A/N: Is it just me or does Calem/Serena seem to be like, the most inanimate and generic characters in the game? I mean, if you compare them to Shauna, Tierno and Trevor, they don't really seem to have too much of a personality. At least the three of them have a little character development during the game. Ah well. I'm just rambling. I'm going to fix that here, though.

Chapter 2:

Overcoming A Trial

. . .

Darkness covered more than half of the city in a shroud of darkness, casting an eerie feel throughout the metal jungle. City workers scrambled around like bees, doing their best to calm the citizens as well as trying to rectify the situation. No one knows what cause the sudden blackout, but many believed it has something to do with the Kalos Power Plant just outside the city on Route 13. Even though the power had just shut off just an hour ago, the citizens were acting as though it has been cut off for weeks. It's funny how much humans rely on something for so long, and become so clueless and lost when it's suddenly taken from them. Nothing's really changed in 3,000 years.

A soft breeze wafted through him, causing his scarf to dance whimsically just a bit before falling back lifelessly on his back. The summer air was pleasantly warm, even if his long red coat blocked most of the outside air. He casted his gaze down on the city, slightly amused by all of the commotion down below. He stood on the edge of the building, completely unphased at the intimidating height, his bright blue eyes casting an eerie glow on his facial features. If he were to fall, he could easily land on his feet, or simply fly off, but the amount of people in this place and the crowded buildings would make him stick out like a sore thumb. It was bad enough those other group of idiots had found his resting place - the last thing he needed was to draw attention to himself. Arceus forbid if he did - he'd never hear the end of it from her. Ugh.

He walked along the edge smoothly, keeping his piercing blue eyes on every human that was out in the streets. The one whom he was searching for was deep within the bowels of this metal jungle, but he couldn't exactly pinpoint the location. He could, however, feel the aura of the other two, but they were too far away from here. He had searched through the entire city many days and nights, but have not been able to find the one who carries his blood. Perhaps they weren't here and in another location? No...that was impossible; he just wasn't looking hard enough. Yes, that had to be it. Regardless of what it was, he'd have to find them - one of them at least.

"I thought I would find you here."

Oh great. He turned to see another "human" - her light blue hair cascaded down her shoulders and back like a silky waterfall, her short, fitted blue dress was complimented with her black leggings and pastel blue shoes. Her soft deep blue eyes stared sternly at the other, though he didn't seem to care less.

"Why do you insist on monitoring my every move?" he muttered.

The woman took a couple of steps towards him. "You know I can't completely leave you on your own."

"Our powers are limited and we have not fully slept. I can do no more than what you can."

"But I know you haven't changed since our last encounter. We can't afford any mistakes, not after we were almost caught." The woman stood next to him, but kept her distance away from the edge. Unlike him, she wasn't as reckless and preferred to be more careful in the presence of humans. "I know you're looking for them."

"Oh really?" he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm "What made you figure that out? I mean, it's not it's obvious or anything." The woman scowled and opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly cut off. "Don't play innocent - I know you're looking for them too. Besides, I only need to find one of them"

"As do I," she said quickly "But what will you do when you find the one who carries ours? Will you seek our destruction here as well?" Another breeze wafted through him, causing his hair to stick out more than it already was, but he remained silent. "We can bring our people back! Reunite the tribes-"

"It's too late for that," he growled, and then his features softened when he saw how hurt the woman was "...Look, I know how you feel. They meant the world to me as yours did...but that idiot AZ-!"

"The foolish king is already paying for his mistakes," the woman murmured "I just wish they didn't have to either." Silence. A police car drove by under them, its siren blaring and echoing through the once crowded streets. "I wonder how Zygarde's doing…"

"Mmm…" the other hummed solemnly "I'm pretty sure he's not happy about this. Makes me wonder where he is now, or what he plans to do about this."

"He can do no more than what we can," the woman said "and it would be wrong to do anything reckless and make matters worse. We should just lay low until we are able to find our respective human." An impatient growl suddenly emanated from her right side, causing her to glance at the other worriedly. "Yveltal-"

"I don't want to hear it, Xerneas." "Yveltal" then turned on a heel and walked off the edge of the roof in a huff. "I for one, refuse to sit back and twiddle my thumbs. You do what you want to, but if nothing is done soon, then I will take matters into my own hands."

