It took me at least five minutes to get over myself and stop being a drama queen, during which time I paced, mumbled, punched the air, looked generally annoyed, and cursed the gods and Mew and Bill Nye the Science Guy.

I never said anything about being reasonable when it came to those I directed my anger towards.

Even I calmed down I was still being a bit of a diva. I felt I had fair reason to be such a thing. Tate and Liza had left the room by this point, realizing both that an adult conversation was about to occur and that their newly discovered cousin was being a prat.

But I could help but be a prat. Bombs dropped do not a composed man make.

Or, for those that don't understand my butchering of Yoda-speak, I don't do well with random shit like this.

As has been pointed out.

Repeatedly.

"Alright," I grounded out, my eyes closed and my mouth dry, my mind going a mile a minute. "Alright. Okay. Just-…"

"Just?" Rachel echoed.

I growled. "Just give me the details. All of 'em. Don't mince anything. Don't treat me like a kid, I want it all."

Though I could not see her, due to my eyes being closed, I could hear Rachel give off an audible hum of what I perceived to be acknowledgement. "What would you like to know?"

I wanted to know how much of a screw-up this second life was if I had to deal with family twice over when I've never once dealt with one for the entirety of my first life. I wanted to know why this was even happening. Hell, I wanted to know why a bit of shared blood mattered in the first place.

But, for her sake, I wouldn't say any of those things.

Not right now, at least.

Instead, I had a simple set of questions with not-so simple answers; more likely to hold loaded answers over anything.

"Who is my mother?"

Like I said. Loaded.

At least Baelish was kind enough to know this was important shit, so he kept his beak shut.

Rachel sighed. "Her name is Roberta. Our mother liked naming conventions; all of her kids and pets and Pokémon had names starting with the letter R. We-"

"Hold up." I said. That just caught my attention. "You said her name Is, not Was. So she's still alive?"

Rachel took in a deep breath. "Yes, she's alive."

Good to know. Well, no; not really. Honestly, I couldn't care less. But, as much as I don't want to deal with it, there's no denying that it is necessary information. I do not appreciate this left-field bullshit. The more I know, the less likely that is to surprise me further.

And based on how lost I currently am, I'm gonna need the whole damn story.

Also, really? Roberta? With a name like that she probably got teased a hell'ova lot as a kid.

"We were born three years apart, I'm the elder sister." She continued. "I told you already that she was my half-sister; we have different fathers but the same mother. Well, that is to say, Roberta was- is, Roberta is-…" She sighed. "There's no good way to put it. She's the result of my mom cheating on my dad."

Fantastic.

"The details on how it happened are irrelevant, but suffice it to say, divorce was brought up." Announced my apparent aunt, and though it sounded obvious, I still blinked in surprise. "Divorce is a rare occurrence in Hoenn, but it happens. Same as anywhere else. That being said, the people of Hoenn really don't like divorce on a cultural level, so when one gets out, it spreads; celebrity divorces can be career enders, the type of material that people will gossip over for months. And being a Gym Leader is a position of celebrity status, no matter how minor that might be. My father is a good man, Jon. Better than most. He knew that if he divorced my mom, your grandmother, that this would get out, and her reputation might get ruined and the League might take the gym from her due to her bad press. But he couldn't let her keep Roberta around; it went against everything he believed in. It would turn cheating, which is already bad, into the stuff of cuckoldry. Ah, do you- er, know what that is?"

I breathed out deeply, not wanting to stay on this line of topic. "Yes, I know what cuckolding is." It was some seriously fucked up stuff, and the people that fetishized it were damned weird. And yes, I am kink shaming. Anybody that says you shouldn't kink shame doesn't understand that kinks weren't meant to get around. If it gets out of the bedroom, it is subject to mockery. And I refuse to hold my tongue.

But this was not the time for such a series of totally reasonable and non-assholish thoughts.

