Misheard Whisper
[b][color=#FF0000]I[/color] [color=#FF7F00]also[/c
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- Age 30
- He/They
- Nimbasa Gym
- Seen Oct 3, 2022
Well, here it is. Shattered. Yes, I love italicising it. Shattered. Anyhow, this will be updated whenever, my time (GMT+12). I know the etiquette is to not nag people for the next chapter, but I give you permission.
Announcements (such as going on holiday, important updates etc) will be put here in BOLD RED FONT.
CURRENT ANNOUNCEMENTS: This thing is deeeead. I have vague hopes of getting it up again some time in the future, but till then . . . hmm. Not likely.
|~Chapter List~|
no longer exists
This story is rated M for mild language and eventual violence. I will not make excuses for the fact it starts out as an OT fic. Put down the pitchforks. I do not own Pokemon. Here we go.
Thousands of years ago, Sinnoh was a nation torn by feudal warfare. Large clans fought for control of land. One particular clan, the Shinoka, was led by a powerful warlord. This warlord was cruel and heartless, attempting to subjugate all of Sinnoh and establish a dictatorship. To this end, he was assisted by three trusted lieutenants.
For years, nobody dared to stand up to the warlord and his lieutenants as they dominated almost all of Sinnoh. Until one day, a hero came forth, leading a determined band of men against the warlord. The warlord was furious that someone had the nerve to stand up to him. He became even more angered when he discovered that the rebel was a childhood friend of one of his lieutenants. In a fit of rage, he banished the lieutenant from his lands.
Seeking vengeance, the woman who had once been a lieutenant of the most powerful man in Sinnoh joined forces with the warlord's worst enemy, her childhood friend. Together, they were able to defeat the warlord and his two remaining lieutenants. Sinnoh once again disintegrated into tribal warfare, clan against clan. The people soon forgot there had ever been such a dictator, or who had freed them from him. The heroes who had deposed the dictator faded into obscurity . . .
The sun dawned brightly on Sunyshore City, as it did every morning. Pokémon, as per usual, were the first ones awake, immediately springing into life, followed shortly afterward by shrieking children. Bleary-eyed adults stumbled out of bed quite some time later, wishing they were still asleep, while the children and Pokémon played frantic, loud games around the house. Such was the scene in many family households across the city.
One such house, however, was very different.
In a small, cosy villa on the seafront, three people slept peacefully well past ten o'clock. This was the home of the Bach twins, and at ten-thirty, both were still sound asleep.
"Come on, Tyson. Wake up!" his mother whispered, shaking him gently. Tyson's eyes snapped open instantly, revealing grey-blue irises that flitted around for a few seconds, searching for the source of the disturbance, before settling on his mother.
"Morning, Mum," he mumbled, still half-asleep. Sitting up, he stifled a yawn. "What day is it?"
"It's Thursday, love," she said, smiling. "You've only got a half-day today, remember?"
"That's right," he said, trying to clear his head of the fog of sleep. "Teacher conference, right?"
"Yes, something like that. Get up and get dressed, love. See you in the kitchen in five for breakfast." With that, she stepped outside the room, closing the door behind her.
Blinking tiredly, Tyson swung his legs off the bed and got unsteadily to his feet. He had been up late last night reading, of course. Unlike other fourteen-year-olds, however, he hadn't been reading comic books about superheroes or novels about fantasy lands where strange creatures roamed and magic ruled the world. No, what Tyson Bach loved to read were crime thrillers. The suspense and mystery filling each page was enough to keep him reading well past eleven o'clock. His particular favourites were Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes novels. As a matter of fact, he had been reading The Hound of the Baskervilles just last night.
Crossing the room to the window, he pulled the curtains back, blinking in the light that flooded the room. Being on the eastern – seaward – side of the house, Tyson's room got full sunlight for the whole morning. It wasn't often he got to enjoy it like this, however. Every morning, he would get up while the sun was barely peeking over the horizon in order to be at school by eight. As a result, he only got to sleep in once a week, on Sundays. Saturday classes finished at lunchtime, though.
Flicking through the hangers in his closet, Tyson picked out his wardrobe for the day. It wasn't really a hard decision. He simply grabbed the first T-shirt he came across and matched it with a random pair of jeans. He ended up with a sky-blue T-shirt with the word 'Armageddon' printed on it in white above a picture of an Exploding Voltorb.
