A cool and salty breeze greeted Ethan as he rode his bike down the ledges that led to Olivine City. Floating just a bit behind him was Wiggler, a Wigglytuff that had been his first ever Pokemon. He looked back at it as it continued to keep a decent distance behind the bike. "C'mon Wiggler! You used to be able to float faster than that!"
He turned his attention back to the road ahead, in time to see a wooden fence coming up and coming up fast. He slammed on his brakes but at the speed he had been going, it'd be close. He let his foot off the pedal and dragged his foot into the ground, causing him to slow down a bit more. He put down the other foot, which helped even more, causing him to slow down enough that he could hop off his bike and walk it to the fence. He leaned it up against the fence and locked it up as Wiggler landed on a wooden post, huffing and puffing. He shook his head. "Hey, I warned you. I always ride real fast on my bike!"
Wiggler waved its small arms and he smiled. He reached to his backpack and pulled out a pair of Pokeballs. "I gotta tell you, that was a pretty long ride. I forgot how long a ride it is from Goldenrod to here. Maybe next time I'll borrow my grandparent's Fearow and fly over here. At least we got here before it got too dark."
Wiggler let out a little squeak and turned its attention to the one structure that loomed over anything nearby, the Olivine Lighthouse. Ethan glanced at it, focusing his attention on the top floor, where a powerful Ampharos lived, giving the lighthouse the great light it was known for. "Ha, you want to go visit Amphy, don't you? It's been awhile since we were out here last so I guess we could go."
Last time he had been out here, he and his small team of Pokemon had traveled across the ocean to locate a cure for Amphy, who had been sick at the time. He remembered not being all that interested in making the long long trek overseas but when he had heard it was for the shy but very cute Gym Leader of Olivine, how could he turn it down then? "I wonder how she's doing? I guess I haven't talked to some of the people I met since I lost to Crystal in the finals. Hah, I bet money she's up there, watching after Amphy!"
For now, he had to focus on the task at hand, delivering a couple of Pokemon to an older lady who had left her Pokemon at the Day Care Center but had been unable to pick them up. Usually they didn't do stuff like this but seeing as it was a regular customer, his grandparents felt the need to send him out to do it. He let out a sigh. "Kind of a drag, huh Wiggler? I mean we were planning to check out the Lake of Rage but instead I'm on the other side of Johto, delivering a couple of Pokemon!"
He found her house on the row of buildings closest to the docks, a small light red house with a slanted white roof and a lawn bordering a large amount of flowers planted around the house. A low white picket fence surrounded the house, each picket bearing the image of a Pokemon on the front. Known as the Pokemon Grandma, she had more species of Pokemon than some serious collectors but she seemed to have a fondness for normal Pokemon like the ones he had with him. If that were the one Pokemon type he would rather be, it was hard not to go with Normal. He walked up to her front door and knocked a few times. After the third knock, the door opened to the sound of a Jigglypuff speaking. He half expected a Jigglypuff to greet them until he realized it was just a recording. An elderly lady answered the door, her eyes lighting up when she saw who it was.
"Ahhh Ethan, how good it is to see you this evening! How are my babies?"
Ethan smiled. "Well Miss Cayan, both your Clefable and Miltank did just fine together but they had grown quite a bit since you last saw them. You might have to go try them out in a battle to see but I'm pretty confident they'll do well."
"Oh that's wonderful. I do appreciate all the hard work you guys do. It makes caring for Pokemon such a load off my back sometimes. Tell your grandparents I said thank you."
He nodded as he handed over the Pokemon. "Of course, we're always happy to serve you. If you ever need us to watch any more Pokemon, just let us know!"
After leaving from there, they made a beeline for the Olivine Lighthouse. He looked across the bay and could see several ships coming into the harbor, mainly smaller yachts and pleasure cruisers. They didn't get many large ships in the harbor but when they did, they often cast a huge shadow over the rest of town. The only ship he had been on had to be the St. Anne, a large cruiseliner filled to the brim with eager trainers. The trip had been sort of a consolation prize for him, having just lost the Johto League Final to Crystal. It did give him the oppurtunity to travel to Kanto and meet many people over there, including Lt. Surge, Erica, Brock and Blaine.
