Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon and Harry Potter
BloodyKitsune1997: So we find out what happened on Ash and Gary's side of things which was wow! It's been technically ten days, but what an update for you guys. I also might have a one-shot for you guys. I might also have a lemon idea in the works that will be going on my A03 page. Give me some feedback if you want it, yes it might star a certain champion or two. I might also do both champions as well. Just tell me what ya want!
Chapter 6
"This sucks!" Gary grumbled kicking a rock towards the nearby wall, "Vali's still treating us like little kids!"
"She's not wrong though," Ash flinched as Gary turned towards him with a fierce glare, "We're still just starting ou-"
"I don't care!" Gary seethed stomping his foot, "We're thirteen. We should've been trainers already, but thanks to Vali-"
Anger rippled through Ash at that, it was a sore subject among many of their year level since the trainer age requirements had risen just before they had all turned ten years old. Due to her jobs within the League, Vali had been within the thick of it. Unlike Gary, Ash had seen it when Vali would come home late at night from various missions during those those days with her pokemon looking as if she'd seen a ghost. Even if she hadn't meant for him to see it or hear her, he'd seen her cry. He had heard her talking with their mom about so many horrible accidents happening and wanting to ensure that they didn't happen to them. Hearing Gary try to blame Vali for making them wait, it made him so angry.
Growling darkly, Ash shouted at Gary, "You don't know anything! Vali only did it to protect us!"
"Protect us from what?!" Gary swung around with a glare.
"Protect us from dying like those other kids," Ash snapped earning a startled look though he didn't give two shits right now, "Vali had to see so many kids die because they weren't prepared or rushed headlong into stupid situations thinking they were ready. She came home from long nights by some kid's bedside watching him die and had to tell his parents that there was nothing she could do!" He glared at Gary as the boy shrunk away, "She got slapped by more than one set of parents that thought she should have saved their precious kid when they'd been dead for hours before she'd even got there! Do you know how hard it was for her? To hear that she'd gotten blamed as much as those rangers and Ace's back then? You weren't there when I had to listen to her coming home late at night crying. You weren't there, Gary. I was," Ash clenched his fist as tears welled up in his eyes, "I was never happy about waiting, but Arcues damn it, I'm okay with it. If it means our sister won't be crying because of us, I'll take it,"
"I...I never knew," Gary dropped to his knees, "S-she..."
Ash shook his head, "Vali will protect us as long as she can, Gary. We need to get strong as soon as possible and find more partners to help shoulder her burden," He walked over to Gary and held out a hand earning a look, "Now, we've got partners to train up."
"I...Yeah," Gary swallowed and slowly took his hand, "W-why didn't you say anything?"
"Because I know that Vali didn't want the attention," Ash pulled Gary to his feet, "I mean Vali doesn't even know that I found out. Mom doesn't either..."
"Fuck, Ashy," Gary shook his head, "I wish...All this time...Fuck..."
Ash released Gary's hand with a slow sigh, "Let's just focus on training, Okay?"
"Right," Gary nodded slowly, "Maybe we can look up different pokemon to possibly add to our teams too..."
"Yeah," Ash smiled slowly.
Taking a moment to breath after running laps with Pikachu, Ash sat down and drank some water as Pidgeotto slashed her wings across a nearby boulder working on Steel Wing. Pikachu leaned against his knee panting softly. Gary joined them a moment later with Squirtle falling to the ground beside him. Weepinbell was working on Razor Leaf in the corner. Dropping down beside Ash, Gary took out a water bottle and drank some water as well, "Man, I know Vali said we've got to train too, but this is exhausting."
"It'll be worth it in the end," Ash poured some water into a bowl for Pikachu and smiled as the mouse drank it, "'Sides, we're all getting faster each time we do this,"
"True," Gary laughed lightly, "I-"
They all jolted as an explosion sounded from nearby cutting off Gary. Ash quickly returned Pidgeotto as Gary did the same with Weepinbell. Pikachu hopped onto Ash's shoulder as they cleaned up their things. Ash spoke with a frown, "That sounded close, we should head inside and call Vali..."
"Right," Gary nodded with a frown.
