Hard Enough Chapter 23: Returning home

Brock! Brock! Brock! Big Bro! Brother!

One after another, the rest of the family piled in. Timmy, Billy, Tilly, Cindy, Yolanda! I replied in turn. My hands went up over my head so the egg that I was carrying didnt get crushed as small bodies impacted . Like a Growlithe with a treat in sight, their heads tracked the object.

They gasped as one. IS THAT?!

Its a pokemon egg. I got it from a friend and was rather surprised, but they told I could give it to one of my siblings.

They squealed in glee. What is it!? I grinned at them before looking around. I turned to Yolanda. Wheres Forrest?

Sothing flickered in her eyes for a second and I worried sothing had happened before she gave a smile that didnt look right for so reason. Hes in the gym, Ill go grab him. She ran off quickly. Had I said sothing wrong?

Brock! What sort of pokemon egg is it? Salvadore asked. He approached with a notepad in hand, already busy sketching the pokemon egg onto paper.

I smiled and winked. Lets wait until everyones here first. I led them into the lounge room and claid a spot in the middle, keeping the egg in my lap. My siblings crawled over the back of the cough and crowded in on . Tilly reached out and I watched her carefully stroke the egg. Thats good. You have to be careful with it, Tilly. Eggs are delicate.

Her actions emboldened the rest of my siblings to reach out and touch it. Slowly, more and more of the family ca in until finally Forrest was led in by Yolanda.

Hey big bro, congra He stopped when he saw the egg. Is that an egg?!

I snorted at the obvious answer. Instead of firing off sothing obnoxiously sarcastic I nodded. Yeah. I got this from Titans mother. This egg will be one of his siblings.

Oh wow, Forrest said quietly.

I nodded my head before raising it out to him. Forrest, I want to offer you the chance to have this pokemon. I watched him as he blinked and blanched. Do you not want it?

I dont! I an I do but I He trailed off and sighed before shaking his head. I an I want a pokemon as strong as Titan but an egg?

I frowned. I know itll take a long ti to hatch. It doesnt yet have the minor tremors to indicate its out of the first stage, sure. And a pseudo legendary egg will take longer than pretty much any other pokemon to get up to their true potential peak, but the pay off with pokemon like Titan outweighs the wait a hundredfold. I offered him the egg. Trust on this, I know.

Forrest took the egg awkwardly and shifted from foot to foot. ...Thanks Brock.

Yolanda shifted next to him before stepping closer. Forrest glanced to her, montarily taking his attention off the egg. Right as he did this his grip shifted enough to have the egg wobble. I tensed and began to throw myself across the ground to catch it. Images of it shattering like a re Doduo egg for breakfast filled my mind before horror even had a chance to set in.

Yolanda must have sensed the problem before I saw it as she whipped her hands out and snatched it from Forrest, leaving him gaping. He never had the option of even doing more than twitching wrong before Yolanda had it in her arms. I had already committed to the action though and had to bite back a curse as I landed on the floor belly first only to skid forward, knocking Forrest off his feet as I careened forward. Yolanda skipped backwards with the egg held firmly in hand.

Forrest lay on top of groaning as I tried to work out what had just happened. I glanced at the floor spotting my own reflection on it. I replayed the mont in my mind and wondered how I had skidded so far before inspecting the glistening floor closer. Oh?! You guys mopped the floors without reminding you! I grinned at them before looking at Yolanda who was now carefully holding the egg to her midsection. Good save Yolanda!

She gave a tremulous smile as I rolled onto my feet and stood. Forrest thumped onto the ground and squawked before he scrambled up to his feet. I gave him a sheepish smile. Sorry about wiping you out like that. Leapt before I could stop myself, little bro, you scared . You need to have a more careful grip and never let the chance of slipping them co up.

Yeah well, I had it. He coughed and thanked Yolanda as well. Then he held his hands out.

Yolanda eyed him dubiously. Brock was right. You were holding it wrong Here, hold it like this in the future. Yolanda, I noted, looked extrely conflicted as she handed over the egg to Forrest.

