Ch.23
Redemption
Pokemon is the property of its respective owners
Catherine ran. Ran as fast as her battered, bloodied legs could carry her as her breathing became sluggish and her body ached with pain from all the various bruises she had suffered in a brutal ambush that had nearly taken her life. Taking a chance, she peeked over her shoulder to find her pursuer easily keeping pace with her as its glowing, sky blue eyes glared into her soul as Catherine screamed in fear and picked up her pace, but it was all for naught. Her pursuer gracefully front flipped and landed in front of her causing Catherine to backpedal away in fear and fall on her butt. Catherine trembled in terror as her pursuer turned out to be a Lucario who approached and grabbed her by her neck and hoisted her up in the air as the rain continued to batter down on them, but Lucario paid it no mind. Catherine gagged and wheezed as she tried to pry off the Lucario's paw, but its grip was too strong.
"(Do you know who I am?)" Lucario snarled fiercely at the heiress who fearfully shook her head which caused the enraged aura pokemon to slam her fist into Catherine's gut.
Catherine's eyes bulged from the force of the punch causing her to howl in agony and fall limp in Lucario's grip as the aura pokemon chucked her violently to the ground and glowered at her dangerously as Catherine inched backwards while Lucario advanced towards her aggressively.
"(Think hard Mrs. Wayne; do you remember a cheerful, happy girl whom you battled a few weeks ago? A girl whom you mercilessly crushed in a pokemon battle and belittled for being a weak trainer when she had only just stared her journey?!)" Lucario roared furiously as Catherine shook her head and continued to inch backwards until her back was stopped by the muddy cliff side.
"Y-you mean Yoko? I battled her yes, I defeated her Turtwig, her Geodude, but her Riolu was tough," Catherine's eyes widened in shock when she realized whom she was speaking too and tentatively pointed a shaky finger at Lucario.
"Y-you-"
"(I am that riolu whom you battled, and she's come back for your blood. I will give you one chance to defend yourself; send out your whole team and maybe they can find the strength to defeat me,)" Lucario boomed fiercely as Catherine wasted no time and sent out her three pokemon consisting of a Zangoose, a Linoone, and a Machop.
"Guys, she's going to kill me! Please, you have to help!" Catherine begged her team who exchanged glances at each other laughed mockingly at her.
"(That little weakling over there managed to hurt you? Geez, you're really pathetic Catherine,)" Zangoose snorted as Lucario's eyes darkened and thought back to her teammates.
"(Rocky,)" Lucario mumbled sadly as she remembered seeing his stone body nearly cracked in half as he moaned in agony, unable to do anything to alleviate his pain.
"(Catherine, you suck. I'm ashamed to be your pokemon if this loser can hurt you,)" Machop stated disappointedly as Lucario's paws clenched tightly and let crimson blood fall from her paw onto the soggy, wet ground below.
"(Leaf,)" Lucario whispered solemnly as she remembered seeing her beloved teammate with his eyes rolled to the back of his head and all of his legs twisted in the wrong direction.
"(Fine, we'll take care of this nobody for your Catherine, but after that we're not your pokemon anymore,)" Linoone said coldly as Catherine couldn't understand what they were saying, but she got the message plain and clear from their facial expressions and body language while Lucario gritted her teeth.
Lucario readied herself as she saw her prey encircling her, cutting off all routes of escape, how cute. She wasn't planning on running. Catherine saw Lucario make her move and turned her head away just as the enraged aura pokemon plunged her fist deep into Zangoose's chest cavity. Catherine cringed when she head a squelching sound and trembled in fear when she heard Zangoose's screams of pain before his cries became silent as her other two pokemon watched as their leader's body fell to the ground with a thump and saw a large, gaping hole where his heart should be. Lucario glared at the remaining two as she readied herself once more as Linoone shook violently witnessing his partner's death.
"(Fuck this, I want to live!)" Linoone shouted in horror as he bolted for the trees as Catherine weakly raised an arm towards him only for Lucario to appear right in front of him with her foot raised high in the air.
Catherine turned her head away as she heard a loud, crunching, slam and cried when she saw blood flowing down the muddy landscape as Machop got down onto his knees and clasped his hands together.
