Marin 7

Milo and the Blue Umbreon

Milo scuffed his foot aimlessly on the cobbled sidewalk of downtown Jubilife City, one hand shoved into his pocket, the other holding the cheap taco that was his dinner. He walked with his head down, headed nowhere in particular. He'd only just turned 16, but he'd be graduating tomorrow. He didn't much care. In fact, he almost dreaded it. He could see it already, his parents would be there to see him off on his great journey, and he'd be expected to hit the proverbial road towards Sandgem Town (actually he'd take a short airplane flight, for safety reasons) to see the Professor and get a starter Pokémon of his own.

Somehow the thought of choosing a Pokémon someone else caught as his own companion made his stomach churn. A Pokémon partner should be just that, a partner. Not a one-in-three choice based on statistical analysis or some inane personal preference. His teachers kept saying he was just scared because he hadn't decided yet, that he was making up these ideas to rationalize his own fear and indecision. Once he picked Turtwig, Piplup, or Chimchar, he'd feel much better about all this. That was what they kept saying, but he'd always felt this way about Pokémon and trainers. He didn't want a Pokémon he hadn't first personally befriended.

Sighing, he bit into his taco. Suddenly a noise came from the alley to his right,

"Br-r-r-r-ee!"

He whirled to face it, but couldn't see anything, until he spotted a blue streak of something disappearing around the far corner. Strange, but perhaps some careless family had left their pet Pokémon out, or it was just a stray wild one lost in the city. Whatever.

As he continued on his way to nowhere, Milo's mind turned sullenly back to his impending departure. He really wouldn't miss the academy all that much, but it still felt strange to leave. After all, he'd been there for over a decade now, since he was five. That was how the Jubilife Pokémon Trainer Academy, the JPTA, had always worked: It was a boarding school for children who demonstrated 'early potential', meaning they had a natural talent for training Pokémon. How that was determined in five-year-olds was anybody's guess, but he'd been offered a spot and his family had proudly shipped him off to Jubilife, and now he only saw them a couple times a year, on designated family visit days.

They'd be there tomorrow, certainly, as well as all his teachers and many of his classmates. Milo wished it could be a more private affair; he especially didn't want his classmates there. They'd likely jeer at him one last time, or just look on in disinterested, awkward silence. He'd always been rejected for the strange way he treated and thought about Pokémon. They especially disliked his 'weird ideas' because they seemed to work, he almost always beat his companions in practice battles by focusing more on each individual Pokémon than just its species and type.

There was that odd noise again, from out in front of him,

"Br-r-r-r-ee! Br-ee-br-r-r-ee!"

He looked up from his musings in time to see a black shape, with blue highlights, definitely a Pokémon, dart across the sidewalk and down the next alley. Was…was that Pokémon following him? What kind of Pokémon was it? It wasn't one he was immediately familiar with, which was unusual as he knew almost any Pokémon on sight, like the Zubat fluttering about under the street lamp across the road, or the flocks of Starly that laid claim to Jubilife's rooftops. He made a mental note to look it up later and then kept walking.

Soon enough, he got back to the JPTA, having just finished his taco, and was immediately greeted by the various Pokémon pets that the students and teachers all helped take care of. Buneary and Shinx almost fell over each other scrambling down the entrance hall to jump on him. Munchlax tried to come down the stairs a bit too fast, and toppled over, rolling and tumbling and landing in a jovial heap right at Milo's feet. He knelt down and hugged them and let them climb all over him.

"Ever the pets' favorite, Milo. Ready for tomorrow?"

His favorite teacher, Mrs. Ketchum, was smiling at him from the stairwell. Her son, Ash, was widely considered the very best Pokémon trainer, like no-one ever was. In fact, he'd visited once, a few years ago. Milo could still recall being an awestruck twelve-year-old, shaking hands gingerly with the best Pokémon trainer ever to have lived, and waving excitedly at his famous Pikachu. Mrs. Ketchum was no trainer however, and instructed the students on proper Pokémon care.

"No, I'm really not ready", Milo answered her, his shoulders drooping, "I would still rather have a real partner as my first Pokémon, not just a standard issue starter from the lab. Like your son's Pikachu, you know?"

Mrs. Ketchum had always been the most understanding of Milo, and she was his closest confidant at the JPTA.

"I know how you feel, Milo. You want a real bond with a Pokémon, not just a bond enough to battle and train. But that kind of bond doesn't just happen; even Ash and Pikachu had a rocky beginning to their partnership, and look where they are now!"

"I've heard about that, Mrs. Ketchum, but it still just feels weird to pick my first Pokémon based on type and statistics and all that. I want the Pokémon I can be the best friends with, but there's no way to tell that."

With a sympathetic grin, Mrs. Ketchum pulled him in for a hug and reassured him, "I understand. That's what separates you from other Trainers, Milo. Hold onto that."

