AN: Hey everyone, I have the next chapter here. Thank you for all the support this series is getting. We are approaching the end of the Yang and Neo section of this chunk of story. In this chapter, we get the set up for their gym battle, and some more training and bonding between the two girls. Of all the groups, this one is still my favorite for interaction like what you will see this chapter. And at the end, you will see exactly who they are up against. Hope you enjoy this chapter, leave a review with your comments and questions, and have a nice day.
See the most recent Save State Chapter for Cover Art details.
Chapter 25 – Trust in Another
Nearby the dojo, a small campsite was set up. At a picnic table, Yang and Neo sat across Leaf, while the two girls' new Pokemon were eating food on the table. The shrewd trainer scanned the mute girl's gooey Pokemon, "Goomy, the soft-tissue Pokemon. Because most of its body is water, it will dry up if the weather becomes too arid." The Pokedex said, "It's considered the weakest dragon Pokémon."
"Goo…" Goomy said in sorrow, but was then petted by Neo, "Goomy!" the gooey Pokemon said as a look of joy returned to its face.
"It may be weak, but it is still a dragon-type Pokemon," Leaf said, "That is one of the strongest types out there."
"A dragon type, sounds like I should catch one of those as well." Yang said as she looked to Goomy, then saw Neo's hand covered in the goop again, "Still, this Pokemon has a lot of slime." She said as Neo cleaned off the goop with a napkin.
"It has its hidden ability, Gooey." Leaf said before looking to Neo, "You drew a picture of a small rock formation where you pulled him out of. I asked around and found out those are called Dens were strong Pokemon can be live."
"Then why aren't we going into those to find more members for our teams?" Yang asked.
"The Dens can be a bit hard to manipulate without wishing stones, and there is a shortage of them on this island." Leaf commented, "Besides, the two of you have four Pokemon each now. That is more than enough for this next challenge." She said before sighing, "Which I should also go over with you, as this may be a bit different than what we will see going forward."
"…?" Neo tilted her head in confusion.
"Well, this will be a double battle." Leaf responded.
"So, we already know how that goes from the cruise training," Yang responded.
"This is a little different." Leaf responded, "The double battle will be both of you on a team against two gym leaders at the same time."
"You mean a tag team match?" Yang said with Leaf nodding, "Is that allowed in the league rules?"
"It is, but it makes things a lot harder." Leaf responded, "Neither of you can have a type or regional badge matching either gym leader. Even if you win, you only get one badge each and are locked out of the other type as well."
"So, why are we doing this then?" Yang asked, "Why not just have me fight one and then Neo fight the other like before."
"Honey said this was the only way these gym leaders could make it here for this challenge." Leaf said with a sigh, crossing her arms, "They only have time for one battle, so if you lose, then we get no badges from this region. As trying to get a Galar gym battle set up in the stadiums is impossible."
"Then, we only got one shot," Yang commented while looking to Neo, who nodded back.
"Yeah," Leaf added, "This battle will give each trainer three Pokemon, which means you have to pick one member to sit out for now."
"Well, I think Hitmonlee deserves a rest." Yang commented, then taking out her pokeballs, "Which makes my team an easy pick." She said before tossing out the balls, causing Larvitar and Munchlax to appear next to Larvesta, "Say hello to the party."
"Lar?" Larvesta said to the two other Pokemon.
"Lar," Larvitar responded with a smile, causing the flame bug Pokemon to smile back.
"Lax!" Munchlax said with a smile, then looked over to Goomy, "Munch?" However, in the big eater pokemon's mind, he saw was a gooey cupcake before him. "Munch!" Munchlax said before picking up the gooey Pokemon.
"Goo!" Goomy cried as Munchlax opened its mouth.
"…!" Neo panicked as she grabbed Goomy.
"No, Munchlax stop!" Yang said as she tried to hold her Pokemon back.
"Munch…Lax…," Munchlax said while slowly moving Goomy closer to its mouth. However, the gooey Pokemon slipped out of his hands, which were covered in the goop.
Both trainers and Pokemon fell at opposite sides of the table, while Leaf watched with a sigh, "It's going to be a long hard battle." She said before looking back to Neo, who had a shaking Goomy in her arms, "I think you should have Goomy sit this one out. I'll look into some training ideas for the little pile of soft tissue for after the gym battle."
