Timothy was back in his regular clothes, walking down the hall from the changing room with a proud grin. He held up his ring containing his badges with his new Rock Badge connected to the very top of the ring. Electchu walked beside him, ignoring the scratches on its body as it looked at the ring with a smirk.
"Rai Rai Raichu. Chu Rai Rai Raichu," Electchu said.
"You said it, pal. That was a great battle," Timothy said. "Sure, Gordie's Shuckle landed a couple of hits on you, but other than that, it was one easy win after another. And for Gordie's partner to be a Coalossal, making it super easy for Poliwrath to beat it in a snap? Man, where was that when we went against Kabu's Centiskorch? I tell you, Electchu, it feels so good to get an easy win like that in a Gym Battle again. No one fainting, no attacks weak against the Pokémon I Dynamax, no sludge in your face. We go in, kick the Gym Leader's butt, and get out."
"Raichu," Electchu said, nodding.
The man in the "H.A.K." shirt and his partner chuckled in delight as Timothy put away his ring just as they made it to the door leading to the lobby. When they entered the lobby, they saw Sonia standing in front of the door with Coovers while cradling Winnie. The Little Bear Pokemon looked green around the gills.
"Way to go, Timbo!" Coovers cheered.
"Great job, Timothy," Sonia chirped with a bright smile.
"Uh, thanks, guys," Timothy said. "Side notes: what are you doing here, Sonia? What happened to Winnie, and where's Gwen?"
"I just happened to be here for research and found Coovers and Eddie in the crowd," Sonia answered. "And it looks like a jumbo-sized bottle of honey was too much for poor Eddie."
"Teddi," Winnie whimpered, trying not to hurl.
"As for Gwen, some security guards asked her to come with them for something," Coovers said. "So, you should probably go find her."
"Me? What about you two?" Timothy asked.
Coovers bit his bottom lip to keep himself from squealing in excitement and said, "We're going on a date."
"You're what?!" Timothy shouted.
"Could you take Eddie and tell Gwen I'm sorry for overfeeding it when you find her? Thanks," Sonia said, handing Winnie to Timothy. "We're gonna be gone for a while, and I'm sure Gwen has something that'll make poor Eddie feel better."
"Wait, hold on a minute," Timothy said.
"See ya later, Timbo, and congratulations again!" Coovers called out as he and Sonia turned around and headed to the stadium entrance, the peach-haired woman waving with a cute smile.
"Guys!" Timothy called out.
Coovers and Sonia exited the stadium, ignoring Timothy. Timothy and Electchu stared at the entrance doors, flabbergasted, while Winnie moaned in Timothy's arms.
"Sonia is suddenly here, she said yes to a date with Coovers, Winnie has a stomach ache, and Gwen is taken by security?" Timothy asked before turning to Electchu. "What else did we miss while battling Gordie?"
"Raichu," Electchu said with a shrug.
"Timothy!"
Timothy and Electchu turned to their left to see Ezria racing toward them with her arms wide open, followed by Gwen and two League Staff members. Ezria cheerfully pulled Timothy into a tight hug, not noticing he had Winnie in his arms.
"The staff told me you won. I told you Gordie was going to be easy to beat," Ezria said.
"Yes, you did. And now we both only need two more badges," Timothy said. "Though, why are there security guards following you guys?"
"Oh, it's just the silliest thing," Ezria said as she broke her hug. "Someone who looked like Gwen snuck inside the stadium to watch our matches without a ticket, and judging from what little security saw from the video cameras, the culprit looked an awful lot like Gwen. I happened to be walking by when they were taking her in for questioning and decided to investigate the matter with them. When you look close enough, the person actually has dark red hair, and I found other footage that shows Gwen legally coming here with Coovers and Winnie. A silly misunderstanding, to say the least, but it's good that security was on the case. We wouldn't want people doing anything they shouldn't. Isn't that right?"
"Y-yes, that's right," Gwen said with a fake smile.
Timothy and Electchu looked at each other, feeling a sense of unease by the way Gwen and Ezria were behaving. Suddenly, Gwen gasped and raced over to Timothy to scoop Winnie off his arms.
"Winnie, what happened to you?" Gwen asked.
"Oh, yeah. Apparently, Soni- uh, Sonja watched my match with Coovers and decided to give Winnie a jumbo-sized bottle of honey," Timothy explained.
"Sonja, as in the woman Coovers has it bad for?" Ezria asked.
"The very same," Timothy said. "They just left to go on a date a few minutes ago, leaving Winnie with me."
