Author's Note: I surprised myself at how quickly I wrote this. It may not be a long chapter but I enjoyed writing it.
I hope you all enjoy!
Gloria had been loitering in her room for an hour at this point. She stood next to the window and gazed outside at the partly cloudy sky. After watching the Wooloo in the pasture for a few minutes, she suddenly desired the outdoors and picked up her rucksack to secure it on her shoulders. Outside, she summoned a flying taxi to take her to the Isle of Armor.
She was dropped off at Challenge Beach. After stepping down and thanking the driver, her eyes set on the ocean horizon. After taking in the view, she took out the dive ball containing Milotic and tossed it into the air. The graceful water type twirled upward before splashing into the ocean waves. Gloria smiled, "It's only natural you're always down for a swim even in this cooler weather."
Milotic chirped happily and continued to frolic in the waves, staying close to Gloria. The young trainer turned her head glancing downward; her eyes caught a sparkle in the sand. When she approached and crouched, she noticed it was a small star piece. She picked it up and brushed the sand off, the red sparkle caught her eye.
"How pretty!" She whispered and placed it in her rucksack.
"Gloria! Hey Gloria, over here!"
The voice of Hop caught her attention behind her. She whirled around to see him waving excitedly at her. But he wasn't alone, he had Milo and Allister with him.
"Guys!" Gloria called out to them as they approached her.
"Hello there, Gloria!" Milo greeted warmly.
Allister shyly spoke, "Gloria! What are you… doing here?"
Gloria smiled, "I wasn't expecting to see you all! What a crazy coincidence!"
"Isn't it?" Hop exclaimed, "This wasn't even intentional! I was out here to observe the Pokémon a bit further and I ran into these two! Small world, huh?"
"What about you, Gloria?" Milo asked, "Are you drinking up the beauty of the island too?"
"Something like that!" Gloria replied, "I was uh… busy this morning and it wore me out! So, I'm recharging."
Allister fumbled nervously with his hands, "Mm… I understand that. It's easy to do that here… because there are no people…"
Gloria's Milotic flew out of the water and landed delicately behind his trainer, letting out a happy cry. The gym leaders were in awe at the beautiful Pokémon.
"W-Wow…" Allister mumbled.
"Ah! I remember seeing that one during the tournament!" Milo recalled, "That Pokémon is quite a sight to see up close."
Gloria suddenly felt eager to tell the story on how she met her beloved water type, "You wanna know how I found him?"
Hop perked up, "I already know!"
"Well, I'm going to tell them." Gloria replied, "I had just completed the Circhester gym and decided to take a break."
Flashback…
"Wow, that place was so cold I could hardly focus! But I'm glad it's over with now." Gloria stated, "Whew! Time for a break!"
She was in the Wild Area, walking where she would get a clear view of the Lake of Outrage. After stretching her arms above her head, she placed her rucksack on the ground and was ready to set up camp.
"I hope the gang is ready for some curry!"
It was at that moment that she thought she heard a sound from the water. A small, blooping noise. She looked up.
"Hm?"
She focused her hearing but didn't hear the noise again. Assuming she was hearing things, she shrugged and went back to digging in her rucksack. That's when she heard the noise again. She jerked her heard up just in time to see the end of what appeared to be a fin sinking in the water.
"Whoa, what was that?" Gloria spoke. She jumped up and hurried to the edge of the water.
After a few seconds of still silence, a long figure suddenly broke the surface sending large waves into the air. Gloria gasped and turned around just in time to get drenched. She stood shocked, it registered in her brain that she had just gotten splashed hard, and water was now running off her and dripping from her clothing.
"What the heck!?" She exclaimed, grabbing the hem of her dress and squeezing water out, "What was that?"
Milotic landed gracefully in front of her and let out a tender call. Gloria immediately became entranced by the appearance of the Pokémon. She had forgotten all about the inconvenience of getting soaked.
"So beautiful!" She fawned.
Her rotom dex read to her,
Milotic, the Tender Pokémon. A Water type. Milotic live deep in lakes with clear water. They appear when conflict is imminent, calming people's hearts. Milotic is said to be the most beautiful Pokémon in the world.
Gloria whispered, "I've seen them in so many works of art… I never thought I'd see one out in the wild like this!"
The Milotic gazed upon her graciously, and Gloria was looking right back. She was unable to take her eyes away from the grand Pokémon. Just as her rotom dex said, the Milotic's presence immediately brought peace to her heart. A calming sensation that could not be put into words. The scales of the Pokémon glimmered in the sunlight. It was a truly enchanting sight to behold. Gloria did feel some slight confusion however, "So if they appear when conflict is imminent… does that mean…?" She looked all around her, was there danger nearby? But there wasn't anything or anyone else present. She glanced back up at Milotic.
"You clearly have a reason to appear in front of me." She spoke softly, "Did you want to challenge me?"
Milotic nodded slowly. And Gloria accepted, taking the Poke ball that housed her starter, Rillaboom.
"I just came from a gym battle, but it's okay. I can do this." She whispered, ready to battle.
End of Flashback…
"So we had a battle, and at the end of it he wanted me to be his trainer." Gloria concluded the story.
