Author's Note:

And here we are with Chapter 16. A Korrina heavy chapter here, so it's a bit different. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 16: Shalour Showdown

Korrina had been feeling down ever since returning from the IPL match against Laverre University. Sure, they'd returned home with some much needed points in the standings, but one had come from something meaningless. Or rather, one point had come from something that meant Korrina would be dealing with an utterly devastated Pokemon.

As she sat outside on the beach of Shalour City, looking out to the Shalour Gym out on the water, Korrina felt her eyes stinging with tears. She'd been thinking of the Laverre trip every day in the weeks following their return. Not a day went by that she didn't hate Anton more for what he'd done to Vivillon.

Vivillon had been so hopeful. Korrina had been amazed that it had even wanted to see Anton after all that had happened, but when she had seen Vivillon and Gabby, she knew that there had definitely been a bond between it and Anton as well. If it had been so close to his sister, there was no way it didn't have an attachment at least as close with its trainer.

When Korrina and Gabby had made their way back to the Pokemon Centre once Anton had left, though, it had been a tough pill to swallow for all of them. Gabby had told it what had happened, thinking it would be best if it came from her. She had left out some details, trying to make it sound as though Anton simply needed some time, but Korrina had a feeling Vivillon could tell something had been held back. And, it didn't make it any easier for the poor thing to take.

Gabby had wondered about keeping Vivillon with her and trying to force Anton to communicate with it, but she and Korrina had eventually decided that wouldn't be the best. Instead, Korrina had brought it home once more, and had continued working with it to get its strength back. It was work they still both enjoyed, keeping their minds occupied and not allowing the pain of Anton's betrayal, or the fear of the hunters, to halt their lives.

"I wish there was more we could do," Korrina whispered, embracing the sea breeze as it washed over her. "Vivillon is working hard, but it doesn't get excited like it used to. I don't know how to help it."

"Ruru," Lucario murmured from her side, looking concerned as he placed a paw on her arm. They were so connected by now, that Korrina didn't really need to voice her feelings for him to know, but regardless, she felt she needed to say it aloud just to get it out of her head.

She sighed as they sat there another few minutes, eyes drifting towards the forest that had become the source of so many of their problems. Somewhere in there, horrible things had happened. Anton's life had been turned upside down, Vivillon and his Fletchinder had been terribly hurt, and who knew what else. The only good things that seemed to have come from there were Vivillon's and Gabby's Swablu's rescues, which only occurred after they'd been hurt.

Elekid was there, too, Korrina thought with a smile. It left her face a moment later, though, as she thought of Clemont. She missed him a lot, and she desperately wanted to talk to him. She'd avoided calling him since the IPL match, however, and she'd neglected calling him back when he'd attempted calling her. It wasn't right, and she knew that, but she wasn't sure if she could tell him how it had gone with Anton. It was a complete failure, and maybe she could've done something better to make Anton see things clearer. Clemont had figured out that Vivillon might've been Anton's, and Korrina hadn't been able to reunite them. Would Clemont be disappointed in her?

Lucario seemed to sense her distress again, patting her on the shoulder to try to get her out of her depressive state for the moment. She nodded at him, starting to stand up. "You're right, Lucario, we can't just sit here doing nothing."

As sad as things were with Vivillon, Korrina still needed to ensure that it was making the progress it needed to be making. It had moved to staying with her at the gym instead of the Pokemon Centre, but today it was back with Nurse Joy for a checkup on its recovery. Korrina decided she would see how it was going, and then perhaps give Gabby a call to let her know what was going on. At least Anton's sister was invested in how it was doing.

It wasn't too long before Korrina and Lucario had reached the Pokemon Centre, passing by Officer Jenny on the way. She gave the police officer a wave as she drove off towards the forest with her Manectric, doing one of her routine checks for hunter activity. Korrina knew it wasn't likely Officer Jenny or any of the other police officers would find anything new, but it was worth the check. At the very least, it would keep the hunters hesitant about doing anything in the area. Unless they're getting bolder like Clemont warned me about.

