TEAM: Twigs (Thwackey) & Crumbs (Greedent), Spike (Drednaw) & Tilda (Gloom), Hook (Galarian Slowpoke) & Cress (Charjabug)

Flare's POV

Our plans to set up camp were going smoothly. We picked a nice open spot of the route near the daycare building that was a bit off by the main path. There was a little lake nearby, which Spike and Sev seemed happy with. We let the rest of our Pokémon out to frolic or help with setting up the cooking and camping stuff.

Hop already had his pot set up and had ingredients ready. "Gathering supplies is gonna be so much easier now that Heart's evolved. I've read about how Boltund are crazy fast!"

I chuckled at his enthusiasm, but still found myself meek at the thought. Yeah, not like I've gotten to see what that was like myself… As the thought passed, I thought about the Isle of Armor and remembered Hop's phone call. "Oh yeah, didn't you say you had something cool to show me?"

It seemed my mentioning got him to remember as well, causing him to drop his ingredients to fish something out of his bag.

"Ta-da! Look at these, mate!" He proudly took out what I recognized as Pokémon Eggs. They were bigger than I imagined.

I was just left wide eyed as he handed me one of the large purple things. "W-Where'd you get these? Did any of your Pokémon…"

He still wore his signature smile and motioned to the daycare building nearby. "Nah, mate. I just took a brief detour to help the old folks there with some errands. I got to adopt some Eggs for myself and even learned some things! They got some good reads in there, honest!"

I found his familiar enthusiasm contagious and couldn't help but chuckle. I should've figured he'd give one to me. I looked at the Egg in my hands. I don't even know what's inside this… I still can't believe there's a baby in here…

I still mostly expected Hop to have a gift or something prepared. It was just like him, of course. I came prepared, too. As I very carefully set the Egg aside, I got my bag out and started fishing. "You know, you've always been treating me to stuff. I've been meaning to repay you somehow."

I brought out the flowers I got from Turffield's florist, all wrapped in plastic. I started opening it, only to be greeted with a surprisingly pungent scent. It smelled… bitter.

I just sat there with widened eyes as I saw that the "flowers" I bought looked more like green buds. I started to regret asking Hook for advice on what to buy. My face wanted to scrunch up at the scent. Why are they smelly?!

And then Hop just accepted it, excitedly taking it off my hands. To my surprise, he was really happy about my gift. "Humulus flowers, I was just reading about these! I can use these to make some Pokémon medicine later! Aw, you shouldn't have, mate!"

"Er, no problem!" I was still a bit surprised that Hop actually liked it, so I just decided to take it in stride, albeit sheepishly.

With that exchange going surprisingly well, we went back to preparing food for everyone. It was nice to spend moments like these again.

Twigs' POV

I bloody swear this has to mean something…

While everyone was faffing about with their own thing by the campsite, I was wondering why the sight of that bridge felt very familiar. I could swear I've seen it before.

There I stood, peering over the edge to see what exactly seemed so familiar to me. I tried to get a good look at what was below, but I could barely make out what was in the bloody distance. I thought there was a building down there, but…

"What're you doing here, Twigs?"

I turned my back to see that familiar blue lizard coming my way. "Heya, Sev. Take a look at this, will you?"

The lad looked cautious. He was always a bit of a scaredy boy. "Are you sure it's okay to be that close to the edge, Twigs? It looks really high up."

I tried to reassure him. "You dinnae need to worry. I'll be sure to catch you if anything happens. Try taking a look down here, you've always had the better eyes."

"O-Okay…" He was starting to sound back like his scared self, so I kept close. Even as a fine Drizzile he was still wee compared to me.

"That's… that's Bridge Field, isn't it, Twigs?" I should've known. "And down there… that's the daycare building!"

The realization got me real giddy. I looked at the bridge, then at the nearby daycare building on this route. "I knew that familiar looking sight wasn't just coincidence!" Thinking about it got me pumped.

He looked at me, eyes still confused. "Does that mean… this bridge…"

I grinned knowingly. "The very same one!"

I recalled the days back when I was still a wee lass, down there in Bridge Field's daycare. Me and a few others would wonder what the giant bridge was like, and what it was like up there. Sev was a part of that group too, the wee Sobble. Us baby Pokémon weren't allowed to go to the other parts of the Wild Area, so all we could do was look up and wonder.

"Guess now we know why it was called Bridge Field. Still surprised to see another daycare here of all places." I looked down, as if by some miracle my vision could get clearer. "I wonder how the others are…"

I saw Sev crack a smile. "Maybe we'll see them again when we pass through there." His eyes widened again, this time in excitement. "I hope they still have our storybooks! I think I can read better now that I've evolved!"

"You and your books." I started poking fun. "I'd rather just listen than actually read. It'd be more exciting to see what's actually beyond this bridge."

Sev gave me a look. "Are you still illiterate?"

Silly boy. "I'm not ill, lad! Perfectly healthy, I dinnae know what you're thinking."