"…" Neo nodded before recalling Goomy to her Pokeball, then took out three others. In tossing them into the air, Cubone, Hatenna, and Zorua emerged.
"Well, these Pokemon give a lot of type coverage for any opponent." Leaf said as examined the six, "But, they are all pretty small."
"…!" Neo pouted as she crossed her arms.
"What I mean is that most are unevolved." Leaf said before looking to Yang, "You saw how strong Tyrogue got after evolving."
"That's true," Yang responded, then looked to her Pokemon, "But I don't want to force my Pokemon to evolve if they don't want to yet."
"Fair enough, which is why I worked out a substitute until they are ready to evolve." Leaf said as she showed a large book, "I talked to a student here who teaches other members of the dojo special moves that can only be learned on this isle."
"And he just gave you that book?" Yang asked.
"Let's say, yes." Leaf said with a smirk, "Point is, we need to train your Pokemon to know some stronger moves to better prepare them for the battles ahead." She said before opening the book and turning to a page, "For example, your Hatenna can learn Expanding Force, which is far stronger than Confusion."
"…" Neo looked over to the book with Hatenna in her arms. As both read the page, a smile formed on each of their faces towards one another.
"Sweet, what can I teach my Pokemon?" Yang asked Leaf.
"Well, sadly there are no moves in here Munchlax and Larvitar can learn yet." Leaf responded, "But your Larvesta could learn Skitter Smack."
"What does that do?" Yang said before picking up her flame bug Pokemon.
"It's a sneak attack where a Pokemon can strike the opponent from behind." Leaf answered, then scanned Larvesta with her Pokedex, "Good for maneuverability, and works well for its other known move Flame Charge. You have Struggle Bug to lower the special attack of the target as well."
"Okay," Yang said before seeing Neo with Zorua and Cubone.
"…" the mute girl gestured to the two other Pokemon she had.
"They have some potential moves to learn." Leaf responded as she flipped through the pages, "Scorching Sands, Burning Jealous, Lash Out."
"Oh, I like the way all of them sound," Yang commented.
"In any case, you have a lot of preparation to do in a short amount of time." Leaf responded, "So, let's get to work."
"Right," Yang said as Neo nodded, then turned to the mute girl, "I guess we can start with Hatenna first." She said with Neo smiling, causing the two to look back at the book, "Okay, it says the Pokemon needs to be exposed to a Psychic Terrain for its powers to grow." The blond brawler and mute girl then looked back to Neo, "How do we do that?"
"I've got that covered." Leaf said as she had a Pokeball, tossing it up in the air. Emerging was a Slowpoke, who yawned on entry. "I traded one of my Slowpoke's from Kanto for this one from Galar." Leaf commented, "And this one knows Psychic Terrain." She said before kneeling, "Now, time to use it."
"Slooow," the fast pink Pokemon spoke, then its body pulsated with a purple cloud. The cloud covered the area, merging with the soil to make a thin mist.
"…" Neo looked around in wonder, then turned back to Hatenna. The calm Pokemon was slightly emitting a pink aura, matching the mist in color. Soon, Hatenna releases the energy, causing a small shockwave of power that pushed back almost everyone in the area, even flipping the campsite table, "…!" Neo reacted in shock while picking herself up.
"Wow," Yang commented, "That was stronger than Confusion."
"I should also mention that the terrain makes psychic moves stronger, and that move also gets a boost while in this terrain as well." Leaf responded, "Down the line, we can see about her learning Psychic Terrain, then you can dish out some real damage."
"…" Neo responded, but then looked to Hatenna, who was panting a bit at the release of power.
"She needs a target to focus her power towards." Yang responded, "One that will be safe for her to use the move on."
"…" Neo nodded before looking around. As the other Pokemon recovered from the attempted expanding force, she noticed Zorua was unfazed.
"Ze?" Zorua said as Neo smirked.
A few hours later.
Neo pointed as Hatenna unleashed another powerful Psychic strike. Its body glowed in the pink aura before the energy erupted from the ground underneath Zorua. However, the tricky fox Pokemon took no damage, only yawning with a tired expression.
"I think she has it down a path now," Yang said she walked over.
"Using a Dark-type to help train a Psychic-type, not a bad idea." Leaf commented.
"…" Neo nodded, then turned to watch Hatenna bouncing with joy at her new move.
"That's one done," Yang said, then looked over at the setting sun, "But it's getting late."
