"Hmmm...How about Clam? It jumbles up a his name a bit," Tierno suggested. "What do you think Trevor?"

"Huh? Do I really have to do this?" Trevor inquired nervously.

"It's tradition Trevor, so pick a name," Shauna stated with a frown.

"If I must. Okay, how about Cal? It's simple and easy to remember," Trevor added.

"That's probably the best one you've come up with Trevor. But I have one too," Shauna grinned.

Calem, for whatever reason, didn't like the look on Shauna's face. It wreaked of something sinister. Even Serena sweat-dropped at this.

"Callie!" Shauna exclaimed excitedly.

Trevor face palmed, Tierno laughed and Shauna giggled happily. Meanwhile Serena was also laughing, not at the name, but at the confused expression on Calem's face.

"Better than mine," Tierno laughed.

"Eh, Cal, Callie,what difference does it make?" Trevor added.

"Hold on just a-" Calem stopped.

"I think it adds some color to that name of yours. It has a certain ring to it, no?" Serena inputted.

"Seriously!?" Calem sputtered.

"Oh come on Calem, live a little. Just like real men wear pink, a man comfortable with his own masculinity won't be offended by a girly name," Shauna pointed out.

Oh, she was good. If there was anything difficult to beat, it was sound reasoning, only Shauna was using it in a rather underhanded manner. "It's official, Callie it is," Shauna decided.

What did I do to deserve this? Thought Calem as he looked away with tinted cheeks.

Gah! He looks so cute when he's embarrased. Serena, can't possibly not notice.

And notice she did. Serena couldn't help but giggle at Shauna's handiwork. Then again, they were both good at doing that to guys they were comfortable with.

"Well guys, adventure awaits and our first order of business is to get to Lumiose City. But in order to do that, we need to take the long way so, let's get this party on the road!" Tierno stated as he stood up, dancing a little before turning to the group.

"Hold on there Dancy-Pants! Did you forget out Pokédex and balls?" Shauna asked, tapping her feet impatiently.

"Nope! Got'em right here," Tierno replied as he whipped his bag around and pulled out three Pokédex and a bag of Poké Balls.

"Huh. Strange, I must've grabbed an extra dex on my way out. Oh well! Here ya go you three," Tierno said as he handed the devices over.

"Thanks Tierno," Shauna replied as she, Serena and Calem took theirs.

"Here's a few Poké Balls as well," Tierno added, handing the three, five each.

"Merci, Tierno," Serena replied, taking them and clipping them to her skirt.

Calem clipped the five he was given next to Froakie's ball and smiled. This was it. He was finally going on an adventure. He turned to face his new friends.

Shauna was quirky, bubbly and all around odd. But he appreciated those qualities, even if he did get a girly nickname from her. Tierno was upbeat, funny and rather excited about a lot of things. That, coupled with Shauna's enthusiasm would make for an interesting journey. Trevor was rather chill, intelligent and soft spoken. But Calem had a feeling there was more to him than that.

Lastly, there was Serena. She was a mystery to Calem. She was fierce in battling, but fun loving at other times. Even her laugh was adorable. And her accent? He got chills from how beautiful it sounded when she spoke. This was going to be an interesting journey indeed. And he had a feeling that he would have more fun than he ought to.

"So, Avance Trail is just through the other end of town. It's a really short trail that leads to Santalune Forest. It's gonna take a while to get to Santalune City and after that is Lumiose! So gang, shall we?" Tierno stated as he adjusted his bag.

"Oui!" Shauna shouted, pointing dramatically to the edge of town. "That trail, we blaze!"

"There she goes again," Trevor sighed, shaking his head as he walked over to Calem. "Welcome to the team. Try not to get scared off by Shauna's overly enthusiastic ways," Trevor laughed.

"No worries, I knew some pretty excitable people, albeit she takes it to a different level entirely," Calem replied.

"Hey you two! Come on, let's get going already. I'm eager to meet new Pokémon!" Shauna squealed.

Serena laughed softly at her friend. She was always so eager to start things. She was always getting ahead of herself and rarely ever stopped. She was like the Energizer Buneary. That was probably the main reason she stayed friends with her. Also, Shauna was there for her through all the breakups. The two were inseparable.

"Right, coming!" Trevor called after them, catching up quickly.

Calem took one last look back at the gate of Aquacorde Town. Beyond that gate was his mother. Part of him still wondered if she would be okay. The other half knew that she would never forgive him if he didn't go on the journey. As he was looking back, he felt a tap on his shoulder. When he turned around, he found Serena looking right at him.

"Calem," Serena began, keeping a neutral expression on her face as she spoke, "the journey won't be much fun without a rival." Serena smirked.

Calem couldn't help but smile. Serena considered him her rival and they'd only had one battle. Serena extended her hand to him. Calem looked at her hand and then took it.

"Hey, Callie! Serena, stop flirting and come on!" Shauna hollered.

"Tais-toi Shauna!" Serena retaliated, causing her friend to burst into a fit of giggles due to Serena's pink cheeks.

Before Shauna knew it, Serena was chasing after her down the trail.

"Should we stop this?" Calem queried.

"Nah, it's normal. We've learned not to get in the way of those two. Besides, it's fun to watch," Tierno snickered.

"Even so, let's make sure they don't kill each other," Trevor added.

The three boys took off after the duo, eager to begin their adventure.
================================

Boom! Another one finished. Credit for the nicknames mentioned go to EpicAuthor01 and AnhkietJrHyunh. Also, there's a movie reference in here.

Tais-toi means "shut up."

I hope you all enjoyed this!