The flight to Kanto was a lot more pleasant this time around. With Altaria Mega Evolved, all it took to discourage would-be pursuers was a show of strength.

  The dragon-fairy type seemed to derive a certain amount of glee with every pokemon that attempted to stop their journey. An old, scarred Charizard who had made its territory in a secluded volcanic island had aimed at them as they passed by. Altaria had enjoyed showing the dragon who’s boss with a pixelated hyper beam to its face.

  Gray couldn’t help but muse at how this journey was so different from the first time around. 9 years ago, with a less experienced team, they had to take care in skirting around islands with aggressive pokemon. Altaria had to carry Gray in a precarious ride basket not dissimilar to the flying taxis in Galar whilst the team would have to protect him with each rest. The entire journey had been a gamble as they were uncertain of how far away the Western regions were.

  Now, with Mega Altaria’s liberal usage of Tailwind, it was sufficient.

  Hours later, a substantial landmass began to break on the horizon. Gray began to mentally prepare himself as they drew near. Flocks of Wingull began appearing as they approached Indigo’s shores.

  “Need to stop for a bit?” Gray teased his dragon. They had been flying for hours without rest, and it had frankly been astounding how Altaria was able to make the trip in one go. It bode well for their return to the Western regions though, and Gray found himself taking comfort in the idea.

  Altaria turned his head sideways, made sure to maintain eye contact with his trainer before rolling it as much as he could with a scoff.

  “I didn’t doubt you for a second! Never asked you to stop once, right?” Gray patted his pokemon’s neck soothingly.

  Gray’s worries were proven to have no merit when Altaria sped up. “Al-Altaria!” Wind began to rush through them at a faster pace with a flap of his pokemon’s cloud-like wings.

  Gray could only laugh at Altaria’s silliness and innate dragon pride. It wouldn’t do to question his strength, Altaria said. This wasn’t like before. They may have left Kanto beaten down, but they were returning stronger.

  As they flew by increasingly familiar towns and cities, Gray couldn’t help but notice how little has changed over the years. While towns seemed to have sprawled out to accommodate more areas, key buildings remained untouched.

  In Lumiose City, progress seemed to be the natural direction. Prism Tower was updated with the changing times, as some surrounding skyscrapers began to shoot higher, competing with Kalos’ most prolific building.

  A light show every evening made Prism Tower an even more popular tourist attraction as it showcased the ingenuity and technical advancements championed by its electric leader, Clemont. Upon stepping foot into the city for the first time, Gray almost expected a young, excitable boy to be its leader due to his past life’s memories. He was pleasantly surprised when Clemont appeared to be a fit dude in his mid-20s who had a penchant for all things tech.

  In comparison, towns in the Indigo region’s Johto side looked to be unchanged.

  While a dragon’s eye view could only give a fleeting impression, Gray wouldn’t be surprised if this was the case. Indigo, particularly Johto, prided itself in its steadfast tradition. Years have built a status quo nigh unbreachable, and anything other drew apprehension at the minimum which could rapidly develop to hostility. Kanto may have been less so, but it was still a stark contrast to the freedom and acceptance rife in the west.

  After all, tradition and the norm was what chased Gray away all those years ago.

  A flight over Mt. Silver later, they found themselves flying over more familiar lands. They began to slow as they reached their destination. Gray could now tell that the air was definitely stickier than how it was in the west, and the humidity seemed to cling onto his skin quickly. It was undoubtedly fresher, though, with every breath filling his lungs fully.

  Altaria slowly descended, and Gray could now recognise the quaint town they began to approach.

  There seemed to be little change from nine years ago. People were strolling across the main town plaza at a sedate pace, content to take their time and enjoy the good weather. Children were running around, shouting pokemon names and moves as they ‘battled’ much to the amusement of the older generation around them.

  Gray could feel the pang of nostalgia as memories he had kept subconsciously locked began flooding in. He remembers running after his siblings and their friends, trying his best to keep up in their games and activities. His joy whenever they deigned to include him in their little adventures, and how he would elect to visit any of the older aunties and uncles should he be left alone. While it wasn’t the same as having an adventure with kids around his age, it was still fascinating to hear the stories of the older generation. Their struggles and triumphs during their own journeys, the decisions they made to get where they are today and any regrets they wish they could take back.

  Growing up, he was close to the older folks who would reward his visits with snacks, drinks and knick-knacks, more than content for the opportunity to impart wisdom on the younger.

  Altaria, the attention hog that he was, roared in satisfaction at the success of their journey, immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the vicinity. People paused to stare at the strange looking Altaria, and Gray hurriedly recalled him after a few quick words of grateful praise before he could command more attention.

