Cover Art: Amasw.

Teams:

Pierce Lawson:

- Narcissa, Beedrill

- Orion, Onix

- Cygnus, Abra

- Bellatrix, Gyarados (Shiny)

- Andromeda, Vaporeon

Lillian Dale:

- Root, Bulbasaur

- Talon, Spearow

- Gem, Geodude

- Star, Cleffa

Cerulean City XXXV

"And you get to do this whenever you want?" he asked, looking around at the frankly breathtaking sight before him. It was also, however, quite humbling, in a way. There was nothing quite like the vast ocean to make one feel small and at the same time amazed.

"Not quite whenever," Daisy replied, sitting beside him in the boat they'd taken for a ride in the waters close to Cerulean. The coast was, however, far in the distance, never quite leaving their sight but far enough that it was almost nothing compared to the infinite blue of the sea and the light blue of the sky, both of which were only interrupted by the sun up above and each other. "You know me and my sisters, we are busy a lot. It's also often… difficult to bring ourselves to do things like this. We always end up putting it off for later."

"And then never do it," he added with a smile. He knew how that was. How many times had he put off for later something in that exact same way? Procrastinating wasn't something that only happened with things that one didn't want to do, after all. "Well, we are here now."

"Yeah. Thanks for giving me an excuse to stop being lazy about it," Daisy said, beaming in a way that made her look even more beautiful than she already was. Which was all sorts of unfair, really. How was he supposed to not feel like kissing her?

So, that's what he did, leaning forward and pecking her lips.

"My pleasure," Pierce replied with a grin of his own. Surprisingly, the blonde was kind of weak against physical displays of affection like that, evidenced by her slightly startled look and the red that was dusting her cheeks. "Have I told you that you have the cutest reactions sometimes?"

That earned him a slap on the chest, but he just chuckled in response.

"Shut up," she mumbled, pouting rather adorably.

"You are not helping your case, just saying."

This time, his punishment was a rather hard finger stab on the side which actually hurt. Despite that though, amusement won out against pain and he laughed. Maybe he was pushing his luck a little, but he just couldn't help it.

"You are an idiot," she mumbled before huffing and turning away. "Why do I put up with you?"

"Well, maybe Lily's right and you-" he started, before stopping. He had, evidently, approached a rather dangerous line. This was made clear when Daisy turned towards him and sent him a rather intimidating glare.

"Finish that sentence. I dare you," she threatened to which he smiled innocently at her. "You are lucky you are cute," she grumbled, to which he chuckled.

Before either of them could say anything else, the water by the boat on their side was disrupted and a large red figure peeked out. They had brought their pokemon on the trip, after all, which meant that Bellatrix and Andromeda were enjoying a swim in the open sea with Daisy's team. Narcissa was flying around overhead with Daisy's pelipper and Cygnus was enjoying a nap on another side of the boat under the shade of the cabin.

"Hey girl, here for another snack?" he asked with a soft smile. His answer was a rather enthusiastic nod from the shiny gyarados. As he turned to pick up a pokeblock from the container he'd set a little to the side, however, another gyarados popped up. Daisy's gyarados, to be exact. "Here you go, both of you," he said, having picked an extra pokeblock when he saw the look on the second sea serpent.

Both caught their little snack before making sounds of appreciation and diving right back into the water.

"My pokemon like you," Daisy commented, sounding… in awe. "I don't think they've ever liked anyone I've been with before. They tolerated a few, or maybe one or two liked them, but pokemon just love you in general, don't they?"

"I mean, I don't know about that, but if it's true, I won't complain," he answered, because who would? He loved pokemon, so if they loved him back, everyone won. They were wonderful creatures and they made the world he was in so much more… fantastical than the one he'd left behind.

He might miss all the things he'd lost, his family, his friends, his life, but what Pierce didn't miss was how dull his world had seemed to him. Most of the time, wonder had to be found in escapism, through imagination and fiction. There were, admittedly, amazing things happening all over the world, but they seemed so… rare and small in the grand scheme of things.

In the pokemon world? Pierce could be dropped literally anywhere and there'd be something cool and wonderful happening within throwing distance.

"Thanks for bringing me here, by the way," he added then, smiling at the sights once more. Not only because they were amazing though, but also because there was something very calming about the endless sea filled with gentle waves. It reminded him of the feeling of quiet of being underwater, but different in a way that he couldn't quite explain.

"Don't mention it," she replied with a smile. "Call me greedy, but I thought it'd get you to myself for a bit at least. You are going to go away soon, aren't you?" she added then, her smile turning a little sad. "Everyone's likely to want to spend time with you before you go away. I think we've told you, but we don't have many friends and even fewer that are around."

"Someone might have mentioned it," he said, following that with a chuckle. "Difficult to believe, but I guess I'll take your word for it."

