Science has changed

"Does she bite?"

"She preens my hair."

"…So not only do you have a Pokémon—you have a nice one? This is some nonsense." Ayan said. 

"You will have to register it with the school like Elicia." Neil reminded. The rules mandated that if anyone gets a Pokémon earlier than the Alliance mandated one, one would have to register it with the school authorities for book keeping. 

This was done mostly for the convenience of the rich kids. The families of the rich kids would sometimes be given a Pokémon for transportation like Tauros, Dodrio and such others. In some cases some Pokémon would voluntarily follow a young child and thus in order to combat such cases the schools had provisions if anyone brought a Pokémon openly. 

Now the Pidgey might not look like a big deal when it came to gamers in the game but any Pokémon in the real world was a big deal if it was caught in wild without having their own Pokémon in the beginning. Because unlike the gaming world, in real world it was almost impossible to hit any Pokémon with the Poke ball because they would evade most of the times. Thus Ayan having a flying Pokémon was like a young kid driving a Ferrari. 

Of course it didn't apply to Pokémon who were slow like Grimer. But very few trainers would even go for their first partner to be Grimer because of the smell and the things it ate. And even a Grimer might be hard to catch because it wasn't like a Pokémon like Grimer was helpless. It could always fight back, and injure any trainer who didn't have any Pokémon to safeguard its trainer. 

Ayan was very lucky because in the game world it was much easy to catch a Pokémon. 

"You coming or not? Gotta hit up admin first." As Neil gawked at the Pidgey perched proudly on Ayan's shoulder, Ayan offered only a smug little shrug and said. Still half in shock, Neil followed him down the main hallway, a sleek corridor. 

Students moved around them, and more than a few paused to stare. Whispers followed as they walked past.

"Is that a real Pidgey?"

"Did you see that bird on Ayan's shoulder?"

"No way he already got one—he's still less than a month away from getting one from Alliance."

They reached the admin office—a glass-walled room near the front courtyard. The woman inside was Ms. Kavira, stern-faced and hawk-eyed, as always. She looked up from her tablet the moment they entered.

"Yes?"

"I'd like to register a Pokémon for school records," Ayan said, trying to sound casual.

That got her attention.

"Do you now?" She leaned forward and tapped her screen. "Name?"

"Ayan Tori."

"Alliance ID?"

He recited it. Pidgey, as if on cue, let out a polite trill and fluffed her feathers. Ms. Kavira blinked once, then gave a small approving nod.

"Pidgey. Female. Flying/Normal-type. Wild-bonded. Any battle data?"

"No." Ayan replied. 

"Alright. Registered and tagged under your ID. No battling on campus grounds. Keep her away from the food court, and no aerial scouting over private dorms. Understood?"

"Yes, ma'am."

As they left the office and walked toward their class block, the stares grew thicker. Students openly turned in their seats in the hallway nooks. By the time they walked into homeroom, Ayan felt like a spotlight was pinned to his head. Soon they entered the class, only to see Mr. Ramesh was already in class. His eyes narrowed as he looked at Ayan and the Pokémon that stood on his shoulder. 

"Is that a Pokémon on your shoulder, Mr. Tori?"

"Yes, sir."

A longer pause.

"Did you register it?"

"Just now, sir. Ms. Kavira approved it."

"Very well." Mr. Ramesh nodded slowly. "Please ensure she doesn't disrupt the class."

Pidgey chirped softly as if to say, I'm the most polite creature here.

"Bro. You're gonna have to tell me everything. This is more than a surprise. You've become a walking legend. Do you know how jealous everyone is?" Neil said. 

"I'm sure you'll catch up soon," Ayan said, hiding a grin.

----

The first period began.

Mathematics. The teacher, Ms. Yuan, started reviewing linear equations. The topic was routine, but it took every ounce of Ayan's concentration not to glance at Pidgey every five seconds. She sat still on his shoulder, eyes half-lidded, quietly taking in the rows of students and the floating whiteboard.

Science came next. They covered magnetic fields—how Magneton clusters were studied to better understand natural electromagnetism. A few kids tried to sneak peeks at Pidgey during the session. One even asked, "Can Flying-types sense magnetic poles?"

This topic came as a bit of surprise to Ayan. Because electromagnetism in such depth was never taught so early in his previous life. It was probably due to the influence of Pokémon and their scientific applications that this topic was pushed so high up. 

Physical fitness class came after the mid-morning break. They were split into groups—warm-ups, resistance bands, sprint drills, and calisthenics. Pidgey flew a few laps above the gym dome while Ayan pushed through the drills, catching brief glimpses of her from the corner of his eye. She looked oddly proud.

"She's watching you like you're being judged." Neil commented while doing jumping jacks. 

"I am being judged."

"Bro. I want a Pokémon just for moral support during PT."

After lunch came the final class of the day: Pokémon Studies.

The large projector dimmed the room as the instructor, Ms. Komori—a calm woman with a passion for fieldwork—opened the lesson.

"Today," she said, "we'll talk about wild Pokémon behavior, especially in suburban zones. Some of you may not know this, but even common species like Pidgey, Zigzagoon, or Bidoof have strong social structures. When approaching any wild Pokémon, even a docile one, respect its space and instincts. Anyone here with direct recent experience with a wild-caught Pokémon?"

Dead silence.

Except one Pidgey trilled lightly.

Every head turned toward Ayan.

"Mr. Tori, would you like to share anything about your partner's behavior in the wild?" The teacher asked.