Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any other property in this work that I didn't make myself.

Bea and the autistic gym challenger

Chapter twenty-nine: Stepping back to focus on what's more important

It has been only two days since the gym challenge had come to a complete close, and yet the excitement of the people of Galar is still at an absurd high. But then again, who can blame them? The first and most obvious thing is that Leon, the long time reigning champion of Galar, had been defeated in the title match by Nina. As such, she took Leon's place and became the new champion of the Galar region.

There was no need to worry for Leon over him not being the champion anymore. You see, he was actually offered a new job that would allow him to 'be a real adult and help lead Galar into the right future', as he put it. What was Leon's new job, you may ask? Well, he became the newest member of the commissionery board for the Galar Pokemon League, putting him into a spot similar to Commissioners Hakurou, Tobias, Anahthyne and Kankuro.

They needed more members in the commissionery board, too; as a result of their actions in the terrorist act they carried out during the champion cup, my mom as well as Rosalia and Robin were all voted off of the commissionery board. It's not exactly like they would be needing to have jobs, given that all of them plus their numerous terrorist underlings were found guilty and sentenced to a rather lengthy stay in prison.

I won't be seeing my mother for years, decades probably. Can you blame me for being happy?

There was still a bit of scandal to deal with, however. Mainly how I was getting some heat for my relation to one of the three ex-commissioners, even though I had no hand in any of my mom's dishonorable actions. But then again I cannot begrudge those who are giving me flack in the least; were the situation reversed, I can realistically see myself being the same. Some folks are even saying that I became a gym leader due to my mom's connections.

...That offends me, as it was Commissioners Hakurou, Tobias and Kankuro who oversaw my evaluation and all approved of my becoming a gym leader. And I had earned it fair and square.

Still, given my relation to my mom and what my mom had taken part in during the interruption in the Champion Cup, people will be drawing conclusions out of suspicion and, in some cases, personal hurt. Such is the way of people sometimes. But I digress. There are actually a number of good things to come out of all of this, mostly due to Nina having won the Championship Match and becoming the new champion of Galar.

First off, those laws that are being argued for in parliament right now, which would take away the Pokemon of special needs citizens should said laws pass, have been pushed way onto the back burner. They haven't been completely tossed quite yet, but from the looks of it those laws will be given the kibosh. I'm pretty sure that the people of Galar wouldn't like it if their newest champion was forced to step down because she just so happens to be autistic.

In fact, Nina talking about those laws in one of the first interviews she had after becoming champion actually drew a lot of attention to them; prior to that over ninty percent of Galar's population had no idea about them, and out of the less than ten percent of Galar's population that did know over eighty percent thought that said laws were just rumors. Thanks to Nina, those laws are under a lot of fire.

Another thing about Nina becoming the new champion of Galar is that, given that Nina is a Spikemuth native, a lot of attention has been drawn towards Spikemuth, resulting in Piers's city getting revitalized with an abundance of tourism. This was Marnie's main reason for wanting to become champion herself, as she was worried about Spikemuth dying out as it were. Thanks to her friend, Marnie will get to see her hometown go on for quite some time yet.

Now Marnie has time to improve herself and her Pokemon for next year's gym challenge.

The seven gym medalists whose medals were tainted by the cheating of the ex-commissioners were all still upset that they had to relinquish their gym medals, even though none of them had done anything to deserve it. What a lot of them were even more upset about is the fact that they had beaten Raihan for their respective Dragon Badges because all of his gym challenge party Pokemon were drugged.

It made the news that their medals were tainted by the cheating of mom, Rosalia and Robin, with some reporters asking if they would be allowed to try again next year. Hakurou said that, if they can get the endorsements necessary, then yes, all of them would be allowed to enter the gym challenge next year. Some questions were asked about my friends, who had confessed to being the true culprits behind the 'Nina being bullied in Stow-on-Side' stunt that resulted in the unfair disqualification of Bede from the gym challenge.

