Limitless Dreams Ch 47: Ready for a new beginning

Waking up in your own bed after so much time traveling is a great experience. I didn't really realize how much I missed my home until this moment. But that doesn't mean that I didn't like traveling. All the memories of my journey are very important, even the bad ones. And then, there's what happened yesterday… I will never forget what happened yesterday. Battling the Elite Four is a crucial moment for every trainer. Although the most important for me is what happened after defeating the Elite Four…

Right now I'm getting ready to go and have breakfast with my parents but first, I will talk about how my trip back home went. I didn't tell anything to my parents yet regarding what happened yesterday. Soon you will see why!

Before leaving the Pokémon League building, I went straight to heal my pokémon. After all these battles, they need it more than ever! The same nurse from before was there.

“Hey! Did it go well?” She asked in a friendly manner.

“Well, I managed to make it to the champion, but I couldn't defeat him.” I couldn't help but smile as I said that. I bet the nurse thought I'm crazy or something.

“Oh! Well, our champion is very strong, but so is the Elite Four. You being able to beat them means you must be a very skilled trainer.”

“Thank you! I guess so…” I answered as I put all the pokéballs inside my bag.

“I bet your battle against the champion was very interesting!”

“Yes… Very interesting!” Again, I smiled like a fool as I finished the sentence.

The nurse smiled as well. “I’m glad to hear that! Now, if you are going somewhere far from here, be careful!”

“I will!” And with that, I finally left the building. As soon as I did that, I sent a message to my parents. All I said was that I was going back home and that I would be there in a few hours.

Going across Victory Road took less time than I imagined. In less than forty minutes, I was back at Ever Grande City. As soon as I reached the shore, I released Venus into the water. As I thought, she wasn't mad at me or anything, Venus didn't mind having to take me all the way from Route 128 to Route 103. Yes, I know I could have reached Route 103 in no time if I went there flying with Hershey or even Alyx, but I needed time to think about how would I tell my parents about what happened, I felt like I needed a long trip.

I saw many trainers along the way. Some were just relaxing, but others were looking for battles. A few of them asked me for one, but I politely refused their offer. I already battled enough people! Also, as I surfed with Venus, I observed the landscape thoroughly. I remember that something caught my attention: not too far away, I could see some sort of tower. I wonder why there is a tower in the middle of the sea… it must be an important place or something.

I can't say for sure how much the trip lasted, but when we reached Route 103, it was night-time already. Of course, we made several stops along the way so Venus wouldn't get too tired. Now all I wanted was to see my parents and the pokémon I had to leave at home. As soon as we reached Route 103, I expected to see Cataegis. It was already night-time, but it was still a bit early for my parents to withdraw him, so I assumed he would be there.

I waited for a while, still in the waters of Route 103, but nobody was there. I started to call his name, but there was no response. I told Venus to surf around the route a couple of times, but Cataegis was still nowhere to be seen. I was starting to get really worried. I asked Venus to take me back to firm ground. Once I was out of the water, I returned Venus to her pokéball, finally allowing her to rest.

I started to torment myself with all the possibilities: What if Cataegis got lost? What if he left because he thought I wouldn't come back? Or… What if Team Aqua came and took him away? No, that would be impossible! I called his name a few times but, just like all the other times, there was no answer whatsoever. I was so distressed that I even started to feel dizzy.

But suddenly, something rose from the water. It was Cataegis! He began to emit happy cries upon seeing me. As for me, there are not enough words to describe how happy and relieved I felt.

“There you are! Why would you make me worry like that?” I said pretending to be angry. I approached Cataegis and I pat his head in an affectionate manner. Cataegis responded by making low, purr-like noises. “Now I'll go to get your pokéball. Please stay here, I will be back soon!” And as soon as I finished the sentence, I began to run through Route 103, with Oldale Town being my destination.

I reached my home town in a short period of time. As soon as I reached my house, I grabbed the keys from my bag and I opened the door. Knowing them, I expected to see my parents as soon as I crossed the door, but they weren't there.

“Mom, dad, I'm home!” I waited a few seconds, expecting an answer, but nobody came to receive me. I walked towards the kitchen hoping to find them there, but my parents weren't in that room.

