Chapter Three: Edges Have Always Been Rough
Carla listened intently, but there was no indication that the newcomer was coming up the stairs.
The light came on downstairs. Would they see the dirty footprints she must have left on the carpet? Would they sense something was wrong and go up the stairs - or worse, call the police?
A tiny shape toddled towards the bathroom entrance. Carla darted forwards and snatched Tess up, whispering desperately before the Vullaby could make any noise: "Stay quiet, and don't go anywhere. We are in serious trouble."
Tess went completely still and quiet.
Carla stuffed the T-shirt into her bag and tied the still-wet hoodie around her waist. She put Tess down for a moment while she put the rucksack back on, picked Tess up again and, quickly as she could, crept towards the top of the stairs.
Judging from the sounds, the person was in the kitchen making something to eat.
Every second felt like an hour, but eventually Carla's feet touched the hallway carpet. Arceus, please don't let the door be locked. Heart in her mouth, she crept towards the door.
The sound of the radio coming on made her jump sharply; she was barely able to stop herself from dropping Tess. She glanced towards the kitchen. The person wasn't visible, but his shadow was lying across the floor.
The doorknob was cold under her palm. Still praying with all her mind, Carla turned it as carefully as she could.
It wasn't locked.
Barely stifling a sob of relief, she opened the door until it was halfway open. Then she slipped through, careful not to trap her bag against the door and closed the door softly.
It was just at that moment that Tess cheeped. Carla froze again, then started running away from the house. She thought she heard the door open behind her, thought she heard a voice call after her, but she didn't stop. She just kept running and running until her feet screamed and Tess cried out in protest. Only then did she stop, surrounded by trees and shadows.
"It's OK, Tess," she gasped out. "I'm sorry. It's OK." She dropped to her knees and perched Tess on her lap, panting heavily.
That could never happen again. Carla had pushed their luck too far. A trainer's first priority was their team's wellbeing, otherwise they didn't deserve to even be trainers at all.
From now on, your team comes first.
Glennis would understand.
Something soft nudged Carla's cheek. Tess was looking at her, eyes shining in the dim light.
"I'll be careful from now on," Carla promised. "We'll never run out of medicine again."
Her mind went back to the man in the house. He must have been so scared. But then, he might not even have known she'd been in the house at all.
Carla shook her head derisively. He'd know. He'd be able to smell she'd been there.
That didn't matter now. What did matter was that she was out in the woods at night, and she should have set up camp ages ago. Someone else already had - there was a definite hint of smoke in the air. Or maybe she could keep walking, and hope she wasn't too far away from Petalburg...
A piercing scream shattered the silence. Carla sprang to her feet, eyes staring into the darkness. There was no way that had been human.
The shriek that followed was.
She started running again, ignoring the stitch that jabbed into her gut like a spear. A dim glow began to appear down the path just ahead of her.
It was the remains of a campfire; it was now almost completely burned down but gave off just enough light to illuminate a small pink tent. A girl was crouching beside the fire, hands clasped over her head. Something was floating around her, its crimson eyes fixed on its target.
"Leave me alone, leave me alone!" the girl sobbed.
Then the Misdreavus saw Carla. It paused in mid-air.
There was no time to think. "Gust!"
Tess flapped her wings at the Misdreavus. It cried out as the wind blew it upwards before regaining its balance, narrowing its eyes. Tess wriggled out of Carla's arms and screeched a challenge to the hovering enemy.
In response, the Misdreavus let out a tiny growl. Tess faltered, putting her head on one side.
"It's tricking you, Tess! Don't let it!"
Then the Misdreavus screamed again. Carla yelped, clapping her hands over her ears just as Tess jumped sharply.
"Use Gust again!" Carla yelled, not waiting for her ears to stop ringing.
The Misdreavus' scream rose sharply as the attack blew it higher in the air. Carla quickly zipped open her began and rummaged inside until she found what she was looking for. She hurled the capsule at the Misdreavus before it could recover.
The ball snapped shut and fell to the ground, rocking from side to side. Carla held her breath, clenching her fists. Then the capsule went still, a soft 'click' echoing in the air.
