A/N: ] Hell yes! This is the chapter you've all been waiting for! Don't know what I'm talking about? Read and find out! The title might give it away though…

I apologize for the delay. ^^" I have started my freshman year, and I've already gotten a TON of homework… Anyways, please keep in mind that I just ADORE this story and would LOVE to update faster, but I DO have a school life. I'll do my best to update ASAP.

Mystique
CH 6: Good-Bye Shinx, Hello Luxio

It was the fifth day of the week.

Shinji heard the Starly chirp outside and woke up. He looked at the clock above him. It was six o' clock. Hn, time to get up. Shinji stood up, walking towards the backyard. Unfortunately he was half asleep and forgot about the transparency, so he accidentally smacked himself against the glass door. "… Damn transparency…" he murmured. He nosed his way out and breathed in the cool morning air.

"Should I train right now or not…" Shinji slightly turned his head to his side. "… Torterra?"

"Just do whatever you want to do this time, Shinji. You did great last night, anyways." Torterra smiled at the slight determination that suddenly sparked in Shinji's eyes. "I have good feeling about today, though."

"Who knows…? It wouldn't last forever though…" He noticed Torterra raising a brow. "I'm pretty sure Troublesome is going to start spoiling you guys again – just like yesterday."

~.~.~

Flashback…

"That Leaf Storm was great, Torterra!" Hikari gushed. She ran over to Shinji's Pokémon, embracing him by the neck. She giggled when she felt Torterra accept her embrace.

"How about a Poffin?" Hikari took out a handkerchief full of Poffins and started picking out of it. "Ah! Here it is!" She held it in front of Torterra's jaws. "I cooked them this morning, and this one is specifically made for you!" Hikari stuck her tongue out playfully. "Try it, Torterra!"

Torterra sniffed it and a wonderful scent filled his senses. He took it and chewed. It was delicious, a sweet and slightly dry taste dancing on his tongue! He responded delightfully.

"I'm so relieved!" she exclaimed. "I thought I made it wrongly!" Hikari patted his shell. "You're an awesome Pokémon, Torterra! I don't get why Shinji wouldn't praise you though…"

Shinji was, fortunately, secretly resting on the tree on Torterra's shell, hidden from Hikari's sight. He lifted his head, rolling his eyes. "… Tch." He chewed on a nut on Torterra's tree, which tasted quite good.

"I wonder where Shinx went. I was planning to groom him, but he's not here." Hikari walked away to find Shinji.

"I feel so very relieved I'm here…" he murmured.

End of Flashback…

~.~.~

Torterra chuckled. "It was a bit amusing to see Hikari-chan look for you." He shook his head smugly when Shinji temporarily stopped his training to glare at him. "Anyways, that's not the 'good feeling' I had in mind."

"Then, what do you mean?"

"What I meant was that I have a good feeling that you might evolve today."

Shinji slightly raised his brows. "Really…?" As much as he wanted to smirk to himself, he was too caught up with the possibility that he might evolve today. He was only a few steps closer to becoming normal. "Hn."

"Good morning, Shinji-kun, Torterra," a quiet voice greeted.

The two turned their heads to Ayako, who had a small blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She was holding a mug filled with warm coffee. "How was your training with Hikari so far?"

"… Horrible. It was torturing." Shinji rolled his eyes to add to his remark.

"Yes, I know it's very likely that you'll find her method of training difficult," Ayako paused, "but it looks like it has gotten you very far in a short amount of time." She took a sip of her coffee. "And if you evolve into a Luxio before Hikari wakes up, you should hide and give her a little surprise!"

Not wanting to be rude, he only shrugged. He sat next to the tree he practiced on. The shade felt good against the morning sun's warmth. Torterra was soaking in the sunlight through his tree.

"Well, I should go make breakfast. It's almost time for Hikari to wake up." Ayako left the porch and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Her head suddenly poked out of a small window from the kitchen. "Oh, and Shinji-kun, if you run out of energy, I left a bowl of Oran Berries on the porch." She disappeared again and a shuffling of pans was heard afterwards.