"(Please, just let me go! I want to live! I want to-")
Catherine screamed as she saw metal blades sticking out of the back of Machop's head as his body went slack causing Lucario to grunt and kick his body away like garbage. Lucario, finished with her prey, refocused her attention back to Catherine who was scrambling to her feet and tried running away only to be roughly placed in a choke hold as she felt Lucario violently pull her to a nearby tree. Catherine's breath hitched and her lips quivered when she saw what was on that tree, a noose.
"W-why?" Catherine asked fearfully as Lucario growled and shoved her against the trunk of the tree and cupped her chin, forcing the terrified girl to stare directly into Lucario's deadly, black eyes.
"(Yoko took your words to heart. She was so broken after her defeat; she didn't consider herself a worthy trainer anymore and do you know what happened? I walked into her room to find herself strung up by the neck the very next day. You killed her Catherine Wayne, so I will give my beloved trainer justice,)" Lucario stated firmly as Catherine began struggling to free herself from her attacker's iron grip to no avail.
"Oh Arceus, please don't do this Lucario! You saw what happened; I admit I called Yoko a weak trainer, but I tried to get my pokemon to stop! I didn't want Geodude or Turtwig to get hurt like that!" Catherine pleaded as Lucario grabbed the noose and tried to wrap it around the struggling girl's neck only for Catherine to grab it and yank it downwards.
Deep down, Lucario knew what she said was true as she witnessed the girl trying to stop her pokemon from harming her beloved teammates after the battle and because her new ability to sense aura indicated her words to be true. Even so, justice must be done. Finally managing to wrap the noose around Catherine's neck, she prepared to string her up only for Catherine to wrap her legs around Lucario's chest and wrap her arms around her neck.
"No, please Lucario! If I die, I won't be able to help my family!" Catherine pleaded as Lucario's eyes narrowed and considered the girl's words carefully.
Cupping her chin, she forced Catherine to stare directly at her and glared at her angrily.
"(Speak Catherine Wayne! My patience grows thin!)" Lucario spat as Catherine nodded and began blabbering about how her siblings were irresponsible and how she needed to inherit the family fortune to bring it into financial stability in order to preserve her family name.
Lucario had no need for money, but nevertheless, she was impressed by this girl's conviction and strong aura that resonated with her when she spoke her purpose. It…it reminded her of…
Nodding to herself, Lucario cut the noose in half with her claws and gently set Catherine on the ground as the girl stared at her confusedly before looking at her gratefully.
"Th-thank you for sparing me Lucario; I promise I'll try my best to make amends," Catherine stated passionately as Lucario nodded and folded her blood stained arms.
"(You can make amends by letting me come with you. I've sensed your passion, willpower, and conviction and I want to help you achieve your goal. It's the best way to honor Yoko, and I nearly failed her by nearly letting myself go,)" Lucario said sadly as she bowed to her new trainer who bowed in return before looking at the corpses of her pokemon and stared down at the ground downcast.
"We didn't really like each other, but…they at least deserve a proper burial."
"(Very well mistress,)" Lucario stated as she blasted three holes in the ground with aura spheres and walked over to the corpses of her deceased foes.
"Lucario?"
"(Yes mistress?)"
"You don't need to call me mistress. It makes me feel like a pretentious snob so just call me Catherine," the heiress told her new friend who nodded in response and gently placed the corpses of her foes into her makeshift graves.
"Lucario, with you by my side, I know I'll achieve my goal."
Dmitri stared wide eyed at Catherine's story as the former heiress put her hands on her knees and stared down at the ground with a solemn expression.
"Catherine, wow, I-"
"It's okay, I did crush trainers in battle, calling them weak, telling them they'll never accomplish anything in life, and that nearly got me killed. All I can do now is keep trying to reach my goal and help those along the way who need it. I need to do this to move on with my life and to honor Yoko," Catherine said softly as Dmitri nodded and stared at Luka and Maris.
"To think that the quiet, kind, and humble Luka-"
"I know, I'm glad that she's managed to calm down since that day. I mean, she'll still kill if necessary, but she'll make it quick and painless as possible…even to those who don't deserve it," Catherine said calmly as Dmitri shuddered and glanced at Luka who was laughing with Maris and had a paw on her shoulder.
"Dmitri, I want you to promise me something," Catherine said as Dmitri glanced at her with a confused look.
"Yeah?"
"We will face each other when we enter the Lily of the Valley Conference and when that happens, I don't want you to hold back because you know I have to save my family. So promise me when that day comes, we both agree to fight at our best, no holds barred," Catherine said passionately with a determined look as Dmitri nodded and extended his hand.
