Marinette: Tikki (Ledian), Wayzz (Dottler), Longg (Vibrava)
Adrien: Plagg (Meowstic), Neufchâtel (Skitty)
The next gym on Adrien's list was Cyllage City. The gym leader there was Grant, a rock-type specialist. There was little Marinette could do to prepare him for this one. But still…
"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Marinette asked, for probably the third time that day, as they prepared to set out for Cyllage City.
"Sure!" Adrien said. "Plagg and I have been working hard a new strategy. I figure that Magical Leaf will give us a good start, and Neufchâtel's Assist can take care of whatever's left!"
"Assist? But that's…" Marinette did the math in her head quickly. "A one-in-thirty chance of getting the right move!"
"One-in-thirty three, actually."
Marinette would not have bet on those odds. But the idea was not terrible on its own. Grant's Amaura would not ordinary have a defense against a psychic-type using a grass type move, but what about Tyrunt? The last thing she would want as a psychic-type pokémon would be to get stuck in the Big Jaw pokémon's Bite attack…
Wait, that was it!
"I know!" She said. "Why don't we visit the Fossil Lab in Ambrette Town?"
"The Fossil Lab?" Adrien asked.
"Sure. Grant's two pokémon are fossil pokémon, after all!" Marinette said. "We can stop in on our way to the gym. Maybe we can ask Max for some advice if he's working there today."
"Alright, you lead the way then!"
Marinette felt her face flush. She nodded, trying hard not to think of this as a date, as she fumbled to page Charizard for a ride.
The Fossil Lab was a somewhat new development in Ambrette Town, an add-on to the fossil museum made 20 years ago when a team of researchers in Hoenn developed a way to revive pokémon in fossils. It was a curious process that only worked for pokémon hundreds of thousands of years old, but one the people of Ambrette Town took pride in. The lab still was primarily a museum, but every once in a while, when researchers found an intact specimen they could use, they would hold a big demonstration showcasing how the machine worked.
Marinette was quite surprised to see one of these demonstrations happening right now. The lab was packed with people, each crowding around a small stage and made walking through the town nearly impossible. That was weird. She would have remembered if Max had said there was a demonstration happening again this week…
"Oh! Salutations, Marinette and Adrien!"
And there was the Schoolkid now. It was clear the poor kid was being run ragged, with his arms still full of paperwork and his glasses askew.
"We did not highly advertise this demonstration due to the ongoing Team Prismillon attacks. I predicted there was only a one-in-thirty-three chance of you attending." Max said. "But I'm glad you're here! Did you hear which pokémon we're working on today?"
"No. We didn't even know you were going to be doing a demonstration." Marinette said. "We were actually hoping to ask you about advice for the next gym…"
"My apologies, but that will have to wait until after the demonstration. Approximately one hour from now?" Max said. "But you should stay! This is going to be the most recent fossil sample we've been able to work on. It should be quite interesting to you especially, Marinette."
Why her specifically? Was the fossil pokémon an Anorith, maybe? An added rock type would be nice for her team, but Longg could already cover that…
"We should be starting in 13 minutes, 17 seconds. Why don't you make yourselves comfortable? I will see if we can't get some more seats set out in the front row for you." Max said, before scurrying off.
"Still think we should stay?" Marinette asked.
"Of course! I've never seen one of these!" Adrien said. "Although I didn't know Max worked here. Don't you need a licence professionnelle?"
"His parents work here, so he started to help out when he was still in école élémentaire. But he knows so much now that he's practically a main member of the team." Marinette said.
"Wow, that's impressive!" Adrien said. "But I didn't think you and Max were such close friends."
"Max and I are friends! That's why I know so much about him!" Marinette said, defensively. "I make a point to remember everything about my friends, including their birthday, their favorite food, their pokémon's favorite poképuff flavor, what they want to do when they leave class, and how I can help them with that! I even know things about Chloé!"
"Does that include me?" Adrien asked.
Marinette felt her face heat up. Was that too much? Was it too weird of her? Thank Mew that the lights were starting to dim with a reminded for everyone to take their place so she did not have to face Adrien with her face redder than a Darmanitan.
"Here. You go grab some seats, I'll get some snacks." Adrien said.
Marinette nodded. True to his word, Max had manage to reserve some seats for them close to the stage. By the time Adrien returned (with pecha berry macarons for her and a cheese danish he split with his pokémon, just like she predicted he would), the demonstration had started.