Carla sighed with relief, and then saw what she'd used to catch the Misdreavus.
Hope you can make better use of it than I would.
"Oh my gosh, thank you! I can't believe you just caught it like that!"
It was the girl. Her black hair was wild and rumpled, and her blue eyes stood out sharply in her pale, scared face. She was wearing dark pink pyjamas with Duckletts on them.
"Are you OK?" Carla heard herself ask.
The girl nodded shakily. "I think so. I was just about to go to bed when it started screaming and I got so scared!" She sat down, running her hands through her hair.
Carla dimly remembered reading something about Misdreavus feeding on fear. It had probably been hungry; it might not have been going to hurt the girl, even if it had been using Astonish.
Realising she couldn't think of her Misdreavus as 'it' anymore, Carla scanned the capsule with her dex.
Species: Misdreavus
Gender: Female
Move Set: Growl, Spite, Psywave, Astonish
"What are you doing out here?" The other girl had scrambled to her feet and was looking at Carla curiously. "I didn't think anyone would be out so late."
"My Vullaby got poisoned and I didn't set up camp in time."
"Oh." The girl frowned. "Is it all right?"
Carla glanced down at Tess, who looked as if she'd never been poisoned at all. "Yeah, she's fine. You did great, Tess."
"Do you want to share my camp?" the black-haired girl offered. "My name's Tally."
Carla would be an idiot not to take up the offer. "Thanks. I'm Carla." She looked down at the Vullaby again. "Stay here, Tess, and don't go anywhere."
With Tess watching from the side, Carla took out her green tent and started to pitch it next to Tally's pink one. But it was almost completely pitch black now, and the dying glow of the fire only illuminated so much.
Carla couldn't see clearly enough to pitch the tent properly. It was difficult to see which pole went where in the dark.
"Do you want some help?"
"Yes, please." Again, Carla wished she'd set up camp when she had the chance.
Tally hurried over and picked up one of the poles. "I don't like setting up in the dark. It's scary, isn't it? I didn't even know there were Misdreavus in the area."
"Neither did I." Carla concentrated on finding the correct holes in the tent fabric.
"Are you going to Petalburg or Oldale?"
"Petalburg."
"I'm going there too. But Oldale's very pretty, isn't it? I loved all the flowers in the windows!" When Tally stood up, Carla saw grass stains on the knees of her pyjamas. "Where does this one go?"
"Right up here, at the top." Carla held the tent steady while Tally inserted the pole carefully through the correct loops.
"So how long have you been on the road?" Tally asked. "Are you an actual trainer?"
"I… Only a couple of days. And yes, I am an actual trainer." It felt strange to admit that, but Carla brushed the feeling aside.
"I am, too. At least, I guess I am. I don't have any badges or anything. Do you come from Oldale?"
"No; I just got my starter from Birch Labs." Carla glanced to her right to check Tess hadn't wandered off. The Vullaby was standing by the fireside, watching the proceedings.
"Really? Did you get a Torchic, Treecko or Mudkip?"
"Snorunt." Carla was about to leave it there, but it would have been rude not to ask Tally what her starter was. "What was yours?"
"Cleffa. Her name's Treble." Carla could hear the smile in Tally's voice. "Could you pass me those silver pegs?"
Once the pegs were pushed into the ground, Carla sighed with relief. She couldn't wait to crawl into her sleeping-bag and get some rest. "Thanks for helping me."
Tally smiled brightly. "Not a problem!"
There was one more thing Carla needed to do before going to bed. She took out Zoe's pokéball and released her; the Snorunt landed on the ground next to Tess. "Zoe, Tess, I want to introduce you to our new teammate." Carla pressed the heal ball's button and the Misdreavus burst out of it. She looked down at Zoe and Tess with narrowed, searching eyes.
"Hello."
The Misdreavus turned around slowly to look at Carla.
"My name's Carla; you've probably figured that I'm your new trainer. This is Zoe, and you've already met Tess."
The small ghost blinked once.
"You're going to need a name too."
"She looks like she's wearing a necklace, doesn't she?" Tally said. "I read about a coordinator in Sinnoh - think she's called Davena - with a Mismagius called Jewel. You could name her Ruby, or Garnet!"
