Battling the Teacher!
"Good morning class!" A brunette trainer that looked only a few years older than those within the classroom entered it and cast off a smile as she waved at them all. "I'm back from my trip abroad, it was nice getting away for a bit but I really missed you all! I see we got some new students as well! Hello there you two, I'm Roxanne care to introduce yourselves?" Roxanne gave Zach and Dawn a friendly wave to proceed.
"I'm Dawn, I aim to become a top Coordinator!"
"And I'm Zach, I aim to collect the badges of this region and battle Steven for the champion title!"
"Oooh what fun, sounds like we'll be battling soon!"
"Wait what?!" Zach and Dawn turned to look at one another in confusion while May let out a light giggle before explaining.
"She's the first Gym Leader that Hoenn trainers have to battle against, she may be our teacher but she also doubles as the city's gym leader!"
"That's right!" Roxanne confirmed while flashing him a smirk. "My door is always open for challengers just not during school hours."
"How about right after?" Zach was quick to ask, shaking lightly as he was informed that all of his friends who were collecting badges already earned one while he hadn't gotten a single one! "Sorry but I'm itching to earn a badge, I'm worried about falling behind."
"Right after's fine, I don't have any plans today!" Roxanne accepted his challenge with a kind smile before turning to a slightly serious look. "But until then, let's get to the lesson. Today we're going to study the effects of a Lava Cookie-"
As soon as class had ended for the day Zach practically jumped out of his seat and rushed to the front of the classroom to speak with Roxanne and get their gym battle underway. Roxanne couldn't help but chuckle at his excitement before waving her hands as a gesture to slow down.
"I have to get the school's battlefield cleared out, just wait outside for a few minutes and I'll open the doors when it's ready!"
Zach merely nodded in response, trying his best to wait patiently though his foot started tapping after awhile of waiting. Dawn had wandered off but promised to be back with a 'surprise', May wasn't sure what that meant but she did appreciate the brief alone time she had with him as the hallways were now deserted. She slowly edged closer to him as he leaned up with his back against the wall, her hand slowly reached for his and their fingers began grazing one another before she grabbed ahold of him, lightly squeezing his hand. Zach's mind appeared to be elsewhere prior to that as he suddenly leaped up at the touch before turning to look at her, a faint smile crossed his face as May blushed heavily and started to speak up before Dawn returned.
"You like it?!" Dawn asked before posing for him as she wore a cheerleader outfit. May's eyes widened at the sight before letting out a frustrated growl as Zach's eyes lit up, a bit of drool coming out of his mouth which Dawn couldn't help but giggle out at his reaction as her cheeks turned a heavy shade of red.
"Y-Yeah, of course! Y-You look se-incredible, absolutely incredible! It looks good on you!" His own face was burning bright red. "B-But why are you wearing that right now?"
"To support my champion, silly!" Dawn giggled out before rolling her eyes lightly, placing a finger beneath his chin before giving him a warm smile. "There was another reason I left Sinnoh you know, other than escaping my mom's shadow... it's you, I came here because of you! I love you, Zach!"
May's mouths widened as she couldn't believe Dawn said that when she was right there! "Z-Zach before you respond, please know that I love you too! I may not be able to prove it but I'd follow you to the ends of the earth! It's not solely because you saved my life either, well I did want you after but I've fallen for the real you just as she has!"
"Wait Zach saved your life too?" Dawn asked with a blink.
"Twice actually!" May added with a bragging smirk.
Zach bit his lip as his eyes flickered between the two, had merely just one of them confessed then that'd have been easy! He cared for both of them more than he cared about anyone else, both of them made his heart race whenever he saw them and he always felt a flutter whenever he made them smile or giggle, and he felt very upset if he caused them to get sad. It was impossible to choose, was it even possible for him to be in love with two different girls like this? Not to mention if he just chose one at random, the other would still get upset and he couldn't bear that!
"I-I..." Zach stuttered as he stared off into space. May and Dawn looked concerned before waving their hands in front of his face.
"Did we break him?!" May gasped with worry.