"Thank you all for joining us today." Scientist Claudie Kanté said as she took to the stage. Max hovered behind his mother, not quite sure what to do on stage but with a huge smile on his face. "We'll be working on something very exciting. This is the first specimen we will be working on that is not a fossil pokémon in the traditional sense. This specimen was first uncovered during an archaeological excavation at Geosenge Town. Working with our colleagues at the Nacrene Museum in Unova, we have verified that this is a fully in-tact Larvesta egg."
A murmur rippled through the crowd. Marinette saw why. A fully intact egg?
"We can date this specimen back to 3,000 years ago, most likely before the firing of the Arme Suprême. It was uncovered in a bed of igneous rock, no doubt as a way to preserve the egg by its parent." Scientist Kanté continued. "However, that turns out to be quite the opportunity for us, as that igneous rock acts just the same as the regular fossilization process of other fossil pokémon. This will be the first time we are working with a fossil this recent, so we should prepare for anything. However, I have high hopes about this experiment. Max?"
Max jumped at the sudden attention. But once he got to work, his fear seemed to fade away. His movements were careful but precise, delicately handling the large chunk of basalt rock and activating the fossil resurrection machine with the skills of a real scientist. It was not quite the same energy Marinette was looking to give off on stage, but still…it filled her mind with possibilities.
She was so caught up in watching Max that she did not realize she wasn't watching Max, not until the very second he activated the machine. The machine lit up as it got to work, blinding her and shaking her out of her thoughts. When the light cleared, there was an orange poke-egg sitting on the machine, free from its rocky core and shining brightly.
Scientist Kanté went on to describe all the scientific processes that the machine did. Marinette did not really pay attention; she had been at one of these before for class, and it had not made sense to her then either. Instead, she spent her time watching Adrien. The trainer was rapt with attention, hanging off of Kanté's every word. Maybe he was just fascinated by the science? Or maybe he was preparing himself for Grant in every way they could. Either way, Marinette could not get his shimmering emerald eyes out of her head.
When the presentation ended, Max made a beeline straight for them, Larvesta egg in arms.
"You did a great job, Max!" Marinette said.
"I appreciate your compliments, Marinette!" Max said. "I will be happy to answer any questions you have regarding Amarua and Tyrunt in a moment, Adrien, but first let me ask Marinette something."
"Oh? Sure."
"Well, you see…the scientists and I have been under discussion regarding what happens to the Larvesta egg now. It is quite different than our usual specimen, and we believe that a trainer such as yourself would be preferable conditions for the pokémon."
"M—myself?" Marinette squeaked.
"Affirmative." Max said. "There are practical purposes to putting it under your care, of course. The current scientific consensus among both researchers and breeders is that pokémon eggs and the resulting offspring thrive under the care of an active trainer. Not to mention, you have unique qualifications to raise a Larvesta as a bug-type trainer. It would be a benefit to both yourself and the scientific community at large."
"I think you should do it, Marinette!" Adrien said. "You know the Unova champion has a Volcanrona, right? I bet you can make some good routines and kick major butt with one, too!"
That was true…wasn't Volcanrona's signature move Fiery Dance? Already the possibilities were buzzing in her mind.
"Alright." Marinette said. "But let me know if you need to change your mind or anything."
"The chances of that are low." Max said as he handed her the egg. "Now, what questions did you have for me?"
Max had done more than just answer Adrien's questions. He left the lab with a full spreadsheet of Grant's pokémon's moves and Grant's usual patterns for using them. He had made a point to read through it before they reached the gym, but stored it in his pocket so he didn't have to rely on it too much.
"Are you sure you're ready?" Marinette asked.
"Yup! Feeling even better about it, now, thanks to you and Max!" Adrien said. "I never would have thought to ask him for help."
Honestly, Adrien was not sure if he would have ever thought to ask Max for anything, let alone help. He didn't think he and the Schoolkid were all that close. He knew he was friends with Marinette now, and he was pretty certain he was getting close to friends with Nino. He couldn't get rid of Chloé if he wanted to. But were he and Max friends now?
"Alright, I better get going. Break a leg!" Marinette said. "Wait—I mean do good! Good luck! Don't actually hurt yourself on that climbing wall!"
"Relax, Marinette. I know what 'break a leg' means." Adrien said.
There were two entrances to the Cyllage Gym. One was off to the side, which only took you to the stadium seats. The other was directly in front of Adrien: a 15 meter tall climbing wall. The goal was that the trainer was supposed to climb it with the help of their pokémon. But he doubted that Grant had designed the wall with psychic type pokémon in mind.
"Ready, Plagg?" He asked.
