- Vagabond - Male Reader x Pokémon

Chapter 6: Smoke

[Evening, Professor Rowan's Laboratory, Sandgem Town]

As night descended upon Sandgem Town, the settlement was lit up by light through the windows of each building, providing only a silhouette into the lives of each household. It was quiet, and peaceful. Not even a Shinx's howl could disturb them. However, up at the Pokémon Laboratory, it was another late night for all the researchers. It was a bad habit, too focused on work and experiments, they often forgot that eating was just as important. That was just how invested they were in their studies. Yet, it made for a good excuse for them to all eat together at the end of a day of constant rigorous testing and work.

And, fortunately for them, their resident Pokémon researcher, Yuzo, was a phenomenal chef. There were over ten of them all together, including [Y/N] and Cynthia, who sat alongside them. In the centre of the room was a massive oak table, adorned with plate after plate of dazzling, tantalising food for all to dig in. "It looks like you've outdone yourself once again, Yuzo." Mina said from one end.

By the end of the table, four hungry Pokémon ravaged through their individual food bowls. Gible was constantly on the edge of falling in entirely, while the other three held a bit more decorum. Bibarel slept on its stomach, keeping a watchful ear out for any trouble.

Yuzo smiled brightly. "Well I couldn't just let our guests eat any old meal! Anyway, it's time for celebration!" He said, racing around the table, finishing up the last few small dishes. "Cynthia's going off to beat the Gym Challenge! Our Champion in waiting!" Attention fell upon the new trainer, her face growing slightly red. "D-Don't call me that while Professor Rowan's sitting here! A-And I'm sure there are tons of trainers who could be Champion." She said sheepishly.

Rowan chuckled to himself. "Don't be modest, Cynthia. We've all seen you train day and night for your journey. We'd be amiss to not recognise your determination!" Another researcher commented, Berlitz. "Now, now. You're embarrassing the poor thing." Mina scolded. "I'm sure she'll do just fine whatever happens." Cynthia smiled. "Thanks." And she got a small nod in return. The reigning Champion looked at them all fondly. It was always hard to tell with Rowan, especially behind the enormous bush underneath his nose, but this time it was clear.

Sitting next to Cynthia sat a conflicted [Y/N]. He remained closed off, deep in thought. Since he had awoken this morning, there remained some hope that some memory would return to him. And he certainly had tried his hardest to remember, and yet nothing came to him. That essentially rendered his first plan a failure. If he couldn't remember who he was, then he couldn't just keep hoping it would magically come back to him. He had to go to his second plan, and that meant he couldn't just sit around the laboratory doing nothing.

There were two options he foresaw before him. Try to persuade Rowan to take him on as a lab assistant, or try to persuade Rowan to let him become a trainer. He continually weighed the options back and forth in his head. Working in a laboratory seemed safe, free meals, a place to sleep and a roof above his head. It probably meant that he also had to be smart, but not just smart, he would have to be knowledgeable about Pokémon. And that was currently a subject that was in need of more information.

If Rowan were to potentially mentor him, or one of the many other researchers, he would catch up with time. Yet, that felt a little sleazy. He had already done so much to help. Coercing him into taking in some strange, amnesiac from the middle of the woods and giving him a job seemed a step too far.

So that left him with option two, become a Pokémon trainer. This also wasn't fool proof. He was in a foreign country essentially, with no real idea as to where he was. And, it wasn't a safe place either from how everyone described Sinnoh. It was a treacherous landscape filled with wild and dangerous monsters. Not only would he have to survive that, but a trainer had other roles to fulfil. Catching and training Pokémon, making sure they were well-looked after, and so on. There was the Gym Challenge too, which would test his worth, but also the Pokémon League. That was thinking too far into the future however, for now he had to think small.