TEEN: But How Will It Be: A Drabble Collection (COMPLETE!)

[System Error]

Sorry about the late reply. I had to deal with hot water issues.

Hope it was a good dinner, buddy. I once tried typing on my phone while riding in a car while drinking coffee. It did not end well lol.

Oof, don't mess with hot water issues. Stuff can be a pain. As for the dinner, we went to A&W, since I was feeling whimsical and they had a special I had a "Festive Turkey Burger" which was turkey, a hashbrown (instead of stuffing), cranberry sauce, mozzarella cheese, and came with gravy. It was pretty good, needless to say.

And to reply to something you deleted but I typed up before you did so while thinking about what to say on some other points: it's fine, enjoyed this one chapter, and you have to write at your own pace - sometimes, demotivation happens. The reference in mine is in fact your fic here - very minor mind you and not even in anything that'll be published for a while; I'll even say it's naming a Joe that knows Steven (which let me reference a certain other Joe). Minor thing, but a lot of my fic's other fic references are minor. And feel free to read mine if you want, whenever (or if) you're able!

This is probably pre "Steven giving up his position to go looking for rocks", so he doesn't have to be dealing with the Champion position... yet.

In one of the events for Pokémon Masters, Wallace says this:
"Haha, you could say that! In our family, beauty is an ongoing source of rivalry!... In the past, I was always the one trying to catch up to everyone else..."

That—combined with me doing too much analysis into Anime!Wallace, me doing too much analysis into Wallace being Gym Leader and Contest Master and Sootopolitan/religious leader, the mess that was 2018-2021, and this thread—led to the whole "Wallace has a mountain of expectations higher that Rayquaza" interpretation.

As someone who's really close to their siblings, I always like seeing/writing healthy sibling dynamics, and as someone who deals with mental health issues, I can testify that it's always good to have family members to support you.

Thank you for coming by to review this story. I always look forward to your reviews. Sometimes they make me laugh, sometimes they really help improve my work, sometimes it's just nice to know that someone's reading my story and someone cares. It means a lot to me.

I wonder how your Wallace will handle the extra pressures of Champion? Heh heh heh...

Interesting inspiration. Know another person who uses Masters as a source of inspiration. Never got into it myself. Juggling three mobile games (FE Heroes, FF Record Keeper, Saga RS) is a bit much already, heh. And that's a very interesting thread about Contests - anime ones at least. Game ones I imagine are much easier to manage, but I don't see a lot of people write those ones in.

Indeed, having good siblings is a nice feeling. That said, I say that as someone with both good and bad ones...

Glad you enjoy my reviews, and happy to hear you enjoy them as much as you do. Do agree, just having readers is a really nice feeling, and knowing I'm making people feel good getting them makes me feel good in turn. And I'm certainly enjoying these, enough to read your formal fic whenever I'm up for it.

 

[Welkamo]

Oof, don't mess with hot water issues. Stuff can be a pain. As for the dinner, we went to A&W, since I was feeling whimsical and they had a special I had a "Festive Turkey Burger" which was turkey, a hashbrown (instead of stuffing), cranberry sauce, mozzarella cheese, and came with gravy. It was pretty good, needless to say.

Wait A&W is a restaurant? I thought it was just root beer. Glad you enjoyed it.

And to reply to something you deleted but I typed up before you did so while thinking about what to say on some other points: it's fine, enjoyed this one chapter, and you have to write at your own pace - sometimes, demotivation happens. The reference in mine is in fact your fic here - very minor mind you and not even in anything that'll be published for a while; I'll even say it's naming a Joe that knows Steven (which let me reference a certain other Joe). Minor thing, but a lot of my fic's other fic references are minor. And feel free to read mine if you want, whenever (or if) you're able!

I go through cycles of being motivation to, say, write. Then I lose motivation. Then I get it back.
I'm sorry for deleting some of the other stuff lol. I sometimes get worried that I worded something wrong and come off as a jerk or something, so I go back and change it.

I wonder how your Wallace will handle the extra pressures of Champion? Heh heh heh...

Hopefully by then, he'll have things at least 90% sorted out.

Interesting inspiration. Know another person who uses Masters as a source of inspiration. Never got into it myself. Juggling three mobile games (FE Heroes, FF Record Keeper, Saga RS) is a bit much already, heh. And that's a very interesting thread about Contests - anime ones at least. Game ones I imagine are much easier to manage, but I don't see a lot of people write those ones in.

I use a mix of games/anime/manga/Masters canon. I tried getting into FE Heroes, but the server wasn't working and I just gave up lol.
Game!Contests might be easier to manage, though in my case, you have to worry about spending all of your time doing them and never getting back to your main quest of Gym Battles lol.

Indeed, having good siblings is a nice feeling. That said, I say that as someone with both good and bad ones...

It's good that you have at least some good siblings. I'm sorry to hear that you also have experience with bad siblings.

