Here are the names of the Pokemon mentioned in this chapter

Cornelius - Sarah's Corviknight

Layla - Sarah's Glaceon

Kiki - Sarah's Indeedee

Woody - Hop' Wooloo

Meddows - Hop's Grookey

Note: Sobble and Scorbunny will be receiving names in this chapter


Sarah got up early so that she could have a meeting with her social media team. The official celebration to mark the beginning of Galar's gym challenge was only a few days away. Outside the guestroom window, the sun was rising, and Sarah could see the waking world as she occasionally glanced out the window. There was Hop with his grandfather taking care of their Wooloos with a Yamper helping to round them up. It created an idyllic scene as the sunrise perfectly framed the outline of the buildings in Wedge Hurst.

Sarah heard noises from the kitchen down the hall where she assumed June was cooking, but it didn't distract her too much from the meeting. Just when Sarah said goodbye to her team and closed her laptop, June knocked on the door to tell her that breakfast was ready. Breakfast was delicious and Sarah enjoyed the comfortable atmosphere as everyone chatted about how each of their Wooloos was doing and the local news. While everyone seemed to take their time to savor their food, Hop ate so fast that he nearly choked on some eggs that went down the wrong pipe. June admonished Hop as he drank a glass of Moomoo milk.

"But Mum, it's my first official rival battle today! Who needs food?"

"Gro-key!" shouted Meddows who was eating on the floor with Kiki, Layla, Woody, and the family Purrloin. From the look of Meddows' face, he wanted to battle as much as his trainer did. Cornelius, who was outside due to space, stuck his head through the kitchen window and let out a caw.

"You do Hop. You won't be able to battle if your stomach keeps telling you you're hungry," said Leon, "Also Meddows needs to eat, especially as he evolves, and you keep training him."

Hop nodded his head and then proceeded to eat breakfast at a more subdued pace. Once he was done, he quickly thanked his mum for the food and sped out the front door to get Victor and Gloria. Woody seemed to be used to this as he talked to Meddows. Meddows jumped onto Woody's back as Woody left to follow their trainer. George chuckled after the door slammed shut behind them and commented, "He should get a Yamper on his team. He's energetic enough to be like one."

Sarah offered June to help with the dishes. George decided to check on the Wooloo again and Agnes went back to her room. Leon said that he had to call someone quickly and left his mother and fake girlfriend alone. Sarah learned more about June and got the opportunity to learn how she met Conrad Best, her late husband and Leon and Hop's father.

"We met when we were very young. I was raised in Unova and I came here on a study abroad program in Wyndon during college, or uni as you call it in Galar. It was a lot of fun, and I became friends with a girl named Janice, you know Victor and Gloria's mum. She was attending Wyndon University at the time and invited me and a few of her friends to her great aunt's at Postwick for the spring holiday. We came and spent a few days in Poswtick and also a day in Motostoke. On the day in Motostoke, we ended up running into a group of her hometown friends who lived there. One of them was Conrad. We chatted for a bit and then later Janice handed me a piece of paper with his phone number and said that he would like to call me. The rest is history."

"What was he like?" asked Sarah.

June smiled and her eyes got a distant look.

"Very charismatic and charming. When I talked to him, it was like he was truly interested in what I had to say. He was always like that, even with the people he got frustrated with or the most boring subjects."

June then started to get tears in her eyes.

"Sorry. It still hurts to think that he's gone."

Sarah nodded her head. She dried off her hands before placing a hand on the top of June's back.

"Don't apologize, it's understandable that you're sad that he's not here. I'm glad you told me a bit about him. Leon told me about his dad, and I could tell he was someone special."

June nodded and then sighed.

"Thank you." said June, "I'm glad out of all the people Leon was set up with, it was you. You seem like a nice girl."

Sarah then heard Leon come down the stairs. He came into the kitchen and asked if Sarah was free to see the rival match. Sarah told him that she was ready and asked June if she was coming.

"I'll watch from the window," said June, "I would be too loud as I like to shout my encouragement and I might distract Hop. If I do it from inside, I won't distract anyone."

Just like yesterday, Hop was eager and ready to battle. Gloria and Victor were nodding their heads and smiling as they let Hop ramble. The twins greeted Sarah and Leon and told them the new names of Sobble and Scorbunny.

"I decided to name her Lucy," said Victor, "It took a bit of time because she was very picky, but she had no complaints with Lucy!"

"Scor-bun!" cheered Lucy as she hopped up and down.

