With their journey finally started, Will and Pyro went to train last chapter. However, due to both the cold and the length of time he was training, Pyro could not do as well as hoped. This caused Will and Pyro to have a bit of a one-sided argument. Pyro wanted Will to know that he's doing his best, but before Will could respond, a random hailstorm with golf ball-sized hailstones began. After getting to cover, though, they learned it was a prank! And the prankster was proud! Will gave the polar prankster a loud verbal thrashing, but Pyro wouldn't attack. He reminded Will of who they are and what they do, causing Will to just leave without another word. Pyro followed behind, leaving the Snorunt alone. With their first full day of adventuring complete, what's in store?

TheGreat0ne: Firstly, thanks for reviewing! I really appreciate it! Will is putting his goal before a lot of other things like you said, so I wonder how far that will go? (Duh, I know, but whatever lol) The same can be said for Will's relationship with his parents. It definitely is strained, and you'll learn why kind of soon. Sorry for the super long wait, but I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Will's Team:

-Pyro (Torchic): Scratch, Growl, Ember

The sun had barely risen when Will got out of bed. He was usually an early riser, so it wasn't that weird of a sight. However, rather than waking up Pyro like he normally would, he stood quietly above his sleeping partner, his brow furrowed. Will was already showered and dressed, ready to go downstairs to get some breakfast, but rather than wake up Pyro at this point like he usually would do, he stared.

So much has happened already, he thought, biting down on the right side of his inner cheek. And it's only day two. What a way to start…

Will sighed and looked towards the window on the wall right in front of him. As the window faced east, the sun came right in as it rose through the sky. For Will, someone who generally wakes up before sunrise each morning, this wasn't a big issue, but he was curious about whether or not it would wake up Pyro, who was laying down on the tiny mattress next to Will's own that the Pokemon Center supplies for smaller Pokemon like him.

At least my room at home doesn't face east… There's one upside to it at least.

The night before, rather than going back to their parents' house, Will and Pyro had gone to the Pokemon Center. Will had no desire to stay at home any longer than he had to, and as soon as he received his trainer's license in the mail yesterday, he knew that he would begin staying at the Pokemon Center, which was required to have a set amount of free rooms available for all certified trainers. Pyro knew that Will had planned to do this, so when they began talking to the center rather than home the previous night, he said nothing about the matter.

Will's mind quickly went back to the first day of his journey, the distraction the sun had caused gone. He flinched slightly as he remembered the panic attack he had endured after hearing about the news report of the Ursaring attacking the trainer.

I haven't had an attack in months, but then one happens on the first day!? What the hell!? The ferocity he felt quickly died down as he sighed once more. He looked through the window to the outside world, almost as if looking for something. When will I finally get past this? I can't become strong if a simple news report is able to wreck me…

Will slowly shifted his gaze to the small TV that the Pokemon Center provided to each room. Next to it laid the remote, and before he ever even realized it, Will had begun moving towards it. Then, unconsciously, he reached out for it and picked up the device. Holding the remote, Will shook slightly as he turned on the television to the Sinnoh news. While there was no news of another attack like the one the day before, the aftershocks of the Ursaring attack were spread across the screen for Will to see.

The on-scene reporter was standing outside the Champion's office, where two very different kinds of protestors picketed behind her. One side held signs advocating for the rights of Pokemon to be remembered and that the Ursaring was unjustly killed as he had not gotten a trial. The other side was counter protesting, arguing that Ursaring had killed a human and was put down for the good of society.

To not wake up Pyro, the TV was on mute, which meant that Will didn't have to hear the fighting taking place. However, he was still watching every second of it. Unlike the day before, though, Will seemed fine. His breathing was steady, and only the occasional shaking of his arms showed any effect whatsoever.

With a sigh of relief as though he had proven something to himself, Will went to turn off the TV. However, just as he went to press the power button, the picture of yesterday's victim appeared on the screen, a sixteen-year-old boy who, like Will, had only just begun his journey—a sight that Will hadn't forget from the previous morning. In that moment, his eyes went wide and he no longer could feel anything. His breathing went heavy, and he began to shake uncontrollably.