Stepping out of his room, Tyson found himself nose to nose with his twin sister, who had just come out of the room on the other side of the hallway. It was a little like looking into a mirror. The same round face, the same grey-blue eyes, the same quirky grin. The only difference that was immediately visible was their hair. While Haley's brown hair was neatly combed, and hung down past her shoulders, Tyson's was shorter, yet long enough to be shaggy. He hadn't bothered to touch it since he'd got up, and it showed.
Even though they were almost identical, Tyson and Haley could not be more different. While Tyson was down-to-earth and practical, Haley was a dreamer, with her head stuck permanently in the clouds. Although they were polar opposites in personality, they were as close as any two siblings could be. They'd lived together for fourteen years, after all.
"Morning!" said Haley brightly. "Lovely day, isn't it?"
"Absolutely," agreed Tyson as they headed for the kitchen. "Do you know what time we're supposed to be starting today?"
"Eleven thirty, I think," she said thoughtfully.
"Oh, Tyson, do you ever brush your hair, love?" his mother asked as she spotted them entering the kitchen.
"Not really," Tyson grinned. She sighed in exasperation and set about attacking his hair with a comb.
Elizabeth Bach was a typical mum. She was fussy when she needed to be, but always proud of her children. Due to her husband's demanding job, she had practically raised the twins herself. Tyson and Haley were closer to her than they were to anyone else in the world, except each other. Her face set in a frown of motherly annoyance, she tugged her comb through Tyson's hair while Haley set about breakfast, trying not to laugh.
Tyson was, in fact, finding the situation equally amusing. Then again, Tyson found just about anything amusing.
Over breakfast, the topic of discussion ranged just as widely as always; from the latest Pokémon League challenger to the annoying DJ on the local radio station, from last week's maths test to the weather.
"Did you hear about that cyclone in Johto?" Haley asked. "It was on the news last night."
"Yes, I saw that," said Tyson, nodding thoughtfully. "Tore Cianwood City to pieces, didn't it?"
"Yes, it did," confirmed Haley, "but they evacuated everyone a couple of days ago. Only a few people were killed. It would have been a lot worse if they hadn't found out about it when they did."
Tyson gazed thoughtfully out of the window. The sky over Sunyshore was as clear and blue as usual. He couldn't imagine any weather worse than a cold breeze ever coming to Sunyshore. The disaster wreaked in Johto seemed remote and distant. Yet glancing over at Haley, he knew that his sister was feeling the loss of those lives more than he was. She was emotional like that. He knew that a cloud would hang over her for the rest of the day.
"Come on, you two!" their mother laughed. "It's almost eleven. You should get going, or you'll be late." Chatting amiably all the while, the three of them cleared up the breakfast and made ready to leave.
Stepping out of the door, Tyson took a deep breath of fresh air. The sun was warm – as usual – and there was only the lightest of sea breezes – again, as usual. Everything was so predictable. He wished that something different would happen. Just once.
"Come on, Tyson!" Haley nudged him cheekily. "It's not like you to just stand there. What's gotten into you?"
"Nothing," he mumbled dismissively, starting to walk. "Nothing at all." Looking at him askance, Haley followed.
"What's been eating you lately, Tyson?" she asked in concern. "You're not the same these days."
"It's nothing," he said again.
"It's not 'nothing'," she said. "It's something. Don't try and lie to me, Tyson. I know you too well for that." Tyson sighed. She was right. He couldn't put anything past her.
"Do you ever feel . . ." he began uncertainly, then paused, unsure if he should continue.
"Go on," she prodded gently.
"Do you ever feel as if there's something more?" he asked cryptically.
"Always," she said. "There's always something new out there, right?"
"No," he said. "That's not what I mean. Like . . ." he paused as he struggled to find words for what he was trying to say. "Like, do you feel that there's something else we should be doing?" he asked finally.
"Instead of what?" Haley frowned.
"Instead of . . . you know, just going to school every day, living out a normal life, and never doing anything to make a difference, whether it be to us or to anyone else?"
"I see your point," she said slowly, "but why the sudden change in philosophy? You're starting to sound like me!" she laughed.
"I practically am you," Tyson said, laughing as well, "remember?"