"Right, we'll come out to learn a few more moves tomorrow." Leaf said before walking away, "For now, let's all get some rest." After the group put away the camping equipment, they returned to the dojo and their rooms just before nightfall.
In their room, Neo brushed her teeth while Yang stretched, "So, we got to be on a tag team match now?" the blond brawler said with the mute girl nodding, "Well, we already trained each other for a bit, this shouldn't be that much different." She said before falling onto the bed, "But, how are we going to communicate in battle? I mean, that whiteboard is a bit too slow in the heat of action."
"…" Neo spits out the florid in the sink before showing Yang a Pokeball.
"Are you suggesting using a mental link like what Hatenna does with you and your other Pokemon," Yang asked with Neo nodding, "Uh, I don't think so?" The blond brawler said while scratching the back of her head, "That's kind of an invasion of privacy for me." She said before looking back to Neo, "How do you and Roman work together then?"
"…" Neo reached and grabbed her whiteboard, quickly writing a message, "We trust each other." The message read, "Is it different for your team?"
"No, of course I trust them!" Yang responded, "Ruby's my little sister, I know her better than anyone. Blake is my partner who always has my back. And Weiss may be cold at times, but she always means well. I can count on any one of them by my side when the going gets tough." She said with Neo having a look of confusion, "What?" Yang said before realizing, "…Did you not know those were their names until now?"
"Roman always gave your team nicknames." Neo wrote, "Red, Ice Queen, Cat, Blondie."
"Of course he did that instead of learning our names," Yang said with a sigh, "It's Team RWBY, not RICB." She said with Neo rolling her eyes, "In any case, we need to trust each other if we want to win this battle and get the second badge sooner rather than later." The blond brawler said with Neo nodding, "So, do you trust me?"
"…" Neo did not say a word but did nod after a slight pause. She then showed a new message on her whiteboard, "Do you trust me?"
"Y-yeah." Yang responded, then sighed, "Both of us just hesitated, didn't we?" she said with Neo reluctantly nodding, "Look Neo, I made my promise to you and will uphold it. You can trust me." She said before looking back at the mute girl with a focused gaze, "But, can you make a promise to me as well?"
"…?" Neo had a raised eyebrow.
"I promised not to hurt you," Yang spoke, "So, can you promise not to hurt my friends?" She asked, "You will not attack them or even think about killing them when we return to Remnant." The blond brawler said, "If you can promise me that, and show me that you mean it, then I can trust you as well."
"…" Neo waited before writing her response, "Add to your promise not to hurt Roman."
"What? But he-" Yang was about to say as Neo scowled, "…Fine, I will not hurt Roman." She said before crossing her arms, "But you have to convince him to stay away from my friends as well, okay?"
Neo quickly wrote her response, "He's stubborn." The message read, "But I'll try."
"So, we have a deal?" Yang said, her eyes focused, "Show me that you mean it."
"…" Neo wrote a long message on her whiteboard, then handed it to Yang.
The blond brawler them read the message aloud, "I promise not to kill Ruby, Weiss, Blake, or Yang." She spoke Neo's promise, "Even if Roman wants me to, I will not harm Team RWBY, nor let him hurt a hair on any of their heads." Yang then focused as she read a familiar line, "I swear on everything I hold dear; my One Thing and my Pokemon." She then looked to the mute girl, who had her right hand on her heart, "Heh, a bit of a copycat move at the end." Yang said with a chuckle, "And I didn't need my name included in the list. I just wanted to make sure my friends would be safe." She said before looking at Neo with a smile, "But … thanks, that means a lot."
"…" Neo smirked as she took the whiteboard, marking a repeat message, "Do you trust me now?"
"Yeah, I trust you," Yang said with a nod, "Do you trust me?"
"…" Neo smiled, then leaned in.
"What are you-" Yang said before Neo hugged her, cutting off her train of thought as her face went slightly red, "Uh, Neo?" the blond brawler said as the mute girl remained silent. Slowly, Yang hugged Neo back, a calm expression on her face starting to form.
The next morning.
Near the challenge beach, the trio of girls already had begun training the next Pokemon his new move, "Cu," Cubone said while spinning his club in the air, causing some of the sand to gather in a small cyclone, "Cu," the lonely Pokemon said while increasing his spinning, causing the sands to grow hotter with the increased acceleration, "Bone!" Cubone said before quickly aiming his club at a nearby large stone, causing the hot sands to swarm towards in at high speed. The heated grains since the stone, chipping off pieces as the temperature rose. When the attack settled, the rock was still steaming as Cubone stood in pride, "Cubone."
