[PKMN FULL] Hoenn: Square One [IC]

QueenNothing · Jan 4, 2021

Robynn White

Tuesday, September 21st, Night

Boy, am I glad I got out of there. I wasn't being dishonest with how I felt towards June or anything like that, it's just that people are difficult to handle whenever they get that close to you.

Oh hey, the camera is on me now! Let me properly introduce myself- I'm Robynn. Robynn White Papillon, although the "Papillon" is optional. I'm sixteen and from Castelia City, but I grew up in Icirrus, a pretty small town in northern Unova- I'm sure you all know it as the place with Dragonspiral Tower.

I knew lots of people like June in Castelia, and when I say "like June", I mean ladies who are into other ladies; I swear we're drawn to each other like magnetism. Hoenn is no exception as you've just seen, and I'm sure I'll come across plenty more.

And speaking of June and the situation that got me into this diatribe in the first place, I'm kind of dumbfounded. I knew she had some confidence that popped up every now and then, but never in a million years did I expect she'd make the first move! I guess that's kinda my fault for leading her on so much, but who would ever expect her to do something so sudden?

You're probably wondering right about now why I would flirt with her so much if getting close to people terrifies the hell out of me, and to that I'd answer: Good question! And even if I had an answer, I wouldn't tell you. I'm not spilling those beans this early in the runtime.

Anyways, I'm heading back to the Pokémon Center right now. Now that my family has all left Hoenn, I'm staying in a room the Pokemon Center lent me. While it's small compared to what I'm used to, it's pretty nice from what I've seen. I don't need all the space Mom gives me, so that'll do just fine. Just thinking about it makes me tired… Despite its simplicity, it's so cozy.

I've arrived at the Pokémon Center from behind the building. There's no way they'll let me in from here, so I'll just make my way around the center and ignore the fucking Meowth that just tried to pounce me that I had to swipe away- Probably should have mentioned this Pokémon was digging through the trash when I approached this part of the building.

What is it about me that drove this Meowth to suddenly assault me? And why won't it go away? Even after I've made it clear that it's no match for me, the Scratch Cat Pokémon just doesn't leave me alone. It hisses at me and bares its claws, and on further inspection, I notice its fur is dirty and scuffled, and it even looks skinnier than average. I think I see what's going on now, and I know what I need to do.

I send Peridot- That's what I named Seel- out to battle. Meowth immediately rushes forward to hit Peridot straight in the smeller, and while the water-type flinches, sharp claws are harshly slashed across his face. Judging by the intensity of that attack, that's no ordinary Scratch. Poor Peri had to suffer through that. At least he's gaining battle experience.

"Peridot, use Water Sport!" Seel shakes off the pain as if he wasn't even hurt in the first place. Cheerfully clapping, he fountains water around from his horn, getting the ground wet. This doesn't give me much of a type advantage, but the first thing I know about Meowths is that they hate water, and I'm proven right when the stray Meowth hisses after being soaked. It's probably the closest thing it's had to a bath in forever.

"Good! Now, slow it down with Icy Wind!" Peridot exhales a cold wind toward the normal-type, and ice chunks form on its body. Now that Meowth is unable to move, I have Peri Aqua Jet his body weight into it, shattering the ice and knocking Meowth back. I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel bad for the Pokémon who was already suffering, but one toss of a Pokeball that shakes three times before making a clicking sound makes me feel better.

I check its Pokedex entry, nothing terribly special about it. It says my newly caught Meowth is female. It is incredibly weird to think about applying an arbitrary man-made label to these creatures, buuuuut it's just easier to refer to this Meowth as a girl, y'know? As for her name, Ruby seems fitting based on the gemstones Persians' have on their foreheads. Yeah, that's a good name- Right now, I think I'll heal Ruby up and give her a nice bath, because boy, does she deserve it.

❄️Robynn's lineup❄️

[PokeCommunity.com] Hoenn: Square One [IC]

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Aquacorde · Jan 5, 2021

Chapter 4: So Much To Do, So Much To See

Get ready for the real adventure! A trek along the back routes is a great introduction to camping and hiking for those less used to the idea. While trainers can find plenty of things to do along the way, the majority of the experience will indeed be walking. It's best to pace yourself, especially when you have to carry all your gear along with you. Good luck! :)

AREAS
Route 102, Oldale-Littlroot, Cottage Grove, Route 103

POKEMON
Azurill, Basculin, Burmy, Lillipup, Lotad, Geodude, Alolan Geodude, Heracross, Nincada, Poochyena, Ralts, Rufflet, Seedot, Skiddo, Stantler, Vullaby, Wooloo, Wishiwashi

Route 102

Trainers headed east from Petalburg will, on average, spend three days and two nights on Trainer Route #102. The dirt road itself winds and rolls gently, but the many small ponds and sheltered campsites are found below the road, in the valleys of the dells. It is considered by most to be an access road for the various ranches and farms in the area. Definitely a popular weekend trek for those living in Petalburg, but trainers travelling on weekdays will only see farmhands and ranchers going to and from worksites along the route.

On nice nights, camping under the stars with nothing but a sleeping bag works fine for most, given the relative shelter the surrounding dells provide. However, it's usually advisable to rent a tent from the Petalburg Pokémon Center at a rate of $500 per night [paid in advance, money returned or additionally charged upon tent's return to any Pokémon Center]. If a trainer chooses to buy their own gear, the sports center in Petalburg sells backpacking tents around the $5,000 price range.

Conveniently, for members of the Pokémon Fanclub, a ranch associated with the club has rooms for travellers. The ranch is more on the eastern half of the route, so travellers will usually stay their second night at this location. Guests of the ranch are sent on their way with a selection of medicinal berries to assist them on their journey.
OOC: Talk to Anna to receive your berries! You may not apply for a Fanclub Membership here.

POOCHYENA
"Common throughout the region, but especially so in this calm and sheltered stretch of land. Protective of their territory." [Common - 40%]

LOTAD
"Found in and around ponds and marshy stretches." [Uncommon - 25%]

SEEDOT
"Easy to shake out of trees, but watch out for their evolved forms!" [Uncommon - 25%]

RALTS
"Sensitive to the emotions of humans and therefore quite good at avoiding us." [Rare - 10%]

Oldale-Littleroot Township

Over time, even the rural towns of Oldale and Littleroot have found themselves susceptible to sprawl. Once two towns separate, the populations lazily inched toward each other until eventually meeting in the very middle, completely obscuring the old Trainer Route #101. Its legacy lives on only in the name of the main thoroughfare connecting the old town centers- Trainers' Corridor, a wide expanse of green parkway used mainly for sports and leisure.

Colloquially, the area is known as "Littledale" and is still primarily the residence of ranchers, farmers, and other rural folk. Officially, the Oldale-Littleroot Township encompasses the land east of Trainer Route #102's exit and west of the inlet separating the Littleroot peninsula from the Slateport peninsula, and all the way to what once was the northern terminus of Trainer Route #103. Most of the area was once rolling dells but is now farmland. Littleroot plays host to the Birch Research Institute and the only port, while Oldale has much more of the usual amenities- including the Pokémon Center. Unfortunately for those that prefer contests, the local Contest Hall- situated in Oldale- closed a few years ago due to low attendance. The building still is accessible as a community space for those that would like to practise.

AZURILL
"Love the open grass and various water features of Trainers' Corridor." [Common - 40%]

LILLIPUP
"Much friendlier than the Poochyena outside of town." [Uncommon - 25%]

WOOLOO
"Wild Wooloo are a persistent problem in the two towns, as a few tend to escape from the farms every once in a while and start their own small colonies, which end up raiding the towns for food." [Uncommon - 25%]

SKIDDO
"Skiddo, more skittish than the Wooloo but in a similar situation, tend to congregate along the southern coast. [Rare - 10%]

PROMPT: wily wooloo

IC: Either by asking around town or by finding flyers posted on notice boards, the current caretaker of a wayward Wooloo will eventually discover that the creature has escaped from an elderly woman who lives on the east side of Littleroot. The story is thus- after her pet Wooloo died some months ago, she requested a breeder's finest to replace it. But after all this time, she was unprepared for a young and energetic Pokémon having run of her tiny house. So thank you for finding her, young trainer- and perhaps you would help an old woman train her Pokémon to be more docile?
OOC: Spend a few hours working with the woman to keep her Wooloo happy without putting too much strain on her elderly body. If you succeed, she will give you a TR from her old collection (discuss choices with Anna). If you fail to find a solution that works for both of them, the woman will release the Wooloo into your care.

Littledale Gym
In the exact middle of Trainers' Corridor, at the exact line of the merging towns, the Littledale Gym stands proud. The building itself may be humble, built recently but in the style of the area's traditional barn homes, but its access to the open, hilly fields of Trainers' Corridor is perfect for trainers looking to let their Pokémon run free for a while.

It's also perfect for gym battles- at least in the opinion of current gym leader Merry Richtide. They much prefer the open air to a confined arena, and will insist on an outdoor battle no matter the weather. Merry's honestly not much of a battler- their Pokémon are much more used to helping around farms- but they're competent enough, and will give you the run-around if you let them. Their format is non-negotiable: four rounds of 1v1. Each round begins with the challenger choosing their Pokémon and Merry responding to their choice. Once a Pokémon is knocked out, both Pokémon are recalled and a new round begins. A challenger must defeat three of Merry's Pokémon to earn the Dell Badge. Those who are defeated are offered a TM for any one terrain move as consolation, while victors are offered a TM for any one Grass- or Ground-type move with a base power of 60 or less.

HERDIER
Normal . Intimidate
Protect . Ice Fang . Howl . Lick . Pursuit . Dig

MILTANK - Female
Normal . Scrappy
Rollout . Milk Drink . Heal Bell . Stomp . Headbutt . Metronome
The trickiest of Merry's Pokémon and the one that likes battle the most. Uses Rollout for mobility; likes to get far away and use Milk Drink or Heal Bell. Will be chosen against Ghost-types.

SKIDDO - Female
Grass . Grass Pelt
Synthesis . Horn Leech . Grass Knot . Nature Power . Grassy Terrain . Wild Charge

TAUROS - Male
Normal . Anger Point
Horn Attack . Swagger . Bulldoze . Spite . Iron Head . Wild Charge
Merry loses control over Tauros when Anger Point activates.

WOOLOO - Female
Normal . Fluffy
Copycat . Double Kick . Cotton Guard . Grassy Glide . Rest . Sleep Talk
Easily maneuvers in the grassy fields.

YAMPER
Electric . Ball Fetch
Bite . Thunder Fang . Fire Fang . Howl . Dig . Charm

Birch Research Institute
Though their names are in the Hall of Fame and they were once regarded as top-tier competitive trainers, Brendan and May have put aside the lives of professional trainers in favor of working at the Birch Research Institute. While Brendan's father is still the resident professor, he has left day-to-day operations to his friendly and easygoing son so that he may travel Hoenn on whatever whims he has. May is Brendan's right-hand woman- though she is often impatient and unaware of personal boundaries, nobody matches her ability to bond with and collect data from Pokémon.

The Institute itself is in the southwestern corner of Littleroot. The fenced property is extensive, but the lab itself is a rather small, two-story concrete block. It was designed to be a simple base for fieldwork and it shows.

PROMPT: research assistant

IC: While skimming the HRD is great for data snapshots, Brendan is looking for more detailed information on how Pokémon interact with their habitats, with people, with each other. To this end, he is ready to make deals with travelling trainers- for each 300-word report emailed back to Brendan, he will send you an item- May's little family of Pidove are quite good at finding people, no matter where they are in the region.
OOC: This is an ongoing side hustle. Your character's reports must be 300-400 words long and focus on a single Pokémon species' habits. They must include details like where they were observed, what time, and how many. They must be posted IC, either as part of your post or on their own. It's not that hard, I promise- this whole prompt section itself is exactly 200 words, for reference- but you may do this as frequently or infrequently as you please. You may sign up for this job either with Brendan himself or by emailing him some time down the line if your character hears about it through the grapevine. The items will be primarily consumables. Request your reward in #brendan after posting!

103 Crossing
The west side of Trainer Route #103 these days is only the beach looking east, across the sparkling inlet toward a collection of small buildings barely visible at this distance. It's not quite clear, but the building closest to the water on the other side seems to match the one closest to the water on this side- a large storage shack with associated docks. For rent here are fun one-seater pedalboats shaped like Pelliper, cute two-seater rowboats meant for romantic outings, and the usual canoes and kayaks. For a small fee- $1000- travelers may rent one of these to row, paddle, or pedal across to the matching building on the other side of the water, where they may leave their craft and set out again on land. For those accustomed to such sports, the journey may take two hours or so at a leisurely pace. Those that are not may choose to pay a rather larger fee- $4000- to have someone row them across. Or, well… good luck?
OOC: Wouldn't it be fun to partner up? Two people means twice the power, doesn't it?

Cottage Grove

Cottage Grove is barely a town- just a collection of tiny cabins scattered across the eastern shore of 103 Crossing. They don't even have a Pokémon Center. Its residents are tight-knit and all extremely into fishing and kayaking, though they won't turn their noses up at a canoe. They will turn their noses up at any praise for the Mauport Bridge, however- the bridge has absolutely ruined the pristine coastline, they insist, even thirty years since its construction. Did you know that the land bridge beneath used to be a series of islands? But supports for the bridge had to be anchored, so they filled in certain areas. Cutting that section off from the sea has had a horrific impact on the environment. Half the native Pokémon have been wiped out! But the worst is the traffic, they say. The only place in Hoenn where you'll hear ceaseless automobile traffic is the Mauport Bridge, with its neverending back-and-forth between major cities. Disgusting.

But their village itself, this far west, is quiet and serene. Powered vehicles are prohibited- everything is done by human hand or with Pokémon assistance. Even delivery trucks stop at the eastern end of Trainer Route #103 for goods to be picked up by bicycles and on foot. The population is happy- when not on an anti-urbanism tirade- hale, and hearty, and always willing to open their homes to trainers in exchange for tales of adventure.

GEODUDE
"The hiking trails and rocky coasts near Cottage Grove are littered with docile Geodude." [Common - 40%]

RUFFLET
"The rocky coastlines and abundant fishing near Cottage Grove make the area a favorite of Braviary." [Uncommon - 25%]

VULLABY
"Recent fashion trends among Mandibuzz have encouraged members of the species to seek the bones of Basculin to adorn themselves with." [Uncommon - 25%]

ALOLAN GEODUDE
"While non-threatening to the ecosystem, these counterparts to our native Geodude have begun to spring up in larger numbers." [Rare - 10%]

PROMPT: stay the night

IC: Making your way across the water is an arduous task. It's probably best to stay here for the night before heading east on foot. May as well get to know your host family while you're here! Your hosts would love to hear a tale of adventure. Something that happened to you on your journey, or something from long ago- but make it dramatic.
OOC: Your character must recount an experience by way of a dramatic oral performance. If it's within the realm of believability and well executed, your hosts will reward you with a high-quality scarf of your choice- Blue, Pink, Green, Red, or Yellow. If you don't do so well, that's okay. You still get to stay the night.

East 103 (Fishing Spot)
IC: The eastern coast of Route 103 is never in danger of being over-fished, due to the protections the residents of Cottage Grove take it upon themselves to enforce. They will, however, lend trainers a rod and allow them to take one Pokémon that they've fished up themselves.
OOC: Roll once. 60% chance of Wishiwashi, 20% chance of Red-Striped Basculin, and 20% chance of Blue-Striped Basculin. This roll does not count toward your 3 rolls for Route 103. You may catch what you pull regardless of if you've caught other Pokémon in Route 103. You may not SCAN here but you may use your guarantee.

Route 103

As previously stated, there is no vehicle traffic across Trainer Route #103. The route is primarily forested, with one fairly flat and wide trail through the center and many small ones looping and crossing around. The northern trails are rockier, with more grade changes, and the southern trails bring you deep into the forests. Trainers leaving from Cottage Grove will usually spend two days and one night on this route. One may encounter hikers and campers, as this is a popular spot for those coming from Slateport.

