Blueberry Academy felt quiet without Ghetsis. The sages still met for Team Plasma meetings and held protests, but they didn't pressure Colress to join them. That suited him fine. He found Team Plasma awfully boring without its nefarious leader at the helm.
Colress resumed the routine he'd grown accustomed to before Ghetsis had steamrolled into his life – Wake up, study, go to classes, study at lunch time, classes, dinner while studying in his room.
The weeks passed by, uneventful evenings filled with theoretical inventions and scribbled equations all blurring into one. Exams were fast approaching, signalling his time at the academy drawing to a close. In September, Colress would be attending Castelia University, the final stop on his road to being a scientist.
Since Battle Studies had been commandeered completely by Team Plasma, he had taken to spending at least two evenings a week training in the terrarium. He had felt completely helpless in Dragonspiral Tower; he had no intention of letting that happen again.
On one such evening, Colress had Klink and Magneton out on the sandy battlefield of the Coastal Biome, the waves lapping calmly beside them as they practiced some new moves.
"You've taken my spot." a voice sounded behind him. He turned to see Annie, her copper hair glowing in the orange sunset. She had her hands on her hips but wore a jovial smile.
"It's hardly your spot, I come here twice a week." Colress retorted.
"I'll battle you for it."
'A battle? That would kill two Pidoves with one stone.'
"I would find that acceptable." His mind reeled as he took his place on the battlefield. The last battle hadn't gone well, but Klink had some new moves that could turn the tables. He needed to land an attack before her Ariados could use Dig. The spider was too much of a threat to waste time raising Klink's speed.
"Go, Frosmoth!"
Colress' strategizing was stopped in its tracks as Annie sent out a Pokémon he'd never seen before.
"That's new..." Were the only words he could conjure.
"I caught her during half term," Annie grinned proudly. "She's from Galar."
"You went to Galar?" asked Colress, watching as the icy moth fluttered in front of him, scattering snowflakes from its beating wings.
"I live there, I'm Galarian. Can't you tell, mate?" Annie put on a thick Galarian accent. "I go home during the holidays."
"I suppose that was a silly question." Colress grimaced.
Annie grinned, "Well, shall we...?"
"Oh, yes! Klink?" Colress beckoned Klink onto the battlefield.
'Stick to the original strategy, attack before it can unleash any nasty surprises.'
"Klink, Gear Grind!" Colress commanded. Klink managed to land the hit, snagging Frosmoth between its gears.
"Frosmoth, Snowscape!" Annie shouted across the beach. Frosmoth's eyes glowed blue as a flurry of snowflakes began to descend around them.
The snowstorm obscured his vision and he shivered as the icy air blew over him. He squinted through the flurry, trying to make out Klink.
"Keep it up, Klink! Hit another Gear Grind!" he called into the mist.
"Use the snow to evade it! Use Blizzard!" Colress heard Annie's voice, but he couldn't see her. The battle waged on, frustratingly cloaked in a thick veil of snow. Colress shouted commands into the storm, not knowing their outcome.
When the snow eventually yielded, Klink lay on the ground beneath the victorious Frosmoth.
"Yes! Well done, Frosmoth!" Annie rush forward and threw her arms around the bug. It squeaked happily in her embrace.
Colress' chest tightened as he wordlessly recalled Klink back to its ball.
'Her friendship with Frosmoth looks just as strong as it is with Ariados, even though she only caught it recently. How does she do it with such ease?'
"Splendid. You are quite the trainer." Colress approached her with a self-depreciating smile.
"Have a good rest, Frosmoth." she said before recalling Frosmoth back into its ball. Colress noticed for the first time that both of her Poké Balls were green. 'Friend Balls... Could that be the secret to her bonds, or is it just a factor?' "You've gotten stronger yourself."
"Thank you..." Colress nervously adjusted his glasses, his eyes lingering on the ball in her hand. "You use Friend Balls?"
"They're cute, aren't they? There's a guy in Galar who gives out Poké Balls, so I got a few." She held it out to Colress. He tentatively took it, noting how warm her hands were as they grazed over his.
"Do they help?" he asked, holding it up and letting the moonlight dance over the glossy green enamel.
"Maybe, Frosmoth did seem to warm up to me quite fast. But then, Ariados was following me around way before I caught her officially, so I don't think it makes a lot of difference in the long run. I mainly got them because green is my favourite colour." she chuckled.
Colress made a mental note of her favourite colour, although he didn't know why he'd ever need that information.
"How long have you had Ariados?" Colress asked. Annie took a seat on a nearby rock and looked up at him, the hexagonal pattern of the glass dome reflected on her glasses.
"Hmm, it's been around three years now. I was terrified of bugs back then, too. Then one day I find this a massive Spinarak in my room. I freaked out, I was up on the bed, brandishing a broom at her, telling her to stay back." she was smiling nostalgically out at the water as she told the story.
"So, you decided to catch her?" Colress took a seat beside her, sitting cross-legged on the sand.
"No, I just wanted her out, but I was too scared to touch her. So, I got her some food and said: Eat that and then leave. Well, that was it then. I became the food lady. Spinarak would show up every day for her plate of berries."
Colress laughed, imagining young Annie's consternation at having encouraged the spider to keep visiting. "When did you stop being afraid of her?"
"I don't know, really. Feeding her every day just became a routine. I started leaving the window open so she could get in easier and at some point I found myself looking forward to hearing her little feet on the windowsill. Then one day, she never left. And I liked that."
