Hey guys, I finally have chapter 26 up! Thanks to everyone who has kept up with my story this far!
P.S. I do not own Pokemon.
Previously, Hikari and her friends, Tatsuya and Cheren, had captured a group of Team Plasma members in Driftveil City's Cold Storage. However, Ghetsis arrived soon afterward and the Gym Leader Clay was forced to release them. Hikari is now working even harder to defeat Team Plasma and their leader N! Perhaps a little too hard…
Tatsuya's POV
I watched as Hikari battled against a pair of wild Pokemon on Route 6. Ever since Team Plasma had been released from custody a day and a half prior, she had been training like crazy. She had sounded so playful when she had challenged Cheren, but now she seemed dead serious. I had lost count of how many times she rode her bike to the Pokemon Center to heal her Pokemon only to go right back out and continue training. I understood her determination to take down those horrible people, as my feelings were similar, but even I didn't go this far. She was really starting to worry me, and Victini also felt concerned.
At the moment, the younger Trainer was focusing her training on Dewott and her recently acquired Vanillite and shiny Deerling to prepare for the Gym Battle against Clay. The Grass-type Pokemon, who had shed its spring coat and now wore a fresh green coat for the summer, Jump Kicked a wild Deerling while its partner Vanillite used Avalanche on a Foongus. Both wild Pokemon were beaten simultaneously.
"Foongus, the Mushroom Pokemon. It lures people in with its Poké Ball pattern, then releases poison spores. Why it resembles a Poké Ball is unknown."
The instant Hikari recalled her Pokemon, I walked over to her. "Hikari, I need to talk to you."
"What about?" she asked as she started looking around for more wild Pokemon to battle.
"About all this training," I said. "You've hardly had any rest for the last couple of days! I understand that you wanna get stronger, but you need to chill."
"Tatsuya, the sooner I beat Clay, the sooner I can go after Team Plasma," Hikari countered. "And if I don't train my Pokemon, they won't be strong enough to beat Clay's Pokemon, let alone whatever N might send their way when we find him again – "
I cut her off by stepping in front of her and taking her head in my hands, forcing her to look at me. "Hikari, you're exhausted. As much as I want you to work towards whatever goal you have, I don't want you running yourself ragged. So please… calm down and take the rest of the day off. Will you do that for me?"
She glared at me for a few minutes, not saying a word. Then her eyes closed and her legs gave way, the exhaustion finally catching up to her. I managed to catch her before she fell and gently lowered her to the ground, kneeling down so I could still support her.
"Sorry," she murmured. "I guess I went overboard…"
"It's OK," I said. "Just lie down for a bit." I sat down on my knees and allowed Hikari to lay her head on my lap. She fell asleep in a matter of minutes, while Victini breathed a sigh of relief.
We stayed like that for a while, but eventually my legs started to hurt from being in that position. I looked at my Xtransceiver, which read 5:30 pm, and decided to head back to the Pokemon Center. With some careful maneuvering, I managed to get Hikari onto my back and carried the sleeping Trainer back to town.
Halfway back, I felt her move her head a little. "Tatsuya?" I heard her say. "What are you…?"
"Whoops, didn't mean to wake you," I said apologetically. "You're so tired, I couldn't have you walk back."
"No, guess not," Hikari said softly.
I smiled to myself. "You know, this kinda reminds me of the old days back home," I told her. "Remember all those times you got hurt, and I would carry you back to your house?"
"Cuz you didn't know how to fix it yourself," she replied with a soft laugh.
"Well, what else was I supposed to do, leave you there?" I asked. "And no matter what, you refused to cry. You always had to tough it out like Cheren would."
"What can I say? We were rivals even then," she muttered. Then her arms wrapped themselves around me. "You've always taken care of me, Tatsuya. That's why I…" Her voice trailed off, and I could feel my cheeks flushing as I waited for her to finish that sentence. A few seconds later, I heard soft snoring by my ear, and I just shook my head.
When we returned to the Pokemon Center, I had to ask Victini to open the door to Hikari's room so I could go in. I laid her on her bed and then left as quietly as I could. Mere seconds after closing her door, I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, trying to figure out what she was going to say. Why was that bothering me so much?
"Everything alright?" a voice asked. I turned to see Nurse Joy looking at me with a concerned expression.
I walked over to the counter and leaned over it. "If you're asking about Hikari, she's getting some actual rest now," I answered.
"Well, that's good," the nurse said with a sigh of relief. "The poor thing was really starting to worry me. But that's not what I was asking about. I meant, are you alright?"
"Oh," I responded, my face turning red again. "Uh, Nurse Joy? Do you mind if I ask you something?"
"Not at all," Joy said. "Ask away!"