NINCADA
"The Nincada in this part of the region are surfacing this year." [Common - 40%]

STANTLER
"While these herds are not prone to using their illusions on passing humans, they will still do so if they feel threatened." [Uncommon - 25%]

BURMY
"The camouflaging abilities of the local Burmy are top-notch." [Uncommon - 25%]

HERACROSS
"Heracross are considered the knights of the forest. Beware of altercations." [Rare - 10%]

what's wrong with taking the back streets?

QueenNothing · Jan 5, 2021

Robynn White

Wednesday, September 23rd, Morning

First thing I had to do this morning was get some breakfast, and honestly nothing they had at the Pokémon Center cafeteria looked super good to me. I don't have any means to cook food of my own, and even then, I don't have much that'll keep me going. Thank the stars that Mom gave me enough money that I can use for whatever the hell I want. Bagels sound good right about now, and a quick online search shows there just so happens to be a bagel store in Petalburg. Perfect.

It's not a long hike to get there, and in almost no time I see a small establishment with an outdoor dining area. The bagel shop advertises itself as selling Castelia-style bagels- I'll be the judge of that.

I've purchased four plain bagels, two with cream cheese for myself, and the other two for Peridot and Ruby. Before taking a bite out of my food, I hold a bagel over Peri's head, making him clap a few times before I drop it into his mouth. He eats it in one bite, and cheerfully claps again.

Ruby is a little different- I try teasing her with it like I did Peri, but she just springs up and grabs the bagel out of my hand. The Meowth begins slowly nibbling the baked good, but something suddenly rushing into her causes Ruby to leap back and drop her bagel that's quickly stolen.

I'm not very concerned about it- I can just buy her another one, but Ruby is furious. She follows suit, and pounces the Pokémon that crashed into her, stopping it dead in its tracks. I'm able to get a better look at what exactly bothered her, a Galarian Zigzagoon. That's weird, what are they doing in Hoenn? Then again, I did meet Peri in Hoenn, so this isn't news to me.

Of course, since it is a Galarian Zigzagoon, this thing doesn't give up super easily- it gets an adrenaline rush from Ruby's assault, headbutting her in the chest to knock her back. She recoils and swipes a mighty slash across the dark-type's face. Since they're dedicated to this scuffle I might as well direct.

"Ruby, you're going off-script! Peri, why don't you help her out?"

Peridot understands my cue, and puts his flippers together for a clap of encouragement. Ruby uses another Scratch, and the combination of her unusual strength plus Helping Hand delivers a blow so rough that the Zigzagoon unleashes a loud screech of pain. Acknowledging his defeat, the badger Pokémon hastily zig-zags into the sunset- well, sunrise is more accurate, but whatever, you get the idea.

"Shame such a unique species only serves a very minor role. But I wonder, why are your scratches so strong?" I check the Pokedex app with my phone, and according to Ruby's entry, her ability is Technician. For the viewers who aren't zoologists, Technician is a natural ability that increases the power of attacks that are usually weak. I don't know the specifics, but who cares about that- this is definitely gonna come in handy for the Battle Round on Thursday.

"Ruby, I think you've got have a bright future ahead of yo-" I look up from my phone to see Meowth hissing at a Surskit that tried to investigate her bagel that's probably covered in dirt. Unlike the earlier Zigzagoon, this Pokémon instantly runs away- smart move. I wouldn't wanna mess with Ruby either.

Ruby grew to level 17!
Ruby forgot Feint and learned Pay Day!
Peridot grew to level 18!

❄️Robynn's lineup❄️

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WizardOfOdd · Jan 8, 2021

Jacques 'Jack' Tenenbaum
Location: Slateport Gym, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 9
Hubris - Part 1

After what had transpired at the Contest Hall both I and Katrina went to the gym as promised. Honestly, everything went much well than I expected. We got new friends, well just one friend for me... I'm just grateful that Mo— Oh wait, she's Shuna now. I bet everyone else already knew except me, that's what you got for not checking your communication device, I guess.

Anyway, it didn't look like she knew about my fake identity at all. Or she was being polite by not revealing it in front of Katrina, well who knows?

The interior of the Slateport Gym was nothing fancy, but it was far superior to whatever the heck it was I battled in back in Akurnai. Well honestly even being outdoors was even better than fighting inside that sorry excuse for a gym, so it was an incredibly low ceiling to surpass.

"So, are you ready?"

"Better than ever, let's go Aurora!"

I pondered my choice of Pokemon to use this time. But eventually, I made up my decision on something I would never use in any other situation.

"Hmm… I choose you, Kaplan!"

"You have two Pokemon with type advantage over me, yet you still going to choose a Wingull?"

Katrina's face showed blatant disgruntlement at my decision, but I didn't have any choice. Both of my other Pokemon in my possession just weren't compatible enough to beat her without making it a one-sided beatdown. It's going to be bad for morale, trust me I've been there.

"Yep, my newly caught Pokemon without type advantages is enough to handle you, Kat."

I was in a mood to do a bit of banter, so hopefully, she would be able to reci—

"...We'll see about that."

Her eyes turned sharp as I finished my words. Welp, I guess I was wrong to do that now that she was eager to beat me no matter what. Maybe I shouldn't provoke her... But then again it might have made her take things more seriously.

"Powder Snow!"

"Water Gun!"

Katrina didn't waste any time to instruct her Pokemon's next move, Aurora exhaled a cold breath from her small jaws, but the water Kaplan spouted manage to intercept it before it landed on the target, creating a block of frozen water in its wake.

"Powder Snow, again!"

"Soar with Quick Attack!"

Aurora tried the same strategy, only for Kaplan to rapidly ascend towards the ceilings of the gym. Making the chilling breath to miss due to its range.

Kaplan flew high near the ceiling in a bid to tire Aurora out, it was a solid strategy on my part, or at least I thought so...

"If Kaplan doesn't want to come down, then I'll just have to make him do it. Aurora, now!"

Aurora roared while emitting a white colored aura as pure white clouds started to swirl above her. It was something I was familiar with, but I'm not… Oh no… No! No! No!

"Get down! now!"

Kaplan complied while looking back at me with a befuddled expression. I knew he would act like that since we gave up our range advantage for what looked like essentially nothing, but I knew better than that…

Soon, I was able to see it by myself. It was exactly the situation I feared.

"Snow Warning, huh?" I clicked my tongue as I observed the situation.

Kaplan started to shook its body due to the area around us dropped suddenly in temperature as the snow started to fall down from the clouds above.

I've watched countless times on television about how this ability could turn the tides of battle in an instant. It was something I stupidly didn't predict would happen in front of me… Yet it did.

"So how about it? Will you retract what you've said?"

Kat looked at me with a triumphant expression on her face, sadly I've got a lot more tricks on my sleeve to turn the tables on her.

"Pfft… Please, it's just a minor inconvenience. Kaplan, Quick—"

"Disable." She uttered the word that brought chills down my spine without any touch of hesitation in her voice.

The brave front I put out crumbled instantly as my jaw dropped as I behold the despairing sight upon me.

Whatever plan I had to turn the tides against Katrina? It had gone down the drain in an instant.

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WizardOfOdd · Jan 8, 2021

Jacques 'Jack' Tenenbaum
Location: Slateport Gym, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 10
Hubris - Part 2

The battle in the gym raged on, as Kaplan tried his best to survive the onslaught coming from the Snow Fox Pokemon.

There were several opportunities to mount an attack, yet every single time Kaplan squawked to tell that Disable had worn off…

"Disable!" Katrina yelled once more from her wheelchair.

Yep! There was no chance in hell that I could use Quick Attack any time soon.

With the lack of move options to pivot to, I had no choice but let Kaplan to focus his efforts on dodging every single attack launched by Aurora.

If there was any silver lining in the perilous situation Kaplan was in, it was the fact that Aurora couldn't manage to seal the deal completely against. Mostly because of what appeared as a lack of experience from Katrina.

"Water Gun!"

"Powder Snow!"

My desperate attempt to do something predictably failed as the water Kaplan launched get frozen before shattering as it hits the ground once more.

At this point, I was grasping at straws on what to do. Thanks to the snow and occasional chunks of ice falling from the sky, the time kept ticking as snatching a victory out of the jaws of defeat seemed more and more improbable as Kaplan kept getting buffeted by the hail.

"Just give up, Jack!"

"No chance in hell!" I screamed with all my might as frustration starting to cloud over my judgment.

Just as I finished screaming, I could hear several people cheering near us. When I shifted my gaze just for a bit, I realized that there was a crowd starting to form to watch our battle.

Great, just great… Just when I was trying my best to ignore the pressure, they had to come.

There was no choice at this point, I wasn't going to roll over and eat defeat so easily. I didn't waste years in the academy so I could get beaten badly by someone that seemed to have no formal education in Pokemon training at all.

And so the time had come to risk it all.

"Quick Attack!"

Using the fact that Kaplan didn't try to signal me after the last time because he knew the signal was already compromised, I decided to call the move without knowing if Disable already wore off. It was a high-risk gambit, but also a gambit worth taking.

To my relief, Kaplan dived down towards Aurora at a high speed with no visible issue at all. This should be an easy opportunity to land some damage. But, unfortunately, it was all within Katrina's calculation.

"Freeze-Dry!"

My eyes turned wide as the word left Katrina's mouth, I couldn't do anything but watch as Kaplan was blasted by a powerful gust of freezing wind coming from Aurora's mouth.

Kaplan tumbled roughly towards me, and as the crowd went wild, I alone felt the despairing implication of the situation.

Normal Ice-type moves wouldn't damage Kaplan much, but since this was Freeze-Dry… Getting hit by one is almost a guaranteed defeat due to how much it counter Water-type Pokemon's resistance to Ice-type move.

Yet Kaplan still tried his best to stand up, even when the hail kept pelting its damaged wings, even when it knew there was almost no chance to win, it decided to soldier on unlike his stupid trainer who already thinking about throwing the towel.

When did I become such a loser? The thought lingered on my mind.

I couldn't just stand there and let my Pokemon bear all the burden by themselves. It was my duty as a trainer to help them reach the victories they seek. I couldn't let this setback demoralize me any further...

Back before I was beaten by Deidre, I've managed to gain victories after victories facing these kinds of situations. I wouldn't go down this easily, no… Not then, not now... I would never give up.

"This is far from over, Kat. Prepare yourself!"

I boldly declared a comeback, causing the crowd around us to erupt in cheers.

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WizardOfOdd · Jan 8, 2021

Jacques 'Jack' Tenenbaum
Location: Slateport Gym, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 11
Hubris - Part 3

'Dis— No, Freeze-Dry!"

"Too Late!"

Aurora's attempt to attack Kaplan failed once more, as Kaplan rolled mid-air to dodge the powerful breath spitted out from Aurora's jaw.

"Supersonic!"

A unique sound wave launched by Kaplan was more than enough to cause Aurora to start wobbling in place. She was clearly not in a good condition to fight back, which was something I was looking forward to using.

"Wing Attack!"

"Uh… Freeze-Dry!"

Unfortunately for Katrina, just as Aurora tried to counter the incoming Kaplan she had to stumble and fell down, making her an easy prey to sink an attack on. Which Kaplan capitalized by throwing a powerful chop with his wing.

Katrina visibly panicked, but who wouldn't? The victory she had envisioned already on her grasp was slipping away bit by bit. However, I didn't intend to let her recover at all.

"Wing Attack, again!"

"F-Freeze-Dry!"

Aurora didn't manage to snap out of her confusion in time as Kaplan bashed her head so hard to the floor that it caused her head to bobble back and forth. It was not a pretty sight by all means, which was made terribly obvious by how silent the crowd was when this happened.

This is over, even Katrina's somber expression indicated that. She couldn't do anything else but try and spam her strongest move without any success. It's time to seal the deal, but…

Just as I thought it was going to be over, Kaplan started to stumble once more. I knew this would happen… Under the barrage of hail and that devastating Freeze-dry before? I was lucky that Kaplan could even survive this far.

"Disable! Spite!"

Oh boy, I could only sigh as I saw the black aura covering Kaplan's body. Kaplan's inability to seal the deal made enough time for Aurora to recover. So did her trainer, the light in her eyes had gone back to its usual state, as the expression of doubt had faded away from her face.

At this point, I guessed that this was the end of the line for us.

Yet… Kaplan squawked hard in an effort to regain his fighting spirit. Even when he was battered and bruised, he wouldn't give up.

I took a deep breath to calm myself down, it wasn't over yet. I could still reverse the outcome if I can find the right strategy.

But of course, the luxury of time wasn't something readily available to me as Katrina didn't waste any time at all to mount the finishing offense.

"Freeze-Dry!"

"Quick Attack!"

Kaplan rushed through the air once more as it tried to outmaneuver the freezing breath once more, but due to how damaged his wings were, Kaplan couldn't fully avoid the attack fully as the chilling winds pelted one of his wings.

Kaplan couldn't flap one of his wings anymore as he went into a nosedive towards the floor.

"Fill her mouth with Water Gun!"

"Freeze-Dry!"

It was a desperate attempt. I didn't know what it would result in, but my hope was that the water could somehow fill Aurora's mouth so that when she tried to huff out Freeze-dry from her mouth once more it'll freeze her throat. Cruel, but it was the only method I had in mind with whatever time I had.

But of course, that's just how I envisioned it. In reality, it didn't go well at all. The torrent of water unleashed by Kaplan was immediately frozen before the rest of the chilling breath blasted Kaplan high to the sky before he eventually crashed down unconscious beside me.

The crowd cheered loudly as Katrina rushed to hug the victorious Aurora.

She looked at me with bright eyes and a huge smile. I… I was happy for her, there was no doubt about that. But at the same time, I couldn't deny the fact that deep in my heart I felt… Rage, Anger, Disappointment… Not at Kaplan, not at Kat, but at myself.

My own hubris led me to my downfall. If I hadn't been so confident about my winning chance I would probably win with the Pokemon I had… The only reason I could even hang on after the initial Freeze-Dry was because Kaplan was that good of a Pokemon, there was no way around it. If Kaplan had a better trainer instructing him, then this wouldn't end the way it did.

Maybe, considering all the effort I gave, the sacrifices I did, all the time I spent on learning... I just didn't have the talent to train Pokemon, it's as simple as that.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

QueenNothing · Jan 9, 2021

Robynn White

Wednesday, September 23rd, Morning

The Point is such a nice view. The coast lined with all these rocks is so beautiful, and honestly I'd like to go swimming around here. The only thing really stopping me is that I didn't change into my swimsuit, but that can be easily fixed… Well, at least it would be anyways if I didn't find this craggy shore so mesmerizing. Having lived in the city so long, I kind of forgot just how picturesque nature can be.

"Hi there youngster!" A friendly greeting is called out behind me. I turn around to see a fishermen, not someone out of place here, and he seems very jolly. He's a very round and wide stocky guy, and he has a dark brown complexion with a beard of curly black hair. A beige vest and bucket hat, a blue flannel, jeans and rubber boots are all things I'd expect someone frequenting this area, and he seals the deal with a fishing rod and tackle box in each of his hands. Aside from the flannel, it's not to my personal taste, but it's appropriate for his job.

"Are you a Pokémon trainer?" I can tell this guy doesn't have a single hateful bone in his body. No harm in entertaining him. "Is the ocean blue?"

A friendly laugh is released from his gut. "I think I like you already! But I'm asking because I enjoy helping trainers out here."

"I'm not sure how I know this, but somehow I think you want to help me go fishing?"

Another loud laugh is heard from him. "You're a funny one, kiddo. But yes, that's exactly what I was gonna say!"

"I'd be alright with that, y'know, as long as I can borrow your fishing rod anyways since I don't have one of my own."