"She's a very good parent," Torterra murmured to himself.

"Torterra," Shinji called. "I want to battle you."

The gentle-natured Pokémon blinked at his master, processed the words, and then slightly gaped. "You… want to battle me?"

"Yes." Shinji gave him a firm nod.

"Um… Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Shinji growled.

Torterra hesitated for a brief moment before accepting. "Okay." They prepared to battle. "Err… You sure about this?"Shinji glared. "Okay, okay."

Shinji planted his hind paws in the ground to lunge at Torterra. Electricity engulfed his body as he lunged at the continent Pokémon. He tackled him, but it did no damage. Shinji leapt back, prepared to take any retaliation. Torterra stomped his front two legs into the ground. The ground suddenly started shaking. Shit, he's going to use Frenzy Plant!

As if on cue, large roots of spikes emerged from the ground, heading towards Shinji. His eyes darted back and forth to see any escape routes. He quickly dodged the roots while he had the chance. He leered at Torterra straight in the eye. Torterra was slightly frozen. Shinji saw this as a chance to use his Discharge. Unfortunately, a root knocked him down – hard – from behind.

"Gah!" The attack sent Shinji crashing into the ground. It nearly knocked the breath out of him.

"Sh-Shinji!" Torterra was about to rush over until he saw Shinji trying to stand back up. "Are you okay?"

Shinji answered with a strong and perfectly-aimed Discharge. "There's my reply." His legs were shaking, but he wasn't going to give up yet.

Torterra shook off the electricity, feeling slightly dizzy. It looks like the time is near, Shinji, he thought. Let's see if you can evolve before Hikari-chan wakes up. He gathered energy around himself, and two rings of small rocks circled around his body. "If you really want me to continue, Shinji, I'll shoot now."

"Give me your best shot."

"Okay then." Torterra's eyes started to glow a bright green hue and he fired the rocks at Shinji. Knowing that Shinji was an electric type, a rock-type move would probably knock him out.

Shinji's eyes scanned the oncoming stones and dodged the first few, took two hits, and his legs finally gave way. "I am NOT giving up!" he growled as he released a very powerful Discharge. It became a beam of electricity that aimed at Torterra. Unfortunately, his large body prevented him from dodging so he took the hit.

"W-wow, Shinji…" Torterra was slightly paralyzed, barely able to move. "T-that was a very powerful Discharge!"

Suddenly, a white light enveloped Shinji. "Huh?" His body began to grow bigger and slender with a firm build, and his mane, legs, and tail grew longer. "This is…"

"You're evolving, Shinji!" Torterra exclaimed. "… into a Luxio!"

The white light disappeared and Shinji, who was a Shinx, became a Luxio. The mane around his frame had much more purple streaks than before, his tail was longer, and there were two yellow rings on his front legs.

"This… Is this how it feels to evolve?"

Torterra nodded, smiling. "Yes. It feels very refreshing and powerful, doesn't it?" He observed the newly-evolved Shinji. "Well, the purple streaks and your onyx eyes are the only features that discriminate you from other Luxio."

"I feel so powerful…" Shinji felt an urge to try hitting the target with his Discharge one last time. He faced the tree, focusing on the target. He charged himself with energy and released a straight beam of electricity at the target! The target broke into pieces and fell to Shinji's feet. As for the tree, its trunks were covered in burn marks. Shinji smirked, satisfied with his new power. "Hn."

"You sure are going to surprise Hikari-chan…" Torterra murmured. "You used a lot of energy, Shinji. Why don't you eat some of the Oran Berries?"

"I know." Shinji hopped onto the back porch, taking an Oran Berry in his mouth. He lied down on the floor, taking a bite out of the berry. "I can only expect her to start squealing and squeeze me to death." He slightly shuddered at the thought.

