Chapter 9: Sister Wars At The Golden Metropolis!

Goldenrod City was a bona fide metropolis in every sense of the word. The whole city seemed to shine with golden light. It didn't help that since it was sunny out, the light would reflect off of glass windows, blinding the girls every now and again. People of all ages bustled about, running to and fro. Parents with kids, business people, police officers, young couples, school children, all kinds of people went about their day, going wherever they were going.

Skyscrapers lined most of the city. Seeing them from the ground made Julia feel like a baby ant, they were so tall. Most of them had rows of glass windows in neat, straight patterns, going across them both vertically and horizontally. Train tracks went horizontally across the center of the city. A large, black radio tower loomed over the entire city, boasting its grand height and large scale. As much as the girls wanted to go sightseeing, they needed to check into the Pokemon Center and get their pokemon healed.

Julia, on the other hand, was all too excited to call her parents and let them know how she was doing. The first thing she did upon entering the center was pick up the video phone and call her parents. Neji and Tokiko watched curiously as the static appeared on the screen. Perrine hid her bundle of hair underneath a large beige hat and put on a pair of sunglasses. Finally, the screen flickered before Kassia's face appeared.

"Hi, Mom!" Julia exclaimed.

A beaming smile appeared on Kassia's face. "Hi, Julia! It's been a while, hasn't it? How's your journey been going?"

"Hehe. It's been a little rough, but it's been fun, too!" She replied. "Hey! You know that egg Mr. Pokemon gave me to give to Professor Elm? Guess what? It hatched! Look!"

Julia picked Tokiko up with one hand, holding her close to the screen so Kassia could get a good look. Tokiko chirruped cutely and waved her little arms up and down to greet her. "Awww. Is that a togepi? It's adorable!"

"I know, right? She's a keeper!"

"Choki choki!" ("I'm a keeper!")

"I named her Tokiko!"

"Are you going to show Professor Elm? I think he'll be happy to see her."

"I will right after this. I wanted to show you first."

"Fuuur?" Neji peered over Julia's shoulder to look into the screen.

"Is that a furret? He's cute!"

"Yep! This is Neji! He used to be a sentret but he evolved when we were in Azalea Town. He's a sweetie pie," She stroke Neji's head gently, and the ferret pokemon basked in her affection. "Oh! By the way, would it be okay if you transferred the oddish I caught over to me?"

"Of course, dear. Not a problem," Kassia said. Papillon fluttered onto Kassia's head. "Freeee!"

"Hi, Papillon! Have you been a good girl?"

"Eeee freeee!" Kassia stroke Papillon's head gently. "Your butterfree is a doll. She helps me out with my cooking and keeps me company when I'm home alone. Anyway, which pokemon do you plan on sending over?"

Julia turned to Neji. "Hey, Neji. Want to hang out with Papillon and meet my parents and their friends?"

"Fur!" Neji nodded.

"I'll send Neji over, if that's okay. He's nice to hug and cuddle," She put Neji in his pokeball and placed it in a silver transporter. A white light consumed the pokeball, and it disappeared. Another one appeared, bringing with it a pokeball that didn't have a sticker on it. "Got her!"

"That's good dear," Papillon flew away, and as soon as she left, a frown turned Kassia's smile upside down. "By the way…"

"Hm?"

"Have you...run into Amara?"

Julia's smile faded, and she looked down at Tokiko. "No, I haven't. We just got to Goldenrod, so for all I know she could be anywhere."

"Same here. The police are searching everywhere, and your father's been asking her friends if they've seen her," Her shoulders slumped, and she let out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Julia. This is all my fault…"

"How so? You didn't do anything wrong."

"Choki!" Tokiko tried to butt into the conversation, but nobody heard her.

"It's just…" Kassia stammered. "I don't know...how all of this happened. First it was Chanel's death, then everything that happened with her other friends, then being put on the blacklist...I feel like I missed a chance to make things better, and now she's on the run because of me. She's my daughter! I should be helping her! I wish...I wish I could figure out why she's doing this."

Julia fell silent. She knew how her mother felt. The change in Amara's entire personality and demeanor felt like a switch was flicked on. Overnight, Amara had gone from cheerful and amiable to bitter, defiant, and rebellious. She remembered the days when Kassia would help Amara with her homework, or bake cookies for them whenever her friends would come over to play or hang out. Amara even stood up to bullies who were picking on Julia, and even played with her most of the time. But there were times when Amara just wasn't herself. Julia remembered seeing Amara in her room, screaming and crying for an entire day, not leaving her room even once. She had gone over to hug her, but she continued to cry and howl.

Perhaps Amara acting out wasn't just about Julia after all. "Is that your mom?" Perrine thankfully broke the silence by peering into the screen.

"Oh? Who's that, dear?"

"Oh! Mom, this is my friend Perrine. I met her in Union Cave. Perrine, this is my mom, Kassia Parisa," Julia introduced the two of them.

