No more giant rock monsters appeared. Maybe due in part to Gloria and Hop's blood-soaked path of conquest.

They beat all challengers, big or small. Some brown Pokémon wearing what looked like athletic attire tried to get a sneak on Hop and Grookey shortly after their bout with the Onix, and received a backhanded stick to the face for its troubles. A creepy Ghost-type looking thing appeared right in front of Gloria and Scorbunny, and left amid a barrage of Embers from the latter and incoherent curses from the former.

Come what may, Gloria and Hop flexed their knowledge, expertise and talent and beat up pretty much everything with a pulse (or not, in the case of the Ghost-type). Cassius had just been along for the extremely violent ride.

Night had fallen eventually, and the two apparently remembered that they were supposed to eat and sleep between their adventuring and marauding. The group circled back to the clearing where Grookey had defeated the Onix, only to find that the Rock-type had mysteriously vanished. So long as Grookey was present, however, they doubted it would be coming back. They made camp there, and started on dinner.

Gloria had made some kind of curry with rice. Cassius had offered his own cooking gear, which the young woman grudgingly deemed worthy of her culinary skills. Scorbunny started the fire, and before long the trio was shoveling food into their eager mouths.

Hop looked completely satisfied. "What a day. We've only been here for a handful of hours, and I feel like I could live here my whole life." Gloria nodded in agreement, in the process of finishing her bowl.

Cassius was still a little jumpy. "Are you two sure we're okay? Nothing's gonna attack us in the middle of the night, right?"

"Way ahead of you. The trick to any camping excursion are repels." Hop gestured to the numerous small, open containers surrounding their camp. "These are specialized items that give off a scent that most Pokémon despise. This particular variety is made for nights and lasts about twelve hours, so unless Arceus itself shows up, nothing's bothering us."

Cassius observed Hop's Grookey slowly approach one of the canisters, only to gag dramatically before rushing back to its trainer with a hiss. Well, if these items could deter a feral thing like Grookey, he supposed they'd be alright.

"Speaking of which, Cassius," Hop continued. "You didn't battle a single Pokémon today. I was hoping you would."

"I got mauled literally yesterday, in case you forgot."

"I understand, and I do hope you know that I don't mean to trivialize that experience, but you're going to need to battle at some point." Hop was stern but not upset. "We've started on your studying, but that can only take you so far. Practical experience goes a long way."

Cassius eyed the recently-changed bandage across his arm. While Hop and Gloria had worked on dinner, he'd taken more time to actually observe the scar. The feeling of it, the shape, the length. How it would remain on his body likely forever.

It had been lost in the rush of all that had happened today—which might have been a careful bit of scheming on Hop's part—but Cassius was still very, very afraid. Why Hop apparently expected him to just brush that off and move on with his life, he didn't know.

He gave a look at Hyla, whom he'd let out of her ball once dinner had started. Even if he was okay mentally, was Hyla? The thought of forcing her to fight was sickening.

She looked up at him from her bowl of Pokémon food, and Cassius scratched the underside of her chin. A kind, gentle creature such as her deserved better than someone trying to play trainer like him.

"I'll think about it tomorrow," he settled on saying. It would be enough to placate the two for now.

Or so he thought. "Nope. We're doing it tomorrow. No more putting it off."

So much for placating them. "And what makes you so sure that it'll go well?"

Hop grinned, of all things. "Because this time, you'll have a plan in mind."

"What, like a flow chart?"

"Interesting idea, but not quite." Hop moved on. "What's the biggest thing you're lacking right now as a trainer?"

Was this some kind of joke? "Gosh, I dunno. Everything?"

"Well, yeah," Gloria chimed in helpfully. "But specifically speakin'."

Cassius thought on it for a moment. "Well… experience?"

"Bingo," Hop agreed. "It goes without saying that experience is vastly important for a trainer. You have to be ready for any scenario, and the more often you're put into those scenarios, the more prepared you are for anything."

"You, meanwhile, know roughly jack-shit about anythin'," Gloria readily announced. "So, to counteract your general idiocy, we're gonna have to get a little creative with how you battle."

Cassius' brow raised. "Creative how?"

"Well," Hop rubbed a hand behind his head. "In basic terms, we're gonna have to get stupid."