This got a good chuckle out of him, but for what, I wasn't sure. As long as he was happy.

"By the way, Twigs. Have you heard about the Egg? I figured that'd be something you'd be interested in." He looked back to the campsite. "You were always helping the caretakers back in the daycare, so…"

I didn't need to hear nothing more. "Sorry lad, I have to see this for myself!" If anyone here were to take care of something that valuable, it'd have to be me. Didn't take me another second to come running back.

I almost dropped dead when I saw that Flare just had a Pokémon Egg by her side, lying scarily close to a cooking pot. It was fortunate she wasn't planning anything bad with it and ended up entrusting me with it when I confronted her. Smart girl, even if I caught her at a busy time.

I held the purple Egg close, noticing how warm it was. Wouldn't be long until the little thing would enter this world, it felt like. It would be my first time trying to care for an Egg without help from any of the caretakers, but I knew I was up to snuff.

I quickly looked around the place to see what the rest of my team was doing. Sev was back in the pond with Spike, Hook was nearby doing… fishing?

I sighed. "Doesn't seem like we have any birds on our team…"

"B-Birds?!" I ended up waking Cress up, who was just napping by a berry tree nearby.

I tried to calm her down. "It's okay lass, there's no birds here who'll hurt you."

She looked up at me before letting out a sigh. "That's… good." She crawled off somewhere else, probably to find a better place to snooze it out.

I suddenly remembered how my old caretakers did it. I asked Flare for that Box Link device from her bag, and showed her that it could also double as those incubator things. Once she entrusted me with that, I was left to keep it safe.

Guess I'll have to be extra careful with you, eh? I looked at the purple thing inside the capsule and wondered what would hatch. Whatever it was, I'd do my best to protect it.

Something fell out of the tree I was just sitting by. I held the incubator close until I saw the brownish furry mound on the ground was wearing a white scarf.

I sighed, loosening up a bit, but still clutching the Egg. "Crumbs, lad, don't do that!"

He groggily got back to his feet, the klutz. "Golly, I didn't mean to scare you!" He saw the Egg. "Gosh, is that-"

I held it away from him. "I know what you're thinking! You can't eat this!"

Crumbs looked taken aback. Beady eyed unit. "Well gee, wasn't thinking that. I wouldn't just up and eat another Pokémon Egg! I know they need warmth and care to hatch and all that!"

I paused. "How'd you know that?"

He looked excited, the kind I'd see when he was telling me about himself. "Well, I don't do much around Route 1, but there was a nest I found once!"

And a nest would have eggs. The lad seemed happy to be telling a story about this. "Go on."

Crumbs nodded eagerly. "I think it happened during winter, where all the snow started! I was supposed to hide for the season, but I found a lone nest sitting on a high tree. Was easy to see since all the leaves were gone. Didn't seem like any mother was around, so I got worried. So I climbed up that tree and saw that there were eggs just alone, like I expected."

By then I was sitting down and listening to his story, still holding the Egg by my side. I was still intrigued, but I decided to tease him. "And you ate them."

Crumbs looked a tad riled up. Big furry bugger. "I'd never do that! I'm a caring critter, so when I saw those eggs out there in that dangerous weather, I wanted to help! I'd spent my days curled up there, hoping to keep those little things warm with my fur. It was tiring, but I packed a whole surplus of berries to keep my strength up. Even if it was cold, it was all worth it when I got to see those eggs hatch that spring…" He trailed off. I would've guessed he was remembering something fondly, but he seemed to freeze up.

I was worried for a second. "Did something happen?"

He snapped out of his state and gave me a meek smile. "The Rookidee chicks were fine. I fed them crushed up berry bits so they wouldn't starve, too. Just… their mommy came back and wasn't too happy about me being there."

"Cripe, I wouldn't want to get caught in a scuffle against a…" I paused, making sure to speak carefully just in case. "... a Flying type."

Crumbs was still rubbing his head, the cheeky bugger. "It… hurt… inside and out… but I still think it was worth it. Golly, seeing those eggs hatch was magical."

I understood what he was going on about. In the times I've helped around the daycare, I've seen plenty of Eggs hatch, and it never got old. "I'm sure I can trust you to help me watch this, then."

I decided to pass the Egg to Crumbs, and he looked surprised. "Golly, can I really help?"

I nodded. Not sure why I doubted him in the first place, anyway. I already knew he had a pure heart from the get go. "We can take care of this Egg together, aye?"

Crumbs nodded too, just more excited. He started hugging the capsule, pulling it close to him. "I'll make sure this Egg stays nice and warm and safe!"

I wanted to tell him that the incubator would fix any warmth problems, but I found his sentiment too nice to bother. That Crumbs. He was as fat and furry as his heart was big. I joined him in trying to hug the Egg. It was a bit awkward, trying to hug a cylinder, but it was nice.

