Pokémon Nuzlocke Novels: Ancient Scarlet

Chapter 15: Son of a Beach

"Hello, hello. My name's Jacq, and I'll be your Pokémon biology teacher." Jacq said with a friendly smile to the assembled class, which included Milo, on a bright Tuesday morning.

"In my class, we'll all learn about the various quirks of our beloved Pokémon together!" Jacq said as he clapped his hands. "I hope you all come to love Pokémon even more from the things you learn here."

Milo listened intently as Jacq continued in a relaxed voice. "In today's class, I'll teach you a great way to get to know Pokémon in more depth. If you'd like to become better friends with your Pokémon…you can let them come out of their Poké Ball and walk along with you! Sounds great, huh? Nothing cuter than watching your Pokémon run around underfoot, if you ask me."

"I'd also advise talking to them. They'll be sure to respond in some way. Pokémon are just as social creatures as you and I. It's a great way to get to know them better!" Jacq went on, pacing back and forth. He turned to the class with a mischievous smirk. Jacq went on to explain several in-depth studies done on the nature of friendship and affection respectively.

"However! Letting your Pokémon out of its ball isn't such a great idea in some locations." Jacq said, his smirk becoming a rather sly smile. "Can anyone tell me where it is that you shouldn't have your Pokémon walk along with you?"

Milo considered it, and after a few moments raised a tentative hand up. Jacq pointed at the boy, who responded quietly. "Inside of buildings?"

"That's right!" Jacq beamed, laughing with delight. "Great job, Milo. I see you did your homework. The correct answer is that we should not walk with our Pokémon indoors. How about that!"

"Now, that may be common sense, but you'd be amazed at how often things need to be replaced because some thoughtless person decided to send out an Onix inside of a post office. I won't name any names, but it's definitely a situation I've seen firsthand!." Jacq said with a helpless shrug. "Some Pokémon might damage walls, desks and other things walking around inside buildings, so it's not allowed regardless of the species."

"Therefore, please only let your Pokémon out of their Poké Balls while outdoors. Okay, everyone?" Jacq asked before blinking a few times, as if remembering something. "I think I see them out and about in classrooms from time to time, but still…"

Milo smirked himself at the thought of someone calling out a Gyarados in the school Entranceway and causing mayhem as Jacq continued. "Anyway, you may become even closer friends with your Pokémon pals by walking together!"

"Professor, do you walk with your Pokémon?" one of the students asked.

Jacq nodded, grinning at the question. "Of course! I go for an evening stroll with my Pokémon every night before we have dinner. It stimulates the appetite and it's a wonderful way for us to bond."

Jacq continued his lecture for a long while, explaining various other ways to bond with your Pokémon. He even mentioned how there was a place in Sinnoh that was specifically designed for such a purpose. Amity Square was a place well-known for allowing visitors to amble around with "cute" Pokémon, which resulted in countless arguments over the years about what counted as such. The class itself even had a long discussion about the subject, however Milo found himself not joining in because he had the oddest sensation that someone was watching him.

For the record, you are being watched. And not just by me.

"Wait, what? By who? Can you tell me?" Milo asked the voice, earning a mental scoff in response.

Nope.

"Thanks for nothing." Milo thought back sarcastically, leaning forward at his seat with an annoyed expression.

Anytime.

A loud chime that everyone recognized echoed throughout the school, causing Jacq to jump slightly. "It looks like that's all the time we have for today. See you all next class!"

Milo hopped up from his seat and exited the classroom, waving back at Jacq as he waved at the class in farewell before heading to his room to do some studying…unaware that he was still being watched.

The student in question watched as Milo departed, heaving a sigh and throwing up the hood on her hoodie to cover her face. She quickly walked through the hallway and ducked around the corner with a frustrated expression, with her fluffy Eevee backpack vanishing from sight without anyone glancing her way.

Milo walked up to his dorm room, only to spot both Juliana and Arven standing beside the door chatting. Both students looked at Milo as he approached, stopping their conversation.

"Not one, but two visitors? I'm popular today." Milo asked, smiling at his two friends as Arven waved at him.

"I ran into this big lug at lunch and sat him down with the girls. We all came to the conclusion that Arven has some awesome hair, so we tried getting him to tell us what he does to make it so nice!" Juliana chirped, grinning at the taller student who laughed nervously.

"Y-yeah, that was a conversation I wasn't ready to have." Arven replied, rubbing the back of his head with a faint blush on his face. Milo grinned at the mental image of the quartet of excitable girls badgering Arven about his hair.

