Toot~
In the early morning, a ship's deep, prolonged whistle echoed across Coumarine City's harbor as it slowly sailed in.
Coumarine City, a famous port in the Kalos Region, was renowned as a leisure and vacation destination. Even at this early hour, the port bustled with activity.
The harbor teemed with vessels of all sizes — from massive cruise ships to medium-sized yachts and small fishing boats...
As ships docked, the pier came alive — dock workers unloaded cargo, tourists streamed ashore, and street vendors called out their wares. The air filled with a symphony of voices and movement.
Cole stood on deck, his heart swelling with emotion as he watched the approaching pier. How long had it been since he'd seen such a vibrant scene? So long that the human world had become almost foreign to him.
Ten days had passed since Captain Sanders and his crew rescued him, and now, after their long journey, they were finally docking.
Through patient attempts at communication, Captain Sanders and his crew discovered that while Cole couldn't understand their speech, he could comprehend their meaning through Pokémon.
The crew was intrigued by his ability to understand Pokémon language, and though puzzled by a child who seemed intelligent yet couldn't speak, they were relieved to find him otherwise unimpaired.
Over these challenging days, Cole learned that Sanders led an official Pokémon League exploration team. They had been investigating ancient ruins at sea when they unexpectedly found him on their return voyage.
During their journey, Cole devoted himself to learning the new language through Daisy and the crew's help.
The crew embraced teaching him with enthusiasm. They spoke slowly in conversation and eagerly helped with his questions — teaching him words like "chair" when he pointed to one, or "sky" when he gazed upward...
Cole felt profound gratitude for meeting such kind and welcoming people.
Seeing Cole staring intently at the crowd on shore, Sanders walked over and said, "Once we dock, I'll have Mogu take you to the police station, and Officer Jenny will help you get home."
Mogu was the young sailor who had first discovered Cole.
Cole nodded.
In truth, he had no home — wherever he and Daisy went would be their home.
Since Captain Sanders couldn't understand either Cole's or the Gardevoir's speech, and Cole's newly learned language wasn't yet at a conversational level, they remained unaware that he was a wild child raised by Pokémon on a deserted island. Instead, they assumed he had been in a shipwreck and temporarily separated from his family.
With no way to make himself understood, Cole didn't bother trying to explain.
After coming ashore, Captain Sanders had official business to attend to, so Cole was entrusted to Mogu.
As they walked to the police station, Mogu enthusiastically talked non-stop about his hometown of Coumarine City.
Coumarine City was indeed beautiful, seamlessly blending sea, trees, and modern light rail into a rich natural and cultural atmosphere. After taking it all in, Cole felt this would be an ideal place to settle down, offering both urban conveniences and natural beauty.
The two arrived at the police station, where Officer Jenny formally received them.
After Mogu explained Cole's communication difficulties, she said, "I see... then we won't be able to get information effectively from this child..."
After a moment's thought, Officer Jenny suddenly slapped her forehead.
"Oh right, I have an idea! Wait here a moment."
She quickly ran off.
When she returned, a pretty young woman in a light green dress accompanied her.
"This is my good friend Margie."
Officer Jenny made the introduction to Cole and Mogu.
"Her Alakazam can help us communicate with this young friend." Then, turning to Margie, she said, "Margie, please."
Margie nodded gently and took out a Poké Ball. With a flash of light, a golden-colored Alakazam appeared before everyone.
The Alakazam looked questioningly at its trainer, but after Margie whispered something in its ear, it deftly took a pen and blank notebook from her hands.
Officer Jenny explained with a smile, "Margie's Alakazam can read and write. Since this young friend can communicate with Pokémon, he can tell Alakazam what he wants to say, and Alakazam can write it down for us."
Mogu exclaimed in surprise, "That's amazing, an educated Alakazam!"
Cole also marveled at Alakazam's intelligence.
Through Alakazam's help, Officer Jenny and the others quickly learned Cole's true situation. Mogu exclaimed in shock, "You weren't just shipwrecked? This Gardevoir raised you?"
No wonder such a big child couldn't speak.
"Little one." Officer Jenny asked gently, "Do you have any plans? Would you like to stay in Coumarine City?"
Cole shook his head then nodded.
He knew nothing about this world now, so naturally had no plans. Though he knew about Pokémon from his previous life, knowing about Pokémon and understanding the Pokémon world were entirely different matters!
But staying in Coumarine City seemed like a good suggestion.
"Since you're willing to stay in Coumarine City." Officer Jenny said thoughtfully, "I'll first help you get identity documents, then we'll figure out how to settle you."
Having an identity was indeed necessary to survive in this world.
Cole nodded obediently, ready to follow her guidance.
Pleased that Cole would stay in Coumarine City, Mogu ruffled the kid's head with a knowing smile, "Good kid, trust me, you won't regret staying here."
Seeing that Officer Jenny had made arrangements, he added, "Officer Jenny, I'll leave Cole to you. I have matters to attend to, so I'll be going now."
She nodded and replied, "Don't worry, I'll take good care of this little one."
After saying goodbye to Cole again, Mogu left the police station.