"Of course, of course! That's why they call me Pete the Fishing Guy, but you can just call me Pete!" That's kind of an unnecessary bit. He didn't expect I'd call him by his full title, right?

"Nice to meet you. I'm Robynn, by the way."

"Well Robynn, I'll let you borrow my fishing rod, but only under one condition; You have to battle me afterwards!"

"I take no issue with that," I smirk. "I could always use the practice."

"Very good!" Pete grins ear to ear and holds his left arm out straight to hand me his fishing pole.

I've been waiting an hour now and still nothing. Pete's incredibly kind company makes the time go by a little quicker, so I'm not completely bored out of my skull. I am a pretty patient person, but even I have my limits. I'd like to practice for tomorrow's contest right about now.

My patience finally pays off though when I feel something tug against the line.

"There you go! A bite!" Pete cheers. I quickly turn the reel with all my might, but the catch barely puts up a fight- Scratch that, it puts up absolutely no fight. Huh, that's strange. Maybe it's just a very weak Pokémon.

...Oh, that's why. It's not even a Pokémon at all.

It's a small rectangular box-looking thing I can easily fit in both of my palms. Who the hell would just toss this into the ocean?

Pete is holding back his excitement, I can tell. "I think it's a case! Try opening it!"

He's not wrong about that- there's a button in the center of the backside. I push the button down and it opens up like a Pokeball, and speaking of which, three Ultra Balls sit inside.

"Huh?" I'm not complaining, but who just tosses three Ultra Balls? Glancing over to Pete and his smile that exposes his pearly whites, the options are kind of narrowed down. I'm guessing he left these for trainers to fish up as sort of a compensation prize, but I hope he didn't just carelessly throw them into the sea.

"It's not a Pokémon, but you still got lucky! Who would expect to find these while fishing!" Pete, it's pretty obvious you did this to make trainers feel better about themselves, but who am I to ruin his fun? Honestly I'd feel kind of bad if I did- his unadulterated bliss is pretty warming to watch.

"Yeah, who woulda thought, huh?" I play along. I then grab two Pokeballs from my pockets, holding them up to be visible to Pete. "You still wanna battle me, huh?"

"Mmhmm!" He nods enthusiastically.

"I only have two Pokémon with me. How does a double battle sound?"

"I accept!"

I flash a collected smirk at Pete. "Then it's settled. Peridot, Ruby, it's showtime!"

Pete takes a good look at my Pokémon before he grabs two Pokeballs of his own. "Based on your Pokémon, I think I'll use two I recently caught! Totodile, Teddiursa, I choose you!"

Just like he called out, a Teddiursa and Totodile stand across from my Pokémon. "Teddiursa, huh? I would have expected a fisherman to exclusively use water-types."

"Are you kidding? I'd be completely screwed over by electric and grass types!" He guffaws. "But Ursaring are good at catching fish! Certainly will come in handy once he evolves!"

He's implied he has other Pokémon stronger than what he's sent out, and he understands type advantages well enough not to use a single type throughout his entire team. Pete might be better at battling than his demeanor leads me on to be.

"I see. Well then, let's set the stage, you two! Ruby, Fake Out on Teddiursa! Peridot, cheer him on!"

Ruby zips forward, being encouraged by the small Seel's clapping. She slaps Teddiursa in-between the eyes, dealing heavy damage from Helping Hand, and pushes him back. Being at such a close range brings a downside though, because Totodile shoots a Water Gun at a close-range. Ruby jumps back after being soaked, but pounces forward, biting the opposing water-type on his head and has the rest of her body balance itself on Totodile's snout.

Teddiursa stands back up, but is immediately knocked back down when Peridot rams into him with an Aqua Jet. While lying on the floor, Teddiursa buries his face in his paws and starts sobbing. I recognize it's Fake Tears, but I know Peri doesn't. He's too kind-hearted, in this case for his own good, and crawls forward to check on him.

"Peri, don't fall for his act!" Peridot looks back to me, but ends up distracting himself and is slashed by Teddiursa claws across his face. It's nothing compared to what Ruby can do, but any damage at all still isn't great.

Speaking of Ruby, Totodile tosses her off his head. He blasts another Water Gun directly at Ruby, but she impulsively counters by tossing round gold looking things at him- I think that's Pay Day! Nice, this'll come in handy! Well, not at this moment though, because the coins she just conjured up unsurprisingly do nothing against a stream of pressurized water that wets her face.

I'm starting to get an idea- something that'll definitely be useful for contests, so I might as well rehearse it here. I just need to set some stuff up first.

After Teddiursa scratches Peri, he just goes back to using Fake Tears. I think anyone else would pick up that this is an act, but Peri is just too caring.

"Peridot, why not give his convincing performance a round of applause! Use Encore!"

He looks back at me to tilt his head sideways, but claps with admiration anyways. All Teddiursa does is continue to cry.

"Ho ho! Smart move!" Thanks Pete! I always appreciate an adoring audience.

"Cut! Ruby, Peridot, fall back!" At my signal, Peridot uses Aqua Jet to skid a few feet back and Ruby follows, now standing the same distance from their opponents as they started.

"Ruby, it seems you're feeling awfully generous today! Why not share some of your fortune with Pay Day!" Meowth stands on her hind legs to materialize a pile of fake coins she carries in her arms, and flings it all forward. This normally isn't the strongest attack, but with Technician and what I'm about to do next, I'll make sure Teddiursa and Totodile get a raise in their paycheck.

"Oh my, it seems the greedy Peridot has decided if he can't have the fortune, nobody will!" Even for a casual battle, I make sure my acting is still on-point. "Peridot used Icy Wind to freeze the gold!" Peri opens his mouth to exhale a cold wind, covering each individual coin in a coat of ice, and further propelling them forward. The frozen coins pelt Teddiursa and Totodile like a harsh hail, and the combined effort of my Pokémon knocks their opponents to the ground.

"That was an excellent battle!" Pete congratulates, returning his Pokémon. "I didn't expect you to be quite the actor!"

"Thank you! I didn't tell you, but I'm a contest coordinator, so I'm glad to hear I'm doing my job well." I return both my Pokémon as well, extending my arm to shake Pete's hand.

"I think you have a good career as a coordinator ahead of you! But for now, I shall be on my way. There are other trainers who need help with fishing. Enjoy the prize money!" I wave at Pete as he walks into the distance. He's a very swell fella, and I'm sure the next person he graces will enjoy his company.

But that combo Peridot and Ruby pulled off reminds me to get back to rehearsing- There is a contest tomorrow, and I think Pay Day is appropriate for the theme.

Peridot grew to level 20!
Ruby grew to level 20!
Ruby forgot Scratch and learned Fury Swipes!

❄️Robynn's lineup❄️

100,700

CREDITS

Spoiler:

Groc · Jan 10, 2021

Edison Kintobor
Tuesday, September 22nd, morning
Dewford Town, Docks

Neo and Aster appear in a flash of light, while Brawly sends out Poliwrath and Meditite. From what he's heard and what he can see, Ed knows this won't be an easy fight, and he'll need every advantage he can get. This isn't a good match-up for him, even with Poliwrath's Water typing. He'll have to do what he can, but with both opponents being Fighting type, half of Ed's team is at a disadvantage...

"You okay, dude?" Brawly's concerned tone cuts through his thoughts. "You've been standing there, not blinking, for like 30 seconds..."

"He does that sometimes." Sunny helpfully calls out. "Eddie! Get out of your head and focus on the fight!"

"Yeah, man! Find your center. Meditite, show him what I mean. Poliwrath, give him a hand." Meditite kneels on the sand, eyes closed as it Meditates. Poliwrath puts a hand on its shoulder, no doubt using its inexplicable psychic powers to bolster Meditite through Coaching.

"N.D., use Thunder Wave on Poliwrath! Aster, Confuse Ray on Meditite!" Neo unleashes electric current, causing Poliwrath to lock up mid-speech. It glares at Neo, who doesn't react. Aster's core flashes red, the eerie light affecting Meditite even with its eyes closed.

With both of his Pokémon hindered, Brawly metaphorically sits up and pays attention. "Coming at me sideways, huh? You're a clever one!"

"Yep! Don't be fooled, Eddie's full of tricks like that!" Sunny leans against the railing, smirking smugly at Brawly.

Ed tunes them both out, considering his options. Even with paralysis, he's still in trouble, especially after Meditite got a power boost. He'll need to lock that down. "Aster, hit them both with Swift. N.D., Thunder Wave at Meditite, too." Faster than the others, shurikens of white energy launch from Aster's core, too fast to be dodged. The stars burst on contact, doing minor impact damage but otherwise mainly annoying the Fighting types.

"Poliwrath, use Surf! Meditite, dodge with High Jump Kick!" At Brawly's command, Poliwrath calls up a wave from the nearby ocean. With its Telepathy, Meditite knows exactly where it will hit, leaping into the air as the wave passes underneath it. Neo beeps in distress as they fight to stay airborne, but then Meditite descends from above, kicking them in the face. Despite the damage, they unleash the electric pulse at point-blank range. Meditite staggers back, having difficulty getting its limbs to cooperate.

As he figured, an exchange of blows didn't work in Ed's favor. Neo won't last much longer, and while Aster tanked Surf, he won't last under concentrated fire. Which is exactly what he'll need to take down Brawly's Pokémon. "N.D., Shock Wave on Poliwrath, if you can. Aster, Psywave on the same target."

Brawly calls for the same moves, but points Meditite toward Aster this time. Aster produces a wave of kinetic force, pushing back Poliwrath. Between that and paralysis, Poliwrath locks up before it can conjure another wave. Meditite isn't hindered by paralysis, but it trips from the confusion as it tries to jump, hitting the ground. Neo scans Poliwrath with his targeting laser, firing an undodgeable bolt of blue lightning, knocking the big poliwog to its knees.

"One more should do it... Psywave and Shock Wave, you two!" Aster unleashes another wave of force, but it's not enough to drop Poliwrath, who is faster than Neo, even paralyzed.

"Poliwrath, Drain Punch to get some strength back! Meditite, use Power Trick!" Poliwrath pushes through the paralysis, striking Neo with a fist wreathed in red energy. They go down from the hit, restoring a small amount of energy to Poliwrath. Meditite can't move, so Brawly's strategy fails to go off.

"Magnemite is unable to battle!" Jim Gai announces, reminding everyone of his presence. "Challenger Edison, please call your next Pokémon."

Ed recalls Neo to their ball, offering a silent apology to his starter. "Can't send out Addie against these odds, so... Come on out, Gremlin!" He tosses the ball, and the shiny Sableye laughs at her opponents.

"Aster, aim your Water Gun at Meditite. Gremlin, aim for Poliwrath. I don't think Meditite can hurt you." Gremlin snickers at the yoga Pokémon as she sinks into her own shadow, disappearing from sight. Before Poliwrath can move, Gremlin leaps out of the ground directly in front of it. It raises its arms to block, but she goes over its head, kicking the back of its leg in a Fake Out that makes it fall, hitting its head and getting knocked out.

Meditite is once again gripped with paralysis, but this time to its benefit, as Aster's Water Gun strikes true.

"Poliwrath is unable to battle. Leader Brawly, your next Pokémon?"

"You've got skill, buddy. Using a Ghost against a Fighting type is smart. But I'm not just a Fighting type trainer! So come on out, Raichu!" Brawly grins as he swaps Poliwrath for Raichu.

"Careful, Eddie! That thing's more mobile than it looks. Get Aster out of there!"

Jim Gai clears his throat at Sunny's interruption. "If you recall your Pokémon, it will count against you and you won't be able to call it back out."

Ed nods in understanding. "Thank you, Sunny, but I have a plan."

He doesn't have a plan. There's no surefire way to beat the surfing Electric type, but then again, half of his battle strategy is gambling.

"Gremlin, Confuse Ray at Raichu! Aster, hit them both with Swift." Gremlin grins wickedly, her eyes gleaming.

"Raichu, set up Electric Terrain! Meditite, Psycho Cut on Staryu."

In the blink of an eye, Gremlin is up in Raichu's face, her eyes shining with eerie light. Raichu stumbles back in surprise, tripping over its own tail and falling. Aster pelts the two foes with stars, while Meditite again can't move.

"Man, you don't let up, do you?" Brawly chuckles. "You're not letting me get off a single attack."

Ed shrugs, but his hands are shaking. "If you do, it's over for me. I can't match your strength."

"Well said. You've prepared for this fight, and you're covering your weak spots. I might actually enjoy this! Raichu, Electric Terrain! Meditite, High Jump Kick!"

"Aster, Swift! Gremlin, Shadow Sneak!" Gremlin vanishes into her shadow again, her claw rising from Meditite's shadow to smack it upside the head. She cackles as she reappears from Ed's shadow. Raichu plants its tail into the sand, causing lines of electricity to rise up from the ground and cordon off the area. The bolts seem to energize Raichu, and it floats above the sand on its own tail. Aster fires more stars, striking Raichu and Meditite both, which finally knocks Meditite out.

"Meditite is unable to battle! Leader Brawly, please send out your next Pokémon."

Brawly smiles sadly as he recalls Meditite. "This is fun. I almost don't want it to end..." He tosses his last ball, revealing Hariyama. "But this is my last Pokémon, and my strongest!"

"Come on, Eddie! You can do this!" Sunny cheers from the pier.

"Go, Brawly! Don't back down now!" A woman calls out from next to Sunny.

Everyone turns to look at the new arrival, an olive-skinned woman slightly shorter than Sunny. Her blue hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and her black shirt is unbuttoned in the Dewford heat, revealing a red halter top underneath. She has a suit case by her side, implying she recently arrived by boat.

Brawly's face lights up with recognition and joy. "Shauna!" He sprints past his Pokémon, Jim Gai, and Ed, leaping for the pier ten feet over his head. Surprisingly, he manages to grab the boards, hauling himself up to grab the railing and climb up to give the woman a passionate kiss, which she reciprocates.

"Leader Brawly has called for a time out, due to the arrival of his wife." Jim declares. Ed merely shakes his head, lifting his hands in acquiescence.

Shauna leans back from the kiss, her face flushed but smiling. "I hope I'm interrupting something important."

Brawly grins, still clinging to the railing so he can be at eye level with Shauna. "Just having a Gym Battle while I waited for you, babe. I can leave now if you wanna get out of here."

Shauna laughs, putting her hands on Brawly's shoulders. "Don't you dare! You get back down there and you win this thing! Or lose with dignity. No forfeits on my watch, mister!"

"Aw, you know I love it when you boss me around, babe..."

"Go! You're making your challenger wait! And his friend blush." Indeed, Sunny is looking away from the pair, her face almost as red as her hair.

Shauna pushes Brawly off the pier, and he lands lightly next to Ed, flashing him a big smile. "How can you say no to that, huh?"

Ed says nothing as he looks at his Pokédex, so Brawly happily jogs back to his spot. "Right! Where were we? Oh, right! Hariyama, Foresight on Sableye! Raichu, use Electroweb!"

"Gremlin, Confuse Ray on Hariyama! Aster, Water Gun on it, too!"

Gremlin swiftly gets in Hariyama's face, shining her eye lights on it. It looks back at her, its eyes glowing white. For the first time since he caught her, Gremlin stops smiling, looking nervous as she scurries away from Hariyama. Raichu surfs toward the pair, gliding around them as it gathers electricity in its cheeks. It leaps over their heads, dropping an electric net over Gremlin and Aster. Gremlin gets tangled in the somehow solid lightning, while Aster locks up and collapses, his core flashing red.

"Staryu is unable to battle! Challenger Edison, please call your final Pokémon."

Ed recalls Aster, nervously grabbing Addie's ball. He doesn't like the look of this, but he has no other choice. "Addie, let's go!" Addie pops out, immediately giving Ed's leg a hug.

"Aww, he's adorable!" Shauna coos, leaning against the railing. "He's gonna get destroyed."

"Don't count on it, lady." Sunny glares, getting an amused grin back. "Addie's tougher than he looks, and Eddie definitely has a trick up his sleeve."

