Timothy, Coovers, Sonia, Electchu, Oshawott, and Yamper continued to laugh during the train ride to Motostoke. Coovers and Sonia reenacted the prank call, with Sonia pretending to be Luke using a silly low voice. Timothy laughed at everything their friends quoted and praised his friends for their work. All the while, he was holding on to his backpack, where Luke's freezing coil was stuffed between his textbooks and notebooks.
During Pokemon Biology, Coovers and Erin glanced at each other while Coovers was writing notes. Erin still looked away bashfully as soon as she laid eyes on Coovers, yet she smiled throughout Mr. Jacq's lecture, relieved to see Coovers and his partner fully recovered. Timothy and Sonia smiled at each other, happy things were looking great for their best friend and his dreams. Simultaneously, Timothy was glad that Erin was so invested in Coovers for the sake of his plan.
At the end of first period, everyone but Coovers put their stuff away and exited the classroom. Timothy waited to make sure Mr. Jacq had left the classroom for his free period from teaching before turning to Coovers to give him a wink. Coovers grinned and gave Timothy a thumbs-up before grabbing a lab bottle from the counter behind his seat. Timothy, Sonia, Electchu, and Yamper exited the classroom while Erin collected her things at Mr. Jacq's desk. Coovers waited until he, Erin, Oshawott, and Piplup were left and dropped the lab bottle. The bottle landed on the floor and broke into pieces, startling Erin and Piplup.
"I'm okay," Coovers said with his hands up.
Erin sighed with her hand on her chest and said, "You startled me. What happened?"
"I, uh, was getting up and didn't see the bottle behind me, and I guess I knocked it off the counter when I turned around," Coovers lied.
"Oh, I see," Erin said. "You need to be careful with lab equipment. They're very expensive, and Mr. Jacq's budget was cut drastically for this year."
"Oh my goodness, I had no idea," Coovers said.
"It's no big deal. You didn't know," Erin said. "Anyway, you better get to your next class."
"I'm afraid I can't do that. I insist I help you clean this up," Coovers said.
Erin smiled and nodded before grabbing Mr. Jacq's small trash bin next to his desk and two pairs of gloves from the lab equipment cabinet. She and Piplup walked over to Coovers and Oshawott, and the students knelt down with Erin, putting on a pair of gloves and giving Coovers the other pair. They carefully picked up the pieces of the lab bottle while Piplup and Oshawott held up the trash bin.
While they picked the pieces, Timothy snuck back into the classroom while Sonia, Electchu, and Yamper waited outside as the lookout. Timothy carefully opened the chemical cabinet and, with his backpack already open, grabbed several bottles of pheromones and stuffed them into his backpack. Coovers looked up as he grabbed two pieces of the bottle and smiled as he watched Timothy tip toe out of the classroom until Erin cleared her throat to grab his attention.
"How are you and Oshawott feeling?" Erin asked.
"Good as new, thank you," Coovers said. "Although, it helps that you were there to help me recover while Nurse Joy took care of Oshawott. That was very sweet of you."
Erin tinted and looked away, playing with her hair.
"I-it's no problem. I just did what anyone would do," she said.
"All due respect, my lady, I think we both know that's not true," Coovers said with a flirtatious smile. "Timothy told me how everyone laughed at me and Oshawott, and you were the only one apart from him who thought to help. Far as I'm concerned, dear maiden, your kindness is as unmatched as your beauty."
Erin's face turned beet red, and she hid her face with her ponytail.
"W-W-well, I share that kind of admiration with you. I admire a handsome man who stands up for his friends like you did the other day," she said, looking at Coovers with her ponytail covering the bottom half of her face to hide her blush. "By the way, I liked how you battled against Guzma. You really know how to handle going against someone like him."
"Piplup," Piplup agreed.
"What can I say? Oshawott and I know something about humiliating hot-tempered bullies," Coovers boasted. "Truth be told, I can't believe Oshawott isn't a Dewott yet. It really deserves to evolve. Don't you, buddy?"
"Oshawott!" Oshawott boasted with its flippers on its hips.
Erin let out a giggle that made Coovers' heart skip a beat. Timothy and Sonia, who were watching at the door with Electchu and Yamper, covered their mouths to hide their laughter. They quietly walked away to leave Coovers with his crush, and Sonia looked back before turning to Timothy with a heartfelt smile.
"I can't believe what we just saw. They look so cute together," she said.
"I know, right? Not only did we get the goods, but Coovers is getting more quality time with Erin. That's what I call a score," Timothy said.
Sonia rolled her eyes over Timothy bringing up his plan before mentioning Coovers and Erin.
