Addressing some popular inquiries from last chapter: Yes, Lisia and Wallace are canonically related, and yes, Ali really is a boy!

I think we've all been waiting for this particular chapter for a while, so here you go! : )

Chapter 20: Crossroads of Fate

Mauville was like nothing May had ever seen before.

The buildings in the outer ring of the city rose up around them in every form, from tall skyscrapers to shabby homes shoved in corners. In contrast to the unity of Rustboro or Slateport, everything seemed to clash apart from the fact that neon signs and huge billboards advertising things like "Hoenn TV" and "Hoenn Battle Institute" were everywhere. Brendan had told her that Wattson was one of the ringleaders in remolding Mauville into such a grand city decades ago, and she wondered if all the lighting wasn't his fondness for electricity showing through.

She could only imagine how the nightlife would look.

The people, as well, came in all shapes in sizes. There might be a rocker with a Mohawk on one side of May and a sweet old lady on the other in the same moment, and then they would quickly be replaced by people of even wider variety. If anything, the types of passerby were clear proof of Mauville being the crossroads of the region.

It was also far, far larger than any city she'd ever been to or imagined.

"Cute, isn't it?" Lisia said, grinning up at the skylights as May watched a rather sketchy exchange take place between two figures in a nearby backstreet out of the corner of her eye. She subconsciously took a step closer to her companions, and her hand rested on her hip just above her pokeballs.

"Been here before?" May asked. Her voice lilted with an incredulous undertone.

"Oh, loads of times! I film for Mauville TV sometimes," Lisia said. She laughed, a sound that tinkled like bells, at the Pokenav Brendan was trying to guide them through the city with. His brow twitched.

"What's so funny?" he growled.

Over the course of the last four days, his patience with Lisia had notably thinned, although May was sure of the fact that he still treated the other girl more politely than he treated her. Figured.

Not that Lisia seemed to notice or anything.

"Why don't we just go to the indoor plaza? The food court's right at the entrance, so we can have lunch there," Lisia said, sounding very reasonable all of a sudden. She pointed one delicate finger towards the center of the city, which rose up in massive columns of marble and sheets of glass like an enormous mall.

"It's always crowded," Brendan muttered, yet he altered his direction towards the indoor section of Mauville all the same.

They passed a building that had enough neon lights to shine brightly even over the midday sun. Loud, pop music and a distinctive, musty stench wafted from the place, which was bustling with activity amidst the already crowded streets.

May wrinkled her nose. "What's that?"

Brendan glanced up, and his brown eyes lighted with understanding at once. "Oh. That's the game corner," he said.

Judging by his tone, they wouldn't be paying it a visit.

Lisia hung back from it, her pink lips pulled back warily. "Even Uncle Wallace doesn't like to go there," she said, as if that was enough for her.

May had seen enough as well. "Oh," she said uncertainly.

She could already picture what her father would say about her being in close proximity to gamblers, especially drunk partying ones. He'd probably have Slaking drag her back to Littleroot by the hair of her head and then lock her in her room with chains and all for the rest of her life.

Brendan, observant as he was, picked up on her concern. "Just don't go near it at night," he advised, thankfully not taking the opportunity to pick on her. "Or anywhere else in Mauville actually."

"Well, I'm hungry, so we'd better go," she said quickly. Her insides were itching in readiness to just get away from the place already.

The center of the city was famously all indoors. It contained the newest and most popular spots of Mauville, including the main shopping centers, the city's largest pokemon center, and even the gym. No residential areas were on the ground floor, although the top floor was said to be home to some of the richest people in Hoenn. It was, of course, off limits to any regular citizens (Such as May) who didn't have a special pass.

As soon as they walked through the indoor gates, air-conditioning replaced the hot Hoenn weather, and May stared around with wide eyes. The inside didn't really seem like a mall at all; if she hadn't already been outside, she'd think it was its own indoor city. It was admittedly somewhat cleaner than the outer ring of Mauville, but the sea of people around them was as diverse as ever.

She didn't realize she'd formed a hazard to the flow of traffic until she felt a tight grip latch around her arm and tug her out of the center of the street. Her surprised eyes snapped to familiar brown ones, and she felt an annoyingly familiar tug in her gut. Brendan's hand dropped her arm like he'd grabbed hot coals.