Xerneas reached out to Yveltal to stop him, but he had already disappeared into the shadows before she could even utter a word. She sighed, sitting on the edge of the roof and overlooking the city, hoping that her more destructive counterpart wouldn't do anything to draw attention to himself. The fact that they were on the run made it difficult for either party to move through the world, for it was unknown whether or not their movements were being monitored. Plus, the amount of time they had left was still undecided - they either had to act fast or be patient and wait, but what the real issue here were the possible outcomes that would come from this. She knew she wasn't going to get any cooperation from her counterpart - not until he calms down, at least. She sighed before she stood, and walked back to the door she had come entered the roof from. It looked like she was going to be on her own for a while...

. . .

I had forgotten that I was no longer at home until I felt Merida licking at my face until I woke up. I had almost missed Pepper's chirping and pecking, but Merida's method was less annoying and didn't cause me any physical pain.

"Hey girl," I murmured, softly petting her. Her soft fur felt good against my fingers, and the warmness that emanated from her body was pleasant too. She yipped at me before hopping off the bed and went went back over to Chester and Electra in the middle of the room. I yawned as I sat up in bed, suddenly feeling cold when I drew the duvets off my body. Shauna was on the other side of the room, still in her pajamas brushing her hair in front of a mirror. She heard me stirring and greeted me with that bright smile of hers.

"Good morning, Li'l K~!" she sang "Are you joining us for breakfast?"

"Yeah," I said getting up and stretching "The boys up yet?"

"Tierno and Trevor are," she replied "Calem already left."

I frowned. "Why did he leave so early?"

Shauna gave me a look. "It's almost 10 o'clock, Li'l K," she then added "He had a morning match with the Gym Leader, so he got up earlier than the rest of us to get in some extra training before going to the Gym. But that's Calem for you - he'll be alright."

That did sound like something Calem would do. He seemed pretty psyched about challenging the Gym, even if he tried to hide it. I got out of bed and headed straight for the bathroom; I showered, brushed my teeth and fixed up my hair (Shauna let me borrow her hairdryer since I didn't have mine) before getting dressed. I decided to groom Merida while I waited for Shauna to get dressed - we were going to explore the city until we met up again to hang out as a group.

"We don't have to leave right away - we can stay for a few days before we have to leave for the next city," Shauna explained. We were out eating at one of the cafés on a hill that overlooked the rest of the city and a perfect view of the Roselia fountain to boot. "But we do have to meet up with the Professor in Lumoise City, which happens to be the next city over, and the largest in Kalos. you couldn't miss it if you tried."

Merida was pawing at my leg and whining, trying to reach up to the food on my plate. I gave her a piece of bacon, causing her to quiet down. "Why do we have to meet up with him? He already gave us our Pokémon and our assignment to fill up the Pokédex."

"I think he wants to evaluate our progress in person. Besides, he hasn't met you yet, and we have to pass through Lumiose City anyway if we want to continue our journey."

"Okay, that makes sense now that I think about it," I murmured. "So, where did you want to go today? We sorta have most of the day to ourselves until we meet up with the guys later."

"I want to go check out the Trainer's School," Shauna said as she fed Chester some fruit "I want to become a good Trainer like you and Calem, and I heard they're allowing Trainers to take day courses for the summer since school's out. I don't know a lot about Pokémon like you guys do, so I should study up a bit before we leave."

"You probably won't have time to go today," I noted as Merida hopped into my lap "We promised we would all hang out when Calem comes back from his match, remember?"

Shauna sighed and pouted. "You're right...but hey! I would rather spend time with my friends than go to school anyway! I think I'll go tomorrow."

"I might go with you." Merida managed to swipe another piece of bacon, but I didn't care. "Not sure if I really need to, though. Mom and Dad made sure I went to the best school back when we still lived in Johto, so I was fed knowledge about Pokémon since I was like, four years old, I think. But I could use some pointers on how to properly raise Merida. I'm not familiar with most of the Pokémon here in this region."

"You probably don't need it," Shauna said with genuine honesty "We became rookies at the same time, but you're almost on the same level as Calem when it comes to skill! It would TOTALLY awesome to see you two battle one day, but I'll be rooting for you every time!"

"Wow...gee, thanks a lot, Shauna." We ended up smiling while Shauna just giggled.

"Hey...um...listen, Kat."

"Hm?"

