Before they reached the cafeteria, another idea had occurred to Alysa, and she briefly stopped Drayton in the hall to share it with him. It's been a while since she's spent time at the school's entrance, and the sun would be setting soon. She'd think it'd be nice if they ate their ice cream up there, and she hasn't seen a real sunset in a while.
She's loved them for a very long time.
Unsurprisingly, he was all for that idea. The two loitered around in the cafeteria, Alysa mainly filling the air with miscellaneous chatter about classes since Drayton inquired about them. She tried to not get too flustered over how he started playing with her hair. Before she knew it, it was about time for the two of them to grab their treats and head up.
When they stepped out, greeted by fresh air and the twilight sky, Alysa knew they made the right decision. It was beautiful, so beautiful that she stared at the multitude of colors completely spellbound. Even better was how there weren't any other students present, only just a handful of Wingull roosting, leaving the area to be serene.
Drayton took her from the scene by gently nudging her, gesturing over to the right set of bleachers with a half-lidded smile. She followed his lead, sliding in next to him. From where they sat, they could see the tail end of the setting sun, casting a bright orange line across the horizon. The sea reflected some of the light, but how removed the elevated platform of the school made them prevented her from capturing the full majesty. Oh well. What she did get to see was still wonderful.
"This is a nice sight." He whistled, popping open the container to his ice cream. Alysa did the same with hers.
"Thanks for suggesting this, dearest."
"No problem." Her soft voice almost blended into the breeze. She ripped open the little baggie containing her spoon and napkin. Frankly pumped to have ice cream, something she hasn't had in what was probably months or longer, Alysa immediately started digging into her caramel-chocolate flavor.
The sweet, rich flavors danced across her taste buds. Smiling widely, Alysa shoveled more into her mouth.
"Yummy...!" cheered the fluffy-haired girl quietly. She was so happy to eat, but then she realized how quiet Drayton was being. She turned her head towards him, and her heartrate skyrocketed when she saw the look of sheer tenderness on his face. He was watching her, slowly eating his mint chocolate chip ice cream.
"W-What?" Alysa stammered.
"You make the cutest noises." Drayton professed, with no qualms. Self-conscious, Alysa blinked rapidly.
"You think so...?"
"I know so. You don't do it that often, but when you do..." he chuckled. "Most precious thing ever."
Alysa decided to spoon more ice cream in her mouth, in the hopes of cooling herself down. Thankfully, Drayton made no additional comments. Silence went on, and Alysa fully took in the atmosphere. Against what remained of the sun's light, the distant skyline of Castelia City was eye-grabbing, speckled with dots from countless lights being on. It made her remember the date idea her boyfriend presented days ago. Sadly, she still couldn't afford much time for it...
"Sweetheart?" Drayton's voice sounded. She faced him again.
"Hm?"
"Thanks, for... getting offended by what Carmine was saying. About me." Drayton maintained his trademark lazy mien, but it was far softer than she's ever seen it.
"You didn't need to, but I do appreciate it. A lot."
"Ah...of course." Despite the cold treat, her body temperate still felt like it was climbing. "I really don't like the idea of anyone speaking poorly about you."
"You might be in for a rough time then. I have lots of fans around in the school, but there's lots of people who have fun talking shit too."
He smiled, but she couldn't manage to form her own.
"Comes with the territory of being popular. Especially when your club's strongest trainer is pretty open with his...opinions."
Right, their Champion. She's seen enough of their dynamic to know that Kieran probably never has anything nice to say about him. Which did piqued her curiosity.
"...Um... has things always been bad between you and Kieran?" she questioned hesitantly, stirring her spoon within her cup.
"I don't think they were. I treated him like I did anyone else. He was timid, but he didn't view me like I was trash or whatever." He shook his head.
"When he came back from that school trip, it's like he slapped a target on my back and deemed me his number one enemy. It was weird at first...concerning too. Now it's just annoying that he's still on that wave. Annoying and...sad."
Drayton tapped his finger in thought. Oooh, how she wished she could tell him more about the Kitakami story. She did promise Amarys she'd keep it a secret though, and it wasn't her story to tell anyway.
"I get wanting to win. I get how humiliating it can feel to lose. But, letting that need take priority over everything else that goes into being a trainer...it can ruin you. I did try to talk to Kieran once, but he shut me out in a second. Tried to take the throne back, that didn't work either..."
Alysa watched as his demeanor lost its light-heartedness, and her heart panged. She wished she knew what to say.
"It's fine though. I think things will work out eventually, in some way."
He went back to eating his frozen treat. Alysa's mind spiraled around how Drayton's own intentions for wanting Kieran to lose the Champion title truly went far beyond just sheer bitterness. She had already suspected that, but it getting verified caused a new light to shine down on it.
"Say, hon. If you do actually beat Kieran..." he started, looking out towards the horizon. "What are you going to do as Champion, and as president too? Have you thought about it?"
She gasped. "Uh...no. I haven't..."
How could she gloss over what defeating Kieran would fully do? She hadn't the slightest clue what went into being the club's president, the expectations involved and the duties required. Kieran barely visited the club room and she shared no classes with him, so she hadn't been able to absorb any information through osmosis either.
"That doesn't surprise me." The light from the sun reflected off of Drayton's eyes, highlighting the gold and making them almost appear to glow. Alysa had to try so hard to not get lost in them.
"Focused so much on reaching him first and leaving everything else second, hm?"
His teasing tone automatically drew out a smile.
