Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, or any other property in this work that I did not make myself.
Pokémon: Sinnoh no Isekai
Chapter One-hundred and seventy-eight: Eevee enigma
The heroes, after their time at Mt. Molteau where Ash made a LOT of strides towards becoming stronger in Kalos, continued on with their journey. First, they came across a Tyrunt that Bonnie, in her Tyrantrum sleep outfit, began taking care of. Eventually that Tyrunt evolved into Tyrantrum and was reunited with its trainer; Kenny's named Turynt Rex tried challenging Tyrantrum to a fight ("TyRuNt!"), but Kenny quickly made Rex back off. After that, the heroes continued making their way towards Anistar City, and Clemont told the tale of how he came to catch Bunnelby.
After that, the heroes walked around a grassy field and decided to settle down for rest and training. It was on that break that something important for Serena occurred.
...
As the heroes relaxed while Ash geared up to train his Pokémon, Serena had a worried look on her face. "...What's wrong, Serena?" Clemont asked.
"The next Pokémon Showcase is in Anistar City, same as the gym that Ash, Dawn, Kenny, and Trip will be challenging," Serena explained, "I'm just worried how I'll do, especially as I haven't won any Showcases yet."
Trip nodded in understanding. "Yes, you are facing some steep competition in the Pokémon Showcase scene. That Ochaco girl is especially threatening, due to her using multiple shiny Pokémon."
"Silver lining," Bonnie said, "If Ochaco wins one more Showcase against you again Serena, then you won't have to worry about facing her anymore as she'll have the three Princess Keys she'll need to qualify for the Master Rank Showcase."
As Serena sulked out of worry, Kenny said, "You could have used a bit more tact, Bonnie."
Later, Serena had made flower crowns for herself, Bonnie, Dedenne, and even Dawn and Chi-Chi. However, when Serena tried putting the flower crown for Chi-Chi on the named Infernape's head, the mass of flames on Chi-Chi's head burnt the flower crown up. "...Yeah, I was wondering why you made a flower crown for Chi-Chi," Dawn said.
As Serena looked embarrassed due to forgetting a crown of flowers would be countered by a crown of flames, Dedenne who was excited to wear a flower crown jumped around so much, its flower crown flew off and rolled away like a rolling hoop. This prompted Dedenne and Pancham, as well as Argent who was out, to go running after Dedenne's flower crown.
"I hope they'll be fine," Ash commented as the three Pokémon ran off to get Dedenne's flower crown.
...
Pancham, Dedenne, and Argent ran after the flower crown as it rolled. Argent ran on ahead and made a turn so that he was in the path of the rolling flower crown. His body ended up catching the flower crown, allowing for Dedenne to get it back. As Pancham helped to put the flower crown on Dedenne's head, the three Pokémon all heard some crying coming from a ways off.
Looking over, Pancham, Dedenne, and Argent spotted an Eevee dancing on a rock. By that point, Serena and Bonnie caught up, and they also spotted the Eevee. "Oh look, it's an Eevee," Bonnie said causally.
Serena looked on, surprised by the Eevee's footwork. "Yeah, it may even help me with a new routine that could help me finally start earning Princess Keys."
As the Eevee was dancing, the girls and Pokémon heard Ash call out, "Hey, the tea's ready!" Hearing Ash call out suddenly startled Eevee, making it jump up and proceed to try running away. 'Try' being the operative word here, because Argent, seeing that Eevee was a Pokémon one of the humans Dawn was friends with was interested in catching, rushed forward while using Wild Charge, ramming right into Eevee and knocking it out. Argent, as he stood over where Eevee was down, looked to Serena and panted while wagging his tail.
"That... wasn't exactly what I had in mind," Serena said as she nonetheless went in, scooped up Eevee, and carried it back to camp while Bonnie and the Pokémon all followed.
...
Back at the camp, Serena and Bonnie explained what happened while Dawn was treating Eevee who was still out of it. "My guess is that Argent, hearing that you Serena were interested in Eevee," Dawn began, "Decided to battle and defeat Eevee so you could capture it." Argent over where he was with Dawn's other Pokémon gave a loud bark in the affirmative.
"Well Eevee did try running off out of fright when it heard Ash call out randomly," Bonnie said, "Maybe Arcanine didn't want Eevee getting away?"