Hurrying as they finished packing up, Gary returned Squirtle and they rushed inside the pokemon center. Reaching the front area, they both gasped at the sight of a fire blooming outside the front doors front a nearby building. Nurse Joy, a different one from Vali's friend, was no where in sight. Shaking his head, Ash took off for the phone room with Gary hot on his tail. He told Gary, "I'll call Vali. You call the Jenny's?"
"I'll call Gramps then the Jenny's," Gary retorted earning a nod.
They reached the phone room and hoped into a pair of booths. Ash dialed Vali's number quickly and frowned as static coated the screen. He tried again and again only for static to coat the screen each time. Shouting over his shoulder, he called out, "I'm only getting static!"
"Same! I tried both Gramps' number and the police," Gary replied, "What the fuck?"
Moving away from the phone, Ash started to head towards Gary only to find himself falling to the ground as the building seemed to shift under foot. A loud explosion echoed through the air as a piercing wail screamed out. Flinching at the sound, Ash immediately sought out Pikachu and pulled his partner close as a whine left the electric mouse. He cuddled Pikachu to his chest as red lights flickered on the walls. Gary appeared moments later as Ash shouted out, "Gary!"
"What the actual fuck is going on?!" Gary shouted back over the wailing sound.
"No idea," Ash looked at his best friend and was glad to see that he was fine despite the apparent explosion, "We need to find Nurse Joy,"
"Agreed," Gary nodded slowly, "Let's head back to the front and hopefully find some answers,"
Slowly, they started to make their way towards the front of the building again. Ash felt something within him scream that something was wrong here. It made him move far more slowly. Gary followed his actions as they had learned to follow his instincts over the years. The minute they reached the front saw both of them paling rapidly. Black uniforms coated the bodies of three large males, a ruby red 'R' sat on each of their chests. The glass doors at the Pokemon centers front were shattered by a large truck which had been backed into the entry way. Gripping the neck of Clarity Joy was Scizor, it's face was one of cold passiveness as it peered at the human within it's grip.
Clarity struggled slightly as she gripped at the pokemon's wrist. She gasped out, "W-why? T-this is a place of healing!"
"Exactly," One of the rockets sneered at Clarity, "The pokemon are weakened and easy enough for us to steal,"
"N-no," Clarity glared at the Rocket, "I won-"
The Scizor clenched it's claw slightly earning a gasp and Clarity's grip tightened as the rockets laughed loudly. One of the others patted the middle's shoulder, "Nice work with that Scizor, Dravis. Now, let's start loading up those pokemon."
Ash shook his head and started stepping forward only for Gary to grip his hand. He looked at Gary with a scowl, "Gar-"
"Those are Rockets," Gary hissed at him, "Like with fully trained pokemon rockets! We can't fight them!"
"We need to," Ash hissed back, "If we don't, they'll take those injured pokemon and might even kill Clarity!"
"I just-" Gary started to argue.
They both froze as a loud growl echoed through the air. They turned their heads to see a pair of Houndour stalking towards them. A laugh echoed through the air from one of the rockets, "Look at this! The pups we got from that backyard breeder actually sniffed out something. And they look like baby trainers!"
"Too late to back out now," Ash swallowed as Pikachu tensed on his shoulder, "Pikachu, I'm trusting you,"
Pikachu growled in agreement and jumped off his shoulder as Gary sighed deeply. Gary tossed out Squirtle and Weepinbell, "Fucking hell, Ash. Sis is going to kill us."
"Ooh, the kiddies want to fight," The Rockets laugh.
"Pikachu, Thunder Shock!" Ash narrowed his eyes as he looked over the two pokemon and glanced towards Clarity who looked at them in panic, "Don't hold back at all,"
"Squirtle, Bubble. Weepinbell Powder Mix into Acid Spray. Like Ash said, we aren't holding back because these aren't nice guys," Gary barked earning growls of agreement from his own pokemon.
Part of Ash wished he had enough room to bring out Pidgeotto, he resolved to get another pokemon that could be used in close quarters. Pikachu's Thunder Shock landed and one of the two Houndour howled in pain as the other jumped away to avoid any backlash. That put it into the direction of Squirtle's Bubble which sent it skidding backwards, the powder mix Weepinbell created was spread across both pokemon who coughed and spat as they tried to get away from it. The Acid Spray splashed across their bodies as they tried to get the various powders out of their eyes. Covering his nose, Ash grimaced as the scent of burning flesh hit his nose.
