AN: If you haven't already, I suggest reading the reviews for this story. It's like a forum. So many of you have great comments/headcanons/ideas that are cute and creative. Just a head's up, some comments will contain spoilers, so proceed with caution. That is all for now. I hope you enjoy this next bit:)
The Coral Gym was a yellow and blue building near the beach.
When they arrived, an Espeon greeted them.
"Hey, this is Benny and Tamaki's mother's Espeon," said Logan.
"Does that mean their parents are in charge of the gym?" Amber asked.
"Spee Espee Espeon," the Espeon replied. "Espeon spee spee espee."
"She says that Sakura offered to take over the gym after the old man who used to run it died last year," Lily translated. "But she's in Toka helping with Giovanni's mission, so Tamaki, Benny, and his uncle are in charge of the gym."
"That must mean that Sakura left behind her Espeon to help them out," said Soledad.
"Spee, espee," the Espeon nodded before walking away.
"She wants us to follow," said Logan.
"Tamaki? Benny!" they called as they followed the Espeon into the gym.
"Hello! Is anyone here?!" Amber shouted. "Tamaki, Benny, Anyone!?"
"Hello?" someone responded after a few moments.
The Espeon ran behind a corner and came back with a human.
"Tamaki!" Jocelyn exclaimed, running up to them. She jumped into Tamaki's arms, nearly knocking him down.
"Hey Jocelyn," Tamaki yawned. "I had a feeling you'd all be coming around early. Your parents said you were early risers."
"Tamaki, it's wonderful to see you but please tell me you're not here alone," said Annastasia.
"Hey, A, and nah, I ain't alone—Uncle Toshi's here."
"You a gym leader now?" June asked.
"He can't be," said Soledad. "He's twelve."
"You're wrong, cuz I'm the Coral City Gym Leader," Tamaki announced.
"No."
"It's true, little girl."
"Shut-up."
"Who is this kid?" Michio asked.
"Tamaki, this is Michio. He's visiting Kanto from Alola," said Annastasia.
"Alola, Dude," Tamaki said as he offered a low-five to Michio, which he accepted, though begrudgingly.
"That's a first," said Soledad. "He let Tamaki touch him."
"Mmhm. Interesting," Lexi whispered. "More normal human behavior. Maybe we were wrong; Michio isn't an alien."
"I can hear you," Michio retorted.
Tamaki laughed. "I'm Tamaki, by the way. I was born and raised in Johto. I started living with Ritchie and Sakura when I was seven, and I've been their number one headache ever since…I sorta don't like battling, but my Pokémon like to battle. Benny's my little bro. He's seven. Right now, he's out of school for Child's Day, but the little dude likes to sleep late on his days off. My uncle is at home keeping an eye on him. And this is my mom's Espeon; if you battle her, she'll by far be your toughest opponent."
"Does that mean you're gonna battle all of us?" Takeshi asked.
"Yep."
"Oh…Are you sure?" Annastasia asked. "That's a lot to handle."
"Of course. We haven't spent time together in ages. Soledad, June, Takeshi, you all haven't been to Johto in two years! Last time I saw y'all was New Years, and that was only for a few days. I wanna see for myself how much you've grown since last we met."
"Then let's get started," said Takeshi. "Anyone mind if I have the first battle?"
"I don't mind," June replied.
"Me neither," said Soledad.
"Go for it," said Amber.
"Yeah, I kinda prefer not being the first to go…" Jay confessed.
"Lily, Logan, what about you or Squirt Gun?" Lexi asked.
"We're still not sure if we're gonna battle here," Lily replied.
"Kk, so let's go," Tamaki told Takeshi.
Everyone followed Sakura's Espeon and Tamaki to the arena. It was a half tide pool, half sand battlefield. There were a few palm trees on both sides.
"I'll officiate," Rita offered.
"Why thanks, Milady," Tamaki replied, staring at her starry-eyed. "If you can do that then maybe later you could…"
Rita pinched his ear and dragged him to the ground. "I told you 'no' dozens of times already so cut it out!"
"Ouch! Geeze, I get it! I GET IT LET GO!"
Rita let go of his ear and marched over to the judges' platform with Zorua.
"Sheesh," Tamaki muttered. "I was just kidding."
"What's Rita's problem?" Michio asked Annastasia.
