The action starts to pick back up here, so here's to the people who were thinking "Bleh shipping" last chapter ;) You guys are a very divided bunch on that issue. It's actually kind of funny!

And oh gosh, 200 reviews is in sight! That's so unbelievable and exciting! You guys helped motivate me to get this out sooner again. All of your comments honestly mean so much to me!

Chapter 15: The Big Wave

Surfing, May quickly discovered, was not for the clumsy and twig-legged.

She only had to wait two more days for Soren to be cleared for training, after which the actual work began. Thankfully (Or not, depending on how she looked at the situation) Brawly had been kind enough to explain to her the general concept of how surfing worked, and he had even lent her a basic surfboard.

"It's awesome for beginners," he'd assured her. Not that she really knew what that meant; she just hoped they didn't crash it into a rock and break it in half or something.

May then explained all of this to her pokemon, all of whom eyed her dubiously at the idea. Well, it was mostly Soren. Demi was busy watching some nearby taillow circle the jungle, while Ezra was at least familiar with the concept after having lived on Dewford for a little while.

"Why don't you show them how it's done, May?" Brendan encouraged from under the shade of a palm tree. He was tossing a pokeball absently in his hand, but he was more focused on watching her. Of course he would be excited to see her make a fool of herself.

"Grovyle," Soren said, sounding satisfied with the idea. May's mouth dropped open.

"Traitor," she hissed. To Brendan, she said, "Fine. I will!"

So May waded out into the ocean, permitting the salty water to wash over her bikini-clad body. Unsurprisingly, it was warm, and the scent of salt invaded her nostrils more strongly than ever. Soon she was deep enough so that she was submerged over her chest, leaving her red toenail polish scarcely visible even through the clear tropical waters.

She recalled the sharpedo tooth from Brawly's house, which made her all too aware of what could be lurking beneath the surface of the waves. However, mere seconds after she braced herself uncertainly against the board, water rushed in towards her, and sharpedo were the least of her worries.

The wave threw her off balance immediately. It washed over her roughly and jerked the board out from underneath her. Her petite body was sent tumbling back to the beach, which gave May a mouthful of sand and a painful jab from a seashell to the back. She hadn't even attempted to stand up like a real surfer would.

"Oww," she moaned, lying on her stomach. Her board had miraculously been swept back in alongside her instead of vanishing out to sea.

"You okay?" Brendan managed to ask, but it was hard for her to buy into his concern when he was laughing so hard. She spat out a nasty mixture of sand and saltwater and glared at him.

"Mmhm. Why don't you have a turn?" she asked, her voice sickly sweet. She probably resembled a drowned growlithe puppy.

"I'm good," Brendan assured her. Still snickering to himself, he took the opportunity to let his pokemon out of their pokeballs so they could enjoy the beach. Apparently, he had realized that they wouldn't be leaving anytime soon, and he was right.

Her eyes flicked to her too-smug grovyle. "Soren. You're next."

Soren huffed as he made his way to the water, but he kept his shoulders back confidently nonetheless. He wasn't about to pass up a challenge, and certainly not when it was something his future opponent could do.

Honestly, her pokemon didn't fair entirely better than she did, especially not at first. Although Soren at least managed to crawl to his feet on his first try, he was driven underwater in no time flat. A scarily long gap passed where he didn't resurface, but finally, limbs flailing, his nose poked above the water.

In true Soren fashion, he was quickly scrambling to go again, putting May's nerves on edge.

"Hey Neptune, why don't you go take a swim?" Brendan suggested, pointing towards the rolling water near Soren. The golduck waddled over at once, eager to be back in his element.

May shot Brendan a thankful look. Soren clearly couldn't swim well, and she didn't want his stubborn nature to get him drowned. If she knew Neptune was nearby to drag him back to the beach if necessary, her mind would at least be eased.

As the morning turned to afternoon, May rotated her pokemon in turns on the surfboard. She tried to have the two that weren't surfing stand by and watch the third, but Demi never failed to get distracted, whether is was through trailing after Orion through the jungle or simply becoming fascinated with her own tail. Soren would just sit with his arms crossed moodily every time he fell (Which was a lot), so she couldn't even be sure if he was getting anything out of the experience. Ezra, at least, observed silently.

Somewhat surprisingly, Ezra was by far the most at home on the surfboard. His longest ride that day lasted nearly a full minute, which left the load of stress piling up on May significantly lighter. At least one of her pokemon was getting it.

"Have you done this before?" May asked him, after he had passed the board to Demi. He sat beside her, still dripping water and gazing at her curiously.

He shook his onion-shaped head. From May's opposite side, Soren grunted out a displeased sound and shot a stream of seeds down into the sand. His attack left behind tiny indents that would only be washed away by the tide later that night.

