So, uh, I did it again. That whole making everyone wait because I had most of it written but couldn't motivate myself to finish the last little bit. It happened again. Sorry.

That being said, updating every month or every two months is probably going to be more the style to expect moving forward. Just not as motivated to write at the moment. Who knows though, that could change at the drop of a hat.

ALSO: I came up with a little game for us all to play. I've been listening to all the pokemon theme/opening songs lately and have assigned each one of my main characters (Luke, Julia, Brendan, May, and Keith) their own theme. It is your job to guess what each character's theme is, excluding any region-specific references. Whoever guesses all, or the most, correct will get to read chapters early via some way that I'll figure out. Responses can be left in the form of a review or PM! Happy guessing!

Oh, also, enjoy the chapter. Please.

The so-called Tent Tyrant seemed like he at least deserved his title, Luke reasoned. Rather, he was successful enough in the event even against what seemed like more powerful pokemon and teams that the title had validity.

For the life of him though, Luke couldn't figure out why this kind of event drew a crowd like a high-tier gym battle. Not an eighth or ninth tier battle, sure, and definitely not the league tournament or an attempt at an Elite 4 gauntlet, but the tent was almost full to the brim with spectators watching niche pokemon battles.

Which was something else he didn't understand. The appeal of this battle type. Or at least why the non-ability of the trainer to issue commands was as big of a hinderance as it apparently was. The Unovan had found that most commands slowed a pokemon down in a fight, and would cause them to rely on the reaction and command from their trainer instead of their own reflexes and instinct.

Battles were won before either trainer set foot on the field. Better conditioning, training, and instruction days, months, or years before the battle starts determined who the winner would be. Something unprecedented, or simply unexpected, being overcome simply shows better mindset and adaptability, something that comes from experience and making open and adaptive strategies.

In short, this was just a contest to see who trained their pokemon better, like almost all battles are. Taking away one tiny aspect of the battle wasn't that big of a deal. If anything, it was a training exercise to tweak and hone your team's reactions to certain matchups.

As the "Tyrant's" Munchlax knocked yet another opposing pokemon into the ground before waddling back to its trainer to demand snacks to the roar of applause of the assembled spectators, Luke realized he was probably just thinking too hard about it. There wasn't the same sports culture here as there was back in Unova, this was probably the closest these people got to sporting events, with the players personalities substituted with the personalities of pokemon and their interactions with their trainers. He was thinking about it too much as a battler instead of a fan.

The same couldn't be said for Wally or his uncle, clapping and cheering with the energy of all the rest of the crowd. Or for Julia, whose smile was only occasionally broken by a small frown when a flying type was summoned to fight only to brighten up within moments.

Then the Tyrant summoned a pokemon Luke had never expected to see here in Hoenn.

Boss had finally gotten tired enough to justify switching the Munchlax out so he wouldn't have to keep explaining to him that mid-battle snacks were classified as cheating.

Keith didn't have to think about who to use next, as one hand plucked a pokeball from his belt as the other brought his water bottle to his lips. Blake could handle whatever his opponent could dish out.

The water type emerged from his premier ball, landing in a crouch in front of Keith, paws already placed on his scalchops. The blue sea otter stood to his full height before pulling his weapons of choice from his hips and dropping into a ready stance, a thing current of water already running over the edge of the weapons.

As the barely a meter-tall otter took off, Keith thought about how fair it really was to use a pokemon none of the other trainers would have expected him to have in a competition like this. But it wasn't like they didn't know what pokemon it was: the Oshawott line was an endangered species even in its native Unova region, and was the subject of a lot of environmental ads. So really, it wasn't on him for bringing a rare pokemon that they didn't expect. It was on them for not being ready for it.

Not dissimilar to how Blake's opponent, a Swellow, was not ready at all for the Dewott's speed, or to have a scalchop bounced off the ground to collide with its beak.

Keith knew it was a wrap once Blake closed in on the stunned bird, and the other trainer did too, returning his bird and approaching for a handshake. Keith was relieved, really. The end of the battle meant he could go get lunch. Rebecca was back in the warm-up room getting ready for her next bout though, so the Sinnosian resigned himself to eating with just his pokemon. Until a ball of green hair and excess energy appeared in front of him. A small ball that moved very fast.

