Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"Did he die in his sleep?" Pawniard looked at his trainer, still asleep in bad after perhaps ten hours of sleep. Hilbert didn't even look close to waking, but Pawniard was sure the human had gotten more then enough sleep. It was well past morning, it would be noon before long. Pawniard wanted to get going right now.

"Apperantly, he always sleeps this hard." Snivy walked up to Pawniard's side. "I had to wake him up last morning by jumping onto his gut. Best way to wake him up is to force him to get up."

Pawniard glanced at Snivy, then nodded and turned back to Hilbert. "I'm on it." He raised one of his bladed arms.

"Whoa." Snivy grabbed Pawniard's arm to stop the movement. "I do not think Hilbert would appreciate being woken up like that." Snivy put Pawniard's arm down and thought for a moment. The room didn't have anything he could climb up, so he couldn't repeat what he did yesterday. He began to think of some other way Hilbert might be woken up. Neither he or Pawniard was really strong enough to raise up a bucket full of water, let alone hoist it up to the head of the bed and dump it on Hilbert. Of course, Hilbert would have a none too graceful reaction to that.

The sleeping Hilbert rolled onto his side. Pawniard looked at the skin of the back of Hilbert's neck, and had an idea. Walking past Snivy and bearing one of his blades, the steel comprising them most likely ice-cold considering the temperature in the room right now, he poked at a sensitive nerve on the human's neck.

The eyes of their trainer suddenly snapped open and he spasmed at the sensation that shot through his body. He leapt up to a sitting position with a small yelp of surprise, his hands were already going to his neck to try and determine what made that stinging cold sensation. Taking several moments to calm down, he slowly turned to Pawniard, and then to Snivy, who looked amused.

"Waking me up like this had better not become a habit of yours." He glared at both of his Pokemon, his neck still tingling. The Pokemon shared a glance, then just turned back to Hilbert and shrugged. Hilbert sighed at his pair of living, breathing alarm clocks and reached for his nearby hat. "Where's Bianca?"

He had barely gotten the question out when the door opened. Fennel stuck her head in. "Oh, you're awake. Bianca told me you'd probably sleep much longer."

Hilbert threw the covers off. He had decided to sleep in his clothes, the only thing he wasn't wearing at this point were his shoes. He looked at Fennel. "So sorry your plan to get into my bed didn't work out."

Fennel's eyebrow twitched, but she held herself back from the comment she wanted to give. "Your friend is waiting downstairs, so hurry up. You're not supposed to keep a lady waiting." She left the doorframe and went back to the hall.

Hilbert grunted and looked toward his shoes. "I assume she meant Bianca and not Hilda. Because 'lady' is not the correct descriptive term for Hilda."

"You're awake!" Bianca saw Hilbert come down the stairs and immediately rushed to him. "What woke you up?"

Hilbert frowned. Was his tendency to sleep-in really so extreme that him waking up before noon meant that something external had to have woken him up? "One of my two biological alarm clocks is to blame."

Bianca smirked, Hilbert sighed. "Oh, Hilbert, remember your promise from yesterday?"

'Promise' was the wrong word, but Hilbert nodded regardless. "Yes. We'll be checking out the whole city."

"Have fun, you two." Fennel said. "Once you're done sight-seeing, head west to Striaton Park and north to Route 3. I'll stay here and-"

"Wait for a new teenage boy to flirt with?"

"Yes. Wait for a new, uh…" Fennel suddenly shuddered, and her hands went up to her face. "Hilbert. If you make another comment like that, I am going to get unhealthily angry. Just… go."

Hilbert smirked, taking a moment to give Fennel a final comment, then he turned to Bianca and patted her on the shoulder. The two left.

Striaton City felt completely different in the daytime. The street was lively, but not crowded, and it honestly didn't feel quite as energetic as it seemed when the two first came to the city last night. There was enough light from the sun that there was no need for electronic light, and somehow the city felt calmer and quieter. Hilbert let Bianca have her way for now and lead him around the streets, letting her see the things that caught the attention of her curious eyes.

"Oh, aren't they precious, Hilbert?" Bianca asked as the two passed by one of their many stops, a doll shop. She looked at little plush dolls of various Pokemon. She turned to Hilbert, expecting an answer from him.

He sighed. "Yes… Bianca. They are… cute." He looked at the same bundle of dolls that Bianca was looking at, it was dolls of Pokemon that were not at all native to Unova. He looked at a doll of a Beedrill, a Sableye, and a Weavile, and he wondered how this was supposed to be 'precious' in any way. He was relieved that Bianca wasn't interested in buying any of the dolls, or that the thought simply hadn't crossed her mind. They had money, but Hilbert would rather spend money on much more important things.

Bianca suddenly yanked him away to examine something else. For at least an hour Bianca was dragging Hilbert all around Striaton to examine every 'cute' and 'adorable' thing she could find. Though Striaton was obviously not a center of entertainment, there was a lot to catch the girl's interest. She didn't ever notice that Hilbert was bored beyond imagination. Finally, there was a lack of new and fresh things for her to admire.