These two really were taking every opportunity to remind him that he was garbage at battling. "Really feeling the love here, guys."

"I'm not meanin' to offend you, promise." Hop offered. The look on Gloria's face conveyed otherwise. "Perhaps stupid is harsh. What I mean is that we're gonna have to employ a lot of gimmicks and tricks. Stuff your opponents won't be expecting."

Cassius was starting to see what Hop was getting at. He wasn't a fan. "So, essentially, I'm supposed to do things experienced trainers wouldn't even think of me doing."

"Pretty much."

There was a lot of risk in that. For one thing, it was desperate, and hardly a sure-fire strategy. When it came to almost any organized competition or game, novices made random moves all the time, just to see if anything would stick. That didn't make them good at the game. Against someone with years of experience and strategy, he'd not only lose, but embarrass himself in the process.

Hop could sense his hesitation. "Obviously, once you get more familiar with battling, the basics will come naturally to you. But I'm sure you know that playing by those basics alone won't get you anywhere. Especially against the Gym Leaders."

"So it sounds like I don't have much of a choice then," Cassius concluded. He could see the reason in that. He had to either get creative, or learn years' worth of battling strategy in a matter of weeks. Despite not having a full team. The answer seemed obvious, but neither option was very palatable.

"So, let's run over what your team has, one more time." Hop motioned to Cassius' phone, which he pulled out, catching on to what Hop wanted from him. Scanning Hyla, her information appeared on the Pokédex application once more.

"Tackle, Focus Energy, and Roar," Cassius read off. "Well, I've only got one actual attack."

"I wouldn't worry about that. I imagine it won't be long 'till Hyla learns another move. Bite, I assume. We can look it up later." Hop turned his attention elsewhere on the screen. "Hustle for an ability. Not bad at all, considering Hyla's skillset."

Cassius didn't follow. "How so?"

"Hustle is an ability that increases physical attack power, with the trade-off of lowering accuracy," Hop explained. "Seeing that Tackle is a physical attack, and that Dragon-types are naturally strong fighters, that'll serve you well."

"And that's a passive thing, right?" Cassius asked. "Like, I don't have to activate it or something?"

"Yep. The effect is instant and passive." Hop's gaze landed on Hyla. "Tell you what, pairing that ability with Focus Energy, you're pretty set. Lots of offensive potential for sure."

Cassius was glad he was happy, but... "Even if the attack power is high, I can't really get creative with that. It's just one move."

Hop nodded. "Very true. You are limited in what you can do. At least, on paper."

He'd lost him. "On paper?"

"He's referrin' to the environment," Gloria clarified with a grunt. "You won't always be battlin' on a flat plain. You can battle anywhere you want. Forest, water, whatever."

You could do that? "Really?"

"Sure can. The beauty of battling is that no two bouts are ever the same." Hop recited the fact like a mantra. "We can use this to your advantage in any fight outside of the Gym Challenge."

"I thought we were going to avoid any fights outside of the Gym Challenge."

"We plan on it, yes, but that doesn't necessarily mean it'll happen," Hop replied. "It might be unavoidable in some cases. Should that come to pass, learning some form of strategy would do you plenty of good. And I'm sure you can understand why this strategy specifically is a good fit for you."

Cassius didn't need to be told why Hop thought that. Out in the open, Hyla was pretty easy pickings, with her lack of stamina and experience. With the benefit of cover and terrain, however, they could hide her and plan on sneaking their way to victory. Not the worst plan ever, all things considered.

"So... in a forest, for example," Cassius threw out. "I could have Hyla hide behind a tree, or some other obstruction, and have her use Tackle to catch my opponent off-guard, right?"

"Now you're thinkin' like a proper trainer," Hop grinned. "Of course, your opponent is free to do the very same thing, but strictly speaking on Hyla's current offensive limitations, it's better than having her stand out in the open. Using your environment will also get you in the habit of thinking outside the frame of simply attacking and dodging every fight."

Steven, Lance, Cynthia. All unbelievably strong trainers in their own right. But anybody could become strong, given a sliver of talent, a healthy amount of drive, and an abundance of time. What separated those three from the 99.99% of other trainers was their cunning. Steven's technical genius, Lance's mastery of Dragon-types, Cynthia's overwhelming offensive prowess—those traits came from years of training and scheming of ways to win beyond the realm of what was on paper.

