Three things to note this chapter: 1, it's unusually long. Not that you mind, right? 2, Kou's got a dirty mouth. It's her personality, I guess. Wonder where she learned them? And 3, I've revamped chapters 1-9. Feel free to look back on them! I did write them, what, two years ago?
Disclaimer: I own the threat of an Organic Chemistry test next Tuesday. Yep. But not Pokemon.
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"How old are you again?"
Lia shifted uncomfortably, not looking the casino security in the eye. Aurora floated lazily near Lia's shoulder, glancing around the area.
"Er…thirteen…" she mumbled.
The security man raised an eyebrow. He seemed to be making a decision as he frowned down at her.
"But I'll be fourteen in five months!" she added hastily.
The man sighed, "Fine, you can go in. Hell, there are probably ten year olds in there."
Lia darted past the man before he could change his mind and pushed past several glass doors. The inner room smelled overwhelmingly of cigarette smoke and was brightly lit. There were sketchy looking characters playing the slots, holding a cigarette to their mouths with shaking hands. Somewhere to her left, a ten year old kid swore loudly and kicked the machine, swearing again when he hurt his foot.
Lia sighed, "This place…"
'…seems like just the kind of place Darren would come to, right?' Aurora finished.
Still, not about to lose an opportunity to win some money, Lia weaved her way through the crowd and made it to the front desk. There were several receptionists there, counting the profits for the day.
"Um, excuse me? I'd like some coins…"
The middle woman looked up. She blinked and asked, "How old are you?"
"Old enough to get in."
"Right. Well, fifty coins are 1000 P, or you can buy 500 for 10,000 P."
Lia stepped back in shock and replied, "That's…that's expensive!"
"Hey, it's a casino. We gotta fund the city somehow. So, do you want coins or not?"
Lia sighed – yes, the city needed money, but… To think that Mauville was funded by such a sketchy operation. That would explain why the city was so nice looking on the surface. The Pokemon Center even had multiple levels like a hotel.
"Er…could I just get 25 coins? I really don't have the money for much else…"
"Sure. That'll be…500 P."
Lia paid the woman and got her coins, only to discover that she had no coin case to speak of. She eventually dropped the coins in her pocket and tried to find Darren. She had to shove past dozens of people, unable to see very much because she wasn't incredibly tall. Eventually, she ended up bumping into someone on the slot machine.
"Oh, sorry…" she blinked, suddenly recognizing the person. "Kanon?"
The dark haired boy spun around in his chair and laughed, "Hey, it's Lia! I thought the hospital still had you in its clutches. They let Taz and I out a couple days ago. I had to endure the most boring memories ever…who knew that Slowpoke led so very uneventful lives?"
"Yeah, I just got out today. I was looking for my travelling partner, actually."
Kanon looked about to reply, but the machine buzzed for him to insert three more coins. He begrudgingly put in a few more and pulled the lever before returning his attention to Lia.
"You're too short to see him, eh?" Lia blushed and nodded sheepishly. "Eh, it's alright. I wasn't always 5'11" myself. So, what does he look like?"
The girl thought for a second about the best way to describe him. "He's taller than me. Red hair, gold eyes. Most likely cosplaying as a pokemon. Loud mouthed and rude, with a constant air of nonchalance."
"Ah, I've definitely seen him. He was wearing a Meowth ensemble, I believe…"
Lia sighed at how easy it was to pick Darren out. Did he really annoy people that much?
Kanon led Lia over to the roulettes, where Darren was indeed gambling. He was surrounded by men and woman more than twice his age, smoking cigarettes and staring at him irritably. The boy paid them no heed and instead studied the board.
"Green Wynaut 12." he said decisively, leaning back in his chair.
The official nodded and took the other bids, then rolled the ball. The roulette spun round and round, becoming a silver blur. The ball finally slowed down, barely making it over each ledge until it rested comfortably in a little green square with a Wynaut in it. The number 12 was above it.
A woman stood up abruptly, scattering her betting chips. "He's cheating!" she shrieked. "There's no way he could win five in a row with such narrow bids!"
The official calmly replied, "It's a game of luck, ma'am. Now, I believe each of the bidders owe Mr. Darren 500 coins each."
Ten people begrudgingly withdrew the coins, including the woman, would flung them in his face. He calmly collected the five thousand coins and put them in the coin case that, Lia recalled, he shouldn't have really had.
"Um…Darren?" she said eventually. "Can I talk to you?"
He looked up and said, "Yeah, sure, I'm pretty much done here anyway."
Lia bid goodbye to Kanon and joined Darren, and together they made their way back to the front. Darren navigated over to a prize counter that was lined with stuffed dolls and TMs.