  It was too late, however, as attention naturally shifted to Gray once Altaria was no longer around. While some brows furrowed at him for his pokemon’s disruption, more and more began to notice his peculiarities. Gray was too self-assured to be a complete stranger, immediately choosing a direction to walk with nary a glance around to orient himself.

  As Gray made his way to Grandpa Sammy, he eyed newer additions to the town that were not present during his boyhood. A cafe in a corner street was bustling with activity. Gray pleasantly noted the name of the place: ‘Delia’s Cafe’ – it would seem that Delia had finally reached her dream of opening up her own place. A larger building replaced the relatively small grocery store from before, and Gray could see a wide display of goods and merchandise that were difficult to obtain growing up. Quality of life improvements were likely the result, as Pallet Town residents could now easily purchase goods that may have needed a further trip to another city before.

  “Gray? Gray Oak?” An old lady called out, causing Gray to turn around.

  It only took him a few seconds to recognise her. Though she appeared older than his memories, Aunty Mallory was recognisable. Her greying-red hair was now more silver than colour, her laugh lines deeper and more wrinkled. Gray was particularly fond of the lemon cakes she would give him when he visited.

  “Hi Aunt Mallory,” He smiled at her, pleased that she still recognised him.

  “Look at you, you’re so handsome now!” She approached him more confidently now. Before Gray could move away, Aunt Mallory managed to pinch one cheek for a fond squeeze. She was less aggressive than he remembered in his youth, an action in remembrance of once was.

  “Thanks Aunty. You’re not looking too bad yourself,” Gray let out with a laugh as she released him. “Do you know about Grandpa Sammy? I heard about his fall.”

  Aunt Mallory sighed forlornly. “Ah, no wonder you’re here. He’s been hospitalised but hasn’t returned yet.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “Is he alright?” Gray didn’t bother correcting her. He wouldn’t be here if not for Grandpa.

  “We don’t know,” she said with a frown. “Your family has kept it to themselves thus far. The gym has been empty all this while.”

  Gray thanked her for letting him know before hurrying to Grandpa Sammy’s gym. He wouldn’t be rest assured until he saw for himself that he was no longer there.

  Standing in front of the slightly dilapidated building, Gray gulped down his nerves in an attempt to curb his turbid emotions. Everything looked so different yet somehow exactly the same. The once vibrant mahogany paint was now peeling in some spots with crawler plants adorning certain areas. The stone pillars framing the entrance were clean, yet Gray could see crumbling holes where time had inevitably left its mark.

  Making his way in, Gray was unsurprised to find himself unobstructed yet frowned when the reception area was unmanned. He approached the table to find a piece of paper hastily pasted on the countertop explaining that the gym was closed till further notice. Why was no one covering Grandpa Sammy? Where were all the gym trainers?

  As he sauntered towards the more private areas of the gym, Gray couldn’t help but note the layers of dust against the walls. The air was so stale and humid that mould grew in corners of the ceiling. Fishing out a key, he unlocked the employee entrance giddily. Grandpa had obviously made a point in not changing out the locks so Gray would still have access to the gym. It’s been years, yet he had faith that his pseudo-grandson would return.

  The locker area for gym trainers was barren, and dust mites were dancing in the air after the disturbance of an opening door. It was eerie to have a once lively place be similar to a ghost pokemon habitat. Not being able to stand the solitude further, Gray released Sylveon.

  His partner seemed ecstatic to be in a familiar surrounding, though his good mood plummeted when he realised they were both alone.

  “Syl?”

  “I know, buddy. Let’s go see if the living quarters are any better.”

  Trainer and starter were pleased to find that Grandpa Sammy’s private living area had signs of life. The couch was unchanged from his youth, and Gray could remember fond memories of him and grandpa watching league battles together. Peering closer, the dining table retained the scratches six year old Gray had made after a particularly daunting art project grandpa had assisted him with for school.

  It was obviously lived in and cleaner than the gym parts yet a layer of grime came off when Sylveon jumped onto the couch. The pokemon ended up sneezing repeatedly much to Gray’s amusement.

  As the laughter petered down, Gray asked his starter to reaffirm his thoughts. “You think we should head down to the lab? We’ll have to ask them sooner or later,”

  Sylveon took a moment to process the question before nodding his head. “Syl,”

  Taking a few more breaths to bolster his confidence, they began to make their way to Professor Oak’s lab.

  While his visit to the Pallet Town gym was a somewhat pleasant trapeze down memory lane, he couldn’t say the same for the lab.

  He couldn’t help but remember how bleak his final few days in Pallet was like, and the tense environment he had run away from..

  Steeling himself, Gray walked up the well-worn path to the lab. It was a stark contrast to the shabbiness of Grandpa Sammy’s gym — unsurprising, for Pallet Town was well known for being the residence of the famous Samuel Oak before anything else.