"This is Sami! Spelled S-A-M-I!" exclaimed Gloria, but then lowered her voice when she noticed her Sobble wincing from the noise, "I looked up his final evolution and I want a name that he would grow into well. Sami is cute and cool."

"C'mon!" said Hop, "Let's have a battle!"

"Who will be going against you?" asked Leon.

"Victor!" said Hop.

Victor accepted the challenge and both sides got set up as they recalled their Pokémon into their Pokéballs. Sarah, Gloria, and Sami sat on a nearby bench and Leon stood at the edge of the of where the battle would take place.

"I will be the referee for this first match. I look forward to seeing how you two battle." said Leon with a grin, "Ready? Set? BATTLE!"

Hop slapped a Pokéball with both hands and then threw it. The ball clicked open and out came Woody. Victor carefully threw his ball and Lucy hopped out. Sarah noticed that Lucy was hopping back and forth with a wide grin on her face. At first, the match started with Woody putting up Defense Curls with Lucy using Growl back. Then Woody did a Tackle by rolling and slamming into Lucy, which knocked her down on her bum. As Woody rolled back, Lucy quickly bounced back up and rubbed her nose. That's when Victor told her to tackle Woody. Lucy did that as she quickly ran and tackled the fluffy Pokémon. She hopped back and before Hop could shoot out a command, Victor told Lucy to tackle Woody again and again. Woody couldn't shake off Lucy and soon fainted.

Hop was gaping as he saw his Sheep Pokémon faint, but he quickly recovered as he congratulated Victor and brought out his next Pokémon.

"Go Meddows!"

Meddows then hopped out of his Pokéball, bracing himself on the ground, ready for whatever came next. Victor then smirked before shouting, "Lucy! Ember!". Lucy then spatted out little flames from her mouth. Meddows ran to dodge what he could, but one of the flames caught on his fur and he screeched as he tried to get the flame out.

"Roll Meddows!" cried Hop, "You certainly know your type matchups, Vic!"

"Sob? Sob?" said Sami nervously.

"Don't worry Sami," said Gloria, "Meddows can handle this, right?"

Gloria looked towards Sarah and Leon. Leon was too busy focusing on the match, his face impassive. Sarah reassured Gloria and Sami that Meddows was tough and could take hits, but she knew that the type matchup was not in Meddows' favor. Hop then called for a Branch Poke. A branch appeared out of thin air in front of Meddows who did a swish motion with a stick in his hand. The branch sailed through the air and poked Lucy's belly.

"Scor!"

Lucy's eyes flashed with fury and then she blew a huge ember from her mouth. Meddows couldn't avoid it and fainted. Leon counted down from ten seconds and after Meddows didn't get up, Leon announced Victor to be the winner. Hop then tilted his head to the side and put a hand on his forehead as if he had a headache, but still congratulated Victor on the match. Leon reminded Hop that he needed to give Victor a reward of Pokédollars and Hop quickly got his bag and handed Victor a few coins. Just as Victor was thanking him, Hop turned around and got into his excited pose again, this time staring intently at Gloria and Sami.

"Now, it's your turn Glo!"

"Hold on Hopscotch! You're putting the cart before the Rapidash there," said Leon.

Hop, along with everyone else turned to look at Leon.

"What do you mean?" asked Hop.

"Hop you need to give your Pokémon a rest, they haven't even recovered. Maybe you could battle around here for a bit and gain more experience-"

"But Lee! I can't just wander around here! Not with the gym challenge starting in a few days!"

Leon looked surprised by Hop's outburst and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Hop, there's no need to shout," said Leon.

"I'm not shouting!" shouted Hop.

Leon gave him a pointed look and Hop sighed. Leon put a comforting hand on Hop's shoulder and continued to talk to him.

"I think I know why you want to jump into another battle. You want an endorsement letter."

Hop nodded his head.

"Listen, Hop, I can't just give you or your friends an endorsement letter based on one battle."

Victor and Gloria made some shocked noises. They didn't expect Leon to be endorsing them.

"That's why I need to battle now!" said Hop.

"How about we rest first, and then head to the lab?" suggested Leon, "Besides you need a Pokédex and to catch some more Pokémon."

Hop's face immediately brightened.

"Brilliant! Let's do it."

