In a lone cabin, up north in the forest with several other cabins just a few yards away, Zam just came home after a long day in middle school. Tomorrow is his thirteenth birthday, but he had little reason to celebrate with his friends, especially with how exhausted he was. When he walked up to the front porch, he opened the door and noticed that his parents weren't saying hello to him.
“How was school, kiddo?” His father asked, while reading the newspaper.
Zam didn’t respond, whilst taking his shoes off, even with his friends at school trying to cheer him up, it simply wasn’t enough. “Nothing special.” He answered.
“Zam, tomorrow's your birthday, you should at least be a little bit excited.” His mother responded. “If this is about you not getting into anything that's not digital or video game related, then what are we gonna do with you?”
With the limited options he has, he just can’t make up his mind for his birthday tomorrow. His brother and sister have many ideas to cheer him up and he does appreciate what they do for him. However no matter how hard he tried to, he can’t even give his family the credit they deserve.
“Maybe going somewhere? Like a place I never went to before?”
“You had so many walks on the streets with us, I can’t even pick which location you would prefer to go to.” His father replied.
“Can you at least pick one activity that’s not television related, or video game related?” His mother offered.
“I would, but I just couldn’t do it, if only my expectations weren’t so subverted in the wrong way.” Zam placed his backpack by the kitchen table. He may have no homework for the night, but he always spent his time alone in his bedroom. Upon heading upstairs, his brother walked past him, noticing his little brother had the same day for the past few months.
“We really need to make his birthday really memorable tomorrow.”
“Let’s face it, it will always be a waste of time if he never has high hopes for anything.” His father placed his newspaper on the table.
Zam’s brother remembered the convention advertisements he came across in his high school. The guests who will appear at the convention are one of the cartoon characters Zam is familiar with. “I have an idea.” His brother walked down the steps. “There’s a convention just forty five minutes away from here. I think Zam will enjoy his time there.”
He showed the convention poster to his parents with the characters on it. There was Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony on the bottom, Anne and Sprig from Amphibia by the left, three pokemon from the fourth generation from the right, Lapis and Amethyst from Steven Universe in the middle of it all, and finally, Sonic The Hedgehog on the top of the poster.
“All of these characters are gonna appear in the convention?” His mother asked.
“Yes and there will be more, but mostly for autograph signings and pictures.” The brother answered.
“Are these the same characters he watches online?”
“It does feel like they’re the same characters he watches.” His father looked straight at the characters from the poster.
“The convention will begin at seven in the morning. I will be able to afford everything, just for him to meet these famous people.”
With zero plans for the mother and father tomorrow on their day off, they make their decision to go with their eldest son’s plan. “You should tell Zam about this.” His mother gave the order to the brother.
Inside Zam’s bedroom, he was writing his personal feelings in his journal he keeps to himself. Usually he would do these when something actually happens in his life, but he was days away from catching on due to his depression constantly getting in the way.
However when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs, he immediately put his journal away. “Zam?” His brother walked inside. “Are you feeling alright?”
“Only a little, today wasn’t any different.” Zam replied. His brother closed the door right behind him while sitting next to him. He showed Zam the poster of the cartoon characters appearing at the convention. “Cartoon Pandemonium?”
“Trust me, it would be exciting to meet these characters in person.”
“I thought cartoon characters are nothing more than a drawing on paper.”
“That’s what I thought when I was your age.” His brother gave him the poster while giving him some experience from his past. “When our dad told us he would love to meet Thor in person, I thought he was referring to Chris Hemsworth. But unfortunately, he wasn’t messing with us.”
Zam had never met a celebrity in his life, but learning that a celebrity being portrayed by a character who has a life in the real world just seemed too unrealistic. “How can I believe that when he never showed me a photo of him and Chris?”
“It was from 2012, when you were four during the time.” His brother responded. “Yes the MCU Infinity Saga is over, but when I meet one of the cast members, they sometimes head to different...places that no other person went to.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.” Zam placed his hand on his head.
“Believe me, that’s what I thought when I only knew very little of the information.” He took a deep breath, trying to get back on track with Zam. “Please, I promise tomorrow will make your birthday the best you had in years.”
Zam looked at the poster again and the advertisements available at the convention. He can tell there’s a lot going on tomorrow even if it’s not in one of the biggest buildings in town. “I’ll probably get an autograph and maybe a picture with one of the guests.”
“And maybe you should do one of the activities like, playing band lessons with Anne. I don’t know if Sunset Shimmer’s gonna be there.” His brother heads out of the bedroom, about to order the tickets before they’re sold out completely.
Zam can’t even decide if he’s making the right choice or wasting not only his time, but also his family’s time. He took out his journal and wrote down how tomorrow could make his birthday different, but in a spectacular way.
