In which our heroes enter a hole.
Diglett's Tunnel, fortunately, was a short walk from the lab, and something Diana could connect back to her own home. Kanto, too, had a tunnel named after Diglett.
It wasn't the same Diglett, she knew, but it was close enough. This trip would give her a chance to study the Alolan variant, and maybe see what was under the rocks...
But she'd take it one step at a time. Step 1 was dealing with the kahuna, and whoever she was talking to.
The two strange people dressed in white turned and left, not seeming to notice the kids. When Olivia turned, she did notice, and both cousins found themselves distracted once again. There was hardly any light, so Olivia's jewelry didn't sparkle, but Diana focused on her anyway.
Was everyone in Alola ridiculously attractive? More importantly, would Diana ever be?
Luckily, Olivia couldn't read minds. "I see the two of you are interested in Diglett's Cave," she said, and the cousins shared a look.
"Not really," Eli said immediately.
"Then I assume you don't want to know that the Diglett are getting out of hand?"
"We've only encountered a single Zubat since we got here," Diana pointed out. "We haven't noticed any Diglett at all." She pulled out the small bag she was using to hold all her Z-Crystals. "I was actually looking for you. I wanted my Grand Trial."
Olivia smiled. "Well, then. If you can pass through this tunnel, I will prepare for our battle. I suggest you explore Konikoni City. My shop is there, so you can most likely find me there."
"What do you have in your shop?" Diana asked, eyeing Olivia's jewelry and building up hope. She could feel Murkrow's ball twitch as he, too, developed hope.
"You'll see." Olivia's smile turned secretive, then looked back at Eli. "This place does have some Fire Stones around, now and then. I think the Diglett leave them there for trainers. If you find one, feel free to take it."
Eli's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "How do you know I have a Pokémon that could use a Fire Stone?"
"I spoke to Professor Kukui, Eli. I know you're a budding Fire-type specialist, just like I know Diana's motivation is to investigate the Pokedex. As kahuna, I want to help you both in any way I can."
Eli, despite not feeling called to the Fire-type specialty so much as feeling it was being forced on him, merely grunted. He did seem to relax, though, which was all Diana cared about.
"We can take it from here, Olivia," Diana promised, preparing to lead him away.
"I know you can. I wish you good luck regardless."
Eli did get his Fire Stone. He did not evolve Growlithe with it yet. He gave his cousin an explanation that she didn't really pay attention to, and she climbed a set of metal stairs without him. She stopped when she saw the people Olivia had been talking to, and this time, they saw her.
"Hi," said the woman. "Are you here to help Olivia with the Diglett, too?"
"No," Diana answered immediately. "Why did she choose you? No offense."
"We're the Aether Foundation," the man explained. "We're a Pokémon conservation group."
"Team Skull got the Diglett riled up," the woman explained. "It's a good thing you aren't getting involved, really. They like interfering with trainers and Pokémon."
"We've been involved with Team Skull," Eli told them. "We can take them."
"They interrupted my first trial," Diana continued. "I beat them with only a Murkrow."
"It does sound like you can take care of yourselves." The man looked around, then turned to his coworker. "I think the Diglett are all calm now. We should get back to the Paradise."
"Good call." The woman rolled her eyes. "I'd hate for Faba to think we're goofing off."
They left, laughing. Diana looked back to Eli. "Well, then. We should get a move on, too."
"Good plan. In theory."
"In theory?"
Eli gestured around them. "Do you know how to get out of here?"
Diana stopped mid-thought. "Rotom!" she called, and the Pokedex hopped out to guide them, even though his map didn't give him a way out of tunnels.
A bit more wandering, and the three decided to stop. Not because they got tired - they found Team Skull.
Luckily, neither grunt recognized them.
"Just when things were startin' to heat up, yo, I got surrounded by Diglett and beat up, yo!"
"Seriously," Diana said bluntly, "stop it. Rap talk is acceptable when rapping to music, but anywhere else will get you nothing but a punch in the face. Please move so we can continue without resorting to violence."
"Don't be mad 'cause you were the fools who were dumb enough to be here now."
"Improved grammar. Thank you."
"I thought I heard your voice." The cousins turned to find Hau, casually walking up behind them. He looked at the grunts, then back at the heroes. "You're up against Team Skull?"
"They're just blocking our way," Diana summarized. "It's nothing serious."
"We should face off, yo!" The grunt looked to his companion. "You want to help me kick their butts, or what?"
The other grunt shrugged. "Why not?" she decided. "Beats sitting around and doing nothing."
Diana stepped back. "This one's on you, boys," she told her friends. "I'm staying out of it for now."
"Are you sure?" Hau asked, and Diana nodded.
"Don't worry. It'll take you about five seconds."
Reassured, Hau joined his childhood friend in the battle.
The grunts ran away after their defeat, and Hau left them at the entrance to go and train more. They let him, walking into the next city together.
It was nice, Diana decided. It wasn't much bigger than Viridian City, certainly smaller than Saffron. And lit up like this at night...she was sure things would be awesome.
But as eager as she was to explore it, and see what Olivia's shop was, she had to take care of a few things first. And, hearing Eli's stomach growl beside her, she was sure he'd agree.
"Food?" she suggested, gesturing to a convenience store right on the outskirts.
"Food," Eli agreed. "Then sleep?"
"I was hoping for exploring," Diana admitted.
"I've walked more than I wanted to today," he pointed out. "And the whole wormhole thing. We can explore more in the daytime, right?"
"I guess." Diana looked down at Murkrow's ball. "I was hoping that we'd get to go shopping, at least. Just to look at any pretty sparkly things that might be sitting out..."
"The jewelry stores are probably closed by now," Eli pointed out. "And I'm pretty sure the clothing stores are shutting down, too."
"He's got a point there," Rotom seconded. "The shiny things will be there tomorrow."
"But what about -"
Eli crossed his arms in the same stubborn way that Diana often did, getting her suspicious that he might be mocking her. "Do you really want to argue with a kid who can set fires with his mind?"
"No," Diana said reluctantly. "But you don't even know your trigger. You can't stop me."
Stanford suddenly burst out of his ball. "We can stop you," he told her. Rotom quickly translated it, and before she could object, he flew up to her face. "Do not do sleep-deprived science, Diana. I can't believe that's something I actually have to tell you."
As Rotom translated for him once more, Diana looked over her trusted starter. "I guess we can call the 'Dartrix is a figurative birdbrain' myth busted now, huh?"