The conference ended in about an hour. Tomorrow was the ceremony, Cynthia had suggested for her to go home and rest before tomorrow, to which she happily obliged. Victor accompanied her back down to the lobby, and Tofu, the skitty, once more wrapped herself around her neck, warm underneath the crocheted scarf. During the meeting, it had started to snow In Jubilife.

"It has been an absolute pleasure, Champion Luna." He said before giving a short bow.

"Oh please Victor, just Luna is fine." She said with a smile.

And with that she was off, she released her Driftblim when she was outside as snowflakes settled on her hair and nose.

Luna couldn't sleep. She was so anxious about tomorrow, about the ceremony. It just was all becoming too real. She crept downstairs to make herself a cup of tea when she noticed Julia knitting in the living room. What time was it? Why was she still up?

"Jule?" Luna called out her name from the bottom of the stairs. Julia quickly threw her work across the couch and under the blanket that was there, as if to hide it from Luna. She laughed, "What are you doing Jule?" She asked intrigued.

"Nothing! What are you doing still awake?" Julia hurriedly said.

"Couldn't sleep. What are you doing being so secretive?" Luna giggled.

"So you saw it then… Well I was knitting you a sweater for tomorrow, but it's not finished yet… I didn't have much time to do it but…" Julia trailed off. Luna uncovered the sweater from the blanket and gasped, it was gorgeous. A green colour worked sweater with Mareep on it! It was so cute!

"This is so beautiful!" Luna threw herself in Julia's arms, as she stroked her medium-length hair. "Thank you Jule."

"Off to bed now, you need to rest before tomorrow, get some sleep. I will try to finish this." Jule said tiredly. Luna knew there was no convincing her otherwise, so she quickly prepared a cup of tea for her Nanny and then crept back into bed. Dreaming of Mareep hopping over fences, Luna quickly fell asleep.

Today was the day.

Luna was wearing her black coat open, with her Mareep sweater and long forest green cashmere skirt with combat boots. Anxiety bubbled in the pit of her stomach. A stage had been set up in Jubilife, leading from the stage was a long walkway, connected to the Jubilife town hall. She looked at herself in the town hall's bathroom mirror. She was alone, Cynthia and the other champions were behind the stage. The Mayor of Jubilife called her from outside the bathroom, it was nearly time. She could hear the crowds cheering and yelling from here. she wiped the last bit of sick from her mouth and fixed her lipstick, the mayor was waiting.

She could hear Professor Rowan begin his speech over the loudspeakers which echoed across the City's main square, people hushing. Luna however started to hear a ringing in her ear. The anxiety was too much. She shakily took a breath. She had to do this.

"-and now, the moment we've been waiting for! Luna Renn! Champion of Sinnoh!" the professor concluded. Screams of joy and cheers could be heard coming from all over. The door to the town hall opened. There she stood motionless, as the mayor urged her a few steps ahead to start walking.

Luna did not smile as she slowly walked. All she could think about was putting one foot in front of the other. Her boots crunched the thin layer of snow beneath her feet and Tofu happily skipped about in the snow between herself and the mayor. She slowly turned her head around to look at the people that surrounded her. Smiles of children and Pokémon and all types of people looked back at her, clapping and cheering. The champions and Cynthia were on stage clapping all in a line.

She felt herself relax ever so slightly. All these people had shown up for her. In the freezing cold middle of winter. People had come from all over the region for this. Her Aunt had knitted her a damn sweater for this. The champions had flown across the world for this. She needed to do this.

She walked down the walkway, waving and smiling shyly at the crowds on each side, until she reached the end of the walkway through the city. The mayor gestured to some stairs that led up to the stage, and she quickly hopped up them careful not to trip or slide with the snow.

"And now, we'd like to hear a few words from the former champion Cynthia!" The professor announced, he handed the mic to Cynthia.

As the daughter of the legend Callisto Renn. I want to thank Luna, for the flawless battle, and for showing me what the bond between people and Pokémon can create. I look forward to seeing what our champion will do from here. Luna brings forth her mother's legacy, and now, is forging her own path with Sinnoh. Thank you. Now, some words from the champion herself. Luna!" Cynthia's speech was short and sweet. It was her turn. She walked up to the mic slowly, as if approaching a wild Pokémon, the cheers were so loud, but then immediately silenced as she got to the mic.