The Misdreavus didn't look like a Ruby or a Garnet. She needed a name that would roll off the tongue easily in battle.
And it needed to be quirky. Almost…mischievous.
Carla's mind roamed around until it landed on a name that seemed to fit.
"Rakel," she said, folding her arms. "Your name's Rakel. Welcome to the team."
"Here you go," Tally said as she held out another piece of dried pecha.
"Thank you." Carla wished she had something to share. All she had for breakfast was an energy bar that was so small, it couldn't even be broken in half.
She tried to eat, but her eyes kept going back to the figure a short way away from her. When the Spoink came down from a bounce, she would swipe up some food and eat it, chewing about once or twice before swallowing it and then snatching up the next bit.
"Is there any water in Petalburg?"
Surprised at the question, Carla answered: "I don't know. Why?"
"I need to feed Boing, and I can't let him out here. I can't feed him with Treble and Glossie," Tally said, gesturing towards the Spoink and the tiny pink blob sitting on her lap, taking pieces of food from her hand.
"Oh. Is he a Water-type?"
"Yeah, and he's really big, so I can't just let him out anywhere."
"What is he?" Carla asked, curious.
"He's a Wailmer."
Carla nearly choked on her mouthful of pecha. How had Tally managed to get one of those? Her other two Pokémon were tiny. "How did - OW!"
Carla's hands flew to the back of her head. Something was tugging on her hair. She looked upwards at the culprit, who was hovering above her with a strand of long dark-blonde hair in her mouth, eyes glinting.
"Rakel, let go of my hair. Now."
The Misdreavus glanced down at her trainer, then at Zoe and Tess, who were glaring at her. Then she opened her mouth, releasing the strand.
"Do that again to anyone," Carla said warningly, "and I won't let you out of your ball for a week. Got that?"
Rakel raised her thin eyebrows.
"What about mealtimes?" Tally asked.
Carla nearly rolled her eyes. "Except for mealtimes and training. That means Zoe and Tess get to have fun and you won't, Rakel."
Theo Saverre had told both his daughters that it was important for a trainer to bond with his or her pokémon - or at least find some common ground. But it was also important to know when to be firm and Carla knew that if she didn't put her foot down with Rakel now, she would have problems.
Rakel hovered, seemingly deep in thought. Then she nodded once. Carla hoped the Misdreavus wouldn't decide to test her on the threat she'd just made. Going through with it would not be pleasant for either of them.
Tally was studying her closely. "You know, your hair is really long."
"I can't exactly afford to get a haircut at the moment." Carla couldn't really afford to get anything now; a haircut was the least of her worries, even if her hair did look like a Spearow had tried to make a nest in it.
"Oh." Tally fell silent for a moment. "There's bound to be somewhere in Petalburg you could get it cut. We could have a look when we get there."
We?
Carla shrugged. Both girls were going in the same direction. It would make sense if they travelled together, even if it wouldn't be for long.
"Yeah, we could have a look."
Treble nudged her trainer's hand and let out an impatient little squeak. While Tally apologised and quickly picked up some more food for her, Carla found her mind returning to her monetary problems. She needed to get money for her team and her sister, and the best way to do that was to challenge other trainers. Petalburg wasn't famed for strong trainers; Carla wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.
There is a strong trainer there.
And Carla was bound to get a lot of money if she defeated him.
"When we do get to Petalburg," she said slowly, "could we train together for a bit? I'm going to challenge the Gym Leader, and I need to be prepared for him."
"Of course! That sounds...wait." Tally's eyes widened in realisation. "That means you're going to challenge the Champion's dad."
"Yes."
Tally grinned enthusiastically. "You bet I'll help you out."
It was late morning by the time they reached Petalburg City. Carla was able to pick out the Gym easily: it had a gold roof instead of the red slate that crowned the other buildings. To Tally's delight, there were large patches of water right at the edge of the city.
"We need to book a room," Carla said. "We don't know how many trainers are staying here." She was willing to bet it would probably be quite a lot.