Torterra chuckled nervously. "You can never know, Shinji. Hikari-chan can be a bit unpredictable."

Shinji rolled his eyes. He had two more Oran Berries before standing up. "Do you have anything planned today, Torterra?"

"No. Do you have something in mind, Shinji?"

Shinji shrugged. "Not really." He sighed, looking back at the leftover Oran Berries in the bowl. He nudged the bowl over to Torterra with his paw. "Eat it. You did use a lot of energy after all."

"Thanks, Shinji. But I think you need it more… You did get injured a lot in our battle." Torterra nudged the bowl back over to Shinji. "I'll be fine after I eat breakfast. You are going to need the Oran Berries because I am definitely sure that you're on the verge of fainting." He smiled. "Even if you did evolve into a Luxio, you still have some damage from before."

"Then, take one."

Torterra chuckled. "Okay." He took an Oran Berry in his jaw and ate it. After a swallow, he felt a little more energized. "Thanks, Shinji." He noticed Hikari coming down the stairs. "I think you should hide now. Hikari-chan's here."

"Whatever." Shinji glanced at the bowl of Oran Berries and took one in his mouth. Then, he hid behind a nearby tree. Torterra swore he saw a small smirk coming from his master.

What are you planning? Torterra smugly sighed, chuckling to himself.

"Good morning, mom!" Hikari came down wearing another short-sleeved shirt and jeans.

"Good morning, Hikari! Did you sleep well?"

"Yep! But it's so strange! I woke up when I felt the house shaking!" Hikari exclaimed. "Was there an earthquake?"

"No, there were no earthquakes. You must've felt Shinji-kun's Torterra using his Frenzy Plant move." Ayako smiled reassuringly as she set a plate of rice, a bowl of miso soup, and a few side dishes. "Eat up! You might want to prepare for Unova."

"But, I have to train Shinx, don't I?" Suddenly, a thought struck her. "Wait… Torterra used Frenzy Plant… That is what you said, right?" When Ayako nodded, Hikari's eyes widened. "Did… Did Shinx and Torterra battle?" Her mother was about to answer, but Hikari stopped her. She tried to finish her breakfast as quickly as possible. She washed it down with a cup of milk and ran out to the backyard.

"Oh my…" Ayako stared at the plate that was eaten clean. "She must be very excited."

"Shinx?!" Hikari wheeled around and around to look for any sky blue and black fur. "Torterra, have you seen Shinx?"

Torterra shook his head, trying to hide a smile.

Hikari was about to give up, until she spotted a long black tail! Her eyes widened. "Sh-Shinx?" She slowly took a few steps towards the tree. What she found was not a Shinx, but a Luxio! Hikari gasped. "Lu-Lu-Luxio?!" Her breathing became a bit heavier. "Is that you, Shinx?"

Shinji rolled his eyes.

"Oh my Arceus, you've evolved into a Luxio!" Hikari gently embraced Shinji by the neck. "You look great! The purple streaks are more visible too!" She rubbed the side of her head against Shinji's. "I'm so proud of you, Luxio!"

"…" Torterra stared at Shinji, whose brow was twitching madly. "… Shinji? Are you okay?"

"Get. This. Troublesome. Girl. Off. Me," he growled. But as if on cue, Hikari immediately released her embrace. "Damn…"

"Sorry, Luxio…" Hikari sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "I just wanted to show you how proud I am of your progress…" Instead of another hug, she gave Shinji a pat. "I bet Shinji would be so proud of you…" she paused, whispering these last words to herself, "… if only he could realize how hard you worked this week."

But Shinji developed a keen sense of hearing, so he heard what she said. "Tch, this week? Are you kidding me? If I was able to train all day, I would've evolved in three days!" he hissed. Shinji wasn't really blaming anyone. Sure, Torterra suggested that he should take a break once in a while, but it was worth it. And of course, Hikari did want to do some unnecessary grooming with him, but it did entertain him to watch her try to find him when he hid.