Kassia's beaming smile came right back, brighter than ever. "Oh my gosh! You made a new friend?! That's so wonderful, Julia! It's nice to meet you, Perrine!" The sadness in her voice was completely gone, like it had never been there.

"Same here," Perrine gave a simple wave.

"Julia?"

"Hm?"

"I know this sounds strange, but would it be okay if I talked to Perrine in private for a moment?" Kassia asked.

Talk about out of the blue. Kassia had only just met Perrine and already she wants to talk to her on the phone. Perrine removed her sunglasses so Kassia could get a better look at her. Julia figured Kassia wanted to talk to her about some things. As sudden as it was, she didn't see anything wrong with it. Plus, it'd give her more time to play with Tokiko, and a chance to put a sticker on her oddish's pokeball. "Sure, I guess," She handed the phone to Perrine.

With that, Julia couldn't hear anything from Kassia's side at all. She didn't mind, and played patty cake with Tokiko. After that, she pulled out a flower sticker, stuck it on the oddish's pokeball, and wrote Blossom on it. Blossom was the oddish's new nickname. A new friend...Julia held the pokeball close and nuzzled it with her cheek. "Come on out!" She opened the pokeball, and the little oddish came right out.

"Oddish?" Blossom looked around curiously at its new surroundings. Julia smiled and kneeled down to her level.

"Hi there! Would you like to be my friend?"

The plant pokemon smiled. "Odd!"

"Choki!" Tokiko waddled over to Blossom and greeted her with a warm hug. Blossom cooed contentedly, basking in the egg pokemon's unbridled affection. Soon, the two of them were playing and rolling on the floor.

"Jule? Your mom wants to talk to you again," Perrine called out.

"Oh! Thanks!" She left Blossom and Tokiko to play by themselves. Perrine smiled and walked over to them to make sure they didn't wander off.

Julia said goodbye to Kassia before signing off. But there was one more person she needed to talk to. She dialed another number. The screen flickered for a bit before materializing, and it showed Professor Elm. "Hello? Is that you, Julia?" He asked, adjusting his thick glasses, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him.

"Hi, Professor Elm!"

"Ah, it is you! How's your journey going?"

"Great! Hey, you know that egg you had your assistant give me? Guess what? It hatched!"

"Wah!" Professor Elm practically fell off of his chair. He climbed back on his seat and gave Julia a wide eyed expression of surprise. "It...it...it really hatched?!"

"Yep!" She turned to face Perrine, Blossom, and Tokiko. "Tokiko! Can you come here, please?" Tokiko waddled over to Julia without hesitation. The girl picked Tokiko up and held her to the screen for the bespectacled professor to see. "Here she is! She's a togepi, and I named her Tokiko! Say hi, Tokiko!"

"Choki choki kriiii!"

"Wow! So it's that pokemon!" Professor Elm exclaimed, scratching his hair to keep it together. "So it's true! Some pokemon are born from eggs!" He adjusted his glasses once more. "There's a lot of research to be done. Thanks so much, Julia! I was right to give the egg to you! You're helping unravel pokemon mysteries for us!"

Julia let out an embarrassed chuckle. "I don't think I'm doing all that much…" Tokiko didn't seem to mind. She just trotted back off to play with Perrine and Blossom. "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know this, so I'll let you go, okay? Bye!" With that, she hung up the phone.

The orange haired girl put her hat and sunglasses back on. The chances of someone finding her were too high, and she couldn't risk being found. "Want to go to the department store? There's lots of good stuff in there."

"Sure!"

The Goldenrod Department Store's selection was as big and varied as the building it lived in. The first floor contained mostly trainer essentials, such as potions, full heals, pokeballs, etc. Julia only bought a few potions and full heals in case anything happened. The second floor contained items more in the entertainment caliber, like books, board games, videos, video games, etc. Julia knew exactly what she wanted, and much to her surprise, a book caught her eye. It had a dark blue cover on it, with shining white stars on it. Six black silhouettes gazed upon them longingly.

"The Bond Between Shooting Stars!" She wasted no time grabbing it. "I finally found it!" It was only eight dollars, so she was easily able to pay for it. Whether it would fit in her bag was another story entirely. Something caught Perrine's eye as well, but it wasn't a book, video, or any merchandise.

A missing person's poster latched onto the blue walls. It had a picture of Perrine on it. Have You Seen This Girl? The poster read in big, bold, black letters. It had most of her personal details on it: her full name, Perrine Innocenti, wavy orange hair, blue eyes, wearing a maroon vest, a white blouse, a long brown skirt, white stockings, and brown shoes. Eleven years old, height 4'11, weight 76 pounds. Phone numbers lined the bottom of the poster, along with a reward of a whopping one million dollars to whoever finds her.