As the heroes sighed, Eevee slowly stirred, coming to. Eventually, Eevee woke up and, seeing that it was surrounded, immediately tensed up out of fright, especially as it saw it didn't have a clear path to escape. Serena got Eevee to settle down by presenting it with some of her handmade Poké Puffs. Eevee didn't know what Poké Puffs were, so Serena demonstrated by feeding one to Pancham. Serena then offered a pink one to Eevee who, now knowing that Poké Puffs are food, took a nervous nibble from one, still a little scared of everything as a whole.
Eevee relaxed a bit upon seeing how good the Poké Puff tasted, and proceeded to eat the rest of the Poké Puff. After Eevee finished the Poké Puff, Pancham and Braixen proceeded to do some Pokémon Showcase dancing, catching Eevee's attention. "Yeah, my Pokémon and I participate in Showcases where we dance and perform," said Serena to Eevee, "I saw you dancing earlier and thought that you'd be good at it. Wanna try dancing with Braixen and Pancham?"
Eevee, although a bit nervous, decided to give it a go anyway. Eevee ran over to Braixen and Pancham and proceeded to dance around with them, eventually getting into things and enjoying itself. After a while, the dancing Pokémon all stopped dancing due to getting tired. As the Pokémon relaxed, Serena asked, "Hey Eevee, if you wanna continue dancing and performing, then why don't you come along with me? We'll be seeing a lot of performing together!"
Looking up at Serena for a moment, Eevee eventually gave a happy cry and jumped up into Serena's arms. Serena, happy that Eevee wanted to come along with her, proceeded to capture Eevee, adding another Pokémon to her team. After that, Serena got Eevee out to introduce it to the other Pokémon the heroes had. Eevee, due to being timid, was a bit shy and hid behind Serena's legs. Eevee did, for some odd reason, seem calm around Bunnelby. Clemont said that getting Serena's Eevee used to the other would require an approach similar to Ash's Goodra back when it was a Goomy; slow and steady.
Dawn and Kenny said they had some Pokémon that could help.
Much later, the heroes eventually reached Anistar City. After Dawn, Kenny, and Trip rotated their parties as needed (they knew ahead of time that the Anistar gym uses psychic Pokémon but the others didn't know they knew), the heroes went outside to watch Serena practice for her next Pokémon Showcase. Serena practiced with her Braixen and Pancham while Eevee watched from the sidelines. Although Eevee clearly enjoyed watching the Showcase practice, it still seemed nervous around so many other Pokémon, although it warmed up to Serena's Pokémon and was still warm towards Bunnelby.
"We need to get Eevee used to the Pokémon of others," Bonnie said.
"That's why Dawn and I rotated in some Pokémon we figure Serena's Eevee would warm up quickly to," Kenny said, prompting both himself and Dawn to call out Shallot and Fena, Kenny's Glaceon and Dawn's Leafeon respectively.
"Evolved forms of Eevee!" Bonnie squealed excitedly, right before Dawn and Kenny directed Fena and Shallot to go greet Serena's Eevee. Despite a nervous jump upon seeing something come for it, Eevee relaxed instantly when it saw that it was a pair of Pokémon from its evolutionary family. The heroes were amazed that Eevee, who is normally skittish, got up and immediately walked up to greet Fena and Shallot. Serena, Braixen, and Pancham all stopped when they noticed that Dawn and Kenny both had some Eeveeloutions out.
"Yeah," Dawn said, "Kenny and I figured that it would help get your Eevee used to being around other Pokémon if we weened Eevee onto the idea using Pokémon that evolve from Eevee. Hence why I have my Leafeon Fena."
"And Shallot here is representing the cringe posse," Kenny said while gesturing to Shallot, who was sniffing at Serena's Eevee. Fena also sniffed at Serena's Eevee, and then proceeded to lick Eevee around its left ear. Eevee gave a gentle but happy purring cry, like a young kitten being cared for by its parent. This drew amused, happy smiles from the heroes.
As the heroes watched Fena and Shallot interact with Eevee, they heard the familiar voice of Tierno cry out, "Hey, you guys!" Turning to look, the heroes saw that Tierno was walking up with Shauna following him. There was a Blastoise following Tierno and an Ivysaur following Shauna. "You guys here for the Anistar City gym, I take it?" Tierno asked, "Although I bet that Serena will wanna try her hand at the Pokémon Showcase that will be here."
