A top a grassy hill, Green sat beneath the stars. A circle of grass had been cleared. Inside it, Green and Abby had set up their tents and dug out a small fire pit. They'd pitched their tents close together so that their walls touched. The fire pit smouldered, the last of its embers stubbornly holding on to life. Around it, the Pokémon slept in a group. Graveler had dug himself out a crater and was curled up inside it. Primeape slept beside him in a crouching position, his legs tucked up into his fur. He looked like a furry boulder with ears. Electabuzz and Tyrogue were sprawled out on their stomachs, sleeping side by side. Dragonair slept beside them, curled up in a spiral. Inside his spiral, Horsea and Charmander slept. Even Gyarados was out his ball. He slept at the base of the hill, encircling it. Green sat outside their group at the edge of the clearing watching Machoke. He was down in the plains shadowboxing. With fists blazing orange, he fought an invisible opponent, attacking ferociously and weaving away from attacks unseen. Jabs, slugs, uppercuts and wide swings hits came together to form all sorts of combos. As she watched, Green thought about her next fight with Janine. Or at least she tried to. Something prodded the back of her mind, an annoying, infrequent nibble. It never quite faded, only dulling when it wasn't showing itself. Green tried to ignore it but each time it prodded, her eye twitched and her hands tensed. Until eventually she couldn't resist. She turned around and looked at Abby's tent. Halfway through standing, she stopped herself.

"No I can't, she's asleep," she thought.

Green sat back down.

"It can wait 'till tomorrow," she thought.

The nibble in her mind prodded and Green slammed her palms into her forehead as if that would make it stop. It didn't. She kneaded her forehead and shut her eyes. It persisted. With a huff, Green stopped and went back to trying to ignore it but when she opened her eyes, she found Machoke had stopped shadowboxing. He looked up at her, his face fraught with concern. Machoke clambered over Gyarados and climbed the hill. He sat down beside Green and put his arm around her.

"Choke?"

"I'm okay, really. Don't let me stop your training."

"Ma…"

Machoke tightened his hold on her, bringing her firmly to his side. Green sighed and lay her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you…"

His body was hot as if Green had lain her head on a giant loaf of bread fresh out of the oven. A bold contrast to the chilled night air. Again, Green's mind began to drift. The beginning of a strategy began to form. The nibbling returned at once and steered Green's mind away.

It had been Willis who found them, knelt on the ground crying uncontrollably against each other. His presence seemed to snap the world back into focus. If he hadn't shown up, Green didn't know when they'd have stopped crying. Finding the strength to speak had taken a while but in the meantime, Willis dried their tear-stained faces and brought them new shirts from Green's discarded bag. The bag is what lead him to them, apparently. When he found it on the side of the path he had noticed Primeape's footprints and followed them all the way through the grass. Once they'd explained what'd happened, the horror on his face struck Green to her core and almost made her start crying all over again. Thankfully, he rid his face of its horror quickly. His eyes had welled with tears but he still kept a smile and tried to crack a few jokes. Somehow, he managed to bring smiles back to Green and Abby's faces, if only for a little while. After an hour or so of sitting in the clearing, Willis offered to let them stay in the village for another night. While tempting, Green and Abby decided to refuse. They'd made excuses about needing to be efficient with time and being on a tight schedule. But really, Green just needed to keep moving towards something. She figured Abby must have felt the same way. And figure was all she could do. A mutually agreed silence dominated the walk through Route 15's infinite plain of grass. As well as the preparation of their camp, the making of dinner and the meal that followed. The solemn nature of it all wasn't lost on Green. She hadn't fought it. Her mind had too many thoughts buzzing about and clattering up the space to leave room for speaking.

A squeeze from Machoke brought Green's mind back to the present.

"Hmm? Oh, what's up buddy?"

Machoke was frowning.

"Ma…"

Green kissed the back of Machoke's hand right between his enormous knuckles. He still frowned at her so Green got up on her knees and kissed his cheek. A smile flickered across his face and his face grew even warmer. Machoke chuckled and Green giggled. His thumb kneaded her waist. He gazed at her with big, wanting eyes. She placed her hand on his chest, leaned forward and kissed him. Machoke's grip tightened around her lower back as he returned the kiss. He pulled her closer and Green held onto his shoulders, feeling the huge bulging muscles. However, as Machoke began to lift up the back of her shirt Green suddenly pulled away. Machoke recoiled, looking alarmed.

