Chapter 47

As morning turned into afternoon, battle strategies whirled around in Mark's head. He carefully considered each plan, often jumping from one to the next as he weighed the pros and cons of each. One thing was certain. If he wanted to beat Lily, there was once again a lot of training that needed to be done before he was ready.

Mark had seen Lily's human Pokémon in action against Team Deus, so he knew full well how strong they were. Maple had fought alongside them and even her power boost from the Red State had only brought her up to their level. It hadn't made her any more powerful than that. They had a lot more experience than she did and Lily was clearly a very skilled trainer.

Worse still, Maple had a type disadvantage against both Shinobi and Aroma. The grass-type human Meganium probably wouldn't be an issue for Maple. In that instance, the grass versus grass match-up would work out in Maple's favor. She could simply use Swords Dance to boost her attack strength and break through any defenses Aroma set up. She would also simultaneously be well prepared against anything Aroma used to attack.

However, the opposite would be doubly true if Maple fought Shinobi. The bug and flying type Ninjask would shrug off Maple's Leaf Blade with ease, even after a Swords Dance. Worse still, her alternate attack in Dig, which had won their first fight, was completely useless against Shinobi. As it stood, Maple could not beat him.

So, what were his options?

The first to cross his mind was to add Cherry to the fight. As a fire-type, Maple's inherent disadvantages against Shinobi and Aroma turned into advantages to exploit. Mark had no idea what abilities the small Charmander-girl possessed, but any fire-type attacks could mean the difference between a loss and a win.

Unfortunately, aside from typing, Cherry possessed little to no advantage over Lily's human Pokémon. She may have been a human Pokémon, but she was still an under-evolved Charmander. Worse still, Mark remembered hearing that she had evolved into a girl only a short time after she had joined her first trainer. That meant she still had a very low amount of experience. Mark had trained Maple for two years and she still was only just as powerful as Lily's human Pokémon. To match that kind of training in time to fight Lily would be a daunting task, maybe even impossible.

But what if Cherry didn't even want to fight Lily? She had become friends with Aroma in their short time together in the Team Deus prison. What reason would she have for wanting to fight her?

Even setting that entire mess aside, it felt cruel to put Cherry into a full-scale battle when she was just a little girl. She was ten years old, she shouldn't be fighting. Mark had put himself through enough with sending Maple into these bloody human Pokémon battles. There had to be another way.

"So…what are we doing today?"

"Huh?" Mark looked around the lobby of the Pokémon Center and realized that he had no idea how he had arrived there. Maple was standing in front of him, patiently and cheerfully waiting for him to remember where he was. Next to her, Cherry had an eyebrow raised as she peered up at him. Eric, Lily and the others had gone. Mark only vaguely remembered parting ways with them.

"Can we eat?" Cherry suggested with some annoyance. She had been looking forward to it ever since Eric's match had ended and her patience was starting to wear thin.

"Yeah, sure," Mark agreed, "let's go eat." Mark led the way back to the hotel followed by the two confused and worried Pokémon girls. They walked in silence as Mark further contemplated how to prepare for the match.

If he couldn't use Cherry, his next best option would be to repeat the strategy of his first match. His normal Pokémon would not be as powerful as their part human opponents, but maybe it would be worth a try.

But the more he thought about it, the more he realized how lucky he had been in that first match. Tristan had practically walked right into his strategy, adding to its effectiveness. He doubted that Lily would be that reckless. Even if she was, Mark would have to force out Shinobi to even have a chance of it working. If it failed, there would be no back-up plan.

The only other choice he saw was to rethink his approach with using Maple. Dig had served them well against Tristan, but it would be pointless against Lily. It was a wasted ability. If he taught her a different attack, maybe that would be enough.

His bag, back in the hotel room, had the Technical Machine device ready for whenever he needed it.

Mark knew very little about how the device worked. It was used by loading a disc into the machine and attaching a few probes onto the Pokémon's head. It stimulated the brain to allow a Pokémon to learn an ability that it did not learn naturally. There was wide debate over the humaneness of the device as well as its long-term effects on the Pokémon, but the majority of trainers overlooked the inconclusive details in favor of the results. After all, even the device had its limits and a Pokémon almost always rejected some of the abilities available.