Ed strokes his chin in thought. One wrong move will spell disaster, and victory is slipping from his grip. Hariyama is the biggest threat, with powerful attacks that will hit both of his Pokémon super effectively, now that it can bypass Gremlin's immunity. But Raichu can hit both of them with that Electroweb, meaning Brawly can focus on Hariyama's tactics...

"Raichu, Electroweb again! Hariyama, Force Palm on Sableye!" Brawly calls out, requiring Ed to make a snap decision.

"Gremlin, Disable that Electroweb! Addie, Lick Hariyama!" Gremlin jumps to Raichu's shadow, startling it as she glares into its eyes, putting a mental block on the technique even as Raichu tries to execute it. Hariyama charges in, tripping over itself and faceplanting in the sand. Addie waddles over, running his long, flat tongue over Hariyama's face. The bulky Pokémon recoils in disgust, shuddering with revulsion as paralysis sets in.

"Oh, what?!" Shauna is just as shocked as Brawly. "Did that seriously just happen?"

"Yep! Told you not to count them out just yet!" Sunny crows victoriously.

Holy shit, it actually worked... Ed clenches his fists in determination. He still has a chance, but it's going to require something... risky.

"Gremlin, use Leer! Addie, use Metronome!" Gremlin laughs as she stares at Hariyama and Raichu, her eyes shining. They both turn toward her, dropping their guard as they face her.

"Hariyama, use Force Palm on Sableye. Raichu, get in there with Electro Ball!" Hariyama is unable to move, but Raichu shakes off the confusion to launch an orb of electricity at Gremlin.

Addie rocks his fingers back and forth, his hands glowing white. Unusually, he doesn't immediately use a technique, as the white glow merely spreads until his entire body is glowing with harsh light.

"Eddie, what's going on? Where's the attack?" Sunny leans over the railing to get a closer look at Addie.

"I... I'm not sure. I've never seen this technique before." Despite his words, Ed grins excitedly. This is precisely why he's so fond of Metronome, the chance to see new moves and keep fights interesting.

Brawly keeps his focus on Gremlin. "Raichu, another Electro Ball! Hariyama, Force Palm!" Raichu charges up as Hariyama charges in, slowed by neither paralysis nor confusion.

"Gremlin, use Detect!" Gremlin's eyes glow blue as she ducks under Hariyama's hand, moving aside to lock eyes with Raichu. It launches the orb, but she sinks into the sand, appearing on the other side of the arena.

The energy on Addie forms into a pair of glowing wings as he unleashes a powerful Sky Attack! Hariyama can't even dodge as Addie flies toward it like a missile, bowling it over. He turns sharply, curving up and over the battlefield to land in Ed's arms, laughing happily at the exhilarating sensation of flight.

Ed is knocked to the ground from the weight of his baby boy, but grins as he sets Addie back down. Gremlin joins at his side as Hariyama stands back up.

"Dude, that was pretty sweet! Never seen a Munchlax fly before!" Brawly cheers, his excitement palpable.

"Thank you, Brawly. Every battle is an adventure, and you never know what will happen." Ed tousles Addie's head fur, earning a contented smile as he scratches behind the ears. "But, on with the battle, yes?"

"You know it, dude! Hariyama, go for Reversal! Raichu, another Electro Ball!"

"Addie, use Metronome again! Gremlin, Confuse Ray!" Again using her supernatural speed, Gremlin shines more eerie light on Raichu, confusing it again.

Hariyama builds up energy, preparing to deal back the damage it just took from Sky Attack, but it stumbles in confusion, colliding with a similarly hindered Raichu. Gremlin cackles as she strolls back to her starting point, while Addie hypnotizes himself with Metronome. The energy spreads across his body, and again he glows brightly.

Then, the glow is absorbed into Addie's body, and it suddenly erupts in a massive explosion. Ed barely has time to realize what happened when his Pokédex confirms it: Self-Destruct.

The explosion sends sand flying in all directions, forcing everyone to turn and cover their faces. The noise draws attention, and several people come running to see what happened.

When the sand settles, Ed turns back to the field. The explosion left a 10-foot diameter crater on his side of the field, an unconscious Addie lying in the center. Hariyama and Raichu lay sprawled by Brawly's feet, blown back and knocked out from the blast. And in the center of the field, Gremlin stands unscathed.

There's a moment of silence as Ed and Brawly take stock of the situation, with only the murmurs of the crowd for noise.

"Damn it, Eddie, do you just hate beaches?!" Sunny breaks the silence, causing people to step back from her. "First Hyper Beam, and now this?"

"It's not my fault! I didn't expect... I didn't want- Addie..."

"Hey, folks! How's it goin'?" Brawly talks to the assembled crowd. "Yeah, it's me, Brawly! You know how it is! I mean... that just goes to show ya. You never know what will happen at a Pokémon battle."

"Uh... Munchlax, Hariyama, and Raichu are all unable to battle?" Jim Gai tries to do his job, but no one is listening. He raises his voice to be heard. "Leader Brawly is out of usable Pokémon! Challenger Edison is the winner!"

"Ha ha... what?" Brawly looks back to the field, seeing his Pokémon at his feet. "Hey! Look at that! You won!"

Ed kneels at the crater, putting a hand on Addie. "Addie... are you okay?" Addie lifts one hand, giving a shaky thumbs-up. Ed sighs in relief, returning him to his ball. He stands, surprised when Brawly grabs his hand and lifts it high.

"Let's hear it for our winner! Congrats, Ed!" The crowd politely applauds, more confused than anything now, and a few of them even drift off.

Ed smoothly works his hand free from Brawly's with a practiced movement. "Thank you, Brawly. I... didn't expect it to end that way."

"You and me both, dude! But, since you won, I hearby award you the official Dewford Gym Knuckle Badge! Plus, ₽5,000 and this TM for Bulk Up!"

Ed is slightly overwhelmed at everything Brawly hands him, as well as surprised that he had these on him at the time. "T-thank you..."

"No problem!" Brawly claps him on the shoulder, making Ed's knees buckle. "Just doing my job as Gym Leader. But now, I gotta go! My lady's waiting for me, and I hate to make her wait! You should go see yours, too."

He takes off at a light jog, heading back up to the pier to meet up with Shauna. He takes her suitcase, and they walk off together, hand in hand.

"Wait, mine? My what? My... lady?" He looks up to the pier, seeing Sunny grinning down at him.

"Nice job, Eddie. I knew you could do it. Let's head back to the Center, then head to the ferry. The day's just getting started!" She steps away from the railing, expecting him to catch up to her.

WizardOfOdd · Jan 11, 2021

Katrina Purcell
Location: Slateport Beach, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 10
Pokemon Hunting

"This is much harder than I expected."

I traversed through the grainy sands of the beach to find a Pokemon to catch alongside Aurora who helped me while sitting on my lap.

I was happy that I won against Jack, that meant that my effort to train by challenging the butlers and maids of the estate had paid off handsomely.

However, I wished that Jack was here right now, but… It's half my fault that he had become sick. If I didn't activate Snow Warning, then maybe he wouldn't end up looking sickly pale earlier. I'm worried about him, but he insisted that he would be fine resting alone.

I didn't have the guts to ask him if he needed any help. Even when he was unwell himself, he still lent me the sweater hanging on his neck just because I sneezed after the battle was over.

Maybe it was for the best that he didn't come here. I couldn't imagine how much he would hate me if I bothered him any further. I had to pull my weight soon.

I couldn't just be good enough to beat Jack's Pokemon just by sheer luck, it wouldn't be enough to achieve my dream. I had to start learning how to do things alone, even if it meant returning to this hazardous beach.

I should be able to catch a Pokemon around here without any issue… I hope. Anything but a Stunfisk would be fine, anything but a Stunfisk would be fine… Yet...

"Why are there so many Stunfisk!? Can't I just find a Staryu or a Shellos!? They should be common around here!"

My scream alerted the few beachgoers around me, but I couldn't help it. There should be some Pokemon instead of this dangerous creature.

As I finished complaining, I couldn't help but notice that the sun was slowly drowning on the horizon.

The silence around me made the moment feel even more surreal. I never saw this kind of atmosphere without being sad… But right now I might be the happiest girl in the world. I was free from the restraints that had bound me back in Galar, now I could control my own life without being trapped in a birdcage.

Now, if I could find… Ahhh!

"A Staryu!" I accidentally shouted at the said Pokemon who was laying down on the sand. Causing it to panic and tried its best to escape.

Aurora leaped from my lap and went straight ahead toward the Staryu. Realizing that it would be hard to escape with current circumstances, Staryu stopped running and instead started a stand-off against Aurora.

"This is your chance, Aurora us—"

Staryu used the opportunity to attack first, as its orb glowed bright gold. Blinding both of me and Aurora temporarily. Just as my sight returned to me, I realized that Aurora had started to wobble once again just like the fight against Jack earlier.

"Oh no… Au— Ack!"

Sand entered my mouth and eyes as I tried to call for Aurora. When I recovered I could only see Staryu spinning away from us using the distraction it made earlier.

"It's getting away!"

I thrust my wheelchair forward as strongly as possible in an effort to chase the Staryu.

At first, I was able to keep up, but the fact that wheelchairs aren't made for this kind of terrain and the effect of being an indoor person started to impair my capability to chase it.

Staryu looked left and right as I gasped for air while trying my best to catch up with it. But before I could come any close to it, it made a break for the sea.

"WAIT!" I could only scream as the Pokemon I wanted slipping through my grasp without me able to do anything about it.

"Whaooahh!" Suddenly a Sandygast appeared from the ground in front of the Staryu and engulfed the latter with its sand body.

I had to do something. No way I could let that Staryu end up like that.

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WizardOfOdd · Jan 11, 2021

Katrina Purcell
Location: Slateport Beach, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 11
Pokemon Hunting - Part 2

"Pi!" Aurora dashed towards me after snapping out from her condition.

I didn't know what to do in this situation… But maybe distracting the attention of that Sandygast would be a good thing? I didn't know for sure, but at least it was better than doing nothing.

"Aurora, Powder Snow!"

I decided to use something that was not going to harm the Staryu inside the sand. Because if I had used Freeze-Dry then Staryu would probably be damaged hard. I'm so glad I read the Ranger Database before coming here, otherwise, I wouldn't know at all that Staryu is a Water-type Pokemon.

The snow froze the moist sand particle on Sandygast's body, but it wasn't enough to put it down as it managed to shake off its frozen exterior easily before spitting out Staryu from its body.

It didn't look quite pleased as it didn't waste any time to create a sand vortex around Aurora, trapping her from doing anything else.

"Jump out, Aurora!"

As ordered, Aurora jumped out from the sand vortex. It wasn't a big one, so I thought it wouldn't be much of a problem to do it. And it didn't become much of a problem, but unfortunately being mid-air without any means to dodge incoming attack was.

Just as Aurora managed to leap above the vortex, she was on the receiving end of a powerful mud spray by the Sandygast.

"Aurora, use Powder Snow!"

Aurora who managed to recover quickly after being at the receiving end of the attack retaliated by exhaling a cold breath towards the attacker, but it was blocked easily by the Sandygast who erected a sand wall to divert the breath.

The situation didn't look good at this time, I wasn't going to waste more time as I realized that most people had already started packing up because the sun was almost completely gone from the horizon. I knew that I had to wrap this quickly, maybe there was no choice except to unleash Snow Warning once more.

Just as I was about to shout the order to Aurora, Sandygast suddenly turned its head as it visibly looked befuddled with something. Apparently, Staryu was already recovering enough to shoot a torrent of water in defiance against the sandcastle looking Pokemon.

"Aurora, aid Staryu!"

Aurora nodded before she rushed towards the Sandygast, all before huffing a powerful freezing breath.

But the Sandygast was much smarter than expected, it managed to move out of the way leading the attack to struck down Staryu instead.

"NO!" I reactively screamed, cooperating with Staryu was the only way we could win. Getting it damaged badly by Freeze-Dry was the exact thing I was trying to avoid, now with Staryu lying on the ground, there was no way I could…

"Pi!" Aurora yelled towards me while trying to avoid Sandygast's relentless assault.

"No… I can do this. I'm not a damsel in distress…" I clapped my cheeks several times to help my mind back to the battle. It was disappointing I couldn't get any help from Staryu, but it's not the end of everything.

"Aurora, let's go! Powder Snow!" Aurora whipped up a cold gust of wind from inside her mouth with small balls of snow mixed inside the wind. A move that Sandygast once more evaded before launching what looked like mud from his mouth.

A move like that wasn't that hard to evade from this range, but that also meant that to hit it then… We would have to close our gap.

"Aurora, chase it! We'll corner it down!"

Aurora swiftly ran through the sandy terrain, but the Sandygast erected a powerful sand vortex around it preventing anyone from breaking through… But not for long.

"Disable then Freeze-Dry!"

Black aura appeared around the Sandygast body as the protecting sand vortex was abruptly gone. The shocked Pokemon had no chance to counter the devastating attack as the cold chill enveloped its body and sent the sand castle-like Pokemon flying.

However, it was far from over. Sandygast raised itself up once more from its prone position and… Just left? It dragged its body slowly from the battlefield.

Maybe it thought that it was just not worth it anymore to continue battling us. I was really relieved. Oh wait, the Staryu! I suddenly remembered about the Staryu… Wasting no time, I thrust my wheelchair towards it.

It was weakened, but definitely not fainting. I felt a bit of guilt at this point, especially because Aurora was the reason why it ended up in this state. So I took a potion, and…

Staryu slapped my hand away. I didn't understand what it was thinking, after all, it was hard to judge its expression because I didn't have the ability to read minds and Staryu didn't have a visible face, so… Yeah. I was not willing to let it go without healing it though, I felt kind of responsible anyway. So I sprayed the potion on it, whether it liked it or not.

Anyway, I was not oblivious to the state around me. As Aurora started to bark once more, which meant that… It was already dinner time.

There was not much time left, I had not caught a Pokemon yet but the beach was already bathed with moonlight, adding more urgency to my quest to find a Pokemon soon.

I would want to recruit the Staryu, but with time ticking I wasn't sure it would obey my orders by tomorrow. If only I didn't blow a gasket yesterday, I could have caught a Pokemon by now.

My train of thoughts was halted abruptly as I saw the same Staryu waddled its way to the front of my wheelchair.

"Wait, Staryu... Does this mean you're okay with joining my team?"

Staryu nodded and with it, my first Pokeball throw ended up with a successful result and I was ready to face the gym battle tomorrow... If I had any experience in doing Double Battle that was. At this moment, my elation started to turn into pessimism as I went back to my room.

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WizardOfOdd · Jan 11, 2021

Katrina Purcell
Location: Southern Pokemon Center, Slateport City
Pokemon at hand :

Friday, September 18th

Chapter 1 - 12
Anxiety - Part 1

I really have to sleep now.

The thought swirled in my mind as I tried my best to close my eyes. Yet no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't. I was unable to continue my sleep.

As I raised my head, I couldn't help but to check the clock in front of me.

It was already past 1 o'clock.

I shouldn't be awake… But, at this time I just had the feeling I wouldn't be able to force myself to sleep again.

My stomach wasn't feeling good after all, maybe it's something I ate? Or probably something else entirely? I didn't have a clue at all.

But it was clear that laying down on the bed until I slept wasn't something I was keen on doing, not in this state anyway…

So I tip-toed my way towards the clothes hanger as I changed my clothes to something more appropriate to take a stroll outside with, as silently as possible of course.

Wouldn't want to wake up Aurora at this hour, she'll just scold me until I went back to sleep.

So I sneakily walked out through the door. There were barely any people visible in the lobby, obviously because it was already so late. I was starting to think that maybe strolling around at night wasn't a good idea, especially since I was alone and bound to a wheelchair.

I didn't know what to do…

I was nervous. At this point, I knew barely anything about Pokemon training. Sure I learned a bit with the help of the internet, but… I never practiced battling with another Pokemon other than Aurora, yet alone practicing a Double Battle.