"Ma?"

"I-I'm sorry. You didn't do anything wrong."

"Machoke…"

Machoke moved his hand away from Green's waist and instead put his arm around her shoulder. Delicately, he pulled her close and rested his chin on top of her head.

"Thanks, buddy," Green choked.

She leaned against his large frame and held onto his arm, wrapping her thin arms around his thick upper arm. Tears welled in her eyes and although letting them flow would have definitely felt nice, Green fought them off anyways.

"Dumbass," she thought, "What the hell are you crying for? What gives you the right?"

Machoke's chin lifted from her head and his body turned. Something rustled behind them. Green followed his gaze and looked over her shoulder. The flaps of Abby's tent opened. Green winced and squeezed Machoke's arm. Abby emerged from the tent, her auburn hair frizzled and her eyes drooped from want of sleep. She sat beside them.

"Can't sleep?" Abby asked.

"Yeah… you?"

A smile crossed Abby's face.

"Yeah."

Abby smiled at Machoke.

"How about you Machoke?"

Machoke nodded and returned the smile.

"I could hear your training, it sounded like it's coming along well."

"Ma!"

Abby giggled and turned her gaze back to the stars. The moon caught her eye, painting a thin white blade across her iris. Her gaze only remained on the stars for a moment, before meeting Green's. Green looked down at the dirt and shrunk away.

"Abby… we need to talk."

"Do we?"

"Y-yeah."

"I thought we'd left this behind."

Green shook her head. Abby looked at her feet and shuffled them.

"Look, we just made a mistake. That's all. We could have avoided all this. If I'd just told you how I felt."

"But, talking about that stuff is hard. That's not your fault." Green shook her head again. "And you keep saying we."

"Well yeah."

"You didn't make a mistake. I did."

Abby sighed and tucked her knees to her chest. They sat in silence for an agonising moment.

"Back then before. You asked me if you'd raped me."

"I did…"

"Well, I still stand by the answer I gave you. You didn't."

"I-"

"Please just listen to me."

Green recoiled.

"I came to you. You said no and I still kept pushing you."

"Abby… you didn't rape me."

"I know, that's not what I'm saying." Abby looked away. "It was only after, that it became an issue. My regret it- I… I was more frustrated with myself than anything. I only acted the way I did towards you because I was scared to ruin what we have between us. And I know you think you still hold some responsibility for what happened. I'm not disagreeing, but it isn't solely your fault."

Abby stopped herself as she began to ramble. She took a long deep breath.

"Please don't think you're evil because of what happened," Abby said.

"Evil?"

Green looked down at her hands. She closed them into fists and took a deep, shaky breath.

"Okay… We made a mistake then. So now we have to fix it."

Abby smiled.

"How?"

"I don't know."

"I don't think this is something you just fix."

"Yeah, maybe."

Abby turned so her whole body was facing Green.

"I think it's something that'll just heal, gradually. We just have to have the strength to let it."

"You think so?"

Abby grinned.

"Yeah."

A smile tried to creep across Green's face. She resisted but when Abby reached out and grasped her hand, she couldn't help but let herself smile. They both smiled at each other and squeezed the other's hand. However, Abby soon looked away again and let go.

"That's why- uh… well…" Abby fidgeted. "I saw you and Machoke before."

Green gasped.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean for you to see that I wasn't-"

"Please don't let what happened between us ruin what you two have."

Green looked back at Machoke. To her shock, his eyes were welling with tears. At once, she grasped his forearm.

"Ruin what we have? No, it couldn't. I just… I think I might need some time before I'm ready to be intimate like that again."

Machoke smiled and nodded, and Green gave his arm a hug.

"Me too," Abby said.

She pepped up and scooted closer to Green.

"So, we're still friends right?"

"Yeah, definitely!"

They both giggled and hugged each other.

"Without the benefits, at least for a while," Abby said.