Those numbers were all too familiar to her. They were her parents' house and cell phone numbers. With a grunt, she turned away from the poster. She caught Julia buying some more stickers and some accessories for her pokemon. Perrine smiled. How could Julia be so absorbed in everything she did and not care about the world around her? She wished she could be that oblivious when she wanted to. Oh well. This was time to have fun, so she figured she might as well make the best of it.

"Look, Perrine!" Julia showed her faithful friend some cute, sparkly accessories. "I found some cute accessories my pokemon can wear! I'm definitely putting this flower barrette on Blossom, this light blue bubble ribbon on Aqua, and I think this pink hat would look absolutely adorable on Tokiko!"

The third floor was mostly clothes. The girls figured they could use some new clothes, but nothing too fancy. Pokemon journeys often resulted in people getting dirty. But it didn't hurt to try something nice on. Julia wasn't one for fashion, as she just bought whatever felt comfy and gave her body some breathing room. Perrine was more into pretty dresses, but nothing too flashy or proper. At one point, Perrine came out of the fitting room wearing a pale green dress that went just above her ankles, with short, white lacey sleeves. "Wow! You're really pretty!" Julia exclaimed.

"Thanks," Perrine pushed some hair behind her ear. "My mom says I look great in green."

Unfortunately, as much as Perrine wanted to, she didn't buy it. This was a pokemon journey, not a party for noble aristocrats, she reasoned. "Can I ask you a weird question, Julia?"

"Sure. What is it?" Julia gently placed a red flower barrette on Blossom's weed. Blossom smiled the whole time Julia put it on her weed, kicking her tiny legs up and down.

"Sorry if this sounds rude, but I've never seen you wear a dress or a skirt," Perrine said. "Why is that?"

"I hate dresses and skirts," Julia answered matter-of-factly.

"How come?"

"No real reason. I just don't," Blossom nuzzled Julia's arm happily, thanking her for putting the barrette on. "I like looking at pretty ones, yes, but that's it. Skirts and dresses make me feel...exposed. Pants and shorts are the way to go for me. Besides, what if creepy perverts see my underwear and make fun of me about it for the rest of my life?!" Her hands flew to her cheeks as she imagined the awful scenarios that could play out. Boys laughing at her, pointing at her, calling her names related to her underwear… "I don't want that happening to meeeeeeee!" She cried.

Perrine facepalmed. This was the first time she had ever met someone like Julia. Still, everyone had things they liked and didn't like, and Julia was no different. "It's okay. I feel the same way about high heels."

Julia's hands descended back to her sides. "You hate high heels, too?"

"Yeah! I can't walk in them for the life of me!" Perrine exclaimed. "But my dad did make me take classes on how to walk in them."

All she got in response was a quizzical look from Julia. "There are classes on wearing high heels?"

"Yep. My dad even made me take what they call etiquette classes. Basically I have to learn how to eat, drink, walk, dress, and talk like a rich lady."

"Those exist?!" Julia had no idea there were such things as etiquette classes. Life as a rich girl didn't sound easy at all.

"Yes they do."

The girls decided they had enough of the department store for today, so they went down the escalators and left. However, they did stop to buy some food for both themselves and their pokemon in case they got hungry, such as bread rolls. Outside was as lively and bustling as ever. Perrine kept her sunglasses and hat on, hoping nobody she knew would see her.

"Quil…"

A high pitched voice from below caught their attention. Julia looked to her left to find a small pokemon wandering about. A light yellow ant eater-esque pokemon about Florian's size walked around on its large legs, with its stubby arms carrying its weight. It's back was a navy blue color, with orange spots on its back. Wrapped around its neck was a red choker with an orange, flame shaped jewel dangling from it. "Quil!"

"Awww! A cyndaquil!" Julia exclaimed. Perrine pulled out her PokeDex to examine it.

"Cyndaquil, the fire mouse pokemon. It's a timid creature that often curls up into a ball. When threatened, it flares up the flames on its back to scare off enemies. When it's angry, it can produce powerful flames, but when it's tired, it has trouble producing fire and suffers from incomplete combustion."

"Quil?" The cyndaquil looked up to find Julia kneeling down to its level.

"Hello there. Are you lost, little one?" Julia asked in a low, soft voice so as to not frighten it. The cyndaquil looked at her with a quizzical expression at first before sniffing her with its long nose.

"Quil…"

"Oh, so you wandered away from your trainer and got lost," Julia said. Perrine loomed over Julia's back to get a closer look. "Don't worry! We can help you find your trainer."

"Quil? Cynda!" The cyndaquil's voice was quite high pitched. It cheered once but it didn't jump.

"So what's your trainer like?"

"Quil cyndaquil...quil quil…"

"So his name's Caiseal Brownstone, has yellow hair and is wearing a green shirt and beige pants?" The cyndaquil walked into Julia's arms, giving her permission to pick it up. Warm to the touch, Julia basked in the fire pokemon's soft fur. The fire mouse nuzzled its nose against Julia's chin, briefly tickling it, forcing a giggle out of her. "We'll find him for you!"

