Warning: Reader Discretion Advised. Pokémon x Human relationships. I do not own Pokemon.


Avery's Pokemon

Evangeline/Eva (Umbreon)
Gender: Female
Nature: Rash

Lady (Kirlia)
Gender: Female
Nature: Modest

Chastity (Buneary)
Gender: Female
Nature: Adamant

Dusty (Furfrou)
Gender: Male
Nature: Hardy

Sprite (Surskit)
Gender: Female
Nature: Quirky

? (Zoroark?)
Gender: Female
Nature: ?


Chapter: High Rise

Taking Hardy's advice, I had embarked early this morning to mark a path for us to explore and train on, wanting to avoid surprises. It'd been a thorough work-out, not quite an adventure. With the training spot I'd picked and set-up in mind, we all headed south, with me leading. The forest around Oreburgh and the Coronet mountain range was largely untouched, with no beaten paths. I preferred it that way, enjoying the pure wilderness.

The wind whistling through the high peaks near Oreburgh was so cold it burrowed beneath the skin, yet it was still far warmer than the grey depths of the Underground. We traveled through wooded, hilly terrain, but the wind kept bringing the cold mountain air down to us. We passed the occasional house or cabin, but a few miles south of Oreburgh, signs of human civilization became scarce. To our left, the imposing bulk of Mount Coronet loomed dark and dreary, its brown face contrasting against the cerulean sky. Huge, puffy white clouds floated peacefully across the horizon.

Pokemon were everywhere, just as plentiful as they were beneath the earth. Starleys and Staravia, their flock led by Staraptors, pinwheeled across the open sky, ebony feathers shining in the sun. While rare, Pokemon from other regions sometimes found their place in Sinnoh, so not just that breed of bird-type soared through the skies—Pidgeys and Taillow did too, blending in with the flock.

As we moved farther from Oreburgh, the landscape transformed into deep, dark, dense forest - many Pokemon stared out at us with curiosity from treetops and rough undergrowth, and not every stone we passed was actually rock; sometimes a bit of earth would move, revealing a rock-type spying on us. When she saw this Roxanne giggled with delight, snapping a photo with her poketch. She was a good sport, and didn't complain one bit.

Not the same for Lady and Chastity.

"Kirlia kirl. Kirl kirl kirl."

"Buneary! Bun."

"Kirlia…. Hmm, kirl."

"Would you two stop glowering at me?" I turned, dark hair falling in my eyes. I hadn't bothered tying it back this morning. "I get it, you two think you're like, queens of the universe or something. That I should carry one of you on each shoulder, yeah? Something like that?"

The pair glanced at each other. Then nodded, smiling wide.

"Yeah well, reality check! You Pokemon are supposed to be more durable, stronger, faster, all of that, than human beings are. If anything, Lady, you should be carrying me."

Roxanne's eyes twinkled. "He does have a point. Against one of you us puny humans wouldn't stand a chance."

Lady just scoffed. I didn't want to work anybody too hard, and we had kept up a consistent pace since we'd left Oreburgh - more than an hour and a half ago, so I decided we'd take a break. Nobody complained about that. Dusty was the most good-natured about everything, but even he was panting, tongue dangling from his maw.

I opened my bag and pulled out a bunch of water I'd nabbed from the hotel, and offered it up to everyone. I stayed quiet, listening to my team, and Roxanne and her team, conversing. I felt truly at peace. The dense forest mantle was a thick, dark canopy above us, cloaking all of us in darkness, flickers of light peeking in, casting thin beams of sunlight across our features. I liked it here.

The farther away we got from the town turned city, the more at peace I became. Unlike in Oreburgh and Hearthome, the industrial aspects of life didn't surround us, the constant flow of people.

Roxanne glanced around, then gave me a curious look. "An observation. You're a new trainer, yet you're pretty careless about where you go. Walking through all this dense territory, you're bound to run into a problem sooner or later. So much thick grass, and the type of terrain…."

"A problem? You mean like Pokemon?"

"Mhm."

"Well, I haven't had any issues yet. I'll handle that when it happens. Isn't the danger part of being a trainer?"