“I need not only my family to be pleased, but also the guests at the convention.”
On the morning of Zam’s birthday, after eating breakfast with his family, they all head inside the car to make their way to Cartoon Pandemonium. It was a long drive for Zam’s brother and sister but it didn’t phase him in the slightest. He has some expectations, but not like before.
“Tell me Zam.” His sister called. “If one of your favorite cartoon characters is there, everyone enjoying themselves, what would they feel if they saw you not excited?”
When Zam looked away from the window, he gave his sister his honest opinion. “Maybe give me a candy bar?”
“I’m not joking.”
“And if you're gonna say, they’ve seen a few people in the crowd not having a great time, that’s completely false.” His brother chimed in.
“You know, you're not giving me opinions about what I’m really feeling!” Zam retorted.
“Guys!” Their mother looks at them through the rear view mirror. “Please, this is supposed to be a great day, meeting guests in a convention isn't everywhere every day.”
Upon taking deep breaths to calm himself down, Zam looked out the window again. “Yeah, I’m just not ready when opportunities like this come up.”
“Zam, you’ve always said that about past opportunities.” His father responded. “But this is the first time you've ever gone on a trip to a convention.”
“We’ve been to conventions many times, simply to have a happy experience.” His sister commented.
“And we’re gonna take you to where most of the autographing sessions take place.” His brother added. “We’re only three miles away from the convention. Just keep an open mind.”
Zam wanted to believe his family, but during his perspective on any media he watches, is never like anyone else at his school. Telling the truth is one thing, but expressing it in front of the guests could lead to severe embarrassment.
Upon entering the town itself, the family saw a few limos parked with security cars protecting them. “Seems like the guest stars have arrived.” His father looked through his window.
Upon parking along with the other cars, the family got out of the vehicle while heading to the convention. While heading to the entrance, they saw a purple pony using her horn to give the fans wristbands.
“Enjoy your time at the convention.” She smiled.
“She seems nice.” Zam’s mother commented. “Have you seen her from one of the cartoons?”
“Yes.” Zam replied. “Her name is Twilight Sparkle.”
“Do you think she might appreciate someone new like you?” His brother added.
“Not sure.”
After waiting in line for about ten minutes, the family walked up to Twilight. “I haven’t seen a family like you before.” She then turned her attention to Zam which caused him to shy away. “Especially a kid like you.”
“Yeah…” Zam responded meekly, trying to look towards the purple alicorn.
“This is his first time attending a convention.” His father responded. “Can you please give us a map?”
“Sure.” Twilight took out a map from her saddle bag and gave it to the father. “By the way, make sure you have your youngest son meet one of the other guest cartoons.”
“Guest cartoons?” Zam blinked. “Wait, you're not an advanced hologram?” Just when he’s about to touch her horn, his sister stopped him.
“We should probably get going.” She kept Zam away from Twilight.
“Yeah, just keep him occupied.” Twilight smiled while she got back to her job.
As they enter through the main hallway of the convention, they’re are so many stands available. A We Bare Bears simulator, an arcade of Nintendo and Sega games installed, and the autograph tables.
“So your first priority is getting an autograph right?” His mother asked,
“Yes, but how am I supposed to believe the guests are real?” Zam asked, being a little confused.
“We’ll talk about that later.” His sister let go of him. “Let’s just pick the person you want to give an autograph to and do the activities in the stands.”
Zam can’t even get over the fact that Twilight wasn’t fake upon meeting her for the first time. And knowing there’s more guests just like her, he wanted a straight answer from one of them. Once he sees them signing his autograph, that’s what he’s gonna do.
Over the last twenty minutes, Zam had been waiting in line to meet Amethyst and Sonic in person, while also getting their autographs. He did remember playing Sonic Adventure One and Two on the Sega Dreamcast in their grandfather's house along with watching the episode of Steven Universe, where Amethyst faces Steven in season three. But on the other hand, he never owned any of the future generation systems to play the more recent Sonic games, nor even bothered to watch the later seasons of Steven Universe.
“Hey, relax.” Zam’s father said. “It’s fine if you don’t know much about them, at least give them a good impression of yourself.”
Zam saw the way Amethyst gave her fans a rock hand gesture, not to mention the other gestures she gave fans prior to him getting up to her. He’s not sure if she ever met anyone similar to him, the same goes with Sonic. With the opportunity in sight, he took his steps in front of the table.
“Hey dude.” Amethyst greeded. “You seem a little different then the fans I’ve met today.”
“He’s mostly new here, this is our first ever convention.” Zam’s brother responded. “Today is also his birthday.”
“Really!? Today must be your lucky day!” The gem said, leaning a bit too close to Zam for his liking.