"Hey, I want to exchange these coins for some TMs." Darren said.
As the woman nodded and turned away, Lia whispered, "What are you going to do with those TMs anyway?"
"Sell then for five times their value, of course. Honestly Lia, you need to think about things like this."
"I'd rather not. I don't want a mind as twisted as yours." she replied dryly.
Darren laughed and got his TMs. Lia decided to trade all her coins for a cute looking Torchic doll and stuffed it in her bag. She had her eye on it since she got in – it would make a good reminder of how cute Kou had been. Too bad she hadn't acted that cute…
--- --- ---
Darren and Lia stepped out into the bright light outside. The day was nice, with only a few clouds drifting across the sky.
Lia flipped open her Pokenav and scrolled through the map conveniently contained in the device.
"Hmm, the Gym is about…half a mile north of here. Let's move on!" she chirped, putting the Pokenav away.
"Eager, are you?" Darren noted.
"Well, the more badges I have, the better. How else am I supposed to battle my dad?"
Darren raised an eyebrow. "Is that what this is about?"
"Not entirely! But…I have to admit, it is an incentive. What, you never wanted to battle your parents in a battle?" she inquired.
"They weren't trainers, they're scientists. They only have a few pokemon around."
A moment of silence, and then, "EEH? Your parents are both scientists, Darren? Wow, that's amazing! What do they do?"
Darren took a step back, shocked at her reaction. "I don't know why you're so amazed. Being a scientist is nothing special. They do a lot of research in the different types and such."
When Lia's expression turned confused, he added, "For example, my mom's only pokemon's a Pikachu. Named him Pyro because he's been genetically engineered to use fire attacks. Ever seen a Pikachu use Flamethrower?"
"Th-that's amazing! Darren, why didn't you tell me before?"
"It didn't seem important. It has nothing to do with you." he replied flatly. The tone of his voice suggested that the conversation was over.
Her face fell, feeling slightly hurt. "Well, yeah, but –"
"Let's get going. Wattson's not going to wait forever."
Lia sighed as Darren walked away. He shut her off again. He didn't like to talk about his family. Why? Did they hurt him somehow? She frowned – she didn't like that idea at all.
Aurora tapped her on the shoulder, snapping her out of her trance. She yelled, "Wait up, Darren!" and ran after him.
--- --- ---
They arrived at the gym in more or less silence, neither having much to say. However, when they reached the gym, there was quite a disturbance to distract them.
A young boy and an older man were arguing vehemently in front of the Gym doors. Neither seemed willing to back down, and both were screaming.
"Absolutely not! You are nowhere near strong enough to battle the Gym leader! You'll get too worked up and have another attack!" the older man shouted.
"I will not! How many times to I have to tell you that I'm healthy now?! Just let me try!" the boy hissed back.
Darren sighed, "Ugh, how annoying. Can they take this somewhere else?"
Lia was quiet. The boy had familiar green hair… She walked a little closer and said, "…Wally…?"
The boy turned around, orange eyes wide in shock. Yep, it was Wally alright. He seemed a little taller than last time and a lot healthier. He was almost as tall as Lia now.
"Lia!" Wally replied happily. "It's good to see you again! How are you? How is that Torchic of yours?"
Lia laughed – he was certainly more energetic. The man leaned over and stared at Lia and Darren.
"Wally, do you know these people?"
The boy's face returned to a scowl. "Yes, Uncle. Lia's the one who helped me catch my pokemon. And I want to use that pokemon to challenge Wattson!"
His uncle laughed, "Wally, be realistic. You probably couldn't even beat this girl, much less this Gym leader."
A scarlet blush spread across Wally's face in indignation. He whipped out his pokeball and held it out in front of Lia. His entire arm was trembling in anger.
"FINE! If I can beat Lia in a pokemon battle, then can I challenge Wattson?"
Lia blinked in surprise. How had she been drawn into this? This was the boy who was afraid to even pick up a pokeball not even a month ago. Having a pokemon seems to have drastically changed him.
The man folded him arms across his chest, an incredulous look on his face. "Fine. But if you lose, you must come home without complaint."
Wally nodded, then turned to Lia. His look was almost apologetic, as if to say 'sorry for dragging you into this'.
"Well, I only have one pokemon, so this will be one-on-one, okay?" Wally said, rolling the pokeball nervously from hand to hand.
Lia frowned – he only had one pokemon? Then it must have been Ralts. She knew he wouldn't be able to win like that – it just wasn't possible. As cruel as it was, she resolved to crush him, and to do it fast.
