After deboarding their plane, collecting their luggage, and taking a short trip on the cleanest, most spacious subway car Jason had ever ridden, he and Korrina arrived at Lumiose City's Northern Boulevard district just after 2 PM.
'Oh, wow...' thought Jason, his eyes widening slightly as he and Korrina exited Lumiose Station. He had never been to Paris or France before, but he felt like he was stepping into an idyllic, postcard version of the famed City of Lights. In place of conventional roads, it had wide, cobblestone avenues that glistened like honeycombs under the midday sun. Along all routes were evenly spaced berry trees that people and Pokémon could presumably pick from at their leisure, and past those were swept, white-cobbled sidewalks that sequestered tall, elegant, slate-roofed buildings of relatively uniform construction. There were a handful of vehicles, but they were primarily taxis covered in soft blue solar paneling.
Following the length of the avenue with his gaze, Jason set his sights on Lumiose City's and, consequently, the Kalos Region's greatest landmark, the Prism Tower. It had a sleek, tapered design that flared at the base like the Eiffel Tower, but instead of being assembled from puddled iron, it had a pristine white exterior that almost caused it to blend into the clouds that framed it closer to the horizon. And at an impressive 611m tall—located at the exact center of the circular city—it was visible from virtually any open vantage.
"Alright, it should be fine to release Ren here. We just have to make sure she doesn't wander off or attack any other Pokémon. If she does, she'll either have to remain in her Poké Ball or wear a muzzle—and I don't think she would take kindly to the latter," explained Korrina, thrilled by the fact she had returned to her home region but otherwise calm as she had seen the scene that currently had Jason awed countless times.
"Right...I don't have Audino to shadow her, so I'll need to be a lot more attentive..." confirmed Jason, pulling Ren's custom blue and black Poké Ball from his shirt—affixed to the end of a corded necklace. In its small, compact form, it was smaller than a large marble, so it attached easily to a necklace and symbolically allowed Ren to remain close to his heart at all times.
"Time to wake up, sleepy head," Jason whispered to the Poké Ball. Then, drawing the attention of a few passersby taking their respective Pokémon partners for walks, he released Ren, curled up in a Lucario-themed hoodie and dark blue shorts, on the cobbled avenue.
"Riuuu...?"
Reacting to the warmth of the cobblestone beneath her, Ren opened her eyes and performed a deep, cat-like stretch before plopping onto her butt and inquisitively taking stock of her surroundings. For the first time in her life, she wasn't the only Pokémon wearing clothes. Rather, as the fashion capital of the League-controlled territories and the home of the Pokémon Showcase circuit, there were nearly as many Pokémon with custom-made garments and accessories as without.
Drawing considerably more attention to herself, Ren perked up, rushed over to Jason, and animatedly exclaimed, "Jason! Jason! Look! Other like Ren!" while gripping the outsides of his pant legs.
"But Ren is still the most amazing..." hummed Jason, squatting to Ren's level to caress her head and calmly remind her, "But remember—this is not our home. You can't run around freely here. And we have to be quiet so we don't bother anyone, okay? Behave now, and you'll be able to play all you want once we reach Korrina's home."
"Mmn! Ren good! Ren best~!" responded Ren, holding up and clenching her tiny paws into fists while her tail wagged excitedly behind her. By that point, a handful of people had pulled out their largely non-Rotom phones to take pictures or film them, but as he couldn't exactly prevent Ren from speaking whenever they left the beach, he was mentally preparing for her to gain both fame and notoriety.
"That's my girl..." hummed Jason, cupping and massaging both sides of Ren's face before habitually lowering his right shoulder, allowing her to climb onto his back. He figured the safest course of action was to keep her from wandering entirely, so while he immediately felt a strain on his lower back due to her 53kg weight, he was prepared to ferry her around the entire city if need be.
Raising her brows slightly, Korrina thoughtfully asked, "Should we hail a Taxi and head straight for our hotel, or are you fine with walking around for a bit? There's a famous restaurant I sometimes shoot PR videos for a few blocks from here. You normally need to schedule a reservation three to six months in advance, but I'm friends with the owner."
"Mmn...I would prefer to drop off our luggage first, but if it's not too far, I don't mind walking," responded Jason, smiling. He and Korrina only had a single rolling bag each, so while rolling it over cobblestone was bound to bother him greatly, he didn't care, as it was an opportunity to experience Lumiose's famously scenic boulevards alongside his prized partner and a woman he loved.
"Don't be silly~" chimed Korrina, spinning around, sticking out her tongue, and walking backwards away from Jason as she explained, "We'll have a taxi transport our luggage directly to our hotel. That's a common service here in Lumiose, since people like to walk around and do a lot of shopping all at once. Just wait here while I call one over."
Without waiting for Jason's response, Korrina spun on her heel and moved with eye-catching speed toward the closest taxi. Even without the use of her Omnishoes, she could easily exceed 40km/h, leaving Jason and many onlookers at a loss as she ran so fast that leaves along the ground swirled in her wake.
