TM2 - First Day of School; Of Grapes and Oranges

[DragonFang099]

Brian woke early the next morning, gathering with the rest of the student body out on the lawn. He took note that there was a specific uniform for each house, and he had to wonder if there were different forms of the uniform, or if the shorts were the only pants they had for each one. Looking through the box for the class he was in, he was pleasantly surprised to see there were, indeed, pants other than the shorts. While he didn't like the striped pants, they looked better than the shorts, and he chose a short-sleeved shirt, but decided to forgo the suspenders, since he thought they looked tacky with his choice of outfit, and because he'd never liked suspenders to begin with.

Once he'd gotten his uniform and changed, he walked out of the bathroom and looked at his new outfit. It fit well, and he had to say, it was actually quite comfortable. As he was heading to where he'd been told the classroom was, he pulled out his poffin container, counting out how many of each type he would need and wondering if there was a kitchen on campus he could use to make more. As he got closer to the classroom he was supposed to be in, he could smell something from a room next to him, and he walked closer to see what it was.

"Can I help you, young man?" came a deep voice, and Brian turned to see a muscular man standing there in a pink shirt and dark blue pants. "Ah, I'm sorry, I smelled something really good, so I came to investigate," Brian apologized. "My name is Brian Adams." The man looked surprised briefly before he gave a friendly smile. "I am Professor Saguaro," he said. "I teach Home Economics here at the Academy. Do you make those yourself?" He was indicating the container Brian was holding, and Brian nodded.

"Aye, they're my own recipe," he said. "They're called poffins, a Pokemon treat developed in the Sinnoh region. Each of the eighteen different types here are made for specific types of Pokemon, like Electric, Ground, etc. Most Pokemon I've met really seem to like them, and I've even given the Electric-type ones to a hybrid friend of mine." "Interesting," Saguaro said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "If you're interested, could you perhaps show me how to make them sometime? I'm sure my class would love to have a demonstration on how to make something other than just sandwiches, and it's good to expand ones knowledge from someone who has experience." "I'd be honored to help ye out, sir," Brian said, giving a smile. Saguaro nodded and walked into his classroom, and Brian hurried off to his own first class of the day.

As he took his seat, he could see several of his teammates there already, and when Raifort asked them to introduce themselves, he waited until the rest of his teammates went before standing up. "Brian Adams, Hoenn native and Pokemon breeder in training," he said, giving a friendly nod. "My family runs a breeding/daycare facility back in Littleroot Town, and I'm hoping to take over for my parents one day, when I'm ready. The main history I've learned from reading is that Hoenn was supposedly created by Groudon and Kyogre, two of the Legends from the region. I've heard it said the two fought and had to be stopped by Rayquaza. My first Pokemon was Lu, my Lucario, whom I hatched from a egg. Yes, I've encountered a Legendary, and she's a Mew. As far as one I wish to see, I'd love to meet Latias and Latios, the Eon duo, or perhaps Cresselia and Darkrai." Having said his piece, he sat back down to let the next person go.  

[Darksol88]

[Uva House]

Aden balked a little when Dendra came into the courtyard with her Medicham, looking to Cera. "Uh, you don't think she knows about that village too, do you?"

"I... I think I'd know if I saw her..." Cera remarked, remembering how long she'd been there. Dendra certainly seemed the energetic sort, though she still wasn't terribly used to the idea of everyone being called heroes. Or having the profile she and the others had now. Before she could think about it more, she'd look to Aden again and the smirk he was absolutely failing to hide. "Aden, why do you have that look on your face-"

Aden stepped forward with a sudden eagerness, a hand going into his vest pocket. "Aden, favorite type would probably... be Psychic, was part of the World Championship Cup in Galar alongside the rest of the team, and..."

As Aden pulled out the case holding his badges from Johto and opened it, Cera set Smoliv down to nervously waddle around and buried her face into her hands. "Aaaand there he goes..."

"Managed a gym circuit in Johto with a mentor joining in the travels." His tone went hollow for a second as his sentence finished, thinking back to earlier events. Swallowing the nagging feeling, he'd continue to answer Dendra's questions. "Otherwise, I've got a few Pokemon with me like Nidoking, Raticate, Ampharos... I don't know if I could really choose one over the others. They're all good friends and battlers themselves, so I'd rather see more of Paldea's Pokemon and any new strategies they might let me try."

