A/N: Oops, today's chapter came out later than usual. I got distracted by Minecraft. See you on Saturday!

18: The Tournament—First Round IV

Pikachu

Snorlax was never one to care about the public eye. He has yawned, belched, and done anything he felt like in front of others, uncaring of Red's apologies to others and my second-hand embarrassment. It was all a front, though.

He was one of the most intelligent pokemon I knew and he used the façade of being a typical snorlax to gain as much information about his opponent as he could without giving away his own strength. So as he studied Absol, he scratched his fur as if he'd rather be sleeping but I didn't doubt that he'd be napping if we let him.

Absol scoffed. "Snorlax? You've got to be kidding me," he said.

Snorlax seemed unbothered. "I usually don't kid," he replied.

I wanted to laugh because it was true—Snorlax hardly ever joked around and was up there with Charizard for those who were pretty serious.

Absol blinked a few times and then laughed as he got into a fighting stance. "Then give me a good bout!" he barked. When Serena commanded a Night Slash, he started to run as fast as he could at the large normal-type.

Snorlax watched as he jumped into the air to attack but with a single step to the left, he dodged the attack. Absol was flabbergasted how simply he'd avoided the attack and narrowed his eyes before he prepared another Night Slash to try again. He quickly grew frustrated when the second Night Slash didn't hit either.

Two cooed into her microphone, "It seems like Snorlax is much faster than anticipated!"

Snorlax was a living and breathing literal representation of 'slow and steady wins the race.' He was no steel- or rock-type, so he couldn't take nearly as many hits as Steven's team could, and because of his size, it was easier to land hits and it took a lot of energy for him to jump and twist in the air like Charizard could. Instead of using moves like Agility, Teleport, or other fancy moves, he could throw off the flow of a battle by simplicity—meaning he did was step out of the way and let the opponent exhaust themselves.

I grinned as Snorlax dodged a few more times as if he were in a choreographed dance; Absol was using a lot of his own stamina trying to attack the large normal-type.

Absol landed a couple of hits but nothing to do much and jumped away with a glare on his face as Serena grunted. "Absol, use Swords Dance!"

Finally when Absol was distracted, Red snapped and Snorlax hunched over and started to run at Absol, his paws glowing with Brick Break. Absol was startled when he realized how close Snorlax had gotten in such a short time and was too slow to dodge the Brick Break.

The force of the attack flung Absol awfully close to Serena and while he slid to a stop right in front of her, she let out a soft squeaking noise of shock and Red gave Snorlax a look that made him sheepishly rub the back of his head. I knew the look just as well as Snorlax: he was telling him to be careful. Yes, accidents happened, but we couldn't afford to be marked down for any accidental injuries to the opposing trainer.

We returned our attention to Absol when he surprisingly got back up to his paws. He gritted his teeth together and said, "Seems like there's more to you than meets the eye."

Snorlax scratched his chin and replied, "I would hope so. You're pretty fast for an absol. I will enjoy this battle."

He grinned. "I am having fun now!"

Snorlax didn't answer, but he returned the eager smile.

I tilted my head as the two danced on the field again, dodging moves that grew faster in succession. Did that mean Absol wasn't a jerk after all? Red wasn't paying any attention to me; instead, he was carefully watching the match with a critical eye. I couldn't read his face, so I turned my eyes back on Absol and Snorlax.

One chimed in as Snorlax landed another Brick Break, "How much more can Absol take? It looks as if Snorlax isn't even winded!"

Well, he shouldn't be. He had to spar with me most of the time. At first, he had definitely panted and grew tired quickly but with such a diverse team, we tried to strengthen our weakness. I was small and fast with lightning-quick reaction times, he was large and slow and had the strength to back up his bulky frame. I was sure one Hammer Arm from him could knock me out—he didn't hold back when battling anyone.