I felt my stomach twist as realisation set in. I hadnt had the chance to get anything else. The offer had been a surprise to but now it created an issue in that Id accidentally snubbed everyone else by having a gift for only one of them ready upon my return ho. I had already decided to do sothing for the family as a whole, but perhaps I should also consider giving sothing more personalised to Yolanda. She did a lot and deserved recognition.

I clapped my hands together to try and drag everyone out of a depressive funk, my younger siblings mimicked before continuing to clap like Id started a ga. I chuckled. Alright, maybe I was just projecting my mood.

Alright! Forrest getting this egg was a surprise even for ! That doesnt an Im not going to do sothing for everyone else though! So lets find a way to celebrate by having so food and you can all start telling your thoughts ''THE CAKE! gasped Suzie as her eyes widened. Then she snapped to look at . She slapped her hands over her mouth as if thatd stop from hearing what shed said.

Yeah! Cake! Tilly and Billy cheered ignorant that this was obviously supposed to be a secret. I bit my lips to hold in my laughter. Cindy sighed while Salvadore tilted his head in thought.

Salvadore tapped his lip with his pencil. Hey did anyone cover the cake before we all ca into the lounge room?

I blinked at that before rembering that wed recently added a new pokemon to the family. It took the family a bit to register what he ant. Yolanda hadnt heard due to triple-checking that Forrest had a proper hold on the egg. I got it Yolanda! Leave alone. he muttered at her; she ignored him.

Cindy and Tommy understood what Salvadore was talking about first. They turned together and sprinted towards the kitchen. Munchlax! No! This ti I couldnt stop the snort of laughter that escaped my lips.

I laughed harder when a dramatic wail echoed from the kitchen followed by a content-sounding Munchlaaaaax!

I followed the others in and found the destroyed remains of a large cake on the island. In a corner, slumped against the cabinets, with frosting sared over his lips, Munchlax lay. Tommy and Cindy stood over him berating him but he looked far too content to be bothered by their words. When Tommy raised a fist as if to strike at Munchlax I cleared my throat pointedly.

No hitting Tommy. Munchlax didnt understand that he couldnt have the cake now. You can tell him what he did was wrong but you cant do sothing wrong yourself. And why is that? I said with my best big brother voice.

Cause two wrongs dont make anything right He muttered before shaking a finger at Munchlax who did now look a little ashad of eating the cake. Yolanda walked in and swept her gaze over the scene.

Yolanda rely giggled before clapping her hands. Alright, everyone! Its fine! Well just make another cake! A better one! This got the girls to cheer while the boys groaned. Yolanda smiled at them fixedly. That ans we need the bowls cleaned right now!

I eyed the bowls that had been left in the sink. Were those supposed to be a welco back surprise as well? This got them to trade so embarrassed looks before they set to work. I tagged Forrest to co along with to get a proper egg carrier and incubator first though, before we got distracted.

The gym had a few as it wasnt rare to find one of the pokemon huddling up on an egg occasionally. It wasnt sothing we promoted however and most of the pokemon were fed a mix that rendered their chances of making an egg much lower. I led Forrest into an area that served as the dical bay for ergencies at the gym. In a locked cupboard I drew out the durable glass incubator and showed it to him.

Thats it? he said. I smirked at him, picked it up and hurled it straight at the ground. Woah what are you the incubator hit the ground and wobbled slightly. It didnt bounce and it didnt shatter. What the?

Forrest, I wasnt going to buy so cheap incubators for the gym. I picked it up and gave it a quick polish. These beauties are expensive but they are redundant as anything. You can plug them into a computer and have it scan the egg, calibrate an optimal temperature, register the Eggs current health, protect the egg, and it can also be tracked if you happen to lose it.

Forrest leaned closer. It just looks like a glass display case over a slab of tal?

And most good backpacks just look like backpacks, I replied. Forrest gave a confused look. I shrugged. I didnt expect him to understand but, then again, you had to live another life where expansion technology wasnt standard. While they hadnt yet gotten it to the stage of improving housing for people, they had been able to make a two-foot box fit as much as a small storage container recently.

