*distant footsteps*

*kicks door*

What's up, it's ya boi, bruhmeister! Back with another chapter of Roadtrip! Last time, Tyler and the girls finally got their first taste of adrenaline pumping battles! Let's pick up with where we left off, as the group left the park. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Still don't claim ownership.

Disclaimer 2, Electric Boogaloo: Alright, I'm going to be frank here. The frequency of chapters being put out is much higher for the time being since it's currently the quarantine period. I have jack shit to do, so why not write? That being said, I cannot promise that I will put out chapters this often in the future, especially if quarantine ends.

With all that hullabaloo outta the way, on to the chapter!

Edit: I republished this chapter, since Jerrend noticed a pretty large mistake on my part. How the hell did I forget that Normal attacks don't affect Ghost types? Anyways, thanks Jerrend for pointing it out for me!

"Hey, Tyler?" Jewel asked as she trotted alongside Autumn and Tyler, walking down the street. The night sky was full of stars, with the occasional shooting star. Less people and Pokemon roamed the streets, compared to a few hours ago. All three of them are pretty tired, agreeing to go back and rest at the inn.

Tyler looked down at the Eevee, before replying. "Yeah, what is it, Jewel?".

"Was that actually your first battle? You seemed to be in complete control, as my previous trainer's first battle went horribly." She shivered at the last bit, bad memories of constant beating leaking into her mind.

"Well…Not really." Tyler admitted with a somber expression. "I mean, yeah, that was my first battle against a stranger. But I used to….uh…train a lot with my dad. He was….really good…" Tyler spoke with a sniff.

"Oh, uh, I didn't mean to offend you.." Jewel spoke softly, remorse evident in her tone. "But…may I ask…uh..how's your dad?"

Tyler visibly froze with wide eyes. He can't take it anymore, He just can't. Almost instantly, tears streamed down his face, staining his sweater. He tried his best to muffle his sobs, though still fairly audible. Autumn, who was shaken up by this, rushed over and began nuzzling him, trying her best to soothe the sobbing boy.

Jewel backed away slowly, instantly feeling regret as she felt her own tears well up in her eyes. This is the second time she hurt someone she cared about, her first being her previous trainer. Though, she was proven wrong. Horribly wrong, as the beatings have shown her.

"I-I'm s-so sorry, T-Tyler… I-I didn't k-know…" She mumbled, beating herself up at the idiotic question. Before she could speak anymore, Tyler rubbed his eyes with his sleeve and hugged both Pokemon, catching Jewel by surprise.

"It's fine…You didn't know. You didn't hurt me, Jewel. In fact, I think you helped." He spoke, eyes still wet with tears, but no longer crying. Both of the girls gave him confused looks.

"Sometimes, its better to face your issues, rather than repressing them. You two give me the strength to do so. I never speak about my past, but I now realise… Not speaking up is like leaving a wound untreated, it stays and hurts." Tyler spoke softly at them, hugging them tighter. "I'll explain everything at the inn. I promise."

Jewel couldn't believe it. Autumn couldn't believe it. After a breakdown that send a normal person down a world of hurt, Tyler gave them the most innocent smile they've seen. Both of them knew, deep down, Tyler was more than just another trainer as seen by everyone else. He was their trainer, their human, their companion.

Tyler smiled as he set both of them on his shoulders. Then, he began walking down the empty street to the inn. Jewel and Autumn glanced at each other, gave a quick smile, then leaned both of their heads to his.

Entering the inn, he noticed the empty lobby. The old man was nowhere to be seen, instead a piece of paper which said "Gone to the bathroom" sat in his place. Tyler chuckled and went to his room.

Immediately after entering his room, he plopped his two Pokemon on the bed. He moved over and at in front of them both, crossing his legs.

"Right, ask me anything. I won't hold anything back." He spoke.

"A-are you sure, Tyler? Y-you don't have to…" Autumn said, her voice giving off a nervous tone.

"It's fine, Autumn. It's better if I did, anyway." Tyler reassured her. The room stayed silent for a moment, before Jewel spoke up.

"H-how did you get those scars o-on your back?" Jewel asked nervously, still unsure if she wanted to.

