Chapter 22
Making Waves

Half past six in the morning was an altogether unfair time to wake up. Even the sun seemed to be in denial of the early hour, stubbornly refusing to even so much as peek over the horizon to combat the velvet black of the morning. Jetlagged and disorientated, Paul stumbled about the tiny room, trying to get organised. Completely forgetting the convenience of a light switch, he attempted all this in total pitch dark.

Annabelle kept him right, as she always did, flipping on the light and leaving Paul blinking in confusion in the middle of the room, hair unkempt, in underwear and too-tight t-shirt.

"Come on," she said kindly, like shepherding a child. "Let's get moving."

Thankfully, the first hints of daylight were at their backs as they headed for Goldenrod Pier. Kept awake by gusts of cold, salty air and hot sweet tea sipped from polystyrene cups, they watched the MV Seaforth dock. Almost from nowhere, Annabelle felt a twist of nerves. This was it. The final leg of her journey to getting her breeder's license back.

Fear swelled in her like the waves lapping at the dock's edge. They knew she was coming. She could only give them a vague date – anytime within the next few days. The receptionist she had spoken with had been frosty and had taken her details under thinly-veiled contempt.

Paul stomped up the gangplank, breaking Annabelle's concentration. "Who the hell schedules ferries for this early?"

Annabelle didn't have the heart to tell him that half past eight hardly constituted as early. "You can have a sleep on the ferry if you want?" she offered.

"Nah. I'll probably scout out the Battle Zone. This ferry will have one, won't it?"

"You're taking this training very seriously, aren't you?"

"Oh come on, Annabelle!" Paul's eyes shone. "You've seen how much the Macho Brace has done for them! Indiana's got Rollout perfect now and I swear I saw the start of Magnitude yesterday! Ledyba's learning Silver Wind too and I just know he's almost ready to evolve!"

Annabelle smiled to herself. "Just don't push them too much, yeah? Pokemon get tired. Even if they've been to a Pokemon centre, even if they seem like they're at full health, they can still be tired, still have a lot of pain. Just treat them nice, yeah?"

"Of course." Paul rolled his eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

After stowing their luggage, Annabelle led them to the lounge. It seemed to be a quiet crossing, much to Paul's disappointment. What were his chances of finding someone decent to battle if the ferry was only carrying a handful of crusty old fishermen and preoccupied families? Annabelle held no such worries, sweeping into a table sandwiched between a gaggle of pensioners and a young family nursing a chubby baby.

Paul hovered impatiently over her shoulder as Annabelle spread a pile of papers and files across the tiny table. Glancing over her shoulder, he tried to make sense of the tiny print.

"What are you doing?"

Annabelle didn't even look up to acknowledge him "Going over my records." She said, thumbing through a selection of handwritten reports.

"Why?"

"Because I've got a hearing coming up, Paul." She kneaded the tops of her temple. "Odds are they'll scrutinise everything I've done in the business. I need to make sure all my records are straight – both here and in my own head."

With all the excitement of the journey so far, Paul had almost forgotten its true purposes. To get Annabelle her business back and to get him to battle Dest. It was a sobering thought, enough to guilt him into silence for a few minutes.

"Reminds me, I'll need to take some pictures of Ledyba to show the people at the hearing. And you'll need to figure out what you're gonna say to them too…"

"Me?"

"You're testifying on my behalf, aren't you?"

It was a statement, not a question. That much was painfully obvious. Annabelle was clutching the pen she was holding so tightly that Paul had visions of it bursting open.

"You'll need to explain the context… you know, we were fighting, you goaded me, things were said. You really should write everything down that you wanna say, might help us from a really embarrassing moment—"

Paul intercepted only when Annabelle paused for breath. "You need to stop stressing."

Annabelle let out a sigh that ruffled the tops of her fringe. "Easy for you to say…"

"I know…" he gave her shoulder a little squeeze, wondering if that was enough to make her feel better. He'd offer a hug, but would it even make a difference? "Listen, I'll get out of your hair for a bit. I'm gonna go look for a place to battle. Just… try not to worry too much, yeah?"

"I'll do my best." She said wearily.

"Attagirl." He offered her a smile, then moved away, the touch of her still lingering on his fingertips.

.-.-.

Two hours in and Paul dared to say that he was getting the hang of this battling thing. Battling now felt like a familiar rhythm, like falling into steps of a well-practiced dance. Not that he had ever danced, but that's the feeling he imagined it would be like. Supersonic to catch the enemy off guard, Mach Punch to send them reeling, then a Swift from afar to seal the deal. Opponent after opponent fell to Paul's new strategy and on the modest battle zone of the ship, it was no different.

The adrenaline made him tremble all over. A young boy with a Whismur skulked away. A pair of twins bested by an unforgiving Silver Wind. A teenage girl with a fat little Swinub, who wore the smile of victory even before they battled, fell to her knees in humiliation. And all the while, Paul wore a wide grin, the likes of which hadn't graced his face since he was a child.