"Tamaki has a thing for Rita, and it's not as innocent as that little crush that Takeshi used to have," Annastasia whispered in his ear. "Obsessive, and Rita already tried all the gently means."
"What just happened?" Jocelyn asked as she looked to Tamaki.
"Fla?"
"We're not sure," Soledad answered.
"More like we don't wanna know," said Amber.
"This will be a Single Round Double Battle with no time limit," Rita announced. "Two Pokémon each, no substitutes allowed on any Pokémon that has sustained any damage, and only the challenger make substitutions. One item per Pokémon, no doping, and I'm assuming you know the rest."
"This is the first time we ever did an official double battle in a gym before," said Soledad. "I hope this pulls me out of my losing streak."
"When Takeshi wins, it'll boost my confidence too," said June.
Tamaki sent out his Wooper and Ivysaur. Takeshi picked Gloom and Cyndaquil.
"The first move's yours," said Tamaki.
"Right…Cyndaquil, use Fire Spin on Ivysaur. Gloom, use Acid on Wooper."
"Now Ivysaur, dodge those flames and paralyze Cyndaquil with your Stun Spore," Tamaki retorted. "Wooper, use Water Gun on Cyndaquil."
"Tamaki has both his Pokémon attacking Cyndaquil at once," said June. "Is that allowed?"
"Sure is," Lexi replied. "It's a good strategy in double battles—in most situations, it helps to lead you towards a quicker victory, though it may not seem like it would."
Ivysaur's Stun Spore attacks left both Cyndaquil and Gloom paralyzed. Wooper was able to avoid Gloom's Acid attack, but it failed to hit Cyndaquil with Water Gun. Cyndaquil's fire fainted Ivysaur.
"Ivysaur's out of the battle!" Rita announced.
"Yessss!" Takeshi cheered. "Now it's just us two against Wooper."
Wooper used Water Gun on Cyndaquil, who used Protect. Wooper then used Round on Gloom, who then fainted.
"And Gloom's out!" Rita declared.
"Uh-oh, Oniisan only has Cyndaquil," said Jocelyn.
"Fla."
"And water beats fire!"
"He's still got a chance," said Annastasia. "Let's watch now, remark later."
"Cyndaquil, it's just you and me," said Takeshi.
"Go Takeshi!" June cheered.
"Yeah, you got this! One down, one to go!" said Amber and Jay.
"You can do it, Oniisan!" Jocelyn shouted.
"Fla feeeeee!"
"Piiiichuuu!"
"Toge Toge!"
"Ice Punch, Wooper!" Tamaki instructed.
"Uh…Sand Attack," Takeshi countered.
"Ice Punch? Why is it called Ice Punch? Wooper doesn't even have fists," said June, making the others laugh.
"It's like my parents always say," said Soledad. "Some things with Pokémon just don't make any sense."
"It's the damned truth," said Amber.
"Yeah," said Jay. "And Amb, that's a curse."
"Shhhh. I'm tryin to watch Tamaki," said Logan. "Quit distracting us!"
Cyndaquil dodged the Ice Punch and damaged Wooper with his Sand Attack. Takeshi had Cyndaquil use Double Team then Headbutt, which ultimately knocked the water-type out.
"Wooper is out of the match! Cyndaquil and Takeshi are the winners!" Rita declared.
"Yay!" Everyone cheered as they ran up to Takeshi.
"You did it! You really did it!"
"I'm so proud!"
"You did it, Oniisan!"
"Flaaafeeee!"
"You aren't bad at all!"
"I told you you'd get another badge eventually!"
"It must be nice…traveling with such…good…friends," Tamaki sighed to Nolan as the others showered Takeshi and Cyndaquil compliments.
"Do you wanna come with us?" Nolan asked.
"Of course, I do, but I can't just leave Benny. I might not be his brother by blood, but I might as well be. I promised I'd never leave him. It's bad enough we had to leave Johto and make a new home here. It would be pretty awful for him to experience another big change so quickly. We've only been here for two weeks."
"Seems like you've already thought a lot about this."
"I have."
"Well, I'm proud of you for that, but what if you were to bring him with you?"
"Huh?"
"I haven't said anything to the others, but they wouldn't mind. Annastasia told the others several times that they're welcome to invite additional friends to come along."
