Considered splitting this into two chapters but, eh.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"Um, did we just come in the wrong building?" Hilbert asked.

The Striaton Gym. Hilbert would have had many ideas what the inside of a Pokemon Gym would look like. A workout Gym themed on Pokemon, a coliseum for trainers to battle, maybe even look like some dark shrine, but, a restaurant? The only thing about it that made it look like a Gym for trainers were the large emblems of Fire, Water, and Grass stitched onto the carpet. Those symbols most likely just referred to an oven, cooking water, and vegetables.

Rather then see trainers and challengers, he saw waiters and waitresses moving swiftly but elegantly, seeing to the orders of the patrons. Judging by the looks on the faces of those eating, this was apparently a very high-quality restaurant you were guaranteed to leave satisfied with. He turned to Bianca, who made a confused shake of her head.

"Maybe we should… get back to the town map, and-"

"Excuse me." A male voice cut off Bianca's suggestion. Bianca and Hilbert turned to one of the waiters, this one had green hair. The two Nuvema trainers couldn't help but notice all the other waiters and waitresses had stopped and were looking at this green-haired man. He was apparently someone of authority here. "Are you two, um, challengers?"

Hilbert looked to the side, in this situation he wasn't sure what they question meant. "We're… Pokemon trainers, I'm here for a Gym challenge. Is this, the Pokemon Gym?"

"Yes, it is." The waiter answered, not a speck of sarcasm in his voice. "My name is, uh, Cilan. I and my two brothers use this building as a restaurant, but in the back we have… Gym challenges. You will, face me or one of my two brothers for your Gym badge."

Cilan paused a lot as he spoke, and looked flustered to speak. Hilbert's guess was that Cilan had some issues with his self-confidence. The Waiter and Gym Leader swallowed before continuing to speak.

"Which brother you face depends upon which Pokemon you, um, have. Assuming they are small enough to not wreck this room with their size alone, can the challenger, ah, show me his Pokemon?"

Hilbert nodded, releasing both his Snivy and his new Pawniard. Cilan blinked, then nodded. "Alright, a Grass type and a, um, dual Dark and Steel type. We'll take a moment to prepare for the battle. Please take a seat at a vacant table…" Cilan made a polite waiter bow, then walked off, heading to a door. Despite apparently not being confident at talking, he was an elegant, graceful, and ideal waiter. Hilbert shrugged as he and Bianca moved to a table.

Snivy and Pawniard stood on the table, Snivy began to pace as Pawniard was as still as a statue, the fact that it was alive and well occasionally noted by a small movement. Both Pokemon received various glances from around the room, particularly the Pawniard, which didn't look like an overly friendly Pokemon. Bianca looked at the two Pokemon, then decided to release her own, letting Oshawott and Pansear also sit on the table. A few of the waiters shuddered at the sight of a Fire type Pokemon sitting on the white and entirely flammable fabric stretched across the table.

After a time, someone exited from the door. It wasn't Cilan, though his general build and his face was very similar to Cilan's, his hairstyle and hair color were completely different. He walked right up to Hilbert and Bianca, looking at them with his one visible eye, his other eye hidden behind his blue bangs. "One of you is the challenger?"

Hilbert turned to the man and just pointed a finger at himself.

"My name is Cress." The waiter answered. "One of Cilan's brothers. Who you will fight has been decided. Please follow me to the back."

He turned around, but spoke again before Hilbert and Bianca had even stood up. "As usual, as compensation for the slower service caused by the disappearance of three of the waiters, any meal you've already ordered will be half off during the Gym challenge."

There was a round of applause and cheers for the challenger from the patrons, and some silent grumbles from the one person who had just finished signing a check.

Hilbert and Bianca were in the back now, and this looked more like Hilbert's idea of a battle arena. It was well lit and spacious, the walls were not glamorous, they were clearly designed to handle stress and damage, not to look good. The room was flat, but the emblem of Fire, Grass, and Water again appeared, apparently painted onto the hard ground.

Cilan was already back here, though his stance seemed to suggest that he was a spectator more then anything else. There was also a red head sitting in a chair, Hilbert immediately knew it was the third brother, the only one that he hadn't seen yet.

"You're very lucky." Cress said, in a slightly cocky manner as he joined his brothers. "I won't be the person you'll be fighting. No, your opponent will be Chili."

"Yes!" The red haired brother, Chili, flipped out of the chair and pumped both of his fists, and with that alone revealed that he was the most excitable brother. "Sorry about making you think bad of your skills, but a scorching Fire-type specialist, and the strongest of the Striaton brothers, just won't hold back!"

"…Fire-type?" Hilbert felt some of his confidence slip. Both of his Pokemon were weak to fire, this match might already be over. At the same time, Snivy had come through and defeated a Fire type enemy not even an hour ago. His confidence returned with a vengeance, and he wore a victorious grin. "I'm sorry that I'll make a 'scorching Fire-type specialist' think bad of his skills when he loses to Pokemon weak to the Fire-type, that are holding back."

Chili's bravado gave way to a stunned, gaping silence. Bianca gave a small cheer at Hilbert's taunt while Cress chuckled. Cilan smiled as his normally endlessly confident brother was struck dumb.