She now pulled away from him, and holding his shoulders, said in a more serious tone, "I know starting something this big is always tough, but remember that this is only a beginning, your whole journey is still ahead of you no matter what happens. Okay?"

With a deep breath, Milo knelt back down to pet the grateful Shinx, and smiled, "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Mrs. Ketchum."

"Of course, Milo, I'm always here for you. Now head to your room, you should be asleep soon so you're ready to go in the morning."

Feeling marginally better, as he always did after talking to Mrs. Ketchum, Milo went down the hall to his room and began to get settled for the night. He was about to jump into his bed when he heard a sound at his ground floor window, like a soft tapping. He peeked through his blinds to see a Pokémon pushing on the outside glass with its two front paws. It looked like the Pokémon that had been following him earlier as he walked home!

Its body was jet black, except for neon blue rings that wrapped around its ears and tail, and equally blue circles on the outside of its front and back hips, and on its forehead. Its yellow-brown eyes were focused intently as it pushed repeatedly on the unyielding glass. It looked a bit smaller than a Luxio.

Curiosity kicked in after a moment of shock, and Milo hesitantly lifted the window open. As soon as it had enough space, the mysterious Pokémon squirmed into Milo's room. It cried happily as it wrapped itself affectionately around his legs, its ears just reaching up past his knees.

"Br-r-r-r-eeeee! Breeooooooon!"

"H-hey there… are you lost? Umm, are you looking for something?"

The Pokémon jumped happily on his bed and looked at him, swishing its tail back and forth, its neon blue stripes and rings pulsing with a warm glow.

"What kind of Pokémon are you, anyway? And can you get off my bed? I need to sleep there. I need to be ready for tomorrow."

It seemed to understand him, but chose to simply move aside to the foot of his bed. Still unsure of what to do, Milo sat down on the bed as well, opposite the Pokémon, who immediately hopped into his lap and made itself comfortable, as if it were assumed that this was perfectly normal. Having not the heart to disturb it, Milo reached carefully to the tablet on his bedside table and began trying to find out what exactly this Pokémon was.

He first searched through the official Sinnoh Pokémon listing, but couldn't find it. He sighed, and began digging through every National Pokedex listing he could find, from Kanto to Kalos. Eventually, he found a Pokémon called Umbreon that was supposedly native to Johto. Supposedly it had been spotted in Sinnoh before, but only very rarely. The other problem was that every picture of Umbreon Milo could find showed yellow rings and stripes, but this Umbreon instead was bright blue.

After trying and failing to think of a good reason for this discrepancy, Milo allowed himself a small smile.

Maybe, he thought to himself, maybe you're just different. Like me. I guess that makes us a matching pair of misfits, huh?

He did a bit more research and found that based on its eye color and size, this was a female Umbreon, which was in and of itself a rarity. He found himself hoping that she would stick around with him, so he could give her a name and take care of her.

She was by now sound asleep, so Milo stretched his legs out without disturbing her and laid back to get some sleep himself. All of a sudden tomorrow seemed a lot more exciting, with a real Pokémon partner having dropped out of nowhere to be his friend. With his head buzzing, it took Milo a while to fall asleep, but eventually he drifted off.

-o-

The next morning, he was delighted to find that the Umbreon had stayed all night, and was now curled up in a pile of sheets next to his head. The nerves of yesterday had completely disappeared as he jumped out of bed, waking up his new Umbreon friend in the process. She disentangled herself from his blankets and stretched gleefully.

"Hey there!" he greeted her as he changed into his brand new travelling clothes. Black pants, with plenty of pockets, made of a heavy-duty yet lightweight material. Black light hiking shoes, durable but not overkill. A standard grey JPTA shirt and his favorite jacket, white on top and fading to black at the bottom. Black beanie cap with an orange stripe around the bottom to cover most of his unruly dark brown hair.

The Umbreon, who had up until this point sat and looked at him quietly, now jumped down and rubbed contentedly against his leg. He'd had his favorite grey backpack packed with all the essentials for a few days now, so he slung it over his shoulder just as a knock came on his door. Mrs. Ketchum's voice came though from outside;

"Milo? Are you up yet, dear? It's about time for you to get ready; your family will be here soon!"

"I'm pretty much ready to go now, Mrs. Ketchum, come in! I have a surprise!"

He could feel himself beaming as she opened his door and saw the blue-striped Umbreon looking inquisitively up at her from his feet.

"M-Milo, what is that? Oh my goodness, wherever did you get that Pokémon?"

"I don't know why, Mrs. Ketchum, but she just showed up at my window before I went to sleep. I was curious so I let her in – she's an Umbreon, I looked it up – and she just kind of stayed, as if she was supposed to be here."

He leaned down to pet his new friend, eliciting a warm pulse of blue from her neon stripes.

"Well…", began a bewildered Mrs. Ketchum, "I've never heard of anything like this before. She certainly looks like an Umbreon, from what little I know, but don't they usually have yellow stripes?"

"Yup. But not her. I guess she's just different. Like me."

