Creation began on 04-25-24

Creation ended on 05-22-24

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Earning the Eighth Badge

"Brrrrrrrr!" Toji shivers as he brushes the snow off his coat. "I need a hot shower when we get to Snowbelle City."

"Yep," Shinji agrees with him; they had followed the exact route needed to reach Snowbelle City, but they all ended up caught in a mild snowstorm that just appeared out of nowhere. "My legs are turning into popsicles."

Amongst the group, Maya and Hikari had fallen onto the snow twice before Shinji let out Leo to carry them.

"How much further is it, Shinji?" Misato asks, feeling like her nose was ready to fall off.

Shinji stops and looks into the distance, seeing a small series of lights.

"All we gotta do is go down this slope and we're there," he reveals, already tasting the bliss of a cup of hot chocolate.

"Eevo," his Eevee expresses in his arms; the snow had become too thick for her to walk in, so Shinji had to carry her.

"We so did not get the right gear to come this way," Antonio declares.

"No, we packed the right coats," Ritsuko confirms. "We just didn't expect for the snow to be this cold to travel in."

"Yarp," they all heard Pen-Pen go; the cold weather was affecting him more than it was affecting them due to not being used to a cold climate.

"How fast can y'all run?" Shinji asks them.

"I can barely run right now," Asuka tells him. "Why?"

"Because I need Leo to light a fire under my hide."

"Rrrraurgh!" Leo responds as his mouth flares with flame.

"Incoming!" Kensuke gasps and moves away from the Pyroar that releases fire upon Shinji.

Shinji, now covered in mild burns, looks to everyone with a smile on his face.

"It stings, but I never felt better to feel a little warmer," he tells them.

-x-

"…You got second place, Shinji?" Kensuke Aida gasps as Gendo watches the video post of his son obtain the second-place position of his time in the Johto League. "In second place, that's just one step away from first place! You did spectacular out there!"

Gendo found the boy's humble nature at his success to be very pathetic. He never threw a fit at losing a championship, not even a fit when he lost a few matches against a few gyms he visited. And when he did throw a fit, it was when someone did something to set him off, usually when it involved Pokémon, like this Team Rocket group, which earned some comments from people on the video posts that Shinji demonstrated a vengeful attitude when Pokémon were being mistreated, almost to the point where he needed someone to hold him back from going too far. This wasn't lost to Gendo; he also had a vengeful side to his own character, but where he and Shinji differed was that Shinji didn't pursue any vendetta at all costs, whereas Gendo himself would persist until he came out on top.

"How does it feel to be the runner-up, Shinji?" A reporter asked Shinji.

"It just reminds me of how much further I need to go with my Pokémon to reach the top," he responded, "and even long after, how much further I can still go because of Pokémon."

Why couldn't you show this level of humbleness when you were piloting the Eva?! Gendo wonders angrily as the video ended with Shinji's Eevee climbing onto his left shoulder to sit on it. And why can't you focus on finding your way back here?!

-x-

"…On some days, the temperature out there can reach almost absolute zero," Nurse Joy informs the group as they were warming up inside the Pokémon Center. "Even if you dress in the best protective gear, you still run the risk of catching your death of cold."

"And none of us knew because it wasn't mentioned in the map," went Kensuke as he accepted a mug of hot chocolate from a Wigglytuff. "Thank you very much."

"Wiggly!" Wigglytuff expressed and turned to Asuka, who looked almost blue.

"So, all of you are here to face the Snowbelle City Gym Leader?" Nurse Joy asks.

"Nope," replied Shigeru as he sat beside a heater. "Only Shinji here. The rest of us are just here to cheer him and his Pokémon on."

Over near the front desk, Shinji could be seen getting his Poké Balls out and setting them on a tray his Eevee was sitting on. He looked almost like he was barely able to continue moving.

"Shinji Ikari? Isn't he the young man that… The ghost Ursaring incident in Laverre City? He's the one it was after that day, right?"

"That's right," responded Rei, wrapped in a blanket.

"Is it true that he almost…bit the dust?"

Misato shivers as she drinks her hot chocolate and replies, "Actually…he did sort of bite the dust for a little while…and then he was revived by this Legendary Pokémon that appeared. Xerneas."

"The Life Pokémon? I'd say that your friend is rather lucky to be alive."

"Oh, trust me, he knows," says Toji. "Most of the time, he can't believe how close he came to something of a bad ending, only to walk away from it and live to talk about it."

"Blown off his feet," went Hikari.

"Almost drowned at sea," added Maya.

"Poisoned by toxic gas or pollen," stated Asuka.

"Even electrocuted and burnt," Rei finishes.