Gesturing to Dawn, Shauna said, "I'm surprised that Champion Dawn's not springing for the Showcase scene."
"I've said it before and I'll say it again," Dawn replied, "I'm more into battling."
Turning her head slightly, Shauna saw Serena's Eevee. "Ooh, whose Eevee is that?" Shauna asked.
Serena turned to see where her Eevee was still caught up in interacting with Fena and Shallot. "Oh, the Eevee is mine," Serena answered, "The Leafeon belongs to Dawn and the Glaceon belongs to Kenny."
"Ah, a cute Pokémon for a cute girl," Tierno remarked, clearly indulging in his affection for Serena, "No wonder you make marks in the Showcase scene. You know just what Pokémon fit well with you!"
"Eee! I gotta cuddle Eevee!" Shauna said, immediately dashing over to where Eevee was with Fena and Shallot. When the three Pokémon heard Shauna rush over to them, they turned and saw her coming. Eevee immediately turned to run and hide behind Fena and Shallot, who both got aggressive towards Shauna, making her come to a sudden and surprised stop. "Why are Leafeon and Glaceon so mad?" Shauna asked, looking concerned.
"You tried rushing at them and Eevee suddenly and without warning," Dawn pointed out, "And you scared Eevee."
Kenny gave an amused chuckle. "It looks like a perfect family scene. Papa Glaceon and Mama Leafeon protecting the Baby Eevee. I bet taking a photo of the three of them together being a Pokémon family would make for a cute photo."
Looking at Kenny in confusion, Shauna said, "Wait, Glaceon's the boy and Leafeon's the girl? I thought that Glaceon would be the girl and Leafeon would be the boy."
"Nope, Shallot's a dude," Kenny confirmed.
...
After Tierno and Shauna settled down, the heroes asked them how they were doing. "Oh, I'm getting ready for the Pokémon Showcase," Shauna explained.
"And I came here for the Anistar gym," Tierno said. Holding up a Psychic Badge, Tierno said, "I actually won too, but it was close. A good thing that my Arcanine knows how to use Crunch." Putting his badge away, Tierno said, "Trevor was supposed to meet up with us, but he got sidetracked with seeing a Pokémon that he wanted to take a couple of photos of. Hopefully Trevor will get here in time for the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase."
"Speaking of," Serena said, "I hope to get Eevee prepped in time for it." Turning to look, Serena saw that her Eevee was still acting skittish around most of the other Pokémon that the heroes have. "...But Eevee still has confidence issues," Serena remarked in a concerned tone.
Clapping his hands together, Kenny said, "Why don't we introduce all of our Pokémon to Eevee? Shallot and Fena can even stand with Eevee, be like its parents to help make Eevee feel better about meeting their friends from work."
Trip let out an amused chuckle. "That actually sounds like a good idea, Kenny. I say we go for it." The rest of the heroes all agreed, and thus an introductory party was held to help Eevee get used to her parents' co-workers.
All of the on hand Pokémon of the heroes, aside from Tsukune, Black, and Deelia who were all being held back, Serena's Eevee who was being introduced to everyone, and Shallot and Fena who stood with Eevee like its parents, were in a line waiting to greet Eevee. Bonnie noted that Dawn and Kenny had multiple dark type Pokémon each, while Trip had his Greninja Kululu and a few steel types. "I got it that the Anistar City gym uses psychic Pokémon," Trip explained, "So Dawn, Kenny, and I prepped by bringing dark and steel types which are either immune or resistant to psychic."
"He's right," Tierno said, "The Anistar gym does use psychic Pokémon."
First in line to greet Serena's Eevee was Marquess, Dawn's Spiritomb. Despite Eevee's apprehension given that Marquess is a ghost, the named Spiritomb was very cordial and friendly, putting Eevee at ease. Helping was how Fena looked to be reassuring Eevee that Marquess can be trusted. After Marquess saw some success, the next Pokémon to go was Goofy, Kenny's Houndoom. Eevee, despite looking up at a big dark doggy Pokémon, was calm and willing to look at Goofy. It helped that the named Houndoom exuded a very clearly friendly air and that he lacked even the barest scrap of malice. He also had an expression that reflected his nickname.
