Three years ago:

For a few breaths, all that could be heard within the dark living room was the soft cooing of Murkrow outside. Inyssa looked down. Her fingers gripped the fabric of her pajamas.

"…I've been running you ragged, haven't I?"

A confused sound left her mouth. She looked up toward Shadi, eyes wide.

"I'm pushing you so hard that you need to lose sleep to keep up. Any other kid would've quit already." Shadi looked over her shoulder, a tiny smile forming in her lips. "I've fished out some complaints from you, but never willingly. You're taking it all in stride."

Inyssa gulped, then nodded.

"… Heh. You're diligent as hell, if nothing else," she said, turning her head toward the fireplace again. "That's good enough, sometimes. Honestly, for every prodigy like the Champion or me there's a thousand diligent idiots like you that together can accomplish more than we ever could. Dedication's nothing to scoff at."

"But… I want to be both," said Inyssa, weakly. "I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't want to become the Champion someday, right?"

Shadi didn't reply for a few seconds. Inyssa couldn't see her expression from where she stood, but judging from the tilt of her head, she wasn't looking at the object in her hand anymore.

"You're a strong kid, enduring all this," she said. "But you'll have to work a lot harder and sacrifice a lot more than sleep if you want to reach our level. You might end up regretting it."

Inyssa stomped the ground, hands curling into fists. "Never."

"…Alright." Inyssa couldn't see the smile, but she heard it in her voice. "But don't come crying to me later if you don't make it."

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The sight of Rowan frowning, his mustache angrily twitching at her, was enough to make Inyssa shiver.

"Watch your language, Miss." His voice was deep and gruff, like the sound an Ursaring would make if it could speak. "And while you're at it, please step away from the tall grass".

Inyssa slowly looked down, coming to the realization that she'd unconsciously put herself between Barry and the patch of grass. Heat ran up her face.

She straightened up, stiff as a plank, and bowed to the man. ""I... I am very sorry, Professor! I wasn't trying to... you see my friend here wanted to..." She was at a loss for words, she couldn't believe that the region's most prestigious Pokemon expert had caught her during such an embarrassing moment.

For better or for worse, Barry opened his mouth to speak.

"I can't believe it!" The boy's eyes shot wide open and he placed both hands on his head as if he were about to rip his hair out. "Are you professor Rowan!? Like, the professor Rowan? I can't believe my freaking eyes!" His eyes went from the professor to her. "I told you we would meet him, look he's even taller than on TV! And he looks like an Ursaring like I told you, now we can finally get our Pokemon and start our journey and...!"

Inyssa placed both hands on top of his mouth. She was probably suffocating him a bit, but that wasn't important at the moment.

"Please disregard whatever he says, sir. He's simply over-caffeinated at the moment."

Rowan's expression changed, becoming softer, and there was a glimpse of a smile on his eyes. "Well, aren't you two an interesting pair. Would you mind telling me what you were doing here?"

Barry finally managed to get off the choke-hold she was holding him in, and started talking without even taking the time to breathe. "We wanted to go to Sandgem so you would give us a Pokemon and we could become trainers!"

"Barry, shut up!"

Rowan narrowed his eyes, and Inyssa felt like she was being stared at through X-rays. He stroked his mustache with one hand, only speaking after a long silence.

"A Pokemon, eh? That's a strange request coming from kids reckless enough to go through tall grass without protection." He gave both of them a stern look. "Am I expected to reward that kind of behavior? What sort of professor would that make me?"

Inyssa felt her heart drop to her stomach, the inside of her skin itching as if a million ants were running under it. This couldn't be happening, she thought. To have someone like Rowan be so disappointed in them...

"I... I'm sorry, we..." She tried to say something, but her mouth was completely dry.

Just then, Barry put his arm between Rowan and her. "Hey, don't blame Niss! It was my fault, sir! I tried to convince her to do something stupid and she tried to stop me! If you're not going to give me a Pokemon then at least give her one. Then she can catch another one for me when you're not looking."