"No one invited me."
"I'm inviting you."
"Because you feel sorry for me."
"Maybe a little; your water-type did just lose to a fire-type…but you're also a fun guy and most of the people in our group would benefit from having another trainer—and friend—on their team. Do me a favor and at least think about it. Your parents would probably love for you to come with us and Benny definitely would like the adventure. I am sure your uncle could find some other teenager around here to help him run the gym. The city is filled with jobless teens."
"I'll talk to Uncle Toshi and Benny tonight."
Takeshi approached Tamaki.
"Here's your Pace Badge," Tamaki said as he gave Takeshi the yellow and blue pin. "Congrats on winning. So, who wants to go next?"
"I do!" Amber, Soledad, and June asked at the same time.
"How about Jay?" Tamaki asked. "Or should I say, Blue-Jay."
"You too, huh?" Jay mumbled.
"I like the new hair. I almost didn't recognize you. And those earrings are…something. I like them. I'm thinking of getting mine done. Just one hole though. A lot of the other guys 'round here do it. So, you want to battle now?"
"Hey? Why not us!?" said Amber. "June, Soledad, and I asked first."
"Y'all look a little too eager. So, what'ya say, Blue-Jay?"
"Sure, I'll go", Jay replied.
"We've only been here fifteen minutes and you're already starting to get annoying," Soledad told Tamaki.
"I just wanna face Blue-Jay next. I'd like to see what type of Pokémon he caught. Is that so wrong?" he replied. "You're not jealous, are you?"
"No…just have your battle."
Everyone cheered as Jay stepped up to the platform. Rita recited the rules. Tamaki released a Donphan and a Marril.
"I choose…Hmm...this…is a hard one. What is the theme of this gym anyway?" Jay asked.
Annastasia groaned, then laughed a little.
"What?" said Michio.
"Oh, I just told the squirt three times…well, that's how Jay is. My lil ADD compadre."
"Okay…"
"Beach theme," Tamaki told Jay. "C'mon Blue-Jay, you could've figured that one out. These are all Pokémon that you can find out the beach. So, sand and water lovers. And since I'm from Johto, so are most of my Pokémon."
"I get it," Jay replied. "I choose Togetic and Chikorita!"
"What?!" his friends exclaimed in unison. Everyone except Amber, of course.
"When did your brother get a Chikorita?" Michio asked Annastasia.
"Pikachu pi?" asked Scarlett.
"I didn't even know he caught one," Annastasia responded.
"Oh yeah…ha-ha…surprise, everyone," Jay replied shyly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Chika!" Chikorita exclaimed, looking around at everyone.
"Hold the battle! STOP EVERYTHING!" Jocelyn screamed, throwing her arms in the air.
"FLAAFY!"
"Sure, we can take a break," said Tamaki.
"The battle is officially paused," Rita announced. "Tell us Blue-Jay, did you steal that Pokémon? Because stealing's wrong."
"Zo Zo!" her Zorua barked at the Chikorita, who growled back.
"No! I….um…." he stuttered. "Chikorita and I… we…."
"I'm just messing with you," Rita assured him. "I know you wouldn't steal."
"When did you get a Chikorita?" Soledad asked. "How? And where? They aren't even from around here."
"It's an interesting story," said Amber. "Tell 'em, Blue Jay. I'll help fill in the blanks."
"Sure," Jay replied. "It was last night after everyone went to bed…"
"So Togetic, you can't sleep either, can you?" I asked my Pokémon.
"Toge Toge," Togetic responded, circling around the room.
"I think I have to pee. But I can't tell. Should I go? Maybe if I hold it long enough, I'll forget about it."
"Togetic toge."
"Your right; that tactic never worked in the past. But what if I wake everyone up?"
I surveyed the room. I was on the top bunk, above Nolan. Michio was on the bottom bunk across from us, snoring loudly. Scarlett was lying on top of his face, covering everything but his mouth. Takeshi was curled up on the other top bunk along with Cyndaquil and Logan. They were all in the exact same position, rolled into little balls, lined up in a row, with no covers—Cyndaquil's flames kept them too warm for blankets.
"They're too snug to wake," I decided. "If they can sleep through that snoring, they could probably sleep through anything—"
"I don't snore!" Michio interrupted. "You made that part up!"