When Snorlax avoided another Night Slash and slammed a final Brick Break into Absol, I knew what was coming next. Absol yipped in pain but seeing that he was still up on his paws, Snorlax lunged forward and feigned a final Brick Break, but it quickly changed into Hammer Arm. Absol did his best to avoid the attack but ultimately, it hit and he crashed to the ground hard.

"Absol!" Serena cried, worried about the mega evolved dark-type.

Snorlax straightened himself and flexed his fist as we watched Absol's still form twitch. He hadn't reverted back and slowly, he coughed as he staggered back to his paws. He swayed and looked up at Snorlax. After a few seconds, he reverted back to his normal form. "That was fun," he muttered and then collapsed.

"Absol has fainted! Red is in the lead, five-to-three!" Two said.

In all honesty, it felt as if Serena was a painfully easy opponent. Sure, Absol had landed a few hits on Snorlax but Snorlax was barely winded and he'd caught his breath by the time Serena threw another pokeball to replace Absol's place. It didn't mean I wasn't happy to battle, because I was elated to be on the field again.

A tall, green pokemon with long arms and legs appeared and he let out a loud battle cry, looking ready for anything. "Chesnaught, I'm counting on you!" Serena said.

Chesnaught grinned and nodded. "You can count on me, Serena!" he replied.

"Serena has chosen Chesnaught, a grass and fighting type from Kalos!" One shouted. "Could this be Serena's break?"

Red glanced at Snorlax. I knew it would be a smart idea to switch now for Espeon instead, but Snorlax must have noticed Red moving his arm and he shook his head at him. I wanted to know why my team loved going up against pokemon with typings the polar opposites of our own—myself included, I loved going against ground-types and watching their shocked faces when I won.

Chesnaught flexed his muscles when Serena commanded a Bulk Up. Maybe she knew Snorlax's defense was abnormally high. He then leaned forward. "Leech Seed!" she shouted.

Snorlax grunted as he tried to avoid the seeds but after he'd used Hammer Arm, I knew he was too slow to avoid every single one. He looked down when a few caught his foot and he grunted as his energy was immediately getting sapped away. He huffed and I saw him reach into his fur with one arm and then the other slammed into his own stomach a couple times.

When Snorlax was done, he pulled out a sitrus berry and popped the entire thing into his mouth. I wanted to know why Red would let him use Belly Drum this late into his match—I felt like he should've used it earlier, the fight against Absol would have been a lot shorter.

Chesnaught grinned again. "Let's see what you're made of!" he said.

Serena jutted her arm out toward Snorlax. "Hammer Arm!" she commanded. "Get Snorlax out of here!"

Chesnaught ran forward and his arm stretched out to the side with the familiar move. Snorlax must have known he wasn't fast enough to dodge so instead, he waited for the last minute to use Protect and harmlessly took a step back to give each other some space between them.

Red snapped his fingers and Snorlax closed his fist as ice began to form. He stepped forward again to close the distance he had created and when Ice Punch was close to striking Chesnaught, the grass-type blocked it with one arm and the other swung out with Hammer Arm one more time.

It caught Snorlax in the face and while he didn't make a sound, I winced for him as he staggered to the side. In a battle against a fighting-type, Snorlax's one weakness generally didn't give him trouble. For him to get pushed as hard as he did from a single hit told me enough about Chesnaught and his own hidden strength. Snorlax couldn't afford to play it slow and smart; he'd faint in a few hits if he didn't do something different.

Luckily for us, Hammer Arm made the user a bit slower from the stamina they had to use and Chesnaught was trying to catch his breath when Snorlax corrected himself so he didn't fall. Serena watched as Snorlax's other fist came up to strike Chesnaught's exposed side with Ice Punch again and she shouted, "Chesnaught, Spiky Shield!"

In the blink of an eye, Chesnaught disappeared into his shell and the spikes on his back grew sharper and longer just as Snorlax brought his fist down to hit him. This time, Snorlax made a sound of pain as he pulled his injured paw back. "Now would be a good time to switch for Espeon," I said out loud.

Snorlax barely glanced at me. "Shush," he said to me, moving to avoid a Brick Break when Chesnaught appeared out of his shell.