She smiled at Ezra. "So you're just a natural."

"Med," he muttered bashfully, suddenly very interested in playing with his fingers. Out in the sea, Demi fell from the board again, but May was unsure whether is was on accident or if she just wanted an excuse to play in the water.

"Maybe you can give the others some tips-" May was cut off when a finger tapped her on the back. She paused mid sentence and turned to look into the now familiar azure eyes of Orion.

"Blaze." He shook her shoulder with one clawed hand and pointed eagerly towards where Demi was surfing with his other. His face was glowing with excitement.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," May said flatly, without even looking to see which level of agitation Brendan's expression had reached. If Orion fell into the water, which he would, it could do serious damage to his sensitive, fiery body.

His shoulders slumped, and he somehow managed to form a pouty expression with his beak. "Blaziken," he mumbled, before slouching off like a three-year-old who had just been put into time out.

"You can help us out later!" May promised. As long as it's not involving water, she added privately. He perked up and skipped off to harass Acumi and Iris, who were sunbathing.

As days went by, May slowly began to observe improvements in her pokemon's surfing abilities. The shifting of their stances was more confident on the board, especially after she convinced them to try mimicking Ezra's movements. After another particularly rough period on day two in which no progress was made, May realized that the same form that worked for her meditite could only take her other pokemon so far. Soren was taller and heavier (And he was also still adjusting to his new body), while Demi didn't even have arms.

With the occasional tip from Brendan, she managed to help them find their own style. Soren stayed the firmest while leaning ever so slightly to the left, while Demi had to hold her tail at exactly the right angle… It was slow going, but May knew it was going to pay off in the end. Or at least, she hoped so.

Whether it was May's wishful imagination or not, she thought she noticed small changes in the way they moved on land. Their steps were surer, stronger somehow.

On the day that marked a week into their stay in Dewford, May didn't send her pokemon out to surf. She wanted to see how much improvement better balance could really bring.

True to her goal set back in Granite Cave, May had Soren and Demi practice on moving targets with bullet seed and water gun, respectively. At first, she was at a loss on how exactly to accomplish this, but finally she opted to have Orion simply toss Frisbees (Which she purchased from the Pokemart for ten pokedollars a piece—Dewford prices were ridiculous!) for them to hit. He hurried over, eager to help as always.

May couldn't help but beam with pride when their attacks came out stronger and faster than before. Balance was important, she knew it!

"Yes, we're gonna knock Brawly's socks off!" May exclaimed, practically glowing with excitement at the increased size of Soren's seeds. She paused. "Well, his ugly toe shoe things- Does he even wear socks?"

Instead of responding to her, Brendan stared at her with an odd, bemused light in his eyes.

"What?" she asked. She cupped her left elbow with her opposite hand self-consciously, but she tried to hide it with a weak glare.

"Nothing," he said, and then he let out an amused breath of air that May scarcely recognized as a laugh. He nodded towards Demi. "Maybe you should make sure they actually hit the Frisbee before getting too excited."

May looked up just as Demi fired her slightly wider jet of water, which missed the Frisbee by several inches and slammed into a poor palm tree instead. The trunk jarred, and a single coconut fell into the sand with a loud thud.

May slapped her hand over her eyes. "Demi! Take your time!"

She pushed them to continue working on their attacks, and at times when they reached a standstill in their progress, she would take them back to town to practice their new skills against some of the islanders' pokemon. The people in Dewford were always eager for any excitement, although they there weren't many particularly skilled trainers among them. Either way, battling them helped May see some of the areas they still needed to work on.

However, focusing on Ezra took up the majority of her time.

While he wasn't weaker than Soren or Demi, the fact that he was new to May's team left him behind. She wasn't as used to his moves, nor he her training methods.

Oh, and there was the little issue regarding the fact that he still couldn't harness his psychic powers.

"It says here that meditite continually meditate for hours every day. As a result of its rigorous and dedicated yoga training, it has tempered its spiritual energy so much that it can fly," Brendan read aloud from his Pokedex. His brow was bunched together, and his lip was curled up, serving as a telltale sign of just how frustrated he was becoming. He absolutely hated not having a solution.

"Fly…" Brendan scoffed, shaking his head and scowling down at the device in his hands.

May slumped over with her elbow propped on her knee in boredom. She had given up on finding the answer in her Pokedex long ago.

Instead, she observed Ezra, who was sitting cross-legged opposite her. His eyes were narrowed in concentration as he glared down the little rock in between them, and he became tenser and tenser as more time passed. The rock didn't budge.

"Ezra," May said, and his shoulders slumped at once.

"Meditite…" he said, avoiding May's gaze as if he were ashamed of himself.