Shauna started fiddling with the bow on her bracelet, looking bashful for the first time that I've met her. "I...um...I just wanted to tell you that...that I really, really, really want to be good friends with you. I mean, I've known the guys for years, but I never met anyone else outside of Vaniville Town. When I heard that there was a new girl moving in, I was, like, super excited, y'know? I really didn't care that you were Grace's kid, I just wanted to make a new friend that I could just be cool with, y'know? A-and when I heard the Professor say that he was gonna invite you to travel with us, I was SOOOO psyched, I could barely contain myself! I know I've told you that one of the reasons why I wanted to travel was the create memories, but I think the best memory I've made was meeting you yesterday. N-not, trying to sound like an idiot or anything but...it's just how I feel..."

I heard Chester making some worried noises while pulling at Shauna's shorts, seemingly to sense that there might be something wrong. I was left speechless - I only met Shauna yesterday, and she already feels this way about me? Perhaps she's been sheltered while living for Vaniville Town up until now? She seems to be very inexperienced about the outside world and the people outside of her hometown, so maybe she feels comforted around me because I have had my fair share of traveling, albeit just a little? What ever the reason was, I believe Shauna will have to learn to grow up and mature on her own, but I can understand why she would want to be around someone else. The outside world is a scary place, especially for someone who has never been past the home. If you don't have any good friends to look after you while you travel, you're pretty much on your own and have to look after yourself. But pressure like that can make someone like Shauna breakdown in just a matter of days. Perhaps that's the reason why she has to be around someone at all times.

"Hey, at least you were being honest," I said, finally finding my voice "Look, I never had any friends - any real friends up until now. Back in Johto, a lot of kids I went to school with only want to be my friend because my Mom was famous, and only cared about what they could get out of me. So I've been alone for most of my life, and I always believed that there weren't a lot of good people out there, so I stayed in the house most of the time and tried to avoid people in any way I could, spending most of my time reading. But...now that I've met you guys, I'm starting to see that the world isn't just in black and white; it's much more colorful and bright once you're able to see past the bad parts, y'know?"

"Yeah! The world is just a big ol' rainbow!" Shauna exclaimed, regaining her energetic personality again, much to my relief. "Hey! Speaking of rainbows, there's a boutique just a few buildings down from the Pokémon Center. We should go there and get some new clothes!"

"I actually need some more clothes," I admitted, even though I was using it as an excuse to get rid of that stupid dress. We paid for the meal after we were done and went to the boutique after we left. They really didn't have anything in particular that I wanted, so I bought another cap and a pair of shorts. Shauna went nuts in there, grabbing and trying on every piece of clothing she could get her hands on. I had to remind her that she should try to save her money for supplies, so she settled on buying a shirt and a pair of leggings, much to her dismay. By the time we left the boutique, Calem had finished his match against the Gym Leader and unsurprisingly came out victorious with his shiny new Badge. But it kinda came with a price.

"What the heck happened to you?"

Calem shot Shauna a sort of annoyed look; His clothes were soaked with a combination of water, sweat and dirt, with pieces of what looked like some sort of white silk in his hair and clothes. "If you're going to the Gym, you'll find out why."

"I'm challenging the Gym," I said "I gotta see when a match is available, though."

"A word of advice," Calem said "Viola, the Gym Leader, is prepared for Fire types. She starts out with a Surskit, so I recommend catching a Flying type to make it a little more easier. But Viola's no pushover - I had to work for this badge."

I nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

Claem went back to the Pokémon Center to get himself cleaned up and change his clothes. We still didn't know where Tierno or Trevor were, so I offered to go look for them. Merida and I wandered around the city for a while, checking every café, the plaza, the other shops, the Pokémon Center, and everywhere else in the city. But they were no where to be found, so I had to assume that they were on one of the Routes doing whatever they it was they were doing. The gate leading to Route 4 was just towards the west, so I headed there to see if I could find them. There were two women talking to each other when I reached the gate - one of them was a fairly short woman with blonde hair, white tank top, green knee-knockers and boots and had a camera around her neck, while the other was light brown hair, a pink and black shirt, beige pants and a fanny-pack on her waist. I didn't pay them any attention, until one of them spoke to me.

"Hmm? Excuse me, miss?"

"Huh?"

The brown-haired woman was the first to approach me - the blonde haired one was right behind her. "Hi, sorry to stop you like this, but you look familiar...Your name wouldn't happen to be Kat, would it?"

I nodded. "Yes, it is."

"And your mom wouldn't happen to be the famous Rhyhorn Rider Grace Yvetta, would it?"

Oh, great. "Yeah, she is."

