"Come on, Rookie."
"Where are we going?"
"Walking practice."
He started trotting away without waiting.
After a few steps he glanced back.
"You coming?"
I pushed myself upright again, wobbling slightly.
"…I might fall."
"Probably."
"…You're not helping."
Miro grinned.
"You'll figure it out."
He flicked his tail once more and started walking again.
"…Eventually."
…
"…So where exactly are we?" I asked, wobbling again on my still-unsteady paws.
Miro paused mid-step, his star-tipped tail flicking lazily as he surveyed the patchwork of green around us. Sunlight filtered through the leaves of low trees and bushes, scattering warm golden patches across the grass.
All around us, quiet chatter drifted through the air—soft trills, whistles, and the rustling of small creatures moving through the undergrowth. To anyone else it might have sounded like birds or insects.
But to me, the sounds carried meaning.
Conversations in the trees.
In the grass.
In the wind.
"This," Miro said, hopping up onto a flat rock, "is just outside Floaroma Town. Grasslands, small forests, streams, Pokémon everywhere. Cozy enough to survive…"
He glanced down at me with a crooked grin.
"…if you're not completely hopeless."
I blinked.
Streams… grass… Pokémon everywhere… survive?
"Uh… and… food? Water? Shelter?" I asked, trying—and failing—to take a steady step forward. "How do we actually… live out here?"
Miro's ears twitched as he tilted his head, golden eyes glinting with amusement.
"Relax," he said. "Everything has a pattern. Watch the ground. Watch the water. Watch the Pokémon around you."
He hopped down from the rock and padded past me.
"You'll figure it out eventually."
He paused, glancing back with a smirk.
"Or you'll trip over a few more roots first."
I swallowed hard.
Yeah… that sounds about right.
He leaned closer suddenly, lowering his voice into a dramatic growl.
"Honestly… if you're not careful, you might even end up as someone's dinner."
I froze.
What?!
My entire body went rigid.
Miro's grin widened as he reached out and lightly patted my shoulder.
"Relax, Rookie," he said. "I'm joking."
He paused.
"…Mostly."
I stared at him in disbelief.
"Mostly?! What does that even mean?!"
He chuckled and sat back on his haunches.
"Look, some Pokémon eat berries. Some eat fish. Some…" he gestured vaguely toward the forest, "…eat smaller Pokémon if they get desperate enough."
My stomach twisted.
"It's the circle of life," Miro continued casually. "Survival of the fittest. Humans aren't that different, you know. Sometimes you have to fight or scavenge to stay alive."
I shivered slightly.
This world is… real.
Not the bright, safe cartoon I half-remembered from childhood.
A strange mix of excitement and unease bubbled in my chest.
Miro flicked his tail again.
"And hey," he added with a sly grin, "don't worry. I'm not adding you to the menu anytime soon."
He glanced back at me.
"…I think I like you."
Before I could respond, he suddenly veered toward a small clearing.
Nestled between a cluster of rocks and tall grass sat a clear pool of water, its surface shimmering in the sunlight.
We probably would have reached it sooner if I hadn't stumbled every few steps along the way.
"Here we are!" Miro announced, trotting closer to the edge.
He looked back at me.
"It's bath time."
He wrinkled his nose slightly.
"You're still covered in hatch-gunk."
I glanced down at myself.
…Yeah. Fair.
"Couldn't you say the same?" I shot back. Despite the fact he looked spotless.
Miro looked offended. "I bathed yesterday."
I rolled my eyes—well, internally—and cautiously approached the water.
The surface rippled softly as I stepped closer. It looked cold… but clean.
Taking a deep breath, I stepped forward.
One paw.
Then another.
The cool water lapped against my fur, sending a shiver racing up my spine. I waded in slowly until the water reached my chest, then began awkwardly splashing at the dirt and grime clinging to me.
The sensation was strange.
New.
My fur clung to my body as the water soaked in, and droplets slid down my arms and tail.
Eventually the dirt washed away.