The heavy conversation degenerated into helpless laughter. By the time they stopped, they had made an unspoken agreement not to breach the subject again. At least, not that day.
"Hey, Tyson! Haley!" The twins turned slightly to see a tall, red-haired girl jogging along behind them, trying to catch up. Tyson stopped immediately and let her do so. Haley smiled.
"Hi, Alexis!" she said brightly. "Did you miss the bus?"
"Yeah," said Alexis regretfully. "I thought it left at quarter past eleven, but, well, it didn't, so I missed it, so I had to walk, so I'm gonna be late, so here I am!" Haley blinked.
"Whoa. Calm down, girl," she cautioned as the three started walking again. "You won't be late."
"Did you hear about the cyclone?" Tyson asked Alexis, watching Haley out of the corner of his eye. Just like he thought, Haley winced slightly at the mention of the disaster. Interesting.
"Yes, I saw it on the news this morning! It's just as well they managed to evacuate just about everybody, right?"
That's pretty much what Haley said, Tyson mused. Shaking his head, he shoved all thoughts of disaster to the back of his mind and focused on trying to remember all the methods for working out an angle at the centre of a circle.
By the time the trio reached school at twenty past eleven, the conversation had all but died out. Tyson was mumbling to himself about geometry, Haley was lost in cloud-cuckoo land, and Alexis was walking awkwardly between them, glancing from one to the other.
"What have you got first period, Alexis?" asked Haley, completely out of the blue.
"Oh," said Alexis, caught off guard. "Science, I think. What about you?"
"I've got Art," she said dreamily, her hand working an invisible paintbrush in the air in front of her.
"Aren't you lucky, then," grumbled Tyson good-naturedly. "I've got a Maths test. What do the interior angles of a polygon add up to again?"
"Number of sides, minus two, multiplied by a hundred and eighty," said Alexis. "I think."
"Thank you," he said briskly, dashing off toward his first class. "I'll see you guys in Pokémon Studies!" he called over his shoulder. "I have to be at Maths five minutes early!" Before either of the girls could reply, he was gone.
"Sides, minus two, times one-eighty," he mumbled as he ran. "Sides, minus two, times one-eighty. Sides, minus two . . ."
An hour later, Tyson slid into his seat next to Haley in Pokémon Studies looking decidedly worn out.
"Damn," he said. "I hate geometry!" Haley raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Alexis arrived and dropped into the chair on Haley's other side.
"Damn," she said. "I hate science!" Tyson looked at her for a second, before he and Haley burst out laughing. Alexis looked utterly bemused. "What?" she asked, going a little pink.
"Silence, please!" Mr Jay's voice rang out from the front of the room. All chatter immediately ceased. A stout little man with a suit and tie, Mr Jay was well respected by his pupils. He didn't need to shout. When he said jump, they jumped. "Today, we have a very important guest. Now, I presume that most of you are aware that the staff have been occupied this morning with a conference of vital importance?" Most of the class nodded. "Well, you are about to find out why. Without further ado, I present to you Dr. Goldstein of the Pokémon League!"
An excited murmur ran around the assembled students as the classroom door opened. The Pokémon League had not been operating for very long; the government had been firmly set against it, for reasons that were, on the whole, incomprehensible. Whatever Dr. Goldstein was here for, it had to be important.
When Dr. Goldstein stepped through the door, the murmuring stopped. Goldstein was a tall man, long and lanky, with neatly cropped black hair and round, black glasses that obscured his eyes from view.
"Good morning, everyone," he said. His voice was deep and gravelly; it sounded as if he had a large piece of sandpaper lodged in his throat. "I am Dr. Goldstein. I represent the Pokémon League." The class remained silent. Mr Jay had told them as much. "I am here this afternoon to present to you the Pokémon League's latest initiative, a joint project with the Ministry of Education," he continued, droning on as if he was simply reciting lines spoken a thousand times. "In response to the Pokémon League's lack of challengers, the Ministry of Education has agreed to allow students to undertake an extended field trip of sorts. This will allow you to travel around Sinnoh, experience new things, learn about Pokémon and gain valuable knowledge that will serve you well throughout your life."
"He sounds like he's swallowed a textbook," Tyson whispered. Alexis nodded in silent agreement, but Haley was gazing thoughtfully at the doctor, completely focused, for once, on what was being said.
