Hi, guys! I'm back with another chapter!

Thanks, Shinyhonedge, for the Follow!

Defender31415 - Thanks! Crystal in Kalos...well, we'll have to see. I'm debating on continuing the series since I've got so many other ideas right now - so long as I can get this one done, I think I'll be pretty well content with it. Actually, I'm referring back to the previous story I wrote with Crystal - Legends. The events that took place there had some similar standings with the manga, but I took the "silent protagonist" bit from the games and messed with things from there. I know that you've read it - your reviews are all over the chapters. ;)

Well, I'm not gonna keep you guys waiting! Here's the chapter!

Chapter 35

Crystal didn't know what it was that she was expecting when she left Mauville and started towards Verdanturf.

"Oh, wow." Crystal took in a deep breath and looked down the path with wide eyes of amazement. "The air here…it feels so pure. It feels almost like the air on the other side of the world."

"The other side of the world?" Samuel repeated in confusion.

Crystal looked over at her newly-evolved Pokémon and smiled. "Yeah. There's an entire half of the world that humans can't go to. Pokémon live there instead, and they do all sorts of incredible things with these weird items! They can't even evolve on their own, either – they have to go to specific spots in order to do that."

Samuel frowned. "You mean, if I lived over there, I wouldn't have been able to evolve into this in the middle of a fight?" He lifted one of his hoof-like paws a little.

Crystal nodded, and she jolted a moment later. "Oh, yeah! That's right – I still haven't checked what the PokeDex says about your evolved form yet!" She quickly scrambled into her backpack and pulled out the device in question.

"Breloom, the Mushroom Pokémon, and the evolved form of Shroomish. These Pokémon are known to live in humid climates. It closes in on its foe with light and sprightly footwork, then throws punches with its stretchy arms. Its technique is equal to that of pro boxers. It also releases spores from the cap on its head, and its tail has seeds on it that are made of toxic spores. Inhaling or eating these spores will hamper and poison its foe. This Pokémon is a Grass and Fighting-Type."

Crystal blinked, lowering the PokeDex. "Grass and Fighting, huh?" She smiled a little. "That'll definitely be a big help."

Samuel grinned and started hopping from one foot to the other. "I can't wait to see what it is I can do! If those Magnus guys end up running into us, they're definitely going to regret trying to cross me!" His grin widened.

Samuel's foot suddenly hit something as he continued prancing about, and the Breloom fell over on his face. The Pokémon tried to get to his feet, but he wasn't able to get very far.

"We're definitely going to have to work on your balance before you can do any fighting," Crystal commented. She started forward in order to help her Pokémon up.

"Miss! I wouldn't try to do that if I were you!"

Crystal stopped short when she heard the voice, and she looked up in surprise to see a young man wearing a bright red apron and matching bandanna on top of his head.

"Why not?" Crystal frowned.

"Some Breloom can instinctively release spores if they come in contact with someone," the man replied, coming over. "You could get poisoned."

Crystal's invisible ears shot up in surprise. "Really? That didn't happen earlier today. He tripped not too long after he evolved, and I helped him up then."

"That's why I only said some Breloom," the man replied. "I've found that some other ones have the ability to heal themselves when they're poisoned, but that's actually a pretty small number." He pulled a pair of gloves out from one of his pants pockets and pulled them on before reaching down and helping Samuel to his feet. "My name's Dan, by the way. I'm a Breeder."

"A Breeder?" Crystal's tail stiffened upward a little. "That means you know about how Pokémon can evolve then, right?"

"Depends on which Pokémon." Dan chuckled. "I'm an expert in Grass and Poison Pokémon, myself. I actually have a couple Breloom on my own personal team, because they're such adept fighters."

"Do you have any advice for us, then?" Crystal motioned between herself and Samuel. "Samuel evolved earlier today, and he's gotten somewhat used to walking, but he can't exactly get himself back on his feet if he falls over."