"Is he done?" Cera asked as she made sure to keep Smoliv nearby. "He's done, thank Arce- um, right, I've gotta answer two. Um... this is awkward. I know, there's a Mew dressed up in a uniform, oooh, ahhh..." She remarked, gesturing at herself as she turned from left to right. "You can call me Cera. I don't really have a favorite type, I haven't done much battling unless you count me fighting, and I was part of the same championship cup but didn't make it into the tournament proper. The Pokemon that stay with me's less... entirely me catching them or anything and more them deciding to stick around. Except that Smoliv, they just hatched. Some of the others include a Lapras and a Tyranitar that's a lot cuter than she thinks she is. If I had to use only one... I don't know? I guess I could stick to Smoliv for a bit whenever they're a little older?"


[Naranja House]

Sol would wait for a turn to stand up, shaking the nervousness that came to being a new student. Again. He cleared his throat and did his best to ignore the eyes on him as he saw about getting introductions out of the way. "Hola. My name's Sol, and I'm a Paldean native returning after a very long time away. Bit of history... ah! Well, the Great Crater and Paldean Empire's a bit of a gimme answer, so how about we bring up one of the few expedition teams to explore there and live to tell about it? Pretty sure there's been a book or two on it, though most like to write them off. Think that covers some historical points of interest too, that and occasional encounters with crystallized Pokemon that rarely popped up. Never could figure out that one. As for Pokemon, my first partner was a Sprigatito and well..." Very slightly extending his wings, he'd soon put them back in a rested state and sit back down. "I've certainly had a run-in with Ho-oh and Mew. Long story for both of them. A few other legendary Pokemon too, our line of work finds ways to be extra spicy."

Amaranth waited until after Sol sat down to get up herself, though she was surprised to hear that Charizard wasn't his first. The bit of Paldean history piqued her curiosity, but she could ask or look it up later. Nervously looking around, she wasn't sure how to answer a lot of what was expected out of her. Sure, she did kinda come from Orre, but how much of a lie was it? Her first Pokemon almost certainly couldn't have been a Flareon, but she still didn't remember a Pokemon with her before him. She also wasn't sure if she really wanted to bring up one of her earliest memories as herself involved a showdown with Reshiram and Zekrom. Her mental turmoil over the whole thing felt like minutes, though thankfully it was only a very awkward ten, maybe twenty seconds. "I'm..."

Her unsure tone would suddenly give way to putting her tiki artifact and the Evergrow Wood on the part of the desk she was at. "I'm Amaranth, from Orre. I think. I don't really know a lot about the region, the first Pokemon I remember having's a Flareon and he's really warm at night, and any legendary Pokemon I remember running into's been with the team. What I do know is I have a weird way of coming across artifacts like these from groups and civilizations I want to learn about." She'd gesture to the hammer on her back, before nervously looking around and scrambling to take a ball out to put it inside, wondering how she hadn't been confronted about it so far. Even Sol had the good sense to stash his sword away.

"...um. A-anyway, history's something I've been getting more and more into, thanks for having us," she said before quickly sitting down, nervous and hoping she hadn't just messed up things for the team.  

[Requiem of Whyspers]

SubonicXP

[Uva House - Battle Studies Class]

A portion of Uva House was now assembled in the school's courtyard, the Snagems having just been here yesterday when they were introduced to Director Clavell. Standing on the battlefield the students would wait for their teacher to arrive a woman named Dendra. "Osu! Good morning, class!" A black haired woman called out to the assembled students, those familiar with her responding with 'Good morning miss Dendra'. Following behind the black tracksuit wearing woman was a Medicham, the Pokemon giving the students and a wave of its own.

After taking her place in front of the group she would glance over the students and smile as she took notice of the Snagems. "I see we have some new students with us today! The heroes of Team Snagem! What a treat!" Dendra declared, excited to see the group, the students murmuring and carrying on once it was pointed out who the newcomers were. Sub, who was standing in the far back of the group, however wasn't receptive to the compliment in being called 'heroes', he was too busy still stewing over being here in the first place.

