"I still can't believe you put together such a targeted, comprehensive, thoughtful activity for the sole purpose of getting back at me for one off-hand comment," Mac said. I took one hand off my handlebars to scratch under Vola's scruff, and she mewled in appreciation. Mac was riding Dodrio beside me, and Janelle had pulled one of those fancy folding bikes out of her pack once we were on actual roads again.

"I'm a complicated person," I told him, "I don't have to do things for just one reason."

My human companions rolled their eyes.

"Still," Mac continued, "you did win our little wager. I can't say it would be fair to loan you one of my aces for a two-Badge match, but I have quite a few others that I've trained that would fit nicely on your team for a battle. Dodrio here laid some eggs a while back, and one of those Doduos would be perfect for Viridian."
"Oh, uh, I…" I stammered. I had been way too focused on our prank, and avoiding having Mac around any longer than necessary, to think about what I'd do with my prize from our wager. How could I put it to avoid looking cowardly?

"Yeah!" Janelle piped in, "Between Doduo and Pidgeotto, not to mention Vulpix's Ice attacks, you'd have a great matchup against Viridian's Gym Leader!"

"I dunno," I hedged, "I don't really feel right using your Pokemon. And I haven't really seen anything I'd need your help catching around here."
He frowned, "Why'd you take the bet, then? You even asked for a new term on my end, why not ask for something else for if you won?"
I kicked myself. That would've been a great idea. "It's not that I don't like the idea, it's just… are you going to catch me a Rattata? A Pidgey? This area isn't exactly teeming with Pokemon I'd need help catching. Maybe we could go somewhere else with some more variety?"

Mac's frown twisted into something more contemplative, "We shouldn't go too far, since at that point we're basically just on our way to another Gym, and I don't want to make you double back." Dang. "Why don't we head to Pallet? It's not too far, but the beach has lots of fishing opportunities! It probably won't help you in Viridian, but like Janelle said, you've already got some serious advantages there."

"Ooh, and there's a famous florist in Pallet with a Mr. Mime! I'd love to go there!" Janelle said.

I turned back to her in confusion. "Oh, um, sure," I managed, "You're coming with us, then?"
She gave me a saucy grin and tossed her head towards Mac, riding in front of her, whose position on Dodrioback pulled his outfit tight against his back and waist. "Why, of course!" she exclaimed. "It's been such a long time, I wouldn't think of saying goodbye before we've had a chance to really catch up. And time at the beach sounds absolutely lovely!"

I didn't miss the subtle emphasis on "abs," nor the furious eyebrow-waggling that accompanied it. I pasted on a smile.

"Great! Is that all right, Mac? I wouldn't want to accidentally make her bury a musician on the beach or something," I said, trying to drizzle as much sarcasm into my voice as possible.
Now Janelle looked confused, but Mac just shrugged, "I don't see why-"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Janelle go ramrod-straight, freezing in mid-pedal to slowly drift for a moment. "O. M. G!" she screeched, "It was you! Where you were coming from, the Pokemon she mentioned, it all fits!" She let herself drift to a stop, absently putting one leg down to prop herself up as she dug out a Poryphone.

My eyes went wide as I realized what she'd realized. I snapped a finger out to point at the phone as I said, "Janelle, wait!" Her fingers continued to slide over the screen. I was out of time, "Lucky, fetch!"

My little pup reacted with instincts that made me proud, even targeting accurately enough to avoid Janelle's fingers. Thank goodness for that. The last thing I needed, especially here and now, was one of my team attacking someone else. Lucky trotted over to me, proudly presenting me Janelle's slobbery Poryphone. I took it delicately between two fingers, checking to see that nothing had been sent. I let out a breath I hadn't known I'd been holding when I saw the message text still displayed, ready to send. I touched the "cancel" button.

Mac had only just stopped and turned to look at us. He was looking at me in suspicion and a little outrage, but before he opened his mouth to chastise me, I said, "Janelle, you can't post anything to link me to that Gab girl. I'll give you your phone back and tell you the whole story if you promise."

My face must have convinced her, or else the look of shock on Mac's did, because her indignation melted away into curiosity. With a far-away nod, she said, "Yeah, okay."

"Have you been living under a rock?" Janelle displayed considerably less sympathy for my plight than Lila had, though I hadn't expected differently. "Gab is only the Kanto authority on makeup and fashion in Pokemon Showcases. I'd understand not liking her- well, I wouldn't understand it, but it wouldn't be a surprise; there are those crazy Miss Teria fans- but to not even recognize her?"