"We should get going to Nacrene City now." Bianca eventually said, she almost frowned at the obvious relief that appeared in Hilbert's face, but just kept talking. "I could spend days just looking around Striaton, but we shouldn't stay here too long, or we might be spending the night here again."

"Finally." Hilbert called, grabbing Bianca's shoulder and starting to haul her off. In that hour he had grown completely sick of Striaton City, and he wanted the mercy of being able to leave. Bianca was annoyed at how Hilbert was responding to this like it was some blessed release, but it was better to leave now. If they had to stay at Fennel's again tonight, Hilbert, who seemed to take amusement out of provoking Fennel, would probably make the doctor turn violent.

They paused in the Park outside of the city, taking a moment to examine the flow of water and the bushes. The greenery has been carefully cut into some strange, somewhat amusing shapes that Hilbert had to chuckle at. Hilbert wondered if the water flowing through the park was used for personal recreational pleasure, like for swimming. He would confirm that before he took that chance, he wasn't about to commit any kind of social error. He wouldn't let Bianca take that risk either, and the two of them just hurried along.

"So, what is this place?" Bianca asked as they came across a building alongside Route 3. It wasn't the most glamorous looking place, much humbler then any of the city buildings, but there was the ringing sound of childish laughter nearby that made the place seem somehow welcoming.

Hilbert would have said that approaching would have been snooping, but Bianca had already stepped forward to sate her curiosity. As the girl wondered what the place was… someone suddenly approached the two.

"Who are you two?" An elderly woman asked them, Hilbert cringed. There wasn't anything hostile about her tone, and her approachable face made it seem like she was simply curious as to what the two were doing. Even so, Hilbert moved to diffuse any suspicion.

"Just… Pokemon Trainers." Hilbert said. "We just left Striaton City. We… didn't mean to trespass, just," He made a glare with no malice at Bianca, then turned back to the elder. "We got curious. Sorry."

The woman nodded, Hilbert expected that she would briskly suggest that they be on their way, but she unexpectedly smiled at them. "Pokemon Trainers are welcome at the Pokemon Day Care."

Hilbert blinked at the words. "Day Care?"

"We hold a Trainer's Pokemon and raise them for the Trainer, and the Trainer can pick up the Pokemon later. The Pokemon spend time in the playground, and play with the local elementary class. In fact, another boy and girl pair came here at early dawn and have been entertaining the kids since."

"Hey…" Bianca brought a finger up to her lip, making the face that Hilbert hated. The one that showcased some turning gears in her head. "Can we show the elementary students our Pokemon too?"

Hilbert lightly closed his eyes in exasperation, but the Day Care Woman politely nodded. "Yes, the students would love to see more Pokemon. Especially ones they haven't seen before. The Trainers with them right now are probably getting tired anyway." She inclined her head in the direction of the playground. "Please come with me."

They came to the playground, and, yes, there was another pair here entertaining the kids. The two Pokemon running around, however, somehow seemed to be owned by only one of the two. Hilbert took a second glance at the two his age, and realized that he knew both of them very, very well.

Cheren met Hilbert's expression and made a slight tilt of his head. He turned to Hilda and whispered for her to watch the children playing with his Pokemon before he went over to Hilbert and Bianca.

"Finally done with Striaton?" Cheren asked. "I got my Trio Badge, Hilda and I stayed at the Pokemon Center… not the most comfortable beds in the world, and left at the crack of dawn."

Hilbert smirked. "I got the Trio Badge as well, but I stayed at a local doctor's place. The beds were very comfortable."

Cheren's brows furrowed slightly. He arced his back, looking a little sore. "Those beds at the Center were very uncomfortable. Anyway. I had wanted to get past Route 3 with all possible speed, but Hilda decided to investigate this place. Before I knew it, I was agreeing to entertain the kids."

Hilbert looked at what Cheren had released to entertain the children. Tepig looked to be enjoying racing with the little kids, though it seemed to lose the majority of them. It might have been letting the kids win to let them feel good about themselves, he knew that Snivy would not have been so courteous to the school children. He turned to see some kids playing with another Pokemon, a little Dark type.

"A Purrloin?" Hilbert asked out loud, looking at the Pokemon before turning to Cheren, who sighed.

"I had hoped to catch you off-guard the next time we had a battle… but now you've seen it." He looked at Hilbert out of the corner of his eye. "It has a bit of an attitude, but it grew accustomed to these kids real fast. Though I recall Hilda going on the warpath when someone tried to put Purrloin's paws in little bags."

There was no way for Hilbert to repress the smile. Hilda always had been the one with the temper. Cheren looked like he was about to change the subject, when some of the kids rushed up to Hilbert, Cheren, and Bianca.

"Do you have Pokemon too?" One of the children asked, looking straight at Hilbert. "Lemme see!"

"Calm down." An older woman walked by. She was older then Hilbert, but clearly much, much younger then the Day Care lady. "Hello, Trainers. I'm the teacher of this class, every school day we take a trip to the Day Care. Today is eventful because of Cheren's Pokemon." She turned and smiled at Cheren, whose face remained impassive. She turned back to Hilbert and Bianca. "Not to be a bother… but if you two are Trainers, and your Pokemon are nice, can you show them to my students?"