"Your school curriculum," Goldstein continued, "will naturally be put on hold for the duration of your 'Pokémon Journey', as this project is called. I believe your teacher will have further information on this for you later." This news sent another excited buzz around the room. No school? No boring history or maths?
"This class is one of many from across the region that will undertake the Pokémon Journey. Our long-term aim is to have this standard practice, but for now, you are beta testers, if you will. If you are successful in your journey, we will be able to push our case to have every student doing this." A few people were nodding. It seemed fair enough. But it all seemed too good to be true. Was this a prank? If it wasn't – and admittedly, Dr. Goldstein looked deadly serious – what was the catch?
"Your teacher has an explanatory booklet and permission form for your parents. Naturally, if you do not wish to be involved, or your parents do not wish you to be involved, you are under no pressure to participate. I will be holding a seminar tonight in the school auditorium for any parents who may be under any doubt as to the logistics or ethics of the project. Thank you," he said, bowing. He left without another word. Mr Jay, caught off guard by his sudden departure, almost tripped over his chair in his hurry to reach the front of the class.
"Well," he said. "I can tell you're all excited, so . . . ah, where did I put them?" He trotted over to his desk and started riffling through piles of papers. "Aha!" he exclaimed triumphantly, holding up a sheaf of glossy A4 booklets. "Take one of these each," he said, passing them around, "and take it home. Careful, James, don't drop the permission slip inside!" he cautioned one of the other students.
Tyson, Haley and Alexis eagerly flicked through their copies. The booklets were full of many pages of text, as well as pictures of young Trainers with Pokémon. Tyson skim-read the first page. It detailed the history of the Pokémon League, with lots of not-so-subtle references to its notability, safety, multiple business awards and reputation in other regions.
"What do you think?" asked Alexis. Her eyes were shining as she looked hopefully at Tyson and Haley. "Are you going to do it?" Haley nodded, her expression rapt.
"It would be just wonderful, wouldn't it? To travel all over Sinnoh, to see everything, to meet all those Pokémon!" Tyson frowned.
"I'm not sure," he said. "It sounds like fun, but . . ." he took a deep breath. "I really wanted to stay in school, you know that. Otherwise, I can't get the qualifications I need to go to university." Haley's face fell.
"It wouldn't be any fun without you, Tyson," she said pleadingly.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I can't make a decision now."
"All right, enough talking!" snapped Mr Jay. "We will now be continuing with our Basic Fire-type sociology unit," he said, drawing a collective moan from the group. Grabbing a piece of chalk, he began to scratch away on the blackboard.
Three-quarters of an hour later, the class broke for lunch; because it was a double period, however, Tyson, Haley and Alexis chose to stay in class and discuss the Pokémon Journey program.
"I'm definitely going for it," Alexis reaffirmed for the tenth time in as many minutes. "The only problem is that my parents aren't going to like it. They're kind of . . . protective."
"Well, at least your dad's not a police officer," countered Haley. "He can be very protective."
"I don't think he'll have a problem," Tyson spoke up. "He knows we're responsible."
"True," Haley admitted, "but Mum will be a different story altogether." Tyson winced as he imagined his mother's reaction.
"I might not have a problem, though," he laughed. "I might not be going, remember?"
"Oh, but Tyson, you have to go!" Haley begged. "I don't want to go off on my own!" Tyson frowned.
It did sound amazing. It was, after all, something he had always wanted to do for a long time. But what about university? he asked himself. It wasn't like he could sit exams while he was wandering all over Sinnoh, could he?
"Tyson, I know you want to go to university," Alexis said, "but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Look at this," she said, flicking through her booklet to a particular page. "The Pokémon League is supplying everything! Pokémon, Poké Balls, PokéGear, the works!" Still unconvinced, Tyson nodded.
"I'll think about it." It was an attractive prospect, but still.
"All right," said Haley. "No pressure. I'll get Mum and Dad to go to the seminar tonight, anyway."
"Same here," said Alexis. Right then, the bell rang, causing them to cover their ears.
"Someone needs to replace that damn bell," muttered Alexis when it had finished.
"Sorry?" said Tyson. "I didn't quite catch that. My ears are numb." They laughed as the rest of the class trooped back in, followed by Mr Jay, who immediately began scribbling away on the board again. Tyson settled in for a long afternoon.