"Welcome to Battle Studies, Snagems, I'm instructor Dendra and this here is my pal Medicham!" She said, gesturing to her Pokemon who responded with a bow. "I'm a Fighting type specialist and battling is my game! Nothing better than a red hot battle and I love to see my own fighting spirit passed on to others. Though I'm not sure what I can teach such a talented group of trainers like Team Snagem but I do hope you'll take away something from my class. Now that I've introduced myself why don't you each introduce yourselves to the class! Tell us your name, your favorite type if you have one, tell us about some of your Pokemon and if you had to use only one who would it be, and any achievements you have as a trainer such as badges, tournament victories, and so on. And if you new kids have any other interesting info to share about Pokemon and battles please do! I'm sure Team Snagem has much to say about battle!" Dendra was clearly excited to have the Snagems with her. Sub however kept quiet, waiting to see how the others responded first, or rather was just putting it off because he didn't want to be here.

Odd greeted Sub with a small wave as he approached, yawning wide as he arrived near the school’s main entrance. He’d find himself largely too tired to have a strong opinion on much, though he was sipping a cup of coffee while he ate some kind of breakfast pastry he’d picked up along the way. “I’m surprised you talked Lykas into coming along for this.” He stated simply, looking over his shoulder to see his rather disheveled fiancé following after him. After the Snagem leader’s explanation of the two houses and looking at the uniforms offered, he grimaced at the bright Orange of Naranja house’s uniform. “Ugh… Was the person who picked these colorblind?” He asked absently, hearing Sub begin to list off the members who’d been assigned to each house.

“I have to agree…” Lykas remarked with a large yawn of his own. “These colors make my eyes hurt to look at.” He remarked, listening to Sub’s explanation of it all as well.

As the members of Uva House came to a close, Odd paused. “Wait…”

“It’s fine, Odd. Let’s just get this over with as soon as possible so life can go back to normal.” The hybrid grumbled. “I wonder how fast I can get expelled?” He wondered aloud as he dug out a uniform in his size, cursing his small stature. Once he had one of his own, he assisted Odd with locating one of his own. “You know, I hate how much taller than me you are…” he remarked as the pair began to walk off.

Clare arrived just in the knick of time to hear their House assignment and claim a uniform, gagging internally at how violently orange it was. “Do I really have to wear this?” They asked mostly calm but clearly unhappy with it. “I suppose I’ll live if I only have to wear it to class…”

~~~

Lykas and Odd walked the halls of the ancient school a few minutes later, each changed I to their respective uniforms, clashing horribly with one another as they walked. “Don’t get in too mich trouble.” Odd told the hybrid as they walked, the shorter of the two trying to get his uniform to sit comfortably. “It’s not my fault these things are made for giants… I’m only 5’4” and even this uniform’s still too big…” he snapped back, annoyed by the amount of sagging his clothing was doing in places he felt it shouldn’t be. “Why do you think I wear variations of the same outfit all the time? It’s one of the few sets of clothes I’ve ever found to fit right.”

Odd couldn’t help but to giggle slightly at Lykas’s comment. He was about eight inches taller than Lykas but the hybrid had never really had any complaints about his height before now. But that might have been due to never being forced into a situation quite like this before. “Alright, alright. I’ll grant you that. You didn’t get enough sunlight as a kid so you just stayed short like a sun-starved plant in that gym, right?” The Channeler questioned playfully. “Go on. We’ll be late if you don’t split up now. I’d rather not cause any trouble for Sub and I do actually want to be here, even if you don’t.” He insisted.

Lykas nodded. “Fine. I guess I’ll behave myself for now… don’t make me do this for long, though. I hate having to be ‘good’ all the time.” He offered a small smile as Odd walked down the hall in the opposite direction from him. He’d find his way to the History class pretty quickly, finding that Clare had gone straight to the class and was already there in their own uniform though they seemed to have traded out the shorts that most students wore for a mid-calf-length skirt in the House colors.

~~~

“Um… Excuse me… I’m a bit lost… I’m supposed to be in the BattleTactics class with Professor Dendra but I can’t seem to find the courtyard.”

“Just follow the signs. Hard to miss them.”

Odd gave a scowl at that response. “I need a little more help than that…”

“Can you not read?!” The kid he’d asked for help snapped back.

“No, actually. “ Odd replied, giving a deadpan look to the kid. “I’m a bit handicapped there. Mind helping me out?”