"Cyndaquil!" The little fire mouse squeaked with a smile. Perrine loomed over to stroke its nose and said, "I figured it'd be lost. You don't normally see cyndaquil out in the wild, and it has a choker on its neck."

"This cyndaquil's a boy," Julia clarified.

"Well, how about we take him to the Pokemon Center down the street?" Perrine suggested. "They're pretty good about helping trainers reunite with their pokemon."

"Good idea."

Goldenrod City was huge. Gigantic, even. It could be very easy for a trainer and a pokemon to be lost here if they were separated. Perrine made a good point. Even though the cyndaquil gave them a good description of his trainer and a name, they couldn't just wander around the city. It would take far too long. It didn't help that people and pokemon were bustling to and fro, so nobody would really notice a lone cyndaquil on the streets. The Pokemon Center was the only option.

It didn't help that the Pokemon Center was about twenty minutes away on foot. The girls knew they had to deal with it or else the cyndaquil and its trainer wouldn't get reunited. The sun beat down on the city, and Julia put her hand over her eyes to block it out, not that it did very much. Her legs began to hurt from all the walking. Finally, the Pokemon Center was within their vicinity. However, they didn't even get to go inside.

"Apollo!" The hysterical voice of a young boy pulled them out of their minds. The cyndaquil in Julia's arms perked up upon hearing the voice.

"Quiiiiil!" It let out a shrill cry. Julia wished she could cover her ears, but she was too afraid to let go of the cyndaquil. All she could do was squeeze her eyes shut and deal with it. Thankfully, the cyndaquil leaped out of Julia's arms.

"Apollo! You're okay!" The cyndaquil ran right up to a young boy of about the same age as the girls. He had a thick head of bushy, curly dark blonde hair the color of gold, just like the city. The worry in his blue eyes completely vanished once Apollo hopped into his arms. He was wearing a light green shirt over a long sleeved white one, beige khaki pants, and solid grey shoes. Apollo nuzzled the boy's apricot colored cheek with a cry, and the boy laughed happily.

'So that's his trainer, huh…' Julia thought to herself. Was this Caiseal Brownstone? Apollo was happy to see him, and he responded to his nickname, so it had to be him. Her heart grew warm upon seeing the happy reunion. However, the happiness was short lived when she could feel the blonde haired boy glaring at her.

"I can't believe you!" He suddenly shouted.

"Huh?"

"You stole my cyndaquil!" He marched right up to Julia and peered right into her face. He was so close to her that their noses almost touched.

Stole his cyndaquil? Julia found herself flabbergasted. Where in the world did he get that idea? She found the fear in her heart morphing right into anger. "No, we didn't!" She shouted loud enough to make him back off. "We found him in front of the department store! We were just trying to give him back to you!"

"Cynda cyndaquil!" Apollo squeaked as if to convince his trainer that Julia was telling the truth. The boy looked at the two girls with a surprised expression, which soon softened into a remorseful one.

"Oh. I see. I'm sorry," The boy replied in a lower, softer voice. "I was a little on edge, that's all. Team Rocket's been lurking around."

"We get it," Perrine said. "So this is your cyndaquil, right?"

The blonde boy nodded. "Yep. His name's Apollo. You're pokemon trainers, right?"

Perrine nodded. "I'm Perrine, and that's Julia," Julia waved at him shyly from behind her friend.

"I'm Caiseal," (Pronounced Cash'l) The boy replied. "Hey! Do you want to battle with me? I'm itching to get some training in before I battle the gym leader here."

How could Perrine refuse that offer. She gave Caiseal a look full of determination. "I accept your challenge. Don't think you'll win, buddy."

Before they knew it, they were at the Pokemon Center. Behind it, to be more precise. A sandy battlefield stretched about fifty feet long, with Caiseal on one side, and Perrine on the other. Julia sat on a bench away from the battlefield, with all of her pokemon watching, Tokiko included. Caiseal was the first to pull out a pokeball. "I'll go first! Hey, Geo! Batter up!"

A light popped out of his pokeball, and out came a bumpy, brownish grey rock pokemon with large eyes, a mouth, and two muscular arms protruding from its sides. "Geodude!"

"A geodude…" Julia pulled out her PokeDex to check it out.

"Geodude, the rock pokemon. Geodude has incredibly high defensive power, making it virtually resistant to any physical attacks. They are often found on mountain roads with half of its body buried in the ground so it can observe mountain travelers. Proud of their sturdy bodies, they bash against each other in a contest to prove whose is harder."

"I don't even need to think about this one! Go, Florian!" Perrine threw a pokeball out, and Florian came bounding right out.

"Chiko!"

"Geo! Use Rock Throw!"

"Florian! Dodge and use Vine Whip!"

"Geoduuuude!" Rocks materialized from thin air, and Geo used his muscular arms to throw them at Florian. Since Florian was smaller and more agile, he was able to swiftly dodge the rocks. Once he saw an opening, he shot two vines from two of the dots around his neck right at Geo. He wrapped them around Geo's arms.