Leon went inside and got two revives and several potions. Soon Woody and Meddows were healed. Lucy also got patched up and she went over to Meddows to check to see if he was alright. Meddows didn't seem too fazed that his friend set him on fire and they were soon chasing each other in circles. Sami slowly watched them go round and round, a content look on his face. Gloria asked him if he wanted to join them, but he shook his head no. Sarah then felt her phone buzz in her pocket and excused herself towards the back of the garden to answer the call. She saw the Phone ID and noted that it was Marnie, Piers' little sister. Although Sarah was better friends with Piers, she had over the years become an older sister figure to Marnie and Marnie would reach out to her if she needed comfort or advice that her brother couldn't give her.

"Hi, Marnie! How ya doing?"

"Alright," said Marnie, "I just wanted to ask you about what clothes I should pack for the gym challenge. Piers is no help! He keeps telling me 'Whatever you want'!"

Sarah laughed. That sounded like Piers.

"Well, I distinctly remember him during the gym challenge wearing all black and a leather jacket. He obviously didn't care, but he didn't pack smart at all," said Sarah, "I hope you don't try to use that old tent of his."

Marnie laughed on the other end. Soon Sarah gave clothing suggestions to Marnie.

"Pack the stuff you want to travel and train in, but don't forget to bring outfits that you like too. You'll probably be buying more clothes as you complete each gym. You and your team will be getting stronger and will be earning more money along the way. You should treat yourself and find something cute to wear. You might not want to enter Wyndon wearing sweats."

"Never!" said Marnie.

Sarah grinned. Marnie loved fashion and would often spend her time searching through thrift stores to find her clothing. Sarah was impressed at the wardrobe and style Marnie possessed at such a young age and on a tight budget.

"Also...I was wondering… you know...do I have to be a part of this interview?"

"You mean the one I'm doing with Piers?"

"Yeah. Can you make sure that I don't show up in it? I rather keep my identity a secret." said Marnie.

"Of course," said Sarah, "If he brings you up, I'll tell him that he doesn't have to mention your name. We don't even have to mention that you are participating in the gym challenge."

Marnie breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Sare," said Marnie, "I'd rather be in the shadows as much as I can."

"Well, when you make it to the finals-" began Sarah.

"If," corrected Marnie.

Sarah continued.

"If or when you know that eventually you'll be placed in the spotlight. As the competition grows smaller, you are going to stand out more due to being one of the few left standing."

"I know, but I rather not have all this pressure on me right away," said Marnie, "At least I'm not the Champion's sister or something. That would be hard to escape."

Sarah got quiet for a moment. She then realized that Hop would be right in the spotlight the moment he entered Motostoke. You had to be living under a rock to not see the resemblance between him and Leon. She knew the press loved it when she participated in Galar's gym challenge due to being Melony's niece. Hop would experience the pressure and the media coverage ten times worse than she did.

"Sarah? Are you there?"

"Sorry, I got distracted for a moment."

"It's no prob. I gotta finish packing 'cause Corey is about to go into hangry mode."

"Peko!"

Sarah heard Corey, Marnie's Morpeko in the background. It still sounded normal.

"I'll leave you to it! See ya later!"

Marnie ended the call and Sarah walked back to the garden, where she found Leon sitting on the bench, staring out into the nearby woods.

"Hey, where did the kids go?" asked Sarah.

"Gloria forgot her phone, so they all went back to her house."

"Did they all need to go over there?" asked Sarah.

Leon shrugged. Sarah decided to sit next to him and look out into the woods. It seemed out of place with the rolling hills and fields of Postwick and Wedgehurst. It was as if someone decided to pluck a forest from somewhere else and plop it in the middle of nowhere.

"So, have you been in that forest?" asked Sarah.

"No, it's actually forbidden to enter there," said Leon.

"Why?"

"Anyone that goes in there doesn't come out the same. It's called the Slumbering Weald and there are tales of a terrifying beast slumbering there. Sometimes kids go in there on a dare, but they all come back very shaken."

Sarah opened her mouth in shock as she saw the serious look on Leon's face. She couldn't believe that the people here would casually go on in their lives with a sleeping threat. Leon though was quick to change the conversation.

"What did you think of the battle today?"

"Well...it was certainly a beginner's battle. I think Hop will improve over time."

"I thought that he would be ready, but I'm not so sure. What was he thinking bringing a grass type against a fire type!"

"It's not like he had a full team with coverage. I'm sure you had battles like that when you first started out Mr. Undefeated Champion."

"I know. I know." said Leon with a laugh, "No need to remind me."

"By the way, how much longer until they get back?"