"Knowing when to pick a battle is also part of being a trainer," Roxanne smiled, "but point taken."

"I didn't pick our destination randomly always. Tryna be more forward thinking. Something like that." I shrugged. I caught Lady giving me a dirty look. She was probably thinking how the only person I'd really talked to since we'd set out was our human companion, but it wasn't because I didn't want to socialize with anyone else. The truth was, I was already winded.

Coming out earlier had been quite a trek. Maybe it was my recent injury, but I was surprisingly tired already, echoes of pain ricocheted through my frame. My throat echoed with the pain from Red Ebony's claws. A rush of regret hit me, and I wondered if I should've taken it easy today, but I fought it back.

So what if I was a little sore? So what if I still had to make it all the way back to Oreburgh from our training zone? I could handle anything. So I told myself as we trekked on.

Occasionally, a wild Pokemon stumbled across our path, only to scamper off quickly, frightened by our numbers. The forest eventually broke into a rocky, rough terrain, specked by the occasional tall trees. Unlike the cool forest we'd been in, the sun poured down powerfully here, so it was viscerally warmer. Mountain water trickled down in a thin stream, the torrent of water flooding the air with its magical, twinkling notes. Sprite leapt towards it, plunging into the dense cerulean stream. She showed no sign of being bothered by the temperature, dark eyes gleaming as she raised herself above the frothing surface. The little bug began to run back and forth along it, shrill sing-song notes vibrating through her frame.

We didn't often meet open bodies of water, so I let Sprite play for a while. When I turned, I didn't expect to find Roxanne stared longingly at the water, biting her bottom lip. She was so damn cute, I didn't have the heart to tell her we needed to focus on training soon.

We'd just taken a break, but it wouldn't hurt to take another, right? Both she and Sprite wanted it.

"Do you want to swim?"

Rox caught my stare. "Who, me?" She grew red-faced. "O-Of course not. I don't have a swimsuit."

"You have underwear, right?" I turned to Lady, Chastity, and Eva, hoping to the stars above that they would allow me to fulfill one of my childhood fantasies. Lady saw the look on my face, and immediately rolled her eyes.

'You can't be serious.'

"So uh, how do you guys feel about a swim break?"

They met eyes. Seemed like a mutually-agreed, resounding NO, with nothing spoken yet.

Roxanne spoke up hastily. "D-Don't worry about it, really, I couldn't be indecent like that! It's probably ice-cold anyways!"

Sprite was listening in on our discussion. Apparently, she didn't want to be in the stream all by herself. I saw it coming, and threw myself out of the way just in time. Everybody else was not so lucky, including Roxanne. A powerful jet of water washed over the entire group, soaking them to the brim in what I imagined was very cool water. Then, Sprite made a sound much like a giggle, and started to sprint away down the stream, her long little legs working like no tomorrow - no sign of her earlier injury right now.

It was a good thing she ran, because Lady's reaction was immediate. She was absolutely enraged. If there was one thing about my kirlia I knew it was that she didn't like surprises, and she certainly didn't like not having control of her emotions or physical state… to be soaked like that - she took it personally. Lady let out a shrill "Kirl!" And took off down the bank of the stream, eyes aglow.

"Take it easy, Lady!" I called after her. "Don't rough-house too much. Sprite, you better stop playing with fire!"

Sprite merely made more amused sounds. I shook my head, and watched my second partner raise her little hands, and send a big orb of psychic energy careening toward the water-bug type. Sprite easily sprang out of the way, avoiding the blow, riding the wind with thin streams of silk-strand that she used to float in the air, dropping abruptly into the water and diving into the depths when Lady aimed for her in the sky. While Lady started charging up a weak, shimmering beam of psychic energy, Sprite began preparing a counter-attack of her own.

"K-KIRL!" Lady cried, thrusting her palms forward. The psybeam sprang toward Sprite under the waves. While evading, strong legs thrusting her through the watery blue depths, Sprite sent a powerful aqua jet in Lady's direction, soaking the little kirlia once more.

Poor Lady. She looked like someone had just struck her. She stared down at herself, in utter shock, and began to stomp her foot. Pure frustration, a temper tantrum if I'd ever seen one.

