Janine's hand ached as her pencil traveled across the paper. The seven year old hadn't kept much track of how long she had been writing, sometimes forgetting about the clock behind her. She just knew it felt like forever. Enough for her to rub her eyes just before setting aside the page she had just filled out, and exchanging it for a blank sheet. A bulky textbook sat beside her on the desk, her free hand propping it open.

Face tightening in discomfort, the girl wiggled her writing hand in front of her, trying to will the cramps away. This would be her fifth page, but it was also her last page. Setting the pencil down on the blank sheet, she turned the page on the textbook, holding it open as she began to read.

Constantly, she found herself rereading paragraphs as certain statements flew over the young girl's head. "Basic Biology" was hardly basic, and the book refused to work with her by wording things clearly. At this point, she just wanted this whole session to be over, and start fresh for tomorrow. And if she had to read the word "anatomy" one more time…

Propping the book open with her free hand, her writing hand returned to the pencil, wrapping around the utensil as she got to work on the sheet. Pausing after a few words, she found herself rummaging through her brain, figuring out how to word something based on text that she wished was worded better.

It felt as though another year had gone by when she had finally filled the page up. Setting the pencil down, she briefly wondered if she needed more paper. Simplifying and condensing her thoughts had been difficult… had she covered everything?

But the assignment had been five pages. She had fulfilled that criteria, and ensured that no space remained on either sheet for a single additional letter. Wasted space would not be tolerated, so she left none.

Closing up her textbook, Janine, having sat leaning forward for a good while, allowed her back to press against her chair, leaning backwards, lowering her arms and shoulders, dangling her legs, and forfeiting all effort in her body as an exhale escaped her mouth, her eyes absentmindedly directed to the ceiling above.

She had all but forgotten what she was doing, not paying attention to how long she had been resting (likely five minutes) when a knock on the door jolted her out of her state.

"I'm coming in, Janine." her father's voice was final as the door opened.

Knowing what would be said to her otherwise, Janine re-straightened her posture as quickly as able, turning her head to greet the man walking in. Her arms extended over to the desk, hands folded together as they rested on the final sheet she had just finished. "Hello, father."

"How are you feeling?" he stopped beside her as his hand rested on her shoulder.

"...I'm tired." she answered after a moment of thinking. Opening her hands, she slid the last sheet of paper to where the prior four were being kept. "But I just finished."

She watched her father gather the papers in his hands and sort them. They had all been numbered, so he knew what order to put them in as his eyes scanned his daughter's work. Janine refolded her hands, keeping her straightened position in her seat while her eyes never left her father's face.

The man in question was completely silent, his expression unreadable with no signs of change as he read through each sheet of paper without a sound. The lack of any noise or movement prompted Janine to shift in her seat a bit.

Finally, he turned to her. "You did well with the information, but the handwriting on the last page is sloppy."

Her expression fell a bit. "...I'm sorry. It must have been my hand." she lifted her writing hand for him to see. "It… was sore."

Her father looked her over for a moment, before setting the sheets (the last page on top), back on the desk. He ripped a blank page from the notebook and set it down in front of her, beside the completed sheet. "Redo the last page more carefully. You'll need to learn to deal with sore hands in these situations once you're older. You can copy what you already wrote, dinner's downstairs once you're done."

Retaining her expression, Janine wrapped her fingers around the pencil once more as she stared down at the blank sheet. "Yes, father."

/

Ash and Janine shifted their bikes back into third gear, their momentum beginning to slow as they passed through Saffron City's gates. Eevee gripped the edges of Ash's basket as the normal type peered around the area passing by.

Recalling the gray rain clouds from the previous time he and his friends had entered the city, Ash felt a sense of satisfaction regarding the far better mood this time around. The morning sun was fully visible in the sky today, with a few white clouds elsewhere in the overhead sea of blue. The air was clean and comfortable, the weather in general far more inviting than it had been before.

It was impossible for the two trainers to not angle their heads upwards towards the Silph Co. Head Office, towering over everything else from its position in the very center of the city. They only looked for a moment, however, quickly returning their gazes to the road as they followed the signs to the Pokemon Center. The two of them had chosen to hold off on breakfast until they got there, their stomachs now leading the way.

The two parked in front of the Center, Eevee leaping out of the basket and onto Ash's shoulder as they returned the bikes to the Poke Balls.

Clipping the ball onto her belt, Janine lifted her wrist to check her watch. "We made good time, it's still pretty early."

/

When checking in, Ash had remembered to ask Nurse Joy if Sabrina was in the city this time (he had figured she would be by now, but had wanted to make sure), and was thankfully told that she was. Joy booked the two trainers a large room on the third floor, enough to accommodate for the collective total of twelve Pokemon on their teams, but they had gone to the cafeteria before heading to the room itself.

Taking a seat next to Janine while setting his tray on the table, Ash was pleased with the number of trainers present. It wasn't obnoxiously crowded, but there was a promising number, and he knew that this couldn't be all of them.

"It looks like both of us should be able to get a lot of battles in while we're here. " he said, adjusting himself while getting ready to dig into his french toast.

The surrounding conversations going on between the trainers around them blended in as Janine finished chewing on her apple. "Yeah, we thought so. This city is always active, I imagine the Center's outdoor battlefield is going to be occupied just about all day. Trainers were battling each other for as long as daylight remained the last time I was here. We'll have to find another place to train when we're not going against other trainers. The outskirts would work. Other trainers will probably be there too, but there's plenty of space to go around."

Ash figured as much. He hadn't done as much battling in the Centers themselves, but when they were busy (and as Janine had pointed out, Saffron's always would be), he knew the outdoor battlefield that each Center had effectively acted as a gathering amongst the trainers staying there. Battle after battle would take place throughout the day, with the other trainers often watching from the sidelines as they awaited their turn. He was excited to join in on that fun, but wanted to spend enough time preparing from Saffron's Gym first. Once he felt he and his team were ready for Sabrina, they would put their training into practice against the other trainers first, and then set their sights on the psychic specialist if they found good results.

Looking back, he hadn't really done something like this in his previous Gym challenges. He had certainly prepared, especially going out of his way to ensure his team were ready for the unorthodox battlefields at both Pewter and Cerulean, but retroactively, it likely would have been better if he had taken the extra step to assess their progress amongst other trainers in battle, rather than simply leaving the evaluation to himself. He could still do the latter, but nothing demonstrated progress and gains better than watching it unfold in a proper match. He'd have to make this new approach a routine, whenever possible. Thankfully, a busy city like Saffron would be the perfect place to start falling into the habit.

As they ate, he began replaying his plans for the city through his mind. Valiant was currently in the midst of learning Shadow Ball, under the guidance of Eevee. He had managed to get the move to materialize, and was close to using it in its full form, but was lacking in control and ease of use. He was still new to the move, and his psychic typing certainly wasn't helping in that regard. His prior knowledge of Shadow Sneak eased things a bit, but the different manner in which each move was formed and utilized was the primary barrier. It helped him summon the ghostly energy needed for the Shadow Ball, but it could only do so much to help him form it properly, or get used to it. That would be his main goal, which should simply come with practice. So far, his progress over the past two days hadn't signaled any severe roadblocks, so he just needed to continue as he was. Apart from that, he was also working on Moon Blast, which Ash imagined could be put on hold until Shadow Ball was done. Some time was also being set aside to learn Icy Wind from Tempest, and although that wasn't a priority, Ash was always going to ensure that some portion of the day was directed towards that.

With that thought in mind, he spared a glance at his team, eating with relative peace and mildly conversing with one another and Janine's Pokemon as he continued to comb through his thoughts.

Apart from training Valiant, Eevee was working on Focus Energy. Once Valiant was finished with Shadow Ball and ready to start prioritizing Moon Blast, and Nebula was finished with Air Slash, he would have the evolution Pokemon teach the Staravia Swift for additional ranged options. That should make for a decent end goal to have leading into challenging Sabrina. He wanted to try his luck with getting the Staravia to know Ominous Wind, but with some disappointment he figured that that would be best saved for later, despite how useful it would be at the Gym. Unlike Valiant, Nebula had no prior experience with Ghost Type moves, let alone had been born with one, so such a thing would likely take up too much time, even if she had Eevee and her usage of Shadow Ball to lead by example. Swift would still be beneficial to learn, and Ominous Wind, as much as he wanted her to learn it now, would at least be a good goal to have for the future.

Regarding new moves, Tempest was mostly focused on Surf, which Ash knew for a fact the Krabby wouldn't be ready to use practically in time for the Gym. Even when he did reach the point where it was usable in battle, it would still take a lot more practice yet to get the full benefits out of such a move. Apart from that highly long-term routine, Ash was mainly focused on having the river crab further hone the moves that he already knew. His Night Slash was certain to come in handy. His sparring sessions with Eevee would be a good way to do that, along with giving the normal type an opportunity to further put her Focus Energy into practice. The water type's impressive durability would provide her with further encouragement to get the strength enhancing move down during bouts.

Pikachu and Tyrunt would still be grouped together. Both were learning Play Rough, while Tyrunt also practiced Earth Power. As Ash had already predicted, Pikachu was outpacing the youngest member of the team in their training, providing the electric type with an opportunity to lead by example and guide the dinosaur through the hoops, also teaching him how to use Brick Break. For now, they would keep up their routine, and Tyrunt's progress would be tested eventually.

/

With full stomachs and work ethic to spare, the two trainers had taken their bikes out of the Center and to a far end of the city, with fairly open space and a mixture of grass and concrete. With other trainers occupying different parts of the area, the two were not able to split up as freely as they had been on the open road, although they quickly found it wasn't much of a problem.

After all, certain members of their respective teams were working on similar things.

"Keep yourself steady, Tempest." Ash's eyes briefly darted to the side, where Eevee was watching Valiant hold a Shadow Ball within his hands. The normal type remained by the psychic's side as the Kirlia struggled to steady the distorted orb. As quickly as he had averted his gaze, Ash's undivided attention was back on the river crab, who was currently hovering in place.

The water beneath the Krabby's feet was a few inches above the ground, wobbling shakily as Tempest's balance threatened to give out. Whether he was in more danger of losing his footing or of losing control of the water holding him up above the ground, Ash couldn't determine.

To the left of Tempest, Tentacruel and Skrelp were both in a similar situation, also balancing themselves on an erected pillar of water a few inches high. Tentacruel had managed to produce one slightly bigger to further accommodate for her greater size, and to Tempest's clear envy, appeared to be doing a better job of balancing herself on it. To the left of her, however, Skrelp very clearly had the least stable aquatic pillar to work with, and had already fallen off once, and failed to uphold Surf twice. The mock kelp nervously listened to her trainer's voice as Janine patiently guided her through the exercise. The poison specialist's voice was even and focused, sophisticated serenity radiating from her as she instructed her partners.