She shook that thought away, though, as she entered the Pokemon Centre. As she approached the front desk, she glanced over to the seats in the lobby, noticing some trainers watching a news report about the appeared they were planning to have the playoffs hosted in Lumiose City, using the Kalos League stadium for the battles, and a brand new theatre which would also hold the next Masterclass Showcase. The report made Korrina a little excited, as she knew that if Shalour could qualify for the playoffs, she'd get to spend some more time with Clemont and her Lumiose friends while she competed, even if they didn't qualify.

"Are you here to check on Vivillon?" Nurse Joy asked as Korrina approached, bringing her attention away from the TV with the report. "It's doing quite well today. Well...physically."

Korrina nodded sadly, understanding what Nurse Joy meant by that. "Well, that's something at least. We won't be able to make it any happier if it's not able to go out more, right?"

"That's true," Nurse Joy responded, smiling. "Well, I've still got a few tests to run, and then I think Vivillon can go. It might be worth giving it a chance to do some battle practice afterwards. I have a feeling that's something that it misses a lot."

Korrina was surprised at that, but she thought of Serena and her progress with Absol. It seemed to have improved greatly once it had been able to participate in more trying activities. Although she wasn't Vivillon's trainer, she did like the idea of giving it a bit of a test. It might even be a way to remind Anton of what they'd done together in the past.

"That sounds like a great idea!" she said, looking to Lucario excitedly. "Maybe we can work on some of our own new strategies with Vivillon, right Lucario?"

"Ruru!"

It was nice to have something to be a bit more excited about, so as Nurse Joy headed back to finish her checkup, Korrina felt much better as she headed towards the phones. She decided she would try to call Gabby, figuring the Laverre Performer would be interested in hearing about Vivillon's progress. It was a good sign if it could get back to battling, and maybe Gabby would be able to let Anton know what was happening.

Korrina dialed the number Gabby had given her for the training facilities at Laverre University. She had expected she would be spending a lot of time there, with the final regular season matches of the IPL coming up. The other times Korrina had called, that had been the case, and when the attendant who had answered heard who Korrina was calling for, they quickly went to get her.

It was only about a minute before Gabby was at the phone, smiling as she looked at Korrina through her screen. "Hey Korrina. And Lucario!" she said with a grin towards both. "Everything okay with Vivillon?"

Korrina nodded. "Yeah, Vivillon's been flying pretty well lately. It's...still sad, but Nurse Joy said it can work on some battle training if it's up to it. That should make it a little happier, don't you think?"

Gabby's eyes had lit up at that. "That's great! Yeah, Vivillon would probably love nothing more than to get back to battling. I bet it'll feel safer about the..." She paused, taking a nervous look around before continuing. "I bet it'll feel safer about the hunters if it gets back in a training routine."

"You're nervous about Raphael?" Korrina asked, narrowing her eyes as Gabby looked behind her once more. "Is he there right now?"

"We're having a team training session," Gabby explained, sighing. "He's working on some training techniques with Anton..."

"Anton's working with him?!" Korrina stared at Gabby in complete shock. "How...how can he even talk to him."

Gabby avoided looking back at Korrina, appearing uncomfortable. "I don't know. If he doesn't believe us about Vivillon being his, maybe he just didn't believe anything. I've talked to Valerie about it, but she's worried about pushing things too far and having Raphael figure out we're on to him. If Anton continues to act normal around him, it doesn't matter that I flinch at everything he does, I guess."

Korrina gave her a sympathetic look, seeing the stress in Gabby's eyes. It must've been scary having to be around Raphael so much without having the opportunity to stop him. "Has Valerie not told the police at least?"

Gabby shrugged. "She trusts Officer Jenny of course, but I think she's worried about some hunters being on the inside. If just one finds out, it'll be really hard to catch them, find their base and save all the Pokemon they have if they know one of them is under suspicion. They'll lay low, get all the Pokemon out and we'll be in a worse position to do anything."

"I guess..." Korrina hated hearing that, and wished it didn't make as much sense as it did. She'd avoided telling Officer Jenny in Shalour about it as well for the same reasons. Just one wrong set of ears hearing the rumour, and too many Pokemon would be in danger. "I still haven't even told Clemont..."