"Okay, I promise," Dmitri replied as Catherine gripped his hand and shook it firmly.
"I'll let you talk to Luka, Dmitri. It would be best if you heard her side too. I'll talk to Maris about this as well," Catherine told him as she hailed Luka over causing her pokemon to narrow her eyes and warily approach the two trainers.
"(You told him?)" Luka stated curtly as Catherine nodded causing the aura pokemon to glance at Dmitri and purse her lips.
"(C'mon, I'll tell you more about it then,)" Luka said in a tone that left no room for argument as she grabbed Dmitri's wrist and pulled him over to the side while Maris walked over with an annoyed look on her face.
"(What the flip Catherine, we were training over here!)" Maris shouted angrily as Catherine put her hands on Maris's shoulders and began telling Maris her past as the martial arts pokemon nodded intently and focused all of her attention on Catherine's story.
"(So Catherine told you about how I ambushed her, killed her entire team, and nearly succeeded in hanging her from a tree?)" Luka said tersely as Dmitri nodded while Luka sighed and gestured for him to sit down as he did so.
"(Well, that's only the half of it. I loved Yoko, Dmitri; she was like a big sister to me. My teammate Rocky was the overprotective older brother and Leaf was the goofy, naïve younger brother while I was the middle child who had to put up with all their antics. Yoko set of on a journey with us; three misfit pokemon whom she raised in her tiny little shack on the outskirts of Sinnoh to be the best like no one ever was. She had so much hope and cheerfulness and it only increased when we managed to defeat some trainers along Route 1. We all felt invincible, like no one could stop us,)" Luka stated nostalgically as Dmitri noticed her get a dreamy look on her face while she looked up at the sky.
"What happened?" Dmitri pressed as Luka glowered at him, but Dmitri just stared back at her blankly.
"(Catherine,)" Luka growled as Dmitri looked at her sympathetically and put a hand on her knee which did little to calm the furious Luka.
"(Rocky lost, but he went down swinging. Leaf didn't fare much better against Machop; didn't even get one good hit on him. Then it all came down to me, I was Yoko's last hope and I wasn't about to let her down. It was by far one of the toughest battles I have ever fought in my life. Every part of me was wracked with pain and I was only able to fight on due to sheer willpower, but it wasn't enough. I managed to take down Zangoose with a well-placed kick to the ribs, I defeated Machop with a hard punch to the side of his throat, but Linoone…he was so damn fast,)" Luka breathed out as she remembered the blinding speed Linoone had possessed as Dmitri nodded at her causing Luka to continue her tale.
"(I finally went down and Catherine began calling Yoko a weakling and telling her how she'll never be able to get strong. I wanted to punch Catherine right in her smug face, but Yoko restrained me with a hug and told me she wasn't worth it,)" Luka said sadly as she remembered seeing Yoko's pleading look telling her not to harm the spoiled rich girl.
"(And how is Yoko repaid for her mercy and restraint?! We're attacked by Catherine's pokemon who couldn't understand how I could hurt them so bad and I could only watch as Zangoose and Machop began brutalizing my teammates as Linoone held me down and forced me to watch,)" Luka cried bitterly as she clenched her fists and pounded the ground forcefully leaving a large crack in the ground while Dmitri just stared wide eyed in horror at what she was telling him.
"(Catherine tried to get them to stop, but they didn't listen to her. I passed out after a while, but when I awoke I remember seeing my head in Yoko's lap and I saw her crying, it wasn't until I turned my head that I realized why,)" Luka said depressingly as she remembered seeing the mangled bodies of her teammates lying on the ground not moving at all.
"So Rocky and Leaf-"
"(We gave them proper burials. After she took me home, I knew this wasn't the same Yoko I loved anymore. A few days later, when I had finished my training for the day, I came home and found her…)" Luka covered her eyes as she began to weep, but eventually ceased her crying and put on her cool, composed persona once again.
"(After that day, I used my anger, my despair, and my bloodlust to train myself nonstop over the span of a few weeks to gain my revenge against the girl who took my trainer from me. And the rest of the story you already know,)" Luka said calmly as Dmitri pulled her into a hug which shocked the aura pokemon as she remained frozen in his grip before awkwardly returning it.
"(I already told Maris and she's accepted me for who I am,)" Luka stated calmly as Dmitri nodded and broke off the hug while Luka continued to gaze into his eyes.