"Oh, so you noticed… Well, I guess I gotta explain them. Back when I was young, I'd say like eight or something, I wanted to be a trainer really badly. Since I was too young, my father decided to start training me early, so that I would get a headstart later. He was a great trainer, as he had collected all eight gym badges. Though, before he took on the League, he met my mother. He decided to quit before taking it on. Anyways, for around six or seven years, I trained with him in the forest near Lake Verity. He taught me a lot about being a trainer, such as caring and trusting your Pokemon. 'Protect them and they will do the same for you', he said. He wasn't wrong." Tyler stopped briefly, petting both his precious Pokemon, earning a delighted smile from Jewel and a blush and a grin from Autumn.

"Anyways, one day while I watched him demonstrating a battle, a wild Ursaring showed up out of nowhere. At least, I thought it was wild, before a man showed up behind it. For the life of me, I can't remember what he looked like, as I was scared shitless. My dad noticed my shock, but it was too late. When he turned around, the Ursaring…slashed him, knocking him down to the ground. H-he coughed up blood…before yelling at me." Tyler suddenly stopped, the screams as clear as day.

"Go…GO!"

"But, dad…"

"I SAID GO!"

"DAD! DAAAAD!"

A tear fell. He wanted to stop right there, but he knew he had to power on. "The Ursaring ran at me and let off a few shallow slashes. I tried running as fast as I could, before gunshots rang out behind me. I didn't even notice that I got shot multiple times in my back. Thankfully, a Pokecenter was in sight and I reached it just before I collapsed. H-had I-I not ran earlier…." Tyler spoke with a sniff, concluding his painful flashback.

"W-wow…I-I didn't know…" Autumn spoke, tears in her eyes. Jewel was still in shock,, but she quickly shook it off and ran towards him, wrapping her legs around his chest, hugging him.

"T-Tyler…" She spoke and stuttered, tears falling down her cheek. Tyler pulled Autumn in into the hug as well. Tyler sighed as he felt the weight on his chest, caressing it gently.

All I'd do for them

After holding the hug for a few minutes, he broke it off. Just then, he took of a whiff of his body, noticing the stench. "Ugh, I stink. We should probably take a shower." He said with a chuckle. Both Pokemon laughed in response.

A quick shower for all three of them later, Tyler slipped into a maroon T-shirt and his boxers. He walked over and laid in his bed, yawning instantly.

"C'mon girls, let's get some shut eye." He spoke before yawning.

"Yeah, I'm really tired." Jewel said while curling herself into a ball and laying on his chest.

"S-sure…" Autumn spoke as she laid down beside Tyler's head, leaning hers into his.

Tyler carefully reached over to the bedside lamp and turned it off. He nodded off soon after.

…

The rays of sun shone brightly in a warm orange glow, straight onto Tyler's face. He cracked his eyes open, using his hand to shield himself. Letting out a refreshed yawn, he glanced at his still sleeping Pokemon.

Jewel was no longer curled into a ball, instead she was sprawled out across the bed. Her chest rising and falling softly. Tyler found this to be absolutely adorable. He looked over to his left and spotted Autumn, who was lying on her back with a smile on her face. Her legs occasionally twitched, as did her ear.

Tyler got up slowly to avoid waking them up. He knelt down and grabbed his clothes from his backpack. Silph Co. backpacks are a technological marvel, since they stored almost a 30 times amount as a normal bag of the same size.

He walked over to the bathroom and got undressed, taking a quick shower.

Right, we're heading to the lake today. After that, I want to head on over to Oreburgh, since that's where the first gym is.

Finishing his morning routine, he headed back into the main room. Jewel was already awake and Autumn was showing signs of consciousness.

"Morning, Jewel. Sleep well?" He asked, she responded with a smile.

"Of course! I'll always sleep well with you!" She replied with a toothy grin. Tyler grinned back in response. "That's good to hear, since I'll always be there."

Hearing the racket, Autumn fully awoke. She rubbed her eyes with her forepaw, before looking over to him. "G-good morning, Tyler."

"Good morning, Autumn. You seem to have a good sleep." He said as he picked her up, ruffling her hair with his free hand. "Sorry we didn't go to the hot springs last night, I forgot."

"It's fine. Your issues were more important…" Autumn spoke fairly nervously, a blush on her face as she tried to look away. Tyler laughed and set her down, scratching under her chin again. "Aww, thank you." He replied, before looking at both of them again.

"Right, today we're gonna head to the Lake. Probably gonna set up camp there for a bit, then we'll head to Oreburgh, since we'll take the first gym there." Tyler said, recalling his thoughts last night.

"Alright, sounds fun!" Jewel yipped, wagging her bushy brown tail. Surprisingly, Autumn also seemed excited, a wide smile on her face.