"Let's wait until we're sitting down to daydream," he said. To May's surprise, his voice was more serious than teasing. She glanced back at the crowd and noticed that a couple glares were indeed being shot in her direction. She glared back.

"I was just looking," she said to Brendan.

"Look in the food court then."

May searched her brain for the perfect comeback—preferably something involving how she wouldn't be able to look anywhere for closing her eyes while Brendan was gorging himself like the emboar he was. However, Lisia chose that moment to nudge her way in between them.

"Oh look, guys!" she said, bouncing on her toes. Her skirt, which was cotton candy pink that day, swayed with the action. "There it is!"

Lisia looped her right arm through May's and her other through Brendan's before practically skipping to the food court. May's mind immediately abandoned her little "debate" with Brendan in favor of focusing on her grumbling stomach. It was lunchtime, and they'd been on the road without a good meal for days now.

Lisia's getting kind of good at breaking up our fights, was her last, absentminded thought before she was immersed in the blessed scent of grease that hung over the food court.

Booths for various restaurants spanned in a semicircle over a much wider space than May had anticipated, but that wasn't what really caught her by surprise. Across the yard, several battles were taking place beside tables and in the walkways. A particularly heated one between a nuzleaf and a sandshrew grabbed her attention, but most of the people ate their meals as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

Then May noticed the large sign labeling the area as "Battle Food Court".

She grinned, her fingers brushing across the single blue ball on her belt. "Awesome! I can finally let Gunner battle."

May had kind of trained him while on the road. "Kind of" being the key words. The trainer battles she'd encountered on Route 110 had been devoted mostly to getting Demi adjusted to her new form as a marill or trying to coax out Ezra's psychic abilities. With Gunner, she'd ran through a few exercises on their own, although he'd remained particularly stubborn that his way was the right way more often than not.

And of course, Soren still glowered at him nastily every time the two of them were let out of their pokeballs at the same time, and Gunner was starting to spark back. She was only waiting for the day she had to break up round two of their fight.

"Let's eat first," Brendan said, maneuvering his arm out of Lisia's grip. He stretched out his bicep as if it had gone numb in her hold.

May copied him. "Fine."

"Oooh, there's so many things to choose from!" Lisia said, glancing around with shining blue eyes.

May followed her gaze. There really was everything: sushi, subs, pizza, and even foreign food from places as far away as Kalos! She could practically feel her mouth watering.

"Oh my gosh, I don't know what to pick," May added, sidling over next to Lisia to admire the sub on a nearby man's plate.

Brendan nudged his way past them to take his place in a line. "Better order before this grumpig eats it all," he said to Lisia, jerking his thumb towards May. Light mirth danced in his eyes, letting her know he was only playing. She stuck her tongue out at him, and Lisia giggled behind her hand.

"Hmph." May huffed. "C'mon Lisia. Brendan obviously doesn't know how to treat a lady."

"I don't see how you'd know," he muttered, and May put her hands on her hips threateningly. He raised his eyebrows at her display, seemingly unaffected.

"You'd better be glad I'm hungry enough to ignore that, Brendan Birch," May said. Upon seeing the smirk creeping onto his lips, she spun around towards a different booth. Over her shoulder, she called, "Whatever. I'm getting pizza."

May weaved through the mass of people to reach her target, scarcely acknowledging the fact that Lisia had trailed behind her. The joy written all over the other girl's face caused a strange feeling of dread to curl in May's stomach.

"You're getting pizza too?" May asked, trying to keep the uncertainty out of her voice. Lisia continued smiling creepily at her.

"Maybe." She giggled. "You two are so cute, you know."

Heat rushed to May's face as soon as the words left Lisia's mouth. She stared determinedly at the pizza stand in front of them. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said stiffly.

"Awww, you're blushing!" Lisia cooed, cupping her face with her hands. May felt herself get ever redder. "I knew it!"

"Peperoni!" May said to the vendor, making a point to raise her volume over Lisia. She subtly glanced back to the ramen line, where she spotted Brendan's white hat at the front. Thankfully, he seemed completely focused on his own order.