It was like watching a child try to keep up with a Manectric in a foot race, Lady getting revenge as she wanted to just wasn't going to happen. The terrain advantage served Sprite too well, the little prankster was so agile that Lady just gave up, trudging back to us while muttering to herself.

"So… swimming?" I asked, still hopeful.

"Kirlia kirl!"/'We can swim when we win. Let's go.'

Not so long ago, Lady had claimed she'd refuse to train. Now she was demanding we get back to hiking?

Well, whatever, she was right. I let go of my dream, casting a wistful glance Roxanne's way. She grinned, and we marched along.

I sighed resentfully. I never had been able to see the elusive, legendary "swimsuit episode." It seemed today I wouldn't get to see the real thing. Guess that was part of being serious about someone, it was like I had to let the child in me die.


They'd been complaining before, but the chatter spiked even more after we started to mountain climb. Nothing crazy, I'd done this early in the morning, the path was very reasonable. At least it was to me, but the gang didn't agree.

"This is the way you want to go?" Roxanne panted as we climbed yet another easily-scalable wall, rising even higher. This was our fourth time, we were already more than three yards in the air. Far above us an outcropping of stone broke into a long, flat forest area, a small parting in the trees serving as a kind of entrance into a woody mountain area. Obviously, with the way everyone was breaking a sweat, it was a good choice.

"Yes. Remember, you weren't supposed to be here, so don't bitch at me."

The brunette rolled her eyes. "I'm just surprised. Most people pick the path of least resistance. Not this abomination. My feet are sore already."

"That sounds like bitching to me." I didn't want to mention that my feet were hurting too.

'Master doesn't know how to do that. He picks the path that leads to the most struggle every time.'/"Kirlia kirl Kirlia!" Lady chirped to Chastity, and the little bunny stared at me, nodded, and then burst into laughter.

"As I recall, it's me picking the path of 'most resistance' that led to me even saving you from that trainer so long ago."

But she wasn't listening to me, or at least she pretended she didn't. Her petulance made me want to tease my hand along her green crest, holding her against me. Her brattiness was frustrating and enticing at the same time. She flicked her ruby eyes my way, and I knew she was aware of what I was thinking.

Chastity glanced back and forth between us. "Bun!" She grabbed Lady's hand, and dragged her attention away from me.

"Quite the pair, huh?" Rox said quietly, glancing back at the pair of female mons. "They seem close."

That was certainly true. Even the way Lady and Chastity walked was… unique. Chastity hopped along, a natural swing to her furry little rear, and Lady, well - she was coming into herself. She'd long since ceased being the tiny ralts that trotted around, tripping over herself, she now strutted, as if in heels, a dancer's grace in her every step. The way they clung to each other, practically hand-in-hand after their earlier fight was almost annoying.

"Yes. They've been attached at the hip since I went through the Underground. Had a big argument this morning, but both got over it pretty quickly."

"Are they mates?"

"Mates?" I burst into laughter. "Lady and Chastity? What the Hell, of course not."

"Why? Because they're both girls?"

"For one. The other-" They were both with me. But I couldn't say that. "Lady isn't interested in anything but being my partner Pokemon. She acts like everybody else is a distraction."

"And if someone fights through that energy, and wins her attention? Proves themself worthy of it? Also, your views of sexuality seem rather… dated."

"Yeah, they probably are. Been working on being less small-minded. Just can't picture Lady that way…."

"I like her, even if she hates me." I didn't like the way Roxanne was eyeing up Lady, licking her lips. Or maybe I did. An odd feeling took hold of me. Then, the Hoenn Gym Leader giggled, shaking her dark-haired head. "Ignore me, I'm just being silly. Your Umbreon though, I have to say I am very impressed. She's adorable, maintains her fur well, that's indicative of an emotionally healthy Pokemon."

Eva, hearing her name, glanced over at us. She was always at my side, and had kept relatively silent. She still hadn't quite shaken the dark aura she'd had since the Underground. The dark–type met my gaze with her own glittering, ruby stare; the intensity of her stare, the way her eyes flickered over to Roxanne and then narrowed, was exciting to me.

