Chapter 12
Boulder Family home
If there was one emotion that can define the atmosphere in the Boulder Family home, it would be fear. Fear from everyone, the Boulder family and the Hoenn Gym Leaders as they looked upon the Pokemon League Agent as he looked at everyone as he sat in a chair that allowed him to look at everyone present in the living room.
It had been some time since the Pokemon League Agent found them. Since then, things have been hectic for the Boulder Family and the Hoenn Gym Leaders.
Upon finding Brock and his team of Hoenn Gym Leaders, the Agent had them contact the other Gym Leaders that went to the city so that they're all present in Brock's family home where he intended on revealing Winona's fate along with everyone else. He didn't say anything about their punishment along with Winonas', but they all figured it wasn't anything good given how he refused to say about Winona's fate, how he tracked her down when none of the Hoenn Gym Leaders told the League of their lead on Winona, or even how he would deal with Brock concerning what he did for Winona and his part in dealing with Team Rocket. Because of this, no one was assured by the agent. In fact, they were terrified of him and what he could bring upon them all.
For the Hoenn Gym Leaders, while some of them were put off by the appearance of the League Agent, they didn't suspect any too major punishment on them. After all, they didn't do anything illegal. Sure, they didn't tell the League or the Police about their leadership and that may lead to scolding, but that would just be it. Nothing more. At least reasonably so. The others weren't so sure. Mainly because of the severity of the crimes that Winona is accused of along with her breaking her house arrest for so long and there was the possibility of them being punished for withholding their lead given her accused crimes and those she actually did. It honestly depended on the mood of the League and this agent. And given how he refused to answer their questions, they were preparing for the worst.
The same could be said for Brock's siblings. They were nervous and worried when they saw him and Forrest coming with an official from the Pokemon League. While the younger siblings didn't understand the severity of his appearance, the older ones did and they didn't like it one bit. Especially with how nervous both Brock and Forrest were as they walked with the agent. Although Brock and Forrest told them all to head to their rooms and stay there until they tell them to come out, they only did so reluctantly. After that, Brock took Winona to his bedroom to both wake her up and comfort her over what happened with Team Rocket, leaving his brother and the other Hoenn Gym Leaders to confront the League Agent.
Looking at the man as he looked at everyone with yellow eyes, Norman spoke up, taking charge while Brock took care of Winona.
"I take it the Pokemon League is here because of the number of Gym Leaders missing in Hoenn right now?" Asked Norman, keeping his nerves under control so as to not appear weak to this man. Juan and Wattson had covered for them when they told him that they were leaving to look for Winona. As much as they all wanted to look for Winona, they needed a few of them staying in Hoenn to both handle paperwork for the League branch there and handle whatever thoughts and talks they had to attend with the Pokemon League officials themselves. They assured them they can handle it and that the League won't notice them missing. It appears they were wrong.
"Actually it's that and the fact that I was the reason that Juan managed to find a lead on Miss Caelus." Said the agent, catching everyone by surprise. "The League has eyes and ears in all the regions it has branches in, Mr. Maple. It was trivial to find Winona when she stayed in one major city for too long. A simple favor here and there and here you all are. I will admit I'm surprised to find so many of you coming to find Miss Caelus. She really means a lot to you all if you all came here to look for her."
"She's our friend." Said Flannery as she glared at the agent. "Not to mention innocent of all the crimes that she's been accused of."
"Yes, the accusations of murder, property damage, and letting the illegal usage of Pokemon to commit assault." Said the Agent. "While those are the ones you're obviously speaking about, you forgot about the breaking of her house arrest. That is certainly something that she did on her own and willingly. When we learned that she broke her house arrest, the agents and police officers tasked to keep an eye on her and her Pokemon reported she didn't have any contact with anyone beyond you Mr. Maple, your wife, and her assistant. At least anyone no via video call. Thus, we came to the conclusion that she departed on her own. That is something you cannot deny she did poorly on and must be held accountable." Everyone stayed silent at that, knowing that he was right. With that out of the way, the agent continued.
"Now as for you all, no punishment will be given to any of you nor the Pokemon Doctor known as Brock Boulder." Said the Agent. "You all didn't do anything illegal. Yes, you withheld information vital to the finding if Miss Caelus, but it's nothing too serious. As for Brock, he was merely helping a friend and someone in need. Nothing more. So you can all relax at that." Although Forrest was relieved to hear that, the Hoenn Gym Leaders weren't. Mainly because of the fate of their friend.