Beating maids and butlers are completely different from trying to challenge an actual professional and to be honest, I was not really sure I would be able to fight without embarrassing myself.

All I could think of while walking towards the lobby was how should I approach the fight… There were several ideas flying around inside my brain, but I felt every single one of them was stupid. If I knew this would happen, I would've asked the maids on how to do double battle. But alas, it was all too late.

'...Did I make the right decision?' The thought scared me as I tried my best to convince myself that it was the right decision to run away from home… But, if it wasn't then… Sis would've gone home already...

In the middle of my pondering, I couldn't help but notice a man sitting in the cafe as I walked towards the exit. From afar it looked like he was busy scribbling something on his notebook. He was alone without anyone else there except the staff. After all, most people would've already been asleep in their room at this hour.

Of course, using common sense meant that I should leave him alone since he was looking busy, but for some reason, his presence gravitated me towards him. I'm sure he wasn't someone I knew. After all, that white hair would surely leave a lasting impression if I've met him before.

I decided to just ignore the weird feeling I had and continue to walk outside, but… I just couldn't hold back my curiosity.

And so I tried to mask my presence as much as I could as I tried to recognize who it was, but his sense was too sharp to deceive. He noticed that someone was looking at him and so he raised his head to look at who it was.

As I looked at his face carefully, I finally understood why I had the nagging feeling.

"Jack, is that you?" I called towards the white-haired boy.

He looked at me with a confused expression on his face like he knew nothing about me, yet it didn't take long until he took a deep breath and dropped the facade.

"Busted, huh?"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Embyr · Jan 12, 2021

Name: Kira Wolf || Day: Sunday, September 20 || Time: Evening
Location: West Wilds

Lost

"Ow, Damn it…" Kira muttered to herself as she laid on the floor of the cave, wincing in pain as she tried to move her left arm. "No, please don't be broken, please don't be broken, please don't be broken…" she repeated to herself in a panic as she sat up and checked it over, letting out a sigh of relief shortly after. Not broken, just battered and bruised.

Attempting to look around proved futile, it was completely pitch black, the only sound being a faint whimpering. "Nyx!" Kira gasped, quickly scrambling to where she heard the whimpering. The fox made no effort to resist Kira picking her up, her only movements being slight trembling.

Kira lifted Nyx up to her shoulder, wincing in pain as her arm rebelled against the movement. "Lantern or bag, either one, just need a light…" she muttered to herself, searching the floor of the cave with her good arm. Quickly she came across the familiar cloth fabric of her bag, letting out a sigh of relief quickly followed by a groan of disappointment. "It's… wet…"

Pulling the holotch out of the bag's front pocket she turned on its flashlight and quickly confirmed her suspicion. Several of the glass bottles inside broke during her fall, their contents soaking everything. Fortunately, one of the potion bottles seemed to survive. After fishing it out of the broken glass Kira set Nyx down on the cave floor and began applying it. Nyx's whimpering quieted as she did so. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

Kira froze as she heard a loud, distant roar to her left, presumably up the incline she fell down just a moment ago. "W-We need to go… Now!" Kira stammered under her breath. Tossing the empty potion bottle aside she threw her bag over her shoulder, picked Nyx up and began running down the cave.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

What was about ten minutes felt like an eternity as Kira ran down the cave's labyrinth like tunnels. Ignoring every little nook and distraction along the way as the faint light from her Holotch led the way forward. Then, just ahead, a brilliant orange glow. "An exit!" Kira called out, her voice nearly cracking in excitement.

Her hope renewed, Kira's running turned to a full fledged sprint, reaching the exit in no time at all. However, meeting her at the mouth of the cave wasn't the same sandy beach she expected from earlier, but rather a dense forest illuminated by the deep orange of the setting sun.

Kira collapsed in the shadow of one of the trees, staring intently at the mouth of the cave. "I don't hear anything at least…" She muttered to herself, satisfied with her examination.

Kira let Nyx drop into her lap and pulled open her bag, searching through it for anything that seemed either broken or ruined. "Almost the entire medicine kit, ruined…" Kira whined as she fished the only other surviving bottle out of the wreckage of the plastic case, a smaller bottle with a red liquid inside.

Digging through the rest of the bag, her two spare pokeballs seemed to suffer a similar fate to the Medicine case, each of them nearly caving in from the force of the fall. In addition while her swimsuit seemed fine, it being resistant to the leaking medicine, the dress she bought in Akurnai didn't seem to be as fortunate. A clear, discolored stain dominating the entire upper part of the dress.

Kira let out a heavy sigh as she tossed the ruined items to the side. Closing her bag again before turning her attention to Nyx who appeared to be fast asleep in her lap. "Honestly… Not that bad of an idea." Kira whispered as she fished out Azure's ball from her pocket, counting her lucky stars that his and Nyx's ball managed to survive.

Azure's happy bark as he appeared was quickly hushed by Kira, pointing out the sleeping Nyx in her lap. His joyous look turning into one of concern as he took in his surroundings.

"Azure, I hate to ask you this, but I need you to keep an eye out for us. At least long enough for the both of us to get some sleep. Think you can manage?" Kira pleaded, grabbing at her left arm in pain as she tried to lean forward.

Azure gave Kira a dutiful look before nodding, turning around in an exaggerated fashion to keep watch. Smiling, Kira patted Azure on the head before leaning more heavily against the tree. "I'm counting on you buddy…"

Spoiler:

forg · Jan 12, 2021

Koko Puffs | Emilio Estéban Grácia • • •
◇ Dewford | Monday, 21 - Noon

Spoiler:

The Pier located just south of the docks, albeit not full, had the occasional trainer renting its services. If not for the pamphlet tucked neatly inside the nightstand in her bedroom then the common sight of fishermen meandering the town would have sent her here.

Bored and hoping to catch a new Pokémon with little to no effort, Koko purchased a rental and bait. But the ocean's glistening waters consequently caused her to feel thirsty and return to the shack as soon as she left.

With a bottle of water in hand, she ventures into the end of the dock, sluggishly sitting near the end, shoes hovering feet from the calm waters. And as her first time fishing, she was clueless as to how to go about it.

With a video playing on one hand and the fishing rod in the other, she mindlessly watched and replicated the movements presented in the aforementioned video; a professional fisherman's 101 video for dummies.

"Woosh," she unenthusiastically blurts out, flinging the fishing line a mere foot forward, bait slapping against the surface before sinking into its depths. Koko watched as it did so, the bait's bobber dancing as it rode the cold sea. And, as the plethora of times prior, Koko sat and spaced out, eyes glazing over.

There have been times where a poor creature did get stuck in her lure, but miraculously she did not feel the first few tugs. Furthermore, reeling the fish was an entirely different dilemma in itself; 45 degree angles, letting the pokémon run, and holding tight yet not too tight were only a few of the many hints, tips, and tricks she attempted to follow.

The sudden introduction of a familiar voice gave her relief, company finally appearing when she needed it most. "No way, do you really not know how to fish? I thought you were joking, haha!"

Chapter 3.3

ONE HOUR AGO

Emilio had stared a hole into the Pokémon Center's wall, his galarian ponyta napping against his feet, therefore rendering him immobile. Here he contemplated on the prospect of spending -dare he say it- quality time with his galarian ponyta.

Through a pamphlet he plucked from the front desk Emilio skimmed through Dewford's must-see locations. Despite the charms to each, it was the Fishing Pier that caught his eye, not because of its entertainment, but because of the bittersweet memories his father had created using the hobby.

They were horrible memories, that was true, and yet he wanted to return to them.

Somewhat annoyed by the conflicted emotions, he flings the pamphlet over to the coffee table in front, only to witness it flutter and veer away from the furniture and glide beneath it, much to his frustration.

"What the hell," he muttered, leaning over to grip the folded paper, crushing it in his tight grip. Galarian Ponyta's eyes cracked open at the crunching sound, steadily readjusting to the center's fluorescent lighting.

PRESENT

Two bobbers floated near one another, keeping each other company as their lines traced back to the two trainers sitting at the dock.

"Like this?" Koko inquired, hands positioned on the fishing rod just as Emilio had guided her.

"Yeah, like that."

"Oooo. Coolio."

Then there was silence. Onix had been released from the confines of his pokéball to meander nearby; he frolicked next to the pier, tall enough for his head to remain above the surface and observe Koko between his diving sessions. Galarian Ponyta sat next to Emilio, attentive to his every move as she absorbed what her trainer was teaching. Koko, on the other hand, wasn't as enthusiastic. Instead she seemed to allow him to partake in all the work as she mimicked his moves and gave him permission to move her as he pleased.

In the serenity Koko took it upon herself to begin humming and beatboxing without rhythm, breaking Emilio from the tranquility that came with fishing.

"What are you doing now?" Emilio whined, head tilted back to soak in the warm sunshine.

"I'm bored though," she explained her reasoning, body jerking and moving alongside her unsynchronized noises. "Emiiiiilioooo, how long till we catch a fish?"

"Here, let me ask the fish," Emilio replied nonchalantly, leaning over and cupping a hand to his mouth. Koko did not read between the lines, leaning forward with the man with an exhausted expression. "FISHES. HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE UNTIL YOU GET FISHED BY US?!"

Emilio turned to face the female trainer, cheek pressed against the palm of his hand that held a wide, mischievous grin. In reponse Koko chuckled, but only for a moment, before his sarcasm registered and processed through.

"A-hahahah, whoopsie daisy, fell riii~iiight into that one, yeah?"

"You bet your sweet *ss you did."

He paused and then immediately shifted himself to face Koko, who now carried a small smile as her eyes had locked on to a frolicking Onix to her right. "Stop doing nothing and look at a pro catch a fish - you see this?" he begins, coincidentally feeling a tug on his end of the rod. "Perfection." But alas the line broke.

The sea pokémon vanished with the bait, fading into the deeper abyss where Onix did not dare explore. Koko turned much too late, thus her confusion upon seeing neither a line or pokémon at his hand.

Ashamed and embarassed, Emilio let out a roar of frustration and slapped the rod against the Pier's floorboards while getting up, marching back to the shack. Koko then twisted herself to face his retreating form, curious. "What happened? Didn't see it," she asked of the man, but to no avail. He ignored her question, entering the shack and disappearing from view.

With him now gone the young woman sat and lost herself in the iridescent, opaque waters crashing against the pier's wooden poles once more. So much so that upon her rod being tugged, Koko did not budge. She did not pay mind to it. On the contrary she let out a giggle at Onix's antics.

Unfortunately Emilio was a witness to this, who found himself watching his "disciple" regress to square one the moment he left the shack. Sighs followed one after one the other until he took notice of just how long the fish had been in the hook, prompting him to accelerate into a dash. "Hey... HEY! Koko! Pay attention!"

Emilio snatched the fishing rod and took over, reeling in whatever had bitten into the bait. Galarian Ponyta leaped to her feet, bounding in anticipation of what was to come. Meanwhile Koko's eye slightly widened, curious as to the culprit of it all yet all the while remaining sitting in front of a struggling Emilio, whose hands and body moved all sorts of ways.

"F*ck, it's been freaking forever since I did this- why weren't you paying attention?!" he continued to scold, eyes jumping between Koko, the rod, and the submerged water pokémon.

She lifted her hands in self-defense. "Uh…. My bad, forgot what to do."

"Nn-no you didn't!" replied Emilio through gritted teeth, lifting his rod just a tad as he begins to reel in his victim.

"I swear I didn't know, sorry," Koko apologized once more, anxiously scratching the side of her scalp and vision directed to her floating feet. Sadly this disposition prevented her from admiring Emilio's skills, who was at the cusp of successfully capturing his first water pokémon.

From where the line emerged from the sea the water grew more disturbed the closer the victim became, bubbles and slight waves growing more frequent. "HELL YEAH! Come here baby!" Swift hands kept reeling the catch, eliciting a gasp from the ponyta when the surface of the sea broke to display Emilio's prized pokémon; a golden magikarp.

His hands quivered, golden fish squirming and squealing in horror as it felt the cold air blanket its moist skin. Amidst its thrashing it inadvertently slapped Koko's head down before tumbling off the hook and smacking its wet flesh against the rough Pier's wooden boards. "WHAT! A GOLDEN MAGI- AH FUUUU-"

As Emilio scrambled to his knees, failing to keep a good grasp on the slimy water pokémon, the ponyta took a step towards Koko in guilt, feeling responsible for her trainer's actions.

"HEY! What are you doing?! Remember what you always did with Tia?!" Emilio hollered to the mare, finally gripping Magikarp's fins. He lifts the golden perfection above his head, unaware of Koko's reddened cheek. But this was it. This was the moment he was waiting for. This would be his first catch. An off-colored fish, but a rare catch nonetheless.

Unwilling to have Emilio question her well-being, Koko lifts her hood and scoots over to the other side as to not let Emilio witness the red cheek upon her gazing up at him. Ponyta whimpered and bowed to Koko as an apology.

"Oh nah little pony, it's all cool, I'm peachy," Koko immediately reassured the horse, leaving the fairy type in some ease as she turned and started to give a faint, icy blue hue to the air surrounding her. It began to sparkle and concentrate to the space in front, the magikarp in Ponyta's view.

Wanting a small amoung of time for herself, Koko steadily rises and signals Onix to approach her. But she waited until Ponyta had pummeled the fish with fairy wind, snickering at Emilio's grunts and cursing as his forearm also suffered some of the attack.

"I'm gonna go to the pottyyyyyy," she announces, scaling up Onix's cheek to rest on his scalp, arms wrapped around the skull protrusion.

"You can't go," he replied, placing the weak fish against the wooden floorboards, hand retrieving a Pokéball. Koko grew puzzled, giving her Onix a single glance before looking back at Emilio.

"Uh... that's cool too. When can I go-"

"I'm just kidding!" he interjects, guilty that she hadn't seen through the humor and taken it to heart. Her smile widened and disposition relaxed some more at the reveal, releasing a small giggle as she reflected upon her own gullibility and stupidity. "I was just being an *ss."

"Haha, that's cool too! Imma go now then. I'll beeee baaaaaaaaack..." And like that she left atop her Onix, heading back to shore. Trails of seawater ran down its boulders as he ascended from the sea, happy as Koko pat and scratched his scalp here and there. lt was this frequent show of affection that kept the giant going.

From afar Emilio watched on, somewhat disheartened that Koko was not here to witness him catch the rare magikarp. Ponyta's glance towards him caused him to fluster, revealing to the mare that he still desired human company.

"F*ck her and her bladder, we can celebrate by ourselves," he muttered, clicking the pokéball to initiate capture. A red zap of lightning exited the sphere upon opening, consuming and blanketing the laboring magikarp. "But, HAH, I got a gold magikarp, look!" he distracted himself away from Koko's disappearance and on to the joyous occasion with his ponyta. She nodded and neighed in agreement, just as excited for her trainer as she was about the prospect of a new friend.

The magikarp sighed as it vanished, its red form sucked into the Pokéball that then began to tremble and click in accordance to the norm. Both Emilio and Ponyta stared at the rolling sphere, counting the "clicks" it produced until it had reached the final verdict, no longer quivering.

Emilio burst out into a fit of laughter, feeling bittersweet at the occasion, grabbing a hold of the new Pokéball in order to place it back into his backpack. "I know it's just a fish, but man, this is my first catch... haha... HAHAHA, MY FIRST CATCH! WOOOO YEAH!" Emilio cheers himself on, fist pumping the air.

The Galarian Ponyta beamed with pride, yet found herself occasionally blinking over to the beach in the background in hopes of catching a glimpse of a returning Koko.

She never returned.

