Author's Note: Whoo! This is another long chapter! Wow, I'm beat…

So the next chapter after this will be the last! The story is almost over!

I'm gonna miss it… but hey, I'll be excited for the future!

Now sit back and enjoy!

Gloria and Hop were seated in the fields of Postwick, leaning against the stone wall lining the walkway. They were browsing old pictures on Gloria's phone, viewing vital moments during their journey. Gloria lit up with joy when she came across the photo of her meeting her beloved starter for the first time as a Grookey. It was a perfect shot of them exchanging a high-five. A wave of nostalgia washed over her, it was a feeling of sentimental longing that was hard to put into words.

"Look Hop! This is where it all began!"

Hop smiled, "You guys look so great in that picture! It's amazing to see considering how you guys are now!"

Gloria giggled softly, "I had to chase him up that tree, remember? Leon was showing him off and he just decided to bounce out of his arms, off his head, and run for it."

Hop laughed remembering the look of shock on Leon's face when the little Grookey did that, "He was quite a rambunctious one, eh mate?"

"He still is. Just a lot bigger now." Gloria stated bluntly.

Hop chuckled, "I guess old habits truly die hard."

Gloria scrolled again and found a photo she happened to snap when her and Hop in the Slumberling Weald, looking for the lost Wooloo with worried faces, "Look, here we are in the Slumberling Weald."

A surprised Hop replied, "Whoa, I didn't know you took a photo while we were there. Look how scared we look! Hahaha! Wait… was that before or after we saw Zamazenta?"

"Before." Gloria answered, "To be honest, that photo was completely accidental. I was trying to send a text, haha…"

"Man, my bro really read us the riot act for that one… I'm still confused as to how he found us so fast."

Gloria came across a photo of her, Hop, Leon, and Sonia all at the lab. Sonia was carrying her Yamper in her arms.

"Aww, there we are!" Gloria fawned, "Our first visit to the lab as real trainers!"

"The show was on the road!" Hop declared, "To be honest, I'm still a bit salty over the fact that we had to beg my brother for those endorsements."

"Speaking of…" Gloria then showed a photo of her and Hop with one arm around each other and showing off their endorsements to the camera. Hop wore the cheesiest grin and Gloria was cheekily sticking her tongue out. This caused them both to tumble over laughing.

"Look at us!" Hop barely managed to say.

Gloria had to wipe a tear from her eye, "I'm not sure what made me want to make that face. Haha!"

"Who cares? It's great!" Hop assured with confidence.

He wasn't wrong. At that moment, it was the best thing ever. They felt like they ruled the world. They rushed down that road like they were never coming back. Freedom and Rookidees were in the air.

Hop's expression turned serious, "If I'm being truthful Gloria… when I lost to you in the semifinals. I was devastated. It hurt me to realize that I wasn't going to be the one to face off with my brother and become the Champion. Even after everything, I still truly thought that it would be me."

Gloria wasn't surprised to hear this, "I… I know that, Hop. I wasn't clueless. I knew full well that you were putting on a brave face for me."

Hop looked at her baffled, before sighing, "I'm so sorry."

"You don't have to apologize." Gloria assured, "I appreciate you still being a good friend to me despite that. And you know what? Just because one door closed, doesn't mean another won't open for you."

Hop smiled warmly, "I'm so glad I learned that. Thanks, mate. For always being there for me."

Gloria responded in kind, "Thank you, Hop. You've done the same for me."

Hop let out a joyful chuckle, "Of course, mate! No problem!"

Gloria decided that was enough reminiscing for now and put her phone away, "I'm so glad for everything that's happened."

"Me too, Gloria. And you know what the best part about that is? There's still more to come!"

"So true!" Gloria agreed, "I haven't stopped trying new strategies with my amazing team!"

Hop asked, "Have you tried using an Ability Patch, Gloria?"

Gloria answered, "I have. You know how Rillaboom had the ability Overgrow before? Well, now it's Grassy Surge."

Hop's face lit up, "I know that ability! It turns the ground into Grassy Terrain when that Pokemon enters the battle!"

Gloria nodded, "That's right! His grass type moves become even stronger then!"

"That's smart!" Hop praised, "Now I really can't wait for the next tournament! Better watch out mate, 'cause now everyone's gonna be after your title!"

Gloria laughed, "Well they can bring it! But I'm not gonna go down so easily!"