"Indeed!" She chimed in. Tyler smiled at both of them, as he began packing his things. He grabbed a dark green hoodie and put it on, covering his white T-shirt base layer. He pulled out a scarf and drapped it around his neck and a pair of gloves.

"Lake Verity's pretty close to the edge of the sea, not to mention being smack dab in Route 201. It's gonna be pretty cold there. And I know what to do with you two." He added with a smirk, receiving confused looks from both Pokemon.

…

Tyler stepped out of the inn, with his backpack behind him. He unzipped his hoodie slightly, letting the two pleased faces pop out of the hole.

"Mmmm, so warm…" Jewel cooed, highly appreciating the warmth of both Tyler and Autumn.

"Yeah, it's so nice…" Autumn added in, her eyes half closed in comfort.

Tyler chuckled and got into his S2000, starting the engine and driving out of the parking lot, leaving the inn.

As he drove through the town, he couldn't help but feel happy. His Pokemon were enjoying themselves, indulging in the warmth of his hoodie and he himself enjoying the drive. As he approached a red light, he got a mischievous idea.

Engaging the clutch, he revved his engine, which was much louder than before, accompanied by popping and crackling. This startled both Pokemon that were napping on his chest, which got him to laugh fairly loudly.

"Hey! I was sleeping you know…" Autumn pouted, smacking Tyler's face lightly, getting him to laugh more. "Hmpf!" Jewel scoffed, visibly annoyed.

"Haha, c'mon girls. It was funny." Tyler spoke before noticing the green light, prompting him to go. "Heh, sorry about that." He said while rubbing the two heads poking out of his clothes.

After a few more minutes of driving, they eventually left the town. Tyler spotted the road that lead to the Lake and turned on to it.

The green scenery immediately surrounded them. Tall pine trees surrounded them, the wind blowing in between them. The sun shined fairly faintly through the treetops, not enough to make it any warm enough to prevent a tiny vapor cloud form after every breath.

Tyler slowed down a bit to let his roof go up. He turned on the heater, set it fairly warm and pointed it towards him and his Pokemon.

Roughly half an hour of travel later, he pulled up at the parking lot at the end of the road. "Hey girls, we're here. C'mon, let's get a move on." He said, tapping each of them on the forehead to wake them up. Jewel cracked open an eye, letting out a yawn. Autumn sneezed, jolting her awake.

"Hooaaahh…Alright." Jewel said with a muffled yawn. "That was fast…" Autumn spoke softly, a bit groggy after her nap.

"Well, not really. It was roughly a two hour drive. Anyways, let's get a moving, girls." Tyler spoke, getting out of his car and walking over the trunk. He grabbed his backpack and slung it on his back. He promptly walked along the path that lead into the forest.

…

"Hey, I wonder how Tyler's doing? It's been sometime." Josh spoke as he typed in various lines of code into his laptop. "We should probably ring him up."

"Eh, who cares. Ty's probably fine. He's got Pokemon, two of em in fact. Don't need to worry bout him." Samuel spoke lazily, scrolling through Twitter on his phone while lying on the couch.

"I hope he wasn't in Pastoria when those explosions went off, though. Apparently, after the tears closed, some people reported feeling ill. Nausea, headaches, the whole lot…" Josh added, finally finishing writing his program. He turned around to face Samuel, letting off a sigh. He got up and walked over to his phone, passing Helios and Ruby, who were both napping on each other.

Quickly scrolling through his contacts, he selected "Tyler mah boi" and held the phone to his ear, waiting for him to pick up.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Tyler. It's Josh, how are you?"

"Hey, Josh. I'm good, walking through the forest leading to Lake Verity right now. Man, it's pretty darn cold."

"Yeah, so I've heard. There's a pretty sudden drop in temperature in that area according to the news. I wonder what's up?"

"Dunno, seems pretty fine to me. Anyways, you're kinda breaking up. I'll call you later, alright?"

"Yeah, sure. See ya, Tyler."

…

"See ya, Josh." Tyler replied before hanging up and pocketing his phone. He felt the cold going straight through his body, stronger this time. This was definitely strange.

"H-hey Tyler, is it just me or is it getting really cold?" Autumn asked, shivering all the while. "Y-Yeah, I-It's f-freezing." Jewel added, also shivering.

"Yeah, no kidding. It's really fucking cold. What the hell is going on?" Tyler swore, gritting his teeth at the cold. He continued walking before approach a clearing, when he froze at the sight.