Eleanor · Jan 12, 2021

Avril Reese

16 - ♀ - Laverre City

Pokémon / Inventory:

AVRIL'S MONEY: $15 000

AVRIL'S TEAM:
🌼 Poppy (Flabebe) -♀- lv. 28
Flower Veil
Synthesis, Fairy Wind, Grassy Terrain, Lucky Chant, Wish, Magical Leaf

🌼 Hydrangea (Shellos) -♀- lv. 26
Storm Drain
Water Pulse, Mud Bomb, Recover, Rain Dance, Mud Sport, Hidden Power (?)

🌼 Wisteria (Inkay) -♂- lv. 20
Infiltrator
Swagger, Hypnosis, Topsy-Turvy, Pluck, Reflect, Psybeam

🌼 Venus (Mawile) -♀- lv. 22
Intimidate
Fairy Wind, Feint Attack, Sucker Punch, Fake Tears, Taunt, Baton Pass

AVRIL'S INVENTORY:
🌼 Holotch (phone version)
🌼 Fanclub Membership card
🌼 Eviolite
🌼 Silk Scarf
🌼 Various clothes and commodities

AVRIL'S CONTACTS:
Jordie, Shuna, Natsuko, June, Marcella

AVRIL'S BADGES:
🥊

🌼 Character art made with [SPAN="color:rgb(40,180,40);"]https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097[/SPAN]

Backstage friends

Wednesday, September 23^rd - about 10 a.m. - Dewford Contest Hall

Hey, look, I decided to take part in another Contest here in Dewford! I read today's theme shortly after breakfast, inside the Fanclub Resort hall, and thought it fit well enough with my Pokémon's moves. Well, to be honest… it was Poppy who convinced me for good, and who looked so enthusiastic to try again. Hey, I couldn't help but agree with her~

This time I tried to sign up Venus, of all Pokémon. I may regret it later, but all that I really cared in that moment was to get to know her better. No, I didn't care about winning a ribbon or anything, not yet at least. Honestly, it would have been a huge victory already... if I would just approach the contest differently.

And yet… now that I'm sitting here inside the backstage, I don't feel much different than how I felt Monday morning. Just a bit more… on my own.

The same stage fright is creeping up on me as I still move my right leg up and down, occasionally reaching for my pendant or for Poppy, who is more than happy to "high five" me when I put my hand on my hair. There's no Tsu or Shuna or June this time, only people I've never met before or I don't remember very clearly. Our total is… 7 coordinators.

Even the public is not as much as it was on Monday. But the judges say it's fine, still. We'll have only 4 people move on to the second round, and 2 to the last, but there will be a Third Place final battle to keep things more entertaining. Still, less people also means… a higher chance of being the first to go. Case in point…

I hesitate in front of the curtain, trying to give myself some needed encouragement. You've already done this before! There's less people this time! You've improved! The theme works well with your team, even better than last time! You've done so much these past few days to become a better trainer! You beat a Glalie! You need more money anyways!

My chime rings as the curtain finally opens, and I walk forward towards the judges - still in my usual sandals and flower crown, but with a borrowed, puffy red dress and a small flower basket. One of the judges throws a smile at me as I let out Venus, and have her try a Fake Tears.

I then tell Mawile to hold her mouth open. The other one, please. Eventually she does, and that's the moment when I can unload all of those flowers right in there. I'm told she doesn't feel any taste from that second mouth, which works in my favor. "Time to blossom, Venus Flytrap!"

And that is the cue: Poppy fires Magical Leaves to the sky, and gets ready to use Grassy Terrain right on top of... Mawile. The result is much better than I could have ever hoped for: the flowers grow tall and overflow from inside Venus's maw, right as Poppy uses Fairy Wind to disperse their scent around the arena.

To wrap things up, I let Mawile close up her mouth, tear the little plants apart, and use Fairy Wind to push it all up in the air. As this colorful, flavored rain of particles comes down on me, my eyes are all for the judges. "So, t-this is the power of plants and Pokémon working together!" I bow down, letting Poppy perch herself up on her usual spot, before walking back inside the backstage room.

I do have mixed impressions of my routine. The judges seemed to appreciate the fact that I improved on Monday's performance and added the flowers, but did they really feel that way? Was Mawile a good idea? Were things just too simple? The public looks a bit confused by it all, or at least that's my impression. And yes... I know I didn't come to win, but I can't help it!

I try to read the faces of the other contestants, but there's not much to see. Probably they're just focusing on their own routines and trying to remember all the steps, or talking between themselves. They probably know each other since before this contest.

The boy that goes second stands up the moment I sit back down inside the backstage room. He adjusts his papillon and his bright red jacket - surely enough, his outfit will work well with the theme - but he doesn't look that comfortable in it. I throw him a slight smile as the curtain opens, though he doesn't see it.

"Now, give it up for the second contestant…"

"So, hi there!"

I flinch and quickly turn towards the new voice, who happens to be another contestant. Her dark skin is offset by very light, very straight platinum hair that reaches a fair bit past her shoulders. "Oh, hello." It's a bit unexpected for her to talk to me, now that I think about it, but I try not to look too intimidated and see where this goes.

"That was an interesting routine! And your Pokémon's so cool. Oh, also!" She smiles proudly. "I'm Kimberly, nice to meet you! And you are?"

"Oh, I'm… I'm Avril. Glad to meet you!" I reply, somewhat relieved, as Poppy chirps and waves to her as well.

"That Pokémon is so cute! Any idea where I can find one? Please?" She gushed.

"Uhm, right, this is Poppy, a Flabébé." I try to explain. "I found her back at home, in Kalos, but… I don't know if there's any in Hoenn."

"Kalos you say? That's so far away! Aw, I wish I could go there… wait, how's it like?"

"Well it's… very diverse, I think. But my area? Lots of farmland, nature, cute Pokémon…" I smile. "Sums it up, right?"

Kimberly's eyes seem to tell me she's already there with her mind. "Well, doesn't look too different from Petalburg. But didn't you have that… large city, right?"

"Oh, Lumiose? Oui! It's massive, for sure. Everything you might want is there. And yet, it's not quite my cup of tea."

"Aw, really?" The girl now looks quite smug. "To me it sounds… fantastic! Splendid! Phenomenal!

"You'd fit in better than me, then… surely!"

"But of course!" Kimberly bursts out laughing. "Heh, thank you!"

I believe my cheeks are turning ever so slightly red at this point. Well, more red than they usually are. "Y-you're welcome."

"Well, what brought you here then?"

I scratch my head. "I'm just traveling as a trainer. Spending some time away from home…"

"Interesting…" The girl reflects for a moment. "I'm from around here and I'm not exactly traveling, but I love contests like these!"

"Cool! This is just my second contest, but I'm slowly getting the hang of it…" I look briefly at the ceiling. "I think."

"That's… that's ok. I said it before too, you did well, right?"

"Y-yeah…"

I'm blushing again, am I not? I try not to let that get to me, though. It's not that easy though, especially when she stands up, turns around, and waves. "My turn now! Cheer for me, please?"

I smile as I see her two nearly identical Pokémon appear beside her - other trainers say they are two Zigzagoon, except one is strange, not from here.

I cheer as they dance and run in circles, sometimes hitting each other, sometimes just jumping or dodging each other instead.

I gush as they end the routine by jumping on top of each other and spinning as their Pin missile attacks intertwine, creating the image of… a cone? No, a fern. One of today's themes!

One of the other contestants looks at me, somewhat worried, and I realize…

Why am I cheering for Kimberly? Aren't we opponents?

Eleanor · Jan 12, 2021

Avril Reese

16 - ♀ - Laverre City

Pokémon / Inventory:

AVRIL'S MONEY: $15 000

AVRIL'S TEAM:
🌼 Poppy (Flabebe) -♀- lv. 29 ↑
Flower Veil
Synthesis, Fairy Wind, Grassy Terrain, Lucky Chant, Wish, Magical Leaf

🌼 Hydrangea (Shellos) -♀- lv. 26
Storm Drain
Water Pulse, Mud Bomb, Recover, Rain Dance, Mud Sport, Hidden Power (?)

🌼 Wisteria (Inkay) -♂- lv. 20
Infiltrator
Swagger, Hypnosis, Topsy-Turvy, Pluck, Reflect, Psybeam

🌼 Venus (Mawile) -♀- lv. 23 ↑
Intimidate
Fairy Wind, Feint Attack, Sucker Punch, Fake Tears, Taunt, Baton Pass

AVRIL'S INVENTORY:
🌼 Holotch (phone version)
🌼 Fanclub Membership card
🌼 Eviolite
🌼 Silk Scarf
🌼 Various clothes and commodities

AVRIL'S CONTACTS:
Jordie, Shuna, Natsuko, June, Marcella

AVRIL'S BADGES:
🥊

🌼 Character art made with [SPAN="color:rgb(40,180,40);"]https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097[/SPAN]

Backstage Fellowship

Wednesday, September 23^rd - about 10:30 a.m. - Dewford Contest Hall

The Battle round starts with a Kimberly win, fair and square. I can't help but feel happy for her, and yet part of me is doubtful that she even needs my encouragement to begin with. She's confident, gives the right directions at the right time, and is definitely better than me as a trainer. All while looking stunning, just like in the first round...

So, why did she ask me to cheer for her?

I try not to think about it, and just watch the battle unfold on the backstage screens. Sitting next to me now is my opponent, the boy with the red jacket, who is quietly staring at the screen too - in fact, his only words are "May the best win!", pronounced right before we make our second entrance in the arena. We walk side by side for a bit, then in opposite directions, and finally the battle commences. "Second battle: Avril vs. Kendrick!" I hear the judge announce.

My two Fairy types are up against two Poison types. He's brought a Gulpin and a Dustox on the field, and that's enough to turn Poppy away from the fight - but as much as I'd love to keep her safe, I must follow the rules. Luckily, my other Pokémon is none other than Venus, and I'm sure she can be helpful.

I also know she'll have to do most of the work, though. And so I start with a Feint Attack on Gulpin, and a Lucky Chant from Poppy - a little song to keep me focused.

The small, green Pokémon charges up a Poison Gas in the meantime, and Dustox's Gust directs it towards Poppy, who I tell to twirl around as she uses Fairy Wind. She looks a bit dizzy, but it works!

Ok, Avril, let's think for a second.

Poppy has to stay far away from the boy's Pokémon, and she knows better than me why. Venus is the only one who can do some proper damage, but is it even worth it? Given that Mawile is also Steel-type, what if my best bet is… to run out of time?

The boy has a plan of his own now, and it's no good for me. Poppy gets thrown off thanks to Dustox's Confusion, who flies up to her and throws a cloud of Poison Powder right onto her flower… I grind my teeth at that sight. In the meantime, Gulpin pulls another trick onto Venus, by hitting her with Yawn. All while I've tried to land some hits on the opposing Pokémon, but not much else.

Looks like it's back to my previous approach to fights… panic!

I tell Venus to continue with the Feint Attacks while she can, reliably hitting Gulpin until it's heavily damaged. But Poppy… I feel bad even giving her a single command, especially as I see her floating towards me with those suffering eyes. This… this gives me an idea, though. If Venus endured all those flowers in the first round...

"Poppy, go hide inside Venus's mouth, quick!"

The iron maw closes shut as the Steel type falls flat on the ground, but only after Poppy has literally thrown herself inside with a powerful Fairy Wind, who nearly made the flower crown fly away.

Kendrick's Dustox tries to intervene now. Silver Wind, Confusion, Gust, they all fail to knock Venus out or get her to free Poppy… but the time is still ticking. It's actually working!

Eventually, Venus herself wakes up, her slightly open maw now pointing upwards and glowing from the inside. With Fairy Wind, she shoots Poppy to the sky, where she can complete her Synthesis and regain some strength. I forget everything and just yell more, random orders. "Use Wish this time!"

As Mawile laughs, all smug, some tiny comets fall on her. As Gulpin and Dustox come charging forward, trying to attack her with any move they have, Mawile starts to dance and run around them, hitting from weird angles, biting and jumping around. She continues, on and on, even after the timer declares the end of the encounter, and I have to recall her to her Pokéball.

I take some long, heavy breaths. The ending is uncertain, since no Pokémon were knocked out, but that matters to me only relatively when the battle I've just gone through felt so… difficult to understand. It's my opponent who tries to bring me back to reality.

"Congrats Avril, that was as unexpected as it was effective! Guess that's why the judges let you win this."

"O-oh, thanks, K-K-Kendrick! And good luck on the third place final."

"It's all good… just beat Kimberly, alright?"

"W-what!? Hm…" I'll try, maybe. Surely I didn't expect things to get this heated during a D-Rank Contest in Dewford…

I walk back behind the curtain, where a Staff member is already in position to pick up my Pokémon and heal them up before the Final Round. Somewhere else in the room, Kimberly is watching me with a smug smile.

Eleanor · Jan 13, 2021

Avril Reese

16 - ♀ - Laverre City

Pokémon / Inventory:

AVRIL'S MONEY: $20 000 (+ 5 000)

AVRIL'S TEAM:
🌼 Poppy (Flabebe) -♀- lv. 29
Flower Veil
Synthesis, Fairy Wind, Grassy Terrain, Lucky Chant, Wish, Magical Leaf

🌼 Hydrangea (Shellos) -♀- lv. 26
Storm Drain
Water Pulse, Mud Bomb, Recover, Rain Dance, Mud Sport, Hidden Power (?)

🌼 Wisteria (Inkay) -♂- lv. 20
Infiltrator
Swagger, Hypnosis, Topsy-Turvy, Pluck, Reflect, Psybeam

🌼 Venus (Mawile) -♀- lv. 23
Intimidate
Fairy Wind, Feint Attack, Sucker Punch, Fake Tears, Taunt, Baton Pass

AVRIL'S INVENTORY:
🌼 Holotch (phone version)
🌼 Fanclub Membership card
🌼 Eviolite
🌼 Silk Scarf
🌼 Various clothes and commodities

AVRIL'S CONTACTS:
Jordie, Shuna, Natsuko, June, Marcella

AVRIL'S BADGES AND RIBBONS:
🥊

🎀• 1

🌼 Character art made with [SPAN="color:rgb(40,180,40);"]https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097[/SPAN]

Backstage enemies

Wednesday, September 23^rd - about 11 a.m. - Dewford Contest Hall

"Avril, r-right?"

"Yes!"

"I liked your last round, actually! You definitely have a chance against her!"

The boy with the red jacket points at the screen - the framing of the video never changes, as if it was nothing more than a security camera. Kimberly is confidently walking straight towards the center of it, with her white dress and red high heels, and a… Leppa Berry in her hands.

"You think so? A-are you sure?"

"Yeah. You and Mawile alone on the field made for a striking image, even though it was predictable. When you held up the flower crown and realized that there was no Poppy, I felt your anguish. Even though it was staged!"

"T-thank you! Venus is the nickname."

"I also liked Maw-... Venus doing all of those antics with you. Going from fake tears all the way to taunt - of course, your acting to go along with that worked well, too."

"Hm, are you sure? I never even tried this before with her. Just told her a few instructions before the round. I still can't believe she listened."

On the screen, Kimberly is looking at her own Pokémon with the berry still in her hand, as if it was a flag they had to get. Her two Zigzagoons were mostly exchanging Baby Doll eyes and Leer, running and dancing around her.

"A-avril, it's good! The following part was even better though. You, looking so sad and resigned as the little sparkles from Wish hit you, you looking around in confusion, and that Fairy Wind coming from Venus's half open maw… that was intense!"

"It's just a Pokémon inside another Pokémon. How good can it be?"

"That's the point, you made the best of what you had available!"

Kimberly has thrown the berry into the fray by now. On the screen, the two Zigzagoon are running around in circles, hitting each other with Covet or Thief to steal the berry from each other. It's almost… seamless.

"Oh, and finally, that ending was just… so cool! Poppy just rupturing out of Mawile's mouth with Fairy Wind! Those Magical leaves raining down on Mawile, who just shattered them with her attacks… And finally, Poppy flying straight down into your arms!"

That's way too enthusiastic of a description, but in a way, I get it. "I loved that moment too… i-it means a lot to me. Every time Poppy is not near me is… you know."