"We'll see just who's gonna get humbled, challenger!" Chili grabbed one of his Pokeballs, an appropriate fiery look in his eyes. "Let's see if your Pokemon are even worthy of meeting my Pansear. Lillipup!"

He threw the Pokeball, the Fire Leader saw fit to start with a Normal type Pokemon. The Lillipup, clearly better trained and stronger then the wild ones Hilbert had seen before, barked and waited for an enemy.

Hilbert smirked, both of his Pokemon were already out of their balls, so he just turned to call one of them. "Snivy, you're up." The Grass type beamed, pleased to have been the first to meet the enemy.

Snivy walked forward and raised his head, holding himself as something far beyond the Lillipup. The Lillipup fell into a fighting posture and growled at its arrogant opponent. Chili took on a battle stance of his own and gave the first order.

"Let's make this quick. Bite!" Lillipup rushed forward on command, then leapt in the air and opened its mouth, ready to sink its teeth into the enemy. Snivy darted to the side, Lillipup missed Snivy's chest by a fair margin and missed Snivy's tail by barely an inch.

Lillipup landed, and immediately whirled and repeated its effort. This time it managed to sink its teeth into Snivy's tail. The Grass type yelped and started to swing its tail from left to right in an attempt to shake Lillipup off, but the Normal type held strong.

"Get to the wall." Hilbert ordered. Snivy swiftly obeyed, eager for a chance to rid himself of the source of the stinging sensation in his tail. Snivy raced to the wall, then spun and slammed the Lillipup's side into the metal. The Lillipup held on with a single-minded determination, Snivy slammed it into the wall again, and on the third time the Lillipup finally let go.

"Knock it around some!" Chili called, Lillipup got up, bruised but still healthy. It rushed forward and slammed into Snivy, who was busy soothing his tail, knocking the Grass type off his feet and into the wall.

"Vine Whip!" Hilbert yelled, Snivy got back up and revealed its vine and swatted the Lillipup away as it tried to press the attack. The Lillipup tried to charge again, only to receive another vine to its face, this time knocked the Lillipup on its side. "Finish it!" Snivy retracted the vine and charged, crashing into the Lillipup's face and sending it rolling away, all the way back to Chili's feet.

Chili frowned, kneeling down and patting his Pokemon. "Oh, kid, if you wanted the volcano to erupt that badly, why didn't you just say so?" He took his second, and apparently final, Pokeball out and released his Pansear. The monkey bounced up and down at first, then looked with a grin at its enemy. Snivy was somewhat worn out and was already taking deep breaths, the Lillipup had bit deep into the single most sensitive part of his body. Pansear was rested, ready, and would enjoy a elemental advantage. "You are so in for it now!"

Snivy didn't have its usual cocky smirk, but neither did it look afraid. The pride overruled everything else. He stood quietly, waiting until either Hilbert or Chili made the first command.

"Pansear!" Chili called, starting things off. "Use Incinerate!" Not wasting any time, he decided to emphasize his elemental advantage immediately. Pansear started to roast, its fur catching fire, and it charged forward looking like a fireball.

"Snivy, get out of the way and, and then counter!" Hilbert ordered, not needing any proof to know that this was far more powerful then the Ember of Cheren's Tepig. Snivy moved as fast as he could and still only barely dodged the roaring flame. As Pansear reached the wall, its flame dispersed. It turned around to catch a Vine Whip to the face, followed by Snivy rushing forward and tackling Pansear hard in the chest.

This is good. Hilbert said, watching the Pansear get knocked back. As long as Snivy and I can keep the Pansear from using a Fire type move, we-

Pansear suddenly jumped back, slamming its head into Snivy's chest, knocking its enemy into the air.

"Incinerate again!" Chili called, Pansear surged forward again before Snivy had fallen back down. This time it caught Snivy with its fire, searing the Grass type before flinging it away, sending the burnt Pokemon flying back to Hilbert.

Snivy slowly opened its eyes once it had come to a complete stop. He put his hands down to push himself slowly, painfully, up. It had its pride, and it had defeated a Fire-type before, and it was not about to lose to-

"Snivy, enough." Hilbert whispered almost right above his starter. Snivy looked up, and Hilbert slowly picked it up. "You're done, leave the rest to Pawniard." He placed Snivy upon the wall, letting it lean back and begin to rest. Bianca's Oshawott and Pansear came up to it, Snivy looked away from them and toward the battle, clearly it wasn't in the mood to talk to them.

Pawniard walked forward, taking a moment to grind the blade on the end of his arms against each other in an intimidating gesture. Hilbert had a new serious look in his eyes. He had to be sure that Pawniard was not hit with a Fire type attack, or else the Gym challenge would be over.

"Another Pokemon weak to fire. It's all too easy for me." Chili boasted, not noticing a distinct, disapproving glance coming from Cress. Chili would be lectured on how battles didn't begin and end with typing whether he won or lost. "Let's hurry up and get to me winning!"

Hilbert narrowed his eyes. He had already done some research on the Pokedex of what Pawniards were capable of, and was ready for this. "Pawniard, Scratch!" Pawniard leapt forward, it moved faster then the enemy Pansear expected, and it managed to easily make the first blow, nicking the Pansear's chest even as it tried to evade the attack.