"Hey, isn't that Korrina, the Gym Leader of Shalour City...?" questioned one male passerby to another, causing Jason's ear to perk as he picked up on the excitement in the man's voice. Korrina was famous throughout the League-controlled territories, but within the Kalos Region, she was a bona fide household name.
"It definitely is..." affirmed the second man, shifting his gaze to Jason as he asked, "But who's that tall guy she's with? It couldn't be her boyfriend, could it?"
"I don't know..." responded the first man, following his friend's gaze as he noted, "But he's got a Riolu on his shoulders, and I'm pretty sure I heard it speak a while ago. It can't be a coincidence that they're together."
'Well, that didn't take long...' thought Jason, sighing internally before he turned to glance at the two men and their partners, a poodle-like Furfrou and a blue-and-white, squirrel-like Pokémon he recognized as a Pachirisu.
Not expecting Jason to look back at them with a smile, the two men, who appeared to be in their late teens or early twenties, briefly startled before the man with the Furfrou asked, "Why are you looking at us? Do you need something...?" with a frown. He was dressed well, and his brown hair was combed over and formed a slight swirl, giving the impression he was well off or wanted people to think he was. Meanwhile, his shorter, somewhat stout friend was dressed casually and carrying a very expensive-looking camera.
"Indeed, I do," affirmed Jason, presenting his best business smile as he confidently approached the duo and flicked out a white and gold-lined business card, stating, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jason Springfield. And though I'm not operating in an official capacity as of this moment, I'm a Junior Marketing Coordinator for the Aether Foundation. To that end, I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't carelessly speculate or spread rumors."
"O-Oh? So you're with the Aether Foundation...?" asked the swirly-haired man, his brows rising and eyes widening as he accepted Jason's card and inspected it, finding it to be of an exceedingly high quality.
"That's right," affirmed Jason, causing Ren to stare down at him curiously as he maintained his business persona and explained, "I'm accompanying Gym Leader Korrina on her WCS tour to conduct market research. It's not well-known, but the Aether Foundation is planning to sponsor the creation of a Pokémon League in Alola. This is but one of many steps we are taking toward that goal."
"Right! I remember seeing on TV that Gym Leader Korrina was taking on the Alola Island Challenge...!" exclaimed the stout man with the camera, his pale brown eyes lighting up like a Journalist who just learned about a scoop as he excitedly inquired, "Does this mean the Aether Foundation is sponsoring Gym Leader Korrina's title run!? Could that be the reason she abruptly traveled to the Alola Region in the first place!?"
"Do you perhaps work for the local news or paper...?" asked Jason, his brows perking slightly as he had assumed the man was just a hobbyist taking photos around the city.
"Not directly, but I'm a contributor to a lot of different media groups...!" responded the man, his eyes practically sparkling as he stepped toward Jason, readily invading his personal space.
'Well, this is convenient...' thought Jason, the corners of his smile curling more prominently as he fed the man pieces of the narrative he and Lillie had carefully constructed before his departure. Korrina herself didn't mind if their relationship became known, but as that would draw considerable attention and scrutiny, Jason had convinced her to let him play the part of a marketing specialist. And since Lusamine had created a position for him with the same title within the Aether Foundation's structure, it served as a convenient explanation for why he, someone completely unknown, would be meeting and engaging with various famed and influential figures during their travels...
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"It was really impressive how you took charge of that situation back there. It reminded me of when you practically demanded to speak with President Lusamine," remarked Korrina, her clear blue eyes glistening as she and Jason walked along a shaded sidewalk past many small but high-end storefronts, grooming studios, and bakeries that spread the aroma of fresh, sweet-smelling bread throughout the avenue.
"I passed on the responsibility to others once things got busier, but back when I was first establishing my brand and businesses, I handled most of the marketing myself..." revealed Jason, his expression softening, his eyes showing equal parts nostalgia and melancholy as he admitted, "I had a lot of help, of course. But I spent a considerable amount of time refining how to speak and present myself to clients and investors. In the end, it mostly came down to confidence and knowing in advance how my actions would tangibly benefit them..."
"But you don't like acting like that, do you...?" asked Korrina, preempting Jason's response with one of her characteristically radiant smiles and the casual assertion, "You're more of a listener than a speaker. If you weren't, you wouldn't be able to listen to me and the others speaking for hours on end with that serious and attentive expression of yours."
"It's because I feel genuinely fortunate just being in the position to listen to you all..." contended Jason, his expression sincere and his hazel-brown eyes reflecting the cerulean sky above as he inclined his head slightly and softly appended, "Everything about this world is beautiful, but you all take things to the next level by having infectious personalities...I can't help but want to spend more time with each of you..."
"Ren too...?" asked Ren, partially obstructing Jason's view of the sky by leaning over him.
"Of course. You are my first Pokémon and most precious partner. Even if I catch other Pokémon in the future, you will forever remain my most prized and cherished companion..." responded Jason, infusing sincerity into each and every word. Ren could discern this with her Aura Reading, so with her pale red eyes glistening with emotion, she hunched and hugged his head so snugly that she could have been mistaken for a Lucario-themed helmet from afar...
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