Gwen looked at Timothy in disbelief before grumbling against Sonia as she petted her poor Pokémon partner. Then she glanced at Electchu, noticing the scratches on its body, and suddenly got an idea. She looked at Ezria, who was too focused on looking at Timothy like neither Gwen nor Winnie were in the lobby. With her enemy distracted, Gwen decided to take a chance and walked over to the nearest bench.
"Electchu, could you be a dear and reach into my backpack to take out some medicine for Winnie, please?" She asked with a kind smile. "After that, I'll treat your injuries, so you don't need to go to the Pokémon Center."
Gwen winked at Electchu with her right eye; her head angled so no one else could see it. Electchu looked at Gwen, confused, before it decided to play along with a smile. It walked over to Gwen, and Gwen took out a box of pills from her backpack, and handed it to her. She smiled and put the pill in Winnie's mouth before Electchu took out a potion from her backpack so Gwen could heal its wounds.
"Thanks, Gwen," Timothy said with a smile.
"Yes, very nice of you, Gwen," Ezria said without looking at Gwen. "So, Timothy, I thought we would explore the town and grab some lunch to celebrate our victories. Would you be interested in that?"
She batted her eyelashes flirtatiously as she asked her question. Timothy briefly glanced at Gwen, who was healing Electchu, while Winnie laid down on the bench. He wished Ezria wasn't around so he could celebrate his victory with Gwen while Coovers had his date with Sonia. Unbeknownst to either of them or the League Staff members, Gwen whispered into Electchu's ear as she treated its wound, telling the Mouse Pokémon everything that transpired between her and Ezria - excluding Ezria accusing Gwen of liking Timothy. Timothy mentally sighed and thought to himself, "It's for the mission," before he answered.
"That sounds like a marvelous idea," Timothy said.
"Wonderful," Ezria chirped. "Why don't you put on your disguise, and we can be on our way?"
"Oh, yeah. I forgot about that," Timothy said.
He took off his backpack off his back and took out his hoodie, mask, and sunglasses. As he put them on, Gwen finished informing Electchu while spraying a potion on the last scratch on its arm. She pulled her head back from Electchu's ear, and it nodded in understanding. The Mouse Pokémon hopped off the bench and walked over to Timothy just as he put on his sunglasses.
"Alright, let's get going," Ezria said before turning to Gwen. "What are you going to do, Gwen?"
Gwen took a deep breath to keep her cool and turned her head to Ezria, saying, "I think I'm going to go back to the Pokémon Center so Winnie can sleep off its stomach ache."
"Aw, that's a shame. Hope Winnie gets better," Ezria said before turning to the staff members as she put on her sunglasses. "And best of luck to you finding the culprit, gentleman."
"Thank you, Ms. Markenel," the staff members said, knowing Ezria really meant to keep an eye on Gwen.
"Right then. Let us be off," Ezria said.
With that, Timothy, Ezria, and Electchu left the building with Gwen exiting the stadium after them with Winnie in her arms. Timothy and Electchu waved goodbye to Gwen as she went toward the Pokémon Center. The next thing Timothy knew, Ezria wrapped her arm around the one Timothy was using to wave to Gwen and pulled it close to her.
"Ezria, what are you doing?" Timothy asked.
"Just getting into character," Ezra said. "We look less suspicious with our disguises this way."
Timothy frowned underneath his mask and muttered, "I don't think that's the only thing suspicious."
"Come, there's a special place I want to show you," Ezria said.
She dragged Timothy by the arm, leading him down the steep road. Electchu walked beside Timothy with a skip in its step as they walked. It smiled with its mouth wide open and its eyes closed as it sang.
"Rai. Ra-i, Rai-i, Chu, Chu. Ra-i, Ra-i, Chu, Chu. Raichu, Raichu, Chu-Chu-Chu."
"Well, Electchu seems to be in a really good mood," Ezria said.
"That's because it's thrilled that we won the match and we're so close to competing in the Championship Cup," Timothy said.
"Is that so?" Ezria asked with a smirk. "Well, I share Electchu's excitement."
"Me too," Timothy said.
But underneath his mask and sunglasses, Timothy was lost in color. Despite its upbeat demeanor, Electchu was singing that Chairman Rose, Oleana, and Ezria found out who Gwen was and everything that Gwen told Electchu while she was healing it. Electchu repeated the lies Gwen gave Ezria in its song to ensure Timothy had the story memorized. He silently took deep breaths to keep himself together as he mentally prepared himself for what Ezria was planning to do.