The trek up the lighthouse spanned six floors, usually filled with trainers with nothing better to do than harass people wanting to climb the lighthouse. He remembered having to struggle through a few of them during his first trek up, including a pair of Sailors who gave Wiggler quite some trouble. He looked over at him and smiled. "Hah, you remember that one sailor here? He had a pair of Machop-"
Wiggler interrupted him with a loud squeak, flashing a frown at him. Ethan laughed. "I guess you do remember. I thought we could nail them with Bounce but I had to bring in Juan and freeze the fight out of them."
As he reached the top floor, he walked to the railing and looked down at the rest of the city. It had gotten a bit darker but with his Raichu, he'd have all the light he needed to get back home. He could see a couple more ships pull into the harbor but what seemed to catch his eye was a smaller ship lagging a bit behind the others. It was a dark colored ship, carrying quite a bit of cargo but it came to a stop near the edge of the bay as if it was waiting for something. He shrugged it off but heard Wiggler let out a cry. The light that had bathed the area blinked a few times before it went out. He spun around to look at the glass windows where Amphy's light had just shown. "That's weird. We better go check it out. Hopefully he isn't sick again."
They walked into the lantern room of the lighthouse and noticed two guys dressed in dark clothing, standing over Amphy, who laid sprawled out on the floor. "There! That should take care of it!"
"You think it'll stay knocked out long enough for the ship to sneak in? It seemed like a pretty strong Pokemon."
"I think so. Besides, it has to stay up here and shine its light for ships to see. It's bound to get tired from doing that for so long. Our job is done here so let's get out of here before anyone comes over."
They both turned in unison, in time to see him standing in the doorway. He folded his arms and smiled. "It's a little late for that now, don't you think?"
One of the men, the one with light blue hair pointed his finger at him. "What are you doing here kid? It's pretty late for a walk, don't you think?"
"Is that supposed to excuse you two from harming Amphy?"
The two looked at each other and shrugged together. Ethan made a fist with his hand. "It's a Pokemon kid. It's pretty strong, it can recover. We just didn't need its light for a bit. Now if you'll excuse us-"
"You aren't going anywhere! And if you think I'm just your normal, everyday trainer-"
"That's nice kid but we did poison that stupid Pokemon. The longer you delay us, the worse that Pokemon is going to get. If you let us go, maybe you might be able to help this Pokemon out."
They could be bluffing or they could be telling the truth. Without any light in the room, it made it tough to see if the poor Pokemon was sick. He would need some light and fast. He pulled out the Pokeball holding his Raichu and both guys stepped back. "Don't try anything funny. I'm going to light this room up and see if you two are telling the truth."
"Don't even think about it! How do I know you won't turn your Pokemon on us? How about you just abide by our demands? If not, this Pokemon is going to suffer for it."
Ethan shot a glare at them before looking at Wiggler. He didn't say anything for a few minutes before he stepped to the side. "Fine, leave then."
"You should have just done that right away! Thanks kid!"
Ethan suppressed the sick feeling rising in his stomach and looked away. He would have loved to flattened both of them with a punch for harming Amphy like that but it'd probably just lead to more trouble than he wanted. The two scurried out the room and made a beeline for the stairs leading down. He didn't bother watching them leave, moving back inside and hurrying over to Amphy. He summoned Rai, his Raichu at once. Rai looked at him, wincing a bit as electricity leapt from its cheeks. "Ahhh, stored up a little too much electricity? How about you put it to use and light up this room for us, while me and Wiggler try to take care of Amphy."
Rai nodded and scurried up the curved wall that surrounded Amphy's resting area. He let out a little cry as he let forth a large blast of lighting, lighting up the entire room in an instant. Ethan gave a thumbs up to Rai as he walked over to Amphy. He knelt next to it and looked down at its face, noticing its face looking a bit purple. "Yea, it was poison all right. It must have fainted from it since there was no one here to cure it."
He pulled his backpack off and set it down. Wiggler reached into the front pocket and pulled out a Revive. He took it, hesitating a bit and then put it back in. Wiggler looked at him with a confused look but he winked at him. "I think we'll need a Max Revive. A regular one won't help him much."
They were more than a bit hard to come by and he usually saved them for a rainy day but somehow it felt right using it now. He took it out before opening Amphy's mouth with care, making sure not to be rough or careless. He slipped the item into its mouth before moving its jaw up and down with his hands to get it to chew. After a few more attempts, Amphy began to move its jaw on its own. He backed away as the Pokemon sat up, looking a bit better than before but still sporting that purple hew on its face. He grumbled. "One of these days they'll make a revive that cures status condition too."
