—Liam POV—
"Achoo!!!"
I'm all wet now, and I don't have an extra pair of clothes. As I turned my head toward Daisy, I could tell she was holding back her laughter at me.
But as I looked at Professor Oak's laboratory, I knew I had seen it in the anime, but it looked way better in person.
"So... what do you think of my grandpa's laboratory?"
"It's... SO AWESOME!!"
I mean, come on! I'm in the Pokémon World, and isn't it every Pokémon fan's dream to at least visit Professor Oak's lab if they were to be reincarnated into this world?
"Wow, this is the first time I've seen someone this excited before. I mean, I know my grandpa is pretty famous, but still."
I could only chuckle at her comment about me as I scratched the back of my head.
"Haha, yeah, sorry about that. I was just so excited about being here, that's all."
"Well, care to come in and let me ask Grandpa if he has any clothes that'll fit you?"
That would actually be nice since my current attire is soaking wet.
"Sure, thank you, Daisy."
"Don't mention it."
As we went inside, Daisy started calling out for her grandpa until we heard a crash in the next room.
"Grandpa! You in there?"
"Oh! Is that you, Daisy? Sorry about the loud bang. I accidentally misplaced some documents in the wrong place and knocked over some things. Oh, and who might this boy be, Daisy?"
This old man before me is Professor Oak. I swear every fan would be jealous of me for actually meeting the real thing.
"Oh, this is Liam, Grandpa. He came here to be a trainer. And if you have any extra clothes he could use, since his current attire is wet."
Professor Oak looked directly at me. This is very nerve-wracking right now.
"Uh, yes, just like Daisy said, I came here to be a trainer, but I just found out I had to fill out an application form six months or more ahead of time. But I was wondering if I can still be a trainer."
All I could see was that he gave a small sigh and shook his head sideways.
"I'm sorry, young man, but I have no more Pokémon meant for beginners here anymore. However, I did give a unique trainer a Pikachu as his partner."
I had my head down. Even though I knew in the anime that Professor Oak had none, I still had to try, considering that Daisy was here and this might not just be the Pokémon anime version, but a mix or AU.
"Cheer up, Liam. Remember, I told you if there isn't any here, I'll just catch one for you. Is that fine, Grandpa, if I catch a Pokémon for him as his starter?"
"That seems like a wonderful idea, Daisy."
"That's great, but can I get a change of clothes first? I really don't want to catch something."
They both chuckled at my comment.
Professor Oak gestured for me to follow him.
"Sure thing, Liam. Follow me. I should have some old clothes that should fit you."
"I'll wait down here, Liam."
"Sure, Daisy."
I followed Oak upstairs to his room as he rummaged through his closet. He stopped momentarily as he looked at an old box, but it appeared he had a sad look on his face for a brief moment.
"Sorry about the wait. Here, you can change into these. They belonged to my son."
I could tell just from his voice that there was a bit of sadness in it.
"Are you sure, Professor Oak?"
Professor Oak could only look at me as he gave me a warm smile.
"Sure, I don't mind. Besides, they're just gathering dust in there to begin with, and based on the current outfit you're wearing, I think you need something new and fresh, especially since you're going to be a trainer."
"Yes."
As Oak handed me the box, he stepped toward the door and turned back toward me.
"Come down once you're done. Oh, and I have a favor to ask you. I hope you're up for the task, Liam."
I nodded my head toward him as he walked out of the room, and I started to change.
A couple of minutes later, I looked into a mirror at my new look. I wore a short-sleeved gray polo shirt, dark khaki cargo pants, and black shoes.
"I've got to say, I look good. Well, better head downstairs then."
I immediately headed downstairs and heard Professor Oak and Daisy discussing something.
"Hey, guys, I'm done changing."
They both stopped and turned toward me.
Daisy was wide-eyed at my appearance change, while Professor Oak had a look of approval at my outfit.
"Liam, you look nice and clean now."
"I guess it was the right call to give you that box."
"Yeah, thanks again, Professor Oak. Also, what were you guys talking about?"
"Oh, we were talking about this Poké Ball my cousin sent me from the Alola Region."
He showed me a Premier Ball, which meant there must be a special Pokémon inside. I had to say, I was really interested in what sort of Pokémon it was because it came from the Alola Region.
"So, what Pokémon is it, Professor Oak?"
He could only smile at my curiosity.
"Daisy was right about you, Liam. You sure are full of enthusiasm. Well, let's see what Pokémon my cousin sent me."
He immediately pressed the button on the Poké Ball, and a bright light came out of it. What appeared was a...
"Shiny Wimpod!!!"
"A Wimpod?"
Daisy was confused, as this was her first time seeing a Wimpod. But from Professor Oak's expression, he was wondering why his cousin had sent him a Wimpod until he saw a note inside the box.
Hey Samuel, you wouldn't believe what I saw on one of my outings. You're probably wondering why I sent you this Wimpod. Well, you know how Wimpod run away at the sight of danger or strangers and are known to be very weak. Well, this one is the same, but the strangest thing happened when it saw one of its friends in danger. Instead of just running away, it immediately went to save its friend from a Pokémon. Of course, after knowing its friend was out of danger, it ran away too, but wasn't able to leave in time as it was already surrounded by that other Pokémon group.
Well, after going in myself and saving it and running away too, I had it nursed back to health. But I found that it has a unique personality that is a bit different from other Wimpod. When it sees that one of its friends is in danger, it isn't afraid of fighting to protect them, even if the Pokémon is a big and strong Pokémon.
So I thought you might be interested in studying this Wimpod's nature and perhaps give it to a trainer who can bring out its full potential.
From your cousin, Samson Oak.
As I looked at the note Oak was reading, it reminded me of how cool Pokémon really are compared to what the games always said about them.
"Wow, this Wimpod must be very special to even go against what is stated about its species' nature, right?"
I said to both Daisy and Professor Oak with enthusiasm.
"Wow, that is amazing."
"Hmm, this is very fascinating. This might be a perfect opportunity, though."
As Professor Oak was getting closer to further examine Wimpod, I saw a book on the floor. Before I could warn him, he tripped and accidentally flipped the table over that Wimpod was on. At that moment, Wimpod gave out a cry of distress as it started running away.
"Scrhcchh! Scrhcch!"
"Oh no! Wimpod ran away!"
"Grandpa, are you alright?"
"Don't worry! I'll catch it!"
I said to both Professor Oak and Daisy as I hurried out of the lab. From the sound and trail Wimpod left, it went into the forest.
"I better hurry and go catch Wimpod before it gets lost. After all, it's not in the Alola Region anymore. It's probably scared and confused by all the unknown things around."