The kid looked at Odd sheepishly for a moment before nodding. “Sorry… it’s this way.” After a bit of walking and following, Odd arrived just barely on time for class.

~~~

Uva House

Odd found Miss Dendra’s energy to be a tiny bit overwhelming at first but as the others began to introduce themselves, he began to wind down a bit and fall into a more comfortable place in the group, eventually presenting himself. “I’m Odd, Ghost specialist and exorcist by trade. Some of my Pokémon include my partner Cadenza, the Shedinja who forged our channeling bond with me, Adagio the Lampent and Replay, my Chatot and first Pokémon.” He introduced himself. “Can’t say I have any badged or competitive anything that belongs to just me but I was part of the group that got to the second round of the World Championship Tournament last year.” He’d pause for a moment to think before answering the last of Dendra’s questions. “If I had to pick just one to battle with, I’d have to say either Cadenza or my Mimikyu, Celesta.”

Naranja House

Lykas listened to Raifort’s introduction and while he found her energy a bit annoying, he had to admit her passion was admirable. He’d wait for a moment to jump into the introductions and when he found his moment, he’d announce himself. “Lykas Fenrall, originally from Hoenn, raised in Kanto. I don’t know much of Kanto’s history but I do know Hoenn was once home to a pair of warring nations called the Kreek and the Gyaan, the latter of which I happen to be one of the few remaining descendants of. As far as Legendary Pokémon, I had an unfortunate run in with a Lugia as a kid and have the scar to prove it.” He began, turning and lifting the back of his shirt to show the spiral scar in the small of his back from the Aeroblast he’d barely survived. “I also happen to have a Keldeo of my own and my fiancé has a Meloetta. I don’t know as much about either of them as I’d like, though. I do hope to find a Manaphy or Phione someday, though.”

Clare waited until nearly everyone else had introduced themselves before doing so as well. “Hello!” They greeted. “My name is Clare Asmia Kristel and that’s about all I have to tell for now. I don’t know much about myself including where I’m from or hardly anything about Pokémon in general. I’m still trying to figure things out. I’ve heard stories of a Legendary Pokémon called Diancie I think I’d like the chance to meet someday, though… “  

[Reno Vantas]

[Naranja House - History Class]

Beau would watch as a few of the others took their opportunity to introduce themselves, eyes bouncing between each Snagem as they began to speak about their area's history, what they've done, and all those sorts of things. And when the door burst open just as the late bell rung out, there was a small hope in his chest that maybe he wouldn't have to track down where the heck Leslie had run away to. But alas, it was only Aile. What had taken her so long? Did she fall into another rift in space-time? Probably not. She still had all three of her remaining limbs.

Realizing the slight pause and silence in the room were probably meant for him to do something besides criticize his one teammate, Beau would stand up and give a small flourish as he spread his wings a bit. "My name is Beau Orson LaForrest. I am a Kalos native. I can cover my interesting history and historical point of interest in one fell swoop. I hail from La Ruche, which is a hybrid colony with Kalos' borders that many hybrids ended up exiled and detained within from the time of the monarchy until very recently." Beau explained, a smile growing on his face as he mentioned the cessation of hybrid detention to La Ruche. "My first Pokemon was a Seedot from around the area in La Ruche. As for encounters with Legendary Pokemon....that's a very long list after all the overthrowing we did in Kalos, but I'll go with encountering a Zygarde in all the myriad forms that it has." Giving a nod of approval to his pick, Beau would return to his seat and see if anyone else gave a greeting. Maybe Leslie was here and he had just missed her?

A sound of crashing metal would erupt from the back of the room, for sure drawing Beau's eyes, if not a few other eyeballs. It would seem that one of the other students was attempting to build some....ramshackle thing in the back corner. Why would they decide to come to class if all they were going to be doing was playing around with metal scraps?

Looking up from her personal project, Leslie would give a quick roll of her eyes and a nod of acknowledgement to the attention she had just gathered herself. "Hammer," was the only word she offered to the other students as she scrambled out of her chair to gather a few of the fallen and scattered bolts and nuts that now littered the ground. Stupid plate she was using to start forming the head for her hammer was apparently more brittle than she expected. That or she somehow managed to tighten the thing that hard. But there was no way, she was still able to move the plate so easily. It had to be the plate being brittle. Stupid cheap scrap. Getting back into her chair, Leslie would once again resume work with her wrench. She had to make this hammer.