"Of course."

They were joined by Machoke who put his arms around both of them and pulled them to his chest. Abby laughed.

"Whoa! He's so warm!"

Green laughed too.

"It's cause his muscles are so dense. They can store up to 10 times the amount of energy ours can."

"Cool!"

Green and Abby awoke early the next morning. They made breakfast together, frying ham and toast for everyone. As soon as their meal was over, they packed up and continued along Route 15. In every direction, there was only grass and hills and more grass. While their Pokémon raced and explored, Abby and Green laughed together.

"Do you have a plan at least?" Abby asked.

"Ah, not just yet. I guess rely on Machoke."

"Maybe you could cross-type into steel? Steel can block poison attacks completely, right?"

"Ooo, that's a good idea!"

Green grinned.

"Machoke already knows rock-type moves, steel shouldn't be too different. The real issue is Janine's fighting style."

"What's her fighting style?"

"Well, if she's anything like Koga she'll be all about evasion. My team wants to rush in and overpower her with raw strength, so not a great match-up."

"Oh yeah, isn't Koga's team meant to be like unhittable?"

"Pretty much."

"Yeah, that's not good for you."

Green and Abby broke out into laughter again.

"You remember Jackson, right?" Green asked.

"Who, the kid?"

"Yeah, safari hat, khakis."

"Oh yeah, why?"

"I had a battle with him before we joined up with you outside Vermilion. His Beedrill, with a single jab of poison, crippled Machoke insanely fast. He only barely took out Beedrill before the poison had corrupted his whole body."

Abby grimaced.

"That's terrifying…"

"I know right. Imagine what a master's poison is capable of."

"Is Janine a master?"

"Close enough."

"Wow, she's our age right?" Abby asked.

"A little older. I'm pretty sure she's 19."

Green smirked.

"Not too impressive, you'll be a dragon master soon."

Abby laughed and clutched the back of her head.

"I'm not even a tamer yet. A master is a whole series of steps above that."

"You need to catch every species of dragon to be a master, right?"

"Right! And not just catch, you gotta raise them and train them!"

"I bet you know all their names, huh?"

Abby grinned wildly.

"Yup!"

Over the next hour or so, Abby listed off all the dragons she knew. Some Green knew like Dragonite, Salamance and Flygon but there were a whole lot she'd never heard before. Each time Abby said a name she didn't recognise, Green stopped her and asked about it. And each time Abby gave her a description of its biology, evolution tree, region of origin, typing and even its number in the international Pokédex. Once Abby had finished her description of Regidrago, a dragon of legend from Galar, she came to a sudden stop.

"Green!"

"Yeah?" Green laughed.

"I wanna do some training!"

"Alright, let's do it!"

Green stuck two fingers in her mouth and let out a shrieking whistle. All their Pokémon stopped what they were doing and looked over at them.

"Gather up! Time for training!"

A chorus of different cries rang out, a stampede rumbled the earth and Gyarados split the clouds. Abby started at Green, eyes wide.

"How'd you do that?"

"Like this."

Green folded her tongue with two fingers, closed her mouth, blew and let out another whistle. Abby did the same but when she blew she only made a sputtering sound.

"It takes a bit of practice."

"Why do you even know how to do that?"

"It's how we gather up Red's Pokémon for feeding time."

In a big group, their Pokémon gathered around them. They chattered amongst each other excitedly. Abby rushed forward, grinning wildly.

"Dragonair, come here. Horsea, you too!"

Dragonair slithered forward, followed by Horsea who floated precariously in a sphere of glowing, dark-blue water. Abby held out her hand and immediately the sphere snapped away, dropping Horsea onto her palm. He awkwardly balanced on his curled tail to sit upright.

"Sea!" He trumpeted

Dragonair gazed at Abby curiously.

"Air?"

"I, uh, need your help with something. Horsea, remember what we tried to do before?"

Horsea nodded.

"Well, try again okay?"

"Sea!"

Horsea closed his eyes and furrowed his brow. His body tensed. His muscles hardened. He took a deep breath through his snout and held it. Purple sparks spat from his scales. But again, when Horsea tried to fire, his spout sputtered and the sparks stopped. Abby turned to Dragonair and gestured to the rest of her Pokémon.