  Before Gray could enter, a broad chest bumped into him, causing him to stumble. Fortunately, he was righted up immediately by Sylveon’s ribbons.

  Frowning at the collision, Gray glared up at the taller man, only for everything to pause as their eyes met.

  The man was a full head taller and a great deal bulkier, crafting a demeanour more masculine than Gray could ever hope to pull off. Yet, they both shared the same deep brown eyes that appeared more onyx until pulled into direct sunlight. Their noses were both similarly sharp and aristocratic, a generational inheritance from their grandfather.

  “Gray. You’re back,” the man seemed amused at his younger brother stumbling.

  “Blue. Where’s Grandpa Sammy? He’s not at the gym.” Gray decided to remain as objective as possible. Blue always got a kick out of messing with him, best not to give him further ammunition.

  “Don’t be like that little bro, surely you’ve missed me after all these years right?”

  With the cocky gleam in his older brother’s eyes, Gray’s steadfast determination to remain unbothered went down the drain. Taking a step back so he wouldn’t have to keep looking up at the older trainer did little in curbing the arrogance in Blue’s eyes.

  “Just tell me where he is! I didn’t fly all night back to Kanto to joke around with you!”

  Blue was now full on grinning at the outburst. His little brother has always been the easiest to rile up, emotional to the point of tears in his younger years if you push his buttons just right.

  “He’s better. Not great, but better. You went to the gym first? That place is a dump now,” he reassured, leaning against the door frame with his thick arms folded.

  Better. Not great, but better. Gray felt more relieved now that his worst fears had not come to fruition. Gray made an active decision to focus on his earlier words, the latter comments no doubt made to get another reaction out of him.

  “Who’s that pokemon behind you? Thought you’d still have little Eevee trotting behind you like when we were kids.”

  At the question, Sylveon stepped around his trainer, nose up and giving Gray a slight nod. He’s always been the calmer in their partnership, tempering Gray’s more emotional moments with his steady personality. “Sylveon,”

  “Syl…veon? Wait, is that little Eevee? What evolution is he?” Blue dropped the arrogant act, taken completely aback by an eevee-lution he had never encountered in all his years as a trainer.

  Gray relished in his brother’s surprise. During his first circuit in Kanto, Gray was questioned for leaving Eevee unevolved. One of Gray’s first major purchases as a trainer was an everstone for Eevee, a decision that baffled his family and peers. Eevee performed decently as a first stage pokemon during their short stint in the Indigo conference. While it was admirable that they even reached the annual conference without evolving, questions were raised on whether Gray was purposefully stifling his pokemon’s growth with the choice. It took the combined effort of Gray and Eevee to dispel the abuse claims.

  “He’s a Sylveon, duh.” “Sylveon.”

  “Gray is that you, my boy? And this is your evolved Eevee? How remarkable!” An elderly man piped up from behind his brother. He barely spared his youngest grandson a glance before focusing his attention completely on Sylveon.

  It was a classic Professor Oak move; choosing to focus on his work and pokemon passions before family. It wasn’t at all surprising that the professor’s son, Gray’s father, grew to be an absent parent. Granted, parenting was a bit more hands off in Kanto and the wider pokemon world. Still, it would have been nice to have a family growing up.

  Sylveon, the prideful little fairy that he was, soaked in all the attention. He took a tiny step forward, posing a little bit with his ribbons dancing enticingly in the air. “Sylveon.”

  “Remarkable! Remarkable! He must be the first of his kind, well done Gray! All your effort was worth it!”

  Torn between annoyance at his grandfather scarcely greeting him and pleasure at the praise, Gray chose to give a nod and switch subjects.

  “Thank you. May I know where Grandpa Sammy is now?” he questioned. Surely, Professor Oak would show at least some concern for his brother, right?

  “Sammy? Why he’s —”

  Before the professor could finish his words, Blue injected himself back into the conversation.

  “Don’t tell him yet! Let’s battle first before he runs away. Sure, Sylveon is rare and pretty. But is he strong?”

  Gray showed no surprise at his brother’s segway. He had expected it. Blue, at the end of the day, beat the Kanto champion in his first year as a trainer. Yes, people made fun of him for being the most short lived champion in Kantonian history but his achievements left no room for doubting his strength. It was a point of contention between both brothers, Gray’s underwhelming performance in his first Kanto circuit was a stark contrast to the elder’s successes. It only invited further criticism that Champion Samuel Oak’s progeny were somehow lacking, nevermind that reaching the Indigo conference at their first circuit was impressive in itself.

  “One on one? We’ll make this quick,” Gray's fast agreement seemed to please both older men.

  “Gonna give up so soon?”

  Gray paid no heed to the teasing. Strength will speak for itself.

  “As long as you don’t throw a tantrum after losing, we’re okay,” Gray waved him off as they maintained eye contact.