The admission had come out unintentionally, and Korrina blushed as Gabby smirked at her. "You talk about Clemont so much. Are you guys..."

"No...I don't...maybe..." Korrina felt her face heating up, and tried to avoid looking at Lucario, who was staring at her while Gabby giggled. "I just mean...should I tell him? He might need to make preparations in case Raphael tries something when they visit you guys in Laverre City."

"Well he hasn't gone after any students' Pokemon," Gabby pointed out. She considered it a moment more, though, before nodding. "Lumiose needs to know, though. They seem to find out everything. And if they're hosting the playoffs..."

"You don't think Raphael would try to do anything then, do you?" Korrina asked, shocked at the suggestion Gabby seemed to be making.

"I don't know..." Gabby looked nervously over her shoulder again. "It's possible. A lot of powerful Pokemon will be there and if people are distracted by all the excitement, it might be the time to act."

"If you think that, then we should definitely tell the police," Korrina said, clenching her fists at the thought of the hunters ruining the fun of all the teams in the IPL, and trying to hurt the Pokemon there.

"I suggested it to Valerie, but she says it's too early to know what Raphael might be planning. Again, we'd need more proof. Otherwise..." She trailed off again, looking dejected.

"Yeah...he'll know we're on to him." Korrina glared at nothing in particular, staring out the window of the Pokemon Centre.

Gabby seemed to sense the frustration. "I know...it's frustrating, but she's right. We can't screw this up. Raphael has avoided attention for a long time. He's probably done all kinds of things to get out of trouble before. The last thing we want to do is make things worse."

"We still need to have a plan," Korrina argued. "If he is planning something, we can't just sit around and wait for it."

Gabby nodded. "Then you'd better get Clemont and the others on board. If anyone can help us get ready for a fight, it's them."

Korrina was agreeable to that, and a moment later, she and Gabby were saying goodbye. She took a deep breath before she dialed the number for Clemont's gym, hoping he wouldn't be upset with her avoiding him lately. She knew he would understand, though, given that he knew how much time she'd spent with Vivillon and that it was a difficult situation.

Luckily, Clemont was there when she called, and he was the one to pick up. He excitedly put enabled the video once he realized it was Korrina who was calling, and when he appeared on screen, the two of them simply looked at each other a moment, before finally Korrina spoke up.

"I'm sorry I haven't called you..." she said awkwardly. "It's just..."

"It's okay," Clemont said quickly, adjusting his glasses as he leaned forward, looking concerned. "I'm just glad to hear from you again. Are you okay?"

Korrina nodded, smiling at his kindness. "Yeah...it's just been tough since the visit to Laverre."

Clemont looked surprised. "I thought you guys did pretty well there. I heard that Anton even lost his battle. Did you beat him?"

Korrina sighed, feeling shame in having gotten a point for doing nothing against Anton. She hadn't deserved it, and based on the standings, it could be the difference in her team making the playoffs over Clemont's. It was embarrassing letting him know. "He forfeited the match..."

Not surprisingly, Clemont looked shocked at the news, before tilting his head curiously. "Was something wrong? Is that why you seem so upset?"

Korrina nodded, managing to lift her gaze and look Clemont in the eyes. "After the performances and contest battles finished up, I took Vivillon out for some flying practice. Gabby saw us, and...well, she recognized Vivillon, and Vivillon recognized her, too."

Clemont still looked confused, as though unsure if this was bad or good, given the history. Korrina clarified. "They were happy to see each other. Gabby hadn't seen Vivillon since she was a little kid, and Vivillon clearly adored her back then, and seemed to be ecstatic to see her. It was later...at the battlefield...that was when things went bad."

Clemont seemed to realize the problem then. "Anton..."

Korrina nodded again. "Vivillon wanted to see him again, but we left it at the Pokemon Centre just to keep it safe from the battles going on. Anton got mad when Gabby told him. He stormed off after claiming that there was no way Vivillon was his."

"No way..." Clemont looked stunned, eyes drifting down as he processed what Korrina had told him. "He abandoned Vivillon...again?"

"Vivillon's been pretty down ever since," Korrina continued, looking over to Lucario, who was looking towards Nurse Joy's desk in concern. "Nurse Joy says it can begin battle training again, though, so hopefully that can cheer it up."