The woman smiled before she extended her hand towards me. "I figured. My name's Alexa - I'm a journalist. I was the one who interviewed Grace after she won the National Championship in Johto."

"Oh! I remember seeing you during the ceremony," I said as I shook her hand "I didn't know you lived in Kalos."

"Yup. Kalos is my base of operations, but I do travel to other regions to get the biggest scoops of the century. I even write articles for a Pokémon magazine that I published a little while back." She then motioned at blondie next to her. "This is my younger sister Viola. She's a photographer, and happens to be the Gym Leader here."

I shook Viola's hand as she said "It's a real pleasure to meet you. I would've been with Alexa during the Championship if my duties as a Gym Leader weren't so demanding. It was a real shame, but I'm going to get some a-MAZING shots once the International League begins next year! Oh! By the way...are you challenging the Gym? I just had a match with a boy around your age."

"That was Calem" I explained "We're traveling together for Professor Sycamore to complete the Pokédex."

"I heard about that," Viola nodded "Augustine - I mean, the Professor - recently took in five kids as his students. I heard rumors that you were one of them, but I could barely believe it. you just moved here, after all."

I shrugged. "Hey, always expect the unexpected - that's what my mom always says, anyway. But yeah, I wanted to challenge the Gym, so I'm glad I ran into you when I did. When are you accepting more challengers?"

Viola went silent for a minute as she rubbed her chin, before growing a broad grin. "Tell you what, I don't usually do this, but I'm willing to have an evening match with you. I've always been a fan of Grace, and I'm very curious about how you will do against me, even if you just started out as a Trainer. So, whaddya say? 4:30 sounds good to you?"

"4:30 sounds perfect," I grinned "See you then." Viola gave me directions to the Gym just in case I didn't know how to get there before I left. I met up with the gang at the plaza shortly afterwards - Tierno and Trevor were with Calem and Shauna when I arrived. I told them about my match with Viola this evening. Calem advised me to get some extra training in before going there. It was only a few minutes after 1:30, so I had to pass up our plans to hang out because I wanted to go ahead and train and not wait until the last minute. Trevor informed me that there were some Trainers and stronger wild Pokémon on Route 22 if I was interested. I decided to go ahead right then and there to practice. I bid my friends a quick goodbye before heading towards the east gate that led out to Route 22.

. . .

Route 22 wasn't too different from the earlier Routes, but it did have a racing track, which I assumed was going to be used when Mom started racing again. The gate to the Pokémon League was at the other side, but I had no reason to go there, so I focused on training. I battled against most of the Trainers that were loitering the place, and I came out victorious against each one. Calem gave me a few pointers regarding Viola's Pokémon - she sends out her Surskit first to set up a Water Sport to weaken the power of fire based moves. Plus, it's pretty fast, and I doubt Merida could out-speed the thing right now. Then she sends out her Vivillon, which is a Flying and Bug type. I believe Merida wouldn't have too much of a problem against Vivillon - it was the Surskit I was more worried about.

"Alright Merida," I said "I'm not sure what to expect when we go to the Gym, so we gotta cover everything we can while we're out here, 'kay?"

"Kiiiieen." I sat down on a fallen log and starting thinking about possible training methods. I remember reading about Surskit when I was still in school - it glides over the water's surface with grace and speed, so it must be pretty evasive if it was trained by a Gym Leader. Maybe I could try to recreate Surskit's movements somehow...

I saw some kids rollerskating near the race track up ahead. They appeared to glide effortlessly as they raced each other down the road, almost like Surskit would...Skate...glide...Wait a minute..! I suddenly got up from the log and ran back towards Santalune, Merida at my heels even though she had no idea what I was doing. But the grin on my face indicated that I had an idea...

I ran back into the city, bought some roller skates and some small beanbags and went back to the same area on the Route. I attached the skates to the bottom of my shoes and stood in front of Merida, who kept giving me some confused looks.

"Okay Merida," I explained "we're going to work on your speed and evasion. Okay, now, I'm going to use the skates to try to mimic Surskit's movements, so pretend I'm Surskit and try to hit me with Scratch. The beanbags are going to be a make-believe Bubble, so try to avoid them as fast as you can. Your Fire type moves won't be as effective until we get rid of Surskit, so we're going to use this training exercise to work around that weakness of yours, okay?"

"Fwarff!"