"They're all struggling with. Can you show them how? Maybe give them a dragon rage or a dragon pulse?"

Dragonair shook his head.

"Air."

He slithered away down the path a few feet and curled up into a spiral. His head raised and craned, bringing his face within an inch of the ground around the outside of his spiral. Purple light skittered across his scales and a purple glow filled his mouth. He opened his mouth and spat purple flames. They burst against the dirt and remained, burning away at nothing. Dragonair drew a circle of purple flames around him in one, quick motion. His scales glowed and the flames grew as high as a person. He raised his head above the flames and stared at Horsea with glowing, purple eyes.

"Dragonair," He commanded.

"Horsea…"

Horsea shut his eyes and tensed. Blue sparks spat from his body before a sphere of glowing water wrapped around him. He floated off Abby's hand and approached the draconic flames. Within a short distance, his body began to spit purple sparks.

"Char!"

Charmander rushed from the group. His tail flame flared high above his head as it swished side to side. A streak of purple surged through the flame. Silently, Gyarados loomed over the circle. The flames danced and played in the reflection of his giant eyes as purple sparks popped from his mouth. Horsea and Charmander stopped before the edge of the flames and looked to Dragonair with apprehension.

"What are they doing?" Green asked.

Abby grinned.

"I have no idea."

Dragonair flicked the end of his tail through the flames and offered the end to Charmander. The two gems skewered by his tail shimmered purple. Charmander grasped them with his tiny arms and was guided towards the flames. He stepped into them and was engulfed by draconic fire. His tail stuck out of the flames, swishing side to side.

"Mander!" He cried cheerfully.

"Air…"

Dragonair shut his eyes and lowered his head into the flames. A surge of purple light flickered across his scales, spitting sparks and tiny bolts. Then, a pulse snapped around the ring of draconic flame, fluttering the tips of the flames. Dragonair poked his head out of the flames and stared at Abby. Baffled, Abby stared back.

"I think he wants you to go to him," Green said, her voice a hushed whisper.

"R-Right."

Abby approached. Dragonair gestured to Charmander with a nod.

"Oh… Oh!"

Abby crouched down behind Charmander.

"Charmander, focus on the energy inside the flames. Let it pass over your scales, flow through your body and emerge from your eyes and throat," Abby said.

"Mander…"

A streak of purple flashed through the flame of Charmander's tail. Then another. Sparks spewed around the base of the flame, shooting high into the air. The flame billowed into a tall plume and a streak of purple once again shot through it. Although it did not disappear. Instead, it grew, becoming a flame within a flame. A small purple flame danced within the larger red flame independently.

"That's it, take deep breaths."

"Man… der!"

The smaller flame surged and the two flames became one. Red was replaced by purple.

"Yes! Now channel it into your hands!"

"Char!"

Charmander whipped around and burst from the flames. He swiped at the air, arms glowing white. Purple sparks rained from his claws. The purple flame on his tail surged and the white glow of his arms became purple. Three bolts of purple lightning shot from both of Charmander's hands and froze in the air. They grew, twisting and bulging to form three large claws. Charmander swiped them, leaving purple trials of popping energy through the air that lingered for a moment before fizzling away.

"You did it!"

Abby picked up Charmander and swung him around. The purple claws snapped away along with the glow. He waggled his arms as he beamed up at Abby.

"Char! Charmander!" He squeaked.

"DOS!"

Gyarados slapped his tail down onto the flames. The flames surged around it, growing and spreading to engulf the wide tail fin. Between Gyarados's large, thick armour plantings a purple glow shot up his body. Sparks rained as they flooded out of the gaps. Charmander swiped at them and each time he swatted one from the air a purple streak shot through his tail flame. Abby put him down and cupped her mouth.

"Channel it through your jaws and throat!"

"DOS!"

Gyarados opened his jaws and held his head up high. Green and Abby craned their necks all the way back to follow his rising head. He bellowed a mighty, earth-trembling roar that caused the purple glow to flare blinding bright. Sparks spewed from his mouth and a glow shone from deep within his throat. He shut his eyes and furrowed his brow. The glow dulled, then flared, then dulled only to flare again. Abby clenched her fists.