"I'm just saying you're having a hard time and Espeon wouldn't!"

Snorlax didn't answer me. I felt my cheeks puff out in my irritation but I didn't want to distract him more than I already did.

Serena smiled when Snorlax began to pant after he was hit with another Brick Break and said, "Follow it up with Focus Blast! You can do it, Chesnaught!"

Red snapped his fingers and Snorlax spread his arms out wide to use Protect again. The moment Protect faded, Snorlax was running at Chesnaught again, this time using Giga Impact.

Serena immediately pointed her arm out at Snorlax. "Chesnaught, use Giga Impact, too!"

The two threw themselves at each other, both giving off bright glows as they slammed into each other. I wasn't surprised when Snorlax crashed into the ground and when I noticed Chesnaught's Overgrow starting to show, Snorlax finally smiled. I tilted my head. What did the large normal-type have in mind?

He suddenly let out a huge yawn and he calmly laid on the ground as if he were going to bed for the night. It threw Serena off when he fell asleep—hardly anyone used Rest in a battle of this caliber. Even when Snorlax used it, it was risky. He was vulnerable like this but I didn't want to start cackling. Munchlax and snorlax were notorious for falling asleep for long periods of time, they had come up with a way to protect themselves even in sleep.

Chesnaught looked back at Serena and then turned around again. "Well… I guess thanks for the win?" he said questionably. He then ran at Snorlax with Hammer Arm, not needing to worry about how fast he would be after the attack.

Red snapped his fingers, a crisp, short sound that made even Chesnaught look at him.

In front of us and still fast asleep, Snorlax let out a loud snore. The sound was loud enough for Chesnaught to slide to a stop and put his paws to his head where his ears likely were and yipped in both shock and pain.

"And just like that, Snorlax has surprised us all with Snore! How much more of this can Chesnaught take?" One shouted.

Chesnaught looked like he was at the end of his own battle but he looked annoyed, and I watched the spikes on his back start to glow again. "Quick, before Snorlax wakes up! Frenzy Plant!" Serena yelled over the noise.

This time, I knew there was no way to avoid the attack and Red's eyes widened a little. I knew he was hoping Snorlax would wake up, but without a chesto berry or sheer dumb luck, Snorlax was going to take the full brunt of the attack.

Frenzy Plant came crashing onto Snorlax without mercy. As much as Snore attempted to counter it, the sheer power of the grass-type move easily overpowered it. I watched Red start to reach for Snorlax's pokeball but when the Frenzy Plant retreated, he stopped. I was surprised when Snorlax got back up to his paws and coughed as he patted his side. "I don't think that worked too well," he admitted.

Chesnaught panted and because of Frenzy Plant's overpowering consequence, he was unable to avoid the final Ice Punch that caused him to faint.

Two sounded excited when she said, "Chesnaught has fainted—oh, what's this? Red is returning Snorlax!"

"Well, after that battle, I'm not surprised!" One answered.

Red recalled Snorlax at the same time as Serena. In their places, Espeon was released and she flicked her ears as a Clefable appeared on the other side. She remained sitting as she watched the pink pokemon and then hummed. "Let's have some fun!" she told Clefable with a smile.

Clefable blinked and then she smiled back. "Yeah!" she replied.

I didn't know why Espeon would clearly antagonize our opponent. Espeon was only nice to her opponents when she thought she was stronger than them—and half the time, she was right. One look at Clefable's face gave me the impression that she hadn't realized Espeon's back-handed optimism, though, and for that I let out a sigh. Espeon hated when she went ignored like that.

Our humans couldn't see what was going on between them and Serena made the first move after a few seconds of quiet. "Clefable, use Moonblast!" she shouted.

I had never heard of that move—Moonblast? I wanted to know more about it but once we saw the brightly glowing pinkish ball that formed just above Clefable's head, Red signaled a Shadow Ball to counter the attack. The two balls of energy were sent at each other and collided with each other instead of their targets. The explosion's power caused Red and Serena to hold their hats onto their heads to avoid them flying away and I clung a little tighter to Red's shirt to make sure I wasn't blown away, either.