Eventually, Ezria led Timothy and Electchu to an ancient stone pillar structure containing a rectangular hot spring. Children and Pokémon were playing in the spring while adults watched on the stone steps or were in the springs resting against the wall, enjoying the warm water. At the center of the other side of the sitting was a wide metal sign that said, "The Hero's Bath."
"The Hero's Bath," Timothy read out loud before turning to Ezria. "Let me guess. This is connected to the Darkest Day?"
"Supposedly," Ezria answered.
"Supposedly?" Timothy asked.
"This is called the Hero's Bath because it's said that heroes bathed here to heal and rest," Ezria said. "People think they're referring to the hero in the Darkest Day, even though the text suggests more than one hero. I think it's silly that they believe that when there's never been talk of our great hero needing to heal and rest."
"Why's that? It's possible he would need those things while saving Galar," Timothy said. "We are talking about one person against a region full of Dynamax Pokémon."
"True, but that would imply him traveling to the snowy mountains just to rest and heal after a battle no matter where in Galar he was," Ezria said. "Besides, saying this is where more than one hero rested even when nothing suggests there was more than one gives me the impression that this spring is used as a tourist attraction rather than a place of historical value."
"O...kay," Timothy said hesitantly. "Then, why bring me here?"
Ezria smiled and leaned her head closer to Timothy.
"Because even if it's a false historical landmark, it's still one of the many natural wonders of Galar. A hot spring in the middle of the snowy mountains is rather rare. Gives the region more character, don't you think?"
"I suppose so," Timothy said.
Ezria looked away for a moment with her cheeks turning red and said, "And who knows? Maybe one day Galar will have more than one hero, and there will be a place to honor them and be treated as a real historical landmark when they're long gone."
Timothy frowned and asked, "Why? Do you think Galar will soon be in danger of another threat that could destroy it?"
"Oh, no. I doubt we will have something as terrible as what happened on the Darkest Day. We have the technology to control Dynamaxing after all," Ezria said. "But, if anything like that does happen, I like to imagine there will be heroes who will always be there to stop it, and they will go down in history for it. Their names will be forever remembered, unlike the hero from Galar's ancient past."
Timothy's frown deepened, knowing Ezria was imagining the heroes being the two of them. He then wondered why she thought Galar might be in danger again someday. He turned to Electchu, who looked back, thinking the same thing.
"What could she be referring to?" Timothy thought. "Is she thinking of people like Professor Magnolia trying to stop the chairman, or there could be a crime organization like Team Rocket here in Galar that I don't know about?"
His frown turned onto a look of unease.
"Or maybe she and the chairman are aware that they might not be able to contain Eternatus's power, and they are willing to try anyway, and Ezria wants me to fight alongside her in case -"
"Timothy?"
Timothy snapped out his train of thought and looked back at Ezria. She looked away nervously, then tightened her hold on Timothy's arm before looking back at him.
"Timothy, I know this might come out as rude, but something has been bothering me," Ezria said. "You, Coovers, and Gwen have been traveling together for years, right?"
"That's right," Timothy said.
"Were they with you when you took down Team Rocket?" Ezria asked.
"Not Gwen. Coovers was one of the people I led to victory, but Gwen left the group to help her mom with her research several years ago," Timothy said.
"How did you guys end up traveling with her again?" Ezria asked.
"We got back into contact when Coovers, Electchu, and I were flying to Galar. She just happened to start researching on the Darkest Day and decided to come with us to support me while she investigates places that connect to the Darkest Day along the way."
"Just her? What about her mother?" Ezria asked.
Timothy flinched, hating that he had to maintain the lie of how Gwen lost her mother, and looked away as he said with a sad voice, "She was crushed by an avalanche when they were traveling through the mountains some time ago."
Ezria let out a fake gasp with her hand on her mouth.
"How awful," she said. "I can't imagine how painful of a loss that is."
"That makes two of us," Timothy said.
Ezria, Timothy, and Electchu stood in silence. Ezria herself was unsettled with how to proceed with her plan. Thus far, Timothy's answers matched everything Gwen said, and even with the hood and mask covering his face, Ezria could tell that bringing up Gwen's mom made him uncomfortable. She knew she had to change the subject while still investigating to avoid upsetting Timothy in case he was ignorant of Rose's operation and Gwen's part in it. Fortunately, there was only one question she had left that had nothing to do with Gwen, so she cleared her throat and gave Timothy a friendly smile.
"Timothy, does the name Professor Magnolia mean anything to you?" She asked.
