A Challenge Accepted

          An elderly gentleman with a soft smile took a seat next to his young grandchild in the comfort of their living room couch. His wispy white hair found a reassuring home in the hills of their aged couch. He closed his eyes and rested for a few silent seconds. Slowly, he peeped one eye open to look over at his curious grandson who wondered what his grandfather was up to.
         "I've got an idea,"said the old man. The creases on his face seem to disappear as he smiled wide.
         "What's that Grandpa?" asked the curious boy. His full attention moved from the book he was reading to his grandfathers face.
         "I'd like to see how well very own grandchild can train Pokemon. I thought of a challenge for you. Would you like to hear it?"
         A huge grin appeared on the boys face. He put the book he was reading down next to him and placed his hands in his lap and listened attentively.
         "There's a Pokemon called Eevee. Have I told you about it before?"
         "I don't believe so." Nero's head tilted and lips pierced together creating an awkward look as he tried to recall past stories of Pokemon his grandfather had told him.
         A chuckle could be heard from Nero's grandpa. He swung his arm around his grandson's shoulder and pulled him closer as if he was about to reveal a deep dark secret. Their strong bond was easily seen no matter where they were. In public, or at home where no one saw them. Nero's grandpa was who cared for him after his parents passed. He was Nero's teacher, teaching him all there was to know about Pokemon, and he was a great friend to him as well.
         "Eevee is a very special Pokemon. It's a normal type Pokemon that has several evolution forms. Its forms depend on the stones it is exposed to and some depend on other factors – which you'll have to discover on your own." Grandpa's old eyes closely watched Nero as his grandson's face lit up with curiousity.
         "Wow, it sounds awesome!! So- how can I get one? Are they around here?" Nero jumped up from the couch with excitement.
         His grandfather sighed.
         "Well, they don't appear often in the wild, but throughout the years, I have obtained a few of my own..."
         "Can I please see one?!" asked Nero anxiously.
         "Aren't you intrigued?" chuckled Grandpa. "You can see one if you listen and accept my training challenge."
         "I'm all ears, gramps!" said the youngster as he patiently waited to hear of the challenge.
         "I am willing to let you train two of my very own Eevees for six months. Your challenge will be to have two of these Eevees evolve into different evolution form in that time period." His grandfather's  cool toned eyes shifted from a careless free look to a serious one in a matter of seconds. Training Pokemon was a very important and a matter not to be joked about when it came to Nero's grandfather.
         "Oh, that's going to be easy. I'll go get a stone right now for one of them! Mae already has a fire stone.." Nero let his sentence wear off as he saw his grandfather's facial expression changed. He could tell his grandfather did not want him to depend on a stone that his childhood friend already had.
         Nero's grandfather sat up straight and his eyes stared directly into his grandson's.
         "I have some conditions you must follow. If you use a stone, you must earn enough money for your own through battling. If you want to use one, you'll also have to travel far for one as our town doesn't carry any at the moment," he explained.
         "Oh, I see. Well, I guess that idea didn't work out so well. Anyway, what if I complete your challenge grandpa?" Nero's eye brows raised as he had a good idea of what the answer would be.
         "You'll get to keep both of the Pokemon I give to you, of course!"
Nero's brimmed with happiness. His smile stretched from one cheek to another in delight.
         "Then I'll definitely accept! When do you want me to start training them?"
         Nero was ready to leave at any moment. Training two Pokemon that he never knew of before is something he has not ever done. He could feel his toes wriggle in his boots while he tried to remain patient towards his grandfather.
         "A great trainer can always accept a challenge at last notice. I want you to start now."
         Taken aback by how quickly this challenge was supposed to start, Nero had to ask once more. His grandfather has never asked him to leave on his own on such short notice.
         "Right now?! Are you sure?"
         "Yes, Nero, right now. Things happen every day in the life of a trainer that may require them to leave what they consider shelter at any given moment."
         Nero was a bit nervous of leaving so quickly, but he knew he had to impress his grandfather.
         "Er – okay! I'll start packing!"
         Nero felt his grandfather's arms squeeze his shoulder giving him a boost of encouragement.
         "That's my boy! I don't want to show you the Pokemon now- once you're out in the wild you may release them and get to know them."
         Nero started to run up the stairs to his bedroom to pack for his short adventure. After a few steps up the stairs, he suddenly froze midway. An idea was brewing in his head.