"Right. Go, Shadow!" she called, tossing out the pokemon.
Darren chuckled under his breath, "Oh, cruel are we?" This battle wouldn't even be worth watching.
The Poochyena appeared and instantly poised himself for battle. His posture was much steadier, Lia noted proudly. Wally, however, wasn't so sure.
"He only has one eye? You're not patronizing me, are you Lia?"
Her face settled into an annoyed look. "If you knew how hard Shadow has trained, you'd actually be complaining. I'm not going to go easy on you, Wally."
The boy was annoyed as well by her curt reply. "Don't think it'll be so easy! Go Ralts!"
Lia recognized the Ralts from before. She wasn't quite as delicate as Aurora had been, and actually seemed quite tough. She wouldn't back down.
Unfortunately, Lia wouldn't give her the chance.
"Shadow, Bite!" she commanded.
"Ralts, dodge it!" Wally replied.
Shadow charged, a dark aura gathering around his fangs. The Ralts cleverly dodged to the left to take advantage of his blind right eye, but suddenly Shadow skidded in front of her and bit her arm. The Ralts shrieked as the darkness seeped into her skin, tinting it black.
"R-Ralts!" Wally yelped.
Lia calmly said, "Ah, it's a bad idea to get on a pokemon's blind side. He so much more aggressive that way. He likes to see his opponent, and if he can't, well…"
She gestured towards the pokemon, where Shadow had released the Ralts, watching her carefully as she lay on the ground, clutching her arm.
Wally clenched his fists, tears welling up in his eyes. "Ralts, Confusion!"
The psychic sat up as her eyes glowed with a rose colored light. The pink light brightened and passed right through the Poochyena, much to her and her trainer's surprise. Shadow shook his head with a sigh.
"Shadow, let's finish this. Faint Attack." Lia said quietly.
The puppy's body slowly faded away before their very eyes, reappearing and slamming into the Ralts as a dark shadow. He landed easily on his feet as the psychic stumbled back and fell without another word.
The battle was over.
Wally fell to his knees, his face blank with shock. "I…lost?"
Lia nodded mutely. Shadow ran back to his trainer, tail wagging happily. Sparks of light seemed to gather around his feet and spiraled upward in a familiar manner. Lia blinked – he was…evolving?
Sure enough, the puppy was enveloped in white light, growing rapidly in size. The tattered gray bandana fluttered to the ground, now too small for his head. Once the light faded, Lia could see how much he had changed.
His head came up to her waist now. Instead of the black mane lying smoothly, as it should, it seemed to stick out every which way, falling over his short gray fur. His face seemed calm and mature, his good red eye offsetting his milky blue eye. The scars crossing the right side of his face had not disappeared, but had faded somewhat.
Lia smoothed the fur on his head affectionately, grinning widely. She got out a new bandana, a blue one this time, and wrapped it securely over his right eye once more.
"Terrific job, Shadow. Never thought you'd evolve someday, eh?" she whispered.
The Mightyena gave a wolfish grin in reply, wagging his tail side to side. Lia patted his head again and stood, walking over to Wally. He was holding his Ralts protectively, stifling tears the whole time.
"…Guess I wasn't ready, huh?" he murmured.
Lia sighed and said, "Look, that's not your biggest problem. You can't expect to win very many battles with only a Ralts. Heck, I lose my fair share of battles, and I've got six pokemon. It's all about having a support network."
He looked up at Lia, letting the message sink in for a bit. "…All right. I'll build up my team and come back later."
He stood up and shook her hand. "Thank you Lia-sensei!"
"Sensei?" Lia said faintly. Darren suppressed a laugh all of the sudden, making it sound like a cough.
Wally's uncle finally said, "All right, all right, enough idol worship. Let's get you back – you know your cousin Wanda is worried."
Wally nodded and waved a cheery good bye to Lia. She waved back, glad he was quick to recover. She had been rather bitter about her first trainer loss, against Ryu if she recalled correctly.
"Come on Lia, I'm bored enough as it is. Let's get into the Gym already." Darren sighed.
She nodded quickly and they walked into the Gym.
--- --- ---
"Darren?"
"Yes?"
"Are all Gym leaders in Hoenn completely and totally insane?"
"Most likely."
Lia and Darren were, at the current moment, surrounded by bars of electricity about five feet wide each, extending far above their heads. There were two switches nearby – a red and a blue one.
Lia studied both carefully. "If I press the wrong one, what do you think would happen?"
"We'd probably electrocute ourselves somehow. There are a couple of grounded poles behind us." he replied.