Then it happened.

Evolution was a thing that Paul, as a gamer, had waited on with muted impatience. It was often an underwhelming visual, pixels shining and rearranging themselves into a new form. Evolution, right in front of him, was astounding.

Ledyba had gone still for a moment after the Swinub fell in front of him. Paul wondered for a second if perhaps he had finally exhausted himself and needed a break. But the bug let out a screech that Paul had never heard before. The tiny Ledyba was engulfed in a shining bright light that seemed to fill every corner of the room. Children started screaming and shouting in excitement, jostling and bumping into each other to get in close enough to see the process.

The whole thing was over before Paul could even have a chance to react. The wings lengthened, the body elongated, and a whole different Pokemon stood in front of Paul and the audience of children.

"Ledian!"

The children roared with applause and cheers as Paul scooped up the Ledian. Speechless and trembling, he barrelled out of the room. Excitement billowed through him, one thought above all others punctuating his mind. He had to find Annabelle. She had to see this.

Bursting into the lounge, he almost rushed straight past her, camouflaged behind an absolute mountain of paperwork. Only did her muffled cursing enlighten Paul to her whereabouts.

"Annabelle!" Paul risked an avalanche of her reports, thrusting the freshly evolved Ledian at her. "Look what just happened!"

"Not right now, Paul. Can't you see I'm a little-"

"But look!"

"Not now, Paul."

"Could you just look?"

"…fine." Annabelle's paperwork crunched down onto the table in front of her, and the nearby baby took fright and started crying. "I need to get a picture or two of Ledyba anyway, so I suppose you're not just wasting my - oh you are kidding me."

"Look! He evolved!" Paul could feel the pride radiate through his body as Annabelle buried her face in one hand and grinned despite herself.

"You, Ledian, have the worst timing, you know that?"

"…Leh?" Ledian chirped back, flummoxed at her accusing finger.

"Oh, it's not your fault Ledian," Paul squashed the tiny bug tighter between his arms. Its big blue eyes glittered in response and it began purring. Bugs could purr?

That was something no Pokédex had never told him. But against everything Paul thought he knew, he could feel the tiny vibrations emanate from the bug between his arms, complete with a strange noise that sounded almost like someone running their finger along a xylophone.

Paul felt daunted by all of this new information. After years and years of knowing everything, it stunned him to learn that he knew… nothing. Ledyba weren't punching bags and Supersonic actually hit its target on occasion. And if Ledyba were actually competent in battle, just how well would a Ledian do?

Annabelle's good mood was brief. Fed up with the pair of them under her feet and Ledian's attempts to eat some of her paperwork, she shooed them away with a stern warning not to come back until they were ready to dock. Fine by me, Paul thought in ecstasy. He was dying to try Ledian out in battle anyway.

She was too absorbed in her cloud of concentration to notice Paul dropping a bottle of Kricketang and a large flaky croissant beside her. It even came with a perfect square of butter and a tiny pot of jam. It wasn't him feeling guilty in any way, not at all. He just wanted to make sure she ate something. She was looking thin. Thin and pale. And a croissant was cheap. It wasn't like he'd miss the money.

In preparation for round two of the battling, Paul emptied a can of Bisharp and deposited the contents of a fat, greasy bag of crisps. A sudden lilt in the waves sent him careering into the side of the boat, unable to steady himself against the rocking. Two young men walked past him, sniggering "tourists" in a stage whisper. But no sooner had he walked back into the battle zone did the giggling stop.

The word had gone around among the younger and more inexperienced trainers that a new guy had just evolved his Pokemon. A literal line of challengers had run itself along the battle zone, waiting for his return. Paul met them with spirited glee.

Ledian's strategy had only improved with evolution. While he had a shaky start, obviously getting used to the new body, the extra power was instantly noticed when some poor Sentret was knocked out cold as early as the Mach Punch stage. Indiana was pulling his weight too, being finally able to aim his Rollout accurately. The next trainer's Zubat proved more of an annoyance than a challenge, using Ledian's own favourite tactic against it. Both Pokémon ended up floating around aimlessly from confusion, so Paul used his initiative and swapped in Indiana. He acted quickly and struck the helpless bat to the ground with a Swift attack – something that was rapidly becoming his signature move – and then defeated it with a carefully aimed Rollout.

Next up was a Seel. Paul knew the fat, dopey looking thing was going to be a challenge for Indy, so it was Ledian's turn again. The bug reduced Seel's Icy Wind to a cool breeze with his Light Screen and then dove into a series of quick-fire Mach Punches. Supersonic was meeting Paul's expectations and missing spectacularly, so he instead ordered yet another Swift. But Ledian instead glowed a pale greenish colour, and struck the Seel down with a sparkly breeze of its own. Silver Wind!