Milo opened his door and let his friends inside, calling out his team and allowing them to frolic around the room. Reggie continued to waddle alongside Milo as he walked over to the fridge and pulled out a water bottle.

"Huh. So this is your room. Cozy." Arven commented, though a shadow passed over his face as he noticed Koraidon napping on the massive mat that Milo had bought for it.

Arven shook his head and turned his attention to the signed posters of the Galar Gym Leaders and a few knickknacks Milo had seemingly brought from home. He also noticed a half-open cardboard box with what looked like a picture frame sticking out the top. Juliana looked over at the package and realized what it was.

"Ooh, you got a care package? Wait, I swear to god, if you have some of Mrs. Hannah's fudge and you didn't share, I'm going to dropkick you down the huge stairs in front of the school!" Juliana proclaimed as Milo gave her a bored look.

Milo walked over to the box and carefully closed it before pushing it back. "She's sending some in the next care package, actually. Mum didn't have the ingredients on hand when she sent this one."

"Hey Milo, have I ever told you how great of a friend you are?" Juliana said sweetly, giving her best friend an almost pleading look. Arven snorted with amusement at the exchange while Milo rolled his eyes.

"So what's up?" Milo asked his two friends as he sat down in his desk chair.

Arven crossed his arms, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Well, I was thinking about what Juliana said the other day and realized that she was right. I'm gonna need another Pokémon for my team if I'm gonna take on the Titans. It ain't fair on Munchy to have him do all the work."

"Good call. Any idea what you wanted to find?" Milo asked his friend, who considered it as he looked over Milo's team. His eyes lingered on Shelly, who was floating around Storm's head and giggling at her.

"I'm thinking a Water-type would be good." Arven admitted as Shelly let out a cry and floated to Milo, who rubbed the Bivalve Pokémon's shell. Storm also chose that moment to land on Milo's shoulder, her talons digging somewhat painfully into his shoulder.

"Good idea. I've got Shelly and Cocoa for dealing with Rock-types, so I'm good on that front. With the two of us having an advantage over the Titan, we'll be set." Milo said easily, leaning back in his chair.

"So where's the best place to get Water-types?" Juliana asked, looking at Milo and Arven, who both considered it.

"I mean, there's a ton of places to find them, but some are easier than others. We're not exactly Trainer powerhouses, so let's aim for something we can handle." Milo said in reply, with Juliana nodding in agreement. She had more experience as a Trainer than Milo did, but not by much.

"We could probably head out to Los Platos and check out the water over there. I think I've got a canoe tucked away somewhere in my bag, so we can go even further out over the water if we want." Arven suggested, grinning now at the thought of adventuring in the ocean.

"I've never bee canoeing! Sounds like this'll be a blast!" Juliana chimed in as she picked up Fiona and sat down on Milo's bed.

"Wait, you want to go out over the water?" Milo asked, going somewhat pale. Arven looked at him for a moment before nodding. "I'd…rather not. I'm not good around deep water."

Arven looked surprised by this. "Really?"

"I mean, looking at the ocean doesn't bother me. But getting close to the ocean, or really any big bodies of water, makes me really nervous" Milo said apologetically, with Arven realizing Milo actually somewhat looked uncomfortable.

"Can you swim?" Arven asked, earning a nod from Milo. "And still you're scared of large amounts of water?"

Milo's response was another silent nod. Arven stared at Milo for a second, looking concerned. If he had been paying attention, he would've noticed the profoundly uncomfortable look on Juliana's face as she looked away from him.

"You can hang out on the beach, little buddy! It's no problem at all!" Arven said bracingly, giving Milo a wide grin. It took a surprised Milo a few moments to smile back at Arven, open relief on his face.

"T-thanks Arven." Milo said gratefully as Shelly landed on his lap, crying out happily as Milo patted her head.

"You can set everything up for a big beach picnic!" Juliana suggested, causing Arven to do a small fist pump.

"That sounds good. I can get things set up for Arven so he can make us some awesome sandwiches the second you both get back from getting him a new teammate." Milo offered, with Arven letting out a laugh as he placed his hands on his hips.

"Now you're speaking my language! How about we head out first thing tomorrow? I'm already itching to get back out there!" Arven said excitedly, giving the two freshman an enthusiastic thumbs up. "We're in for some inclement weather where the Stony Cliff Titan is anyway, so we might have to hold off on any in-depth exploration for another few days."