No. No! NO!

Will suddenly dropped the remote to the ground as he brought both of his hands up to the top of his head. He ran his fingers through his hair and gripped it tightly, hoping to regain control of his body and breathing. In that same moment, though, the remote fell to the floor and made a loud smack as the batteries fell out and rolled around the room. Will paid it no mind, instead continuing to try and get back under control, but the smack had stirred Pyro in his sleep.

Through his deep breathing, Will didn't notice Pyro's eyes start to open shakily. The light shining in from the window disoriented him, so he wasn't able to see the panic attack that Will was having. Instead, he drifted back to sleep. Meanwhile, Will never noticed his partner's stirring. He was still struggling silently, internally screaming at himself.

Damnit! Get a grip, damnit! The shaking was slowly ceasing, but Will's heavy breathing stayed the same. It's not the same thing! It was just an accident, and you had no control over it! he thought to himself angrily.

He simply repeated that over and over, reminding himself that there was nothing he could do to save the other trainer that he had never met. For five more minutes, he stood nearly completely still—other than his heavy breathing.

Eventually, when Will was fully convinced that he had everything back under control, when his breathing was back to normal and he no longer shook, he carefully bent down to pick up the remote once more. He hit the power button and turned the TV off, ignoring the news which continued coverage of the protest outside the Champion's office. Then, just as deliberately as he had picked it up, Will put the remote down on the table and walked far from it towards his bed.

After sitting back down on the mattress, Will let out a deep breath that he didn't even realize that he had been holding in. As he exhaled, his thoughts roamed as began to lay back down onto the bed in attempt to relax.

Day two, and I've already had as many attacks… Great. Just great, he thought, his face grim. How in hell am I supposed to become the strongest if I can't even watch the damn news!? Then, turning his head to look down towards the sleeping figure of Pyro, he thought, How are we supposed to become the strongest if I can't get over this?

Before he could think any further on the matter, a loud fog horn cut through the silence. Will was so shocked by the sound that he shot straight up and was then sitting up on the bed. At the same time, the unexpected sound had instantly woke up Pyro. He leaped up at the sound and scanned all around the room, as if believing they were under attack.

After a few short seconds of the both of them looking around for what caused the sound, Pyro looked up to the bed towards Will.

"Any idea what that was?" he asked, his head tilted to the right. "It interrupted such a great dream; I was eating some of Mom's homemade pie…"

Will simply shrugged in response, and then without a word, he got up from the bed and went to the window. He covered his eyes from the sun's glare and looked out towards the docks. Just as he had thought, there was a ship atop the icy waters. It had a black hull and red bridge with a foreign flag painted on the side, and like any ship that came to Snowpoint, it was an icebreaker, a special kind of ship that had a reinforced double hull to allow it to plow through the often-frozen waters of Northern Sinnoh.

"I thought that was a fog horn we'd heard…" he muttered. Then, raising his right eyebrow, he continued, "But why is there a ship here? It's definitely not a Sinnohan ship. I've never seen one like it before…"

Pyro, energized by the mystery that he was hearing, ran up to the window as well, eager to see whatever it was that was confusing Will.

"Ooh, ooh!" he cheered as he maneuvered around the bed. "I wanna see it! It's been so long since a ship visited!"

Without saying anything, Will bent down and picked up Pyro, setting him on the windowsill. Knowing that he couldn't do it himself with his small wings, Will blocked the sun's glare for Pyro without ever being asked, surprising the Pokemon slightly.

"Thanks!" he said in response with a smile. "Wow! It really is bright out there today!"

Now able to see out the window, Pyro took a look at the ship for himself. Like Will, he didn't know what the ship was doing there, but unlike his partner, Pyro didn't seem to be too curious of why it was there. The only emotion he felt was excitement.

"Yes! Awesome! There's gotta be at least one other trainer on that boat, right!?" he asked rhetorically, turning back towards Will and grinning. "That would mean that there's someone that we can train against for our first Gym Battle!"

Will's stolid expression never wavered as Pyro stared at him with his usual wide smile. However, despite saying nothing, the gears in Will's head were turning.