Without prompting, Pikachu unleashed another Thunder Shock on both the Houndour who ended up passing out rather quickly. Rather than return them, the three Rockets threw out another set of pokemon looking more annoyed than worried. As soon as Ash caught sight of the Koffing, he immediately want to run if only due to how bad this could turn out. One of the Rockets shouted, "You three need to murder those two trainers! They've become a nuisance."
Swallowing harshly as the two Koffing and one Raticate began to step towards them, Ash looked at Gary, "We need to be care-"
"I know," Gary narrowed his eyes, "Those Koffing are fit to burst any moment while that Raticate looks positively rabid-"
A low growl sounded from behind them and they both looked to see Eowyn stalk out of the shadows. Ash and Gary both relaxed a bit as the hellhound-like pokemon stalked forward. Ash spoke as Eowyn's eyes narrowed in on the three pokemon, "Eowyn, will you help us? I know that you're sis' pokemon, but-"
Eowyn cut him off with a dark bark and glare aimed at the Scizor holding Clarity. Gary realized without needing a translation what Eowyn meant, "She's going to try and get Clarity free?"
"While keeping us safe," Ash confirmed as the Houndoom planted herself before them.
The three rockets jolted back as a loud snarl left Eowyn. One of them actually whimpered out, "Shit."
"I know that Houndoom," The one in the middle looked pale, "It belongs to the Fire Empress, Valkyrie Potter-Black,"
"What's it doing here?!" One of them hissed in panic, "We can't beat that thing even with your Scizor!"
"I-" The middle one was cut off by the Raticate darting forward.
With a snarl, Raticate lunged for Pikachu only for Ash's partner to dodge with ease. Sliding slightly as he landed, Pikachu shocked the Raticate with a Shock Wave that struck out at the two Koffing as well. The three pokemon let out pained cries as Ash called out, "Pikachu, use Quick Attack into Thunder Punch!"
Taking off towards the Raticate, Pikachu dodged around it's snapping jaws and easily scored a pair of heavy hits on the overly large mouse's jaw sending it backpaddling with a cry of pain. Not to be left out, Gary called out, "Bell, Vine Wrap those two Koffing into a Razor Leaf!"
With a gurgling cry, Weepinbell struck out with his vines and grabbed the pair of floating rocks as his leaves rustled. Razor sharp leaves dethatched and swarmed outward in an almost uncontrolled manner, they struck the floating poison-type earning a pained cry. Pikachu easily dodged the projectiles while Raticate wasn't so lucky. Eowyn burned away any leaves that approached them. Seeing mustard colored gas leaking from the two pokemon as new holes were formed, Ash grimaced as he called out, "Pikachu, we need to finish off Raticate quickly. Hit it as hard as you can with Thunder Punch!"
"Bell, I want you to use Razor Leaf again!" Gary called out before looked at Squirtle, "Squirtle, I want you to use Aura Sphere and Bubble. We need to knock those two out and neutralize that gas,"
Squirtle nodded and rushed around Pikachu as the mouse once again began hitting Raticate with Thunder Punch. Ash grimaced as blood splattered across the white floor of the center from Raticate's muzzle alongside a yellowed tooth. Raticate stumbled back with each punch and tried to swipe at Pikachu only for his partner to dodge. With a loud cry, Pikachu used Quick Attack and slammed into Raticate's chest sending the larger pokemon skidding back a bit. With a loud crack, he managed to knock Raticate's head to the side. Stumbling backwards with a series of squeaks, Raticate tried to swipe at Pikachu a couple more times only for his partner to send the larger rat flying back with one last hit to the head that knocked it down flat.
As Weepinbell created larger cuts in the two Koffing's bodies via Razor Leaf, Squirtle doused them with increasingly larger Bubble's which soon became two to three per attack. Slowly as the two began to fall the ground with distressed cries of pain, Weepinbell eventually tossed them towards the three rockets. Before the two Koffing could hit the three rockets, the Scizor appeared without Clarity in it's grip and knocked them away with a silent glare aimed at Weepinbell. Ash and Gary looked to see Clarity standing up slowly holding her neck with a silent gasp. Eowyn let out a loud howl of anger and rushed towards the Scizor as a Flamethrower burst from between her jaws. Without a word, the Scizor lept towards Eowyn clearly deeming her the most threatening at the current moment.