"You snore," Takeshi, Logan, and Nolan, replied in unison.
"Pika Pikachu pika," Scarlett affirmed.
Michio turned away, probably to sulk. Everyone rolled their eyes at him while Jay continued his story
Togetic fluttered behind me as I made my way down the hall. There was an 'out-of-order' sign taped to the bathroom door. I had to use the one in the lobby.
We glanced at the analog clock hanging on the opposite wall.
"It's already 5:00 am," I noted.
The moment I spoke, there was a shuffling noise from across the room.
"Do you hear that?" I asked Togetic.
But he had already fluttered towards it. Behind the potted lemon tree was an angry Chikorita. It yelled at us and hit me with Poison Powder.
"That' terrible," said June. Are you okay?"
Jay nodded. "I'm immune."
"How?"
"Genes," said Annastasia. "Jay and I, perhaps Jocelyn too, are immune to Pokémon poison."
"That's convenient," Soledad said as she took out her notebook. "I'm taking that down."
"Sorry to interrupt," said June. "Please, continue your story."
"Sure," Jay replied.
Chikorita got madder once it saw that its poison didn't work on me and that Togetic was quick to dodge. It kept growling, even after we apologized. It then grunted and posed as if ready to battle.
"You wanna battle me?" I asked.
"Chikaaa!" it asserted with a nod.
"Okay then…Togetic?"
Togetic agreed, so I went along with it.
"Does this mean if I win, you'll come with me?" I asked.
Chikorita nodded again. I got super excited and knew that I had to make this battle a good one.
"You can come along with me for free," I said as I held out a Pokéball. "You don't have to battle me unless you want to."
Chikorita leaped forward and smacked the ball right out of my hand. It repeated its assertion, and I knew that battling was the only option.
"Togetic, use Psychic," I instructed.
Togetic lifted Chikorita in the air, but once it was two feet off the ground, it resisted the attack and pummeled Togetic with Magical Leaf. As you all know, Togetic has been working on his defenses so he handled it np. We used Gust like, five times in a row, and it wasn't until the last attempt that we managed to get Chikorita. Just as Togetic was about to put the finishing move on Chikorita, I stopped the battle. It looked confused.
"There's no point in having you collapse," I explained.
I felt bad for Chikorita, even though I did what it wanted. But, it's like A and my dad always say: Most Pokémon like to battle. If they don't wanna, they'll make it obvious. So, I figured I did the right thing.
We carried Chikorita to the front desk and rang the bell. A few moments, Nurse Joy and Chansey appeared in their PJs.
"What happened here? Were you out of bed battling past curfew?" she inquired.
She sounded super disappointed and surprised.
I explained what happened, and after I think she understood. She refreshed Chikorita and Togetic while I left to finally use the bathroom.
"That was awesome!" Amber exclaimed.
I fell over. I hate when she scares me like that.
"Were you here the whole time?" I asked.
Amber and Pip sat comfortably on the couch. Her bow was in her lap. She was sharpening her arrows with a knife.
"Yep," she responded. "That was a good battle by the way. On a full bladder too. Impressive."
"Why didn't you tell me you were here?" I asked. "It was so dim…I didn't even notice you."
"First of all, you need glasses. Second of all, I didn't say anything because I was gonna jump out and scare you. Then I decided that be a bad idea in case you accidentally peed yourself like last time, and then you started battling and I pretended to not be here because if Nurse Joy caught me sharpening my arrows on this couch, she'd kick me out."
"But you scared me anyway."
"Yeah…couldn't resist. Did you pee yourself?"
"No."
"Congrats. I'm kinda jealous about that Chikorita though...it's not native to Kanto."
"Thanks…Did you know that Chikorita was out here by itself?"
Amb shrugged. "Sorta thought it belonged to someone else already…you should go pee before you explode."
So, I ran, and while I was taking care of business, I wondered if Chikorita really could come with me—maybe it really did belong to one of the other trainers staying overnight at the PC.
Nurse Joy, Togetic, and Chikorita were waiting for us at the desk when I returned.
"This Chikorita doesn't have a permanent home," said Nurse Joy. "She's been hanging out here for months—since she was an egg. I didn't let anyone take her away because she was so young. But I know your sister. She is well known here for being a very good Pokémon trainer. I think I can trust you to take good care of her for me, and it seems like she wants to go with you."