Suddenly, I felt really nervous. "Um, have you… that is, I… let me start over," I muttered before taking a deep breath. "What would you do if someone said they liked you? Just hypothetically."
"I think that would depend on who the person is," she answered. "Do I know this person very well? Do I like them back?"
"I-I'm not sure if you like them back," I stammered. "But you've known them for a long time, and you were pretty close growing up, almost like siblings."
"And you're afraid of ruining that relationship with her if you told her?" Nurse Joy asked.
"No no, I wasn't talking about me! It's just a… friend of mine, yeah!" I hastily blurted out, trying to cover up but failing miserably.
"If you say so," the redhead giggled, obviously not fooled.
I sighed, giving up. "Never mind, forget I said anything." Nurse Joy nodded and got back to work. I walked over to a couch and sat down in it, leaning back into it before adjusting my cap so it was over my eyes. What is wrong with me? I thought to myself before dozing off.
Hikari's POV
I woke up when I felt someone shaking my shoulders. Dewott was looking down at me with a concerned expression. "Hey, Dewott," I said as I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.
"Dewott, dewott (Morning, Hikari)," the Water-type Pokemon greeted.
"Morning?" I muttered before looking at my Xtransceiver, which read 8:30 am. "Guess I needed that rest more than I thought." Then I looked at Dewott and pulled him into a hug. "I'm sorry I pushed you and the others so hard, Dewott. I really don't know what came over me."
"Dew dewott (It's OK)," he told me.
I got up and let Vanillite and Deerling out of their Poke Balls. "I'm sorry about the last two days, guys," I said apologetically. "I swear, I'm not usually like that."
"Va, va vani vanillite (Hey, those guys made me mad, too)," Vanillite told me. "Vani vani vanillite (I don't blame you in the least)."
"Deerling deer deerling! (I liked the training!)" Deerling piped up. Apparently, this Pokemon was quite the hard worker.
"Thanks for understanding," I said with a smile. Then suddenly my stomach growled. "Oops, guess I need to eat something," I muttered. I had skipped dinner yesterday, after all.
I got dressed, and then walked out of the room, nearly running into Audino, who was carrying a breakfast tray. "Audino! (Good morning!)" it greeted as it held out the tray to me.
"Oh, thank you!" I said gratefully as I took the tray to a table and started eating.
"Well, look who's up and about," a voice from next to me said. I looked to see Tatsuya walking over to me. "Hey there, sleepyhead! How are you feeling?"
"Better than ever!" I answered enthusiastically. "I feel like taking on Clay right now!"
Tatsuya laughed. "Well in that case, you'll need these," he said as he held out a bag full of pink potions. I counted ten of them. "These are Hyper Potions. They restore your Pokemon's health three times as much as a Super Potion does. You kept forgetting to buy supplies yesterday, so I took care of it for you."
Hikari obtained Hyper Potions!
"Oh, you didn't have to do that, Tatsuya! Thank you!" I said as I took the bag. "I'll put these in my bag as soon as I finish breakfast."
"I'm glad you like them," Tatsuya said with a smile. "How are your Pokemon holding up?"
"They say they're alright. I'm just glad they're so understanding," I told him. "Even so, I should probably have Nurse Joy check on them one more time before I battle Clay."
"You hear that, Nurse Joy?" Tatsuya called over.
"I heard, and that's a smart move, young lady," she said. "If you don't mind, I'll take your Pokemon right now."
"Sure. Thanks," I said as I handed over my six Poke Balls to the nurse.
A few minutes later, my Pokemon were all cleared and ready to go to the Driftveil City Gym. When we got there, we walked into the lobby. Sitting behind a desk was a young man. "Excuse me, I'm looking for the Gym Leader Clay," I said.
"In that case, please take the elevator in front of you," the man said, pointing to a platform in the center of the room.
"Thanks!" I told him as Tatsuya and I walked over to the platform. Sure enough, when Tatsuya pushed a button, we started to go down.
"Hope you're not claustrophobic, Hikari," Tatsuya said. "You need to navigate this mine shaft using the elevators, and Clay is all the way at the bottom of the shaft."
"It's not small spaces that worry me," I replied. We reached the first level of girders and we carefully walked across to the next elevator. We kept this up until we finally found the main elevator which kept taking us further and further underground. I could've sworn we passed a Pokemon skeleton! "Just how far down is he?" I asked in amazement.
"You know, I actually asked Clay about that once," Tatsuya replied. "He said that the reason for the depth of the Driftveil Gym helps to remind him that he once started at the bottom with nothing."
"That's… pretty cool, actually," I muttered.
We finally reached the bottom of the shaft, where it opened into a large cavern. Large green crystals could be seen in the rocky walls.