Though Tempest seemed somewhat relieved that he wasn't performing the weakest out of the three water types, it didn't stop the Krabby from growling in frustration as the water beneath him finally gave out, his form tumbling down into the grass, now soaked from the splashing remnants of the failed Surf.

Ash showed no signs of frustration as he approached his teammate and watched the Krabby pick himself up. He had already known that this was going to take a long time to get done correctly, but it didn't seem like Tempest had accepted that as fact, despite his repeated warnings to the river crab.

"I keep telling you the same things, Tempest." Ash knelt down beside the water type as Tentacruel's eyes briefly viewed the two of them from the side. Skrelp was too busy struggling to maintain balance, and Janine was solely focused on the mock kelp. "Learning this move is going to be a long process. You're not going to wake up one morning and suddenly get it right." his brow furrowed as he only received an irritated grumble for his efforts. "You have been listening to me, have you?!" The sharp edge in his tone seemed to get more of the water type's attention. Ash's eyes narrowed. "Is that it? You're trying to jump over the game you have to play? This move isn't like the others you've learned, as I keep on reminding you. No Pokemon that I've ever heard of was able to get it down in a week or two and be completely perfect with it afterwards. It's a training investment." Although he kept his gaze on the Krabby, he could see Tempest's own eyes traveling to the side. "Look at me."

Tempest's eyes moved back to him a little bit, but not by much.

"I said, look at me." Ash increased the edge in his voice, and finally, seemed to have regained Tempest's attention. The Krabby's eye contact still wasn't as good as previously, but he at least wasn't trying to ignore him anymore. "I know how much you love training. If you just kept putting the effort into this move that you do into others, you'll be just fine in the long term." Even as he spoke, a bit of understanding suddenly seeped into his face, as though he had accidentally solved a puzzle. "Is that it, then?" Tempest didn't respond, but didn't move either. He seemed to be waiting for Ash to continue. "You're always making progress whenever you practice a move. It probably encourages your love for training. Correct, Tempest?" a nod. He had figured as much.

Ash planted himself into a cross-legged sitting position, facial expression evening out as he kept his eyes locked on his partner. "But you have to understand that not all moves are going to be equal, Tempest. I think you already do, but most importantly, you have to accept it, which clearly you have not. When I tell you how much longer it's going to take to learn a move like Surf than it would for a move like Scald, that's not a challenge. That's a warning. I'm trying to let you know ahead of time so that you won't think that this is a failing on your part. You seem to be more focused on not letting this new move "beat" you than you are on adding it to your arsenal, or at least just as much."

A light grumble escaped the Krabby's throat, and Ash sighed.

"You need to go into this with the same dedicated mindset that you've always had, Tempest." the trainer pressed. "And you have to hang onto that in the long term. Yes, you're going to fall off the water, whether you like it or not." another grumble from the Krabby. "But," insistently, Ash, unfazed, didn't stop. "If you keep letting yourself get frustrated like this, and constantly ignore the fact that this is going to be a process, you're going to be falling off a lot more often than you need to be, and that's not going to change whether you like it or not either."

Tempest didn't respond in full, simply averting his gaze downward while shuffling his feet on the soaked grass.

"Do you have a rebuttal?" Ash kept pressing. After a few moments, he felt a flicker of satisfaction (although he tried not to relish in it) as the water type finally shook his head. Just barely, his lips curved up. "Good. Let's address something important, then." he nodded as his partner finally looked back up at him. "What's the problem: Maintaining your balance, or keeping the water up?" quickly, he added. "Or if it's both, which one do you think you're having more trouble with? We should address that side of the issue first."

Regaining his posture from before, Tempest began making gurgling noises as he gestured his pincers across the grass in a wavy motion, as though intimidating the flow of water. Ash raised a brow. "The water's the problem?" The Krabby nodded in affirmation. Ash gripped his chin, tapping the fingers of his other hand against his knee as the gears turned in his mind. "Alright… how about this? I'll hold onto you and try to keep you steady. Put your focus into maintaining control over the move for now, if that's where you think you need the most practice."

Tempest blinked for a moment, seeming like he was trying to process the request, before relenting with a nod. Standing back up, Ash positioned himself behind his partner, kneeling down while holding out his arms. "Alright… you can start now."

Quickly, Tempest summoned the water beneath his feet. It didn't take too long for the Surf to appear, lifting him above the ground by just a few inches and allowing the river crab to hover in place. Once the Krabby stopped rising, Ash placed his hands on Tempest's sides as his knees sank into the grass, the water type shifting awkwardly as his trainer gripped him.

Now that he was holding Tempest relatively still, Ash could notice the uneven stability in his partner's Surf attempt just a bit more clearly: even without Tempest wobbling in place, the short pillar of water was still sloshing in place, his partner unable to keep the liquid steady.

Control over the water, and retaining balance were both mechanisms that Tempest would need to become near perfect before either of them could even think about moving on to actually riding the water across the battlefield. Incorporating actual movement into the process was going to be more than enough of a hurdle as it is.

Ash remained in place for the next few minutes, feeling himself growing restless, and his knees somewhat sore. Nevertheless, he continued doing his best to stay still so as to not screw up Tempest's concentration.

Finally, the water gave out, and Ash felt a cold splash on his pants and shirt as Tempest began to fall through the collapsing pillar. The sudden downward movement caught the trainer off guard, and he failed to keep his grip on the Krabby to prevent him from falling.

Backing away from the soaked grass and returning to his sitting position, Ash winced at the discomfort in his pants, now soaked from the knees up. His shirt, while not as drenched, was still wet.

"Alright," he began again as the dissatisfied Krabby turned back to him. "I think you lasted longer this time. Did it feel any easier to you?" After a moment or two of consideration, Tempest nodded. Ash responded in kind. "Okay, perhaps we can keep doing this for now while I'm here. I still have to check on everyone else, but I can stay for a bit longer." even as he said it, the boy inwardly winced. To keep doing things this way would mean his clothes would become even wetter. They were already uncomfortable, and another splash or two would make it unbearable.

He tried to shove that thought aside, however. When it came to grit, tolerating wet clothes was the least of what was expected from successful trainers. He could already picture Misty calling him a helpless crybaby.

As he picked himself up, however, he suddenly noticed movement in his view. He had been so focused on Tempest that he hadn't realized that Tentacruel had dissipated her own pillar of water. The action had gotten Janine's attention, the poison specialist watching with a tilted head as the jellyfish approached Ash and Tempest. The river crab's eyes narrowed as the water/poison type stopped in front of him and his trainer.

With surprise, Ash blinked. "Tentacruel…?" Noticing the look on Tempest's face, he quickly redirected his attention. "Be nice, Tempest." he firmly reminded. Despite his grunt, the Krabby shifted his posture, and addressed the newcomer with a more neutral expression.

Tentacruel seemed unoffended, and Ash realized that she might've been expecting such a reaction from the crab. It's not like Tempest had kept his charming demeanor a secret from anyone in the extended group, and Ash himself had warned Janine ahead of time.

Gesturing her tentacles, the jellyfish looked between trainer and Krabby, rumbles escaping her throat as she spoke to them. Ash knew that Tempest could understand her, but he was at a loss. Thankfully, Janine was already approaching the water/poison type from behind, Skrelp (no longer practicing Surf) watching from her position as the purple haired girl placed a hand on Tentacruel.

"I see… are you offering to help them, Tentacruel?" Tempest shifted as the jellyfish nodded. "I was going to have her give a few hands-on tips to Skrelp, anyway, so this shouldn't be an issue." she looked at Ash. "If you two are okay with it, of course."

Blinking, Ash thought it over for a moment. Of the three, Tentacruel had been the one clearly ahead when it came to using Surf. Skrelp needed more help than Tempest did, but both Janine and Tentacruel seemed to be perfectly willing to include them in that, so they wouldn't be intruding on anything.

Realising he hadn't offered his friend a reply, Ash quickly snapped out of his thoughts and nodded gratefully. "Yeah, sure. If you're willing, I mean." Beneath him, he could hear Tempest beginning to protest. "Enough, Tempest." The boy's voice grew stern as he looked down at the Krabby, who quickly looked back up a thim. "I've already told you that you're going to need to learn to work with other Pokemon. Nebula and Golbat are practicing together just fine." he pointed off to the sky a little ways away, where the Staravia and the bat were circling one another, each taking turns firing off Air Slashes. "I expect the same from you." he continued as Tempest followed the movement of his finger to the sight of the flying duo. "You want to make progress, don't you? This is an order."

Although the frustration didn't completely leave Tempest's tone of voice, the young Krabby's responding grumble was a bit more submissive than usual.

"I can stay here for a few more minutes, but after that, I'll need to talk to Valiant and Eevee, and then spend some time with the others." Ash looked over to Janine. "Will you be okay with that?"

His friend nodded. "Of course. I was just going to stay for a little bit longer myself before making the rounds. Don't worry, Tentacruel can handle things fine."

He didn't doubt that, but still wanted to make sure. Looking back down at Tempest, Ash's eyes narrowed. "You'll be on your best behavior around Tentacruel and Skrelp, and when I get back, you'll be helping Valiant with Icy Wind for a little bit before we return to the Center."

Tempest looked like he wanted to groan, but didn't simply shuffling off as he followed tentacruel to where Skrelp was currently waiting for them. Janine lingered just long enough to shoot Ash a thumbs up and approving grin. His cheeks flushed, a sense of embarrassment hitting him out of nowhere as the poison specialist turned to follow the others, finding his hand absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck.

Being strict wasn't easy. Or fun.

/

Golbat swerved around the blade of air Nebula had chucked at him. Simultaneously, a blade of his own was forming at the tip of his wing as he dodged the strike.

The Air Slash that Golbat fired off was sharper than Nebula's, and also somewhat bigger, but the Staravia's progress had begun to bear fruit. She had managed to pull off five consecutive Air Slashes that looked and felt at full power. As she hurled a sixth, the streak was broken when the slightly smaller than normal blade fizzled out a bit earlier than the others, but Golbat still had to avoid it.

The Staravia huffed in frustration, but quickly shook it off in time to dodge downward as Golbat tried to counter with another blade.

"Nebula!" Perking up, Nebula continued to fly down as she saw her trainer calling out to her from below. Golbat followed her down, landing several feet away as she perched herself on a small rock in front of Ash.

She smiled as he patted her head. "I was watching you two for a bit. You're doing great out there. At this rate, you might have the move ready in a day or two." As she cheerfully chirped back at him, he pulled out an oran berry. "Here, you can have this." as her beak plucked the rejuvenating snack from his hand, he turned in Golbat's direction. "Would you like one too?"