Next after Goofy was Kululu, Trip's Greninja. Similar to Marquess and Goofy, Kululu saw success in greeting Eevee. As the other Pokémon went one by one, the heroes, as well as Tierno and Shauna, looked on with looks of relaxed pride. "Wow, Eevee's really warming up fast," Shauna said, "The Pokémon you guys have really know how to put others at ease." The heroes and their friends turned back to see Ash's Pikachu hold out a paw to Eevee while giving a friendly greeting, and Eevee bumped its paw against's Pikachu's, as if accepting a handshake.
...
After the heroes' Pokémon finished being introduced to Eevee, Serena and Shauna on Dawn's advice went to register for the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase immediately. The two girls, with time to spare, made it and were both able to register. After that, the heroes went back to where they were and saw Serena and Shauna practice for the Showcase. Seeing how hard the girls were practicing, Kenny who was wringing his hands as if he had just washed them said as he walked over to Dawn and Trip, "What did I miss while I had to download a brownload?"
"Serena and Shauna were inspired by something they saw on TV involving the current Kalos Queen Aria," Dawn explained, "And Serena received further inspiration when she and Shauna had a tag battle against Ash and Tierno, calling the battle off midway through because she wanted to try out something she thinks can be useful in the Showcase tomorrow."
Looking to where the girls were practicing, Kenny said, "They seem to really be going at it. What lit the fire under their fannies?"
Trip let out a mildly troubled sigh. "Ochaco had been seen registering for the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase. I guess she still needs one more Princess Key."
Kenny let out a whistle. "Yeah, the girls are facing an uphill battle here. Ochaco's generous use of shiny Pokémon puts her a cut above the rest of the competition. Even if her shiny Raichu and shiny Lopunny lose some of their wow factor due to being seen before, Ochaco STILL has an edge against opponents using non-shinies."
"Well Pokémon Showcases are about being visually appealing to an audience, rather than being strong enough to trump the competition in a direct fight," Dawn pointed out, "And shiny Pokémon are the epitome of being visually appealing." Shrugging, Dawn went on, "The only thing I could think of that could wow an audience more in a Pokémon Showcase would be a legendary or mythical Pokémon."
"Serena doesn't any of either one," Trip pointed out, "Nor does she own any shinies." Looking to where Serena and Shauna were practicing together, Trip went on, "Serena, as well as Shauna, are gonna have to rely on sheer talent and skill. Even so, I can't blame them for wanting to train together despite how they'll be facing off against one another tomorrow."
Dawn nodded in agreement; she would readily admit that Serena would trump her on the Contest or Showcase stage, but even so she had reason to believe that she could beat Serena if she used Tsukune (her Palkia) and or Zatch (her shiny Hariyama), simply because of the wow factor of using such rare Pokémon. Dawn could see why it'd be an unfair advantage in Showcases (and to a lesser extent contests). As such, Dawn was all the more comfortable with her chosen stage of the battlefield, where battle skill and power were what mattered, not if one was visually appealing.
Dawn hoped that Serena would find success in the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase tomorrow, given that she had only so many chances left for her to earn the necessary number of Princess Keys needed to qualify for the Master Class showcase.
The next day, the heroes, as well as Tierno and Shauna, made their way to the Showcase hall in Anistar City, arriving early because Clemont had set an alarm clock that he bought at a store; Kenny upon confirming that Clemont simply bought the alarm clock at the store and did not modify it in anyway breathed a sigh of relief, as he didn't have to have Godzilla (who Kenny had on hand for the challenge to the Anistar City gym) chuck it into the air, as the clock wasn't going to explode. Clemont when Kenny expressed his relief said that he learned from his mistake he made last time.
While inside the contest hall, the heroes and their friends were surprised to run into May, Ash's former traveling companion from the Hoenn region. "Yeah, I'm actually only one Princess Key shy from qualifying for the Master Class Showcase," May explained as she was accompanied by her Blaziken, "So if I win here, I'll have the three that I need."
Shauna gave May a serious look. "I wouldn't count your Pokémon before they hatch from eggs," Shauna said, "That Ochaco girl who I got from Dawn is into studying Pokémon revived from fossils has entered the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase. She'll be the girl to beat, given she's got a shiny Raichu and a shiny Lopunny."