Surprisingly, it was Bede and Nina, the two hurt by that scheme, who were the first to call for permitting my friends a chance to be relieved and allowed to atone for what they did. Nina had come up with the idea of having Sashay, Rosie and Marina all do community service for a little bit of time, which ended up being five months. My friends were all surprised, with Sashay later admitting to me (since Nina and Bede are easing up on my friends I was doing so as well) that she thought she, Rosie and Marina were all getting off rather lightly.

Nina originally thought that my friends would simply be doing things like picking up trash at parks, and volunteering time at retirement homes like the one in Ballonlea where former gym leader Opal lives. However, Bede thought of something else that my friends could do for their community service; my mom, Sashay's mom and Rosie's mom did what they did because they thought so little of those who are special needs, such as people like Nina who's autistic.

So, in addition to picking up trash at parks and volunteering time at the Ballonlea Retirement Home, my friends are also going to be volunteering time helping with autistic youth all over the Galar region. Sashay said that she actually appreciates the irony that is proposed by what Bede had suggested; the ex-commissioners hates those who are special needs, but the daughters of two of them have to play nice with special needs youth.

To the surprise of my friends, this saw them having to spend time with Luna, one of our classmates over at Stow-on-Side middle school. My little brother Allister was also one of the persons that was on their list to their surprise, and even more to their surprise was the fact that Nina was on their list too. Champion of Galar she may be, Nina is still an eleven-year-old, so she technically qualifies as 'youth'.

Regardless, everything in Galar seemed to be looking brighter. ...Well, there's still people wanting me to answer for what my mom had done. I have an idea that will satisfy the ones who are more bloodthirsty, but it will come as a shock to a lot of people. However, I feel that it will be for the best, and hey, I'll have a lot of time afterwards to focus on more important things. It'll be a win-win for all involved.

It was five days after Nina had become champion when I held a press conference where I announced that I was stepping down from being a gym leader. I cited how I cannot in good faith continue being a gym leader in the Galar Pokemon League due to the actions my mom had taken during the Champion Cup, as well as how due to my mom's arrest and incarceration over said actions I'll be needed more by my family so I won't have time to be a gym leader anyway.

My announcement of stepping down as a gym leader drew a lot of surprise from the people of Galar, but it did seem to appease those who wanted me to 'answer for what my mom did' so to speak. Galar had seen two gym leaders step down this year, and although one was replaced in short order, one will take quite some time, probably right up before the gym challenge that will be taking place next year.

Something else I had to do in order to make more time for my family was go to my Galar karate instructor, Master Teriyaki, and inform him that I regretfully had to drop out of his classes. I had actually cried when I told him what all had been going on, what I had to do now. Master Teriyaki was very understanding, saying that my wanting to prioritize my family (my dad and Allister at least; mom's in prison now) was a sign that I saw value where it truly laid.

However, right when I was about to leave, Master Teriyaki said, "However, before you can officially leave, it is only fitting that you are given a proper send off, my star pupil." A wry look of amusement entered my sensei's eyes. "...Luckily for us, a volunteer had come here looking for you. I believe that she may be willing to serve as your final opponent before you bow out of the way of Galar karate so that you may have more time for your family who will be needing you now more than ever."

To my surprise, Nina came walking out from a hallway. She was dressed in her normal outfit, featuring a whole lot of purple including that scally cap of hers. There was an upset look on her face as she looked at me, like she might cry. "...I'm sorry that you had to stop being a gym leader, Bea," Nina said, "Because your mom had been bad and got arrested and thrown into jail. I wish I could have done something to help you continue."

I held up a hand to cut off any further argument. "...My mom's actions, in addition to bringing shame onto both myself and herself, have resulted in her being locked up, meaning she won't be around to help with the family. Although my mom is just one source, she has given multiple reasons for me to step down."

"But will I ever get to see you again?" I was surprised by what the new champion had asked me. "You...you are a really nice person," Nina began to explain, "And you helped to save Galar from what your mom and the other ex-commissioners tried to do." Nina's shoulders shook a bit, a sign that she was probably going to gently cry. "I don't think it'd be fair if I never got to see you again, because I feel like you're my friend."