He took an antidote that Wiggler had taken out and extended it toward Amphy. "Come on, take it," he said but Amphy shook its head and backed away from him. Even after having taken the Revive, it was still spooked around him? Ethan tried to extend his hand again but Amphy just moved away again, shaking its head. Did it think that maybe...he had harmed it? Of course while it did this little game, the poison continued to take a toll on its health. If it kept this up, he'd be using another revive and going through all of this again. As he tried to extend the antidote, a sweet smell entered the room and a hand reached down toward his and took hold of the antidote.
"Please...let me. Amphy will only take it from me."
He knew that voice from anywhere and let Jasmine take the antidote. She brushed by him like a summer breeze as she knelt next to Amphy and rubbed the back of its head. He got up and walked out of the room, hoping that might make Amphy a bit more comfortable. With the light once again on, he looked around in the bay for that ship that had sat in the water but it was nowhere in the docks like he expected. A couple more yachts had come in and a few ships at the edge of the bay that seemed to have been waiting for the light to return were making their way in but that one ship? Good as gone. He looked at Wiggler and frowned. "You think...that those guys were connected with that ship somehow? Maybe with the light down, that ship could slip in...wherever. There are a bunch of coves around Olivine, maybe they wanted to get in that way?"
Wiggler looked at him, cocking its head sideways and he laughed. "You're right. I could be just making stuff up. I just wish I knew what they were up to. Why was it so important to knock out Amphy unless they were trying to smuggle something in? I mean...I can't think of any other reason why. What benefit is there to knock out the light at the lighthouse?"
Wiggler looked behind him and began to wave its arms. Ethan stood up straight and looked behind to see Jasmine standing in the doorway, arms behind her back. "Thanks again for helping out Amphy. That's...two times now I owe you."
He waved her off. "Ahhh that's okay, really! I don't mind helping out when I can. I was just passing through anyways."
She nodded. "Still...I'm glad. And...I think Amphy is glad too, he's just too shy to show it."
Ethan nodded, rubbing the back of his head. He always found it a bit tough to talk with her. She seemed so quiet and reserved, he felt at times that he might say something bad or dumb, killing any chance he had with her. If he even had one that is. "Oh, I see. I'll keep that in mind."
"You...even gave him a Max Revive to heal him."
"Well hey, might as well put it to good use rather than holding onto it, right?"
She nodded and opened her mouth to speak but closed it instead. She always seemed like she had to take a few moments to gather herself, as if everything she said caused her pain. "You mentioned some guys?"
"Oh yea! There were two goons in the room who knocked out Amphy with the poison. They were dressed in dark clothing so I couldn't see what else they looked like. I had to let them go so I could heal Amphy. That's all I really know, though I think they could be connected to a strange ship that may be hiding in one of the coves around here."
"Troublemakers?"
He nodded. "By the looks of it. I was actually thinking of going down there and checking things out. See if I can find our missing ship."
She frowned. "By yourself?"
He shrugged and looked at Wiggler. "Why not? I may not be the champion but I finished second place to her and have even beaten every gym leader in Kanto and Johto. Why not me? Me and my Pokemon are more than enough."
She nodded. "You're right. I forgot that."
Wouldn't be the first time someone forgot that. "So how is Amphy? Is it feeling much better now?"
"Amphy is doing good but it seems that poison took its toll. It'll need a little longer to recover," she said before gathering herself. "I...was hoping you could let your Raichu remain here just a little longer, until Amphy gets better."
Ethan's mouth fell open for a little but he smiled when he noticed her blushing. "Ahhh it's okay. I'm fine with that. I'm sure Rai won't mind either. He likes to show off every now and then."
"But...will you still be able to go check things out? It'll be dark."
He hadn't thought of that. Without Rai around, he'd need another Pokemon to light up the caves if need be. He began to go over in his head about some of the Pokemon he had stored in the PC and wondering which ones would serve in some capacity. "Heh, that's a good question. I think...I may have some Pokemon that can help fill the void but it'll be tough," he said with a laugh. "I guess I didn't realize how much I'm used to traveling with my team. They all work so well together that if one's missing, things don't work out so well."
She nodded. "Well...I think you'll be able to manage."
He smiled. "You're right. I'll be able to manage. Take care of Rai while I'm gone!"
