Daisy was chewing thoughtfully over her pizza crust. It was fine. There was almost no such thing as a bad pizza. But she couldn’t help but feel that it wasn’t the greatest. The cheese just slid off as a mass when you took a bite, and the pepperoni hadn’t curled into little cups of grease and flavor. It wasn’t that she was being picky – far from it. Daisy had yet to find a food that she wouldn’t at least try once. Even those gross green balls called “brussels sprouts” tasted pretty good if you fried them in bacon fat and drizzled them lemon juice. The first time she had them was at Maryann’s house. Maryann’s mother had boiled them until they were tender and poured some violently yellow “cheese sauce” over the top.
Those had been disgusting. The only reason why Daisy had finished what was on her plate was because it was rude not to. However, from then on, if asked…Daisy wasn’t hungry at Maryann’s and always went home before dinner.
“Daddy?”
“Yes, Daisy?”
“Next time could we try a different pizza place? I want to see if Cicero’s is any good.”
“Sure thing dear.”
Daddy had taken less time to get home than Daisy had originally thought. He had swung by Little Celebi’s on the way home from the PokeMart. Their claim of “Hot and Fresh” was…debatable. It was certainly warm, but the crust had gotten a bit hard and difficult to chew. Daisy sighed and put it back on her plate before stabbing at her salad. At least that was tasty. Sliced Tamato berries interspersed with mozzarella cheese and basil topped in a balsamic vinegar drizzle. Daddy called it a “Caprese salad” and had made it himself. Dad’s cooking was the best.
Almost the whole family was gathered in Mom’s office, cozied up against each other on the wide leather seats. Well, except for Uncle Corvi. He had been banned from the chairs after ripping one of them open by accident. He had attempted to perch on an arm rest once, but his talons had simply cut clean through, exposing the fluffy white padding within. Daisy had never seen Mom quite that angry before, and Uncle Corvi had been terrified and walked as if he was stepping on eggshells around Mom for weeks after.
Daisy’s parents were lounging together on the love seat closest to Mom’s desk. Uncle Corvi and Uncle Sceptile were bickering in low voices. Uncle Octillery was tapping rapidly on a tablet and completely engrossed in whatever it was he was doing. Matt was on his back next to Daisy, his almost ruby tails splayed out on her legs making the best blanket. He belched, and Daisy shot him a dirty look. Matt gave her a lopsided grin in response and began to swallow air in preparation for another burp, but a small cough from Mom made him blanch and stop. Daisy was grateful, it was really gross when Matt did that.
“Alright guys. Who wants to go first?”
Daddy had made it a rule that anytime they had a family dinner everyone would share one good thing about their day.
“Me me! I’ll start!” Matt rolled over and sat up. Daisy clicked her tongue now that her blanket was gone. Daddy said it was cute when she did that since it reminded him of Mom.
“Okay, Matt. Let’s hear it.”
“I finally learned [Swift]!”
“Very nicely done! Did my pointers help you get over that hump?”
“Not really…Unca Corvi’s told me that it would work better if I focused more on generating one star at a time and fire them off in quick succession rather than several at once. When I tried that, I was able to get a feel for it better. I can do three at once now!”
Applause went all around the room, and Uncle Corvi looked both proud and upset at the same time. Uncle Sceptile gave him a meaningful look which made his face sour even more before he finally grumbled. “It’s passable for now, but I expect you to continue to practice until you can do at least 10 at once.”
Daddy’s face had fallen a teensy bit, but Mom had draped another tail over him, and his smile returned. Daisy wondered why the two had looked upset as she pulled Matt into a big hug. The hug was returned, and Matt resumed his reclined pose. Daisy’s blanket also returned.
“Alright, who’s next?”
“Why don’t you go next dear?”
“Okay. So, you all remember those Terra Shards from Paldea?” A few nods came in response, and Uncle Octillery set down his tablet. “Well, according to some of my colleagues in Paldea, the occurrence of Terrastalization can be directly influenced by contact with said shards. It’s a bit too early to tell, but I’ve got a hunch that they could potentially be used to help familiarize Pokemon with different TE ‘flavors’ if you will. If my hunch proves correct, then it may be possible for Pokemon to learn moves that they normally might not be able to.”
