Teams:

Pierce Lawson:

- Narcissa, Beedrill

- Orion, Onix

- Cygnus, Kadabra

- Bellatrix, Gyarados (Shiny)

- Andromeda, Vaporeon

Lillian Dale:

- Root, Bulbasaur

- Talon, Spearow

- Gem, Geodude

- Star, Cleffa

- Cinder, Vulpix

Saffron City VI

Daisy was laughing and she was laughing hard.

"It's not funny," Pierce grumbled, his expression far from pleased.

"It definitely is," the blonde disagreed. "Look at you, suffering from success."

"How did I go from one sponsor offer to… eight," he all but exclaimed, pausing for a second to double check the number. Sure enough, it hadn't gone down. That day, he'd woken up and decided to check his mail once more… only to be welcomed by that sight.

"Well, I imagine that might be our fault," Daisy commented, not even trying to appear ashamed. "When we went around asking about that one sponsorship you got before, it might have gotten out that you were considering it."

"And that changed what exactly?" he asked, having no idea what one thing had to do with the other. It wasn't like his involvement with the sisters was news to someone. His most notorious moments had taken place in the Cerulean Gym, for crying out loud, nevermind the amount of videos he'd recorded there.

"Well, they might have thought you weren't in the market," Daisy answered, calming down a little, even though a smile remained. When his expression didn't show any understanding, she continued. "Your first appearances were closely connected to us, and the League, by proxy. People might have thought you were already employed or sponsored by the League."

"Should I be?" he asked, trying to process that.

"It's a little surprising that the League hasn't reached out to deepen their connection, at the very least. They might have decided it was better to leave you alone though. I can see why they'd do that," Daisy answered with, sounding pretty sure of what she was saying. Which was good. At least one of them understood. Alas, he had more pressing matters to dig into.

"So, now that they've heard I'm not, everyone wants a piece of me?" Pierce said, looking at the list of names apprehensively.

"Pretty much. Word will spread from here though. I'd expect a bunch more to come sooner rather than later."

"Oh joy," he mumbled dryly.

"Yup, fun stuff," Daisy replied mercilessly. "Well, I can reassure you about some of these, at least. The others, we'll have to dig into. You might even have to get your own manager or something though. I can get you a few numbers if you want."

"Sounds… exhausting," he mumbled, being hundred percent serious. He felt tired just thinking about that. He wanted to be a trainer and have fun, damnit! "Most of this is going over my head though, so I guess you aren't wrong. I'll take those numbers whenever you can send them," he decided, resigning himself to his fate.

"You can take your time before jumping to anything," Daisy told him, finally showing some sympathy for his plight. "Remember that we helped you when you become a star though."

To that, he groaned, causing the woman to laugh at him.

"Don't even joke about it."

"Who's joking?"

"Is it too late to take everything back?" he asked and the look on her face told him that yes, just a little bit. Pierce sighed. "Alright, I guess I'll look into this and then see. I can't see myself handling all this, so the manager thing would be very appreciated. If I can get enough money for that."

"You'll probably make enough with your career, if you keep getting involved in things like you have. Which, considering how you are speedrunning your way to the top of the League's call list, you probably will." Well, wasn't that reassuring? Pierce really didn't know how to feel about that. "And that's without counting whatever sponsorships you decide to take. Just one of these sounds like they could provide quite a bit, but you've got several."

"Well, that's nice, I guess," he mumbled. It was nice to have more resources, for sure, but it wasn't like he'd been short on those as it was. What was he supposed to do with more? He was already unsure of what to do with what he did have. Maybe he should look into that, or save it all. He might even get enough to buy a place for himself that'd be spacious enough to house his team… Maybe even larger?

Thinking about it, having a ranch-like place, with a lot of nature and pokemon and maybe some space for a berry farm… It sounded nice to him. His team and him would have plenty of space and he'd get to have fun with wilder pokemon too. The nature he'd come to enjoy would be within reach and he'd have all that he could need… Sounded like a nice plan for whenever he stopped traveling the roads.

If his team ever let him do that.