"Yes, it's great that we got the pheromones. Those two are going to be pretty late for second period, though," Sonia said.
"I don't think they care right now," Timothy said. "Speaking of being late to class, we're going to take a little detour."
"Detour? Why?" Sonia asked.
"I looked on social media during class and found that Guzma's victim today is a poor soul named Chandler Buller," Timothy said. "Rumor has it he intends to bully Chandler while he's gathering stuff at his locker. We're going to save poor Chandler by playing the McGoogle's theme song on my phone."
Sonia frowned and asked, "Are you sure about that, Timothy? I can't see Guzma being so traumatized that just hearing the song is gonna scare him. Besides, how do you plan to do this without Guzma knowing what we're up to?"
"You'll see. Now, come on," Timothy said.
Timothy took Sonia by the hand and led her down the hall to the other side of the floor with their partners following. He led them up the stairs to the third floor and stopped at the corner where dozens of students were grabbing things from their lockers. His eye was on a boy a foot shorter than him and Sonia wearing brown glasses, a blue shirt, a brown vest, and worn-out jeans. Standing on his head was his Emolga, anticipating gym class with a cute smile.
Timothy looked past the boy and his Emolga and smirked as he saw Guzma and Ariados coming from a distance. He took out his phone, opened the music app, and knelt before Electchu.
"You ready?" Timothy asked.
"Pikachu," Electchu said hesitantly before taking Timothy's phone with its tiny hands.
Timothy's smirk grew as he picked up Electchu with both hands, walked over to the wall of lockers where Chandler and Emolga were, and tossed Electchu over to the top of the lockers. Electchu walked on the lockers until it was above Chandler and Emolga, then waited. Guzma closed Chandler's locker while he was still gathering stuff, and Chandler and Emolga quivered with fear as Guzma moved his jacket back to reveal the name "Chandler Buller" on it.
"Hello, Chandler," Guzma greeted.
Chandler whimpered and his legs shook while his Emolga hid under his vest. Guzma and Ariados chuckled as they surrounded Chandler and Emolga, with Guzma cracking his knuckles and Ariados waiting for him to give the word to use String Shot. Timothy gave Electchu a two-fingered salute, and Electchu nodded before hitting the play button on Timothy's Rotom Phone.
The second the music began playing on Timothy's phone, Guzma's mischievous grin fell. First, there was the sound of a ukulele playing a slow tune, followed by a keytar. After a few beats, Guzma heard bagpipes playing a giddy melody and he grew ill at ease. Finally, Guzma's blood froze when the bagpipes stopped playing, replaced by a silly, high-pitched voice singing.
McGoogles is me name; I'm a happy pizza eater.
It's time to play a game with your favorite Frogadier.
One, shake your leg with a shaky shaky shake.
Two, wiggle your ears with a wiggle wiggle wiggle.
Three, pat your tummy for your pizza pie, so yummy.
Four, count to 10, then we start it all again.
Oh, McGoogles is me name. I'm a happy pizza eater.
Let's play another game with your favorite Frogadier.
As Electchu repeated the track, students and their Pokemon looked at each other, wondering where the music was coming from. Some laughed at how silly and childish the song was. Others criticized how "eater" and "Frogadier" do not rhyme. Guzma, however, backed away from Chandler, Emolga, and Ariados with his face as pale as his hair. He looked around the hall fearfully as though it was nighttime, the lights were out, and he was alone with a mysterious beast about to attack him from the shadows when he least expected it.
Students and their Pokemon noticed Guzma's reaction and laughed with some of them recording him on video. Ariados grew embarrassed by its partner's demeanor and nudged him with its front leg. Guzma jumped at the touch of Ariados' leg and chuckled as he looked at Ariados with an awkward grin. He gestured to Ariados with his hand that they should go, and they walked away without saying a word to Chandler. Chandler and Emolga looked at each other with Emolga's head popping out from under Chandler's vest, unsure of what happened.
Timothy gave Electchu another salute, and it stopped the music before returning to its partner with his Rotom Phone. He put away his phone and turned to Sonia, who covered her mouth with both hands to hide her laughter. Sonia looked back to see Guzma still looking around in fear as he walked, and she bent down laughing with her hands on her knees.
"Enough proof for ya?" Timothy asked.
"Y-y-yes," Sonia giggled. "I wish I recorded that so we can show it to Coovers and Oshawott."
"I'm sure there will be more than enough coverage on social media with people publishing their own videos," Timothy said. "In any case, it is painfully clear that Guzma is still traumatized by McGoogles. Now, we just need to sneak my dad's costumes here tonight; then, we can strike tomorrow."
