Early in the morning, May was awakened by loud knocking on their bedroom door. She had to take a few seconds to remember where she was. Lisia, who was already up and drawing with a pencil on her bed, got up to answer.

"Hi there?"

"Clefairy!"

A large pink Pokemon entered the room with a tray full of profiteroles of all colours and shapes.

"What is… ?" May muttered, wondering if she was still dreaming.

"Oh, it's breakfast! Thank you very much Clefairy."

"Cle, Clefairy!" The Pokemon answered happily before leaving, continuing its distribution in the next rooms while Lisia came to place the tray on the desk.

"Come on, wake up and come eat, you Snorlax," she teased May. "It's already eight o'clock."

May rubbed her eyes and pulled herself painfully out of the covers.

"So Clefairy comes to bring us breakfast every morning just like that?"

"Yes! We had the choice of having breakfast included in the price of the rooms! Every morning it's a different pastry. Come on, taste one! And call your Blaziken, so he can enjoy them with us."

The young champion opted for a chocolate profiterole and her Pokemon took a lemon one. Lisia and Ali served themselves and the two trainers began to eat, still in their pajamas on their bed. It was a strange but rather pleasant awakening. May didn't think her roommate would be so relaxed and familiar with her, it made her behave the same way. Even if she didn't know the coordinator so well, she didn't feel embarrassed to find herself disheveled, in pajamas, and nibbling as best as she could on her breakfast in front of Lisia.

"We almost feel like princesses, huh? The young woman laughed, chasing the crumbs that were falling on the top of her pajamas. Even me, who am used to having the red carpet rolled out for me, breakfast in bed, I think it's a great luxury."

May nodded, laughing. Neither did she, as a champion, know of such treats.

"We'll be full of energy to start the day thanks to this, she replied. What are you going to do today? With Brendan and Wally, we wanted to start training. You're welcome if you want... "

"Oh that's nice, thanks! I didn't really have any plan, actually... Wait, I'm just checking my Poke Nav..."

Lisia grabbed the device off her bedside table and turned it on, distractedly chewing on her profiterole. Even when she had just woken up, she looked the same as usual; her long, messy turquoise hair made her look classy and her blue pajamas looked like they were tailor-made.

"Oh, my uncle just texted me! He wants us to be in the hall at nine...for a special event!"

"A special event?" May repeated, frowning.

"Yes! Don't tell me you don't know what it is?"

"I should?" she asked while turning on her own Poke Nav.

Indeed, Wallace had also sent her a message about twenty minutes ago:

Meeting at 9 AM in the HALL of the Pokemon center. DO NOT ignore this message!

What was he up to? It was the first time he'd written to her privately like this, on anything other than league business.

"Of course you should, Lisia retorted. It's almost the coolest thing here in Pasio! Many events are organized during the PML, to distract the trainer and the public. Most of the time it's the prince and the other people in charge of the tournament who set them up, but the trainers can also organize their own events and invite all the people they want."

"Okay so... Wallace just organized a special event and didn't let us know until an hour before its beginning… Did I sum up this right?"

"I don't know if it's him or someone else, but in any case we're invited!" Lisia smiled excitedly, not seeing the issue. "Come on, May, get ready, we don't have much time left!"

Great... That meant she had to cancel her training day with Wally and Brendan. May quickly sent them a message to tell them so, but the two boys quickly replied that they were also invited to this mysterious event. What could it be? May wasn't too fond of surprises most of the time. But despite her reluctance, she began to dress. The lump in her throat was back.


Lisia and May arrived at the top of the stairs at seven past nine, because the coordinator had wasted time looking for her lucky hairpin that had gotten lost under her bed. In the hall, many trainers were already gathered, busy chatting with each other.

"Oh, looks like the majority of the Hoenn league's trainers are here!" Lisia noticed.

The Hoenn league? So Wallace had invited them all?

"So this must be a Hoenn special event!" Lisia exclaimed.

May moved forward to get an overview of the first floor. Sure enough, there were several familiar faces there: Brendan and his father, Wally with the twins Tate and Liza, Brawly and Flannery, Roxanne and…

Roxanne and Steven?…

May moved back with shaking steps. Suddenly her heart was pounding inside her chest. Calm down… calm down, she told herself. She had been warned; she knew she would eventually see him since Steven was in Pasio. But she had hoped… she hadn't thought it would happen so quickly. No, May had believed that with all the trainers who were in Pasio, Steven and her would maybe only meet once or twice, without having the time to even speak together… and yet, there he was, right down the stairs with everyone else, probably waiting for the same event as her.

"Are you okay May? Lisia worried. What's going on with you?"

"I… my stomach hurts…" she improvised.

"Because of the profiteroles?... Oh no! It's true it can be hard to digest when you're not used to it. I hope it will pass soon."

"Yeah, I hope too."