Clemont nodded, smiling at that bit of good news. "I guess you'll need to take over its training in the meantime. At least it's got a couple of great partners to help it," he said, smiling at Lucario, and then returning his gaze to her.

Korrina smiled at that, feeling her cheeks heat up like earlier. "You're the best, Clemont." He seemed a little embarrassed by the praise, and Korrina was instantly relieved that she'd called him. She'd needed to talk to him, and not just because... She shook her head, remembering what she needed to tell him. "Clemont...there's something else I need to tell you."

He seemed to sense her urgency, leaning forward expectantly. "What is it?"

While Korrina was embarrassed she hadn't told Clemont earlier, she was relieved to be able to get it all out now. And while he had every reason to be upset she hadn't informed him earlier, he wasn't. Instead, he simply let her tell the story, and waited until she had finished before he commented.

"So Valerie and Gabby are sure Raphael is involved?" he asked, eyes serious as he looked back at Korrina. "And Gabby expects he might be planning something in regards to the IPL playoffs?"

"It's just something she wondered?" Korrina admitted, shrugging. "But, it would make sense. They have been more bold lately. Or even if it was a stealth operation, people might be distracted with everything going on with performances and battles all over the place."

Clemont nodded, looking down as though considering something. "Well if they're that concerned about ensuring it doesn't get out that they're suspicious of Raphael, I won't say anything to Officer Jenny. I'll have to tell Ash and the others, though. If we see anything in our next IPL match, we'll have to act."

"Of course," Korrina said, feeling that was logical enough. "But...do you know of anything you can do to protect the city if they did try something during the playoffs?"

Clemont thought for a moment. "There is one thing," he said, adjusting his glasses as he looked behind him, a robotic voice calling out something. "Clembot..."

"Is something wrong?" Korrina asked curiously, watching as Clemont's robot substitute gym leader emerged behind him, apparently cleaning around the gym.

Clemont shook his head, turning back to Korrina and smiling. "No...I think I have an idea."

Korrina's eyes lit up in excitement at that as she and Lucario leaned forward to hear. "Really? What can you do?"

Clemont adjusted his glasses, the lights reflecting off of them as he smirked. "Let's just say the future is now, thanks to science!"

Meowth woke up with the worst headache he'd ever had. The pain alone was terrible, but he also felt like it was filled with fog and was weighed down by bricks. It was only made worse as he opened his eyes to sunlight shining on to his face, and the sound of Wobbuffet suddenly crying out as he so often did.

It took a couple of minutes for Meowth to adjust to his surroundings, realizing he seemed to be in some makeshift den, lying on some leaves. Outside, all he could see was a forest and what appeared to be the Wetlands beyond it. From what he could tell, he and Wobbuffet were very high up, as though they were on a mountain or cliff.

He groggily sat up, slowly turning his head to look into the den they were in. It wasn't much, clearly just inhabited out of necessity for a place to rest. However, it seemed to have enough space for Meowth's makeshift bed, along with another two. One must've been for Wobbuffet, but Meowth didn't know who inhabited the third.

That question was answered a moment later as a familiar bleating sound entered his ears, and then Skiddo emerged at the edge of the den, carrying some berries. Meowth was relieved to see him, along with Wobbuffet, and he was grateful as the Mount Pokemon gave him an Oran Berry to eat, while Wobbuffet sat down to join them.

"So guys, I'm a little hazy on da details," Meowth said, rubbing his head as he and the other two ate. He could barely remember what had happened. He knew they'd been trying to escape the hunters compound, but there were just flashes of the hallways and the other Pokemon in his head. After that, it was all blank. "What happened?"

"Wobbaaa FET!" Wobbuffet said, rubbing his own head, appearing as confused as Meowth. "Wobba."

Meowth sighed, looking to Skiddo, who seemed troubled, avoiding eye contact. "How about you, pal? Remember anything?"

"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo answered nervously, bowing his head. He no longer appeared interested in eating his berries. "Doo-oo-oo."

