"Are you here on appointment?" a weary lady spoke behind an old, birch-wood desk. She was guarding a wooden double door behind her, and her impatient taps against the copper-marble floor irked Charles as he walked up to her.

"Yeah, I'm on for 10:30. My name is Charles Lockwood," he replied, standing as polite as a nail holding up a loose painting.

The woman squinted at a computer on her desk. After a second, she nodded.

"I'll need to see your license, please."

Charles was quick to go into his back pocket to take his wallet out. He pulled out a small ID card and passed it to the woman, who took the card quickly in her polished nails.

"How many pokemon did you bring?"

"Three pokemon. Two class B's and a class C."

The woman sighed before clacking away at her keyboard. It didn't take too long for her to hand Charles back his license.

"It looks like your entry fee was already paid for, so you are all set to head on in. Roxanne is waiting for you."

"Thank you." Charles bowed before entering the gym.

The inside was dimly lit with yellow lighting, like a theater during a dramatic showing. He walked along the right-side walkway, a railing separating him and the huge sandpit the size of a basketball court below. Gray rocks jutted out from random places in the pit, and smack dab in the middle was a woman with two ponytails that crisscrossed behind her head. Her smile was dull and unfurnished, but as soon as she noticed Charles, it grew wide and full of emotion.

Roxanne, Charles recognized her. He ambled down a staircase where the walkway met in the middle. She wore her standard black miniskirt and red bow tie. A guy wearing white and black referee clothing was situated along the side of the battlefield.

"I admit, I didn't expect Walter to call me about adding you to my battle schedule today. I thought your first badge would be against Cheren from Unova." Roxanne's cheerful tone echoed throughout the room, getting Charles' attention.

"Even though I was born in Unova, Hoenn will always be my home," Charles replied, sliding his hands into his pockets before reaching her.

"I'm happy to be the first gym leader you face. After all, you were my student."

"You won't be happy when I defeat you. With ease," Charles said wily.

Roxanne's eyebrows lowered, but her smile stayed. "Well then, let's see just how much you've learned!"

"Positions!" the referee on the sidelines shouted. The two walked back up the stairs before splitting at the top of the walkway. They both took positions on opposite sides of the field when they arrived. Charles unclipped a pokeball from his belt and brought it to his lips.

"Espeon… let's win this. For Moxy." He whispered. He felt the fires of anticipation swell inside him. All of the knowledge he'd learned from the moment he got his first pokemon would be tested here. He couldn't fail. He wouldn't fail. Too much was at stake for him.

"The challenger Charles Lockwood will commence battle against gym leader Roxanne!" the referee spoke loudly, which was easy to do in the silent gym. "The battle will be one on one combat, but only two pokemon may enter. Whoever's pokemon is knocked out first loses. If a trainer recalls a pokemon, they are forfeiting the round!"

Charles was looking hard at Roxanne on the other side, trying to figure out her game plan. Her face had a similar expression.

"The gym leader will choose their pokemon first. The challenger will choose second."

Roxanne primed a pokeball in her hands and released the pokemon within on her side of the pit.

Dang, Nosepass already. A drop of sweat trickled down the side of Charles' head. The rigid-looking pokemon was swaying from side to side like a slow metronome. Roxanne was smiling, her anticipation for the battle obvious.

"Go, Trapinch!" Charles aimed his pokeball at the pit. Once she appeared, Trapinch was quick to scurry underneath the sand. She lifted her eyes out just a little to peek at her opponent.

The referee pulled out his own pokeball and released a pale-blue pokemon. There were wings on the sides of its head, and it had a large shell on its back. The Wartortle climbed up the referee's shoulder and put its stubby hands outwards, materializing a green, transparent shield around the referee and itself.

"Begin!"

Charles shielded himself from the explosion that sprouted from the middle of the pit. Once it cleared, he saw Espeon standing in the explosion's epicenter, a brilliant bubble surrounding her.

The Armaldo she faced swung a wild and heavy claw at her like a steel ax, but a wave of red energy stopped it dead in its tracks.

"Finish this!" Charles shouted. With a growl, Espeon lifted her head high, the silver bell that dangled visible to all. Armaldo was flung straight up into the air. She released her psychic grip on it and faced away from the battle, leaving Armaldo to fend for itself in its free fall. Before it could hit the ground, a red light engulfed Armaldo.

"Roxanne has forfeited her last pokemon! The challenger Charles is the winner!"

Charles looked over at Roxanne. Her expression was calm and sincere, like a rainbow after hard rain. Charles and Roxanne made their way back down towards the center of the battlefield littered with soot and cracked rocks.