Standing in front of one particularly large crystal was Clay. "So, I heard ya worked yerself pretty hard fer this match."
"Who told you that?" I asked before it dawned on me that there was only one person who could've told him. "Tatsuya!" I shouted, glaring at him.
"Hey, somehow he had to know you were gonna be a while," the older Trainer said with a shrug.
"I know I said don't keep me waitin', but ya didn't havta take it literally!" Clay explained.
Now I felt kinda embarrassed. "Sorry bout that," I muttered.
Clay just shrugged and then pulled out a Poke Ball. "Well… Think it's about time to see fer myself what it is about yer skills that made a Gym Leader like Elesa take such a shine to ya."
Tatsuya made his way to the sidelines along with Zorua, who once again let himself out of his ball. Victini, Zorua and Minnie all stood with the older Trainer to watch the battle.
A referee came out and made the announcement. "This Gym Battle between the Gym Leader Clay and the challenger Hikari is about to begin! Each Trainer shall use three Pokemon!" And with his signal, my fifth Gym Battle began!
Hikari vs Clay!
Hikari is challenged by Leader Clay!
"Krokorok, go!" Clay called as a large crocodile Pokemon appeared.
"Krokorok, the Desert Croc Pokemon and the evolved form of Sandile. They live in groups of a few individuals. Protective membranes shield their eyes from sandstorms."
"Vanillite, c'mon out!" The Fresh Snow Pokemon took to the battlefield.
"Torment!" Krokorok turned and teasingly waved its tail at Vanillite, making it mad.
I can't use the same attack two times in a row, I thought. Better make this count! "Ice Beam now!" The Ice-type Pokemon shot an icy bolt from its mouth, hitting Krokorok dead on.
Clay smirked. "I'll be! Sure didn't see that comin.' Use Bulldoze!" The Desert Croc Pokemon leapt up and stomped down hard, sending Vanillite to the ground.
"You OK, Vanillite?" I asked, noticing that the attack had caused quite a bit of damage. Vanillite just floated back up and nodded. "Good, then use Avalanche!" Sure enough, a huge amount of snow fell out of the air, burying Krokorok. It managed to slowly dig itself out, but it ran out of strength and passed out.
"Krokorok is unable to battle. Vanillite wins!"
The foe's Krokorok fainted!
"Good job, Vanillite!" I encouraged.
Clay recalled Krokorok. "Go, Palpitoad!" He sent out a large blue Pokemon with quite a few bumps on its head. It looked like a large tadpole with feet, but no arms.
"Palpitoad, the Vibration Pokemon and the evolved form of Tympole. When they vibrate the bumps on their heads, they can make waves in water or earthquake-like vibrations on land."
"Vanillite, return!" I said as the Ice-type Pokemon disappeared into its ball. According to the Pokedex, Palpitoad was half-Water half-Ground, and there was only one Pokemon in my team who could cause significantly damage to that. "Your turn, Deerling!" I shouted as I threw an Ultra Ball and the Season Pokemon made its sparkly entrance.
"Muddy Water!" A large wave of brown water headed for Deerling, but the little Pokemon leapt up and just barely managed to avoid it.
"Whoa, Deerling can really jump!" Tatsuya marveled.
"Jump Kick!" Deerling landed right in front of Palpitoad before turning and landing a kick right in its face, forcing it back a ways.
"C'mon, Palpitoad! Use Aqua Ring!" Clay ordered. A blue ring of energy surrounded Palpitoad, and it slowly started getting its energy back.
"I don't think so! Energy Ball!" I shouted. The green energy ball shot out of Deerling's mouth and hit the opponent.
Palpitoad appeared to be on its last leg, but then Clay gave it a Hyper Potion. "Bulldoze!"
"Not again!" I cried before Palpitoad slammed into the ground, damaging Deerling in the process. "Hold on, Deerling!" I said as I gave it a Hyper Potion. "Use Grass Knot!" The Season Pokemon's eyes glowed green, and then two blades of grass grew just in front of Palpitoad. The two blades also glowed green before tying themselves in a knot, tripping the Vibration Pokemon.
I thought I saw Clay flinch that time, but I could've been mistaken. "Muddy Water!" This time, the wave hit Deerling, soaking it and dirtying its fur, which really seemed to make it mad.
"Hit it with Energy Ball again!" Deerling shook its fur before releasing another Energy Ball, hitting Palpitoad and knocking it out.
"Palpitoad is unable to battle. Deerling wins!"
The foe's Palpitoad fainted!
Tatsuya and the Pokemon with him cheered from the sidelines as Deerling pranced around in a circle, proud of its victory.
