The walk back through Aquacorde Town was quiet and easy, the afternoon sun warm on his shoulders. Yugito let himself enjoy it the sound of the water, the soft rustle of the trees lining the path, Froakie's Poké Ball resting snug in his pocket. He was nearly at the gate leading back toward Vaniville when a voice rang out behind him.
"Yugito wait! Please!"
He stopped and turned.
Shauna was jogging to catch up, slightly out of breath, her pigtails bouncing with every step. She came to a halt a few feet away, one hand pressed to her knee, and looked up at him with bright, determined eyes.
"I'm glad I caught you," she said, straightening up. "So and please don't say no — can we battle? Just once, before we both head home?"
Yugito looked at her for a moment. Then a slow smile spread across his face.
"So it's a battle you want?" He took a few steps back, putting distance between them until they stood on opposite ends of the street, the cobblestones stretched out like a makeshift battlefield between them. "Then it's a battle you're going to get."
Shauna's expression lit up. She reached for her Poké Ball and planted her feet.
"Fennekin, I choose you!"
"Froakie — stand by for battle."
The two Pokémon materialised at the same moment. Fennekin shook out her cream-coloured fur and flicked her large ears, eyes bright with focus. Froakie dropped into a low, ready crouch opposite her, the cluster of frubbles on his back trembling with quiet energy.
"Fennekin, use Ember!"
A burst of small flames spiralled from Fennekin's mouth, arcing through the air toward Froakie.
"Counter with Bubble!"
Froakie opened his mouth and fired a stream of iridescent bubbles directly into the oncoming fire. The two attacks collided in the middle of the street with a sharp hiss flame and water meeting in a billowing cloud of
steam that rolled outward and swallowed both Pokémon from view.
Yugito's eyes stayed fixed on the white haze. He'd been waiting for exactly this.
"Now's your chance use Pound!"
Froakie burst through the smokescreen at a dead sprint, closing the gap before Fennekin could reorient herself. His tail connected with a clean, solid strike and Fennekin skidded back across the cobblestones with a sharp cry.
"Froakie finish it with Bubble!"
Another volley of bubbles surged forward. Fennekin braced herself, but the impact was too much. She let out one last, valiant yip before her legs buckled and she went down, landing softly on the stone.
Shauna stared at the battlefield for a moment. Then her shoulders dropped and she let out a breath, a rueful smile breaking through the disappointment.
"Oh man." She recalled Fennekin with a gentle click of her Poké Ball and held it close for a second. "I lost. I've really got a lot to work on, haven't I?"
Yugito crossed the street toward her, recalling Froakie as he walked. He held the ball up for just a moment before pocketing it.
"You battled hard," he said. "That was a good match, Shauna. Thank you."
Shauna looked at him, surprised by the sincerity in it then smiled
"Next time I'll be ready for you," she said. "That's a promise."
She turned and headed back toward town with a wave over her shoulder, already muttering something to herself that sounded a great deal like a training plan. Yugito watched her go, then looked down at the Poké Ball in his hand.
"You battled hard and won this match for us," he said quietly. "Thank you."
He tucked it back into his pocket and headed for home.
The house was quiet when he pushed open the door, but his mother was in the sitting room, a folded letter in her hand. She looked up when he came in
"The Professor's letter arrived," she said. She read it through once more, almost to herself, then looked at him with a small, steady smile. "Come on. Let's get your things together."
She disappeared upstairs, and Yugito could hear the careful sounds of packing drawers
opening and closing, the soft shuffling of a bag being filled with everything she thought he'd need. When she came back down, she pressed the Town Map into his hands, tracing the routes of Kalos with one finger as she talked him through what she knew. He listened patiently and let her have the moment.
When it was finally time to go, they stepped outside together.
The Rhyhorn that lived in the yard lifted her great, armoured head as Yugito passed, her dark eyes finding him. She held his gaze for a beat then let out a low, resonant roar
His mother rested a hand on his shoulder.
"Come home safe," she said. "And make us proud."
He covered her hand with his for a moment. Then he shouldered his bag, turned toward the road, and walked out of Vaniville Town.
Oh here are my manners?
My name is Yugito.
Someone who, after finishing a full playthrough of Pokémon X and , woke up on the floor of a bedroom in Vaniville Town and found himself living inside it.
I don't know everything about how this happened. What I do know is that the world is real, the Pokémon are real, and my Froakie waiting inside that ball at my hip is more than just data and pixels now.
As for what I want out of this second life?
Simple.
Strong opponents. Real battles. The kind that push you past our Limits