I don’t know what I expected but waiting in a refitted interrogation room was not it. Whoever redecorated this room had gone to great lengths to try and avoid the association but despite their best efforts, it was clear what this was based on the location. Though the walls were a bright colour and held pictures of people and Pokémon, presumably famous pairings. I sat at the table which was in the corner of the room. Leaning back on my chair resting against the back wall just watching Leo play on the floor with the Pokémon toys provided.

The room itself was comfortable with the vibrant colours of the walls giving it a calm vibe. One change from an actual interrogation room was the lack of a giant one way mirror though this was replaced by the small security camera on the ceiling. Which was the only visible reminder of what this place once was, all other signs having been replaced leaving the room looking similar to a doctor's waiting room crossed with a child's playroom.

It had plenty of toys scattered across the floor and a desk at the back with several chairs surrounding it. This was where I sat with my back to the wall like a wounded animal ready to face what came next. With that said I wasn't as worried as I was earlier.

Not only did this seem to be a division in the police that specialised in this kind of situation. That and it was hard to believe someone like Karly would lead us astray.

With that thought I resolved myself to be cautiously optimistic about this whole situation. That's not to say I had no reservations about it but I was for the first time in a while hopeful about our future. I just had to ensure we weren't separated in some government program.

After waiting for the better part of an hour we were interrupted by a knock at the door. Leo, ever oblivious, didn't even look up or notice the significant tension that seemed to flood the room. After a moment of hesitation I got up and opened the door to a woman wearing a police uniform with a serious look on her face. She had long brown hair tied into a neat bun and wore glasses on her face. Though I was somewhat surprised that it wasn't Jenny I got over that quickly and introduced myself.

“Hello, I’m Luis Adriano and my brother Leo Adriano is the one playing behind me. It's a pleasure to meet you.” I say reaching for a handshake. The woman who seemed momentarily surprised by my introduction reached out and firmly shook my hand.

“I’m Captain Jubilee, leader of the Nacrene city branch of the Hidden Villages Association, the pleasures all mine.” she responded introducing herself. In doing so she had confirmed my suspicion that this section of the police force was specialised in dealing with my situation and those like it.

“May I come in? We have much to cover.” she asks.

“Yes, of course.” I say moving aside and gesturing in.

“How are you finding the change so far? I heard from Karly that you were from quite a remote village.” She asks with a professional smile as she takes a seat on one side of the desk. I move to sit at the otherside.

“It’s been good so far, not that much has happened, though I must say that the whole city is much bigger than I expected.” I replied.

“Yes, we get that a lot, many ‘Hidden Villages’ are quite small.” she says.

“Anyway, I have a few questions for you about your Village and then about your personal situation. After that we can go over your educational background and future goals to help us give you a plan to get situated.” she says, taking control of the conversation and in the process revealing that the government help would be quite extensive though likely at the cost of full cooperation. Not good for someone with secrets.

“Of course I’d be happy to help!” I say whilst thinking about how much I should reveal.

Before we can begin there is another knock at the door.

“Oh that must be Nurse Joy, would you mind if she takes Leo for a basic health check up whilst we talk?” she asks. My instinct was to refuse but at the same time I was worried that such a thing would be taken the wrong way.

Seeing my hesitation Captain Jubilee said “Don’t worry you will be reunited by the end of the day its a short examination and is quite safe, It's just incase he has some unknown illness or a previously undetected one, many Hidden Villages don’t quite have the health standards that are common to wider Unova.”

With that It seemed the choice had been made, It was an offer I could not refuse. While I wasn’t comfortable with it I was less than confident in the health practices of the cult.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Sure It’s for the best after all. Don’t want him to get sick.” I replied.

With that I picked up Leo and after a few words of encouragement/ reassurance, which admittedly were as much for me as they were for him, I handed him off to Nurse Joy. Nurse Joy herself was seemingly a natural Pinkette giving me my first experience seeing anime hair. Though I’m sure I saw some on the way to the station my mind was occupied with other thoughts at that time.

After a final goodbye to Leo I sit back down in the ‘interrogation’ chair ready for what was next.