Rachel cleared her throat. "Right. So. He gave her an ultimatum. Either she gets rid of my sister, or she gets rid of him."

"Had to have been harsh," I said breezily, squeezing my knee. Harsh, but fair in its own messed up way. Cheating in any relationship is pretty scummy all things considered, but marriage is especially worse in my mind. I don't have much background with relationships, fuck I'm still a virgin if you want to get technical, but even from my position of inexperience I know that I would never cheat. It's just poor taste.

Or, at least, I would hope I wouldn't cheat. Relationships are complicated and people are fucked up. I'm fucked up. Shit might happen. Shit that I really need to stop thinking about, because damnit more important things than a hypothetical bad relationship are occurring right now and my brain needs to stay focused.

Rachel shook her head, frowning. "Not as harsh as it could have been. Things had been strained for a while between my mom and my dad at this point; they're marriage was arranged and they never really had the chance to date anybody else."

"They still have those?" Really?

"Arranged marriages? Yes, they do; it's still quite common in certain circles. It was decided by their parents, my grandparents, before they were old enough to start primary school." Shrugged the woman before me. "And they got along well enough, all things considered. But this was their breaking point; the beginning of their end. My mom chose my dad in the end and after she gave birth to Roberta, by the grace of all that is holy, the man she cheated with did the honorable thing and took Roberta back to Johto, where he was apparently from. Regardless of her being gone, however, things didn't work out between my parents. There just wasn't any more trust and my dad couldn't put up with it. My mom and dad are still married on paper, but they separated about five years after all of this happened. They only really see each other for major holidays and events nowadays."

"What does that have to do with me?" I want to know the gritty parts of this Roberta woman. I don't care about the family background.

"I'm getting there." She breathed. "You asked for the whole story, and that means you need the setup."

Rachel pinched at her chin and donned a faraway look. "I don't really know Roberta all that well; we were raised by different people and were brought up with different morals. But if you want a one-word description of her, then that word would be anxious. Roberta had always been twitchy, and she never really got on with people all that well. She was the type that was slow to make friends but would stick with the few she had through everything. Her father wanted us to get along and have a relationship though, so they would take annual vacations to Mossdeep during the summertime when he wasn't working as a schoolteacher. I remember her being jealous of me for having a Pokémon when she was younger, even if Slowpoke didn't like to do much, and since we couldn't see each other during our birthdays I thought I'd try to help her problems. So, as a belated birthday gift, I found and captured a Poochyena for her. That Poochyena was her starter, and that was the start of a bit of a craze for her."

"Wanderlust?" The one thing that all Pokémon trainers had in common to some degree. I may have started my own Pokémon adventure out of nostalgic greed, but I wanderlust played a big factor as well.

She nodded sharply. "Wanderlust. From then on, she started to save her money meticulously, ignoring her anxiety as best she could with job after job: fast food joints and tutoring services and even a bit of manual labor. Her father actually confined in me that he'd been worried horribly about her up until that point, but that my gift helped her more than I knew. And when she turned sixteen she felt she'd saved enough to go on her Journey, and he felt her issues had settled well enough that he was willing to allow her to go."

"And that's where this nonsense started," I drawled.

Rachel winced. "Not immediately. Roberta didn't want to be a serious trainer; she just wanted to see the world. She started traveling in Johto, because she was accustomed to it, then moved on to Alola a year later with a friend she started traveling with. She is when the nonsense started. Roberta's friend was far more outgoing than she was, an extrovert to the extreme, and had one of those personalities that let her influence anybody she wanted to some degree. And Roberta stuck with her friends through everything, remember? So, of course, when her friend got caught up in the Alola party lifestyle, Roberta followed suit. Sex, drugs and rock 'n roll and everything in between. Fast enough, Roberta had become a different person."

…I can't believe I'm about to say this.

But go mom. That sounds kinda awesome.