Everybody was waiting for her. She swallowed, hard.

"Hello." Don't fuck this up don't fuck this up don't fuck this up. "My name is Luna." Cheers rose in her silence. The crowd chanted her name over and over again, shit. "Some of you may know me as the Black Lotus." The crowds roared in excitement. And that was when she spotted Julia in the crowd. She nodded at her. you got this, she mouthed. "Some of you may not know me at all. I'm twenty-three years old. My partner is named Tofu," Tofu yapped at her feet. "I must admit, I'm really happy to be up here." She breathed deeply. She had to be strong. "The truth is, I wanted to be champion of people's hearts." She looked across the crowd, "You may not know me yet, maybe you aren't even interested in knowing or listening to the champion of your region." The cameras kept their focus on her. "People. Pokémon. Our bonds between us become the greatest thing we can ever have in this world. We need to stand together; I want to go forward together."

"I want to be your reason for peace and prosperity, I want to be the ground you walk on and the sky you look up to. I want to be the great mount Coronet that protects you. I want to be the sword you fight with."

"I want to be the most inspiring flower in your garden. And if you'll trust me, I want to guide you on this journey we'll take. Together. "

Silence, and then. Everything.

Claps and the roaring sound of cheers and screams and cries of joy erupted from the crowd. Luna glanced back at the champions behind her. They were all clapping, proud smiles on their faces, Cynthia, tears in her eyes. Luna looked forward, at Jubilife, at the crowd, at the cameras, at everyone in pure bliss, confidence emanating from her whole being.

A conference was scheduled for the next day, at 14:00. Luna was still on a high from yesterday at the ceremony, it all felt so unreal. Stepping into the elevator at Jubilife Grand Hotel she clicked the button for the top floor. This conference, Cynthia had briefed her, was about her plans for the future of Sinnoh, whether she would continue being Champion as usual, or make any changes to Sinnoh's current social or gym structure, it was scheduled to be a short meeting, so she was excited to go back to the yarn shop later.

She gently pushed open the door the conference room. It was 13:59. Most of the champions and league advisors were already there, Steven stone, Lawrence, and Alder were missing. They decided to wait for the other champions before starting the meeting. Lawrence, the league advisor arrived shortly after.

10 minutes went by, then another 5, and Alder finally arrived. Still no Steven Stone. A frown graced Luna's face for some reason.

"Where's Steven?" Cynthia asked Alder.

"He's not here? he's usually punctual." Alder replied. The room was silent for a moment.

"Well….where is he?" Lance said impatiently.

"This morning I saw him leave for mount Coronet, probably looking for rocks. He can't have forgotten about the conference could he?" Alder said, a note of worry in his voice. "It's just not like him to forget. He must've gotten caught up there…"

"Mount Coronet is a sprawling maze. One with an exceptionally strong magnetic field. Someone's got to go and get him." Cynthia said, a hand on her chin.

"I'll go." Luna spoke up. The champions looked at her. "I know mount Coronet inside out. I'll find him." She said.

"Well then. Good, Champion Luna taking her first official rescue mission." Victor clapped his hands, amused at his own joke. "This meeting will be rescheduled to 9 am sharp tomorrow. I remind you that we have the league dinner tomorrow as well, formal dress!" And with that the Champions filed out the door.

Steven Stone was in quite the pickle. He certainly hadn't expected this. His magnezone and Metagross and Skarmony were stuck to the ore filled wall in a cave in mount Coronet, magnetic field not letting them go. They had been that way for hours and he was sure he had missed the meeting. Damnit he swore internally. He simply couldn't leave his Pokémon there.

"Thought I'd find you here." A voice said from above, Steven looked up, it was Luna. She had a light smile on her face and certainly wasn't dressed to be trekking in mount Coronet. She was standing on a ledge a few meters away, she flipped down gracefully and landed firmly on her feet, Luxray leaping elegantly behind her. "The ore directly under spear pillar have an incredibly strong magnetic field, it's the choke point of the whole mountain. Some say it was a defence mechanism to stop hikers from reaching spear pillar." She spoke.