Chili made a growl. "So your Pokemon is faster then I thought. It'll only take one good hit to send it off, just like your Snivy. Pansear, Incinerate this one too."

"Pawniard, get out of the way!" Pawniard obeyed swiftly, darting to the side of the flaming enemy, then whirling and following the Pansear to the edge of the room. "Right, Pawniard, use Fury Cutter!"

Almost the second the Pansear stopped, Pawniard was upon it, making several slashes across the enemy, then finishing with a final cut that knocked the Pansear away.

Pansear only grunted, still able to fight. It bounced around enthusiastically, looking like it was daring Pawniard to approach, and then Chili ordered the monkey to go on the offensive. Pansear ran forward, Pawniard dodged the palm thrust and jumped back, and then Pansear burned with its element.

Rushing forward, Pansear wanted to end the fight here and now. Hilbert suddenly called for a counter. Pawniard braced himself, putting his arms in front to block. The Pansear came at him and knocking Pawniard back through the air, but the burnt Pawniard landed on his feet. Injured and hurting only somewhat, it dashed forward and slashed past Pansear, stopping behind the Fire type who, after a moment of delay, collapsed on the ground.

"Aw, man." Chili shook his head. His defeat was registering, he shook his head and sighed deeply. Cilan gave a smile for his brother, the occasional defeat was just part of being a Gym Leader. On the other end of the room, Hilbert made a sigh of relief at his victory, and was suddenly being shaken by Bianca's arm on his shoulder. He was almost overwhelmed by the congratulations the girl began to give him for his first Gym victory.

Pawniard shook its head and started to walk back to Hilbert, who frowned. "Come on, Pawniard. At least help it get up."

Pawniard narrowed his eyes, then turned around and extended an arm. Pansear grabbed the wrist and pulled itself up to a standing position. It slowly went back to Chili.

"Seems you won." Chili muttered, putting his Pokemon back in their Pokeballs. "Just so you know, you defeated an elite trainer recognized by the League."

Hilbert crossed his arms, and a smirk appeared on his face. "Is it okay for an 'elite' trainer to lose to someone who got his first Pokemon just yesterday?"

"I…" Chili opened his mouth to retort, but settled for a simple response. "Shut up."

"More seriously…" Cilan spoke up, stepping forward with an approachable look on his face. "All Gym Leaders have, ah, two teams. One they use for Gym challenges, like now, and a more 'regular' team they use for, well, other purposes. For example…" He took a Pokeball out and released a Pansage. The little monkey danced around Cilan's legs like it was dancing with tree trunks. "I would use this for a Gym challenge, but if, um, the battle is more important, I have this." He took a second Pokeball out, and released a different, very different looking Pokemon that balanced itself on three feet.

Hilbert blinked, then got his Pokedex out. "Ferrothorn?" He gaped, suspecting that this Pokemon could probably take both Snivy and Pawniard out with a single blow. It was clearly an older, and stronger Pokemon, who had seen no small amount of battle.

Cilan nodded. "Gym Leaders do, um, more then wait for challengers. We have to respond to various issues, some local, some national. We use our, well, 'regular' team when we do that. Though, since becoming Leaders there hasn't been a single national issue for the three of us to respond to."

Bianca tilted her head. "What are the other Gym Leaders like?"

A complete and utter silence crept in. The three brothers shared uncomfortable glances. Even Chili seemed uncharacteristically reluctant to speak, and then Cress stepped forward. "We… haven't met any of the other Gym Leaders personally."

"There isn't any kind of get-togethers?"

Cress sighed. "There are, but we've never attended them. Our duties to the restaurant, which is open seven days a week, from six in the morning to eleven at night, prevent us from going. The other Gym Leaders have day jobs that don't have such a restricting schedule."

Cilan stepped forward. "We don't… um, well, mind the fact that we miss out. Though, I think the other Leaders think that we, uh, give them the cold shoulder."

"Oh." Bianca looked down. "I… I'm sure they understand that there's something that is keeping you from meeting them."

Cilan smiled. "I hope so. I really wouldn't want them to think that we believe we're, well, better then them, or something."

Hilbert adjusted his hat and stepped forward. "What if we… asked every Gym Leader what they think of you? Put in a good word if they think badly of you?"

Cilan blinked. "That… that would actually be very nice. Thank you."

"Don't worry." Hilbert smiled, intending full well to go through with the deal he was making. "You three are… actually pretty cool. It'd be good to make sure the other leaders think well of you."

Chili smiled. "Alright. Be sure to tell them only the good stuff about us. Also, be sure to tell them that I'm the hottest, toughest Gym Leader ever!"

Hilbert blinked at the request, then smiled as he knew exactly how to respond to that. "I think I'll try to keep it non-fiction. Thank you."

"Before you go." Cress interrupted just as Hilbert was about to turn. He walked off to the side and moved to a undecorated box and opened it. He took an item wrapped it cloth out and closed the box, then returned to his brothers. "We'd be the laughing stock of the Pokemon League if we forgot to give you this." He handed the cloth to Cilan. Cilan took it, unwrapped it, and showed the item to Hilbert.