Mark had managed to build up a respectable collection of discs for use. He still had a few discs that contained Aerial Ace; a technique used by flying Pokémon. If Mark had Maple forget her use of Dig and replaced it with Aerial Ace, then she would have a potent weapon to use against Shinobi.

However, Mark was unsure if the device would work on human Pokémon at all. His intuition told him it would, but he had no reason to take that for granted. Maple might not be able to use it. And even if she could, most of Mark's usual strategies favored Dig over Aerial Ace and he didn't know if he had a spare Dig disc to re-teach her after the fight was over.

More than ever, he wanted to upgrade his collection of the discs. He knew that the manufacturer had started producing re-usable discs, but they were all very expensive and Mark didn't have the money for them.

"So, what are we doing after lunch?" Maple asked. They would have a few hours to themselves before going to PureBlueSky's match, "could we show Cherry around the island?"

"Oh…sure," Mark said noncommittally, "I guess we can do that."

Maple dropped back, away from Mark, before frowning to herself. She had hoped for a better response. She kept thinking back to the day before, when she and Mark had spent the afternoon alone together. She wanted to do it again and find out what it would be like to have Cherry along, but Mark's thoughts were clearly far away.

"What's wrong?" Cherry asked her, quickly noticing her sour expression.

"Oh, nothing," Maple smiled down at Cherry, who didn't believe it for a second.

More lies. Just great…

Of the two of them, Cherry had taken more of a liking to Maple. Mark had been kind enough to let her go with them, but he was an odd person. In many ways, he seemed weak and unsure of himself. Then other times he had the nerve to scold her when she had done nothing wrong.

Everyone around her was lying to her and treating her like a baby. She could handle the truth, why were they hiding it from her? She had been through worse than all of them.

"Am I going to have to fight Lily?" she asked. There was no fear or uncertainty in her voice, only determination. She would show them all just how strong she was.

Mark stopped and turned around.

"No," he shook his head, "I'm not making you fight them."

"What if I want to fight them?" Cherry narrowed her gaze at her trainer. She hadn't fought even one battle since she had evolved. The need to do it was getting stronger. It was like an itch from the inside. If she was free, then she should have the freedom to fight, if she wanted.

Mark looked down into her bright, emerald eyes and noticed that her flaming tail had begun to burn more brightly. He remembered that look. He had seen it in Maple, even without the shadow of the Red State hiding behind it. It would be the same thing all over again.

Regardless of age, species, or nature, human Pokémon still had a craving for battle. He didn't understand it, but he stood by his decision with Maple. He didn't want to force a ten-year-old little girl into a fight, but if she was going to do it anyway, at least he could watch over her. He had learned his lesson the first time and he had no urge to repeat those mistakes.

Not only that, but Mark had been searching for an answer for what his relationship with Cherry should be. He still had no idea whether he was a father, older brother or something else entirely, but here was a chance to find out. He could still be her trainer and maybe he could learn what that meant. Humans and Pokémon had always grown closer through battling and training. It would be the same between Mark and Cherry. He could better understand who she was and maybe she would learn that she could trust him.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Do I look sure?" Cherry spat back, defiantly.

"Then you'll let me train you?" Mark ignored Cherry's response. He had rescued her, but that did not mean everything was perfect between them. There was still a wide gap in their understanding of each other. Mark was starting to recognize it better, but he would need to lessen it, if not take it away entirely. If he wanted to beat Lily, he needed Cherry. But most importantly, they needed to be a team.

"Isn't that what a trainer is for?" the Charmander-girl smirked.

"Yes it is," Mark smiled at her, feeling strangely eager to get started, "we'll go back to the Pokémon Center this afternoon, then you can get your physical and get registered for the tournament."

"Alright," Cherry nodded her agreement.

"We'll go see Aurum," Mark continued, "and start training tomorrow. There's a lot to do and it's going to be hard. Can you handle that?"

"Of course," Cherry nodded, "just let me fight."

"Good," Mark nodded before turning away, "then let's get going."