Cassius, obviously, wasn't either of those three. He also didn't have the benefit of time (quite the opposite, in fact). But Hop wasn't going to rush this. The best way to help Cassius improve would be to help him establish good habits early on, and for him to grow from those habits moving forward. Effectively wielding the terrain to one's advantage was the first step in that foundational training.

"For these next few days, we'll divvy up your training in two parts. Practical training during the day, studying in the evenings. For now, keep on memorizing type matchups. You've still a ways to go with those, but it gets easier the more you look them over." Hop imagined they'd be hard-pressed for privacy after the ceremony, so these few days in the wilderness would have to be a grind.

A thought struck him. "Oh! Also, I would highly recommend you look for some combat footage of the Deino evolutionary line. Never hurts to have an idea of what to strive for, and obviously, those videos would provide you with a better insight on your Pokémon. Better than Gloria or I could give you, anyway."

Cassius thought it was a bit rudimentary, though he couldn't deny it was a good idea. Amateurs at anything often learned by emulating the pros in their field, and that principle would obviously apply to a universal sport like Pokémon battling. "I shouldn't just straight up copy them, right?"

"Obviously," Gloria rolled her eyes. "If it's already online, there's a counter in place for it."

"What she means to say is that you should take battling tactics from footage you like and incorporate it into your own, but not in their entirety," Hop clarified. "Plenty of trainers use a hodgepodge amalgamation of tactics and tricks to win. There's no one way to win a fight. Do whatever it is that you think gives you the best chance of winning. Any trainers you can think of off the top of your head that you'd like to study?"

Not a one. "Not particularly."

"Completely understandable. Personally, I'd say Iris is a solid figure to emulate. She has a Hydreigon herself, if I'm not mistaken." He was not, Cassius confirmed mentally. Hop continued. "In a similar but kind of different vein, Brycen's a solid option. Of all the Unova gym leaders, he likely understands the importance of terrain the best. Also, seeing as he's an Ice-type trainer, which is a natural weakness to Hyla, learning how that variety of trainer battles will be important down the road."

How much was he supposed to study in one night? "You sure know a lot about Unovan battling."

"You're not the only one that studies," Hop winked. Cassius nearly groaned. "Okay, one more time. Memorize type matchups. Study the Deino evolutionary line, and watch footage on experienced trainers utilizing the concepts we talked about. During your day training, we're gonna practice your in-battle processing and use of environment. Sound good?"

Cassius nodded. "Uh, yeah. Got it."

"You should probably write that all down somewhere," Hop recommended, and Cassius did just that. Seeing Hyla drift off slightly—not particularly invested in all the human talk of strategy—Cassius recalled her to her ball as he thought about winding down himself.

"Rivetin'," Gloria mumbled, bored. Apparently through with all the talk of battling tactics and studying, she packed her things and prepared to make her way to her tent. "I'm gonna sleep. 'Night."

"Ah ah ah," Hop quickly rushed beside Gloria and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We're not done just yet."

Gloria, as was commonplace, looked annoyed. "What, gonna offer me pointers too?"

"Because I know how receptive you'd be to that," The boy laughed. "No, I've something else in mind. Come on, back to your chair with you." Her glare settled on her childhood friend, but seeing as he was unperturbed as ever, Gloria sighed before returning to her seat. "So? What're you buggerin' me with this time?"

Hop grinned. "Well, I was thinking—"

"Which is how most of our problems start."

"—and I thought, hey, we don't really all know each other that well, do we? So, I figured we could take a bit of time tonight to really get to know each other better!"

Gloria and Cassius, for what might have been the first time since meeting each other, shared a common sentiment. Cassius turned pale—Gloria looked about ready to send out Scorbunny and have him incinerate the two morons with cocks for brains.

Hop sensed that his announcement was perhaps a bit unpopular. "Now, I know we're feeling a bit apprehensive, but we're gonna be roughin' it together for the next few months at least. Why not get to know each other better? We shouldn't all stay strangers forever."

"Bold to assume Wonderboy here will last that long," Gloria snarked. Cassius, for his part, was more than a little apprehensive. It was like he was back in school again, during those dreaded first days of class that happened every year. Trying to make himself sound interesting in front of people who didn't acknowledge him as anything more than a fly on the wall. There was always nothing to say.