"Hey, you'll get it," she encouraged. Obviously, Tessa's fierce attitude about the subject hadn't gotten results, so she might as well try being positive. She still kind of believed that it had helped him move the pebble a bit before, but she didn't voice her opinion in fear of Brendan declaring her insane. "Why don't you just, like, meditate for a while or something? Try to focus your mind."

May didn't really know what she was talking about, but her gut told her that no amount of simply staring at a rock was going to solve the problem. Hesitantly, Ezra tried to relax his posture, and his hands floated to the classic meditation pose. Lastly, he allowed his dark eyes to fall shut.

"I wish he'd get it," May said, quietly enough so that he couldn't hear. "I really want to use him against Brawly."

Something in Brendan's face lit up. "That's got to be it. He has a horrible mental state!"

Her mouth fell open. Was he seriously just insulting her pokemon like that? "Excuse you."

"Not like that." Brendan rolled his eyes. "He probably just needs confidence before he can use his psychic powers. It's a mind game."

"Oh," May said, and she had to admit that it made sense with what she had seen. Being captured by Tessa as a young pokemon and then being put under immense amounts of pressure by her couldn't be good for Ezra's self esteem. She knew what she had to do. "Well then, I'll use him against Brawly anyway."

Somewhat surprisingly, Brendan nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that'd be a good start."

As long as it doesn't come back to bite me in the butt.

Another week later, May and Brendan headed to Dewford Gym.

It was located on a cliff side on the edge of the town. What with its large, oval shape and wide windows, it was easily one of the most modern buildings on the entire island. Although it had the same League symbol as Roxanne's gym perched over the doorway, something about it seemed far homier and less professional. In fact, May had observed many residents casually walking in and out of it over the course of her stay in Dewford.

But then again, with Brawly as the gym leader, should she have expected anything else? He was nothing like Roxanne, that was for certain, yet she didn't let her guard down. Friendly or not, he was a gym leader for a reason, and she had to be ready for him.

"You're about to miss your appointment, Slowbro," Brendan said from beside her. She gave him a look, and she noticed that his eyes roamed over her face in a way that was more calculating than annoyed. After a moment, it dawned on her that he was searching for any signs of approaching anxiety.

"It's called being fashionably late," May shot back lamely, trying to keep her voice as cool as a cucumber. Brendan raised an eyebrow at her, and she ignored his gaze by latching onto the cool metal of the door handle.

If she said she wasn't nervous, that would be a complete lie. Beautifly were beating furiously at her stomach, but so far, she had managed to fend off any all-encompassing fear from taking over her mind again. She had learned the first time around that she wouldn't stand a chance if she allowed that to happen.

I've worked hard. I'm ready. I can do this. The statement had become her internal mantra over the past hour.

The faint smell of sweat hit May as she walked in, causing her to wrinkle her nose instinctively. The gym doubled as an actual athletic training center, and although a girl in workout clothes was the only other person in the room, the stench clung to the exercise equipment and carpet like glue.

The girl dropped her weights. "Here for your battle?" she asked, sounding exceptionally eager for someone with so many beads of sweat running down her face. Then again, it didn't take much to excite the Dewford residents.

"Yeah." May nodded, and she even managed a smile. Brendan's eyebrows had practically disappeared under his hat at this point.

Wow May, you're doing awesome, she encouraged mentally.

"Great, through those doors!" the girl chirped, pointing to a large, circular orange door that May would've mistaken for part of the wall had she not been told differently. The girl turned her attention to Brendan. "Are you-"

"Nope, just watching," he interrupted.

"Alright, well the rules are that the challenger has to make it to the gym leader with only his or her pokemon. It's made to test bravery," the girl said apologetically. "I'll have to take you straight to the battle room."

Brendan spared May a look with his deep brown eyes, and she could almost count the reddish flecks in them. He flashed her a rare smile, but the expression faded into his familiar smirk just as quickly. "Don't get beat up too much, Maple."

"Gee, thanks for the encouragement," May said, pursing her lips and crossing her arms. Her charm bracelet flopped heavily on her skin at the movement, reminding her of how happy she would be to call and tell her dad the results of her match. Of course, she had to win, first.

"I aim to please," he said.

She rolled her eyes.

The gym trainer guided May towards the orange doors then, and they slid open. All that could be seen inside was a pitch black, gaping hole. She paused, biting her lip.

Of all things, Brawly's test just had to involve the dark.

To her credit, she hesitated only slightly before stepping inside in a surge of courage. She knew there was no Team Magma or scary men with enormous bug types waiting for her inside, and she had no choice if she wanted to earn her badge.

She managed one fleeting glance back at Brendan before the doors slammed shut, encasing her in pure darkness.