Hikari was slightly taken aback by Shinji's sudden retort. "Err… Okay, okay, Luxio. I won't say anything else." She scratched him behind the ears, which triggered something inside Shinji. He felt more relaxed when Hikari was doing that. "Why don't we go to the mall? I'll buy you any treats you want."

"Treats? Please…" Shinji murmured sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Like I'd want any."

Oh boy was he wrong…

~.~.~

Piplup and Torterra tagged along because Hikari asked them to. They walked around the Twinleaf Mall looking from one store window to another.

"Did you see anything you might want, Luxio?"

Shinji gave a small frustrated sigh.

"Well, we might be here all day, because I need to do some shopping too." She put a finger to her lips. "Hmmm… Maybe I'll go to Veilstone City tomorrow. They have the biggest department store in all of Sinnoh after all."

"Veilstone City, huh…?" Shinji murmured to himself. An evil smirk appeared on his face, making him look more intimidating than your average Luxio. "Maybe I can tag along."

Torterra slightly cowered at the dark aura that was emitting from Shinji. Piplup stared at Shinji as if he suddenly transformed into a human again.

Suddenly, Shinji's eyes came to a peculiar package that was on display. It appeared to be a snack. He stopped walking beside Hikari, reading the label. "Pocky? What's that?"

"Did you find something, Luxio?" Hikari followed Shinji's gaze to a package of Pocky. "Oh! That's Pocky, Luxio. It's chocolate-covered biscuit sticks."

"Is that your Luxio, miss?" A young woman stood up, smiling at Shinji.

"U-um, sorta. I'm just looking after my friend's Pokémon." Hikari patted him. "… I've had him for a week, and he evolved into a Luxio this morning."

"That is amazing!" the woman gushed. "You must be a very good trainer!"

Hikari giggled nervously. "Not really, ma'am. His master isn't much of a… err… bright person, so Luxio might be a bit antagonistic to me."

"Well, he seems quite curious about the Pocky. Would you like to try one, Luxio?"

Shinji raised a brow, but shrugged. He wasn't a fan of sweets, but he's never tried Pocky before. The young woman took out four Pocky sticks from a small bag and handed them to Hikari.

"One for you, Piplup, Torterra, and Luxio!"

"W-Wow! Thank you!" Hikari gave one to Piplup, who chewed his treat down. She held one out to Torterra, since he didn't have anything to hold it with. Torterra took it in his mouth and chomped it down. It wasn't very filling but it tasted delicious!

"What do you think, Torterra?" Piplup asked. He grinned. "Doesn't it taste good?"

"I've never had… um… Pocky before, so yes," he replied. "Shinji, what about you?" The two found the Pocky sticking out of Shinji's mouth. "Do you like it?"

Shinji shrugged. He took the Pocky out with his tail. "It's not that bad." He licked the chocolate off the top of the Pocky. Strangely, he was starting to like this… Pocky snack. After the chocolate was gone, he nibbled on the biscuit.

"Do you like it, Luxio?" Hikari smiled. "Judging by the way you're eating it, I'm guessing you like it. Can I buy two packages, please?"

"Of course! You are very lucky, you know. We're having a 50% off sale on the Pocky packages."

Hikari's eyes glistened. "Wow! That's such great timing!" She paid the amount of one package for two. "Thank you so much, ma'am!" She carefully placed them in her bag and went on their way. "So is there anything else you want to see?"

"Over there!" Piplup tugged on Hikari's jeans, pointing to a fashion store. "How about there, Hikari-chan?"

"Alright, let's go shopping for new clothes." Hikari glanced at Luxio and Torterra. "Um, you won't mind if we shop there for a while, right?" She laughed nervously. Shinji rolled his eyes, while Torterra shook his head. "You two are the best! Hey, maybe I can buy you something in there too!"