Pyro's right… he thought. If there's somebody here—even if they're more experienced than me—we could battle them. No matter how much we practice accuracy and endurance, we don't stand a chance against the Gym Leader—let alone anyone else—if we don't actually practice battling.

"Then let's go check for trainers," Will said simply after a moment, a small smile making its way to his face.

Pyro, despite spotting the smile forming, said nothing, but his excitement grew even more. If Will was looking forward to this, then it was definitely going to be fun for himself, Pyro knew. With that thought in mind, he hopped off the windowsill and jogged over towards the door.

Looking back as he got to the door, Pyro called, "You coming, Will!? We've gotta get over towards the dock quickly—"

He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed that Will hadn't yet moved from his spot. Will was instead continuing to stare down towards the dock as the ship began to move away from the city. With a final fog horn, the ship retreated back to the icy waters, and his gaze never once left it until it was out of sight. Only then did Will turn around to face Pyro.

"You're right," he said, as though responding to the question Pyro has asked a couple minutes previously. "We should get going."

Then, without another word, he walked over towards the door. Pyro said nothing as Will passed him, instead just staring. The moment by the window confused him, but he knew better than to ask about it. He followed along behind Will as the two left the room to head over to the docks.

As they walked, only one thing was on Will's mind, and it was almost as if it was a song playing on repeat.

This is our first test. We have to succeed.

"They've gotta be around here somewhere, right?"

Pyro was scanning through the barren streets of Snowpoint City for whomever had been on the ship to no avail. He and Will had seen no sign of anyone around the docks, so they decided to move back towards the Pokemon Center, thinking that they might have passed the visitor at some point. However, they still hadn't seen anyone, even on their way back to the Pokemon Center.

"You would think so," Will muttered, glancing from side to side as his brow furrowed. "But there's not a single sign of anyone having been here."

Walking down the street, Will and Pyro were careful to keep their balance as they looked around, because like always in Snowpoint, the roads were icy. Even in times when it hadn't snowed in days and the ground was clear, the pathways were still slick. Sighing, Will slowly turned around to face Pyro, glaring off into the distance all the while.

"Whatever," he muttered as he glared. Then, facing Pyro, he said, "Let's just go train."

Pyro was visibly slumped at not being able to find another trainer but said nothing as he nodded his head. He watched Will walk past the street corner, but just as he disappeared out of his sight, Pyro heard a loud thump.

"What the hell!?"

The annoyed voice of his partner was unmistakable to Pyro. He ran across the corner to see Will sitting down on the ground rubbing his right arm. Across from him was a teen seemingly the same age as Will with short blond hair. Despite the year-long cold temperatures of Snowpoint, this teen was wearing only a pair of khaki shorts, a gray T-shirt, and a blue zip-up jacket. Suffice it to say, he looked incredibly out of his element.

"I'm s-s-so s-sorry!" he nearly yelled while shivering.

Unlike Will, he was still standing and didn't seem sore, leading Pyro to believe his partner took the majority of the force from the collision. Despite the circumstances, Pyro had to stop himself from laughing. Even as he stood there, the other teen continuously apologized, and all the while, Will never said a word. He just sat there wide-eyed, seemingly confused by the constant babbling.

"I didn't mean to b-bump into y-you, I'm s-s-sorry!" he stammered. "I'm j-just not used to all of this ice, and I k-keep s-s-slipping!"

By that point, Will had already risen to his feet and was shaking off some of the snow.

"I'm s-s-sorry! I didn't even try to help y-you up!"

Will ignored the apology.

If the teen was bothered by Will's ignoring his help, it didn't show. He just continued apologizing all the same amidst his shivering.

"I r-really didn't mean t-to do it," he said. "It was an acci—"

"Don't worry about it." Will spoke quietly, but there was an edge to his voice. "We're just going to be on our way…"

The blond boy's eyes went wide as he heard Will trail off, as though he had just made a sudden realization. All the while, Pyro watched from behind Will, still struggling to keep from laughing.