Sometimes I forgot she was just as possessive of me as Lady was. No,moreso. Afterall, she'd been there to witness what I did with the Fair Lady. She was so cute when she was jealous. A part of me wanted to tease the umbreon, just so I could see the signs of the bratty, insufferable little even she once was, but I decided to behave for now.

About five miles southwest of Oreburgh was Crescent Peak, at least that's what I called it. It was our destination, a curved, high mountain shorter than the rest but still with natural land-stairs and cliffs swirling like a spiral staircase around it, the top left half terminating in an extremely tall natural earthen pillar, the other a downward, curved slope, hence the nickname 'Crescent.' It had various small caves etched into the side, and many different ridges and cliffs allowing one to climb it. I knew that from experience, I'd climbed it earlier. The massive, flat peak - about fifteen meters in circumference- was quite a cinematic spot for a battle, if Roxanne consented to it.

First we had to make it to the top.

My group clustered around the bottom of Crescent Peak, staring up at it. Roxanne gave me a doubtful look, while Eva was already pressing her paws against the rough side, trying to scale it on her own.

"Kirl Kirlia!" - 'This is too much.' Lady complained. The little Kirlia was breathing heavily. She'd likely never traveled/exercised so much in her young life. I couldn't pretend that her flushed face, her sweat-clad body and rapidly rising chest, didn't appeal to me. I let my gaze linger, enjoyed the way she squirmed, promised things with my eyes.

Roxanne groaned in agreement. "I went on vacation so I wouldn't have to do this sort of thing. You know, I do field trips with the students just like this almost everyday, and they STILL have the audacity to say I'm boring!" She shook her pig-tailed head, sighing, "And then the League wonders why I crave my time outside Hoenn so much."

Ignoring her complaints, I found the handspots I had earlier this morning. With a deep grunt, I hefted myself up, muscles straining. It wasn't easy, but I managed to pull my body up, slowly scaling the wall, determined to make it to the top and show everyone just how do-able it was. The wall we were scaling was about the length of two adult men, I eventually did make it up, pulling myself up and over, breath ragged. Sprite was a gentle, wet weight on my shoulder, but everybody else I was going to make do it on their own. Only she got the clear to not train, considering her injury.

Dusty woofed loudly when Chastity smacked him suddenly, right on the butt. I was wondering what the bunny's intentions were when she clambered onto Dusty's back, before flexing her hindquarters, preparing to jump. She was using him as a bouncing board, some kind of stepping ladder! How very Chastity. I was about to scold her when she launched herself into the air with a gleeful "Bun bun!" and landed right next to me.

Dusty offered Eva the same treatment, but the Umbreon merely glowered at him, as if offended at the mere suggestion. Apparently my first girlfriend wanted to figure her way up here on her own. Good, I was hoping she'd do that. I stepped back, giving her more space to leap up, and crossed my arms. I continued to observe the group, wondering who would be last to clear this mini-challenge.

Lady got up next. With a powerful burst of psychic energy she began to glow, slowly raising her body up a level, landing right beside me, innocent face aglow with joy. I lifted her up, tucked her cold, wet body into the crook of my arm.

While all this was going on, Roxanne proved her earlier claim true. She made it up just as easily as I did, not without complaint. She glowered at me when she reached the top, and brushed her sweatsuit off with a happy sigh.

"Woooh! Quite the work-out! Remind me not to train with you again. I had no idea free climbing was part of the routine!" Roxanne pushed her sleeves back, revealing surprisingly muscular arms. She was covered with sweat, and tucked her soft brown hair behind one ear. Rox caught my lingering stare.

"I'm gonna check on Eva, make sure she gets up."

"Such a gentleman," Roxanne giggled.

It took her a bit, but Eva eventually figured her way up. She did an exceptional feat. Dusty had climbed the rocks, struggling to do so, and was only half-way up, but Eva was something else entirely. She sprinted toward, bunched her muscles up, and began to leap. She jumped five different times, huge bounds to individual little outcroppings I hadn't even noticed, the final leap sending her more than seven feet in the air. She landed on all fours, her furpuff bouncing, tail lashing fiercely, a few feet behind us. Her lithe dark form had moved so damn fast!

