TEAM: Twigs (Thwackey) & Crumbs (Skwovet), Spike (Chewtle) & Tilda (Oddish), Hook (Galarian Slowpoke) & Cress (Charjabug)

Author's POV

The trainer couldn't bear the thought. She sat by the staircase just outside the dojo, head in her hands. Her Pokémon were all around to console her, but all she could think about were the two who weren't there at that moment.

Images flashed in her head. One second they were fine, and suddenly they weren't. Flare couldn't help but think about how she could've prevented what just happened. She knew this wasn't just another nightmare. She was ready to burst into tears. She had to acknowledge the possibility that-

A light tap on her shoulder brought her back to her senses. Flare suddenly remembered her team all around her, all deeply concerned, and then looked up at the source of the shoulder tap. Honey was looking down at her with a reassuring smile.

"They're okay."

Flare's fearful look immediately became a tearful smile. 'They're okay.' She looked to her team, who all seemed relieved as well. Without a second thought, she got up, wiped her tears, and made her way towards the dojo doors.

Right in the main area was Honey's Blissey alongside several other Chansey who just finished tending to Hook and Cress. The latter saw Flare coming in and crawled up to her like nothing happened.

"Su-"

Flare quickly but gently picked her up into a hug. "I'm just glad you're both okay." She set Cress down and looked to find Hook staring at her rather quizzically before shifting his gaze.

The Galarian Slowpoke found himself immediately surprised when Flare knelt down to embrace him. He was genuinely confused whether the gesture was one of sincerity until he felt her tears on his hide. For a moment, he felt an unfamiliar warmth well up inside him, and wondered what it possibly meant. But for that second, he let himself stop thinking. Unbeknownst to him, a genuine smile came across his face.

Mustard accompanied Flare back to the train station as she called a Flying Taxi to head back.

"I do apologize I wasn't able to help you find who you're looking for." He slowly nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. "It's not like lil' old me to just forget my old pupils like this."

Flare just meekly smiled at him. "Don't worry about it. At least I'll be able to focus on my Gym Challenge now."

Mustard went back to his carefree smile. He kept a hand on his hat to make sure it wouldn't blow away as the Flying Taxi came down. "Good luck, trainer!"

She thanked him as she got in the cab. The pilot waved to Mustard for a bit before telling his Corviknight to start flying. "Awright awright, goin' up!"

As the cab was being lifted, Flare looked out and saw Mustard still there, waving. He called something out. "And do say hi to Judith for me!"

Flare smiled at the thought for a second but ended up with a surprised stare. Not once did she ever mention her mother during her time on the island. She simply sighed and chalked it up to more stories her mother never told her.

Mustard simply stood, a carefree smile on his face as he watched the Flying Taxi fly away. "I do hope their journey goes well. I'm quite proud of both of them." He spoke aloud, his tone less light hearted, but he still had a gentle smile on his face. As he said this, he chanced a glance behind him. "You may come out now. I know you're hiding."

In response, a nearby bush rustled for a second before a small furry bear came out. The little Kubfu meekly made its way towards Mustard.

The dojo master smiled at it, noting how its eyes were focused on the Flying Taxi in the sky. "I couldn't help but notice you were watching her. I do feel bad about lying to Flare, hmm." He chuckled and started petting its head. "Did you perhaps see something in her as well?" Mustard paused. "Perhaps when the time is right…"

The little Kubfu heard this and looked up at Mustard. Its newfound smile was excited.

Flare's POV

"Mom…" I spoke through my phone. "... have you ever been to the Isle of Armor?"

"Oh! Believe it or not, I caught a few of my old team members there, darling!" Her tone seemed fond with remembrance. I can't believe she never told me about this. "Have you visited the Master Dojo, dear?"

"I have, actually." I gave myself a moment to look out the cab window. Spike and Tilda were busy sightseeing as we flew. Though, the island was long gone by now. "That's kinda the reason I'm calling. I didn't know you and Mustard knew each other."