She turned toward Barry, not believing what she'd just heard. Rowan did so as well, his expression unreadable under that thick mustache.

"Well..." he whispered, looking down contemplatively, "you do seem like an honest and earnest boy. And you must have at least some common sense as to try to stop him from putting himself in danger." He turned his eyes to her. "How old are you two?"

"I'm seventeen and a half," Inyssa answered fast, not giving Barry any more opportunities to embarrass both of them, "and Barry will be eighteen in a few months."

Rowan seemed surprised, as much as he could with his usual stern expression. "Hold on, Barry Paladino from Twinleaf Town? And he just called you Niss, are you Inyssa Dawn, by any chance?"

Both of them narrowed their eyes in confusion.

"How do you know that?" Inyssa asked.

"Yeah! What gives, gramps? Are we famous and we didn't knew it?"

"Gramps?" Rowan's mustache twitched a bit. "...I'll have you know I'm the head of Pokemon investigation in Sinnoh, and I have contacts with every trainer school in the region. I am expected to keep tabs on the most promising trainers of every town. I think I remember reading your names in Twinleaf's yearly student reports."

He looked at his wrist, where his Poketch was, and started fiddling with the controls.

"Ah, here it is! You're both at the top of your respective classes, it seems. Very high scores, at least when it comes to Pokemon battling." Inyssa felt her heart skip a beat, and next to her Barry formed the biggest, stupidest grin ever. "Then again, it's no wonder. The blood of distinguished trainers runs through your veins, does it not?"

Inyssa's smile froze, and she suddenly felt as if the route had grown a little bit colder. It was a good thing neither Rowan nor Barry were looking at her; otherwise they would've noticed the way her eyes went dull and distant for a moment.

"Y...yeah. I guess," she spat out, voice barely a whisper.

Rowan, still looking at the device on his wrist, didn't notice anything. He continued reading for a few seconds before he spoke again.

"I suppose... I might've judged the both of you too quickly."

Barry gasped so hard Inyssa thought he might've burst a lung.

Stolen story; please report.

"D-does that mean you're going to give us a Pokemon!?" He jumped in place like a Pachirisu on a sugar rush.

"These are strange circumstances for this to happen," Rowan nodded, "but I suppose that's the way some of the greatest trainers have started their journey too. Very well then, I will give you both a Pokemon as a way to express my patronage." He adjusted his tie and cleared his throat. "Wait for me here. My assistant is carrying the briefcase where I have my Pokeballs, and he must not be far."

The man turned his back on them and started walking toward the path leading to Verity Lake. Inyssa turned to Barry, who seemed to be vibrating with excitement.

"I can't believe your plan worked." She tried to suppress a smile, but her body betrayed her.

"I told you, I'm an unappreciated genius!" He put his arm around her, a wide smile stretching across his face. "Niss, we're gonna be famous! We'll be the greatest trainers in Sinnoh and it'll all be thanks to me!"

Inyssa couldn't help but laugh, and she put an arm around him as well, messing with his hair. "In Sinnoh? Aren't you falling a bit short? We'll be the best in the entire world! Although that's assuming you can keep up with me, banana head." A sly smile formed on her lips. "Remember our score?"

"Don't give me that, you're only ahead of me by a couple wins!" He pointed at her with his finger, as if giving her a warning. "Tell you what, whoever defeats Oreburgh's Gym Leader first wins the next point."

"We shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, we don't even have our Pokemon yet," she reminded him, trying to hide her excitement. "But I accept that challenge."

They kept excitedly talking amongst themselves for a couple minutes until the professor came back. He was accompanied by someone else: a dark-skinned boy their age, quite a lot shorter than Rowan and dressed more formally than anyone his age should be. On top of his short, black hair was an oversized red beret that almost covered his eyes. To Inyssa he looked like someone trying to pretend he was older and appearing ridiculous in the process.

"Is this them, professor?" The kid asked with a soft, wavy voice. "Are you sure about this? They look young."