Suddenly, Neo approach her Pokemon from behind, "…" She smiled while picking up Cubone and hugging him.
"Cubone," the lonely Pokemon said while his face was blushing under the skull.
"Nice, looks like he mastered Scorching Sands." Leaf said as she and Yang walked over as well, "Now, we can focus on Zorua."
"…" Neo nodded before recalling Cubone and taking out a different Pokeball. She then tossed it into the air, causing the tricky fox Pokemon to appear.
"Zehehe," Zorua said before landing on the sandy beach.
"So, she can learn two moves." Leaf commented, "Both of which require the Pokemon to have control over volatile emotions." She said before smirking, "Luckily, the training for both is the same, only requiring the Pokemon learn from its trainer on how to shift and control their emotions." The shrewd trainer said while looking at the book, "Of the two, let's start with Burning Jealousy. It could inflict a burn condition if the target had its stats raised the same turn."
"…" Neo nodded but had a look of worry as she took out another Pokeball.
"Oh yeah, I forgot." Leaf commented, "Hatenna won't like that you are feeling such intense emotions like this book wants."
"Well, let me help then," Yang said as she walked up, "I'll train your Zorua while you teach Larvesta." She said while offering the ball of the flame bug Pokemon, "Besides, volatile emotions are kind of me thing." The blond brawler said before winking, "And I bet you can teach someone how to do a sneak attack faster than I can."
"…" Neo had a look slight shock at Yang's offer, but in seeing the blond brawler's nod, she responded with her own before accepting the Pokeball.
"Cool, we'll come to find you in a bit." Yang said before waving, "Good luck."
"…" Neo responded with a smile before walking away and into the woods.
Leaf looked back to Yang in slight shock, "What happened between you two while I wasn't looking?" She asked the blond brawler.
"I took your advice," Yang responded, "We've been talking and getting to know each other." She said with a smile, "There is a lot more to Neo than I gave her credit for."
"Well, look at that." Leaf said with a smile, "I'm glad you two are starting to like each other."
"I-It's not like that!" Yang responded with her face slightly red, then sighed, "But, I can trust her now." She said before looking back to Zorua, "And if I can count on her, she can count on me." The blond brawler said before walking over to the tricky fox Pokemon, "Hey there little girl,"
"Ze…," Zorua responded, slightly intimidated by the blond brawler.
"Don't worry, I won't get angry like before," Yang responded, "However, I'm going to teach you how to do that for these new moves."
"Ze?" Zorua said with her head tilted to one side.
"It's easy, watch." Yang said before closing her eyes, "The power comes from inside your heart. It's like a fire you need to ignite." She said with Zorua watching her, "You visualize a situation that makes you angry." The blond brawler said while her fists instinctively clenched, "Then let that anger flow through you, building like a volcano, until it erupts!" she said before opening her eyes, hitting her fists together, "You see, normally my eyes would be red and hair glowing, but I hope you get the point."
"Eh?" Leaf overheard, "What was that last part?"
"Don't worry about it," Yang looked back with a grin, then faced Zorua again, "You're turn."
"Ze," Zorua said before closing her eyes. In her mind, she visualized what made her anger the most. Being alone. She recalled the days in the forest where the tricky fox Pokemon had nobody around. No friends or family to interact with. She then remembered occasionally seeing some trainers walk through the woods, seeing them laughing with one another, something she never had, "Ze!" Zorua said while gritting her teeth, causing the red in her hair to glow in color, "Ze!" the tricky fox Pokemon said as the fur glowed brighter, her body radiating a form of heat.
"Okay, now you need to-" Yang was trying to say but was cut off.
"ZE!" Zorua roared before her body erupted with fire that spread through the entire area. The blond brawler gasped before Leaf quickly throw a Pokeball. After expelling all the fire, Zorua was panting with her hair no longer glowing, "Ze?" She then opened her eyes but gasped at the carnage. The sand on the beach had been scorched black.
Where Yang and Leaf stood, a massive shell was seen. The shell opened to reveal the Pokemon as Blastoise, stood up to reveal an unharmed Leaf and Yang. "Nice save," Yang said to Leaf, then petted Blastoise on the head.
"Ze…" Zorua hung her head low in shame, then saw Yang approaching.