"He was more acquainted with your father than me. Explained why he was a much stronger trainer. Leave it to a former Galar Champion to train up such strong trainers."

I just paused for a second. In just a few seconds she already dropped several bombshells I never heard of before. Former champion? Trained there with dad? I thought the Poison type Gym Leader being there was just a coincidence!

"I never knew any of this!" I cried out, suddenly finding myself louder than expected. I hesitated in embarrassment, realizing I startled Spike and Tilda in the process.

Even Mr. Pilot buzzed in through the intercom. "Oi, kiddo! Is everything awright over there?"

"Y-Yeah!" I called out to him. It was then that I heard my mom chuckling over the phone and started whispering to her. "How come you never told me any of this?"

She still sounded very amused. "I didn't think that stuff would be that interesting to you, dear." She chuckled again. "At least it's fun hearing what you think now."

I still just found myself stunned how I've never heard about any of this. Just a while ago I was talking to someone who could be on the same level as Leon!

"And you forgot to ask anyone for an autograph." Spike said, now looking up at me.

I blinked, surprised at how Spike was right but also how he knew how I was thinking. "Could you hear what was on the phone?"

He nodded. "Think you have it on speaker. Either that or I just have really good ears."

Tilda was hopping excitedly beside him. "I don't even know if I have ears!" She cheerfully declared.

I heard my mom chuckle to herself again. "You have amusing Pokémon, dear. In case you're wondering, all the others you've caught are still being taken care of here. The house hasn't been this lively in ages!" She went silent for a second, right as I heard something clatter from her end. "... Banana's new friends do give me more things to do, at least. Still! Feel free to keep them coming! I can always just contact Magnolia if things get out of hand."

I supposed that was reassuring to know. I found myself smiling again. "I'll keep that in mind, mom."

"By the way, I saw your battle against Milo earlier! You did amazing, dear! It was a shame something happened to the live broadcast…"

I knew exactly what she was talking about. I thought about it for a second and supposed it'd be safe to tell her. "Actually, there was a trainer, and…"

"So is that what happened, Flare? That explains… quite a bit, actually." She sounded convinced, at least. "It's probably not that big of a deal, hopefully. But if at any point things get too dangerous beyond the Gym Challenge, do call me. I can bring my old team back from their Poké Jobs if you need me to!"

I couldn't help but smile. It wasn't often my mom was that enthusiastic. Almost as if she was excited at the possibility. "I'm really hoping it doesn't come to that. I just wanna have fun with this Gym Challenge." I briefly looked out the window. "Oh! I've almost landed in Turffield. I gotta go now."

"That's alright, Flare. Call me soon, okay?"

"I will, mom." I hung up. "Okay, now we just need to head east from Turffield…"

Spike was looking at me with a little smile on his face. "She sounds like a nice lady. I wonder what Route 5 is like. That is where we're headed, right?"

"Ooh!" Tilda was by his side as usual. "Maybe I can do some more battling! I feel really close to evolving now!"

I just pat their little heads. "Sure, you guys. I'll let everyone else train as well. The next Gym is close by, anyways."

I also have to find Hop… and while I'm at it…

"And that's my catch for this route…" I put the ball with the Stufful into my bag, where my Box Link would send it home to mom. "Good job with that catch, Hook."

I looked to see him by the grass where he was just battling, catching his breath. He looked up at me with a raised eyebrow. "I simply did the same Yawn technique last time you asked me to help you catch something. It wasn't as if I got to knock out a tough opponent myself."

I simply knelt down a little and started patting his head. "Doesn't mean you haven't been helpful. Fighting captures like these are quick when you can put them to sleep so easily. Tilda does have Sleep Powder, but she only learned that recently." I didn't know where he liked being pet so I chanced seeing how his yellow head mark felt. It was all just skin. "I know you're a bit troublesome, but you've still been really helpful without doing a lot of the battling. You helped a ton with the Gym especially."