Meowth looked at him sympathetically, leaning over to give him a pat on the back. "It's all right, pal. We're gonna get through dis. I just gotta know what happened if we're gonna do somethin' about it." He tried again to remember, but the best he could do was think of a falling sensation which he supposed had something to do with the amnesia.

"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo relented, sighing as he looked to Meowth. "Doo-oo-oo." He looked like he was about to deliver some bad news, and Meowth braced himself for it, just hoping that the Jessie and James' Pokemon that had been with them during the escape attempt weren't hurt.

When Skiddo finished, Meowth started to piece together some of the flashes in his head, and the final thoughts he seemed to have from before blacking out seemed to make a little more sense. However, the dread of it all nearly overwhelmed him. He was grateful that Wobbuffet and Skiddo were there, because otherwise, he wasn't so sure he would have the nerve to leave the cave. He couldn't believe that somehow Skiddo and Wobbuffet had managed to get him there.

"So you're saying da hunters have der base set up in a mountain nearby here?" Meowth asked, looking to Skiddo for clarification. The Mount Pokemon nodded nervously, gesturing with his head that it was in the opposite direction of the Wetlands on the other side of the cliff they were currently in. "So when we got through dat exit, we actually fell right off. I guess dey usually have helicopters or something go out of der."

Skiddo nodded, but also added some additional information. "Doo-oo-oo!"

"So it was a waterfall, huh?" Meowth nodded, remembering the suffocating feeling as he'd held his breath while the water had surrounded him. The crash at the bottom must've been what knocked him out. "So when we landed, der was hunters already der?"

"Wobba!" Wobbuffet answered this time. "Wobbaaa!"

"Doo-oo-oo!"

Meowth stared at them in shock. "We totally failed. All of de Pokemon dat helped us got caught again?!" Meowth knew he was a member of a criminal organization, but he couldn't help but feel awful for those Pokemon. They were innocent. And they had helped them. And Inkay, Gourgeist, Seviper, Yamask...they're all trapped again...along with all the others.

"Wob..." Wobbuffet looked devastated, and Meowth could see Skiddo felt no better.

"So you managed to come to, Wobbuffet," Meowth asked, looking to the Patient Pokemon. "And you got me out of der with Skiddo?"

"Wobbaaa," Wobbuffet answered, nodding.

"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo added, sounding ashamed.

"Don't be sorry," Meowth told him, wanting his new friend to know how helpful he'd been. "Ya couldn't have done anything else. It's amazing any of us got out. We'd still be der if it wasn't for you."

"Doo-oo-oo!"

Meowth grinned at that, before looking back outside the cave, feeling a little uncertain. "So if dey was just roundin' up the Pokemon dat fell, it's possible dey didn't even think of us." He knew they would eventually think of them if they hadn't right away, but he wanted Wobbuffet and Skiddo to be a little less worried. At the very least, they'd likely managed to get away because of all the commotion, and now they at least had some bit of safety. "If we can get to some people, we can show where da base is."

"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo then said, shaking his head, looking nervous as he also glanced outside.

"You saw them fleeing." I guess they did think of us, Meowth realized. Even if they didn't know he could talk, they would've probably guessed that some beaten up looking Pokemon could've drawn the attention of people and their base wouldn't have been safe. At least he did know one thing. "Well, we still have some useful information. We know dey got lots of Pokemon with dem, and some of de experiments der workin' on."

"Doo-oo-oo!"

"Wobba!"

"Right," Meowth said, nodding. "And dey plan to attack de schools during de IPL playoffs."

Korrina was feeling much better after her talks with Gabby and Clemont, and knowing that Vivillon was going to get a chance to increase its training. It was a nice change after feeling so down about things since Anton's reaction to being told about Vivillon. While she knew Vivillon would still be upset, she was sure the training would help, and she was glad she'd made some plans with Clemont on what to do about Raphael.

I just hope his plan works, Korrina thought, smiling as she thought of Clemont's excitement over his inventions. If anyone can pull it off, it's Clemont.

As she continued to wait for Nurse Joy to finish up with her appointments and whatever else she needed to do with Vivillon, Korrina decided to head outside and do a few training exercises with Lucario. If they were going to be working with Vivillon, they would need to start loosening up now.