"I'm glad; even with what you've done, I still consider you my friend," Dmitri replied as Luka nodded and crossed her legs as she rested her paws on her knees.
"(Thank you Dmitri, that means a lot,)" Luka said gratefully as Dmitri looked over to Buizel and Geodude and gazed back at Luka.
"How do you like your new teammates?" Dmitri asked Luka who shrugged and stared at him unsurely.
"(I like them, I do, except now I'm the eldest sibling who has to keep the two younger ones under control,)" Luka answered with a slight grin as Dmitri sighed and placed his hands behind his head briefly before settling them on his legs.
"Well, I'm glad you guys are getting along Luka," Dmitri said as happily while Luka just nodded and stood up as she offered a paw to Dmitri who took it as Luka pulled him to his feet.
"I…uh…didn't know you could extend your aura senses this far," Dmitri stated awkwardly as Luka smirked and put her paws on her hips.
"(I had to learn how to otherwise Catherine would need to do charades with Maris just to talk to her. Trust me, she's terrible at it and it's quite a funny sight to see,)" Luka chuckled as Dmitri tried to stop himself from laughing, but nevertheless a laugh escaped his lips.
"(Well, I'd better get back to training Dmitri. It was…nice talking to you,)" Luka said respectfully as she began walking back to her training partners until Dmitri's hand on her shoulder stopped her as she turned her head with a raised brow.
"Luka, I know it's not any of my business, but did you ever think of telling Catherine how you truly about her? You see how happy Maris and I are now that we've accepted our feelings for each other, so why not you two?" Dmitri asked confusedly as Luka sighed and gently brushed his hand off of her and folded her arms as she regarded him coolly.
"(I truly do want to, but I don't know how to go about it,)" Luka muttered with a blush as something elbowed her in the ribs causing her to turn her head to the source to find Maris staring at her with a confident grin and an arm around Dmitri's shoulder.
"(Luka, all you need to do is let her know outright. Just tell her and then you guys can be like us,)" Maris said cheerfully as she pulled Dmitri closer to her with a crushing hug causing her boyfriend to grunt and sheepishly smile as he gently patted her back while Luka smiled and shook her head.
"(You're right sis; I should tell her after we finish our training when I'm all sweaty,)" Luka stated simply as Maris gave her an odd look and gently placed Dmitri back on the ground and putting her paws on her hips.
"(I'm sorry, but what the fuck Luka?!)" Maris blurted out as the other pokemon on the training field stared at her while Maris just waved back at them curtly and continued to stare at Luka with one brow raised and her arms up in the air.
"(What? When I tell Catherine how I feel, she'll either say yes and I can hug her to my sweaty chest and push her down onto the bed or she'll say no and I can take a shower to cope with my broken heart,)" Luka replied evenly as Maris groaned and shook her head as she told Luka to do whatever she wanted which caused the aura pokemon to nod and walk back to her training partners who were currently trying to manipulate chi like Maris had taught them.
Luka, upon seeing Catherine staring at her while kneeling down next to the younger pokemon, took on a confident strut as she began sensually swaying her hips causing the former heiress to blush as Luka looked back and winked at her. Catherine flushed a bright, tomato red and covered her eyes with her hands causing Luka to chuckle as she made her way over to her training partners and asked about their progress.
"(I'd better get back to training too Dmitri; try asking Catherine if she has any technical machines as that would really help out Haxorus, Druddigon, and Hydreigon to learn fighting type moves,)" Maris informed him as Dmitri nodded and walked over to Catherine who still had her hands over her eyes as Geodude and Buizel were poking her in the sides concernedly.
"Hey Sparkplug, how's it going girl?" Dmitri asked his pokemon affectionately causing her to mewl in delight and rub her head against his leg as she looked up at him with bright, sunny eyes.
"(It's going great! Look what I learned!)" Sparkplug shouted excitedly as her feet started shining a blinding white and her tail solidified into a dense, solid iron as the appendage hit the ground and caused part of it to collapse on itself.
Sparkplug took a deep breath in and let it back out as electricity cackled and sparked around her body and let it transfer to her feet and tail which in turn caused them to glow a bright, colorful, sky blue as Sparkplug suddenly rushed over to a tree and swung her tail at it. The tree was shattered into many tiny pieces causing Dmitri's eyes to widen as he continued to watch Sparkplug doing her thing as she ran to another tree and turned her back to it as she struck out with her two hind legs causing it to burst into an array of wooden confetti. Sparkplug then sprinted to the biggest boulder she could find and stood up on her hind legs as she jabbed forward with her two front paws with a series of quick jabs causing the boulder to be smashed into dust. Sparkplug grunted and shouted loudly as more electricity began pouring off of her as the lights around the Pokemon Center and around the training field began fluctuating wildly until she ceased causing the lights to return to normal.