For a horrible moment, May felt the black air closing in around her, as if there was no escape. Her heart sped up and her palms began to sweat, but she forced herself to take a slow breath.

She was fine. She had already proven she could handle some silly little darkness, hadn't she? This was practically nothing compared to what she'd experienced in Granite Cave.

Feeling significantly calmer, May managed to use the logical side of her brain enough to stick her arms out to their full length. After some blind groping and a near trip, her palms managed to land against a cool surface. The wall.

If I've got to find my way to Brawly… May thought, still running her hands down the wall. It seemed endless, yet she knew she had probably only covered inches of its vast expanse. It's got to be a maze.

Inwardly, she cursed Team Magma. If they hadn't made her lose her stupid flashlight, maybe she would have an easy out of this situation!

Perhaps her pokemon could help her. Her first instinct guided her hand to Soren's pokeball, because surely he had better sight than her with his unusually sharp eyes. She hesitated uncertainly over her belt.

Soren might be able to see a little better, but Ezra had supernatural senses.

Her mind made, May grabbed her meditite's pokeball instead. The white flash of his release was like a brief beacon in the dark, lighting up the walls ever so briefly. She barely caught a glimpse of Ezra's bipedal form before the glow melted away to black once again.

"Can you tell the way out?" May asked. She was facing the general direction of where Ezra was standing, or at least she hoped she was. She knew he might not be able to do it; he still couldn't do a proper confusion attack, even after all of their training. What he had done, however, was become more comfortable in his own mind.

"Med…" He didn't sound so sure. May's spirits plummeted slightly, but she reminded herself that he didn't really know his own abilities yet.

"Just try," she said. "Close your eyes and try to open up your mind, like when you meditate. Or something."

May might as well have been making up stuff at that point, but Ezra hummed in quiet compliance. In her defense, she didn't know anything about psychics. If they had the theoretic ability to toss around objects or manipulate matter, then it seemed awfully simple to just sense the layout of a room.

"Med!" The happy little tug on her sleeve a few moments later seemed promising. May smiled and followed after Ezra as confidently as she could. She believed he knew where he was going, but she had less faith in her own ability to avoid tripping into walls. Progress ended up being very slow, since she'd really prefer not to earn her Knuckle Badge with a bloodied nose or sprained ankle.

As Ezra pulled her through halls and around unexpected corners, May took the opportunity to think over her strategy for the match. Brawly allowed two pokemon per trainer in his gym, which left the two he was using a mystery. After a long discussion with Brendan, she had ultimately decided to use Ezra and Soren. She wanted to save Soren for any potential battles against Hariyama, seeing as he seemed to be Brawly's most powerful pokemon. She could use Ezra against either of the other two, although she knew Breloom's speed could potentially lead to problems.

They rounded another bend in the invisible wall, and the light of an opening was suddenly in May's sights. A grin formed on her face, and she heard Ezra exhale in relief.

"Great job, Ezra!" she praised, heading towards the light.

The room opened up into the familiar dome of a battlefield. Like Roxanne's, Brawly's terrain was rocky, although there was no massive stone carving located on his walls, and a gentle stream of water encircled the edges of the room. Far to the left, she saw Brendan sitting rather sulkily on some small bleachers next to a hoard of giggling girls. She couldn't say she blamed him for the sour look on his face.

Great. More fans, May thought unhappily.

"'Bout time, babe!" a familiar voice said, and her attention fell to the center of the field. Brawly stood there grinning, stretching his arms in a way that made his muscles bulge even more noticeably than usual. The giggles from the bleachers increased in volume.

"Hi, Brawly," she said, sighing and trying not to stare at his protruding arms. Why she hadn't expected his fan girls to follow him into his gym, she would never know.

Brawly spun a pokeball on his pointer finger, and May watched enviously. She'd probably pop herself in the face if she tried that.

"Laura here will explain the rules."

May didn't know who the heck Laura was, but the athletic girl from before hopped down from the bleachers. She must have been one of his gym trainers. Thankfully, it wasn't Tessa.

"The battle will be two on two. The challenger is allowed to use substitutions, while the gym leader is not. Good luck!" Laura announced.

"Show me what you've got," Brawly called. He dropped his spinning pokeball into his hand and tossed it coolly out in front of him. "Surf's up, Machop!"

Machop formed from the white beam, his short gray tail flicking. With a cocky gleam in his red eyes, he leaned over and kissed his flexing bicep.

May struggled not to snort out an unattractive (Not to mention unprofessional) laugh. Like trainer, like pokemon, she supposed.

"You're in, Ezra," she said.