"And he continues to go about his days like it's common for anyone to experience such things," Fuyutsuki says before finishing his cup of hot chocolate. "But in all honesty, the Ursaring incident was the absolute worst by far; a ghost of a Pokémon that came back to do worse than haunt someone."

"Well, has he recovered from it?"

"Not fully," states Hanmyo as she and her Meowstic were beside another heater, "but he's made progress. He's made progress."

Nurse Joy looks over to Shinji as he returns from the front desk and sits beside his guardian and her ex, looking a little paler than Rei normally did.

Kaji hands him a cup of hot chocolate, and Shinji accepts it.

"Maybe next time, we should fly here instead of walk," Kaji suggests to him. "I'm all for exercising and everything, but it was almost absolute zero out there when we arrived."

"Or…we could travel underground, close to the core of the planet," Shinji counters. "Either way works fine."

"So, what is the prognosis for your Pokémon?" Ritsuko asks him.

"Since only Misato and Leo were the only ones out of their Poké Balls, they got mild exposure, but are expected to recover after tomorrow. Everyone else, Otona, Komadori, Yūrei-Shiryō and Bitā are fine."

"And yourself?" Kensuke asks him.

"Well…I haven't turned blue yet."

"No, but I feel like my back is a popsicle," went Antonio to them. "I need hot sauce in my hot chocolate just to get over the sniffles I have right now."

"Hot sauce? In hot chocolate?" Hyuga questions.

"Believe me, that combo works better than it tastes."

-x-

The mere thought of meeting Shinji at the Lumiose Conference prompted Ash to prepare as best as he could before that day came. He knew it was only a matter of time before he obtained his eighth and final badge like him, but that wasn't what made Ash determined to be at his best. It was the mere fact that Shinji, unlike himself, had gotten further than he ever did in the Pokémon Leagues that they had both participated in, with the exception of the delayed Unova League. Even though they were only a year or so apart from each other in their respective advances, Shinji had gained greater strength and caught more Pokémon than Ash had during the time he visited a new region (and that included rare and powerful Pokémon that most could only dream of catching). And this older person had more experience and a past that was something he didn't really have much joy in before he discovered Pokémon, something he wouldn't wish on anyone that had never encountered such amazing creatures a day in their lives, and this alone made Ash wonder, between the both of them, who would win a Pokémon battle.

He's only one badge behind me, he thought as he ran down the road with his Pikachu. We're bound to meet at the conference in Lumiose City. When we do, I want to be at my best, just as I'm sure he'll be at his best.

He stops running to look up at the clear sky. Maybe it was the fear of losing to Shinji before they even got to meet and talk to one another, but Ash refused to let this fear get the better of him. The fantasy of the two meeting on a battlefield, surrounded by many people in a stadium, either during the day or at night, and the referee just commencing the match.

I look forward to the real thing, he thought as he resumed running, eager to meet Shinji in person and know more about the transient resident of Pallet Town that, like himself, was aiming to be a Pokémon Master.

-x-

As the hot water rained over his head and back in the stall, Shinji felt like his old self once more.

"Oh, yeah," he sighs as he raises his head up to let the steaming liquid warm his face and wash the soap suds away. "It doesn't get any better than this, huh, Misato?"

"Eevo!" His Eevee agrees with him, sitting on a small stool.

"You can say that again," they hear Toji express in a separate shower stall. "The bliss of hot water! One of the best things about life!"

"Eh-heh-heh," Shinji chuckles.

One of the craziest things about right now was that Shinji was technically the only Pokémon Trainer in the Pokémon Center in Snowbelle City; Hanmyo, despite having her cats with her and Kensuke, despite having his Machamp with him, were barely training their Pokémon to participate in matches or contests, but still had the qualifications to be viewed as Pokémon Trainers to some extent. As the young men and women were bathing, Antonio and Fuyutsuki were enjoying a warm meal in the cafeteria.

"Did it snow like this in Japan before Second Impact?" Antonio asks Fuyutsuki as he looks out the window at the falling snow.

"Yes," the elder answers. "It reminds me of how much I loved the country when it had seasons."

"One can hope that the seasons will return in the future. Although…I don't mind the seasons before winter. Mostly spring and autumn; I've had my fill of the summer weather."

"Trust me, I've had enough of summer to last me a lifetime."

Fuyutsuki then looks over at the space where Shinji's Pokémon were eating their dinner…and had to wonder if Shinji's Pyroar, probably the strongest out of his Kalos Region roster by far, was still under his control now that he has seven of the eight gym badges that he needs to enter the Lumiose Conference when it starts.