Shinji's eyes slightly widened in horror and his eye twitched. Before he was able to retort in objection, they were in front of the store. "… Stupid, idiotic, troublesome girl…"

"I don't really think it'll be that bad, Shinji," Torterra whispered. He took a glance inside the store. "It doesn't seem as if this store only targets a girl's interests." He noticed three signs in the large store. "Look, there's one for girls, boys, and Pokémon."

When they entered the store, they heard two gasps from two young women beside them.

They were staring at Hikari, their jaws hanging open. "W-wait, a-aren't you Hikari-san, the coordinator who was in the Grand Festival?!"

Hikari blinked at the two employees in fluster. "U-um, y-yes, why do you ask?"

"Your design is the most popular in all of Sinnoh fashion styles!" One of them held a magazine with Hikari and Buneary, in their white dresses, on the front cover. "I can't believe we're meeting the Hikari!"

Shinji walked over, gazing at the magazine in curiosity. Buneary was wearing a white dress with a small blue bead necklace. Hikari was also wearing a white dress that extended to her ankles, white heels, a yellow ribbon sewn in the back, and the same blue bead necklace as Buneary's. Her blue locks were put behind her ears as her hair freely flowed down without any hairclips.

"Wow," Torterra breathed out. He looked at Shinji, who seemed focused on the cover. "Uh… Shinji?"

A strange feeling was overwhelming Shinji as he continued to gaze at the magazine. He felt warmth caress his cheeks. What is this warmth…? After he heard Torterra repeat his name again, he snapped out of his thoughts. "It's nothing."

"Why don't you look around in the Pokémon section? I'll be in the girl's section." Hikari left, leaving Piplup, Shinji, and Torterra at the front of the store.

"Um, I'll show you around." Piplup led Shinji and Torterra into the Pokémon section. It was large and there were so many different varieties of sizes, types, and colors of the clothes. "Oh! If I was you, Torterra, I'd like to try this on." Piplup took out a small dark blue ribbon with a bell on it. He tied it on Torterra's tail.

Torterra blinked, slightly shaking his tail. The bell made a wonderful and soothing sound. "It's a soothe bell, isn't it?"

Piplup nodded. "Yup! If you don't need it, it's completely fine."

"Thanks for the offer, Piplup, but I'll be fine without it." Torterra smiled reassuringly.

Piplup shrugged, pounding his chest with his flipper. "No problem, Torterra!" He grinned. He turned to Shinji, who was shaking his head at the accessory. "What? There's nothing wrong with these accessories, you know."

"Those would only spoil yourselves and get you weak," Shinji hissed.

"That's what you think, Shinji!" Piplup retorted. "But you can be wrong!"

Shinji smirked. "How?"

"One, you can wear an accessory so one can tell the difference between their Pokémon to another." Piplup held up the ribbon with the soothe bell. "Two, it can bring out a certain personality out of you." She pointed to Torterra. "For Torterra, it can bring out his gentle nature." He shook the small bell in his flippers, a soothing chime filling the atmosphere. "And finally, you might be able to use it during battle."

"…" Shinji was silent. Never has he heard Piplup like this before.

Piplup put his flipper on his hip while he pointed at Shinji. "Are those enough reasons for you?"

Before Shinji was able to answer, Hikari rushed over. "Guys! I need your help!"

Torterra and Shinji looked at each other then at Hikari.

"No problem, Hikari-chan!" Piplup led Shinji and Torterra to the girl's section.

Shinji's eyes widened. "NO! I refuse to go there!" His tail was starting to light up in electricity to add to his refusal.

Piplup groaned. "There's nothing but clothes, Shinji! It's not like you're going to find any underwear or lingerie in here!" He nearly broke into giggles after seeing Shinji's face. It was a mix of total embarrassment, disgust, and a color similar to that of a Tamato Berry. "Just come on!" Piplup grabbed Shinji and threw in near the changing rooms. Torterra merely followed, a small blush coating his cheeks.