Plagg let out a small grunt as he wrapped the two in a Psychic bubble. Effortlessly, the two floated above the climbing wall.
The inside of the Cyllage Gym was absolutely stunning. Its design echoed the nearby Glittering Caves, with cavernous walls illuminated not just by stadium lights but by luminous moss and brilliant crystals. The stadium-sized battlefield in front of him was smoothed down, but they were surrounded by stalagmites and boulders that would have made moving out of bounds impossible. The bleachers were nearly full too; Adrien guess that most everyone had come straight from the fossil demonstration once they heard there would be a gym battle. And standing across from him in front of a flowing waterfall was the gym leader Grant, the wild yet cool and collected rock climber.
"That's quite an impressive way to get past my climbing wall. Quite an achievement, actually!" Grant said. "You must be Adrien, correct?"
Adrien gave a curt nod.
"I've been waiting in eager anticipation! Not just for you, but for a worthy challenger!" Grant said. "I have a feeling that our battle will turn out to be worth the wait!"
Grant tossed a pokéball out onto the field. In a flash of light, an Amarua appeared. The battle had started.
"Alright. Plagg, I choose you!" Adrien said.
Plagg hopped onto the battlefield.
"I hope you'll show me that your skill as a Trainer surpass even mine." Grant said. "Now, Amarua! Thunder Wave!"
That was expected. Max had warned him that Grant almost always started with Amarua, and almost always started with Thunder Wave. Fortunately, Plagg did not need to move around too much to use Magical Leaf.
"You know the plan, Plagg! Magical Leaf!"
The magical leaves moved slower than usual, hovered in the air for just a minute longer. But it did not matter. Magical Leaf was an attack that never missed.
"Not bad." Grant said. "Amarua, don't hold back! Rock Tomb!"
"Plagg, Quick Guard!"
But Plagg was moving slower, too. The Quick Guard was not quick enough to completely shield himself from the oncoming rocks that were hurled at him.
"Keep going, Plagg! Magical Leaf!"
"Amarua, Take Down!"
Even though the attack struck, Amarua rushed through the leaves with ease. It charged towards Plagg, picking up speed…
"Plagg! Quick Guard!"
Too late. Amarua slammed into Plagg, sending the psychic-type to the end of the battlefield.
"Are you okay, Plagg?" Adrien asked.
Plagg grunted, and forced himself to his feet. Good. They still had a chance. And no doubt that Amarua was starting to feel the effects of the Magical Leaf and the recoil of that Take Down.
"Alright, Plagg. One more Magical Leaf should do it!" Adrien said.
"Don't give them the chance, Amarua! Icy Wind!"
The leafy attack slowed down as it flew through the oncoming storm. But it still it its target, and it was still enough to knock Amarua out.
"Not bad." Grant said as he recalled his pokémon. "But we can still surmount this wall. Go, Tyrunt!"
Alright. Now this was the hard part.
The sound of Marinette's Holocaster going off shook her out of gym battle in front of her. She at least managed to step back out into the lobby before it activated, showing her a frenzied-looking Max.
"Marinette! Are you okay?" He asked.
"Of course. Adrien and I are at the gym." Marinette said. "Why, what's going on?"
"The lab is being attacked. While I do not have the data just yet, I'm positive these are Team Prismillion." Max said.
Marinette's blood ran cold.
"I believe they are after the Larvesta egg. But that's good for us! All you have to do is deposit the Larvesta egg into your bank account at the Pokémon Center and escape!" Max said.
"Alright." Marinette said. "I'm on my way."
Marinette hung up on Max before she could clarify. Hopefully he'll assume that she meant she was on her way to the Pokémon Center and not the Lab itself.
"Let's go, Tikki!"
"Alright, Tyrunt!" Grant said. "Let's make short work of this Meowstic! Bite!"
"Dodge, Plagg!"
But Plagg did not move, and Adrien realized that he was still paralyzed just as Tyrunt snatched Plagg up in its big jaws. It was only a quick bite—Arceus knows there was no way that Grant could get away with eating his challenger's pokémon—but it did not matter. The attack was super effective, and Plagg tumbled to the ground.
"Are you okay, Plagg?" Adrien asked.
Just barely, Plagg managed to lift his head. Good, they might still have a chance.
"Magical Leaf, Plagg!"
"Don't give them the chance! Dragon Tail, Tyrunt!"
Before Plagg could muster the energy to start the attack, Tyrunt knocked him to the other-side of the field.
"Good, now Crunch!"