"This is the Trio Badge. Proof of your victory in Striaton Gym. Take it with pride, and try to collect the badges of the seven other Gyms across Unova."

Hilbert grabbed the badge, smiling as he let the piece of metal glint in the light briefly. He quietly put it in a small case. "I guess I'm done here." Making a farewell wave, he and Bianca left the Gym.

Chili turned to his brothers. "Well?"

Cilan tilted his head. "Well, what?"

"Isn't this the time you try to comfort me for my loss?"

Cress crossed his arms. "Chili. You lost. That's it."

The red haired brother looked indignant. "Oh, come on. Isn't this the part where you say 'The challenger just got lucky' or 'You were just having a bad day' or something?"

Cress smirked. "Oh, so your loving brothers are supposed to lie so you can feel better about yourself."

Hilbert and Bianca left the gym. Hilbert looked up at the moon. It was getting late, but it wasn't even midnight yet. The activity in the city had settled down somewhat, Striaton was a city that did sleep, it would seem. Only a few people were still walking the streets, and at this moment the population seemed about as dense as it was in Nuvema. He turned to Bianca, deciding that she deserved to have things her way for the rest of the night. "Are you still awake enough to sightsee?"

Bianca looked at him, her eyes widened, she clearly wasn't too tired if the look of excitement was anything to go off of. "Yes! Yes, let's-"

"Hey!" A female voice cut Bianca off. Hilbert and Bianca turned, Hilbert having a slightly irritated expression, at a woman who looked like she had been waiting outside of the Gym just for the two. She walked forward, Hilbert wasn't exactly sure if he liked the smile on her face. "Hilbert, right?"

"…Yes." Hilbert answered. "Should I know you?"

"We've never met, but I'm an old friend of Juniper." The woman answered. "My name is Fennel, and I want to show you two something. Could you follow me?" She took a step back and turned around, then stopped and looked over her shoulder to wait for their response.

"Wait…" Bianca blinked. She turned to Hilbert. "We… we were about to see the city. What just happened?"

Hilbert shrugged. "I don't know. I guess the whole world is just against you." Bianca frowned, Hilbert put hands on Bianca's shoulders. "Look, I'll make it up to you tomorrow, alright? We can spend the majority of the day just wandering around Striaton."

Bianca still looked disappointed, Hilbert wondered if she was going to try and push the point, but she instead conceded. "Alright. We have all of tomorrow."

The two followed Fennel, right up to her room on the second floor of a Striaton building. She turned around to look at the two again. "To repeat myself, my name is Fennel. Doctor Fennel. I study Pokemon dreams, but sometimes I'm more focused on studying Trainers."

"You study… Pokemon, Trainers." Hilbert repeated, crossing his arms while looking at Fennel's smile. He sighed. "I'll give you points for originality, but you're not my type."

"You…" The next words were snatched away as she realized what Hilbert said, and she began to sputter. "That wasn't, I… I mean, I didn't, um…" She continued for a moment, then took in a deep breath to compose herself. Clearing her throat, she spoke again with a little fluster in her cheeks. "I study the relationship between Trainers and Pokemon. I think you're a little young for me, Hilbert."

Hilbert just glanced at Fennel, biting back the comment he wanted to give and offered something else. "What is it you wanted to show us?"

Fennel turned to a large machine in the room. "This machine would allow me to collect data on various trainers. I've hit a bit of a standstill on my research, I need a certain something to really complete this project. I need something called Dream Mist to continue." She turned back to the two. "Dream Mist is given off by a Pokemon named Munna. Munna live at the Dreamyard, do you know where-"

"We were at the Dreamyard." Bianca spoke up. "I got my Pansear there," Her eyes twinkled slightly, she would always remember the Dreamyard as the place she found one of her companions at. "It's also where Hilbert found his Pawniard."

Fennel did a double-take. "You found a… Pawniard, at the Dreamyard?" Her voice sounded incredulous. "Those things are native to-"

"We know." Hilbert said, releasing his Pawniard from its Pokeball. Fennel turned her eyes to the Pawniard, belief only now registering in them. "They live at Route 9 and Route 11, I don't know why this little guy was at the Dreamyard."

The Pawniard turned and glared at his trainer, offended at being called a 'little guy'. It turned back to Fennel as the scientist approached and crouched down to look at it. "Maybe, it was exiled."

"Exiled?" Bianca tilted her head, not understanding.

"Pawniards live in moving clans. They're led around by a Bisharp, their evolved form. Sometimes… the Bisharp thinks that one of the Pawniards might someday threaten their position as the leader of the clan. So it kicks the Pawniard out of the clan. It's never a pleasant sight, because the Bisharp and Pawniard always get into a very violent fight. But the Pawniard never wins."

She looked over Hilbert's Pawniard, the bruises all over it gave sad proof that being brutalized and then exiled by a Bisharp was exactly what happened to it. "The Pawniards that get exiled become bitter, understandably. They try to make a new home for themselves somewhere else, and by itself a Pawniard is unpredictable, and dangerous."

The Pawniard looked away, Fennel's theory of why it was at the Dreamyard touched a nerve… it stormed back to Hilbert's leg, not looking back at Fennel.

"Anyway." Fennel decided to change the subject. "I'd like to ask it as a favor. Could you two go to the Dreamyard and see if you could find any of Munna's Dream Mist?"