Her meditite blinked up at her uncertainly, and she gave him what she hoped to be a reassuring smile. After staring at her for a moment, he nodded and leapt onto the battlefield, poising his limbs like a martial artist.

Brawly inspected Ezra thoroughly before grinning. "You surfed!" he said, a deep laugh rumbling in his chest. It was like he could tell just by looking at the way her pokemon was standing. "Don't get too confident. I'm not some fancy pancy honors student, but me n' my fighters have churned in the roughest waters of Hoenn!"

"I'm ready," May shot back, to her own surprise. Brawly didn't intimidate her as much as Roxanne had, whether it was because she knew she was prepared this time, the guy's demeanor was so friendly, or simply that she was trying her absolute hardest to fight her nerves. "Force palm!"

Ezra skittered forward, his right arm held over his head in preparation to strike. Machop made no move as the meditite neared him, and May thought for a second that she would be lucky enough to land the first attempted strike.

At the last second, Brawly said, "Karate chop!"

The side of Machop's burly gray hand met Ezra's opened one in midair. Ezra's face tensed from the strain of holding off the heavier pokemon, and his palm crackled with unreleased energy. Unfortunately, it was a struggle that he couldn't win against Machop's pure physical strength.

"Release and dodge it!" May said, before he lost it.

Ezra allowed his palm to slip from Machop's, and when the larger fighting type's hand flew down to smack him, he bent over backwards with magnificent flexibility. The gray hand swiped mere inches above his face. As soon as it at passed by, Ezra twisted around, his left fist glowing with the energy of another force palm.

But Machop wasn't fooled. He reached out with expert reflexes, catching Ezra's bony wrist in between both of his hands. Time seemed to slow down as the meditite's black eyes widened in apprehension, but Machop had used his grip on his arm to slam him into the ground in a flash.

"Now karate chop!"

Ezra's back was exposed vulnerably, and he barely managed to twist halfway around before Machop's fist came down hard on his shoulder. He winced in pain, digging his nails into the rock beneath him. Machop was rearing back for another attack by the time May finally managed to gather her senses.

"Detect!" she cried.

Ezra's black pupils lit up a ghostly olive color, and as if he could predict every movement of his opponent, he shifted away from Machop's attacks with ease. He climbed back to his feet, bending and stepping away from each karate chop that came his way. Machop's face steadily transformed into a frustrated scowl, and his attacks grew messier.

May was just thinking of how she could get back on the offensive when the glow in Ezra's eyes suddenly wore off. His mouth widened in surprise just before Machop landed a satisfied smack to his chest. The first was followed by another, and then another until May lost count.

"Ezra!" May bit her lip as she watched the tide rapidly turn in Brawly's favor. Fighting type moves wouldn't have too much of an effect on Ezra, but they would still wear on him eventually. Her mind went blank with worry, and she had to forcefully remind herself to stay calm before an attack rose to her lips. "Bide!"

Ezra squinted his face in either pain or concentration, and white energy began radiating off of his skin. Brawly's sky-colored eyes widened.

"Machop, stop attacking, bro!"

Machop got in a couple more hits before he turned to blink at his trainer curiously. Brawly frantically motioned for him to move away, but he was too late. A mass of shining white energy erupted from Ezra and slammed into Machop, sending him hurdling across the battlefield.

"Awesome, Ezra!" May cheered.

Machop was completely on the other side of the room, struggling to his feet. Ezra was panting, but he was still holding up surprisingly well considering the amount of damage he'd taken. She couldn't afford to let it happen again, especially not when Ezra was fighting a battle he wasn't built to fight. He wasn't meant for brute force like Machop, but unfortunately, that's all they had to work with at the moment.

She'd just have to make sure his force palm could compete with Machop's karate chop.

"Meditate!" she ordered, and Ezra obediently gathered his limbs into his mediation pose. His skin began to glow, blue this time instead of white, as he focused all of his mental energy into raising his attack. They'd practiced a ton over the past week, and although he still couldn't use a damage-dealing psychic attack, he was at least able to tap into that energy.

"Hurry and use karate chop!"

Machop, sensing the urgency of Brawly's tone, stood and began racing across the room towards Ezra. May prayed to every legendary she knew of that Ezra would finish his preparation in time.

Machop was feet away and the blue glow of meditate was just beginning to fade when May yelled, "Force palm, hurry!"

Miraculously, Ezra managed to stand and hold out his sparking palm with enough force to stop Machop in his tracks. Agitation appeared on both pokemon's faces, and May knew that Ezra's attack hadn't grown stronger than Machop's. It was only equal.

"Come on, Ezra, you can do it!" she half begged, half cheered.

Ezra hardened his face in renewed determination. Something different washed over his stance, and his eyes faded to an eerie blue color. Suddenly, Machop was launched away with incredible power, yet Ezra's force palm never touched him.