Glad you enjoy my reviews, and happy to hear you enjoy them as much as you do. Do agree, just having readers is a really nice feeling, and knowing I'm making people feel good getting them makes me feel good in turn. And I'm certainly enjoying these, enough to read your formal fic whenever I'm up for it.

Reviews are symbiotic.

Good to hear. If you're referring to Pokémon: Heroes and Villains, you could call that my formal fic. In terms of tone, it's mostly far less formal than But How Will It Be, but it's certainly what I would call my "main" fic.

 

[Welkamo]

These drabbles are slowly getting longer and longer...

Parents - Winona

Winona wouldn’t say her parents were controlling, but she would certainly say that they were overprotective.

Her mother certainly was. Maybe it was because Rina had a rough life, but she was very strict with her children: they couldn’t be out after four, they couldn’t leave Fortree City, and they couldn’t go on their Pokémon journey at the age of ten.

Haruki Kimura was an orthonthology professor at the Fortree College of the Sciences (he currently works as a professor at Azalea University). He was also a bit hesitant to let his children go off on a Pokémon journey, but that didn’t mean he didn’t teach his children about the world. After all, knowledge would be their greatest tool and their greatest weapon against the worst of the world.

He taught them everything he knew about the natural world, but Winona’s favorite thing to learn about was birds. She would spend her time reading all of her father’s books on birds, looking at his diagrams, or staring out the window to watch the birds fly. On her fifteenth birthday, Winona even received a Pokémon: a little Swablu she named Aurora.

Winona wasn’t always inside, but she rarely left Fortree City, apart from the occasional visit to Johto. She spent some time outside (under the supervision of one or both of her parents). Sometimes, Haruki managed to convince Rina to let him take the kids flying on his Skarmory. Winona felt free in the sky: free from the cage that was her home, free from the confines of the city, free from the worries of the world.

But the thing about teenagers is that they like independence. This became especially apparent to Haruki and Kimura when Winona turned fifteen. At that age, she began asking, no, begging to be allowed to go on a Pokémon journey. Haruki and Rina spent several discussing whether or not they would let Winona leave. They couldn’t keep their children from leaving forever, after all. Eventually, they would have to leave the nest, but she had to be prepared to fend for herself. The two came to the conclusion that they would let Winona go on her journey if she defeated Haruki in a Pokémon battle.

And then she did.

 

[Welkamo]

CW//Suicide, Implied Suicide Ideation, Mental Illness, and Implied Self Harm

Parents - Steven

Steven’s relationship with his father is… complicated, to say the least.

It’s not that Joseph ever hurt Steven, physically or verbally. Steven loves his father, and Joseph loves his son. When Steven was a toddler, Joseph would play hooky from work just so he could spend time with his wife, Sophia, and Steven.

Sophia took her own life when Steven was only five. The topic was and is a sore subject for both Joseph and Steven. For Joseph, grief became workaholism; for Steven, grief became social isolation. Naturally, the two were distant.

Then came Steven’s teenage years, when he and Joseph went from not talking to each other to screaming at each other. Steven didn’t want to inherit the Devon Corporation. He didn’t want to be stuck in an office all day. He didn’t want to stay at the Stone Estate and walk down the halls of bad memories. He wanted to see the world. He wanted to see it with his own two eyes, to walk across it with his own two feet. Aside from that, he rarely talked to anyone other than Beldum, he forgot to take care of himself, and he was overall miserable.

Joseph wanted to understand his son. He knew that Steven was, deep down, suffering, and he could see the warning signs, both in the red marks on Steven's arms and in his mood swings. Joseph saw similarities between Sophia and Steven—their smiles, their love of Pokémon... their self harm and suicidal ideation. Joseph didn’t want to lose Steven like he had lost his wife. However, most conversations between the two somehow turned into arguments.

Steven couldn't deal with being inside all day, so he ran away from home to go on his Pokémon journey.

A very irrational and irresponsible move, in retrospect (even Steven admitted it after defeating two Gym Leaders), but at least he remembered to leave a note saying what his intentions were so Joseph wouldn't worry.

His return home after those two Gym battles was... awkward, to say the least, no matter how good of a trainer he was.

Joseph allowed Steven to continue his journey, on the condition that he would come and visit every so often, makes friends, spend time outside (Steven had a Vitamin D deficiency), and reach out to to someone—anyone—if he needed help. Joseph, in return, promised to try to understand him (both in a “get hip with the kids” sense and “understand his problems” sense), promised to help him in any way he could, promised to support his son no matter what.

And they both delivered on their promises.

 

[Welkamo]

CW// Parental Death, Mental Illness, Eating Disorders, Self Harm, and Alcoholism

Parents - Wallace

There has always been a sense of rivalry in Wallace’s family. The rivalry over beauty and perfection goes back generations. Wallace was lucky enough to have parents who supported him and his sister, but that didn’t keep Wallace from always wanting to do better, be better, do the best, be the best.