Gloria wasn't done. "We've known each other forever, Hop. Nothin' I don't already know about you. And I've no interest in hearin' that sorry sap's life story."

"Come on, Gloria," Hop pleaded, a tad exasperated. "Just this once?"

"No."

"Tell you what. I'll handle Cassius' training tomorrow. You can go explore all you want in the meantime. Sound fair?"

"You weren't gonna stop me anyway."

All semblance of geniality escaped Hop's expression. "Happy juice, remember?"

A snarl. "I hope you die."

"Love you too." Hop's smile returned. "Now then, who should go first? I can go if no one wants to start." He was met with silence, and took it as a hint to continue. "Alright, suppose that's my cue!"

He cleared his throat. "Hello all! I'm Hop Dande. I'm 18, youngest of the Dande family tree, and future Pokémon battling extraordinaire! My brother's the champion, as I'm sure you're already aware, but he's just keeping the seat warm for me." He paused to allow for the ensuing belly-aching laughter, and was met with none. "You probably already guessed it, but my dream is to become a Pokémon trainer renowned throughout Galar, and eventually the world!"

His gaze landed on Cassius, a prompt for him to reintroduce himself. "Uh, sure." Arceus, he had no idea what he was supposed to say. How had he ever survived this back in grade school? "Well, I'm Cassius. Er, Hargreaves. I'm 18, and an only child. My dad's a station master at Wedgehurst, and my mom's a real estate agent. Things I like..." he paused briefly. "... spending time with Hyla, I guess?"

'Way to make yourself stand out, champ,' Cassius cringed to himself. "My dream is... well, I guess I'm a Pokemon trainer now. So that, probably." Finally finished describing himself in the most boring way possible, he folded in on himself slightly as Hop showered him with polite applause.

That left only one person. Though, by the look on her face, she didn't seem in the outgoing mood. "Gloria. 18. You're a blackmailin' tart, and you're a waste of air. I'm gonna be champion. Fuck off."

"Very eloquently said, both of you," Hop congratulated, though he pointedly ignored the annoyed look on his childhood friend's face. "Now that that's out of the way, I have a game we can play to better get to know each other." Reaching into his bag, he pulled out what looked like an orange cylinder, placing it on the mat in front of him.

The object was foreign to Gloria, but Cassius quickly recognized it. "Is that... Stacka-Tacka?"

"Keen eye!" Hop applauded. "Yes, this is indeed Stacka-Tacka. Sort of." Opening the cylinder, Hop dumped its contents, revealing the small wooden blocks Cassius was familiar with. However, while the shape was similar, what was on the blocks differed from standard issue.

Cassius squinted his eyes to get a better look. "Writing?"

Hop offered him a closer look. "Questions. We're gonna play a simple game of Stacka-Tacka, with a small twist. Each block contains a get-to-know-you question!"

Cassius thought it was horrifying. Genius, but horrifying. Who'd even come up with something like this?

"And what's to stop me from topplin' this wee tower over and leavin'?" Gloria asked bluntly, eyeing the halfway-constructed block tower dangerously.

"Well I'd be awfully hurt by that, for starters," Hop answered. "You see how long this takes to set up? Also, the loser has to reveal one embarrassing secret about themselves, so I'd not recommend losing by design."

"An embarrassin' secret? Hop, are you five?"

"No, I'm desperate," Hop admitted truthfully. "You two have been at each other's throats this entire trip. If we're ever gonna reach a point where we can travel together without the urge to kill each other, it starts with getting to know each other on a personal level. If it means we play a silly icebreaker game meant for kids, then we play."

He placed the final block on the tower. "Now, are you gonna get along, or am I gonna have to force you to partake and make the both of us miserable?"

Gloria's outward expression didn't change, but there was a part of her that was taken aback by Hop's forwardness. His general demeanor didn't lend itself to being stern; he was a lot like his brother in that regard. Rare were the times where Hop felt the need to get serious and put his foot down, even as a trainer. It was in his nature to tackle everything with a smile.

She knew he was doing this for her sake, in some roundabout way. He was doing it for the whelp, too. He wanted her and Cassius to get along like the two of them did. Like old childhood mates. Despite the animosity, he was continuing to put in effort where most would have already given up.

