Fashion and Fyre Part 5a: Shadows(Shauna's Eyes)

The day was long and tiring. The two of them; Shauna and her companion, Mr. Cabberin, trudged pathetically along the long road north to Lumiose city. The day wasn't a complete waste however, running her hand through the flowers as they walked, Shauna found after a while that one blue flower she had brushed against before had continued to drift along with her. Gripping the top of the flower was a small white and green creature with a small crown of yellow dots around it's head. Knowing the Flabébé having seen one before, Shauna squealed in excitement. Her squeak startled the large man beside her, with the small flower hovering above the palm of her hand she turned to face him. The small Pokemon looked up at the faces, drifting closer to her chest at the appearance of the tall man. "If it happily comes along, no argument here." He said with a smile, making her bounce excitedly in place with the flower above her hand.

As the sun set, the two companions breached the gate into the 'city of light', the great and famous Lumiose City. The great city seemed as if it were day, no matter how the sky hated them. An odd smell, ever present but less pungent than Mr. Cabberin, hung about the city. The large stone buildings had beautiful arched windows and often small balconies. An enormous spired building rose from the center of the city, shedding light as a beacon around it. The large man tapped Shauna's shoulder and pointed to the building, explaining that it was Lumiose's Pokemon gym, should she want to try her hand at it. However for now she had an appointment down the road from where they entered, a very old, quite classical building with a sign declaring 'Sycamore labs'. With a pat on the back, Mr. Cabberin left Shauna to enter the building of her own motivation.

The professor's laboratory was certainly once a house, though it's interior maintained gave it a distinctly clinical feel. As the door swung closed it was caught, Serena pushing it open again to allow herself access "Sorry I'm late" She remarked, shutting the door quietly behind her. "Was visiting my aunt, she's letting me stay the night tonight" Shauna nodded, commenting that it was a better idea than the Pokemon center. The two laughed, Serena taking this momentary reprise to show Shauna the many Pokemon she had already caught. Shauna was quite embarrassed to admit that though she had traveled the same distance in the same time, and even had a gym badge, she only owned one Pokemon. The little flower creature sticking to her blouse simply being a random passenger.

After a moment adoring each others cute little Pokemon, Serena asked the woman behind the counter for directions to where they could find the Professor. Her simple response was to request their invitation, their letter of acceptance from the Professor, which Serena proudly presented, while Shauna politely placed hers on the counter. After reading each, the quite distracted receptionist pointed down the only obvious hall. "Take the stairs to the fourth floor and it's the door on your right." The two girls smiled at each other before racing down the hall, Shauna's red and gold dog barking excitedly as it chased them along. The beautiful oak staircase was quickly bounded up despite it stretching four floors. The door on their right at the top of the stairs was open already, from inside they could hear things being hurtled about during what could easily be noticed as a Pokemon battle.

"Ha ha! You're too much for me! You're really something, aren't you?" The taller man in the room panted, leaning back against a desk after a flash of light signaled the end of a battle. As the two girls entered, he waved them closer "Fantastic! You're here! You are Shauna and Serena right?" The man smiled, straightening his shirt as he stood from the desk. The two girls nodded, Shauna admittedly getting somewhat excited to be in the same room as Professor Sycamore. "Many thanks for coming all the way from Vaniville Town! I'm Professor Sycamore! It's a pleasure to finally meet you! How is your Pokemon journey going so far? Have you met many different Pokemon? Fantastic! Let me have a quick look at your lineup and see!" The man wandered around the room a little, a warm smile and gentle hand gestures as he spoke. As he requested, both Serena and the young boy; Ryan, presented their Pokeballs. Each were proud to show they had five in their possession, embarrassing Shauna greatly when she held out the one Pokeball her Fennekin had come in, the canine in question sitting by her side. The professor's eyebrows narrowed as he looked her up and down, keeping the calming smile all the while. "Haven't you had much luck? It'd be fantastic if you took another Pokemon with you! Here! Pick one!" Shauna was shocked and slightly bewildered. She stuttered as three flashes of mechanical red light revealed three Pokemon; A lizard with a bulb growing from it's back, a bipedal lizard with fire on it's tail, and a large turtle. Looking at the three people in the room with her she blinked for a moment, unsure if they were joking.

"I don't know which one to pick! It's so difficult!" Shauna whispered confused and slightly upset. The older girl's hand rested on her shoulder as Serena encouraged her. Being told she'd be with this Pokemon for a long time both frightened and excited Shauna as she knelt down in front of the Pokemon. Looking at each of them she holds out her arms by her side, palms facing away and shoulders lowered. After about a minute, the bipedal lizard wandered forward and placed it's arms around her waist. Avoiding the fiery tail, Shauna wrapped her arms around the little lizard's back. "Hello, Charmander. I'm glad to meet you. I hope you'll come to trust and like me. I promise that I'll take good care of you." She hugged it tight, only letting go when a little nose nudged her side. "Oh, this is Kinglii. I hope you too get along!" After wiping a couple tears from her eyes she wrapped her arms around both of them, a little flower sitting in her hair. Looking up she watched as Ryan took the Pokeball for the turtle and Serena took the one for the final Pokemon.

After a few minutes getting to know the new Pokemon, the four people were met by two more. Tierno and Trevor strolled through the door excitedly. Both boys greeted the professor, and were met by a warm smile and handshake. Trevor looked around at the others as the professor hopped up to sit upon his desk. "Wonderful! Everyone's all here." The professor grinned at them triumphantly. "So now that we're all here, I'd like to say a few words." Shauna watched as both Tierno and Trevor rolled their eyes, grabbing nearby chairs for each person. She politely declined hers, preferring to sit on the floor with the two Pokemon hugging her. "Be the best Trainer you can be!" He rubbed his hands together, eager to begin his speech. "At the same time, remember to have fun traveling with your Pokemon!" The Charmander and Fennekin shuffled to watch where Shauna was watching, remaining in her arms. "Also, I want to ask for your help in solving the Kalos region's biggest Pokemon mystery: the secret and potential of Mega Evolution, a new kind of Evolution that occurs in battle!" Shauna sighed quietly to herself, this is where it ceased to be as amazing or whimsical. This was something that was already quite well understood, it wasn't a mystery or an enigma. Professor Sycamore figured a lot of this out many years ago, there was even rumours of a human who could mega evolve. This was simply some simply little quest to send the kids accepted into this 'program' on, if they didn't want to do the Pokemon league challenge.

The professor's spiel continued for a further half an hour, the darkness outside almost impossible to note for the lights of the city. He spoke whimsically and excitedly, many of the others sharing his enthusiasm as the time drew on. When finally he declared the lesson over, he handed each one of them a small card with their picture on it, apparently taken during his talk. Shauna's Pokemon license showed the Charmander, Fennekin and Flabébé, along with her name; date of birth and several other details. As they left, Serena approached her excitedly "I can't wait to be a Pokemon master", her excitement instantly rubbing off on Shauna. "Oh, do you have a place to stay tonight?" She asked suddenly, as the two walked through the well lit streets. At the shaking of Shauna's head she smiled "Great! Come with me and stay in my aunt's spare room. It'll be better than the pokemon center!"