"I dunno," I shrugged. "It's not really my area of interest."

"Well, whatever," she said. "I guess I understand."

Mac, who had been listening quietly up to that point, finally interjected, "Janelle, why do you like "Gab" so much?" His voice was quiet and flat, off, somehow. It piqued my interest.

I don't think Gab noticed, other than the fact that Mac had asked her a question about herself. "I mean, she's funny, and she's always on top of interesting trends, and her Showcases are just straight-up better than Miss Teria's."

"You may want to distinguish whether you like her content, or her," Mac advised cryptically.

Janelle looked confused, "That's kind of out of nowhere."

But I was starting to understand, "You know why the League took notice of what an internet personality was complaining about. Why Bruno stepped in with my situation, despite probably having way more important things to worry about."

I narrowed my eyes, studying his expression. It was neutral, but it tightened ever so slightly as I spoke. I was right. "What's going on?"

He turned Dodrio back towards Viridian, "We should get moving."

"Oh, no you-"

"Barrier, Mimsey!"

Mimsey worked fast, erecting a wide, solid psychic barrier in front of Mac. It wasn't so big that he couldn't go around it, but that wasn't the point.

"We really shouldn't get into this," Mac warned, not turning around.

"Yeah, well then maybe you shouldn't be so interesting," Janelle replied. "Now dish."

I rolled my eyes, but I was glad she was as intrigued as I was. "Seriously, Mac," I pushed, "if this has to do with why the League is following my life this closely, don't I have a right to know?"

He sighed, and looked back at us, "You can't just let this go?"

Janelle and I shared a look, then, in near comical harmony, fixed Mac with a flat stare, as though we'd telepathically arranged it.

He sighed.

"Fine, but not here. This isn't something random passersby should hear."

"How much do you know about the attack in Kalos a few years ago?"

We were within sight of both Route 2 and Viridian itself, but Mac had been insistent that we couldn't discuss it in town. Mac had been silent since we'd started setting up camp, aside from giving Cloyster, Electabuzz, and Dodrio some quiet instructions. The suddenness of his voice, not to mention the strange topic of the question, threw me off.

"Some wack job blew up a town, right?" Janelle said.

"That's certainly what the popular story is, especially this far away," Mac replied. "But the truth is much scarier. It wasn't a lone individual. It was the result of an orchestrated terrorist group. Things could have been much worse without the actions of some local trainers, but it was still devastating. The group held some extreme ideas, but were mostly either apprehended or disbanded after their leaders were caught.

"Unfortunately, it seems that their ideologies didn't quite die out. A group calling themselves Team NeoFlare has adopted some of them."

"This is all, um, interesting," I said, "But I don't see what it has to do with anything."

"I do," said Janelle. "Miss Teria's fans have been saying that Gab supports some kind of shady organization, but it's not true. Gab's even talked about how ridiculous it is."

"It's not quite as far-fetched as that," Mac said. "NeoFlare has specifically used quotes from Ms. Acerra in some of their media. Many of the members we know of have also frequented her pages and forums."

"That's not her fault!" Janelle exclaimed. She has so many followers, of course some of them will be rotten. It's not like she controls us."

"Normally, I'd be right with you," Mac said. "Master Bruno has certainly had some more… vocal fans. The issue is her response. While Ms. Acerra hasn't outright announced support for them, she's never condemned them, either. The closest she's come is saying that 'people need to stop reading into things so much,' which isn't exactly a denouncement. Considering the leader of the original Team Flare was a celebrity, I don't think it's unfair that we're keeping a close eye on another popular individual with ties to them."

"I think I understand," I said. "Even if Gab herself isn't part of it, it's a problem if they can recruit from her followers, isn't it?"

Mac touched his nose, "Got it in one."

Janelle scowled, but her eyes widened a moment later when Mac brought up some pictures on a PoryPal. Dragon Dance, was I the only person without a computer in my pocket?

Then I saw the pictures and forgot about my lack of technology.

An enormous crater was blasted into the town square. Buildings nearby had been flattened, with massive stone obelisks sticking out of buildings further away. Janelle had gone pale. I felt sick.

"This was taken two days after the attack. Coming so closely on the heels of the attempted coup in Unova, every League is on high alert," Mac looked at us seriously. "Janelle, even if Ms. Acerra is just being exploited, and the majority of her followers are decent people like you, we can't afford to let anything slip by us."