He didn't seem to react to my gesture, unamused as usual, until his expression seemed to shift for a bit. I thought he cracked a smile but he looked away before I could get a good look. "I do suppose you're right. Though I'd much rather you involve me in more matters where I can actually destroy—er—battle seriously. Was it really necessary for you to bring me to that florist?"

I wanted to keep him in safer scenarios because he was recently injured, but I didn't think he'd want me to bring that up. That and I'd rather give him the benefit of the doubt than continue to doubt him. He definitely seemed pleased for that split second smile. "Well, I've never bought flowers before. I just wanted your advice on what would be nice."

Hook paused for a second, but his perplexed eyebrow was still raised as he looked my way. "You have two other Grass types on your team. Why was I accompanying you?"

Shoot, he got me there… I just meekly smiled at him. "Well, Psychic types like you must be smart. I needed advice from someone with that kind of wisdom, is all." Not to mention I already bought the flowers you picked out. Hope it's the thought that counts…

At least Hook seemed humoured by my words. "You could perhaps call on my wisdom if the need comes." He stopped to catch his breath. "But in the meantime, might I rest in the ball for a while? I didn't quite like getting battered by that Stufful's Brutal Swing."

I smiled at him, glad. "Sure thing."

I've withdrawn Hook, got my catch for the route, I just needed to meet Hop. He did say he would be waiting for me here. Route 5 looked to be another straight path with grass here and there, so it shouldn't be too hard to find him. There were other trainers passing by, catching Pokémon, doing some battling, but I knew Hop stood out enough for me to pick him out.

It was then that I noticed a small building of some sort ahead. And standing right nearby was Hop. He seemed to notice me at the same time I noticed him.

He was quick to start waving at me. "Hey, Flare! Over here!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" I picked up the pace and made my way over to him. I noticed his backpack was sitting on the floor. "You said… you had something cool to show me, right?"

Hop proudly crossed his arms, his smile becoming confident. "I've thought about it, and figured I'd try battling you first before anything! Hope you're ready, mate!"

I just paused for a second. "You… want to battle? Right now?"

His stance loosened. "Come on, mate! I'm not pulling your leg here! I know we've both gotten stronger since Turffield! I wanna see how your fully decked out team stacks against mine!"

I chuckled. He really was enthusiastic about Pokémon battling, and it really can't be helped. "Just making sure." I reached into my bag to bring out a Pokéball. "Should be more good training for the Hulbury Gym, at least."

We decided to have our battle a bit ahead of the route, on the huge brick bridge connecting the two halves of Route 5. Hop didn't wanna cause a ruckus right in front of the daycare building.

"Promise me you aren't gonna hold back, Flare!" Hop wound up his arm and smacked it against the Pokéball in his hand. "We both have Gym Badges now! Let's give it all we got!"

I found confidence in his words as I clutched my Pokéball with resolve. "Agreed!"

Author's POV

"Heart!"

"Twigs!"

Both Pokémon were sent out at the same time, appearing to face each other down. The Yamper seemed much more resolved and battle ready than before. Twigs was the same as she readily took out her sticks, but she hesitated for a moment.

The Thwackey surveyed her surroundings and paused with intrigue. "Wait a bloody minute, I think I know this bridge…"

"We have to battle first, Twigs!" Flare called out.

Twigs snapped out of it and nodded at her trainer. "Aye!"

It wasn't long until she found herself getting headbutted by a Yamper's Tackle, causing her to reel back.

"Good job, Heart!" Hop called out.

Flare called out a command as well. "She's right in front of you, Twigs! Double Hit!"

The Thwackey obliged and lunged forward with her sticks. She swung them both in quick succession, her first strike hitting the ground and the second touching nothing but air. Twigs' target had somehow managed to sidestep both blows and was out of her sight.

"We got her right where we want her!" Hop called out in triumph. "Bite!"

Heart immediately pounced on Twigs' back, sinking her teeth into it and causing the Thwackey to cry out. Twigs desperately started reaching for the Yamper behind her as the little dog just hung on.