"It seems I've learned the hard way." Luna laughed.

"Luxray, reverse the poles, Mr Stone, get ready to recall your Pokémon." Steven nodded, and in an instant the Luxray let out a beam of electricity and the wall released the pokemon. Steven recalled them as quickly as possible.

"Luna, just Steven is fine." He said to the woman. He sighed in relief as his pokemon were safely in their pokeballs, then looked at the woman straight ahead. "Thank you. I owe you." He said with a smile. She didn't reply, only gave a shy smile.

"The conference was postponed to tomorrow morning, 9am, because of your absence. They thought it was important for you to be there." She said.

"Ah…thank you for telling me." Steven was silent for a moment. "I assume you know how to get out of here?" he asked hopefully. It was true, Steven couldn't remember the way he had come, it was too far long ago. Luna giggled quietly.

"Yes, follow me, and uh… if we encounter any wild Pokémon, leave the battling to me." Luna said, turning around. The two had been walking in silence for a while, Steven desperately racking his brain for non-stone related conversation topics, but to his surprise, Luna broke the silence. "So…find any good rocks?" she asked.

"A few. I had planned to go to the grand underground after mount Coronet, but…I got caught up." Steven said.

"Literally." She laughed again; this time Steven chuckled as well. "You know…Under mount Coronet there's a vast chamber filled with different gems and stuff like that… I discovered the tunnel following a wild Sableye." She stopped, turning to face the man. "It's actually not too far from here." Steven's eyes lit up, but he tried to keep his cool.

"Sounds interesting…you know…the meeting was cancelled. I know I owe you, but…perhaps you could show me?" Steven was shameless, he couldn't help himself. He simply was a slut for rare stones. Luna grinned and led the way. The tunnel to the cavern was about 20 minutes away. Steven was quite positively buzzing the whole way, excited as a little kid, his excitement only heightened when they saw the gem-lined tunnel to the Grand Underground chamber. Luna smiled softly when she saw his eyes gleaming at all the stones, and soon enough, the tunnel opened up to a vast cavern, glittering every colour imaginable, sparks of light reflecting in each direction. Steven was positively breathless.

"Well…Here we are." Luna said, placing her hands on her hips. "Go crazy." She laughed. Steven took one look at Luna, then back at the cavern. He got to work immediately, unpacking tools from his backpack, and approaching the cavern wall. Luna wandered around the chamber, the wild Pokémon here weren't used to humans, they weren't very aggressive, more often than not they flitted to some hiding spot to avoid contact with the strange beings. She looked around, she had been to this cavern before, but it always made her wonder… the light beams scattered across the place could be replicated by a Pokémon move of some sort.

She hummed to herself, a little song she had made up in her head, as she took her knitting out from her travel pouch. She always brought her knitting with her, just in case there was the opportunity to get a few rows in.

Best believe I'm still bejewelled, when I walk in the room, I can still make the whole place shimmer! She hummed in a quiet tone.

This didn't go unnoticed by Steven. As he chiselled away at the cavern wall, spotting a dawn stone, he found his lips curving into a smile. He noticed the tink tink tink of his chisel falling into beat with Luna's quiet, almost unnoticeable voice.

I polish up real, I polish up real…nice. She hummed, knitting away, not noticing Steven's head turn to face her.

Luna once dreamed of becoming exactly like her mother. A champion and a contest star. She had watched all her mother's old recordings of performances at the Hearthome arena, including her hit song, 'Cruel Summer'. She was a star, and Luna never had the courage to perform like that, so she settled on becoming champion. That didn't stop her from writing songs now and again. When she had travelled to Unova, she often performed with Roxie as a backup vocalist and bassist. She was younger then, somewhat free. But she wasn't cut out for it, she was much too shy to even step on stage.

After a while she stopped humming to herself, instead listening to the scuffle of pokemon and the soft, soothing tinks of Stevens chisel.

"If you were a stone, what stone would you be?" The question was unexpected, and Steven barely heard it as Luna was quite some ways away. He turned to face her, concentrated on her knitting.