Why?

Because hammer.

[Uva House - Battle Studies Class]

Reno would wait a moment as he let the others take their opportunity to introduce themselves. After his slightly more reserved introduction with Clavell and with how pouty Sub looked in their class right now, he was going to relish the opportunity to ham it up a little for an audience. And he didn't want to have too many of the other members having to follow this. Doing a mental tally and coming to the conclusion that over half of the team had gone, he figured now was his opportunity to step and do something. Yanking off his prosthetic arm and proceeding to wave it around a bit to get the attention focused on him, Reno would give a smirk as he breathed his last breath before beginning.

"Hello there. My name is Reno Vantas. I am the Co-Leader of Team Snagem and it is a pleasure to be a part of your class." Reno started, slow rolling through the preamble as he looked over the other students and their teacher. "I'm a Psychic type specialist with Pokemon from across the world for my specialization. I have an Alakazam, an Alolan Raichu who can hover via electricity, a Metagross who enjoys her fights, a Reuniclus who potentially knows more than I do about Psychics, and a Wynaut who will never leave my side. Mostly because she's the brains in this operation, while I'm just her preferred mode of transportation." Giving a chuckle at his own joke, Reno would straighten his back and proceed to tap on his chin with the robotic arm he was still holding in his hand.

"Now then....achievements as a trainer....Where to start." Continuing to scratch at his chin with the arm he was holding, he would being to pace a little. "Well, I have completed the entire gym system for the Kanto region, but got sidetracked due to things with the team before I could make a run at the Elite Four. I participated in Galar's tournament earlier in the year, which you may have seen me in when I ended up televised for my slightly disqualifying takedown of a rogue entity. I was tapped as a potential for entering the Galar gym circuit as their Psychic gym leader. Am I missing anything...." Pursing his lips in mock contemplative thought, Reno would give a quick pulse of Psychic energy into the prosthetic he was still holding and gesturing with, manipulating the fingers for them to snap. "Right.....no wait, that was a team effort. Guess I'll let our leader take credit for that one." Reno stage whispered to himself, slowly pivoting towards where his chosen victim was. Giving another flourish, Reno would point towards Sub with the prosthetic proceeding to alter its hand position to be a pointing gesture straight at the man "Speaking of our leader. Over there, doing his best to pretend he's too cool for all this and looking more like a pouty four year old is our illustrious leader, Sub. Feel free to direct all questions about why Team Snagem ended up in the Academy to either him or me."

Reno couldn't resist letting his smirk grow as he finished. Sub was going to try and kill him for this but it was all worth it.  

[Cecile Silverstone]

[Uva House - Battle Studies]

Ulla watched as everyone started to introduce themselves, as they got down the road, she realized it was her turn. "My name is Ulla Hanabi from the Alola region! Alola." She waved to the other students with a warm smile. "My favorite type of Pokemon is Fairy types. My Lucario and Decidueye I've traveled all over. They are the two Pokemon I can depend on the most." She said as she remembered when their journey started with Snagem. "An interesting battle? Hmm..I would say when I got Mimikyu. Originally, it was just a plush that my Papa gave me. But during a journey I was on with Odd, it was possessed by Mimikyu." She said as she let Miki out of their Pokeball. The doll Pokemon looked around, who hasn't been out since the Fairy Realm, was confused where they were. "Good Morning Miki." Miki turned to her Trainer as she looked different to it. It took them a minute to realize it was them as it jumped up and nuzzled against Ulla's cheek.

With the appearance of Sub speaking, the gears started rolling. She was a bit taken back that she would be commentating for the kids. "M-Me?!" She said as she noticed Miki get a little saddened. Guess they had an itch to battle. "It's okay, we can have fun commentating." She said as she started walking towards where her and Deo were suppose to sit. She put the headset on as she looked down at the battlefield. "Hello hello, my name is Ulla Hanabi from Team Snagem. Commentating for the kids, when we face our senior citizens of Snagem." Ulla said a bit embarrassed that she said that. Knowing she might get an earful from Crystal,Odd, and Reno about their age. "Now you are probably wondering, why are kids part of Snagem? Why are they recruiting children? The answer to that : We are no ordinary children. And we will show that off here today in a triple battle!"  