Flare had to quickly think of something. "Razor Leaf!"

The command reached Twigs' ears immediately, already giving her an idea of how to use it as if by pure intuition. She quickly spun around, conjuring a circle of leaf projectiles around her. The combined spinning motion alongside the twirling leaf projectiles threw Heart off balance and sent the Yamper into a Razor Leaf hit.

The impact left Heart tumbling towards Hop's side, knocked out.

Hop simply sighed. "Didn't expect you to be a few steps ahead, mate." He returned Heart into her Pokéball and took out another.

Flare called out to him in encouragement. "You still got us good, though!" She took a second to spray Twigs with a Super Potion.

Hop was quick to regain his smile and composure. "This pair might be at a disadvantage, but we still have more up our sleeve! Get 'em, Sev!"

The Drizzile was sent out into the field, his new biped status meant he assumed a fitting battle stance. Sev and Twigs both stared each other down for a moment.

"Oi, Sev!" Twigs cracked a smile. "You really want to do this? You've yet to best me, lad!"

Sev had a smile of confidence on his face as well, even if his Drizzile look meant he came off as more lax. "There's a first for everything, Twigs!" His voice matured to sound more confident as well. He started forming a water projectile in his hand. "You're not the only one with new tricks!"

At that point, both trainers watched as their Pokémon looked ready to pounce, silent but seemingly in sync with them. Neither had to call out a command for the two to start fighting.

Twigs was the first to run, sticks at the ready to attack the Drizzile in front of her. The Water type calmly stood there and let the Thwackey approach, knowingly waiting as if by Hop's plan. As Twigs got closer, Sev threw the orb of water in his hand, promptly missing and splashing the floor in front of him.

Twigs smirked as she continued running. "You must not be used to having hands if your aim is still that bad!"

Sev simply smirked as well, waiting for Twigs to get closer. Right as she did, the Thwackey found herself stumbling across the wet brick floor, losing her balance and tripping. Before Twigs could faceplant, Sev quickly twirled her way and Pounded her with the curled end of his tail, sending her reeling back.

Twigs stopped her momentum by plunging the end of a stick against the ground, making a bit of a screeching noise as she did so. "Oi, that's hardly fair! You picked to fight on the bridge just for this, didn't you?"

"I'll take any advantage I can get!" Sev prepared two more water balloons in his hands.

"Why I oughta…" Twigs quickly conjured up Razor Leaf projectiles and sent them flying at the Drizzile ahead.

Sev easily saw the attack coming and leapt out of the way, turning invisible as he did so.

Twigs stood on guard, waiting for any sign of movement or noise. All she could sense was silence.

Impatient, the Thwackey attempted the spinning Razor Leaf tactic, sending the projectiles all around her. Sev quickly revealed himself behind her, leaping into the air to easily dodge the leaves and hurl his water balloons. The attack bursts into ring-shaped Water Pulse pulse projectiles that catch Twigs by surprise and soak her.

She quickly tries to shake the water off her fur. "Can't I go one of these fights without getting wet?"

"Twigs!" Flare called out. "He's too agile on defense! So-"

Twigs nodded, immediately understanding. "Let's force him on offense, then!"

The Thwackey took a deep breath, knowing Sev won't strike until the next move. She wore a cocky smile.

"Is that all you've got?!" She extends a hand in a provoking gesture. "I've fought against other Water types who've put up more of a fight!"

The Taunt takes its effect on Sev, causing him to reveal himself on the other side of the bridge. Without a second thought, he rushes ahead.

This caught Hop off guard, changing his expression completely. "Wait, Sev!"

But it was too late, as the provoked Drizzile was rushing headfirst at the Thwackey. Even Twigs found herself surprised at how quick Sev reached her.

"Cripes, you're fast!" She tried holding up her sticks to block what was coming, only for Sev to blow them away with a point blank Water Pulse from his palms.