Clefable yelped as the shockwave hit her and Espeon stood her ground, but Red was already signaling Espeon to use Future Sight during the distraction. Espeon's eyes glowed alongside the gem on her head and she shouted as she opened a portal above herself and sent the blast of energy into it before it disappeared.

Unfortunately, Serena had seen it. She frowned in thought and then commanded, "Clefable, use Meteor Mash!"

Clefable ran with impressive speed for her awkward shape with glowing silver fists. Espeon remained where she was and wasted no time catching Clefable with Psychic. Clefable shouted with shock when she was lifted and then in pain when she was slammed into the ground. She wiped her chin and as soon as she got back up, Future Sight opened up and slammed her back down.

Serena looked worried as Clefable let out a yell of pain. When Future Sight's onslaught was over, Clefable panted and struggled to get back up. She was clearly hurt and while she did her best to remain upright, I had to give her props: not many could withstand Espeon's brutal psychic attacks. Hell, I hardly could. Even Espeon looked impressed, but she didn't let her guard down as she sent another Future Sight straight into the sky at Red's direction.

Serena took the time Espeon sent the attack and said, "Clefable, use Moonlight!"

Clefable hummed and she glowed slightly. The minor restoration made her grin as she slowly healed and Espeon looked annoyed and got off of her hind legs, finally on all four paws.

"Now use Magical Leaf!"

Espeon didn't move and let the Magical Leaf hit as soon as possible. She closed her eyes and let out a calm hum, using Morning Sun to restore herself. As soon as the cuts from Magical Leaf had appeared, they immediately disappeared and she smirked at Clefable, who was now the annoyed one.

I wanted to roll my eyes. Espeon really loved pushing buttons during battles.

We were all taken by surprised when Serena recalled Clefable. Espeon let out a tiny huff. "I was having fun," she whined.

"Annoying the opponent isn't having fun," I replied.

"To you, maybe. Besides, it's all part of a strategy. You smack-talk in battle, too."

Serena took her last pokeball into her hand and smiled as she said, "Do your best, Altaria!"

I couldn't tell you how disappointed I was when Red didn't let me onto the field and instead chose to keep Espeon out. I wanted to fight! I wanted to at least do something other than sit here and watch the battle happening without my help!

I wanted to strangle him. "Why are you purposely not letting me battle?! I want to battle!" I poked Red's cheek to make sure he knew of my disappointment.

Espeon was jumping in the air before I knew it to avoid a powerful Dragon Pulse and I huffed again. Of course, the cotton ball bird was also a dragon-type—I would have been able to do next to nothing against him. Maybe a Thunder Wave, but it would be a long and drawn-out fight.

At least Espeon was doing well avoiding the powerful attacks and she smiled the entire time as she sent her own. "This is more like it!" I heard her say as she was hit by Dragon Pulse.

Altaria blinked at her enthusiasm. "You were just hit—are you okay, like, in the head?" he asked her.

"Y'know, I've been asking that for years," I answered for Espeon.

Espeon ignored the conversation and let out a calming cry into the sky. The sky grew bright and as the Sunny Day became active, Altaria flew up high and his body began to grow bright as well. Espeon winced as she watched him and as Red directed Quick Attack for her to get out of the way of Sky Attack, I noticed Espeon blink yet again.

I looked at Red and figured out why she kept blinking. The two of them were likely communicating mentally, and Espeon normally blinked when she used Calm Mind. It was a habit she had developed when we were much younger, and even with all the other psychic-types telling her she didn't need to blink every time she used it, she kept doing it.

Luckily for us, Serena had no idea what we were up to. "Altaria, Dragon Pulse!" she commanded.