"May-" Lisia started, but May shoved her money at the cashier and snatched her pizza.

"I'll meet you at the table!" she called, scurrying away from Lisia. She spotted an empty booth relatively close by, and she allowed herself a sigh of relief once she neared it.

Ohmygosh. Ohmygosh. She'd better not say anything to Brendan-

May's train of thought crashed and burned when something rammed into her shoulder. She stumbled and almost dropped her pizza onto the courtyard. Once she was steady, her shocked face shot up to the figure that had bumped her.

"Sorry," a deep voice said. May barely refrained from plugging her nose as the reek of alcohol slunk over her. She met the beady eyes of a man with skin so tan he might've been made of leather, although he couldn't have been a day over 25.

"No problem," she muttered. He smiled, and her skin crawled.

"You're a trainer," he said, in a way that was almost too knowing. "Would you like to battle?"

"Oh, um-"

"May, there you are!" She'd never been so relieved to hear Lisia's voice. Her friend came over, carrying a tray with a slice of cheese pizza. "I found us a table."

"Great," May said, a weight lifting off of her chest. She spared the man another glance. "Sorry, but I have to go."

May didn't wait for a response, and when she glanced back to see his reaction, he'd disappeared. She was glad when they plopped down at a table a good distance from the one she had originally chosen; at least he wouldn't come back.

Lisia smiled over her drink. "So," she said.

"So what?" May said back, picking at a stray pepperoni. All concerns about the weird man left her as she felt her face heat up again against her will.

"Are you going to make a move?" Lisia held back laughter like a five year old talking about cooties.

May nearly choked on the tiny piece of food she'd stuffed into her mouth. "No!" she hissed, once she was sure she wasn't about to die.

"No what?"

Brendan set his tray next to May's and slid into a seat, looking at them curiously. Lisia's smile widened, and May had never wanted so badly to be able to turn invisible. Could Ezra teleport her away or something if she let him out?

"Nothing!" May blurted.

At the same time, Lisia said, "No, that can't be the rule."

Brendan shot May a weird look before asking, "What rule?"

"Only one pokemon permitted in the courtyard per trainer," Lisia said, inclining her head to a sign on a nearby wall. Sure enough, the rule was written there loud and clear, yet the way she was biting her lip to hide her grin didn't help her case. "May doesn't like picking just one."

May nodded, mentally thanking the legendaries that Lisia wasn't going to continue their conversation in front of Brendan. She might've died right there from embarrassment—and then she'd have come all the way to stupid Mauville without even getting her third badge.

"Oh," Brendan said, but his eyes narrowed. He studied both girls for a few excruciating seconds, and eventually he paused on May.

She gulped, forcing herself not to start fidgeting out of nerves. Good grief, why does he have to be so observant?

And then Brendan rolled his eyes and downed some of his ramen, apparently deciding not to bother with whatever they were really discussing. He said, "That is annoying. I guess I'll keep all of mine in their balls."

May stared down at her pokeballs, forcing herself not to exchange any incriminating looks with Lisia. After a moment of contemplation, she grabbed Gunner's ball. If anyone needed a battle, it was him (So long as it wasn't with that creep from before), and she also felt that she still needed to get to know him a little better.

The greatball burst open with a tint of blue, unlike the simpler white of a regular pokeball. Gunner emerged, shaking his grass-colored fur in a way that pointedly shot tiny bursts of electricity through the air.

"Trike," he greeted, and then he looked around with curious black eyes. His gaze landed on a battle going on across the food court, which caused his legs to quiver with anticipation. "Ela, electrike!"

"We will after we eat," May said, swallowing a chunk of pizza. Noticing that Lisia had released Ali and was feeding him little bits of cheese, she offered Gunner a pepperoni. "Hungry?"

He poked his furry muzzle forwards to sniff the piece of meat before lapping it up with his tongue. May smiled down at him, and he butted his head gently against her knee. Getting him to like her as much as her other pokemon was still a work in progress, but he'd definitely improved from nearly electrocuting her four days ago.