"Twirl'em and whirl'em!" Perrine shouted. Florian spun around twice before throwing Geo across the battle field.

"You can do it, Geo! Use Rock Polish!" Geo rubbed itself against the sand.

"Razor Leaf!"

"Chiiiiko!" Florian swung the leaf on his head twice before sending a barrage of sharp green leaves right at Geo.

"Tackle it!" Unfortunately, Geo managed to evade the attack. Having become more agile, Geo charged at Florian and rammed his body against him, sending Florian bouncing on the battlefield.

"Chiko!"

"Florian! You okay?" Perrine cried. The tiny leaf pokemon stood back on his feet, giving his worried trainer a nod. "Alright! Use Razor Leaf again!"

"Rock Throw!"

Both pokemon threw their attacks at each other. This time, the leaves not only managed to cut through the rocks, but leave some dents on Geo's body, sending him rolling on the dirt. "Chiko!" Florian cheered, finally landing a hit on that pesky sentient rock. Geodude managed to brush off the injury, floating right back in the air as soon as he was knocked away.

"We can do this, Geo! Use Tackle again!"

"Use Vine Whip to block it!"

As soon as Geo came close, Florian slapped the sentient rock across the face with his vines. Despite Geo putting his arms up to defend himself, the force of the vines was strong enough to send him rolling right toward Caiseal. He wasn't injured, but Caiseal could tell Geo was struggling to get back up. Caiseal kneeled down to Geo's level and put a hand up. "That's enough! You win!"

"Oh…" Perrine and Florian found themselves dumbfounded. Did Caiseal just finish their battle early? Caiseal put Geo back in his pokeball and walked over to Perrine. "You're a great battler, Perrine. You really got me there."

"Same to you," Perrine told him. "I think that's enough for now."

Caiseal turned to face Julia. "Hey! You wanna battle, too?"

"No thanks!" Julia called back. "I'll train a little later. I'm in no rush!"

"Well, I want to battle Whitney already," Caiseal mused to himself, kicking a stone into the sand.

Julia tilted her head to one side. "Whitney?"

"She's the Goldenrod gym leader," Perrine explained as Julia came over to them. "We don't have to battle her today. We can just watch Caiseal battle her and see what her battling style is like," She suggested. Julia couldn't help but notice that Caiseal was eyeing her. She couldn't tell if it was curiosity, contempt, or genuine interest.

"Sure. That's fine."

"Pichuuu!" Hikaru squeaked.

"Marill!"

"Coo coo!"

"Ledy…"

"Chokiko!"

"Odd odd!"

"See? Everyone's game," Julia said.

After that, they were out on the road. Julia's pokemon all stayed together so they wouldn't get lost. Hikaru sat on Julia's shoulder, and Tokiko in her arms. Tsubasa and Ladybug flew right behind her, whereas Aqua and Blossom just walked beside Perrine. Caiseal kept staring at the happy pokemon with an odd look, like he had never seen them outside before. But they weren't hurting anybody, so he decided not to make a big deal out of it.

"So...what's this Whitney person like?" Julia asked.

"I hear she became a gym leader just recently, like Bugsy," Perrine explained calmly. "She's only seventeen, but she's really strong. She's often called the Beautiful Dynamite."

Caiseal folded his arms behind his head. "I hear she's a massive crybaby, and a colossal ditz, too."

The gym came within their vicinity. It was shorter than all of the other buildings surrounding it, but it had a distinct glamor to it that the kids couldn't quite describe. It actually looked rather simple, with plain white walls, a sunny yellow roof, and some pink, yellow, purple, and orange flowers planted in front of it. "Well, here we are!" Perrine exclaimed. She pushed the heavy doors right open…

Only to come face to face with a pink haired girl and a cow pokemon falling right in front of them with a massive thud. The kids were quick to back away so they wouldn't get hurt. The woman in question had rosy pink hair tied in two spiky pigtails with yellow hair accessories, matching her eyes. She was wearing a short sleeved white shirt with red sleeves and yellow buttons, a red bracelet on her right wrist, blue shorts that went down to her knees, black socks with teal stripes on them that went up to her knees, and red and white shoes. The pokemon that fell next to her was a large, pink cow with a round body, and its head looked to be covered by a black hood, but it was actually its fur. Two small white horns protruded from its head, it had a round white belly with pink utters dangling from it, and it had black feet. Its thin tail was yellow, with a black ball right at the end of it.

"Stop! Please, stop!" A man's voice cried. "You already won!"

"Owww…" The woman grunted as pain shot through her arm.

"Are you okay?" Julia was quick to help the woman up, careful not to exacerbate any pain the woman might have.

"Sorta. Yeah...oww…" She put a hand on a fresh wound on her arm. It wasn't large, but blood trickled out of a scratch past her elbow. But she pushed some hair out of her face and helped her pokemon up. "Mil-Mil. Are you okay, sweetie?"