"You look like you have something in mind," Daisy commented, interested.

"Just thinking about what to do with all that money. Not much came to mind, but I think I have an idea for whenever I decide to stop traveling through the circuit," he answered, drawing an even more curious look from the woman. Still, he decided to leave it at that. It was just an idle thought. He'd have to revisit that later though. "Anyway, I think that's enough about me. Everything alright over there?"

"Everything's calm. Business as usual, more or less," she answered, looking like she very much wanted to stick to the previous topic but being magnanimous and letting it go. "My sisters and I are applying your teachings and preparing a show with pokemon that we were a little wary of working with before. Things are going well, but it'll be a while before we decide that it's enough. We aren't quite as crazy as you."

"And not quite as short on time," he added, to which she nodded. "I'm looking forward to it. Save me some tickets, yeah?"

"Of course," Daisy answered, beaming at him. Then something seemed to occur to her. "Actually, do you want to join?"

[}-o-{]

"They stare too much," Cygnus said from beside Pierce, his emotions bleeding through the link to him. "Annoying," the kadabra muttered in his mind, as if the feedback he got in his mind hadn't been enough to put that together. "Shut up."

'Ignore them. It's not even that bad,' Pierce told him, rolling his eyes.

He had to admit that it was a little annoying, the way people were staring at Cygnus, but he truly didn't think it was that bad. It was certainly understandable though, considering what he'd observed so far through their stay at Saffron. He had quickly figured out that his Psychic was bound to stand out.

Why?

Because Cygnus walked.

In Saffron, there were a lot of abra and kadabra, even the occasional alakazam, although those latter ones were much, much rarer. Psychics truly made up the majority of the pokemon in the city, after all. From those that they saw, none of them walked. Most would float themselves with their powers, some standing, some sitting, some in weird positions. There were some abra that did as Cygnus had in the past and were carried around too.

Again though, none of them walked.

So, Cygnus certainly drew attention with his "weird" way of getting around. Not only that, but more than a few people had noticed his equally as "weird" "spoon". Indeed, his friend stood out a whole lot, especially in that city, although he imagined he'd do so anywhere they went. No offense to him, but he did choose a very abnormal path to develop.

'You knew what you were getting into,' Pierce reminded his kadabra, who gave him the mental equivalent of a huff.

Still though, he'd admit that they were wearing on his patience as time passed. He knew it wasn't their fault or anything, but he was growing tired of being in the spotlight, even if it was Cygnus that was drawing attention to them. Maybe it was stupid that he didn't like to be the focus of so many people, considering he'd orchestrated a show for a crowd and was making videos for an internet audience, but that was different. He was choosing to put himself out there at those times. It was all on his terms and that made all the difference in his mind.

"I can't say I'm a fan either," Cygnus readily agreed to which both of them bonded over their uncomfortable feelings… even though the kadabra mixed in more annoyance than anything else. "Shut up."

'We are here because of you,' Pierce shot back, raising a mental eyebrow at the Psychic.

"I said shut up."

Rolling his eyes, Pierce focused on where he was going. Last thing he needed was to walk into a lamp post or something because he was distracted talking in his mind. That'd just be embarrassing and he just knew that Cygnus would never let him live it down afterwards.

Something that was evidenced by the amusement bleeding through the link.

The rest of the way was thus spent ignoring annoyance and stares. Alas, they didn't have a teleport spot close by that they'd visited already. They were actually going to pass by one of those while they were at it. Which they did, before actually taking the path to their destination. It was a bit of a journey, but maybe that was more because of how annoying getting there was other than the actual distance.

"Finally here," Cygnus said, almost like a sigh in his mind.

"Yup," Pierce replied out loud, looking up at the sign over the Fighting Dojo.

Cygnus had been all for visiting the place once they'd found it while looking into Saffron City. Pierce had honestly completely forgotten about it… if he'd ever known it existed in the first place. He didn't remember it being a thing in the anime or the games, but then again… He didn't know much about either. He thought he might remember a mention of it somewhere or something of the sort, but that was about it.

The point was that it did indeed exist.