Tyrunt snatched Plagg into its jaws once more, and that certainly looked like it was about to devour his pokémon. But Tyrunt spit him out, and Plagg did not stir after that.
"Sorry Plagg. You did good work out there." Adrien said as he recalled his pokémon.
Time for Plan B.
"Neufchâtel, I choose you!"
The Skitty hopped onto the field.
"Alright, Neufchâtel, Assist!"
Assist was a unique move to the Skitty line. Similar to Smeagle's Sketch, it could copy any move it saw in battle. Unlike Smeargle, who could only learn a handful of moves, Skitty's options were limitless.
Also unlike Smeagle, it was completely random what move came out.
Which is why Skitty used Helping Hand despite not having any partners to help. A one-in-thirty-three chance, indeed.
The Lab was surprisingly bare. Coxyclaque assumed that Max had played a role in evacuating everyone, but what about the Team Prismillion grunts?
She got the answer when she got to the doors. Her hand bounced off a psychic wall before she could reach the handle.
"A Barrier?" She asked out loud.
"Yup! I made it myself!"
Coxyclaque nearly yelped at the new voice. She spun around, coming face to face with another Team Prismillion admin. Melodie and Sparrow had looked somewhat older than her, but this admin looked somewhat younger, maybe just old enough to have a pokémon license. A mess of brown hair covered most of his mask, but she could still make out the barest hint of bright blue eyes. His uniform was flashier than the usual grunt uniform, but not quite as flashy as Melodie or Sparrow's.
"Oh, you must be that bug Melodie and Sparrow keep talking about!" The admin said. "Are you actually a pokémon? How do you use pokémon moves? Can you fly? Does it hurt to be a pokémon? How can I become a pokémon?"
Coxyclaque blinked.
"I…uh…" She stammered. Not exactly the superheroic aura she wanted to give off, but what else was she supposed to do? He was talking a mile a minute!
"Oh, I'm Kid Mime by the way!" The admin said. "But are you here to ruin our plans? Cause that means I have to stop you."
Well, that was a little more what she expected from these goons so far. Coxyclaque braced herself.
"Showtime, Mr. Mime!" Kid Mime called as he released his pokéball.
But that was just an ordinary Mr. Mime. No shadow-y aura surrounded it.
"Mercury won't let me have my own snagged pokémon yet, but that's okay! Our psychic powers are more than enough to deal with you!" Kid Mime said. "Mr. Mime, Magical Leaf!"
Coxyclaque ran through the attack, charged towards the Mr. Mime in front of her. Mr. Mime countered every Comet Punch she threw with a series of Barriers. She took a step backwards, preparing herself for a Struggle Bug.
"Substitute, Mr. Mime!"
Drat. She ended up hitting a plushie instead.
What else could she be doing? She should have an advantage against a psychic type, but she had to get through those Barriers first. If only Mistigrix was here, too, then she could at least distract them long enough…
"Mr. Mime, Psybeam!"
Coxyclaque barely managed to jump of the attack in time. No time to think about possibilities. She had to make her own distraction.
She fired off a Swift attack. Predictably, the Mr. Mime left its Barrier long enough to leave him vulnerable. Coxyclaque charged forward, charging herself with a Double-Edge. It was enough to shatter its substitute, and enough to knock it to the floor.
"Mr. Mime, Psybeam again! We can't let her win!"
Coxyclaque barely manged to pull herself to her feet in time. She caught the attack with a Light Screen in one hand, too tired to dodge properly. In the other, she threw one more Silver Wind attack.
Mr. Mime was too distracted firing the Psybeam to properly dodge. The attack hit dead on. Good. One more attack and…
"That's enough."
Coxyclaque nearly jumped at the new voice again. She glanced up, past the battlefield, to the lab door. There was another Team Prismillion admin waiting there for her. The voice was deep, probably male, but that was about all Coxyclaque could make of him. His mask was far more elaborate than Kid Mime's, covering his entire face and hair in a skin-tight cap.
"Mercury!" Kid Mime said.
"You're wasting your time, Kid." The admin, Mercury, said. "The fossils have already been moved out."
Way to go, Max!
Mercury turned his attention towards her.
"And is that the bug?" He asked.
"Yuh huh. I was taking care of it, but—"
"Allow me."
Without preamble, he touched a pokéball on his belt and released a Dragalge. Once again, Coxyclaque could not sense a shadow aura from it, but…
"Dragalge, Poison Gas!"
Coxyclaque did not have the time or the energy to jump out of the way. She was covered in a purple gunk before she had the time to blink. It was not the attack that hurt, however. The acid burned, causing her to fall to her knees in pain.