"Why don't we walk over and see what's happening?"

Leon stood up and offered his hand, and Sarah took it. The walk was short to Victor and Gloria's house. Leon stopped just before the stone stairs to the small house and turned his head sharply to the left. Sarah looked to see that there was an entrance to the Slumbering Weald. There was a gate there that looked like something barreled into it and broke it. Leon quickly walked over and picked something off the ground. Sarah walked over to see Leon holding a silver keychain in his hand with the logo of Motostoke University on it. That's when Sarah saw multiple footprints in the dirt, with one of them noticeably having left scorch marks in its wake. And that's when Sarah saw a look of terror on Leon's face.

"Shit!" shouted Leon.

He was on his feet now facing the Slumbering Weald. Within seconds, Leon brought out Charizard and was about to run in there, when Sarah quickly grabbed his arm.

"Let go!" said Leon.

Charizard looked like he was ready to agree with Leon and roared at her to let his trainer go, but Sarah tightened her grip and shouted back at him.

"Stop! We need a plan!" said Sarah.

Leon twisted his arm quickly and then yelled back.

"There's no time with a plan! The longer we wait, the longer they're in there."

"Lee, we'll both go in there once we inform your mum that we are going in there. That way they can keep a lookout for us here."

Leon froze and simply said, "oh" as the words Sarah said finally sank in. Charizard nodded his head slowly to show that he agreed with Sarah.

"C'mon, let's go check in with Janice and June. Who knows, maybe Hop and the twins are there."

It turns out neither Janice nor June had seen the trio since breakfast and when Leon and Sarah told the mothers about the teenagers going into the Slumbering Weald, both women were distraught. Janice looked like a breeze would cause her to collapse while June cried. Agnes was also there with them and commented how George told her that one of their Wooloo was not quite right in the head and had been trying to get into the Slumbering Weald for the past month. Agnes admitted fearfully that the Wooloo must have gotten in and the teenagers were trying to bring it back.

Leon and Sarah comforted everyone as they could and reassured them that they would find them. Sarah had brought Cornelius and Layla out when they stepped outside in front of the Slumbering Weald and told them that they were on the mission to find the teenagers. The Pokémon nodded in agreement. Layla first sniffed at the tracks and went ahead with Charizard and Cornelius following close. Sarah sprinted after them with Leon right behind her.

Sarah took notes of their surroundings. Despite the bright sunny day in Postwick, the moment they stepped into the forest, they were surrounded by fog. So far there were a lot of Skwovets and Nickits that quickly scattered once they saw two ginormous Pokémon flying above them. A few minutes in, Sarah felt a strange feeling and stopped abruptly. Leon crashed into her but righted himself up and made sure that he and Sarah didn't tumble into the dirt.

"Sorry."

"It's fine. I just…"

Sarah let her sentence trail off, wondering if she should tell Leon about the strange feeling she was having. Their Pokémon circled back to them, wondering what had happened. Sarah then looked at her Pokémon who seemed to be looking around trying to figure something out. Layla and Cornelius then took off to the side and a few moments later a Wooloo came crashing onto the path. It bleated as it ran around haphazardly until Charizard put a stop to it by roaring at it, which caused the Wooloo to roll over and play dead.

"The Wooloo's here, so they can't be far," said Sarah.

That's when the strange feeling intensified into something stronger and more ominous. It was a feeling she had only felt when she had met Tapu Koko on Melemele Island. Sarah immediately took off on a sprint, fearing what Hop, Victor, Gloria, and the baby Pokémon were up against. She heard Leon calling out to her along with Cornelius and Layla's cries, but Sarah was determined to find the teenagers and Pokémon before it was too late. The fog suddenly grew thicker which caused Sarah to slow down, not wanting to lose herself in it. A wind came howling through, the fog slowly dissipated and revealed an unconscious Hop, Victor, Gloria, Lucy, Sami, Meddows, and Woody on the ground.

Sarah rushed over to Hop first and took notice that he was breathing. She looked quickly at everyone else. They were all breathing and looked like they were in a deep slumber. She then heard Leon's shouts along with a roar of a Charizard. Hop, his friends, and the Pokémon slowly woke up. Sarah was just helping Gloria calm down a distraught Sami when Leon and Charizard came along with Cornelius and Layla. Her two Pokémon were quick to surround her, making sure that she was alright. Sarah was focused on reassuring her Pokémon that she missed the conversation Leon and Hop were having. She had just told Cornelius to give her space to stand up when an angry Leon came to her.