I held my hand up again to cut Nina off. I offered her a gentle, appreciative smile. "...Just because I'm stepping down from being a gym leader and having to withdraw from my Galar karate class doesn't mean I'm going to disappear forever. I just need to be able to focus more on my family in order to help out." Offhandedly, I mentioned, "Also, I'll be able to have more time to work on my school work. I'm not a failing student, mind you, but my grades can stand to be a lot better than they are."

I gave an amused chuckle, gently shook my head. "I can give you my number so you can call me on my days off from school. And maybe we could arrange to hang out on those days?"

Nina perked up at that, nodded vigorously in agreement. "Yes, I would like that."

I turned to face Master Teriyaki. "Now you're saying that I'm going to face Nina in a battle?'

"Indeed, Bea," Master Teriyaki proceeded to explain, "Champion Nina will be your final opponent while you are still a practitioner of Galar karate. You two will have an exhibition battle where each of you will be permitted to use three Pokemon each, but only one Pokemon at a time. First to knock out all of their opponent's Pokemon wins."

I nodded in understanding, the set up simple enough. Master Teriyaki then had me and Nina follow him out into the outdoors sparring grounds, where other students in my class were all waiting for us. "We're here to see you off, Bea!" a boy in my age group said, "We will miss you here, but we understand that you need to put your family first. We will wish you luck in your life that you'll be living!"

To be honest, I was touched. I was still a little bit teary eyed from earlier when I told Master Teriyaki I had to withdraw from the class, although he assured me there was no shame. And in any event, I had an exhibition battle against Nina to fight. This will be my last battle while I am still on the path of Galar karate. Knowing Nina, she'll make it a battle that I will remember right into my dying days. You know, it's weird; everything started with an exhibition battle against Nina, and now that's how it's ending.

Anyway, I have to focus. Out of all of the Pokemon that I own, I kept only my championship tournament party Pokemon, plus my Pangoro that I kept in my gym challenge party, in order to have a full party of six. The rest of my Pokemon, sadly, I surrendered to good homes that I know will take good care of them. Things will be getting tight around the house, so I had to think very carefully about which Pokemon I was going to keep.

Luckily I still had my Machamp from my championship tournament party; that Machamp is my first ever Pokemon, so of course it's staying.

That being said, I was going into the battle against Nina with Pangoro, Machamp, Hawlucha, Falinks, Grapploct and Sirfetch'd. I was thinking about what Pokemon Nina might have with her as we took our places for the battle; if Nina has the same party with her that she had used to defeat Leon and become the new champion, then she'll have Cinderace, Stonjourner, Dragapult, Zarude, Zacian and-

"Go on, Juri!" Nina said as she sent out her Urshifu, "I know you can do it!" My classmates all cheered excitedly upon seeing Nina send the ultimate fighter out to face me, some expressing jealousy that I was getting to battle Urshifu while others saying that I couldn't have asked for a better final opponent to see me off. The cheering had surprised Nina a bit, prompting her to put her special headphones on.

Once Nina had settled down a bit, she gave me a smile, accompanied by a knowing twinkle in her eyes. I remember now, the request I had made of Nina while we were storming Rose Tower to stop the terrorists and save Allister. She was fulfilling my request here and now. I gave a lone nod of appreciation as I tossed up the ball that held my first Pokemon in our exhibition battle. "Pangoro, I choose you!"

"Bea's first of three Pokemon is Pangoro!" Master Teriyaki announced as he acted as the referee for our battle, "Nina's first of three Pokemon is Urshifu! Begin!"

"Pangoro, use Circle Throw!" I ordered.

"Juri, use Brick Break!" Nina commanded.

The two ursine Pokemon rushed one another, but Urshifu, swift and flowing like a river, was the quicker of the two; it rushed Pangoro with a hand pulled back to deal a chopping blow, and then upon getting close enough dealt said blow right onto Pangoro's head, knocking it down onto the ground where he laid defeated. "Pangoro is defeated! Urshifu wins!" Master Teriyaki announced.