The Seel blew a raspberry and then fell unconscious, as Ledian was scooped up into a hug by an ecstatic Paul.

"You're doing great, Ledian! You owned that Seel! Good j-"

A loud klaxon launched Paul's train of thought, and sent it careering out of his left ear.

*Ding, dong!*

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are soon to be arriving in Cianwood City. For those alighting, please make your way to deck B. Those continuing onto Olivine City should remain on board. Please make sure that all alighting Pokémon are safely in Pokéballs before approaching the deck. We would like to wish you a safe and pleasant ongoing journey. Thank you for sailing with us today."

There was a painful screech as connections were cut, and reality hit Paul with a thud.

"…oh. Already?" Paul felt strangely embarrassed. Where had the time gone? "Better go find Annabelle then, eh Ledian?"

"Leh! Leh!" Ledian fluttered alongside its trainer happily as he swam through the bumbling sea of ferrygoers, hoping he remembered where Annabelle had stationed herself. Her and her paperwork had remained relatively undisturbed at the same table, with the same neighbours as before. The loud baby from before had acquired Annabelle's croissant – whether it was given or stolen, Paul did not know – but the bottle of juice had been emptied at least. That was something.

"…Hey, you ready to go?" He tried a wary poke at her shoulder.

"BUSY, Paul!" Annabelle growled back at him, and even Ledian flinched away from the outburst.

"Annabelle, the boat is literally docking. If you don't get off here, we're going all the way to Olivine. So… you ready to go?"

"But we're not even…?" Annabelle finally tore her eyes from her paperwork, only for her face to completely drop when she saw that there was land outside. Sweeping golden beaches, with the occasional peppering of houses, in front of a backdrop of mountainous forest. The town's modest port was floating into view, full of garishly dressed tourists, workers in their high visibility jackets, and the occasional Wingull, chancing their luck at the fishermen's hauls.

"…we're already here."

"Yup. That place you need to be, else you get your breeder's license revoked and you die of starvation."

It was a crass joke and he knew that. He just desperately wanted her to smile.

"…I-I know, Paul. You don't need to remind me of that one."

No smile. Paul wanted to kick himself. "Then we should probably get off of this boat?"

"Y-yeah, we probably should."

Annabelle dashed about like an especially impatient Zigzagoon, scattering paperwork everywhere in a vain attempt to get it organised and back into her rucksack. Paul stayed far away as she flustered, knowing that his involvement would not help her in any way. He would try, she would shout at him, probably end up punching him or something, and it really just was not worth the effort. So he shared a knowing gaze with Ledian as the woman forced herself together.

"Right! Ready to go!" She appeared by his side, all flushed and heaving. Her hair was sticking up at the front from how many times she'd ran her hands through it, and there was a suspicious greenish stain on the front of her flannelette. But she was there, at least physically anyway.

"Remembered everything?"

"Yes, I'm sure!" Annabelle's voice came out in a squeak, as the klaxon from earlier sounded again, prompting the pair of them to get a move on. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?!"

"Well for one, I didn't want to risk you tearing my hand off," Paul sidled up what he hoped was the right flight of stairs. "And two… did you not hear the announcement? I was practically deafened by it!"

Annabelle shook her head fervently. "N…nuh-uh! I was too busy with all my paperwork!"

"I'll say." Paul frowned. The pair followed after the last few dregs of ferrygoers as they filtered out towards the indicated deck. At the request of security, Paul returned Ledian to its Pokéball, and felt a bizarre heavy feeling fall upon his chest as the capsule gained weight. He minimised it and stuffed it away into his bag before he and Annabelle stumbled out onto the deck itself. Fresh air at last.

The pungent, acrid tang of seaweed and sun-dried fish hit like a salty slap in the face. He thought he'd gotten used to the smell, having lived in a seaside town for a good five years, but after just a couple of hours of being cooped away from it, it was just as powerful a scent as ever.

Annabelle's breath was becoming rapid and shallow. Her eyes were fixed on something on the horizon that Paul couldn't identify. She looked even paler than before. In amongst the hustle and bustle of people and the armfuls of things they were both holding, Paul's hand found Annabelle's.

"Ready for this?"

Author's Notes

It's been so long guys, I'm so sorry. I started my teacher training in August so that has been kicking my butt as it is absolutely intense and full-on. That, coupled with the fact that these transition chapters are not easy to churn out when motivation is down, just meant that I couldn't bring myself to keep working on it.

At the end of the day, I just needed to get this chapter out. Hence, I'm really sorry if it's not that good. But you guys have been sticking with me and reading and reviewing faithfully, so I owe it to you.

I'm... not sure when the next update will be. I have 6 weeks of a placement coming up but I have a whole month of holidays from mid-December to mid-January. So you might see some stuff then. I hope.

Thanks guys!

Until next time!