Sev didn't let up his attack, not even after disarming Twigs. The Thwackey found herself having to dodge repeated tail swings and watery palm strikes, until Sev reared his head back for one more attack. He let out a Round attack in the form of a yell.

Twigs was disoriented for a second, but she quickly composed herself. "I can do better than that!"

She quickly rubbed her hands together before retaliating with her own yelling attack, her Screech move much louder than what Sev did. The attack managed to disorient the Drizzile and stun him for a second.

"Good job, Twigs!" Flare called out. "There's our opening!"

Twigs quickly leapt to find her sticks and pounced once she found them. While Sev was still disoriented, Twigs struck him twice with her sticks before finishing him off with Razor Leaf.

Twigs let out a sigh, catching her breath and redoing her bun before making her way to help Sev up. "Up you go, lad. Hope I didn't hit you too hard." Her tone was soft.

Sev clutched his head as he got to his feet. "Urgh… did I… do better, at least?" He went back to sounding meek.

Twigs smiled kindly at him. "You're doing good, lad. If it weren't me, I bet you would've won easily."

Sev managed a smile. "Thanks. I'll definitely get you next time, though."

Twigs chuckled. "I'd like to see you try. Don't worry, I'll be cheering for ya… Sebastian."

Sev smirked, nudging her. "I'll be looking forward to that day, Tara."

The two had a good laugh with each other before they walked back to their trainers to be returned into their Pokéballs.

Flare's POV

Whew…

I looked at Twigs' Pokéball. It was a good thing our plan worked out, but I still found it curious how she figured what I was thinking when I haven't even told her. I didn't think too much about it and brought out Crumbs' Pokéball.

I looked to see Hop doing the same. He still had a smile on his face, which was good. I still don't know how I was winning, but I hoped he wouldn't be too distraught with how well everything was going for me. If anything, he seemed even more pumped up than before.

"Don't go calling this an easy win! There's more where that came from!" I couldn't help but chuckle at how dedicated he was to intense battle one liners. "Your turn, Knightley!" He lurched his arm forward and send out the Corvisquire, which circled for a bit before landing.

I had a feeling this was coming and knew it was a good idea to tag Twigs out. "Go, Crumbs!" I sent out my Skwovet, who seemed more ready to battle than usual.

"You know what to do, Knightley!" Hop called out.

Knightley looked just about ready to pounce with his fierce look. "Things shall turn out differently this time, I assure you."

I called out to Crumbs to try to give him a confidence boost. "Let's just try what we did last time!"

My Skwovet looked back and did a little salute. "By golly, I'll do ya proud!" He suddenly hesitated. "H-How high up is this bridge?"

I tried calling out to him, but he was too terrified to dodge the Corvisquire speeding at him. Knightley suddenly flew with a burst of speed that made him strike Crumbs with a flurry of flying tackles.

"Good Fury Attack, Knightley!" Hop called out.

By the time the Corvisquire let up, I wondered if my Skwovet was still okay. "Crumbs, are you hurt?"

He seemed dazed for a second, but looked back at me reassuringly, shaking it off. "He's fast, but… I'm good. Nothing a berry can't fix up." He fished through his tail and brought out a Sitrus Berry.

"Use Pluck, Knightley!"

I could only watch as the Corvisquire flew with another surprising burst of speed, snatching the Berry right out of Crumbs' poor paws.

Knightley didn't hesitate to fly in place and swallow the berry in front of him. "My gratitude for the snack. Do you perhaps have any more? I jest, of course."

Crumbs looked really shaken up. And… mad? "That was… that was my berry… There ain't no varmint who snags my stash and gets away with it!"

Knightley seemed shocked by his sudden change in tone, and I couldn't blame him. I could just watch in awe as Crumbs suddenly leapt into the air, crashing down onto Knightley with a Body Slam attack. The impact was so rough it kicked up a bit of dust, leaving it clear to show Knightley already knocked out.