"Yes Lucas, I'm sure," Rowan intervened before Inyssa or Barry could protest to his comment. "They are talented trainers, and I believe having a Pokemon with them will bring them less trouble than if they didn't have one."

He approached them with a briefcase in hand, nervousness clear in his voice. "H-hello, my name is Lucas. I'm Professor Rowan's assistant and..."

"Are our Pokemon in there!?" Barry almost trampled the poor kid, who jumped back a few inches at his excitement. "Which ones do we have to choose from!?"

"I... well..." Lucas backed off a couple steps, clearly frightened. Inyssa sighed.

"Sorry for that," she apologized on his behalf, faking a smile. If they wanted a Pokemon then at least one of them had to pretend to be polite. "I'm Inyssa, and this is my friend Barry. Nice to meet you."

"Oh, yeah..." He smiled shyly and nodded, "the pleasure is mine. I was trying to say that I have your Pokemon right here." He placed the briefcase on the ground, and opened it to reveal three red Pokeballs. "We only have three right now, but they're good Pokemon. They are Chimchar, Turtwig and Piplup. Choose whichever you want."

They were each branded with a sticker representing the Pokemon's type. Inyssa could feel her eyes gleaming at the sight of them, and expected Barry to be all over the briefcase, but when she turned to look at him she noticed him standing still, eyes on her.

"Come on, what are you waiting for?" he inquired, pointing at the briefcase. "You can choose one first. I'd feel bad if I got the best one before you had a chance to pick."

She smiled, and without hesitation her fingers closed around the one with the flame sticker. She always knew that she would start with a fire type if the opportunity presented itself to her. It was a strong choice and quite uncommon in Sinnoh, so it was strategically the best option.

Plus, it was the same type she had started with.

"Aw man, I wanted the fire one," Barry complained, placing his hands behind his head, "I guess that's what happens when you're such a gentleman. It doesn't matter, I'll just pick this one." He grabbed the Pokeball with the water sticker on it. "Piplup is still pretty cool."

"Yeah, what a gentleman, picking the one strong against mine," she snickered. "Well, only in theory. I'm still gonna be stronger."

Barry smiled, and he pointed the Pokeball at her with so much force it almost went flying from his hand. "Is that a challenge!? I've been waiting for this, our first official Pokemon battle!"

Lucas looked confused, and Rowan slightly amused. The grown man let out a strong laugh and picked up his briefcase.

"Ah, the wonders of having a rival. I remember when..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "Ah, I'm sure you don't want to hear the tale of an old man. I will be taking my leave now, kids. I will wait for you in Sandgem Town, make sure you tell your parents about what happened before coming over." He looked at them for a couple seconds, smiling, as if they reminded him of something. "Let's go, Lucas! We still have a lot of paperwork to turn in."

Lucas waved goodbye to them, and with that the kid and the old man took their leave, heading straight towards Sandgem Town. Inyssa stood still, not believing what had happened. She looked down at her Pokeball; it felt so real and heavy, she never expected to be holding one so soon. Something stirred inside her, a funny feeling in her stomach that sent heat to her entire body.

"Still wanna fight?" Barry asked, rolling the Pokeball on his finger like a basketball. "If I'm going to have my first official battle then I'd like it to be against you."

She avoided eye contact, smiling nervously. "So cheesy. Let's just try to kick each other's butt."

"That's the spirit!" he shouted, throwing his Pokeball into the air. "Come on out, Pedri!"

The Pokeball erupted in light revealing a small, blue creature with a round head, fins for hands and a sturdy looking beak. He looked around with his huge black eyes, confused as to where he was. Barry introduced himself in the most grandiose way possible, claiming to the Piplup that he was the best trainer in Sinnoh and that he was going to be his partner from now on; the Pokemon was even more confused after that.

"Anyway, your name is Pedri now, and we have to defeat her," he explained, pointing at Inyssa. "You think you're up for that?"

The Piplup looked over to where she was, and for a moment seemed frightened by her, but after breathing in deeply he composed himself and nodded.