"You're wondering if Leo will be good with Shinji in his next gym match?" Antonio asks.

"He's among the strongest Pokémon he currently has, but surprises Shinji with just how strong he is."

"Although his Tyrantrum may be just as strong now that she's evolved. I know she's a Dragon-Type Pokémon, but she looks like a dinosaur. Many of the reptilian Pokémon we've seen so far resemble dinosaurs and the bigger ones are often the most powerful ones."

"And Shinji is among the trainers that have a number of them that are large and powerful. As of late, some of Shinji's Pokémon have gotten larger as they evolve. I mean, we've seen some of his Pokémon get bigger upon evolving and it's hard to imagine how he's able to handle them if they're like Leo much of the time."

"To be a Pokémon Trainer means to show no fear towards the Pokémon you catch. You let your Pokémon intimidate you, you give them power over you instead of you having authority over them. His Ursaring, though…the nickname he gave it posthumously… Does it really mean to lament when translated?"

"Yes. It would seem that Shinji's choice of a nickname for particular Pokémon has to have meaning to why he would choose such a nickname to begin with."

Suddenly, Hanmyo's Meowstic levitated onto the table, surprising the two.

"Oh," Antonio gasps, seeing Hanmyo walk over with a towel wrapped around her head; she had apparently finished her bath earlier.

"Shinji doesn't have the right strategy yet for how to face the Snowbelle City Gym just yet, but Leo's bound to be among his choices for facing the Gym Leader," she tells them, making it clear that she knew about their discussion about Shinji. "Personally, he takes into consideration the personal feelings of his Pokémon above their type advantage. He wouldn't make his Eevee go up against an Ice-Type if she wasn't up to facing it, even if she could beat it. And he could also have his Gyarados or another Water-Type come in handy if Leo wasn't enough."

"Why a Water-Type?" Fuyutsuki asks her.

"Because ice melts in water as it warms up."

"Oh, that's right."

"Out of the Pokémon he currently has on him," Antonio reminds, "It's his Eevee, Tyrantrum, Gogoat, Pyroar, Trevenant and Talonflame. He might use his Pyroar and Talonflame, but he might also use his Tyrantrum."

"Bitā may be a Rock-Type, but she's also a Dragon-Type, and Dragon-Types are vulnerable to Ice-Types. Reptiles can't endure the cold."

Both men understood that to be true; Shinji would've taken that into consideration, even if he did choose to use Bitā.

-x-

Oh, how the dream was different this time for Shinji. He was on an open field by himself, looking down two different paths; on his right, the path towards a city that echoed Tokyo-3 was visible a mile away, and on his left was a path leading towards a forest. If he had to wager a guess, this was his subconscious trying to remind him of how his time displaced in the Pokémon world split him between his past as an Evangelion pilot for NERV and his present as a Pokémon Trainer, the latter of which he preferred over the former. But he had already made his decision; he was never going to pilot the Eva again, no matter what his parents thought of his decision to stay as far away as possible from that awful place of a fate they dealt him early on. If it was between a plugsuit and a Poké Ball, he would take the Poké Ball, along with a bag of traveling supplies, a badge case and his Eevee, leaving that life behind.

Even after a brush with death, he thought as he turned to go down the path to the forest, the sins of my parents refuse to let me get on with the life that I chose.

Every so often, when he turned around to see if he was being followed, he would see the echoes of his parents the last time he ever saw either of them. He would just ignore them; they didn't say anything to him that he didn't already know and would rather not hear from either of them again. In his own way, he was doing what his dead Ursaring represented, before and after its death; he lamented over the fact that his past with his parents ended on a sour note and that there was no going back to the delusion that they were a happy family when that was unlikely due to their choices. He practically thought of these six L-words that made sense to him every once in a while, and this was due to what they represented in one way or another.

Lament. Lore. Laudarant. Liminal. Lazarus. Leviathan. The regrets of life. The pursuit of knowledge. The praise and recognition of loved ones. The stimulation of existence. The return of a life lost. And the monster that dwells at the bottom of the abyss that seeks to lay claim to your soul as it rules over your darkest nightmares.

Looking to his right, he saw a colossal head that belonged to a colossal Groudon…that slowly started to rise above the trees to reveal itself.

"Rrrrrrrraaaurgh!" It roars as Shinji runs out to a clearing and sees the Groudon in all its glory.

It had to be as tall as a skyscraper, the largest of potential mutations in Pokémon that could grow to gigantic proportions. A Groudon worthy of the name of Behemoth, after the biblical creature itself, something Shinji wouldn't have minded if he ever caught a Groudon in the future. Along with a Kyogre, then he would have the Pokémon that appeared to be based off the creatures from the Bible: Behemoth and Leviathan.