"And what about Winona?" Asked Flannery as she looked at the League Agent. "What the heck is the League going to do with her?"
"That's the big question." Said the Agent, looking at everyone before giving his answer. "Well, unfortunately, the League is still deciding on what to do with Miss Caelus given what she is accused of and her history with us. However, the League, at the moment, is considering the option of permanently revoking her Gym Leader license and allowing the police to handle her, which will likely lead to her being locked away for a really long time. And the League is planning on doing that even if Winona wasn't found and captured by authorities. Thereby not giving her the option of defending herself." Upon hearing that, everyone either gasped in shock or glared at him in anger. Before anyone can say anything, they suddenly heard some yelling.
"That's completely ridiculous!" Yelled Brock as he made it to the living room, anger clear in his face as he looked at the Pokemon agent. "You can't just do that after everything she's been through! She deserves to at least defend herself and her actions. You can't just revoke her license without a trial first!"
"He's right." Said Norman as he glared at the agent. "That's just an abuse of authority and I refuse to let that occur without a fight." Everyone else either nodded in agreement or continued to glare at the agent, who sighed.
"I understand how you all feel. I truly do." Said the agent as he looked at all the Hoenn Gym Leaders, Brock, and Forrest. "But the fact of the matter is, the charges against her are quite severe and with no other suspects nor evidence to suggest that Miss Caelus is simply a victim of someone trying to frame her or something else entirely, the League is finding that it has limited options in assuring the populace that they're on the case and doing whatever they can in solving this conundrum that Fortree City is suffering currently. Between the two incidents involving an above average sized Skarmory and Miss Caelus mysteriously breaking her house arrest despite having several police officers and agents keeping an eye on her, people are questioning the competency of the League and local law enforcement in Fortree City."
"For good reason if the League is pulling what you said." Said Flannery, causing the agent to sigh.
"Perhaps so, but it's something we all have to deal with and hopefully overturn." Said the agent, causing some of the Hoenn Gym Leaders to blink in surprise at what he just said.
"You're actually on our side?" Asked Tate, causing everyone to look at him and then the Pokemon Agent in surprise.
"Yes, I am." Said the agent as he looked at everyone. "I know, I surprised you all with that given what I just said concerning Miss Caelus and her punishment. But the thing is, the League is actually on your side along with Miss Caelus. Not only has she done marvelous work for us during her time as a Gym Leader, coordinating the Hoenn Gym Leaders, and making sure they all cooperate to our standards, amongst other things, but recent evidence uncovered has…made us question the accusations towards Miss Caelus."
"What do you mean?" Asked Roxanne, both surprised and relieved to hear this. That meant they had nothing to fear from the Pokemon League.
"After we heard about the second incident in Fortree City, we sent an investigation team to figure out what happened and if miss Caelus had anything to do with the second rampaging Skarmory. I was a part of that team. What we found was certainly interesting." Said the agent as he looked at everyone.
"What did you find?" Asked Brock, calming down when he heard the League knew that Winona was innocent of the crimes she was accused of.
"A bunch of things that both assure us of Miss Caelus' innocence and worried us for several reasons." Said the agent, unnerving quite a few of his audience with what he said. "Between the deleted video recordings of the evidence room where Miss Caelus' Skarmory was being held and the unconscious officers we found, there's quite a lot that left us believing that someone is after Miss Caelus and her reputation." Upon hearing that, the Hoenn Gym Leaders, Forrest, and Brock let out a gasp.
"Knocked out police officers?" Asked Brock, shock clear in his voice and face.
"Deleted video recordings?" Asked Liza.
"You all heard right." Said the agent as he looked at everyone. "A good chunk of recordings from the security cameras overlooking the evidence room in Fortree City's police station either got corrupted or outright deleted from their memory cards. And then there are the knocked-out officers. They were out doing their patrols in the station when they got their heads knocked out by something. And guess the timeframe for all this?"
"This is around the time when that other Skarmory got free and went on a rampage." Said Brock, seeing where the conversation was heading and it kind of got him a bit…nervous. About all this, he was going to stay strong for Winona and her friends. Especially when he faced tougher and more dangerous things than someone knocking out police officers and tampering with security cameras.