I suddenly dashed to the left and threw one of the beanbags at her as hard as I could - I had a pretty good throwing arm after spending at least eleven years of my childhood playing T-ball and baseball in school and with Dad. Merida could barely avoid the first beanbag before I threw another one, and she had a lot of trouble trying to keep up with my speed.

"Never lose sight of your target!" I instructed "If you can't keep yourself focused, you'll leave yourself wide open for an attack! Try to keep your focus on my movements while trying to avoid the beanbags. Trust me, it'll help you in the long run!" Gritting her teeth, Merida did her best to follow my instructions. She got hit once or twice, but she didn't let that hinder her efforts. She soon learned how to use her large ears as an asset - if she wasn't able to face me in time, she would listen for the sound of my skates on the pavement and the rushing wind coming from the beanbags. Her speed improved considerably, so dodging the bags had almost became easier for her.

When I felt that she had improved to a satisfactory level, we worked on her attack methods. "We're going to do the same thing as before, but this time, instead of avoiding, you'll have to try to hit me."

Merida frowned. "Rruuruu..."

"Don't worry about hurting me - a few scratches doesn't hurt anything. You retaliated pretty well after being hit with a beanbag, right? Besides, it's not like we're both intentionally trying to hurt each other. It's for training, remember?"

Merida made a gesture that looked like she was shrugging, but showed me she was willing to try it. We took our normal positions again, but now it was my turn to avoid Merida. I decided not to burn out Merida's fire supply and told her to just use Scratch. Since her speed was improved from the beanbag assault, it was my turn to have a hard time avoiding her - I was really glad I bought the skates now.

"Thatta girl! Keep it up!" I could see Merida's confidence building by the second - she was focused, but it almost looked like she was having a lot of fun. She had bit at my leg a few times and managed to scratch me once or twice, but it was nothing too severe. Some of the Trainers who were on the Route - including some I had already defeated - were watching us from the background, and making a few comments.

"Whoa, cool!"

"Isn't that Grace's kid?"

"That Fennekin's really fast! Look at it!"

"That's an odd way to train a Pokemon...I should give it a try."

"I wonder if she's strong..."

"She is. She beat me in a battle a little while ago."

I better not gain a fan club by the end of this. Anyway, Merida managed to hit me a few times with Scratch and even Ember, but I managed to avoid being burned. I noticed that it was getting a bit late, so I checked to see what time it was only to see that it was 3:49pm - I was going to have to wrap up the training if I wanted to be on time for my battle with Viola. However, the moment I looked over at Merida to tell her we were done, I saw that her entire body was surrounded in flames before she charged at a speed that almost matched a bullet. I screamed and dashed to the side quickly, only to lose my balance and fall. I hit the ground pretty hard, and I ended up tearing a hole in my jeans and scraped my elbow a little. Merida was making some frantic yipping noises as she scurried over to me, checking to see if I was hurt. My elbow stung, but that was about it - I didn't break a bone or anything major.

"Hey, it's alright, calm down. I'm fine, see?" I told her as I stood up on my feet. She calmed down once she saw I wasn't severely injured and barked at me again. "What was that back there? Did you learn a new move or something?" She nodded as I took out my Pokédex and did another quick scan. The move she had learned was called Flame Charge; it was like a Fire type Tackle, but it increased the user's speed each time it was used. I grinned - that was going to be VERY useful even after the Gym battle since there are other Pokémon out there that can easily out-speed Merida. I detached the roller skates from my shoes and told Merida that we were done for the day. Some of the Trainers who were watching me were giving me compliments as I walked past, and some of them even requested a battle or a rematch. I had to decline since I had a Gym match in less than an hour, and I had to get myself and my partner rested up before then.

"If I come out with a shiny new Badge on my belt, then we can battle," is what I told them before going back to Santalune. I went straight to the Pokemon Center to get Merida checked out to ensure that there wasn't anything wrong with her before I left. I checked the time again and saw that it was a 4:02pm, so I had almost a half an hour before I had to leave. I ran into Trevor in the Center as I waited for Merida - he was at the pharmacy in the back getting a refill on some disposable contacts while I got some bandages and ointment to treat my minor injuries.

"I didn't know you wore contacts," I told him. We were sitting at one of the tables in the lobby as I waited for my partner.

"Yeah, I can't have glasses," he told me "I always ended up breaking or losing them. I find the contacts easier to handle because I can sleep in these, and throw them away when I don't need them anymore." He then looked at me before raising an eyebrow. "What happened to you? You're all banged up..."