The first corporations to crack the housing issue were set to beco the big gacorporation. Silph Co, Devon, Poketech, and more, were all heavily invested in solving this. I wouldnt be surprised if ten million pokedollars was a drop in the ocean compared to the funds they poured into R&D around that particular issue.

I opened the case, grabbing a soft brown pillow literally designed for this before I settled the egg atop it and sealed it back up. There you go, keep it close so it can get used to your voice. That way it will imprint on you easier and follow your orders without too much hassle to start with.

To start with?! Forrest said.

Well, I an, its going to possibly one day be a Tyranitar. By then youll need to be ready to handle a strong pokemon by already having its respect or else youll have a huge problem. Best to work on it early, imprinting while it's still in the egg.

Forrest nodded dubiously, eyeing the container. I clapped him on the shoulder. Dont worry, this will be a walk in the park. Ill show you so tricks and walk you through the whole way, itll be great!

I guess. I raised an eyebrow at his lacklustre response. Thanks Brock. I decided to rely nod before leading him out. Before I left, I looked over the room. It wasnt all that effective without so highly trained people, or rather pokemon, to man it. I had rows and rows of antidotes, potions, revives, gauze and more. All of that was a stop-gap asure compared to a dedicated, specialised pokemon. Id never be able to get a nurse but a pokemon? That was more doable. I decided Id bite the bullet and buy a Chansey if one ca up for auction.

When we ca back to the kitchen I was pleased to see everyone busily working, either cleaning or engaged in so aspect of the cooking.

I patted Yolanda on the head before pointing towards my office. Ill make so calls then be back out, alright?

No problem! She said leaning into my hand and smiling up at . I gave her a quick hug and left her to it.

I entered my office and sighed when I spotted a frankly intimidating tower of mail sitting in my inbox. I clicked my teeth together before deciding to run awa check sothing else first. Turning on my computer and booting up the email revealed a slew of more mail except this ti in digital form.

I sighed and set to work, either reading and ignoring, briefly deleting, reading and replying, or reading and setting aside as sothing to deal with later. Most of the mail, both physical and digital, was congratulations for beating Lance.

Dear Brock, congratulations on your I read through a lot of mail that started in that vein before rambling on. A lot of the letters were fan mail. So, though, were a bit more interesting.

Dear Brock, congratulations on your victory. We at Silph Co. are interested in having you as the face of our new hiking attire. Wed love to I created a new folder and nad it Sponsor Deals before flicking the email into that. Id need to hire myself a What had Sabrina called it? A dia Officer, before I dealt with this.

It felt weird for such a thing to be an issue. I kept flicking through my emails and each company correspondence I got asking to make an appearance, or to appear wearing, eating, or using the companies goods made feel Out of my depth. I had to sit in my chair for a while and wonder where things had gone so terribly right that this was a problem for . It had only been a week ago that all I had to worry about was a pokemon battle.

Sure, it had been a battle against Lance, but still. It was amazing what one strong showing did. Was this what it would have been like If I had managed to win a serious regional tournant when I was on my journey? Would that have ant that Flint would have stuck around? I stopped at that. My mind roiled as I considered how that would have changed everything. If Id had all my ducks in a row and really worked at it, surely I might have been able to win?

I sat back and tapped the armrest of my chair.

No. Truthfully it was not as easy as the cartoons or the gas made it out to be. You didnt simply go about catching pokemon willy-nilly. There were restrictions and small considerations to take, such as the costs of having them stabled. Few were the trainers that got unlimited storage unless you were sponsored by the truly Elite. Id had an advantage simply as Flints son with access to a pokemon stable to keep any captures I had as soon as I started my Journey.

Other trainers had to pay or win the right to stable their pokemon in gyms or large organisations. Trainers that passed Oaks exams needed to do so with a certain percentage to earn the right for them to keep pokemon at his ranch.

This made it tough to have more than six pokemon for the majority of people. Often it grew tougher for the majority of people on their journey as the decreasing slots available to them made them more conservative in what they might catch. Despite my access to a larger pokemon pool thanks to my fathers stable, and all my prior knowledge, I still hadnt been able to win a tournant.