Rachel however didn't approve, obvious though that may be by the way she's currently speaking. "Then, after a year of wastefulness, they, along with a few others met along the way, headed off to the Orange Islands. From what I could gather, they wanted to see if the archipelago had similar lifestyles. And, of course, she ended up staying there for just under a year before running back to Johto with her tail between her legs and not a friend in sight. It was in that year that you were conceived and born, by the way."

"How old was she when she gave birth?"

"I… actually don't know." Rachel said, blinking. "When is your birthday, Jon? I know it's in December, but so is Roberta's."

"I was born on the 26th."

"Then she was nineteen. Her birthday is the 11th."

The fun facts.

"I really don't know everything, part of this is conjecture." Admitted Rachel. "But, from what I've been able to gather, Roberta had some sort of break down, putting it simply. She loved traveling; it was the only thing that really made her happy. And when she was traveling, she was fiercely independent. She made her own choices, moved where she wanted to and dealt only with the people that she wanted to deal with. It was the perfect therapy for her condition. We all knew that she never intended to settle after those first few months of her Journey. So, being pregnant… it messed with her. And then, it turns out that that friend she'd done all of this with abandoned her when she stopped imbibing due to her condition. That hit her hard. The only reason we knew you existed was because her father died four years after you were born and my mother was Roberta's other emergency contact; a pediatrician was wanting to bring you in for a long overdue checkup and couldn't reach my sister.

"That was easily the most emotional phone call I've ever been subjected to. Roberta called us semi-regularly up until that point; four or five times a year, not a lot, but enough to stay up to date. My mother railed into her, and demanded all the details about you, damn the consequences. And she got those details she wanted, along with those consequences. We learned what little there was to learn about you, and we haven't spoken to Roberta since."

…This is some seriously weird family drama that I have been subjected to. Like, what have I done to deserve this shit?

I… I actually don't want to know the answer to that. Alright, let's leave off of that and return to the present. In for a penny, in for a pound, I guess. "Have you tried talking to her?"

Rachel laughed, a bitter and scornful thing. "We tried for a while. Still do. Mom and I were mad for a weeks but were madder that Roberta didn't tell us; we would have been happy to take you in. That's what family does. But when we tried to reconcile our differences, we discovered that Roberta hadn't just blocked us; she completely cut us off. She changed her phone number, her trainer ID, her bank information; everything. The only reason we know she's alive is because that pediatrician still has her on record and he still have us listed as her emergency contact. That's it."

We were quiet then. After a few moments of contemplation Rachel stood and walked away, citing the excuse of checking in on her kids. But her eyes were wet and glossy, and it was clear to me that she needed to calm down. Me, I was just thinking. Thinking about things that were better buried.

Memories of my time at Baychester were brought up.

I never loved Baychester. I admired the place, was molded by it, but never loved it. The staff and volunteers were kind, our basic needs were cared for, and stretched though the budget was, we were happy. But I never loved it. Nobody did. The majority of us that lived beneath Baychester's roof were of the opinion that you were supposed to love a home, not a hostel. And no matter how hospitable and comfortable Baychester was, no matter how kind or caring the people were, an orphanage could not equate to a home.

I knew the story of my original parents from my first life. A pair of scared-ass teenagers that weren't ready to have kids. It wasn't an original plot in the slightest. And Roberta sounded the same sort, one she had a slew of extra issues piled on top. I still didn't really know how I felt about her, how I felt about this narrative, but I knew one thing at the very least.

It. Didn't. Matter.

Cruel and callous though such a statement might be, it was true. Lance, while this body's father, was not my father. Though I respect the man and have grown to enjoy his company and might rely on his aid in the future, I will never view Lance in such a light. And Roberta, the apparent mother of this body, wasn't my mother. I was an orphan and a proud one at that. I had no parents. And this body? This Jon Snow

He wasn't here. Not really.

He was dead.