"I almost forgot! I n-never introduced m-myself!" Sticking out his shaking hand towards Will, he continued, saying, "I'm J-James Anderson, b-but everybody just calls me J-Jimmy."

Will slowly extended his hand out to shake Jimmy's, but before he even opened his mouth to introduce himself, the rambling continued.

"I'm a n-new trainer and decided to start off here in S-Snowpoint!" He was shaking just as much as before, but the nervousness in Jimmy's voice was lessening with every sentence as a smile began to grow. "My family just moved to Sinnoh fr-from Kalos. They wanted me to start off in Canalave C-City where they moved to, but I w-wanted to start off s-somewhere with a reputation for strong trainers!"

Jimmy still hadn't let go of Will's hand. He was staring at him with his usual stoic look, but the smiling Jimmy either didn't notice, or he didn't care, because he rambled along.

"I only have one P-Pokemon at the moment, and he and I j-just started traveling together a f-few days ago. Professor Sy-Sy—"

Jimmy sneezed before he could get the name out, and as he did, Will ripped his hand out of Jimmy's. Jimmy blushed as he realized how long he had been gripping Will's hand.

"Excuse m-me! S-Sorry about that; I think I'm getting a c-cold."

"Don't worry about it," Will said once again. He turned around and went to walk away, saying, "But we really have to be going—"

"Wait!"

Before Will could take a step away, Jimmy had reached out again and grabbed him by the Will's shoulder. The action immediately made him tense up, but he didn't move away. Instead, he slowly turned back to face Jimmy again, relaxing slightly when he saw the look on his face. The small smile that had grown as he rambled was gone, leaving a desperate look in his eyes and a depressing frown.

"I…don't know how t-to get to the P-P-Pokemon Center, and… it's pretty cold."

Will's stoic expression melted away.

"Come with us. We can get you to the Pokemon Center and find you some warmer clothes," he said softly, not looking up to meet Jimmy's eyes.

The depressed look that Jimmy had disappeared just as quickly as it had come after hearing that. It was exactly what he had wanted to hear, and his face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"Th-thank you! Y-you don't know how much I appre—" Jimmy paused suddenly and scanned the surrounding area. "We? Is there someone else here?"

Finally deciding to make himself known, Pyro stepped forward after hearing the question. He walked in between Will and Jimmy and smiled up at the shivering teen.

"Hey there, I'm Pyro!" he said. "It's nice to meet you, Jimmy."

He smiled once again at the shaking teen warmly. In response, Jimmy's eyes shot open wide.

"Whoa!" he cheered. Excited, he bent down towards Pyro and stuck out his hand, as if trying to shake Pyro's non-existent hand. "I'm J-Jimmy Ander—Oh, wait. Y-You already know th-that." He paused for a second and looked dejected. However, he quickly shook it off and perked back up again.

With another broad smile amidst his shivering, Jimmy continued, "Well since y-you know who I am, what's your n-name, buddy?"

Pyro opened his beak to answer, but before he could even make a sound, Jimmy suddenly jumped back up and faced Will. With wide eyes, he bowed his head towards Will and stared at the snow-covered ground.

"I'm s-so sorry! You're b-being so nice to m-me, and I n-never even asked for your name!"

His only movement was the shivering of his arms as Will stood silently, only staring at Jimmy. His face was stolid once again.

I'm not sure what this guy's issue is, but I just want to get him to the Center and be done with him.

"Don't worry about it. I'm Will Knight, and my partner over there is Pyro."

As soon as he spoke, Jimmy brought himself back up to eye level with Will. Just like before, the sad expression dissolved instantly and his broad smile returned. He then looked back towards Pyro.

"It's nice to m-meet you both, Pyro," He looked over towards Will next. "And W-Will."

Pyro smiled in response and nodded his head in agreement. Will nodded as well, but unlike Pyro, his face was still neutral.

"Should we get going to the Pokemon Center and find you some warmer clothes?" he asked evenly.

Somehow Jimmy's smile grew even wider when he heard that and between shivers, he said, "That'd be great! Th-thanks!"