"Arceus I hope not, I always dreamed of settling down with him once we succeed in our goals." Dawn snapped her fingers as she tried getting his attention.
"Really? I have the same dream only... with kids!" May blushed as Dawn's eyes widened before looking away while muttering out.
"Same..."
"I-I can't choose!" Zach shook as he spoke the words, Lucario and Raboot kept their distance the whole time as they didn't want to interfere with their trainer's love life. "I-I know it sounds selfish but my mind's been on the gym battle all day and now both girls I've grown feelings for and love more than anything revealed that they both feel the same... i-it's hard to think! M-My battle can obviously wait but I can't choose between you two, I just can't! I care about you both too much to break your hearts! If I could have both I'd do it in a snap but I wouldn't want to force that on you two!" He continued shaking from nerves and anxiety as he looked at the floor.
May and Dawn looked at him before looking at one another, his words certainly were genuine. Zach was an awful liar, anyone could tell though he never directed one at the two of them personally. They overheard him trying to explain his lack of word due to his accident to his Kanto friends and it was laughably bad even an idiot like Flash could tell he wasn't busy 'getting down with girls every day' or 'training so hard his Pokemon were sweating waterfalls!'. He was crying as well which made it all the more obvious he meant every word he said.
Dawn and May looked at one another.
"You can have him, you two would make cute kids!" Dawn offered.
"Are you kidding, you'd make a great couple! I'm the one who should go!" May objected. The two went on like that for a few minutes before pausing as something he said stuck to their minds.
"What if we-" May started.
"Both be his girl?" Dawn finished as the two looked each other over.
"Well you are rather cute," May giggled out.
"So are you," Dawn complimented with a smile. "I think this could work, we both clearly love him and neither of us have intention of using him. He's too loyal to ever cheat or leave us especially if both his loves are in relations with him, sounds perfect to me!"
"That and he's attractive don't forget, two of us will have an easier time fending off crazed fangirls he'll likely receive once he succeeds in his goal! I mean look at Steven and Red, people go crazy over them for some reason! Heck Flannery might have tried had I not made it obvious to her that Zach's mine!" May laughed as the two turned to Zach who appeared to be too broken that he hadn't heard a word they spoke!
May grabbed one of Zach's arms while Dawn grabbed the other, the two gave each other a friendly nod before kissing both of his cheeks, the kiss being enough to break him out of his spell as he looked at the two of them it utter silence for a brief moment before forming a light smile as the two threw their arms around him, pulling him into a warm embrace as they rested their heads against his.
"Unbelievable, Victor got his wish!" Zinnia gasped out as she spied on them from the janitor's closet. "His idiot nephew's got two mates!" She had laughed at his 'repopulate' scheme several times to his own face but maybe the aura bloodlines actually would advance into future generations and not die out in the next?
Roxanne opened the door to her gym and was about to speak only to see what was going on, deciding to quietly go back in but left the door open.
"You can have both of us!" May breathed out.
"But only us!" Dawn added on before the two kissed him on the lips, leaving him stunned as his face burned brightly while a goofy expression formed across his face.
"Of course! A-Asking for both was too much of a request to even do, I couldn't bare asking it!" Zach shook while giving the two a warm loving gaze before kissing both of them on the lips in return. "I love you both more than anything in the world!"
The three remained in the embrace for quite awhile before eventually separating. "We can spend plenty of time together once you win." Dawn flashed him a smirk before nodding in the direction of the door. "Much as I think we'd all want to just stay here for the rest of the day, it's rude to keep Roxanne waiting."
"Right," Zach pulled away and gave the two one last smile before walking on into the gym, the two following after him while Lucario and Raboot quickly followed after their trainer as the time for the battle fast approached!
Roxanne didn't seem mad at all, she was rather happy for the three having found love. Roxanne honestly wished that she'd found the time to find somebody when she was that age but with so many responsibilities latched onto her now, she doubted she'd ever have the chance at it! "Greetings challenger!" She waved. "We'll each use two Pokemon and well... I assume you know the rules?" Roxanne asked, testing him as she was still his teacher.