Golbat seemed mildly surprised at the offer, but nodded nonetheless after a few moments.

/

Tyrunt's orange-glowing fist struck against Pikachu's as both Pokemon swung at one another. The dinosaur's face scrunched up in discomfort, but he did not relent as he and the mouse both reared their other fists back and struck one another again. Working as fast as they could, the duo continued to punch without reprieve, each Brick Break clashing with another as they both kept up their rhythm.

Finally, Tyrunt's aching fists failed him, and the younger pokemon was met with a blow to the face that sent him rolling into a nearby rock. Yelping a bit in surprise at the broken patter, Pikachu made his way over to him while massaging his own sore fists. Both had lost track of how long they had been at it.

Despite the pain in his paws, Pikachu knelt down and helped the dinosaur to his feet. Tyrunt stumbled forward for a moment, almost falling on his face, but Pikachu caught him, propping up his friend with his paws until the royal heir Pokemon was able to regain a steady footing.

Although Pikachu had noticed it before, the exchange made him realize that Tyrunt had grown bigger than he was. On average, his species was smaller than Tyrunt's so it was bound to happen eventually. According to Ash, Tyrunt would be growing in height at a fairly decent rate for the moment, most likely not slowing down until he reached the average height of two feet and seven inches. Which, according to Elacia's information from the folder, should be fairly soon.

Had he and the others (besides Tempest) not been there for the hatching, Pikachu wondered if he would soon forget that Tyrunt was supposed to be the baby of the group.

A gurgle from his younger training partner drew the young mouse's attention. Tyrunt's face was sizably bruised from the Brick Break that Pikachu had landed directly, but despite the clear pain that he was in, the young dinosaur's smile was almost as wide as ever, and the rock/dragon type began requesting that they continue.

Pikachu rubbed the back of his head. At least Tyrunt's behavior would be a good reminder. Increasing size or not, the electric type didn't see that going away any time soon.

Turning around on all fours, Pikachu created a few meters between him and Tyrunt before turning back, waving his paws and calling out for an Earth Power. Complying, Tyrunt happily charged forward, clearing some of the distance to take aim as he stamped the ground. Like a crack, the line of glowing energy traveled across the ground in between them, detonating as it reached Pikachu's location, but the mouse had already leapt aside.

Quickly deciding on a change of pace, Pikachu called out for Tyrunt to use Dragon Tail as he circled around to charge at his teammate from the side. Tyrunt obeyed as quickly as possible, tail glowing bright purple as he lashed out to meet Pikachu's Iron Tail. Upon impact, the dinosaur grunted in pain as the blow sent him sliding back, but he retained his footing to launch a Rock Blast, which Pikachu avoided.

As the fleeing mouse called out for Tyrunt to keep up the offense, the royal heir Pokemon raced after his faster opponent, open jaws filling with fire. As Pikachu slowed to allow Tyrunt to catch him, the pursuing dinosaur didn't take the time to consider that the fast mouse might have been behaving a bit too conveniently for him, and lashed out with the Fire Fang.

The upwards Static Tail that met with his chin while Pikachu ducked under his bite hasn't been full force, lest Pikachu risk busting his teammate's jaw open during a sparring match, but although the Iron Tail hadn't been at full power, the Thunder Wave coating it was, and Tyrunt found the muscles in his jaws locking up as he was knocked onto his back.

Smiling apologetically, Pikachu helped the younger combatant sit up whilst massaging his paws against Tyrunt's aching jaw, talking to the rock/dragon type as he did so. Tyrunt had taken an obvious form of bait that he shouldn't need Ash to warn him about. The critique elicited an innocent frown from Tyrunt, but it was followed by a nod of understanding.

Patting Tyrunt's head good naturedly (that seemed to cheer him up), Pikachu told his friend to stay where he was before taking off. He knew Ash had some medicine for paralysis.

/

Valiant's stomach rumbled as he and Tempest stood a few feet across from one another. It was nearing lunch time (a late lunch, as Ash and Janine had chosen to get all of today's training done in a single session and wind down for the remainder of the day), but his trainer hadn't forgotten about his and Eevee's arrangement with the river crab, and wanted them to reach their quota before calling it a day.

In secret, Valiant had hoped Ash would forget just this one time, but knew such a thing wouldn't be realistic.

As Tempest grumbled impatiently, his pincers crossed, Valiant shot the water type a quick glare before putting his hands together. Off to the side, Eevee (who had just finished a brief sparring session with the crab) observed the psychic as he closed his eyes and began to gather all of his focus into his hands.

After a few moments, a small stream of cold air shot out at the water type, who simply braced himself, crossed pincers now in a defensive position, and allowed his natural resistance to do the work. At the stage Valiant's Icy Wind was currently at, it posed no threat to the river crab due to his ice resistance, especially with Shell Armor making him even more durable in general.

To Valiant and Eevee's surprise, Tempest began stating additional instructions, albeit in a less-than patient tone. Regardless, Valiant nodded back at the Krabby before going for a second attempt.

His concentration seemed to be improving, as this one felt slightly stronger than the first Icy Wind, albeit Tempest hadn't even needed to shrug it off. After a third attempt, Valiant, as if by accident, noticed his hands were growing a bit cold. He almost asked Tempest about it, but decided against it. The question was too obvious.

It was likely because he wasn't used to using ice type moves. Tempest's natural cold resistance had likely exempted him from that kind of recoil, much to Valiant's envy. It was just something else that he would have to adapt to. At least, it wasn't as bad as what it was like to hold a Shadow Ball in his hands. Valiant had made fairly decent strides today, and Ash was even considering that he might be able to progress to practicing with the move without Eevee's coaching, but that was mostly in regard to how much competence he was able to form and execute the move with. That burning discomfort was still there, and the young Kirlia imagined that it would continue to be until his body was further used to using the move.

After blocking another Icy Wind, Tempest gestured or Valiant to stop, the emotion Pokemon growing tense as the Krabby approached him. Stopping in front of the psychic's side, opposite to Eevee, Tempest's expression was begrudged as he pointed a pincer outward, signaling for his "training partner" to pay attention. Backing away to give the water type room (and because he didn't trust the crab to make sure he wasn't hit), Valian observed as a much thicker and steadier blast of icy air escaped both of Tempest's open pincers. Unlike Valiant's shallow attempt, it genuinely felt like a snowy blast of ice.

Without looking at Valiant (or Eevee, for that matter), Tempest repeated his previous instructions from earlier, trying to better describe the "visualizing" aspect and what Valiant needed to imagine and concentrate on. The concrete ahead of them froze over as he fired a second wave. After observing the solid ice for a few moments, the Krabby poured a surprising Scald over it. Turning back to Valiant, he pointed towards the ice, now melting from the boiling heat of the water type move, and grunted in demand.

Valiant stepped forward, but didn't go right by Tempest's side, insteads walking in a slightly opposite direction before turning to face his target, and took aim at the melting patch of ice, along with the boiling water glazed over it.

/

The sky was beginning to show shades of orange as Ash looked up from the bench he was seated at, just outside the Pokemon Center. The late afternoon breeze brushed against him as he watched a few older trainers make their way to the door, chatting excitedly about something (the Fighting Dojo, from what he heard? Maybe one of them got accepted in?). Eevee was perched beside him, content to rest her legs as she watched Tyrunt thrust Brick Break after Brick Break, continuously punching away at the air to get a final bit of practice in for the day. The dinosaur's work ethic had shone in the results; though he lacked Pikachu's experience with the move, Tyrunt was producing a fairly decent form of it. His speed in using the move had also increased, his strikes quick and fairly precise, and the consecutive nature of them well-paced overall.

"Hard worker." Ash commented out loud as he and Eevee observed the rock/dragon type. Hearing the normal type murmur in agreement, Ash patted her head. "You've all been doing great. Valiant's coming along with Shadow Ball thanks to you, and your Focus Energy is getting better." Eevee grinned a bit at that. "So… I think he could still use a little bit more of your help, but I feel like he's ready to start easing out of it, too. You okay with spending some time with Nebula tomorrow? She's doing great with Air Slash, so she can start working on Swift while she finishes it up."

Eevee didn't respond for a moment, a brief flicker of concern on her face, before turning to Ash and nodding back. He frowned. "Are things okay between you two?" Eevee hadn't been hostile towards the Staravia for a while now, but it was best to make sure. Thankfully, she nodded.

"I get it." Ash took a quick moment to look back at Tyrunt, who was still keeping his own routine going. "If it's about Valiant, I know you probably don't want him to have to deal with Tempest on his own, but I'll keep an eye on them. They won't be together all day, and I'll make sure Tempest doesn't start anything-don't punch any objects, Tyrunt!" he quickly called out as Tyrunt seemed ready to test his Brick Break against a nearby sign. The dinosaur mumbled apologetically before backing away from it, resuming punching away at the air with orange-glowing fists. "Anyway," he turned back to Eevee, who had rolled her eyes at the royal heir Pokemon's antics before returning her attention to her trainer. "I'll make sure you don't have to worry about that. And I know Valiant was nervous about using Shadow Ball," they both recalled the Kirlia's unease at holding the distorted orb in his hands. "But you've done a good job at guiding him through that. He'll need to take off the training wheels to go further, and we both know he can." he was given a grateful bark for that.

After a few moments of silence, something caught Ash's attention from the corner of his eye: A tall girl, probably in her late teens, was entering the Center accompanied by a black quadruped. Ash quickly recognized the Pokemon as an Umbreon, one of Eevee's evolved forms. As if a button had been pressed, he began to realize something…

"Hey, Eevee?" The normal type, who had gone back to watching Tyrunt (he seemed to be getting a bit tired by now), turned her head back to him. "Have you thought about what you want to evolve into?" her expression seemed a bit surprised by the question, and she shook her head.

Ash chuckled. "I don't blame you. I'm here mulling over my options for what direction to take once we're all done in Saffron, but you have eight forms to choose from." he patted her head. "No need to rush into it. Just try to think it over when you can; they all have different circumstances, so it'd be good to plan it out. Any preferences I should know?"

Eevee thought over her trainer's question for a moment or two. She was aware of her evolved forms, but had never really put much thought into any of them. She wanted to keep getting stronger, and it likely wouldn't be too long before she hit that plateau, where evolution would be necessary to keep gaining without difficulty, but did she want anything specific? With the amount of choices that she had, she was tempted to just go with whatever opportunity presented itself first, but…

Maybe narrowing things down would find a happy medium. She could be flexible, at the very least. All eight forms would greatly expand her arsenal.

Not wanting her trainer to think she was ignoring him, the normal type shrugged with a shake of the head, offering him a casual bark. She leaned into his touch as she patted her head.