"Ready, Lucario?" Korrina asked as they stepped outside, heading over to the training field next to the Pokemon Centre. "I want to work on your Metal Sound and Aura Sphere combo, okay? We need to make it just a little bit quicker when you transition into Aura Sphere."

"Ruru!" Lucario said, nodding in agreement as he followed her.

Korrina grinned, glad to see her partner Pokemon's eagerness echoing her own. "All right, so what we need to do is-"

"Stop right there, in the name of the law!"

Korrina snapped her head around as soon as she heard the yell, instantly recognizing Officer Jenny's voice. A moment later, she heard the sirens, quickly approaching the Pokemon Centre. She quickly exchanged a nod with Lucario, and the two of them rushed towards the front, darting around a few trainers who had come outside upon hearing the commotion.

"Manectric, Thunder Fang!"

Korrina jumped back, not having realized how close the culprit was, watching as he raced along the road on a motorcycle. Unfortunately for him, he was yanked off as Officer Jenny's Manectric grabbed him from behind, throwing him hard to the ground while his motorcycle crashed into a tree up ahead.

"Gahhh!" the man yelled, wincing from the electrical attack and scrambling back. He fumbled for a pokeball at his belt, dropping something out of a bag he held as he did so. "Swampert, go!"

Korrina heard gasps behind her as the fierce water and ground type emerged in front of them, staring down Officer Jenny as she came to a stop in her own vehicle, hopping out to stand behind her Manectric. "Get ready, Lucario," she whispered, quickly realizing what this was. A hunter.

"Sir, you need to stand down immediately!" Officer Jenny ordered, glaring at the man. "Backup is on their way now. It's in your best interest to cooperate!"

"I ain't going down easy, lady," the hunter snarled, smirking as he looked to Manectric. "Swampert, take it down with Mud Shot!"

"Swaaamp!" Swampert roared out, slamming its feet on the ground and then unleashing a barrage of mudballs towards a stunned Manectric. Korrina's eyes widened as the ground type attack exploded against the electric type. As the dust settled, Manectric was down for the count from the single attack, and the crowd gathered began to murmur nervously as Officer Jenny stared ahead in shock.

The hunter laughed. "Now, if you'll excuse-"

"Hold up!"

"Ru!"

The hunter looked just a little uncomfortable as Korrina stepped out in front of him and his Swampert, she and Lucario staring him down confidently. She supposed there was a decent chance he knew she was the gym leader here in Shalour, but what likely made him hesitate was the Key Stone on her wrist. That would make most trainers hesitate. She saw him glancing at his bag a moment, before glaring at her.

"You ain't stopping me, kid. Go on and run home!" He bared his teeth at her, like some kind of snarling Pokemon.

"Only when Officer Jenny has you in handcuffs!" Korrina snapped back, hearing Jenny urging caution behind her, while the crowd out front of the Pokemon Centre was murmuring in excitement. Korrina could just see the door opening as Nurse Joy was emerging to see what was going on.

"Like that's happening!" the hunter said sarcastically. "Swampert, Hydro Pump!"

"Deflect with Bone Rush!" Korrina ordered confidently.

"Swaaamp!"

"Ru!"

Lucario fared much better than Manectric, forming a blue bone of light out in front of him and spinning it like a fan in super speed while the massive jet of water rushed towards him. The Hydrop Pump was easily dispersed as it struck, dealing no damage as Korrina's fierce fight stared Swampert down, ready for the next attack.

"Not bad..." the hunter muttered, looking more uncomfortable. "How about a-"

"VillllOOONNN!"

Korrina's eyes widened as Swampert was slammed into suddenly, the Mud Fish Pokemon stumbling to the side as a flying purple shape hovered a few feet away from it. "Vivillon?!" she called out in surprise, the bug and flying type looking back at her, determination in its eyes.

It didn't appear ready to stop there, either, instantly darting forward again, a white aura surrounding it as it slammed hard into Swampert once more, the Mud Fish Pokemon falling over this time, the hunter yelling at it for it to get up.

"Villon!" Vivillon then cried out again, flapping its wings hard as it flew back a few feet, aiming carefully as Swampert struggled to rise. "Vivillon!"