"Only I-er the challenger to say can change Pokemon, and the winner will be announced once either one of us is unable to battle or forfeits." Roxanne nodded with a light smirk before reaching for a Pokeball that sat on her belt.
"Geodude, let's rock!"
"Dude!" A golden Geodude sat across from them.
"Oooh, a shiny!" Dawn gushed.
"Man I wished I had a shiny!" Zach eyed the golden Geodude, showcasing how easily distracted he could be before he shook his head to regain focus. "Raboot, let's go! I promised this to you and Lucario and I'm keeping that promise!" He threw out his arm only for nothing to happen. He began to sweat before looking down towards Raboot.
"Raboot...?" Raboot turned her back to the battlefield as if to say she didn't want to let him down again. Zach let out a sigh, silently stroking her fur as he apologized. He'd tried reasoning with Raboot but unless he or somebody else was in danger, Raboot seemed unwilling to battle lately. Forcing Combusken to take over as the primary Fire type, Zach hoped he could fix Raboot's problem soon as winning the League wouldn't be the same without her fighting by his side just like in the early days! "Rockruff, you're up!"
"Ruff!" Rockruff burst from her ball and began cutely panting as she gazed towards the Geodude.
"Hold up, you have a Rockruff?!" It was Roxanne's turn to be amazed. "I hope you take good care of her, they're quite the loyal Pokemon!"
"Rockruff and him are made for each other." May added with a giggle as Dawn joined in. Zach blushed lightly and gave the two a smile before returning his focus to the battlefield.
"Rockruff, let's use Leer!" Rockruff howled out before leering at her opponent. Lowering his defense in the process.
"Rollout!"
"Dude!" Geodude began spinning in place before firing off across the field, his body twirling about as he prepared to roll Rockruff over!
"Double Team!" Rockruff split off into multiple different copies of itself causing Geodude to lose focus of the real one, spinning right through a copy before flying off into the wall of the gym!
"Yay, go Zach!" Dawn cheered as she stared leaping up and down, getting a bit too into acting the part of her outfit as May nervously sweated.
"He didn't win yet!"
"Rockruff use another Leer!" Rockruff shot off another Leer, further lowering Geodude's defense.
"Now return!"
"Ruff!" Rockruff happily barked before returning to her ball as Zach motioned towards Lucario. "Aura Sphere!"
Lucario gave him a smirk before clamping his paws together as he fired off a powerful sphere of aura at their opponent, the super effective move providing further damage thanks to the setup as Geodude collapsed to the floor, swirls in his eyes as he let out a groan in defeat.
"Now you can cheer," May smirked at Dawn before joining in with her as they cheered over him winning the first half of the fight!
"Huh, his aura attacks are quite strong." Zinnia remarked as she rubbed her chin, continuing to spy in her janitor disguise as she watched the fight.
"Not bad," Roxanne returned Geodude. She looked towards the ball containing Nosepass before letting go, instead going for a different Pokemon. "Onix, let's go!"
"Roar!" The massive rock snake towered over Lucario, May and Dawn couldn't help but flinch at the sight but Zach and Lucario remained rather calm as they stared up at it.
"Stealth Rock!" Roxanne smirked, removing Zach's option to try the same trick twice as large stones began levitating around the field and ready to strike whatever was sent out next! "Now use Dig!"
"Roar!" Onix burrowed underground, disappearing from view as it traveled beneath the ground below them!
"Lucario, close your eyes and focus your aura on Onix's! When he's ready to lunge, strike with Ice Punch!"
Lucario closed his eyes and began focusing on Onix's aura, charging up an ice covered fist before striking out at Onix's face as he blasted from the ground! Onix let out a pained roar.
"Fissure!"
"Isn't that the move that-" May started only to get her answer as Zach and Lucario nervously began to sweat. The two had never planned a counter for the one hit attacks other than Horn Drill! Onix lashed out with his tail and slammed it into the ground, creating a massive fissure that opened up and struck Lucario, knocking the jackal out cold and removing him from the battlefield!
"Lucario!" Zach rushed right for him causing Zinnia to raise her eyebrow as she saw how close the two were outside of simply using aura to do it. He reached out and helped Lucario up before taking him off of the battlefield as Zinnia watched.