Milo took in the story with a gentle smile, "That's amazing, Gloria."
"C-Cool…" whispered Allister.
Hop grinned, "You always have incredible stories to tell mate! It's got me thinking you should write a memoir about your adventure!"
"Oh, I couldn't!" Gloria objected, "I'm not really a polished writer… It wouldn't come out too good."
"Hey, if you write one. I'll read it!" Milo volunteered, "I would love to hear more stories about your journey!"
"You must have had a lot of fun… out traveling." Allister observed.
"Hey, I think a memoir written by the champion would be a best seller within no time! Even if the writing isn't that swell!" Hop stated, "Hey, you'll give me an autographed copy, right? Hahaha!"
"Hop…" Gloria muttered.
The gang all laughed together as several Magikarp were tossed about in the distant ocean waves.
Meanwhile, back at the Ballonea Gym, Bede sat in the gym office with the night of the Galarian Star Tournament on his mind.
His team was knocked out on the second round, so he had plenty of time to watch the other challengers. He recalled seeing Gloria and Hop win match after match. Each time, they would exchange high-fives or excitedly grab onto one another by the arms like they were little kids during the Christmas season. It made him feel disgusted for some weird reason and he couldn't figure out why. What did he care what those two did?
"Hmph…" He scoffed, before thinking about the interaction he had with her this morning. He wondered what made her want to visit him, and even more bewildering to him was that he didn't really mind at all. He thought about what he said to her. It's true that he didn't hate her, despite the fact that she's the one that kept interfering with every plan he made from the day the two met. He was willing to admit only to himself that he did enjoy her company do a degree.
"It was just normal conversation, that's all." He declared quietly. But he had a quiet, nagging feeling in his chest. One that said he wanted to see her again. Trying to ignore it, he grabbed his cup of coffee and took a sip.
Back at the Isle of Armor, Gloria, Hop, Milo, and Allister had all set up a picnic. They cooked curry and happily showed off their Pokémon. Gloria's Milotic seemed slightly afraid of Allister's Cursola. Hop's Dubwool and Gloria's Rillaboom began a friendly conversation. Milo's Appletun was curious about Gloria's Flareon.
"So Gloria, what are you going to do now?" Milo asked.
Gloria shrugged with a spoon of curry in hand, "I'm not sure Milo. My adventures have taken me so far. It's hard to predict what'll happen next!"
"Haha! I get it! I would like to travel like that more. I'm lucky I was able to take a walk here today! A change of scenery is always nice!"
Gloria looked at Allister, "What about you Allister?"
"M-M-Me!?" He stuttered, "Um, oh… I don't know… It was just… really quiet at the gym… It made me feel lonely…"
"Don't be nervous, Allister!" Milo comforted, "Everyone has days like that at times!"
"Th-Thanks, Milo…"
Hop patted Gloria's shoulder, "It sure is nice to get everyone gathered here, huh?"
Gloria nodded, and remembered what Sonia told her. Her hands started to shake, she had really wanted to keep this a secret. But she knew it was best if he knew. She waited until everyone was finished and the picnic was packed up.
"Well, that was a great lunch! Thank you everyone!" Milo expressed, "It's been fun, but I have to head back to the gym! Can't keep it unattended for too long you know?"
Allister also spoke, "I… also have to go back…. Th-thanks for lunch…"
Hop grinned, "Hey, we had a real blast! We should meet up again sometime soon!"
"Of course we will!" Milo affirmed.
Gloria waved, "I'll see you guys later! It was nice to see you again, Milo and Allister!"
After the gym leaders waved bye, they caught a flying taxi that would take them back to their gyms. Gloria and Hop waved until they were out of sight. Once they were, she hesitated for a moment before turning to Hop, "Hey Hop? I have to tell you something."
Hop nodded, "Yeah?"
"I'm… not quite sure how to say this. But it's been on my mind."
Hop smiled nervously, "You're starting to freak me out, mate. What's going on?"
"Well, after the Galarian Star Tournament. You remember when you went home and I decided to stay behind?"
"Yeah?"
"About a minute after you left…" She hesitated, briefly considered backing out but blurted out before she could, "Bede found me and spoke to me."
Hop was obviously surprised, but he kept a mild demeanor, "Bede? Is that so? Huh, I see…" His tone turned protective, "He wasn't being a jerk to you, was he?"
"No, he wasn't." Gloria answered quickly, "He was actually, kind of nice."
Hop sputtered out a laugh, "Wow, really? Never thought I'd see the day! What's next? That whole ocean over there is going to freeze so we'd be able to walk over to the islands?"
Gloria chuckled awkwardly, "Heheh…."
Hop was now intrigued, "Did anything else happen?"
Gloria shook her head, "No, nothing."
"Well, that's good to hear." Hop smiled, "Hey Gloria, don't let anyone get you down. You've gotten to where you are now because you have talent. Don't let someone like Bede tell you otherwise, okay?"
Gloria smiled back, "Thanks, Hop."
After exchanging a brief hug, the two decided to walk around together. Gloria thought to herself, "Okay, so I feel a bit better now that I've told him a bit. But at the same time, I feel guilty because I only told him a bit… ugh! What is wrong with me!?"
This was going to be tougher than she thought.