She glanced back – sure enough, there were identical poles behind them. Pressing the button would send that electricity right through them. She sighed and the two proceeded to edge away from the danger.
"I wonder if the taxpayers know about this." Lia murmured.
"How many taxpayers are pokemon trainers? They probably never come here."
"You're probably right."
Once they were out of the way, Lia poked the red button. The electrical fields shifted all at once, turning from blue to red. A small path was opened up, so they were able to proceed a little further.
"How long have we been in here?" Darren asked, patting down his static pulled hair.
Lia checked her Pokenav. "About 45 minutes. A Ground type would be so useful…"
"Well, let's keep going. Press the blue one this time."
--- --- ---
"Wa ha ha! A little charged up, are you?"
Lia and Darren stood across the shiny metal floor from an old man in a fuzzy brown sweater and gold cargo pants. His white hair stuck up in all different directions. While he was looking rather poised, the same couldn't be said for the two trainers.
Their hair was super charged and standing on end. Several dryer sheets that were cruelly placed throughout the Gym were now affixed to various places on their bodies. They were standing about three feet apart, afraid to accidently bump into each other and get shocked. They had rather murderous looks in their eyes.
"Wa ha ha! Well, just touch those metal orbs over there to get grounded." Wattson laughed again.
The two shuffled very carefully to the metal orbs. They weren't even one foot away when a visible shock of electricity discharged from their fingertips and were absorbed into the orb, making it glow. Instantly, their hair fell flat and the dryer sheets fell off.
Lia shook the rest off and muttered, "I hate this Gym already. They just keep getting crazier…"
She finally approached the stage and faced Wattson formally. Darren leaned again the wall lazily as he had done at the last Gym battle.
Wattson laughed, "Wa ha ha! Well, this Gym has a three-on-three battle rule. I'm not allowed substitutions, but you are. Those sound fine to you?"
Lia nodded and withdrew a pokeball. "Go, Rakurai!"
The Electrike materialized on the field, shaking out his short green fur. He glanced back at Lia just once, then turned his eyes towards Wattson. Lia was worried a bit, since she had never battled with Raku, but she had faith in his ability.
The old man chuckled and threw in his own bid. "Ha ha! Go Voltorb!"
The red and white sphere appeared on the field, glaring at Rakurai as electricity sparked around it. Raku grinned, his overgrown fangs jutting over his lips.
"Rakurai, use Quick Attack!"
"Voltorb, Spark!"
The Electrike rushed in and slammed into his opponent. At the moment of impact, the Voltorb released a torrent of electricity, blasting Raku off of it. He flew through the air, bounced off the ground once, and landed on his feet. There was a ridge of charred fur along his forehead.
Lia frown and ordered, "Let's go with Bite!"
Raku growled as the familiar dark aura formed around his fangs. He ran up and bit the Voltorb, putting cracks into its metallic skin. The pokemon immediately let off a high pitched wail that resounded through the arena.
Lia clapped her hand to her ears – damn, a Screech attack… Rakurai, unable to stand the sound released the pokemon and backed off. The Voltorb wasn't looking so good with those puncture wounds.
"Rakurai, go in for another Quick Attack!" Lia called. That should finish it off…
When Rakurai was within five feet of the Voltorb, Wattson commanded, "Self-Destruct."
Lia panicked, yelling, "Raku, get out of there! Hurry!"
The Electrike skidded to a stop and began to sprint in the other direction. The Voltorb glowed a bright white and exploded, sending a shock wave throughout the Gym. Lia was thrown to her feet as Rakurai was blasted through the air.
The girl sat up hurriedly to see her pokemon struggling to his feet. "Rakurai, are you okay?" she called.
He glanced back again and smirked. Yes, it seemed like he was just fine. He still had numerous injuries, though, and dark bruises were beginning to appear under his fur.
The Voltorb, obviously knocked out by attack, was recalled by Wattson.
"Wa ha ha! Your Electrike is faster than I expected. He's a good choice. But he won't last against this next one. Go, Magneton!"
The Gym leader tossed out a Great ball, releasing the strange magnet pokemon into the field. Lia recalled having a camera ruined by a Magnemite once. She wasn't exactly happy about that.
"Rakurai, Spark!"
The Electrike unleashed a bright golden spark in all directions. The Magneton was knocked back, the small dots in its eyes spinning. It quickly righted itself, not too much worse for the wear.
"Magneton, Tri Attack!" Wattson called.
The Magneton formed a small sphere of white light in front of each eye. The top one let loose first, blasting a controlled beam of electricity. Rakurai dodged this narrowly, the fur on his back raising in response. The left eye released a Flamethrower attack which Raku could not dodge, so he was blasted back by the flames.