As a place that specialized in Fighting types, it certainly appealed to his kadabra and his particular preferences. It might be an unofficial Gym, which didn't appeal to him all that much, but they were also open to anyone wanting to learn from them the – their words, not his – art of fighting. As such, they were there for a visit and maybe a quick lesson.

Depending on how things went, maybe Cygnus and Pierce would come back later. Might as well see if challenging the place looked worth it or not, even without the incentive of a badge. Although, considering how his pokemon were, he might go through with that anyway, just to sate their lust for battles.

"So dramatic," Cygnus said, rolling his eyes at him.

'Anyway, let's go,' Pierce thought, taking a deep breath in and walking inside. After checking with the receptionist – who looked at Cygnus like he was a foreign pokemon of an unknown typing –, they learned where the lessons were held and made their way there. Once they moved there… they were met with even more odd looks, which Pierce guessed was fair.

There wasn't a single Psychic type around the place other than a single gallade, which made sense since it had a secondary Fighting type. Everything else was more Fighting types and some other types sprinkled around here and there. A kadabra certainly stood out there, even more than it did walking on the streets.

"Amusing," Cygnus said, a bitter feeling bleeding through their link more than anything else.

'Indeed,' Pierce agreed, a smirk forming on his face. Well, it seemed that his kadabra and him would have to make a show of themselves, on purpose this time. Because if those people thought they didn't belong there, they were in for a rude awakening.

[}-o-{]

Pierce watched Cygnus go through the motions and stances that were taught, having joined in the spread of pokemon in the massive room. It looked, to him, like those gatherings of martial artists where they were at even distances between each other and all of them went through the same motions in synch… But not quite that coordinated, since they were all learning.

Fortunately for them, Cygnus wasn't the only newbie. He was the only one that had joined that very day, but there were others that looked to be roughly in the same level, committing mistakes and not quite matching the same pace that those that had been there for a while had. Even then, Pierce wasn't too concerned. His Psychic type was smart and he was using his powerful brain to try and absorb everything that was being taught to the best of his ability.

It was kind of cool to see him improve in real time with everything the teachers said or demonstrated. Little by little, the mistakes became fewer and he started coordinating with everyone else much better. He wouldn't be a master anytime soon, but he was definitely making great progress to catch up with the pokemon around.

Meanwhile, Pierce had fun just watching the whole thing happen.

To be perfectly honest, he hadn't expected much from the "dojo". He thought it'd be more of a tutoring space, where they'd teach Fighting type moves and such. Instead, it actually seemed to work like a dojo. Sure, there was move training too, but they also taught martial arts, which Cygnus was very much interested in. Everything Pierce had seen so far pointed to the place being more than good enough to be challenged, if one cared to test their abilities outside of official Gym challenges.

Which was good, since it would allow him to give everyone a chance to shine in Saffron, between the Gym and the Dojo. Although, to be fair, his team didn't have any great strengths against the Fighting types other than Cygnus' Psychic type moves… which he didn't have any yet, but they'd be working on that now that he had his bases covered for the moment in terms of melee fighting. However, they weren't weak against them either… other than Orion, that is. 'Maybe I can use him in Saffron though,' he mused idly. He didn't want to choose him just to get him to participate, but Orion had worked hard to be an option.

'Stop snooping,' he thought out loud, almost feeling Cygnus peeking through their link. 'Focus on what you are doing,' he added, for good measure. To this, his kadabra sent him the mental equivalent of grumbling, but he did as he was told.

A good while later, the lesson ended and then started another kind of teaching. This time, they were pitting students against one another. Apparently, they'd been watching the whole time and were now deciding matchups accordingly. Pierce wondered if they'd underestimate Cygnus for what he was. That'd be… amusing, when his kadabra inevitably wiped the floor with the poor pokemon.

"You bet," Cygnus replied to that thought with, having moved back to standing next to Pierce.

Granted, Cygnus wasn't going to be matching the physical might of a Fighting type, but Pierce was positive that he could beat anything that the ones making the matchup calls would put him against. If the odd looks they'd been getting so far told him anything, it was that Cygnus would surprise everyone. At least until they made a name for themselves, which… Well, Pierce rather doubted that, but he'd also rather doubted his channel would do well and such things before.