I recalled my fainted Pangoro, remembering that he's not as well trained as my championship tournament party Pokemon as I kept him at a level people still trying to earn badges can handle well enough. Oh well, that's where my other two Pokemon in this exhibition battle came in. I tossed up the ball that held my second Pokemon. "Hawlucha, I choose you!"

"Bea's second of three Pokemon is Hawlucha!" Master Teriyaki announced, "Continue!"

"Hawlucha, use Flying Press!" I called out, hoping type advantage would help me out here, if only a little bit.

"Juri, use Aerial Ace!" Nina ordered.

Hawlucha flew up and prepared to fly down to slam into Urshifu, but she just put the index and middle fingers of her right hand together, then quickly lashed out, dealing a striking slashing movement against Hawlucha's body and sending him slamming down onto the ground, clearly defeated. "Hawlucha is defeated!" Master Teriyaki announced, "Urshifu wins!"

I recalled my fainted Hawlucha, down to just my last Pokemon. Even so, this was bar none my favorite battle that I've ever had, and it was fitting that it would be the battle to see me off from actively battling Pokemon. I gave a sincere smile as I regarded Nina, before sending out my last Pokemon. "Machamp, I choose you!"

"Bea's third and final Pokemon is Machamp!" Master Teriyaki announced, "Continue!"

"Machamp, use Cross Chop!" I commanded.

"Juri, use Waterfall!" Nina cried out.

Both Pokemon rushed one another, and with Urshifu being the faster of the two, she slammed into Machamp while cloaked entirely in water. Machamp was dealt a critical hit by that attack, and as such fell to its knees before falling over onto the ground, laying there defeated. "Machamp is defeated! Urshifu wins!" Master Teriyaki announced. Gesturing to Nina, Master Teriyaki declared, "The winner is Nina!"

Even though the battle was a loss for me, I still felt exhilarated. Similarly, my classmates in the Galar karate class cheered excitedly not just because they got to see the ultimate fighter battle right before their very eyes, but also because it was helping to give me as much of a send off as what can be managed. I gave a calm, sincere smile as I recalled my fainted Machamp, thankful it had been by my side since the first day I ever started working with Pokemon.

And now Machamp, as well as the others I've kept, will be going with me beyond that.

The rest of the day at Master Teriyaki's school was spent with a party, courtesy of Master Teriyaki himself. We had a blast, what with the games, snacks, (non-alcoholic) drinks, and some of my classmates, as well as Master Teriyaki, even got me going away gifts. Nina was also one of the persons who had gotten me a gift; in her case, Nina got me a set of six hair clips, each one three inches long by about an inch wide, and each clip was based off of a different one of the Pokemon in Nina's party she used to defeat Leon.

"I was told by the commissioners that since I'm champion now, there's going to be merchandise of me and my Pokemon made," Nina explained, both embarrassed and a little confused, "But I'm a little bit surprised it's already available." I nodded in understanding, thanked Nina for the gift. Knowing me, I'll probably use the Urshifu hair clip first and most often, but I will still be making use of the other hair clips. It wouldn't do if I didn't show appreciation for the gift Nina got me.

At the end of the party, everyone in my class, as well as Master Teriyaki, and even Nina and her Urshifu, bowed respectfully to me as I was leaving the school for the last time. I will admit that I teared up a bit at the gesture from everyone, but I did appreciate all that they were doing for me. Due to how many gifts I got, as well as how I took home some leftover party food, I needed help carrying everything. Nina after she had recalled her Urshifu offered to help me, and so with the champion of Galar following me while she carried some of my stuff, I went home.

...

My dad and especially Allister were surprised to see it that I brought Nina home with me, so I had to explain the situation to them. Dad was understanding, and Allister was super excited to meet 'the coolest Galar champion ever', making Nina light up a bit out of embarrassment. After I gave her my number as well as the days I have off of school, I saw Nina off to the Corviknight taxi port closest to where I lived, then saw her fly off to Spikemuth.