Machop lay collapsed on the floor, completely unmoving. Ezra's eyes slowly returned to their normal color, and both he and May stared at Machop with a combination of shock and awe in their expressions.

"Machop is unable to battle. Meditite wins!" Laura announced, and Brawly returned his machop good-naturedly.

"We got stuck in the undertow," he mused, but May was too excited to bother deciphering his weird ocean analogies.

"Ezra!" She beamed. "You just used confusion! You're amazing!"

"Meditite," he mumbled. Blood rushed to his cheeks, and he rubbed at the back of his head shyly. Despite this, the pride in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Here comes my big wave," Brawly said, drawing May's eyes back to him. He held another pokeball in his grasp. "Let's see if yours can match it!"

Hariyama materialized in a flurry of bright orange knuckle pounding and rock hard muscles. In contrast to Machop, he leered down at Ezra calmly, seven and a half feet of pure power. Like the vast ocean he surfed so masterfully, Hariyama was a force to be reckoned with.

May swallowed subtly. She'd been hoping for Breloom, for the sheer size of Hariyama could be a problem all on its own.

Oh well, she decided. No going back now.

"Try another confusion," May said, not liking the look of those humongous hands. It looked like one squeeze from them could snap Ezra's thin limbs right off.

A panicked look overcame Ezra, and he stared at Hariyama for several seconds. Unfortunately, no blue mumbo-jumbo entered his eyes this time, and the lines of his face crumpled in strain.

Oh crap, May thought, when she realized he was far from having mastered the attack just yet.

"Bulk up."

Any ease that May felt after having won the first battle was rapidly melting away. Brawly was seizing the opportunity to power up his pokemon, and now Ezra was standing uselessly with his eyes closed in a last ditch attempt at a confusion attack.

There was no other solution. She couldn't afford to let Hariyama gain any more preparation while Ezra tried to get a grasp on his confusion again.

"Switch to force palm!" She tried not to let her reluctance creep into her tone, but it probably showed on her face.

Ezra charged at Hariyama, palm alight. Brawly's cool façade never faded.

"Give 'em a whirlwind!"

Hariyama waved his massive hands in a circle, whipping up a breeze. The breeze quickly transformed into a howling wind that swept Ezra clean off of his feet and into the stone wall on the edge of the battlefield.

"Ezra!" May cried, straining on her tiptoes to see if he was alright. She had his pokeball ready in hand, but surprisingly, he fought his way back to his feet. He glanced back at May questioningly, although he made sure to keep one eye on his opponent.

Hariyama never offered to attack, however. May realized with irritation that he probably wasn't going to until she did. Every move she made, Brawly waited until he could use her own force against her. It was so clever, so surf-ish, and so him that May couldn't decide whether to be impressed or infuriated.

To her dismay, she couldn't think of any attack that could make it around whirlwind. Unless…

"Alright, Ezra," May said, placing her hands on her hips in determination. She could just image Brendan smirking at her action from up in the stands, but she didn't have time to look. "Another force palm, but run to the left this time!"

Ezra probably thought she was insane, but to his credit, he didn't show it. He ran towards Hariyama, eyes trained on his left side this time.

"Haven't you realized our tide's too strong for that, babe? Whirlwind!"

Just as the air around Hariyama began to stir, May shouted, "Now feint!"

Ezra dove under the wind at the last second before summersaulting up into the air. Leg glowing, he twisted around and landed a clean kick right to Hariyama's round cheek.

"Knock off, quick!"

The large pokemon grunted in pain, but one of his hands came down on Ezra like a giant orange bug-swatter. The meditite crashed into the ground beneath Hariyama's feet, scattering rocks and scraping his skin in the process.

Ezra's body quivered once before going still.

"Meditite is unable to battle. Hariyama wins!"

May barely registered the announcement as she recalled Ezra. She was more than happy with Ezra's performance, but she was worried. Technically, she and Brawly were tied now, although Hariyama was a seriously tough cookie.

If anyone on her team could beat him, it would be Soren, especially after his evolution.

"Come on Soren," May encouraged, as she tossed her starter's pokeball out onto the field. Soren spread out his leaves, as if to make himself appear larger, and surveyed Hariyama in that smug, reptilian way of his.

"Gro," he said lazily.

Hariyama grumbled something, and Brawly laughed. For some reason, May got the feeling that he was mocking Soren's size. She huffed. Not everyone was a giant!

Soren's yellow eyes had narrowed at the commotion. Irately, May said, "Ready to kick some butt?"

"Grovyle!"

She took that a definite "yes".

"Bullet seed!" she said, just for the sake of keeping Brawly on his toes.