I headed towards the living room and there I found out why they didn't say anything: Mom and dad were asleep in the sofa, cuddled up to each other. Seeing them like that made me smile and I didn't want to disturb them. So, being as silent as a ninja, I headed towards their bedroom since I imagined they would keep Cataegis's pokéball there. But after looking for it everywhere, I couldn't find it. “It must be in my room, then.” I said to myself.

And sure enough, there it was, placed on my drawer. Alyx's pokéball was there as well. And speaking of Alyx, she wasn't there to receive me either… After putting the pokéballs inside my bag, something told me to head towards the garden and that's exactly what I did. As soon as I got there, I saw Alyx. She was sleeping like a log. I smiled as I shook my head and I returned Alyx to her pokéball. Now I just had to do the same with Cataegis and I would finally have all of my pokémon with me.

Returning to Route 103 was easy. There was nothing to distract me and I could spot Cataegis almost immediately. As I told him, he didn't move from his spot. I walked towards Cataegis as I grabbed the master ball from my bag. “Well Cataegis, it's time to go back home!” I pressed the white button in the middle of the device, making Cataegis return to it. Finally, I reunited all of my pokémon! And that meant I could go home and sleep for once and for all. I had lots of things on my mind, but falling asleep would be easy since I was pretty tired.

When I reached my house, I opened the door as silently as possible just in case my parents were still asleep. As I suspected, they were still in the sofa, sleeping like a log as they hugged each other.

“Goodnight.” I whispered before turning the lights off and heading to my room.

When I reached my bedroom, I closed the door and I changed into my pajamas in the blink of an eye. After that, I snuggled under the blankets and the last thing I remember was asking myself if Steven would be doing fine. I'm pretty sure I fell asleep almost immediately! After all, it was a very intense day and I was too exhausted.

And that brings us back to this moment. Just some minutes ago, my mom came and told me that breakfast was almost ready. I can already smell the pancakes from here! I just finished putting my clothes on and I'm pretty much ready to join my parents in the kitchen. I put my glasses on and I place my hand in the doorknob, but now I can hear my phone ring. I'm pretty sure it's someone who got the wrong number. Dealing with that kind of calls can be annoying, since sometimes the person at the other side can be pretty insistent.

I grab my phone expecting to see an unknown number, but the person calling is not unfamiliar to me… It's Steven. It feels like if time just froze. Of course, I answer the call.

“Hello?” I say in a low tone due to a sudden feel of shyness.

“Hello, my dear! I just called to see how you are doing.” He answers cheerily.

“I’m doing well! I just woke up. What about you?” Despite feeling a bit awkward at first, now I feel more comfortable all of sudden. He’s my boyfriend, after all!

“I reached the Pokémon League building right now. I think today is going to be a hard day of work!”

“Being a Champion is a hard job.” I state remembering how close I’ve been to take that role “But anyway… I know you will do great, I don’t think anyone can beat you!”

“Do I have to remind you how close you came to do that yesterday?” His voice sounds friendly.

I giggle a bit “No, you don’t have to!” After finishing the sentence, I can hear a faint voice in the background through the phone.

“Emily, I have to go now. I wish we could talk longer.” Steven says after responding to the person who was talking to him.

“Aww, I wish we could talk a bit more too. Send me a message when you can… Just to let me know that you are alright.”

“I will. I’m glad to know that you are doing fine. We will talk later.” He pauses a bit and suddenly says something that I wasn’t expecting, leaving me speechless. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” I respond as my cheeks burn all of sudden. Hearing him say that still surprises me, I guess I will have to get used to it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying I don’t like it; it’s just that this is a brand new thing for me.

Steven hangs up and as soon as he does, I open my bedroom’s door and I head to the kitchen. I’m still trying to figure out how I’m going to tell them about what happened yesterday, specially the thing about my relationship with Steven. What if they told me that they approve, but they actually don’t? I don’t think so; my parents aren’t that kind of people. I’m thinking about it too much!

Before I can realize, I’m already on the kitchen. My parents are sitting at the table; they have been waiting for me.

“Well well well well!” Dad exclaims cheerily “It turns out Hoenn’s best trainer already woke up!”

“You have to tell us everything!” Mom is equally excited.

Now I’m really nervous. I will have to speak carefully, I don’t want to disappoint them, it looks like they really think I defeated the champion! I sit down and I smile before starting to talk.

“It went… pretty good. The Elite Four was quite a challenge; they aren’t the Elite Four for nothing!” My parents smile and nod as they hear me. “Surprisingly, I could beat them.”