"R-Rakurai!" Lia called.
The pokemon struggled to his feet, ready to go again, when the last attack was fired. It was an ice attack, spraying the Electrike with ice crystals. The blizzard like wind completely surrounded him, blotting him out of view. When the wind died down, the Electrike was completely encased in thick ice.
"Raku!" Lia yelled. Taking Aurora along, she ran up to the ice and shattered it with her elbow. Despite bruising it badly, she managed to free him. The pokemon took a shuddering gasp of air – after all, you can't breathe when you're encased in ice.
"Return." she said with a sigh of relief, recalling her pokemon.
She walked back to her side of the arena and called forth her next pokemon. "Faelia, let's go!"
As the Zigzagoon appeared on the field, Wattson raised an eyebrow. He hadn't seen anyone seriously use such a pokemon against him. At any rate, he chuckled, he had to take it down.
"Magneton, Sonic Boom!" he called.
The Magneton concentrated sound waves and shot them at Faelia, but he dodged it quickly. It attempted several more attacks, but Faelia was too quick for it.
"Fae, Rock Smash!" Lia called. Her Zigzagoon was a jack of all trades with her HM attacks.
The raccoon leapt into the air and slammed into the magnet pokemon claws first. A burnt orange light burst out at the point of contact, and there was a distinct sound of crunching metal. She leapt back and landed neatly as the Magneton crashed to the ground.
Wattson laughed again, annoying Lia. "Wa ha ha! A Fighting attack, huh? A good choice! My Magneton was always weak to that…well, time for my last pokemon. Go, Manectric!"
--- --- ---
It had been a long battle. The Manectric had taken down Faelia fairly quickly, being bigger and faster than her. Lia had then sent in Kou, and the battle had really gotten interesting.
Kou, as usual, fought like a demon. She kicked and slashed and pecked without order, never leaving an attack unreturned. The Manectric, in turn, was vicious with the electric attacks, scorching Kou badly.
Both pokemon stood on the field, breathing heavily. They both were in a bad shape, Kou noticeably worse than the other.
"Wa ha ha! Brawly didn't lie! The combination of the unpredictable Lia and the demonic Kou really is impressive! It's been a blast battling you!" Wattson laughed.
Lia raised an eyebrow – Brawly had been talking about her? She wondered if the Gym leaders had some sort of secret network?
"But anyway…" Wattson said quietly, suddenly serious. "It's time to end this."
He threw out his arm. "Manectric, use Shock Wave!"
The Manectric crackled with blinding electricity, creating visible layers in domes around him. He then rushed forward at Kou with insane speed. The attack was unavoidable. Each layer hit Kou one at a time, ending with what was essentially a skull bash.
Kou staggered back, her eyes wide in shock. She clutched at the large, charred black spot on her chest as blood trickled out of the side of her mouth.
"Com…busken…" 'You…bastard…'
She then fell over backwards and hit the ground with a soft thump.
For a while there was silence. No one moved.
Then, slowly, Lia walked out into the arena and kneeled over her pokemon. She touched her pokemon softly, afraid to hurt her more.
"Kou…are you okay?" she whispered.
The Combusken weakly grabbed the front of her trainer's shirt and hissed at her in her language. 'Am I okay? Am I okay?! I lost, you idiot! You were supposed to make me stronger! You…you lied!' The meaning of her words was unmistakable.
The pokemon looked ready to make more rude remarks when she felt a drop of water. Then another, then another, and…
Lia was crying, the tears absolutely streaming down her face.
"I'm…I'm sorry Kou. I'm sorry! I…couldn't win."
A shadow fell over the two. Lia looked up to see Wattson offering her a handkerchief. She took it and hid her face shamefully.
"Now now little Lia – you have to laugh at your defeats, not cry! Think of how much you learned right now! You should be happy!" he admonished gently.
She looked away, but the confusion was apparent on her face. Wattson straightened up and sighed heavily.
"Come back went you understand."
With that, he turned and left Lia on the arena. The girl robotically returned Kou and staggered over to where Darren was standing quietly. She half expected him to make a snide remark, but he thankfully said nothing of the sort.
"Off to the Pokemon Center, then?" he said.
"…Right. Then we can go to Verdanturf for your contest, right? We can come back here…later." She straightened up and added, "When I understand."
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I actually remember my battle with Wally in Mauville. Shadow was evolved before that, actually, and I killed it in one shot with one freaking Bite. So yeah, I'm actually making the battle with Wally bigger than it actually was. XD It was pathetic...
Please review! Tell me what you like!