When I finally paused to catch my breath, my gaze drifted down toward the water's surface.
The reflection stared back at me.
I froze.
That's… me.
A small blue body.
Short tail.
Pointed ears.
Black markings across my face and legs.
The unmistakable form of a Riolu.
My chest tightened.
Why didn't I recognize this sooner?
I mean… I was never some huge Pokémon nerd or anything. Hell, I barely watched the anime past Pokémon the Series: XY before I lost interest.
That had to be… what?
Ten years ago?
And even then… I barely remembered half of it.
If I'd known I was going to randomly wake up as a Pokémon someday—
I definitely would've studied.
Although… there's not much left to regret.
Seeing as I'm already here.
"So… Miro," I said, glancing up from the water.
He was sitting on a nearby rock, facing the opposite direction. His ears twitched slightly, but he still refused to look my way.
"…Yeah?"
I tilted my head.
"Why are you helping me?"
Miro didn't answer right away.
His tail swayed slowly behind him as he stared very intently at a patch of trees across the clearing.
"You could've just left," I added. "Back there. When I kept falling over."
"Yeah," he said.
"…But you didn't."
"Guess not."
I frowned slightly.
"That doesn't really answer the question."
He shrugged without turning around.
"Maybe I felt like it."
"That's not very convincing."
His ears flicked again.
"Well," he said casually, "watching you try to walk is pretty entertaining."
I splashed a bit of water in his direction.
"Hey!"
He chuckled.
"Relax, Rookie."
Still… he wasn't looking at me.
Not once.
"…You know you can turn around, right?" I asked.
"I know."
"…Then why aren't you?"
Miro coughed into his paw.
"Just… being polite."
"…Polite about what?"
"…Nothing."
That sounded suspicious.
But before I could question it further, something he'd said earlier floated back into my mind.
Humans aren't so different…
I tilted my head again.
"…Hey, Miro?"
"Yeah?"
"What are humans?" As if I didn't know what Humans are I literally was one but minutes ago! But I guess I should still ask the question…
That seemed to get a reaction however.
His tail stopped moving.
For a moment he didn't say anything.
"…Where'd you hear that word?" he asked.
"You said it earlier," I replied. "When you were talking about fighting and scavenging."
"Oh."
Silence stretched for a moment.
I waited.
"…Well?" I prompted.
Miro shifted slightly on the rock.
"They're… complicated," he said.
"That doesn't help."
"They're not Pokémon."
"…Okay."
"They walk on two legs. Most of the time."
"…Like I do?"
"Kinda," he admitted.
I leaned against the edge of the pool, watching him.
"…Have you seen one?"
Another pause.
"Yeah," Miro said quietly.
"What are they like?"
He took a moment before answering.
"Some are nice."
A small pause.
"Some… aren't."
The way he said it made something in my chest tighten.
"…Do they live around here?"
"Sometimes," he said.
That was all.
The conversation felt like it had quietly run into a wall.
After a moment he cleared his throat and his voice returned to its usual teasing tone.
"So."
I sighed.
"So?"
"You done washing yet?"
"…Almost."
"Good."
"Why?"
He finally glanced over his shoulder, just for a second.
Then quickly looked away again.
"Because once you're clean," he said with a grin creeping into his voice, "we're going to see if you can actually fight."
I blinked.
"…Fight?"
"You're a Pokémon, Rookie," he said simply.
"Sooner or later you'll need to defend yourself."
I slowly stepped out of the pool, water dripping from my fur.
"…And if I can't?"
Miro studied me for a moment.
Then he shrugged."Then we'll fix that." Before looking back at me. "Or you could become some Staraptor's lunch"
'I'm gonna decline from commenting on that one' I shook the water from my fur—
—and paused.
Something brushed against my mind.
Or maybe my fur.
I wasn't sure which.
It was faint—like a ripple spreading across still water. A pressure that didn't belong to the wind, the grass, or the quiet chatter of Pokémon nearby.
I turned slowly toward the trees.
There.
A presence.