"If we're making this an all-day thing, we should probably figure out more to do than just a beach lunch and getting you a water-type. But what…?" Juliana put a finger to her chin, thinking of how they could pass the time. Milo considered that, and then realized he could kill two birds with one stone.

"Hey Arven, you want to help me do something while we're out getting you a teammate?" Milo asked his friend, who raised a single eyebrow at the rather vague question. Juliana also quirked an eyebrow, wondering just what her best friend was up to.

The Next Day…

"How do I let you rope me into these things!?" Arven shouted as Munchy the Skwovet squealed in pain from the Acid that the bright blue Toxel had launched at him.

The Tera Toxel let out a wail as it flailed its arms and legs from its crystal podium. Arven returned Munchy and called him back out so that Arven could quickly heal the poor Pokémon. The Tera Raid Den that they found themselves in gleamed and shimmered around them as the battle raged on.

"Just keep attacking!" Juliana called out, her expression one of total fear as Niles continued to spam Snarls to whittle away the Toxel's strength. The Nickit was faring better than Munchy, but that was just because it was a stronger Pokémon. Juliana was very unnerved being inside of the Tera Den and it showed on her face as she battled.

Milo glanced at his friends with a faint smile, not particularly bothered by the Tera Toxel. Especially when his Tera Orb flickered brightly, showing that it was ready for use within the Tera Den. Of the three of them, he was the only one he had access to the device.

"Cocoa! Terastallize!" Milo shouted as he primed his Tera Orb and hurled it, causing his Paldean Wooper to become a Tera Wooper. She lashed out with a Mud Shot, bolstered by the power of Terastallization, and struck the Tera Toxel hard enough that the crown atop its head shattered into a thousand pieces.

One spectacular ball throw later, followed by some rewards from the 3XC member who was assisting them with the Tera Den, and Milo was sitting on a rock looking down at the rather grumpy-looking lizard that was sniffling a little.

"Toxel. The Baby Pokémon. It has no problem drinking dirty water. An organ inside Toxel's body filters such water into a poisonous liquid that is harmless to Toxel. This Toxel is Female and has the Ability Static. Its Tera Type is Ice." The Pokédex App informed Milo as flicked through what moves the newly-caught Pokémon knew.

"Dirty water. Like mud?" Arven questioned, wondering about that particular fact.

"Well, we shouldn't have to worry about that." Milo said as he lowered his phone. He smiled down at his newest Pokémon, already excited at having a new teammate.

"She needs a name." Juliana remarked as she sat down on the grass, looking at the Toxel and cooing at her. "Aww, you're just a big stinky cutie baby! Aren't you?"

"Toooox!" the newly caught Toxel cried out, getting on all fours and padding over to Milo, who had slipped on the gloves he tried to use whenever handling Cocoa and her slimy skin. He held out a hand to the Toxel, who sniffed it for a few moments before Milo petted her on the head. The Toxel made a soft noise before nuzzling Milo's hand.

"Man, this is always the hard part. I'm awful with names. Maybe something electrical…?" Milo muttered quietly, still petting the newly-caught Pokémon.

"How about Echo?" Arven suggested as Milo and Juliana both looked at him in surprise at the sudden suggestion. "If I remember right, Toxel evolves into some kind of cool rocker Pokémon, right?"

"Yeah, Toxtricity. They're kind of rare, but they can be found in the weird dens that are in the Wild Area back home in Galar." Juliana remarked, grinning at the thought. "It's a good name, Arven!"

"She's right, it is a good name." Milo agreed, ignoring the snickering inside of his head.

How is everyone better at naming your Pokémon than you?

"Because I suck sometimes, now zip it." Milo thought before registering the name in his Pokédex. He spotted another Tera Den not too far from where they were at, shooting up a black beam of light. "Looks like our next target is in sight."

"Good. I'm definitely not built for this outdoorsy stuff." Juliana grumbled, brushing her hands on her shorts to get the dirt off of them, only to realize she had gotten her shorts dirty. Juliana frowned in annoyance, but decided to just start walking as Milo returned Echo and joined his friends trekking through the area.

"You get used to it." Arven said as he adjusted his pack, grinning at the younger Trainers. Milo had noticed that the older Trainer seemed particularly enthusiastic about their latest adventure, and wondered why that was. He brushed the thought aside and went hiking towards the next Tera Den.