"I can see that! By the way, Mawile running towards Poppy to give her that last thumbs up was also very cute on her part. And that combined Fairy Wind… powerful."

Kimberly has ended her exhibition with a bang… literally. Her two Pokémon threw the berry in the air, hit it with Pin Missile and tore it down in countless crumbles when their attacks collided.

"And she's done with her round. Let's get ready with the award ceremony, shall we?"

We walk back out for the last time, as the public cheers for us, finally reaching Kimberly. With the three of us in front of the judges, the boy is the first to receive a prize.

"Congratulations, Kendrick, for your third place! Now onto the two finalists."

I'm already shaking, now more than ever. As the judges wait it through and build suspense, I can see Kendrick and Kimberly looking funny at each other already. And that is what makes me feel so weird… they still seem to want me by their side.

"The winner of this contest is… Avril Reese, with her Mawile and Flabébé! And of course, the runner up is Kim-"

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat."

Everyone looks at each other awkwardly, as the public keeps clapping and cheering us on. The look on Kimberly's face, though…

I didn't want to make anyone angry. I didn't want my mind to get filled with self doubt again. I didn't want any of this, really, but apparently I have no choice. I run back to the Resort as soon as I can, trying to dispel all of these negative thoughts.

Also… no, I'm not interested in battling Kimberly, like she said she wants. Never.

QueenNothing · Jan 13, 2021

Junko "June" Enomoto

Wednesday, September 23rd, Noon

After seeing how upset I've been from my shattering loss today, Uncle has persuaded me to go fishing with him at Lake Petalburg during his lunch break. He's told me Dewpider can be found here through fishing, and that alone has me willing to join him. Once we arrive, Uncle attempts to give me a demonstration on how to fish, but it's not difficult to tell he doesn't have the best idea of what he's doing.

"Err uhh, how do you do this again?"

"Uncle, aren't you supposed to be the one teaching me??" I wearily exhale and take a deep breath to regain myself. As much as I love Uncle Tetsuo, he can be a really frustrating person when something out of his field of knowledge is brought up. To be honest, I'm not sure if he had any interest in taking me out here besides an attempt to cheer me up.

"Need some help, you two?" A voice approaches from behind us, and a jolly stocky fisherman behind us turns out to be the voice's owner. A friendly grin resides on his face. "I'd be more than glad to help!"

Uncle goes quiet, mysteriously enough. I suppose I have to answer for him. "In what way would you like to assist us? Do you just mean helping us fish?"

The man nods his head. "Yep! That's why they call me Pete the Fishing Guy! Normally I'd lend you a rod, but you guys already have two. It's always good to be prepared!"

"O-of course. I mean, err uhh, what kind of uncle would I be if I took my niece fishing without any rods, y-y'know?" This is the first time I've ever heard Uncle nervously stutter, and I'm astounded. What's going on with him?

Pete pays no mind to it though, and just smiles. "Showing young family members the joy of fishing is unbelievably satisfying, isn't it?"

"O-oh yeah, I'll sure say." Uncle, just a minute ago you struggled to teach me the basics. I'm not judging you for your lack of interest, but your answer feels a little dishonest. I get the impression Pete knows this as well, but it's a challenge to tell what he really thinks through his insistent smiling.

"So what are you both waiting for! Let's get to it!" He announces, making a swinging motion with his arms that I assume is supposed to be tossing the hook into the water. Without any words being spoken, it's more helpful than Tetsuo's instructions.

I repeat the arm motions of the fisherman, and I'm able to cast a line. I anticipate Uncle will do the same, but he never does- instead he further initiates his conversation with Pete. "Pokémon caught in lakes and the ocean are just the best!" The wide man continues.

"Of course it doesn't hurt to balance out your team. I make sure to not just carry water-types because I'd be absolutely screwed in battle, so my Teddiursa keeps me company. Of course, I don't just haphazardly catch any non-water-type. For example, I caught Teddiursa because Ursaring has a natural fishing technique they use in rivers. Maybe a bird Pokémon could help me grab fish too!" The way he passionately speaks of this subject is reminiscent of myself and bug Pokémon. His advice relating to balancing teams to counter disadvantages could be applied to the Pokémon I carry, but I'm certain I want to avoid any more harm done to them. Serious battling is something I should avoid from now on.

"Uh- yep, couldn't have said it better myself!" Uncle hastily nods. "My brother, err uhh, has like, so many normal and fighting types and two water-types, and I always tell him the same thing!"

Their conversation progresses for a while, and it's mostly just Pete going into detail about a specific topic while Uncle agrees in whatever way he's able, occasionally with an additional comment. I become less and less aware of the specifics as I begin tuning it out to focus on the fishing rod. I haven't checked the time, but this has really dragged on. I haven't gotten as much as a nibble...

I try to remain patient, afterall Grandma always said it's a virtue, but sitting on the dock for this long is undeniably tiring, even with the chance I have to catch a new bug. Admittedly even that fails to raise my spirits. I feel as if very little could brighten my mood if I'm being honest with myself…

I decide to reach for my PokeGear in my purse so I may check the time, but I'm surprised to see I've received a notification. I peek at the message preview and...

Avril, 23/9, 12:14 pm
Hi June! :)

Avril, 23/9, 12:15 pm
Wow, you made so much progress! Congrats for your ribbon <3

My heart flutters in a frenzy upon reading these messages. It seems I was wrong- there is at least something that cheers me up. The heart emoticon specifically causes my face to flash red the more I focus on it, but I try to calm myself so I can respond. I don't want to misinterpret Avril as I did Robynn yesterday, but I think that's a promising sign. Carefully, I type out my response, being sure to be extra precise with my words, tapping the "Send" button when I'm satisfied enough with what I've wrote.

🐞June's party🐞

32,492

Spoiler:

ft. messages from Avril Reese (Eleanor)

Eleanor · Jan 14, 2021

Avril Reese

16 - ♀ - Laverre City

Messages written with QueenNothing as Junko Enomoto

Pokémon / Inventory:

AVRIL'S MONEY: $20 000

AVRIL'S TEAM:
🌼 Poppy (Flabebe) -♀- lv. 29
Flower Veil
Synthesis, Fairy Wind, Grassy Terrain, Lucky Chant, Wish, Magical Leaf

🌼 Hydrangea (Shellos) -♀- lv. 26
Storm Drain
Water Pulse, Mud Bomb, Recover, Rain Dance, Mud Sport, Hidden Power (?)

🌼 Wisteria (Inkay) -♂- lv. 20
Infiltrator
Swagger, Hypnosis, Topsy-Turvy, Pluck, Reflect, Psybeam

🌼 Venus (Mawile) -♀- lv. 23
Intimidate
Fairy Wind, Feint Attack, Sucker Punch, Fake Tears, Taunt, Baton Pass

AVRIL'S INVENTORY:
🌼 Holotch (phone version)
🌼 Fanclub Membership card
🌼 Eviolite
🌼 Silk Scarf
🌼 Various clothes and commodities

AVRIL'S CONTACTS:
Jordie, Shuna, Natsuko, June, Marcella

AVRIL'S BADGES:
🥊

🌼 Character art made with [SPAN="color:rgb(40,180,40);"]https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097[/SPAN]

Backstage drama

Wednesday, September 23^rd - afternoon - Ferry from Dewford to Briney Port

June, 23/9, 1:10 pm
Thank you so much! ^^ Also I'm sorry for the late reply, I've been occupied with my Uncle who lives here, but I'm free to continue texting with you now! I hope you've been able to progress as much as I have.

Avril, 23/9, 1:18 p.m.
Well! I won one ribbon myself just now, but I had to run from the angry runner up! I also had a super scary cave adventure but I made it out alright and got a Mawile, too ^-^

Avril, 23/9, 1:19 p.m.
Just done with lunch at the fanclub now! Am in my room trying to calm down

June, 23/9, 1:21 p.m.
That sounds very frightening ^^; but I'm glad you made it through all that, and congratulations for the ribbon! And Mawile seems like a very unique Pokémon!

Avril, 23/9, 1:25 p.m.
Thank youuu! <3

Avril, 23/9, 1:26 p.m.
Mmm, Petalburg is the next city, right? Might as well come over and meet up again if you'd like? Say hi to your new catches from me!

June, 23/9, 1:29 p.m.
It is, and that sounds delightful! Where might you like to meet at, and when?

Avril, 23/9, 1:33 p.m.
I think the boat is at 4 pm for me but I don't know how long it will take. After that, it's Pokecenter right away! Are you staying there as well?

June, 23/9, 1:35 p.m.
The ferry should approximately take two hours. As for where I'm staying, I've actually been spending the nights at my Uncle's house, but I have zero qualms of meeting you at the Pokémon Center!

Avril, 23/9, 1:36 p.m.
That settles it then! Pokecenter in the evening… maybe around dinner time, or a bit before that? Hope I can get there quickly! ^-^'

June, 23/9, 1:37 p.m.
Great! ^^ See you then!

💢💢💢

Just like with Slateport before, I decide to leave Dewford for mainly two reasons: first, someone I don't quite trust is looking for me, and second, a friend of mine is encouraging me. Orion and Layla then, Kimberly and June now.

As I pack everything up, I realize that I would've had to leave sooner or later anyway, just so that I could continue my journey - or, at the very least, act like I care in the eyes of my parents. I'm positive they will call me soon enough. This helps, at least a little bit, when it comes to leaving this Fanclub Resort in the past: it's been an amazing place to stay, with comfortable rooms and a gorgeous view, but there has to be something similar somewhere else in Hoenn… I think.

It's nearly 3 p.m. by the time I turn in the key for my room and take my last step inside that building. The staff is immediately alerted of this by the rolling backpack standing beside me, of course - something even I have to get used to once again, after leaving it inside my room for days.

If there's something else that can make me remember this place, though, it's the bandages on my arm. They've been here for almost two days now, but it will take some more for the wounds to heal. I've been recommended to just check in at the nearest Pokèmon Center, when it's actually time to get rid of them.

With all of that sorted out, it's time to get onto the ferry. Two hours, I've heard… two hours until I see you again.

💢💢💢

"OH IT'S YOU!"

Oh no it's Kimberly.

I remain quiet, trying to pretend I didn't hear that shrieking coming from the other side of the boat. But that's not easy to do when the girl is trying to nab at me with her feet… and no, this is not stretching, this is a deliberate attack.

"Someone didn't listen, or maybe didn't want to? I said I wanted to battle you! No judges, no contest rules, just you and me. And we'll see who's better!"

"I-I… think I will consider it?"

Kimberly doesn't like that answer. Of course. All I can do now is stand up and perch myself on a different seat - which happens to be right next to another trainer I've seen before.

"Kendrick?"

"Avril?"

Unlike Kimberly, who basically has nearly the same outfit as the contest, Kendrick is just wearing a blue shirt and jeans… nothing out of the ordinary. He basically blends right in.

"Look, she has acted like this even in a few contests before this one, but she's never got this close to win. Still, if you battle against her you should have no problems. Just deal with that in Petalburg and…"

"But I don't want to!"

I don't want to, indeed. I still liked Kimberly, at least before she'd go crazy, and even now I can see why she would be angry. I don't want to enrage her more, and I don't want to risk going through more of her shenanigans. But also, I don't want either my or her Pokémon getting hurt for nothing… as if she'll ever hold back and play it cool, right?

"She has to understand this is not ok! You got this, girl!"

"S-someone else will teach her that, regardless…"

"I guess? Whose side are you even on?"

I hate these questions, I actually do. At this point I'm considering jumping off the ship and swimming to Petalburg with Angie's help… also because seeing Kimberly trying to get closer to us, barely balancing herself as she stands up on the ferry, doesn't help things.

The answer would go something like… I still like Kimberly, she's proud and passionate about contests, and she's also quite friendly! I would have been more than happy to celebrate her victory with her, since I didn't care about winning myself, but just try out a contest for the fun of it. That would never work though, that is clear as the sky right now.

"Kimberly, Kendrick… I-I don't even know."

They both pout at me.

"I j-just wanted to win and the judges agreed on that… you should blame them!"

"It's not a matter of that anymore, I have to know how good you really are!" Kimberly yells.

"Girls?" Kendrick intervenes once again, trying to stay collected as usual. "Please, let's not bicker here. You can battle when we get to Briney."

💢💢💢

The moment has come, the boat has arrived at its destination, but this is not quite Petalburg yet. It's Briney Port. Kendrick, who is from here, has just told me that Petalburg - Kimberly's hometown - is further inland, up a gentle hill. It might take a while to get there, but not late enough to not get a room at the Pokémon Center. I might have to tell June… right, June. Exactly why I can't afford to battle now.

I get off the boat with the Holotch in one hand and the handle of my bag in the other, just before Kendrick and Kimberly do the same, and try my best to dodge the other people who have already touched solid ground before I did - not easy to do with this narrow of a pier. But when Kimberly has almost caught up, I find an opening and go for it.

"DON'T LEAVE!" The girl tries to stop me. "Where are you even…"

"Date!" I yell back… Date? Date? It seemed to be effective, at least on, well… Kendrick, but did I really have to say that? I just hope that the chatter of the other people has muffled that word, and I keep running until I lose my breath.

Luckily, by the time I do, the wheels of my bag rolling on the ground is the loudest sound I hear.

QueenNothing · Jan 14, 2021

Junko "June" Enomoto

Wednesday, September 23rd, Afternoon

June's been sitting in the leather seats lined up against the Pokémon Center interior for thirty minutes now, thirty minutes before the estimated arrival time. A roughly two hour ferry ride plus a hike that's about a half-hour is what she's been eagerly waiting through.

Is she too early? Probably, but the thought of seeing Avril again drove such anticipation in her that she had to show up early "just in case" the blonde girl arrived before expected. She eagerly checks her PokeGear every other minute, all the while Sting roosts atop her head- she really looks forward to showing her recent catch to Avril.

Maybe checking her phone so frequently isn't very worthwhile, but the idea that Avril could text her important updates is a very real possibility to June. She basically has a pattern- grab her phone from her purse, unlock it, see no notifications on her lock screen, store it back in her purse, and repeat. She's gotten so used to this by now that it comes as a surprise that Avril in-fact, does send an update text. She grows giddy, holding back the urge to squeak with joy until she actually reads the message.

Avril, 23/9, 6:28 pm

omw there but i'll b late

June's heart stops. That's concerning. Without much thought, she quickly types up a response asking what's the matter.

Avril, 23/9, 6:35 p.m.
go twd briney pls

Such an obvious typo gets June worried, and unhesitantly, she agrees to Avril's request. She zips her purse up and hightails it to Briney Port, wishing she brought her sunhat with her- the sunset around this time, while beautiful, is undeniably blinding in the wrong spots.

Trying to run all the way to Briney Port is exhausting. It's a fairly long walk, and while her added energy speeds up the process a little, it leaves her near breathless when she's just miles away from Briney. She's ecstatic when she can spot Avril coming the opposite way, clumsily running towards her. She's not alone, though. A girl wearing a white dress and silver hair seems to be chasing Avril down.

"Why d-do you see… me as the enemy?" Avril yells, but sounds very much out of breath. "I'll never… battle… 'specially with that kinda wager! And please…" She pauses. "Stop your Pokémon!"

Examining the two girls, one a stranger and the other familiar, June is very unsure of what their quarrel is about. "Avril!" She powers through her panting to continue. "Um, what happened here?" Her index finger taps her lower lip.

"I just have to prove. I. am. better." The other girl declares, as two Zigzagoon come back from chasing Avril and stand beside her. One of the two Pokémon stands out to June, having black and white fur instead of the usual shades of brown. She's seen Pokémon with unique colors before, but the black and white Zigzagoon generally seems rowdier. If she didn't find herself in this current situation, she'd scan it out of curiosity.