Dan considered Crystal's statement for a moment. "Well, my suggestion is to have him work with his arms a lot."

"My arms?" Samuel looked down at his paws. "These short things?"

Dan frowned, cocking his head to one side before sighing and shaking his head. "I almost had it that time." He let out a sigh and looked at Samuel. "Despite what it looks like, those arms of yours actually have a lot of strength to them. They basically work like rubber bands that some Trainers might have around to hold things together – they can stretch a good distance, then snap back. If you put enough force into them, then you'll be able to cause a lot of damage."

Samuel perked up at that. "Really?"

Dan nodded, then turned to look at Crystal. "Like I said, I have a couple Breloom of my own. I can have them work with yours for a while so that he can get used to moving around."

"That would be great, thanks." Crystal smiled out of relief, then remembered something else. "Oh, yeah! I was told a while back that one of my Pokémon could evolve in two different ways, and I wanted to know your opinion on which one he should end up going for."

Dan blinked at the statement. "Well, I don't know if I'll be all that much help, but there are other Breeders around. I can probably point you in the right direction of the person you're looking for."

"Thanks. I was wondering if I could know more about the Pokémon Kirlia and the two forms they can evolve into. I wanted to know so that I could figure out which one Richie should go for." Crystal motioned to the mentioned Pokémon, who looked up at Dan with a curious look on his face.

"A Kirlia?" Dan looked down at the Pokémon in surprise. "This is the second Kirlia I've seen in a while – there's a kid around here who has one. His name's Wally."

"I actually ran into him earlier today," Crystal replied. "He's nice."

"Yeah. It's too bad about the main reason he got sent here from Petalburg, though." Dan shook his head as he made a tsking noise. "Well, if you're looking for our expert on Psychic and Fairy-Types, I think she's working in the Day Care today with Gran and Gramps. I was thinking about heading over there for your Breloom's sake anyway, so we can take care of your Kirlia question while we're there."

Crystal nodded. "Sounds good. So, where's the Day Care?"

"It's not all that far from here. Come on, I'll show you."

The Day Care wasn't just a building, like it was in Kanto. Crystal found herself amazed at the fact that there was a large stretch of land going off in a number of directions behind the house and a picket fence, and that there were terrains of all kinds.

"Wow. You guys really went all out," Crystal said, amazed.

"Well, we tend to accommodate Pokémon from all sorts of places, and making them comfortable while their Trainers are away is very important to us." Dan opened the door to the small, house-like building. "After you."

Crystal nodded in thanks, then stepped inside, her Pokémon at her heels.

"Good afternoon," the old woman behind the counter greeted. "You look like a new face around here."

"I am." Crystal nodded. "I'm Crystal."

"Call me Gran. Everyone does." Gran smiled. "Is there anything we can do for you?"

"I've already got it covered, Gran," Dan replied, stepping in. "Her Breloom's gonna get a little strengthening work done on his arms, and she wanted to know a few things about the Ralts line from Lydia. She's still back there, right?"

"Lydia?" Gran frowned. "I think she might be. If she isn't working with the Pokémon that have been left here, then she might be out on the Route, training the Pokémon that have been left at the Day Care permanently."

"People do that?" Crystal asked in surprise.

"Some do, yes." Gran nodded. "There are Pokémon that have been abused previously by Trainers, and they've been brought here by the police or friends of the Trainers who would rather see the Pokémon more well-cared for. We accept all kinds of Pokémon with open arms as a rule, and we also give out Pokémon to Trainers if they're looking to help us heal the hearts of some of the Pokémon we've taken in."

"Sometimes, we act more like a shelter and an adoption center instead of a day care," Dan added. "Not that we mind it. It's just that there are some Trainers out there that really shouldn't be allowed to have Pokémon."

Crystal nodded. "Yeah. I understand that completely." She frowned slightly. "Have you heard things about the other half of the world?"

"You mean the half that's been left alone by humans?" Gran asked. "I've heard some things about that place, yes."