Hilbert turned to Bianca. She shrugged and smiled, Hilbert turned back and nodded. "Sure. We've got time, and apparently nothing better to do."

"I wonder how many times we're going to come here." Hilbert sighed, this was his second visit to the Dreamyard tonight. Though he hadn't really gone into the Dreamyard, he supposed.

"Maybe we'll make a new friend?" Bianca suggested, trying to raise Hilbert's enthusiasm.

Hilbert tapped a foot and rolled his eyes. "I seriously doubt anything interesting is going to happen." He looked ahead to the only way to get deeper into the Dreamyard. "The only path in also seems to be blocked by a tree." He released Pawniard from its Pokeball. "Can you deal with this?"

Pawniard crossed his arms, then lunged and slashed the slender tree at its base, letting the wood fall down. Hilbert recalled Pawniard and led Bianca into the Dreamyard.

They began to search for a Munna, or anything that looked like Dream Mist. It did not go well, they encountered just about every other Pokemon that might have lived in the Dreamyard besides Munna. Most of what was native to the Dreamyard was brave in the face of Snivy, but would run to little hiding holes when Pawniard appeared. The buildings of the Dreamyard had a confusing design and were almost maze-like, the two managed to get lost a few times.

The minutes ticked on by, Hilbert looked with exasperation up at the moon above them. He yawned, at this point he was far more interested in a bed then in Dream Mist. He turned his head to find Bianca, and suggest that maybe they could come back tomorrow. The Munna, however many might be at the Dreamyard, would probably be easier to find in the daytime. The Pokemon might have already gone to some den for tonight. Tomorrow they would just-

"Munna!" He heard Bianca suddenly yell. He turned and saw the girl, she turned to Hilbert and pointed at a little Pokemon hovering through the air. Hilbert pulled his Pokedex out and scanned the Pokemon.

"Yes, definitely a Munna." He put his Pokedex away. He noticed, and ignored how Bianca was obviously getting endeared to the Munna's little movements. "Now… how do we get some Dream Mist? Scare it?" He suspected Pawniard could do a good job at that, but…

A rustling sound came from the side. Munna turned to the sound and shivered, looking like it understood exactly what had made the sound.

"It's about time you appeared." A man said as he and a woman both appeared out of the grass and, in a manner that did not in any way seem friendly, approached and surrounded the Munna. Suddenly, he grabbed the Munna and pulled it to him. "Dream Mist, right now!"

The Munna made a small cry, which became a squeal as the man started to squeeze.

"What th-" Hilbert couldn't believe what they were seeing. From out of nowhere, two people had just suddenly started to brutalize the Munna.

"Who are you?" Bianca demanded, stepping forward. "And, what, do you think you're doing to Munna?"

"Who are we?" The man relaxed his hold on the Munna slightly, letting it breath comfortably again, but not letting it go. "We…"

The woman turned a very hostile face toward Hilbert and Bianca. "…are Team Plasma. We fight every waking moment to free Pokemon from cruel, unflinching human hands. As for what we're doing…"

Hilbert's mind suddenly flashbacked to Accumula Town, and the speech given by Ghetsis of Team Plasma. And of N, the boy close to his age who sought the freedom of Pokemon, not unlike Team Plasma.

The man continued for the woman. "Munna's Dream Mist allows people to see dreams as reality. Team Plasma can use that to influence people around the world to see how Pokemon suffer under them. It will convince them to free their Pokemon, and if they won't even after they see that, we can take their Pokemon by force and free them."

"You mean steal them." Hilbert said coolly. He was beyond repulsed. He had been willing to stop and think about Team Plasma's mission statement, but, after this?

The Plasma agents ignored Hilbert's words and put their attention back on the Munna. The woman spoke to the little terrified creature. "Dream Mist now, it's for your own good. You don't understand what we can do to you if you don't cooperate."

The man dropped the Munna, and the woman raised a foot and pinned it on the ground. The little thing squirmed and flailed, but couldn't fight the weight pressing on it. Bianca had had enough and rushed forward. "How can you do that? You're Trainers too, aren't you? How would you like it if someone did that to your Pokemon?"

"Yeah, we're Trainers." The male Plasma agent responded. "The difference between me and someone like you is that we're fighting for the freedom of Pokemon everywhere. Including the ones enslaved by other Trainers. So it's time to free your Pokemon."

As the female kept the Munna pinned down with her boot, the male stepped forward, taking a Pokeball out. "You're a preachy girl, so I'll liberate your Pokemon first."

Bianca shuddered and took a fearful step back. Hilbert, instead, stepped forward. He took one of his own Pokeballs out. "Don't expect that I'm going to sit here and let anyone threaten her like that."

"H-Hilbert…" Bianca looked fearfully at her friend. "Stop, they'll hurt y-"

"Stay back, Bianca." Hilbert ordered, releasing Snivy. The Grass type narrowed his eyes, having heard everything from inside the Pokeball, and it was just as repulsed as its trainer right now.

The Plasma grunt let out a Patrat. The little Pokemon looked… dark. The Pokemon of the Plasma grunt postured, looking like it lived and breathed combat. Snivy, who had been undeterred by anything it had faced so far, was a little bothered by the almost demented look in the Patrat's eye.