"Why did you run off like that?" he asked, his face tense with worry.

Sarah was impressed that he was able to get his question out without screaming and tried to answer him calmly.

"I felt something...something ominous and powerful…" said Sarah as she started to stand.

"What do you mean?" asked Leon as he helped her up.

"I can't explain it, but when I lived in Alola, I met one of the guardians Tapu Koko, who is known to be a legendary Pokémon. They have a different presence," said Sarah.

"I wonder if that's related to the Pokémon we saw," said Victor, who was holding Lucy in his arms.

Leon suggested that the trio would explain what happened as they walked their way out of the Slumbering Weald. The teenagers had gone after the Wooloo as Hop wanted to go and save it. As they got deeper into the forest, they ended up in a thick fog. As they were trying to find their way out, two Pokémon that reminded them of Arcanines, but fiercer and more battered, came to them. One had blue fur and the other dark red fur. The teenagers' Pokémon began to attack them, but their attacks would go through their bodies as if they were made out of air. After a few minutes, the two creatures howled, causing everyone to blackout until they woke up.

"Oh wow," said Sarah, not sure what else to say about that.

"Was that what it was like when you met the Alolan god?" asked Hop.

"I remember being so scared because I wasn't expecting Tapu Koko when taking out the trash! Apparently, I was just standing there in shock for too long that my grandma came out to ask me what was taking so long. I had never seen so much fear on her face until that moment."

"What happened next?" asked Gloria.

"Well, they actually came to me and brought me to an injured Eevee. I brought her to a Pokémon center and she later joined me for my Island Challenge. And now, she's Layla my Glaceon."

"Gla-ce-on!" said Layla.

Finally, the group reached the edge of the forest where they saw Janice and the Best family waiting for them behind the broken fence. The waiting families shouted with joy and ran to the group. June and Agnes were smothering Hop with hugs and kisses while Janice held the twins tightly. After the women were reassured that they were not harmed, they tried to get their children to come home, but Hop vocally refused.

"No! We're fine! I need to catch more Pokémon!"

That led to an argument between June and Hop, but then Leon brought up the fact that they would be visiting Professor Magnolia, the region's professor which caused June's worried expression to be wiped off her face. But she made Leon and Sarah promise that they would be with Hop the whole way there.

"Will Sonia be there?" asked Janice, "It would be good to talk with her since she had gone through the Slumbering Weald before. It might help."

Suddenly there was an awkward tension in the air and Janice looked like she regretted even saying the name Sonia. Sarah wanted to ask who Sonia was, but June was quick to give a strained smile, and a look at Leon and say, "That might be good, what do you think Leon?"

Leon coughed and then had a smile on his face, but it was strained.

"Maybe, will she be in the lab?"

"She works there. Professor Magnolia made Sonia her assistant, but I know she often runs errands for the professor, so she might not even be there today," said Janice, "Victor, Gloria, if you are going to go, here is some pocket money so you can get your basic supplies and some Pokéballs. I trust that you can stay safe in the tall grass."

"Don't worry," said Leon, "Sarah and I will accompany them besides I want to show them how to catch Pokémon."

"Actually, last week at school-" began Gloria.

"Brilliant Lee! I can't wait to learn from you!" said Hop.

And with that, the group set out for the path to Wedgehurst, this time through the tall grass. Leon was careful and concise with his explanation of how to catch a Pokémon. It was clear to Sarah as she saw the teenagers each capturing a Pokémon for their team that they already knew how to do it, but she was glad that the twins let Hop spend more time with his brother. As she and Leon watch the teenagers battle and capture Pokémon, she had one question running in her mind.

Who was Sonia and why was there a negative reaction when her name was mentioned?


Remember when I promised this will be posted in two weeks? Well, it's a month later and I'm not going to make promises like that anymore. I will definitely be consistent on one chapter a month. I might add another one each month, but I'm not going to make promises I can't keep.

What did you think about this chapter? I always thought that it was strange the townspeople were like, "Oh the Slumbering Weald? That's just been there forever, but it's really spooky and will mess with your mind" and then they did nothing about it? It's true that mainline Pokemon games have haunted houses and buildings that are just there...so I guess a spooky forest with no disturbance makes sense.

Next chapter will be meeting the Magnolias! Sonia's is going to have an interesting arc and you are going to find out what exactly happened between her and Leon eventually.

Again, thank you for your reviews and follows along with favoriting this!