"Ahaha! That's the spirit, Gloria! Man, I really hope the final match will be between you and Bede! That'll be the best!"

Gloria couldn't help but blush, "Oh Hop, stop!"

"What? It'll be fun! You know you'll be hearing me throughout that match!"

Gloria face-palmed, "Oh no… I know I will!" She grimaced at imagining the embarrassing things Hop would likely shout. Nonetheless, they shared a laugh before Hop mentioned, "You know Gloria, I've been wanting to return to Stow-on-Side to see those statues again. They just look so cool!"

Gloria agreed, "They really are, aren't they? I'm glad that it was discovered. Because now everyone knows the real story. And Sonia was able to tell it!"

"Did you hear that her book is selling in other regions too? It's becoming a worldwide hit!"

Gloria became ecstatic hearing that, "Really!? Oh wow! I'm so happy to hear that! She's amazing, she's definitely earned it!"

Hop decided to bring this up, "You know people think that you discovered it."

Gloria shook her head, "I know that. But… heh."

"Have you ever talked about that with Bede? Considering he's the one that caused the original painted mural to collapse…"

Gloria averted her eyes, "No… I don't want to. It brings back bad memories for him. I would think that he would rather leave the subject alone. So, unless he brings it up first, I won't talk about it."

"Ah… I understand." Hop replied softly, "No worries, mate. It's all good." After a pause, Hop mentioned, "He's… been through a whole mess of things, hasn't he?"

Gloria nodded quietly, thankfully, this made Hop get the hint and he decided to change the subject, "You think Sonia and my brother are gonna end up dating?"

Gloria smiled, "I think they are already. The question is, will they become an actual thing?"

"If they do, I'll give them my full support!" Hop grinned.

"Me too! To be honest, I think they'll be really cute!"

"Haha! I feel the same way mate! You know, call me crazy. But I had a feeling it wasn't just my imagination."

"What do you mean, Hop?" Gloria asked.

"Sonia. She's always had a bit of a crush on my brother." He rested both hands on the back of his head, "I was starting to wonder if I was just seeing things."

"Looks like your hunch was spot on." Gloria affirmed with a smile.

"On that note, if you meet any girls that you think might be my type. Feel free to send them my way!" Hop suggested playfully, "With my bro and childhood pal with special someones, I'd like to find one for myself, you know!"

Gloria bust out laughing, but she agreed earnestly, "Sure thing Hop!"

Their laughter was interrupted by Gloria's phone ringing, she looked at the caller I.D.
It was Bede.
Hop gave an impish smile and gave permission to Gloria to answer it. Gloria shot Hop a sassy look and picked up the call, "H-Hello? Bede?"

"Hey Gloria. How are you?" His voice was calm.

"I'm doing great! Thanks! How about you?"

"I'm good. It's just slow at the Gym today."

Gloria replied, "I see, I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's not all bad." Bede assured, a hint of satisfaction was present in his voice. Gloria noticed this and asked with a playful tone, "Bede? What happened?"

Bede chuckled; they both knew he was waiting for her to ask. And he explained with no reservation, "I had to chase some troublemakers out of town. They were causing a ruckus for the residents."

This stirred curiosity in Gloria, "Troublemakers? What do you mean? Oh no… it wasn't Team Yell, right?"
Hop's eyebrows raised in alarm hearing that name.

"No, no. It wasn't them at all." Bede hastily answered, "Just some delinquents."

Gloria sighed in relief, "Oh thank goodness it wasn't them. Well, I'm sure everything is fine now that you've taken care of it."
Hop was also happy to hear that. He silently gave an approving nod.

Gloria knew her boyfriend was smiling on the other end. He expressed, "But of course! Would you expect any less? The match was over before it even began. But still, I was hoping for a bit more of a challenge."

Gloria laughed, she could hear in his voice just how proud he was of himself. She noted, "I bet they won't come back! Well, I'm glad you got to have a battle today! Even if it wasn't a Gym battle."

"Naturally. But that's not all I wanted to talk about. Are you free tonight?"

Straight to the point, Gloria answered, "Yes! I'm free!"
Hop put his hand over his mouth to silence a laugh.

"Wonderful! How about I… come to your house at around seven? I… believe I still need to properly introduce myself to your parents." His voice growing nervous.

"Yes, you should." Gloria was calm, but on the inside, she was just as nervous as him, "The time is good! I'll be ready then!"