Her words hung pleasantly in the air. Colress was captivated by the simple intimacy of them. He looked up at her, studying the way her lips curled up as she recalled the fond memories. She met his gaze and he looked away, feeling his face heat up.
"How did you meet Klink?"
"It's not a very interesting story," Colress admitted. "I researched what Pokémon would suit my battling style and then I caught them."
"I think that's interesting." she leant forward, resting her hands on her knees. "What about Klink and Magneton was it that suited you?"
'Steel-types are less emotionally intricate than other types. They don't require as strong of a bond to master. They typically prefer to be given a function. They are well suited to being used as tools.'
Colress looked away, scooping up a handful of sand and letting it slide through his fingers. "Steel-types are... dependable."
Annie nodded, looking over at Magneton who was still floating dutifully nearby. "Yeah, I suppose they are."
"I have a losing streak to keep up, I'm nothing if not consistent." Colress smiled, hoping to move the conversation along. Annie let out a hearty chuckle.
"You can lose to me any time you want, I could use a rival." she nudged him playfully with her foot. Colress stiffened, not sure how to react to the gesture.
"You said you're training to be a Gym Leader, right?" Colress asked.
"I don't know about that," she laughed, propping herself up on her hands as she stared out at the artificial horizon where the beach met the distant glass of the terrarium. "I always say I'm going to be a Gym Leader, but I don't know really."
Colress glanced at her, confused by her noncommittal tone. "You seem to have a natural talent for battling, you specialise in one type, why wouldn't you go for it?"
She tugged on a loose curl, her smile dulling. "I dunno… I mean, I like battling, obviously, but I don't always feel like I'm cut out for… everything else. Being in the spotlight, being a leader. What if I suck at it?"
"Of course you won't suck at it. And if you do, you'll improve." he said simply.
Annie looked at him with big, hopeful eyes. "You make it sound so easy. But… Maybe you're right. You're always working hard, I see you reading textbooks everywhere you go. Maybe I need to be a bit more dedicated."
'She sees me?' The thought caught Colress off-guard. He never imagined being anything more than a backdrop to the people around him, only at the forefront of people's minds when he was standing directly in their way. But Annie had noticed him.
"Maybe you could join me some evenings?" Blood rushed to Colress' cheeks as he suggested it, quickly adding: "For battling?"
"Maybe I will," Annie's pensive expression cracked into a smile. "What are you doing next year?"
"University. I'll be getting a degree in Pokémon Science like my parents did."
"Oh, so you're smart-smart," Annie laughed. "Remember me when you're famous."
Colress smiled at the floor. "Well, I was never going to be a famous battler."
"Not with that attitude you aren't," Annie rolled her eyes. "I was worried you were going to say you'd be joining Team Plasma."
Colress' thoughts drifted to the stone sphere that was hidden under his pillow in his dorm room. A relic related to Reshiram, the legendary dragon that he could have the chance to study if he were to stick around with Team Plasma.
"They won't be able to afford me when I'm Dr. Colress Achroma." Colress lied.
"Good," Annie nodded. "I can empathise with some of what they say, but I don't think separating people and Pokémon is the answer."
Colress remained quiet, turning her words around in his brain. He couldn't put the words together to explain why he felt glad that Annie didn't support Team Plasma. 'Ghetsis. It's to do with Ghetsis, I think. He's dangerous and Annie is... Well, she shouldn't be around someone like that. She-'
"Okay, that's twice you've gone quiet on me when I've brought up Team Plasma. If you agree with them, you can just say." Annie interrupted Colress' thoughts in a teasing voice. "I can keep an open mind, you can preach to me if you want?"
"No!" Colress blurted out. "No, I mean, I'm glad you don't agree with Team Plasma."
Annie tilted her head, "Why?"
'I don't know, I hadn't got that far yet!'
"You're going to be a Gym Leader..." Colress spoke slowly, not sure where his sentence was heading as he picked each word individually. "You don't want to be... getting mixed up with them."
Annie smiled, her eyebrows still knitted together in confusion. "Well, thank you. It kind of sounds like you believe in me. I don't think anybody has ever expected more than mediocrity from me, but if Dr. Colress says I can do it, then I'd better do it."
She was fiddling with a lock of her copper hair again as she spoke. Colress was glad she'd interpreted his words that way. He wanted her to succeed.
"I'll come and challenge your gym when you're the leader." Colress looked up at her with a fond smile.
"Good idea, I won't have to give out any badges that day." she grinned back.
A Venomoth fluttered past, the nocturnal creature reminding them of how long they'd been sitting on the beach. The nights in the terrarium stayed at the same ambient temperature as the daytime, so they had barely noticed the sun set and the stars begin to twinkle above.
Annie stood, brushing the sand off her jeans. "Right, I should be off. Don't wanna get in trouble for being out too late again. They docked my points last time and Mrs. Hawthorn's on my case."
Colress found himself smiling like a fool. "I'll be here on Thursday if you want to battle again."
"You bet." She gave him a playful salute before turning to leave. Colress watched her go, feeling an ache in his chest. Evelyn Harmonia, Annie... There were people that made the world feel less cold. He wanted to know them.
He reached out and placed a hand on Magneton's cool surface as it floated over to him. He remembered Annie's hesitation over trying to become a Gym Leader and suddenly understood. He wanted to be Annie's friend...
"But what if I suck at it?" he muttered in a Galarian accent as they made the slow walk back to his dormitory.