"Some Pokémon from there travel over here sometimes – mostly to see humans, I think, because we don't live on their half of the world. Maybe you could somehow make this place open to them, too – they form teams of their own sometimes, and maybe the Pokémon you have up for adoption would be willing to join them." Crystal shrugged. "Just a thought."

"How do you know about that?" Dan asked, blinking in surprise. "I mean, that does happen sometimes, I think, but I haven't heard of a Trainer suggesting it before."

Crystal froze, feeling like she wanted to slap herself because she had just let something slip. Quickly figuring out what it was that she could say, she stammered, "I can understand Pokémon, and I've heard them talking about teams sometimes."

"You can understand Pokémon?" Dan repeated. "I have a hard time doing that with even Grass and Poison-Types, and I'm older than you are!"

"Some Trainers are prodigies, Daniel," Gran pointed out. "I shouldn't say that I'm surprised, but with a team comprised of those Pokémon, it doesn't look like you've been traveling for very long."

"I live near Professor Oak's lab in Kanto, and I like to go over there sometimes and help him out." Which was true – Crystal did help out whenever she was in the area. "I guess I spent so much time there, I started to understand what the Pokémon were saying."

Crystal's invisible ears twitched at the blatant lie. She was glad that they were kept hidden by her illusion.

"Oh? You know Professor Oak?" Gran seemed surprised, then smiled. "Is he doing well?"

"I called him before I got here, actually." Crystal chuckled. "He said he was studying the different Pokémon most Trainers are getting as Starters in the different regions. He also said one called a Chestnaught was causing him some problems."

"Glad to hear it." Gran gave a nod. "So, training for your Breloom and information on Kirlia is all you're asking for today?"

Crystal nodded. "Yeah."

"All right, then. Dan, go ahead and tell Crystal the rules that we have set up for things like this; I'll go ahead and see if Lydia is hiding on the grounds somewhere." Gran turned and walked through a doorway that was behind the counter, stepping out the other side of the building and onto what Crystal guessed was the land that they owned.

Dan took in a breath. "All right. In the past, we used to let Trainers into the Day Care area to have them work with us as we trained their Pokémon, but we ended up having a few incidents involving other people's Pokémon getting stolen by a few rather greedy Trainers. Ever since then, we've taken to letting the Pokémon interact on their own without us really keeping an eye on them. So your Breloom is going to be working with my Breloom for probably about an hour or so in order to be able to get a few basic exercises for strengthening his arms memorized. You can keep his PokeBall on you – just remember that you're going to need to come back here in order to get him."

Crystal nodded. "Okay. That makes sense – Pokémon do learn best when they're working with other Pokémon, right?"

"Exactly." Dan grinned, then looked over at Samuel. "So, are you ready to do a little training, buddy?"

Samuel frowned a little. "Well, I'd like to, but…." He looked over at Crystal.

"It'll be okay," Crystal encouraged. "Besides, you're going to need this if you're going to be able to get up on your own if you end up tripping, remember? I'll stay nearby on the route, all right?"

Samuel considered that, then nodded. "Yeah. You're right." He looked over at Dan with a determined expression.

Dan smiled and nodded. "My Breloom are probably in the woods right now. It'll take a little bit to get to them, so we should get going now." Turning to look at Crystal, he added, "Just to let you know, Day Care's aren't exactly free. Gran's gonna give you a bill when you get back to pick up your Pokémon."

Crystal nodded. "Thanks for the warning. I think I've got enough to pay that."

"Kay." Dan gave Crystal another nod, then moved to the counter and jumped over it before pushing a hidden door open. "Come on, buddy. We don't have all day."

"My name is Samuel," Samuel responded, starting after the Breeder. "And I'm not your buddy."

Dan's expression brightened, and he burst out laughing. "I actually understood you that time!" He grinned at Samuel, then motioned for the Pokémon to follow him as he kept talking. "So you're name's Samuel, huh? That's pretty cool."