The ball, which was a petite boy with light green hair now that Keith got the chance to really look at him, was talking incredibly fast. Some things about how cool his pokemon were and how great his battle was, the tall man was sure. So he smiled, nodded, and tried to move toward the line for one of the food stalls. He could deal with fans when he wasn't so hungry.

That's when he noticed the ones trailing behind the green boy, an older boy in a baseball cap and blue vest and a girl in an orange vest and athletic shorts, both with brown hair, although the boy's was noticeably darker. He wasn't sure what about the boy made him uncomfortable, but something was off about him. Something in the back of Keith's mind was telling him to reach for Boss or Mimi's pokeball.

With a start, Keith realized that he was being intimidated by something about the much shorter man, probably by 30 cm or so if he had to hazard a guess. It wasn't his build, Keith had no doubts he was more physically powerful than the stranger, and it wasn't the way the man carried himself, although Keith could tell the apparent relaxation was forced. It was his eyes. They were a cold blue, incredibly tense and almost unreflective.

By contrast, the girl seemed entirely at ease. Warm grey eyes with an easy smile on her face as they came up behind the green ball- boy, green haired boy.

When the pair reached the boy, the one with cold eyes placed his left hand on the boy's shoulder before extending his right towards Keith.

"My name's Luke Williams," he said, the tension not fading from his eyes, "and I've got to say, I never expected to see a Dewott outside of Unova." The eyes warmed the smallest bit as he turned to the petite boy, who was about 50 cm shorter than Keith by his eye-check. "I'm sorry about Wally though, he can be a bit much when something gets him excited. Buy the soon-to-be champ dinner?"

Keith wasn't sure what angle the man was trying to play, but if it got him free food he'd play along. For now. Keith shook the offered hand and steered them towards a Sinnosian food stall.

The ball of energy, Wally, continued speaking. Keith did his best to pay attention, really, he did, but he was talking so fast in a Hoenn accent just different enough from Rebecca's that the syllables blended together. At least when the cold one spoke, he went slow enough for Keith to catch everything he said.

It wasn't until she ordered that he caught the girl's name, Julia. Luke and Julia, maybe they were dating, and Wally was a little brother to one of them? Or all just friends? Context clues would probably tell once they started eating.

"So," Luke said, watching someone's food get made on the hot stones behind the counter, vegetables and meats together, "where did you get that Dewott? I haven't seen one since my circuit run back home in Unova."

Ah, he was Unovan. That explained why he qualified it with 'outside of Unova' earlier. And why he was a bit easier to understand, Indigan wasn't his primary language either. This is where Keith wished he could speak Unovan/Galarian to flex, but he had never bothered learning.

"Blake? I got him from a trade at the GTS in Jubilife City in Sinnoh. His old trainer couldn't handle his rebellious streak. Or that he'd accidentally let him swim in a river that had traces of Eviolite and Everstone," Keith explained, motioning toward Blake's ball as Julia's name was called, "It took him nearly twice as long to evolve into a Dewott, and is probably never going to evolve into a Samurott."

"That's too bad," Julia said as she returned with her platter of food, "Someone traded him just because he couldn't fully evolve?" Wally's number was called as the four made their way to a table.

"He's also a dick, don't forget that." Keith said, eyes fixed on the server who would call his name for food. "But he can't be as much of one on my team, not where he knows Boss can take him."

Luke hummed in agreement as his name was called, quickly moving to get his food and back. Keith was the only one without food, even though he'd ordered first. Darn.

"I had a pokemon like that on my old team," Luke said as he broke his chopsticks apart, "except knowing another pokemon was stronger than her didn't exactly stop her from acting like she was the best thing to happen to the world. Just pissed her off whenever it came up."

Keith had stopped listening when his name was called. He had food to eat. When he got back, Luke and Julia were staring at his plate as Wally was taking measured bites of his own meal. He'd gotten a meal for himself, a few sweet berries for Mimi, a kid's meal for Boss, and some fish for Blake. The Unovan had offered to pay for his food, he might as well milk the free food for as much as he could. "You offered." Keith stated, trying to get them to stop staring at his plate.

The laugh that bubbled out of Luke surprised the Sinnosian. Because it came out of nowhere, and more so because it seemed genuine. Maybe all he needed to do was crack the ice in his eyes and Luke would become a real boy too.

As they ate, Keith kept his eyes up, both on his team and the strangers whose company he was in. Luke seemed to be doing the same, eyes flicking between Keith, his team, and every so often at Julia and Wally. Wally had eyes only for his food and Keith's pokemon. Julia kept looking at Luke in a way that told him they definitely weren't siblings. At least, Keith sure hoped they weren't.