Inyssa followed his example. From the beam of light emerged an orange and yellow creature with thin arms, fire burning from his short tail. He turned around , apparently much less confused about the whole situation. He looked at her expectantly, as if waiting for Inyssa to say something. She got on her knees to meet the Chimchar's eyes, not paying attention to how cold the dirt was, and attempted to smile. In that short moment, the thought crossed her mind; how had other legendary trainers introduced themselves to their first Pokemon? How had Red? How had Anabel and the current Champion?

"Hey there little guy," she spoke calmly. "I'm Inyssa, your new trainer, and I think I'm gonna name you Enma. Do you want to team up?"

The Chimchar moved his head to the side, studying her carefully, trying to judge whether she was worthy. He seemed satisfied enough, since he showed her a smile full of sharp teeth and turned towards Barry.

She stood back up and put herself at a reasonable distance for a Pokemon battle; Barry did the same. "Alright then. Ready?"

"You know it!" Barry stood in battle position, which was him just squatting a bit, "Pedri, Pound!" he yelled, gesticulating heavily.

"Use Scratch," Inyssa ordered without moving an inch.

The Piplup jumped straight towards his opponent, preparing to kick him in the face. Inyssa expected Enma to dodge, since he was probably faster.

The kick landed straight on his face, and he didn't move an inch. Pedri looked at him confused, not expecting to land a hit so easily. But Enma hadn't suffered much damage and his eyes were set on the Piplup, a huge smile on his face.

"What the... the heck is that thing made of? Come on Pedri, try again, Pound!"

"Enma, what are you doing?" Inyssa frowned, "I said use Scratch. Come on, don't embarrass me in our first fight."

Pedri backed up, nervous, and he jumped right back at him again, preparing for another kick. However this time the Chimchar dodged out of the way, moving left at the last second. Before the Piplup realized what was happening Enma was behind him, claws out and a grin pasted onto his face.

The battle was over as quickly as it started. The attack from Enma was devastating, sending the small penguin Pokemon straight into a tree, knocking him out with a single hit. Both Barry and Inyssa stared at the result, dumbfounded.

Barry ran towards his partner, returning him back to his Pokeball, "Come on, that's cheating! You got the one with crazy strength, not fair!"

"Hey, don't start sounding like a sore loser now," she smiled, equally surprised, "though I have to admit, that was better than I expected," she stared down at the Chimchar, "What was that? You could've ended the fight a lot quicker, why did you take that hit straight on?"

Enma shrugged and pointed at his left cheek, where Pedri had hit him. It didn't seem like he'd suffered much damage.

"He probably wanted to show just how much stronger he was," Barry complained, arms crossed, "Great, you got a Pokemon with a bigger ego than yours, and that's saying something."

"Obviously it was my mastery as a trainer that made the difference," she said sarcastically, before kneeling down and patting the Chimchar on the head. "Good job buddy, but I'm gonna need you later to cross the route, so rest for now." She put him back in his Pokeball before he had the chance to protest.

"That was just a fluke and you know it," Barry put Pedri's Pokeball in his bag, and he pointed right at Inyssa. "I'll catch a bunch of Pokemon and I'll challenge you later! Now I gotta go back to my house to tell my mom that I'm traveling, and to get food. I don't wanna starve on the road."

Inyssa's smile faded as quick as it had appeared. Right, she had to tell her mother the good news. Suddenly all the excitement from having her first Pokemon evaporated. She sighed deeply, and tried not to look too down.

"Yeah, me too."

"Alright then, I'll go first. Let's meet here in two hours," he was still pointing at her. "Remember, if you're late you owe me all your money!"

He took off before she had a chance to say anything, leaving her alone in the middle of the route.

She looked at the Pokeball in her hands, feeling a lot heavier than before. The wind was howling and yet she stood still, lost in thought, enduring the cold. She had dreamed for so long about this moment; getting her first Pokemon, having her first rival battle, meeting the professor. And still...

"We'll make it through," she said to no one. "Now is not the time to worry about that."

She attached the Pokeball to her belt and started walking towards Twinleaf, hopefully for the last time.