"Rrrraaurgh!" It roars again as it walks away. "Rrrraurgh!"

"Is this really what you want to do with your life, Shinji?" He hears his mother's voice say to him as he turns back to see her and his father standing several feet away. "Trying to catch animals like that?"

"I've caught creatures like that before," he responds.

"You could get killed."

"It comes with the territory of being a Pokémon Trainer."

"You were nearly killed by one of your own Pokémon," his father reminds him, "and that was one that despised you to the death! Are you really going to throw away your life like this?!"

"Don't pretend that you care about what I do when you don't care at all. You view what I do here as nothing more than an escape from piloting the Eva and facing the Angels, which was the worst thing to make me do to begin with. But it was something you both chose for me before I was able to decide for myself in any actual capacity. I prefer being a Pokémon Trainer over anything you two needed me to be for the sake of some goal, and it's becoming annoying that I have to keep reminding myself of this, even in a dream, simply because you two can't accept that you're not going to get what you want from me, the same way I know I won't get what I never had from either of you. But that's okay, really. I've moved past you two. I'm out of my rut. You two need to move on, too. Do something else with your lives that doesn't require you to hurt others with false promises."

"Shinji…" Gendo utters to him, but Shinji raises his left hand up, holding a standard Poké Ball in its grip.

"This…is my life, you two," he tells them, walking away. "If you can't accept that this is my choice, then there's nothing left to say, even in a dream. Goodbye."

Turning to look the other way, Shinji ran down the other end of the clearing, towards the Groudon that he aimed to catch.

"Eevo," he hears his Eevee chirp, seeing her sitting on a cut tree stump, as if waiting for him. "Eee! Eevo!"

"Let's get to it," he tells her with a smile, and she runs off the stump, heading towards the giant Groudon. "Ha-ha-ha! Wait for me!"

Outside his dream, Shinji turned in his sleep and dropped one of his Poké Balls.

"We…got…this…" He utters.

-x-

"Huh?!" Gendo grunts as he wakes up in front of his computer, having fallen asleep earlier when his coffee ran out. "Oh."

He was watching the posted recordings of Shinji's Kalos gym match against a robot and seeing this large lion of a Pokémon he had exhibiting rebellious behavior towards him a little, which was an indication that it was trying to turn against him for some reason…but was lacking much of the will necessary to do so. And then the robot that was defeated handed him a badge, causing the lion to cease its rogue behavior.

"Some of these creatures can rebel against him or any other trainer," he utters, "but if they possess these badges or have the means to keep them in check, they're obedient."

But he had the craziest dream while he was asleep. He was in some sort of forest with his wife…and they were trying to convince Shinji to turn away from what he was doing and return to them, but he remained steadfast in his conviction to stay away from them and the Evangelion, seeing them as nothing more than a waste of his life…along with them.

"This…is my life, you two," Shinji had told them. "If you can't accept that this is my choice, then there's nothing left to say, even in a dream. Goodbye."

Gendo gets up and goes to his kitchen to prepare another cup of coffee.

Even when nearly killed by one of these creatures, he still chooses that waste of a life with them instead of actively looking for the ones he needs to find his way back here, he thinks as he pours the water into the container. Enjoy your glory while it lasts, boy. Sooner or later, you'll fall into darkness and be nothing more than a forgotten memory.

Looking back at his computer, he saw the video post of his son's participation in the Silver Conference replaying.

-x-

The following morning, the snowfall had finally let up, which allowed for limited time outdoors for several people and Pokémon. This was a good thing, as Hanmyo ran out the Pokémon Center with her cats close behind as Shinji and the others stepped out to observe the snow-covered scenery.

"Man, oh, man," went Toji as he stretched his arms out. "I wish I could snowboard right now."

"What's stopping you?" Shinji asks him; there was nothing to really do today since he was letting his Pokémon rest up before he went off to face the Snowbelle City Gym Leader.

"Uh…no snowboards or directions?"

"Huh?"

Kensuke took out his map and pointed out the direction to the mountain that offered courses for snowboarding and skiing.

"You're in luck," he tells Toji. "The age requirement is twelve and over."

"Whoo!"

"It's been a long time since I strapped on a snowboard," Antonio expresses, and the adults look at him like he was joking. "What? I snowboarded a few times when I was sixteen through twenty-two. It's like surfing with heavy gear."

"Does this make any sense to you?" Shinji asks his Eevee.

"Eevo," she replies with a tilt of her head to the left side.

"I didn't think so, either."

-x-

"Urgh!" Toji groans as he falls face down into the snow.