He was only about half-way done with his meal when his 'nav buzzed.

Rebecca: Won my match! Wanna meet up before our next round, 45 min?

Rebecca: Let our teams run around, relax, get comfy

Rebecca: Grab some food?

The first one would have done it. Come to think of it, the second would too given who sent it. But the third one really caught his attention. After texting back a quick affirmation, he stood up and picked up his food on the disposable tray it was served on.

"It was nice meeting you guys," he said, "but I need to go meet up with my girlfriend now, she just finished her match. Bye."

"Hey, before you go, are you doing the gym circuit, and have you fought Wattson yet?" Luke asked as Keith started recalling his team, "Because I'm getting ready to, and could use a fresh training partner for the last couple days before my prelim match."

Keith paused. Someone new to train against would be good, especially if he was going to continue around the region without Rebecca. So he shrugged, and wrote his 'nav code down on a napkin before handing it to Luke. "I wouldn't mind. If you're being serious, go ahead and call me. I tend to ignore texts from numbers I don't know."

Then, the Sinnosian did walk away. Food in one hand, Boss' pokeball in the other. It was time to hang out with Rebecca and get even more food. He would have patted his stomach in anticipation, but his hands were full already.

Keith did not disappoint Luke's expectations in either of his final two matches, and although he'd already keyed the other man's number into his 'nav, he wasn't going to call him quite yet. He still had a flight back to Mauville getting the breath squeezed out of him by Julia ahead, and he wasn't really looking forward to that. She was stronger than she looked and her relatively slim body implied.

Wally's uncle had offered for them to stay at their home in Verdanturf for the night, but the teens had refused. Thankfully, he lent them the Altaria again instead of the Mandibuzz for the ride back.

Before they got on the dragon-type, Luke handed his jacket to Julia, which she quickly shrugged into. It was odd seeing her wear it, and he appreciated it in a different way now under the streetlight than under that morning's sun.

It seemed to actually fit her in a way it did with nobody else. Besides him of course. Her shoulders were narrower than his own, and her arms thinner, but still, the jacket fit her well enough that his stomach wanted to knot. He knew it was a petty and childish thought, but she shouldn't fit so well in his jacket. Next thing he knew she might steal it and start taking his other clothes too.

Luke turned his head toward the stars and rubbed his eyes. Flying when he was tired enough that his thoughts were wandering this far was probably a bad idea. But he didn't want to impose on Wally's family, especially after saying they would fly back tonight, and he definitely did want to be back with his pack and gear, in the little room he recognized and had become familiar with. Nightmares were more likely in places he hadn't slept before, and nobody needed to see that, especially not Julia and Wally.

"Luke," Julia called his attention back down from the constellations he didn't recognize and onto her face, "are you ready?"

She was scared. Out of her mind by what she was showing on the surface. Shallow breathing, breaking out in a sweat, pupils dilating although that could be from the low-light.

"'Course I am," he said, putting his smile back on as he stroked the Altaria's head scales, "how about you? Think you can handle flying again?" His question sounded like banter, but he hoped she could hear the concern behind it.

After she nodded, he climbed on the dragon's back. A moment later, she was behind him, pressed snugly against his back, arms snaking around his midsection to pull the two even closer together. Then her head on his shoulder.

Luke took a deep breath, making sure his chest could still expand despite the pressure Julia was putting on his chest. It worked some. It felt a bit looser than it had in the morning? Maybe? Hopefully he'd be able to breathe comfortably the entire trip.

Just like before, her grip got tighter the higher they went until they leveled out at the Altaria's cruising altitude. And it wasn't just the chilly he'd been expecting, it was actually cold at that height without the sun warming him. The fluffy down of the dragon below them, however, was warm with what he assumed was stored heat, or a small fire attack being held in its body to keep the reptile warm. Either way, he was thankful to be able to lean forward into it.

After a couple minutes, he realized the problem with it. The more he leaned forward, the more the wind struck Julia, regardless of how close she pressed herself against his back. Once he could feel her body shaking against him, he knew he needed to rethink how they were positioned, so he guided the dragon back to solid land.

"Why'd we stop?" Julia asked as he checked the clock on his 'nav, "Are we close?"