Hop was many things, but delusional wasn't one of them. He had to have known that one game of Stacka-Tacka wasn't going to change her entire opinion of the dork from Unova. Even now, as her eyes briefly stole a glance at the boy, that pervasive displeasure spread through her once more. His reserved demeanor, his closed-in posture; even the way he spoke seemed to rub her the wrong way. Here was someone who had no business being a trainer and intruding on their journey, who had been given a chance to make a run on the backing of the region's strongest trainer. By sheer chance.

It was infuriating. She'd worked for years to get where she was, and she still sometimes found herself questioning if she was good enough. Hop liked to think of her as some ball of confidence, but no one could ever realistically go through the tribulations of a trainer without second-guessing themselves from time to time. She'd had her ups and downs, highs and lows, and still found a way to come out on top.

On one hand, she understood why he had to come—he would have ratted on Lee otherwise, and no one was eager to see the potential fallout from that. On the other side of that, however, he didn't even slightly deserve to be here. His presence alone was a constant reminder that this entire journey—this huge moment in their lives—was tainted.

Maybe it wasn't his fault. Maybe he was a victim in all of this too. Was she being unfair? Perhaps. Did she particularly give a damn? Not really.

But Hop was putting in an effort, and for as much as she wanted to, Gloria couldn't spit on it. Not when he'd worked this hard to make this work. Still, that didn't mean she couldn't voice her displeasure. So, she sighed as dramatically as she could, and made herself comfortable. "Fine."

Hop gave her a smile that looked equal parts tired and appreciative. 'Yeah, he's putting way too much effort into this,' Gloria thought. She noticed Cassius scooting his chair closer to the tower nervously. 'Into him.'

With the trio gathered around once more, Hop readied himself with a stretch of the arms. "Okay, I assume we all know how to play Stacka-Tacka, yes? Remove a block from the tower, and place the block on top of the tower without toppling it over. You'll also have to answer whatever question is on the block you choose. Everybody clear?" Affirmative nods. "Alright, then I'll start!"

With an ease that Cassius thought was almost too practiced, Hop swiped a center block near the bottom and made to read the question. "Let's see... who is your hero? Oh, this one's easy! My big brother, of course!"

Gloria rolled her eyes. "Obviously. You'd just about shag Lee if you could."

Hop's adoration was quickly replaced by revulsion. "Gloria, that's disgusting."

"Why is incest even your first insult?" Cassius asked, cringing outwardly. To his surprise, she actually had the manners to look a little guilty, but not enough to the point where she looked eager to apologize. "Fuck you," she spat, effectively ending that conversation.

Hop was very quick to move on. "Cassius, if you would." He added with a little urgency, "Please." Cassius obliged, pulling another center block from a different row, thanking his steady hand that the tower didn't fall over.

"How would your friends describe you?"

Oh boy. The look on Hop's face conveyed his interest in the question, and Gloria would probably at least listen to the first word or two out of his mouth by default. There was just one small problem—he didn't have any friends that would describe him.

Still, he had to say something, didn't he? What was one more lie, right?

"Uh..." he thought for a moment. "... fun?"

"That's a lie," Gloria immediately called him out. Cassius shriveled in on himself slightly. He really should have picked something more believable. Even he didn't really think of himself as a particularly fun person.

"Gloria!" Hop smacked his friend on the arm. She didn't even look like she felt it. "Hop, don't lie to yourself. You know he's not fun. Why d'you think he didn't battle with us?"

"Just because he didn't battle with us doesn't mean he doesn't do fun things in his free time." He turned to him. "Come on, got any fun hobbies?"

He was trying to kill him, Cassius was convinced. Was he doing this on purpose? "Well, I... played basketball a little when I was younger. I still practice a little when I'm bored."

"Ooh, cool!" Hop seemed genuinely interested. "How long'd you play? Why'd you stop?"

"Couple years. I tore my ACL when I was 14, so I kind of fell out of shape and lost my bounce." That was kind of the truth, anyway. At some point, he couldn't find anyone to play with around Lacunosa. "These days I just play to keep myself active."

"Neat," Hop commented, before giving a wry smile. "Think you could beat me?"

"Hop, you haven't played basketball since primary," Gloria shot down.

"True, I'm more lethal on the pitch anyway. Doesn't mean I don't have a few moves on the court."