Espeon's gem glowed much brighter this time and I wanted to know exactly how many times she had used Calm Mind when I saw the sheer power emitted from it. Psybeam easily overpowered the dragon-type move and cut through the attack as if it split into two completely separate halves. Altaria hit the ground and as he tried to get back up with Fly, Espeon grabbed him with Psychic.

"Perish Song!" Serena shouted. Altaria started to sing the moment Espeon lifted him up into the sky and stopped by the time she had slammed him back down again.

Espeon panted as she let him go and when he didn't get back up, she licked her front paw. "Keep me out—I can beat Clefable," she said to Red.

Red didn't look convinced but he granted her wish.

"Perish Song! Don't forget about the Perish Song! Your stupid antagonizing is gonna cost us the match," I warned.

"I did all that Calm Mind while dancing around the battle against Altaria—I'm not letting it go to waste. That Moonblast? Not gonna do anything to me now."

She was right.

The moment Clefable came out again, Moonblast was thrown at Espeon and while she had been hit, it didn't do much. Espeon grinned at Clefable's shocked look and sent two Psybeams her way—but then she suddenly winced and tried to fire one last one before she suddenly collapsed onto her side.

I ran my paw over my face. I told her about Perish Song.

Espeon was recalled and then my wish was granted—Red looked at me and nodded. Elated I smiled and jumped off of his shoulder and directly into the match. Finally! I grinned at Clefable. "Please drag this out—I haven't battled at all!" I said.

She didn't answer me, instead she gave me a dirty look that should have been for Espeon.

Although I was tempted to let her use Moonlight, Red snapped his fingers and I fired Thunderbolt instantly.

And then, to my utmost disbelief, Clefable fainted.

One attack.

One.

Amidst the cheering and the referees calling the battle in our favor, I sulked as I went back to Red and nearly sent an Iron Tail into his face when I noticed his little smirk as we walked back toward the hall. "Espeon put you up to this, didn't she?" I mumbled.

She was totally getting a Thundershock from me later.

-x-

"Why is Pikachu so mad at you?" Ethan asked. He laughed when I glared at him.

We had returned to our spots from before and although Hilda and Rosa weren't there, I was eager to watch their battle. Red glanced down at me and scratched the fur between my ears. "He's always mad when he doesn't get to battle," Blue answered for Red.

I didn't acknowledge them, I wanted to get the point across to my trainer that only using one move in a battle was not a battle—it was like taking a sample of my favorite human meal and watching someone else eat the rest of it.

"Aww, angry Pikachu is so cute!" I heard Nate say.

When sparks danced off my cheeks, it only caused Ethan to laugh harder. "Maybe you should let him battle more, Red."

At this, I looked up at my trainer and nodded in agreement. I needed to battle more. Watching the others go all-out wasn't fair, in my opinion.

"Our last battle of today is a match between two of Unova's finest! Please join me in welcoming Champion Rosa and Champion White!" Two shouted.

Red leaned forward a little and I couldn't help myself from rolling my eyes at him. He's never been this invested in watching a pokemon battle that hasn't been Blue, Ethan, or Leaf in a very long time.

Hilda stopped in the same place Serena had been and Rosa stopped in ours. Both of them already had a pokeball in their hands and I could easily tell that this wasn't going to be the first battle the two of them have had against each other.

When prompted, they both threw their pokeballs out. Rosa smiled as she shouted, "Go, Hydreigon!" Hydreigon appeared with a roar and when he saw Hilda, he looked extremely excited.

Hilda tossed hers at the same time with a loud, "Come on out, Stoutland!" Stoutland landed heavily on the field with a proud bark, standing his ground. He didn't seem as excited as Hydreigon; if I was correct, he looked more like he was nervous to go up against Hydreigon.

As the rules were repeated a final time, I squirmed out of Red's lap and jogged up to the barrier to get a closer look. When the rules were done, One and Two didn't say anything. If it was for dramatic effect, I was immediately annoyed. After a few brief seconds, they both finally shouted, "You may begin!"

Rosa's reaction was faster. "Hydreigon, use Dragonbreath!"