His mother was Lucille Izumi, an artist, actress, and musician from Lilycove City. His father was Dorian Papadakis, Gym Leader of Sootopolis City, poet, and patron of the arts. Lucille and Dorian wanted to give their children a good, well rounded education and unconditional love and support.

And they did, up until their deaths when Wallace was ten years old.

From then on, Wallace lived with his mentor, Juan.

Juan had been a close friend of Dorian, and while Juan was unable to have children, he had always wanted to be a father. He was also a wise, well respected member of Sootopolitan high society. Naturally, he was chosen to raise Wallace.

Juan tried to be a good father figure to Wallace. He taught Wallace many subjects: the humanities, mathematics, science, and, most importantly, Pokémon. He taught Wallace about Pokémon battles, Pokémon biology, and Contests.

Juan saved Wallace's life several times: when Wallace was drowning in grief after his parents' deaths, when he got attacked by a Gyarados while training his Feebas, when he was too weak from exhaustion to stand up or hold down food. Juan was the first person Wallace confided in about his identity issues, about his starving and purging habits, about how he would drown out debilitating depression and anxiety with self harm and alcohol.

Juan tried to lessen the burden on Wallace’ shoulders by teaching him that failure wasn’t bad, that failure was a part of learning and growth, that perfection was a summit that could never be reached. Wallace didn’t believe him. In his eyes, anything less than perfect was failure, and failure was bad.

Wallace can make Juan proud. He can make Nicole proud. He can make Sootopolis City and Hoenn and the world proud. But no matter how strong of a trainer he is, no matter how many Contests he wins, no matter what he does, he can never know if his parents would be proud.

 

[System Error]

Okay let's read more.

Parents: Winona
- Wow not out after four that is like no time after school to even socialize. Heard of strict but that's demanding.
- Leave it to a professor to insist knowledge is power.
- Everything he knew? Including the texture of dung and how you can tell what dropped it?
- Like a bird in a gilded cage who wants to fly free
- Insert joke about princess Aurora here
- Must be a big Skarmory to fit all of them on
- Rina caves a bit easily after being obsessively strict. For all the huh motivation it is.
- Wow that is just rude, she didn't have time to train or anything and they're saying she could only leave if she beat a veteran trainer? It's a good thing her father presumably threw.

Parents: Steven
- Steven seems to have trouble with people called Joe...
- Well this one turned dark fast. Speculation: Joseph played hooky to be there for his wife.
- Funny mental image though of a corporate executive pissing off to do whatever he wants
- I take it Steven did not want to take after his father's hooky-playing ways either
- Well at least he had his pet...living sentient...mineral thing.
- Oof, also was not expecting it to go in that dark direction either. Like mother like son...
- Two in a row who were trapped by parents or circumstances who wanted to travel
- Uh wait a sec if Steven was being kept up inside all the time and he has a Vitamin D deficiency, no wonder he got depressed. Self fulfilling indeed.

Parents: Wallace
- Crazy families, huh?
- At least one of these in a row has good parents. And then they died for no good reason. Sounds like an accident.
- I presume Wallace just didn't want to live with the rest of his family. But ironically he ended up following the path of perfection anyway.
- Oh, or he might've had Juan chosen for him by the shadow council or something.
- Does school like not exist in this world? Or is Juan simply teaching him advanced subjects?
- Alcohol?! At a young age??
- I guess Wallace took more after the rest kf his family after all
- And by contrast, ending on a more grim note here...

 

[Welkamo]

Okay let's read more.

I always look forward to your reviews, but they always come when I’m either right about to fall asleep or in some other inconvenient place lol, hence why this is coming later than when I initially read your review.

Parents: Winona

• Wow not out after four that is like no time after school to even socialize. Heard of strict but that's demanding.
• Leave it to a professor to insist knowledge is power.
• Everything he knew? Including the texture of dung and how you can tell what dropped it?
• Like a bird in a gilded cage who wants to fly free
• Insert joke about princess Aurora here
• Must be a big Skarmory to fit all of them on
• Rina caves a bit easily after being obsessively strict. For all the huh motivation it is.
• Wow that is just rude, she didn't have time to train or anything and they're saying she could only leave if she beat a veteran trainer? It's a good thing her father presumably threw.

• As someone who didn’t really hang out with kids outside of school, eh, at least she’s got (some of) her siblings.
• Just as Schoolhouse Rock said. Also, gotta put 6+ years of studying to good use.
• I mean… maybe not. Maybe Winona read that in one of the books. Or maybe he taught her, idk.
• Exactly. I was going to add an explicit cage simile, but sometimes, subtlety is golden.
• I named her after the Roman goddess of the dawn. Winona seems like the type who would name her Pokémon after sky deities.
• Maybe it’s one at a time.
• Maybe Haruki asked very politely. Or maybe he's just good at rhetoric. In my head, he knew Wallace's dad, who was really good with that kind of stuff. They also came to a bit of a compromise in the form of Winona's battle test... thing, so there was the possibility that Winona wouldn't get to leave.
• Haruki probably isn't the best trainer, but yeah, really unfair. Good thing Winona studied. Haruki also probably (certainly) went easy on her.