The trio made their way past several ruins, large ponds and even a few cliffs, which were easily scaled thanks to Arven being somewhat familiar with the path. Despite that, it took the better part of an hour to get to the next Tera Den. Milo recognized the black crystals with a faint red coloring to them as belonging to a Dark-type Tera Pokémon.

Milo dropped down into the Tera Den with Juliana and Arven alongside him. It didn't take long for another 3XC member to poke their heads into the den and join them in a Tera Raid. The group made their way into the lair of the Tera Pokémon. It was a small Pokémon that looked like a fruit, and Milo recognized it as a Bounsweet, a Pokémon he had seen several times.

Thankfully for the team, it wasn't very powerful, so the battle didn't last particularly long. Milo used Storm for the battle, with the Wattrel making quick work of the Tera Bounsweet with repeated Plucks. As the crown shattered, Milo hurled another Poké Ball and acquired his ninth Pokémon.

"With a competent team, these Tera Dens aren't too bad. Thankfully these are just the One-Star Dens." Arven remarked as he helped Milo and Juliana out of the hole. The 3XC member was loitering behind them, so they stopped caring and focused on the adorable fruit Pokémon Milo had called out of the Poké Ball.

"Sweeet!" the Pokémon cried out in a high-pitched voice, bouncing up and down. Milo chuckled softly as he pulled out his Rotom Phone and pulled up the Pokédex entry.

"Bounsweet. The Fruit Pokémon. Its sweat is sweet, like syrup made from boiled-down fruit. Because of this, Bounsweet was highly valued in the past, when sweeteners were scarce. This Bounsweet is Female and has the Ability Leaf Guard. Its Tera Type is Dark." Milo looked at the Pokédex entry for several moments before thinking of a name.

"Aww, just look at her!" Juliana squealed with delight as she knelt down and held out her hand, rubbing the top of Bounsweet's head and causing her to let out a delighted sound. "You should name her Fleur!"

"What? She's my Pokémon! Stop suggesting names!" Milo said with a slight panic, ignoring the Voice that was laughing at him again. Juliana reached forward and snatched the Pokédex out of his hands. Milo made a move to grab it from her, only for Arven to step in front of Milo and block him. By the time Milo had slipped past Arven, Juliana had already registered Fleur's name in the Rotom Phone.

Milo snatched his phone back and glared at his two friends before sighing and picking up his newest Pokémon. "You guys suck."

Arven and Juliana exchanged a fist bump while Milo started walking towards the beach nearby, which even had a Pokémon Center Outpost. This struck Milo as odd, but Arven explained that many of the outposts were in odd locations to help Trainers as they traveled through the vast Wilds of Paldea.

Arven quickly threw out an item capsule and prepped his canoe, with Juliana joining him. Soon the two were paddling out over the water, with Milo watching them nervously.

"Get over it man…You're here. You're okay!" Milo hissed to himself, clenching his fists as he stared at the ocean. He felt trepidation that his two friends were heading out over the deep water, but forced down the emotions and focused on the beach by turning his back to the ocean.

Milo had already swapped around his team, swapping Cocoa for Fleur and sending out his three new Pokémon. Milo managed a smile at the trio as he stared at them on the beach.

"We're expanding the team again. Awesome." Milo muttered as he thought about what to do next. He had a lot more options now, especially since he had spent a few weeks working on strategies and ways to make the most of his Pokémon's movesets. He checked the levels of his Pokémon and found they were all sitting around the same power as the rest of his team. He also noticed that he had a growing pile of the XP Candies rattling around in his bag, and he eyed them for a few moments before pulling out a handful of them.

"I wonder how much they boost experience by. It can't be that much if they're so tiny, right?" Milo muttered as he fed a few to Echo, with the Toxel happily munching down on the candy. As Milo offered some to his newly caught Fleur and the Bounsweet gobbled down the treats, the Voice spoke up.

So remember how I said to be careful about overleveling? You accidentally just made your Toxel and Bounsweet too powerful to face the Stony Cliff Titan.

Milo froze as his hand began to move towards Fiona, another XP candy in his hand. He paused for several long seconds before an angry growl escaped him.

"You couldn't have warned me before I tried that, Mister I Know Everything About Nothing?!" Milo barked angrily, frustrated by the knowledge that his entire day catching new Pokémon for his team was effectively pointless against whatever the Stony Cliff Titan had in store for him.