“Now that that's sorted we can move on to the basic questions. For records purposes and to ensure there is no foul play from either party this meeting will be recorded.” She starts

“Now I know we introduced ourselves already but for the record I am Captain Jubilee conducting the questioning of one Luis Adriano as per the regulations of adults under the Hidden Villages act. Before we start, do you have any questions?” She asks.

“No” I reply.

“Ok, on to basic questions: what is the name of your village and where is it located?” she asks.

“The town was called ‘Freedom Ville’ and beyond being in a forest I’m unsure of where it is located though I can say it was to the south of where I ran into Ace trainer Karly.” I reply by making sure to refer to Karly with her proper title. Captain Jubilee writes down a couple notes at my response and then continues.

“Next question, do you know if this 'Freedom Ville’ is involved with any crimes or actions that threaten Unova?”

“Umm not that I’m aware of, though they did seem to have a lot of people trained for combat, most of that was to guard the town” I reply somewhat unsure of what to say.

As with last time she writes some notes before continuing.

“Next question: Did you witness or receive any abuse by people or Pokémon onto people or Pokémon?” she asks.

“Yes, I received abuse from my parents both physically and mentally. Most of which being neglect and the occasional beating” I reply suddenly feeling a dampness in my eyes as the memories of what I endured came back. The screams were so loud I could still hear them ringing in my ears as the belt whipped up and down. The world seemed less vibrant as the memory took control of my vision.

“It's ok, you don't have to speak about it if it's uncomfortable” said a voice as a comforting hand held my own. Blinking I clear my eyes of nascent tears out of my eye and reaching my hands out of hers and wiping the rest of my tears away.

“It’s ok we can continue” I say now just wanting the questioning to be over with.

The questions continued in this way for the better part of an hour, they covered the basics of my living situation in the town. What the laws were, how they were enforced, who our leaders were and what people did for work. Though none of the questions gave me an emotional reaction such as the third one did, some were on some sensitive topics though Captain Jubilee was careful not to make me feel obliged to speak if it was too much.

What the Captain found most surprising was the lack of trainers as the only people who interacted with Pokémon were the town guards and leaders with it being rare for the rest of us to see a Pokémon let alone train one. That said it wasn't that trainers were unheard of, in fact they were widely disparaged as slavers and criminals. A fact she found most disturbing due to the significance of trainers and training in general in Unovan society.

Though I made it clear that I held no such beliefs and even mentioned that I had angered several people in the town by questioning them. It wouldn’t do to have my dreams of being a trainer be snuffed out due to a misunderstanding.

Once the basic questioning was over I was asked about my education, which was a complete schooling experience though my town only had one small school so how complete said education was I couldn’t say. So it was decided that I would complete the standardised tests for a high schooler and be granted a diploma if I passed.

With that done it was on to the best part.

“So what are your goals? What do you want to do with your life? Before you answer I must clarify that you don't need a grand goal as this answer is just used by us to help get you on the right path. You could say something as simple as working with Pokémon or something as specific as Pokémon Ranger.” she explained.

“I only have two goals: one to keep me and my brother safe from the townspeople and two to become a Pokémon trainer” I say with conviction. Making sure not to mention that becoming a trainer was as much of a dream for me as it was a way to buy my freedom with strength if I needed to.

“Ok that is something we can certainly help with” she said with a smile.

“To be clear though your first goal is something you would’ve been assisted with by our division either way as cases of abuse are taken very seriously.” she said briefly, losing her smile to adopt a serious face as she spoke with conviction.

“With that said, we can definitely help you with your second goal as well. As you have not been raised in a society with a Pokémon League we cannot just send you off on a journey as many households here do, what we can offer though is enrolment into a trainer school which will teach you about the basics of training and Pokémon care. Though we will not be able to fund too many classes you can certainly join the basic one and from there gain a licence and apply for or capture a starter Pokémon” she says.

“Thanks, that would be a big help,” I reply, happy that the way forward is clear.

“With that covered, we are done. If you’d prefer it I can take you directly to nurse Joy and your brother. We can even see if your own check up can be done straight after.” she says.

“Sounds great” I reply with a dramatic exhale releasing tension I didn’t even know I’d had. Hopefully once my medical was clear I could finally after sixteen years of reincarnation start learning about Pokémon training.