As quick as his trainer was, Hydreigon reared his middle head and fired the putrid breath. Stoutland didn't seem worried, it was more than likely he had expected it.

"Dodge it and use Work Up!" Hilda shouted. Stoutland immediately obeyed and soon shook out his fur, Work Up successful. "Now use Ice Fang!"

"Counter it with Crunch!"

Fangs met in the air, but I watched as Stoutland skillfully avoided Hydreigon's largest head and a strong set of jaws then landed on his back, sinking ice-covered fangs into Hydreigon's wing. The dragon roared in pain, and with only one wing, they were unable to stay in the air and he crashed into the ground as Stoutland leaped off.

When Hydreigon got back up, I could see that the wing was frozen over and would be unable to fly again until it melted. Rosa noticed it as well and while she was probably worried about it, it didn't stop her as she yelled, "Hydreigon, use Dragon Pulse!"

Stoutland was caught by surprise by the sudden counter-attack and gave a loud yelp, but he was right back up and charging straight for the dragon. "Stoutland, use Superpower!"

Hydreigon cried out, being thrown to the side and crashed into the ground again, though when he didn't get up, she sighed and returned him as cheers erupted in the audience. I saw Red smile a little—I knew he was happy with the first win.

"White has taken the lead!" One cried. "Let's see if she can keep this up!"

Rosa didn't let her loss stop her and she tossed another pokeball. "Golurk! You're up!"

Hilda gritted her teeth together. Judging by Golurk's appearance, I assumed it was a ghost, and as soon as Rosa shouted for it to use Earthquake, I knew it was also a ground-type. Red was completely fascinated with the pokemon and I looked over to see him pulling out his pokedex. While I was curious about what kind of details he could see, I was much more interested in the battle that was going on down below.

"Stoutland, use Crunch!"

"Golurk, Hammer Arm!"

I inwardly winced when Golurk's large arm made contact with Stoutland's side, sending the pokemon flying into the arena wall. Hilda shouted for her pokemon, frowning and recalled him when she realized he had already fainted.

"Just like that, Rosa has evened the score!" Two said.

Hilda didn't hesitate and sent out Serperior with a grin. Serperior rose his head and looked at Golurk with a sneer. "You again?" he mumbled.

Either Golurk couldn't answer or didn't want to, because the ghost-type remained quiet as Rosa commanded another Earthquake.

Serperior was more agile than I thought him to be. He jumped onto pieces of the broken ground to avoid getting struck and used Coil when he had a chance. Hilda then pointed her hand out. "Use Leaf Blade!"

"Golurk, Heavy Slam!" Golurk tucked its arms to its sides and its hands disappeared suddenly, letting loose two rockets that propelled it forward.

Serperior ducked and slithered out of the way of the attack. When Golurk hit empty air and hit the ground, his tail glowed a bright green, taking a sharp look and he sliced it as hard as he could against the ghost. Golurk raised an empty arm, suddenly shooting its fist out with Mega Punch.

As the battle went on down below with both pokemon trading moves, I felt my ear twitch when I heard a familiar voice say, "Ooh, those guys are really good down there."

"Mew, nice of you to show up," I answered calmly.

Red clearly heard us but he didn't react.

"Yeah, well, something kinda sorta came up and I kinda sorta need to talk."

I blinked and looked back, seeing Red's similarly confused look. He took a deep breath and got to his feet.

"I don't know what your excuse is this time, but I'm not going to get more food with you," Blue told him.

"Bathroom," Red insisted.

"I didn't ask."

I followed Red out and as we walked down the hall to get somewhere private, I heard Mew say, "So, you know how me 'n Mewtwo have been out doing stuff?"

Yes, did you find anything? Red's thoughts answered. He opened the door to the restroom and as soon as we were in, he locked the door.

Mew appeared floating in front of us. I watched as she nervously looked around and frowned. It was never a good sign when she was nervous. "What happened?" I asked.

"Well, technically, nothing happened, but something could have happened without my knowledge."