"Well…" Hilbert crossed his arms and leaned his head down. "One of my Pokemon can't really be called 'nice', but he's not exactly 'mean' either."

Cheren did a double-take. "One of… you've caught a second Pokemon?"

Hilbert nodded, then moved a hand to his Pokeballs, both Snivy and Pawniard came out. The students made a collection of 'oohs' at both Pokemon that none of them had seen before.

"T-that's a…" The teacher looked at the Pawniard, and was starting to tense as some of her students started to approach a Pokemon that, as a species, were renown for their violent and cruel behavior.

"Careful." Hilbert took a step forward, then knelt down and put a hand on Pawniard's shoulder. "This is a Pokemon that… would rather be stared at and admired then played with."

The students stopped, then turned their attention to the Snivy. Immediately one of the little girls picked it up and hugged it like it was a beloved stuffed doll. Others surrounded the Snivy, the little Grass snake smirked as it was the complete center of attention.

"Do you have Pokemon too, miss?" One of the little girls asked Bianca. Bianca looked down and smiled, taking her three Pokeballs out.

Snivy, Oshawott, Pansear, and Munna joined Tepig and Purrloin in playing with the kids. Pawniard seemed inclined to stay near Hilbert's leg. Hilbert did not believe that Pawniard would have actually attacked any of the kids, but it would have been better to not take any chances. The thing was small, but it was already clear to Hilbert that it had a cold mentality, and was rarely in the mood for games.

Hilda had rejoined the three, she looked exhausted after humoring one too many games of tag with both the kids and Pokemon. The four sat together as the Pokemon played with the kids.

Bianca looked at the children, making sure that no one was being mean to the Pokemon, and a thought struck her. "Weren't we that age when the four of us first met?"

Cheren blinked, then slowly nodded. "Yes, we were all in the same class, since we're the same age." He took a moment to stroke his chin. "Well, we were in the same class, how exactly did we meet and become friends?"

They collectively thought. They had all been friends for so long it was hard to think that there was a time where they weren't. Finally, Hilda's eyes widened. "Wasn't it because of that bully?"

"I…" Cheren was about to say something, but his mind was suddenly flooded by memories. Yes, in elementary school back in Nuvema there was the obligatory school thug. One time in class Bianca had been getting scared by a picture of a Scolipede, and when the teacher walked out of the room one of the students grabbed the picture off of the teacher's desk and thrust it in Bianca's face.

Hilda and Hilbert, at almost the exact same time, got out of their school desks to try and defend Bianca. The other kid hid the picture behind him so they couldn't yank it from him, but Cheren decided to sneak up behind the thug and swipe the picture and immediately shove it into the paper shredder.

When the teacher came in just second later, Cheren managed to convince her that the boy who had been harassing Bianca was the one who had shredded the picture. The kid, who already had a record, got an in-school suspension for that. After the class, Hilda was the first who came to Bianca to see if she was okay, but Hilbert and Cheren came by only minutes later.

They spent the rest of the day after school together. It wasn't all together dissimilar to their modern get togethers, though they undoubtedly had more immature mindsets compared to now. They decided to meet again tomorrow, and the day after, until meeting each other was just a ritual for the four. Unlike many other friendships, their's lasted.

Of course, they had their differences. They were eventually ironed out, and they accepted that the others were just different in some areas.

Hilbert smiled. "So, how does life now compare to life then?"

Hilda thought for a moment. "I guess it was more fun, I-" She suddenly paused for no clear reason. "Hey, I am not old. I am too young to be thinking about how better things might have been 'back in the day'."

Bianca started to laugh at Hilda's self-conscious attitude about her age. Then Cheren suddenly stood up.

"It's a fun discussion, but I'd rather wait until we're much further into this journey before we think about what we've been through as a group. I've settled upon a goal on this journey…"

"What's the goal?" Hilbert asked honestly. Cheren looked straight at Hilbert, then looked almost longingly at the case that Hilbert was keeping his Trio Badge in.

"In a minute. First things first…" He walked off, starting to speak to the elementary teacher and the Day Care lady. After a moment he returned. "I want to challenge you again, the teacher and the Day Care lady are okay with that. Just as long as we take it a little away from the playground.

Hilbert thought for a moment, then nodded as he grabbed his hat and stood up. "Sure. Getting a third win off of you sounds like fun."

"Cute arrogance. I think you're starting to take after Snivy." Cheren turned back to the playground, he called and Tepig and Purrloin came back to him. Pawniard was still by Hilbert's leg, so Hilbert only needed to call his Snivy back.

Hilbert and Cheren walked off, leaving Bianca and Hilda at the playground. Bianca decided to watch her Pokemon as they continued to play with the kids, but she would silently root for Hilbert all the same.