"Great, I'll see you then."

"Okay Bede. Tonight at seven. Bye!"

After hanging up the call, Gloria turned to Hop's knowing expression.

"Got a date?" He asked impishly.

Gloria smiled, "Yes."

Hop patted her back, "Well, hope you have a good time and all goes well mate! So, what was this about troublemakers?"

Gloria casually explained the whole thing to Hop, who was just as glad it had nothing to do with Team Yell, and hopefully Oleana too.
That was the last thing they needed.

Later that evening…

Gloria had decided to dress casually in a hot pink sweatshirt and a navy plaid skirt. On her head she wore a blue knit beret. On her feet she put on black thigh-high socks and her favorite brown boots.
She looked for a jacket to wear, pushing several hangers aside until she came across the perfect choice. Her Fairy Type themed tracksuit jacket.

After one last look in the mirror, she adjusted her smaller, pink rucksack on her shoulders and went out to the living room to meet with her parents.

Connell celebrated, "All right, tonight's the night we meet the young lad, eh Gloria!?"

Thea attempted to calm her husband, "Relax dear, you don't want to scare the poor fellow. Gloria, we're so excited!"

Gloria smiled, "Thanks mum, I am too. I'm kind of worried about what you'll think, dad."

Connell was confident, "Hey, any chap that makes you happy is fine with me, dear! So, when's he gonna be here? I'm practically rocketing through the roof here!"

"Dad… chill." Gloria replied in exasperation. Deep down, she was prepared for embarrassment.

Thea reprimanded him, "Just sit down and relax dear! He'll be here soon."

Sure enough, Gloria looked out the window and saw a flying taxi dropping someone off. It was Bede. With no one seeing this coming, she rushed outside to greet him. Ignoring the calls of her father as she slammed the door behind her.

She was now face-to-face with a shocked Bede. He was also dressed casual. To be exact, he was in the same dark magenta button-up and black dress pants as their first date. But she didn't care, to her, he still looked cute.

"Um, hello Gloria. Good evening." He greeted her uneasily, "Is… everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine!" Gloria replied with an anxious smile, "I just…"

Bede grew concerned, "Is something wrong?"

Gloria turned to the door, then back to Bede. She spoke very quietly, "Before we go inside. I just want to let you know. My father… he's… really excited to meet you."

Bede took a deep breath with trembling hands, "All right. I'm ready."

Just then, a giggling Thea stuck her head out the door, "Gloria, your father said he's gonna ram this door down if you don't come back inside this instant." She smiled at Bede and gave him a wink.

Connell's voice boomed from inside, "Bring that young man with you!"

"Okay, okay! I'm coming back inside!" Gloria insisted.

If Bede wasn't already anxious enough, he certainly was now. Taking Gloria's hand, he was carefully led into the house. Connell took one look at him and immediately recognized him.

"Hold on a minute. I know who you are!" He stood up from the couch and slowly approached Bede. Once he got close, he crossed his arms. Not once taking his fierce gaze off Bede.

"Dad, please." Gloria spoke, matter-of-factly.

Bede looked at him, this was the most terrified he had ever been in his entire life. Nonetheless, he did his best to keep a straight face.

Finally, Connell spoke, "Aren't you that bloke that interrupted the Championship Tournament to challenge my daughter?"

Bede gulped, "Um… yes, sir."

"And now you're dating her?"

Bede's eyes were wide, he nodded the affirmative. He wanted to speak, but he found himself unable to. It was like he was hit by a Thunder Wave; and was now paralyzed. He braced himself for the worst…

Connell suddenly put on a smile and laughed, "Ahaha! I'm just giving you a hard time! I'm glad to meet you!" He placed both hands on Bede's shoulders and gave him a few pats. Gloria and Thea both let out sighs.

Gloria met Bede's eyes with an embarrassed smile, one hand on her cheek. She was well used to her dad's antics by now, but she couldn't help but feel he was being extra goofy on purpose.

Thea stepped in, "All right Connell, that's enough. You've given him quite a fright." She looked at Bede with an assuring smile, "Relax honey, he's harmless."

Connell objected, "I'm sorry, I couldn't resist! I just had to rattle the lad a bit! But hey, it's nice to finally meet you, son. I'm glad for you both!"

Bede managed to speak, "I… Thank you… very much, sir."

"He's a loud one." Thea told Bede, "But I promise he won't try anything else."