“And then…?!” They say loudly in unison.

“Then I faced the champion.” My parent’s expectation is more than evident. I can’t let them linger. “It was a very intense battle and I did everything I could, I even got to battle his last and strongest pokémon! But in the end, and despite everything, I couldn’t beat him.”

I pay attention to their reactions. They don’t seem too disappointed. Does that mean they expected me to lose?!

“Alright…” Mom starts with a serene expression “Don’t you remember what we told you before you left?” Yes! I remember very well what they said.

“We don’t mind that you lost against the Champion! What you did is more than enough and, as long as you are satisfied with what you did, then we will be glad too.” Dad’s words make me feel even more relieved.

But telling them the other thing will be way more complicated. I can’t keep it to myself because it’s something they must know!

“Oh, I forgot!” Mom exclaims all of sudden after a moment of silence “Won’t you tell us who the Champion is?”

Well, the moment has arrived… I only answer with a nervous smile as I try to find the exact words to explain everything.

“And well?” Dad inquires with a hint of impatience.

“You want to know who the champion is?” I ask pretending to be surprised by the question.

“Why, of course!” My parents answer leaning towards me as if they wanted to hear me better. Are they imagining something already?

“Okay then.” I still feel wary but I think the best will be telling them quickly, without beating around the bush. “I think you know him, I talked about him quite a few times… The champion is Steven.” Their faces change from a relaxed expression to a look of absolute shock. It turns out they didn’t see it coming!

“Wow! How did you manage to battle him?” Mom asks with her eyes wide open.

“Believe me, it was very hard at first, but I had to do it!”

“No offense, but now I can’t help but wonder… Did you lose on purpose?” I’m not offended; I can see where dad is coming from.

But mom replies before I can say something “Greg, don’t say that kind of things! Of course she didn’t lose on purpose! Didn’t you listen to what she said before?”

“Okay, but don’t bite me!” Dad jokes as he raises his hands.

And now I don’t know what else to say. Maybe I’m just waiting to be betrayed by my expression. Or maybe I’m waiting for my parents to ask more questions. But my parents remain silent, although I can tell they want to know more, I’m sure that now they are really feeling that there’s something else behind. Now I can’t leave them hanging.

“And… There’s something else you should know.” I finally decide to explain the rest.

“We are listening.” Mom affirms calmly.

I take a deep breath “After the battle, I had a little meltdown. I felt that maybe I pushed my pokémon too hard and Steven comforted me, seeing in the condition I was. But that’s not all; during that moment, I somehow got the courage to tell him everything.”

“Everything?” Dad seems to not recognize what I mean at first, but he realizes quickly “Ooh…”

“And what did he say?!” Mom’s excitement is more than evident!

“He… he reciprocates my feelings!”

I have no time to react. Before I can realize, I have my parents hugging me, both mom and dad at the same time. I think I’m starting to feel short of breath!

“We knew it! I had a feeling.” Mom speaks frankly “You just didn’t want to believe it.”

“See? There’s nothing wrong with expressing what you feel. You never know what the other person is going to say so, as your mother says, in life there are risks which are worth taking!”

“Well, now I’m glad I took that risk!” I respond as my parents return to their seats. As soon as they do, I finally take a few bites of the stack of pancakes on my dish.

My parents start eating as well, now we are in silence. I’m so glad that they took the news so well! I don’t know why I expected otherwise, but there’s always a chance that they would have reacted differently. Luckily, they didn’t. Now I have to tell them about something equally important, and that’s my decision of becoming a Ranger. Now it’s when I’m not sure of how mom and dad will react, maybe they won’t like the idea. Being a Ranger can be dangerous, after all.

This time I won’t wait for them to ask. “There’s something else I want to talk about.” I announce as I put the knife and fork aside.

“Tell us what it is.” Mom says as she puts her cutlery down, dad does the same.

“After what happened yesterday, I’ve been thinking about what I want to do next. During my journey, I’ve been interested in the work of Pokémon Rangers, so after thinking about it, I decided that I want to become one of them.”

My parents seem to be thinking about it. If they don’t like the idea, I will understand, but I’m old enough to know that this is what I want to do. “And well?” I ask in light of their silence.

“Are you aware that it can be a dangerous job? There can be accidents; it can be a risky job.” Dad voices exactly what I thought they were going to say.

