Track 37 - Lemon


A violent explosion shook the top of Mount Hokulani and the inside of the Hokulani Observatory. From the black smoke emerged a round and massive Pokémon.

"You're Water-type Pokémon may have surprised me by taking out all of those Charjabug, but he stands no chance against the power of my Totem Togedemaru!" Sophocles, the trial captain screeched into a microphone. He stayed hidden behind tinted glass, and his voice was modulated, making him the most intimidating of all the trial captains that Charlotte had come across so far.

Charlotte examined the Togedemaru and then her Greninja. Sophocles was correct. Even if her Greninja wasn't worn down from the battles with the dozen or so Charjabug, taking on a massive disadvantage was foolish. She had stuck to her Greninja and Vivillon for most of the trials, as she didn't want to show off too much of her team to Leilani. Although they were friends, they were competitors first.

But then, she got an idea. It was risky, but she had been working with another Pokémon when she could get the time. She lifted her Poké Ball and withdrew Greninja before quickly finding another ball on her belt and then tossing it into the air. From the flash of light, the wild Turtonator known as Mosh emerged. He roared and slammed his gigantic tail into the ground, trying to intimidate the Togedemaru.

Leinani stood up straight at the sight of Mosh. She wasn't sure how training with the Turtonator was going, and she was interested. She knew that Charlotte was a good trainer, but did she manage to get the crazy Pokémon under control?

"Turtonator, use Dragon Pulse!" Charlotte commanded.

Turtonator waited a moment and then huffed. Leinani relaxed.

But then, Turtonator lifted his head and purple arcane energy began to form at the tip of his snout. He blasted it against the floor, causing a massive wave. However, the Totem Togedemaru was quick. He curled into a ball, and the spikes from his body stuck out. The wave of energy washed over him, but seemingly did nothing.

Togedemaru laughed as he uncurled. An orb of electricity formed around his body before he dashed forward in a zigzag motion. He crashed into Turtonator's stomach before immediately retreating and laughing along with Sophocles.

"Mosh, use Flamethrower!"

Mosh lifted his neck to start the attack, but he winced and held at his stomach, still feeling the effects of Togedemaru's signature strike.

Togedemaru chortled while he began to crouch. His body was taken over by a silvery glow before he rocketed forward, ready to bash his head into Turtonator once again.

Charlotte gasped and then looked at Turtonator in his weakened state. "Mosh, it's okay! You don't have to be tough right now! It's okay to feel the pain! Fall over!"

"Tur?"

"Keel over, yeah?" Charlotte said.

Turtonator held at his stomach and then fell over, leaving only his spiky shell to be a target. Togedemaru crashed into his hard shell and then bounced into the air. Once Turtonator realized the vulnerable position that Togedemaru was in, he grinned.

"That's right! Spiky Shield!" Charlotte ordered.

Turtonator let out a roar as the spikes on his back missiled into the air, exploding around and on Togedemaru. The Totem Pokémon panicked as the smoke took over his body.

"And now, Flamethrower!"

Turtonator turned around and blasted his flames upward. The flames engulfed Togedemaru, who let out a terrifying screech. When the flames stopped, Togedemaru crashed into the ground, his body limp.

Leinani couldn't believe it. Mosh not only listened to Charlotte, but he seemed to have trusted her. She was happy for her former Pokémon, but she couldn't help but feel like she failed herself in not trying harder to get the Pokémon's trust.

There was silence while Charlotte waited for Sophocles' next move. But then, the lights flashed on, and the one way window that hid the trial captain opened, revealing him for the first time. He was a teenager with a round body and short stature. He took off his microphone that kept his voice modulated and terrifying, and then walked out of his control room and onto the battlefield.

"You're much stronger than usual Island Challenge goers, Charlotte," he said with a slight shriek to his voice. "Had I known what I was getting into, I would have increased my effort by 151 percent. Nonetheless, a loss is a loss. Congratulations."

He reached out his hand, which held a small white box with a yellow Z-Crystal.