Red glanced at me and then asked, What do you mean? Then he looked around. Where's Mewtwo?

She paused and her tail swished back and forth. "That's kinda the thing… I, uh, don't know."

All the other questions and possible scenarios in my head that had started to form disappeared.

What do you mean you don't know?

"Yeah, this isn't funny, Mew," I said.

She shook her head. "And I totally agree, it's not funny in the slightest!"

Explain. Now.

I looked up at my trainer. His face was a mixture of worry and annoyance—maybe some part of him, like me, was hoping she was just pulling a really bad prank.

"So you know how you went to Clay Tunnel and saw some Team Rocket people there? We went back and I said I was gonna come watch your match—which you did lovely in, by the way. Espeon is starting to take up a lot of my traits—"

Focus, Mew. Did you come, then?

She nodded. "Mewtwo told me he was gonna come with me, too, but I had this really bad feeling, you know? So, I told him we should leave together and he said he'd catch up and I trusted him. I watched part of your match and then I couldn't shake this weird feeling so I went back and Mewtwo wasn't there at the tunnel anymore."

I started to get that same bad feeling slowly crawling its way in me. "What are you saying? Did he go somewhere?"

"I don't know! I can't sense him anywhere like I usually can—you know how I can read your mind, Red? Yeah, there's nothing when I reach out to Mewtwo. Nothin. Nada. Zilch. It's like he's there but he's not, do you get it? It's like seeing a rattata nest but with no rattata in it."

I gulped. "So… Mewtwo is missing?"

"I hope not, I hope I can find him but this bad feeling isn't going away."

Red frowned and took a slow and steady inhale. When he let it out, I heard his thoughts say, We'll figure this out.

"We should probably head back before Blue gets suspicious of us doing something dumb again," I told him.

He nodded and looked at Mew. Whatever his reason, it's not your fault, Mew. We'll find him.

She looked up at him, eyes hopeful. "You don't blame me? I should've kept an eye on him."

Red shook his head. "Of course not," he said out loud. Then he lifted me and she smiled before she disappeared. Once she took her spot on his shoulder, he opened the door and we headed back for the box.

I didn't know what to think. Mewtwo was missing? Where did he go? Why were they in the tunnel, anyway? We were already there before, and we nearly got caught snooping around by Team Rocket grunts—twice.

As the battle between Hilda and Rosa raged on, I found myself too worried about Mewtwo. Where in the world did he go? He can't have been caught, could he? That was impossible, he had a pokeball he kept on him at all times.

I shook my fur out to ease my rapidly rising anxiety and decided to try and watch the match. There wasn't anything we could do right now, running off without any sort of clues wouldn't have been a good idea.

Far below us, Serperior was panting and Golurk was gone, replaced by a large fire-type that flexed his muscles before throwing a Flamethrower his way. Serperior struggled to dodge it, his back was already burned, likely from a different fire-type attack, and I looked at the screen in the center.

Rosa and Hilda seemed to be pretty evenly matched—both were on their second to last pokemon and it was clear Serperior was going to faint if Hilda didn't recall him for someone else. When I looked at Serperior, however, it was clear he was just like Charizard and refused to be recalled even in a match against the opposite typing of him.

"Face it, Serperior, you're never gonna beat me in battle," the fire-type said with a grin. "Me 'n Rosa are gonna take this win!"

Serperior let out an annoyed hiss. "I am not giving up that easily, Emboar," he retorted.

Emboar grinned. "That's what I like to hear!" He fired another Flamethrower and this time, Serperior completely dodged it.

Hilda grinned as Serperior slithered underneath the fire harmlessly. "Do it, Serperior! Aqua Tail!" she shouted.

Emboar looked surprised as Serperior came out from underneath him and when Aqua Tail hit, he was thrown off to the side. Rosa watched, wide-eyed as Emboar hit the ground and then breathed a sigh of relief when he got back up. "Emboar, Flame Charge!"

Emboar coated himself in fire and ran for Serperior as fast as he could go.