"We never had much time for friends," she said with a shrug. "Our parents tried, but there was only so much they could do to help us have normal childhoods. We thought being trainers like them was the coolest thing and got into it really early… Everyone wants to be a trainer, but few take it seriously. It's a journey, practically a tradition, and that's about it, a cool hobby to have for a bit before going on with your life. We stood out, even against those that were more serious about it."

"I guess I can see that."

"And everyone that got close wanted to get in our pants too."

"That's definitely more believable," he said casually.

Then they shared a look.

And both started laughing.

It was a good day.

[}-o-{]

"I can't believe you convinced me to do this," Misty said, her voice shaky.

"I thought you wanted to spend time together," he replied with a grin, floating face up in the water and gently kicking it to push himself forward the smallest bit. "And you are doing great."

"Yeah… You know, chat for a bit… Maybe eat something," Misty muttered, her eyes fixed down as she gulped.

He smiled to himself. Daisy's words had turned prophetic, apparently. Misty was the third Sensational Sister that had approached him to just chill for a bit. Violet had beaten her to the punch the previous day, pulling him aside and spending a good few hours just randomly chatting with the excuse of discussing stuff for his channel. It sounded boring, but there'd been plenty of tangents to go on, really. It was an interesting time, and he'd also learned a few things along the way.

What more could he ask for?

"I think Daisy would have a problem with me dating her younger sister… maybe anyone at all? We aren't in a relationship, but it feels like it'd be shitty regardless, you know?" Pierce commented idly, taking a moment to think that over. "Lily and Violet would probably have something to say on the matter too."

Apparently, there was one thing that could cut through her panicked state and it was his dumb humor. Why was he sure of that? Well, because the redhead was glaring at him as if wishing she could melt him in the pool's water.

Alas, she wasn't a pokemon and thus didn't have super powers.

It also helped that she was sitting on top of Bellatrix, so there was no way for her to get to him quickly… And the gyarados wouldn't take well to that. Was it mean to think that? He hadn't intentionally asked Bellatrix for that with the intention of being a deterrent against violence on his person but… Well, it was certainly convenient and appreciated.

"W-What?!" she screeched, bringing Pierce back to the present to see that her face had turned completely red. That was kind of very amusing and also adorable. "S-Shut up. Don't be an idiot! See if I want to do anything with you!" she stammered out before huffing and looking away with a glare.

She seemed to have forgotten she was on Bella there, but Pierce gave his gyarados a look and a smile to keep her calm.

"Just to be clear that'd have been a bit of a mistake with a regular gyarados," he said, because he couldn't not correct that when it was right on his face. It felt a little shitty either way though. He was the one that had teased her, after all, so it was his fault. "It was my fault though, so don't worry," he added, trying to reassure her.

If the way she sat now, even more stiff than before, was any indication, then he didn't succeed. He was about to go for another attempt, but Misty relaxed by herself, looking at a spot above her hands on Bellatrix's back. Her expression had gone from slight anger at the teasing to slight panic at the realization and now it had changed to… Something Pierce couldn't quite place, but it seemed sad.

"Something the matter?" he asked softly.

"I'll get worse again without you here," she answered, sighing and leaning forward so that she was all but lying on Bellatrix's back. If it weren't because he was focusing on what she was saying, he'd have been shocked that she did that without having a panic attack. "I'm making so much progress, but that's because you are here."

"I'm sure you can keep going on your own," he replied, turning his eyes to the ceiling of the Gym above the pool. "You have gyarados here besides this bunch. You've got the ball rolling now, just need to keep it so," he told her.

"I just… I don't know."

"Your sisters are here too, if you need some help," Pierce continued, but he knew that was likely a weak argument. Misty seemed to have some problem getting help from her sisters, not because they didn't want to help her but because she didn't seem to want their help, for whatever reason. "And you'll have my number too. If you run into any problems, just give me a call."

"I can do that?" she asked and it pulled at his heartstrings to hear the shy insecurity in her voice. "I know you'll be busy catching up after spending so much time here."

"Don't worry your pretty little head, Misty. I'm here to help first and foremost. The Conference isn't going to be going anywhere. Even if I don't get there this year, there's next year. How many trainers make it in their first year anyway?" he reassured with a wave of his hand.

And hadn't that been a little surprising? In hindsight, it made sense that most newbies didn't make it into the Conference at all, let alone make it far in it. Pokemon Battling was a career, an important one and a prestigious one. There was no way some eighteen/nineteen year old kid would beat people that had been working on their teams for years.

Granted, his team wanted to give it their best shot, so that meant they'd go for it.

As simple as that.

"You sure?" she asked timidly.