Announcements (such as going on holiday, important updates etc) will be put here in BOLD RED FONT.
CURRENT ANNOUNCEMENTS: This thing is deeeead. I have vague hopes of getting it up again some time in the future, but till then . . . hmm. Not likely.
|~Chapter List~|
- Prologue/Stirring (this post)
- Revolution Begins
- Today
- New Toys
- I'm On A Boat
- Dragons in the Closet
- Complications
- Flame
- Down Once More to the Dungeon of my Black Despair
- Rawr
no longer exists
This story is rated M for mild language and eventual violence. I will not make excuses for the fact it starts out as an OT fic. Put down the pitchforks. I do not own Pokemon. Here we go.
Shattered
The End is Coming
The End is Coming
Prologue
Thousands of years ago, Sinnoh was a nation torn by feudal warfare. Large clans fought for control of land. One particular clan, the Shinoka, was led by a powerful warlord. This warlord was cruel and heartless, attempting to subjugate all of Sinnoh and establish a dictatorship. To this end, he was assisted by three trusted lieutenants.
For years, nobody dared to stand up to the warlord and his lieutenants as they dominated almost all of Sinnoh. Until one day, a hero came forth, leading a determined band of men against the warlord. The warlord was furious that someone had the nerve to stand up to him. He became even more angered when he discovered that the rebel was a childhood friend of one of his lieutenants. In a fit of rage, he banished the lieutenant from his lands.
Seeking vengeance, the woman who had once been a lieutenant of the most powerful man in Sinnoh joined forces with the warlord's worst enemy, her childhood friend. Together, they were able to defeat the warlord and his two remaining lieutenants. Sinnoh once again disintegrated into tribal warfare, clan against clan. The people soon forgot there had ever been such a dictator, or who had freed them from him. The heroes who had deposed the dictator faded into obscurity . . .
Chapter 1
Stirring
Stirring
June 14, 2000
The sun dawned brightly on Sunyshore City, as it did every morning. Pokémon, as per usual, were the first ones awake, immediately springing into life, followed shortly afterward by shrieking children. Bleary-eyed adults stumbled out of bed quite some time later, wishing they were still asleep, while the children and Pokémon played frantic, loud games around the house. Such was the scene in many family households across the city.
One such house, however, was very different.
In a small, cosy villa on the seafront, three people slept peacefully well past ten o'clock. This was the home of the Bach twins, and at ten-thirty, both were still sound asleep.
"Come on, Tyson. Wake up!" his mother whispered, shaking him gently. Tyson's eyes snapped open instantly, revealing grey-blue irises that flitted around for a few seconds, searching for the source of the disturbance, before settling on his mother.
"Morning, Mum," he mumbled, still half-asleep. Sitting up, he stifled a yawn. "What day is it?"
"It's Thursday, love," she said, smiling. "You've only got a half-day today, remember?"
"That's right," he said, trying to clear his head of the fog of sleep. "Teacher conference, right?"
"Yes, something like that. Get up and get dressed, love. See you in the kitchen in five for breakfast." With that, she stepped outside the room, closing the door behind her.
Blinking tiredly, Tyson swung his legs off the bed and got unsteadily to his feet. He had been up late last night reading, of course. Unlike other fourteen-year-olds, however, he hadn't been reading comic books about superheroes or novels about fantasy lands where strange creatures roamed and magic ruled the world. No, what Tyson Bach loved to read were crime thrillers. The suspense and mystery filling each page was enough to keep him reading well past eleven o'clock. His particular favourites were Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes novels. As a matter of fact, he had been reading The Hound of the Baskervilles just last night.
Crossing the room to the window, he pulled the curtains back, blinking in the light that flooded the room. Being on the eastern – seaward – side of the house, Tyson's room got full sunlight for the whole morning. It wasn't often he got to enjoy it like this, however. Every morning, he would get up while the sun was barely peeking over the horizon in order to be at school by eight. As a result, he only got to sleep in once a week, on Sundays. Saturday classes finished at lunchtime, though.
Flicking through the hangers in his closet, Tyson picked out his wardrobe for the day. It wasn't really a hard decision. He simply grabbed the first T-shirt he came across and matched it with a random pair of jeans. He ended up with a sky-blue T-shirt with the word 'Armageddon' printed on it in white above a picture of an Exploding Voltorb.