Predictably, Hariyama spun his hands in the familiar movement of a whirlwind attack as Soren's gleaming seed projectiles approached him. May wasn't really surprised, but she was a bit disappointed when they were tossed aside with ease to land harmlessly across the battlefield.

"Gotta do better than that, babe," Brawly yelled from across the battlefield, grinning like an aipom.

May's hands shifted from her hips to cross in front of her chest. Soren glanced back at her impatiently, eager to get revenge for his fallen attack, yet she kept her mouth firmly shut.

If Brawly was so determined to stay on the defensive, then she would make sure he went on the offensive. How?

By doing absolutely nothing.

Seconds ticked by. Soren seemed to have caught on, for he stood statue-still and glared threateningly at Hariyama. The fighting type, on the other hand, kept shuffling from foot to foot, waiting for something to happen already.

Finally, Brawly said, "Patience is a specialty for surfers, but sometimes we gotta rush head on to catch the wave! Hariyama, arm thrust!"

For the first time, Hariyama actually moved. The battlefield rumbled miserably under his feet as his heavy body carried itself across the field towards Soren, yet he was fast for a pokemon so large. Unfortunately for him, it was nearly impossible to match Soren's speed.

"Run forward," May said. He complied, lowering his head to maximize his velocity. If he was scared of being crushed under the incoming weight that was Hariyama, he didn't show it.

They were feet apart when she completed her order. "Now jump over him and use pound!"

Soren leapt, bunching his powerful thigh muscles and using the momentum he had gained from running to perform a high jump. Hariyama tried to stop, but his bulk was in the way, causing him to skid around awkwardly. He was helpless against Soren as he flipped over his back and smacked him with an extra strong pound attack, courtesy of the new leaf sprouting out of his head.

Hariyama groaned in pain, but Soren wasn't done yet. He spun around agilely, digging his clawed toes into the ground, and launched a strong beam of seeds into his opponent's back.

"Yes! Keep it up, Soren!"

They had been practicing his bullet seed a lot. Not only had it steadily grown stronger, but she also knew that he could keep it up for over a minute if the conditions were right.

At the moment, they seemed to be in Soren's favor. May didn't think that Hariyama could whip up a whirlwind when the attack was so close at hand.

"Surf!" Brawly said, causing some of May's confidence to melt away. Surf? He had taught Hariyama water attacks?

"Fall back!" May said, but it was too late.

Hariyama waved his hands, and the water surrounding the arena was suddenly rushing in, seeping across the entire battlefield in treacherous waves. He was careful to keep the water below waist depth near himself, which allowed him to easily remain standing on his strong legs.

Soren, however, wasn't so lucky. One second he was there, and the next his scaly green head disappeared as he was swept away by the makeshift current.

Ohcrapohcrapohcrap, was the only thing running through May's mind as she struggled to catch a glimpse of her submerged pokemon. He couldn't swim well! She knew that from surfing practice.

Somehow, miraculously, when Hariyama allowed the water to run back into its rightful place, she spotted Soren. He was clinging to a tall rock that served as a protective barrier between the bleachers and the battlefield. His scales were drenched, and he was shivering. However, if his spiteful glare was anything to go by, he wasn't ready to quit just yet.

"The tide's in our favor, Hariyama. Arm thrust!"

Hariyama lumbered towards Soren again, and May fearfully noted the slightly dazed look beneath the glare in his eyes. He was still shaken from the surf attack. She had to keep Hariyama away from him until he could recover.

"Bullet seed at his feet!"

Soren dropped down from the rock like nothing was wrong, but the barely visible twitch of his leg gave him away even before he attacked. He dropped his jaw and spat a row of uncharacteristically messy seeds towards Hariyama, which the other pokemon ran through like they were nothing.

In a flash, Hariyama's heavy fists were baring down on Soren one after another. He managed to roll so that he wasn't backed up against the rocks, but he was still unable to escape the violent arm thrust attack.

May froze, suddenly out of ideas. She thought that surely Hariyama would give out soon, but seconds ticked by as the brutal beating continued. Surfing had clearly built him an impeccable stamina.

She blurted the first idea that came to mind. "Counter with fury cutter!"

When the next fist came down on Soren, it was met with the sharp glow of a red leaf. Soren strained under the force of holding him off, and May briefly panicked that his leaves could get broken. However, the sharp blade sliced into Hariyama's hand, causing him to recoil slightly. It was the opening that she needed.

"Go for his legs!" They were the core of Hariyama's mighty body, and since they weren't having the best luck with pure force, it was time to switch up the strategy.

Soren swung his leaves so quickly that it was nearly impossible to see, yet the increasing length of them gave away the fact that his attacks were making contact.

"Knock off!"