"Alright, just let me know if you get any ideas. We can put that on the back burner for now-" he frowned as he spotted Tyrunt lowering to his knees from the corner of his eye. "Hey, buddy! Let's call it a day for now, alright?"

With that subject being put on hold, the two quickly made their way towards the exhausted dinosaur.

/

With Tyrunt wrapped in his arms, Ash led Eevee back into the Center. Holding the now-sleeping dinosaur for an extensive period had abruptly made him realize how heavy his youngest partner had grown since hatching. It didn't feel like it had been all that long ago when he could pluck the then-infant off the ground and carry him without trouble. Or when Tyrunt could freely ride around in the bicycle's basket. Soon, the rock/dragon type would be too heavy for him to carry at all. Already, he was straining himself. He considered simply putting Tyrunt in his Poke Ball, but he'd be releasing him once they got back to the room anyway.

As Tyrunt's sleeping form shifted in his arms (forcing Ash to readjust his grip), Ash and Eevee passed through the lobby and into the waiting room, nearing the hallway that would take them to the elevators. As they stepped into the waiting room, however, he spotted Janine seated in front of one of the video phones. As if by accident, she glanced over in their direction, perking up as she waved them over.

As Ash and Eevee curiously approached her, Janine pressed a button on the phone's keyboard (presumably to put the video phone on speaker and adjust the volume, as she was also removing the phone from her ear). "Nice timing, Ash. We were just talking about you."

Ash blinked. "You were?" his eyes moved over to the screen, recognition suddenly passing over his features.

Although she currently wasn't wearing the silver Ace Trainer uniform, the woman on the other end had a familiar face, and a long, dark green ponytail he instantly recognized.

A small grin lit up his face as Ash's mind quickly flashed back to Bill's lighthouse. "Oh, Aya!"

The Ace Trainer had coincidentally been paying Bill a visit around the same time the researcher had enlisted Ash to help him stop Tempest from terrorizing the younger Pokemon staying at his place. He had also, by circumstance, found out during that time that she was Janine's aunt.

The woman in question beamed back at him on the other end. "Hey, long time no see. Janine just told me you two were traveling together."

As Eevee hopped onto the desk to get a better look at the screen, Ash nodded back. "Yeah, we ran into each other at Celadon. How've you been doing?" He had told his mother about his arrangement with Janine earlier after breakfast, although Janine hadn't been present for it.

"Nothing you wouldn't expect. I'm in Olivine, right now. Just going about standard business." Although not losing its friendliness, her expression turned a bit more neutral. "Say… how have things been going with Krabby you caught back at Bill's place?"

Ash shifted a bit. He supposed he should've expected the question. "We've been… making progress. Hasn't been easy." he admitted.

Aya nodded in understanding. "If he was a problem before being caught, it was never going to be a freebie. Keep working on it."

"We will." Ash winced for a moment. His arms were growing tired from carrying Tyrunt.

Aya seemed to notice, a somewhat amused grin adorning her features. "Well that's a familiar sight. He train himself to sleep again?"

Ash giggled. "It's the gist, yeah." he wanted to stay and talk to Aya a bit more, but he knew he needed to get Tyrunt back to the room. He looked between Aya and Janine. "Sorry… but we better get going. We'll be back at the room."

Janine offered him a thumbs up. "Alright, I'll be there shortly."

Nodding in acknowledgement, Ash turned back to the screen. "Nice seeing you, Aya."

"Same here Ash, good luck out there."

/

Ash clutched Tempest's sides as the river crab attempted to steady himself atop the pillar of water. To their right, Tentacruel was balancing on her own pillar, and to the right of her, Janine held onto Skrelp. The mock kelp let out a quick warning to her trainer, who leapt back as the water pillar collapsed, thankfully avoiding getting splashed.

As Tentacruel allowed her Surf to fizzle out, Ash ordered Tempest to do the same, setting the somewhat irritated Krabby down as Janine checked on her smaller teammate.

Skrelp seemed a bit dejected at her Surf giving out yet again, eliciting a quick pat on the head from Janine.

"Normally, Skrelp's Adaptability would make it a lot easier to get the hang of moves of her type." Janine frowned. "That doesn't seem to be the case right now."

Dusting his pants off, Ash glanced at the frowning Skrelp. "I guess it makes sense for Surf to be an exception. Still though… Pokemon normally have a smoother time learning moves of their own types as it is, and Adaptability amplifies that." It was by a fairly considerable margin, too. If anything, Skrelp's ability should be making up for Surf's additional difficulty. Instead, she was the one having the most trouble with the move.

Janine seemed to be thinking the same thing. Though he hadn't known her very long, Ash quickly found that visible confusion was an uncharacteristic rarity for his new friend. She seemed to be trying to tap into her "thinking mode", given the way her fingers rubbed against her chin, but her expression still seemed entirely stumped.

"Every Pokemon is different, of course…" it wasn't clear if she was addressing him and the group or just speaking out loud, but her head quickly moved down to Skrelp. "Try not to be too upset about it, okay? It's normal for some Pokemon to have more difficulty with the same move than others. And vice versa." her eyes moved towards Tentacruel in acknowledgement. "Still, I am a bit surprised that your ability isn't giving you any cushions. But that's not your fault."

"You're right, it's not." perking up in surprise, the group turned to the sudden voice. On instinct, Tempest's eyes narrowed, prepared to click his pincers in an effort to intimidate the newcomer, but even he stopped short at the sight of who was approaching them.

The trainer making his way towards them was a tall boy, whose voice suggested he was in his teens. Peculiarly, Ash couldn't really make out his face; a black hat completely covered his hair and much of his forehead, and a thick pair of dark sunglasses completely obscured his eyes from view.

But the main attraction was the older boy's companion, and the culprit of Tempest's uncharacteristic hesitance: A large, bipedal Pokemon with pink skin, a tan belly with stripes, and a round muzzle of the same color. The Pokemon easily towered over those on their team, with a large, notably spiked, gray spiral shell wrapped around its tail. It didn't take long for Ash to identify the creature.

"Sorry bout' the intrusion, you guys." As the older boy stopped in front of him, Ash found himself absentmindedly taking a step backward. The teen had to be a couple heads taller than him and Janine, and, now up close, he realized how… fit this newcomer was. He wasn't a human mountain, being of about a medium sized build, but even with his clothes (a gray shirt and pair of pants of the same color), it was quickly clear to him that his muscles were hard to miss. His voice was casual and carefree, with nothing to suggest hostility or even confrontation in general, but his sudden appearance, stature, and companion left the boy startled.

Behind him, Tentacruel and Skrelp wore uncertain expressions, while Janine, arms crossed, was curious and neutral. At his side, Tempest's eyes had not left the newcomer's Pokemon, barely acknowledging the teenager himself.

"Can we help you?" Like flipping a switch, Janine's voice was steady and professional, cool headedly guarded.

Patting his pink companion's side, the teen looked between her and Ash, not at all bothered by the collection of eyes resting on him. "Slowbro overhead the two of you talking just now. He's very… ahem," Ash couldn't see his expression, but as the teenager quickly glanced at his partner, his tone of voice left him picturing a dirty look. "Nosy."

The Slowbro in question barely reacted to his trainer's quip. Something about the water/psychic type's facial expression discouraged Ash from staring at his face for too long. The pink creature wore an almost surreally blank stare, as though he were more object than lifeform. Staring at him had Ash involuntarily shifting in place.

Tempest didn't seem to be affected in the same way, however, his eyes never leaving the aquatic psychic.

The mysterious trainer continued talking as Ash forced himself to look back at him. "Anyway, that conversation you two were having, I think I might be able to explain."

"You can?" Janine appeared beside Ash, not showing much hesitance as her head angled up to make what would have been eye contact were it not for the taller trainer's shades.

The older trainer's grin widened a bit. "Well, you're right about one thing: Pokemon are naturally better at using moves of their own typing. In competitive fields, it's labeled STAB. A Pokemon's typing makes them biologically tailored for, say, a water type move to come more naturally to a water type. And those same biological attributes can benefit the aforementioned Pokemon's usage of the move in a variety of ways: How fast the move's strength grows, control over the move, how easy of a time they have producing the move for the first time, how potent or the properties are-which includes status moves-pretty much anything you can think of that contributes to move usage, a Pokemon will find boons when learning a move of the same type. Makes it a lot easier to develop special combos revolving around said typing as well, given how much importance those place on the "control" aspect." he offered Ash a nod. "Adaptibility is an ability that capitalizes on this. What we refer to as "STAB" is boosted considerably by such an ability: It takes the benefits that Pokemon receive from learning a move of their type, and strengthens them. On paper, that would make all but the hardest of techniques to learn a natural breeze. But that's only on paper." his eyes fell on Skrelp. "I think you've run into a loophole, little guy." A bit less uneasy than before, Skrelp tilted her head in curiosity.

Ash kept his eyes on the newcomer trainer. His nerves had come and gone at this point, running their natural course, and whatever remaining tension he may have felt was replaced with feeling rather impressed by the teenager's speech. He was obviously very educated, although that shouldn't come as a surprise; based on what he said, this older trainer probably saw action in high level tournaments.

"Loophole?" Janine repeated, arms falling to her side. She was as engaged as Ash was. "I understand what you're saying, so what's the exception?"

As the older trainer began to answer, Ash took a moment to spare a glance at Slowbro, who's blank expression still had not changed in the slightest.

"It's a little nugget of info from what I said before," the teen began. "Your Skrelp's Adaptibility increases the boons of STAB. It's not actually a second STAB that stacks on top of the preexisting one." he reached up and quickly adjusted his shades. "Do you get what I mean?"

Ash tried to ponder what he was trying to hint, but beside him, Janine's face was fairly quick to light up. "Oh! Now I see what you're trying to tell us. It only helps out in ways the Pokemon was already benefiting from notably. The foundation of the move itself is unaffected."

As if he had just scored a victory, the older boy grinned at her. "That's what I was looking for. Adaptability is momentum based. If the benefits of STAB weren't enough to help you in the first place, the ability in question isn't going to be the difference maker that changes that. It's true that a water type would have an easier time forming an aquatic move, and that the move would likely grow in power more easily, but as you said: Once the move is formed, the foundation of the technique is entirely up to the Pokemon. STAB will enhance the move, and Adaptability will enhance STAB, but the overall premise of the move itself? That's the loophole." his eyes fell back on Skrelp. "You all just probably never noticed it before. It's fairly common, after all: You're first years, right?" both rookies nodded. "Ask any water type I've ever raised: Surf is a pain in the ass to learn. Up until now, you've both probably been teaching your teams moves that, while not always easy to learn, were at least cases where STAB provided you with a noteworthy cushion. A Pokemon's control over the move benefits from STAB after they've been able to lay that foundation. STAB itself can help them lay the foundation, and for a move like Scald, Razor Shell, or even Whirlpool if the user is talented enough, the technique is easy enough to where that all happens immediately. This might be the first time the move is too hard to learn for STAB to get all the work done right away, in which case, it can only do so much. And therefore, the same can be said for Adaptability. Once you've gotten those basics down, it'll still take a while to learn, because it's still Surf, at the end of the day, but those STAB benefits will still make themselves known throughout, once your team has given those boons something to bolster." he looked back between the two younger trainers. "And of course, the same goes for any other high-level technique you pursue in the future."