"Could you get a room for us while I feed Boing?"
"Sure."
Tally rushed towards the nearest body of water while Carla headed towards the Centre, which wasn't far from the city's entrance. As she approached, the doors slid open in greeting, revealing a lobby with about five trainers lounging around on the sofas.
"Hello!" the nurse said as Carla stepped up to the desk. "What can I do for you today?" She took one look at Carla's long, tangled hair and pressed her lips together to suppress a laugh. Carla didn't have the energy to scowl at her.
"I'd like to get my team healed, and can I book a room for two?"
"Absolutely. Will your friend want their team looked at as well?"
"Probably." Carla and Tally weren't friends, but there was no point in correcting the nurse.
"Give me a moment, and I'll see what rooms are available." The nurse peered at the computer screen, frowning slightly. "We've always got at least one room to spare. Room 7 is free - you OK with that?"
Carla nodded.
"Good." The nurse slid two keys over the counter. Carla was about to hand over all three members of her team, but then realised she only needed to give two of them to the nurse as Rakel was automatically healed every time she was withdrawn.
Thank you, Dad.
"They'll be ready in about half an hour or so," said the nurse. "If you want, you can take a book out of our library; you can read them in the lobby or in your room. Just don't take them with you when you check out."
Carla emerged from the bathroom with a towel draped around her shoulders and flopped onto the bed.
"I won't be long." Tally hurried into the bathroom, eager to use the shower herself.
The room they had been allocated was large enough for both girls, but they couldn't have all their pokémon out at the same time. Carla picked up Rakel's Heal Ball and called her out; the Misdreavus appeared in mid-air, hovering above the bed.
"Come and look at this book with me, Rakel." Carla knew perfectly well that Rakel couldn't read, but this was a good opportunity to spend some time together.
She had taken the nurse up on her suggestion and taken some books from the library up to Room 7. The trouble was that Carla had always read up on coordinating techniques and not actual battles. She had no idea where to begin when it came to challenging a Gym Leader. The only things she knew about Norman was that he was the father of the current Champion of Hoenn and that he specialised in Normal-types.
"I think you're going to have to miss out on this Gym challenge, Rakel," Carla said quietly to the little Misdreavus. "But don't worry – you'll get to fight during the next one."
Rakel's eyes narrowed.
"It's just because this one trains Normal-types," Carla explained. "It won't be much of a battle at all."
Her eye fell on the opening line of the book.
Any pokémon can be powerful if it has the right trainer.
Well, she would be the right trainer for her team. She was going to make sure of that for their sake as well as her family's.
She went back to the list of chapters, hoping there might be something on Gym battles. Fortunately, there was.
A Gym's environment is designed to cater to the Leader's chosen specialty. It also creates the illusion that the Leader has an advantage in battle. The trainer is entering the Leader's territory; although the trainer is issuing the challenge, he or she must battle according to the Leader's rules.
"What will a Gym with a Normal-type Leader look like?" Carla asked Rakel.
The answer came to her a second later. It would be completely normal.
But she couldn't afford to underestimate Norman. Like any Gym Leader, he was going to be a formidable opponent.
She needed to do some very careful planning.
"Where do we start?" Tally asked uncertainly. "I've never trained with anyone else before."
Carla looked around. The two girls had walked to the edge of the city, to one of the patches of water. "We've each got three pokémon. Why don't we pair them up?"
"But your Pokémon won't be able to train properly with Boing. He'll be on the water and they'll be on land."
"Rakel can work with him," Carla said. "She can float around above the water."
The girls called out their teams. Carla's mouth nearly fell open at the sight of Boing. He was massive; the top half of his teeth were visible above the surface of the water.
"Rakel, you're going to work on your evasion with Boing. Zoe, practice your Powder Snow attack with Glossie and Tess…" Carla paused, trying to think of something the Vullaby could work on. "You're going to work on evasion as well."
"Actually, Treble doesn't know any physical attacks," Tally said sheepishly.
"Oh. Then in that case, Tess, run back and forth between those two trees over there until you get tired."
"You do the same, Treble," Tally added.