She'd believe it when she saw it. "Whatever. Let's get this over with." Cassius thanked the heavens above they didn't inquire about his hobbies further—he didn't have any beyond basketball. Gloria took a side piece near the top, and as the tower remained upright, read the question on the block. "What's the most daring thing you've ever done?"

Her eyes immediately traveled to Hop. Hop started back at her with a knowing look. The bastard smirked slightly, of all things. Oh, he would pay for that later.

"Can't really say I'm that darin'," Gloria shrugged. Cassius figured that was probably bullshit, but didn't want to incur her wrath, so he stayed silent. "Snuck into a battlin' dojo when I was a runt. Kept goin' to train there 'till my parents found out and told the masters I was eight."

"I'm sure," Hop nodded. "You sure that's it? Nothing else to add?"

"No."

"Yeah? Nothing of the... thirsty variety?"

Her eye twitched. "I'll have somethin' of the murder variety if you don't shut it."

"Thirsty?" Cassius wondered aloud. He'd meant to keep it to himself, but his intrigue got the better of him. Hop was more than happy to satiate it. "Gloria's got a penchant for wettin' her whistle every so often."

Gloria found a nearby rock and aimed it at Hop. Cassius, meanwhile, grimaced slightly. "Is that, like... a sexual thing?"

"No!" Gloria screeched as she launched the rock, suddenly a few shades redder. Deftly dodging her projectile, Hop explained. "Nah, it's alcohol. She hides a few drinks from her mum."

Oh. "That's it?"

Gloria froze midway through reloading. "Whaddya mean that's it?"

Cassius felt a little conscious now that she was looking at him with a potential murder weapon in her hand. "I mean, we're all 18, aren't we? Most people our age have at least had a little to drink once or twice, right"

"You make it sound as though you've partaken in a few beverages," Hop waggled his eyebrows mischievously.

"Nothing crazy, don't insinuate anything," the Unovan quickly shot down. "My mom had me try wine when I was 16. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't all that good either. These days I just stick with the fruity hard seltzers and stuff." He shivered slightly. "I don't even really enjoy beer that much. And vodka... yuck."

"Well obviously," Gloria scoffed. "You're not supposed to down it straight 'less you're lookin' to get really hammered. Mix it or chase it."

"Mix it? With what?"

"Shit you like, you dope. Lemonade, cranberry juice..."

Hop kept to himself, but he internally felt like crying tears of unrestrained joy. Finally, the two were getting along and not on the verge of skinning each other alive! Granted, they were talking about alcohol as minors, but progress was progress!

"As you can see," Hop returned to the conversation, gesturing at Gloria. "My friend here is an expert in all things boozy. Just don't tell her mom that, yeah?" Gloria looked beyond denying him at this point, exasperation evident on her face.

"I won't," Cassius quickly assured. It's not like he had a means or reason to tell her anyway. "But why is your mom so against you drinking?"

"I did say she was an expert, didn't I?" Hop answered. "Let's just say that Gloria is...very passionate about her hobby. And very loud once she's working."

"Oh! So she's an alcoholic," Cassius blurted without thinking. Thankfully, he had the presence of mind to move his head after Gloria launched her second rock of the night. She didn't bother saying anything more, but she made a show of kicking the tower down before huffing to her tent with a middle finger raised to the both of them.

Hop was reminded of how volatile his friend was. And how poor Cassius was in conversation. 'Progress is progress..." Hop repeated in his head.

At the very least, Cassius looked apologetic. "Sorry, I don't know why I said that."

Hop sighed. Cassius had plenty to work on, even outside of battling. "Well, I don't think she'll hate you for that. Anymore than she already does, anyway." He laughed a bit. "Though, I wouldn't recommend calling women alcoholics in casual conversation, even if it isn't entirely untrue."

Cassius nodded with tight lips. "Noted." As partial atonement, he helped Hop pick up the blocks Gloria had knocked wayward. When they were done cleaning the general area, the two made their way to their respective tents. Not before Hop left him with a final few words.

"Study hard, don't but study too long. We've a big day ahead of us tomorrow." He waved as he entered his tent. "See ya tomorrow!" Cassius reciprocated the wave, changed in his tent, and opened the type matchup link on his phone as he sat down in bed.

A big day tomorrow. Cassius wasn't sure if he was excited.