"Hey, it's okay, you're learning." Yang responded, petting the tricky fox Pokemon, "Trust me, I didn't get it right away either." The blond brawler said with a smile, "But you're already ahead of where I was."
"Ze?" Zorua said before a look of joy filled her eyes, "Ze!" She said before jumping in glee.
"Right, let's get back to training," Yang responded as Leaf looked on with a smile.
A couple of hours later.
"ZE!" Zorua said before unleashing the blast wave of heat from her body. This time, her eyes were open, and the red hair had a more vibrant glow than before. The fire expanded in a near-perfect circle before dissipating.
"Nice job," Yang said with applauds, "It's like I'm looking at a tiny fox version of myself."
"Zehehe," Zorua snickered before backflipping, transforming into the blond brawler. Yang gasped before seeing the illusion change the eye colors to red, then had the blond hair start to grow, "ZE!" the illusion of Yang said before hitting her fist together, then erupting in flames around the area.
Yang slightly held up her arms to shield herself from the heat, then looked back to see her illusion grinning, "Okay, now it is like looking at myself in a mirror." She commented.
"Zehehehe." The Yang illusion snickered before changing back into Zorua.
"Well, looks like she has Burning Jealousy down path." Leaf said as she walked up, "Now, all that's left for her is Lash Out."
"Right, and this one also needs the Pokemon to get angry to use the attack," Yang said before looking back to Zorua, "This time, I want you to visualize a situation you wish to prevent from happening before your eyes."
"Ze?" Zorua had a look of confusion.
"Trust me," Yang responded, "Before, you ignited the flame. Now, you need to focus it into more concentrated attacks." The blond brawler said before closing her eyes, "You've seen what makes you angry, but that power only lasts for a short time. The next step is to know what you need to protect with that power, so you can maintain it for longer and save what you care for." Yang said before opening her eyes, having a slight smile, "When I wasn't getting it at first, my dad said to just use my hair as a starting point. So, I did, and I get really mad when most people touch it or take a chunk off." She said with a slight giggle, "Then, I realize I should also use this for protecting the people I hold dear; my little sister, my team, and all my friends." She said before looking to Zorua petting the top of her head, "And right now, you have a good number of people that care about you as well."
"Ze!" Zorua said with a smile forming.
"Well, that is a rather touching lesson." Leaf said, "Why don't you two go find Neo and let her know about your progress." She said before looking back at all the charred sand, "I'll look into fixing this mess and catch up."
"Thanks," Yang said before she as Zorua left the beach and headed for the forest.
After a short bit of travel, the two saw Neo wandering alone, "…!" the mute girl noticed them, causing Zorua to run up and into her arms.
"Hey, we got Burning Jealousy all set." Yang said, "How did the training with Larvesta go?" She said before looking around, "Where is she?"
"…" Neo did not say a word as she looked at the blond brawler.
"Neo?" Yang said before her eyes widened, "Where is my Larvesta?"
"…" Neo still did not say a word.
"You," Yang responded, "Did you lose my Pokemon?"
"…" Neo still did not say a word, but now grinned.
"How could you do that!?" Yang slightly shouted.
"…" Neo sighed before putting down Zorua, then reaching for her whiteboard. However, Yang quickly batted the whiteboard out of the mute girl's hands, "…!"
"I don't even want to hear your excuse!" Yang shouted, "Damnit, I trusted you!"
"…!" Neo scowled, slightly gritting her teeth.
"I need to find her." Yang said before calling out the flame bug pokemon's name, "Larvesta! Larvesta!" the blond brawler then looked to the mute girl, "You going to help me?"
"…" Neo looked on with half-open eyes, then walked to the whiteboard on the ground.
"Tsk." Yang scoffed before calling out again, "Larvesta! Come on out! Larvesta!" she then looked back to see Neo just as she picked up the whiteboard near a bush. However, the blond brawler gasped at something rustling nearby, "Look out!"
"…!" Neo gasped as she just realized the looming shadow overhead. She jumped back just as a claw slammed into the ground near where her head was. The whiteboard instead took the hit, snapping in half from the strike.
"Craw," the attacker spoke while emerging from the bush, revealing himself to be the crawfish Pokemon, "Crawdaunt."
"This guy again." Yang commented as Neo turned to her in confusion, "I'm guessing you ran into him before?"
"…" Neo nodded before looking back at Crawdaunt, who snipped his pincers towards the mute girl.