Crumbs was on top of him, looking absolutely clueless. "Aw golly, did I do that? Shoot. Must've let all the power get to my head." He sounded really genuine about it. He even left a Sitrus Berry by Knightley's beak before hopping back to my side, looking innocent as always. "Hope I didn't ruffle up my scarf."

Meanwhile Knightley weakly got up and gladly took the Sitrus Berry before returning to Hop, who took out another Pokéball.

"We may be backed into a corner, but I got a good feeling about this! Let's go, Buddy!"

I watched as the Wooloo shared his enthusiasm with uncanny similarity. "Let's gooooooo!"

Crumbs looked up at me, a chipper grin on his face. "Lemme at 'em, Flare! I'm still raring to go, you know!"

"Alright, Crumbs." I decided to trust him and send him forward.

"Looks familiar, doesn't it?" Hop called out to me. "Defense Curl, Buddy!"

"We can do that too!" I called back. "Crumbs, use Stockpile!"

Right as Buddy's wool seemed to expand for a bit, Crumbs took out two berries, which I think he called Kee and Maranga. He stuffed them both into his mouth, making his cheeks appear bigger which somehow increased his defenses.

I called out a move. "Now, Body Slam!" All I had to do was think about telling Crumbs to leap, and he was already in the air.

"You're not the only one who learned how to jump!" Hop pumped his fist into the air as he called out a move. "Double Kick!"

I had to look up to see where they would both collide, suddenly having to shield my eyes with how it seemed like I was looking right up at the sun. Until I realized the sudden flash of light wasn't from the sun.

I watched in awe as Crumbs landed in front of me, his body noticeably much larger and his fur a browner colour.

My Greedent looked dazed for a second. "Golly, that Double Kick was flashier than I remember…" He suddenly looked down at himself. "Is it just me, or did my scarf get smaller?"

I couldn't help myself and ran up to hug him. "Crumbs, you've evolved!" He was so much fluffier now which made him much warmer to embrace. But he was also much heavier so I could barely lift him.

"Oh gosh, is that what that was?" After I pulled back, he had that same goofy smile on his face as he looked at himself. He seemed fixated on his super fluffy tail. "Well, would you look at that! I can fit so many more berries here now! I oughta get collecting right away!"

"Wait, Crumbs!" But he was already scampering away. That big furry goof was bounding away back to the route behind me. I couldn't help but chuckle at the amusing sight.

"I'm a Dubwoooooool!" I heard Buddy's voice and looked to see that Crumbs isn't the only one who's evolved. He started hopping around excitedly, definitely looking happy about his horns.

Hop looked really ecstatic too. "Guess all that training paid off! About time you evolved, Buddy!" He then looked over to me. "Hey, Flare! Are we still battling?"

"Well…" I sheepishly looked behind myself to see Crumbs clumsily trying to climb a berry tree.

"Hey, no worries, mate!" Hop wore his trademark smile and returned Buddy into his Pokéball. "I had to admit you did really well! That was still a fun battle! Too bad you won't be able to see me turn the tables on you and your team!"

I couldn't help but smile at his competitive spirit. I had to admit I felt like I could take his word for it. After all, I still remember how he seemed way more into being a trainer when we were starting out.

A startling voice was suddenly yelling from behind Hop. And the blaring of some sort of horn. "Oi, oi, lad! Think I saw the flash comin' from over 'ere!"

I immediately recognized the brutish tones and the two bustling hooligans heading our way. "Hop, look out!"

He turned around just too late before a blaring purple horn was shoved into his face, surprising him with its noise. "Argh!" He quickly shook it off and went to my side, giving a look to the Team Yell duo ahead of us. "What're you bunch doing here? Didn't we see you at the Buses Drop Inn?"

This time we were faced with two portly guys, both of which were blaring their obnoxiously loud horns. One of them was even carrying a boombox.

"We've been hearing word of some scary flashes poppin' up here and there! Can't let that happen willy nilly!"

"We saw a big bright light happening 'ere, which is dangerous! You can't be passin' this bridge as long as we're 'ere!"