"Wait," she said. She looked down at the ground. "If there is...something fishy going on here, I have to check it out. It's my duty as a gym leader."
He at Wiggler exchanged a look. He did his best not to show off his excitement at this development but still felt like a little kid in a candy store. "Really? I didn't know gym leaders did stuff like that."
She blushed. "It would be kind of silly for us to just stand around and ignore any wrongdoing going around, especially because we have some of the strongest Pokemon in the world. We just can't let new trainers do all the heavy lifting."
He laughed. "Ahhh that makes a lot of sense. So is this the part where you tell me to go home and let the gym leaders do their thing?"
She shook her head. "How can I...say that?"
"I was just joking. I knew you wouldn't tell me to just go home. I just didn't expect you to come along."
She looked back inside. "Let me explain things to Amphy. I don't want it to get sad or afraid that I'm leaving. Could you wait for me downstairs?"
He nodded. "Sure thing!"
Downstairs, he and Wiggler relaxed on the fencing that surrounded the lighthouse. He looked at the Pokemon with a smug look on his face. "How about that? I've struck out with most of the female gym leaders but perhaps I got a chance here."
Wiggler bounced up and down on the post and he nodded. "Yea, I mean there was Whitney but Aries became a bit too lovestruck with her Miltank and that was the end of that. Clair was...kind of a jerk so nothing happened there. Misty was already taken and was pretty ticked off when I accidently ruined her date. Erica was cool but wasn't looking for a date-"
Before he could finish rattling off his list of shame, his phone buzzed and he pulled it out. He flipped it open and answered it. "Hello, this is Ethan."
"Ethan hello, this is your grandma. Listen, I was wondering if you were-"
"Oh yea, sorry about that grandma! Yea I delivered the Pokemon to our customer but I went to visit a friend after that and forgot to call you and let you know. Do you need anything else?"
"Well no, that's about it. I just wanted to make sure you got there safely and everything went well. May I ask which friend you went to visit?"
He laughed. "Ahh I went up to the lighthouse to check on the Pokemon up there."
"Is that the poor Ampharos that you had to find that medicine in Cianwood?"
"Yep, that's the one. I was in the area and wanted to see how it was doing."
"You did that favor for that young gym leader, right?"
He laughed. "Kind of, yea but I was also happy to help out a poor Pokemon. It was the least I could do, especially since I was headed that way to begin with."
His grandma sighed. "You can't lie with me Ethan. You were trying to impress her-"
"Grandma!"
She chuckled and he rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry Ethan. Oh by the way, guess who stopped by today while you were gone?"
"Who?"
"Why Crystal! She had a Pokemon to drop off, a Murkrow to be precise and we got to talking. She's doing well, she was doing a lot of traveling around Kanto and trying to catch a lot of the Pokemon in that region. She asked about you."
He pursed his lips. That might be a hint. "Is that a hint?"
She sighed. "Well, I'm just saying. You both know each other pretty well and have been friends for like...ever-"
"Yes, exactly friends. That's all we've been. I can be friends with girls you know. I mean I'm friends with some of the female gym leaders-"
"Wasn't that only because your attempts to woo them didn't go anywhere?"
Ouch. He tried to counter that but everytime he opened his mouth to speak, he realized he didn't have an argument. "Well..."
"Do you perhaps...resent her because of her accomplishments especially how they always seem to come at your expense? Like the Team Rocket incident, you and Lance chased them out in Mahogany but she turned up in Goldenrod and defeated the Radio Tower plot. Or-"
"Okay I get your point but I don't resent her. I resent always finishing second but it has nothing to do with her. She just happens to be the person finishing ahead of me in...whatever but I don't resent her. That's kind of petty."
She sighed. "I really think you should go for it. I know you two are friends and all but because you're so used to each other, its easy to overlook how well you two might be for each other."
"I appreciate your concern but I'm-"
"Listen dear, are you busy tomorrow?"
He rubbed the back of his head as he flashed a hopeless look at Wiggler. "Not really. I might sleep in a little but-"
"Good because I had an errand I was hoping you could help me out with. Do you mind?"
He frowned, trying to figure out how they went from that to this. "Well, no. I don't mind. What did you need me to do?"
"It's actually about catching a Pokemon. I was just thinking how helpful it'd be for us to have a Chansey around. I noticed how helpful they are at the Pokemon centers and thought they could really help us out when you're out doing other things."
