The Pokémon journey begins in Galar

After receiving the fully recovered Rookidee from Nurse Joy and learning that some lingering internal damage had been treated, Marie finally let out a breath of relief.

That said, according to Nurse Joy, they still couldn't be careless. At least for the short term, the little guy should avoid overly intense training and instead focus on dietary supplements and nutritional recovery.

Although it sounded troublesome, Marie carefully wrote down every one of Nurse Joy's instructions word for word, making sure she'd be able to refer back to them later.

Off to the side, Rookidee craned his neck to look at her, quietly observing the way she took notes so seriously. Who knew what was running through his head?

During his time fluttering around Route 4, Rookidee had already encountered quite a few humans. But most of them seemed more interested in rarer, stronger Pokémon. A common Pokémon like him found everywhere in Galar barely drew a glance.

When he was hungry and flew over to trainers' campsites, more often than not he was chased away. Very few people, if any, had ever offered him food like Marie had.

And even after discovering his, well… peculiar interests, she hadn't driven him off. Instead, she cleaned the dirt off his feathers, brought him to the Pokémon Center, and was now even taking detailed notes on his treatment all for his sake.

Sensing his gaze, Marie turned to look at him.

"What is it?"

"Chuu~ (Nothing! You're amazing, big sis! I'm totally in love with you!)"

"…"

Marie's expression dropped immediately. She should've known better than to expect anything decent to come out of this little pervert's mouth. Without saying another word, she turned away and chose to ignore him entirely.

After finishing her notes and double-checking everything against Nurse Joy's suggestions, Marie finally left the Pokémon Center with the others.

"Let me introduce myself properly. I'm Marie. Starting today, I'll be your Trainer."

"Chuu chuu~ (Ooh, even your name is adorable!)"

Too lazy to deal with him, Marie opened her bag and took out a case holding various Poké Balls, then showed it to Rookidee.

"Which kind do you like?"

"Chuu… (Uh, that one?)"

Rookidee's eyes instantly locked onto the pink Poké Ball engraved with a heart pattern the Love Ball. He hesitated, but the impulse to test his luck outweighed any lingering sense of self-preservation.

He pecked cautiously at the Love Ball, sneaking a glance at Marie's reaction. Unfortunately, her expression gave away absolutely nothing.

"…"

The heavy silence settled over him like a cold fog. He trembled slightly and scooted back a step, then quickly pecked at a different Poké Ball nearby, trying to salvage the situation.

Marie blinked in confusion. Why the sudden change? Just a moment ago he'd picked the rare ball without hesitation. Now he was acting so… well-behaved?

Still, the second ball he picked wasn't exactly cheap either. A black Poké Ball accented with orange rings the Luxury Ball.

Even though it was a standard product, the Luxury Ball prioritized comfort and aesthetic design. Its price was among the highest for mass-produced balls, and it was restricted to limited quantities. If not for having a Gym Leader brother backing her, even Marie would've had trouble getting her hands on one.

"You sure about that?"

She pointed at both the Love Ball and the Luxury Ball to confirm once more. Even though she only had one Love Ball, she didn't mind using it on Rookidee. After all, she deeply respected her Pokémon's preferences.

"Chuu chuu! (Yeah, yeah, I'm sure! That one!)"

Still trembling a little, Rookidee chose to play it safe. He went with the Luxury Ball its predominantly black design would match his future evolution, and besides, there was only one like it.

"Alright. Then it's settled."

Marie enlarged the Luxury Ball with a press, and Rookidee couldn't wait. He darted forward and pecked the button, diving in on his own.

Click.

With that familiar sound, the Luxury Ball in Marie's hand stopped moving.

She pressed the button again and released him, then put the ball away as she watched him excitedly flutter around in circles.

"Don't fly off too far."

"Chuu chuu~ (Yup yup~ Got it~)"

In an exaggeratedly sweet tone, Rookidee squinted happily like he was surrounded by sparkles and promptly dove straight into Marie's arms.

"…"

Looking down at the floppy bird melting into her embrace, Marie's mouth twitched.

"That voice of yours just now was disgusting… I should call you Fat Nerd from now on."

"Chuu? Chuu! (What? No way! I need a cool name!)"

"Vee- (With that round little body of yours? Don't even dream about being cool.)"

"Chuu-?! (What the-?!)"

Moonlight's sharp and spot-on roast struck Rookidee like a bolt of lightning. His whole body froze, then flailed wildly with his claws in a fit of panic.

"Chuu chuu !! (Shut up! When I evolve, I'll be super cool! Tall, strong, majestic Corviknight, that's me! You can call me Crow King! The strongest Corviknight ever!)"

"Pfft…"

Hearing him shamelessly brag, Marie couldn't help laughing. She picked him up and tossed him lightly into the air, watching him flap frantically to stabilize himself.

Still chuckling, she said,

"If you like chirping so much, maybe I'll just call you Chuchu."

Rookidee, stunned by Marie's smile, blanked out completely. He flapped lazily and absentmindedly chirped in agreement.

"Chuu… (Yeah, yeah, sure...)"

"Wait, you actually agreed?"

Marie raised an eyebrow. The name had been meant as a joke too cutesy and feminine. She'd fully expected him to throw a tantrum over it. But he'd just accepted it? Was he still spaced out?

"Chuu…? (Agreed to wha- wait! No! I don't accept it! That name is way too embarrassing!)"

"Vee~ (But you nodded. Changing your name already? What happened to 'Crow King,' huh?)"

"Chuu- (I-I-I… I take it back! Who's taking anything back?! Chuchu it is! I'm still gonna be the future Crow King!)"

"Ruru… (Pfft…)"

Off to the side, Silk couldn't hold it in any longer. She bent over, stifling her laughter with both hands, her whole body leaning against Moonlight's leg. Whatever it was that hit her funny bone, it didn't seem like she'd be recovering anytime soon.

Marie walked over and bent down to scoop up the wobbly Silk, placing her gently into her arms. The moment she did, Silk grabbed her collar and buried her face in Marie's chest, shaking with silent laughter.

"…Forget it. Let's just go."

With no way to deal with the hysterically laughing Silk in her arms, Marie simply sighed and called everyone to head back toward Yuri.