May swallowed hard. She couldn't help looking in his direction. Steven was visibly engaged in an exciting conversation with Roxanne, the young academician, nodding slightly as he listened to her, his chin resting against his right hand. He was smiling, looking rather in a good mood and despite the distance, May thought she detected a kind of warmth in his expression… Why was this scene so painful for her to see?

"Girls, you're finally here? Fantastic!"

Wallace had just appeared at the bottom of the stairs, and he easily brought back the full attention of the small group gathered around him.

"Dear friends from Hoenn, he said stretching his arms, please welcome our league champion! Arrived only yesterday in Pasio, here come… our dearest May!"

What? So they were all waiting for her?

A mountain of applause rang in her ears, and May had to hold on to the bar of the stairs to remain dignified. She didn't deserve this. Even if her title of champion had weighed on her shoulders for a year now, she hadn't done anything special since then.

"Come on, May, come to us." Wallace told her.

Followed by Lisia, she went down the stairs, doing her best not to stumble stupidly on the steps. The gym leader put his hand on her shoulder. Surrounded by Phoebe and Drake, he finally explained the situation to her:

"The elite 4 and I have decided to organize a special event to celebrate your coming to Pasio, May: a small tournament of three-on-three battles between the members of the Hoenn league. Drake told me that you were a little nervous about having to battle in teams of three, and I know you're not the only one in the league to have this apprehension, we are usually more comfortable in individual battle… so I thought that would be a good idea to all train together! What do you say, champion?"

Wow… May didn't expect that. Instinctively, she couldn't help but be excited about this unexpected mini tournament.

"That's great Wallace! Thank you very much."

"You deserve it May, Phoebe said. You work so hard every day in the league."

"Yes, Drake added. It was time that we congratulate you for everything you do."

The young champion laughed nervously, and the fact that Steven chose this precise moment to head straight in their direction didn't help her regain her composure.

Had he applauded her with all the others earlier? If so, that meant he had finally remembered her existence… but anyway, he wouldn't dare to come to them and join the conversation as if nothing between them had happened... right?

In order to avoid his gaze, May took a few steps back, hiding a little behind Lisia.

"Ahhh Steven..." Wallace said with a big smile when he saw him arrive.

"So Wallace didn't lie, the former champion is among us?" Drake commented, raising his eyebrows. "You disappeared for so long this time that we wondered if you were still alive... What have you been up to, Steven?"

Trapped by his former colleague, the young man looked slightly defensive:

"Well... I've traveled a lot and done some scientific research... but I decided to free myself to come in Pasio. I didn't want to miss this amazing event that is the PML."

"Ah, I figured our rock enthusiast hadn't completely given up battling." The captain smiled, patting him on the back affectionately.

May thought Drake would at least lecture him a little about his impromptu departure, but obviously he was just especially happy to see him again. The members of the elite 4 had always been used to Steven's unexpected runaways, from what she understood. Maybe they hadn't even been surprised to see him leave again so abruptly.

"Yes and I'm happy to see that all the members of the Hoenn league are also present. It promises interesting battles." Steven confided to Drake, having regained his self-confidence.

Raising her head over Lisia's shoulder, May gave him a quick, curious glance. What troubled her the most was that, contrary to what she expected, he didn't seem to have changed at all.

Now that she saw him closely, he seemed to her to be exactly the same man as a year ago: the same messy haircut, the same fine features, down to the same black suit with a red scarf. It was like a sudden vision of the past. May was twenty again, her determination intact, with the urge to get his attention by any means possible…

No, it was way too painful to think about all of this… She looked away, wishing she could silence her mind.

"Okay, come on everyone! It's time to divide you into different teams! Personally, I have agreed with my old friend Steven," Wallace declared, grabbing him by the arm, forcing him to get a little closer of May. "And Lisia, my dear niece, do you want to complete our team?"

"Me? With you two?! Of course, it would be amazing!"

May dreamed of running away. But instead, she forced herself to stand there, right in front of Steven Stone. This time, neither she nor he could ignore each other's presence. As his gaze finally rested on her, time seemed to stand still. All the Pokemon center disappeared. There was only him, and this absurd happiness that appeared on his face when he looked at her eyes.

No! How did he dare to smile at her? He had no idea how bad she felt around him right now, how she would have liked to shout at his face if only they had not been surrounded by the whole Hoenn league…

Steven even had the nerve to speak to her, in a calm and warm voice, as in the past:

"It's good to see you again, May."

The young champion felt a shiver run through her whole body.

"Do you remember me?" She forced herself to answer, in the driest voice possible.

How could he pretend to enjoy seeing her again? How could he pretend like this, that he cared?

Steven raised his eyebrows. May wasn't sure if it was because of the question or because of her sarcastic tone.

"What? Of course I remem… How could I have forgotten about you May?" He replied awkwardly.

This, at least, erased his stupid smile. The young woman even felt he was a little confused and took satisfaction from it.