If I blinked, I would have missed what happened next. Serperior ducked low to the ground and in his spot was a look-alike of himself, and while he winced and escaped the attack, the leaves on his collar stretched out enough to catch what sunlight there was left.

Emboar kicked the Substitute out of the way and a little fire came out of his nostrils when he realized Serperior had not only successfully escaped the attack, but also used Synthesis to recover a bit of his own health. "You're only delaying the inevitable, Serperior."

"You're full of yourself, Emboar."

"Hah! Like you aren't?"

I had to agree with Emboar on that one.

Rosa seemed to be just as done with the fight as Emboar. "Emboar, finish Serperior!" She grinned and Hilda seemed unnerved by the look. "Blast Burn!"

The fire around Emboar grew large and hot. So hot, in fact, I could feel it from where we were sitting and I wondered if the fur on my tail would singe if I was just a few rows closer to them.

"Serperior!" I heard Hilda shout and she covered her face to protect herself from the heat.

Serperior stood no chance against the move. He collapsed when the fire receded and Hilda recalled him as Emboar panted for air, shaking with exertion.

"Serperior has been defeated! Rosa is in the lead!" Two said.

"Who knows how this will turn out? Champion Rosa and Champion White both seem pretty even!" One added.

"This has to be one of the most exciting battles yet!"

Hilda sent out her final pokeball. "Mienshao, go! Rain Dance!" she shouted.

Mienshao appeared, flipping in the air and soon the arena above them was covered in a thick rain cloud. She smirked at Emboar. "Serperior is going to rant about your fight all night again," she said.

Emboar grinned. "Good! That means I'm doing my job right!" He pounded his two fists together.

Rosa scowled at the rain but she looked at her pokemon as he continued to regain his strength from Blast Burn.

"Mienshao, Ariel Ace!" Hilda ordered.

Mienshao instantly obeyed and ran up to Emboar's front. With the long part of the fur on her arm, she slashed it against the large fire-type and he shouted in pain, staggering backwards from the force of the attack.

"Emboar!" Rosa sounded worried but looked at Mienshao. "You can do it—Earthquake!"

"Dodge it, Mienshao! Bounce!" Hilda said right after that.

Mienshao leaped into the air just before the Earthquake struck and as quick as a flash, she came crashing down and landed a hard kick to his head with Bounce.

Emboar staggered again when she landed gracefully in front of Hilda and she giggled when he fainted. "That's for Serperior," she said.

The cheers grew as Rosa recalled Emboar, but she didn't seem to thrilled about sending her last pokemon out. "Go, Cinccino!" she said. "You got this!"

A small, gray pokemon appeared and looked up at Mienshao once and then groaned. "I don't 'got this,'" she said.

And Cinccino didn't. Don't get me wrong, she tried her damn best to win, but ultimately, it was Mienshao who remained standing at the end. Red seemed happy Hilda won but I knew what was on his mind when the smile disappeared from his face all too fast. Mewtwo was still on mine, too.

Black stood up and stretched first then grinned as he looked at Nate. "Told you my sister was better," he said proudly.

Nate huffed. "Yeah, well, my bad, okay? I told Rosa to switch out Beheeyem for Cinccino. I thought it would have been a good idea," he replied.

Black shrugged. "I'm gonna go take White out for a congratulatory dinner."

"You mean your mom is making you guys dinner."

"Your mom's here, too?" Ethan asked with a smile.

"Yeah, is yours?"

"Nah, she's all the way in New Bark Town still. Can your mom make really good food like Red's mom?"

"Depends on what she's making. Don't let her bake anything. Or barbeque. Or anything to do with vegetables, she isn't good at cooking those."

"Sounds like she's just not that good at cooking," Brendan said sheepishly.

Red picked me up as Blue asked, "Heading back?"

My trainer nodded.

"Right, well, if I run into White, I'll send her your way."

Red sent him a grateful smile and we quickly made our way out of the stadium as One and Two went over Friday's schedule, and the final day of the first round.