Parents: Steven

• Steven seems to have trouble with people called Joe...
• Well this one turned dark fast. Speculation: Joseph played hooky to be there for his wife.
• Funny mental image though of a corporate executive pissing off to do whatever he wants
• I take it Steven did not want to take after his father's hooky-playing ways either
• Well at least he had his pet...living sentient...mineral thing.
• Oof, also was not expecting it to go in that dark direction either. Like mother like son...
• Two in a row who were trapped by parents or circumstances who wanted to travel
• Uh wait a sec if Steven was being kept up inside all the time and he has a Vitamin D deficiency, no wonder he got depressed. Self fulfilling indeed.

• Wait until he meets Youngster Joey.
• ...I almost started crying at that realization.
• "Damn it, Jerry. I'm a family man."
• "Why play hooky when you could just... not go to work?"
• What's it called, a rock? No, that's a genre of music. Oh shit I only now realized that you were talking about Beldum.
• A family history of mental illness/suicide is a risk factor in the child also developing a mental illness/being suicidal, but whether it's genetics, environment, or both is a bit complex. Pressure from his position as heir to the Devon Co., stigma around mental illness, isolation, and a traumatic childhood experience didn't help.
• Steven was trapped in a cave. Not Plato's cave, though. I'm sure the Pokémon world has its fair share of parents who, for one reason or another, don't want their kids going off to be trainers (like Lux's parents in your story, but while Lux's family's case was more related to stuff with Lux's brother, Winona's was more, "the world is a scary place, and we need to keep you safe", Steven's was, "you have to inherit the Devon Co, and I want you to be safe", and Wallace's was "you're being groomed to succeed your father and be Sootopolis's poster child").
• It's more complicated than that, and fixing the deficiency isn't going to solve all of his problems (speaking from experience lol), but the Vitamin D deficiency certainly wasn't helping his mental health.

Parents: Wallace

• Crazy families, huh?
• At least one of these in a row has good parents. And then they died for no good reason. Sounds like an accident.
• I presume Wallace just didn't want to live with the rest of his family. But ironically he ended up following the path of perfection anyway.
• Oh, or he might've had Juan chosen for him by the shadow council or something.
• Does school like not exist in this world? Or is Juan simply teaching him advanced subjects?
• Alcohol?! At a young age??
• I guess Wallace took more after the rest kf his family after all
• And by contrast, ending on a more grim note here...

• Yeah.
• It was an accident—a natural disaster, to be more specific.
• Well, he has his sister and grandparents, but he had that apprenticeship with Juan. And yeah, because of pressure from his family, pressure from Sootopolis City, and pressure to live up to his parents' name, he went down that dangerous path.
• Dorian and Juan were two very well respected, very strong trainers who were close friends and who were, at different points, the Sootopolis City Gym Leader. Naturally, the Sootopolis mayor/government decided, Juan would be the perfect teacher for Dorian's child, and Dorian's child would be the perfect child to be raised into the perfect Sootopolis City poster child... in theory, at least. Sootopolis City needs strong leadership, and Wallace was either the prime choice or prime target, depending on how cynically you look at it.
• In my head, apprenticeships are far more common in Hoenn (especially Sootopolis City and other island/maritime communities) than traditional education.
• To not spoil too much, yes, alcohol at a young age, but not, like, ten (more like 17-20). There's a strong link between eating disorders and substance abuse. In Wallace's case, both were mostly motivated by overwhelming emotions/trauma/feelings of a loss of control that Wallace tried to hide from his family, his friends, and the public.
• In more ways than one, yes.
• I changed the rating to TEEN for a reason. Not every drabble is going to be as dark as these three were, but some of them certainly will be.

 

[Welkamo]

These next three drabbles will be a little lighter than the previous three. Levity is important.

First Pokémon - Winona

Aurora was a birthday gift from the former Gym Leader of Fortree City, the Bug type trainer Mari. Haruki and Mari were childhood friends, and Haruki and Rina trusted Mari to not give Winona a, say, Salamence.

As a Swablu, Aurora was just as curious about the world as Winona. She would waddle around the house, or hop on Winona’s head. Aurora and Winona couldn’t travel much, but they could play together and study together. Winona started her journey later than most kids, but they made up for it with knowledge and with training.

Aurora looks up to Winona. She's wise, she's kind, she's brave, and—best of all—she gives the best hugs. Aurora is Winona’s strongest Pokémon, but she’s more than just a powerful Pokémon to Winona. When Winona is stressed or overwhelmed, Aurora is there to help her, be it through holding her with her comforting wings or singing a soothing melody. Aurora is a very motherly Pokémon (she even has two children with Winona’s Skarmory Horus), and she’s always there to support the other Fortree Gym Pokémon.

And if anyone threatens her companions, beware the wrath of her Dragon Dance.