Uncle Octillery spoke up at this point. “Like the Professor said, we’re still in the early stages of testing. My calculations suggest that it may take quite a few Terra Shards before the energy is even noticeable. Even then, it may be only temporary as the Type Energy gets used up.”
“True. We’ve got our work cut out for us. But on the bright side, they’re here now and not held up at customs for another month.” Uncle Octillery nodded his head at Daddy at this, then went back to his tablet.
“Guess that covers Octillery and I. Corvi? Sceptile?”
Uncle Sceptile closed one of his eyes before speaking. “I was able to finish clearing the roof of snow…and discovered no pests among the eaves today.”
Uncle Corvi rattled his feathers. “All is well at the Ranch.”
“That is good to hear you two. For myself, I was able to complete the outline of my next book and have sent it off to the publisher for review.”
All eyes turned to Daisy as her stomach turned. She didn’t care to be put in the spotlight much, and the stares reminded her of school. Every correct answer was accompanied by sneers, every aced exam with whispers behind folders and books. Daisy swallowed thickly and forced her happy mask to stay on.
“I got offered an apprenticeship today…”
Warmth.
Compassion.
Love.
Belonging.
All of these emotions swirled around Daisy as she looked down at her plate. She fought back tears as they hugged her psyche and comforted her soul. Daisy could almost forget that stupid Kari and her stupid posse tormenting her, calling her spoiled, pulling on her pontya-tails, drawing on her notebooks. Most of the town’s children had been together at the Academy since kindergarten. Daisy had started later since her parents had insisted on home-schooling at first. Daddy taught math and science while Mom taught her history, reading, and writing. It was only because both of their schedules had changed that they had eventually relented and allowed Daisy to go to public school. She had been so excited on her first day to meet new friends and to play with other kids besides those who visited the Ranch.
Seeing Kari try to forcibly lift a poor Espurr’s ears had made Daisy see red. How could someone treat a Pokemon like that? Pokemon were just like humans. They lived and breathed and talked and hoped and loved just the same. Sure, they looked different and talked different, but they all came from the same place and lived on the same world. Daisy had moved before she could even think and had slapped that stupid Kari across her face. Ever since then…things were hard at school. Kari’s parents were on the Town Board and Kari herself had found her own following among the children. If Kari said that Daisy was a “know-it-all Professor’s kid” and shunned her…so did everyone else. If Kari said that Daisy’s ways of talking to Pokemon was dumb, so did the rest follow her. Only Maryann and Dustin still talked to her, but even they only did so if Kari’s group wasn’t looking.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Of course, it didn’t matter that Daisy was right. Instructor Turo had scolded the entire class after the incident, reminding them all that it was exceedingly dangerous to play with an Espurr’s ears. It was, after all, essentially the only barrier that kept its latent psychic energy from wreaking havoc on its surroundings. It didn’t matter that Daisy had basically saved Kari’s life that day. It only mattered that she had slapped her.
The warmth on Daisy’s lap increased. She looked down at her brother as he softly headbutted her before deciding that her legs made a better pillow than the arm rest. His head tuft tickled Daisy’s chin as she pulled him in closer and he resigned himself to his fate as cuddle-buddy.
“Right. So that brings us to tonight’s main topic.” Daisy’s father leaned forward, a serious look on his face. “It has come to light that Daisy has been bullied at school. Daisy? Do you want to tell us a bit more about how this started?”
Daisy froze as Matt wriggled in her arms. A look of shock and anger appeared on his vulpine face. Daisy looked around at her family and saw the serious countenances before her mask crumbled. Tears rained down her face before evaporating on Matt’s head. Daisy opened her mouth and began to tell her family why school was terrible and why Kari was a stupid-head.