Moving to their side, Clarity spoke with a slightly raspy voice, "You boys okay?"
"More in shock that this happened than anything else," Ash answered as he looked at Clarity with a frown, "Your neck..."
"Will be fine," Clarity grimaced slightly, "We need to contact-"
"We tried calling Vali, Professor Oak, and the police before any of this happened," Gary shook his head as Eowyn managed to earn a pained screech from the Scizor, "Something's blocking the phones,"
"They must have a communications dampener," Clarity cursed darkly.
They all stilled as a familiar howl rang through the air and Ash let out a low sigh, "Vali's coming."
"Your sister has the worst fucking luck, but some of the best timing I've ever seen," Clarity let out a small laugh before wincing as she rubbed at her throat.
Looking towards Eowyn's fight with the Scizor as cursing exploded from the three Rockets, Ash paled at the sight of Eowyn quite literally tearing off one of the Scizor's claws. With a loud growl, the hellhound jerked her head away as blood splattered across her form as the claw came free and she spat it in the opposite direction as the other claw attempted to reach for her neck. Flames blasted outward as the scent of burnt metal and flesh filled the air, he felt sick to his stomach and almost vomited as Scizor began to wail.
Feeling Pikachu cuddle into his legs, Ash quickly picked up his partner as Gary returned his pokemon. He muttered softly, "W-why don't they return it?"
"I don't know," Clarity murmured softly.
There was a wave of energy and the three Rockets fell to their knees, Eowyn jumped off the Scizor after a moment as another burst of energy occurred. Vali appeared on top of Balto's back with Elrond in front of her. She jumped off Balto's back with a fierce glare aimed at the three Rockets as Eowyn trotted over to her. Elrond turned his head towards them for a moment before the Alolan Raichu focused on the three Rockets'. A group of pokeballs appeared after a moment and red lights flashed to return all the Rocket's pokemon including the heavily injured Scizor. Walking towards one of the Rockets that was beginning to struggle, Vali snapped out a hand and gripped his chin with a cold look on her face.
While Ash had always known that his sister carried herself differently when on the job, he'd never seen such a cold look on her face. Vali always carried a warmth to her no matter what. But this? It was like all the warmth had been sucked away leaving only a cold statue in it's place and he hated it with every fiber of his being. When Vali spoke, it wasn't his sister speaking, but someone else entirely. He didn't know who this person was, but it wasn't his sister. Frost dripped upon every word spoke as it left her lips, the iced over fire within those green eyes made him shiver.
"Struggling with only make you fall into the darkness of unconscious that much faster, Rocket," The cold snarl was echoed by Balto and Eowyn as the two pressed against Elite Four Valkyrie's side, "You came to steal weak pokemon only to find something far different within this place. Pity on you and your little cronies,"
"Y-you weren't supposed to be here," The Rocket spat at her.
"I'm not supposed to be in a lot of places," Valkyrie's fingers dug into the Rocket's skin and Ash's eyes widen as he saw her nails shift into actual claws, "Funny that," She tilted her head, "But what isn't funny is just how much you fucking pissed me off just now," She put her face close to the man, "Be glad I'm bound by the legal system, Rocket," A siren wailed, "Pity," She turned her head, "Eli, you know what to do,"
A silent nod was given by the Alolan Raichu as Valkyrie squeezed her fingers for just a minute before releasing her grip. She backed up as Elrond got close to the Rockets. Within seconds, the three began to scream out before falling silent as they slumped over into unconsciousness. When Valkyrie turned towards them, Ash saw that his sister had returned and relief filled him. She rushed towards them with a worried look on her face, "Ash, Gary, Clarity, are-"
"Vali!" Ash cut her off and quickly pulled his sister into a hug earning a squeak of protest from Pikachu as his partner was pressed in between them, "I-"
"Oh Arceus, I was so worried," Vali burrowed her face into his neck, "So fucking worried,"
After a couple moments, Gary pressed into his side and Vali wrapped an arm around him as well. When the police arrived, they were separated to give their statements.