Brendan snorted, finally finishing an impossibly large bite of noodles. "You're battling here? If you use electric attacks, I'm leaving."

Gunner growled at him, and static sparked dangerously around his head crest. "No, Gunner, calm down!" May said, throwing her pizza back onto her plate in order to wave her hands. Her electrike reluctantly eased back onto his haunches, but he still watched Brendan through slanted eyes.

May glared at Brendan. How dare Lisia accuse her of liking someone so obnoxious? He was attractive, sure, but that didn't fix annoying.

"He's fine," she said, although the more she thought about it, the more she doubted her words. Brendan had helped her figure it out as soon as she'd caught Gunner; he used far too much energy in his electric attacks, and he had little to no control over them once they were released. "… Maybe we just won't use discharge."

"Please don't," Brendan said, taking another bite.

"I'm sure you'll do great either way!" Lisia winked at May across the table, and she was torn between thanking her and sending her a mean look. Lisia was just so nice it was impossible to stay mad at her, but she had almost caused May the embarrassment of her life mere minutes ago…

Habitually, her eyes swept across the food court, only to do a double take. There was a very familiar head of greenish hair standing in the sub line.

"Wally!" May exclaimed, standing up from her chair. Lisia blinked up at her, while both Brendan and Gunner gave her the "are you crazy" eyes.

Unfortunately, the target of her greeting remained oblivious to her. He was deep in conversation with a graying man in line next to him, but the scrawny build and ralts perched on his shoulder were unmistakable. It had to be him.

Not wanting to lose Wally in the crowd, May stepped over her chair (Nearly squashing Gunner in the process) and headed over to him. He still didn't turn around as she approached, which left her hovering a bit awkwardly nearby.

To get his attention, she tapped him on the shoulder, grinning when she was met with the set of startling emerald eyes that she'd seen on no one else. They were wide with shock, but before he could say anything, she wrapped her arms around his thin frame in a quick hug. She wasn't usually a huge touchy-feely type of person, especially with boys, but Wally was too sweet not to hug.

"Hey!" May said, laughing as she pulled back. Her amusement intensified when she saw that Wally's face had grown pokeball red to the roots of his hair.

"O-oh, M-may! Hi!" he blurted, shuffling. Ralts waved.

Up close, May could see that Wally actually didn't look exactly the same as he had when she'd seen him those months ago. His skin seemed ever so slightly more vibrant, and there was a sureness to his stance that hadn't been there before.

The change was miniscule, but he looked so much better. He looked healthy, and alive.

"Wow!" she couldn't help but exclaim. "Wally, looks like Verdanturf really was good for you!"

After the words slipped through her lips, May realized that they might sound offensive. Wally, however, simply turned redder and laughed nervously. He glanced towards his shoulder at Ralts, who was smiling down at them, and his face filled with unmistakable adoration.

"Actually, I think it was more thanks to Alastair."

"Raaa," Ralts—or rather Alastair—said. As if the pokemon was Wally in miniature psychic form, his white cheeks glowed a subtle pink from the compliment.

May's smile seemed glued to her lips. She'd almost forgotten how oddly warm she felt seeing Wally with his ralts; there was just something so heartwarming and pure about the two of them together.

"Wally, who's this?"

The older man from before was watching May curiously. Up close, she could see that he had a potbelly and was balding, but he held the same kind expression that everyone in Wally's family seemed to possess.

Wally's light-colored brows knitted tensely for a second, and May was reminded that she had interrupted some sort of discussion between the two of them. Perhaps it had been an argument? Should she have waited to approach him? Then again, she couldn't really picture Wally actually arguing with anyone, especially after the way he had submitted to his mother…

"This is May," Wally said a moment later. There was no coldness or bite to his voice, which seemed as calm and quiet as always. For a moment, she thought she'd imagined the change in his demeanor, but then she noticed the strange flare in his emerald eyes as they spared a glance to her pokeball belt.

Well. That was definitely new.

"Oh, the young lady who helped you capture Alastair!" the man said, proffering his hand to her for to shake. She took it awkwardly. "I'm Wally's uncle. It's nice to meet you!"