As she and Hilda watched the children, neither of them heard a rustle in the grass right behind them…

"This seems like a good enough spot." Cheren said before turning around to face Hilbert. The battle was going to be held on a stretch of road a little past the Day Care. He reached for his first Pokeball. "I'll tell you my goal on this journey after the battle."

"Win or lose?"

Cheren nodded. "All I'm interested in right now is the battle. I don't plan on losing either." He made a knife sharp glare, and released his Purrloin. "I'll soften you up first. The fact that both of your Pokemon have a weakness to Fire isn't lost on me."

"I learned, more so at Striaton Gym then at our last fight, how types effect the battle. I also know that the strength of the Pokemon can outstrip the benefits of elements." He grabbed one of his Pokeballs, and released Snivy. Snivy postured, looking at the Purrloin opposite of it, and his eyes glinted somewhat oddly.

Hilbert looked at the expression, and he knew that Snivy was thinking about the last Purrloin they had fought. The Purrloin that belonged to that Team Plasma agent in the Dreamyard… Cheren's Purrloin, as determined as it looked, was very friendly looking in comparison.

"…Do you honestly think you can divide your attention against me?" Cheren called, looking almost insulted that Hilbert didn't seem to be focusing on the battle.

Hilbert jolted himself out of the memory, then looked at Cheren. "I was just distracted for a moment. Calm down, I'll give you the beat down you seem to want." He and Snivy both gave cocky smirks, but then Hilbert's smile faded. If Bianca decided to speak to Hilda or Cheren or even both of them about it, then fine, but he decided against telling Cheren about his encounter with Team Plasma.

Tearing the thought out of his head entirely, he focused on Cheren and the battle. Snivy braced himself, ready for combat. The Purrloin lowered itself, raising the fur and arcing its back on the eve of battle.

Cheren saw the figurative trophy of victory. He made the first move. "Purrloin. Fury Swipes."

Purrloin sprang forward, its razor sharp claws looking ready to slice the very air apart. Hilbert ordered Snivy to dodge. Snivy did just that, a duck and a spin and other swift movements, Snivy evaded every attack the Purrloin directed at it. The Grass type ended the exchange with a counter, a hard kick to the Purrloin's side.

The Dark type scraped away, then raised its head after it stopped, ready to go on the offensive again.

"Pursuit." Cheren ordered. Purrloin's fur seemed to darken, and it charged forward. Snivy tried to dodge, and managed to evade the attack, but Purrloin immediately turned around and sprang again and crashed its head into Snivy.

Snivy flew back, rolling across the ground until it crashed into a rock wall. Almost immediately he got back up, moderately bruised but not hurt on a meaningful level.

"You can't handle speed like this." Cheren boasted, Purrloin used Pursuit again. Snivy took one look at its trainer, then grinned at Hilbert's expression.

Only a glance at his trainer's face was necessary for Snivy to understand what strategy he should employ. Snivy reached out his arms and grabbed Purrloin's shoulders as it charged into him. Purrloin kept going and Snivy was driven into the wall, and the Purrloin tried to keep pushing further. Snivy pushed back, and eventually forced Purrloin to take a step back, and then managed to steer Purrloin's charge hard into the ground.

Purrloin would have sprang up immediately, but Snivy grabbed the cat's tail and made a small spin, carrying Purrloin with the movement and slamming it hard into the wall. He made another spin in the opposite direction, smacking the Purrloin into a part of the wall behind the Grass type.

The Purrloin yanked its tail back and leapt upon Snivy, pinning the Grass type to the ground. It planned to end the fight by putting its claws through the Grass type, but Hilbert had other plans.

"Vine Whip." He called. Snivy put a hand under Purrloin's underside, and the vine extended. It wrapped around Purrloin's torso, Purrloin tried to hold onto Snivy with its claws, but Snivy lifted Purrloin into the air regardless, ignoring the pain he felt as the claws came out. Snivy took the opportunity to stand up and watched as Purrloin struggled a good eight feet in the air. As it flailed, it managed to put the claws of its hind legs across the vine, but it didn't phase the Grass type on the ground at all. Snivy smiled, then twisted and moved the vine, slamming Purrloin hard into the ground.

The vine retracted, Purrloin stumbled for a moment, but eventually managed to stand back up. It was ready to continue the fight, and-

"Enough, Purrloin." Purrloin paused, sighed in frustration and with unsteady legs, moved back to Cheren and returned to its Pokeball. Cheren showed a bit of teeth, then composed himself. Frustration would not help him win. He took his other Pokeball out and released Tepig.

The pig snorted and pawed the ground in preparation. Hilbert looked at it and tapped his chin thoughtfully before turning to Snivy. "Take ten."

Snivy's eyes narrowed, but it didn't protest its trainer's command. It accepted returning to its Pokeball, and Hilbert grabbed his one other Pokeball that had a Pokemon in it.

Pawniard appeared, its arms crossed. Tepig snorted a challenge, Pawniard uncrossed his arms, its attitude was distinct from Snivy's cockiness, but it held a certain arrogance all the same.

"Same strategy as last time, Tepig." Cheren called. "Use Ember, and don't stop until that Pawniard is down. Don't stop or relax because the Pawniard vanished, either." He recalled how potential victory slipped through his fingers last time, due to Tepig losing sight of Snivy and letting her guard down.