Ħ
Matt was pissed. His sister was absolutely right in calling this Kari girl an idiot. Daisy had saved her ass and the only thing she got in return was ostracization? No shred of gratitude, no thanks, nothing? If there was anything that Matt had learned from Unca Corvi’s lessons, it was honor. This Kari had none. Matt could feel his hackles rise and his internal fire begin to burn with righteous fury as he continued to listen to Daisy’s tale.
Apparently Kari used her parent’s influence to garner a following among the other kids. Since her parents were leaders, that made Kari better than the others and they should listen to her. Matt frowned at the thought. Ridiculous. One must earn their place in the world. Even though his own family was well off, Matt would never consider lording it over the other Pokemon at the ranch. After all, it was his parent’s fortune, his father’s research, and his mentor’s teachings that gave him opportunities. That just made him lucky, not better.
“Why the hell do they listen to Kari anyway?” Matt couldn’t help but speak up. “That is stupid. She hasn’t earned a fucking thing, and – “
“LANGUAGE” came several voices all at once.
“Sorry. She hasn’t earned a flipping thing and yet they follow her like a pack of Wooloo?”
Matt’s father sighed heavily as he slumped back on the cushions. “It’s unfortunately common, Matt. The thing to remember is that the world is difficult to live in. If you don’t have the backing or the funds to secure said backing, it can be even harder. Some folks raise their kits to join the rattata race early. To scramble and scrape for favors, connections, and boons as soon as they can in an effort to come out ahead of the rest of the pack. For some, it is important that winner take all and damned be anyone who gets in their way.” Lee scrunched his eyes and rubbed his hands over them. “For folks like that…well…you get the picture.”
Lee tilted his head towards Ninetales and his eyes widened before he let out a soft chuckle. “Did I do it again? Sheesh. I meant kids.”
The golden fox smiled before turning to face her children.
“Matt, it is…not our place to judge the children of others so harshly. We can only hope that they will learn the same valuable lessons that you have at some point before their manners become habits. I understand your anger, but rather than simply being angry, seek to influence those you can to be better.”
There was a moment’s pause. “Daisy, dear, why hide this from us?”
Matt looked up expectantly at his sister’s face as her arms tightened around his midsection. Jeez he thought, stronger than she looks.
“Because I didn’t want to make things worse.” She whispered.
“How would telling us make it worse dear?”
“If I told you, then you’d probably talk to Kari’s parents. Then she would get in trouble…and take it out on me.”
Matt’s anger flared again and found himself speaking at the same time as Unca Corvi.
“Cowards.”
Looking up in surprise, Matt found a look of immense satisfaction upon the steel bird’s face as Unca Corvi continued with a flare of his wings.
“Cowards! They would assign blame onto others for their own lack? Perhaps Kari should learn humility with battle!”
Matt agreed. If there was a disagreement on the ranch where words were insufficient, it was always settled in battle. Not that might made right, but it cooled things off to the point where words could be effective again. Although…if Matt was honest with himself, usually the losing party would acquiesce to the winner.
“Hmm. Not a bad suggestion. Daisy, dear, have you considered this?”
Daisy shook her head. “No…we don’t even have any partners and the school’s Pokemon are off limits for anything outside of practice battles.”
“Have you had any practice battles with Kari then?”
Another shake. “No…we weren’t going to start battle practices until spring.”
Matt’s Father frowned and muttered under his breath.
“What was that, beloved?”
“Battle nuts the lot of you.”
A smug look came over Ninetales’ face as a several trophies floated between the group.
“And, pray tell my husband…where did you happen to acquire these?”
Lee coughed and looked away as the trophies replaced themselves in their alcoves, then spoke up again. “I suppose that’s as good of a segue as any. The Academy has taken a rather passive approach to it all and have suggested that perhaps Daisy be best suited to join the ACE program in lieu of remaining in the classroom.”
“What’s the ACE Program, Dad?” Matt inquired.
“The ACE Program is that apprenticeship that Daisy mentioned. She would be partnered up with a Veteran Trainer and be taught one-on-one in the field of her choosing. I am personally a little hesitant about it, as Daisy is still a bit young. Normally you wouldn’t be recommended for ACE until you were near graduation age.” Lee explained.