"You too," May said, glancing back towards her table out of the corner of her eye. Brendan and Gunner were watching them nosily, but Lisia and Ali were nowhere to be found.

Huh, she thought, before Wally drug her back to the present.

"Where's Brendan?" he asked. Obviously the absence of May's traveling companion had just struck him, and he frowned, as if he couldn't comprehend seeing her without the other boy following grouchily behind her.

He was probably worried that May had already up and killed him in a fit of anger. It really wasn't too ridiculous of an idea, was it?

"Over there," May said, nodding towards their table. "You can sit with us if you want to."

They could all fit if they squeezed. Brendan probably wouldn't love to be joined by even more people, especially since they didn't really know Wally's uncle, but May had never particularly cared to cater to his antisocial tendencies.

Come to think of it, both he and Wally would probably do well to have more social interaction. This would be great for them.

Wally glanced uncertainly at his uncle. "Well… If you're sure that's okay…"

"Yes, it's okay," May said, nudging him in the arm like she sometimes did with Brendan when he was driving her crazy (Of course, she was gentler about the whole thing with Wally). Couldn't Wally see that they were friends, and that it was okay for friends to hang out with one another?

She waited for them to get their food before leading them to the table.

"Hey Wally," Brendan grunted as they sat down. For once, he only somewhat looked like he'd just sucked a sour pokeblock. May might have to congratulate him on his accomplishment later.

"Hi," Wally said, focusing embarrassedly on his plate.

May sighed. "Where's Lisia?"

"Sighing autographs." Brendan rolled his eyes. May might have thought he was kidding if it weren't for the fact that a decent sized crowd had indeed formed several yards away, a dazzling figure in a pink dress at the center. She was smiling as always, despite the fact that there were fans tugging at her from all sides.

"Great Groudon," Wally's uncle commented. "That's Lisia Halio!"

May raised her eyebrows as she watched the contest start interact with the crowd. It hadn't dawned on her just how well known Lisia really was, but then again, they'd been isolated in the wilderness up until today. There'd been few opportunities for fans to recognize her.

She shuddered. If she reached her dream to become the powerful trainer (Dare she think the Champion?) she so wanted to be, she wasn't quite sure she'd want that kind of attention everywhere she went.

"Trike, ela." Something bumped against her thigh, and May almost jumped. She realized with relief that it was just Gunner, who had leapt into the seat next to her. He nudged her with his head.

"Oh yeah. We'll battle," May assured him. She'd almost forgotten her mission in the excitement of spotting Wally, but as her eyes ran over her surroundings, she didn't see many prospects to challenge. Most of the trainers seemed preoccupied with Lisia, and those who weren't were already in the midst of battle. "Brendan, do you see anyone?"

"You could wait for the guy with the nuzleaf to finish," he suggested. "He's battled like three times already, so he'd probably be decent."

"I guess," May agreed, somewhat reluctantly. Gunner was tapping his paw impatiently next to her, and she had to admit that she felt the same. She felt like she hadn't had a good battle in ages, and the combined effect of having a new pokemon and an approaching gym battle along with that was almost too much to handle.

"Are you battling Wattson?" Wally asked, and May noted that his grip on his fork seemed abnormally tight.

"Yeah," she said. She then realized just how much progress she had actually made since last seeing Wally, and she couldn't resist digging around in her bag for her badge case. "I've already got two badges! The one from Rustboro and the one from Dewford—Soren and Demi have both evolved too!"

"Wow," Wally said, his voice filled with awe as he took in May's two shiny badges, one shaped like a rectangle and the other a boxer's fist. He exchanged a glance with Alastair, who appeared to be barely resisting the urge to reach out and touch the badges.

"Impressive," Wally's uncle said. "You must be quite the trainer to have those!"

Wally and Alastair just looked on, still amazed.

"Thanks," May said, her chest swelling with pride. She really had come such a long way. Next to her, Gunner squared his shoulders, as if he had been the one to single-handedly win both of her badges.

Wally kept glancing between May and Alastair, suddenly reminding her of that day several weeks ago when she'd brought he and Brendan with her to train outside of Petalburg. Was he still interested in training? As May stowed her badges safely away, she had a strong feeling that he was.