Dmitri looked at her in awe as the electricity around her body shined brighter and seemed more deadly as it sparked and burst with a loud ping. Sparkplug suddenly got down on all fours as she narrowed her eyes at a tree and sprinted as fast as her legs could carry her and head-butted it as hard as she could causing not only that tree to shatter, but the one behind it as well. Sparkplug then hunched over and sucked in large amounts of air as she threw her head back and brought it forward unleashing a loud, bestial roar the likes of which caused even Hydreigon to look on with an impressed look as the mighty dragon seemed to give the slightest of nods in approval of the young pokemon's roar.
"Sparkplug, wow, that was amazing. Keep up the great work girl," Dmitri stated proudly as Sparkplug eagerly nodded and went back to her training partners who had since stopped poking Catherine as she had finally stood up and had her arms folded across her chest.
"Catherine, could I ask you something?"
"Shoot."
"Do you have any TM's on you? It would really help out Haxorus and the others if they were able to learn fighting type moves," Dmitri questioned her as the former heiress shook her head causing Dmitri's shoulders to slump until he saw Catherine take out a pokegear and start punching in a number on it.
"What're you doing?" Dmitri inquired curiously as Catherine tapped her foot and played with a lock of her hair.
"I don't have any TM's, but I do know a guy who does," Catherine answered simply as the person on the other line picked up causing the former heiress to squeal with delight.
"Ahoy hoy, to whom am I speaking to?" a gruff, elderly voice coughed on the other line as Catherine grinned and spoke into her pokegear with barely contained excitement.
"Mr. Bensly, this is you isn't it? It's me, Catherine!" the excited former heiress nearly shouted, but managed to compose herself at the last minute.
"Lady Catherine, how good it is to hear from you again! I am really proud that you managed to rough up that barbarian sister of yours! Anyway, what do you need my lady?" Bensly asked interestedly as Catherine did a little victory dance before calming herself down.
"Mr. Bensly, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, could you possibly send over some TM's for me?" Catherine requested as a jovial laugh and the sounds of loud rummaging were heard on the other line.
"Now Lady Catherine, due to…recent events it's outlawed by any employee affiliated with Wayne Hotels to help you out, but let's say that my messenger was delivering some cargo somewhere and he was "attacked" by your Lucario; forcing him to drop the precious cargo," Bensly sneakily suggested causing Catherine to giggle.
"You're the best Mr. Bensly! Thank you!" Catherine yelled happily as a light hearted laugh was heard on the other line as Catherine hung up and put her pokegear back in her pocket while Dmitri stared at her expectantly.
"So how long-"
Dmitri was cut off by a loud, booming caw in the air as a majestic Pidgeot descended towards Catherine with a briefcase in its beak as Catherine clapped excitedly as it finally came to a rest on her shoulder.
"Thank you so much Pidgeot," Catherine stated happily causing the majestic bird to caw softly as Catherine gently took the briefcase from him as Pidgeot flew over to a tree and forcefully banged his head against it causing a big bruise to form on his forehead.
Letting out a loud caw, Pidgeot soared into the air like a rocket a leaving a trail behind him as he flew back to wherever he came from. Catherine opened the briefcase and her eyes lit up like a kid at a candy store when she noticed the wide array of TM's that Bensly had provided for her causing her to call over the training pokemon who lumbered over to her and stared at her expectantly.
"Everyone, I've requested some technical machines that could help you learn moves that you normally wouldn't be able to so I suggest you pick wisely," Catherine told the mob of pokemon who approached the briefcase and began carefully browsing through the discs available to them.
Maris smirked as she saw the moves that she had been dying to learn in the pile of TMs and spread them across the ground as Luka stared at her with her paws on her hips.
"(Sis, when you're done with those, Haxorus and the others want to use them,)" Luka informed Maris who nodded and began going through the rhythms the TM showed to learn the moves she chose while Luka looked at Dmitri confusedly.
"(You didn't tell Dmitri what moves you decided to learn sis?)" Luka said bewilderedly as Maris nodded and finished up the movements for one of the TMs that showed her focus blast and handed it to Haxorus who gave a curt nod and went through the same motions as Maris did to learn the move.