Though Cheren supposed he shouldered some of the blame for their last loss. He should have spotted where Snivy was sooner. This time would be different.

Tepig snorted in air. Hilbert and Pawniard were utterly impassive. Despite their outward looks, Cheren could see that Hilbert was calculating a strategy, he was determined to not let his friend have that chance.

He gave the cue to attack. Tepig released fire out of her nostrils, hurtling the crimson flame toward her enemy.

"Jump!" Hilbert ordered. Pawniard did so, clearing the sparks that were coming at him before landing and dashing toward the Tepig. Tepig leapt back, evading Pawniard's first arm swipe, and instinctively thrust forward with a head butt.

Pawniard blocked the attack and immediately made a vicious first strike, slashing Tepig right across her forehead.

"Get it away from you! Ember!" Cheren demanded. Tepig's eyes glinted with anticipation. Suddenly smoke rose from her nostrils once more.

"Stop it!" Hilbert called. "Don't let it attack!" Pawniard heard the command and hastened to obey, trying to attack again. It wasn't fast enough. The flame impacted Pawniard right in his face, the force of the blow knocking him far back. He scrapped away, and when he stopped, he fell to one knee.

"Pawniard…" Hilbert said softly, waiting for a response. He would put Snivy back out if Pawniard seemed too hurt, but the thing instead stood back up. It slowly looked over his shoulder, nodding at Hilbert to confirm that it was still well.

Tepig pawed the ground, then tensed with excitement. It was expecting to win this one. Pawniard tilted forward with his arms out, assuming a fighting stance. Tepig snorted, then released Ember. Pawniard darted to the side and began to approach at max speed.

Cheren knew that Hilbert's only chance for victory was closing the distance. He would not let that happen. "Use Ember! Use it non-stop!"

Tepig obeyed eagerly. It released fireball after fireball, Pawniard dodged all of them and continued to near his enemy. When Pawniard finally reached Tepig, the Tepig released one last fireball that Pawniard opted to jump over.

Pawniard failed to completely jump over the spark. One of his legs was caught by the fire, and his jump through the air was thrown off. He landed awkwardly in front of Tepig. Tepig grinned, then backed up a bit to ready an Ember that would knock Pawniard out and force Hilbert to bring Snivy back.

"Fury Swipe!" Hilbert called. "Now!" Pawniard got up, ignoring the stinging pain in his foot and dashed forward, and, somehow, made a blow before Tepig could release its fire. Pawniard continued to attack, cutting Tepig a full four times before kicking it away.

"Tepig." Cheren said with a tone of mixed frustration and concern as his starter rolled back to his feet. He stooped down and examined it. No serious, life-threatening wounds, it was just somewhat banged up. In fact, Tepig was still completely healthy and battle-worthy, but Cheren predicted that if he continued the fight, Pawniard would only continue to gain an advantage. He also would never approve of forcing his Pokemon to fight to the point of breaking.

"I concede." Cheren said before shaking his head. His apparent inability to win against Hilbert, even though he could exploit a Type advantage, was starting to get on his nerves, but he didn't whine about defeat.

Hilbert walked forward and put Pawniard back into a Pokeball. He looked as Cheren did likewise for Tepig. "So, what is this goal you were talking about?"

Cheren sighed and stood back up. "Simply this. I'll defeat every Unova gym, earn every badge, and then defeat the Elite Four and the Champion. After that… everyone will acknowledge my strength, and who I am."

Hilbert blinked. It was very like Cheren to have a goal like that, but he grew confused. "Elite Four? Champion?"

Cheren actually gaped at Hilbert, stunned into silence for a long moment. "You… don't know about those things?" The disbelief faded, and Cheren began to explain with a matter-of-fact tone. "The Elite Four are simply the most elite trainers of Unova, and the Champion is the one who stands even beyond them. They all reside at the Pokemon League. Any trainer who seeks to become strong with his Pokemon strives to someday become the Champion." He looked up in the air. "The Champion is the one everyone dreams of defeating. I intend to make my dream a reality. When that day comes, I won't allow you to defeat me either."

Hilbert bowed his head in thought. He would have been completely content to just gather eight badges and then just start… wandering around Unova. Having a position that everyone would want to dethrone him from wasn't particularly compelling to him. Still, Cheren seemed to have some great desire for it, a need for the accolades that came with it. Hilbert opened his mouth to speak, but it was another's voice that was heard.

"Out of the way!" Someone suddenly yelled, Hilbert and Cheren turned to the side, and they both immediately leapt back as two figures ran right past them, and would have trampled them had they not jumped out of the way.

As they moved past, Hilbert caught a half a second glance at them. He realized immediately… it was two members of Team Plasma with their strange, knightly costumes. A nameless feeling awakened in his gut as they ran past… and then he heard someone call him and Cheren.

"You two!" Hilda ran up to them, followed by Bianca and one of the elementary girls. Hilda's eyes were daggers, she rarely looked this angry. "Where did they go?!"