"What about you?" she asked, directing her question to Wally.

He looked around, as if he wasn't sure she was addressing him until it became obvious that he was the only one she could be addressing. "What?" he asked, sending a peculiar look towards his uncle.

"Have you and Alastair been training any?" she asked, avoiding his uncle's eyes. If he was anything like Wally's mother, he'd probably want to wring her neck for even broaching the topic, but she couldn't help herself.

Wally needed to stand up for what he wanted, for once.

"Well…" Wally stared down at the table, and Alastair pawed at his shoulder in concern. May leaned forward in her seat in anticipation for an answer, and to her surprise, even Brendan's eyes were focused unblinkingly on the other boy.

"I k-kind of wanted to battle someone here…" Wally said, in a very small voice, and May wanted to jump up and down in joy. She grinned, ready to help him pick out the best opponent and absolutely demand that they battle him, but his uncle cut her off.

"Now, Wally we talked about this. I told you that it's too much. We came to watch the battles—"

"Actually, I kind of wanted to battle Wattson." Wally's words had grown stronger, and he seemed to sit straighter in his seat. His face flickered with doubt. "Just to try… I know Alastair is great."

"Wally, you can be great too," May said passionately. She had a firm belief that anyone could be great, so long as they had the heart to try. Her father had instilled that lesson in her long ago, and if anyone had that heart, it was Wally.

"I know you two have gotten stronger, but you are not ready to battle a gym leader," Wally's uncle said. He had stood from his seat, and he was shaking his head. "It's too much. Your mother would have my head."

"But Uncle-"

"No," he said, his voice final. "I don't want to cut our trip here short, but-"

"Uncle, I can do it!" Wally exclaimed suddenly, also standing. His eyes were aglow with a fierce flame that May never would've suspected the gentle boy to be capable of before that moment. She was shocked when those eyes turned to her.

"May, please, will you battle me?"

"What? Me?" she cried. Gunner had already abandoned the chair and was flashing a challenging fang at Alastair, but she was shocked. Her eyes sought out Brendan as if for an answer, and his brows were scrunched up in what looked like concern.

"Please," Wally repeated. She saw that his clenched fist was shaking slightly, but he didn't back down. Next to him, his uncle had grown silent. "If I beat you, he'll know I'm ready for anything."

"But…" May didn't typically turn down a challenge. However, as she stared into Wally's pleading gaze, for the first time, she did not want to battle. She knew it was hypocritical and wrong after everything she'd just said to him, but Alastair looked so fragile next to Gunner. Wally, as much as he'd improved, still looked so fragile.

She did not want to be the one to beat him.

May felt the pressure of everyone's eyes on her, especially those of Wally's uncle. Not only would it destroy Wally's confidence if she refused to battle him, but it would also seal the deal for his uncle. He'd be even firmer about the fact that he wasn't to battle.

"Fine. Okay."

"Thank you so much," Wally said, mustering a weak smile at her. It fell away seconds later due to nerves, and then he scampered away to find a suitable space to battle.

May felt sick as she crawled out of her chair. Gunner glanced up at her imploringly, and his pointed tail seemed to droop slightly as he caught her expression.

As soon as Wally and his uncle had moved to an open area, May felt a hand catch her shoulder. Her already queasy stomach trembled when she met Brendan's eyes.

"You've gotta be fair," he said quietly.

His words were vague, but May nodded. She knew exactly what he meant, although she hated it. If she didn't battle at her best, she wouldn't be being fair to anyone: not to Gunner, not to Wally, and not even to herself.

Brendan's face softened in uncharacteristic understanding. Somewhat awkwardly, he released her shoulder and patted her once on the back. "Good luck."

"Thanks," May breathed. As Brendan walked away to find a suitable viewing spot, she turned to Gunner.

"Trike?"

There was an uncertain tint behind the typically confident light in his eyes, and she knew that it was her fault. Her own doubts were influencing him, and she could not let that happen. This first battle was an extremely important step for him, and no matter what she was feeling, it was her duty as his trainer to support him.

May kneeled down next to him. Somehow, the private moment with her pokemon managed to bring a smile to her face, despite her concerns.