Ash took a moment to process the older trainer's explanation. It had all rolled off his tongue so smoothly, as though the knowledge was second nature to him. Definitely a professional, and a high profile one at that.

Janine seemed amazed at the rundown. "That's… great insight, thank you."

The older trainer shrugged. "Eh, nothing wrong with helping the noobies get on their feet. I remember all the hairs I pulled out on my first year of traveling, so I can certainly empathize. Now then…" he placed a hand on Slowbro's side. "It's still morning, I have a few hours before I'll have to catch my train to Goldenrod. If you'd like, I can set aside some time to help those three," he nodded towards Tempest, Tentacruel, and Skrelp. "Figure out where that foundation process comes from. Slowbro's a man of few words, but he speaks from experience."

Ash's eyes fell back on the aquatic sidekick. "Experience" normally wouldn't be the vibe he got from such an inanimate facial expression, but he knew better than to write the pink creature off.

"Sure," he replied. "If you're really willing, I mean."

"I appreciate it, too." Janine spoke up. She turned to Tentacruel and Skrelp. "I'm sure you two are okay with that, right?" Ash wasn't surprised when both nodded. It wasn't a common opportunity to get an expert demonstration, and although Tentacruel was faring better than Tempest and Skrelp, she certainly would still benefit from the high profile perspective.

With that in mind, Ash turned to Tempest, who's gaze hadn't left Slowbro. 'Make sure you pitch it right.'

"Tempest," finally, the river crab moved his eyes away from the pink creature, and back towards his trainer. "You're going to be as strong as that Slowbro one day. If you pay enough attention, you'll get a preview." To his mild surprise, Tempest nodded back without argument, an approving gurgle escaping his throat.

The older trainer smiled at the group. "Well then, it's unanimous." Slapping his partner on the back, he quickly parted from Slowbro. "Alright pal, just let us give you some space, and show these guys what your Surf looks like."

Slowbro nodded, although his expression barely changed as the group backed away, lining up to provide him with an open space. For a few moments, he simply stood where he was, not moving or showing any signs of upcoming action.

Without warning, a pillar of water erupted beneath his feet, the liquid rising into a stationary wave that lifted him a few feet above the ground. Slowbro stood on the wave with no effort; his balance, and the wave's stability, both equally perfect.

Moments later, he began to move, steering the wave in the direction that he motioned his body. The water carried him across the ground at a fairly decent pace, leaving a trail of soaked concrete in his wake as he rode the wave across the opening area, twisting and turning every now and then as he changed direction without much indication that he was about too.

Ash blinked in amazement. He had seen Surf on television a fair number of times, so he knew how a proper version of the technique looked, but watching it unfold in person elicited an entirely different feeling.

When Slowbro finally came to a stop a few minutes later, the pavement looked like a rainstorm had passed over it, the concrete soaked with a few puddles scattered about. The pink Pokemon took the time for a deep breath, but remained unfazed afterwards. Tempest, Tentacruel, and Skrelp all stared in awe as the larger water type turned himself to face the group, facial expression still relatively blank.

The teen nodded in approval as the aquatic psychic made his way towards them. "It's still not an effortless technique if overused, but as you can see, general extensive use still comes easily to him."

"Amazing…" Janine's eyes shimmered.

The older trainer proudly prodded his partner's hide. "Well, now that the demonstration's out of the way, now he can give your pals some pointers on the move in a way that I wouldn't be-HEY!" Without warning, Slowbro's eyes flashed a bright blue, an aura of the same color enveloping his trainer's hat and pair of sunglasses, both of which were immediately pulled off of him. With the hat no longer covering his head, and the shades no longer covering his eyes, the group was greeted with the sight of decently short, bright orange hair that almost hurt the eyes to look at directly, and a pair of blue eyes. "Tch, you gotta be kidding me…"

Ash took a moment to process the sight, blinking a few times as the older trainer's hand instinctively rubbed his orange hair. Suddenly, his eyes lit up.

"Wait a minute!" his mouth began to run ahead of his brain. "You're… Tanner?! The runner up of the Indigo Conference?!"

Tanner had been a fan favorite in Indigo's competition for the past two and a half years now. Hailing from Cherrygrove City, he was known for his charisma in interviews and for putting on some of the most entertaining and well-received battles of the past three Conferences. He had been a top contender in the past two, achieving third place in the Conference prior to the last one, and, just a few months ago, had been the odds-on favorite to win the latest Conference, just barely losing to Will after one of the closest Finals in recent memory.

Turning to the startled rookies, Tanner rose his hands into the air with haste. "Whoa now, don't say it out loud! I conceal myself for a reason. And it was working out for a while before someone decided to play a tactless prank on me!" Slowbro showed no reaction as his trainer shot him a glare. "Oh yeah, well that group wasn't-wait, we were supposed to keep that private, we shouldn't bring it up here."

'Slowbro's talking to him with Telepathy.' Ash quickly realized.

Janine lowered her hand from her mouth, keeping her voice a bit quieter than normal as Tanner scrambled to put his "disguise" back on. "Oh my, I thought your voice sounded familiar. I didn't expect…"

She didn't even need to voice it. All of a sudden, the nerves had returned to Ash in full, and he worried his throat might lock up. Right now he and Janine were talking to one of the biggest celebrities in Indigo's entire training community. He'd watched every Conference and multiple tournaments since he first got into Pokemon training, and had seen this guy on television in every Conference since his debut, including the past three where he had achieved iconic star power. And for him to be right here… the world couldn't be that small!

"Yeah, I get it." Tanner replied, adjusting his hat with one hand whilst re-fastening his sun shades with the other. "Been doing this for about a year and a half, now. Once you leave your mark on the Conference, especially if you're in the Top 16, people are going to recognize you, and it's gonna keep snowballing the more you keep going." he looked around cautiously. "Thankfully, it doesn't seem like anybody was close enough just now. That could've gone worse." he shot another look at Slowbro. "Don't take that as a challenge."

A wave of guilt passed over Ash. And he had just come close to spoiling it by blurting out his name like that.

Tanner must have noticed, however. "Don't sweat it too much, kid. I get that it was a knee-jerk reaction." his thumb pointed behind him towards Slowbro. "You aren't the one to blame here."

Janine rubbed her arm. "So… you've kept your face hidden whenever you go out in public so that you don't get swarmed." she spoke sympathetically. "I understand not wanting too much recognition."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it." Tanner's laid back posture returned. "It at least gives me some control over it, y'know? I obviously don't wanna do it all of the time, but at the very least, going out casually can remain casual. I don't always have to deal with the bombardments of pointed fingers and comments."

Ash considered the famous trainer's words, eyes briefly scanning their Pokemon for a moment as he did. Tempest, Tentacruel, and Skrelp were all staring at Tanner and Slowbro (Tempest finally acknowledging the older trainer's existence for once with their own differing versions of surprise, clearly trying to process the information for themselves. He had known for a long while the kind of fame and recognition being at the top of the trainer community would entail. He hadn't taken as much time to consider how those in such a position often dealt with it.

Tanner shrugged. "Welp, too late to go back now. So long as the disguise remains on," beneath his shades, his eyes moved towards Slowbro's direction. "I'm willing to drop the act for just a little while. Anyway, your pals' ready for Slowbro's pointers?"

The two kids blinked. That's… Right! They were just talking about Surf a moment ago!

/

Nebula perched herself on a small rock as Eevee made eye contact with her, the quadruped offering a few instructive barks to get started.

As she began to talk, Eevee started to really realize that this was her first serious interaction with the Staravia since her grudge against her had subsided. She couldn't help the awkward sensation that reached her chest, but tried her best to shake it off and focus on the topic. Nebula slowly nodded along to what she said before Eevee turned around for a quick demonstration.

Sticking her tail upwards, the normal type took a deep breath before opening her mouth, letting loose a steady stream of golden stars into the air as Nebula angled her head upward to watch. As the Swift continued to flow from her mouth, Eevee began turning her head, allowing the stars to shift in direction before letting up and turning back to Nebula. Raising a paw, she asked her bird teammate to give the move a try; once Nebula was able to use the move decently, Eevee would act as a moving target to test out Swift's homing attributes.

Nodding back at her new training partner, Nebula propelled herself off of her perched rock with a quick flap of the wings, soaring into the air, but making sure to not bring herself too high so as to ensure Eevee could still get a clean view of her at all times. After circling a few laps around the general area, the Staravia closed her eyes for a few seconds, gathering focus as she visualized the move in her brain. Opening her eyes, she performed one final turn before shooting her beak open, prepared to fire…

…Nothing came out at first.

Grunting, Nebula performed another lap, Eevee angling her body around to keep track of her while letting out another bark, reminding the Staravia of her previous instructions. Nodding back, Nebula closed her eyes again, this time taking a bit longer to visualize the goldens tars that she wanted erupting for her beak.

This time, as she reopened her eyes and her beak, a single star emerged, followed by one more a few seconds later. Clenching her beak shut, Nebula shook her head in mild exasperation. At least she could produce the move.

Hearing Eevee barking for another attempt, Nebula circled the area for another lap, before reopening her beak. The stars began coming out in delayed periods; rather than a steady stream like Eevee had produced, one, single star would precede the next by a decent few seconds. A quick bark from Eevee told her to stop, and to look back down to the ground. Nebula's attention quickly moved downward to her instructor, who, after seeing that she had the Staravia's attention, let loose a second stream of golden stars, this time aimed for the rock that Nebula had been perched on just moments before.

Nebula could hear Eevee repeating a portion of her earlier instructions a second time, closing her eyes again as she circled around. Doing her best to forget about everything else, she tried to focus all of her efforts into producing a decent Swift.

The stars once again left her beak one at a time, but now, each star preceded the next by only two to three seconds. It certainly wasn't a well-done version of the move, but it was beginning to look a bit more like a stream.

Eevee watched Nebula continue for a few more moments before getting an idea. Abruptly, she called down for the Staravia to aim at her. In confusion, Nebula looked downward and chirped back. She hadn't been using the move good enough yet.