"I won't as long as you treat my daughter right." Connell added, a degree of threat in his voice.

Bede quickly responded, "Of course I will!"

Gloria went to stand by Bede, "Dad, stop. It's okay."

Connell went back to smiling, "I know Gloria, I trust you. But you can't be too careful, right?"

Thea smiled and rolled her eyes before saying, "All right Connell, you've made your point."

"Yes dear." Connell relented, before going to sit back down on the couch.

Thea asked the couple, "So what are you two planning for tonight?"

Gloria realized at that moment that they didn't really have any plans, so she made up an answer on the spot, "We were gonna head to that Café in Hammerlocke. You know, the one we went to before?"

"Oh, how nice! Well, I don't want to keep you two any longer so, off you go!" Thea bid, "Just be careful out there."

"Thanks mum, we'll be off then!"

Bede spoke, "Thank you, ma'am."

"It was nice meeting you in person, Bede." Thea smiled, "Bye now!"

After waving bye and stepping out of the house. Gloria and Bede descended the wooden steps. The sky was a dull pink with a blue tinge, stars were starting to appear.

"Your parents are quite lovely." Bede stated softly.

Gloria couldn't help but smile uneasily, "I know my dad is… quite energetic, and a bit of a smart aleck. But he's a good man."

Bede nodded, "I… realize that. It must be nice." His voice trailed off during that last sentence.

Gloria noticed his tone. She turned to ensure that they were far enough away from the front door to be out of earshot of her parents. Once she did that she asked quietly, "So where would you like to go? I know I told my mum the café but… is that what you want to do?"

Bede thought about it for a moment, then nodded, "All right. We can do that."

"Okay! I'll call a taxi."

Within ten minutes, they arrived in Hammerlocke. To their dismay, they found it quite busy. Bede crossed his arms, "Oh, seems there's a bit of a wait."

Gloria looked at the line, "Well, I guess we better jump in the line then."

Bede nodded in agreement, but just as they were about to join the crowd. Their path was abruptly obscured by two guys. One look at them would tell somebody that they were the rough type. T-shirts, jeans and a chain around their necks. One was taller than the other and had a bandana on his head, the shorter one wore his ball cap backwards.

Gloria was immediately put off by them, "Um, excuse us."

The shorter guy sneered, "Yup, it's him boss. It's that pink boy that made us look bad in Ballonea."

Bede recognized them from earlier, "You two again? I haven't got any time to play around with you."

The bigger guy replied, "We ain't here to play around pinkie. We're here to settle a score."

An annoyed Gloria spoke up, "We really don't want any trouble right now. Could you two back off?"

The shorter guy acknowledged Gloria, "Huh! Look here, pink boy's got a girlfriend. Hey, I'll take you on too, doll face. And don't think I'm gonna hold back just because you're a girl."

The bigger guy on the other hand, took a closer look at Gloria. His eyes widened and he put a hand on his pal, "Whoa man, don't do it."

"What? What's got into you all of a sudden boss?"

"Dude, don't you know who that is!? That's Gloria! She's the Champion!"

The shorter guy paused a moment, looking at her, "Huh… you're right. She is."

"We don't stand a chance against her. Come on, let's get outta here."

He grumbled, "Fine, whatever…"

The two casually slinked away just as quickly as they appeared. The couple watched them until they were out of sight.

Bede scoffed, "Tch… insubordinate ruffians…"

"Doll face?" Gloria remarked, "Ugh… don't even… If I see him again and he calls me that one more time, I'll just get Rillaboom to wallop him."

She then thought back to her conversation with Bede earlier, and inquired, "By any chance, were those the guys you were talking about earlier?"

"Yes, they were." Bede affirmed, "Those were the fools causing trouble in Ballonea before. They were chasing the wild Spritzee and Swirlix to scare them and just being a nuisance."

Gloria was appalled, "How rude!"

"Quite." Bede agreed, "I went out there and told them to knock it off. When they refused we battled, with expected results." He chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad you solved that problem." Gloria complimented, "Look, it's quieted down. Let's go get drinks!"

Finally, the couple were able to get into the café and get the much-deserved drinks. No one seemed to notice the slight disturbance which was good for them. Last thing they needed was some attention from fans when they wanted to be by themselves.

After this, they had plans to be alone somewhere.

Author's Note: Yippee! You made it!

See you next time on the last chapter of Set You Free!

Bye!