"I gotta hand it to you, Suzuhara," Antonio tells the teen, "your persistence in learning how to snowboard is admirable."

Toji looks at him and replies, "You know, I wish you had said that before I ate all that snow the third time."

"True, but I'd figure that you get a few fails before you learn the basics of the art."

"So, will you tell me now, please?"

"After you get back up."

As Toji got back up, he and Antonio were being watched by Shinji, Kensuke, Shigeru, Hikari, Asuka, Rei and, Kaji and Misato; everyone else, despite the temptation of the thrills, stayed at the Pokémon Center where it was warmer.

"First up, the steering," Antonio teaches him. "You don't really have your right leg in front of you. There's a measure of dexterity involved. You use your dominant foot in the back the board. If you use it up front, you end up munching on snow. I've noticed you tend to raise your leg up more than your right leg, which implies your left leg is your dominant. Try it again."

Toji did as instructed and gave it a try. He was doing better now than he was a few moments ago.

"Not bad," Shinji says as his Eevee rests atop his head.

But just a few seconds later, Toji ended up crashing.

"Spoke too soon," Asuka remarks. "Why'd you pick skis over a snowboard?"

"Thought I'd give them a try."

Then, Misato got up and strapped on her snowboard.

"See y'all at the bottom," she tells them with a smile, then goes down the slope. "Whoo-hoo!"

"Show-off!" Kaji yells as he gets up to follow her on his board.

"Eh-heh-heh," Asuka snickers. "They should just find a room."

"Really?" Shinji asks her. "I'm pretty sure most of everything we do here is being recorded back at the research station."

"Okay," went Hikari, a little concerned now. "That's a little bothersome."

"Most, not all," Shinji clarified. "Not total invasion of privacy, such as what goes on in the bathroom or during a sleep period. Plus, Kensuke here actually was once suspected of trying to film Hanmyo during inappropriate moments. Not something you want to try with her."

The girls turned to face Kensuke.

"Okay, first up, Shinji," he defends himself, "that was accidental on my part. It was just to see what kind of undies she had on. Second, she threatened to slit my throat if I ever tried to sell any footage of her like that, reminding me that in her past, she is an assassin."

"Well, have you tried to film her like that at any time?" Shigeru asks the teen with the tendency to film everything military-related whenever he could.

"No, and she made me torch the disc. That was three minutes of above-average stupidity I'm never getting back."

"Believe me, if you were caught on film and exposed like that, you wouldn't be very average," Shinji tells him.

"Besides, the footage of your exploits have gotten more views than some of the video posts with Hanmyo in them. One of the posts that got the most attention was of our time at the Lake of Rage in Johto. People saw the side of you that values the lives of Pokémon that have been disrespected by people that see them more as commodities or expendable tools of a trade. One viewer even said the memorial service you did was noble because some people forget that there are animals in the world that don't ask to be tortured or left to suffer like that because some people are after something less than desirable."

"I wrote that post," Shigeru reveals, surprising them.

"You wrote that post?" Asuka questions.

"When I saw the video, it was really amazing. I mean, you see the part of life that not everyone can tolerate because it's the side that hurts the most. You spent most of the day gathering the Magikarp and Gyarados that didn't make it. That sort of act takes commitment."

"Yes…but it took me more heart than commitment," Shinji reveals. "Those that can't treat Pokémon with trust, love or basic dignity are the ones that shouldn't be allowed to have any until they do."

"And your Gyarados crying for several hours in the lake?" Rei asks him.

"Honoring the lives of her fellow Pokémon and praying for their suffering to end as they swim the oceans and lakes in the great beyond that we can't traverse."

"You are the most amazing Pokémon Trainer that we know, Shinji. You're among the best."

Shinji smiles as he turns back to look at the slope and sees Toji doing much better than before.

"Among the best," he says, imagining the Lake of Rage on a good day, seeing the Gyarados and Magikarp he had buried and marked their graves, alive and well, swimming around happily. "Forever humble and devoted."

-x-

Unknown to Shinji and the others, the Pokémon Trainer was being observed from a distance by someone that had heard of him and his exploits, including that time at the Lake of Rage in Johto.

"He's impressive enough," a man says. "And these people that are with him seem to idolize him. He won the Sinnoh League Championship once, and it hasn't gone to his head in the slightest. This is a young man that has trust in his Pokémon and believes in them to the point where he puts his faith in what they do. And to survive an attempt on his life by a ghost of an Ursaring that he caught years ago because it was dangerous… He must be either blessed or cursed or both. And there's talk about the likelihood that he's a reincarnation of an ancient man believed by many to be the very first Pokémon Trainer? That's quite a history if he was able to capture a colossal Dragonite after capturing the Tao Trio of Unova. Who are you for real…Shinji Ikari?"