Without another word, Will turned around and walked back towards the Pokemon Center. Pyro followed behind, used to this behavior. Jimmy, though, just stared for a moment, not sure what to do. However, after a moment, he realized that he was being left behind and ran on head, slipping and sliding across the slick sidewalks all the way to the Center.

"Thank you soooooooo much!"

Jimmy was standing in the center of the Pokemon Center lobby, fresh out of the restroom. He had changed into a new pair of dark blue jeans, a red long sleeve shirt, and a black winter jacket. Now more suited for the environment of Snowpoint, he looked less out of place.

"This feels much warmer!"

Will, standing next to the nurse's counter with Pyro, nodded his head in response. His partner, meanwhile, smiled broadly and complimented the other trainer on his new look.

"You seem to be much more suited for Snowpoint now!" he cheered, bouncing up and down with excitement. "Now you can train in the cold without freezing!"

Will nodded his head in agreement with Pyro, but he was nowhere near as excited.

And now we can be rid of him. With a small eye roll, Will thought, So much for someone to help us train for the Gym Leader.

Aloud, he said, "Well, we need to be going—"

"—Oh, wait!"

Before Will could even take a step towards the door, Jimmy had reached out and grabbed his arm, stopping him from going anywhere. As soon as Jimmy grabbed him, Will tensed up. He looked over towards the other boy and glared harshly. Seeing the look, Jimmy released his hold immediately, but didn't seem fazed past that.

"You guys can't leave yet; you haven't met my partner!" Before either Will or Pyro could say anything, Jimmy grabbed a Pokeball out of his jacket pocket and lightly tossed it into the air. "Say hi to Chespin!"

In a bright flash of light, a green and brown bipedal Pokémon. He had two sharp-looking claws on each of his feet and a short tail. When he appeared from inside his Pokeball, Chespin stretched a bit as he yawned.

For the first since he had met Jimmy, Will was interested. He leaned forwards towards the other boy and his partner ever so slightly and eyed the Chespin with a sense of excitement.

Maybe he isn't as useless as I thought…

"It's nice to meet you, Chespin," Will said, his stoic expression hiding whatever excitement he was feeling.

Following suit, Pyro waved his right wing.

"Wow!" he cheered, running towards the other Pokemon. "I'm Pyro! It's really awesome to meet you!"

Chespin waved back to Will politely, but when Pyro greeted him, his face lit up similarly to how Jimmy's does. He dashed over to Pyro and stuck out his little brown hand.

"Wow, I've never seen a Pokemon like you before, Pyro! What species are you?" As he spoke, he extended his arm for a hand shake.

Grinning just as widely, Pyro replied, "I'm a Torchic!" Then, after glancing down towards the extended hand, he joked, "I'd love to shake your hand, but these wings just don't do it."

For emphasis, he shook his wings, causing Chespin and Jimmy to laugh. Will, however, watched the exchange silently, still eyeing Chespin. Pyro, Chespin, and Jimmy continued joking among themselves as Will did some thinking.

Chespin seems pretty young; I wonder if he has done any battling? Will watched as the group of three started to laugh again. They already looked as though they had been friends for a while, not the few minutes that they had actually known each other. I guess there's only one way to figure out.

"So, have you guys done any battling?" Will asked suddenly, cutting off the laughter from whatever joke had just been told.

Chespin looked at Will confusedly, while Jimmy sheepishly scratched at the back of his head. Clearing his throat, he shook his head.

"We haven't actually done any training yet, let alone battling," he explained. Looking down, he said, "Professor Sycamore actually paired us together the morning that my family and I left Kalos to come to Sinnoh, and we've been on the boat since then."

Will scowled slightly at the explanation, but quickly returned to his usual stoic expression. Neither Jimmy nor Chespin seemed to notice it, but Pyro watched his partner narrow-eyed after the slip-up.

"We were hoping to actually start training today now that we're in Sinnoh," Jimmy continued, his inflection lifting towards the end as he stared at Will with a poorly-hidden smile.

The veiled message that Jimmy was trying to convey was not lost on Will. He knew precisely what Jimmy wanted, but Will had no desire to help another trainer when it would do nothing in his quest for strength. He opened his mouth to say 'No,' but before he could say anything, Pyro jumped in.