Another bark from Eevee. If Nebula tried to focus on aiming at her right now, it could give the training for the move more direction.

Although a bit unsure, Nebula nodded back at the normal type quadruped, circling around one final time before lowering herself a bit closer to the ground, and taking aim at her partner.

Eevee leapt to the side to avoid the first star, then to the other side to avoid the second. Once the third came out, she broke into a run, weaving around a few rocks as Nebula pursued her, firing off the golden stars of Swift as consecutively as she was able to.

/

"Anyway, that's my brief rundown on how to pick out the correct climbing gear." Tanner finished, seated on a rock while watching Ash and Janine wrote in their notebooks across from him.

Not too far from them, Slowbro had been coaching Tempest, Tentacruel, and Skrelp for a little over an hour. The former had been a lot more cooperative than normal, although Ash was aware it was simply due to Tempest's newfound knowledge of who Tanner and Slowbro were. To his mild surprise, the river crab didn't even seem to be jealous, per se, although he was certain that the Krabby would be picturing the Slowbro in his mind whenever he trained for the foreseeable future.

Thankfully, that cooperation was seemingly paying off. Already, Tempest and Skrelp seemed a little bit better balanced than before when practicing Surf, adhering Slowbro's careful instructions throughout the training session. The pink Pokemon in question never dropped his… less than active expression throughout the tutelage, making for a somewhat goofy scene to any outsider that may be passing by, but Ash and Janine knew better than to doubt whatever advice he was giving his temporary students.

The three trainers made sure to pay attention to the group of water types as they practiced together, but Tanner had also taken it upon himself to share some advice of his own with the two first-timers. Ash had quickly found that the older trainer's casual lectures gave off a much different feeling than the academic lessons at school. Those were always very well informed and detailed, but Tanner's examples, while not as professionally presented, were from a hands-on perspective, and covered specific, less generalized areas that school never had.

His advice had mostly centered around traveling; he had just gone over climbing gear, and had, prior to that, shared some wisdom on how Pokemon herd patterns could affect traveling routes and be planned around, and how to notice the signs that a Pokemon's nesting grounds may be nearby (which he had emphasized would be crucial further east). He had even shared a story on how his ten-year old self had found himself in a Nidoqueen's nest (which he seemed to have found very amusing in hindsight, although Ash hardly imagined he had felt the same way in the moment).

Janine set her notebook down while taking the time to glance back at their Pokemon, noticing with a small smile that Skrelp had achieved a new record for longest time without falling off of her water pillar.

"Thanks for that," she commented, refocusing her attention on the older trainer. "Honestly I never really considered using the ax that way. I've had my share of hands-on practice in a lot of things, but certainly not mountains."

"It really does rewrite every article you've ever read." Tanner nodded along. "Once you do it for yourself, I mean. I was decent enough in school, a bit above average across the board, and when I first set out from Cherrygrove, I tried to keep all of those theoretical assignments in my mind. But with every experience that I had, my thoughts would just rearrange themselves, y'know? School will always be important, but nobody steps out of it an expert trainer. Students come out of it ready for all of their accumulated knowledge to be recontextualized." he reached into the bag of cheddar chips beside him. "And overall, I'd say it's been more fun that way. Apart from almost getting skewered in the chest by a mama Nidoqueen, obviously."

Ash was almost disturbed at the casual laugh Tanner let out. "You seem to be taking that incident pretty well…"

Shamelessly, the teenager shrugged at him. "Eh, it was certainly my least favorite memory from my rookie year. Wasn't even upset that I had only gotten six badges come the end of the Season, I was just grateful that my life hadn't ended two months ago. Carried that with me the whole final couple of months barely even caring if I made it to the Indigo plateau at that point." he leaned back a bit, taking the time to chew on his chips before finishing up. "But it's far enough in the past now. I didn't actually get hurt, and neither did my team. It was just a close call, a lot easier to move on from now that I'm at where I'm at. Besides, if that was the wakeup call ten-year old me needed to learn how dang awful his camping habits were, then better sooner than later."

Janine frowned in sympathy. "Was the first year really that bad?"

"Name any common trap or blunder a first year could fall into. I was bruised deep in those." Tanner took a moment to glance off to the side, observing Slowbro conversing with the other three water types. "In all honesty? I thought those six badges were just Mew expressing pity for me. I have no idea how I even got that far. It's the average number of badges that first years normally get, and quite frankly, it never felt like I was performing up to the standard. Even now, I still can't help but look back at it all and wonder if it was a fluke."

'A fluke…' Ash's mind flashed back to his battle with Brock. On one hand, something inside of him had changed on that day. But on the other hand, there had always been that doubtful voice whispering in the back of his ear that he had just gotten lucky, and simply performed something that wouldn't be replicated again. His battle with Daisy had thankfully silenced that voice of doubt.

"But again, in the past. First year was fun for all the reasons it needed to be, but in every other regard, the second was way better. Nowhere near as many mistakes, got to the Conference for the first time and finished in the Top 32. Goes without saying that I came out of that way more satisfied with myself, and the rest is history." His grin was casual and relaxed. "That's part of why I'm telling you all of this. Just don't be like me, and you'll find that sensation far sooner. There's nothing quite like the feeling; standing in those stadiums is the ultimate sign from the universe that you've made it as a trainer."

Ash quickly found his expression matching the older boy's. It was a message told and reminded of ad nauseum, but hearing it directly from one of those competitors, face to face, and in person, hit much different.

Janine's face wore a similar vibe. "I remember my aunt telling me about her first Conference story. It felt like she was radiating when she spoke."

"Sounds about right to me." Tanner replied, quickly glancing at his watch. "Hmmm… got a couple hours left. I could probably go for about another half hour before having to get moving. Still got a quick stop I have to make before boarding the Magnet Train."

The two nodded at him in understanding as Ash stood up. "I'll be back, I have to check on the rest of my team real quick. They're probably due for some oran berries."

"Gotcha," said Tanner. "We'll just be over here." Janine nodded in affirmation.

The two watched Ash walk off for a few moments before Tanner returned to his bag of chips. Janine watched him eat for a few moments before speaking up.

"So…" she got his attention. "You said you've been concealing yourself in public for about a year and a half?"

"Mhm." Tanner nodded. "Certainly around that amount of time. Long since gotten used to it."

"So," Janine's finger rested on her chin. "What made you decide to do it in the end? Was it anything specific, or did you just choose in the moment?"

The older trainer took a few moments to process her question. "After I placed in the Top 8 in my third year, it was hard to go out in public, mostly big places, without being spotted. I wasn't impossible to miss, not yet, at any rate, but suffice to say, my fourth year in the field was filled with "Hey, aren't you Tanner, the guy from the Conference?" and just about any other variation that you could think of." he took the last few chips out of his bag and began chewing on them. After swallowing, he shrugged with a bit of a sigh. "I guess it all just accumulated, y'know? Towards the end of the Season, the idea just popped into my mind. And once I received third place in the next Conference shortly after, I needed it more than ever."

Janine wore a sad smile. "I guess that's the bittersweet side of success. Everyone sees you as a hero, or something great, but… they just don't stop seeing you that way."

"Yup, took the words outta my mouth, I'll say. Can still get used to it, but learning to control it for yourself is a major boon. Preserves some of the normalcy of your nostalgic, up-and-coming days." slowly, he reached up and pulled his shades down, getting a close view of Janine without them darkening his vision. "And speaking of recognition… don't think you're fooling me, kiddo."

Although she didn't go pale, Janine stilled, eyes blinking a few times. "Huh…" Unable to help the awkward smile on her lips, her gaze traveled downward. "So… you know, do you?"

"Came to me after you gave your name." Tanner confirmed. He nodded in the direction Ash had walked off. "Does Ash know?"

"Not yet."

"That makes sense. Consider your secret safe with me then; I'm not Slowbro."

Janine's cheeks darkened as a rare sensation of heat made its way to her face. "Thank you." she replied gratefully.

/

"Here, eat up." Ash handed Valiant the oran berry, which the Kirlia accepted with gratitude. When he had arrived, he had taken quick note of the sweat on his psychic friend's face, and the minor burn marks on his hands, most likely from Shadow Ball. The emotion Pokemon quickly nibbled away at the fruit as Ash turned to survey the small area his teammate occupied.

Apart from a few destroyed rocks, he seemed to be aiming the Shadow Balls at thin air. The effects that Valiant's training had on the surroundings seemed rather unremarkable, although Ash knew that was easy for him to think after watching Slowbro drench nearly the entire area Tempest and the others were in. The comparison suddenly made a blinking Ash realize what that could entail for when his team became that strong in the future. How much precautions would they have to take regarding collateral damage? He'd have to ask Tanner about that…

Valiant swallowed the last of the oran berry and looked up at his trainer with a rejuvenated grin. "Thank you."

Ash gave him a thumbs up. "Don't mention it. So, things coming along fine with you?"

Rather than talk more (which he and Ash both knew he shouldn't do too much of), Valiant turned around, facing one of the nearby rocks, and held out his hands. After closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, a dark purple spark appeared between his hands. Moments later, the flashing spark grew into a crackle, as more and more sparks of the same color frenzied in between his hands. The shape of the distorted aura was aimless, but after growing to full size, the sparks began to condense, taking the form of a sphere.

The Shadow Ball still rippled in Valiant's hands, the occasional piece of the ball jutting out every now and then, signaling to Ash that it wasn't fully stable. But it was structured, a clearly formed sphere of blackish-purple aura.

With a quick grunt, Valiant reared his arms back and hurled the orb at the rock. The ball exploded against the stone, scattering shards in an explosion of sand and dust.

Taking a couple of deep breaths to regain his bearings, Valiant wiped a bead of sweat off of his forehead, before turning to face Ash once more. His trainer wore an impressed smile.

"You've made really good progress, buddy. Charge up time seems to be the area to work on for now," it still took Valiant a decent bit to properly form the sphere. "And I imagine you're not ready for consecutive use in battle, but you've gotten a lot better at forming and using it. How do your hands feel after that?"

Valiant raised his hands, revealing no burn marks. Ash rubbed his chin. "I guess that's another thing with consecutive use. It's always tricky when a Pokemon starts learning a typing that their weak too, outside of dragon types and ghost types learning their own. This is your first time using a ghost move offensively, so that additional strain from the exposure to the typing is a hurdle." Valiant nodded in understanding. "But you're doing fine. We'll keep prioritizing this over Moon Blast and the rest for now. And don't worry about deadlines; we'll be testing everything out in battle once the moves are ready." the Kirlia held his fists out affirmatively, before turning around to resume.