What I know and don't know don't matter. You did something, and it has consequences. You were going to have to figure out what those candies did at some point. May as well have it happen now, as opposed to later when it may matter more.

Milo nearly screamed in frustration at that, but held himself in check because his Pokémon were still out and he didn't want to scare them. But now Milo was truly in a bind.

If Echo and Fleur were banned from being used, then that meant Milo had to make due with the rest of his team. He felt a fresh wave of fear and anger at himself, but also the Voice for being so unhelpful. How was he supposed to know how potent the weakest of the XP candies were?

Maybe you should've just given the candies one at a time? I guess there's no harm in telling you that those candies give set amounts of experience. And that experience is relative, so giving a candy like that to your Pokémon means more than giving one to Nemona's Pokémon.

"Shut up! Just sod off and leave me alone." Milo grumbled as he rubbed his face, feeling the exhaustion of the day seep into him. The Voice let out a bark of laughter, but its presence faded.

Well, it's not all bad. Your Pokémon are roughly as strong as what you'll face with the Stony Cliff Titan. You don't need to do any more battling with them to have a fair fight against it. Be wary of over-leveling your team any further. Toxel and Bounsweet are already off-limits, after all.

"I know that, Captain Obvious, thank you!" Milo grumbled as he sat back down on a rock, only to freeze when he noticed Fleur the Bounsweet suddenly glowing with a beautiful blue light.

"No way…" Milo breathed, his eyes going wide in surprise as the Fruit Pokémon's entire body became a beacon of blue energy that bathed the beach in light. The Pokémon that Milo had just caught was evolving before his eyes.

His very first evolution.

Milo's team watched the spectacle in awe as the Bounsweet's body began to shift and change before their eyes, and soon enough the light faded. A new Pokémon was standing there on the beach, smiling up at Milo brightly.

"Steeee!" the newly-evolved Pokémon cried out, causing Milo to break out into a wide grin as he knelt down.

"Wow…look at you Fleur! You evolved! You look awesome!" Milo excitedly gushed, pulling out his Rotom Phone to pull up the appropriate entry.

"Steenee. The Fruit Pokémon and the evolved form of Bounsweet. Steenee spreads a sweet scent that makes others feel invigorated. This same scent is popular for antiperspirants." Milo listened to the entry intently as the Steenee bowed slightly, smiling joyfully up at her new Trainer.

"Looks like we're both experiencing a lot of crazy stuff today." Milo said with a grin, patting Fleur's head gently. By that point Echo was letting out a whining sound, jealous of the attention Fleur was getting, but Milo ignored that. He picked up Fluer, since she was still fairly light, and carried her over to the team.

"Maybe I should just relax. I'll figure something out…It's a nice day and we deserve some rest." Milo said to everyone, making sure to pet Echo so she got her much-needed attention. All of the Pokémon let out various cries at that, eager to play to their heart's content.

Even Koraidon got into it, letting out a loud growl of delight as it wriggled its body, overjoyed at the afternoon sunshine soaking the beach in its warmth. With a few quick swipes of its powerful claws, it made a large hole in the sand that it quickly curled up inside of. Now that it was covered in hot sand, the beast closed its eyes to take a long nap. Milo smiled fondly at the Pokémon before turning his attention to his team.

"Enjoy yourselves but don't get into trouble, okay?" Milo instructed his team, earning several nods and a bored look from Storm. The Wattrel flew off and landed on a rock while the rest of the team tore across the beach, leaving Milo in peace to consider his options and just relax in the shade on the beach.

About an hour later, and well after Milo finished setting up the picnic for everyone. Milo spotted Juliana and Arven paddling back towards the shore. Arven was grinning triumphantly, while Juliana had a sour expression on her face. Milo realized with some amusement that his best friend had a bright red face and looked exhausted, her hair somewhat frazzled*.

"She doesn't go out and rough it in the Wilds very often, so this little adventure has her cranky." Milo thought with a smirk as he pulled out an item capsule and made a small cooler appear on the table. As Arven and Juliana stepped out onto the beach, Milo walked over to greet them.

"So, mission success?" Milo asked the duo, causing Juliana to glare at him and then walk over to the table, where she collapsed with exhaustion. Arven laughed quietly and pulled out a Poké Ball, sending out a Shellder that looked very much like Milo's.

"Oh wow. Looks like Shelly has a new friend!" Milo remarked cheerfully as Shelly floated over and greeted her fellow Shellder, who responded by joyfully crying out to its counterpart.

