Verdanturf Town was exactly how Leo remembered it: peaceful, quiet, and smelling like a fresh-cut lawn after a rainstorm.
He stood at the gate of the family farm, looking like he'd crawled through a few mountain ranges which, to be fair, he mostly had. His boots were caked in a year's worth of Hoenn dirt, and his jacket had seen better days, but as he leaned against the weathered wood of the gate, he finally let out a breath he felt like he'd been holding since he left.
"Man," he muttered, wiping a streak of dust from his forehead. "Twelve months. It feels like a lifetime. I wonder if the old man's still complaining about his back, or if Grandma finally got him to stop eating those sweets behind her back."
On top of his head, something stirred. A small, ghostly dragon a sleek mix of deep forest green and neon yellow blinked its eyes open. It let out a tiny, high-pitched trill, vibrating with excitement as it recognized the familiar scent of the orchard.
"Dreep! Dreepy-dra!"
Leo chuckled as the little guy did a victory lap around his head before diving straight over the gate and bolting toward the main house. "Yeah, yeah, I missed you too, buddy. Don't go knocking over Grandma's vases, okay?"
Leo pushed the gate open. The hinges gave a familiar, low groan that sounded like a welcome-home greeting. He looked around, but the front yard was empty. No surprise there it was getting close to sunset. His grandparents were probably out back in the fields or the barns, making sure the Miltank and Gogoat were settled in for the night.
As he walked toward the main villa, Leo couldn't help but get lost in his own head.
Sixteen years. That's how long it had been since he'd woken up in this world. Back in his "first" life, he'd been just another guy grinding out forty-hour weeks (plus "voluntary" overtime) at a logistics firm. He remembered that last night vividly staring at a flickering computer screen until his eyes bled, desperate to hit a deadline so he wouldn't get chewed out the next morning. He'd been so sleep-deprived and rushed that he hadn't even seen the truck coming.
Standard stuff, really. Overwork, a loud horn, a flash of headlights, and then... this.
The Pokémon world wasn't exactly like the cartoons he'd seen as a kid. You didn't just grab a backpack and leave home at ten. The League actually had laws about that sort of thing now; you had to be fifteen and have a proper license. So, Leo had spent his first decade and a half just being a kid, waiting for his "System" the weird UI that popped into his head the day he hit puberty to actually do something.
And it had. It gave him an egg, a basic stat panel, and then essentially ghosted him.
But that egg? That had been the jackpot. A shiny Dreepy. A literal ghost-dragon pseudo-legendary that most trainers would sell their soul for. At fifteen, Leo had been convinced he was the protagonist of the world. He was going to stomp the Elite Four, become the Champion, and have his name in lights.
Then he'd lost his first battle to a literal Caterpie because Dreepy was basically a wet noodle before it evolved.
That had been a hell of a reality check. He'd crawled back home with his tail between his legs, and he still saw his Grandpa's smug, "I told you so" grin in his nightmares. His Grandpa had eventually felt bad enough to give him a proper starter a Mudkip and that's when his journey actually started.
But after a year on the road, after the dangerous scraps and the long nights sleeping in tents, Leo realized something. He didn't want the spotlight. He was tired. He'd been tired in his last life, and he was tired now. The farm looked a hell of a lot better than a cold mountain peak.
He was just about to reach the front door when the ground beneath him seemed to ripple. A massive, round purple shape burst out of the shadows, nearly giving Leo a heart attack.
"Geng-gar!"
The ghost pounced, all three hundred pounds of him, pinning Leo to the grass with a wet, ghostly lick across the face.
"Gah! Gross! Gengar, get off!" Leo laughed, struggling to push the big guy back. "Seriously, man, did you get even bigger? You're like a beanbag chair with teeth."
Gengar hopped off, looking incredibly proud of himself. This was his Grandma's partner, the Pokémon that had basically acted as Leo's babysitter growing up. The bond was deep, even if it usually involved Gengar scaring the life out of him for a laugh.
"Gengar, Gengar!" The ghost flexed his stubby arms, striking a "strongman" pose to insist that it wasn't fat it was all muscle.
Leo grinned, and with a quick flicker of his mind, he pulled up the ghost's stats.
Pokémon: Gengar Level: 70 (Early Champion-Rank) Aptitude: Champion-Rank Ability: Cursed Body Key Moves: Shadow Ball, Dream Eater, Will-O-Wisp, Destiny Bond, Thunderbolt, Sludge Bomb...
"Damn," Leo whistled. "Level 70? You've been putting in work while I was gone, huh? You're a total powerhouse now."
Gengar puffed out his chest, looking like he'd just won the lottery. Leo knew this was probably the ceiling for the big guy; hitting the "Master" or "Legend" tiers was basically impossible without some kind of miracle, but for a farm guardian? Level 70 was more than enough to make any intruder regret their life choices.
"Alright, alright, big shot. Where are the old folks? Still out in the back?"
Gengar pointed a chubby finger toward the deeper part of the farm property. Leo nodded. He'd guessed as much. He unslung his heavy backpack and handed it to the ghost. "Do me a favor and take this upstairs? My shoulders are killing me. I'm gonna go find them."
Gengar saluted, grabbed the bag, and vanished into the floorboards.
Leo took a deep breath, reaching for the four luxury balls hanging from his belt. "Alright guys, come on out. We're home."
In a series of flashes, four figures appeared on the lawn.
The Mudkip from a year ago was gone, replaced by a nearly ten-foot-tall Swampert that looked like he could bench-press a truck. Beside him were a graceful, blue-flowered Florges, a sleek Leafeon, and a very small, very round Togepi.
The second her feet hit the grass, Togepi turned around and started swinging her tiny arms at Leo's shins.
"Togepi! Togepi-pi!"
"Whoa, hey! What did I do?" Leo laughed, picking up the angry egg-shaped Pokémon before she could do any real damage.
"Togepi!" She crossed her arms and turned her head away, huffing.
"Oh, come on. You're the one who said the mountain air was too cold and climbed into your ball yourself! Don't blame me because you stayed in there for three hours."
Togepi didn't budge. She was a friendship evolution, and she knew exactly how to use that to her advantage. She stayed perfectly still, eyes closed, playing the "ignored" card.
Leo sighed, a smirk playing on his lips. He leaned in and whispered, "If you stop being mad, I'll get you that double-scoop cone from the shop in town. The one with the extra sprinkles."
Togepi's eyes popped open. She immediately did a 180, nuzzling into Leo's chest with a happy chirp.
"Yeah, I thought so. You're a cheap date," Leo joked. He looked over at the rest of his team—Swampert looking goofy as ever, Florges admiring the local flowers, and Leafeon sniffing the fresh Verdanturf grass.
He looked at his house, his family, and his partners. For the first time in two lifetimes, he felt like he was exactly where he was supposed to be.
"This world is actually pretty amazing," he whispered.