"Mil…" The big cow mooed, looking up at the woman with its tired blue eyes.

Caiseal pulled out his PokeDex this time. "Miltank, the milk cow pokemon. Miltank produces very nutritious milk, a perfect drink for reviving sick Pokémon. Miltank are very even tempered and prefer not to battle. It is said that kids who drink Miltank's milk grow up to become hearty, healthy adults. Miltank gives over five gallons of milk on a daily basis. Its sweet milk is enjoyed by children and grown-ups alike. People who can't drink milk turn it into yogurt and eat it instead."

"Alright! I won! Where's my Plain Badge?"

The voice made a shiver run down Julia's spine. She knew that voice anywhere. The one voice she was hoping to run into, yet at the same time not run into. "...Amara?"

There she was, standing before the pink haired woman with her usual scowl. Standing next to her was a tall crocodile pokemon. It looked like the totodile she stole, but at the same time, it didn't. It must have evolved. Amara didn't notice Julia, as she was too focused on staring the pink haired woman in the face, icy scowl included. Amara held her hand out with her palm open. "I beat you, Whitney. Give me that Plain Badge," She hissed condescendingly.

All Whitney did was wipe some sand off of her face before giving Amara a similarly stern, solemn expression. With that, she simply stated, "No."

Amara's ice blue eyes turned wide like saucers. She had a look on her face that made her look as though she got an F on an important school test. "No?! I freaking defeated you, Whitney! If a trainer defeats a gym leader, they HAVE to give them a badge!" She roared, stamping her feet on the floor like a bratty child.

Caiseal found himself speechless. He said that Whitney was a crybaby and a ditz, but she didn't cry even once. Whitney kept her stone faced look. "We gym leaders have a right to refuse to give badges to trainers who act and behave in a reprehensible manner, which you just did," That was when she raised her voice. Julia covered her ears, but she stayed to watch Whitney tear her sister a new one. "You basically confirmed to me that you are an incompetent pokemon trainer!"

"I-I-Incompetent?!"

"Yeah, I said it!" Whitney shouted, crossing her arms. "You waltz into my gym, assault me and my miltank without even so much as asking me for a battle, pummel me and my pokemon even AFTER you won, and not only that, verbally abused your poor bellsprout for losing to Mil-Mil!" There was no mercy nor sympathy in her eyes. She was going to lay it on her good, and she wasted no time doing so. "A good pokemon trainer never calls their pokemon worthless, nor do they treat them like war machines!"

If words could be knives that cut right through people's hearts, Whitney's words did just that to Amara. The brown haired girl was so shocked, she couldn't speak. "You do whatever the heck you want and won't hear any argument no matter what. You don't consider the feelings of the people or pokemon around you, and you throw a tantrum when nothing goes your way!"

"Whoa," That was all that came out of Julia's mouth, and it was in such a low voice that Amara didn't hear it.

Whitney stroke Mil-Mil's head gently, keeping her stern gaze on the flabbergasted Amara. "You have no right to be a pokemon trainer if you choose to behave that way, and I won't waste a Plain Badge on someone like you."

That was the last straw. Amara found herself seeing red. She kicked Whitney right in the stomach with a roundabout kick, sending her to the ground, falling right on top of Julia. A silver, square shaped badge fell out of Whitney's pocket. Amara wasted no time bending down to pick it up. Whitney struggled to grab it, but the pain in both her stomach and arm rendered her unable to move. Julia was aghast. How could Amara treat a gym leader like that? She balled her fists.

Amara was about to walk away when a hand coiled around her arm. She looked down to find an enraged Julia staring right up at her. "Put that badge down. Now."

"Aww! You again?!" Amara pried Julia's hand off of her arm. "You actually followed me all the way here?!"

"Yes! Yes I did, and you shouldn't treat her like that!" Julia shouted.

Perrine and Caiseal looked at each other with confused expressions. Something clicked in Perrine's mind. Julia told her that her sister was named Amara. Was this the same Amara? They talk as though they clearly know each other, so they just had to be sisters. Amara snapped back, "Mind your own business, you brat!"

"No! You stop hurting people and pokemon!"

"Ugh!" Amara groaned. "What's it gonna take for you to shut your hole?!" She sent the crocodile pokemon out against her.

Caiseal used his PokeDex again. "Croconaw, the big jaw pokemon, and the evolved form of Totodile. Once it bites down, it won't let go until it loses its fangs. If that happens, new fangs quickly grow into place. Because the tips of its fangs are forked back like barbed fishhooks, they become impossible to remove when the have sunk in."

Not only that, Amara threw two more pokeballs out. A bellsprout and a beedrill came flying right out, taking on battle stances. Julia shivered. Poison types. She backed away five steps before releasing all of her pokemon. At first, the creatures were confused as to why they were all out, but seeing Amara's pokemon made them go into battle stances. Hikaru stood before all of them with her tiny arms outstretched. "Pichuu!"