"Training," I said with a shrug "Merida ended up learning a new move. I think we'll be set for our battle."

"Oh, speaking of, Calem, Shauna and Tierno wanted told me to tell you that they wish you good luck in your match. And I also hope you do well against the Gym Leader."

I smiled. "Tell 'em I'll give it my best shot! And thanks for the support, Trevs."

Ding-dong! "Calling Kat Yvetta to the reception counter - your Fennekin is ready to be picked up."

"That'd be me," I said as I stood up. I checked the time again and saw that it was pretty close to 4:30. "I better head to the Gym too. I'll meet up with you guys later, 'kay?"

"Okay. See you soon!" Trevor and I left the table at the same time, but he went back to the rooms while I went to go pick up Merida at the counter. We left the Center and went straight to the Gym - I had memorized where it was before I left out to Route 22 to train. I didn't need to though; turns out that it was near the eastern gate to that Route, so finding it was pretty easy. I heard Merida make a soft growl of anticipation and excitement as I stood before the Gym. I gave one more look at my partner, nodded at each other, and then entered.

. . .

I was starting to understand why Calem came out looking like a hot mess once I was inside of the Gym. It was pretty tame in the lobby; photographs of various Bug type Pokémon in various shapes and sizes were all over the walls. My guess was that Viola took those pictures, considering that she was both a photographer and loved Bug types. Merida and I took a minute to look at the various pictures before we went into the second part of the Gym, which was down below. To get there, you had to slide down this skinny white pole, but once you reached the bottom, you get thrown onto this giant web that was in the center of a recreated forest habitat around it. There were a lot of other Bug types on the giant leaves and branches, and to make matters worse, there was an Ariados and a bunch of Spinarak eyeing me as I struggled to get to my feet. I returned Merida to her Pokéball because she was putting extra weight on me, making it hard to keep my balance.

The web was sticky and appeared very thin and frail, but it held my weight pretty well to my surprise. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay on my feet, so I had to swallow my dignity and pride and crawled across the web until I reached Viola in the very back. Needless to say, I was pretty embarrassed when I got there, and I made no efforts to hide it. I was covered with bits and pieces of the web, and the giant dewdrops that were on said web and some of the leaves had managed to get on me, soaking my hair and clothes, but also washed some of the dirt off from the training. I was beginning to wonder if Calem had to go through the same thing, since he was in the same shape that I'm in now. He probably fell once or twice, since he was covered with dirt too.

Viola was waiting under a tent built up in one of the smaller trees. She was fumbling with her camera when I got there, and I was surprised to see Alexa sitting in a lawn chair near a desk littered with papers and camera equipment. She greeted me when I arrived, getting Viola's attention away from the camera. She saw the mess I was in and giggled, but I didn't find it very funny.

"Sorry about that," she said "The Spinarak and Ariados I raise here kept making webs down here, so I created a huge one made from their and Vivillon's silk combined with reinforced twine so it would be able to hold up the weight of a person or two. The boy who came in here earlier fell off, though...I hope he's okay."

"Nah, he's alright," I said "he was more annoyed if anything else."

"I hope you don't mind me spectating," I heard Alexa say "I want to write an article about this in my magazine - I think it would be great way to show the world that Grace's daughter is striving to be the next hotshot Trainer. If you win the match, that is."

"Oh, I'm going to win alright," I cracked my knuckles "I did some extra training with Merida before I came here. I may be a rookie, but I have enough confidence in my skill and Merida's prowess to earn us our first Badge, so there's no way I'm backing out now! We're gonna give it our all!"

I wide grin suddenly appeared on Viola's face, but I couldn't tell if she was amused by my energy or getting psyched up herself. "Fantastic! Just fantastic! I LOVE it when a Trainer is brimming with such feisty energy, it's almost contagious! I get challengers everyday, but you...you're different. I can see it. The intense fire burning in your eyes, that determined expression and confident demeanor...You're a fine specimen indeed!" She took a Pokéball from her belt and tossed it, releasing (surprise) Shurskit. It chittered anxiously while eyeing me, knowing that I was another challenger. "I can already tell that I won't regret having this match with you, even if you win or lose. I know that you will live up to my expectations, now come at me!"