Whether my soul took over the reins of a fresh corpse, somehow superseded the spirit of a drowning child, or was just dropped into these circumstances by the act of an all-powerful and overly confusing god is unknown to me. It also does not matter. The method as to how I came to be in this body is irrelevant. All that mattered was that it didn't matter, and no matter how much emphasis was added, that fact would not change.

I did not demand information from Rachel for the sake of wanting to better know my family, just as I did not seek out Lance or the Blackthorns until I had little other option. I made this inquiry solely to get the full scope of my bearings. To know how much control I don't have, so that I can know who and what to avoid in the future and thus gain that autonomy over myself back.

And now that I know them, it is enough.

"Baelish," I quietly called.

"Yes?" He queried from atop my head.

"Can you Teleport us back to Fortree?"

He nodded, the action moving my hair in a funny way, and I felt myself envelop in Psychic energies. Rachel and Tate and Liza must have felt a shift in the area, being attuned to Psychic types as they were, and all three rushed into the room.

I stared them down, specifically Rachel, and her wide eyes of shock was the last thing I looked upon when Baelish brought me away.


My Pokégear had filled up with messages and calls within my first week of being back at the gym. Rachel had not at all been happy of my method of leaving, neither was Roxanne. To Rachel, I apologized. It was unfair to bail on her in such a way, but I needed my space. I needed to gather my thoughts and settle whatever grievances clouded my mind.

Still, I recognized it was wrong to leave in such a manner.

I offered her a continuous line of dialogue, one that we could maintain and build a relationship around with an emphasis on the fact that I had my own priorities to keep. I wasn't opposed to getting to know her and her side of the family, I was just uninterested in any familial relationships that they might expect of me. She was surprisingly quite content for that, explaining that she preferred this sort of thing, and a state of relative amiability followed.

Roxanne was an entirely different matter. When we spoke next I was subjected to a well worded dressing down the likes of which I'd not felt since I was a wee lad. It was deserved, however. More important than that was her money, I felt. I'd been mightily curious as to how she was able to have the funds to purchase Onix from me.

My inquiries into her funding was answered with only one word: Brawly.

Her boyfriend, older by just a year and surprisingly more entrepreneurial than I ever would have expected, had amassed quite the savings account during his tenure as the Dewford Island Gym Leader. He not only owned a popular surf shop that had branch operations in Slateport City and Sootopolis City, he also held shares in a mining operation based at the Granite Cave that dug for precious gems and evolution stones.

Putting it simply, Brawly was what was commonly referred to in the old world as a millennial millionaire. Or, in even simpler terms, he was rich.

Yeah. It surprised me too.

But it made sense in its own right. Roxanne is a damn stubborn woman and rarely asks for aid with anything, so even though it dented his savings quite a bit Brawly was more than happy to purchase Onix due to the rarity of such a request. I could totally see her as the type that would actually be pissed if she didn't have the chance to pay for her half of a date or something.

To further solidify the deal and further showcase her stubbornness Roxanne concocted a contract around the purchase, stating that it was a loan agreement as opposed to a favor. Roxanne would eventually pay him back. Brawly, being the lender in question, added another capitulation to that, stating that there would be no need to pay him back should they marry, as he believed in a mine if yours mentality in matrimony that meant it would be her money in the first place spent a little early.

Roxanne's face had turned pure crimson after telling me that and she hung up our video call in a delightful mix of elation and embarrassment. Brawly had basically put his intentions for her on the table, damn the consequences. I admired the hell out of that.

What can I say? I guess I'm a bit of a closet romantic.

…Okay, not really. But I admire ballsiness if nothing else.

Quickly though, I stopped caring about what was going on with Roxanne and Brawly, and even put Rachel and hers on the back burner. Why, you might ask?

The Hoenn Gym Circuit had finally begun to settle, Pokémon trainers finally getting good enough to not need League enforced training wheels, and the training I had hoped for, that I had come to Hoenn for, was finally going to start properly. Winona was soon to be available, soon to be free to pursue bringing me up to snuff on a more serious level. I had learned her strategy with Countering, but now we would be able to go more in depth as well as learn some of her signature techniques.