/

"Well, it was nice meeting you two." Tanner stood beside Slowbro as he grinned at Ash and Janine. Tempest, Tentacruel, and Skrelp were lined up nearby, watching them. "Goldenrod's got a tournament with my name on it in a couple days, so I gotta bounce on over there."

Janine raised a brow. "Is it part of the Silver Circuit?" Back before it became a part of Indigo, Johto had its own League called the Silver League. Although the Silver Conference no longer existed in the form that it used to, as the Indigo Conference at the Plateau had replaced it for Johto's trainers, the Region still held a big tournament in honor of the Silver Conference every year, traditionally a month or two before the Indigo Conference itself. Instead of Gym badges (the badges in Johto now counting for the Indigo Conference alongside Kanto's own), a series of tournaments dubbed the Silver Circuit was held across the Johto Region throughout the Season to act as the qualifier for the tournament itself. Though it was no longer a proper Conference where trainer's competed for the opportunity to challenge the Elite Four, it was still a prestigious competition, of which winning was labeled a high honor.

Tanner nodded. "That's the one. Didn't compete last Season, but this Season I'm going as big as possible. Everyone on the team's amped for it." He looked between the two. "Good luck out there, speaking of which. Would love to see you both at the Plateau come the end of the Season."

"Thanks for your advice today." Ash commented.

"Nothing to it." the teen replied casually. "You both are off to a good start, just make sure you keep taking it seriously if you want to get there your first year." Behind his shades, a fire lit up in Tanner's eyes, although neither Ash nor Janine could see it. "And if you do, well, I was speaking to a rival of mine a couple days ago, and she says the analysts are projecting this Season's Indigo Conference to be the stiffest competition in years. Says it's expected to be stacked, even by the usual standards. All the more reason to build yourselves up with everything you've got."

"Rival…" Janine repeated. "Was it Patricia?" A trainer from Celadon Tanner's age, with a similar reputation.

"Yup, the one and only." Tanner turned to Slowbro. "You'll behave if I keep you out, right?" Though his partner's expression remained dull and unresponsive, the pink Pokemon mustered up the effort to turn to his trainer and nod.

Janine bowed. "Thank you for all your time today. We'll make sure our teams take the surfing lessons to heart."

"Good to hear." turning to walk away, Tanner offered the duo a casual wave. "Stay fiery, kids." The two rookies waved back as he and Slowbro walked off, although neither looked back to see them.

Once they were gone, Ash and Janine turned to each other. "It's about lunch time," he commented. "Do you want to call it for now?"

"I'm going to make one more round." she replied. "You guys can go ahead if you want, we'll meet you at the cafeteria."

/

The next several days fell into a healthy pattern for both teams. Pikachu and Tyrunt continued their usual routine, honing the strength of Tyrunt's fists for Brick Break, the execution of his Earth Power, and the young dinosaur's tactical awareness in battle. The mouse was sure to set aside some time to brush up on his own moveset, often with tyrunt watching during breaks from their cooperative training.

Whilst continuing to perfect Air Cutter, Nebula took coaching from Eevee to get Swift properly executed, while Valiant alternated between Shadow Ball, Moon Blast, honing the rest of his moves, and being coached in Icy Wind by a dismissively cooperative Tempest. The Krabby in question would spend everyday with Tentacruel and Skrelp when not sparring with Eevee, giving passive-aggressive lessons to Valiant, and working on his own individual skills. It would still be quite a long time before any of the three water types would be utilizing Surf to the degree that Tanner's Slowbro did, but even just a single session with the aquatic psychic had done wonders for perspective and guidance, and despite himself, Tempest never allowed himself to forget the insight provided to him by the experienced veteran.

Eating arrangements had slowly altered, to the point where it felt like the kind of change too subtle to notice until it had already changed quite a lot. Though Tyrunt was always eager to share his training experiences with Valiant and Eevee (the two feeling varying levels of amusement to the youngest team member's excited ramblings), and was always close to them come bedtime, the royal heir Pokemon now sat next to Pikachu and Nebula during meals, often chatting with the mouse about potential improvement to their respective movesets, and asking the bird a series of curious questions ranging from her own training to what flying was like.

Tempest had turned down Tentacruel's occasional offers to sit with her and Skrelp during meals (which the mock kelp seemed to be relieved by), and continued to eat alone. Since the past couple of days, however, he hadn't gone off on his own during training breaks, remaining with Janine's two water types during resting periods.

Across the board, progress made itself known for all twelve Pokemon involved, but that just meant that there was one more, additional phase to go through before the time came to challenge Sabrina's Gym. Neither Ash nor Janine were going to leave anything to chance until they saw their respective teammate's improvements firsthand on the battlefield, and planned to spend the next few days seeking challenges from the various other trainers within the city, which there was very clearly no shortage of. They also needed the money, and Ash already had a fairly decent idea of what he wanted to buy.

Even beyond all of that, however, he wanted a financial cushion. ENough money to where he wouldn't need to go by a city-to-city budget, but would always have something decent in his account. This would, at the very least, be a decent step to all of that. After all, over the course of their stay, Saffron's Pokemon Center hadn't stopped being a goldmine of competition. And a good few trainers also occupied the various makeshift training grounds the two teams had utilized on the outskirts. Of course, the vast majority of competitive spirit resided at the Pokemon Center's public battlefield, which always saw occupation from multiple people at once.

Right now, however, they were at the training grounds.

"Ivysaur, Infection Blast!" Off to the side, Ash, Pikachu, Eevee, and Tyrunt were watching Janine's battle with a boy their age. Elsewhere, Valiant and Tempest were with Tentacruel and Skrelp, the river crab begrudgingly providing the Kirlia with additional coaching during a break from Surf practice. Nebula and Toxtricity were sharing a quick snack together while watching them train. On the other side, Janine's battle with her opponent had garnered a small audience, a boy and a girl of the same age.

Ivysaur bent his body forward to take aim at the opposing Raticate with his bud, which opened up to release the familiar stream of glowing seeds coated in bright purple powder.

The Raticate, already bruised from previous blows, bolted to the side before changing direction to charge right for Ivysaur. The rat's tail coated itself in metal as the rodent lashed out, but Ivysaur's bud quickly sprouted two vines that pressed into the ground and slingshotted Janine's starter out of harm's way.

"Back, Ivysaur." As Raticate's tail struck nothing but air, the normal type halted his momentum and shifted position, turning to face the direction Ivysaur had retreated in, just in time for the seed Pokemon's vines to press into the ground again just as he landed, propelling him off of the pavement back in the direction that he chad come from, shoulder-first into the surprised Raticate's face.

"Raticate!" Janine's opponent wasn't masking his nerves. His Croconaw had already lost to Golbat after only getting a few brief moments of offense, and Raticate was already getting knocked around early into this round of the match. "Ice Beam!"

Despite the pin, Raticate landed on his feet, sliding back a few moments before sinking down to all fours and letting loose a blast of ice from his mouth as he ran forward. Once again, Ivysaur slingshotted himself to the side, leaving the ice to freeze over the ground where the grass/poison type once stood.

"Sludge Bomb." Janine unflinchingly ordered.

"Double Team!" the boy frantically called out. Just as Ivysaur began to bend forward, opening up the bud on his back in preparation to launch the glob of sludge, Raticate split into two.

"Hold." Though Janine quickly changed her orders, her cool tone remained unaltered as Ivyausar stood in place.

Her opponent seemed to take her choice of words as a sign of hesitance, a slight excitement creeping its way into her tone. "Super Fang!"

Even as both Raticate began to bolt forward towards the target, Janine's words escaped her mouth with rapid fluidity.

"Fire, then Venom Vine in the mouth." Before her opponent had any chance to process what was about to happen, Ivysaur fired the glob of sludge, which ended up striking the clone Raticate, immediately forcing it to vanish. Even as the sludge lef the bud, however, a vine was already sprouting, the tip coated in purple powder as it lashed out at the real Raticate, whose mouth was opening wide.

Knowing exactly what was on the vine, Ash felt his heart skip a beat, and his stomach churn, as the Poison Powder-covered vine was shoved directly into the approaching Raticate's mouth and down his throat, the rodent's fairly quick momentum exacerbating the insertion.

The normal type's eyes looked like they might bulge out of his face as his paws immediately (and futilley) shot for his throat. As Ivysaur retracted his vine, Raticate lost his footing, sinking to his bottom as a disturbing choking noise emitted from the rodent. The opposing trainer's fists shook in desperation as he attempted to call out to his partner.

Raising an arm, Janine's expression and tone remained neutral. "Energy Ball!"

As Raticate began to cough, an emerald sphere of light erupted from ivysaur's open mouth and into the rodent's stomach, bowling him over onto his back as his mouth hung open.

Not even an instant later, Raticate's body vanished in a red flash of light as his trainer frantically held out a Poke Ball.

"I forfeit!" the boy quickly declared, reaching up with his other hand in an effort to wipe the sweat off of his face. "You win, I'm done."

Janine crossed her arms, face remaining stoic as she nodded in acknowledgement of her opponent's surrender. As her gaze turned downward to greet Ivysaur as he approached her, however, her lips curved into a smile as she bent down to pat her starter's head, the seed Pokemon closing his eyes and leaning into her touch.

"Good work as always, Ivysaur. Another great win."

The shift in behavior, now that Ash had time to take it in, was almost unsettling to him. What had happened between Ivysaur and Raticate was not a first; just in the previous round, Golbat had shoved two Steel Wings into the boy's Croconaw's mouth to forcibly pry the water type's jaws wide open. In an earlier battle, Ivysaur had choked a Bayleaf into submission the same way he had done to Damian's Charmeleon back in Celadon (mercifully, Bayleaf had submitted before passing out).

And yet… here she was now. It was all so dissonant; one moment Janine was one of the most compassionate and comfortable to be around people Ash had known, but the moment a battle was declared, she turned cold: Calculated and ruthless, resorting to whatever brutal, shameless, low-blowing tactic that would capture the win. Expression completely cool headed and even throughout. And then when the action died down, suddenly she was back to her old self; as though nothing had happened at all.

"If I hadn't known better, I'd have thought she had two personalities." Ash almost jumped a bit; he hadn't noticed Valiant and Tempest had joined them on the sidelines. Apparently, his psychic friend was thinking similar to him; that seemed to happen a lot.

"Heh…" with a small smile, Ash turned to the Kirlia and Krabby, the latter of whom was eying Ivysaur. "I wouldn't blame you." looking back at Janine, she saw her and the boy with their Pokedexes out, likely going through the "prize money" process. As the boy left with a hasty speedwalk, she turned to the two other trainers who had been watching.

"Would you guys like a match?" she inquired.