I stared at the sponsorship offers and tried not to let my thoughts darken any further. I shook my head. I was only looking at the bad. In truth, this was a great issue to deal with, I just had to shift my point of view to realise that.

I sat back pleased as the issue shifted to a positive in my mind. Then I spied an email that simply said, Thank you! So, so much!. The email address of [email protected] furthered my curiosity.

Dear Brock,

First and foremost, congratulations on your win!

But most of all, thank you so much for choosing to drink our ranchs milk on Live tv during your interview! It might not have ant much to you, but it has made a world of difference for our family! Weve been inundated with orders and requests which will guarantee our family continues to operate our farm! Your support ans the world to us!

Thank you from all of us at Lon Lon Ranch.

Sincerely,

Mary-Sue Lonlon

I felt that sa warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach. It had been a simple gesture, but it ant the world to soone and it seed to have changed a lot for them. I glanced through the big sponsorships. For a mont I considered moving them to another folder that Id marked to be replied to. That folder held emails from people like the Mayor, the Chief of Police, Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny and other acquaintances. I decided to hold off for now.

I would wait until I had a dia influencer? Is that what Sabrina had called it? That sounded wrong. I had a feeling I was associating it with an old-world mory but I couldnt recall what. I shrugged.

I think Id just hire soone on as a Public Relations Manager and call it done. Then Id have them to bounce ideas off. My criteria for hiring might make it tricky. They would need to be local and soone passionate maybe? I wasnt sure, but perhaps soone with Surges energy would be good? I humd for a bit but then nodded. That felt good. Right in a way, I couldnt always coast along.

I sat that aside for now having outlined what I wanted. Id send it to the employnt agency later. For now, I continued to work through the emails.

Spam, spam, sponsor deal to look over later, copy-paste reply for thank you to local businesses for knowing Id co through. Email from League to read later, another sponsorship deal, fan mail to be sent to folder for later response with signature and advice reminder... I quickly worked through the stack making headway while writing notes with my right. When that was done, I repeated the action, only this ti on the pile of mail. I once more found so letters that were heartwarming to read over. I also read so letters that I could only dub as hate mail, decrying for what Id done to Lance.

The language was colourful and I learnt so interesting insults. Id never been called a dung throwing pokemon-trainer-opportunist before. It was interesting how many complintary letters could also slot into hate mail if read from a different perspective. It was all about the way they had worded things. I stacked such letters to the side. Id fold them up into paper aeroplanes and have so of my pokemon practising Fire type moves use them as target practice after letting Rocko and Dennis read so of the letters.

I continued to note down any letters that needed responses on a pad with my right hand while my left opened and flicked through them. Eventually, I unfolded another letter only to stare at its contents.

I stared long and hard before glancing to the side to make sure no little siblings had crept into the room. Then I checked behind that Sabrina hadnt flashed in behind either. With the coast clear, I reached under my desk for a hidden key to unlock the middle draw on my left.

There I opened a very different folder. On the front of the folder, in large emboldened text, the words CONFIDENTIAL DOCUNTS! rested. Inside sat nurous other pictures, anything but innocent. I plucked the picture out and put it with the others of its kind. I noted the stack and my mind idly counted as I leafed through them. After going through the entire stack of mail I now had exactly twenty such fans along with so serial supporters. I felt a twinge as my self-restraint beat back the primal part of my mind that was demanding I send a more aggressive letter back. That was probably the teenager in . Or perhaps it was sothing more in line with the canonical Brock?

I promised myself Id only send the proforma letter I had created which thanked them for their strong feelings on the matter and that I would think about their letter fondly. Id do so after considering their letter in private for a while. Maybe Id give it a week or so?

After taking a mont to centre myself and hide the evidence on a corner of my desk I got back to work. Right Fan mail, more thanks to copy-paste, fan mail she certainly drinks her milk. Another photo was inserted into the folder before I returned to working through my stack. I ntally tallied everything up as either being fan mail, congratulations, sponsorship deals, Fan mail, so hate mail and finally My hand clutched the last letter only for the notable weight to register. I glanced at the package and was surprised to find that it was a finely pressed charcoal paper.