"Exactly." Said the agent before speaking up more. "It was because of that the League is struggling to hand out punishment for Miss Caelus. But on the other hand, with all the evidence against her and the people clamoring for some assurance that the League and law enforcement are doing something, some of the higher-ups are considering just giving Miss Caelus a punishment anyway, regardless if she's innocent or not. We're in a tight spot. Which is why I'm here. While others are investigating Fortree City, I'm here to talk with Miss Caelus. I figured that she wouldn't have left Fortree City with all that's going on there currently without a good reason, so I got permission from the League to go after her for two reasons. One is to figure out why she broke her house arrest and the other is to get her back to Fortree City to help defend her case. I have a third and fourth reason for coming here to find Miss Caelus."
"And those reasons being?" Asked Norman as he looked at the agent, who sighed.
"Well, one is to have her help in proving her innocence and the other is to return her Pokemon to her." Said the agent, shocking everyone at what he just said. He then brought out a small case from one of his coat pockets and opened it, revealing four Pokeballs inside.
"Those are all." Started Roxanne as she looked at the Pokeball incredulously, not believing what she was seeing right now.
"You are correct, Miss." Said the agent as he looked at them all looking at the Pokeballs with various states of disbelief. "These are Miss Caelus' Pokemon. I pulled a few strings and a few favors to get them in my possession, but I think it's a fair price to pay given the circumstances. If she's fully recovered, I would like to give these to her myself." Upon hearing that, Brock stayed silent for a minute before speaking.
"She is awake." Said Brock as everyone looked at him. "She's been awake for quite a while actually. I wouldn't have come out of my room if that wasn't the case. I'll get her right now." Before he could move, everyone heard the sound of a door opening upstairs. They all then heard Winona's voice.
"That's alright Brock. You don't need to do that." Said Winona as she made herself known to everyone. She looked a little worse for wear. Her hair was sticking out of her hood and her clothes were a mess, but she was the same Winona Caelus they all knew and loved.
"Winona!" Yelled Flannery in concern for her friend, but Norman stopped her from running up to her.
"I assume you overheard everything." Said Norman, causing Winona to nod.
"I did." Said Winona as she walked to everyone. "When I heard Brock yelling, I pressed to the door to overhear what was going on. So I heard everything." With that done, Winona then looked at the Pokemon agent and then at the case holding her Pokemon's Pokeballs. Looking at the Pokeballs with longing and hesitation, Winona asked the Pokemon agent if there was any catch to receiving her Pokemon back. As much as she wanted to be reunited with her Pokemon again, she felt that there was a catch to all this.
"There is, Miss Caelus." Said the agent as he looked at Winona. "I saw what happened during your fight with Team Rocket. How you froze up when you saw that Skarmory, causing you and your fellow Gym Leader to nearly get hurt. Perhaps fatally so. That is something that needs to be addressed if you desire to be a Pokemon Trainer again. Much less a Gym Leader. So, here's the deal. I'll return your Pokemon if you have a Pokemon battle with me. One of my Pokemon will battle all these Pokemon along with whatever you have on you currently. Up to a maximum of six, of course. Accept this condition and you'll have your Pokemon back with no strings attached, regardless if you win or not. Is that fair?" Upon hearing that, Winona looked at him in shock, stunned to hear the proposed match format and that she'll get her Pokemon regardless if she won the battle or not, before thinking it over and ultimately saying yes.
"I'll do it." Said Winona as she looked at the agent, shocking everyone at what she just said. Her want to be reunited with her Pokemon is overwhelming. More than enough to make her do a battle with her Flying type Pokemon, despite her trauma not being dealt with. "But are you sure of doing a five versus one battle? That seems a bit extreme and unfair."
"Trust me. You'll thank me for it if you win this battle." Said the agent. "Your friends may attest to that. We'll battle in the Pewter City Gym. That is if the Gym Leader is fine with that."
"Of course." Said Forrest, upon hearing that. "Just make sure you don't destroy the battlefield too much. I may need it later."
"Understood." Said the agent before getting up and leaving for the Gym. But not before giving Winona the case with her Pokemon and their Pokeballs. Once the agent was gone, everyone looked at Winona with varying degrees of nervousness and worry.
"Are you sure about this, Winona?" Asked Roxanne as she looked at her friend as she looked at her returned Pokemon, a small smile on her face. "That agent had quite a large Tyranitar in his possession. If he decides to use that against you. I think you'll be in for quite a fight."