"Um…" Hilbert looked in the direction the agents of Team Plasma has ran off in, then turned back to Hilda. "What's going on?"

Hilda gritted her teeth, but then took in a large breath and looked to the side. "One of the elementary students had a Pokemon of her own, and when she tried to introduce it to Bianca's Pokemon, two members of Team Plasma jumped out and stole the little thing." She looked past Hilbert and Cheren. "They run fast, too."

Hilbert thought back to the agents of Team Plasma at the Dreamyard. They had tried to take his and Bianca's Pokemon by force. That approach to 'saving' Pokemon was apparently employed by every member of Team Plasma.

The little girl who had been robbed sniffled slightly. "M-miss, my P-Pokemon-"

Bianca put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's alright. We'll get it back for you." She smiled warmly, though she was inwardly bothered by her and her Pokemon's inability to stop the Plasma agents right when it all happened. She consoled the girl until the moment of sadness temporarily passed, but the only real remedy was to get the Pokemon back.

Cheren looked at what was unfolding, and made his decision. "Hilbert, come on."

"What?"

"I won't let Pokemon thieves go free." Cheren said. "Purrloin and Tepig are still well enough to battle, and I know your Snivy and Pawniard are healthy. Just follow me." He turned to Hilda and Bianca. "You two just stay with the girl, we'll get that Pokemon back."

Bianca's face twisted with concern. "Be… be careful." She gulped hard. "I don't want to see anything happen to you two."

Hilbert looked at Bianca's eyes, he could tell that she was thinking of the Dreamyard. He turned away and looked at Cheren. "Alright. Let's go."

"They had to have gone in here." Cheren said, looking at a cave at the base of what might have been a mountain. He took a moment to breath in. He had no doubt that he and Hilbert would win if a battle erupted, but he was conscious of the possibilities of what might happen if they lost. The possibilities only made him all the more insistent that he be the victor. He turned to his friend. "Ready?"

Hilbert nodded. Cheren led the two inside…

…and they found the Plasma agents just at the entrance.

"You two!" Cheren called with a commanding tone. Both of the Plasma grunts started, then turned to him. "Release the Pokemon you just stole."

"We are releasing it." One of them growled. "We're releasing it back into the wild. Far away from the hands of cruel humans."

Cheren opened his mouth to respond, but it quickly closed. He simply stared at the one that had spoken, unable to find the words to properly respond to the illogic.

"Let's try this another way." Hilbert said, stepping ahead of Cheren. "Return the Pokemon you stole. I won't tolerate Pokemon thieves."

"Return it…?" The Plasma agents looked at each other, their faces contorting in offense. They turned to the two boys. "We, Team Plasma, fight for the safety and rights of Pokemon. We will not return any Pokemon to abusive human hands." An accusing finger was suddenly pointed at Hilbert. "Or are you about to try and deny that abuse of Pokemon doesn't exist in the world?"

"I…" The accusation was made so fiercely and passionately by a person who clearly believed in his cause that Hilbert was briefly at a loss as to how to respond. Eventually, he found the words he needed. "Of course there's abuse of Pokemon. The fact that it happens doesn't give you the right to steal Pokemon from others. Especially if you're stealing from the humans that aren't abusive, and-"

Cheren put his hand on Hilbert's shoulder. "Don't waste your breath, Hilbert. Nothing is going to get through to them." He stepped forward and took a Pokeball out. "Just return the Pokemon, or pay the price."

The Plasma agents turned hostile at the sight of Cheren's Pokeball. "You dare to threaten members of the righteous Team Plasma?!" Both of them retrieved Pokeballs of their own. "We'll take the chance to free your enslaved Pokemon as well."

Hilbert's eyes narrowed. He settled on a Plasma agent. "I've got that one, Cheren. You take the other one." He threw his Pokeball, releasing Pawniard. It was still moderately bruised from the fight with Tepig, but it was still very fight worthy. Cheren released his Purrloin, surprisingly capable looking after its round with Snivy.

Both of the Plasma agents threw their Pokeballs, and Pawnaird and Purrloin found a pair of Patrats opposite of them. Hilbert zoned out of the Patrat that Cheren and Purrloin were going to focus on, looking only at the Patrat directly across from Pawniard.

"We'll make this quick." Hilbert noted. Pawniard struck a fighting pose opposite the Patrat.

The Plasma agent gave an order for Tackle, and his Patrat ran forward. Pawnaird stepped to the side, letting Patrat sail past him. The Normal type doubled back, Pawniard immediately slashed the Patrat as it approached, knocking it aside.

The Patrat shook itself of its slight disorientation, not bothered by the damage it had just taken. It hunkered down, and charged again.

"Fury Swipes!" Hilbert ordered, Pawniard brought both of his arms into formation. The Patrat came up to him, Pawniard immediately cut it once, then slashed again and again before the Patrat could back off. The flurry of swipes continued for a time, and then eventually Pawniard jumped away. The Patrat wobbled from foot to foot, looking like it was dizzy, then fell down backwards.