I stood in disbelief. Not only did it seem like we'd have to deal with these grumpy old bridge trolls, but… "Scary… bright lights?"

I looked to Hop to see that he had already taken a Pokéball out. "We can't get to Hulbury unless we get our way with these punks."

I already caught on. Crumbs was still busy doing his own thing, so I decided to take out another Pokéball. "Let's do this, then." I had my own confident smile as I said that. It looked like there'd be another battle happening on this bridge.

It looked like those Team Yell guys knew what we were thinking. "Seems like these blokes here fancy themselves a little scrap!"

"Let's give 'em what they want, then!" This guy put down his boombox and started blasting this loud rock music.

One of them came up to me while the other went to deal with Hop. The guy in front of me sent out two Pokémon, a Zigzagoon and a Thievul. I took it as a sign I'd be in for another Double Battle and sent out Spike and Tilda. It was a bit intimidating knowing my two unevolved Pokémon would be fighting an evolved opponent, but I had faith in them.

At least Tilda seemed happy. "Yay! Now I get to fight with Spike! Quick, Flare! Make me do something cool!"

"That was… already the plan." I couldn't help but chuckle. It looked like the Zigzagoon and Thievul were already preparing their own attack, so I had to be quick. "Sweep them away with Acid!"

Poisonous blobs formed on Tilda's leaves, and she quickly jerked her head forward to throw the Acid projectiles through the air. At the same time, the Zigzagoon and Thievul both started growling, sending some dark waves of energy towards my Pokémon. Both attacks hit at the same time, Tilda's Acid landing on both enemies, while the Snarl wave knocked Tilda off her feet. Spike would've been hit by the Snarl as well, but I noticed he was quick to react and blocked it with his own Protect barrier.

I heard him let out a breath. "At least now I know my new move still works."

I was more focused on making sure Tilda was still okay. I made sure to catch her as she fell, which was much easier considering it was the second time she was tossed aside in battle that day. I slowly set her down on the ground as she came to.

"Bloomph…" She quickly shook the pain off before she regained her footing. "Whew… did I get them good?"

I looked ahead to see how her attack left the enemy Pokémon. The Zigzagoon was down, but the Thievul was still standing. That was, until Spike lunged ahead and knocked it away with a surprisingly forceful Headbutt. The way he swung his head horn-first knocked the Thievul out cold.

Spike made his way back to us. "Done, and done."

I smiled at him. "You did good, Spike. You too, Tilda."

Spike paused. "Let's not be too hasty now." As he said that, I heard the sound of something spraying. Potions.

I looked ahead to see the Zigzagoon and Thievul back on their feet as if nothing happened. The Team Yell grunt was standing right by them, still blowing his horn.

"We're hardier than that! Go, Snarl!"

I just stood there stunned as the battle continued. What do we have to do to get past these guys?

I heard Spike sigh as if this was nothing. "Oh, brother. Alright, get behind me."

"Okay!" Tilda just followed his word without hesitation. I had a feeling of what Spike was thinking about, so I just let him do their thing.

Spike stood firm, a glint of resolve in his eye. A bit amusing seeing how small Chewtle are but still cool nonetheless. Tilda just had this big excited smile on her face as she waited for something to happen.

As the dark Snarl wave was headed their way, Spike put up another Protect barrier, this time big enough to cover him and Tilda. His technique successfully blocked the attack, as I expected. What I didn't expect was the sudden glowing that happened immediately afterwards.

Again? So soon? I wasn't as surprised and more so excited. I waited with bated breath until the sudden evolution light going on in front of me started to fade so I could see what became of my Pokémon.

The first thing I took note of as soon as the light was gone was Spike's surprised look. It was rare to see him surprised, especially considering he had his eyes widened for a split second before he went back to his calmer look. "Wow. I'm just going to pretend like I knew that was gonna happen." His new big and rugged look as a Drednaw definitely fit his expression and tone more. He started to stretch his limbs and shake himself from head to tail. "About time. That's more like it."