With an uneasy grin, the other boy held his hands out. "Oh, no thanks. We… have somewhere to be."

"Yeah," the girl sweated. "Maybe another time." Janine watched the duo depart from the scene with a little bit too much franticity.

"Congrats," Janine and Ivysaur turned around, perking up as Ash, Eevee, and Tyrunt stopped in front of them. Behind them, Valiant and Tempest had rejoined Tentacruel and Skrelp, and Pikachu had gone over to Nebula and Toxtricity. "That was… impressive." Ash hoped the compliment didn't sound too forced; he didn't completely mean for it to be.

Janine smiled. "Thanks, Ash." As Eevee, Tyrunt and Ivysaur began to chat at their feet, she turned her head to the city proper. "I think I'm going to take a break pretty soon, now. Go out in the city to browse for some necessities." she turned back to him. "Would you like to come with me?"

With some regret, Ash shook his head. "Thanks, but I want to make sure I'm more securely stocked on money first. I was thinking of heading back to the Center soon; see how much is going on at the battlefield. Overhearing him, Tyrunt's face lit up.

She seemed more understanding than disappointed. "Alright, I'll see you back at the Center later, then?"

He nodded. "Yeah, sounds like a plan."

/

The Chikorita let out a cry as Tempest's Metal Claw smacked her away from him. Landing on her head, the grass type bounced along the pavement for a few moments before going still, quickly returned by her trainer, a different boy about Ash's age.

Although it meant he had needed to wait his turn, Ash had found it was his lucky day upon reaching the Pokemon Center's public battlefield; it was bursting with activity. Numerous trainers (mostly about his age) on the sidelines waiting their turn while watching whoever was currently participating duke it out with one another. An exciting mix of competition and conversation that only the training community could produce radiated throughout the air: it was the place to be.

When it was finally Ash's turn at the front of the line, his team had quickly jumped to the occasion. Tyrunt and Nebula both saw immediate action, although the former would fall after a couple of bouts, and the latter would be left drained after being forced into her Reckless state, and Pikachu had been active for a brief moment as well. Quickly, Ash had found himself racking up a winning streak in front of the audience, and the fair amount of prize money to go along with it. Beside him, Eevee watched, still yet to participate.

As the trainer's gathered clapped, Ash felt a bit of an adrenaline rush, but suppressed it enough to survey his water type partner. Tempest, after happily celebrating his victory with pumped up pincers, had voluntarily taken a seat as their opponent fished for a second Poke Ball; his outer shell was lined with bruises and a burn mark, and his breathing was growing just a bit heavy.

"Tempest…" the Krabby turned his head to his trainer as Eevee remained perched at Ash's feet. Despite his good mood, Ash's face grew a bit serious. "That was your fourth fight in a row, wanna quit while you're ahead?" The river crab had been dominant ever since he was called on, but sooner or later Ash knew his stamina would give in at some point.

Perking up, Tempest quickly rose to his feet, turning to Ash in full and promptly shaking his head as the opposing trainer decided on their next member. Brow furrowing at his partner's stubbornness, Ash's face formed into a frown. 'I see someone's right in his element…' If he was this excited, he'd only be able to imagine what that meant for how Tempest was feeling right about now.

"Tempest, I know you're having fun, I am too, but I'm telling you, there will be plenty of time for that tomorrow. Competition's not going anywhere." Stubbornly, Tempest shook his head yet again, seemingly more as a request than a refusal.

After observing the crab for a few more moments, Ash finally sighed. "Fine…" the water type began to perk up as his trainer held up his index finger. "You'll get one more, but then it's Eevee's turn. No "buts", alright?" Satisfied, Tempest nodded back with an eager grin.

"Yeah! The streak continues!" Ash heard a rowdy girl yell in the small audience. The situation had created a fairly unique atmosphere that he was not fully used too yet: But he knew that he needed to be: after all, the stadiums at Indigo Plateau would be hell of a lot more than this, even if he didn't make it to the main stadium for the Top 16 (and he'd still be there for the opening ceremony regardless). Not to mention Surge's Gym, but he did his best to suppress that memory for the time being.

Expression reminding Ash of Trucy Pallet Town, Tempest turned back to the trainer on the opposite end to await his next opponent, clicking pincers making his intentions clear.

Holding his Poke Ball without a word, the other boy quickly released a Machop, who bent his knees and assumed a fighting stance whilst stoically locking eyes with the excited Krabby. "That thing's a freak of nature, Jumbo! Hit him as you can; he's already hurt. Punch through the bruises!"

The Machop, Jumbo, quickly kicked off the ground as his now-fully curled up fist lit up with electricity. Acting fast, Tempest lunged forward, firing off two streams of boiling water that Jumbo sidestepped away from. The Scald provided a brief distraction for Tempest to close a bit of the distance, freezing the pavement just next to the Machop with a fast Icy Wind.

Caught off guard by the hastily-fired attack, Jumbo immediately found his footing compromised, raising a leg in the air with a startled cry as the fighting type, now on one foot, slid across the small patch of ice whilst struggling to maintain his balance.

"Razor Shell!"

Just as the Machop exited the icy patch, Tempest was already upon him, swinging his pincer forward as the watery blade that he held crashed into the superpower Pokemon's chest. Jumbo grunted in discomfort, flipping over from the impact of the blow, but easily landing on his feet, sliding back a notable bit and crouching down as his hand massaged his chest.

Although the Razor Shell had left a bruise, Ash noted that the immediate effects didn't seem all that debilitating; Jumbo was tough, and Ash wondered if Tempest was having a harder time striking at full power after being active for this long without any breaks.

Their opponent seemed eager to capitalize on the latter (not that Ash would have been any different). "Focus Energy and Thunder Punch, Jumbo!" he quickly added: "Use Dig to reach him!"

'Machop can use Dig?!' beside Ash, Eevee seemed to be equally alarmed. "Water Pulse, Tempest!" hoping to stop their opponent, Tempest quickly held out his pincers, charging up two orbs of water in both of them before firing. Jumbo was acting fast, however, hands mashing away at the cement he was standing on, and ducked into the hole he had dug just in time to leave the two Water Pulses to crash into the barriers in front of the opposing trainer. Noticing a small fissure making its way towards Tempest, Ash quickly called out. "Be on guard!"

Crossing his pincers in defense, Tempest began backing away, preventing Jumbo from emerging just beneath him. Beneath the electricity, the Machop's fist was glowing from the bright, white light of Focus Energy as he swung it forward, aimed for the charred bruise on Tempest's front.

The young Krabby's Metal Claw collided with the blow in intercept, but Tempest almost immediately felt his muscles beginning to strain as the Machop's offense pushed back against his block. After a few moments of struggling (where the river crab's outstretched outstretched limb began to increasingly tremble), the water type was forced to stagger backwards as the metallic pincer was propelled behind him. Raising his other fist, Jumbo drove a second punch into the targeted bruise.

Ash looked on with a pained wince as Tempest gasped and sputtered for air from the impact. Abruptly, however, a second Icy Wind began to escape from his now open pincers, and Jumbo, without warning, was quick to find the ground that he stood on coated with slippery ice. Before his trainer could even cry out in warning, the fighting type's footing completely failed him, falling painfully on his right side.

Lashing out, Tempest's pincers glowed with the familiar light-blue aura of Vise Grip, seizing the Machop by the neck and turning him around. Allowing himself to collapse onto his back, with Jumbo's own back on top of him, Tempest wrapped both pincers around his opponent's neck before the fighting type could even have enough time to think to struggle.

As the young Machop wriggled desperately against the water type's hold, his trainer calling out order after order, an unprepared Ash flinched at the sight. 'He's finding some inspiration from Janine, isn't he?' On instinct, he almost told his partner to stop.

Unable to gasp for air, Jumbo gripped Tempest's pincers, still securely fastened around his neck, and strained to pry them off. The pincers budged a little bit as the fighting type continuously pushed, but to no consequential avail. Finally, like a wrestler tapping out, the Machop's palm began striking the pavement, and his trainer returned him moments later. With his opponent gone, Tempest allowed himself to ease, pincers spreading out on either side of him as he stayed on the ground trying to catch his breath, much more clearly exhausted than prior.

More applause sounded off from the audience as the opposing trainer held up his hand, walking across the battlefield to make his way to Ash and his two teammates. "I give up, you win."

As his opponent stopped in front of him, Ash frowned apologetically. "Sorrow about that, I hope Jumbo's okay."

"He is, don't worry." the other trainer spoke reassuringly. "You just had me beat, that's all. Congratulations." he took out his Pokedex, touching through a few menus before stopping to await Ash's response. Quickly, Ash, having brought out his own during the process, accepted the prize money before offering his hand.

"Good match." the other trainer agreed as the two shook. As the other boy walked off and headed back inside, Ash looked down at Tempest, who still lay in his previous position, perfectly conscious, but clearly not getting back up, or seemingly making any effort to. Sighing, he walked over to his partner, crouching down to meet him at eye level. "Alright Tempest, that's enough for today."

The Krabby gurgled a response, which didn't sound defiant or protest, so Ash decided to take it as a "yes".

Fishing out Tempest's Poke Ball, Ash enlarged the orb before holding it out in front of the water type's face. A grin made itself known on his lips as he offered the spent Pokemon an approving nod. "You were excellent today, great work." Another gurgle, this one more explicitly happy as Ash tapped the ball against the Krabby's forehead.

As her teammate vanished into the orb, Eevee sighed to herself, seemingly relieved to be rid of the river crab for the time being.

Standing back upright and reclipping the Poke Ball to his belt, Ash felt some pressure on his body as the normal type scaled his back and perched herself onto his shoulder. Slightly surprised, but smiling back at her nonetheless, he adjusted himself to the added weight before offering his friend a quick scratch beneath the chin, which she happily accepted, raising her head and closing her eyes with soft pur that easily reached his ears.

Turning to the audience, however, he suddenly felt a bit awkward. There wasn't an absurd number of people present, probably only about a dozen or so, but being the center of attention (in a manner that didn't involve mockery) was a new feeling he'd have to grow accustomed to.

"So, uh…" he trailed off for a moment. "Who wants to be next, I guess?"

"I am going to be next, thank you very much."

Ash and Eevee both jolted. The tone of voice had been final, leaving no room for argument no matter how badly the other trainers protested, but Ash had barely even registered the delivery: he was too focused on the voice, far too familiar to not recognize.

Turning in the direction of the bold declaration, a surprised Ash and Eevee watched a figure step out to the front of the small crowd: A girl slightly taller than him, with casual clothing, and blazing orange hair wrapped into a ponytail on the side of her head. She had attention to spare, and it was solely focused on him.

"What's up?" Misty addressed him with a smirk. "It's been a hot minute."