"No," Luke sighed, they hadn't even been in the air for fifteen minutes, "but the way we were sitting wasn't working. Too cold, too much wind." Before she could protest, he added, "I could feel how much you were shaking, so don't try to argue it. And don't worry, I was cold too."

Eventually, the teens got situated on the dragon's back again, although this time, Julia was in front facing back, lying against the dragon's down. Luke leaned over her, practically pressed together as he tried to keep as close to the warm, reptilian body as he could. Julia's arms, again, wrapped around him and pulled him close to block the wind as he pinned her to the pokemon's back.

It wasn't comfortable by any means. The cold wind cut at his face whenever he looked up for a micro-correction of the Altaria and cut at his back when he leaned back down. Julia wasn't faring as well, judging by the quiet sobs being taken away by the wind he could only hear when he was horizontal.

Luke was glad when it was over, when he was able to walk Julia to her room before crossing the building to get to his own. When he finally crawled into bed.

His last thought before falling asleep was that he never had gotten his jacket back.

Luke stood across the pitch from the other trainer, hands resting on pokeballs. He had the advantage of information, having seen most of his opponent's team in action. With that information, he gained confidence. His pokemon were plenty powerful enough to deal with what he'd seen, at the very least. And if they were closer in strength than he thought, he was confident in the training he'd given to his team.

Rebecca, Franz, Dart, Amelia, and Sain. All five stood ready in their capsules. A signal unseen, but understood, had both humans summoning pokemon.

Franz tore forth from the flash of light, knowing to break off to the side in anticipation of an immediate attack. That training spared him a kick from the bunny that Keith had summoned.

It wasn't the first sparring session the two trainers had since Keith arrived in Mauville, but it had been fewer than ten so far. The Sinnosian had adjusted well to Luke's team and habits in such a short time, but the now sunburnt Unovan hadn't lost a match yet.

He knew he should probably be at Brendan's gym battle, but the kid seemed like he needed space. Besides, he knew how electric gyms worked around third and fourth tier battles. He'd beaten Elesa back in Unova for his fourth badge, and he'd watched plenty of Lt. Surge's battles before he'd even wanted to be a trainer. Something about his title of "The Lightning Unovan" had always stuck out to Luke.

So there was no real need to study Wattson, and his presence would likely make Brendan uncomfortable or angry, neither of which he should be going into a fight. Which left training with Keith to be the best place Luke could be.

Franz finally landed a hit, intercepting a jump kick with a bite that would have shattered bones if he wasn't holding back. Luke rubbed the scar on his arm absentmindedly.

On that note, Luke withdrew Franz and pointed skywards as the first few drops of rain fell from the dark sky. It poured five days of each week and tended to drizzle or shower on the remaining two. Once again, Luke thanked the fire and storm that it hadn't poured on him and Julia while they'd flown to or from Verdanturf. He shot Julia a message as they left the training plot.

The two trainers quickly made their way to a cheap restaurant that they'd eaten at after each session, ordered food, and sat down, both immediately checking their 'navs.

LW: Just finished a session with Keith, hows BC's match going?

JC: Just started, seems to be doing well though

JC: He's up a full ko now, Raph took down an Electrike

JC: FUCK

JC: FUCKING

LW: ?

She stopped responding, so Luke put his 'nav down. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach, but if she wasn't going to tell him right now, he didn't need to worry about it yet.

"Girlfriend stop messaging you?" Keith asked as he continued typing away, "Don't worry, not everyone can have someone as good as Rebecca. It's impossible, I've done the math. Trust me."

Luke snorted as he took a sip from his water bottle. "First off, not my girlfriend. Hasn't changed since the first or last time you made that joke. Second, yes, Julia stopped messaging. Third, I believe you. She has to be better than at least one of my exes, which means, mathematically speaking, at least one person is getting screwed."

"You're assuming a one to one ratio," Keith said as his burger was placed in front of him, "but since it means I'm right, I'll let it slide."

"Sure." Luke said as he started digging into the Kalosian fries, Keith finally putting down his 'nav to eat. Luke's device buzzed again, but he ignored it first.

He checked it after it buzzed again.

JC: Wattson made his Voltorb selfdestruct

JC: Brendan's Torkoal died

JC: Dustox killed by Manectric

So, that was 23. Don't forget to take part in the theme song challenge/game, and don't forget to leave a review if you enjoyed reading.

Peace, stay safe.