 

[Welkamo]

CW// Very Minor Implied Mental Illness

Darn it. I said these next three would be lighter.

First Pokémon - Steven

Beldum was a gift from Steven’s father, a gift of friendship, a gift of companionship. The two have been together since Steven was ten.

Steven’s not psychic. At least, he’s not psychic in the way Tate and Liza are. His connection to Metagross is something, though. It might be psychic because of Metagross’s type. When Metagross is happy, Steven can sense it. When Metagross is sad, Steven can sense it. This dynamic works vice versa; Metagross can sense the emotions of Steven. They also have the intelligence and memory of a supercomputer, and they can keep Steven in check, whether that’s by doing math even Steven can’t do alone, making sure Steven showers and takes his medications, and making sure he doesn’t spend days in a cave without food or contact with the outside world.

Metagross is a formidable foe on the battlefield, and when they Mega Evolve, they’re a sight to behold. They always like a good challenge on the battlefield, with a math problem, or trekking through a lesser known cave.

To their and Steven’s enemies, Metagross is a menace. To their and Steven’s friends (and young kids and Pokémon), Metagross is a warm, gentle friend. To friendly birds, Metagross is a willing perch.

 

[System Error]

More drabbles means more reviews. In weird places and times.

- A bug person giving a normal flyer? And being worried about giving her a dragon?
- Studying astrophysics with my friend Swablu
- Man crushing the gyms with a lot of things is a thing but a Swablu?
- Referencing some of the dex entries I see
- Let's just hope whoever she faces is not cold hearted

- Oh hey shouting out the twins
- Trainer Pokemon connections tend to be poorly explained in canon so this is something
- Using Metagross to cheat on his math homework...
- Also using Metagross as a personal planner
- Well there is little that can challenge a pseudo lego depending on power and how written
- But what is Metagross to bird friends and bird enemies?

 

[Welkamo]

More drabbles means more reviews. In weird places and times.

More reviews means more responses when you least expect it.

• A bug person giving a normal flyer? And being worried about giving her a dragon?
• Studying astrophysics with my friend Swablu
• Man crushing the gyms with a lot of things is a thing but a Swablu?
• Referencing some of the dex entries I see
• Let's just hope whoever she faces is not cold hearted

-Well, Mari probably knew that Winona liked birds, and bugs are more Bugsy’s thing.

• Studying quantum mechanics. Hope we do well on the test.
• When the only reason you could leave home was because you could beat your dad in a Pokémon battle (and you also have, like, self esteem issues), you take training seriously.
• Sure am.
• Hey, it’s the Pokémon world. There’s gonna be a few monsters here or there, but everyone is mostly fine.

• Oh hey shouting out the twins
• Trainer Pokemon connections tend to be poorly explained in canon so this is something
• Using Metagross to cheat on his math homework...
• Also using Metagross as a personal planner
• Well there is little that can challenge a pseudo lego depending on power and how written
• But what is Metagross to bird friends and bird enemies?

• Maybe Steven met them by babysitting them or something, idk
• That’s the point of fanfiction: to put the something in nothing. Or something else that sounds deep.
• hehehe
• Steven can organize rocks and display cases, and that’s about it.
• Haha watch me beat Metagross with a Jigglypuff
• Oooh I should fix that

 

[Welkamo]

First Pokémon - Wallace

Victoria is the daughter of Juan’s Milotic Marie. Born a few months after Wallace began his apprenticeship, Victoria became very close to him, and Wallace became very close to her.

Growing up, Wallace didn’t have many friends his age. Due to circumstances, he mostly talked to older people. Most Sootopolitans kids his age thought he was a weirdo: he dressed flamboyantly and spent his days studying or talking to fish Pokémon about art. Victoria was Wallace's only close friend (until, of course, he met Steven and Winona).

Similarly, Wallace was, for some time, Victoria's only friend. Most Pokémon her age thought she was weak and ugly, but Wallace treated her with dignity, with respect, with love.

Wallace can see the beauty in everything, and he’s always been able to see the beauty in Victoria. Even when she was a Feebas, he saw her potential. Despite the mocking of other people, the two were inseparable.

Victoria evolved into a Milotic during Wallace’s Gym battle with Juan. To this day, Wallace says it's his most beautiful memory.

Victoria became known as one of the most powerful Pokémon in Sootopolis City. She's mostly respected, often envied, and occasionally feared. But to Wallace, Victoria is more than a strong or beautiful Pokémon. She’s a confidant; she was the first to know Wallace's deepest, darkest secrets (because as the old saying goes, Pokémon keep secrets). She’s an advisor; even without words, she’s able to give him wisdom or be there for him when things get rough. She’s the moon to Wallace’s sun, the other side of his coin, his other half. He's incomplete without her, and she's incomplete without him.

 

[Welkamo]

CW// Minor discussions of sexuality and implied slut shaming

Education - Winona

Winona received a very standard education for a girl who wasn’t allowed to go on a journey.

