A Journey of Two, a Pokemon Story

Meridian said:

would it be possible for this post to get an informational threadmark? or added to the mechanics one?

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Yep, I just added it to the Mechanics informational.

On that note, it's time for me to close the vote. Looks like this is going to be a rather social week for Violet as she meets both her parents and Willow's family.

The very first thing Violet did when she arrived in Saffron City was to start walking towards a restaurant her parents wanted to meet in. It was a nice place, relatively upscale with an outdoor seating area. It had been a while since she had seen her parents, and Violet was looking forward to it. There was another part that was nervous about it, especially with how her parents disapproved of her decision to face Team Rocket.

She must have hesitated long enough for the apprehension to show, as Willow gently tapped her on the shoulder. "It's easy to get turned around in Saffron," Willow said in a tone that made it clear that Violet could deflect easily if she wished. "But I'm pretty sure that's the place. Am I right?"

Willow clearly didn't know if Violet was simply lost in the city or if she had a reason to avoid her parents. But either way, the shy girl was grateful for the compassion shown. "Thanks," Violet mumbled quietly. "I'm looking forward to seeing them again." She added afterward, clarifying in a roundabout manner that her parents were great. They could just be a little much for her at times.

"What do they think of me?" Willow asked with a grin, clearly happy to avoid any possibility of a complex relationship between parent and child. "You told them about me right?"

Violet nodded, choosing not to clarify what exactly she told them. Describing her friend as loud was not exactly polite. …Actually, Willow would probably find that hilarious.

Stepping into the restaurant, Violet glanced at the specials, noticing a variety of imported sushi on display. Then she looked around, spotting her parents at one of the booths whispering to each other. She didn't say anything at first, choosing to walk over until one of them looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps. "Hi, mom. Hi, dad."

"Violet!" Her parents said simultaneously, standing up to hug her.

"It's been far too long," her dad said, glancing over at Willow who had thus far remained quiet, allowing Violet to welcome her parents first. "And you must be Willow, it's good to meet you."

"Hi, Violet's dad!" Willow chirped happily, waving at him with a cheery smile. "You wanna see some pictures of your daughter?"

Violet's head snapped to her friend, suddenly she was very concerned. Then her mother (traitors that parents were) leaned over with an eager look in her eye. "I like you already."

"Mom~," Violet whined, trying to avoid the embarrassment that was sure to follow. "Didn't I send you enough pictures?"

"I can never have too many pictures of my daughter," her mother said in a tone that was both pleased and serious. Flicking her eyes to Willow, who was currently energetically showing pictures to Violet's father, she allowed a soft smile to cross her face. "You never talk to strangers, I want to know what she thinks of you."

Willow looked up from her phone, an odd expression crossing her face at her mother's wording. "Violet's cool!" Violet immediately turned crimson, trying to hide in her seat as she already knew what was coming. "You should have seen her fight Flynn! He kept on trying to trick her, but she saw through it every time."

Covering her face with her hands in embarrassment, Violet made a mental note to do the same when she met Willow's parents. It was the least she deserved. "Oh she sent us that video," her mother explained. "I showed it to my coworkers, they were all very impressed."

"As long as she's facing regular trainers, I'm happy," her dad added. "I almost had a heart attack when she said she was going to Lavender Town two months back."

Had it been that long ago? Violet thought. It felt so recent but then again time seemed to blur with how much was going on these days. "We love her, but we worry," her mother directed towards Willow, accidentally cutting Violet out of the conversation. It unfortunately didn't surprise her, she had a habit of fading into the background during talks in a group. "Violet," her mother said, suddenly dragging her back into the conversation. "Do you need more supplies? We got some for you just in case."

Violet shook her head, before realizing her mother was going to start listing what she brought. "I-I'm fine," she said. "I've been regularly stocking up in cities." Pointing out the folded-up bike on her backpack, Violet smiled. "I have to avoid overpacking."

Her mother nodded, understanding the situation, albeit saddened that she hadn't managed to help. Her father, however, then entered the fray. "Perhaps that flashlight you saw. Holly, you remember the one?"

"Oh you're right," her mother perked up. "Violet, how about a lighter flashlight? I saw one online but thought you already had enough."

"I…" she was about to say she already had one before she saw her parent's expression. "That would help," she folded, deciding to accept the slight upgrade.