I gripped Merida's Pokéball and tossed it with gusto as I sent her out into the battlefield. She turned at me and nodded as if she were saying "let's do it" before turning towards Surskit and howling eagerly. Viola raised her eyebrow at the fact that I was using a Fire type, but said nothing about it. I expected her to nerf Merida by setting up a Water Sport, but she didn't instead she went straight to attacking. Surskit fired water-filled bubbles straight at Merida with great speed, but she reacted quickly and dodged to the left before charging at the blue bug and scratching it the same way she did in our training. Surskit took heavy damage, but was far from finished. It skittered across the field at amazing speed that made it look as if it were gliding, even if it wasn't on water. I was right when I figured Surskit had great speed, but it looked like it was faster than I originally thought it would be.

"Remember our training Merida - focus on your target. Don't give it an opening." Merida quickly nodded - she was too focused on Surskit. She used the same methods she learned earlier, using her acute sense of hearing to dodge any incoming attacks that were coming her way. She got hit with some of those bubbles and a Quick Attack, but Merida was persistent and was able to endure whatever Surskit threw at her. I couldn't say the same for the little blue bug though - it was covered with scratches and had a burn on its body, and it was limping whenever it moved. We both knew that one more hit would be enough to finish it, so I allowed Merida to use her new move to finish it off, increasing her speed in the process. Viola wasted no time and sent out her second and last Pokémon Vivillon, a gray butterfly with pretty pink wings. It was only a Bug and Flying type, so I didn't hold back on the Fire based attacks. Vivillon was no push over though, and had an advantage over Merida since her Vivillon could fly, making it considerably more agile than Surskit. I was thankful for Flame Charge and the training - because Merida's speed had improved, plus the extra boost with Flame Charge, both parties were having some difficulty avoiding or trying to attack the opponent. I had to stop using Flame charge since Vivillon could easily dodge by just flying higher or to the side and up its defense with Harden, so we had to stick with Ember and hope Merida could land a hit. This dragged on for a while - Viola and I giving out instructions to best the other, but we were evenly matched. Merida was growing tired, but Vivillon didn't look any better. It was having trouble keeping itself in the air, and it wasn't as fast as it was before. Merida was breathing hard, covered with bruises from Vivillon's Tackle and Infestation, but the fur in her ears was glowing intensely with fire, as if it were giving her extra energy. I could only guess that it was we ability Blaze kicking in. Though, now that I thought about it, it probably wasn't the wisest idea to come in with just Merida; I was putting more pressure on her than I had originally realized. I knot of guilt began to develop in my stomach, but I ignored it and focused; I would apologize to her after the match. I had to finish this, and if I was right, one more hit and Vivillon would be defeated. Not that landing that last hit would be easy; Vivillon had just as much energy to spare, but its weakest spot was where the chest and thorax connected...I wonder if...

"Merida, head straight towards it!" Merida charged at full speed, and Vivillon's initial instinct told it to fly higher. Perfect. "JUMP!" Merida was directly under Vivillon when she launched herself into the air. The butterfly nor its Trainer could comprehend what we were doing. Merida waited until she was close enough before she launched a fireball right at Vivillon. Due to the clase range, there was no where for it to escape to, and it let out a pained shriek before it fell to the ground, unconscious and defeated.

"YES! We did it!" I cheered as Merida landed on the ground again "Merida you were awe-sooome...?" I could barely finish my sentence when I managed to look at my partner again. The fiery glow that was emanating from the fur in her ears was a bright orange, until the fire coming from it suddenly engulfed my little fox in the flames. The fire then morphed into a white light, and Merida's body began to change before our eyes. She suddenly stood upright, becoming a bipedal creature as her front paws transformed into arms, and her hind paws becoming more like feet. The light then faded, revealing a bipedal fox-like creature with black legs, a white furred collar and arms and more orange fur growing from her ears. A stick was sticking out of her tail, and the fur near her waist stuck out more, making it look a bit like a short dress. I used my Pokédex to scan this new creature, and soon learned that my cute little Fennekin had evolved into the cool Braixen. I had my arms around Merida before I even knew it; I was so happy that I could barely contain myself. Not only did I won my first Gym Badge, but Merida evolved in the process, showing me that I am a good Trainer if my partner could achieve this new form of strength. Our celebration had to wait however, when I noticed Viola standing in front of us, a broad smile on her face.