"This is your Electrinium-Z."

"Oh! Fantastic!" Charlotte exclaimed while she took it and held it into the air. "This means that I can now challenge the Island Kahuna, yeah?"

"That is correct," Sophocles answered. "And if this battle is any indication, he should be no issue for you. Good luck, Charlotte. I'll be watching you at the Manalo Conference." He looked at Leinani. "And you, Ms. Koa. Why are you not taking on the Island Challenge?"

Leinani shrugged. "Hey, you're talking to someone who has themself five Alolan gym badges."

"Where's your sixth?" he asked with a sly grin.

"It's waiting for me!" Leinani snapped back. The two had known each other since Leinani was a baby, as her father worked at the Hokulani Observatory. Had a gym system never been put into place, then more than likely Sophocles would have been the one to train and mentor Leinani.

"Congrats, Charlotte! Since we're not too far away from my hometown, why don't we celebrate tonight at my favorite sushi restaurant?" Leinani offered.

"Sushi? Fantastic!" Charlotte exclaimed, never taking her eyes off of the Z-Crystal.

"I love sushi!" Sophocles stated.

"You're not invited."


The two took a bus down the mountain and back to Leinani's hometown of Malie City. They would be staying at Leinani's house for the night, so she'd get to see her family soon. Because of that, she opted out of inviting everyone to eat. She was afraid that her family would have too many questions for Charlotte. And more importantly, she was afraid that Charlotte would answer all of the questions.

The sushi place that Leinani enjoyed tried to be as authentic to the traditional Johto-style sushi shops from the East. They could order their food off a screen, and it'd come to them on what Leinani described as a rotating buffet. They could also freely grab from the buffet as long as it wasn't marked as someone else's order.

The restaurant played music from Johto and Kanto, which Leinani couldn't understand, but she still managed to vibe to it.

Leinani had grown up eating sushi with her family every Friday night. It was their time that they always set aside for each other. She was used to the food, but Charlotte seemed a bit put off by it.

"What's that?" Charlotte asked as Leinani pulled a small bowl from the buffet line.

Leinani opened the lid and took in the scent. "Boiled clams!"

"Oh no. I can't eat that. Is there anything easier to eat?" Charlotte asked while she held her stomach.

"Try this," Leinani said while pulling off a small plate with french fries. "I'm sure you'll like this."

"Fried potatoes? Unovan food is even worse," Charlotte silently complained while taking a single fry and putting it into her mouth.

"Just because it's fried doesn't mean it's from Unova," Leinani said with a laugh. She pulled a few more plates from the buffet, choosing dishes that were easier on the eyes for her traveling companion.

Charlotte was wary, but she tried everything, and once she got used to the texture of the raw fish, she was able to scarf most of it down with ease.

"So, Leinani. After you win your last gym badge, what will you do?" Charlotte asked with salmon in her mouth.

"I'll train for the Manalo Conference."

"And it is your goal to win the Manalo Conference?"

"Of course! Why would I enter if I wasn't aiming to win?"

"Once you win, what do you plan on doing?"

"I'll take on the Elite Four, and then the Champion, and then I'll be the champion. It's pretty simple."

"It does sound simple, yeah? Do you think you can do it?"

Leinani fed DJ a strip of raw fish and then cocked her head. "What are you getting at?"

"I have not seen you battle since we've started our travels together. I appreciate our time and you helping me, but you should definitely keep training," Charlotte answered. "Also, I know how difficult it can be to fight in a regional conference. It is not easy."

"I didn't say it'd be easy," Leinani said. "I just said it'd be simple."

"So, your goal is to be Champion of Alola? And then what? Your journey is over?"

Leinani sat back in her seat. "Well, that's not my only goal. I want to see more of the world, and I want to study hiphop and music. What about yourself? Same questions. Same order."