Her mother practically beamed, clearly happy her gift would be useful. "Thank you for the reminder dear." Placing a hand on her father's arm, Violet immediately looked away. The last thing she wanted to see was her parents flirting in front of her.

"Violet," her father said, ensuring she couldn't escape the sight of her parents flirting. Even if they dialed it down at her obvious embarrassment. "Do you know when you'll be facing the gym? Your mother and I can't stay for long, but we do want to see your fight."

[] Week 22 - Choosing to face the gym almost immediately, you will have to face the attendant then Gym Leader Sabrina within the same week. You could do it, but it would take the entire week.
[] Week 23 - Taking a few days to prepare, you would face the attendant next week then Sabrina the week after. It would allow you to train some of your Pokemon beforehand.
[] Week 24 - Spending almost a month in Saffron City, you will have enough time to extensively prepare for the gym. Almost too much in full honesty.
[] Write-in

Sir LagsAlot said:

Since it looks like we'll be taking the time to do a bit of training I'd like to know Daemon Hunter how many TMs Violet can afford at present, and if you want us to specify what we're looking for when taking the action.

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For that, Violet can currently afford 3 TMs at this time and it'll be followed by a second vote on what TMs you wish to purchase.

On that note, as it looks like voting has died down. Looks like Week 23 is when you'll challenge the gym. Which does allow for some fun training arcs in the meantime. That and the small possibility of other fun encounters.

After dinner, Violet, Willow, and her parents spent a few hours touring Saffron City with the most energetic trainer in the group showing off some of the sights. Most of them Violet had already seen when she first visited the city, so she was more quiet than usual. It was also getting late, and she had spent most of her social battery at this point.

Her parents must have realized it, as they said they had to rest for the night despite not being tired. Violet appreciated it, even if she now had a social introduction to prepare for.

Walking towards Willow's home, Violet was glad that her friend could talk for the two of them. Talking at length about her parents, some of her favorite sights, and how she loved Sabrina's battling style to the point that she was saving the Saffron City Gym for her last badge. Violet was mostly quiet, occasionally asking a question or two here or there.

Approaching Willow's home, Violet looked over it, her eyes trailing across the townhouse. It appeared smaller than her home in Celadon, but that was likely due to the location rather than anything else. Homes in a city were likely far more expensive.

As the two trainers approached the door, it immediately banged open as what appeared to be an older version of Willow ran out. "Willow! It's been so long, how have you been? How long are you staying?"

"Great! I've seen so many cool Pokemon and people, I'll be here for a few weeks, not sure how long." Willow replied entirely unfazed at the sheer exuberance on display.

"And you must be Violet, I hope Willow isn't dragging you around too much," Violet felt like a deer in headlights as she suddenly understood how exactly Willow became the way she was. "How has your journey been? I heard you have a Dratini, how did you two meet? It must have been quite the day."

"Uh…" Violet eloquently explained, glancing at Willow for help.

"She's like dad," that wasn't what Violet expected, but Willow's mother seemed to understand as she let out an understanding sound.

"Well then dear, you should come in and wash up," Willow's mother pivoted on her heels like a dancer holding the door for the two girls. "We have a spare room upstairs, feel free to unpack. We'll have dinner in a few minutes."

Willow walked in first, followed by a notably more hesitant Violet who forced herself to address the other woman in the room. "Th-thanks f-for having me."

The older woman gave her a soft smile, "It's nothing dear, it's the least I can do for one of Willow's friends."

Violet didn't respond, giving a slight nod before turning towards the stairs, only pausing slightly when she noticed Willow chatting away with her father in the kitchen. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that Willow was speaking while her father was mostly listening and occasionally responding with short sentences. …she really was like Willow's dad.

After unpacking her stuff, which took just a few minutes, Violet took a brief shower in the attached bedroom. Then she took a few minutes to just lie down in bed to relax. It had been a long day of socializing with multiple people. She could handle one-on-one interactions easily as evidenced by continuing to enjoy her time with Willow. Group talks were another matter, and now she had to deal with what could be described as a doubling of Willows.

…Tetsuya could never meet Willow's family. She couldn't imagine having to deal with three high-energy individuals at once.

Eventually, Violet was forced to continue socializing. Although knowing Willow, she probably could have just asked if she could have dinner later. But she knew her friend would be sad as would Willow's parents. So eventually, Violet slowly walked downstairs where Willow and her mother were now chatting with each other and occasionally dragging Willow's father into the conversation.