It turned out that Glossie was able to bounce quite a bit higher than just a few inches. Eventually, Zoe learned to aim her attack where she thought the Spoink would land. Treble's tiny pink legs were a blur as she tried to run as fast as Tess. Meanwhile, Rakel was swerving around in mid-air as she narrowly avoided Boing's Water Gun attacks.
"How did you capture Boing?" Carla asked casually.
The other girl's face clouded over a little. "I didn't. Someone traded him to me."
"For a traded pokémon, he's pretty obedient."
"Really?" Tally's face brightened again. "Thank you!"
It was impressive, particularly since Carla was certain Tally didn't have any badges.
Then she noticed Zoe had stopped using Powder Snow. "Zoe, are you OK?"
Zoe's entire body started quivering wildly.
Carla hurried towards her. "Zoe? What is it?" she cried.
Zoe's eyes were closed, and her face contorted as if she was trying to hold back a sneeze. Carla reached out a hand towards her.
"No, wait, don't..." Tally said, but then a sharp gust of wind blew out of Zoe's mouth. Carla jumped aside quickly, just in time for the wind to graze the front of her jeans. Tiny ice crystals sparkled for a moment before disappearing into the warm air.
Zoe blinked in astonishment.
"That," Tally said slowly, "was not Powder Snow."
"No. I think that was an Icy Wind." Carla looked down at the Snorunt. "That's great, Zoe."
Norman wasn't going to know what hit him.
"Do you want me to come with you?"
As she stared at the doors before her, Carla was beginning to wish she'd said yes to Tally. Walking through those doors was as daunting as walking into a dark cavern.
She couldn't turn back now. Hoping nobody had noticed her moment of hesitation, she walked right up to the doors and watched as they slid open to reveal a simple room with wooden walls and a plain, shiny floor. A young man sat on a chair close to the door; he stood up as Carla walked inside.
"Good morning!" he said. "Are you here for a battle?"
"Yes," Carla replied, trying not to touch her blue pendant. If the author of the book was correct – and she had no reason to assume he wasn't – Gym Leaders usually saved their strongest pokémon for last. Her plan was to have Tess battle first, followed by Zoe.
"How many badges do you have at the moment?"
"None." Yet, she mentally added.
The attendant raised his eyebrows; Carla had the strangest feeling that he'd heard the silent word as clearly as if she'd spoken it out loud. "All right. Do you see those two doors ahead of you? The preliminary challenge is to choose a door and battle the trainer behind it. If you go through the left door, you'll have to go up against a trainer whose specialty is speed; if you choose right, the trainer will specialise in accuracy. Since you don't have any badges, you'll only have to battle one trainer. If you win the preliminary battle, you'll get to go ahead and face Norman. Good luck!"
"Thank you." Carla stepped away from him and gazed at the two doors. Out of the trainers behind them, who was more likely to have an advantage over her? Who was she more likely to do well against in a battle?
Was her team better prepared to deal with accuracy or speed?
Then she glanced downwards at the floor. It was smooth and shiny; Tess might have problems moving on it, but Zoe wouldn't.
If that floor got wet, it would be very easy to slip on it.
Her decision made, Carla took a deep breath, walked quickly towards the door on the left and grasped the handle, pushing the door aside to reveal another room with plain wooden walls.
Standing in the middle of the room was a girl in her late teens. "Hey. Hope you're ready for our match."
"Absolutely."
The girl grinned. "That's what I like to see. Come on out, Lissy!"
Lissy was a Zigzagoon. She crouched low to the ground in an aggressive posture, her tail swishing from side to side. Her coat was glossy and her eyes bright; her trainer obviously took good care of her.
"Zoe, you're up!"
The aide raised her eyebrows as Zoe materialised on the floor. "A Snorunt? Haven't battled one of those before. This'll be interesting. All right, challenger, you get the first move."
"Use Double Team!" Carla ordered. Within moments, the Zigzagoon was surrounded by identical copies of Zoe, all of them watching her intently.
Then she realised what had just happened. The aide's specialty was speed; why had she allowed Carla to make the first move? What was she up to?
The answer to that became clear. "Quick Attack, Lissy."