"Sure thing. You are a friend now. You are stuck with us," he told her, drawing a smile from the girl. That is, before Bellatrix decided to voice her agreement… which reminded Misty of where she was and who she was lying on top of…

Which made the girl squeak and jump a little, something that made her slip off and fall to the pool.

Life was good.

[}-o-{]

'Go for it, buddy,' he commanded, and Cygnus teleported right on top of the psyduck, his arm pulled back for a punch. He saw the ice energy gather around the abra's fist and then the attack was sent forward… or down, in this case, towards the head of their opponent.

Through the connection they shared, Pierce could feel that his partner had a good feeling about this. He was getting the hang of the move and now, they could even use it in a spar, it seemed. At least, that was what they thought.

"Confusion," Lily – the Sensational Sister, that is – called from the other side of the pool they called battlefield at that moment. Her pokemon, frustratingly, was able to get the hit in before Cygnus managed to, even with the sudden teleport and all.

'Still too slow, but it has the power,' he thought, aware that his partner was paying attention. 'Not perfect, but we are getting there. Psyduck is supposed to push us, so other pokemon likely would get hit,' he continued. Nothing he was thinking was a lie either. Lily had agreed to this spar to help them, not put them against a pokemon they could bully. 'Getting there, Cygnus. Back to the usual, ok? Get your mind back on track and we can try again,' he suggested and he got a mental nod from the Psychic.

From there, Cygnus started teleporting around, occasionally using Thunder Punch or Focus Punch when he thought he could get away with it. The moves weren't powered quite as much as they could have been, but then again, neither were the psyduck's. This was a training spar, after all. The only move they were going all out on was Ice Punch. That was the one they needed to get the hang of, after all. Trying to underpower it would just make things more complicated for Cygnus.

That was more or less how things went through the spar. Despite the underpowered moves though, they didn't let it drag on for too long. Neither of them wanted to be at it for hours. Both of them had other pokemon that deserved attention, after all. So, eventually, Pierce switched to Andromeda and Lily to a slowbro.

Andromeda was not impressed with it, but he didn't let her be too harsh on the little one. According to Lily, it was barely getting started in its training. So, in a way, it was their time to be the spar partner that the other was training with. Andromeda didn't have anything that really needed to be worked on, after all. They were polishing her current move set, but that was almost done. Pierce was already considering options for what to get his eeveelution to train next.

After that Narcissa was paired against a starmie and that was more of a proper fight than a practice spar. Which was the reason he'd let Narcissa be part of it. She didn't like to hold back unless she had to, so it was better this way. Lily's pokemon apparently would welcome an actual battle that wasn't in front of spectators like at the Gym.

"Well, I think that's enough, don't you?" Lily said once that spar was done. "I don't think you are ready to let Bellatrix go ham just yet, are you?"

"Better not to, no," he answered with a nod. He did believe his gyarados could keep her calm well enough, but it was better not to risk it if they didn't need to. He'd probably try soon though, maybe once they were back on the road against a wild pokemon. Trainers would take it very badly if his gyarados lost control even for a second. Wild pokemon would be more calm about it, if not by much, and he could bribe them too, so that was good. "And Orion would hate it," he added, looking at the pool.

They had gotten some training done in pools and such, just so his rock serpent knew what to do if they absolutely needed to go for it. However, that was about it. They had already gotten some training in regards to that as it was. There was no need to mercilessly torture his own pokemon like that. They could try again at a later date.

"Well, that was nice," Lily said then, running her fingers through her pink hair. "And it was very nice of them to behave," she added, glancing to the side, where the gyarados were.

The sea serpents had been surprisingly calm since the show, he noticed, and it wasn't even that they could say they were still tired. Pierce's best guess was that the whole thing had allowed them to unwind a fair bit, and the Sisters seemed to agree with that assessment. Not that they were perfectly calm though.

They still needed to get involved here and there to calm some fight or maybe just an individual gyarados, but it was practically peaceful… by gyarados standards, that is.

"I'm not sure if the others told you, but the shelters are going to be ready soon after that injection of cash you sent their way," she informed him. "They are keeping us up to date."

"Yeah, Daisy told me something about that," he replied and he smiled sadly at the pool. "I'll miss the troublemakers," he added with a weak chuckle. Sure, the whole ordeal had brought his journey to a halt for a while, but he couldn't bring himself to care overly much. They had needed him, so he offered them what he could, that was all. "And you too, I guess," he added jokingly.

"Wow, I can feel the love, Pierce," Lily told him dryly. "Not quite as much as Daisy though, I'm sure."

"My, you are jealous, aren't you?" he teased, drawing a huff from her.

"You wish," she said, trying to appear offended. The smile won out in the end though.

Yeah, he was gonna miss them all.