There was no sender address and the front only said Brock. I frowned. This was giving so bad vibes but I couldnt quite put my finger on the why. Perhaps it was because it was so different from the other letters Id received?

Unlike the other letters, I opened it with a penknife. One Id gotten from the Pewter Museums gift shop, shaped like a miniaturized Kabutops claw. A thick pad of tal fell onto the table when I tilted the letter down. My feelings of worry grew as I recalled old mories of hologram pads like these. Had it been that old hero movie? The Incredibles? The front of the pad pulsed with light before words appeared.

Place on a flat surface. Do not stare directly at the screen on startup. Strobe lights starting in: Three. Two. one. On two I had the pad flat on the table and when the counter hit one a bright light pulsed upwards before it steadied into a figure that began to lift off the screen.

Huh. I was right, it is a hologram. Instantly my mind began to whirl. Holograms were not sothing that was typically seen in public, not even from large corporations. They were known to exist but few people used them as the technology base simply wasnt there right now. The only ti I had seen a hologram used in the show was I felt my gut drop as I recalled the first pokemon movie. Was this wtwo? I thought that wouldnt happen for a year or two at least! Suddenly my decision to rely watch the areas around Viridian seed to be far too little, too late.

The hologram thankfully did not resolve into a poorly disguised Nurse Joy, but rather a much older female.

Greetings young Brock. You may know as Agatha of the Elite Four. I am the Ghost Mistress and have served on the Elite Four for decades now. You must be wondering why I am contacting you? She smirked at for a long mont as the video kept its silence.

The small form of Agatha remained quiet before nodding slowly as if coming to a decision. Your recent match with Lance has caught a number of figures attention. Chief among those are the people that truly make decisions within the League. Your ability to control and use your Aura is impressive for one so young. I am also an Aura user of so skill. She nodded her head seriously, while for a second her shadow played out behind her, despite her body not moving an inch. I swallowed out of reflex as the shadow leered out at from the tiny hologram.

However, it was by no ans good control.'' She raised her stick and jabbed it forwards. You are very brutish in your application of Aura. For that purpose, I would like to invite you into a selectgroup.

I noted the way she paused on group. Did she an an organization or sothing else?

We are not a well-known group, and it is not advised that you advertise knowledge of us in any manner. Overt or subtle. To extend a hand however, I will inform you of our na. A na you will not find in any textbooks for very specific reasons.

We do not want most people to know we exist. She thumped her stick into the ground. Our group is known as the Guardians. And our duty is to make sure that societys walls remain strong.

I was getting an old-school Freemasons vibe now. I wasnt sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

We will reach out to you further in future. Keep this pad. It works as one of the ways we communicate with each other. As you advance, more features and perks, will be made available to you, should you join us. She smirked at . We will be in touch.

With her ssage delivered, the hologram vanished. The room felt darker, and not just with the sudden absence of light. I sat back and swallowed.

That had implications.

Agatha of the Elite Four In the gas, she was rely a barrier to overco but in the comics, she represented sothing much darker. Hadnt she? I wasnt as familiar with those. I knew the comics werent as nice as the other dia forms of pokemon. Then again, the world seed closer to the ani in structure than the comics or gas. For whatever that was worth.

I groaned, rubbing my eyes in frustration. I wasnt going to achieve anything right now. This was important. Extrely important. But it didnt sound like it would need an instant response. Not that I seed to have an option to respond, I thought as I toyed with the hologram pad. It definitely sounded like they would co knocking soon but I had ti to think about the offer.

That let relax for now. With the other letters and emails, it basically beca important, but not urgent. I chuckled at that thought before standing; Id done enough for the evening. I clapped my hands and made my way back to the kitchen to check in with my family.

Hopefully, I might even have a cake waiting for . Id have so more work later on but for now, I was happy and I wasnt going to let tomorrows work affect todays mood.

I tucked the fanmail away and hid the hologram pad in another, secure drawer.