The dad was the one who saw her first, giving her an understanding look followed by a slight nod of the head.

Violet responded with a similar nod before glancing towards Willow and her mother.

Willow's dad shrugged his shoulders before smiling slightly. Then he glanced at Willow and then at Violet with an inquisitive look.

This time Violet shrugged, before thumbing Dratini's Pokeball.

While it was nice to have a nonverbal conversation as an introduction, it couldn't last forever. And eventually, she would be noticed by the distracted mother-daughter pair. "H-hello Willow's mom. Hi, Willow's dad."

"Oh please dear, call me Aunt Hazel." The older woman said, "How has your journey been? Willow has told me quite a bit about you."

The exuberance on display was less than the introduction at the door, something that brought Violet some relief. Now that she was at a more manageable level, Violet didn't feel as intimidated. "It's been good." She said softly. "I've seen a lot of nice places."

"The caves?" Willow's father entered the conversation for a moment.

Violet nodded, thinking back to her first adventures in them. "Cerulean City has some nice ones. And the Rock Tunnel is well known."

"Oh?" Aunt Hazel interjected. "Do you have any other places you plan to visit? I know a fair few around Kanto."

"Let me tell you about some of them," Willow added, beginning to explain a few of the places her mom recommended.

The rest of the night proceeded in a similar manner. Willow and her mother talked the vast majority of the time and repeatedly directed questions at Violet. Every now and then Willow's father would add to the conversation, but he was more comfortable listening rather than talking. During the talk, Violet learned a fair bit about Willow's family. Her mother was a background dancer for a few artists and her father was an engineer for Silph Co that had been working on alternate versions of the Pokeball.

Eventually though, Violet did feel the urge to sleep, which left her to plan the following week.

The 22nd Week, Pick 1

Pokemon Actions

[-] Catch a fifth Pokemon - Now that your team has its core members, a fifth and sixth member would be useful and have more possible options. However, it's still quite early for that. Locked.
[] Train with your Pokemon - All of your Pokemon are skilled in battle with unique skills. Several of them are near breakthroughs so training would help considerably.
[] Buy and Use TMs/HMs - You're a big enough trainer to afford TMs and HMs for your Pokemon. You should take advantage of it when you can.
[-] Train with Willow's Pokemon - While it would be nontraditional to train with your rival, both of you have unique skill sets that could complement each other. Unfortunately, Willow is busy this week.
[] Review Past Battles - You were so close to beating Flynn, and some of the tricks he tried are giving you ideas. Going over your past battles may help with that.

Battling Actions

[] Challenge New Trainers - Now that you and your Pokemon have developed, fighting a few trainers in rapid succession would be easy.
[] Challenge an Experienced Trainer - Some trainers in the area have two badges, beating them may be a good experience.
[] Look into the Surge in Wild Pokemon Encounters - A lot of trainers have reported being attacked by Eevee on the outskirts of the city. One of the gym attendants was dispatched but hasn't been seen since.
[X] Challenge a Saffron Gym Attendant - You need to face one of the attendants before you're allowed to face Sabrina. The gym is oddly tense for reasons you don't know.
[-] Challenge the Saffron City Gym - Gym Leader Sabrina is one of the more intimidating trainers due to her psychic powers. But she is also an extremely experienced leader with a reputation for having her challenges be notably harder than the norm.

Exploration Actions

[] See the Sights Inside the City - There are a number of interesting attractions in Saffron City. You saw a fair few last time you were here, but far from all.
[] See the Sights Outside the City - With Diglett Cave nearby, it could be fun to spend a few days exploring the cave system and see what interesting locations and Pokemon are within.
[] Explore Unorthodox Locations - Saffron City is a large metropolis with a number of rather unconventional places to explore. See what you can find.

Traveling Actions

*You plan to face the Saffron Gym soon. You can't leave just yet.

Social Actions (For socials, it's assumed you keep up a basic level of contact through text, choosing a social means I write it up)

[] Meet your parents - Your parents are currently touring the city, mainly the places you already visited. While they would understand if you were busy, they would appreciate it if you joined them.
[] Meet Tetsuya - An old childhood friend of yours, the two of you drifted off recently. He has decided to try and figure out what is with the surge in Eevee but first plans to train his Pokemon.
[-] Meet Willow's Family - You're currently staying with Willow's family but they are rather busy with Willow who is herself busy visiting people she knows in the city. It'd be awkward to join her.