"I'm not sure…. what an odd question." He spoke. "I think you'd be a moon stone though." Luna grinned. Of course, she'd be a moon stone. Just like her name.

"I think you'd be a sapphire or something, maybe opal." Luna said grinning. Steven replicated her grin, genuinely surprised on her knowledge of stones.

"Something so precious as that? I don't think so." Luna blushed, not intending it that way. She stayed silent as she continued her knitting, closing the conversation. But Steven, it seemed, wasn't done yet. "Perhaps I'd be labradorite…or some stone in it's family." Luna didn't know what that was, but trusted Steven's judgement. He was the stone expert after all.

She was so engrossed in her knitting that she hadn't noticed Steven stand and approach her. "What are you knitting?" Luna was startled at his sudden presence.

"Oh! Um a pair of socks. For my sort-of Aunt." Steven chuckled lightly at the term.

"Sort-of aunt?" He asked.

"Yeah, well… she isn't actually my aunt, but she was close with my mom, she's…well, she was my Nanny, but I don't like to call her that." Luna awkwardly explained.

"I see." The socks were purple, the beginning of a delcatty's outline slowly appearing on it. "They're nice."

"They're not finished yet but thank you." Luna said, ever the perfectionist.

The pair had spent most of their afternoon in the cave, Luna occasionally asking odd questions, and Steven occasionally showing her some interesting gemstone he found. It was peaceful. But Steven was conscious that he didn't want to bore Luna, he spoke after a long while of silence.

"You know, you have a nice voice." He said, not turning from the stone swallowed by the cavern's wall. Luna stopped knitting and looked at him, blushing hard. She was grateful he wasn't looking at her.

"I…no."

"Yes, you do." Steven said. "Wasn't your mother a contest star?" He said cooly, already sure of the answer. Steven had indeed done some research on Callisto Renn after that first meeting with the new champion. She was somewhat famous in Hoenn too, being the home of Pokémon contests.

"Yes. She was." Luna said quietly.

"And you've never given it thought? Not at all?"

"Becoming a contest star is…well…I would never do it. I nearly froze on stage yesterday. Besides I'm champion now, I don't have time to perform at contests." Luna said, returning to her sock.

"I'm champion. I'm also here in this cave collecting stones out of pure recreation." Steven challenged.

"Yeah, but that's different. You're on vacation." Luna retorted.

"Just because you're champion doesn't mean you don't get to do the things you love." Steven concluded. Luna didn't have a reply for that. She didn't know it yet, but it was true. If she really wanted it, she could make it work. Luxray purred happily, and lumbered over to Steven, stuffing her big head into Steven's backpack, inspecting the stones.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Luna jumped up from the rock she was sitting on and rushed over to the Pokémon, she shooed him away, waving her hand at Luxray. The Pokémon edged away from the backpack and made a soft growl at the wall.

"I know. something's here. I can feel it." Steven said to the Pokémon. "I just don't know what it is yet." Steven worked away at the wall, but it was hard, and stuck well.

"Luxray, eyes." Luna commanded. At once, the Pokémon's eyes beamed bright, it could see through the rock and Steven gasped at the Ampharosite mega stone embedded deep in the wall. "That's…a mega stone!" Luna said. "I've never seen a mega stone in Sinnoh before!" Steven chipped away at the wall; it was finally coming loose! He grabbed it with his gloved hands and ripped it out of the wall.

Luna and Steven admired the stone, it was truly beautiful, yellow and white and red, and glowing. Steven handed it to her.

"Here." Steven held it in his outstretched hand. "Take it." he said.

"I couldn't possibly! You found it!" Luna said.

"Technically, your luxray found it." Steven replied.

"No Steven. It's yours."

"Don't you live on a Mareep farm? You can use it." Steven smiled. It was a dazzling smile, and somehow, Luna thought, all the gems in the cave didn't compare to it.

Steven thrust it in her hands, satisfied on winning the discussion on who should have the mega stone. He stood up and dusted off his trousers. "We should get back. It's probably already dark out." He said putting away his tools. Luna nodded, it was time. And so the pair went the way they came, through the tunnel and back towards the surface of Mount Coronet.