He'd rather reserve judgment after so many bad predictions.

"Smart," Cygnus praised, but there was a hint of mockery there. "For once," he added, confirming Pierce's suspicions. The little shit was probably letting out some of his annoyance on him, if he had to bet. "I'm sure I don't know what you are talking about."

'Sure you don't,' he shot back, before both their attention were stolen by the call for their opponents. A sneasel, by the looks of it, which made Pierce tilt his head. 'Small, probably fast. Not a lot of strength without moves,' he told Cygnus, who gave him the mental equivalent of a nod.

Fortunate for them, since Dark type moves would have made things very difficult. Fortunately, this fighting spar exercise didn't include moves. It was raw fighting without any energies involved. It basically turned things into a typeless battle, which was kind of interesting. 'Maybe we can apply this to our own training,' Pierce mused, taking a mental note of it and asking Cygnus to do the same in case he forgot.

This way, they could train movement, positioning and stances without overcomplicating things with moves. It was a nice way to build a foundation for things, Pierce guessed. No wonder people on the internet said the Dojo wasn't a proper Gym anymore because Sabrina and her family were just that good, not because the Fighting type facility was bad.

'Don't kick their asses too much,' Pierce told Cygnus once everyone was in position and waiting for the call to start. He didn't get an answer other than a rather smug feeling bleeding through, which didn't fill him with confidence. 'Cygnus…'

"Start!"

And start they did. The sneasel rushed Cygnus like its life depended on it, almost teleporting in front of him. Idly, Pierce noted that it could probably match Narcissa for speed. However, Cygnus made up for his lack of speed with smarts, having prepared himself for that attack and countering it instantly.

Thus, the sneasel got a facefull of Cygnus' fist before being smacked to the ground.

And it was the "spoon" hand too, which… ouch.

'Remember the stances you learned. Might as well try to apply them,' Pierce told his pokemon calmly, which made the kadabra twitch. He acknowledged the point though. After all, why bother going there and learning stances and motions if he'd continue to fight with his bar brawler style? 'We are barely getting started, Cygnus. We are here to learn, not to win.'

That was their motto, sort of. All battles were to get better, not to win. Pierce didn't care if they lost all their battles so long as they won the important ones, like Gym challenges or, inevitably, tournament fights. Casual challenges, battleground matches or then and there at the dojo, those were all just to get better, not for wins.

"I know," Cygnus said, taking a moment to calm down and then continuing with his battle, this time with a different approach.

'Good.'

[}-o-{]

[Narcissa, the Ambitious Battler]

"Flamethrower!" their opponent's trainer commanded and she felt herself grow annoyed. She was getting tired of having to dodge the flames. Alas, they didn't seem to have good openings to stop the damned dog.

"Move, Blast," Pierce called and she immediately did as he said, dashing to the side and easily dodging the stream of fire. She used Agility and Tailwind while she was at it, trying to get an edge in before starting to shoot Poison Sting. Electro Web would have worked too, but she'd rather use a type she was more in tune with.

Just like she had thought though, the growlithe dodged without issue.

The battle was getting increasingly more annoying as it went on and she was losing. She knew she was losing. She didn't have any attacks that did serious damage against the Fire type, her range fighting wasn't great and the growlithe's attacks were effective against her. A few more close calls or a solid impact and she'd be out.

Meanwhile, her attacks were barely doing anything, if they hit at all.

"Keep it up!"

"Keep moving," Pierce said, almost overlapping with the other trainer, but Narcissa heard him loud and clear. He was a Voice, after all, and Voices were heard. "Be ready, Modify," her trainer added and she felt anticipation flow through her body. She loved it when he spoke like that, sure, firm, strong.

Pierce's kindness had been why she'd chosen him, of course. He was a Helper and she appreciated it. However, Narcissa knew and had come to appreciate the Fighter in him a lot more. It wasn't who he was, not at his core, but there was a part of him, hidden somewhere in there, that shone through at times. Narcissa loved that Pierce, the one that had nothing to envy Lily for.