A huge mass of ice sat in the middle. It formed a huge dome covered in large spikes. The ground surrounding it was frozen solid, as did the nearby water in the lake. A hole on the side gave way to the interior, in which a Frosslass stood, eyes glowing teal. A large of amount of blue energy emanated from it, accompanied by a bone chilling blizzard swirling on the outside.

"What the hell?" Tyler muttered fairly loudly. This attracted the attention of the Frosslass who glared directly at him. He felt a sense of dread shoot through him. Jewel and Autumn immediately leaped out of his hoodie, both of them getting into a battle stance.

With an ear piercing scream, the dome broke, send sharp shards of ice flying in all directions. Tyler immediately hid behind a tree, as a large shard stuck deep into it's bark. Jewel used her speed to dodge the oncoming shards and Autumn blew a long stream of extremely hot fire, immediately melting all oncoming spikes.

"Get ready, girls! I think this'll be tough!" Tyler said as he stood behind them, concentrating on the Snow Land Pokemon. Jewel and Autumn both looked back and nodded.

Letting out another ear piercing scream, launching a large Shadow Ball that zipped through the air at blinding speeds.

"Jewel! Quick Attack left, then use Swift! Autumn! Dodge right, Confuse Ray then Will-O-Wisp!"

Jewel zipped quickly, barely dodging the explosion caused by the ball and shot off a volley of stars at the Frosslass. At the same time, Autumn rolled and sprinted to the right, dodging the ball and it's explosion. Immediately, her eyes flashed rapidly, producing a visible ray going straight towards the Frosslass.

Unfortunately, the Frosslass sent out a Blizzard, destroying the stars sent by Jewel. She then nimbly dodged the Confuse Ray, rushing over and planting a Shadow Ball directly at Autumn, knocking her back. The Frosslass turned her attention to Jewel, rushing over to it with an icy fist.

"Autumn! Shit, Jewel, jump then Bite, follow up with Swift!" Jewel nodded, jumping just before the Frosslass landed her Ice Punch. Jewel bit down hard, causing the Frosslass to hiss with pain and sent another volley of stars out of her mouth, which unfortunately phased right through it. Autumn got back up from the previous attack, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. Tyler cursed himself internally.

Shit, how could I forget!? Normals do jack shit against Ghosts

The Frosslass clasped her hands together and shot out a sharp gust of Icy Wind towards the Vulpix. "Autumn! Flamethrower, then grab the water with Extrasensory!"

She let out a long stream of fire, turning the Icy Wind into water. Her eyes then glowed pink as the water froze in place with Psychic power, before shooting it back at the Frosslass. Unfortunately, the Frosslass dodged it. Jewel, however, got hit with it directly.

"Dammit, Arceus-dammit!" Tyler cursed as he glanced at his hurt Eevee. The Frosslass charged two Shadow Balls and threw them at Jewel, who barely stammered to her feet.

"Autumn! Flame Charge! Quick!" The Vulpix immediately surrounded herself in pain and jumped at the Frosslass, ramming into her with full strength, knocking the Shadow Balls off target. "Jewel! Baby-Doll Eyes, then Bite!"

Jewel widened her eyes and looked at the Frosslass with a worried expression, then launching herself at it and biting down hard, letting go quickly. "Autumn! Quick Att-" He was stopped as his Vulpix flew and tumbled, stopping right in front of it.

The Frosslass threw a hard Ice Punch at Autumn, who was now struggling to stand. "Autumn, shit! Are you okay!?"

"I-I'm…fuh-fine…" She spoke in short breaths. Tyler glanced over as the stars struck the Frosslass, who was still going strong. "You sure?" He glanced back at the battered Vulpix, who nodded weakily.

The Frosslass screamed again, as the harsh Blizzard picked up even more. Tyler can barely see five meters in front of him. He called out to Jewel, hoping to Arceus she heard him.

"Jewel? Jewel!?" He yelled, shivering fairly intensely. Autumn noticed and kept a small flame lit.

Suddenly, Jewel smashed into the ground in front of him, clearly on her last legs. Tyler felt tears streaming down his face as ran and tried to get to her. Suddenly, the Frosslass emerged in front of him, charging a Shadow Ball before launching it at him. It struck the ground between him and Autumn, knocking both of them back.