I couldn't wait.

In the wake of this, I returned to Lavaridge Town to grab Drogon and Nagga back from Brent Moore, putting my Hodor back in storage in the process. Brent was unexpectedly disappointed to let them go, even going so far as to offer compensation to keep them around. Big numbers at that, more than what I got for Onix. But while I was willing to sell Onix, there was no way in hell that I would even think about selling these two. Nagga was a beast that was likely to turn into my buster, my guarantee against no only Moltres but the threats of the sea itself, and Drogon was one of the Pokémon I hatched all my own. They were special.

Special didn't even cut it, according to Brent Moore. Nagga struggled for those first few weeks under his tutelage, both because the Gyrados King didn't want to listen to somebody that wasn't me and because Fire type attacks were especially hard for Water type Pokémon to learn. But learn he did; eventually.

Brent started him with a TM for Scald, a Water type move that burned foes. From there, Nagga was instructed with the learning of how to focus solely on the burning effect, which manifested into a rage-fueled Flamethrower. He did not learn Fire Blast after that as Brent hoped would happen, but he did then focus more on his Water type attacks and came out of things having understood how to manipulate that energy far better. Brent said it was like he was a sponge, though he also said it was expected of a Water type Pokémon regarding Water type attacks. Water Gun and Hydro Pump were quick to be learned, and he was of the impression that Nagga would soon be able to manipulate water he swam by way of Surf with a bit more practice.

I was going to give him all the practice he damn well needed.

Drogon too showed plenty of promise. He took in his lessons with an eagerness unseen, holding a rare sort of fervor. Brent wanted him to learn how to manipulate fire to an even greater degree, with a focus on control, and that is what they did. Fire Spin was the first attack her leaned, the spinning of his internal flame being a tricky thing. That was followed by Overheat, which he had an even easier time with. Heat Wave came next, which Drogon apparently struggled to learn. Considering it was a move that superheated the air around him, that made sense. Drogon had only ever produced fire from within his body up until that point, and change was hard to handle. Compounded with the itchiness that his Everstone necklace brought him, it was easy to anger him. In this state of frustration, which was met out onto the innocent trees west of the town, he somehow learned to use Slash, completely out of the planning but still quite useful.

This was not the only method with which he let out steam, proved by the extra pair of Charmander eggs Brent admitted to now possessing. His whore of a Ditto worked hard, and Drogon was apparently the type to hate-fuck. Good to know, I guess, though I also wished I didn't have that information.

Regardless, Brent was an honorable sort and genuinely wanted to keep those Charmander eggs. One would go to his son, the current Gym Leader of Lavaridge Town, meant to be used as a gym Pokémon for future challenges. The other would go to Tommy, Luanna's son, back on the Orange Islands. He was apparently planning on leaving within the month for his Journey, and though his Pikachu was formidable, a Charmander was worth waiting around for.

Brent knew me decently by this point, decent enough to know my motivations. Money pushed me forward and made me pliable, and training did too. In exchange for these extra Charmander, Brent Moore would, upon Drogon becoming a Charizard, regardless of when that might occur, teach him the pinnacle of Fire type attacks.

Blast Burn.

For those that are unaware, I stopped playing the Pokémon games when Fire Red and Leaf Green were produced. I played the hell out of those, but they were the last ones I played. Which was why I was surprised by Thoros and Rayder's evolutions, as well as my new Emolga; I didn't know they existed until I came here. But the super moves of the starter Pokémon trio that were introduced during those games, those I knew about. And I was fond of them. Frenzy Plant for Venusaur, Hydro Cannon for Blastoise, Blast Burn for Charizard. The equivalent of a Hyper Beam with an elemental inclination; the most powerful attack of their typings.