Clay, however, simply recalled Palpitoad and pulled out one last Poke Ball. "Givin' up is the easy way out! I could've given up any ol' time! C'mon out, Excadrill!" He threw the ball and a mole-like Pokemon took to the battlefield. Its claws looked like blades, and there was one more blade on its head. All I knew was, this Pokemon spelled trouble.
"Excadrill, the Subterrene Pokemon. It can help in tunnel construction. Its drill has evolved into steel strong enough to bore through iron plates."
"Hone Claws!" Excadrill sharpened its claws by rubbing them together.
"Deerling, use Jump Kick!" The Season Pokemon ran forward and launched a kick, but Excadrill dodged it and Deerling hit a rock wall instead, hurting itself. "Oh no!" I cried.
"Now use Slash!" Excadrill raked Deerling with its powerful claws. The little Pokemon flew back toward me and hit the ground, unable to continue.
"Deerling is unable to battle. Excadrill wins!"
Deerling fainted!
"You did a good job, Deerling. Rest up," I said as I called Deerling back to its Ultra Ball. Vanillite still had some energy left, but I didn't know how well it'd do against a Pokemon who was half-Ground half-Steel, so I didn't wanna risk it. Instead, I pulled out my last ball. "You're up, Dewott!" The Water-type Pokemon hit the battlefield
"Minccino! Mincci mincci! (Go, Dewott! You can beat him!)" Minnie cheered from the sidelines. Dewott looked at her and smiled confidently.
"Slash!" Excadrill ran at Dewott with its claws bared and tried to Slash him, but he quickly drew his scalchops and blocked the attack, much to Minnie's delight.
"Nice block, buddy! Use Razor Shell!" With all his might, Dewott managed to push the Subterrene Pokemon away and counterattack with his scalchops, getting in a nice, clean hit.
"Rock Slide now!" Several boulders fell on top of Dewott, trapping him underneath to the point where I couldn't see him.
"Dewott!" I cried, worried that he might have gotten seriously hurt. I was about to rush out onto the field when Dewott suddenly burst out and ran at Excadrill before delivering a devastating uppercut. Even Clay was surprised at the sudden Revenge attack.
I breathed a huge sigh of relief. "You scared me, Dewott! Let's finish this with Aqua Jet!" Dewott's newest attack surrounded his body with water and he flew at his opponent at an incredible speed. He slammed into Excadrill, and it finally fell.
"Excadrill is unable to battle. Dewott wins! The victory goes to the challenger Hikari!" the referee announced.
The foe's Excadrill fainted!
Hikari defeated Leader Clay!
Tatsuya, Victini, Zorua and Minnie all ran over. "You did it, Hikari! Way to go!" the older Trainer cheered, giving me his usual hug while Zorua and Victini hugged my legs.
Minnie had gone straight over to Dewott, who for some reason looked a little freaked out. "Mincci mincci? (Are you alright?)" she asked in a concerned tone.
"Dew… dew dewott (I… I think so)," Dewott answered breathlessly. Minnie smiled and kissed him, which seemed to relax him.
Clay recalled Excadrill before wiping some sweat off his brow. "Well, I've had enough… And just so ya know, I didn't go easy on ya."
"Honestly, I didn't really expect you to," I said as Tatsuya released me.
The Gym Leader folded his arms. "Mrrrmph. I see. But I sure don't like it! Fer such a young'un, ya have an imposin' battle style. I know ya got people who can dig up your potential. Mrmph. Here! Take this!" he grunted before tossing a small object. I caught it, and when I opened my hand, the object was a badge that looked like part of the mine shaft.
Hikari received the Quake Badge from Clay!
"Wow, my fifth Gym Badge!" I exclaimed with wide eyes.
"Also, I'll give ya this TM," Clay added as his hand went for his pocket only to stop. "…Well, that was the plan, but I just remembered there's somethin' I want. Wait in front of the cave at the end of Route 6, wouldja?"
"Why, you…!" I growled before Tatsuya held me back.
"Down, girl. Save it for your next battle," the older Trainer advised.
"Yeah, you're right," I said with a sigh. "Sorry Minnie, but Dewott's gotta get back in his ball, OK?" The Minccino nodded and allowed me to recall Dewott before she got into her own Poke Ball.
Before we got on the elevator that would take us back to the lobby, Clay called after me again. "I don't know how much potential ya got, but if ya think ya can go, go wherever, and if ya think ya can do somethin', keep doin' it. Do things how ya want! Decide yer own limits."
I looked at him for a few seconds before smiling a little. Despite his rough mannerisms, he really did seem like a decent guy. "See ya on Route 6, Clay!" I said as the elevator took us up.
And so Hikari has earned not only her fifth Gym Badge, but the respect of the Miner King himself! Soon she and Tatsuya will head into Chargestone Cave on their way to the next challenge! Stay tuned!