Dusty stared up, and howled in dismay. Poor guy was the last one up, Chastity wouldn't let him live that down. He made his way up the rest of the way, and I held him by the huge paws and dragged him up.

"Nice job!" I rewarded all of them with a small feast of poffins, but especially Lady and Eva. They'd done it all on their own. I tucked their bodies against me. Eva licked my cheek, Lady reluctantly leaned against me. Both of them I embraced, so proud of them for making it this far with so little struggle. I broke away, embarrassed at the way Roxanne was staring at me, as if I was an object she wanted to study.

My team stuffed themselves on poffins as I guided us the rest of the way. When we passed a steep cliff on our right, I pointed. "Look, isn't it gorgeous?"

I wanted everyone to see what I'd scoped out earlier. From here, one could still see the industrial city of Oreburgh: the great machine cranes, the large buildings and Roark's gym, built into the side of the mountain. We could see it even from this distance, rearing its head above the horizon - a vague outline. Years ago, that wouldn't have been possible. Oreburgh had once been a small mining town. It was hard to believe how much it had grown, that now it was a city with the mountains forming a border around it..

I inhaled deeply, moaning softly in appreciation as the cold air brushed through my lungs. I exhaled, then inhaled again, drawing the mountain air deep. This was nature, true and unblemished, great talons of the earth reaching up into the sky, twisting this way and that, clouds drifting high overhead. Even the storm clouds far off in the distance, a dense, gray miasma, did nothing to negatively affect my mood, though I took note of the looming storm, and wondered how it would affect my journey to Canalave, and our journey back.

'Master, please tell me we're almost there.'

'We are. Just a little while longer.'

This was the easy part. We went round and round an odd, natural earth staircase that led to the peak. The climb was steep, and the air grew crisper with every step we took. The path was narrow, winding through rocky outcrops and patches of hardy alpine vegetation. As we ascended, the sounds of the forest below faded, replaced by the whisper of the wind and the occasional call of a distant Staraptor, its flock crying out in return. The higher we climbed, the more expansive the view became, revealing the rolling landscape stretching out beneath us.

When we finally reached the top, everyone went silent, a breath of awe slipping from each and every one present. I'd truly chosen a great spot, and I knew that they all agreed with me. The center of Crescent Peak was tall and flat, a perfect Pokémon battle arena. The ground was mostly bare rock, with only a lone tree, a thick patch of grass, and a small pond breaking the monotony. The tree, gnarled and ancient, stood as a silent sentinel, its roots digging deep into the stone. The pond, clear and still, reflected the brightly shining sun.

Sprite threw herself right into it, as she had with the stream.

The heavens were glorious above, with pale clouds floating everywhere, offering a perfect 360-degree view of our surroundings. We could see for miles in every direction, the landscape below a patchwork of forests, rivers, and distant mountains.

I spread out a blanket and began unpacking our post-training meal, the aroma of the food mingling with the fresh mountain air. I used a basic, cheap cooking pot I'd rented from the hotel, planning to buy another of my own later, to replace what I'd lost down in the depths.

"This is absolutely beautiful, Avery, thank you for bringing me here," Roxanne said in awe. I smiled.

"U-Umbree!" My Umbreon worked her dark, furry body against me, fur fluffed up.

"I'd love to enjoy the view, and small talk, but… I think those two want to get right to it, hmm? They don't like me personally." Rox commented, shaking her head, seeming wistful. "Well, it's fine. When I throttle them, I'll talk to you as much as I want as a reward, and make them grow to like me."

That made Eva and Lady bristle, they glanced at each other, muttering, and I sighed. Why was Roxanne feeding the flame? I labored over the cooking pot.

"So… how do you want to handle this?" I asked. "Standard battle rules, or what?"

Roxanne smirked, hands on her hips. "You're the one who's going to epically destroy me, right? That's what you claimed. So, how about YOU decide the rules… and I'll put you in your place based on that."

"Put me in my-" I couldn't help but grin at that, cheeks burning, "you're really taking my ego seriously, huh? I just talk a big game you know."

"Well, I'll tell you what I tell my students. Be careful who you provoke, because rivals made are usually rivals made for life."