Korrina was stunned by the ferocity of the attack, the gust of wind generated by Vivillon's flapping wings sending Swampert flying into the air, soaring over the hunter and crashing into the tree just where his motorcycle had hit. It was fairly clear that Swampert wouldn't be rising from that, and the hunter seemed almost too stunned to do anything about it.

Fortunately, Vivillon was still sharp, staring down the hunter right away and sending what appeared to be an electrical net at it, wrapping him and shocking him instantly. "Gahhh!" he cried out, dropping to the ground and rolling around, wincing as he was zapped. It only died away once Officer Jenny had reached him, informing him he was under arrest for Pokemon trafficking and putting him in handcuffs.

Korrina quickly headed over to the two of them, knowing this was the perfect chance to get some information. "What was he doing here?" she asked Officer Jenny. "Did you catch him in the act?"

"I spotted him in the area, cleaning up what appeared to be a hidden stash of some items the hunters had. I confronted him when I noticed he had that bag with him, which must be filled with some of the things they had in the area." Officer Jenny glared at the man. "It'll have to go into evidence, but I'd much prefer to burn it."

The hunter laughed at that, baring his teeth again. "That's valuable merchandise from the boss. Don't want to be wasting it like that..."

"Valuable?" Korrina narrowed her eyes, before bending down to pick up the bag.

"Careful..." Officer Jenny warned quickly. "We don't know what's in there."

Korrina listened to her warning, cautiously peering into the bag as she held it out in front of her, sensing Lucario looking into it from her side. He immediately tensed up, and she knew why. "They're...Mega Stones."

Officer Jenny stared at her in shock, eyes widening as Korrna showed her. "What...what's wrong with them?" she asked, looking to Lucario's, which looked much different.

"I don't know," Korrina said honestly, looking to the smirking hunter. "What did you do to them? Why are they so black and...dull?"

"Ru..." Lucario growled threateningly in addition to the question.

"Like I said..." the hunter told her, smirking as he glanced behind him at some more police approaching. "It's valuable merchandise."

It didn't appear they would be getting any more information from him now, as he refused to say anything more than that and laugh. Korrina had to simply watch in frustration as Officer Jenny and the police got him into a car and sent off to the police station before getting some quick eye witness accounts from the people there.

As Korrina stared at the departing police in frustration, she noticed Vivillon flying down to her, resting atop her head, looking content. "You were pretty incredible out there, Vivillon," Korrina told it, smiling. "I guess you heard you get to go back to battling training, huh? Not that you seem to need it!"

"Villon!" Vivillon responded happily, making Korrina smile again. It clearly seemed to feel much better, clearly proud to have had the chance to show off some of its strength.

"You're going to be a great training partner for Lucario and me," Korrina said. "And I bet you'll show...everyone just how strong you are."

Vivillon nodded at that, seemingly understanding what Korrina was getting at. She was sure Anton would see sense eventually. How could he not, with how great Vivillon was. Besides, there was something more crucial to deal with. The people who had hurt Vivillon were still out there, and they were clearly planning something strange.

"I wonder what was up with those stones..." Korrina muttered, looking to Lucario, who seemed to have had a thought.

"Ruru!" he growled out, looking to her pocket. "Ruru!"

Korrina frowned at him curiously, but at further insistence, she put her hand into her pocket, pulling out what was in it. It was the Lucarionite she'd found in the forest way back when she'd found Vivillon. "What is it?" she asked, looking confused. "It's just..."

Her eyes widened, and she stared at the stone more closely. It wasn't quite like the stones in the hunter's bag, but she could just see the discolouration at the edges. If she didn't know better, she'd think it was altered somehow.

"Why would they be changing Mega Stones?" she asked, looking to Lucario, and then Vivillon. "What on earth are they planning?"

Author's Note:

Hopefully you're not frustrated with no Ash and Serena this chapter, especially given last chapter's events, but obviously some pretty key stuff here. Hunter action is picking up, and it looks like Meowth's escape was only semi successful. Meanwhile, Korrina's found something pretty strange...what might these hunters be up to...

Hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.