"Come on. Let's move."
"Oh, alright." Kid Mime said. "Mr. Mime, Teleport!"
They were gone in the blink of an eye. But Coxyclaque could not bring herself to care at the moment. She needed to do something about this poisoning fast.
Wait a minute…she reached into her pockets. They were crushed and crumpled, but the two pecha berry macarons Adrien had given her were still there, wrapped in a napkin. She shoved them in her mouth as fast as her hands would let her. Once she started to feel the pecha berry take effect, like rubbing aloe vera onto a sunburn, she let herself fall to the ground and relax.
It was good that Max had evacuated everyone and everything before Team Prismillion could really take anything. But she still shouldn't have let them get away like that. And where was Mistigrix when she needed him?
"Assist!"
Neufchâtel used Miracle Eye.
"Assist again!"
Neufchâtel glowed with psychic energy, but did not make a move. Future Sight, perhaps?
"Come on Neufchâtel, we can do it! Assist!"
"This is getting ridiculous." Grant said. "Tyrunt, Ancient Power!"
"Dodge, Neufchâtel!"
If nothing else, Neufchâtel could weave through the incoming attack with ease. But it was becoming clear that Plan B was not going to work. So what else could he do? He had been banking on Assist doing something.
"Tyrunt, Dragon Tail!"
Ah, there was the Future Sight taking effect. It at least bought him some time to run through Skitty's move pool in his head. There was Play Rough, but the fairy type move would lose its fairy typing with Skitty's Normalize ability. There was Double-Edge, but that was too much of a gamble now that he was out of plans. There was Wake-Up Slap…that was it!
"Neufchâtel, Sing!"
The song that came out of Neufchâtel's mouth was soft and sweet. Even with the adrenaline of the battle, even Adrien could find himself falling asleep to it. It knocked Tyrunt to its feet in seconds.
"Good, now Wake Up Slap!"
Wake Up Slap would lose its fighting-type advantage through Normalize, but a powerful move made even more powerful through the status effect was enough to knock the Tyrunt out for real.
The battle was over. The crowd roared, nearly deafening in the echoing cave. Grant recalled his pokémon.
"You have proven to be a wall that even I cannot surmount!" The gym leader said. "As your reward, here is the Cliff Badge!"
Adrien took the badge with a swelling of pride in his chest. He had done it. He had done it!
He had not realized Marinette was no longer in the stands until he saw her waiting at the door for her.
"Marinette! Are you okay?"
"I'm okay. Sorry I missed most of your battle." She said, panting heavy. Had she run back here? From where? "How was your one-in-thirty-three chance?"
"Maybe I shouldn't be leaving things to chance…"
"I wouldn't say that." Marinette said with a wink. "I quite like your odds of winning."
Adrien smiled up at her. He was glad to know he had a friend he could count on.
"Thanks, Marinette!"
But once again, Marinette's shyness got the better of her. She sputtered out a quick thank you and said her goodbyes. Poor thing. Hopefully one day her shyness wouldn't be so pervasive and they could become better friends.
Marinette: Tikki (Ledian), Wayzz (Dottler), Longg (Vibrava) + Larvesta Egg
Adrien: Plagg (Meowstic), Neufchâtel (Skitty)
Author's Notes: Me: Hmm...it's been a while since I watched any episodes with Max...how far should I push his dialogue to be "nerdy"?
Also me: *has been hyperfixating on RWBY since hbomberguy posted his analysis like a year ago*
Me: I know! He'll say "Salutations"!
I know there are some people reading this whose first language is not English (which is impressive, by the way!). I'm not sure if "break a leg" is strictly an English phrase or not, but it's a theater saying that means "good luck". Theater people can be very superstitious, and for some reason wishing bodily harm is more beneficial than just saying "good luck".
I actually think Marinette would be more into strawberry macarons, but I don't know if there is an equivalent berry in the Pokemon World. Also, it helped write me out of a hole.
One thing that separates Coxyclaque and Mistigrix's superheroic antics from Ladybug and Chat Noir is that Coxyclaque and Mistigrix have a whole region to worry about, whereas LB and CN only have to worry about one city. That is going to lead to some complications where one member of the team can't make it for whatever reason. For the record, Adrien would have left his gym battle if he knew Team Prismillion was in town. It also gives Marinette and Adrien more credibility for not knowing each other's identities. After all, there are probably a lot of trainers who have a Meowstic or a Ledian in all of Kalos.