"May! May!"

Unfortunately, this small victory was cut short by the arrival of Brendan, who came to intervene without embarrassment between her and him.

"So May? We're doing our shock trio as planned, Wally, you and me, right?... How many teams do you think we'll be able to defeat?!"

"Um…" She glanced instinctively at the former champion, who gave her a brief nod before turning away, understanding that they didn't need him there anymore. "As much as possible?"

"All of them! He corrected her. A short warm-up and we're going to smash them all!"


"Hariyama, use Rock Smash!" Brawly said eagerly.

"Hold on Blaziken, you can handle this!"

The Dewford gym leader's Pokemon was the last to hold on. They had already defeated Flannery's and Roxanne's ones. May knew victory was almost there.

"Give it your all, Brawly!" The fire-type gym leader kept cheering him on despite everything. "Until the very end!"

"That's how I work, Flan! Hariyama, don't give up!"

"I'll take him, captain!" Brendan called out to May, taking the lead. "Come on Scepticle, let's end this, use Leaf Storm!"

Brendan's sync stone lit up with a thousand lights as the plant Pokemon called on all its power, swooping down on his opponent. This time, Hariyama was unable to resist the attack and collapsed to the ground.

"Hariyama fainted! The victory goes to May's team!" Brendan blustered, clenching his fists.

That there was no audience to applaud him didn't seem to stop him.

Brawly rushed to his Hariyama to heal him:

"Sorry little guy, you fought well."

"We did everything we could Brawly, Flannery sighed, but unfortunately, here we are eliminated from this tournament... We would surely have lasted longer if we hadn't to compete against the Hoenn champion in our first battle."

"Yeah, we had no luck… You three have become quite strong," Brawly sighed, turning to Brendan, Wally and May. "It's incredible!"

"I remember my defeat at the Lavaridge Town's gym against all of you… Actually, it's no wonder that we lost again today." Flannery said, closing her eyes and nervously rubbing the back of her neck.

May remembered that the young champion always had trouble accepting her defeats against young trainers like them.

"You gave us a hard time." She assured them, hoping to sound genuine.

She never quite knew what to say to make the outcome of the battle less heavy for the losers. Sometimes she almost felt like apologizing for winning. She didn't want to drag down anyone.

"Yeah, it was so cool to start this tournament against you!" Brendan said, always there to assist her.

"This defeat is at least going to help us to better target the weaknesses of our trio," Roxanne intervened optimistically. "Thanks to you three, we will be able to refine our strategy for the PML."

"Yeah, don't think we're going to give up before the real tournament has even started. We're going to work harder, and Roxy is going to find us a hell of a strategy!" Brawly said, having regained his motivation.

"Me?... Y-yes, I'll do my best!" Roxanne answered, blushing slightly.

At this, Flannery burst out laughing.

Phew, they seem to take it well. May admired the gym leaders for this. The rare times she had lost, she had only been able to experience it as a huge drama, which brought her to question her entire career as a Pokemon trainer.

"Who are our next opponents?" Wally asked.

"We have to go find Wallace to know."

The trio said goodbye to the three gym leaders before leaving to find him. Wallace had chosen to organize the battles on the various large squares of Centra city, so Brendan, Wally and May had no trouble finding him and his team.

The young champion grimaced, she had forgotten that joining Wallace also meant joining Steven.

"Oh, you three, we've been waiting for you! Wallace welcomed them. How was the battle against Flannery's team?"

"Good. We won." Wally smiled.

"Congratulations! We also won against Winona's team. My niece did very well, she is an outstanding technician."

"Bravo Lisa!" Brendan applauded.

"Heehee, thank you Brendan!"

"Do you know what that means?" Wallace asked, putting his hands on his hips.

"That you are our next opponents?" May guessed.

"Exactly. Prepare well because I can tell you that we are in great shape today! The battle starts in thirty minutes, is that ok with you?"

"Yes!" Brendan answered for everyone as May let out several swear words in her head.

It was getting better and better... After having to talk to him, we were going to force her to battle against Steven.

May was seriously beginning to wonder if Wallace hadn't organized this whole event in order to force them to reestablish some contact. But it would certainly not be under pressure that she would stop resenting him.

"So, Wally started in a low voice, we're going back to the way we were? May as the main striker, and the two of us having her back?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Brendan answered.

"Great! So I'll focus on Lisia, Wally deduced. Do you agree with this plan, May?"

From a strategic point of view, she knew that her Pokemon had the best chance of defeating her predecessor's Metagross. But from a personal point of view, she really would have preferred to be on the sidelines for this battle.

"Hey May, Brendan called her. Don't make that annoyed face. It's a good chance to kick his ass, isn't it?"

A microscopic smile appeared on her lips. Of course, her best friend had guessed what was upsetting her. Suddenly she felt less alone.

"You're right…" she replied, feeling a bit more motivated. "Let's start the warm-up."