"Crystal thought it up," Samuel responded, shrugging as he disappeared.

Crystal smiled as the Pokémon disappeared, then turned and looked at Richie and Ando. "Okay. Now we can see what we can do in order to figure out what it is that you can evolve into, Richie."

Richie nodded in agreement, smiling eagerly. "Yeah."

"I saw Dan walking off with your Breloom, and I was worried that you had already left."

Crystal turned her head and caught sight of Gran coming back through the door. "I wanted to wait until you came back. You did say that you were looking for someone who could help me know more about Kirlia, right?"

Gran nodded. "That is right, I suppose. Lydia isn't on the grounds today. She must be out on the route training with some of the Pokémon that we keep here. You'll usually find her near one of the ponds that are on the Route."

"All right." Crystal nodded. "Thanks for the tip."

"It was no problem. Don't forget to come back in an hour for your Breloom, now."

"I won't forget," Crystal promised, smiling. "Samuel's an important part of my team, and a friend. I wouldn't want to leave him behind."

"Of course."

Crystal stepped out of the Day Care building with Ando and Richie, making sure the Anorith was outside before closing the door behind her. That done, she looked around the route for a moment. "Okay…now to find that Breeder."

"That lady said she was by a pond, right?" Richie asked.

"Yeah. So all we have to do is look for one and see if there's a Breeder nearby."

"Maybe it's her?" Richie pointed farther down the Route. "She's wearing an apron like Dan is."

Crystal followed Richie's gaze and caught sight of a woman with dark hair held up by a red bandanna. There were six small Pokémon playing around her, splashing in the water and looking like they were really enjoying themselves.

"Maybe." Crystal looked down at the Kirlia and Anorith. "Let's go over there and find out."

Richie nodded in agreement, then started forwards, Crystal and Ando keeping close.

"Excuse me?" Crystal raised a hand, getting the woman's attention. "Are you Lydia?"

The woman blinked at the question. "Yes, that's me. And you are?"

"Crystal." Crystal smiled a little. "I was wondering if you'd be able to give me some help."

Lydia frowned, then looked down at the six Pokémon that had stopped playing at Crystal's approach. The Goldeen that was in the water disappeared under the surface of the pond, only to come up a little farther out, while the Wingull took to the sky and circled around above their heads. "I don't know if I'll be able to right now. I wanted to take these Pokémon out to play for a while, and none of them are really ready to be doing any battling…"

"I wasn't looking for a battle." Crystal shook her head. "I was only looking for some advice on a Pokémon."

"Oh?" Lydia perked up. "What kind of advice?"

"Well, I have a Kirlia on my team, and—"

Lydia let out a cooing noise and instantly turned to look at Richie. "Oh my goodness! You have a Kirlia, too? They're really rare!"

"So I've been told." Crystal rubbed the back of her head, smiling nervously as Lydia came over to have a closer look at Richie. "Richie evolved recently, and we heard a couple days ago that he could evolve into two different ways. Dan said that you were the expert in this kind of thing, so he suggested I come and ask you about it."

"Hmmm….." Lydia got into a crouch in front of Richie, who looked at her with wide eyes as she looked him over, but didn't reach out and grab him. "Well, he certainly looks healthy and strong. I'm guessing you leave him out of his PokeBall often?"

"Yeah. I like to let all of my Pokémon stay out if they want to." Crystal looked down at Ando, who blinked up at her. "I like to be able to talk to them, and it makes sure that I'm prepared in case someone wants to come up and give me a challenge – I can ask them if they want to be the ones to take the challenge or not."

"It's a good policy to have." Lydia smiled up at Crystal. "It makes me happy to see healthy Pokémon like this – especially Pokémon like Kirlia. Because they're so sensitive to people's emotions, they can get sick easily if their Trainer is feeling bad. Happy feelings and traveling around does strengthen them some, but the find a lot of strength in the bonds they share with their Trainers." Lydia rose to her feet, brushing off her knees. "So, you wanted to talk to me about their evolutionary line? Is that right?"