Even through his misery, Hariyama managed to swat Soren away. The grovyle's smaller body rolled several times before he landed in a squatting position, hissing. May eyed his battered body warily; no matter how tough he was acting, he couldn't take any more.

Across from him, Hariyama's legs were trembling like they were made of jelly. May tensed, and her brain went into overdrive. It looked like whoever got the next hit would be the winner…

Until Hariyama abruptly moaned and tipped over onto his back, fainted.

"Hariyama is unable to battle. The challenger wins!"

Brawly recalled Hariyama good-naturedly, shaking his head. "The bigger the wave, the harder the crash. That was a gnarly battle, babe!"

"Yes!" May cheered to herself, before running out onto the field to meet Soren. Like she had done on the beach, she dropped to her knees and threw her arms around his neck, careful to avoid any bruising areas. "You were awesome."

"Gro," he said coolly, and May felt the leathery texture of his head leaf droop over her shoulder. In the background, a noise that sounded suspiciously like several girls bursting into tears carried to May's ears, and a barely perceivable smirk drifted onto Soren's beaklike mouth.

She couldn't help but giggle.

"Here's your badge," Brawly said, and she realized he was standing right beside them. She stood, only halfway bothering to dust the dirt off of her knees.

"Thanks," she said, and then she opened her palm so that Brawly could drop her new badge into her hands. Her eyes brimmed with joy as they ran over her prize. It was a clear, sky blue metal cut into the rough shape of a boxing glove. The thumb was colored orange, and the color combo provided her a strange reminder of both Brawly and Hariyama.

"Nice," Brendan's voice said. He had apparently climbed down from the bleachers while she was distracted, and he was now leaning over her shoulder to peer at her new badge curiously. His eyes flickered to hers, flashing with arrogance. "And you didn't even have too much of a panic attack this time. Probably because you have an awesome coach."

May swiftly dug her elbow into his stomach, and he wheezed away from her. "Why thank you, Brendan!"

Brawly let out a loud laugh, and May was shocked when she saw that his fingers were reaching to pull his shirt over his head. "Well, time to hit the beach!"

"Hey, wait!" May called. He spun back around, and if it were possible, his grin stretched even further.

"You wanna go surfing with the master this time, don't you, babe?"

"Uh, no," May said flatly. To her amazement, no blush flooded to her cheeks, although she did hear both Soren and Brendan choking on their own laughter behind her.

Brawly furrowed his brow, like he couldn't comprehend that someone didn't want to go surfing. "Then what's up?"

"I just wanted to ask about how to get a ride to Slateport," she said, glancing back at Brendan. He shrugged.

"Well a ferry usually stops by once a month," Brawly said, and May's jaw dropped in disbelief. She did not want to stay on this island for a month. It was a nice tropical paradise and all, but she seriously needed to make further progress in her journey! Plus, the shipyard in Slateport was waiting on them to deliver Mr. Stone's package. "But hey, I know someone who can take you for free!"

"Free's good," Brendan added. May shook her head at his reluctance to spend money, but she had to nod along with him. They weren't exactly rolling in pokedollars.

"Rad, I can hook you up!" Brawly said. He balled his shirt up in his hands, and May could tell he was itching to get outside in the waves. "Dude's name's Mr. Briney. Heard of him?"

May raised her eyebrows and shot an amused look at Brendan, who was already groaning with dread. "Yeah, I've heard of him," she said.

Brawly bounced on his feet, eagerly glancing over her head. It seemed as if he would explode if he didn't hit the beach soon. May started to laugh and tell him he could go, but something else occurred to her.

"Oh!" she blurted. "Hey Brawly, could you do me one more favor?"

"Sure thing babe," he said, grinning down at her. His large dimples were more apparent than ever so close up.

"Tell Tessa how awesome Ezra did. Please?"

If at all possible, his smile grew even wider.

AN: This chapter reminded me why writing gym battles stresses me out so much. I did my best to add in some interesting concepts, but in the end, I've realized that I'll never be some master battle writer. I try my best, though :)

This chapter was also annoying because it got WAY too long and I still couldn't fit one scene I really wanted in here. Grr. Thankfully I found a way to incorporate it later, so no harm done really. I'm just thrilled that we're finally leaving Dewford after five chapters.

On another note, if you haven't checked out TtS wiki in a long time, the character playlists have gotten pretty big! (Mostly thanks to Alternative Angel and Ten-Faced; what would I do without you guys?) I'd say it's worth taking a look at.

I'll probably ask this multiple times down the road, but who's your favorite character (Or characters, if you seriously can't decide) so far? I think I know who's going to win, and I'll tell if I'm right or not next update. I'll tell you MY personal favorite when I respond to your reviews ;)