EPISODE 44: Coupon*

I walk out of the discipline office only to meet Charlotte and her concerned look. This is my first time being sent to detention or perhaps in this case, the Rocket Discipline Office.

After waking up from Alakazam's hypnotism, I found myself inside the room with Sierra staring at me ferociously. I am scolded for my actions, and I blame my mind for thinking about such an idea. I did not have the confidence to walk around the halls, for the people see me as a retarded sociopath.

"Luna?! What were you thinking?" Charlotte scolds me too. She didn't know whether to be worried or to be infuriated towards me. I, on the other hand, didn't care at all. My mind is jam-packed with questions on how I even thought of hurting him.

"I don't know. It just appeared on my head and I decided to follow it." I utter with a solemn voice, trying to keep out of anyone's site.

"You're a compassionate person yet you almost killed another man. Is there anything wrong?" Charlotte questions with concern.

"No. Anyways, we can't lean on the past. It's better if I apologize instead."

"You know, no one should go under these kinds of situations alone. If you don't tell me what's wrong, you might do things you'll soon regret. Things, which the mind cannot control." Charlotte's words remind me of Jenny. Her words are very much accurate to what Jenny told me during the night Chloe destroyed my sketch-pad.

The past which I try to forget bumped into me once more yet I decide to ignore it. As I walk through the center of the auditorium, I keep minimal eye contact, trying my best to stay low.

People are looking at me like crows and owls. Some are scared while others are angry. I try to ignore them and made my present a past which I want to forget. At first, I didn't want people to think of me as a murderer, but as time goes by things started to intensify.

"I know something that can turn your frown upside down! Actually, I've been planning to this for a long time." Charlotte's concern turns into excitement. My body continues to ignore her presence, as if she is nothing but a poltergeist.

"Come on, please come with me. Look at this." Charlotte cheers while showing me a red coupon. I read the label at my mind and sighs afterward.

"Please, you know my obsession with Flying-types, right? I'm begging you to please come with me." Charlotte pleads with her irresistible baby doll eyes.

She wants me to come with her to the adoption center just to claim a Pokemon. Her intentions are right but I do believe that she has the capability to claim the Pokemon by herself. She's older than me by two months.

Well, since more embarrassing moments will hit my face if I prolong my stay here, I decided to come and help Charlotte.

On the way to the adoption center, Charlotte's lectures about birds begin to rewind again. She repeated her statements all the time to the point I've memorized every word. Oh, and if you're wondering, yes we had to change outfits before leaving the tower.

"Once I give the coupon to the person in charge, they'll allow me to participate in a raffle. The name I pick will be the bird Pokemon which I'll adopt." Charlotte beams with exuberance. She isn't bragging about her coupon however, she is just excited, that's all.

The adoption center looks like the Viridian Pokemon Center. It has a Pokeball statue on the pinnacle of the ceiling. Inside the adoption center are tens of thousands of people and children alike. This made me uncomfortable and uneasy.

Charlotte proceeds to the counter and handed over the coupon. She leaped just like a kid while waiting for the cashier lady's response. With her acting like a little kid in front of a hundred children, I feel more embarrassed and humiliated. I try my best to seal off Charlotte's excitement from bursting forth like a dam.

"Alright! Just pick a paper inside this yellow box and we'll give you the Pokemon." The cashier lady instructs with such a pleasant smile.

Her hand dives deep into the box with her eyes closed. Although I see no reason why she needs to close her eyes. The box is an opaque material after all.

After picking a paper from the box, Charlotte slowly opens her eyes. She unfolds her paper and read the name of the Pokemon. She submits the paper to the cashier lady afterwards.

"What is a Doduo?" Charlotte questions with a seemingly confused voice. She tilts her head to the side, just like a confused dog.

[Doduo! The Twin Bird Pokemon. A normal and flying type. Doduo's two heads contain completely identical brains. A scientific study reported that on rare occasions, there will be examples of this Pokémon possessing different sets of brains.] I decide to search up the name on my Pokedex and this is what it stated. It really looks like a Pidgey with two heads combined except that their heads are rather plain with lesser detail.

The cashier-lady hands her the Pokemon for Charlotte's excitement drained out all of her patience. She held Doduo's Pokeball upon her grasp and releases it to take a closer look at her new Pokemon.

Doduo is a two-headed, bipedal avian Pokémon. Each head has a long sharp beak and two beady black eyes. It has a bristly, down-like covering of brown feathers on its body and both heads. Each foot has four digits ending in a sharp claw. Both heads have an identical brain. 

Doduo immediately responds and pecked Charlotte's hair. The cashier giggles and according to her, Doduo is just trying to be friendly whenever it pecks someone's hair. From my personal perspective, I don't think that pecking one's hair is the best way to greet someone. Maybe because Doduo has a beak rather than a mouth used to lick one's face.

Charlotte is extremely happy though, even if Doduo pecks her head. I just stood still while watching the both of them interact with each other. It is truly a remarkable experience to see an abandoned Pokemon to accept a new family. Our diverse world is filled with cruelty which leads to abandonment. But when there is acceptance, there is always hope. A hope for a new beginning, a hope for a new family.