"I…I suppose so, Milo. Well", she continued, recovering wonderfully from her initial shock, "isn't that exciting for you! You got your wish after all, your very own Pokémon partner to start your journey! I'm so happy for you. Now, are all your things together?"

"Yes, I'm totally ready."

He bent down and rubbed the Umbreon's head and asked softly, "Are you going to come along? I promise I'll take good care of you and we'll be partners and best friends in no time!"

"Breeeeoooon!", came its exuberant response as it pressed its front paws up against his knees.

Taking a deep, determined breath, Milo straightened up again to look at Mrs. Ketchum.

"Let's go."

Wow. As he stepped out the front door of the JPTA he was surprised to see his entire family there, his parents and his little 5-year-old sister Myrian (too shy to say much around so many new people). Even his older brother, Marcus, had come, which was a surprise; Milo had told himself Marcus wouldn't be able to get away from the Hearthome Gym, where he was Fantina's replacement as Leader. Mrs. Ketchum and all the other teachers were assembled as well, and a few of his classmates who liked him enough to at least acknowledge his leaving.

The real shock for them was when Milo's new Umbreon stepped shyly out from behind him to stand next to him, pressed closely against his leg. Those assembled immediately broke out into confused murmurs, until Marcus stepped out and asked;

"Hey, bro, is…that an Umbreon? A blue-striped Umbreon?"

Milo was proud to hear the subdued shock in his normally inscrutable brother's voice.

"Yes, she is", he replied firmly, "She's going to come with me."

As soon as everyone else found their voices he was bombarded with questions, so eventually he just retold the entire story, such as it was. When he finished, there was a stunned silence, as his Umbreon friend tried unsuccessfully to hide behind his legs to get away from the many eyes peering curiously at her.

"You're all making her nervous", he told them, feeling a bit uncomfortable himself at all the attention, "can I go ahead and head out towards Sandgem? I do have to get to the Professor's office today…"

It was again Mrs. Ketchum who spoke up on Milo's behalf,

"Well, usually we have a short air flight to take you to Sandgem to avoid having brand new trainers travel with no Pokémon. But since you have…Oh, but what is your new partner's name, Milo?"

"Her name…", he thought carefully, but then one name materialized in his mind and somehow just felt like the perfect name for his new friend, "Her name is Azura. Are you alright with that, Azura?"

She purred contentedly as he leaned down to pet her.

"Br-r-r-ee! Breeooonnn!"

"Wonderful!", exclaimed Mrs. Ketchum with a smile, "I'm sure that you and Azura can make the walk to Sandgem Town in a day without a problem."

Milo's mother spoke up, "Milo, dear, do you know how to get there?"

"Yeah, mom, I know the way. It's not far. Plus I have a map on my Poketch."

With a quick breath, Milo set his shoulders and began assertively, "Well. I think it's time. I'm leaving right now for my Pokémon journey. Azura, you ready?"

The happy Dark-type crouched as if she were about to pounce and growled eagerly. She was certainly ready.

"Alright. Nothing else for it. Let's do this thing!"

With that he charged off down the street, headed straight for the South Gate that would take him to Sandgem Town and the Professor's office.

There was a subdued pause from those assembled after Milo left. Unexpectedly, it was Marcus who again stepped forward, "Hmm. There he goes. It's odd, I'm not usually one for instinct and all that, but… Something about him, especially with that Umbreon, just gives me a strange feeling."

All the students and teachers looked inquisitively at this stranger, not bold enough to ask the obvious question. Thankfully Milo's mother did that for them. She stepped out and put a nervous hand on her older son's shoulder and asked him (through motherly sniffles and tears);

"Marcus dear, what kind of strange feeling do you have? Should we be worried for our little Milo? It's not a bad feeling…is it?"

The gym leader held his mother's hand reassuringly, but continued to stare thoughtfully after his younger brother. One word at a time, he articulated his odd sense;

"I know that young people start out on Pokémon journeys all the time, and some will become more powerful and well-known than others… Yet somehow I get a different sense about Milo. I can't shake the idea that he and that Umbreon will become something really special."

Mrs. Ketchum herself gave a knowing smile, "Well, he deserves it. I hope for his sake you're right."

Author's Notes:

Chapter Thoughts: I've been told that this is an unfortunately bland Chapter 1. That's probably true, so if you're concerned, I beg you to give me a few more chapters to earn your readership. Hopefully Milo is different from most other OC Trainer characters out there, and Azura's got a lot of personality waiting to be uncovered.

I redid this a bit, tidied it up and changed some minor details, nothing really plot-relevant. I'd love to hear your thoughts, any thoughts at all! If you've got questions, ask away, and I will answer as best I can! I obviously don't own Pokémon, just my OC's.

If you like it, keep on reading, and feel free to follow/favorite. That way you can keep up to date with Milo's adventures and other people will be more likely to find this story! Thanks for reading! Cheers, all!