Matt nodded. He supposed that that made sense. Even as a Pokemon, Matt hadn’t been allowed to take part in any of the battles on the ranch until his fourth tail came in. Daisy…even whilst being human, would roughly be at the development stage of roughly a two-tail. Hah! Two tails. Just like her hair.
“That being said, the school preemptively selected a potential Veteran of the Battle Track. Matt, you were still in your egg at the time, but this Veteran happens to be a family friend of ours. Gym Leader Kabu of Galar.”
“Former Gym Leader, beloved.”
“That’s right…yes, Former Gym Leader. Kabu has retired and is planning on returning to Hoenn. This is where he grew up, after all.”
Matt tried to recall an image of the man but couldn’t recall one. “Is there a picture of him somewhere, Mom?”
“What a good idea, Matt! Let me see…”
Things came to a pause while Matt’s mother started pulling down picture albums and flipping through them. Uncle Sceptile began clearing away the remains of dinner, and Octillery excused himself for a visit to the restroom. Matt nuzzled his sister’s chin.
“Hey sis. Don’t let those idiots get to you. You’re totally better than they are. Probably at everything.”
Daisy pulled him in tighter and squeezed. “Thank you, Matt.”
“Ah. Here’s one!”
Matt and Daisy stared at the picture in question. Their Dad looked much younger with a bright smile on his face holding up an oddly shaped bronze badge with a flame decal. One hand nested on his wife’s shoulder while an older gentleman with grey and white hair stood to their right. His gaze was firm, and his eyes showed the look of someone who had been handed quite the ass-kicking. Corded muscles could be seen underneath his tightly fitted compression shirt. His legs bulged as well, obviously the result of decades of harsh training. A massive bug-type scrolled in the background. Its feelers wisped and blazed as if they were made of flames. Countless legs sprouted from its sides. Matt shuddered a bit. The duo was clearly strong.
“Now that you’ve got a face to put with the name, Kabu would be the veteran that would take our little girl under his wing for the duration of the ACE program.” Lee continued, “But this begs the question. Daisy. Do you WANT to join the ACE program? And if so, do you want to learn how to become a battle-oriented trainer? I will admit, being the daughter of a regional Professor means that I can probably shoe-horn in a Lab Trainer designation for you…yes, I realize that it would be nepotism, but damn it all, like I wouldn’t give my own daughter a leg up if I could. Even barring that, it’s not like we’re hurting for the money.”
Matt never asked how much his parents made before…it never seemed appropriate to do so, and it wasn’t as if he didn’t get pretty much anything he wanted. Well, within reason. But Matt did know that being a trainer was expensive. Were they actually rich?
Daisy spoke up. Her eyes were determined and her voice full of confidence. “I’ve been thinking about it all night. I don’t want to be in the battle track.”
Silence reigned over the group. Even Octillery’s emergence and climb onto the couch seemed to pause.
“How about the ACE Program itself, Daisy?”
“Maybe? I dunno…it’d be fun to learn from Mr. Kabu, but if he only will teach me how to battle…” Matt’s sister trailed off.
“What would you do instead, sis?”
Daisy blushed a little and released her hold on Matt long enough to peer at his face. “I kinda want to be able to cook like Daddy.”
There was another pregnant pause before the entire room shook with laugher. Daisy’s blush got deeper and she pushed Matt away with a huff. “Why are you all laughing at me?” She asked.
“Daisy, my precious gift…never change.” Their Mother smiled. “Those fools at the Academy clearly don’t know you well at all. We all support your decision and will see what we can do to make it a reality. But we have to ask…why cooking?”
Matt watched the gears turn in his sister’s head before she responded. “Daddy’s cooking is so much better than anyone elses! He even does experiments with berries that no one else does and they taste SO GOOD!”
Matt stared at his sister with open incredulity. He knew his sister was a bit picky when she ate…and sure their Dad was a good cook…but really? However, watching the stars in his sister’s eyes and seeing her smile so broadly was good enough for him. Matt shrugged and leaned back in the cushions.
So his sister knew what she wanted to do…but did he?
Matt wasn’t so sure.