"Come on… you've got this…"

After a few moments of watching Gyarados struggle, Green put her hand on Abby's shoulder.

"It's dragon rage, yeah? Maybe being angry would help?"

Abby nodded.

"Good idea." She cupped her mouth. "Gyarados! Think of Skarmory!"

A black pulse swept across Gyarados's body.

"GYARADOS!"

The purple glow in his mouth flared. His eyes snapped open and purple flames erupted from them. A low, droning sound began to build. Louder and louder. Higher and Higher. Until for a single moment, it was deafening. Then suddenly it dropped back down into a single, low pulse as a huge purple ball shot from Gyarados's mouth. It rocketed into the air, broke through the clouds and disappeared behind them all in the blink of an eye. The clouds flashed purple and an earsplitting explosion tore through the air. The clouds rippled and broke apart as if two giant hands were ripping a hole in a piece of paper. Green and Abby slapped their hands to their ears, along with many of their Pokémon. While Green was trying to stop her head from splitting apart, Abby was watching the sky with a manic grin. She uncupped her ears, dashed over to Gyarados and flung her arms around him as far as they could go. As the ringing in Green's ears died she heard Abby cheering.

"You did it! You did it!"

Gyarados roared with laughter and lowered his head to Abby's level. He flashed her a giant grin and she jumped to scratch behind his finned ear. Meanwhile, Green saw Dragonair offer his tail to Horsea through the purple flames. Horsea reached out with his tail and curled it around Dragonair's. The tail guided him closer to the flames. Sparks popped from his body, the light of which danced within the water. The closer Horsea got, the more sparks popped. However, just as Horsea was about to enter the flames and a glow had begun to engulf his snout, he pulled away and shrunk back. Trembling, Horsea shut his eyes and turned away from the flames.

"Abby!"

Abby turned away from Gyarados and Green gestured to Horsea. At once, Abby rushed over and crouched beside him. She reached into the water sphere and picked Horsea up. The sphere's glow fizzled out and the water fell away.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm not sure, but he got all scared just before touching the flames."

Abby and Green both peered down at Horsea with puzzled expressions. His tail had gripped Abby's thumb and was squeezing tightly. He opened his eyes and peered over at the flames only to shut them again.

"Sea!"

Abby stroked his back with a finger.

"There's nothing to be scared of, the flames won't hurt you."

Horsea kept his eyes shut.

"Hmm, no. It can't be that. That doesn't make sense."

"Why?" Green asked.

"He's a water type."

"Oh, true."

Abby looked back at the flames.

"Are you scared of the dragon energy?"

Horsea nodded, still keeping his eyes shut. Abby shot Green a baffled look. All Green could do was shrug.

"Why?" Abby asked.

Horsea opened his eyes.

"Sea! Horsea!"

"I wish I spoke your language…"

Dragonair poked his head above the flames and stared at them. His stare seemed strict and harsh. At first, Green through it was directed at Horsea but was told differently when Abby's expression hardened.

"Listen Horsea, you can't be afraid of dragon energy. It's a part of who you are."

Horsea looked away.

"You want to be a Kingdra one day, right?"

Horsea's look snapped back to Abby.

"Sea!"

"Well, unlike those two." Abby gestured to Charmander and Gyarados. "Kingdra don't use dragon energy, they command it! They are the rulers of the ocean floor! The bringers of storms and the bane of all sailors! So powerful that the most powerful energy of them all obeys them! If you want to be a Kingdra you can't let that energy control you, you have to demand its respect!"

"Hor! Sea!"

Horsea leapt off Abby's hand, summoned his water sphere and plunged into the purple flames. With a chuckle, Green patted Abby's shoulder.

"Nice speech."

Abby blushed.

"Oh, ah thanks."

"Come up with that on the spot?"

"Uh…" Abby laughed awkwardly. "Nah, I stole it from a poem."

Green giggled and smirked.

"Borrowed, you mean."

"Yeah, borrowed. Exactly."