In primary school (ages 3-10), she learned the basic subjects that every child was expected to know before starting a journey: math, science, reading, writing, Hoennese history, art, and of course, the basics of Pokémon. Kids in her class would talk about what their journeys would be like, what starters they would choose, how they would become Champion. These questions isolated Winona from her peers. Well, that and her overactive imagination. Her daydream believing and whimsical fantasies didn’t fade as she grew up.

Secondary school in Fortree City was, at the time, lackluster at best, though Winona did her best to get good grades and to be a good student. She was always at the top of her science classes, in part because of her love of birds, in part because her father knew about the sciences, in part because she was a diligent student.

But Winona also pursued the arts. At the age of fourteen, she found her calling in dance. She felt like a bird in the sky when she was on the stage. She felt free. She felt alive. And dancing also helped in Pokémon battles; teaching her Pokémon elegant choreography helped them dodge their opponents and land powerful hits. It was this strategy that helped Winona win against her father, and it was this strategy that lifted her to the rank of Gym Leader.

Health class… health class was a mess. The teacher, Ms. Vincent, was one of the biggest contributor to Winona's insecurity, confusion, and guilt over herself, her body, and her sexuality, coming at a time when Winona was already confused and scared about everything. The things Ms. Vincent taught were at best confusing and at worst harmfully incorrect. It would help make Theresa’s later comments towards Winona sting even more, though at least Ms. Vincent never called Winona a "bitch" or "slut".

 

[Welkamo]

CW// References to e-cigarettes, homophobia, and mental illness

Education - Steven

Steven’s primary and secondary schooling took place at a private school. He hated it.

He hated how pretentious the kids were, how insensitive they were, how boring they were. He hated the teachers and faculty, who were so stupid, so uncaring, so ignorant.

As much as Steven hated it, he knew that his family was too high on the social ladder for public school (or anything besides Rustboro Preparatory School For the Exalted, really) to be an option. So he just had to put on a smile and do his best to get good grades.

Steven had problems focusing in school, but he didn’t need to study much in order to get good grades. He could learn things pretty quickly. This meant that got bored very easily, so he would read, doodle, or sleep during class. His teachers never allowed it (oh, Steven says, but they let kids vape in the bathroom and throw around homophobic slurs in class). Steven wasn’t a problem child, but he felt… different from his classmates, somehow. He wasn’t ever physically bullied, but he did feel isolated from his classmates, as though he didn’t belong.

He was in a bunch of “gifted student” programs, and he jokes that they ruined him. Later on in his school career, he followed the motto of “D=Dumb, C=Crap, B=Bad, A=Unacceptable, A+=Acceptable”. It was a motto that only made things worse, along with his focus issues. He was a smart kid, he told himself. He could handle six advanced classes. Besides, it looked good on college transcripts.

Running away from home sort of put a wrench in his straight As and advanced classes only plan. When he came back home, he had a lot of catch up to do. His dad and therapist made him drop a few of the advanced classes, though. That was helpful, as much as Steven hates to admit it.

 

[Welkamo]

So my knowledge of the Greek language is severely limited (I’m self taught), so if I got something wrong, please tell me!

Education - Wallace

Wallace didn’t go to school. He was mentored by Juan. This messed up his ability to get accepted into Sootopolis City College of the Arts (the school stopped accepting applicants who had been in apprenticeships by the time Wallace started applying for schools), but other than that, he enjoyed it.

Sure, this meant that Wallace had no social life outside of his Pokémon. Sure, this meant that Wallace spoke to dictionaries more than real people. Wallace didn’t mind. Who needs a social life, he said, when you can teach yourself how to play an instrument, teach yourself a language, or read the entirety of Istoría tou Psará (usually translated to “The Fisherman’s Tale”). It was a self fulfilling prophecy; Wallace would spend his time alone, kids his age would think he was a weirdo and not want to hang out with him. As Wallace garnered more fame, and as he began to express himself, their comments towards him would become more… cruel. To compensate, Wallace pushed himself to be smarter, stronger, better, perfect in every aspect of his life.

Juan taught Wallace many subjects, but the humanities were Wallace’s favorites. Science? Not so much. He found it boring, even more so than math. He wasn’t bad at either (quite the opposite, in fact), but his interests lay in literature, in history, in visual arts, in music, in performing.

Mayor Megalos really didn’t want Wallace to pursue the arts. He wanted him to pursue law or politics. Sootopolis, he said, didn’t need another artist like Dorian, as great as Dorian had been. Wallace’s grandparents also wanted him to pursue a “useful” career, but they eventually accepted the fact that their grandchild had no interest in law school. Megalos, however, pushed Juan to teach Wallace politics, economics, business, and rhetoric. Wallace didn’t mind studying rhetoric, but the other three subjects bored him even more than science and math.

Wallace has done many things for Megalos, but he would never give up art for him.

 

[System Error]

Okay finally being not lazy and getting these off my phone despite reading and jotting this down days ago.