"Sounds good to me," Sonia said.
"Pikachu," Electchu said.
"Arf, arf," Yamper barked.
During the following three classes, Timothy was high in confidence. Before second period was over, videos of Guzma getting scared of the McGoogles theme song hit social media, making it easy for Timothy and Sonia to prove to Coovers in between classes. Coovers was astounded that the guy who ambushed him and Oshawott was scared so easily. Yet, simultaneously, he was pleased that he, Timothy, and Sonia had an open opportunity for revenge, as Timothy claimed. Coovers then bragged about how joyful it was to talk to Erin while she was distracted.
It was hardly surprising to Timothy, Sonia, Electchu, and Yamper that Coovers would go on about Erin. Coovers followed his story with Erin asking if Coovers and Oshawott would like to join her and Piplup to have lunch outside on the lawn. Coovers begged Timothy to let him have lunch with his crush instead of helping him and Sonia steal Matori's tablet. Timothy agreed, assuring Coovers that he and Sonia could handle stealing the tablet without him and seize his moment. Coovers squealed in joy and knelt to kiss Timothy's hand as though he was standing before a king who accepted his request. It was an awkward display of gratitude Timothy hoped Coovers would never do again.
At lunchtime, Timothy, Sonia, Electchu, and Yamper hurried to meet at the cafeteria to be one of the first people to get their lunches. When they got their food, they sat down at a table with Timothy and Sonia opposite each other. Though Timothy and Sonia's partners were enjoying their Pokemon food and they themselves delighted in eating their sloppy joes and chips, they constantly glanced at both entrances to the cafeteria, wondering where Matori and Meowth would appear.
12 minutes into lunch, Matori and Meowth entered from the east entrance. Matori shouted, "Margin Call," and students and Pokemon looked away, praying they wouldn't be Matori's target for the day. Matori scanned through the lines while analyzing her data on her tablet. Sonia eased up, relieved that the targets had come, and turned to Timothy.
"So, what's the plan?" she whispered.
Timothy smirked mischievously as he opened his backpack and took out a bottle of pheromones.
"One drop of this stuff, and Matori will be so distracted that she won't notice if her tablet is out of her grasp," Timothy said.
"Ooooooo. So, we're gonna have a little prologue with what's gonna happen to Principal Sordward and Vice Principal Shielbert?" Sonia asked.
"Exactly. We're gonna have to return Electchu and Yamper to their Pokeballs so they don't join in the fun, though," Timothy said before holding the bottle out to Sonia. "Would you like to do the honors?"
Sonia looked at the bottle and then at Matori, who was still searching through the lines before she smirked and turned to Timothy.
"You know what, Timothy? It'll be my genuine pleasure," she said. "Yamper, finish your lunch quickly."
"You too, Electchu," Timothy said.
Electchu and Yamper hesitated, not wanting to rush on their meal, then wolfed down their bowls of Pokemon food. Timothy and Sonia put Electchu and Yamper in their Pokeballs, and then Timothy handed the pheromones to Sonia, who stood up and walked toward Matori and Meowth. The bullies had begun pressuring a chubby boy with a Caterpie into giving them his lunch money. Everyone else in line looked away from Matori, Meowth, the boy, and his Caterpie, and everyone eating their lunch apart from Timothy kept their heads down less they risked catching Matori's attention. The chubby boy begged Matori not to take his money, but Matori ignored his cries, lecturing him about trust funds and someone "freezing his assets." Sonia opened the bottle, carefully stepped behind Matori, and poured a tiny drop of pheromones onto Matori's jacket collar.
The instant the pheromones landed on Matori's jacket, the chubby boy's Caterpie jumped onto Matori's right leg and nuzzled it. Caterpie was quickly followed by Meowth, hugging Matori's other leg. The next thing Matori knew, a Ratta, a Scorbunny, a Koffing, a Munchlax, a Shelder, and a Seedot were wrestling with Caterpie and Meowth, all wanting to nuzzle her legs. Matori flapped her arms, trying to stay balanced as more Pokemon came from all directions.
"Meowth, cut it out!" Matori shouted before turning to the chubby boy. "Restrain your Pokemon right now!"
"I swear, I don't know why Caterpie is doing this," the chubby boy said.
"I don't know why my Ratta is doing this either," another boy said.
'Zubat, come back!" a girl shouted.
"Vulpix, do you want me to owe Matori for the rest of my life?!" a third boy shouted.
