Harmonia | Pokémon Fanfiction

04 | Test Me

Music in Media: Test Me by Melanie Martinez

10 January, Monday, 4 p. m. | Winter

Cheren set the picture frame he was wiping on his desk when Rae popped in. The Trainers' School, veiled with a tremulous silence occasionally interjected with the screeches of tables and chairs as a Patrat dragged them across the floor and dusted them before returning them to their original spots, was a strange place for Rae to be — she still felt that hint of discomfort when none of the students were present.

"How was your walk?" Cheren managed a tiny smile.

Rae told him it went well and added that Bianca had left after receiving a call from her father. She then went round his desk, to his side, and studied the photo. She recognised the four others with Cheren, alright, having made the news as the heroes of Unova and Prof. Juniper's DexHolders. Of course, she remembered Cheren and his story when the news spread that his memory of challenging the Unova League stopped after the first gym in Striaton City, which was now but a restaurant. It didn't overshadow the glory of the heroes who were branded "Dreamer" for both Black and White, "Arrester" for Blake and "Liberator" for Whitley, though it was something that Rae could easily recall. They looked so happy in the photo, and now they were all going places, including Cheren.

"You miss the days when you were a trainer?"

Cheren frowned and tightened his tie. "A little." He tched. "You didn't come here to ask about my past, did you?"

"No!" Rae's eyes bulged. "I wanted to battle you. But... Where are Icosa and Lenora?"

"The Pokémon Centre lounge. No worries, though, I will fetch them. They will be interested in our battle, for sure. And the children too."

It took Cheren about five minutes before he returned with a bored-looking Icosa and a bubbly Lenora, with the whole bunch of rowdy children in tow, still fuming over Lenora's "stupid crown". The battle soon commenced after Cheren brought the three of them to the backyard where a battle field had been drawn in sand and on a stage. An AI assistant shaped like a Pikachu oversaw the match. Both sides would only use two Pokémon.

Rae marvelled at the simplicity of the gym layout. It was pretty much a playground with a makeshift stage (where the students, Icosa and Lenora sat, on the edge) surrounded by concrete walls that bore the brunt of beam attacks and collisions in the short span of time the Trainers' School operated. This meant the playing area would be huge but limited and the sand would slow her Pokémon down. She wasn't so worried for Noko-Noko as she was for Chilchil, comforted by the fact that Noko-Noko underwent sand-based training under her mentor Kaspar.

"Go, Patrat!" Cheren's first Pokémon scurried out of the classroom and onto the battlefield. It seemed to be bursting with energy despite cleaning up the classroom earlier.

"Chilchil, it's your time to shine!" Rae sent out her Minccino. It felt right given that Chilchil had just handled a Patrat. That experience must be useful.

Like Icosa, Cheren let her have the first move. She didn't know if this was a battling style shared between the student and the mentor or if this was merely the "ladies first" approach to make them seem more like gentlemen, though Cheren didn't need that appearance excuse as much as Icosa did. Regardless of the reason, Rae took this as an opportunity to show what she was truly capable of.

Test me, Cheren. Test my mettle. You may be nice, but I hope you don't hold back. As the thought slithered into Rae's mind, she had Chilchil hit the ground with his tail and propel towards Patrat. Coolly, Cheren told his Pokémon to dodge. This was, of course, within her calculations. No ordinary trainer would wish harm upon their Pokémon.