"Alright. We can do this," she said. "Just try to listen to me and do your best, alright?"

Gunner nodded, and his fur spiked up in readiness as they made their way over to Wally. He walked with powerful strides beside May, letting her know that she had successfully reassured him.

Wally stood in a little area in the corner of the courtyard, his fists still clenched in an effort to quail their trembling. To his credit, his expression showed nothing but determination, as did that of Alastair. Brendan, Wally's uncle, and Lisia (Who had apparently dismissed her fans upon noticing May readying for a battle) sat off to the side to watch.

"R-ready?" Wally asked. The corner of his mouth twitched in dismay when he stuttered, but May pretended not to notice.

She took a deep breath. She had to be all in, or Gunner would sense it.

"Yep. You can have the first move!"

Wally stared across the field, as if he was deep in thought about which would be the best move to use and why. Alastair waited patiently, confident that his trainer would come up with the best strategy. Gunner allowed light bursts of static to stream through his fur, which caused the air to pop ominously, but to his credit, Alistair didn't flinch.

"Hold him with confusion," Wally said finally.

Alastair held his short white arms in the air, and from underneath his helmet, May could see that his red eyes were glowing purple. For the first time, she felt a wave of nerves for Gunner. She had little experience battling psychics, and she didn't know what to do other than wait.

A thin, purple wave of energy rippled through the air and rammed into Gunner. He was slid back a couple feet from the impact, and his claws scraped across tile as he forced himself not to lose his footing. His shoulder twitched, but his gritted teeth revealed that he could not in fact move.

"C'mon Gunner!" May urged. "You've got to break out of it! You can do it!"

And he could, she knew it! Alastair's arms were already drooping with strain, and with a little help from Gunner's bulk, his psychic hold would snap.

Gunner growled, slim muscles bulging as he fought the purple force. May watched the struggle tensely. It was a risk, but… She knew the juice that Gunner needed.

"Use your spark and get him!"

Sparks flew from Gunner's fur, and his eyes narrowed in renewed determination. The electricity stimulating his muscles, he surged through the barrier with one huge jerk, and the loss of his psychic connection caused Alastair to wobble on his feet.

Gunner shot towards him, showers of sparks flying in his path. His near-invisible form slammed into Alastair shoulder first, which sent the much lighter pokemon flying through the air. The ralts then fell to the ground painfully, where light waves of electricity still shuddered through his body.

"Alastair!" Wally cried, terror in his voice.

Alastair moved his head groggily, and after that he shifted so that he could begin the agonizing crawl back to his feet. May breathed a quiet sigh of relief that he hadn't been knocked out in one hit, but her mind quickly reentered its strategic mode.

Her gaze traveled over to Gunner. The energy in his fur was simmering a bit, although his chest was heaving notably after his use of the attack. She frowned. It was better than before, but he'd still wasted too much of his stamina with those showy sparks beforehand.

Finally, Alastair stood back up, yet he was clearly weak on his feet. May paused, waiting to see if Wally as going to give another order anytime soon. He didn't, instead staring at his pokemon with frightened eyes.

Gunner stomped a paw against the ground and shot her an annoyed glance, and she knew she couldn't hesitate any longer. "Quick attack!"

"No, teleport!" Wally said, face fearful.

Alastair 's body became enveloped in a blanket of white light, which disappeared just in time for Gunner to run through nothing but empty air. He paused, glancing around frantically for his opponent. Seconds later, the tiny psychic type reappeared in the center of their makeshift battlefield.

Gunner spun around and darted off towards Alastair's new location, but before he was even halfway there, Wally had yelled, "Teleport!"

He appeared again, far out of reach. Gunner barred his teeth in frustration and bunched his muscles for a third quick attack, but May stopped him. "Stop!"

Gunner was tiring too quickly for a game of chase. Alastair was even worse, as judging by his quivering form, but she didn't want to risk it. From the looks of things, Wally had been scared by Gunner's first hit, and he was now overly preoccupied with keeping Alastair from being attacked again.

It took May a moment of deep thought before she stumbled upon an idea. "Now go in with a slow tackle."

