Since we were in the same boat, I thought that I might as well extend an olive branch. Whether they survive or not would ultimately depend on their own skills and luck.
"Bradley, Vivian, right?" I asked in turn.
"Yep," the scruffy boy replied without looking back up.
"Y-yes." the cute girl with shy hazel eyes stuttered, a blue ribbon adorned her vibrant red hair. " P-pleased to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too." I returned politely with a smile. "I'm Dexter."
"I know." Bradley said as he finished his meal.
"I hope we can get along." I carried on from his rather rude interruption. "We'll need all the help we can get through this. Makes more sense if we train together to increase our chances of survival, if the rumours are believed to be true."
While the girl took my offer almost instantly, the boy remained silent staring at his tray, lost in thoughts.
I looked at him for a moment before speaking again. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you volunteer for this? Not many people actually want to become Pokémon trainers."
Bradley finally turned to look at me. "It's better than the alternative."
"W-what do you mean?" Vivian asked shyly.
The boy simply slouched down in his chair and stared at the table for a moment. He gestured to himself after a while. "Look at me. What did you think of me when you saw me today in the courtyard? Lower class, right? Most likely from District 9? Am I right?"
Vivian slowly nodded her head.
"Well, anyone who thought that after seeing me today would be correct. I do live in District Nine. Or I did until today anyway," he corrected himself. "My mom, two sisters and I lived in a small one-bedroom apartment in the cheapest residential building in the district. It was all we could afford on her income."
Bradley gestured to us. "Based on your clothes and how you carry yourself I would guess you were middle class. Your old home was in District Seven, right?"
The Smiths do live in District Seven and judging by Vivian's reaction she also lived in the same district, through I had hardly knew of her before today.
He nodded. "You probably looked down at your tray and your first thought was about how unappetizing or unwilling it looked. You're used to three square meals a day and snacks throughout the day if you get hungry."
I had nothing to say. Most people in District 7 were from middle-class families
He gestured to our trays. "This meal was on par with or even better than anything my mom could put together each day. We normally ate only once day. Twice a day if my mom came into a little extra income. There were some days that we didn't eat at all. For my family, life is a constant struggle for survival."
Bradley sat back and contemplated the ceiling. "It wasn't always like that for my family. I was actually born in District Four. My father was a team leader for one of Fiore's mining companies. Three times a week, a team of Pokémon trainers would escort my father and his crew to one of the northern mines to mine the ores and gems that cannot be produced within the city state. The trainers took care of any wild Pokémon they came across and watched over the miners while they worked. My father supervised all the work done. Because the work was outside the walls, the mining company paid very well due to high risk. As a team leader, my father brought in enough income to maintain our position in the upper middle class, even with my mom not working."
Ah. Something clicked inside my head. Accidents happen all the time, even more so in such a dangerous line of work.
He looked down at the table again. "All of that changed when I was eight years old. One day, my father and crew set out to the caves they were currently mining from, not realizing that a large group of wild Pokémon had settled in the caves since the last time the crew had been there. They were attacked soon after entering the caves."
"I remember that," I said. "A large group of Aron and Lairon, led by a mated pair of Aggron, attacked some minors that entered their territory seven years ago. The hired trainers did their best to drive off the wild Pokémon, but their trained Pokémon were greatly outnumbered. In the end, the best they could do was try to hold back the wild Pokémon and give the miners a chance to escape and retreat to the city state. Most of the crew and trainers didn't make it."
"My father was one of the casualties," he grimaced. "He always took responsibility as team leader seriously. One survivor told mother that my father was brought down by an Aggron as he was trying to help an injured miner to get back to the city. He died a hero."
He looked at us with anger in his eyes. "He may have died a so-called hero, but that did nothing for my family. Because my mother had no job, we did not have too much savings as my father supported us on just his income. Those savings ran out quickly and we began to fall in debt. The only job my mom was able to find was as a street cleaner, working every night to keep the streets that I grew up in clean. She had no choice but to sell off almost everything we owned to pay off the debts and took what little was left and moved to District Nine."
He paused for a moment. "Even after all that happened, do you know what upset me the most at the time was? Even more than actually losing my father?"
Vivian fidgeted nervously besides me.
Bradley continued, "A week after the massacre in the mines, the company my father worked for hired elite Pokémon trainers to clear out the mines of the wild Pokémon. The day after that, they sent another crew to begin mining where my father's crew left off. Never mind the fact that a week ago, my father and most of his crew was killed because the company sent them to that mine without sending some trainers to inspect it first and, if necessary, clear out any wild Pokémon. They only cared about restarting the mining operations."
"My condolences," "S-sorry" we muttered.
He glared at us. "Why are you apologising to me. None of what happened was your fault. My father and crew knew the risks that came with going outside the walls. If anyone should apologize it should be the mining company. If they have just done their job right, my father might still be alive today. It is not your fault!"
All of us stayed silent for several minutes after that outburst.
Finally, Vivian broke the silence, stuttering constantly. I interrupted her with a flick to the forehead. It was clear what his motives were in volunteering.
"Silly girl," I tutted. I turned towards Bradley. "That's some story there. I suppose the speech must have been effective if they managed to change your mind. As a trainer you could earn a decent income to support yourself and the rest of your family. Besides, it's not easy to rise to a higher class. Not many would have done as you had done."
"I'm sure you would have," he said. "If for no other reason than to try support your family. I saw what you did today. Volunteering in your cousin's place, that just shows how much your family means to you. That took some guts."
Chuckling oddly, I drew looks from both the freckled redhead and the brunette boy. "I wouldn't have let her. She wouldn't have survived the Ordeal." I paused. "Well, I'm beat. Been a long day. I'm going to find an empty bed and get some rest. You should do the same."
Taking my tray to the kitchen I left them to stew in their own thoughts. Today was tiring. Tomorrow was a new day. Carpe diem and all that shit.