[DeoLux]

'Talent.... yeah.... ok....' Deo thought as she said that, knowing he has no talent whatsoever compared to his more experienced colleges. His eyes rolled as well in a tone of embarrassment. This was only amplified when he was selected as the commentator of a team battle. "ME?!" he shot out as his hairs on his already combed down head to a direct reach for the sky in shock. 'Me? A leader? Why me? I am not even worthy to be a sideline commentator!' he thought. As he made his way over to the area he was to be at, he took a deep breath to calm himself. As he turned to face and got his mic. "Well Ulla, today is a g-good day for a b-battle indeed-d!. L-Let's have a g-good one!" Well crap, Deo forgot and this form did not change this. He was a terrible public speaker. Never did well in front of a crowd. Stage fright yes, phobia no. Still, he almost failed public speaking in school. His only saving grace was when he made his final speech and half the class was sick.  

[Reno Vantas]

[Uva House - Battle Studies]

Reno could only roll his eyes as he heard Sub's new bit starting up. It wasn't like this was a surprising thing considering he first met Sub when he was being 'Shades', but it was something else to see what he pulled out when he had to imagine it on the spot. Wonder how long before the director informed Dendra about this Suban thing being a joke? Would he even catch notice? How often did these teachers even deal with the headmaster to that degree?

As he continued down this random sequence of thoughts, Reno would almost miss himself being called out as a combatant for the 'adults' side of the kids vs adults match. Snapping to attention and getting into the marked out arena, he would finally be able to assess his partners and opponents for this match he had managed to miss. And....why was Aden on the other team? "Wait, hold up. Aden's as old as I am. Why are we on opposite teams?" Reno questioned, attempting to get Dendra's attention when the energy field snapped to life around the six of them. Stopping partway through his effort to try and ask after the odd selection process, Reno would simply let his shoulders sag as he turned back towards the field. Too late now.

Giving a quick motion with his hand, Reno would pop out a Pokeball out of his prosthetic to hold in his hand. "I know I said Psychic types are my jam, but I feel like I need to train up some of my other Pokemon while we're here." Giving a small nod as he opened the Pokeball, he would stare down at the ball-shaped Pokemon with its very odd mint green shell. "Alright, Spike. Lets see what the 'kids' have to bring to the table." Reno told the Shelgon, slowly raising his gaze to meet the three opponents across from him. And then quickly raising up his right hand to motion for Absinthe, Aden, and Tristan to all bring it on.  

[Atlantis_Darts]

SubonicXP

"I suppose before officially start class the new students should introduce themselves. Snagems, please stand up one at a time and give us your name, the region you come from, a little bit about the history of your homeland that you're familiar with, any historical points of interest you've seen in your region, your first Pokemon and if you've ever encountered a legendary Pokemon and what it was, or maybe one you wish to see one day. The last part really interests me, if you can't tell from my accessories." Raifort chuckled softly, pointing out her Articuno necklace by tapping on it. She also had a Lunala belt buckle, Marshadow hairpin, and Tapu Koko shell bracelet.

"Hmmm.... Well, the name's Darts." Standing up now, he was used to most eyes staring him down in any situation. Looking the way he looked it wasn't uncommon for whispers and odd glances to follow him both into situations and just in general. A day at the mall for example was a very public affair. It would be one thing if he was just a Snagem, which had enough renown to cause some whispers on its own. But as a Dragon Clan Initiate AND a Giratina hybrid, it was almost impossible for him to feel like a normal human regularly. All of them had enemies, and other than the team or the Clan he was never quite sure who to trust. He could feel the same vibe from the students that didn't know him already, an oddity in gold and black with an orange tie for a headband and a regular tie wound round his neck, his blue hat ballooning out over the top of his crest.

He presses on, regardless. It was all he knew how to do. "Let's see... I'm from Sootopolis City, in the Hoenn region. It's in the bottom of a caldera, an empty valley in the middle of the ocean. There's a cave inside the town, called the Cave of Origin. Locals tend to refer to it as 'the cave where life began' but as a local I can tell you that tends to be a load of hooey. Tends to be empty, quiet, and full of rocks." Not that that had stopped Aqua and Magma from causing issues, whatever the case chasing Kyogre and Groudon. "I've seen most of this region... there was quite an incident there a few years ago that we... I... was initimately involved with that spanned the entire region. Meteor Falls, Mount Pyre... There were quite a bit, but under normal circumstances they tend to be fairly mundane."