"When I'm done with the Island Challenge, I will train and battle with every other trainer that I can find. Then, I will enter the Manalo Conference, defeat you and anyone else I need to. Challenge the Elite Four and Champion, then go back home to Kalos." Charlotte said. "However, I know that it's not that simple. You see, I battled in the Lumiose Conference and made it to the Top 8. I believed that I was on a roll, as you say."

Leinani smiled and held up a sushiroll.

"Funny! Fantastic!" Charlotte exclaimed. "But, I lost. And, I lost to someone that I didn't even know. It wasn't dramatic or beautiful. It was only sad. My friends lost too. We went back home as failures."

"Ambrette Town?"

"It's a very liveable town!"

"That's a weird sentence," Leinani said. "Not everyone can win. Not everyone is me, ya know? Though, if I'm being honest, you're one of the strongest trainers that I've ever seen. Maybe some of my confidence has been tested a little bit while I've traveled with you."

"Am I intimidating?"

"Yes, and no. You're adorable," Leinani said with a grin. "But you're also so commanding when it comes to Pokémon battles. Just from watching you, I feel like I've learned so much. You're vulnerable, and you show your heart to your Pokémon, which allows them to trust you."

"I don't ever put any thought into it though."

"You went to Galar? What was that like?" Leinani hadn't seen any Galar Pokémon in person, and even though the two had trained together off and on, Charlotte still kept her other Pokémon hidden away.

"It was much more challenging than just taking on gyms and then going to a tournament. It felt as though everyone was out to get me. Every battle counted, and I simply did not make the cutoff to enter the conference there," she explained. "Only the most elite of trainers ever do. I felt like even more of a failure when I returned home from Galar."

"I see. So, you were forced to get that strong."

"Leinani, I cannot lose this year. I'm going to train harder than anyone else in Alola, and when I go back to Ambrette Town, I will go back as a winner."

Leinani grinned. "Well, I guess we'll see. You don't need to put too much pressure on yourself. It's important to be determined, but don't lose your head over it."

Charlotte picked up one of her pieces of sushi with her chopsticks and stared at it intensely. "Starting first thing tomorrow morning, let's train very hard! Who knows? Maybe I'll show you some of my other Pokémon!"

"That'd be fantastic!" Leinani said, attempting to imitate Charlotte's Kalosian accent. She seemingly didn't notice. "But! We're staying at my place tonight, which means comfy beds and a tasty breakfast. How about first thing after breakfast? Don't wanna get ahead of ourselves and work too hard!"

"You are funny, Leinani."


Author's Notes: So, I've been busy. In the past two years, I started a pretty intensive teaching job (and was recently promoted, which means I got busier), and I even made my debut in professional wrestling. I'm even in Japanese magazines and stuff, which is really cool. However, I REALLY miss writing. I love chasing my dreams as a professional wrestler, but anytime that I see any of my Pokémon games, collecting dust, in my living room, I always think about Leilani and Logan and Cyan. I can't promise that I'm back, but when I can, I'm gonna try to come back to the stories and work on them.

A/N2: I know that Shell Trap doesn't work like how I used it in this chapter, but I like the idea of the move being more of a natural instinct of Turtonator's rather than a move that needs to be commanded. Next chapter will be the final one with Charlotte for awhile, and it'll be the Fairy-type trial. Not quite sure what to do…

REVIEWS:

pokestets23 - "Charlotte battles very gently compared to Leilani. They balance each other out quite well." - I think Leinani is a more brash battler.

wisdom-jewel - "Pretty interesting. I like how you focus on Charlotte in this chapter. It is good to shift focus on another character once in a while. And loved how Charlotte doesn't like being in the boat or doesn't have her sea legs." - A character is easier to develop if you show their weak points. Charlotte's weak points are boats.

CrescentApple - "Leilani, I was going to comment, was acting a lot more nicer and patient with Charlotte. But you already explained why. So that's good. So Charlotte and Leilani have one more challenge. I'm curious to see how she'll do now against Kala. Charlotte likewise in her last Island Challenge." - I think Leinani will challenge Kala again in two chapters. We'll see how things pan out for her!