“Well, I never had better birthdays before so...can you please give me your autograph?” Zam offered, while stepping back slightly.
“Aren’t you excited?” She responded while leaning back. “And what do you mean by that?”
Zam wanted to answer the gem’s question, but his heartbeat continued to rise. Even asking about her existence could be seen as insulting. He started panting, only for his sister to step in. “It’s mostly personal, it’s not that his old birthdays were horrible.”
“We’re gonna take him to the pokemon stand to have him pet at least one of the Pokemon.” Zam’s mother chimed in. “Sorry this wasn’t what you expected from your fans.”
As much as Amethyst felt bizarre from the way Zam reacted, she wasn’t totally upset. “I don’t blame you, most fans of other celebrities don’t usually make the right impressions.” She looked at Zam again while giving her autograph to him.
“It’s not like your appearances in the cartoon caused him to act a bit counter-intuitive towards you.” Zam’s father added.
Zam’s family went to the next autograph signing session, where Sonic’s waiting. While he was being patient to give his autograph to his fans, he heard almost everything between Amethyst and Zam.
“Hey bud.” He smirked while Zam’s family walked up to him. “You’re here for the games and to step it up on the dance floor?”
“I’m...not really good at dancing.” Zam replied while trying to smile. “But I did play your games on the Dreamcast.”
After looking through the schedules for today, he’s aware there’s not gonna be any Dreamcast games available in the convention. “Oh...sorry to say this but, we only have Nintendo Switch and none of the older generation systems available.”
Now only relying on the current generation of gaming, Zam can only play either Sonic Forces or Team Sonic Racing. “I’m good without playing any games, then.” He smiled.
“Hey, at the very least you could try to play one of my games before you leave. This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of my franchise.”
Upon hearing Sega’s mascot being three decades old, Zam is now dealing with the fact that Sonic along with his friends are getting tons of recognition this year. He can only remember Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Shadow, and most of the characters from the adventure games.
“I can give Sonic Forces a chance.” Zam responded.
“Actually, how about we play Team Sonic Racing instead?” His brother offered. “Believe me when I say this, the spin off did a lot more compared to the latest mainstream game.”
Zam placed his hand upon his head. “I just wanted to play another mainstream Sonic game.”
“Zam, it’s not that big of a deal.” His mother retorted. “You may have beaten those video games before, but you didn’t complete them one hundred percent. So what’s the difference?”
“Hey, I’m sure the kiddo wants to experience the best gameplay then playing a character in a race car.” Sonic smiled while signing his autograph for Zam. “But if you decide to not go to the gaming section, you won’t do me any favors.”
After receiving the autograph, it only put Zam under more stress to reconsider. Even if he manages to go to another convection with Sonic’s friends appearing, he’s not sure if he can keep their promise if they even mentioned it being Sonic’s thirtieth anniversary.
After leaving the autograph sessions, Zam’s family went to the Pokemon section to meet the Pokemon of the fourth generation themselves. With tons of children playing with a Turtwig, a Mime Jr. a Riolu, among others from Diamond and Pearl. Zam also saw another character from Steven Universe, Lapis Lazuli.
She’s been petting Pachirisu for the last three minutes ever since she picked it up. The only episodes he remembered from her debut in Mirror and Ocean Gem episodes, and also how her relationship with Peridot is portrayed. With his family still right behind him, he stepped first onto the yellow carpet of Pikachu faces, while an Eevee slowly walked up to him.
“They’re just animals Zam, they’re not gonna hurt you.” Zam’s father said only for his son to turn around.
“They’re Pokemon Dad.” Zam responded.
“At the very least, give the Pokeman a treat.”
While feeling annoyed with his father mispronouncing the Pokemon, he still took his advice. He walked by the Pokemon while Lapis saw him taking a treat from the bowl. After taking a Poke Puff out from the bowl, Zam gave it to Eevee while getting on his knees.
“Here you go.” He spoke to the Pokemon. The Eevee slowly walked up to him, while gratefully eating the Poke Puff from the birthday boy’s hand. Zam was slowly calming himself down, in order to get used to the Pokemon around him. Even if he never played Diamond or Pearl before, he still has much knowledge of the fourth generation of Pokemon.
Little did he realize, Lapis was adoring the whole moment from the way the Eevee was mesmerized after eating the Poke Puff. “Okay, this doesn’t seem so hard.” Zam lightning himself up.
“As a matter of fact, it’s actually a good start.” Lapis smiling, grabbing the attention from the birthday boy.
“I’m mostly a fan from the first generation, this is still new to me.” He grew a smile while Eevee nuzzled his cheek. “I don’t own a Switch.”
Apparently for him, the Crystal Gem walked up to him while still holding on to Pachirisu. “If that’s the case, I’m sure it won’t hurt to give it a chance.”