"I'm gonna win this time, and you're gonna stay the heck outta my business!" Amara sneered, her attitude unchanging.

Tsubasa made the first move, and slammed into bellsprout with a strong wing attack. Beedrill attempted a poison sting attack, but Hikaru electrocuted it with thundershock to protect Tsubasa. The pidgey and the pichu high fived each other. Croconaw charged at them with a growl, its large, sharp toothed maw ready for consumption. It didn't count on Blossom sucking out some of its energy with Mega Drain. Even Tokiko got in on the battle by throwing herself into Croconaw's chest, making him roll on the concrete. Ladybug let out a shrill cry as her body flashed in a bright white light, causing everyone, even Amara, to cover their eyes with their hands. Or in bellsprout and beedrill's cases, their leaves and stingers.

"Be careful!" Perrine shouted. Caiseal helped set Whitney down on a nearby bench before pulling out some gauze.

"Beedrill! Wipe them out!" Amara screeched. Beedrill buzzed right toward Julia with its stingers ready to penetrate her skin. Hikaru wasn't going to have any of this. The tiny mouse leaped on beedrill's body and used Thundershock on it once more. It wasn't enough to completely knock it out, and the beedrill threw Hikaru off of its body.

"Blossom! Use Stun Spore!" Julia cried, covering her face with her hands.

"Wash it away with Water Gun!" Amara screamed.

A sparkling yellow cloud billowed out of Blossom's leaves. It didn't get very far, as the croconaw washed her away with a water gun attack. Ladybug and Blossom both got caught in the watery geyser and found themselves swimming toward Julia. The two pokemon tried to get back up, but their bodies were too weak to go on. Julia recalled them back to their pokeballs. "Thanks, girls. Sorry you had to go through that."

"Why are you being so stupid, Croconaw?!" Amara screamed. "Beat them!"

"Hey! Don't talk to him like that!"

"I can talk to them however I durn please! Use Bite!"

"Tokiko! Extrasensoryyyyyy!"

Tokiko's eyes glowed in a purple light. Before croconaw could dig his teeth into whoever he came into contact with, his body suddenly went numb. A purple light surrounded him, and he was elevated a couple feet into the air. Before long, he was thrown against a tree. Tsubasa wasted no time flapping her wings up and down, creating a strong gust of wind that blew beedrill and bellsprout away...but not before bellsprout successfully knocked Aqua out with a single razor leaf attack. Julia was quick to recall Aqua into her pokeball.

Whitney pulled out her PokeGear and immediately called the police. "Hello? This is Whitney Blanche. Please help. A girl named Amara is attacking another kid, and she hurt me and my pokemon," She whispered in a low voice so no one could hear. Mil-Mil's ears perked up, hearing every word of the conversation.

"Three down, three to go…" Amara mused to herself.

"Amara! Please, stop this!" Julia screamed, her voice going up several octaves. Hikaru, Tokiko, and Tsubasa all stood before their trainer like knights protecting their beloved princess, glaring at Amara with eyes blazing with determination. Obstinance. Defiance. But Amara could see a strange kind of warmth in their upward glares.

Their eyes shined like stars.

Just like...hers…

"Amara! Hurry up, you silly Swanna!" A young girl's voice echoed in her mind. It wasn't Julia's. It had a lighter, more cheerful sound. A silhouette flashed through her mind before vanishing. A single tear trickled down Amara's cheek, dropping off of her chin.

"Chanel…"

"Huh?"

"Defeat them all!" Amara screamed at the top of her voice. A blast of water spiraled out of croconaw's mouth. Leaves shot out from bellsprout's arms, flying toward the three pokemon like frisbees. Glowing white needles shot out from beedrill's stingers.

A dust cloud exploded, covering the area. Everyone covered their eyes. Dust flew right past them. It took a few minutes for it to fade, but when the dust cloud dissipated, croconaw, bellsprout, and beedrill were panting, gasping for air. Tsubasa, Hikaru, and Tokiko were all laying on the ground, covered in scratches and bruises. "Hikaru! Tokiko! Tsubasa!" With a scream, she ran over to her fallen friends, cradling them all in her arms. Warm tears trickled out of her green eyes, falling onto her friends.

But she wasn't crying at her defeat. She had been defeated before, so she had gotten used to losing in battle. No, it was something else…

Amara stood over her sister. "You're pathetic."

"Alright! That's enough!" Perrine threw herself in between the two girls. "You're her sister! Why would you treat her like that, and how can you treat your pokemon like they're nothing but war machines?!" She shouted, her blue eyes blazing with anger. To think she thought her father was bad.

"Stay out of my business, prissy! I'm doing whatever I want, and you idiots should know your place!" Amara screamed back.

Julia stood up, giving her older sister a tearful yet enraged glare. "Tell me, Amara! Why are you doing this?! What did I ever do to you that was so bad?!"