-x-

After making a short list of several Pokémon his son caught that appeared to demonstrate some hostility towards him or other people, Gendo starts to ponder which of the Pokémon he listed would have been the one most likely to have wanted to kill his son because of one dispute or another. Initially, he wanted to believe that it was this Fearow with the Spearow flock that Shinji caught while in the Kanto Region to protect this Pidgeot protecting a flock of Pidgey and Pidgeotto, but Gendo found that to be ridiculous; there was no way that Shinji would be viciously attacked to the point of being killed by a large bird! His second suspicion was this large rat that once bit him on his left leg, but then he had to assume that the Pokémon that would want to hurt the boy was larger than himself. The fourth Pokémon he wanted to suspect of foul play was this Tangrowth that seemed to act like an aggressive protector, but Gendo had to consider that this walking plant was simply serving a role no different from a bouncer; it was aggressive, but only enough to protect others from those that were just as aggressive when it was unnecessary. And after dismissing a Rock-Type Pokémon that was simply misunderstood, the twentieth and most likely Pokémon Gendo suspected of having a problem with his son…was this large and rowdy bear that, despite having caught during his time in the Johto Region, he never once used in any capacity, either to win a battle or help people out in a situation.

Ursaring? He wonders as he pauses the video clip of the Hibernation Pokémon getting defeated and captured by Shinji. According to his fans, this is the only Ursaring he ever caught that was detrimental in every sense. Hostile to the point of incorrigible and needing to be watched closely at all times.

Gendo began to suspect that it was this Pokémon that tried to kill Shinji after dying a while ago. Despite Shinji's remarkable success as a Pokémon Trainer, he was still an example of how some people (and in this case, creatures, too) were unmoved in any sense by one's ability to sway hearts toward them. If this was the case here, then Shinji was bound to meet people and other Pokémon that simply resented him for whatever reasons there were to resent him for. And nearly getting killed by a bear was just another piece of the tip of the iceberg.

And yet, he still chooses to travel and catch and train these creatures, he thought as he couldn't ponder why any sane person would persist in continuing a profession that almost killed them.

"If you love whatever it is that you do," Fuyutsuki had told him once in regard to Shinji being a Pokémon Trainer, "you get better at it. Even if things happen that endanger your life, you still persevere and move towards the end result of your profession. For some, it is the status and recognition of being a Pokémon League Champion. For others, it's this title and recognition of being a Pokémon Master, whatever that status is. Some believe that in order to achieve that status, one simply has to be among the best and strongest. And Shinji is both, among the best and strongest. He hasn't given up just because of a few setbacks."

-x-

"…What kind of Pokémon are you?" Shinji, Rei, Asuka and Toji sang as they were all walking back to the Pokémon Center. "How do you do the things you do?"

"Share with me your secrets deep inside," Misato adds in as Shinji reaches for the door handle and opens it.

"And do you have a heart that's true?" Antonio goes as he was the last one to enter the building.

"What kind of Pokémon are you?" Rei finishes.

"What kind of Pokémon are you?" Shinji asks her.

"I have yet to decide for myself," she replies.

"I'm a Fire-Type," Asuka states. "Rapidash!"

"The Fighting-Type," Toji adds, raising his fists up. "Hitmonchan."

"Dragon-Type," Misato states her choice. "Dratini."

"Bug-Type," Kaji expresses. "Spinarak."

"Ugh," shudders Antonio, reminded of the time he had those Bug Pokémon on his back. "Fire-Type. Slugma or Magmar."

"What about you, Shinji?" Hikari asks Shinji as he removes his Eevee from his head.

"Do you really have to ask?" He replies, holding his Eevee in his arms. "The answer is always in front of me for all to see."

"Eevo!" Misato chirps.

"How about you?" Shinji asks Hikari.

"Water-Type. Poliwag…or maybe Horsea."

Shinji was about to say something else when his Pyroar came around and tackles him to the ground in front of everyone.

"Rrrah!" Leo roars at him.

"I take it that you're all rested and looking forward to tomorrow?" He asks him.

"Rrrrah!"

"Whoa," went Shigeru, feeling the heat Leo gave off just from being near him.