Stepping out of his room, Tyson found himself nose to nose with his twin sister, who had just come out of the room on the other side of the hallway. It was a little like looking into a mirror. The same round face, the same grey-blue eyes, the same quirky grin. The only difference that was immediately visible was their hair. While Haley's brown hair was neatly combed, and hung down past her shoulders, Tyson's was shorter, yet long enough to be shaggy. He hadn't bothered to touch it since he'd got up, and it showed.
Even though they were almost identical, Tyson and Haley could not be more different. While Tyson was down-to-earth and practical, Haley was a dreamer, with her head stuck permanently in the clouds. Although they were polar opposites in personality, they were as close as any two siblings could be. They'd lived together for fourteen years, after all.
"Morning!" said Haley brightly. "Lovely day, isn't it?"
"Absolutely," agreed Tyson as they headed for the kitchen. "Do you know what time we're supposed to be starting today?"
"Eleven thirty, I think," she said thoughtfully.
"Oh, Tyson, do you ever brush your hair, love?" his mother asked as she spotted them entering the kitchen.
"Not really," Tyson grinned. She sighed in exasperation and set about attacking his hair with a comb.
Elizabeth Bach was a typical mum. She was fussy when she needed to be, but always proud of her children. Due to her husband's demanding job, she had practically raised the twins herself. Tyson and Haley were closer to her than they were to anyone else in the world, except each other. Her face set in a frown of motherly annoyance, she tugged her comb through Tyson's hair while Haley set about breakfast, trying not to laugh.
Tyson was, in fact, finding the situation equally amusing. Then again, Tyson found just about anything amusing.
Over breakfast, the topic of discussion ranged just as widely as always; from the latest Pokémon League challenger to the annoying DJ on the local radio station, from last week's maths test to the weather.
"Did you hear about that cyclone in Johto?" Haley asked. "It was on the news last night."
"Yes, I saw that," said Tyson, nodding thoughtfully. "Tore Cianwood City to pieces, didn't it?"
"Yes, it did," confirmed Haley, "but they evacuated everyone a couple of days ago. Only a few people were killed. It would have been a lot worse if they hadn't found out about it when they did."
Tyson gazed thoughtfully out of the window. The sky over Sunyshore was as clear and blue as usual. He couldn't imagine any weather worse than a cold breeze ever coming to Sunyshore. The disaster wreaked in Johto seemed remote and distant. Yet glancing over at Haley, he knew that his sister was feeling the loss of those lives more than he was. She was emotional like that. He knew that a cloud would hang over her for the rest of the day.
"Come on, you two!" their mother laughed. "It's almost eleven. You should get going, or you'll be late." Chatting amiably all the while, the three of them cleared up the breakfast and made ready to leave.
Stepping out of the door, Tyson took a deep breath of fresh air. The sun was warm – as usual – and there was only the lightest of sea breezes – again, as usual. Everything was so predictable. He wished that something different would happen. Just once.
"Come on, Tyson!" Haley nudged him cheekily. "It's not like you to just stand there. What's gotten into you?"
"Nothing," he mumbled dismissively, starting to walk. "Nothing at all." Looking at him askance, Haley followed.
"What's been eating you lately, Tyson?" she asked in concern. "You're not the same these days."
"It's nothing," he said again.
"It's not 'nothing'," she said. "It's something. Don't try and lie to me, Tyson. I know you too well for that." Tyson sighed. She was right. He couldn't put anything past her.
"Do you ever feel . . ." he began uncertainly, then paused, unsure if he should continue.
"Go on," she prodded gently.
"Do you ever feel as if there's something more?" he asked cryptically.
"Always," she said. "There's always something new out there, right?"
"No," he said. "That's not what I mean. Like . . ." he paused as he struggled to find words for what he was trying to say. "Like, do you feel that there's something else we should be doing?" he asked finally.
"Instead of what?" Haley frowned.
"Instead of . . . you know, just going to school every day, living out a normal life, and never doing anything to make a difference, whether it be to us or to anyone else?"
"I see your point," she said slowly, "but why the sudden change in philosophy? You're starting to sound like me!" she laughed.
"I practically am you," Tyson said, laughing as well, "remember?"