"(No, he trusts my judgement since I'm the one kicking ass and getting it kicked during battles,)" Maris answered bluntly s Luka nodded and intently studied the TM she picked out of the pile and went through the motions it showed to learn flash cannon.
"(So sis, when you're done learning your new moves, how about you show me how to use some of your moves?)" Luka asked politely causing Maris to grin and nod in response causing the aura pokemon to give a grin of her own.
Dmitri and Catherine looked on in awe as the pokemon all worked together to teach others moves they didn't know or helped others improve upon the moves they already knew how to utilize. They both saw Maris training the dragons and Luka on how to properly control their chi in order to utilize their newly learnt focus blast and saw Sparkplug teaching Buizel and Geodude how to properly roll without hurting themselves.
"Well, let's go Dmitri. Let's help them anyway we can," Catherine said firmly as she saw the dragons now practicing firing condensed ball of energy up into the sky and saw Maris showing Luka how to use drain punch as the martial arts pokemon threw out a quick jab with her energy encased paw and instructed Luka to do the same.
Meanwhile…
"I hope training is going well for them. I hate being cooped up in this room," Delia muttered angrily as Dragonite chuckled and patted his belly.
"(You said Dmitri's proven himself so you know they're in capable hands. Not only that they can learn a thing or two from Luka as well so stop worrying,)" Dragonite comforted her as Delia sighed and ran a hand through her hair causing the jolly dragon to groan.
"(What's wrong Delia?)" Dragonite questioned his friend who was rapping her fingers against her leg.
"It's just that woman who came in earlier and questioned me," Delia admitted as Dragonite snorted and rolled his eyes.
"(You mean…uh…Gordnoia or whatever? That woman was being such a wuss. What, you can't handle some loud explosions or attacks that destroyed the majority of the landscape and scared off all the innocent grass type pokemon? Give me a break, makes me wonder how she became a gym leader,)" Dragonite snarled causing Delia to giggle as Dragonite mumbled irritably to himself before gazing at Delia.
"(Have you talked your mom and dad?)" Dragonite asked her as Delia glared at him and gripped the bed sheets tightly.
"Don't ever talk to me about this again!" Delia roared fiercely as Dragonite coiled his tail tightly and narrowed his eyes at her.
"(Delia-)"
"No! They wanted a son, a strong champion who could continue on their legacy, but instead they got me, a girl who just tried to get their approval for so long until she realized it was pointless," Delia stated sternly as Dragonite solemnly nodded and looked at his trainer concernedly.
"(Did you tell the others about this; you know, like Haxorus and the others, Luka, Catherine, Dmitri, and Maris?)" Dragonite questioned her as Delia nodded quickly and placed her hands on top of the bed sheets as a mischievous smirk grew on the jolly dragon's face.
"(So are you and Haxorus-)"
"No, believe it or not, he wants to get together with Hydreigon," Delia stated simply as Dragonite did a spit take and went over what Delia told him in his head.
"Yeah, surprising isn't it. It's either Hydreigon or if Maris wasn't interested in Dmitri, it'd probably be him."
"(Wow, so he wants to be in a relationship with Mr. I must destroy everything huh? I guess that makes sense; they were best friends back when they were hatchlings right?)"
"Yeah, the two were inseparable and I knew it was something more than just close friendship after a while, but after he became Hydreigon, things just stared to fall apart, but due to recent events, it looks like they're picking up where they left off."
"(So what about you Delia; do you have the hots for anyone?)" Dragonite winked at her causing Delia to groan and shake her head while her friend snickered at her reaction.
"If Luka and Maris weren't already interested in anyone, I'd probably see if either one of them wanted to be in a relationship. I thought about asking Druddigon, but you guys are already a thing. I'd ask Dmitri if he were older and if Maris didn't already want him. So yeah, pretty much everyone I'm interested in already has someone else," Delia said as evenly as she could while trying to hide her evident sadness.
"(Ah don't worry Delia! You'll find love someday! You've lived for eighteen Summers so you're pretty much an adult now. There's always someone out there that's right for you, whether they be human or pokemon,)" Dragonite assured his trainer as he offered her a sincere smile while Delia couldn't help but grin a little and give a happy nod in response.
"I guess you're right," Delia admitted reluctantly as Dragonite clapped happily while Delia shook her head and lay down against the soft bed as she let a sigh of content escape her lips.