Spike's POV

It was a fine day lounging around this fading afternoon. I had a nice lake to wade around in, getting used to being a big Drednaw now. There was that Sev kid, pretty chill fellow Water type to speak to. Hook was nearby, trying to pick fights with the local Arrokuda. Still a bit of a show off but he seemed to be in a better mood. Heart was off napping nearby, and so was Cress. I would've expected the Electric types to be the most lively ones here. Both our trainers were still busy preparing meals for us. I supposed I understood why it was taking so long, considering there was a whole lot of us to feed.

That just left me to this lake, waiting and wading as I watched the sun go down. It was bustling at our little campsite, but it was nice and tranquil, too.

However, there was a Gloom on my head.

"Come on, Spike! Can't you swim any faster?" I forgot at what point Tilda went from another clingy fan to a little kid who demanded my attention.

"I'm not exactly trying to swim fast here." The lake wasn't exactly anything to race around in. It was a glorified puddle with fish. "Besides, I don't even know if you can swim in case you fall off."

I looked to Sev, who seemed to be sympathizing with me. "Was she… always like this?"

I cast him a knowing smile. "Unfortunately. Could be worse, at least." We may have both just evolved, but it didn't seem like much has changed. And in a way, I was okay with that.

I started thinking about how I had it better now than when I was a Chewtle. Route 2 was lively when I was around, what with the local wild Pokémon treating me like a big deal. Heart was one of my only friends, but she didn't like being around the crowds of wild Pokémon and ended up moving. I understood her sentiment. I liked my peace and quiet as well, and it was difficult whenever I'd just be flocked by so-called fans. I would've rather my heritage didn't endow me with this 'sociable' trait. I've dealt with enough snobby Nickit for one lifetime.

I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I put myself out there to be caught by a trainer. I supposed a change of pace was what I was looking for. Lucky thing I encountered Flare at an hour where no wild Pokémon were around to bodyblock the incoming Pokéballs. And after getting caught, I expected to either be met with more fake fans or to be ignored entirely. I was pleasantly surprised to have entered a nice area in between. It seemed like I was a fellow member of the team, a fellow Pokémon, a fellow friend. Not some deity of high regard.

Tilda was a bit of an interesting case. She may have come off as someone clingy, but I was smart enough to notice she's different from the folks at Route 2. When we actually talked about something serious like the sensation of dying, I could tell she wasn't trying to fake her concern. She can be a bit of a handful at times, and it can be tiring having her around so often, but at least she was amusing to have around. I knew she was genuine enough to not try to take advantage of my status. It was a nice change of pace to have someone who genuinely looked up to me this time, and still be a friend. I find it kind of admirable myself.

"I know you can swim faster than this! I think!" And she was still insisting.

I supposed it wouldn't be the end of the world to let her have her way just this once. "Aye aye, captain."

"Yaaaaay!"

Flare's POV

Whew… now to let it simmer for a bit… Stirring the pot still felt hefty, but at least it wasn't as tough with Hop helping out. But I knew it'd be worth it. It was nice to see all our Pokémon out and about, actually getting along. I felt warm inside at the sight.

Hop sat by me as I was watching. "I'm guessing being a Pokémon trainer's just as good as you were hoping it'd be."

I smiled. "Guessed right." This wasn't the first time we cooked curry together like this. When we visited each other's houses back in Postwick we tried making all sorts of meals.

And here we were, still doing our thing after all these years. Except this time we were far from home, and we've actually got teams of Pokémon with us. All thanks to this Gym challenge we've embarked on.

We were supposed to be rivals, competing against each other like those matches I've seen on TV, but I was glad we could still help each other out like this.

Hop was looking at me. "It's fun, ain't it mate? Look at us, just two trainers aiming for the top."

I chuckled. His competitive spirit was still there, of course. "I hope greatness has enough room for the two of us, then."

He wore his trademark grin. "I'll be seeing you there when the time comes! As your friend and rival, we oughta help each other get better and all that! Don't forget the part about having fun with it!"

I wholeheartedly agreed. Going about this whole thing in a less competitive way sounded better and more… well, fun.

I still found Hop's enthusiasm contagious and tried to match his energy. "I'll be meeting you at the top, then!"

"That's the spirit, mate! Don't think I'll be slacking just because I'm your friend! I still gotta do my own thing and beat Lee!"

I smiled. I honestly wouldn't have it any other way. I'm pretty sure that left us to both look up at the stars. I didn't know what was going on in Hop's head, but I was wondering what being a top level trainer would like. The apex. Well, maybe somewhere slightly lower. The peak might be too intimidating for me. What was that saying about landing on the stars?

Well, speaking of the stars, I couldn't help but notice that they weren't as bright as I remembered. Maybe the night was still too young. Evening was barely here, anyway. Still, they were shining just enough to the point where I could… smell them? "... wait, is something burning?"

My question snapped Hop out of his thoughts, leaving him panicked and flustered. "Oh no! The curry!" He frantically scrambled to his feet and ran to the cooking pot.

I couldn't help but chuckle at the display. Even after all these years, some things never change.