"Patrat." The Plasma agent spoke, "Tackle. Let's take our time showing the kid how weak he is." The Patrat darted forward, moving far faster then Hilbert expected. He called for a dodge, and Snivy managed to dart out of the way. The Patrat swiftly shot past its enemy, but seemed to effectively bounce off a wall, turning around and continuing with its given order.

Hilbert reversed his order, telling Snivy to hold his ground. Snivy put his feet firmly on the ground and let the Patrat come to him. He caught the Patrat with his hands, and though he initially skidded back a bit, he stopped his enemy's single-minded charge. With his hands still on the Patrat's head, he spun around, carrying the Patrat with the movements, then let go, tossing the Patrat at a wall.

The Pokemon slumped down, unconscious after impacting the hard wall head first. The Plasma grunt stared aghast at the sight of his Patrat felled by a single blow from some kid's Pokemon.

"But…" The words came out slowly, fighting back the shock. "You're just some kid. I'm a righteous member of Team-"

"Seriously?" The woman asked. She took her boot off of the Munna and walked forward, the Munna was too scared to try and get away as its tormentor moved off. "Did you get stupid because they're kids? Let me handle this for you, idiot."

The woman released a Purrloin. This one hissed, looking just slightly stronger then the Patrat. The Plasma grunt who controlled the Purrloin narrowed her eyes. "It goes without saying that I'm by far the better here, but I won't go easy on you. Purrloin! Fury Swipes."

The Purrloin dashed forward, looking to rake its claws across Snivy. Snivy jumped back, Purrloin missed with its claws the first time, but moved barely an inch forward and managed to slightly slash Snivy the second time, and deeply the third time before it jumped back.

Just a minor twitch of discomfort in Snivy's eyes, he obeyed the order for Vine Whip. A quick snap of the slender vine forced Purrloin away, but it quickly came again, evading Snivy's vine and ready to do serious, life-threatening damage to Snivy.

"Wrap!" Hilbert called. As the Purrloin jumped with the intent of sinking its claws into Snivy, Snivy leapt on it and snaked itself around the Purrloin's midsection. They both plummeted from the sky, Snivy still wrapped tight around the Purrloin, clearly in a way that was bringing great discomfort for the cat. It thrashed around on the ground, but it couldn't get its claws near Snivy, nor could it sink its teeth into anything.

Eventually Purrloin's struggles slowed. Snivy released the cat. Purrloin rested for a moment, it looked like the fight was over.

"Get up!" It's trainer called. "I am not failing this operation because of a stupid kid!" The Purrloin, suddenly reenergized by the threatening tone of its Trainer, got back up unnervingly quickly and immediately made a deep cut on Snivy's chest.

"Snivy. Get it up in the air, and then back on the ground." Snivy nodded, able to immediately understand what its trainer's strategies meant. He waited for the Purrloin to approach. It moved to the side as the Purrloin charged and grabbed the Pokemon's tail. Snivy spun around in rapid succession, swinging Purrloin like it was a ball-n-chain.

He eventually released the Purrloin, tossing it into the air, then extended his Vine Whip and let it wrap around the Purrloin's body. With a swing, he forced the Purrloin back into the ground.

The Purrloin tried to stand up, tried to ignore the throbbing pain. It got up to its shaking feet, but then collapsed back down.

"I… I can't believe I lost, too." The Plasma grunt hissed through her teeth, looking at the Snivy that had single-handedly taken her Purrloin and her accomplice's Patrat out. "Fine. Forget about liberating their Pokemon." She whirled and went back to the Munna who was trembling right where she had left it. "Let's just get the Dream Mist and-"

"…failures who could not accomplish such a simple task." A voice came from nowhere. Both of the Plasma agents shuddered, feeling the chills going down their spines at a voice they would always recognize. They turned to see none other then Ghetsis of Team Plasma looking harshly at them, and then he was suddenly gone, almost like he had just blinked out of existence.

"What was-"

"We of Team Plasma shall liberate Pokemon from the hands of the cruel and merciless." Ghetsis spoke again from another angle. "I implore you to think…" He suddenly vanished again.

The male Plasma agent took in a slow gasp. "Ghetsis… knows we just failed." The other took in a slow, fearful breath. This assignment seemed simplicity itself, and Ghetsis was here, seeing how they failed because of a pair of nosy, anonymous kids.

"Let's get out of here." The girl said. "And… and think of a way to apologize to him. We have to somehow be given a second chance!" They made small, jerky movements at first, then moved with full speed, scooping up their Pokemon and fleeing with all possible haste out of the Dreamyard.

Hilbert blinked as they ran past him. The members of Team Plasma were already forgotten, including the mysteriously appearing and vanishing Ghetsis. "Is Munna…" He looked toward the little Pokemon, it was trembling, but starting to rise. He turned to his next priority.

Bianca was just standing there, trembling just like the Munna. He walked up to her. "Are you okay, Bianca?"

"I…" She started, then swallowed whatever lump was in her throat. "I'm the one who should be asking that, Hilbert. Why did you put yourself in danger like that?"