"Fantastic! Honestly, you two were simply amazing," she said before handing me a copper badge in the shape of a beetle with green gemstones in it. "Here's your Bug Badge, proof that you have defeated me in battle." I accepted the badge with humbleness and pinned it to my shirt. I would have to get a Badge Case at the PokéMart when I go back to the Center. "I shouldn't have expected anything less from Grace's daughter. Though, I'm curious about something..how come you only used Fennekin - I mean, Braixen? You have other Pokémon with you, yeah?"

I shook my head. "No. Merida's my first and only Pokémon. In fact, I just got her yesterday."

"You only came in here with a single Pokémon on your team that you've only had for more than a day?...Interesting, and different from the challengers I've faced in my time as a Gym Leader."

"Well, it obviously shows that she had more than enough faith in Fennekin - well Braixen, I should say - to pull off this victory," Alexa said as she stood next to her sister "After all, not many rookie Trainers are confident in their abilities to be able to pull of what Kat has today. And the fact that she just received her Pokémon makes this occasion even more remarkable. This will be one of my best articles yet, with some good shots to boot." She then looked at her watch and sighed. "I wish I could do an interview, but I'm afraid that will have to wait for another time. I'll have to leave for Lumiose City pretty soon if I want to get this article out by tomorrow. Sorry sis..."

"Hey, it's alright - don't worry about it," Viola insisted "Also, be careful when you get back there. I heard that half of the city is experiencing a blackout."

I tilted my head a bit. "A blackout?"

"Yes, about that," Alex explained "Last night, the power suddenly went out on the other half of Lumiose City - that's the next city over, by the way. No one knows what caused it, but there has been talk that there's something going on at the Power Plant on Route 13. We've tried contacting the Plant, but we never get an answer. We even sent some workers to check on it, but they have yet to return. Clemont - the Gym Leader of Lumiose - is doing his best to reduce the panic and give some backup power to the city, but he can only do so much..." She sighed. "I really hate to put so much pressure on Phos and Lux, but I have work to do. The backup generator in my apartment is a piece of crap, but it's the only thing I have until the blackout is resolved."

I was curious about the blackout, but I didn't ask anymore questions about it. If it's the next place after Santalune, then I would ask for the details when we get there. Viola gave me a Technical Machine - or TM for short - for the Bug type move called Infestation. She said she enjoyed herself and hoped we could battle again as equals when Merida grew stronger. Speaking of, I returned Merida to her Pokéball to let her rest; as much as I wanted to show off my newly evolved Pokémon, her health was more important. I'll show the gang after she's healed up when I get back to the Pokémon Center. Viola told me that there was a stairwell leading back up to the lobby behind the curtain in the back to her tent, so I didn't have to climb over the web to get out. Alexa led me out since she had to leave anyway, and she showed me where the stairs were before going back to the lobby. It was dark out when we left the Gym - I had to guess that it was 8 or close to 9 by now. Alexa and I parted ways after a quick goodbye was exchanged (she even gave me an Experience Share - Exp. Share for short - too); she headed towards the western gate that supposedly went to Lumiose City while I went back to the Center. I felt my new Badge pinned to my shirt, feeling very proud of Merida and myself for bringing us both this far. But this was just the first trial - the road after this is going to be long, tedious and filled with many more challenges ahead, but I had faith that Merida and I would be able to overcome what ever comes down the road. Besides, I've already come this far - no sense in turning back now.

E/N: I have to put "pm" or "am" after writing the time. It just...it feels like it makes it easier to determine the time, you know? I should've probably capitalized it but eh...too late to fix it now. Sorry if it bothers anyone.

I had a bit of trouble writing this one, but I think it came out pretty well. I'm looking forward to writing the chapters for Camphrier Town and Route 7, Ambrette Town and the Glittering Cave, Route 13 and the Power Plant, and Lumiose City after the blackout. Those are going to be fun to write.

I would have had this up sooner, but I've had several things come up - mostly work - so I had to wait to finish/post the chapter. I'm glad I got it done though. Even more glad that people are liking this story.

So...regarding Merida (the name of my actual Fennekin/Braixen), I told you all earlier that I tend to over-train my Pokémon, so I really did have a Braixen by the time I left the first Gym. And this doesn't help once you get the Exp. Share after you beat the Gym Leader. I swear, my team was overpowered as hell, but it made training your weaker Pokémon SO much more easier, so I rarely turned mine off.

So, what do you guys think? Is it still good? Is it getting boring? Is the story getting interesting or not? I do have an idea for what happens later on that will explain everything, I promise.

Psst! Whoever can guess the reference Phos and Lux comes from get a free internet cookie.