I let out a resigned, troubled sigh when Nina's taxi disappeared from my sight, and with nothing else holding me there, I turned around and returned home. This time before the gym challenge, I never in my wildest dreams would have even imagined that my life would end up the way that it had. But now, with me having stepped down out of being a gym leader and having stepped out of my Galar karate class because I'll be needed at home more since mom's going to be locked up for ages (a good thing if you ask me), I have no idea what the future holds for me.

Upon walking back into my house, I saw that Allister had lined up all of the gifts I got in an organized manner. "I organized your stuff for you, Bea," Allister said innocently, "It was all in a messy pile, so I figured you'd like it if everything was cleaned up. I was super careful too."

"Yeah, the mess of all of the bags just being set down randomly kind of bothered your little brother so he insisted on organizing things for you," dad explained to me, "Don't worry, I kept an eye on him to make sure he didn't handle anything too roughly."

I smiled calmly, let out a humming chuckle. "...Thanks for cleaning up my mess, Allister. I hope it's my last mess that you have to clean up."

"But I like cleaning," Allister said, "I don't like it when things are messy."

My dad and I both let out amused laughs at Allister's innocence. Well, I had one more week until school resumed, and I'll be needing to speak with dad about that matter later. In the meantime, I got gifts to look through, and Allister patiently sat back and watched while I went through all of the gifts I got one at a time.

In addition to the hair clip set Nina got me, I also got a set of rings, a four bottle set of some manner of gourmet soda, a charm bracelet, a gift card to the local cafe here in Stow-on-Side, a back scratcher (why?), and an eye shadow pallete set based off of a series on the telly that I like. There was a few other gifts, and all of the leftover party food that I had brought home with me from my send off party; I shared some cake and cookies with Allister.

I got my stuff put away and, with nothing else to do, I went to my bedroom to lay down in my bed. It feels like it's been ages since I laid in my own bed, but it feels oddly comfortable. All of the exhaustion over the last few days finally hit me, so I promptly fell asleep, safely in a home that despite the loss of its matriarch felt more like a home than ever for some odd reason.

Funny that.

Two days later, my dad and I had arranged for me to be taken out of Stow-on-Side middle school and enrolled into Stow-on-Side magnet middle school; too many people knew me at my old school, and I knew I wouldn't be able to put up with the looks and whispers I'd be getting due to what my mom had done. I knew that I'd also be harassed over my decision of stepping down as the gym leader here in Stow-on-Side.

Luckily for me, Stow-on-Side magnet middle school is in a somewhat more secluded part of the city, and very few people in that part of town would recognize me. Further helping my ability to blend in was how I had stopped using my contact lenses and went back to using my glasses. I also dressed more modestly, and styled my hair differently, brushing and combing it long and straight. Sort of like how Nina has her hair.

As a result, nobody at my new school knew who I was or recognized me, aside from a few staff members who were in the know but respected my desire to stay anonymous. One female teacher even sympathized with me, understanding why I would want to keep my past where it was at; in the past. Either way, my new life as a Stow-on-Side magnet middle school student had gotten off to quite a good start, if I do say so myself.

Since I was no longer a gym leader, and I no longer had Galar karate classes, I had a lot of free time and effort to put back into my academics; I remember that I had been quite the student back when I was in elementary school, my academic prowess back then being one of my few solaces in a setting where me being a chubby nerd put me well near the bottom of the social hierarchy at the school. Such was life, I'm afraid.

My grades overall had slipped over the years, but that was something that I aimed to fixed. I also figure me tackling my school work in such a manner would set a good example for Allister to follow. I just had to avoid recapturing the part of my past where I was chubby and I would be good to go. And so this is my life now; a studious student at the magnet middle school, with only my father and my six-year-old brother as my family.

...Why couldn't this have been my life sooner?

END, CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Author's notes;

Even though Nina has started her life as champion of Galar, Bea had stepped out of her life as the Stow-on-Side gym leader, as well as made other moves to keep to herself as much as she can manage. Bea's mom Malty had done quite a lot, and none of it good. As such, Bea felt that it would be best if she withdrew from the spotlight. But there's one more thing Bea will be doing, and it will give her hope for the future of the Galar Pokemon League.

You'll see what I mean in the next chapter. Ciao.