"Ahhh yea, now that you mention it. That seems like a good idea. So just catch a Chansey for your day care?"
"Yes, that would be nice. Just stop by the day care so I can give you some special Pokeballs that will help in catching them."
He smiled. "Kurt has some new Pokeballs and he didn't call me?"
"Well he actually didn't make them. It's a new Pokeball that the Silph company made. It's supposed to be a bit more effective when trying to catch Chansey. They've become really popular, with people who need a Pokemon to help around the house and with trainers who want to use them in their parties. That's what they told me when I bought some."
He nodded. "Well I can do that. I'll just have to borrow a flier so I can get out to Kanto."
He finished up their conversation, in time to hear someone clear their throat. He turned around to see Jasmine standing by the door. "I'm sorry, I hope I didn't interrupt."
He put away his phone. "No, it's fine. I'm finished with my call so we can be off."
They walked along the shoreline around the eastern edge of Olivine, guided by the light pouring out of the lighthouse. She had taken off her shoes to walk through the sand but he wasn't near as bold. "So do you come out here often?"
She nodded. "Yes, mainly just to sit here and watch the waves roll in. I can't let my Pokemon play in the water so I just sit here by myself."
His eyes widened. "By yourself? That seems like it'd get a bit lonely, especially without even your Pokemon to keep you company."
"I don't mind. You don't like it?"
He shrugged. "Well it's not very fun by myself. I'd need someone or something around. If it's not anyone, I'd let my Pokemon out so they could enjoy themselves."
She nodded. "Yes but my Pokemon don't care much for water. If they did, I'm sure I would."
"I see your point. I guess I think of Steel Pokemon as almost indestructible creatures but there are still things that could cause them harm."
"Yes, you're right. It's my job to protect them from those attacks. H-how is that Steelix I gave you doing?"
He searched his brain for a bit and laughed. "Oh yea, I remember. After you gave me him, I had him in my party for sometime. I didn't have any Pokemon that had defense like him so I liked it. I used him in the Champions League but he got hurt pretty badly against Crystal's Golem so I have been letting him recover at my grandparents day care center."
"I'm glad he's doing okay. It's been...a long time since I entrusted a Pokemon to someone. Everyone thinks steel pokemon are indestructible. And while they are very strong, you just can't mistreat them or ignore them."
"Yea, I was a bit worried so I decided he needed some rest. I think my grandparents are a bit attached so I may have to get him back soon."
"I...remember seeing some of the videos of that tournament."
"Ahhh...you did?" He asked, looking away. "I hope you didn't see the championship match. I made quite a few mistakes in there. I left Wiggler in too long, I didn't bring in Rai until it was too late and...yea just a bad match."
Jasmine covered her mouth. "It was close still. You did well."
He laughed. "Yea, I guess you're right. No one expected a team like that to get to the finals, let alone beat Lance. I think I might have lost earlier if it wasn't for that Steelix you gave me."
She blushed. "I don't think..."
"No really! Crystal had quite a few powerful Pokemon but they had trouble getting past him since he was such a rock. She had to spend quite a bit of time trying to get past him, while in the meantime I was able to launch some attacks of my own. So he came in real handy and I'm glad you gave him to me."
After walking around a bit more, they came across a cove, a bit out of the way and a much longer walk than he anticipated but they found a medium sized boat floating just outside the edge of it. He peered over the edge of one of the ridges and noticed that the cove served to conceal a low lying cave. He looked around but didn't see anyone hanging around. He hopped down and looked at her. "Okay so I don't see anyone around there. My guess is that they're inside the cave. You stay here. If they try to escape, I'm sure you and your Pokemon are more than enough to stop them."
She nodded. "I...can do that. I'll make sure they don't get away."
He gave her the thumbs up before climbing over the ridge. He inches his way along the edge of the cove, making sure not to take too many steps in the water or anything that might cause too much noise. He crept into the cave but kept still, hoping to hear voices. Thanks to the water rolling in and out, it made it tough to hear a thing, forcing him to move in. As he did that, he began to hear faint voices, causing him to smile.
"So, I finished up with these crates here. Any luck? I'm getting a bit tired of searching through all these crates."
"Not a thing, keep looking. We only have a couple more crates to go. If they aren't in there, we move on."
"Do they really think they'll be in one of these crates?"