More and more Pokemon rushed to Matori, with their partners soon following. The only people and Pokemon in the cafeteria not crowding Matori were Timothy, the lunch ladies, and students with genderless Pokemon. Matori waved her right hand defensively in an attempt to swat the Pokemon away while holding her tablet back with her left arm, still unaware that Sonia was right behind her. Sonia waited until later Matori's hand was far enough back to grab her tablet and slip it from her grasp. She pushed through the crowd, covering her arm and holding the tablet with her trench coat, then rushed over to her and Timothy's table, where Timothy held his open backpack out to her. Sonia shoved the tablet into Timothy's backpack and Timothy closed it while Sonia went back to her seat.
The chaos lasted for a couple of minutes before people thought of putting their Pokemon in their Pokeballs. Eventually, everyone's Pokemon were in their containers save for Meowth. Matori returned Meowth, and she sighed in relief with her hand on her chest before looking daggers at the students around her.
"Alright, fess up. Who's idea was this?" Matori asked. "Someone must've convinced you all to have your Pokemon attack me."
"No one did. We swear," the chubby boy said. "I have no idea what got into Caterpie."
"Yeah, it wasn't like my Houndour to do that," a girl said. "For that matter, your Meowth was acting the same as the rest of our Pokemon."
All the other students save for Timothy, Sonia, and the students with genderless Pokemon said words of agreement.
"Excuses," Matori said. "If the culprits don't step up, I'll raise the rates so high that you'll all be paying me well after you've graduated college. In fact, I'll calculate how much that -"
Matori raised her left hand to use her tablet only to find nothing in her hand. She froze in place, her mouth quivering, and her pupils shrunk to the size of grains of sand. Students watched Matori stare at her hand in confusion, and her right eye began to twitch as it hit her that her device was gone.
"W-where is it?! Where's it gone?!" Matori shouted.
"Where's what gone?" a girl asked.
"My tablet! I had it in my hand, and now it's gone!" Matori screamed. "Who did it?! Which one of you stole my tablet?!"
Everyone in the cafeteria, including Timothy and Sonia, raised their hands, proving they didn't have Matori's tablet. Matori shook her head in disbelief and whimpered while staring at her hand. After a few seconds, she let out a high-pitched scream and ran her fingers through her hair vigorously, then ran out of the cafeteria out of hope that the perpetrator had already run away with her tablet. The cafeteria was silent for a couple of minutes before the students silently agreed it was safe to get back in line or eat their lunch. Timothy and Sonia stared in the direction where they last saw Matori, then looked at each other snickering.
"Holy moly, I was not expecting that reaction," Timothy said.
"No kidding. I think I broke her brain," Sonia said, earning another snicker from Timothy. "Too bad no one recorded her freak out. Coovers would've liked to see that too."
"Yeah, well, he's got something far more precious going on," Timothy said. "Hopefully, if everything goes according to plan, he'll practically forget about Matori so he can focus solely on Erin and getting into the Pokemon battle club when they do tryouts again."
Sonia's smile vanished in a blink of an eye, and she looked down at the table, crestfallen. Timothy picked up his sloppy joe to take a bite before looking up and seeing tears in Sonia's eyes.
"What is it?" he asked.
Sonia sniffed before looking up at Timothy.
"When you say things like that, it makes me think of how you aren't gonna be here when Coovers' dreams come true. He could win tournaments with Oshawott fully evolved and marry Erin after school, and you won't be there," she said. "Not to mention Principal Sordward and Vice Principal Shielbert might give Gran back the paddock and you and Electchu won't be there helping us take care of the wild Pokemon again."
Timothy's heart ached as Sonia spoke. He knew there was much he and Electchu would miss, but he didn't think about how much it would affect their friends. He hung his head, ashamed for not considering Sonia's feelings, and then he looked up and took her hand with a sad smile.
"We'll still keep in contact after I move, and it's not like I'll be gone forever," he said.
"Yeah, but you'll make new friends and might grow to like them better than us," Sonia said.
"Never," Timothy said firmly. "No one can replace Coovers, Oshawott, Yamper, or, least of all, you, Sonia. I love my parents, but my real home is with you guys. I'd rather move back to Galar after graduation than replace everything I hold dear here. I'd still miss those milestones with you and Coovers, but at least we can pick up where things left off at a time of our lives where we won't have to submit to anyone."
Sonia's lips curled, feeling a little better with Timothy's claims. She took Timothy's hand and gave it a squeeze while she and Timothy stared into each other's eyes. Then her smile disappeared again, and she let go of Timothy's hand and looked away. Timothy frowned in confusion as Sonia played with her fingers in unease.
"Speaking of which, do you ever think about the day before Valentine's Day?" Sonia asked.