         "Hey grandpa, would it be okay if Mae helped me?"
         Mae had been friends with Nero ever since the age of six. They had discovered Pokemon together and shared their tough histories together. She was his biggest supporter and best friend. She knew much of Pokemon from her very own grandparents, but wasn't known to be the greatest trainer as she avoided many battles.
         "Hmm- well, I heard.." he trailed off, realizing that he may be too harsh about the boy's friend. "She's a sweet girl Nero, but, I'm not sure how much help--"
         He was interrupted. Although Nero did not mean to give any disrespect towards his grandfather and advisor; he was not one to tolerate anyone who spoke down about Mae.
         "Grandpa," Nero's voice was stern,"She's my best friend and she's always supporting me like you. I'd like to give her an Eevee. She only has a few Pokemon right now. I'm being smart by having her help me train one, aren't I?"
         His grandfather looked up at him for a second and could see the determination in his grandson's face. Knowing his grandson was right, he had to agree.
         "Yes, you are. Nero..she..she's going to need more help at training it than you may know."
         A bit of tension rose between the two, but quickly cooled off when Nero's grandfather realized he was trying to live a trainer's life through his grandson. He knew he did not have a right to make decisions and create an opinion of Mae about training Pokemon.
         "I understand what you mean Grandpa, but we can do anything together. You'll see. In less than six months the Eevees will evolve and be ours to keep!" Nero flashed his grandfather the thumbsup, something he commonly did when he knew things were going to go his way.
         "You're also so confident. You remind me of myself when I was your age. My, my- that was so long ago.. Anyway, I don't see why Mae can't help you out. Seems like you two are always together anyway.  Here's some money for food and supplies."
         He placed the money on the living room table as well as two red Pokeballs. These Pokeballs looked much different than the ones Nero had seen before.  He rushed down the stairs back to the living room couch.
         "Those are Pokeballs, Grandpa?"
         "Yes, Nero, these are special ones. They're called Cherish balls. The Eevees are inside them. Those two are very dear to me. Your grandmother caught one with me while we were young. After she passed, I took care of them both, but I wanted to wait until you were older before I handed them down to you."
         Nero's grandmother has passed when he was a mere toddler, but every day he could feel part of the sadness it left on his grandfather. Nero smiled and gave his grandfather a warm reassuring hug. He wanted to impress both his grandfather as well as his grandmother who may be watching him.
         "I promise to take very good care of them grandpa. I will keep my word."
         His grandfather returned the hug then whipped Nero around and started to push him towards the stares. Nero's grandfather was a great trainer, but when it came to emotional matters, he tried to push them aside.
         "Start packing Nero. I want you out on your adventure in thirty minutes, you hear? If you're missing something, you have to be creative when you're out."
         Nero jumped on the stairwell and ran to his room to pack his belongings for a new adventure.
         After about twenty minutes, the boy came down the stairs, wearing his hat and sporting a backpack that was jammed full of supplies. He started towards the front door after grabbing the cash and cherish balls. He tucked them safely into his pockets.
         "I'm ready to go, I'll see you in several months! Are you positive you are going to be okay without me?" Nero questioned. He was always considered for his grandfather as he was the closest relative he had a relationship with.
Nero's grandfather started to laugh whole-heartedly. 
         "Don't worry! I don't even need a cane! I'll be fine!" Nero's grandfather gestured a good bye to him and gave him the thumbs up.
         The thumbs up made Nero feel safe about his grandfather's stay alone and he laughed in his head about questioning his grandfather's health in the first place.
         "Haha, okay. Well, I guess I'll see you later – once those two are strong and evolve!" He opened the door and looked back at his grandfather for the final good bye before departure.
         "Good luck and have fun, Nero" said his grandfather. He slowly turned his attention to a newspaper that was lying on the table.
         "Thanks grandpa!"
         "Oh and by the way, tell your little girlfriend I said hi!" Nero's grandfather covered his grinning face with the paper and laughed.                              
         Nero felt his cheeks turn pink in embarrassment. "She's not my girlfriend!" He shut the door, smiled, and started his journey. Inside the house, Nero's grandfather sat in the same spot and kept reading the paper.
         "Oh kids."
         He was still quietly chuckling as he relaxed happily in his silent and peaceful home.