- Ah passed down by a mentor in a way. Do a similar thing with my fic.
- First we have talking to rocks. Now we got talking to fish.
- Do like people not know of Feebas beauty evolution
- A gym battle? Student vs mentor or a convenient journey?
- Little did he know Victoria was gossiping to everyone she fought
- tfw a pokemon completes you

- Schools in Pokemon, a very real thing
- Man these nerds choosing from a starter
- And here I thought Skyla was the head in clouds one
- Was the school lackluster, or did she feel apathetic about it?
- Her father knew about THE science. Nothing in particular. Either a typo or her dad is Poke Bill Nye
- Dance battling?
- Ah so part of the mean prerequesite explained
- Hm, I am thinking the school was lackluster, given the teachers

- i am noticing a trend here. And man, no one even with any common ground at all?
- That is a hilariously egomaniacal school name
- Man the types who memorize everything easy
- Betting the teachers were paid off by some. And or that they're absurdly conservative
- Good thing they don't got S rank here
- Advanced classes only, final destination
- The workaholism strikes

- That feel when being homeschooled (?) owns you
- And now talking to the dictionary. Shame it can't talk back
- Yeah all three of these grew up isolated from their peers, and don't really get bothered
- Wallace's peers are jelly
- Well they have a wide range of interests between em at least
- Wallace, attorney at law. Total scumbag, but he gets the case done
- Sounds like Juan didn't listen
- But jeez a mayor meddling who isn't even part of the guy's life

 

[Welkamo]

Hey welcome back!

• Ah passed down by a mentor in a way. Do a similar thing with my fic.
• First we have talking to rocks. Now we got talking to fish.
• Do like people not know of Feebas beauty evolution
• A gym battle? Student vs mentor or a convenient journey?
• Little did he know Victoria was gossiping to everyone she fought
• tfw a pokemon completes you

• I’ve gotta catch up on your fic lol
• And Winona talks to birds
• I mean, this was a decade or so before the events of RSE/ORAS, so maybe people learn things. Also, given the fact that Feebas is so hard to catch, maybe it’s a niche sort of thing, idk.
• Sort of both
• Oh shi—
• I was tempted to reference Wallace’s line in PokéMas where he says they’re two peas in a pod, but I didn’t wanna just repeat stuff.

• Schools in Pokemon, a very real thing
• Man these nerds choosing from a starter
• And here I thought Skyla was the head in clouds one
• Was the school lackluster, or did she feel apathetic about it?
• Her father knew about THE science. Nothing in particular. Either a typo or her dad is Poke Bill Nye
• Dance battling?
• Ah so part of the mean prerequesite explained
• Hm, I am thinking the school was lackluster, given the teachers

• Back in the Gen 3/4 era, there was this thing where Ash and Co. would teach you math.
• Damn basic nerds choosing from the three starters
• They’re both in the clouds. Together.
• Sort of both
• Probably a typo. Thanks for pointing that out.
• Graceful Aerobatics, like her thing in PokéMas. (She also mentions choreography and stuff in the World Tournament I think.)
• I can only get so explicit with the trash talking because 1. Length and 2. Rating. I’ve got another story in the works that’s definitely pushing for an M rating, and it’s all Theresa’s fault.
• Fortree City’s schools didn’t get the best funding at the time

• i am noticing a trend here. And man, no one even with any common ground at all?
• That is a hilariously egomaniacal school name
• Man the types who memorize everything easy
• Betting the teachers were paid off by some. And or that they're absurdly conservative
• Good thing they don't got S rank here
• Advanced classes only, final destination
• The workaholism strikes

• Oooooh themes. Also yeah, rocks are kind of a niche interest, especially at pretentious private schools.
• My job was done good.
• It’s all fun and games until you have to spend a whole week on imperfect tense but you already have it memorized.
• A mix of both, and the fact that a bunch of these students are the kids of the teachers.
• Well, in the academic world, S means “satisfactory”, so it might not necessarily be perfect.
• It’s an awful destination, let me tell you.
• Uh oh

• That feel when being homeschooled (?) owns you
• And now talking to the dictionary. Shame it can't talk back
• Yeah all three of these grew up isolated from their peers, and don't really get bothered
• Wallace's peers are jelly
• Well they have a wide range of interests between em at least
• Wallace, attorney at law. Total scumbag, but he gets the case done
• Sounds like Juan didn't listen
• But jeez a mayor meddling who isn't even part of the guy's life

• Rip
• It’s sort of in a metaphorical sense, where Wallace built up this great vocabulary but never got social interaction, so his words are overly dramatic. (He will correct you if you use a word with a slightly wrong connotation nah I’m just kidding).
• At least they eventually meet each other.
• Great now I’m thinking of that one Electric Company song.
• Always good to have.
• Funny enough, back when I tried to do a one shot a day, I wrote a story where Wallace becomes an attorney.
• Juan can only take so much of Megalos’s shit.
• Wallace needs to be the perfect guardian of Sootopolis City. That means Megalos tries to set him up with wealthy Sootopolitan women all the freaking time.