Timothy flinched as though Sonia smacked him in the face. Sonia's heart sank, knowing she worsened the mood, yet she knew she couldn't back down now. Whether the timing was right or not, the subject was festering in Sonia's mind, and her time with Timothy was short.
"Why are you bringing that up now?" Timothy asked.
Sonia took a deep breath to prepare herself and said, "Well, since you're talking about picking up where things left off, there's something important that I -"
"Hey, Timothy,"
Timothy and Sonia turned their heads and saw Tulip walking over to them with Kirlia, Dendra, and Medicham. Timothy's eyes widened and his cheeks turned pink as it hit him that Tulip was coming over to him while Sonia's hands turned into balls of fists. Tulip and her friends stopped beside Timothy, and she put her hand on his shoulder, which sent shivers down his spine and made Sonia clench her teeth with her mouth closed.
"Glad that I found you. And Sonia, good to see you too," Tulip said.
"Thanks," Sonia said dryly.
"Hey, where's your buddy, Coovers, and your Pokemon?" Dendra asked. "In fact, where is everybody's Pokemon? We heard screaming on our way here, and we came in with everyone eating lunch without their Pokemon. What did we miss?"
"Kirlia," Kirlia agreed.
"Medicham," Medicham said.
Timothy and Sonia looked at each other, and the former said with a chuckle, "You wouldn't believe us if we told you."
Tulip, Dendra, and their Pokemon looked at each other. Dendra furrowed her brow, growing more curious with Timothy's response, and Kirlia and Medichan were anxious to find out why they were the only Pokemon in the cafeteria. Tulip, on the other hand, raised her eyebrow, then decided to let it go with a smile.
"Okay, if you say so," she said. "Anyway, I'm glad we found you guys because I've been meaning to talk to you."
"You have?" Timothy and Sonia asked simultaneously.
"Yes. Have you ever been to the Battle Cafe before?" Tulip asked.
"Can't say we have. I live in Postwick, and Sonia and Coovers live in Wedgehurst. We've never been to Motostoke before school started," Timothy said.
"Oh really? Then I think you'll really like what I offer," Tulip said. "You see, Coach Surge still hasn't set up a date for Pokemon battle tryouts to resume, so in the meantime, Dendra and I are going to meet up with some of our old teammates from last year after school at the Battle Cafe. We were hoping that the two of you would like to join us for some milkshakes. Coovers is welcome to join, too, of course."
Timothy opened his mouth, ready to say yes, then stopped himself, remembering that he, Coovers, and Sonia were going to sneak into the school later that night.
"We have plans tonight," Sonia said bluntly, knowing what was on Timothy's mind.
"Aw, could you cancel your plans just for me?" Tulip asked flirtatiously, her eyes still on Timothy as though he was the one who answered. "I'd like to talk more about Pokemon battles so you guys can ensure a spot in the team."
"I…I'm afraid we can't," Timothy said begrudgingly. "We have some important things going on that we can't hold off. Otherwise, we'd love to come."
Tulip pouted, having expected the guy on her hook to submit to her wishes. Dendra raised her eyebrow, intrigued by Timothy's resistance and curious about what he could have going on to decline an invitation from the most popular girl in the school. After a few seconds, Tulip smiled again, pretending she wasn't disappointed, and leaned her upper body until she was at eye level with Timothy, with her hand still on his shoulder.
"Well, if it's important, then I suppose it can't be helped," Tulip said. "Still, I want you to join us when you have some free time."
"S-s-sure. If we do, you'll be the first to know," Timothy stuttered.
"I'll hold you to that," Tulip said. "Anyway, we better meet up with our group. Catch you later, Timmykins."
Timothy's blush grew from the coquettish way Tulip called him Timmykins. He bashfully waved as Tulip, Dendra, Kirlia, and Medicham walked past him and Sonia. Sonia looked daggers at Tulip as Tulip and Dendra sat at a table with other underclassmen until she heard Timothy sigh.
"We finally have a chance to gain recognition and we have to turn it down because I'm moving. What rotten timing," Timothy said. "Anyway, you were saying, Sonia?"
Sonia winced again, feeling as though someone had punched her in the gut.
"I forgot," she lied. "Let's just get back to our lunch."
Timothy tilted his head, unsure if Sonia was telling the truth. After a moment, he returned to his sloppy joe, figuring that what she was gooing to say might not have been important. Sonia returned to her sandwich, but she wasn't hungry deep down. She looked at Tulip, who laughed and joked with her friends like she owned the world. All the while, boys gawked at her from their lunch tables. Some were earning dark looks from their girlfriends. Sonia looked at Timothy while he ate his sandwich, and her heart ached as she feared the one obstacle she feared she couldn't overcome before it was too late.