After confirming from Nurse Joy herself that all his Pokémon were fit to continue, Shinji could now set about his strategy of defeating the Snowbelle City Gym, which practically relied on Leo and Komadori, as they were his only Fire-Type Pokémon on hand since he had switched out most of his previous Pokémon, including his Charizard, to train the ones he caught here in the Kalos Region. However, Shinji had to consider the likelihood that the Snowbelle Gym Leader, Wulfric, could consider a three-on-three match, which required Shinji to have a third Pokémon in case his first two got injured, tired or defeated. Because Yūrei-Shiryō and Otona were Grass-Types, they'd be vulnerable to Ice-Types, and Misato was a Normal-Type…and he wouldn't let her go up against an Ice-Type if she didn't want to, which left him with only one other option if he didn't want to switch out his Pokémon for an edge. Although being a Dragon-Type, Bitā was also a Rock-Type, which were significantly stronger against Ice-Types due to rocks being harder than ice and couldn't be broken as easily as ice could, meaning she was both advantaged and disadvantaged against the Gym Leader's Pokémon.

"Need some advice?" He looks up and sees Ritsuko looking over at him as he contemplates his course of action against the gym for tomorrow.

"As long as it doesn't involve evolving Misato over here," he chuckles.

"Eevo!" Misato responds, raising her forepaws up to gesture that she was against being evolved.

"Eh-heh-heh. You two are both set on that being a rule, and yet you still manage to pull through every time. My suggestion is that you do the same as you did last time. You put your faith in your Pokémon, and they surprise you in the end with their efforts."

"That's true. But it sounds like luck half the time, doesn't it?"

"If I had to confess to it, more than half the time went up against an Angel, the chances of us winning always came down to luck because we were never in control of the situation."

"Control is an illusion meant to give us all a sense of stability. When the illusion is broken, however, there's something to be sought after that is better than control."

"And that would be…"

"Cooperation."

"Cooperation?"

"Control is an illusion. Cooperation is a choice between two or more forces at work to come together to achieve something none of them could really achieve on their own."

"Too true. Tell me something, though. It's probably tiresome to be asked time and again, but when you…got injured critically by…Nageku, you call it?"

"That's right."

"What were your thoughts in that moment?"

"My thoughts were…the relief of knowing that we got away from Nageku. Even if he had managed to kill me, we still got away from it. Or rather, we got away from him."

"Because the Ursaring you caught was a male?"

"Yes."

"Personal question now: Was it painful when it happened? The sense of dying?"

"Honestly? It hurt so much that I couldn't even cry about it. I would say that it's quicker than falling asleep, but in that case, even when it felt like it was seconds away, and it was seconds away…every second felt like an eternity because it was the result of your life being taken against your will by someone that loathes you to the point of deciding that you needed to be taken out. And while I won't be completely over that horrible experience…I'm getting past it because of Yūrei-Shiryō helping me to cope with such a near-death experience that was more extreme than any other violent experience I've had with Pokémon."

Ritsuko then looks down at his Eevee, who simply looks back her.

"If I can ever find a variant of Full Restore that could serve as a pharmaceutical equivalent to the fabled Fountain of Youth," she tells Shinji, "I'd like to see it be put to good use on people injured in industrial accidents and so on. Who knows? Maybe even a way to regenerate lost or damaged body parts, like hands and organs."

"That would be amazing. Even if it's only theoretical and has yet to be proven possible, the mere thought of achieving such a feat would also make one filthy rich if sold to the right buyer."

"Still, the proceeds would likely go to charity or towards more beneficial research into helping people's lives."

"If I can catch Pokémon like Groudon and Kyogre and was able to bring them back to our world, they'd be able to restore the planet's landmasses and lower the oceans."

"But, as you've proven, it's not something you can rush. You'll find them when you find them. However long it takes you. You got time on your side."

Shinji smiles and then pets Misato on her head, earning a purr from her.

"I am so looking forward to attending the Lumiose Conference when it starts," he says.

"Any particular reason?" Ritsuko asks him.

"Other than to try and win it? There's someone else here in Kalos that comes from Kanto's Pallet Town that I've been waiting for a chance to meet. We've heard of each other's exploits, but we have never once met in person."

"That Ash Ketchum person?"

"That's right."

"Almost six years since you've been here…and not once have you two met?"

"I started out a little over a year after he did, and he was in the Johto Region when I started my journey to Pokémon League in Kanto. The journey is different for each person, as well as the destination they're on. But patience pays off to those that have the will to wait for the opportunity they're seeking."

"And you're both heading towards the same place here?"

"It wouldn't be the Lumiose Conference if it wasn't in Lumiose City."

"Now, you have me looking forward to it when you get there."

"Great things come to those that wait. I've been around six different regions with Misato here, meeting new people, finding out about different Pokémon. I can wait a little longer for the next great excitement that's just around the corner for everyone. But first…we need to earn the eighth and final badge to enter the conference."