Lissy rushed right through one of the copies, then the next one and the next. Carla had to think quickly. "Weather Ball!"
The ball of fire hit Lissy right in the side, sending her tumbling across the floor. She quickly regained her balance - and the copies disappeared, leaving the real Zoe standing alone.
"That was a mistake," the aide smirked. "Use Headbutt!"
Lissy moved forward so quickly, Carla barely had time to yell, "Dodge and use Bite!" Zoe only just moved aside in time; before Lissy could react, Zoe's teeth had closed down right down on her tail. Lissy yowled in pain and wriggled away, leaving tufts of fur in Zoe's mouth.
"Icy Wind!"
Lissy was standing too close to dodge; the attack hit her full on. She flew backwards and landed heavily at her trainer's feet, whimpering. She struggled to get to her feet, but it was obvious she couldn't continue for much longer.
"Weather Ball again..."
"No, I think that's enough," the aide said sharply. "The battle's over. I know when I'm outmatched." She stood aside, gesturing to the door behind her. "Go on through; he's waiting."
Surprised and a little disappointed, Carla walked past her and towards the door. Nerves bubbled up in her stomach, but before they could rise any further she opened the door and stepped into the room beyond.
The first thing she saw was a large window that revealed the sky outside. Her eyes then fell on the kneeling figure in front of it. He wore a red and grey jacket, and black trousers; his feet were bare. He was completely still and utterly peaceful.
Carla stood still and waited.
Then the figure stood up and turned around, and almost immediately Carla felt her nerves rise up again. Norman's face was stern, and his dark eyes sharp. Threads of grey were beginning to weave themselves into his hair.
"My name is Norman, leader of the Petalburg Gym," he said.
"I'm Carla Saverre," Carla told him, glad she couldn't hear a tremor in her voice.
"I have to admit, it's been a long time since I've had a challenger who is on the first step of their journey. Are you aware of the regulations following a Gym Leader's defeat?"
"No," Carla replied.
"It's our duty to inform other Gym Leaders after we are defeated; once a trainer has seven badges, the champion is informed."
"Both the challenger and the Gym Leader will use two pokémon." Carla hadn't even noticed the judge standing in a corner of the room. "Only the challenger is allowed to substitute pokémon; the one who knocks out both their opponent's pokémon will be the winner."
Carla took out Tess' capsule, noting the way the floor gleamed in the light.
She released her pokémon at the same time Norman released his. It was another Zigzagoon. Carla tried to hide her surprise; she'd been expecting a Slakoth. But she knew she couldn't afford to relax. This Zigzagoon wouldn't be so easy.
"Use Fury Attack!"
"Dodge and use Headbutt," Norman ordered.
The Zigzagoon moved even faster than Lissy had, but Carla was still able to cry: "Dodge it!" Tess ran aside, narrowly escaping Zigzagoon's attack.
"Use Gust!"
Tess spun around and flapped her wings, sending the Zigzagoon flying. He scrabbled to his feet, fur ruffled in different places, growling angrily at the Vullaby.
"Don't lower your guard, Tess. Use Fury Attack again!"
Tess darted forwards and hammered her beak five times on the Zigzagoon's head. He yelped piteously and shook her off before launching another Headbutt again. Tess fell backwards and sat down with a bump.
And then she burst into tears.
Carla's jaw dropped as she watched her pokémon bawling her eyes out. Tess' body was literally trembling with sobs. Zigzagoon cocked his head on one side as he watched her, seemingly unsure what to do.
Wait. That wasn't tears, that was Fake Tears.
Norman blanched; he'd realised what was going on as well. But it was too late.
"Fury Attack!" Carla shouted.
Tess snapped out of the performance and launched herself at the Zigzagoon, raining another series of sharp, furious pecks on his head. He staggered to the side before keeling over and lying still. Carla watched him, not taking the chance that it might be a ploy like the Fake Tears.
It was a good ploy. Carla would have to remember that one for later use.
"Zigzagoon is unable to battle," the judge announced. "This round goes to the challenger."
Norman withdrew his pokémon with a stoic expression. "You did well. Rest easy," he said before taking out a second capsule.