Arven sat down at the table and began going over the stats on his Shellder, learning that his new Pokémon was a male. Arven began to consider names for his new Pokémon while he quickly whipped up some delicious Ultra Avocado Sandwiches. The sandwich aficionado made excellent use of avocado, smoked filet, tomato, lettuce and a dash of salt to the delight of his freshman friends.

Milo even managed to bully Arven into making an extra sandwich that Milo fed to Koraidon, much to the latter's delight. He also revealed how he had accidentally evolved his Bounsweet to a Steenee, with Fleur hopping up onto the table to show off her new form, much to the amusement of them all. Juliana naturally thought she was adorable while Arven was curious about the medical benefits of having a Steenee on Milo's team.

Sometime later, as Arven sipped the last of his canned lemonade, he finally came to a decision. "I've settled on the name Barbossa for my Shellder."

"You mean like the bad guy from that one pirate movie?" Milo asked, remembering the movie series in question. The second movie with the giant Tentacruel in it was his favorite.

Arven smirked as he patted his Shellder, the newly-named Barbossa crying out happily as he did so. "The very same. I've got a good feeling that with him and Munchy, we'll be unstoppable!" The Skwovet bounded across the table and hopped onto Arven's shoulder, causing him to laugh as Juliana and Milo smiled at him.

The group continued to chat and enjoy one another's company. With good food, great Pokémon and even better friends the hours rolled by quickly. However, the sun soon started to descend in the sky, and that meant that they needed to either set up camp or start heading back to school.

"I think we should head back to the Academy and regroup. If we're going to be searching for this Titan, then I'm going to make sure my team is up to it. Make sure my coursework is good before taking a few days to hunt down this monster." Milo said as he returned his team, more than ready to go home and relax for the day.

Milo had purposely avoided using Koraidon to travel around, due to Arven's animosity towards the creature, and so hiking around on foot had worn him out completely. Poor Juliana looked more ragged, and was sporting bright red skin as a result of the sunburn she had received from being out on the ocean for so long with Arven. Milo had offered her the sunscreen he had packed, but it was too little too late for the Galarian girl.

"I need some aloe vera, a Rawst Berry smoothie, and a bloody nap!" Juliana huffed grumpily, returning her own Pokémon and crossing her arms.

Arven shrugged his shoulders, not looking particularly bothered by everything that they had done today. If anything, Arven looked like he had enough energy to hike through the rest of the night. "Pffft. Like I care about that. I'll be roughing it out here looking for any leads. Maybe head up to Artazon to see if there's been any sightings. Plus I've got to train up my new friend!"

"Are you sure you don't want to come back with us?" Juliana asked Arven, who shook his head.

"Nah. Gonna look around for a bit and see what other materials I can scavenge, too. I'll be back at the Academy sometime in the next few days, so don't wait up for me." Arven said with an easy smile before ruffling the hair of both Juliana and Milo. "And thanks for the help, you two. I appreciate it."

"No problem!" The two freshman chorused at the same time, grinning back at their friend. Arven walked down the path alongside his friends, parting ways with them at Los Platos.

Milo and Juliana got back to Naranja Academy via the Flying Taxi. Within an hour, Milo was walking through the door to his bedroom (and locking it behind him as always) and calling out his team, ready for an early bedtime. He had already rearranged it so that he had Reggie, Cocoa, Shelly, Storm, and Fiona with him while Echo and Fleur were in PC Storage. He'd have to be very careful about the XP Candies that he had acquired while pillaging the Tera Dens, as well as what Pokémon he had on him when training. After all, Pokémon could gain experience from battles even when they weren't actively involved. If Milo wanted the freedom to use his team how he wanted, he would have to be careful.

"Time for a hot shower and a…" Milo paused as his phone started buzzing from where he had set it on his bed. He walked over to it, tossing his shirt onto his bed with a sigh. As Milo went to pick it up, the call went to voicemail. With a pang, Milo saw that Nemona had been trying to call him.

"Too slow. Damn. Well, I'll text back in a little bit-" Milo muttered, throwing his phone back onto the bed and grabbing a towel-

And then suddenly Nemona!

"Hey Milo! You wanna-" Nemona threw open the door with a wide smile on her face…before realizing Milo was standing there shirtless with a towel over his shoulder. Milo let out an embarrassed yelp and clutched the towel to his chest, glaring daggers at Nemona as she let the door close behind her. Nemona just stared at Milo for a few moments before she blinked a few times and let out a yelp of surprise.