The last question struck a bit of a sore spot for the hybrid on a couple different levels, some of which were related to the internal brooding he had been struggling with. "I don't remember if it's the first legendary I've run into, but one look at my face," He waves a golden-clawed hand around his crest and red eyes, indicating it in the middle of his statement. "Should tell you the most significant meeting I've had. I'll say this much, PRAY you never run across him."  

[MoniqueBrie]

Raifort was starstruck. That much was clear. The Snagems had come to Paldea with credentials that clearly had the history professor's attention from start to finish.

With the introductions out of the way, Monique turned her attention back to Raifort and began to explain that they were headed on a field trip. Moments later, the sheriff of New Po was standing on the front lawn as a horde of Squawkabilly taxis—fourteen of them—landed to ferry the two groups off to their destinations.

Monique climbed in the back of one of the taxis and was joined to her right by a short Lucario hybrid. She hadn't seen her in class, and maybe her height was the reason.

"So you're Monique, huh?" she piped up as the birds began their cacophonous flight, hoisting the taxi into the air. "I'm ChiChi Komatsu. Nice to meet you." She extended a hand to meet Monique's, shaking as the taxi continued to lift into the air, her gold necklace catching the light. "What brings you all to the academy?"

Monique blushed under her fur a bit. "Well... A run-in we had upon visiting Paldea. The Alliance kind of ordered some of us to go, and...well, some of us have nothing in this world but Snagem."

"I see... I'm here as a graduate dance student, actually. I did my initial study at the University of the Whirl Islands in Johto, but I wanted to see beyond the home regions, you know? There are such passionate dance styles in Paldea."

Monique was alternating her gaze between ChiChi and that huge crater they had to swing around. "You been enjoying yourself here?"

"...Yes," ChiChi replied after a pause. "I'm running a dance studio just off campus while learning all about the dance styles of Paldea. You know the Pokémon Oricorio? I'm sure you do since you said you were from Alola."

"Why, yes..." Monique trailed off, thinking of her own Oricorio—the one she'd had to leave behind when the Dome failed. "I used to have a Sensu Style one cuz I lived on Ae—I mean Poni Island." The Zoroark was staring off at the misty crater, over which the Squawkabilly were evidently told not to fly.

"Still not used to the crater, huh? It's so huge and so dangerous. Some think that in that little area there could be half as many Pokémon as in all the rest of Paldea."

"So, where are you from, ChiChi?"

"I was born in Sinnoh, but my parents moved when I was little to Cianwood City in Johto. Dad was a Floatzel, mom was a Lucario like me." She sighed a bit at the thought of her mother. "They met as dockworkers and wanted a bit slower pace than Canalave. What about your family?"

"...Well, uh..." Monique vacillated, unsure of how much to say. "My family situation was weird. I was basically raised by three moms and had two...sisters."

That made ChiChi tilt her head. "How'd that happen?"

"Girl, I ain't exactly from here. Let's just say where I came from is a future you don't want."

"Must have been nice having sisters... I have three brothers. They could be annoying, though I do kinda miss them."

"Where are they?"

"Two still work in the docks in Cianwood. But Hikaru..." She trailed off in a way that indicated to Monique it was best not to ask.

The imposing rim of the crater pulled away, and ahead of them was eastern Paldea. Below, a small town unfolded in what otherwise looked like fairly barren mining country. Further ahead was something else. Gleaming jagged bits of shiny obsidian stabbed the sky and bounced blinding reflections of the sun.

"Is that where we're headed?"

"I dunno," Monique shrugged. "You said you run a dance studio?"

"Mmhmm. I guess there are a lot of Paldeans that can't resist a cute little Lucario chick. You'd be surprised at the crowd we get... It's a good crowd, though. Goes well with my studies at the academy." ChiChi chuckled a little bit.

The taxi was descending, and now Monique could see what was nestled amid all those pointy peaks: a bamboo grove, which—along with the rugged terrain—severely limited the sunlight that filtered through the canopy. The other taxis were landing as well. As each one deplaned, the students got out to see an elderly man wearing a metal armor set that had clearly been well-worn with age—maybe even older than its wearer. Did this guy just return from the past?