Zam’s family aren't able to afford another console, but at the same time, they’ve seen a few Pokemon videos online. Zam even remembered seeing May’s vlog where she takes her Torchic to her friend’s house. Aside from doing more training as always, she and her friends did activities with their pokemon, with the video nearly reaching fifty thousand views.
“So...am I supposed to adopt a Pokemon...or catch one even though Poke balls don’t exist…”
“Not really a good move.” His sister whispered to herself.
“I think you must be mistaken.” Lapis responded. “Everything you see is real.”
The now teenager couldn’t believe her, thinking she’s a cosplayer, but at the end of the day, he still won’t be able to get all the answers he wants. And after making a deal with Sonic to play his latest mainstream game, he can’t even think about the Pokemon’s feelings if he considers being a trainer.
“If you don’t want to be a Pokemon Trainer or play the following games, the very least is to support one Pokemon. For me, I have one and this is one of the only times I can play with them more. It’s not really that complicated.”
“I guess it’s been too long for me to feel what Pokemon feel.”
“There are so many types, you will catch one eventually.”
Zam placed Eevee down while taking the helpful advice from the gem of the water. “I’ll consider that.” When he walked with his family to their next section, Lapis accepted his words. She may have heard that from other fans, but it still doesn’t stop her from agreeing with their choices.
“Well that wasn’t hard, was it Zam?” His mother smiled.
“Not really. It seems like my past memories of Pokemon seem rare with each passing year.”
“Hey, our old Game Boy doesn’t work anymore, you should’ve told her that.” His brother added.
“Then again, even if it still worked, I'd probably need a cord for anyone who’s willing to play multiplayer with me.” Zam knew full well at least one person would have a Game Boy, but it won’t change how others have more advanced portable systems. “So what should we do next?”
When his family heard a beat from the other side of the convention, it’s where most of the music is coming from. “I think that’s where Anne is performing her guitar lessons.” Zam’s sister looked to her left with a huge Amphibia tent covering what’s behind.
“I’ve played Guitar Hero so many times, maybe we should go there so I can play with them.” Zam’s brother walks up to the front.
“Okay, we can watch you while you play.” His father added as they headed straight to the band stand.
As they came to the entrance, the music was super loud, and mostly coming from Anne’s bass guitar. There were ten chairs displayed with Sprig sitting in the front. With the final beats ending off a great song, Anne placed her guitar by the speakers while giving the other bass players a fist pump.
“You did really awesome to perform Thunderstruck with me.” Anne smiled while the players gave Hop Pop the basses. “Make sure you tell your bass dudes to break my record, it won’t last long once I’ve hit expert level!”
With the guests leaving, Zam’s brother went on stage while his family sat down. “So you're playing on hard mode huh?” He taunted Anne while walking up to her. “I’ve played on that difficulty a lot more.”
“Oh really mister show-off man.” Anne taunted back while placing her hand on her hip. “Then let’s pick a song that’s off the walls.”
As his brother takes one of the basses from Hop Pop, he’s ready to give everything he’s got. “Sure and by the way,” He pointed at his brother, allowing Anne to look at Zam for the first time. “It’s Zam’s thirteenth birthday, he’s my brother.”
Zam slightly waved, but Anne on the other hand waved higher to greet him. “Hope you're having an awesome Birthday dude!”
“We just got here, there’s still more in Cartoon Pandemonium.” Zam’s mother filled in for her son.
“Then make sure he does everything he can do before you all leave.” As Anne picks up her remote to pick the song in the menu, her friend Sprig turns his attention to Zam.
“Seems you’re new here huh?” He spoked.
“That and I mostly watched a few episodes from your show.” Zam responded. “No offense.”
“It’s not like you're boycotting if you're watching other stuff on Disney Plus.” While the frog tries to cheer up the birthday boy, he’s fully aware that the company he’s working for isn't the only one taking over the convention.
“I’m wondering, are there more guests here?” Zam asked.
“Not sure, in the next hour once Sonic and Amethyst are done with the autograph sessions, more guests will take over.”
Zam probably knew Sunset Shimmer wasn’t ready to perform, mainly due to the fact she was backstage or something, but one thing’s for sure, he’s aware he didn’t keep track with the other shows he hasn’t watched.
“I think this convention is a lot bigger on the inside than on the outside.”
“Hey I always feel that way when I host my first convention.” Sprig ready for his best friend after finally picking the next song. “Even if we’re cartoony, you wouldn’t believe where we came from.”
The choice of words made Zam more curious, as if the guests were hiding something. But by the looks of it, there’s nothing to be against for how respectful the guests are. There will be a chance he would ask one guest about their birthplace, but he still needs to make the promise to Sonic about playing Sonic Forces.