"You are, you are, no need to…" Avril interrupts herself. "June! That's the runner up I t-talked about." She tries to explain in between heavy breaths. In the meantime, Poppy lures the two Zigzagoon away once again, floating erratically but putting some distance between the Pokémon and the girls.

"Yeah, runner up, but because you won with sheer luck!"

More loud puffs are exhaled from the tall girl's lungs as she remains confused. "W-wait, what are you referencing??" She tries her best to not focus on the girl in white for too long- she'd hate to blush at this new girl right in front of Avril.

"Went to Dewford, signed up for a Contest, and this… 'beginner' snatches the victory right outta my hands! And now, she's too scared to fight and prove she deserved it!" The silver haired girl complains. "My two Zigzagoon are eager to battle!"

"L-look, you were the one to say my P-Pokémon was cute!" Avril replies, with furrowed brows. All that does is earn her a pout, though. Conflict is in the air, and June feels an obligation to try mediating, although being both flushed and physically exhausted could impact her attempt. That doesn't matter though- she thinks about what her grandma would do.

"Um, um, c-c-could the two of you please not argue!" The brunette speaks up to the best of her current ability, trying to simultaneously look at both girls, but just ends up looking down to hide how red her face is. The girl in white quickly turns towards her, a smug look on her face. "Um, from what I understand, A-Avril here won the ribbon, and um, even if i-it was because of luck, that was the judges de-decision." It'd be pretty hypocritical of her to take the girl in white's side when Kit nearly evolving without any prior warning is probably what won her the contest. "S-so, um, please don't fight! My-my grandma always said that umm… W-well, I, um, don't actually remember the whole thing, but please don't fight!" A single blast of air escapes June's mouth. She's impressed she could deliver all that, even if she did leave out some important details.

"June… t-thanks." Avril smiles back, but turns towards the other girl right away, as she starts to speak again.

"Date!" She smirks. "Don't tell me that girl is…"

"D-d-d-date!?!?" June's cheeks burn brighter, and she holds her face with her palms. A million thoughts a second rush through her head. She doesn't want to tell the unfamiliar girl she's necessarily wrong, but after the Robynn incident, she's far too afraid to confirm her suspicion. All she can do is feel her heart pump like a jack-hammer against her chest.

It's awkward silence for a few minutes, with just the panting of the girls being heard. But then, Avril sighs and starts talking again. "You know… yes, s-s-she is! Who else c-could I have c-called…" Someone could probably boil water on June's face at this point.

"Well!" The other girl continues, after trying - and failing - to get her Pokémon's attention. "I feel like… you're losing out just a bit if you go out on a date with Avril." She giggles as she looks towards June. "I'm Kimberly, and I'm clearly the better coordinator."

This made things a little tricky- now this girl, Kimberly as she introduced herself, is trying to pry for her attention. She can't deny that she's very well-dressed for the part of a coordinator, or just in general. The way she compliments her dark skin tone with a white dress is simply stunning, and her silver hair being perfectly straight show she must put a lot of effort into it. Someone who puts this much work into their appearance has admirable dedication- and when June feels her knees wobble, she certainly feels that admiration.

But Avril is standing right there, her eyes still fixed on the other girls. She did reserve this time specifically for Avril afterall, and it would be incredibly rude to waste her precious time focusing on someone who introduced herself a few seconds ago trying to snatch her away. The problem there is she doesn't have the heart to turn Kimberly down.

"W-w-what…" Avril mumbles, her eyes jumping between June and Kimberly. "Can we stop, please? We all need to get to Petalburg, don't we? And I need to get a room for tonight! Let's just stop arguing now!"

With a long, loud sigh, the blonde girl looks down to the ground and starts walking again, dragging her bag beside her. June, feeling guilty, calls out to Avril to wait for her, and quickly follows suit.

"Oh right…" Kimberly whispers in the meantime, as she looks at her PokéNav. She then recalls her Pokémon and runs past everyone. "I'mlateI'mlateI'mlate!!".
"My parents will be so angryangry but don't worry, because I'll come after you soon enough! Byeeeeeeeeeeee…!"

Avril is definitely unable to keep up with the silver haired girl's running speed but that's fine, she doesn't need to. Neither does June, and with the two now alone without any uninvited guests, they can finally spend time together completely uninterrupted.

At least, "spending time together" is how June phrases it to herself. She finds it difficult to admit, but there's a much more descriptive word for what they're doing, Avril even announced it out-loud not that long ago: it's a date.

🐞June's party🐞

🌼ft. Avril Reese (Eleanor)🌼

32,492

Spoiler:

Eleanor · Jan 16, 2021

Avril Reese

16 - ♀ - Laverre City

With QueenNothing as Junko Enomoto

Pokémon / Inventory:

AVRIL'S MONEY: $20 000

AVRIL'S TEAM:
🌼 Poppy (Flabebe) -♀- lv. 29
Flower Veil
Synthesis, Fairy Wind, Grassy Terrain, Lucky Chant, Wish, Magical Leaf

🌼 Hydrangea (Shellos) -♀- lv. 26
Storm Drain
Water Pulse, Mud Bomb, Recover, Rain Dance, Mud Sport, Hidden Power (?)

🌼 Wisteria (Inkay) -♂- lv. 20
Infiltrator
Swagger, Hypnosis, Topsy-Turvy, Pluck, Reflect, Psybeam

🌼 Venus (Mawile) -♀- lv. 23
Intimidate
Fairy Wind, Feint Attack, Sucker Punch, Fake Tears, Taunt, Baton Pass

AVRIL'S INVENTORY:
🌼 Holotch (phone version)
🌼 Fanclub Membership card
🌼 Eviolite
🌼 Silk Scarf
🌼 Various clothes and commodities

AVRIL'S CONTACTS:
Jordie, Shuna, Natsuko, June, Marcella

AVRIL'S BADGES:
🥊

🌼 Character art made with [SPAN="color:rgb(40,180,40);"]https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097[/SPAN]

Holding onto June

Wednesday, September 23^rd - evening - Petalburg City

"And here's my new room!" Avril announces with a smile, sliding in the key and opening the door. "Looks lovely as usual!"

"Y-yes, I would certainly say so." June agrees, possibly trying to hold back a stutter.

Poppy immediately takes flight and explores the small but cozy room, as Avril takes her first steps inside and drags her bag along. This time, the predominant color is green, ranging from faint minty green to lime and emerald - with a large, wooden desk to spice things up.

"I have to admit, it's not like the Dewford resort, but it's still got everything you need!" The blonde girl giggles as she sits on the bed, beckoning June to do the same. "Don't you agree?"

The tall girl stiflingly waddles forward, face growing red. "W-well, g-green is a favorite color of mine, so the vi-visual appeal of this room might trump those necessities, but y-yes, that is nice." Sting lifts off from atop her head, flies close to the ceiling, and lands back on June's head as she cautiously takes a seat on the bed.

"R-right, how could I forget! Also…" Avril replies, blushing. "Your Beautifly is so elegant!" Poppy imitates Sting by perching herself right onto Avril's head, just a few seconds later.

"I suppose that is why it's named Beautifly afterall. Many people think that, because of its appearance, they're a very tame species, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Beautifly are very aggressive, and Sting is no exception, the main tool they use for such activity is their proboscis, which drains nectar from flowers and even some grass-type Pokémon. It's actually thought that over a long period of time, this behavior formed as a result of plants gaining sentience and becoming Pokémon such as Roselia, they both have continuously adapted to…"

As much as Avril is interested in June's explanation, she ends up interrupting her. Well, to be fair it's her rumbling stomach. "T-this is all super interesting but… we should continue in front of a nice meal, w-what do you think?" She looks at Sting again. "Oh, and I can trust your Beautifly to be friendly, right?"

"I, um, well I can't make any promises…" The brunette nervously laughs. "B-but yes, dinner sounds pleasant. I-if you'd like to, I could invite you over to my uncle's house- it's actually a part of my family's conservatory- and he's always willing to make food for me and any guests I bring over." That makes Avril blush even more.

"Well…" She stops to think for a moment. Vanessa and Lucas - Avril's brother - had been together for a while before even telling anyone in the family, and when it happened it seemed to be kind of a big deal. But June herself appeared to be a lot more relaxed about this, and if Avril said no… she would have been quite likely to break her feelings. "Well, it sounds like a n-nice idea! I'll get ready in a second!"

💞💞💞

The sun is already below the horizon when June and Avril leave the Pokémon Center and start walking around Petalburg for another good twenty minutes. She looks around the city, trying to breathe in the new place's atmosphere, but always with an eye on June who navigates through the city with ease.

Eventually, they arrive at what looks like a traditional house, quite different from any other in the vicinity, and from most Kalosian buildings too.

Before either of them can enter, the door suddenly slides against the doorway with immense force, and out pops a large man with a dark complexion covered head-to-toe in fishing gear. It's probably safe to assume he's not related to June, but with the familiarity he smiles at her with, the two clearly know each-other in some capacity.

Avril can't help but feel a bit puzzled about this. She looks at June, trying to decipher the expression on her face.

"Oh, hey there kiddo! I've seen you before! And you got a friend with you now!"

"P-Pete???" Her perplexed tone of voice seems to indicate a surprise to seeing this man. "Wh-what are-"

"Your Uncle invited me to the conservatory, and naturally I just had to see it myself! He invited me to stay for dinner, but I had to reject the offer, my fishing pals and I already had plans. But I'll be stopping by tomorrow- see you then, kiddo!" He gleefully marches away whistling a tune to himself. Once he's out of sight, June looks over to Avril, making sure everything is alright.

"I h-hope we're not a bother to your uncle…?" The blonde girl whispers to June, with a raised eyebrow.

"D-don't worry, he won't mind one bit!" She reassures before stepping up to slide the door open, beckoning Avril to follow. A single step indoors shows a man sitting at a desk, same hair color, skin tone, and eye color as June, and for a brief second Avril can see his face flash bright red, also like her niece.

"Oh, hey Ju-" The man harshly cocks an eyebrow up upon noticing Avril entering, a gesture that the blonde girl can't help but replicate. There's a brief moment of uncomfortable silence between the two relatives as if they can read each-other's minds.

June's uncle decides to speak up. "Hey, what happened with-"

"Uncle!!! I would like to introduce Avril!"

This sounds a bit more serious than expected. The Kalosian girl can't help but blush and look towards June, as if she could tell her what to do. "W-well… nice to meet you!"

At the drop of a hat, June's uncle chuckles and gives a sort of amused look. "I see what's going on, teenagers being teenagers. But I'm Tetsuo. Junko invite you for dinner or somethin'?"

"Oh, that's c-correct." Avril nods, trying to put on her best smile.

Tetsuo chuckles again. "Speak of the devil, I was just about to start that. Go ahead and make yourself comfy Avril, but not too comfy."

"W-what does that mean…?" Avril gets closer to the taller girl, whispering right in her ear. All she does is blush and awkwardly stands completely straight after her uncle's words.

💞💞💞

From such a quirky family living in such an unusual house, Avril should have expected some out of the ordinary food - and that is exactly what happens when Tetsuo gives "gyūdon" to the two girls. At least, that's the name June uses for what looks like a bowl full of mostly rice and meat.

The blonde girl can recognize most of the ingredients and can appreciate the different flavors they create - sure, that makes for a very different meal than what she's used to, but "bad" is certainly not the right word to describe it. In fact, after an initial shock, the gyūdon starts to taste better and better! Although… that may be because June seems just so happy to be eating what is probably one of her favorite recipes, with Avril beside her. On further examination of her bowl though, the blonde girl notices an absence of any beef, with chopped mushrooms in its place.

"So, err uh, Avril was it?" Tetsuo breaks the silence while barely focusing on his large serving. "Where y'from? With a name like that I'd think your from like, uhh, Galar or somethin'."

"Oh, I'm from L-Laverre city, Kalos!" Avril answers with a smile. This question is definitely bringing back memories of home.

"I was close enough." He casually shovels a few bites into his mouth with a pair of chopsticks. "Isn't Kalos the place with the, uhh, tower?"

"I think it's called Prism Tower?" June questions herself, index finger placed on her lower lip. "But that's only located in Lumiose City. I think Viola resides there as well!"

"Lumiose really has it all, I bet." Tetsuo's mouth twitches into something resembling a smile. "Hear they got a good league there!"

"Lumiose is t-too much for me, yeah, and… same goes for the league. But I guess it's nice to know it's there in case you need it?" Avril giggles, now thinking about that special day where she made up her mind to come here in Hoenn. If that didn't happen, she would not be here with June right now… she blushes slightly at the thought.

"Oh, so you ain't challenging the Hoenn League? We got a good gym here in Petalburg." At his words, June goes blank, and fixates on her bowl, silently elevating sauced onions and mushrooms into her mouth in a slow succession.

"I… t-think I am? I'm not that good though." Avril pauses, leading into some more moments of awkward silence as she waits for June to chime in or for Tetsuo to ask her more questions, but that doesn't happen. The other girl especially is looking… a bit anguished at this point. "J-June? Everything ok?"

"O-oh, I'm fine!" She stutters, throwing up a smile. The way she says that, though, reminds Avril too much of herself when she's being anxious.

"Nobody starts out good- we all gotta suck at some point." He states, waving his chopsticks in Avril's general direction. "Why else go on a journey if not to take the League Challenge?" The girl already has an answer ready, thanks to all the times she's had to explain this, but…

"CONTESTS!" The blonde girl turns around immediately and instinctively moves backwards, Tetsuo leans back, and June clears her throat after looking around the room. Even the Pokémon eating their food besides their table are alarmed- except for Einstein and Venus. Chip even scurries back to his Pokeball.

"Um, I mean… I'd think Pokémon Contests are a good reason to explore the Hoenn region. Sure, you can remain stationary in one contest hall, but by venturing to different locations, you're exposing your performance to a new demographic. That could allow me to demonstrate the beauty of bug Pokémon to many different audiences for example! I can picture it just now, people who've never seen a Dottler-"

"Heeeeeyy, that actually sounds like a plan." Tetsuo seems quick to cut her niece off as if he's used to something. "I guess I didn't really consider contests, y'know? Although personally I still think a trainer owes it to themselves to earn a few badges."

"You know, you're b-both right!" Avril giggles. "But really the reason why I'm travelling is her." She points at Poppy, who looks back at her with a playful laugh as she keeps munching on her berries. "Since I met her, people kept encouraging me, thinking I was gonna be a great trainer. So now here I am, trying things out… and it's been a w-wild adventure so far. Right June?" Poppy giggles at that question, chirping enthusiastically, and June's face goes red when her name is called out. "Oh- err, yes, definitely!"

"That's the spirit!" Tetsuo cheers with a chuckle. "The gym is open again on Friday, so be sure to give it your all against Nor- err, I guess it's Wally now- be sure to give it your all against Wally!"

"...but in the meantime, there's a Pokémon Contest tomorrow!" June seems eager to change the subject.

"I m-meant to say… I don't even e-enjoy battles that much! They get s-scary sometimes…" Avril feels the need to remark that. And still… "Contests are more fun but they can be just as scary if Kimberly signs up!" She continues, this time trying to get a laugh out of June as she chuckles herself. "She's just c-crazy…"

"I, umm, I haven't really considered that, b-but I think it's worth signing up for tomorrow's contest regardless."

"If you'd do that… well I-I'd probably feel b-b-better about it." Avril is clearly blushing as she says that. "But I don't want to f-force you or anything and you don't have to come!"

Tetsuo has been biting his lower lip for a bit now, clearly amused by two teenage girls being incredibly flushed with each-other. It doesn't seem to hinder June's answer at least. "N-n-n-n-no, I was planning on entering anyways, b-but I'd appreciate your c-c-company if you did sign up!" At this point, her uncle deeply buries his mouth in his palm, both elbows planted on the table.

"T-that is very reassuring! T-thanks, J-June…" Avril smiles. She really means it: the taller girl is probably one of the few people she knows she can rely on.

[PKMN FULL] Hoenn: Square One [IC]

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