May's eyes widened with surprise. "She's got a shiny Lopunny too?" May said, "Hoo boy, I'm really gonna have to pull double time if I wanna win."
"Yeah, it's like Ochaco's luck in getting shiny Pokémon is almost as good as Kenny's," Dawn said, "Oh May, before I forget." Looking around, Dawn asked, "Where's your little brother?"
"Yeah, now that Dawn mentions it," Kenny said as he also looked around, "I'm noticing a distinct lack of little peoples. Both Max and Bonnie are unaccounted for."
"Oh, Bonnie went to the concession area to get some snacks," Clemont explained.
"And I sent Max to the concession area to get some snacks for himself because he STILL needs to put on some weight," May explained, "He's still too thin, and both me and my mom are worried."
Folding his arms over his chest, Ash said, "Yeah, I did notice that Max was rather thin the last time I saw him. Is he okay?"
...
Over at the concession area, Bonnie was browsing the selection of candies, with Dedenne sticking out of Bonnie's little bag. As Bonnie and Dedenne looked around at the wide selection of sweets, they heard a friendly and excited bark like cry of a Pokémon call out. Suddenly, Bonnie and Dedenne were rushed by a shiny Mightyena, who sniffed at both of them while wagging its tail, before it proceeded to lick Dedenne in a friendly manner. "Oh! You're that Mightyena that Ash's friend May owns," Bonnie said as the shiny Mightyena looked up from Dedenne to Bonnie herself.
As Mightyena looked at Bonnie blankly for a few seconds, it perked up when it and Bonnie heard a boy's voice call out, "Actually, Mightyena belongs to me." Mightyena immediately turned around and ran in the direction the voice came from, leading Bonnie and Dedenne to see Max, who Mightyena stood next to. "Sorry if my Mightyena bothered you," Max said, "Not quite sure why he ran up to greet you so suddenly."
Bonnie, upon seeing Max, found herself unable to immediately respond. Bonnie gulped a bit, then was able to get out, "Well, umm, I met your Mightyena before. He was really friendly towards Dedenne here." Gesturing to Max, Bonnie went on, "So, umm, you must be that Max boy that Ash said is May's younger brother."
Nodding once, Max replied, "Yeah, I am indeed that very person." Gesturing to Bonnie, Max went on, "What brings you here?"
"Oh, I, umm," Bonnie began, stammering a bit, "I came here for some, umm, snacks to eat while watching the, umm, Showcase."
Folding his arms over his chest, Max said with a hint of annoyance in his tone, "My older sister May, who's one of the competing Performers in the Showcase today, sent me here with some money to get some snacks for myself because both she and our mom are worried about how I'm a bit far on the skinny side of things." Bonnie took a closer look at Max upon hearing him say that, and indeed saw signs such as his somewhat thin face that Max could honestly stand to gain a few pounds.
"I bet that, umm, your mom and sister are just worried about you is all," Bonnie replied, "Anyway, your sister competes in the Showcases here in Kalos, right?"
Max nodded once in the affirmative. "Exactly. As for myself, I'm tackling the gyms here in Kalos because I wanna try my hand at the Kalos League." Max then took out a badge case and opened it, showing Bonnie that he had seven badges; the ones from Santalune, Cyllage, Shallor, Coumarine, Lumiose, Laverre, and finally Anistar. "The Psychic badge is my most recently earned badge," Max said as he put his badge case away, "Mightyena and my Houndoom helped me get it on my first try at the gym."
"You have seven badges already?" Bonnie said, "Wow! Ash, Dawn, Kenny, and Trip only have six badges each so far!"
"I bet it's because May and I got to Anistar City at least a week before you and your group got here," Max replied, "We're further up the track." Bonnie, still wanting to continue talking to Max, bought some snacks with him, then got him to agree to sit down with her to talk.
...
"So you're the shorter disguised thief from the time Korrina's grandpa wanted to rebuild her confidence," Bonnie said as she and Max talked while sitting at a table; Dedenne was sitting on the table itself, and Mightyena was sitting on the floor next to where Max sat in a chair.