"Wow, thanks…don't worry, I'll take super good care of her," I replied. "And um, thanks for getting up to help me so early in the morning."
"It was no trouble. Now go back to bed, and try not to wake the others."
So, I got Chikorita, a little more sleep, and now here we are.
"That was really nice of Nurse Joy to do that for you," said Annastasia.
"That's why June would make such a great nurse!" said Jocelyn. "She's the nicest!"
"Flaaa!"
"Awe, thanks," June murmured, a bit embarrassed.
"I owe her a big favor one day," Jay replied. "I just hope I don't get her mixed up with any of the other Nurse Joys!"
"Awesome story," said Tamaki. "So, you ready to battle?"
"Definitely."
"Should I recite the rules again?" Rita asked.
"Nah, we got it."
"Okay…then, go!"
"Chikorita, use Magical Leaf on both of them and Togetic, use Confusion on Donphan!"
"Chika!"
"Marril!"
"Togetic Toge!"
"Donnnnphan!"
Chikorita's leaves cut both opponents, but Tamaki had his Donphan use Body Slam on the small grass type, which caused the attack to immediately cease. Togetic's Confusion attack was supposed to hit Donphan, but it hit Marril instead. Marril accidentally used Water Gun on Donphan.
"Marril! Snap out of it and use Water Gun on Togetic, not Donphan!" Tamaki called out to his Pokémon.
But it was no use; this was a risk every double-battler took.
Jay took advantage of Marril's confusion and had Chikorita use Magical Leaf. After two attempts, it knocked out Marril.
"Marril's out of the match!" Rita announced.
Everyone continued to cheer and shout. Chikorita basked in the praise as she continued to lead the way to victory.
"Chikorita, Magical Leaf. Togetic, Psychic," Jay instructed.
"Body Slam both!" Tamaki commanded.
Chikorita's attacks were unable to cut Donphan's tough armor-like skin. Togetic avoided the Body Slam, but Chikorita did not.
"Chikorita's out of the match," Rita declared. "It is one on one now: Jay and Togetic versus Tamaki and Donphan."
"Togetic, use Confusion!" Jay instructed.
"Dodge and Rollout," Tamaki countered.
Togetic's Confusion attack hit Donphan. It looked at Tamaki, dazed.
"Try Rapid Spin," Tamaki suggested.
Donphan tried to issue the attack but ultimately failed. After one more Psychic attack, Jay was declared the winner.
As Togetic flew into Jay's arms, his friends gathered around and congratulated him. Tamaki handed him the Pace Badge.
"I didn't know what to expect from ya, Blue-Jay, but…I can tell you've changed a lot," said Tamaki. "In a good way—and btw, those earrings make you look really cute. I bet all your lady friends are in love."
"Oh, maybe," Jay said as he blushed. "Thanks."
His friends continued to congratulate Jay and the freshly-healed Pokémon.
"So, I'm thinking I can take one more, then take a break—I need to wake up Benny cuz he wanted to see some battles."
"I'll go next," Michio offered when the others were silent.
"Awesome," said Annastasia.
"Um, yeah…Anyway, is that okay?" Michio asked the others.
"You can go," said Soledad.
"Fine with me," said Amber.
"I'm not sure if I even wanna battle here," said Lily.
"Ditto," Logan said as Squirt Gun nodded. "We haven't gotten in as much training as we hoped…"
"And it's fine with me too," said June.
"Same," said Takeshi.
"Great!" Tamaki exclaimed. "So, Alola dude—Let's go!"
XO
IN THE NEXT CHAPTER:
· More Gym Battles
· Another Pokémon evolution
· Lily confides a secret in Annastasia
AN: I was debating whether or not to do a full character profile for Benny and Tamaki, but I decided against it. All you really need to know is what I mention in the fic. Quick summary though: Tamaki is 12 years old, partly Japanese, partly something else, a little taller than the other kids, blond hair, brown/black eyes, pale, freckled skin, and the laid-back surfer type. Benny is 7 years old, also partly Japanese, partly something else, light brown hair and brown/black eyes, light skinned, shy, trusting, obedient, and likes Pokémon. They're like distant cousins to this group.
Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great weekend. Review if you have time and more importantly, as always, enjoy your life:)