"That'd be great!" he said excitedly. "We'd love to help you both train!"

However, despite speaking primarily to Jimmy and Chespin, Pyro was staring directly at Will. He was smiling, but the look in his eyes sent a clear message to Will.

Why does he want us to train with them? he wondered. I don't see any reason to waste our time helping them when we still need to prepare for our Gym Battle.

Unlike Will, though, Jimmy and Chespin both lit up like Christmas trees when they heard Pyro. Chespin began to bounce in place, while Jimmy air-punched.

"This is going to be great!" Jimmy exclaimed mid-punch. Then, looking right at Will, he said, "Thank you so much!"

Fighting the urge to scowl, yell, or do both, Will, through his stoic expression, said, "Don't worry about it. We're," he paused briefly, staring right at Pyro. "Happy to help."

Pyro smiled at Will, despite knowing what he really wanted to say. Seemingly pleased with himself, Pyro then walked up to Chespin and began to joke with him again as Jimmy moved towards Will.

"I really appreciate this," he said frankly, his face serious. "I'll make you proud!"

Will was surprised by the sudden seriousness, but was no more excited about the training than he was before. However, he stuck his hand out towards Jimmy as he nodded his head.

"I hope you do."

Jimmy smiled broadly and shook Will's hand. The two then walked back towards the exit of the Pokemon Center with Pyro and Chespin following along behind. Will had only one thought in his mind as they walked to Acuity Lakefront.

This is going to be a long day.

"Focus!"

Will shouted the same word that he had said almost a half-dozen times since they had begun training just over an hour before. His neutral expression was long since gone, replaced by a scowl. He was standing behind Jimmy and Chespin with Pyro as the duo tried to practice some of Chespin's moves.

"S-sorry!" Jimmy yelped out, mid-shaking once more. Despite both the warmer clothes and Jimmy himself saying he didn't feel cold, he was shaking once more. Will didn't understand why, but it did annoy him slightly. "Vine Wh-Whip!"

Thin vines appeared from Chespin's back and extended forwards quickly towards the snowmen that the four had set up down range as targets. Chespin whipped at one of the targets, trying to smack it across it's snowy face, but he missed entirely. Instead of the snowman, Chespin had struck a tree that stood nearly ten feet away, and this was not the first time that it happened.

"You need to focus," Will reiterated angrily. "I've been repeating that since we've started, but you aren't doing it."

Jimmy sighed in response. He turned to face his trainer with a disappointed look on his face.

"We're trying to focus, promise," he said. "We're focusing on the move and when to use it, but it isn't working."

Shaking his head, Will replied, "That's because you're only focusing before you use it. Think of it this way, Jimmy." He paused for a second and walked closer to the duo. "When you swing a baseball bat, do you think only before you swing, or do you think before you swing, while you swing, and after you swing?"

At that, Jimmy's smile dropped and was replaced by a thoughtful expression. He frowned slightly as he brought his glove-covered left hand to his chin and stared off in the direction of the targets. Chespin, after seeing Jimmy visually ponder the advice Will gave, brought his own hand to his chin and looked towards the targets. Will watched the scene with a raised eyebrow but said nothing as Pyro watched the two with a smile.

After about ten seconds of the duo thinking, Jimmy nodded his head and turned back towards Will. "I think we get," he said as Chespin nodded in agreement.

Instead of replying, Will held his hands out in front of him, palms up, pointing to the target. His face remained neutral as Jimmy realized what he meant. He looked down towards Chespin and nodded confidently with a broad smile.

"Ready to try again, buddy?" he asked.

Chespin nodded with a determined expression on his face, ready to try again. The two both took in a deep breath and stared ahead at the targets. It looked like the pair of goofballs were gone, replaced by two serious-looking trainees. Will welcomed the change.

Wow, it finally looks like they're taking this seriously, he thought, his mood beginning to shift.

"Alright, pal," Jimmy said slowly. He breathed deeply one more time before calling, "Vine Whip!"