"Bah." The Plasma agent muttered as it recalled his Patrat. Hilbert couldn't help but feel that the Patrat he just fought hadn't been even remotely trained. That was easy, almost pathetically easy. Suddenly Hilbert heard a loud clubbing sound, and he turned to see the other Patrat hurtling through the air from a blow courtesy of Cheren's Purrloin. The Patrat tried to stand up, but its legs quickly buckled, and its trainer recalled it.

"Just a pair of kids." One of them murmured in disbelief. "How can the righteous Team Plasma get beaten… how can we lose when we're in the right?!"

Cheren just inhaled and exhaled slowly at the words. Deciding to not bother responding to the words, he just turned to Hilbert to nod approvingly. He turned back to the two Plasma agents. "Return the Pokemon you stole. Now."

The Plasma grunts remained hostile. Cheren was ready to order Purrloin to attack them directly, when another voice resounded in the cave.

"We are not returning any Pokemon to slavery." Cheren and Hilbert heard a distant voice and looked to the side, another two Plasma agents were present. Hilbert wasn't perplexed by the appearance of these reinforcements, not after the underwhelming performance of the ones he just fought, and simply turned to his new enemies. The two new agents stood with pride. "We are in the right. We, Team Plasma. After this battle you will see the truth in that."

"More of them…" Cheren shook his head, feeling exasperation at this development rather then anything remotely resembling worry or concern. "It doesn't matter how many of you appear. I'm not losing to Pokemon thieves." Looking at the two, he decided to recall Purrloin, then turned to Hilbert. "Come on, we'll make this a two on two. Let's get this over with."

Hilbert allowed himself to smile at how Cheren was treating this as a trivial annoyance that should be sped up. It was getting somewhat difficult to regard these Plasma agents as a serious threat. He recalled Pawniard and reached for his other Pokeball.

Hilbert and Cheren each threw a Pokeball, and Snivy and Tepig appeared.

"Rather rare Pokemon." One of the Plasma grunts noted as he retrieved one of his Pokeballs. "We'll save them from you. I swear it."

Both of the Plasma grunts threw a Pokeball. Another pair of Patrats appeared. Hilbert actually looked somewhat amused.

"More Patrats? Can't you guys think outside the box a little?"

"Shut up, kid." One of the Plasma agents hissed. He and the other agent spoke the next word in unison. "Bite!"

The Patrats darted forward. Cheren narrowed his eyes. "Tepig. Defense Curl." The pig hunkered down and curled up, the teeth of the Patrat's likely wouldn't be able to get to her like this. Cheren glanced over at Hilbert. Cheren's partner wasn't perplexed by his opting for a more defensive strategy.

Hilbert just chuckled. "Snivy, use your new wrecking ball." Cheren raised an eyebrow, then watched as Snivy's vine wrapped around Tepig.

"Hilbert, what do you think you're…" Cheren started with an accusatory tone, then blinked in realization. "Yes, yes, that's a clever strategy, and it'll speed things up quite a bit." He turned back to the unfolding battle, the Patrat's had almost closed the distance. "Tepig, stay curled up." The Fire type tightened its position, Cheren believed that she understood the strategy.

Snivy's eyes twinkled, and he swung Tepig around like she was a large wrecking ball. He made a large swing and smashed her into the two Patrats, sending them flying straight back into the wall.

The duo of Patrats got back up. Their trainers ordered for them to stubbornly attack again. Hilbert looked at Snivy. "Raise Tepig high above you." He turned to Cheren. "Tell her to use Ember."

Cheren inwardly chuckled at the strategy, then turned to his starter currently hoisted in the air. "Tepig. Use Ember. Turn the ground into a fire field."

Tepig snorted enthusiastically, then released a shower of sparks. The two Patrats tried their best to evade the falling flames, and succeeded in darting through the storm, initially. In time, one of them was suddenly hit by a spark that was falling with an erratic arc and dropped. The other Patrat, not noticing its ally falling, tried to keep pushing forward, but was eventually stopped by one flame landing directly in front of him.

It had paused only briefly, but another spark landed on the temporarily stationary Pokemon. The Patrat yelped, then fell down on the now hot rocks.

"No… no!" One of the Plasma agents yelled. Even with the help of reinforcements, they had been defeated by these two kids. The same one that had spoken looked defiantly at Hilbert and Cheren. "We only wish to liberate Pokemon. That's all."

Cheren shook his head as he recalled Tepig. "That logic is absolutely laughable. What was that elementary student doing to abuse her Pokemon? Nothing. I spent enough time with them today to know how they'd treat Pokemon."

One of the grunts clenched a fist at Cheren's rebuttal. "Trainers who ignore the obvious truth… you are the sort of person who makes Pokemon suffer. I truly pity you."

Cheren's face turned hostile at the idea of being pitied by people like the ones standing before him. He was leaning towards the idea of bringing his Pokemon back out and attacking these humans directly, when one of them sighed deeply and stepped forward. He took another Pokeball out.