The heavy conversation degenerated into helpless laughter. By the time they stopped, they had made an unspoken agreement not to breach the subject again. At least, not that day.
"Hey, Tyson! Haley!" The twins turned slightly to see a tall, red-haired girl jogging along behind them, trying to catch up. Tyson stopped immediately and let her do so. Haley smiled.
"Hi, Alexis!" she said brightly. "Did you miss the bus?"
"Yeah," said Alexis regretfully. "I thought it left at quarter past eleven, but, well, it didn't, so I missed it, so I had to walk, so I'm gonna be late, so here I am!" Haley blinked.
"Whoa. Calm down, girl," she cautioned as the three started walking again. "You won't be late."
"Did you hear about the cyclone?" Tyson asked Alexis, watching Haley out of the corner of his eye. Just like he thought, Haley winced slightly at the mention of the disaster. Interesting.
"Yes, I saw it on the news this morning! It's just as well they managed to evacuate just about everybody, right?"
That's pretty much what Haley said, Tyson mused. Shaking his head, he shoved all thoughts of disaster to the back of his mind and focused on trying to remember all the methods for working out an angle at the centre of a circle.
By the time the trio reached school at twenty past eleven, the conversation had all but died out. Tyson was mumbling to himself about geometry, Haley was lost in cloud-cuckoo land, and Alexis was walking awkwardly between them, glancing from one to the other.
"What have you got first period, Alexis?" asked Haley, completely out of the blue.
"Oh," said Alexis, caught off guard. "Science, I think. What about you?"
"I've got Art," she said dreamily, her hand working an invisible paintbrush in the air in front of her.
"Aren't you lucky, then," grumbled Tyson good-naturedly. "I've got a Maths test. What do the interior angles of a polygon add up to again?"
"Number of sides, minus two, multiplied by a hundred and eighty," said Alexis. "I think."
"Thank you," he said briskly, dashing off toward his first class. "I'll see you guys in Pokémon Studies!" he called over his shoulder. "I have to be at Maths five minutes early!" Before either of the girls could reply, he was gone.
"Sides, minus two, times one-eighty," he mumbled as he ran. "Sides, minus two, times one-eighty. Sides, minus two . . ."
***
An hour later, Tyson slid into his seat next to Haley in Pokémon Studies looking decidedly worn out.
"Damn," he said. "I hate geometry!" Haley raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Alexis arrived and dropped into the chair on Haley's other side.
"Damn," she said. "I hate science!" Tyson looked at her for a second, before he and Haley burst out laughing. Alexis looked utterly bemused. "What?" she asked, going a little pink.
"Silence, please!" Mr Jay's voice rang out from the front of the room. All chatter immediately ceased. A stout little man with a suit and tie, Mr Jay was well respected by his pupils. He didn't need to shout. When he said jump, they jumped. "Today, we have a very important guest. Now, I presume that most of you are aware that the staff have been occupied this morning with a conference of vital importance?" Most of the class nodded. "Well, you are about to find out why. Without further ado, I present to you Dr. Goldstein of the Pokémon League!"
An excited murmur ran around the assembled students as the classroom door opened. The Pokémon League had not been operating for very long; the government had been firmly set against it, for reasons that were, on the whole, incomprehensible. Whatever Dr. Goldstein was here for, it had to be important.
When Dr. Goldstein stepped through the door, the murmuring stopped. Goldstein was a tall man, long and lanky, with neatly cropped black hair and round, black glasses that obscured his eyes from view.
"Good morning, everyone," he said. His voice was deep and gravelly; it sounded as if he had a large piece of sandpaper lodged in his throat. "I am Dr. Goldstein. I represent the Pokémon League." The class remained silent. Mr Jay had told them as much. "I am here this afternoon to present to you the Pokémon League's latest initiative, a joint project with the Ministry of Education," he continued, droning on as if he was simply reciting lines spoken a thousand times. "In response to the Pokémon League's lack of challengers, the Ministry of Education has agreed to allow students to undertake an extended field trip of sorts. This will allow you to travel around Sinnoh, experience new things, learn about Pokémon and gain valuable knowledge that will serve you well throughout your life."
"He sounds like he's swallowed a textbook," Tyson whispered. Alexis nodded in silent agreement, but Haley was gazing thoughtfully at the doctor, completely focused, for once, on what was being said.