"Yeah." Crystal nodded. "What do you know about it?"

"Well, you're right, for one – Kirlia can evolve into two different Pokémon, but only the male ones have access to both. Since your Kirlia is male, he's able to evolve into either one or the other, but it's probably going to be up to you whether he does or not." Lydia slipped a PokeBall out from under her apron and tossed it. "This is what they would evolve into if you didn't end up doing anything."

The PokeBall burst open, letting out a Pokémon with a green, helmet-like shape on top of its head, calm red eyes, and what almost looked like a flowing white dress that swished across the ground.

The Pokémon turned and looked at Crystal and blinked for a moment before bowing. "Greetings."

Crystal blinked in surprise at the telepathic contact. "Hi. Wow, you're a beautiful Pokémon."

The Pokémon gave a smile in response. "My name is Gracia. I am a Gardevoir."

"Gardevoir…wow."

Gracia smiled at the obvious amazement that Crystal was showing. "You look like a Trainer. Are you here for a match?"

Crystal shook her head. "No. I was looking for information, actually. One of my Pokémon is a Kirlia, and I'd heard that he could evolve into two different Pokémon."

Understanding flashed through Gracia's eyes. "Ah. It is wise to ask before you decide." She looked over and caught sight of Richie. "This Kirlia is a part of your team, then?"

Crystal nodded. "Yeah." She looked down at Richie and motioned for him to come forward a little.

Richie, who had been looking at Gracia in amazement, took a few steps forward. "H-hi. I'm Richie."

Gracia gave a smile and a nod in response. "It's nice to meet you, Richie. How long have you been a Kirlia?"

"A couple days." Richie looked down at his skirt and blushed. "I'm…not really used to this."

Crystal chuckled while Lydia smiled at Richie's blushing expression.

"I suppose it is a little strange, compared to what you were before," Gracia commented. "Tell me – is there anything that you would want to be able to do if you were to reach your final form?"

"Help Crystal."

Crystal was so surprised at how quickly Richie had answered the question that she stiffened up out of surprise.

Gracia blinked at the answer, looking a little surprised herself, before looking over at Lydia. "This one would be far better as a Gallade, I think."

Lydia blinked at that before nodding, smiling a little. "All right."

"Gallade?" Crystal frowned. "Is that the other possible evolution for Kirlia?"

"Yeah." Lydia looked over at Crystal. "They're Psychic and Fighting-Type Pokémon, and they're known for being very chivalrous, and will defend their Trainers and help them to the very end. Only male Kirlia can evolve into them, like I said before, but you're going to need a specific item in order to make that happen."

"What kind of an item?"

"It's called a Dawn Stone, and they're very hard to find. Probably the best way to look for one is if you went up north to Fallarbor and talked to Professor Cozmo there. I've heard that he collects some rare stones that can be found in and around Mt. Chimney. Maybe he has one or two that he would be willing to spare."

Crystal nodded. "All right. I'll make sure to head up there and have a look around. Thanks for the tip."

"No problem." Lydia smiled. "If you need any more advice on Fairy or Psychic-Types, don't be afraid to ask."

"Actually, I was kind of wondering something else…." Crystal frowned. "There aren't any Fairy-Types in Kanto – at least, not that I know of – and I hadn't been expecting that Richie was part-Fairy, too…could you tell me more about them?"

"Sure! I'd be more than happy to!" Lydia's smile seemed to become even more bright and eager. "I should probably tell you how they were discovered first. See, there's this region called Kalos…."

Sorry if this chapter felt like a bit of an information dump, but it kinda had to be done - if only for Crystal's and Richie's sake, since the way to evolve a Kirlia into a Gallade isn't something that they would have known about.

I hope you guys have been enjoying this so far! I'll see you all next week!