And suddenly came Tilda, who was looking between me and Spike as she excitedly flailed her new arms. "Look at me, guys! I have hands now!" She didn't look like what I expected her to be as a Gloom. For starters, it seemed like she had too much energy to resign to that dopey close-eyed look and still had her curious red eyes. She still had the honey mouth, though. "I finally evolved! Felt sweet! Tastes sweet, too!"

That moment I really felt proud of my team. I couldn't help but kneel down to pull both of them into an embrace. With one arm I got Spike to bring his head close and with the other I got Tilda, who was still busy flailing her arms to hug me back. Of course, I withdrew shortly afterwards, remembering why they were here in the first place.

"Okay, you guys, we still have to finish this… battle?" I looked ahead and what I saw surprised me.

Both the Zigzagoon and the Thievul were cowering behind the Team Yell guy, all of them looking absolutely terrified. I looked to see that the Sableye that Hop was battling was also scared senseless as well. Even more surprising was seeing that Heart had evolved into the Boltund sitting by his side.

The other grunt scrambled for his boombox, stopping the rock music. "There it is again! The scary red flash!"

He mentioned the flashes again. I was confused, Spike was confused, Hop was confused. "Evolution… isn't red." I spoke up.

Hop continued speaking to them. "Mate, I think there's a misunderstanding. You oughta be pulling my leg if you think our Pokémon evolving is that dangerous flash stuff you're talking about. I mean, one of you has a Thievul!"

The two punks looked at each other, now puzzled, before looking at their Thievul, who was also puzzled.

"Oi. How'd you get your Thievul?"

"Rented 'im from one of the guys. Not allowed to use my real team out 'ere, y'know."

"Doesn't your team also have evolved blokes?"

"True, true…"

I could only watch as the two mohawked goons talked amongst each other. It was kinda goofy, actually. And then it went back to obnoxious when they suddenly started blaring her horns.

"Oi, you two! We admit it was a false alarm, but we still ain't letting you pass for now!"

"That's right! We have to stall you guys to make sure Marnie catches up!"

Marnie? It was at that moment I remembered what these guys were all about. It looked like Hop realized it too.

I decided to appeal to them knowing we were on the same page. "If it's for Marnie, I don't mind too much waiting here."

Hop looked my way and smiled. "Not a bad idea, mate. We won't be able to challenge the Hulbury Gym until tomorrow, anyway. You could say I've kept my eye on the schedules. Might be nice to set up camp in the meantime."

Our proposal had them both hesitate, as if in disbelief. "You'd… really do that for our Marnie?"

"Of course." I smiled sincerely. "She's our friend, after all."

Hop wore his trademark grin. "Got that right."

The two Team Yell guys hesitated again. "Marnie… has friends?" They started blaring their horns again, this time sounding like a moment of triumph. "Marnie has friends! Marnie has frieeeeends!" I couldn't help but smile at their little moment of celebration, awkward as it was.

It was then that Hop suddenly approached the two with a feisty look on his face. "Just one more thing! Don't go doing this whole jig with any of the other trainers, got it? Having a fanbase is nice and all, but sabotaging progress is too much!"

"Sounds good to us." The two of them were already walking away, looking really pleased with themselves. "Marnie has frieeeeends!" We could still hear their voices well after they were out of sight.

I watched as they disappeared past the bridge and let out a sigh of relief. At least all that was over. "So Hop, were actually planning on setting up camp or were you just bluffing?"

When he didn't answer, I looked behind me to see that he was back on the dirt path of the route, already taking his supplies out.

I heard Spike speak to me as I made my way back near the daycare building. "Looks like he's gotten another head start on you."

"I can see that…" I looked around the route some more. "I just need to find Crumbs first so I can gather everyone to help me out."

Then, as if on cue, a big doofy Greedent wearing a white scarf fell out of a nearby tree. He looked up at us as he was munching away on a berry. "What'd I miss?"