"Your school curriculum," Goldstein continued, "will naturally be put on hold for the duration of your 'Pokémon Journey', as this project is called. I believe your teacher will have further information on this for you later." This news sent another excited buzz around the room. No school? No boring history or maths?
"This class is one of many from across the region that will undertake the Pokémon Journey. Our long-term aim is to have this standard practice, but for now, you are beta testers, if you will. If you are successful in your journey, we will be able to push our case to have every student doing this." A few people were nodding. It seemed fair enough. But it all seemed too good to be true. Was this a prank? If it wasn't – and admittedly, Dr. Goldstein looked deadly serious – what was the catch?
"Your teacher has an explanatory booklet and permission form for your parents. Naturally, if you do not wish to be involved, or your parents do not wish you to be involved, you are under no pressure to participate. I will be holding a seminar tonight in the school auditorium for any parents who may be under any doubt as to the logistics or ethics of the project. Thank you," he said, bowing. He left without another word. Mr Jay, caught off guard by his sudden departure, almost tripped over his chair in his hurry to reach the front of the class.
"Well," he said. "I can tell you're all excited, so . . . ah, where did I put them?" He trotted over to his desk and started riffling through piles of papers. "Aha!" he exclaimed triumphantly, holding up a sheaf of glossy A4 booklets. "Take one of these each," he said, passing them around, "and take it home. Careful, James, don't drop the permission slip inside!" he cautioned one of the other students.
Tyson, Haley and Alexis eagerly flicked through their copies. The booklets were full of many pages of text, as well as pictures of young Trainers with Pokémon. Tyson skim-read the first page. It detailed the history of the Pokémon League, with lots of not-so-subtle references to its notability, safety, multiple business awards and reputation in other regions.
"What do you think?" asked Alexis. Her eyes were shining as she looked hopefully at Tyson and Haley. "Are you going to do it?" Haley nodded, her expression rapt.
"It would be just wonderful, wouldn't it? To travel all over Sinnoh, to see everything, to meet all those Pokémon!" Tyson frowned.
"I'm not sure," he said. "It sounds like fun, but . . ." he took a deep breath. "I really wanted to stay in school, you know that. Otherwise, I can't get the qualifications I need to go to university." Haley's face fell.
"It wouldn't be any fun without you, Tyson," she said pleadingly.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I can't make a decision now."
"All right, enough talking!" snapped Mr Jay. "We will now be continuing with our Basic Fire-type sociology unit," he said, drawing a collective moan from the group. Grabbing a piece of chalk, he began to scratch away on the blackboard.
***
Three-quarters of an hour later, the class broke for lunch; because it was a double period, however, Tyson, Haley and Alexis chose to stay in class and discuss the Pokémon Journey program.
"I'm definitely going for it," Alexis reaffirmed for the tenth time in as many minutes. "The only problem is that my parents aren't going to like it. They're kind of . . . protective."
"Well, at least your dad's not a police officer," countered Haley. "He can be very protective."
"I don't think he'll have a problem," Tyson spoke up. "He knows we're responsible."
"True," Haley admitted, "but Mum will be a different story altogether." Tyson winced as he imagined his mother's reaction.
"I might not have a problem, though," he laughed. "I might not be going, remember?"
"Oh, but Tyson, you have to go!" Haley begged. "I don't want to go off on my own!" Tyson frowned.
It did sound amazing. It was, after all, something he had always wanted to do for a long time. But what about university? he asked himself. It wasn't like he could sit exams while he was wandering all over Sinnoh, could he?
"Tyson, I know you want to go to university," Alexis said, "but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Look at this," she said, flicking through her booklet to a particular page. "The Pokémon League is supplying everything! Pokémon, Poké Balls, PokéGear, the works!" Still unconvinced, Tyson nodded.
"I'll think about it." It was an attractive prospect, but still.
"All right," said Haley. "No pressure. I'll get Mum and Dad to go to the seminar tonight, anyway."
"Same here," said Alexis. Right then, the bell rang, causing them to cover their ears.
"Someone needs to replace that damn bell," muttered Alexis when it had finished.
"Sorry?" said Tyson. "I didn't quite catch that. My ears are numb." They laughed as the rest of the class trooped back in, followed by Mr Jay, who immediately began scribbling away on the board again. Tyson settled in for a long afternoon.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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