"Thanks for coming, you three. I just need some opinions." Hikari displayed three outfits. "I don't know whether I should wear this one…" She held up a short-sleeved light blue dress that seemed to extend to her knees, very small frills at the rims, and a white collar. "… this one…" She then held up an orange ankle-length. It had designs of maple leaves on it. "… or this one?"

She held out a quite unique, yet simple outfit. It was a light hue of violet and the top extended to the stomach. A slightly darker and sleeveless dress, which came separately with the top, flowed down with grace. It was slightly shorter than a knee-length dress.

"Try it on, Hikari-chan!" Piplup pushed her into a changing stall, closing the door behind her. "You two better not try to escape!" With that, shuffling was heard. Out came Hikari with the first dress. Shinji rolled his eyes, while Torterra slightly shrugged. "Yeah, it doesn't really bring out her bright personality…" They went back in. Hikari came out with the orange dress.

"It kind of stands out too much, don't you think?" Torterra commented.

"Yeah…" Piplup pushed Hikari back in again.

"Hey, Piplup, do you think Shinji could really be in Unova?"

Shinji's ears perked up at his name and the question.

"Err…" Piplup paused for a brief moment. Shinji heard his sigh. "If only you knew, Hikari-chan, if only you knew…"

A vein popped in Shinji's forehead. "What's that supposed to be mean, you stupid penguin?"

"… I'm gonna kill you later, Shinji." The door slightly opened, Piplup's head poking out of the stall. "But I'm pretty sure this might kill you." She completely opened the stall door and Hikari came out with the light violet dress. "What do ya think?"

Warmth was creeping up to Shinji's cheeks. Torterra was slightly taken aback.

Hikari looked very cute, in Torterra's point of view. Piplup thought the outfit brought out the best in Hikari. Shinji was silent, unable to process any thoughts.

"… Hn." Shinji rolled his eyes and laid his head on his front legs. He averted his gaze somewhere else.

"Luxio, do you think I should get this one?"

Shinji looked back at Hikari, his cheeks warming up again. His tail pointed to the outfit she was wearing.

Hikari smiled. "Thanks so much, you three! I'll make sure to give you a treat! Not Poffins or Pocky, but something else…" She thought for a moment and shrugged. "Oh well." They approached the counter. Hikari laid out the outfit they chose, a cheerleader outfit, and a few fabrics. "Is there anything you want?"

"Oh wait! I'll get something!" Piplup ran off into the Pokémon section and came back with a yellow ribbon with the soothe bell on it. She gave it to Hikari, pointing to Shinji with her eyes.

"Oh! Of course!" Hikari added the ribbon along with the other clothes and fabrics. "I'd like to add this too, please."

"That will be 3569 Poké*, please."

Hikari paid for the products. Everything except the ribbon was put in three large bags. She carried two on her left arm and the other on her right. The soothe bell ribbon was in her right hand. "Thank you."

"No, thank you, Hikari-san! Have a nice day!" the employees waved as Hikari left the store.

Shinji stared at the ribbon in Hikari's hand. He then looked at Piplup, who was talking with Torterra. "So why did you buy that ribbon?"

Before he was able to realize the dark aura Piplup and Hikari were emitting, he was ambushed. "Now, Hikari-chan!" The two jumped on him, getting into a struggle. Piplup tried to tie the ribbon on Shinji's tail while Hikari tried to keep him still.

"GET OFF ME!" he shouted. He wanted to use Discharge on them, but alas, it was too late. They already tied the ribbon on his tail… tight enough so he won't be able to bite, snap, or pull it off. He sighed, admitting defeat.

They went on their way, and Shinji's new soothe bell rang along as he walked. His tail moved to the side of his face. He stared at it for a while then a small smile formed. The sound was unique and soothing as if it was meant for him. Shinji rolled his eyes.

Maybe… Just maybe…

Shinji might be able to get used to this…

~.~.~

A/N: Yes, I'm finally done! Thank you for your patience! I'm TERRIBLY sorry for the delay!