Seeing as she had only arrived after the fact, Vali was released far earlier than the boys and quickly gathered up all their things. She decided to get a pair of rooms at a nearby hotel and called everyone that needed to know about what happened. After assuring Professor Oak and Delia that she had everything in hand, she tackled the call the Lance which took about thirty minutes after which the red head decided he needed to speak with Giovanni about what was going on in his city if a group of Rockets was ballsy enough to attack. After a small debate, she decided to call a certain number she'd rarely used even after starting to train Ash in aura.
It took a couple rings and a second call before Red Ketchum's familiar face appeared on her Pokenav screen, "Valkyrie, this is a surprise."
"It is," Vali leaned back against the headboard of her king sized bed with Aragorn's head in her lap, "Normally, I wouldn't call, but given what happened about two hours ago...I decided to err on the side of caution,"
Red's crimson colored eyes narrowed and his Pikachu partner popped into view as the mouse peered at her curiously. The dex holder frowned at her, "What happened to my son?"
Running a hand along Aragorn's ears, Vali informed him of what had happened while she'd been away. Red's mouth pulled into a thin line as she finished with, "I had Elrond punish those three thoroughly for daring to attempt anything with Ash and Gary."
"Thank you. Blue and Green both will be thankful for you keeping their son safe though the fact that three Rockets dared to touch our children..." Red's eyes flashed blue for a single moment, "Even if they do not know of our children's actual parentage, it's a worry,"
"They're becoming more active," Vali warned the dex holder making Red frown darkly, "While we don't have all the information as of yet, my little spies managed to find out that they're sniffing around Fuji,"
"Darkrai and Giratina's black assholes," Red cursed darkly, "If there is one thing we don't need, it's Rocket using Fuji again willingly or not,"
Having her suspicions somewhat confirmed was nice even if it wasn't good, Vali told Red, "Lance is already trying to double up Fuji's protection. Even if I can't know what's fully going on, I'd suggest telling Lance if only because he'd be able to make the calls on this."
"I need to confer with the others before making any decision on Fuji," Red warned her, "But if they are sniffing around that old man, we might just talk to Lance about this. We cannot allow Rocket to use Fuji again. Not after what almost happened,"
Chills ran down Vali's spine and she sat up a little bit straighter, Vali stared at the dex holder as his eyes went a bit distant. He shuddered slightly as his jaw clenched. She wondered just what memories was he reliving in that moment. She spoke softly, "I'll tell Lance that he might be getting a call or visit from the dex holders soon."
"Good," Red nodded to her then the screen went blank.
Elrond spoke as she went about dialing Lance's number, "The situation just keeps getting worse,"
"That it does," Vali muttered softly as Lance's face appeared, "Lance, I spoke with Red,"
Lance's eyes widened, "Wha-Shit," He shook his head, "Why?"
"Given who Ash's related to, I kinda needed to especially since he's the only one who can reach Gary's parents reliably," Vali didn't mention that Green did call to see about getting photos of Gary occasionally, "You might be getting a call or visit from the dex holders soon,"
"Shit," Lance muttered softly, "How the fuck do you always manage to work things like this out without really meaning to?"
"My luck is more bonkers than a Mankey on a sugar rush," Vali deadpanned earning a snort, "Which reminds me, I got an email from Gold," Lance perked up, "The two hatchlings we ended up giving him were sold. One to a second year trainer in Kalos and the second to Drayden," She took out her pokedex and sent Lance half the money she'd gotten, "And that's your half,"
Lance looked away from the screen for a second before he began to choke on air. Letting out a laugh, Vali grinned as he looked back at the screen. He pointed at her, "Y-you had to have given me more than half."
"Nope, I gave you exactly half," Vali giggled at the stunned look he gave her, "According to Gold, he had a ton of people bidding over those two hatchlings. He asked me to see if I can't have Empress breed with Diaval again next season,"
"Shit..." Lance muttered under his breath.
"I know," Vali was more than a little amused by how many people wanted a pair of Bagon that were descended from champion level pokemon, "Empress might even be willing to go for it considering how sulky she's been towards Smaug,"
"Noted..." Lance shook his head, "So how are the boys? And Clarity?"