"The information we have is that one of the plates was being sent over here. We only have to intercept it, that's all. As long as we get the plate, we're good."
Plate? He had heard about something like that from Sinnoh, connected to a legendary Pokemon of sorts. They were kind of vague on it-"
"We were vague because even our bosses were vague with us about it. I get the feeling it's something big and they don't want too many people knowing the details."
He recognized that voice as one of the men who had been in the lighthouse, causing trouble. At least now he knew where they were hiding. "So how did it go at the lighthouse?"
He laughed. "Well things went okay. We were able to poison the Pokemon but then some supposed big time trainer showed up, trying to save the Pokemon."
"Big time? How big time?"
More laughter. "Oh I didn't really care how big time he was. It's funny how trainers earn a badge or two and they think they're ready to take on the world! And get this? What kind of Pokemon did you think he had?"
The others shot out guesses of weaker or obscure Pokemon but he shot down all of them. "He had a Wigglytuff. A Wigglytuff! And he thought he was going to be all tough, I bet if I just sneezed at it, I could blow it away."
The rest of them laughed while Ethan looked over at Wiggler, who looked none too pleased. He patted it on its head. While they seemed like crooks, he wasn't ready just yet to run in and confront them. "How hard was it to get some of these crates off the ship?"
"Not too hard. We just had to threaten them with some of our Pokemon and everything was fine. You should have seen their faces when they saw my Sharpedo in the water. They got real scared in a hurry and were more than willing to comply. You-"
A phone call interrupted him. He began to speak in a lower tone, making it impossible for Ethan to hear. It was brief as the man spoke up a few minutes later. "Hey guys, I think we have to move out. My partner let me know that we have a little spy hanging around the cove. A young woman to be exact and it'd be in our best interests to take a hike."
"A young woman? Why not just chase her off? Shouldn't be too hard."
"Yea but it's the gym leader here. I know for a fact that none of our Pokemon could stand up to her team. It'd be a waste of time and what if the police come around? Nah, let's just get out of here. By the looks of it, all these crates are useless so we'll just leave them."
Ethan and Wiggler snuck out of the cave and crawled up the sides of the cave. They laid low and waited for the men to scramble out. He didn't have to wait long as they scrambled out of the cave, having left the crates behind. They scanned the area, like they expected some police to jump out and catch them. He bent down behind some rocks just in case. After a few, he peeked over the edge in time to see them climb into the boat and speed off. He watched them leave and then noticed a rolled up piece of paper floating on the water. He climbed down and snatched it out of the water. As he opened it up, Jasmine walked around the rocky ridge surrounding the cove. "Did you learn anything?"
"Only that they're looking for some plates connected to a legendary Pokemon. It seems they've been searching for one being shipped here on a ship. They've been stealing crates off ships, trying to find it. Without much luck I might add."
She nodded. "Why did they leave? Did you chase them off?"
He laughed. "I wish. Actually they left because one of their guys say you hanging around the cove and they figured you'd crush their Pokemon so it'd be better to just leave. If there weren't so many, I would have tried to catch them."
He opened the paper up to reveal a large map of the combined regions of Kanto and Johto. At first he began to wonder why they needed a map when he noticed a few areas encircled with a red marker. Locations included the Lake of Rage, Viridian Forest and an area just west of Cianwood City. She walked over to look at it. "Do you know why these places are circled?"
"Nope. I wonder if these could be locations of some more plates. That's the only reason I can think why they're circled. I can't think of any connections to these places, can you?"
She shook her head. "I can't think of any reason actually. I think I'll alert the police to this cove. If they were stealing stuff from ships...I think all those people would appreciate getting their items back...I think."
He smiled at her. "I think that'd be pretty good actually. I might want to check out some of these places when I get the chance. If they're willing to pirate and terrorize people to get these, they're probably up to no good."
Jasmine stepped back. "Olivine City is...usually my problem but if you need any help...I can help out."
He rolled up the paper. "That's not an issue? I mean, what about your gym?"
"If there is something bad going on, dealing with that takes priority of the gym. It's like how at the Radio Tower, Whitney and Bugsy helped Crystal in dealing with Team Rocket or...how Lance and you dealt with the Rockets in Mahogany."
He smiled at the mention of that. "I'm glad to hear someone remembered about that. I see your point though. I'll keep you in mind if I need some help."