"Yeah. Plus, there's your trauma to think about." Said Brock as he recalled the battle Iris, May, and Dawn had against a larger-than-normal Aggron and how they lost handily against it. The same could be said here and that wasn't taking into account Winona's trauma coming to play. Especially if she brings out Skarmory.
"I know, but this is the only way to get back my Pokemon." Said Winona, her desire to have her Pokemon back shown in full to everyone in the room around her. It also gave her a measure of confidence to talk back to everyone regarding her decision. "I failed them recently and I want to get them back to apologize to them for everything they went through. Besides, you all saw what I did back against Team Rocket." Winona winced in shame at the thought of their battle with Team Rocket. Specifically what she did during that battle. "I completely froze up and put Roxanne and myself in danger. If I'm going to be a Pokemon Trainer, much less the Fortree City Gym Leader again, I need to overcome that, and what better way than battling with my Pokemon? Besides, this was the only way I can get back my Pokemon and I was away from them for too long. I honestly thought I wouldn't see them again after leaving Fortree City. If I have to battle that guy to keep my Pokemon, then so be it." None of her friends or Forrest were really assured of her answer, but it was clear to all of them that Winona wasn't going to back down from this decision, despite it being a bad idea. A few, like Roxanne, Brock, and Brawly saw through her sudden confidence and were worried that this battle will only worsen her anxiety and insecurity. They were about to voice this fear when Norman spoke up.
"In that case, we'll be there to support you." Said Norman with a small smile. That caused everyone to look at him in shock. Before anyone could say anything, Norman continued. "We weren't able to during the whole situation in Fortree City and Skarmory. We're not going to abandon you here."
"But Norman, her trauma." Said Brawly as he looked at Norman. "That trauma of hers is going to make her freeze up and make her unable to battle. Not to mention it'll cause her to freeze up again."
"Yeah, we can't make her go through that again." Said Flannery as she looked at Norman, shocked that he would tell Winona to go ahead with the battle. "What kind of friends would we be if we do that?"
"I know, but I think that this is, unfortunately, necessary." Said Norman, catching everyone's attention. "As much as it pains me to admit, sometimes, the best way to confront trauma is to confront it head-on with the support of your friends. Plus," Norman then looked at the Pokeballs containing Winona's Pokemon. "I think its killing Winona about not possessing her Pokemon and to have them right in her reach is driving her up the wall. Besides, if Winona does indeed freeze up, we can call the match off and she still gets her Pokemon. Right, agent?"
"Indeed. All I ask is to just battle Miss Caelus once. Nothing more. She can get her Pokemon after the battle, no matter the outcome. So long as she accepts the deal, of course." Said the Pokemon agent. Upon hearing that, Winona gave everyone a pleading look, begging them to accept her decision. When everyone saw that, they all sighed before looking at each other. Eventually, they all nodded their heads. Even Brock, who was probably the most reserved in letting Winona do this for two reasons. One reason everyone knew about and the other that only he possibly knew.
"Thank you all." Said Winona with a smile, thankful for all the support that she was getting from her friends. She was feeling a bit more confident in herself with all this support. Perhaps enough that she can actually do well against the Pokemon League Agent. Maybe even win against him. "You're all great friends and I'll make it up to you all. I promise."
"You can do that by getting back to the Winona we all know and love." Said Flannery with a smile. She wasn't sure this was a good idea, but if Norman believed it was, she'll just have to trust his judgment on it. "That and proving your innocence and getting back at those that thought it was a good idea to frame you in the first place."
"Yeah." Said Tate with a smile along with Liza. "And go get that Pokemon Agent and show him why you should still be the Fortree City Gym Leader." Winona gave a smile at all the support she was receiving before saying that they should go to the Gym for the battle. Which they did soon after. As they departed for the Gym, Winona found her arm being pulled by Brock. Stunned at this, Winona then heard Brock speak up, worry clear in his voice.
"Winona, I know you want to be reunited with your Pokemon, but I don't think this is the way to get them back." Said Brock as he looked at Winona, who looked at him in surprise at what he said.
"But Brock…" Started Winona, a bit hurt at him not supporting her decision to battle the Pokemon League agent.