"Move quick and Strike," her trainer called and she could have cheered at the order. Now that sounded more like it. Narcissa could fight at any range and in any way, but there was no denying that she preferred to fight up close, showing everyone what the weak and fragile bug could do.

So, following her orders, she dashed in, getting a little singed by a Flamethrower but charging through it. Pierce had a reason for his orders, all the time, so she'd follow through and see what happened. Not like she had better ideas, so she'd trust him.

Once she closed the distance, she unleashed Fury Attack on the growlithe. It was the only move she could think of that would do something against the Fire type. Or, at least, the first one that came to her mind.

"Careful!" Pierce called and she listened, knowing what he meant. Something would be coming her way. He didn't usually waste words much during battles. Sure enough-

"Flame Wheel!" their opponent ordered and the growlithe was, annoyingly, covered in flames, which forced her to fly away once more. Well, at least she'd gotten some solid hits in. She was happy with that. She was less happy with the fact that the battle didn't look any more in her favor than it did before, which was to say very little.

And this continued to be the case despite their best efforts, ending with their loss.

Narcissa didn't like that.

She didn't like it at all.

"It's fine," Pierce told her softly, petting her and reverting back to his usual Helper state. It was, admittedly, very nice, but it didn't take the sting away. "You win some, you lose some," he added, as if that helped at all. "These battles are to get better, not to win. Remember that."

She did remember that, but she wanted to win all their battles. She wanted to be the best. She wanted to be strong. Instead, there she was, feeling weak, like a bug. She hated it. She really, really hated it.

"I know you hate it," he said, as if he could read her mind. He was no Fighter-Explorer, however. Cygnus would have been much more smug about it, for one. For another, she'd learned that Pierce was just eerily good at understanding pokemon, even by pokemon standards. "But this can't go on, Narcissa," he continued, getting back her undivided attention. "You are strong and you'll only get stronger… but it'll be a while before you can win most of your fights. Getting like this all the time won't help you. The opposite, in fact."

She knew that. Narcissa was well aware of this already, but she just… couldn't help it. It was so incredibly frustrating, each and every fight. She wanted to prove herself, to her opponents, to the people watching and to herself. She wanted to show the world that she was more than a bug.

She could be strong.

She would be strong.

"Narcissa…" Pierce told her, sounded tired and sad. She didn't like that. She didn't like that at all. Nothing else was said for a long moment, the words seemingly at the tip of her trainer's tongue but never managing to get out. Instead, he just patted her, trying to show her how much he cared.

Silly Pierce. She knew already.

She'd have had to be stupid not to.

"We'll get there, Narcissa, you and I," he told her and something caught her attention.

It wasn't the first time he said something like that. He'd done so plenty of times before. However, those times, he seemed to say it as encouragement or as a dream. Something to work towards, something to strive for, that's what it had been before.

"You, everyone else and I, we'll get there, if that's what you want," he told her, his expression clear and his eyes certain. "Is that what you want?" She clicked her mandibles affirmatively, as if there was any other answer she could give. "Then we'll get there," Pierce decided, his Fighter side shining through outside of a battle for once.

Not encouragement.

Not a promise.

It was a fact.

Nothing more.

Nothing less.

Narcissa couldn't be happier.

[} Chapter End {]

Hey guys! How's it going?

Well… not much to say on this chapter. I'm quite content with it, even if I guess people want me to get on with things already. You all should be used to the slow pacing though, so I'm not even gonna bother repeating myself yet again. If you've made it this far, then you like the pacing and I'm glad for it.

Hopefully you liked the chapter too.

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: If you had to summarize yourself in two words like the titles that I've been using in this story, what would you be? I think I'd be something like… Dreamer-Enjoyer? Difficult to come up with something considering I don't do much with my life other than writing. I chose dreamer because Imaginer sounds weird and it's probably not even a real word. Enjoyer because of how much I try to indulge, with reading, gaming and with plenty of other things. Man, I'm boring.

See you.