"Good job, Charles," Roxanne beamed, and then said, "I'm impressed. I remember Espeon not being able to control her Magic Bounce properly. It seems you've been able to remedy that."

Charles rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it was a team effort. My friends may have given me advice, and I may have done my best to train her. But Espeon is the one who gave it her best in this battle."

Espeon ran up to Charles before he scratched the back of her ear, making her purr. The silver bell jingled as Charles undid its knot and took it off of her.

"You did amazing, Espeon. Now rest," Charles spoke softly. Espeon chirped before being recalled.

Roxanne had a cheery smile on her face when Charles looked back at her. "It really was a great fight. I've learned so much from our battle. I thank you."

Charles was overjoyed when she said that. All the training he put up with Bisharp had paid off, and he didn't let Gallade down either. He was now a step closer to achieving his goal.

The referee walked up to them holding an old, brown case in his palm. He presented it to Roxanne, who took the box from him.

"I'll be the first to congratulate you on achieving victory against great odds, and I present you with the Stone Badge as a way to commemorate it."

Roxanne opened the box and displayed the reddish-yellow, rectangular badge to Charles. The far ends of the badge looked like arrowheads facing away from each other, and Charles removed the badge out of its case with gentle care.

The Stone Badge was cold to the touch, but it soon warmed like a hearth in his palm. This badge was his golden ticket. As soon as he showed his father, Charles would be free from his iron grasp. And then, he'd be allowed to search for Moxy with impunity. Charles opened the badge case his father gave him and stuck his newly acquired badge into its respective spot.

"Moxy would have loved to see you this happy."

"What?" Charles shot his gaze up at Roxanne.

"Well, I know how much she idolized you. I could tell every time she walked into class."

Charles was surprised to hear Roxanne talk about Moxy, and he rubbed the toes of his shoe into the sand before responding.

"Yeah. I guess she would have."

Roxanne waved off the referee before beckoning Charles to walk with her along the sides of the arena. As they walked, sand lapped off of Charles' shoes.

"Do you miss her?" Roxanne asked, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. Charles was taller than her, making it a little awkward.

"Do you?" Charles took a second to reply, his voice shy.

"Greatly. I saw such promise in her. I only wish I had done more for her before she committed that robbery."

She didn't do it, is what Charles wanted to say. The two were silent as they continued to walk.

"She was always distressed… after Dahlia died." Roxanne crossed her arms, her voice low. "I didn't really know how to help her. I thought if I said the wrong thing… it would make things worse."

"I'm sorry, Roxanne, but why exactly are we talking about Moxy?" Charles asked, almost rudely. Thinking about Moxy dredged up a sadness within him, and he was unable to suppress it from Roxanne.

Roxanne was silent for a moment before she whispered, "I heard from a little Taillow that Janice was going to be traveling with you."

Charles stopped. He lowered an eyebrow at her, unsure how that information got out.

"Sorry, I am just… concerned." Roxanne apologized. "Ever since the school tournament Principal Mason put together years ago, a-and the fire."

Charles shut his eyes, forcing himself not to remember that horrible day. The two continued onward.

"Anyways." Roxanne was quick to avoid the subject. "I know the three of you were friends when you were younger. But Janice and Moxy haven't seen eye to eye since you left, and I just hope you will be okay."

Charles stopped in front of the staircase. The two had made a lap around the field, and Charles was too caught up in conversation and thought to realize.

"I'm fine."

Roxanne was waiting for more, but Charles would say no more. Roxanne may have rough edges in her personality, but she was always the caring type. Too caring that Charles was well-aware she would tell Walter about the recklessness of his plan if he revealed anything.

"I see." Roxanne was disappointed for a moment, but her cheerfulness came back as soon as it left. "Well, if you need anything, you have a friend in me. I may have been your teacher a long time ago, but I still consider you my student now."

"Thank you, Roxanne." Charles bowed before climbing the steps out of the arena.

Roxanne watched him go, and her smile faded.

Be careful, Charles. For you and Moxy's sake.

AN: Yes, I know I skipped their battle. I hope that doesn't take away from the drama I was trying to portray in this chapter. I think a battle would have dragged this chapter way longer than it had to be, and I personally don't like too much filler in fics. What do you guys think? Should I have added the entire battle? Let me know!

Anyways, thanks for reading, guys. Editing really takes a toll on me, and I hope the quality of this chapter was worth it. I'll be uploading the rest of Episode 3 soon, stay tuned!

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d8rkforcen1ght7: I'll leave that up to your imagination... for now. Thank you for reviewing!

Cheers!