“But there are risks in life which are worth taking and I’m sure this is one of them too!” I respond hoping to show them that I’m really convinced.

“Your dad is right, but we aren’t going to stop you from doing this if you really want to do it. And that’s another important question, are you sure you really want to be a Ranger?”

“Yes, I am. I want to continue working alongside my pokémon, but this time helping others. I also wish to keep traveling around the region and I’m sure this job will allow me to do so. I just feel that I should do it. I’m not saying I was born for it, but trying won’t hurt, I think!” I hope this convinces them!

“Well, that looks like a more than valid reason! This reminds me so much of when you said you wanted to become a trainer…” My dad sounds a bit nostalgic “In the end, you gave your best and succeeded, even if you didn’t become the Champion. And you have been to places were barely anyone has been!”

“Yes, and we will never forget all those incidents with Team Aqua and the fact that Kyogre itself thought that you were worth of being his partner. That must mean something, right?” Mom says proudly.

“Well, I think so. Anyway, that doesn’t make me a special snowflake. But I guess that if I could deal with catching Cataegis, I should be able to do what a Ranger does, right?”

“Yes!” My parents answer at the same time. Now mom speaks “I heard that the Ranger School at Fortree City is open for applications now. Maybe you should go and try!”

“That’s great! If you don’t mind, I will go there as soon as I’m done with breakfast.”

“Of course we don’t mind! Just keep in mind everything we told you and if for some reason you decide to back down, we won’t make fun of you or anything. It’s you choice, after all!” Dad stuffs his mouth with a piece of pancake after saying this.

“I doubt I will back down!” I smile as I grab my fork and knife again. Now I can’t wait to finish these pancakes!

I hope the trip to Fortree doesn’t take too long, I think Hershey’s speed is more than enough to be there in a short amount of time. I have so many things on my mind that the fact of eating pancakes, which is something that I love, is in background. Will the school accept me? And if they do, how much time it will take me to get the qualification? And if I get that qualification, what kind of things will I experience? Which places will I visit? Will this job take me outside the region? Lots of questions that only time will answer…

Before I can realize, I already finished my breakfast. I think that I ate too fast… Well, I hope this doesn’t happen again! But now it’s finally time to leave for Fortree City! I pick up my dish and I take them to the sink, ready to wash it. But mom stops me.

“We will take care of the dishes! Now go to Fortree City and try to get that position on the Ranger School!”

I pretend to hesitate a bit, although what I really want to do is leave right now. I’m too anxious! “Alright, I’ll be careful! I think it shouldn’t take very long.”
“Don’t worry about that, just take all the time you need!” Dad says cheerily. It looks like they really trust me on this, after all. And that’s a relief!

I run to my bedroom and I get Hershey’s pokéball. I quickly cross the kitchen as I utter an “I’ll be back soon!” to my parents and now that I’m finally outside the house, I throw Hershey’s pokéball letting him out.

“Alright Hershey, we are going to Fortree City!” Hershey chirps as a response and turns around so I can ride his back. Once I do, he takes flight “Go as fast as you can, but don’t tire yourself!” Hershey flies faster and the wind hits my face violently. But I don’t mind that, I know that if I become a Ranger I will have to go through harsher things!

The landscape changes quickly and I can already see the famous tree houses of Fortree City in the distance. We will get there very soon! The first and last time I visited Fortree I didn’t have time to visit the Ranger School, but now I’m finally going to do it. Also, that time I only wanted to look around, but this time I’m going with the purpose of being a part of it. I really hope they accept me, if they don’t, I will have to look for a different option.

And I will find that out soon, since I already reached Fortree City. Time flies… literally! I get off of Hershey and I thank him for taking me there before withdrawing him. Now all I have to do is find the Ranger School. It shouldn’t be too hard, it’s also located on a tree house, but it looks a bit different. If I remember well, there’s a sign with a little flag on top of the building. I think I won’t have any problem finding it.

I walk around the small city at a quick pace and soon I spot the sign with the flag. Here we go! Now I am excited and scared at the same time, I have no idea of what kind of people they are looking for. What if I don’t qualify? I think I’m just asking myself the same things over and over and that can stress me and make me feel more overwhelmed than I should… and that can’t be good!

I climb the stairs on the trunk without hesitation and right now I’m finally at the door of the Ranger School. “Well, I guess I can do this!” I say to myself as I cross the door. As soon as I enter, I spot a desk where a tired looking woman sits. Behind her, there’s a big orange flag with a symbol in the middle, which I guess is the Ranger’s logo. I walk towards the desk with a smile on my face.