 

[Welkamo]

CW// Minor sexual themes

College - Winona

Winona majored in Zoology and Orithnology at Rustboro University, one of Hoenn’s top colleges.

Her parents had been beyond proud of her for getting accepted. For the whole month after she had gotten the letter, she was the pride of the Kimuras, the talk of Fortree City. She was going to get a degree, her parents bragged. She was going to get a job as an ornithologist or a professor just like her father.

Winona had a very sheltered upbringing, so when she finally became an adult and went to college, she felt free. In some ways, she felt like a bird finally allowed to fly after being trapped in a cage for so long.

In other ways, she felt like a bird that had never learned to fly being thrown out of the nest. At least she had friends.

Not just people who were nice to her and who she could talk to, but close friends, people she could trust, people she went out of her way to spend time with, people who genuinely cared about her well being. It felt so strange and so wonderful. Perhaps her closest friends in college were Wallace and Steven. They had both been isolated in their childhoods, just like Winona.

Wallace is fascinated with the aesthetic parts of nature; Steven is fascinated with the technical parts of nature. Wallace provides emotional support and love; Steven provides logical support and love. She needs them both. She loves them both.

Despite the struggles, Winona couldn’t help but savor the feeling of finally being free. She could stay up past midnight. She could hold hands with people, kiss people, explore her sexuality. She could explore herself without fear of judgement from her parents or from Theresa. She could teach herself to fly, and then she could soar.

 

[Welkamo]

College - Steven

Steven majored in Geology and Human Resources at Rustboro University, a place Steven was, in all honesty, not really at for 70% of his college career.

The main reason was that he became Champion during his sophomore year of college. Steven was able to balance his studies, training, and new responsibilities fairly well by doing classes off campus and in Ever Grande City. What time he spent at campus was usually spent with his first two real, human friends: Wallace and Winona, both freshmen, both new Gym Leaders. Steven had acquaintances he could talk to about rocks (finally), but those two connected to him on a much deeper level than anyone else in his life. Maybe it was just their loneliness in their childhoods that caused them to grow so close, but Steven—as logic-oriented as he is—likes to think that it was something more.

College was far, far better than private school. He could take the classes he wanted. He could talk to people who shared his interests (and who were far less bigoted than the kids at his private school). He had freedom. He had peace.

It’s a little known fact that Steven wanted to major in Education. He wanted to be a teacher as a child. He wanted to learn about and teach geology. Being the heir to Hoenn’s biggest tech company doesn’t fare well with being a professor, or many things, really.

But someday, Steven promises, he’s going to, at the very least, get his PhD.

 

[Welkamo]

So this might be the heaviest of these drabbles so far. Certainly not EVERYONE, probably TEEN, maybe MATURE.

Y'know, this one's less about college and more about how Wallace had really bad coping mechanisms in college. Is that a cop out? Beats me.

CW//Mental Illness, Eating Disorders, Alcohol Abuse, Mentions of Drugs and Alcohol, Minor Suicidal Ideation, and Self Harm

College - Wallace

Wallace majored in Art History and Religious Studies and minored in Theatre at Rustboro University, his Hell above ground.

In addition to academic duties and swim team duties, he also had to balance his training to be Sootopolis City’s guardian and Gym Leader and his rise in the Contest world. And so, in an attempt to gain some control over the typhoon of the world around him, he turned to some rather… unhealthy coping mechanisms.

The restrictive eating habits of his teen years became self induced vomiting whenever he so much as ate a bite over his strict limitations (or whenever he needed to purge negative emotions). His roommate, Filbert, was a partygoer and had a lot of drugs and alcohol. When his emotions became too overwhelming, Wallace would steal a bottle of liquor from Filbert, lock himself up in his bedroom, and drown his pain. Wallace is a lightweight. He doesn’t remember how his mood swings worsen when intoxicated—how he can go from laughing hysterically and singing Galarian rock to laying on the floor as he contemplates suicide. All he can remember is that he feels very numb when drunk, and back in college, he used this to his miserable advantage.

But no one could know about his coping mechanisms, not even the two people that Wallace let himself be slightly vulnerable around. Sure, Steven could let him stay at his dorm when Wallace was too exhausted to make it to his and Filbert’s dorm. Sure, Winona could hold back his hair as he vomited from progressively worsening migraines. None of that meant that they could know why he had panic attacks over eating in public, why he always wore long sleeves even on Hoenn’s hottest days, why he suffered from seemingly constant nausea, vomiting, headaches, exhaustion, and dizziness. They couldn't know. His professors couldn't know. Even his family (which included Juan, in Wallace's eyes) couldn't know. They’d probably see him as a failure—imperfect—if they knew. Wallace had to be perfect on the outside; he could be secretly suffering, but his surface had to be perfect, perfect, perfect.

But then, in Wallace’s sophomore year of college, it all came crashing down, like the cracks in the dam had finally been too much.