"W-What the- wait, I don't want to be rivals with you-"

Roxanne cut me off. "Those years are over for me. But the point still stands. If you brag, you need to own it, or be put in your place just as I said." She pressed on. "But fine, since you asked…. How about best of 3? Or… to spice things up, a double battle and a single. Should be easy, right? Nothing official. 4-locked moveset format?"

I turned to my team, focusing on each of them one by one. A double-battle? That sounded like a disaster. Chastity and Lady got into a fight this morning, Eva and Lady had "issues", Sprite didn't want to battle… but maybe Dusty and Chastity? Glancing at them now, though, I felt a rush of doubt. Dusty was always passively trying to get the slutty bunny's attention. In a battle, he'd likely be over eager to defend and please her, so that could be exploited.

But what about Chastity and Eva? They'd scampered off on their own, bonded the day before at Roark's place, so maybe? But a normal-type and a dark-type didn't seem like it'd be that good of a combo considering how little training I'd given Chastity. Her last battle she'd performed alright against Hardy at first, but she'd been defeated exceptionally quickly, and all because of her ego.

I stared at the pokeball on my belt that housed the one Pokemon I'd never let out. The strange creature from the Underground, the Zoroark-like monster that had demanded I took her with me. Could I use her for something like this? Or would she get prideful about it? She was some ancient "thing", a spirit of some kind, so… maybe a battle with some random girl against mons she didn't care about was a bad idea.

Roxanne's infinite patience made me feel bad so I hastily made my decision. "Alright, a double and a single battle work," I nodded, "I'm going to pick Lady and Eva for the double battle."

Both seemed shocked by that. Lady grasped Chastity's paw and dragged her forward, stomping one little foot in the dirt. Her crimson eyes glowed like jewels.

'Master, Chastity and I-'

'Be quiet, Lady.' I met her glare, and she fell silent. 'Chastity can't be your partner this time. You two just got into a fight this morning. Are you even sure you're ready to work together again?'

She looked doubtful now.

The rest I said out loud. "Besides, you and Eva need to work on your teamwork. Right?"

"Umbre, umbreon!" Eva nodded thoroughly, clearly in agreement about that. Lady scoffed at her sister, and turned her face away, annoyance showing across her features. She wasn't going to get her way this time, it seemed she recognized that.

Roxanne shook her head and smiled slightly. "It really is incredible. The way she is communicating with you in your mind, and vice versa. Roark was right. I can't lie, I am envious of that ability Avery! Tate and Lisa, my fellow Hoenn Leaders, are impressive in their own right, but they seem more attuned to each other than their pokemon."

"Tate and Lisa," I pondered vaguely, "uhm, the twins right?"

Roxanne nodded and scowled. "As a die-hard former fan you should've remembered the special where I had them on!"

"I do!" Kinda. "A-anyway. So, Lady and Eva for the double. As for the single battle… Chastity."

That cheered the bunny right up. She's been pouting along with Lady, but hearing she was getting her chance in the spotlight on her own seemed to change that. She ran a paw leisurely along her big, fluffy ears, nodding in approval, eyes shining.

"But this time, don't think about stuff you shouldn't be. Focus on the battle."

"Kirl!"

"Hmm?" I glanced at Lady. She was even angrier now than she had been.

"Let me guess," Roxanne laughed, "she thinks she should be the one to face my Pokemon one-on-one." Lady seemed startled that she knew, and Rox shrugged. "I'm a grown woman, don't need to be a psychic to sense the petulant, childlike motives of a bratty Pokemon."

Lady glowered, then spun back to me, ruby eyes shining. 'It should be me. Why her? Last night you and I-'

'That has nothing to do with this. It's purely a rational choice. You and Eva need to learn to properly depend on each other.'

'T-that is your reasoning!? Master, I'm stronger than Chastity! I should be the one to do it.'

I gave up trying to reason with her. "Lady, you'll get another chance to take part in a single battle, we'll be facing Roark soon. Not everything has to be about you."

The cooking pot dinged. I offered her a bowl of spicy poffin soup, and smiled, ignoring her shocked, angry expression. "Hungry?"