"Best of luck."

Shinji smiles as he continues to stroke Misato's head.

-x-

Unlike his wife who died because of the Eva, his son was practically murdered by a misbegotten Pokémon, was then brought back to life by another Pokémon associated with the region he was visiting…and resumes his profession like there's no change in what he does. This infuriated Gendo due to how Shinji comes back and continues to affect the world around him…and how Yui didn't come back from the failed attempt to restore her body and mind out of the Eva…and she continued to spend every passing day trapped within its core. And because he was removed from his command at NERV, he couldn't even speak with her to express his contempt towards their son for his stubbornness at doing what he did instead of what he should've been doing. But the boy was trying to find a different way to change the world instead of doing so because of some prophecy people older than him knew of and tried to exploit for their own purposes, which resulted in conflicts of interest between everyone involved.

"I'd sooner see him fail than succeed," he mutters as he watches a video of Shinji facing this woman that was a Dragon-Type specialist to obtain his final badge for this Johto League. "I'd rather him fail period. Then, he'd have no choice but to return to the old scenario."

But he knew that it was just wishful thinking; Shinji was now too independent of everyone to simply stop and crawl back to the previous way of living. His time displaced and his attempt to ruin the Giovanni Corporation's project only resulted in the Third Child being around that other dimension for over four years, and now the majority of NERV was putting their faith in Shinji and the Giovanni Corporation's ability to change the world for the better.

"Tell me, Shinji," a recording of the Fourth Child speaking to Shinji while filming him feeding his Shiny Gyarados, "if your father could see you right now, knowing of the things you've done while here, what would your thoughts of him be?"

"If he could see me right now?" Shinji had responded, looking slightly bothered by the question. "Honestly, if he could see me right now, I'd probably hope that he's at least proud of how far I've come as a Pokémon Trainer."

"Why is that?"

"Because there have been moments in every other day where many trainers feel like they're not going to prosper or are just going to mess up on something. But this is life, and everyone has a few bad slips once in a while. And I'm no exception to this; there have been days where I feel like stopping, where I worry that I won't reach the goal I'm after, or just having a crisis of faith…but I keep going…and I'm glad that I keep going. If he were proud of my success as a Pokémon Trainer…maybe he'd see me as a better person instead of something else."

"Something else? Like what, exactly?"

"Like a lackey or…an embarrassment."

Gendo paused the video processed what he heard…and looked at the reviews written by other people that watched it. While a handful were of the lack of fear at being around the colossal sea serpent, there were those that mentioned how Shinji's answer about how his father would be towards him that hit a different note for the man as he read them. One of the reviewers claiming to be a father himself…and wishing that he had told his son that he was proud of his crazy dream of being a plumber, or of another guy that claimed his father never saw him as much of anything, but watching this video gave him encouragement to keep going until he found his thing that enabled him to turn his life around after a brief struggle with addiction and the loss of his girlfriend. There was even a post of how watching this video helped a father reconnect with his seven-year-old daughter after the passing of her mother, thanking Shinji for expressing his hopes that his own father would at least be proud of him.

This was something Gendo didn't expect to hear at all. His son, separated by time and space, stranded in another world where these amazing creatures thrived…and the only thing he once said about his father was that hoped that he was at least proud of him and didn't see him as a lackey or embarrassment. He resumed the video and listened to the rest.

"Why would he see you like that?" The Fourth Child asked him.

"We don't really talk about anything," Shinji answered. "At least…not about anything that we should've talked about. With him, he seems to put work before anything else. It's hard to relate to someone that isn't even there. He only praised me once, but it was only because of something I did that I really didn't enjoy doing."

"Piloting the Eva, you mean."

"Yes. It's not my passion. It's not my bliss or something I want to return to doing. Even if we were never to agree on anything else in my life, I'd at least want to hope that he's proud of what I do enjoy doing with my life. It's the first time I ever felt like I was able to be happy about doing something I actually love doing. And…if other people could do it and be happy or have people that they know be proud of them, it would mean a lot to know."

Gendo sighs, silently wishing that he had seen this video post before his account was blocked.

To be continued…

A/N: I'll be honest, the last part took me by surprise because I just didn't expect to write it. But what did y'all think about it? Shinji has a strategy to face Wulfric…and Gendo just watched an old recording of how he hoped that his father would at least be proud of his being a Pokémon Trainer. And as for the few pieces of comments by other people that watched the video, it's meant to convey that some people have found hope and absolution from watching the exploits of Shinji and are able to take from it some sort of victory against the everyday struggles that plague us to no end. Until the next chapter, see ya around.