Gunner glanced at her, his snout bunched up in disbelief. She stared back at him, internally begging him to just trust her judgment. After a long moment, he huffed and trotted towards Alastair instead of running.

"Teleport!"

Wally's voice was stumped, obviously caught off guard by May's new plan of attack, but he still didn't waste time calling Alastair away. When the ralts reappeared yet again, his shoulders were sagging more than ever.

"Try it again," May said, and Gunner irritably did so.

"Teleport!"

As the white light faded, it revealed Alastair lean down to brace his hands against his knees in exhaustion. May saw her chance.

"Now quick attack!"

"No, teleport!"

Alastair struggled back upright and the white light of the intended teleport flickered uselessly as he tried to gather the energy he needed. Before he could do it, Gunner had flashed over to him and collided with his center.

The electrike's greater weight sent them flying together. When they landed, Alastair's helmeted head banged against the tile, and Gunner hovered over him at the ready. However, it was for naught, as he had been knocked out clean upon impact.

"Alastair!" Wally cried, his emerald eyes wide. He took a half a step forward, but then paused to recall Alastair instead. His unconscious form was sucked in by a beam of red light.

Wally stared at his pokeball for a moment before his shoulders slumped. Watching him, May felt like she was invading a private moment. She looked away, distinctly feeling as if she'd just kicked a growlithe puppy.

Thankfully, Gunner tapped his snout against her calf to get her attention. He yipped expectantly. She smiled and bent down to pet him. As her fingers massaged his fur, she noted that it wasn't rubbery like Demi's, but long and stiff from all the electricity that regularly passed through it.

"You were awesome!" she said, and he puffed his chest out. Raising her eyebrows, she added, "Aren't you glad you listened to me about the tackle?"

Gunner faltered. "Trike!"

"Mmhmm."

"You won," Wally spoke up, and May was caught off guard to see that he'd approached her. He seemed to be having difficulty meeting her gaze. With effort, he raised his chin, and she could see a resigned sincerity written across his face. "You're a great trainer, May."

"So are you," she protested, but he shook his head.

"I wasn't ready," Wally said quietly. He sighed, and May opened her mouth to reassure him that everyone lost sometimes. However, his next words caught her almost as off guard as his initial challenge.

"But I will be. May, thank you for showing me how much I have to learn."

He smiled at her, and May felt like the growlithe puppy she'd just kicked had turned around and thanked her for it.

"Um. You're welcome?" she said, strangely relieved. She didn't know what she'd expected, but this wasn't it.

"That's the spirit, Wally," his uncle said, coming seemingly out of nowhere. To May's surprise, he just appeared happy that Wally wasn't upset instead of annoyed that he'd battled someone.

"You were right, Uncle. I'll go back to Verdanturf," Wally said. He gazed at Alastair's pokeball wistfully.

"We'll come visit you before we leave, Wa-"

"May, you were ahh-mazing!" a voice screeched into May's ear. Lisia had run from her seat to congratulate her, with Brendan trailing several paces behind her. He rolled his eyes.

May wanted to tell her to quiet down, not wanting to rub salt into Wally's loss. However, the boy seemed to be paying them little mind. He was still preoccupied with Alastair's pokeball, but his eyes were glazed over as if his thoughts were millions of miles away.

May couldn't decipher them for the life of her.

AN: I couldn't decide how to write this place for the longest time. In short, I liked and disliked parts of each version, so I totally just mashed everything together and made it a lot darker for the sake of being unique.

I freakin' love Wally. Spoiler alert, you guys will see him again a lot sooner than you probably think! Like Brendan, he's going to be so much more important than he was in game : ) Oh, and to my crazy Hoennshippers, can I just point out that Wally has hugged May and Brendan hasn't? *Dodges rotten tomatoes*

On a more serious note, I'm going to the beach for a week not this Saturday but the next, so if I don't get another chapter up before then, expect a delay for the next update. I won't be able to write at all on this vacation! Speaking of, do any of you guys have fun summer plans coming up?

Who's your favorite rival character and why? I absolutely adore Wally, but I think it'd be a tie between Blue and Silver for me. Blue's just Blue and Silver is so unique and interesting!