"Here is the Pokemon we… were going to liberate. It's obvious that nothing we do today will keep it from returning to slavery." He handed the Pokeball to Hilbert, then quickly backed up to his comrades. "But make no mistake. Team Plasma will succeed in its goals. All Pokemon will be freed from their blind, idiotic masters. Yours included." With that, he and his allies suddenly darted away further into the caves until they couldn't be seen.

"That logic." Hilbert shook his head. He turned, not concerned with the Plasma agents anymore. With the Pokeball in hand, he just sighed and looked at the entrance to the cave. "We got what we came in here for. Let's just get going."

"My Pokemon!" The little girl yelled in delight as she took the Pokeball back. "Thank you, mister! Thank you!"

Hilbert smiled. "Just be more careful with that." He turned away to see Hilda smiling at him. He looked away immediately before he had a chance to look embarrassed.

"I guess you can be reliable once in a while." Hilda said cheekily. "You too, Cheren."

Cheren wrinkled his nose at the thanks offered in a slightly condescending tone. "It was simplicity. Team Plasma doesn't seem to bother actually training their Pokemon."

"You got the Pokemon back, and you're perfectly alright." Bianca said, walking up to Cheren. "I'm… so glad to have friends like you two."

Cheren cleared his throat and looked away as the time for congratulations and praise ended. "Bianca, you and Hilbert take the girl back to the Day Care. Hilda, it's time we started moving."

Hilda sighed with mixed emotions. "The Day Care was more entertaining then I figured it would be, but I have been waiting for the chance to leave." She walked up next to Cheren, then turned around and waved. The two departed, Nacrene likely wasn't far from where they all were standing.

Hilbert made an exaggerated sigh. He didn't like Cheren and Hilda managing to get ahead, but he shrugged indifferently before turning to the little girl still reacting to her Pokemon's rescue. "Alright. Let's get her back to her class."

Pawniard still had no interest in playing, and sat right beside Hilbert on a bench as Bianca's Pokemon, and Snivy, were still amusing the kids. Pawniard sighed deeply and turned away, bored and wanting to move on. He pressed a blade upon the wooden bench and started to carve a mark into it, which quickly became a neat circle mark with shreds of wood beside it. Every once in a while a kid glanced at the little guy, but Pawniard was never approached.

"Hey, miss Bianca." One of the students spoke out of the blue. "How do you catch a Pokemon?"

Bianca smiled. "I can show you that easily. We just need to find a wild Pokemon. If that's okay with the teacher." She turned to the older girl, who nodded approvingly. Bianca suddenly enthusiastically led several of the students off of the playground. Snivy cocked his head as they left, then returned to Hilbert.

"She's given a demonstration, huh?" Hilbert looked down at Snivy, then back in the direction Bianca left in. He patted his pants before standing up. "Alright. Let's follow them. Anything besides just sitting here."

Pawniard made a sound, perhaps a sigh, then hopped off the bench and started to follow its trainer.

Bianca had found a Lillipup. She released her Munna to demonstrate how to capture a Pokemon. Hilbert, watching from the side, wondered how this would go. Bianca had never actually caught a Pokemon before. Oshawott and Pansear had just been given to her, and Munna had decided to follow Bianca. This, if it went well, would be the first time Bianca actually caught a Pokemon of her own in the typical method.

Munna moved forward quickly, following Bianca's commands and slowly using its Psychic type attacks to wear the wild Lillipup down. The Lillipup barked defiantly and tried to aggressively attack Munna, but Bianca's orders kept Munna safe and out of harms way. Eventually, Munna's attacks had the Lillipup breathing hard.

Taking a Pokeball out, Bianca threw it. It struck Lillipup and took the Normal type inside. The ball fell into the grass and shook weakly, the Lillipup was fighting desperately, but eventually it gave up, and the ball fell still. Bianca walked over and picked the Pokeball up, then turned around and opened it for the kids.

The Lillipup was still bruised, and it turned to Bianca and allowed itself to be petted, and then jumped onto Bianca's arms when she made the offer to hold it.

"That's how it's done." Bianca smiled. The kids cheered. Hilbert sighed. He imagined that Bianca's attempt might not have gone so well if she hadn't seen him capture Pawniard at the Dreamyard. A capture that was far more difficult… and dangerous. He turned and looked down at the little thing, it looked back up at him, understand was not registering in its eyes. Hilbert found it interesting that the thing, which had been honestly trying to kill Snivy, was now one of his Pokemon.

Eventually, the field trip of the class ended and the kids went back to the school with their teacher, and Hilbert and Bianca were finally able to get back on the road.

"I have four Pokemon now." Bianca announced to him, then suddenly smiled. "And you only have two. Feel intimidated?"

Hilbert blinked, then sighed. "Oh, oh yes, Bianca. I'm waving my white flag of surrender." He frowned at her enthusiasm. She was making a full team very quickly. He, on the other hand, still only had two.

"I'll add more members to my team when I'm good and ready, Bianca. For now…" He looked up, it was earlier then he thought it would be. Maybe just a little after noon. "Let's get going to Nacrene. I'd rather not let Cheren and Hilda get that far ahead of us."

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