"Who?" Timothy asked, turning his head back to Ezria.
"Professor Magnolia. She's a Pokémon Professor here in Galar," Ezria explained.
"Never heard of her," Timothy said. "What does she do as a professor?"
"She gives new trainers their first Pokémon in Wedgehurst," Ezria said.
"Is that so? I wondered if Galar had a Pokémon Professor who did that just like the other regions I've been to," Timothy said, pretending to be intrigued. "Where is Wedgehurst?"
"It's south of Motostoke," Ezria answered. "Have you ever been there?"
"Can't say I have," Timothy lied. "Coovers, Electchu, and I went straight to Motostoke to meet up with Gwen and attend the opening ceremony for the Gym Challenge. Besides, there's no point in meeting this professor anyway, right? I came to Galar with the perfect team to crush the Gym Challenge without breaking a sweat - you not giving me Knightblade yet aside, of course."
"Of course. That makes perfect sense," Ezria said.
Once again, silence took over Timothy and Ezria. Timothy turned to Electchu, who shrugged, unsure what to do next. Timothy pursed his lips under his mask and turned to Ezria.
"Why did you ask if I know the Pokémon Professor?" Timothy asked. "Were you just wanting to tell me more about Galar itself?"
"Yes, that's exactly why," Ezria lied without skipping a beat.
"I see," Timothy said. "And did I clear up the confusion concerning why Gwen wasn't in the battle against Team Rocket?"
Ezria winced at Timothy's question and looked away from him. Timothy and Eletchu's hearts sank, worried that Ezria realized he might have asked the question to ensure the mission wasn't compromised. Ezria racked her brain to think of what to say.
"His explanation matches Gwen's story, and he says he never heard of the professor, so they must be telling the truth," she thought. "But will Uncle Rose and Aunt Oleana let the matter go? Gwen might have already told Timothy about the cause, and they might have devised a plan of what to say if we found out the truth. She might have already misguided Timothy to the point that he is completely against Uncle Rose, and I'm too late to stop her. All my hopes and dreams to see a perfect Galar with the perfect man might be ruined before we even met."
Ezria felt a sharp pain in her heartbeat at the idea of losing Timothy. She imagined the chairman making her accept that she and Timothy could never be. That she had no choice but to sacrifice her desires for the cause. She never thought she would hesitate to do anything for the sake of Rose's vision for Galar, but for one brief moment, she considered turning her back on her employer this one time out of greed.
Ezria shook her head and forced the thought in the back of her mind. She tightened her hold on Timothy's arm with both arms as though her life depended on it.
"No, Timothy wouldn't do that," she thought. "Even if Gwen revealed her feelings on the matter, Timothy would have instantly decided to see things Uncle Rose's way. It's too black and white for someone as noble as Timothy not to see that Eternatus is the key. I will convince Uncle Rose and Aunt Oleana that everything is alright, and I will keep a sharp eye on that nosy twit to ensure it stays that way. And when Timothy and I finish the Gym Challenge, and I show him Eternatus, he will vow to serve Uncle Rose, and then I will tell him my feelings. No matter what happens, the title of Galar Champion, the role in protecting the region, and Timothy's heart will all be mine."
With her mind made up, she looked up at Timothy and gave him a warm smile.
"Sorry, my mind was somewhere else for a moment," she said. "Yes, that makes perfect sense."
Timothy and Eletchu eased up and mentally thanked heaven that Ezria bought the story.
"I'm glad to hear it," Timothy said. "Sorry that you were so confused."
"Ah, you're so sweet, Timothy," Ezria said with a bright smile. "Don't worry about it. If anything, I feel silly for letting the confusion get to my head like it did."
"It happens," Timothy said, smiling through his mask.
Ezria's smile grew as she stared at Timothy's sunglasses, imagining his green eyes staring at her rose-red eyes. After a moment, she cleared her throat and said, "Are you feeling peckish? Cause I feel like grabbing an early lunch."
"I could eat," Timothy said. "How about you, Electchu?"
"Raichu," Eletchu replied with a nod.
"Great. I know a diner on the other side of town with the best-frozen yogurt you can have after a good meal," Ezria said.
"Then lead the way," Timothy said.
Without another word, Ezria pulled Timothy's arm with both arms, leading him down the street with Eletchu following. Ezria quietly sighed in bliss, believing everything was alright with the world, even if she eventually needed to report to the chairman. But as Ezria held on to Timothy's arm gleefully, Timothy looked up at the sky with a smile, excited to let Gwen know everything was okay.