Chespin, milliseconds after exhaling, launched two vines from his back that shot rapidly towards the targets. He was visibly focused on the attack with his feet planted firmly, and his gaze directed totally at the snowmen. His first vine successfully smacked one of the snowmen across its face, leaving a small dent in the snow. Shortly after the first hit its mark, the second went to strike, but instead of hitting the target, it struck the first vine.

"Ow! Ow! OW!"

Chespin cried in pain after he whipped his own vine and began to wildly stomp around the area. The vines shot back towards him and disappeared back into Chespin's back nearly immediately after he cried out. In response, Jimmy dashed over to his partner and bent down into the snow.

"Are y-you alright, buddy!?" he asked, shaking slightly.

Chespin nodded his head rapidly, but said, "Yeah, but it hurtsssss!"

He continued to bounce up and down as he dramatically wailed in pain, causing Jimmy to smile a bit. That small smirk then soon morphed into a broad grin and laughter.

"Good job there, Chespin!" he jokingly cheered in between laughs. "You lost our first-ever battle—to yourself!"

He began to laugh even harder as Chespin digested what he said. After a couple of seconds, Chespin also began laughing, realizing the silly mistake he had made. Pyro began giggling shortly after Chespin joined in after realizing that he was alright, just a tad over-dramatic. Will, however, watched with a frown and glare.

He stood still without word as he watched the three of them laughing for nearly twenty more seconds. All the while, his frown grew larger and his glare harsher. When another ten seconds went by without change, Will stepped forwards, standing above Jimmy and Chespin as Pyro watched from behind, no longer laughing as he realized what was about to happen.

"Are you both done."

His voice was stone-cold, and while he had phrased it as a question, it came off as a statement. He glared down at Jimmy and Chespin, and the two gulped as they saw the anger in his gaze.

"Er…Y-Yeah, we're done," Jimmy replied hesitantly. He began to slowly stand back up, but as soon as he did, the five-inch difference in their height seemed to double. "S-Sorry about that, Will…"

Chespin nodded his head slowly in agreement as he stood otherwise still, his eyes wide. While Will would have normally let it be, he felt angrier than he had in a while as his thoughts unintentionally went back to the picture of the murdered boy in the news. Will inhaled slowly, his chest rising as he breathed, and as he began to exhale, he spoke.

"Why aren't you two focusing!?" he asked. "I've said it more than a half-dozen times since we started and I even explained in depth what you need to do, yet the two of you still can't do it!?"

Jimmy raised his hands in defense with his palms facing Will, but the yelling continued anyways.

"You need to focus if you're ever going to become strong!"

Will stood in silence for a bit but continued to glare. Jimmy, confused, tilted his head slightly to the right as his brow furrowed. He stared at Will silently for a moment.

"We're trying, Will," he said hesitantly after the pause. Still on defense, he continued, "This is our first time training; we're bound to make mistakes. I promise that we're trying to focus, and I'm sorry if it doesn't seem like it to you."

Jimmy visibly relaxed after speaking, expecting his explanation to soothe the harsh feelings. However, Will's brow furrowed in response, and his glare once more worsened.

"You're trying?" he asked rhetorically. "You're trying." He barked a non-humorous laugh. "That's not good enough!"

Jimmy's eyes widened in shock at the shout. He was flabbergasted by the reaction.

"I-I'm sorry if w-we offended you at all, Will, I truly am," he said slowly.

Will's glare lessened, but the rest of his angry expression remained the same.

"If you want to be strong," he began with less venom than before but still fierce. "You have to do more than try! Strength comes from hard work and sacrifice! You can't laugh and joke your way to the League!"

"I kn-know that, Will," Jimmy replied instantly, his voice still timid. "Like I s-said, I'm sorry if we offended you in any way, but life is about more than being strong."

Will didn't move as Jimmy spoke, nor did he retort when Jimmy paused, so he took that as a sign to continue.

"Do I want to be Ch-Champion?" he asked. Not waiting for a response, Jimmy answered, "Y-Yes, of course. That's why I left my f-family behind in a new region to become a trainer, but there's more to life than this."

By this point, Jimmy stood taller, and the height difference between the two seemed to lessen.