"For the Munna." Was the first thing he said, "And more importantly, they were trying to steal your Pokemon." He sounded confident. All things considered, the Plasma lackeys were actually quite weak compared to Chili, even if their Pokemon were strangely intimidating looking.

Bianca looked down at her Pokeballs. Oshawott and Pansear were safely in them, not stolen by those two thieves, thanks to Hilbert.

She suddenly felt something pushing down on her head. She realized that Hilbert's hand was on her hat. This was his way of comforting her, she took in a slow breath and looked ahead. "Where did Ghetsis come from, and where did he go?"

Hilbert turned around. It was a good question, and he knew he had seen Ghetsis. The Munna was floating by itself now, and it made a small cry to a corner. Hilbert took an uncomfortable step back as a very large Pokemon appeared.

"Musharna." Bianca read from her Pokedex. The large thing moved up to the Munna. Munna seemed grateful of the Musharna's presence, moving to it and trembling for comfort.

"It's Munna's mom." Hilbert said, looking at how affectionately the Musharna responded to Munna. "Mother and… daughter, I think." The Munna… looked like a girl to him. He took in a breath as the Musharna left with her child. A moment after they left, it started to dawn on him that in the unexpected fight with the Plasma grunts, they never got any Dream Mist.

"You two!" Hilbert jumped, turning and seeing Fennel. She had a clearly impatient look on her face. "I wondered what was taking so long, so I came here myself. Did you find Munna?"

Bianca looked to the side. "Well, yes, but we-" She launched into a… very broad explanation as to what happened. She mentioned that they found Munna, but ran into trouble with Team Plasma, and the appearance of the Musharna.

Fennel put a hand to her cheek. "I think I got that. Musharna saw that Munna was in danger, and used Dream Mist to save Munna. Musharna are tricky, they can use Dream Mist to-" Her eyes were panning to the area behind Hilbert and Bianca, and she noticed, something, on the ground behind them. Her eyes widened in realization and she suddenly dropped the discussion, zooming ahead and getting to what was on the ground.

Fennel looked at a small collection of… something on the ground, and suddenly made a fist pump. "This is Dream Mist! The Munna must have given some off."

Hilbert leaned forward to look at the Dream Mist. It looked like… he wasn't sure how to put it, ethereal dirt? He turned to Fennel. "So, Munna, pooped some Dream Mist out?"

"That is an extremely crude way of putting it, Hilbert." Fennel gave a little glare through her glasses. "But, yes. Now that I have this, I can continue my research. You two should come back to my room tonight." She started to scoop up the Dream Mist on the ground. "I can at least offer you a night's stay. Just come back whenever."

She finished collecting the Dream Mist and was already heading back to the city with full speed. Hilbert sighed at the sight and looked at Bianca. "And I thought you were excitable." Bianca only cocked her head, seemingly failing to understand what Hilbert was saying. Hilbert looked up, it had to be close to midnight at this point. "What next? Should we head back to Fennel's?"

"Not yet." Bianca said, to Hilbert's chagrin. "I want to find that Munna again." Hilbert opened his mouth to speak, but failed to say anything before Bianca ran off again. He pushed two fingers into his forehead, not in any mood to start searching again, and slowly began to follow the girl.

"There you are!" Bianca cried after nearly twenty minutes of fruitless searching. The Munna turned to the human and backed away, shivering. "No, no, I'm okay." Bianca reassured, taking very slow steps ahead and getting to her knees. "I won't hurt you."

The Munna made a cautious, tentative approach. Then stopped when it was barely arms length from Bianca. She reached and, gently, put her arms on it. The Munna shuddered, wondering if it was about to be squeezed, but nothing so horrible happened. It was instead pulled into a hug that comforted and calmed rather then hurt and horrified.

The minutes crept on by, Bianca was eventually playing with the Munna like it was the pet she always had. Hilbert stood just a few steps away from the two. The Munna glanced at him occasionally, but he apparently wasn't all that interesting.

"So, Munna." Bianca said slowly as the little Pokemon floated around her. "Would you want to leave with me?"

It bobbed, Hilbert wasn't sure what answer it was giving to Bianca's question. Then Hilbert heard a deep sound, and saw the Musharna appear. Bianca's breath caught in her throat and she backed up slightly. Munna suddenly darted forward toward her mother and made several odd little gestures. The Musharna responded in its own language, and the mother and daughter shared a conversation.

Eventually, the Musharna approached the Munna and bumped her head upon her daughter's. Hilbert wanted to assume that it was some equivalent of a kiss. The Munna turned away and went back to Bianca. The Musharna slowly floated away.

"The mother was willing to let go." Hilbert noted, looking at Bianca's newest Pokemon, the same Munna he had by some chance come to the aid of just a short while earlier. Bianca just looked at her newest teammate. Hilbert couldn't help but contrast the Musharna with Bianca's dad. He, unlike Musharna, had been stubbornly against the idea of the child leaving in any way.

Strange. Hilbert mused, looking at the Musharna and thinking of his own mom, who had accepted her son leaving. I thought moms were the ones who were psychos about not letting go. He pondered for a moment longer, then shook his head. He walked up to Bianca and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's really time we got back to Fennel's place."