Heavy.
Focused.
Watching.
It felt wrong in the same way standing too close to the edge of a cliff did—an instinctive warning crawling along the back of my neck.
A predator.
My body stiffened before I could even think about it.
Miro noticed immediately.
The moment I tensed, the playful attitude vanished from his posture. His ears snapped upright and his fur bristled slightly as he stepped in front of me, placing himself between me and the tree line.
His tail crackled faintly with static.
"…Rookie?" he murmured.
Before I could answer—
A rough voice drifted down from above.
"Well, well, well…"
My head jerked upward.
"Look what we have here."
The air shifted as something large glided silently overhead. Powerful wings cut through the air without a sound, the shadow passing over the clearing like a cloud.
"Miro," the voice continued lazily, "and a freshly hatched baby."
My stomach twisted as the creature circled once above us before descending.
"What kind of Pokémon are you supposed to be?"
The figure swooped down and landed on a nearby branch with eerie grace.
A large owl Pokémon.
Its feathers were dark brown and tan, its wide wings folding neatly against its sides. Its head twisted almost completely upside down as it studied me with unblinking red eyes.
Recognition flickered somewhere in my memory.
A Noctowl.
The way it looked at me made my fur stand on end.
Its gaze never left me.
Like it had already decided exactly what I was.
Food.
Miro's claws dug slightly into the dirt as he lowered his stance.
Low.
Defensive.
A quiet growl rumbled in his throat.
"…Back off, Hoot."
The Noctowl gave a soft, amused hoot.
"Oh relax," he said lazily.
"If I wanted to eat the hatchling, I'd already be doing it."
His head tilted again, eyes narrowing slightly.
"But I've never seen one like that before."
His gaze traced slowly over my body.
"Blue fur… strange ears…"
A pause.
"…Interesting."
I swallowed.
For some reason, the way he said that word felt worse than being called dinner.
Then suddenly his wings snapped open.
Before I could even react, he beat them downward.
A violent gust of wind tore through the clearing.
Instinct screamed at me.
If that hit me, I was pretty sure I wouldn't enjoy waking up tomorrow.
My body moved before my brain could catch up.
I leapt sideways, paws scrambling across the grass. My landing was clumsy—nearly sending me tumbling over the feet I'd only just learned how to use—but somehow I managed to stay upright.
The wind blast slammed into the ground where I'd been standing a heartbeat earlier.
The earth split apart with a loud CRACK.
Dirt and grass exploded outward as a long trench carved itself through the clearing.
I stared in shock.
Then quickly turned to look for Miro.
He stood on the opposite side of the trench, claws dug into the ground, fur bristling as static crackled faintly along his body.
The gap between us stretched several feet wide.
The Noctowl tilted his head slowly.
"Oh?" he said, genuine curiosity creeping into his voice.
"You dodged that?"
His red eyes locked onto me again, sharp and calculating.
Then he glanced toward Miro.
"Well now…" Hoot murmured.
"What exactly have you dragged into my forest this time, Miro?"
Miro's tail sparked faintly as he lowered his stance, golden eyes narrowing.
"…Watch your wings, Hoot."
The owl gave a soft, amused hoot.
"Oh relax," he said.
"If I meant to hit her, I would have."
His gaze returned to me, studying every movement.
"But that reaction…"
His head rotated almost completely upside down as he examined me.
"…that wasn't luck."
A pause.
"…Was it?"
Hoot hummed thoughtfully to himself, his head tilting to the side before slowly nodding.
"Hm. Interesting."
His wings shifted slightly as he studied me, those sharp red eyes narrowing.
"…Must be a fighting type," he muttered. "That's what the humans like to call it, isn't that right, Miro?"
My ears twitched.
Fighting… type?
I had no idea what that meant.
But something else he said stuck out immediately.
Humans.
Before I could ask about that, Hoot spoke again, almost absentmindedly.
"And judging by that aura…"
His gaze flicked over me once more.
"…she's got some spirit."
My brain screeched to a halt.