"Not bad kid, not bad." Zinnia muttered.
"I guess this is all up to you girl, let's go!" Zach threw forward the ball containing Rockruff as the rock puppy returned to the battlefield before yelping at the Stealth Rock hit her!
"Rockruff use Leer triple time!" Zach quickly ordered out. Rockruff narrowed her eyes and fired off a rapid set of leering, lowering Onix's Defenses to help compensate for Rockruff's disadvantage. "Rock Throw!"
"Ruff!" Several rocks lifted up around Rockruff as she started firing them across the field! The rocks struck against Onix as the rock snake let out a loud roar from aggression before lowering his head to focus his attention on Rockruff with a light glare.
"Bind!"
"Yelp!" Rockruff was suddenly pulled up by Onix's tail and into a tight grasp as Onix squeezed her!
"Roar!"
"Rockruff!" Zach shouted out as the rock puppy sounded like she was in great pain, Onix soon let her go and sent her flying across the gym with his tail before the rock puppy went sliding across the gym and landing in a collapsed heap by her trainer. "Rockruff... let's go..." Zach was about to return her before Rockruff stood right back up, letting off a growl before howling out as the sun started setting outside. Her body lit up as the glow of evolution consumed her, she began tripling in height while her body also expanded in length. Her legs turned a white coloring while her tail expanded into a large white glob of fluffy fur! White and black spiked fur shot up from her neck area and almost resembled a mane while her eyes turned a bright green while the rest of her body turned into an orange coloring.
"W-What did you evolve into?!" Zach stuttered out, knowing for a fact that was neither Midday nor Midnight. He'd know as he knew people with Midday and Midnight! He glanced out the window before tilting his head. "Dusk form...?"
"Roc, Lycanroc!" Lycanroc wagged her tail before reaching up with her paws and giving her trainer's face a lick. "Lycanroc!"
"You're right, let's focus on the battle!" Zach laughed out before shouting out. "Rock Throw!"
However that wasn't what Lycanroc used, she lifted up her hind legs before slamming them into the ground as multiple jagged stones burst with the ground and made their way to her opponent!
"Stone Edge? Nice!" Roxanne smirked, watching as the attack met with Onix. The giant rock snake that out a pained roar before Roxanne pointed forward with her arm. "Bind once more, let's finish this!"
Zach quickly pulled out his Rotom Phone to scan her new moves before tossing out his arm. "Drill Run!" Lycanroc's body began spinning like a drill as Onix advanced on her and upon making contact with her body, Lycanroc sent Onix flying across the gym as the force of her spin was too much for it's tail to handle! Onix landed with a loud thud before collapsing onto his side to reveal swirly eyes as May and Dawn hugged one another while cheering loudly for their boyfriend!
Roxanne didn't show disappointed as a smile crossed her face while she returned Onix. "That was a great battle, it's always great seeing a student surpass their mentor. You had a great strategy planned despite having to change your plans last second and probably would have succeeded had Onix not taken out Lucario. You then showed nobility when you were about to give up but then displayed great faith in your Pokemon once she showed she was still ready to fight! You definitely deserve the Stone Badge!" Roxanne spoke as she held out the badge to him.
Zach stared at the badge in shock for a moment before excitedly grabbing at the badge and thanking her before turning to his Pokemon. "We've got our first badge!"
"Roc!"
"Carrr!" Raboot silently nodded in acknowledgement. One badge down, seven to go and things would only get harder from here!
Dawn and May then grabbed ahold of his arm. "Come on champion, let's get back to your dorm." Dawn whispered causing his face to light up before the three hurried out of the gym!
And this is done, originally it was going to be after Alola and May/Dawn revealed their feelings after Zach got into a Pokemon fight with Ash over Lillie as jealousy overpowered him but I decided against it. Rockruff was supposed to evolve there too. It was a stupid decision and felt very out of character for him to do that stuff and act that way so I removed his feelings for Lillie entirely, she's still a good friend but no crush. That should be a hint by the way, suggestions for future additions are still welcome!