The ring of purple flame surged and flared. A pulse wrapped around the ring and a trumpeting cry bellowed from within. Horsea flew out, his water sphere alight with purple flames. His snout glowed purple, along with his eyes and scales. The glow of his snout was far brighter than the rest of his body, verging on the point of turning white. Horsea drew back his snout and shut his eyes. The sphere snapped away abruptly, dropping Horsea to the ground. He landed with a thud and an alarmed cry.

"You alright?" Abby asked.

Horsea shook the dirt off his head before nodding and reigniting the purple glow of his snout.

"Huh, I guess he can't do both at once."

"Yeah," Green said.

Again, Horsea shut his eyes and drew back his snout. This time, the glow grew and enveloped his whole body. The dirt below Horsea began to swirl. The wild whipping and swooshing of a gale-force wind roared. Purple lighting shot from Horsea's snout. It spiralled away. The spiral only got wider the further away it raced. More bolts joined it, spitting and sparking as they spiralled. They formed a swirling vortex that reached out several feet from Horsea's snout. Abby gasped.

"Twister! Horsea, whip your head!"

Horsea threw back his head and whipped it to the side, firing the twister. Abby and Green both shrieked and jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding it as it careened between them. It hit the grass behind them and shredded a path through it a few feet before fizzling out. Green got up and stared at the shredded grass in disbelief.

"Wow…"

"Wow!" Abby yelled.

She ran over and picked up Horsea.

"Great job! I forgot that ability even existed!"

"Sea! Horsea!"

Bolts popped from his snout. Horsea hopped from her hands, hopped along the ground to the edge of the path and fired off another twister. This time it only took a second to charge. He fired again and again, carving new paths through the grass while making elated trumpeting sounds. Charmander rushed up to his side and reignited his dragon claws. His tail flame turned purple. He swiped at the air ferociously with a look of innocent glee. Gyarados stretched over and loomed his head above them. He fired off a dragon rage that turned a distant hillside into a crater. As the explosion rippled through the ground, Charmander and Horsea stared at him with awe.

"Char!"

"Sea!"

Gyarados laughed, slamming his tail on the ground. He opened his mouth and charged another but Abby hit him with the beam of his Pokéball.

"I think that's enough destruction for today."

Charmander and Horsea gave her sad looks, which immediately snapped away as Dragonair loomed over her shoulder with a stern look. Their eyes widened and they whirred away from him, facing the grass. Dragonair's eyes drooped and he yawned.

"Air…" he mumbled.

Behind him, the ring of purple flames was gone without any trace it was ever there. Abby pulled out his Pokéball.

"You did well, take a-"

"Seeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaa!"

Horsea had his head back and was charging another twister. Purple flames were engulfing his snout and erupting from his eyes. His twister grew and grew, towering the height of nearly two people. The bolts whipped wildly, snapping out in all directions and sending out a shower of purple sparks. Horsea's entire body was glowing a bright purple, bordering on white. As the twister grew, the glow grew brighter until it was purple no more. The twister fired, speeding off into the distance with a trail of destruction behind it. The glow, now white, remained. Horsea's body grew, morphing and warping like clay. Abby's eyes lit up and she shrieked.

"Oh my god!"

Horsea's body doubled, then tripled in size. Everything about him grew larger, his snout, his curled tail, his head. But most of all, the two small fins on his back grew into large spiked, wing-shaped things. The white light snapped away, revealing Seadra. The wing-shaped things were armoured fins, made of some hardened blue material not too dissimilar to a shell. The same material covered Seadra's head and the front of his body. However, his tail and back remained soft. Abby rushed forward and picked up Seadra with strained effort.

"You evolved!" She managed to grunt.

Her arms trembled as she held the now child-sized Pokémon up at her eye level.

"Seadra!"

Seadra's voice was much lower and harsher. No longer did he trumpet, but more so growled. Still, he somehow sounded happy.

Green turned to her own Pokémon, who had been watching the whole ordeal with stunned bewilderment. A fire had been sparked inside Green. The rage of its flames set the tempo of her heart into overdrive.

"You're not gonna let them show you up, are you?!"

A chorus of defiant cries roared.

"Well come on them! We've got some training to do!"