Chapter 40

Watching Camerupt flinch and fall to the ground at Wartortle's super effective water attack, May let out a relieved smile. Glaceon had triumphed against Maxie's pokémon until Camerupt had been released. Since then, she'd been struggling because of May's own carelessness.

She'd asked Glaceon to utilise a dig attack, only to have Camerupt use magnitude. If she'd been better, she would have remembered that Camerupt was a fire and ground type. At least Wartortle had won reasonably quickly with his type advantage.

'Ugh! You are...quite capable... I fell behind, but only by an inch,' Maxie grimaced, his lips turned in distaste as he withdrew his pokémon.

There was a moment of silence where May crossed her arms and stared at the man in an expectant manner. She knew that look quite well from her brother, and knew that there was a lot more the man wanted to say.

'Oh? So you repulsed the great Maxie in battle. Haha... You never fail to entertain me!' The man mocked, his lips pulled back in a sneer that reminded May a little too much of her younger brother when they'd been on her journey with Ash.

She had to be missing Max, surely this man couldn't be that similar to him. Max's ego was the size of a planet, sure, but this guy… it was a whole galaxy with the way he was acting.

'An excellent start! This time, permit me to unleash my full strength! Once you've tasted my pokémon's mega evolved power, you will say good-bye to your last shred of hope!' The man continued, though May couldn't shake the eerie similarities between her younger brother and this man.

Was it their serious nature, or perhaps the air of knowledge they gave off?

Blinking as his Xtransceiver rang, May shook such thoughts away from her mind, mentally reminding herself to contact her brother later. She didn't think that Maxie had a very supportive family, and hoped that her brother would remind her that even Maxie was human.

'Hm? Yes, it's me. ...Oh? Then it is Mount Pyre. I understand. I will come at once. Get ready, Archie's team are headed that way too,' the man clipped, piquing May's interest as he, too, mentioned Mount Pyre. Whatever was there, it interested both Team Aqua and Team Magma, and she knew both groups would definitely cause more trouble.

With an extravagant flair, the man turned to stare at May, his eyes calculating as he stepped closer to her. Tracing the outline of her face, the man stared down into her eyes, though she didn't flinch or blink in response.

She wouldn't let him get the better of her.

'I am sorry to cut our battle short, but I'm afraid I must excuse myself. Such rudeness demands reparation. You may keep this meteorite as my apologies, and you may do with it what you like,' Maxie smiled at her, though it sent a spiral of fear down her back.

Walking ahead, the man paused only slightly before stating, 'and I will not again forget the face of the trainer who managed to thwart me in battle!'

Returning her wartortle, May grimaced, 'let's get the rest of you healed up before the press get here.'

Wiping her forehead with the back of her arm, May grimaced. She could only hope that all of the grunts had gotten the message and cleared off, otherwise she was going to have a hard time getting back down.

Looking back at the direction she should be heading, she saw Maxie storm away at a brisk pace, no hint of discomfort visible. Frowning at his back, May wondered if the man was always as blunt with others as he had been with her.

Trying to keep her decorum, May followed the path he took, dodging any pokémon or rocks.

Before too long, she'd returned to the cable car, May handed her money over and took the trip down, barely noticing the beautiful scenery outside. Whatever was happening at Mount Pyre could cause trouble for the league. The champion would want her to make a report to him, even if she had no idea how these things were done.

She landed back on the route and, upon seeing some reporters, scrambled hurriedly into the waiting car, dialling a number as she buckled up.

'Hello May, how did you go?' The smooth voice of Steven Stone smiled into her ear, as confident and suave as ever.

If only she could mirror that sentiment given how disgusting she felt having come down from the top of the volcano.

'I dealt with it,' May responded bitterly before recounting the events. Closing up, she said, 'Maxie and Archie were both talking about Mount Pyre and will probably be heading that way with their teams. They're both looking into mega evolution.'

'You did well, gym leader. Go home and rest your pokémon, I'll let you know if there's anything else that you may help me with,' Steven said down the device, though his optimism wasn't shown in his voice.

Was it selfish that she wanted him to ask how she went? Or that she wanted him to congratulate her for how promptly she'd reacted to his summons?

'Yes champion,' May muttered bitterly, hearing the man chuckle in her ear before terminating the call.

Feeling her ears burn, May pocketed the device, wondering what she'd done that was particularly amusing.

Turning her gaze out of the window, she considered why the champion was specifically using her especially when other gyms were closer and probably more experienced in helping the league. She couldn't think of a reason unless it were to keep her preoccupied with her home life being as it was.

Moreover, why did she dislike when he called her gym leader? Wasn't that technically all she was? Or was she still hoping that she'd be a coordinator?

A/N:

So I may have made a mistake with this story... in what is going to be published in a few weeks. Not having the game really meant I made a mistake ahhhh. Please forgive me when you get to that point, but I tried to fix it in the best way possible. I'm sorryyyyyy

Also if you knew how much I had written... hehe. Heh. I've been living and breathing this fiction for a bit, just trying to get it finished... and watching anime. Has anyone seen 86? I'm obsessed and want season 3 out last yeaaaaar hahaha but if you're a softy who can't handle war stories, it might not be for you. I wouldn't have thought it was for me cause I bawl my eyes out at the drop of a hat... but I didn't cry too much haha

Sorry for the tangent. I'm wondering if anyone would be interested in me writing a short story on that anime (not the light novel, if I start going down that road my poor stories will be neglected) Ahhhh Shin x Lenaaaa (I'm sorry, none of my friends have seen it)

Stay safe and stay hydrated, wherever you are :)