"I want to be Champion, but what's more important to me on this journey is making new friends…" he trailed off there, staring Will directly in the eyes as he said the word 'friends.' "And making my family proud. Those are both more important to me than becoming the strongest trainer ever."

Having said his peace, Jimmy stood silent as he waited for Will's reply. For his part, Will waited silently as he tried to comprehend everything that Jimmy had said to him. It had all sounded foreign to Will, especially when he spoke about making new friends. However, within a few seconds, Will's mind was already made up.

Still silent, Will turned around and began walking back towards Pyro, whom had watched the entire scene with wide eyes silently. He bent down and picked up his sling backpack from the ground next to his partner and put it over his back. Only then turning back towards Jimmy, he finally spoke.

"Good luck with the League."

Without another word, he began to walk away. Neither Jimmy nor Chespin moved or spoke to stop him, instead watching him walk away with disappointed frowns on their faces. Pyro, meanwhile, snapped out of the daze he was in and ran to catch up to Will, leaving the other duo behind to disappear in the snow.

"Will…"

Pyro trailed off as they walked away from Jimmy and Chespin, the two only then disappearing from Pyro's sight behind them. He then turned to face Will as they walked, his gaze piercing but not hostile and his head tilted to the right. Will, hearing Pyro, glanced downwards to see his partner without ever moving his head.

"What."

As he had before with Jimmy, Will spoke bluntly in a statement, despite it being a question. His voice wasn't harsh but instead back to its usual neutral tone. However, his brow was still furrowed in anger, so it wasn't difficult for Pyro to guess what was on his mind.

"Why did you snap at him?" he asked innocently. Before Will had the chance to respond, though, he quickly added, "He just wanted a friend to help—and, yes, he does consider you a friend, whether you think the same or not."

The two walked in silence after Pyro said that. Will was still looking at his partner through the corner of his eye, but he had no response. Not surprised, Pyro didn't push him any further on the subject. However, he had one last thing to say.

"Why don't you want to grow close to anyone anymore?"

At that, Will visibly reacted. His neutral expression broke, revealing wide eyes. It lasted for no more than a moment, but it was enough for Pyro to notice. He said nothing, though, instead waiting for Will to say something.

They continued to walk for almost a full minute in silence before Will replied, "Friends…" He stopped himself and moved his gaze away from Pyro, back solely on the path ahead of them. "Friends just leave you to die when you need them most."

Before Pyro could interrupt him, Will barked yet another non-humorous laugh. "I know that better than anyone," he said, a small teardrop falling from his right eye as he finished.

Pyro slowly closed his beak upon hearing that. He continued walking, but he stared entirely at Will, his eyes wide in a look concern. No matter how much he hated to admit it, though, he knew that Will wasn't going to say anything more on the matter.

So, after a couple of more minutes of silence, Pyro asked, "Where are we going, Will?"

Pyro still couldn't see Will's face, so he had no clue what he was feeling, yet alone thinking. He had been following along behind him since they left Jimmy and Chespin, but despite their original plan being to continue training for a couple hours, they were headed back to town.

Will finally glanced back towards Pyro once more, his face stone, and replied as simply as possible.

"The Snowpoint Gym."

Firstly, sorry everybody. Year two was busier than expected in the beginning since I started working a part-time job along with my studies, so one month will probably be standard for updates not counting breaks now that I'm in the swing on things. I feel good about this chapter, and I know next chapter is going to probably be my favorite so far. Thank you all for your incredible patience, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

1. What are your initial impressions of Jimmy?

Next Chapter: Left Cold!

Annoyed by his meeting with the fellow-newbie trainer, Jimmy, Will decides to just challenge the Gym Leader out of the blue without any more training. Despite the League rules decreeing the battle a two versus two and Will having only one Pokemon, he challenges her. The Gym Leader accepts the challenge, but what're the odds this goes well for Will!?

Strength Arc:

Snowpoint City:

Chapter 5: Left Cold!

Chapter 6: Warming a Cold Shoulder

Chapter 7: A New Dawn!

Chapter 8: Avoiding the Avalanche!