Cherry turned to Maple, and the two Pokémon girls grinned at each other. They were going to be sisters in battle.

Mark began to plan his battle strategy anew. There was a lot of training to do, but now he had a very important surprise ready to take against Lily.

An odd thought occurred to him, just then. Maybe he did understand why human Pokémon wanted to fight so much. After all, planning and strategizing for the fight was something that Mark enjoyed immensely. His true skill as a trainer lied in his ability to anticipate and prepare.

Once the battle started, it would be Maple and Cherry's turn. Until then, everything depended on the strategy Mark came up with. That was his role in the team.

He had only two human Pokémon now, but they were already starting to feel like a team.

Lily hung her head as she walked, with Shinobi buzzing along behind her. After she had left Mark and the others, she began aimlessly walking around the island. Her mind was far from the upcoming battle against Mark. They were friends, not enemies. She would do her best and he would do his. Besides, she couldn't focus on a match even if she wanted to.

She wasn't stupid. She had known Silver and Aroma liked each other. She had even known that Silver didn't like her in the way that she liked him. Aroma was pretty, calm, nice, another human Pokémon, and even a few years older than Lily. It wasn't surprising that Silver would like her better.

But if Lily knew all of that, why did it still hurt?

She stayed outside because there were people outside. If she went inside, she would be alone. If she was alone, then it might hurt enough to make her cry.

But Aroma wouldn't cry. She was strong and composed and a hurt like this one was nothing. That was the kind of girl that Silver liked. And if that was what Silver liked, then Lily would do her best to be like that.

But it was so hard…

"Is there anything I can do, mistress Lily?" Shinobi asked, trying to offer what little comfort he could manage. He was a warrior through and through. He knew nothing about comforting Lily. It was a shortcoming that he hated in himself. He had no choice but to watch her suffer.

"No, it's okay…" she shook her head. She began walking heel-to-toe in an effort to distract her mind.

What were Aroma and Silver doing? They said that they would find her, but that was hours ago. Where were they?

Shortly afterward, she passed in front of a flower shop. Sweet, pleasant fragrances wafted off of the stand. It reminded Lily of Aroma's ability Aromatherapy; the technique that Lily had nicknamed her after.

Aroma was her best friend, and the first of Lily's Pokémon to evolve into a human. But was she still her best friend if she had stolen Silver away? Could a best friend cause the kind of pain that Lily was feeling?

No, wait…Aroma hadn't "stolen" Silver away. It wasn't like that.

First Aroma had evolved, and then Silver followed. Why did he evolve? Lily had hoped it was for her, the way that Aroma had evolved for her, but that was wrong. He had done it for Aroma.

Why hadn't she seen that?

It was obvious, wasn't it? Everything Silver did was because of Aroma, not her. He wanted to run, but he had stayed because of her. When she went missing, Silver had been the one to band them together. And now that she was back…

Lily blinked a few times to keep the water out of them.

She wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry.

Her hands were trembling.

"Mistress…" Shinobi was helpless. But he was becoming angry, as well. He needed to serve his trainer and banish what was hurting her. He knew the source, but violence would not comfort Lily.

"I…I'm fine, Shinobi," Lily swallowed, hard, "you don't have to worry about me."

"It is my duty to worry, mistress," Shinobi replied, "Shall I summon Silver and Aroma?"

"No…" Lily wanted to say yes with everything in her, but it would be selfish and childish of her to give in. She promised she was going to be stronger.

"What shall we do, then?"

"We're going to go train," Lily decided, "We want to be ready to fight Mark, don't we?"

"Yes, of course!" Shinobi nodded.

"Then that's what we'll do," Lily lifted her head as she started to walk forward again, "we'll train and we'll get stronger. Then nothing can hurt us."

As she walked away, the ache in her chest was starting to hurt less.

AN: wow, that's a lot of Pokemon strategy…although that's probably close to the way I think when planning out a team to use…

Oh, yeah, I figure that that's roughly how the TMs would work in real life. Almost like a Matrix-esque teaching mechanism. Hopefully not very painful…if at all…

So, thanks for reading!