Pokemon - The Apex of Time

Chapter 2 - Initiation

“You can count on me, Darragh.” The Gym Leader nodded.

“Gray, Skyra, you two can help as well.”

They both accepted the responsibilities.

“I hope you all have studded boots?”

Everyone nodded. Thank God for that.

“Right then! Tomorrow, I'll give you all training kits, and we'll head down to our training ground for the first time! Any questions?”

Nick raised his hand.

“Yes?”

“How many toilets are in the house?” The Ranger asked.

“I'm sure there's more than enough.” Xene sighed.

*

“Hey... Nelly...?” I whispered that night while we were curled up together as usual.

“Yes Toby?” She lifted her head from my chest and looked up at me in the faint light.

“Where do you think the training ground is?”

“Oh... I think I have an idea... When I was little, Dad used to take me down to this beautiful place... It's a bank that leads down to a lovely grass pitch beside a river underneath a large bridge... There are hills on either side – you'll love it.”

“It sounds great.” I smiled. “Also... Do you... Do you think I'll be any good at this...?”

“Toby, I know you'll be great at this.” Nelly smiled.

“I'm not exactly built for sports... I'm just too bi-”

“There's nothing wrong with you.” She said sternly, sitting up so she could look down at me.

“But Nelly...”

From where I laid she pulled me into her embrace and sighed. “I love you just the way you are. You don't have to change anything... If you're nervous about anything, you know you can speak to me...”

“I know...” I swallowed, wrapping my arms around her. “I just don't know how much exercise I can take before I...”

“I'll help you.” She whispered. “If you're worried about anything, I'll be there for you.”

Her eyes were serious and caring, and the way she held me made me believe in her even more. “Thank you...” I smiled. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Nelly ran her fingers through my hair. “I'll see you in the morning, Toby...”

“Goodnight, Nelly...”

*

The next morning, Nelly and I were waiting outside her house in our new training kits. The shirt was a deep blue colour, with small ventilation holes around the armpits and waist in order to keep air flowing and minimise sweat sticking. Nelly was wearing a pretty standard pair of white sports shorts, whilst I had chosen to wear a pair of black tracksuit bottoms – I'd always worn this kind when doing sports, and it felt safer. Darragh was across the road, gathering everyone else up. It was ten o'clock in the morning and the Sun was out on a clear day, though it wasn't exactly hot. We had our sports bags by our sides – we weren't supposed to put our boots on until we got to this 'beautiful' place. “You ok?” Nelly asked.

“Yeah. I like these kits, they're pretty nice.” I replied.

“Yeah, they are quite comfortable.” She felt around the bottom of her shirt and patted the holes.

Eventually, everyone poured out from the house in their training kits with a mix of smiles. When we were all grouped up, Darragh began to address us all.