"Winona, I don't think you know what you're getting yourself and your Pokemon into." Said Brock seriously. "That agent's Tyranitar was twice as big as a regular Tyranitar and probably twice as powerful if not more. I've seen such a Pokemon before in action. It was an Aggron and it was owned by another Pokemon League agent. That Aggron managed to not only defeat two powerful Pokemon owned by two of my closest friends but also manage to defeat the Unova champion's most powerful as well. And they all fought that Aggron at the same time, I might add." Winona was stunned to hear that. A champion being defeated by a larger-than-normal Pokemon? Not to mention said Pokemon faced three powerful Pokemon at once. That was a scary thought. Suddenly Winona wasn't feeling as confident as before.
While she was confident that Steven Stone, the current Hoenn Champion, is stronger than Iris, the current Unova Champion if she recalled correctly, and can beat her soundly, though that was likely just bias on her end, Iris was still a Pokemon League Champion, and thus way above Winona in terms of battling prowess. Winona was one of the toughest Gym Leaders in Hoenn, that was of no doubt, but compared to the likes of any of the current Pokemon League Champions, she was outclassed by any of them. Thus, when she heard that Iris got beaten along with two others, she was starting to be less confident in her chances of victory against the Pokemon Agent. Sure, it wasn't likely the same one, but still, with how Brock looked and how worried he was for her, Winona was starting to wonder if she just made a grave mistake doing this and if she had just assigned her Pokemon to a world of pain and misery by accepting the Pokemon Agent's deal.
"I'm not saying to back out of the deal, Winona." Said Brock as he looked at Winona, who looked back at him. "Since you want to get back your Pokemon and the Agent is fine if the battle needs to be called off because of your trauma, then go for it, but just be sure to give it your all. If this agent is anything like the one that Iris, May, and Dawn faced, then you're in for a tough battle." Winona, upon hearing that, simply nodded at Brock, thanking him for the warning. "No problem. And, for the record, even though I think this is a bad idea, I'll be rooting for you all the way." Brock gave a smile at Winona, causing her to blush a bit, before he and Winona left for the Pewter Gym.
Later
"Alright, the Five v. One battle will now commence. Neither side can substitute Pokemon. Is that understood?" Said Brock as he referred to the battle between Winona and the Pokemon agent.
"Got it." Said Winona as she looked at her opponent, who just nodded.
"I understand." Said the Agent as he brought out a Pokeball.
"Then you can begin." Said Brock.
"Pelipper! Come on out!" Yelled Winona as she threw out a Pokeball, releasing her Pelipper. When they arrived at the Pewter Gym, the agent gave back all of Winona's Pokemon and their Pokeballs. After a brief thank you from Winona and her coveting her Pokeballs, they began their battle soon after.
"I see." Said the Agent as he saw the Pelipper come out of its Pokeball and begin flying. Winona flinched at this and soon ordered Pelipper to land on the ground just as it was about to turn and hug Winona after being separated from her for too long. Shocked, Pelipper nonetheless went to the ground and looked at Winona in confusion. The agent hummed disapproving at this. "Miss Caelus, you're giving your Pokemon a severe handicap by not letting it fly. Is your trauma that serious that any Flying Pokemon can trigger it?" The wince from Winona said it all. Sighing, the League Agent nonetheless sent out his own Pokemon to battle while Pelipper turned around to face its opponent for the battle. "Registeel! Prepare to battle!"
"What!?" Yelled Brawly when he heard the Pokemon that the League Agent was sending out. He, all of Brock's siblings, and the other Hoenn Gym leaders were in the stands watching the battle when they heard the Pokemon the League Agent was sending out. Needless to say, they were all shocked.
"You have a Registeel!?" Yelled Roxanne as said Pokemon appeared out of its Pokeball. With a roar that sounded more like a metallic screech than anything else, the League Agent's Registeel slammed its feet on the ground, signaling it was ready for battle. Both Winona and her Pelipper let out gasps of shock as they saw the Registeel. They heard about the legendary Pokemon, but they never thought they would see one today and as their opponent too. To make matters worse, this Registeel actually looked larger than the stories made them out to be. Brock, however, knew this Registeel was much bigger than the few he faced during his time with Ash. From Brandon's own Registeel to the one in the Tree of Life found in Kanto, this Registeel outsized those two with ease. Towering over those two by half their size at least. Not to mention in bulk as well.
Biting his lower lip, Brock nonetheless ordered both Trainers to begin the battle. As Winona ordered the first attack of the battle, Brock started to wonder what the agent's plan was for making Winona do this battle.