Carla braced herself. This was going to be the real battle.
Norman threw the ball and a Linoone materialised on the floor.
"Quick Attack!"
Carla didn't even have time to call out an attack. All she saw was a brown-and-tan blur and then Tess was flying backwards. She skidded across the floor and scrabbled to her feet, claws leaving tiny marks on the polished floor.
"Use Sand Attack, Linoone," Norman ordered.
"Blow it away with Gust!"
The frantic blast of wind scattered the sand everywhere across the floor. Norman raised his eyebrows. "Good thinking. But that won't help you. Quick Attack again!"
Linoone charged again. Carla barely had time to yell out "Dodge!" before Tess was sent cannoning backwards across the floor again.
"Tess!" Carla cried out. The Vullaby lay still, her eyes closed.
"Vullaby is unable to battle," said the judge. "This round goes to the Gym Leader."
Carla returned the crumpled heap of feathers. "You did really well, Tess," she said, meaning every word. She exhaled slowly and pulled out Zoe's capsule. Time to send out her own powerhouse.
"Zoe, you're up!"
Zoe landed on the floor, directly opposite to Linoone.
"Use Icy Wind!" Carla said.
"Dodge and use Headbutt!" ordered Norman. Linoone moved aside, causing the ice attack to land harmlessly on the floor, and ran towards Zoe with his head lowered.
"Double Team!"
Zoe blurred into eleven identical copies of herself. Within moments, Linoone was surrounded.
"Don't be fooled, Linoone. Use Sand Attack on all of them."
"Weather Ball!" Carla shouted.
Zoe shot a fireball at Linoone. He tried to leap aside and yowled as the attack hit him in the flank. Carla bit her lip; she knew that training with Glossie would pay off in some way.
"Icy Wind again!" Carla cried. If it didn't hit Linoone, it would land on the floor and leave another wet patch.
"Quick Attack!"
Just when Linoone was close to colliding with Zoe, Carla shouted: "Dodge and use Bite!" Zoe took a pace back and clamped her mouth shut on Linoone's body. Linoone wriggled around, trying desperately to free himself, but Zoe held on. Eventually he squirmed free and kicked another Sand Attack right in her face. Zoe staggered backwards, her eyes screwed shut.
"Back away and use Headbutt," Norman commanded. While Zoe was rubbing at her eyes, trying to clear away the sand, Linoone ran back a few paces, lowered his head and prepared to charge.
"Zoe, look out!" Carla shouted. Linoone charged towards Zoe – and ran right into one of the slippery patches. He sprawled onto his side with a cry of pain.
"Use Bite again!"
Zoe's eyes snapped open. She ran towards Linoone, who was struggling to get to his feet, and bit him again, keeping him pinned down to the floor.
Eventually, the struggles stopped. Carla held her breath, not daring to speak.
Zoe let go and backed away from the unconscious form.
"Linoone is unable to battle. Victory goes to the challenger!"
Carla let out a sob of relief. "We did it, Zoe!"
Zoe grinned happily, waving her hands. Carla hurried over to her and knelt down, putting one hand on the top of Zoe's cone. "I'm so proud of you both."
"Congratulations." Norman had returned Linoone and was now standing in front of them, his stoic demeanour relaxed into a warm, friendly smile. "This Balance Badge is now yours."
"Thank you." Carla slipped the badge into her pocket, along with the notes that accompanied it.
"Do you know why your previous opponent surrendered?"
How had he known that? Then the answer came to Carla with sharp clarity: he'd instructed her to do so.
"Perseverance is an admirable trait, but not when it comes at the expense of your pokémon's health," Norman said solemnly. "It's important to know when to keep going and when to give up – and when you're fighting a losing battle."
Carla nodded. "I understand. Thank you."
It was only after she left the Gym that she permitted herself to smile.
She'd won. She'd got some of the money her team and her sister needed. She had won.
Thank you, Latias.
Thanks for reading the story so far!
Edit: The original chapter had Tally cutting Carla's hair in their room at the Centre, but I realised that would make the cleaners very unhappy.
This chapter's title is from 'Tough' by Kellie Pickler.