"Can't you knock!?" Milo yelped, flushing bright red as he glared at an embarrassed Nemona, who quickly turned around as Milo walked around the corner of the room and put his shirt back on.

At least you're wearing pants.

"S-s-sorry! I was gonna ask if you wanted to go into the city and grab dinner! I fly out for my League thing tomorrow and won't be around for a while." Nemona asked Milo, who regained his composure and smiled as he walked back around the corner, throwing his towel over his shoulder. He saw Nemona was currently facing the other way, fidgeting slightly.

"You can turn back around, you know." Milo said with a chuckle as Nemona did just that, grinning at her friend. "And dinner sounds good. Just give me a few minutes to clean up. I've been out all day and I'm sweaty and gross."

"Alright. I'll head back on over to my room then." Nemona said with a nod, only for Milo to shake his head.

"Nah. You can chill here if you want. I shouldn't be too long." Milo said as he grabbed a change of clothes and went into his bathroom, leaving Nemona to her own devices.

"I know I locked that door." Milo grumbled as he rubbed his face, willing the embarrassment to drain away from him before he set about getting clean. He made sure to lock the bathroom door, and even went the extra step of bracing a small decorative rock against the door.

Meanwhile, Nemona staring at the door Milo had vanished behind, mentally kicking herself for not knocking or at least sending a text to let him know she was on her way over. With a shrug, Nemona made herself at home, sitting down at Milo's desk as Koraidon growled softly in greeting.

"Hey there, Koraidon! How are you today?" Nemona asked the draconic mount as she rubbed its head, earning a strange hum from the Pokémon as it smiled at her. Nemona cast her eyes around the room as Koraidon laid its head back onto its bed, seeing that Milo had decorated the place further. She spotted a newly put-up signed poster from current Galar League Champion Victor, joining the other posters Milo had of Leon and Kabu. Milo had also added a small picture of himself posing with Katy, a reminder of his victory over the Sugarbug.

Nemona took a few minutes to just relax, enjoying the peace and quiet as she played with Milo's team. However, a troubling thought came to her mind as she considered something from a few minutes ago. It had been just for a brief moment, but she could have sworn she saw-

"Alright, ready to roll!" Milo said as he walked out of the bathroom, dressed in a fresh academy uniform and looking refreshed. Nemona hopped out of the chair and smiled at her friend, who promptly returned his team and Koraidon before the two students exited the room. Milo locked the door behind him, taking a moment to ensure it was actually locked, and then walked down the hallway with Nemona.

"So how was your day? Didn't you and Juliana go out adventuring with Arven?" Nemona asked Milo, who nodded and happily began to tell his Champion-ranked friend about his day. Nemona listened to her friend intently, but quickly found her attention returning to what she had seen earlier. And what had concerned her so much.

A series of strange lines that stretched across Milo's entire chest, with some appearing rather faded with age. It had been for a few moments, but Nemona had seen them. And she knew what they were.

"Why is Milo's chest covered in scars?" Nemona wondered to herself, glancing at her friend as he continued to speak, unaware of the worry in his friend's heart. Nemona considered it for a few moments before putting it out of her mind. She knew her friend was a bit of an enigma, especially because he never talked about his life in Galar, but Nemona would figure her rival out soon enough.

Milo couldn't keep his secrets forever, after all.

Milo's Current Party:

Reggie (Fuecoco) M - Tera Fire

Cocoa (P. Wooper) F - Tera Ground

Shelly (Shellder) F - Tera Fighting

Storm (Wattrel) F - Tera Flying

Fiona (Flittle) F - Tera Grass

Benched/PC Storage:

Echo (Toxel) F - Tera Ice (Overleveled for Objective #2)

Fleur (Steenee) F - Tera Dark (Overleveled for Objective #2)

Graveyard:

Sparky (Pawmi) M - Tera Electric

Pepper (Maschiff) F - Tera Poison

That's all for now! Next chapter, we have the big showdown with the Stony Cliff Titan!

Massive shoutout to my reviewers since the last update, which includes BraviaryScout, Rare Joe Star and DaGuest. Thanks so much for your feedback and support, you are all legends!

If you enjoyed the chapter, please show your support with a favorite and/or follow and leave your thoughts in the review section below. I also cross-post on AO3 if that's more your speed. You can also join the Discord channel for my fics if you PM on this site.

Take care and stay awesome!

Until next time, FlygonNick out!