"No idea, they're all still giving their statements," Vali disliked that fact greatly, "I'm going to head down to the police station in a couple minutes and see if I can't grab them,"
"Smart," Lance shook his head, "I'll let you go then. I've got to prepare for maybe having dex holders here,"
Nodding lightly, Vali waved to Lance, "See ya later."
After managing to spring the boys and Clarity from the police station, Vali took them to get something to eat not that anyone was very hungry at first. Clarity ended up heading home after assuring them all that she'd be okay and extracting a promise from Vali that they'd see each other later. Once they'd finished eating, she took them back to the hotel which surprised and relieved the two boys. While they might have their own rooms, the two boys decided they didn't want to be separated from their older sister right now.
Once everyone had gotten showered and changed into their night clothes for the night, they all settled down to get some sleep. Well, the boys did with Vali staying up a bit longer. She had Galadrial and Nazgul watching over their dreams which turned out to be a good thing as the two reported that nightmares were in bound not long into slumber. Leaning back against the headboard as the two boys cuddled into her side with their pokemon, she tried to settle her mind by editing some photos. She was a bit surprised when someone called her pokenav. After a moment, Elrond floated it over to her and she answered it, "Hello?"
"Vali," Steven called softly, "I wasn't sure if you would be awake to answer, but given what Lance had told me..."
"You wanted to try," Vali laughed softly, "It's honestly nice to talk with someone right now. I've been try to settle my mind by editing photos, but it isn't really helping," She got out bed carefully as the boys began to stir a bit because of the noise she'd been making from talking, "How are you doing?"
"It's...busy," Steven sighed softly, "I wasn't expecting how busy I'd been as a champion. The paperwork would've been fine since Father has been coaching me in dealing with such things as I've aged same with the various politicians," He chuckled mournfully, "But running about trying to deal with various trainers and things that need my attention..."
"It's rough," Vali finished for him, "Lance is the complete opposite. He enjoys the rushing about, but hates everything else," She headed towards the window seat and took a seat, "Honestly, I think among the champions I personally know Cynthia has it somewhat easy and that might be stretching it a bit," She smiled as Thorin hopped up onto the seat with her, "She's the only one that doesn't really complain about much save for when it's really fucking busy. But then again, she's got Volkner pretty much running any challengers raged until they're actually ready,"
"True," Steven chuckled softly before he asked, "And how are you?"
Running a hand along Thorin's back, Vali leaned against the wall and closed her eyes, "To be honest, Steven, I'm feeling more negative emotions than I have in awhile. Part of me wants to give into my animal form's instincts and the darker side of my inner fire, I almost did today," She winced at the sharp intake of breath Steven released, "When I saw my little brothers and my friend in that position, it almost managed to pull that side of me to the surface," She took a deep breath as Thorin nosed into her side, "Thankfully, I didn't, but Elrond might've exacted a bit more revenge on those three Rockets than Lance might be willing to let slide. While it might not be confirmed, Eowyn did mangle a Scizor."
"Shit, Vali," Steven murmured softly, "It's been a long time since something like this has happened..."
"I know," Vali opened her eyes, "And the bad part about it? My only regret is that Ash and Gary saw that side of me," She looked down at Thorin who was staring at her with sad eyes, "Steven...Am I a bad person?"
"No," Came the immediate answer that made something in her that she didn't know existed relax, "You've never been a bad person, Vali. You've made some bad calls, but you've never been a bad person,"
Sighing softly as Thorin nosed into her hand, Vali muttered, "Thanks, Steven. I didn't know how badly I needed to hear that until now."
A low chuckle left Steven, "Well, I'm always here to remind you that you're a good person. Well, Lance and you."
"Both of us when it comes to Lance, I mean we do have to keep that stubborn Dragon from completely going off the edge," Vali smirked a bit as Steven snorted.
Feeling a bit tired now, Vali yawned prompting Steven to ask, "Tired?"
"A bit," Vali admitted.
"I won't keep you then though I do need to ask something," Steven said earning a low hum, "Do they know about your animal form?"
Shaking her head though Steven wouldn't see it due to Vali only having the voice function on, she replied, "No, Delia, you, Lance, Sirius, Professor Oak, Cynthia, Blaine, Surge, and Agatha are the only ones who actually know about it," She paused for a moment before adding, "And the dex holders because Green bribed me with Gold's help to get on the list for a Hisuian style Zorua egg last year."