Processing Cole's identity documents went smoothly. Given his young age and special circumstances, the registry office provided expedited processing.
But everyone struggled with where to register his household.
"Why don't we send this child to an orphanage?" One officer suggested.
"That seems to be our only option..." Officer Jenny said, her brows slightly furrowed.
And so, Cole's destination was decided.
He spent that night at the police station, where the officers bought dinner for him and Daisy.
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Officer Jenny came to pick him up early the next morning, thoughtfully bringing breakfast for them both.
After Cole finished eating, she handed him a Poké Ball, "I'll be taking you to the orphanage soon. Consider this Poké Ball my gift to you — you can keep your Gardevoir in it."
He gratefully accepted the Poké Ball and awkwardly thanked Officer Jenny in the language of the Pokémon world.
Daisy was familiar with Poké Balls. Through her encounters with humans, she had seen these magical devices many times, and Cole had explained to her how they worked.
When he asked if she wanted to enter the Poké Ball, she nodded without hesitation.
Cole wasn't surprised. His "mom" was naturally lazy — during training, he often had to whip her along to keep going (metaphorically speaking, of course). The chance to rest in a Poké Ball was an opportunity she wouldn't pass up.
After breakfast, Officer Jenny stood up, "I'll take you to the orphanage now. I've already spoken with the director, and she'll make arrangements for you when we arrive."
Cole nodded, eager to begin his new life.
Before heading to the orphanage, Officer Jenny took him for a bath, helped tidy his messy hair, and bought him proper clothes.
Cole felt deeply grateful for her kindness.
His previous clothes, borrowed from one of Captain Sanders' crew members, had been far too large for an eight-year-old, making it difficult to move around.
The makeover transformed Cole's appearance. With his dark skin and neat new look, he had become quite a handsome young boy.
He beamed with satisfaction at his reflection.
Officer Jenny looked him up and down with a smile, "Well now, Director Meili will certainly take a liking to you!"
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Coumarine City had a unique geographical layout, with ocean on one side and mountains on the other, divided by a light rail that ran through the city's center.
The ocean side bustled with commercial districts, residential areas, and tourist zones, while the mountain side was home to ranches, farmland, and orchards.
This distinct division was the origin of Coumarine City's name.
The Blue Bird Orphanage, Cole's new home, sat on the mountain side.
After a quick light rail journey across a cliff, they found the orphanage perched not far above.
Standing at the entrance, Cole studied what might become his long-term home. The orphanage was modest — three buildings arranged in a square with a small courtyard in the middle.
A woman in her forties was hanging laundry in the courtyard when they arrived.
Upon seeing Officer Jenny and Cole, she quickly set down her work and hurried over, "Officer Jenny, you're here! Is this the child who will be staying with us?"
Officer Jenny nodded, "Yes, this is Cole Sage, and I'll leave him in your care. He has special circumstances regarding communication, so please pay extra attention to that."
Officer Jenny explained his situation to the director in detail.
After finishing, she had Cole release Daisy and, through translation, told him, "Listen well to Director Meili from now on, and if you encounter any difficulties, you can come to the police station for help."
Cole nodded solemnly and thanked Officer Jenny again.
After Officer Jenny's departure, Director Meili took his hand and led him into the courtyard, explaining the orphanage's setup.
"My name is Meili, I'm the director of this orphanage. You can call me Director Meili, or Grandma Meili..."
Blue Bird Orphanage was small, with Meili as the only staff member and just six children — now seven with Cole's arrival.
Officer Jenny had chosen this place for Cole precisely because of its intimate size and simple atmosphere.
As Cole listened to Meili's introduction, he noticed several small heads peeking at them from a distant corner.
Meili spotted them too and called out with a welcoming gesture, "What are you all doing? Come over here quickly, let me introduce our new member."
Four little ones emerged shyly from the corner — three boys and one girl, all younger than Cole.
"This is your new Big Brother Cole, you should all get along well with him." Meili said, introducing him and Daisy to the children, "And this is Big Brother Cole's family member Daisy. You should treat her just as kindly as you treat your Big Brother."
"Yes, Grandma Director!" The four children shouted in unison, their eyes wide with curiosity as they gazed at the Gardevoir.
Then the director introduced the four children to Cole.
The tallest was Charlie, a six-year-old energetic and active boy. Next was Lily, also six, who had a quiet nature. The younger ones were five-year-old Norman and four-year-old Paul.
Norman was quite shy, hiding behind Lily and avoiding eye contact with Cole and Daisy. In contrast, Paul seemed outgoing — if Norman hadn't held him back, he would have already rushed over to meet the newcomers.
Besides these four, the orphanage had two more children: Alfred and Claire.
Claire was just a one-year-old baby, currently napping inside. Alfred, the oldest child at Blue Bird Orphanage, was nine years old but away at school.
Though Blue Bird Orphanage was small, it operated with government funding from Coumarine City, making Director Meili a public servant.
Children at this orphanage enjoyed one significant benefit: free public schooling after turning seven.
However, the government only covered basic education — any further studies would require personal funding.
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