Would I trade eggs that I didn't know existed for the chance to learn this attack from a former member of the Hoenn Elite Four?

Hell yes. Hell fucking yes.

That being said, I didn't let it stay as a verbal agreement. Fuck that. I barged into his office and basically demanded a written contract. Honorable though he might be, I didn't really know Brent all that much. I didn't know if he was the type to follow through with his words or if he was the type to ignore things that were somewhat difficult. I had a gut feeling he was the type to follow through, but better safe than sorry.

The process was drawn out and our wordings took time to hammer out, but the contract was set and the deal struck. We shook hands, I emailed a trio of copies to Winona, Claire and Rachel, and that was the end of my time in Lavaridge Town. For now, at least.

It was time to get started.


Winter/Pidgeot – Male

Moves: Tackle, Gust, Sand Attack, Agility, Double Team, Whirlwind, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Steel Wing, Twister, Hyper Beam, Sunny Day, Heat Wave, Attract, Rest, Sky Attack, Aerial Ace

Ability: Keen Eye


Thoros/Gliscor – Male

Moves: Sludge Bomb, Slash, Poison Sting, Metal Claw, Dark Pulse, Dig, Guano, Attract, Steel Wing, Iron Tail, Sandstorm, Ice Fang, Crunch

Ability: Sand Veil


Viserion/Dragonair – Male

Moves: Leer, Wrap, Thunder Wave, Water Pulse, Attract, Water Gun

Ability: Shed Skin


Baelish/Natu – Male

Moves: Peck, Leer, Night Shade, Calm Mind, Protect, Teleport, Flash, Confuse Ray, Psychic

Ability: Synchronize


Ramsey/Aerodactyl – Male

Moves: Iron Head, Hyper Beam, Wing Attack, Bite, Roar, Crunch, Take Down, Supersonic, Headbutt, Rest, Stealth Rock, Earthquake

Ability: Rock Head


Rayder/Honchkow – Male

Moves: Astonish, Pursuit, Peck, Wing Attack, Taunt, Haze, Perish Song, Dark Pulse

Ability: Super Luck


Rhaegal/Shelgon – Female

Moves: Rage, Headbutt, Ember, Dragon Rush, Attract, Skull Bash, Protect

Ability: Rock Head


Drogon/Charmeleon – Male(Shiny)

Moves: Growl, Scratch, Ember, Ancient Power, Attract, Iron Tail, Metal Claw, Sunny Day, Bite, Flamethrower, Dragon Rage, Dragon Claw, Dig, Protect, Fire Spin, Overheat, Heat Wave, Slash

Ability: Blaze


Nagga/Gyarados – Male

Moves: Splash, Tackle, Bite, Leer, Thunderbolt, Thunder Wave, Ice Fang, Crunch, Body Slam, Headbutt, Iron Head, Twister, Dragon Rage, Thunder, Scald, Flamethrower, Water Gun, Hydro Pump

Ability: Intimidate


Jon Snow – Male

Date: May 23

Orange League: Complete

Held Pokémon: Pidgeot, Gliscor, Dragonair, Natu, Aerodactyl, Honchcrow, Shelgon,

Stored Pokémon: Kabuto(x2), Kabutops(x2), Omanyte(x2), Omastar(x2), Charmeleon, Gyarados, Skarmory, Lairon, Delibird, Emolga, Nincada

Currency: ₽1,317,730


Relatively short chapter, all things considered. Apologies for that, I've got another story eating up my attention. If any of you like GoT stuff, you should check out Zigzag. And no, I have no shame when it comes to promoting my own stuff. Shame is for the weak.

SO! We know the identity of Jon's mother. I know some of you will be disappointed that she doesn't have any connection to something involving Ice types, but alas; that would be a little too nonsensical. Most of this story is nonsensical already, but too much does a predictable tale make. Roberta will appear eventually, the manner in which this occurs I have yet to determine, but for now, the information that she exists at all will have to be settled.

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