“Good morning. Are the applications still open?” I think my question was maybe too direct. Oh well…

“Oh, so you want to join the school? Fine, just fill this.” The receptionist speaks monotonously as she hands me a form.

“Thank you!” As soon as I have the sheet in my hands, I eye it quickly.

It asks for basic information such as name, age, phone number, etc. There are a few questions too, they are very diverse. There’s things like “Do you have any gym badge?” and “Do you have any experience with injured pokémon”. Also, there’s a question which reads “What are you doing here?” Well, I think the answer to that question is too obvious!

I ask for a pen to the receptionist, which she hands to me carelessly, as if she doesn’t mind dropping it or something. But that doesn’t happen and now I’m going to fill this, but the questions are making me a bit nervous. Some are answered with a simple “yes” or “no”, others can be responded with a few sentences and then there are others which need a longer answer, but I won’t let that be a problem. So I start answering them without further delay.

A few people walk by talking to each other as I write down on the paper, but that doesn’t distract me, I am too focused on this to pay any attention. I only ask to myself, are they Rangers? If so, we might end up meeting soon!

Suddenly my hand hurts; I think I’m grabbing the pen too hard. But I don’t want to stop; I must fill this sheet! The good thing is that now I only have to reply these questions which require shorter answers, since the most complex ones are first. I take a quick glance at the desk: the receptionist is filing her nails passively. It looks like she didn’t have coffee this morning!

And in no time, I already filled the form! Now I just have to hand it over to the receptionist and probably wait a few days before they decide if I’m good for this or not. I get up from the chair I was sitting in and I extend the form to the employee in the desk.

“I finished filling the form.”

“Very well. Now just wait until we call you.” She sounds just like the first time she spoke to me.

“Yo!” An unknown male voice suddenly booms out of nowhere. I turn around to see how the person who just spoke looks like.

And I see a man who looks a few years older than me. From the way he looks, I can tell he’s not native to Hoenn; his skin is pale, his eyes are light blue and his hair, which is pulled in a ponytail, is blonde. He’s wearing an outfit that reminds me slightly of the ones the Rangers I saw along my journey wore, but it’s pretty different. Maybe he is…

“Oh, hi Aarune. Have you finished already?” The receptionist greets keeping her monotone voice.

“No, not yet! I’m just taking a lil’ break.” So his name is Aarune. It does sound foreign. He’s definitely not from here. I wonder which region he came from and what does it look like… “Hey!” Aarune suddenly exclaims making me snap out of my thoughts. Does he want to talk to me? “Are you maybe a new student of mine?” Well, he definitely wants to talk to me and yes, my suppositions were right. He’s the teacher here.

“No, but I’m interested in joining. In fact, I just filled an application.”

“An application, huh? Samantha, can you lemme see it?” Aarune talks to the receptionist, who gives him the sheet I just gave her. Aarune starts reading it and looks very interested “Well… Emily, it says you got eight badges, no less! That’s awesome!”

“I worked hard to collect them.” I smile humbly.

“And you dealt with Team Aqua? The guys who stole the sub? You must be really tough!” He marvels out loud. All of this is going to make me blush! Aarune keeps reading the application with attention. He doesn’t make any more comments. I wonder what he’s thinking… Now suddenly returns the sheet to the receptionist.

I don’t dare to say anything; I’m just waiting for Aarune to say something “Well!” He exclaims all of sudden, startling me “All the things I read there are pretty impressive. I had a few students just like you; they were already experienced trainers and believe me pal, that’s something very helpful when becoming a Ranger. So, if all the things you wrote there are true, I think you are apt for becoming a Ranger!”

“Really? You think so?” I ask very enthused. Does this mean I’m accepted?

“Yup! You should give this a try if you want to. I think I can welcome you into my class. We will start next Thursday, don’t you forget!” And he leaves without saying anything else. I look at the woman in the desk, who once again is filing her nails.

So now I’m a student here, which means that someday I will end up becoming a Ranger. I wonder how long that will take. But until then, I will have to get ready and study a lot! I’m lucky that Aarune showed up at this moment, now I don’t have to wait, I already know I’m part of this school! If I end up becoming a Ranger, I wonder which kind of changes that will bring…