Suddenly, Zorua moved between the two, taking up a fighting stance, "Ze!" the tricky fox Pokemon said as she readied for battle.
"Craw!" Crawdaunt said before unleashing a beam of bubbles from his claws.
"…!" Neo pointed as Zorua jumped to evade. The tricky fox Pokemon then dove towards Crawdaunt, her claws glowing white as she unleashed a Fury Swipes attack on the crawfish pokemon's face.
"Craw!" Crawdaunt recoiled before his claws glowed in an aqua aura, swinging wildly at Zorua.
"…!" Neo pointed again for her Pokemon to dodge, which Zorua did so before
"…" Neo had a slight gasp, then a warm smile at her pokemon's new devotion. She turned to Yang with a smile but was met with a scowl.
"Just beat it fast so we can look for Larvesta," Yang responded.
"…" Neo pouted before looking back to the match but gasped as one of the craws slammed into Zorua's body, sending the tricky fox Pokemon into a tree, "…!" Neo panicked as Zorua struggled to get up, but Crawdaunt slowly approached with snipping pincers, "…!" She turned back to Yang.
"Got it, I'll take over." The blond brawler said she grabbed a Pokeball, "Go, Mun-" However, Neo grabbed her arm before she could throw out the ball, "What are you doing!? You want me to help out or not!?"
"…!" Neo glared into Yang's eyes, her teeth grit, "…"
"I don't understand, what do you want me to do?" Yang responded, "It's not like I can send out Larvesta, because you lost her training for a sneak att-" Suddenly, the blond brawler realized it.
"…" Neo smirked as she let go of Yang's hand.
"You," Yang said before looking back at the Pokeball, then put it away. She then turned to see Crawdaunt still approaching Zorua, "Larvesta!" the blond brawler called out, "Use Skitter Smack!" She said before seeing a rustling in the bushes.
"Craw," Crawdaunt said as he was about to strike Zorua. However, just as he was about to bring the Crabhammer down, something slammed into his back, "Daunt!" the crawfish Pokemon cried out in pain as Larvesta had struck him from behind.
"Lar," Larvesta said with her horns locked onto Crawdaunt, "Vesta!" she said before chucking the crawfish Pokemon away from Zorua and into a nearby bush.
"There you are!" Yang spoke in glee as she went over, petting the flame bug Pokemon on the white fur, "I thought you were gone, but you just got really good at hiding."
"Larvesta," the flame bug Pokemon said with a smile on her face.
Yang smiled back, then looked over to Neo, who had her arms crossed, "Yeah, I get it now." Yang said as she scratched the back of her head, "This is what you were trying to tell me."
"…" Neo responded with a nod, then looked over to watch Crawdaunt emerge again.
"Craw!" Crawdaunt said before a red aura encompassed his body, which then formed into energy swords that hovered around him for a second, "Crawdaunt!"
"Uh oh, I think it just got stronger," Yang commented, then gasped, "Neo, this is your chance!"
"…?" Neo had a look of confusion, then looked back to Zorua. At the same time, she gasped upon remembering Leaf's words regarding this situation.
"Crawdaunt!" the crawfish Pokemon said as it changed in with aqua aura claws.
"…!" Neo pointed as Zorua jumped back into battle.
"Ze," The tricky fox Pokemon said as her red hair started to glow, "Ze!" she said as her eyes turned red, "ZE!" Zorua roared as she unleashed her Burning Jealousy in a massive wave of fire.
"Craw?" Crawdaunt gasped in confusion before getting fully encompassed by the flames, "CRAW!" the crawfish Pokemon screamed. While the claws were protected by the aqua aura, the rest of his body was covered in burns, "Craw! Craw! Craw!" he said while rolling in the ground, soon putting himself out, "Craw…daunt…" the crawfish Pokemon said he struggled to get back up.
"Time to catch it," Yang said as she took out an empty Pokeball. However, she looked over to see Neo with a Pokeball as well, "You want to catch him too?"
"…" Neo nodded.
"Well," Yang said as she looked at her Pokeball, then smiled, "Okay, you can have him."
"…?" Neo looked in confusion, lowering her Pokeball.
"I'm serious, this one is yours." Yang responded, then winked, "Think of this as me being sorry for not trusting you like I should have."
"…" Neo looked on with a smile forming. She then put her Pokeball away and gestured with a bow.