Bianca looked up at Hilbert and nodded. The Munna floated casually near Bianca's head, then accepted being put into a Pokeball. She would end her first day of adventure with three Pokemon.

"Oh, you're back." Fennel was already researching data, beginning the experiments that the Dream Mist had allowed her to start. She smiled. "There is so much I can do now. You have no idea how much you helped me." She gestured toward a computer while she looked at the two. "It's not much, but why don't you take a glance at one of the Pokemon I and Juniper have been doing some research on lately?"

Hilbert and Bianca walked over. They took one look at the picture on the screen and they both drew back.

"What… is, that thing?"

"It… it's called a Garbodor." Fennel said, a little bothered by Hilbert's tone. "It's like a toxic trash bag, in a sense. I suppose it's not the most glamorous Pokemon, but who are we to judge?"

Hilbert and Bianca shared a glance, both looking equally displeased at the sight of this… Pokemon. Hilbert looked at the picture, and a thought struck him.

"This may be a stupid question, but, which way is it looking?"

"It's looking at us. See? It's looking at the camera."

"No, Bianca. That, ah, there are its eyes. Its looking at something to the left of the camera. That thing, I don't think I want to know what's pointing at the camera."

"Excuse me!" Fennel interrupted Hilbert and Bianca's discussion. "It's not the prettiest or the cutest Pokemon in the world, but it really shouldn't be talked about like that. Just because it's, um, somewhat unpleasant, doesn't mean that it should be mocked." She sat down and tapped her fingers on a desk. "Regardless, I do have two beds ready for you when you decide to go to sleep. Pokemon Centers will allow a trainer to stay the night for free, but they're beds aren't as comfortable as mine. The cushion and sheets should be just as good as your beds from Nuvema. Any questions?"

Hilbert stroked his chin for a moment, then nodded. "You're not going to try and crawl into my bed, rig-"

"I wasn't." Fennel began, almost showing grinding teeth. "Trying. To hit. On you."

"Okay, okay." Hilbert raised up his hands to surrender the point. "I'm not sure about Bianca, but I'll head to one of those beds now."

The position of the moon signaled that the hour of midnight had begun. Hilbert and Bianca had already fallen asleep, there was little activity in the building Fennel lived in. Even the doctor had gone to bed, the only movement came from Pokemon.

Pawniard was at one of the windows, staring at the moon. He kept the image as the sole focus of his gaze for a long moment, then slowly lowered his head, his mind filled with many unpleasant memories.

"Hey." Snivy walked up, tilting his head from side to side. "Do you get tired at all?"

Pawniard looked at Snivy, then just shrugged. "I'll get to sleep eventually. I just don't need much sleep."

Snivy took a moment to look at the same moon Pawniard was looking at. Without looking away from the moon, he spoke again. "The doctor girl, how right was she when she guessed how you got to the Dreamyard?"

The Dark and Steel type turned his head to glare at the Grass type. Slowly, he answered the question. "Completely."

"So, you were kicked out of your clan? Miss any of your old friends?"

"I wouldn't be a Pawniard if I did miss anyone." Came the cold reply. "I've seen kin get exiled and wasn't bothered by it. That's just how life in a clan worked. If you were strong, but didn't get on Bisharp's bad side, you could stay. Make an error, and you won't be with the clan anymore. I had the misfortune of being exiled because I just seemed too strong to Bisharp."

Snivy looked over Pawniard, there was no shortage of bruises, some seemed to have been inflicted on him a long time ago. "Bisharp beat you pretty bad, I'm guessing?"

"I never actually managed to hurt him… but it wasn't quite as one-sided as you probably think it was." Pawniard raised his left arm and moved the blade across the large blade sticking out of his forehead. "I snapped off half the blade coming out of his head in the fight. It was the ultimate final insult I could throw at him. Though it also meant that he hurt me more before he and the clan left me on the side of the road."

The Grass type nodded, then yawned. "Well, that's a pleasant thing to talk about before we go to bed. You should focus less on how you were abandoned and more on how I'll outperform you in every category on Hilbert's journey."

Pawniard blinked and turned away from the moon and to Snivy. "You're a cocky one. Perhaps I'm in the mood for some gardening."

"Oh, scary scary." Snivy snickered at the threat. "And I am not cocky, I'm just unafraid to recognize and celebrate the fact that I'm superior to just about everything around me. I'm Hilbert's favorite for a reason. But if you can perform reasonably okay on the rest of Hilbert's journey, I might be generous enough to let 'Hilbert's second most favorite' be a little title for you."

Snivy raised his tail arrogantly and walked off. Pawniard turned back to the moon, and had only barely begun to again reflect on his battle with Bisharp when something else approached it.

"You want to play a game, Pawniard?" Oshawott scampered next to Pawniard. Pansear and Munna were right behind it. "I found a book of connect-the-dots! We can draw something just by connecting the dots!"

Pawniard lightly closed his eyes.

"I found a color-by-number book." Munna announced with pride. "We can become artists! Want to become an artist, Pawniard?"

The head of the Dark and Steel type leaned forward, by some miracle the blade coming from his head didn't leave a mark on the glass. "Oh." The thick sarcasm in his voice was so impossible to ignore, and yet so completely missed by Bianca's Pokemon. "This just has fun written all over it."

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