Nodding once, Max replied, "Yeah, and let me tell you that I was kind of nervous with the attacks called by May's Skitty's Assist and Munchlax's Metronome. I was having Herdier use Work Up so as to buy time for Korrina to knock it out without risking defeating her Lucario." Taking a sip from his drink, Max went on, "Oh, Herdier evolved into Stoutland during my go at the gym in Coumarine City. Helped me win there."
Dedenne picked up and bit into a Poké Puff that was factory made rather than made by hand by a trainer. Seeing this, Bonnie said, "I saw that your sister had to use Poké Puffs to get your Mightyena and your Furfrou to listen to her, but she said that they both listen to you no problem."
"My guess is that they have trouble taking orders from someone who isn't me," Max said, "It's good because my Pokémon listen to me, but it may cause trouble later on down the line if May needs to command them."
Bonnie nodded in agreement before letting out a surprised yelp; Mightyena had gotten up and nudged his muzzle into Bonnie's side, getting her attention. Looking at Mightyena, Bonnie saw him panting calmly while waging his tail, clearly showing a happy mood. Bonnie giggled cutely as she reached forward to pet Mightyena on the head, but he met her halfway by shoving his nose into Bonnie's offered hand before he started licking it. Bonnie's giggling erupted into full blown amused laughter as the shiny Mightyena was being affectionate.
"Yeah, all of my Pokémon are like Mightyena," Max said, "Friendly towards strangers unless given a reason. I was able to chase off some Team Scorn members one time by siccing my Granbull and Arcanine on them."
"Oh, that helps explain why police tend to favor using canine Pokémon," Bonnie said, "They're very good at being sicced on criminals." Leaning back in her seat, Bonnie remarked, "Anywho, I hope that either Serena or your sister May wins. But one of the other Performers they're facing is that Ochaco girl who has both a shiny Raichu and a shiny Lopunny."
Max, after taking a sip from his drink, said, "Yeah, that would be tough to beat, even for May who has loads of experience in Contests which are similar to Showcases." Letting out a breath, Max went on, "One can only hope that either May or that Serena girls wins here. May because it'd be the last Princess Key she needs to qualify for the Master Rank Showcase, and Serena because she..." Looking to Bonnie, Max asked, "Do you know how many Princess Keys Serena has right now?"
"She doesn't have any," Bonnie replied with a concerned look on her face as she shook her head, "If she wins here, it'll be her first Princess Key."
"Yeah, Serena is facing a very steep uphill battle here," Max said, "Here's hoping she wins or, barring that, May gets her third and final Princess Key." Bonnie, nodding in agreement with Max, raised a can of cola to make a toast with Max. The two young kids both hoped for the best for either Serena or May, as both of them needed to get a Princess Key, May because it'd be the third and final one she needed, and Serena because she still needed to earn the three she needed and this would be her first.
They could only hope for the best for May and Serena.
END, CHAPTER ONE-HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-EIGHT
Author's notes;
This chapter sees Serena catch her Eevee, along with the group getting to Anistar City and meeting up with Tierno and Shauna again. The heroes also get Serena's Eevee used to the Pokémon in the heroes' group, and Kenny's Glaceon and Dawn's Leafeon are brought in to help things along. Then the Showcase arrives, and while the older members of the group meet up with May, Bonnie runs into Max at the concession area and gets to talking to him, setting the stage for a side bit for Bonnie that I've been wanting to do. Anyway, the next chapter will see how things went for the Anistar City Pokémon Showcase, as well as see Ash and the reborn trainers have their goes at the Anistar City gym. Later, skaters.
Dawn's Pokémon: (on hand) Chi-Chi (female Infernape), Marquess (male Spiritomb), Boss (male Honchkrow), Fena (female Leafeon), Leni (female Lucario), Tsukune (Palkia)
Kenny's Pokémon: (on hand) Roshi (male Torterra), Ban (male Sabeleye), Goofy (male Houndoom), Shallot (male Glaceon), Godzilla (male Tyranitar), Black (Giratina; Origin Form)
Trip's Pokémon: (on hand) Fourze (male Electivire), HedonismBot (Magnezone), Myde (male Empoleon), Kululu (male Greninja), Deelia (Dialga), Todoroki (male Goodra; alpha; Hisuian)
Ash's Pokémon: (on hand) Pikachu (male), Trevenent (male), Steelix (male; shiny), Frogadier (male), Talonflame (male), Braviary (male; alpha; Hisuian)