"…Her? …She?"
The word echoed in my head like someone had dropped a brick into a quiet room.
"Wait—what?"
I stared at him.
Then at Miro.
Then back at the owl.
"Her?!" I repeated, my voice cracking into an indignant little "Rri?!"
A strange buzzing sensation filled my head as the realization tried—and failed—to settle in.
Hold on.
Hold on hold on hold on.
Forget the part where I woke up as a Pokémon.
Forget the weird owl trying to test whether I'm edible.
"Are you seriously telling me—"
I pointed a paw at myself.
"I'm not even the same gender anymore?!"
Miro made a choking sound behind me.
"…What?" he said slowly.
I glanced back at him. The look on his face made it painfully obvious he had no idea why that was such a big deal.
Right.
He doesn't know about my past life.
Hoot blinked once. Slowly.
Then the Noctowl let out a low, amused hoot.
"…You didn't know?"
A strange, creeping laugh bubbled out of him, feathers rustling as his wings shifted.
"Well now… that's interesting."
His red eyes gleamed as he looked between me and Miro.
"Miro," he continued with obvious amusement, "you certainly know how to bring the most interesting little snacks into my forest."
Miro's fur bristled instantly.
"Watch it, Hoot."
"Oh relax," Hoot said lazily.
"If I wanted to eat her, I'd have done it already."
His head rotated slightly as he studied me again, that sharp gaze flicking across my stance.
"…No," he continued thoughtfully.
"I'm much more curious about what she is."
Before I could react, his wings snapped open again.
The sudden motion made my heart jump.
"Let's try that one more time," Hoot said.
He beat his wings downward.
A powerful gust of wind exploded toward me.
"Move!" Miro barked.
Something inside me snapped.
Maybe it was anger.
Maybe instinct.
Maybe both.
My body moved before my brain could even try to keep up.
The world blurred.
The ground vanished beneath my paws as a burst of speed surged through my limbs.
For a split second everything felt… light.
Like I was being pulled forward by something deeper than muscle or thought.
Then—
THUD.
I slammed straight into Hoot.
The impact sent a burst of feathers into the air as the startled owl staggered backward, wings flaring wide to regain his balance.
I skidded to a stop a few feet away, paws digging into the dirt as my heart hammered in my chest.
The clearing went quiet.
Hoot slowly lifted his head.
For a moment he simply stared at me.
Then a low chuckle escaped him.
"Well now…"
He shook out his feathers, clearly more surprised than hurt.
"That answers that."
His red eyes gleamed with satisfaction.
"…Definitely a fighter."
He gave one last amused look toward Miro.
"You're going to have your claws full with that one."
With a powerful beat of his wings, Hoot lifted off the branch and rose back into the air.
"Relax, Miro," he called down as he glided upward."I've seen enough."
His gaze flicked toward me one last time. Then the Noctowl disappeared silently into the trees.
The clearing fell quiet.
For a long moment I just sat there, staring blankly ahead while a few loose feathers drifted slowly through the air around me.
One landed on my paw.
Another floated past my nose.
My brain struggled to catch up with everything that had just happened.
I had woken up in the forest.
Discovered I was a Riolu.
Almost been blasted into next week by a giant owl.
And apparently—
I glanced down at myself again.
—I wasn't even the same gender anymore.
"…What the hell is my life right now?" I muttered weakly.
Across the trench, Miro finally relaxed his stance.
The Shinx shook out his fur and hopped lightly over the gap, landing beside me.
He studied me for a moment.
"…You good?" he asked.
I looked up at him.
"…Define good."
Miro snorted.
"Fair enough."
He flicked his tail toward the forest path.
"Come on, Rookie."
"…Where?"
"Somewhere safer than the middle of Hoot's hunting grounds."
I glanced up toward the trees where the owl had vanished.
"…You two know each other?"
Miro paused.
"…Yeah," he said simply.
That was all the explanation I got.
And somehow, I had the feeling that wouldn't be the last time I saw that owl