CRACK! Amara's thin, spindly-fingered hand struck Julia across the face, leaving a stinging red mark. The slap wasn't strong enough to knock her down, but to the younger sister, it still hurt. Hikaru, Tokiko, and Tsubasa would have retaliated had they not been defeated. Perrine's hands flew to her mouth, her blue eyes huge with horror. Even Caiseal and Whitney were speechless. How could someone treat their sister like that?

"You'll never understand…" Amara hissed, her voice dripping with contempt. "Someone like you will never understand my pain!"

Sirens wailed in the distance. Ghostly red and blue lights flashed from a ways away. Amara pulled out a purple ball from her pocket and slammed it on the ground. A huge cloud of grey smoke consumed the entire area. Everyone kept coughing and holding their hands to their mouths in order to keep from inhaling it. Once the smoke dissipated, Julia looked around anxiously. Perrine, Caiseal, Whitney, and Mil-Mil were still here.

Amara, on the other hand, was completely gone, her pokemon included.

"Uuuuugh!" Amara slammed her fist onto a nearby tree with a growl. Some tree bark dug into her fist, but she barely felt it. Croconaw, bellsprout, and beedrill all cowered in fear at the sight of Amara's blatant anger. Amara didn't stop there, either. Using her thick boots, she kicked the tree three times, kicking off some more tree bark.

"I hate this! I hate it I hate it I hate it!" She screamed petulantly, falling to her knees.

"Bellsprout?" Reluctantly, the timid bellsprout tried to approach her. Its beady black eyes were filled to the brim with concern. When it tried to touch her arm, Amara glanced at it before slapping it across the face, knocking it to the floor.

"Get out of my face, you worthless piece of garbage!" Amara shouted. The hapless bellsprout ran over to croconaw and bawled in its chest. Croconaw sighed and stroke bellsprout's back with its paw. Beedrill simply buzzed.

Amara leaned against the tree she was abusing before sliding to the grass. She rummaged through her pocket and pulled out a crumpled picture. It had two girls on it, one of which was a younger version of herself, with her hair down and wearing thick glasses. Her teeth were quite large, and she was wearing a beige sweater, a purple skirt, white socks, and black and white sneakers. A totodile flashed the peace sign in the middle with a bright smile. Next to the totodile was another girl with pretty brown skin, curly raven black hair that stopped at her ears, held up by a baby blue headband with a bow on it. Said girl was wearing a short sleeved white shirt underneath a purple dress, black socks, and blue sneakers. The word BFFs was written on Amara's corner in pink marker.

Tears spilled onto the picture. Amara held it close as she sobbed. It was all she had of her.

"Chanel…"

Julia: Pichu (Female, Jolly Nature, Thundershock, Disarming Voice, Sweet Kiss, Thunder Wave), Marill (Female, Mild Nature, Bubble, Tail Whip, Water Gun), Pidgey (Female, Naughty Nature, Gust, Sand Attack, Tackle, Wing Attack), Ledyba (Female, Timid Nature, Comet Punch, Tackle, Flash, Safeguard), Oddish (Female, Docile Nature, Acid, Poison Powder, Stun Spore, and Mega Drain), and Togepi (Female, Hardy Nature, Extrasensory, Headbutt, Dazzling Gleam, and Sweet Kiss)

Pokemon At The Ranch: Butterfree (Female, Calm Nature, Confusion, Sleep Powder, Tackle, Stun Spore), and Furret (Male, Bashful Nature, Scratch, Defense Curl, Quick Attack, Fury Swipes).

Perrine: Vulpix (Female, Quiet Nature, Flamethrower, Confuse Ray, Faint Attack, and Extrasensory), Chikorita (Male, Gentle Nature, Razor Leaf, Tackle, Growl, Poison Powder), Jigglypuff (Female, Docile Nature, Sing, Doubleslap, Disarming Voice, Wake Up Slap), Hoothoot (Male, Sassy Nature, Confusion, Peck, Hypnosis, and Echoed Voice), Chirin (Male, Adamant Nature, Thundershock, Tackle, Cotton Spore, Charge), and Hoppip (Female, Relaxed Nature, Tackle, Fairy Wind, Bullet Seed, and Sleep Powder)

Pokemon At Professor Elm's Lab: Paras (Male, Quirky Nature, Scratch, Stun Spore, Leech Life, and Growth)

Caiseal: Cyndaquil (Male, Bold Nature, Ember, Quick Attack, Smokescreen, and Tackle), and Geodude (Male, Brave Nature, Rock Throw, Tackle, Rock Polish, and Defense Curl)

Amara: Croconaw (Male, Lonely Nature, Bite Water Gun, Scary Face, Ice Fang), Bellsprout (Male, Modest Nature, Vine Whip, Growth, Razor Leaf, Sleep Powder), and Beedrill (Male, Hasty Nature, Twineedle, Fury Attack, Poison Sting, and Tackle)