"Really, you'll let me catch it?" Yang asked, "Are you sure?"
"…" Neo nodded.
"Okay," Yang responded as she looked back to Crawdaunt, reeling back for a capture throw, "Now, you're mi-" She said, but saw nothing as there, "Eh?"
"…?" Neo added to the confusion.
"W-where'd it go," Yang asked with Neo shrugging.
"It got away while you were distracted," the two turned to see Leaf walking up, "Look, I wanted you two to talk with each other, but not in the middle of catching a Pokemon like that."
"Sorry," Yang said with Neo adding on with a bow.
"It's fine, but this did show me what we should use the rest of our time on." Leaf responded, "We need to start working on some strategies for the tag battle."
"But what about Zorua learning Lash Out?" Yang asked as Neo picking up the tricky fox Pokemon.
"We can do that afterwards, she already learned one new strong move." Leaf responded, "Right now, this battle will come down to how well you two are working together more than what moves your Pokemon now knows."
"I guess you have a point," Yang said before picking up Larvesta, then turned to Neo, "Still, thanks for teaching her Skitter Smack. I can already tell the move will come in handy."
"Lar!" Larvesta said with a look of glee on her face.
"…" Neo responded with a smile, holding up her Zorua.
"Ze!" Zorua said with joy as well.
Leaf observed with a smile, then walked over to the broken pieces of the whiteboard, "Luckily, we bought spares." She said while picking them up, "Still, type to be a bit more careful with them."
"…" Neo responded with a smirk.
A couple of days later.
Neo and Yang waited with Mustard near the Corviknight drop-off station, watching one taxi landing inside, "You think that's them?" Yang asked Neo, but Mustard was the one to answer.
"I would hope so, otherwise they are late." Mustard said before seeing two people emerge, "There they are."
One was a girl with a puffy white coat over a lime green and deep purple uniform. Her pink nails matched her hair, which had a large, moth-shaped ribbon in the back, "Well, I'm finally back here." She spoke before looking over to Yang and Neo, gazing at them with her purple eyes "And all for these two challengers." Her voice was somehow joyful yet condescending at the same time.
Next to the woman was a man with long blond hair and glasses. His uniform was purple with rainbow-like splashes of color throughout the shirt and shorts. Around his neck was a black ascot, but on his head was a long top hat with five pokeballs floating around it in some kind of energy, "Yes," He spoke before adjusting his glasses, "Let's hope this was at least worth the trip." His voice was full of a smug demeanor.
"Well, you two don't seem to have changed much." Mustard commented at the new arrivals, then looked back to the girls, "Yang, Neo, I would like you to meet." The old man said while introducing the condescending girl, "Galar's Poison-type Gym Leader, Klara." He said before turning to the smug gentleman, "And the Psychic-type Gym Leader, Avery."
"…?" Neo had a matching look of confusion.
"Hm, speechless in the presence of greatness?" Avery commented, "You are talking to elite members of Galar."
"Uh?" Yang responded.
"Don't worry, I know you each only have one badge." Klara added on with a bubbly smile, "I'll make sure to go nice and gentle." she said before her eyes went cold, speaking slightly under her breath, "As I knock you out flat."
Klara and Avery each emitted an intimidating pink aura, while Yang and Neo still looked on in bewilderment. However, the two girls turned to each other, each having a confident smile before looking back to their next opponents. "Let's see you try," Yang responded with a grin as Neo smirked.
AN: There you go, we have a lot of new moves to go over. Hatenna gets Expanding Force over Confusion. While Cubone gets Scorching Sands over Stomping Tantrum (I picked this one to forget since Larvitar also knows this move). Zorua also gets to learn from the blond brawler how to Burn. And Neo teaches Larvesta how to lay and wait for the right moment to strike. And while Crawdaunt reappears, he is still not captured by either trainer. Now, the two girls are at the step past accepting each other and now can trust one another, thanks to each amending the promise made to one another. However, will this preparation be enough for their opponents, the DLC rivals Klara and Avery. You may think these do not count as gym leaders because of the main game, but Galar still recognizes them as leaders, and I wanted these two as the opponents for Yang and Neo. (More of this will be clarified in the next chapter before the tag battle). Next chapter is going to be intense, so I hope you are ready when it comes out. That is all for now, thanks for reading, and hope to see you in the next chapter. (By the way, I'm still not doing Baked Alaska here, but I will continue to tease it).