Meanwhile…
"(So Luka, just remember what I taught you and that gym leader won't stand a chance…if you get the opportunity to battle that is,)" Maris grumbled as Luka chuckled and began helping Catherine gather her belongings in order to return to her room.
"(I will sis, if by some slim chance Catherine lets me fight against the gym leader, I'll remember your teachings. She's saving me as a last resort as she wants to mimic Dmitri and win the gym battle using only two pokemon which will be more impressive considering both my teammates are weak against grass types,)" Luka said calmly as Maris tossed her a TM that was lying on the ground while Dmitri was giving some last minute instructions to Sparkplug and the dragons as training for the day came to an end.
"(Dmitri and I are going to check up on Delia along with dragon trio and tell her the progress we've made in training,)" Maris replied simply as Luka cocked her head and finished up helping Catherine gather her belongings.
"(Luka?)"
"(Yes, sis?)"
"(Remember, tell Catherine how you feel…in that weird way you told us how you would.)"
"(I will sis, don't you worry. Catherine and I will visit Delia once we get settled in her room,)" Luka responded as Maris shook her head and extended her paw to Luka who gripped it and gave her friend a firm handshake.
"Maris c'mon! Let's go see Delia!" Dmitri shouted as Haxorus tapped his foot impatiently, eager to see how his trainer was doing, causing Maris to nod and give Luka one final nod and jog back to her boyfriend and training partners.
After helping Catherine get settled in her own room in the Pokemon Center, she told her teammates what she was going to do and requested if they could stay with Dmitri and Maris for the duration. Buizel agreed immediately as he looked up to the fighting type, seeing her as a strong warrior and competent leader, while Geodude begrudgingly did so due to the fact that Luka seemed to get along with Dmitri. Luka, happy with the privacy, approached Catherine confidently as her best friend was sitting at the edge of the bed going through TV channels and complaining about the lack of variety.
Quickly taking it out of Catherine's hands which caused the former heiress to give an indignant huff, the aura pokemon turned off the TV and placed the remote on the counter as she tenderly grabbed Catherine's hands and stared into her calm blue eyes.
"Pee-yew! Luka, you smell like a Muk who had just threw up another Muk! How about you take a shower first and then you can tell me whatever you want to?" Catherine suggested as Luka fiercely shook her head and tightened her grip on her partner's hands causing Catherine to gasp.
"(No, this matter can no longer wait Catherine! It's I told you how I truly feel about you,)" Luka breathed out as Catherine's eyes softened and gave a short "oh" in response.
"Soooo…you like me how Maris likes Dmitri right?" Catherine said uncomfortably as she couldn't bring herself to break off the stare she had going with her partner as Luka continued to stare at her intently, as if she were peering into her soul.
"(I've felt this way about you after I slowly started to forgive you for something that wasn't even your fault and when I finally came to terms with what happened, I realized that my respect for you had grown into something more. I didn't come forward with it out of respect and because I didn't want your mind to be in turmoil.)"
"Well, I guess it's my turn to confess. I've always had that kind of lingering feeling for you Luka. I mean, the only people I was close to in my family was my mom and dad and you already know how I feel about my siblings. So when you came into my life and taught me so much, I wanted it to be more than just friends. I didn't come forward with it because I feared what everyone would think, but god damn Luka, do you know how hard it was not to toss a glance your way? I mean, everything about your body is perfect?" Catherine blurted out unconsciously as Luka flushed from her praise while Catherine mentally berated herself.
"(So, we both feel the same way about each other right?)"
"Yeah, we do."
"(So does this make us girlfriends?)"
"It does…I think."
Luka grew a mischievous grin on her face as she pulled Catherine closer to her wet, sweaty chest while being careful about the chest spike and pinned her down underneath her. Catherine's breathe hitched when she felt Luka tenderly brush a lock of chocolate brown hair away from her face and lowered her face down so their noses were touching one another. Catherine could feel the hot breathe of her partner on her face as Luka continued to stroke her face which relaxed the former heiress as she moved into Luka's touch.
"(Well, why don't we do something that would solidify our relationship?)"
"Just kissing for now okay?"
"(Of course my Catherine,)" Luka replied softly as she was slightly disappointed by Catherine's orders, but nevertheless slowly lowered her lips to Catherine's as the former heiress blushed and closed her eyes as she waited for Luka's lips to make contact with hers.