There was a huff of laughter from Steven's end of the call making Vali's cheeks heat up, she rolled her eyes as Thorin snorted softly. Steven chuckled softly, "What did she have you do?"
"Transform and took a picture of me before those two rode of my back for a bit," Vali rolled her eyes as Steven chuckled louder, "Hey, I'm getting a damn Hisuian Zorua out of this, so sue me,"
"How long until you actually get one?" Steven asked curiously.
"Based on Gold's last email, I should be receiving my egg in close to a month," Vali was very happy she'd get some type of Zorua.
"Lucky you," Steven chuckled softly, "So when are you going to tell them about your animal form?"
Pausing as she considered that though, Vali swallowed slightly before murmuring, "I...should probably do it soon. Likely after we leave the city."
"Probably a good idea," Steven replied softly, "It'll be okay, Vali,"
"I know," Vali shook her head as tiredness began to run through her, "I should probably get to bed. I'll talk to ya later, Steven...Thanks for this,"
"No problem," Steven's voice was soft, "I'm always happy to speak with you. Even if it's just to lend a sympathetic ear, I do enjoy our conversations,"
"I do too," Vali murmured softly, "Talk to you later,"
"Talk later," Steven replied as she ended the call.
Getting into bed after putting her pokenav back on charge, Vali curled up with her brothers and sighed deeply as their pokemon got comfortable around them.
As he put his pokenav down, Steven ran a hand through his hair and tried not to think about how close he'd come to confessing to Vali just now. Vali being so dense was frustrating, but he couldn't push it. Especially not after an event like that, he knew better. He looked up as a knock echoed on his office door. Calling out for whoever it was to enter, he almost scowled as Sidney strode inside. The dark-type master grinned slightly, "Yo, Boss-man. Get off the phone with a certain girlie?"
"Not that it matters, but yet," Steven's lips pulled into a frown, "What do you need, Sidney?"
"Just came to drop off this," Sidney came over to his desk and dropped off a stack of papers, "These are the reports you wanted to look at from my division,"
Eyebrow starting to twitch, Steven almost wanted to snarl at the red head, "You could have given me the digital copies."
"Could have," Sidney's smirk was infuriating, "But didn't feel like it especially since some of these don't have digital copies,"
Inwardly growling, Steven grabbed the first report and glanced at it only to see some kind of Pidgeot scratch that was barely legible. Scowl forming, he looked at Sidney, "What is this?"
"A report," Sidney chuckled as he jammed his hands into the pockets of his ripped jeans, "The guys have narley handwriting and some can't use a computer worth crap. Good luck, Boss-man,"
With a cheerful wave, Sidney left his office before Steven could utter a word of protest. Eyebrow twitching as he looked back at the report, Steven about snarled. Metagross sent waves of calm towards him while Claydol levitated some papers towards themself. Taking a deep breath, he muttered, "I really hate being champion sometimes."
Ash's Team:
1. Pidgeotto
Female
2. Pikachu
Male
Gary's Team:
1. Weepinbell
Male
2. Squirtle
Male
Vali's present team:
1. Balto/ Arcanine
Male
2. Smaug/ Charizard
Male
3. Elrond/ Alolan-Raichu
Male
4. Eowyn/ Houndoom
Female
5. Aragorn/ Vulpix-King-Gene
Male
6. Pele/ Camerupt
Female
7. Celina/ Pidgeot
Female
8. Thorin/ Flareon
Male
9. Arwen/ Rapidash
Female
10. Galadrial/ Chandelure
Female
11. Nazgul/ Gengar-Shiny
Male
12. Irmo/ Pyroar
Male
13. Ortho/ Furret
Male
14. Noldor/ Smeargle
Male
15. Terra/ Tyranitar
Female
16. Empress/ Salamence
Female
17. Idril/ Sandslash-Shiny
Female
18. Pippin/ Luxray
Male
19. Bombur/ Dewgong
Male
20. Balrog/ Magmar
Male
21. Khione/ Aurorus
Female
22. Rosie/ Meganium
Female
23. Balin/ Typhlosion
Male
24. Disa/ Jolteon
Female
25. Absol
Male