Tyler slammed into a tree, letting out a grunt in pain. He hissed as he touched his shoulder. He suddenly noticed the Vulpix beside him and crawled over to her. Thankfully, she was only knocked out.

"Fuck! Autumn!" He yelled, grabbing her in his hands as he began crawling away at the approaching Frosslass. Behind her, Jewel slowly opened her eyes and looked ahead. She looked at Tyler, who was incredibly scared.

"T-Tyler…I…I…I won't lose you!"

A blinding light shone through the Blizzard, catching the Frosslass and Tyler off guard. It lasted for a few moments before fading, the Blizzard still ever present. Before the Frosslass could move, she was wrapped up in white and pink ribbons, grabbing her and throwing her straight into the ground. A white and pink blur then ran over and struck the Frosslass with incredible speed, knocking it into a tree.

Tyler slowly moved his hand away, staring right into the Sylveon that stood before him. She gave him a smile and ran over to him.

"Jewel…? Is that…you?" Tyler nervously spoke, shaken by what had just happened.

"Of course, silly! Who else would it be?" Jewel yipped with glee, giving him a wide smile.

"You…evolved. You did it!" Tyler spoke with newfound excitement, hugging her tightly. She leaned into his hug, before suddenly breaking it and turning around, getting into a battle stance. Just then a Shadow Ball zipped through the air, the group jumping away from it before it exploded.

Pulling out his phone, he gave Jewel a quick scan.

Species: Sylveon

Trainer: Tyler Whiting

Battle Level: 35

Ability: Pixilate

Learned Moves: Disarming Voice, Draining Kiss, Light Screen, Quick Attack, Swift, Double Kick, Bite, Baby Doll Eyes, Tackle

Tyler looked over the information quickly, pocketing his phone soon after. He decided to pull out Autumn's Pokeball, recalling her to keep her safe.

The Frosslass suddenly emerged from the Blizzard, rushing over to Jewel and throwing an Ice Punch, which the Sylveon dodged. "Quick Attack, then Draining Kiss!" Tyler yelled, Jewel nodding in response.

She ran up with great speed and struck the Frosslass, knocking it down. She then planted her lips on to the downed Pokemon, as she glowed pink. She broke off quickly, noting the now weakened Pokemon in front of her. Tyler saw the opportunity and after thinking back at her new ability, decided to finish the battle once and for all.

"Finish it with Swift!" Jewel opened her mouth and let out a much larger volley of pink stars, all of them striking the Frosslass, knocking it back pretty far. It tried getting up, but immediately collapsed, fainting. The Blizzard subsided immediately after.

Tyler fell onto his knees and sighed in exhaustion, his shoulder still hurting. Thankfully, he didn't need to move it much to change gears, meaning he could drive over to Oreburgh and heal up.

"Holy Arceus, that was something…I can't beli-" He was suddenly cut off as Jewel leapt to him, knocking him over into a hug, tears streaming down her face.

"T-Tyler! I-I was s-so scared o-of losing you….I…I.." She said between sniffs. Tyler gave her a reassuring look, before hugging her tightly. "It's ok, Jewel. I'm here and I forever will be." He spoke softly, before his nose touched hers. A blushed formed on her cheeks, getting Tyler to chuckle.

"Anyways, I better get this checked up…" He said, pointing to his shoulder. His sleeve was fairly torn up, exposing the bruises and deep cuts that bled a bit. The largest injury however was right on his ball joint, which was a huge bruise the size of a saucer.

"Oh, that doesn't look good. Tyler, I'm so sorry I couldn't help quicker, I wa-" She was stopped as Tyler silence her with a finger. "No, you have nothing to be sorry for. In fact, I should be the one apologizing, dragging you two into this. You two got hurt for me, and yet you're the one apologizing? No way."

Jewel stayed silent, shocked at his answer, a small tear forming in her eye. Tyler smiled at her and wiped away the tear, before speaking again.

"Now, now. I don't like seeing you girls sad. Come on, let's go and get you two healed up. And me checked out." He said as he beckoned her to follow him.

"Tyler…I love you." Jewel muttered under her breath, which surprisingly Tyler caught. He looked over and smiled at her again, scratching her between her ears. "I love you too, Jewel."

The pair walked through the woods, with the trainer trying not to let his shoulder move too much.

That's it for this chapter! Our little Eevee is now a full grown Sylveon, the bane of Dragon types! All it took was a broken shoulder from Tyler, fair trade or not, I'll leave that up to you guys. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter. bruhmeister, out!