[}-o-{]

"I'll miss you too, buddy," Pierce said, rubbing his hand on the side of a gyarados head while they growled something. He wasn't too sure about that, but there was anger and sadness in equal measure, from what he could tell. So, he guessed that he was going to miss him too, but he didn't want to appear weak so he tried to be angry.

Silly sea noodle.

"Take care of yourself, yeah?" he added, looking into the gyarados' red eyes. "And everyone else that's wherever you are, yeah? You are strong, so you gotta look out for the others. They've all been through a lot like you, so, they need help getting back on their feet, just like you did," he said and it was a testament to how close he'd gotten to the gyarados, and maybe how much they appreciated all the help and care he'd given them, that he wasn't even offended when Pierce said he'd "been through a lot".

Instead, the sea serpent grunted and nodded.

"Here, one for the road, yeah?" Pierce told him, throwing up a poffin that the gyarados caught in the air. "Good luck."

The sea serpent growled something that only sounded positive to Pierce's ears and made him chuckle. With what he imagined was the gyarados equivalent of a grin, the pokemon was finally struck by the red laser of a pokeball beam. A second later, he disappeared, leaving only an empty spot in the water. He tried and failed not to feel like he'd said goodbye, again.

"Wanna take a break?" Daisy asked beside him, passing him a water bottle.

"It's not a marathon, you know?" he replied wryly, but he took the offered item anyway. "This sucks."

"I know," was all the blonde said, but that was exactly what he needed. Not someone to reassure him, because he knew this would help the gyarados. Not someone to tell him it was okay to feel bad, he already knew that too. He just… Saying goodbye wasn't something he was good at. Even when people left for a few hours to do something he'd feel a little emptier inside. With the gyarados, who he was unlikely to ever see again?

Pierce felt like shit.

"Want a hug?" Daisy asked, half joking and half serious.

"Maybe later," he said and he could only chuckle when the woman winked at him. "You need to get your head out of the gutter."

"No idea what you are talking about~" Daisy replied playfully before her mood dampened. He knew what she was going to say next, he just… "So…?"

"Next one," he said, sighing as he turned towards the pool. And that was more or less how it went from there. One by one, he sent off his friends, the gyarados and the magikarp, each and every single one of them. Fortunately, there wasn't another Bellatrix incident, which he'd been fearing quite a bit.

Judging by the way the Sisters sighed and deflated when the last magikarp was in her pokeball, they had similar worries.

Eventually, the last gyarados was gone too and now… Now they'd all be sent to different shelters for Water types. They'd have people looking after them at all times, feeding them regularly and treating any injuries. They might even get well enough to be sent to the wild or be offered the chance to join someone in their journey. The world was open for them and full of opportunities now.

What a far cry from the bunch of twitchy and snappy sea serpents Pierce had first met.

He felt… proud, even if he was also sad. They'd gotten so much better that he couldn't not be proud, really. They'd all made so much progress… And now they were being rewarded for that. They'd earned the money for the good life that awaited them for themselves. The Sisters had assured him that things would only go well for all of them now.

Pierce decided that he'd trust them… but he did have some firm words with them.

Because he'd put a lot of effort into this. He'd stopped his journey, his team's journey and his friend's journey for this. He'd worked with those gyarados every day for so long and spent much more time than he needed. He'd gotten paid, sure, but they had told him themselves that it wasn't enough, that they'd owe him.

So, that was what he'd asked for.

For them to make sure the pokemon were fine.

He'd been given exasperated looks and all, but he didn't care. It didn't matter how obvious things were and how much he trusted the Sisters. He wanted to make sure. Because he'd be damned if he sent those pokemon off to a bad place after what they'd been through. No, they deserved all the good they could be given.

"We have pull, Pierce," Daisy told him, as if she could read his mind. He was predictable like that, he supposed. "We'll make sure they receive as much as they deserve."

"Thank you," he replied softly, taking a deep breath in. In front of him, the empty pool seemed so very… depressing now that there were excitable and adorable magikarp swimming around. It was just so… dead without gyarados swimming around and growling and fighting every so often.

"That's what we are here for," Daisy told him. "Now, how about we go for a drink, yeah?"

"Yeah… Yeah, that sounds nice."

[} Chapter End {]

Hey guys! How's it going?

And with that, the last part of Cerulean that clung to Pierce is gone. It took a while, but that wasn't something that could be rushed, I don't think. Or, it's not something that I wanted to rush, because that'd have felt like it cheapened the whole thing. I know there's people that agree with me on that, so I'll choose to focus on them.

If you didn't like how long this arc was then too bad, I guess.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter though.

As always, if you can't wait until next week for next chapter, or if you just feel like supporting my writing, there's up to three new chapters in my Pa tre on:

P a treon . com (slash) AdrianKing

Discord Link: discord .gg/UTDransjJZ

Random Question: What do you think comes next in our boy's journey?

See you.