"Suuure..." His assumption was correct, but she wouldn't readily admit it. "I dunno what the president does or can do exactly, but I'd at least try to make the club fun again. Make climbing the BB League ladder feel really worthwhile."
That was a basic answer, she was aware, but Drayton made no joking remarks.
"That'd be promising. I think you'd make for a good president."
"Are you just saying that because you're biased?"
"Half and half."
She nudged his nearest arm with her own, humor guiding it. He returned it by tapping her nose, then using the same hand to rub her cheek.
"Considering what Kieran's been like, I know you'd be better than him. Part of me does wonder how he'd take losing to you, though..."
His tone of voice changed, but it was so subtle that she couldn't describe it if she tried. But Alysa's ears were so attached to his voice, it was easy for her to pick up differences in his articulation.
Now that she thought about it, Alysa doubted that Drayton having more context of Kitakami's events would change any of his current thoughts on the other boy. Just as Amarys said, what he went through wasn't an excuse for his behavior.
She laid her free hand on Drayton's, enjoying the sheer amount of care that radiated from it. Them sitting together like this, eating ice cream under a twilight sky, was awfully...romantic. She hadn't intended for this moment to come off like that, but it wasn't out of place. It was welcomed in fact, as she hasn't had the opportunities to have more times like this with him as of late. Hopefully that would change once this challenge run ended, however it did.
From how Drayton kept staring at her, like she was something absolutely special, enhanced the tingles jumping up and down her back. He was always so open with his feelings towards her, the girl hoped she was being just as open with her own.
She shivered when his thumb brushed against her lower lip. She missed it the second his hand left her face, but he then encircled her waist with his arm, pulling her flush against him.
Alysa emitted a noise of satisfaction, nuzzling past the flared collar of his jacket so she could rest her head against his own. His fingers kneaded at her waist, and things never felt more perfect than they did right there.
She hoped they could have more and more moments like this... and the following day at least fed some of this desire.
The Polar Biome didn't feel as horribly cold today. Perhaps, wearing a thick, long-sleeve pink shirt and her black parka did the trick. Drayton's company surely helped as well.
Alysa walked with the boy, her snow glove-covered hand held firmly in his uncovered one. It never failed to amaze her on how Drayton was unaffected by the freezing cold, she has yet to see him wear extra protective clothing or even zip his jacket up. She did envy it, but at the same time, it meant that she had more excuses to cuddle up to him.
Accompanying the pair was Alysa's Alolan Vulpix. Zarea ran about in the snow as they headed towards the plaza, so eager to see and sniff what she could. The sight warmed the girl even more, seeing how far the little fox has come. She's built up more weight and all of her energy has obviously returned, like she had never been near-death at all.
She heard Drayton laugh as Zarea trotted up on his side, staring at him with her big blue eyes.
"I guess she's feeling all better now?" he asked his girlfriend, amusement clear.
"Has to be. She's been like this for the last few days, especially during training," smiled Alysa. Zarea was very nimble and had excellent control of her attacks, though she had a tenacity to get too excited and uncontrollably freeze her surroundings. She wasn't too sure why the fox was in such a good mood, but she was willing to believe her improved health was the cause.
Turning around a snowy hill, the Polar Plaza entered the sight of the two trainers. There was something new that instantly caught Alysa's attention, and her eyes widened in delight. There was a small group of Cubchoo with a few Seel loitering, appearing to play in the snow.
"This was what I wanted to show you," Drayton spoke, touching upon the reason why he asked her to come here with him. "Sometimes, we get visitors hanging around the plaza."
"They're all so cute!" she squealed, drawing out more laughter from the boy. He released her hand to approach the group, who all eyed him curiously. One Cubchoo let out a soft cry and ran forward on stubby legs towards Drayton, stopping at his shoes.
Alysa's heart did flips when he bent down to pick the small pokemon up, and turned towards her with a sweetened smile.
"Some of the little guys are my buds, like this one." He held it up in his arm and against his shoulder, careful to not touch its dangling snot. The Cubchoo was content to stay in place, like it had been in the position many times. Internally turning into goo the more seconds went by, Alysa approached to hold out a mitten, cooing when the pokemon laid a paw on her mitten.
"I help out the Terarium Club with surveying the biome, once in a blue moon. A few of the wild mons always remember me."
"That's too precious," the girl beamed, heart threatening to burst. It was made worse when Zarea mustered up enough courage to step out from behind her legs and approach the wild pokemon. A Seel dragged itself forward to her, and after sniffing at it, she was yipping and pawing at it – wanting to play.
"Thanks for bringing me here."
"Anytime, honey." He winked. "This dosage of cute can give you extra fuel, going into your challenge against Lacey."
How thoughtful of him. She had some minutes before she had to head towards the Coastal Plaza, and this moment has definitely quieted whatever nerves she had. Drayton's words did remind her of something, as she watched Zarea play with the other pokemon.
"So, you sometimes do surveys of the biome's pokemon?" she brings up, and he nods.
"Do you know anything about the Alolan Vulpix population? Since, I found Zarea alone and starving..."
"Last I checked, and heard from the Terarium Club, it's at a healthy number. It is weird that she was alone, usually they stick together in groups." Drayton too watched Zarea, contemplation on his face.
"I guess she just got dealt a bad hand. Was separated from her family for whatever reason, and struggled to make it on her own."
How uncomfortably familiar...her eyelids drooped. Alysa wondered just how Zarea was feeling deep down. When the Vulpix soon met her gaze, and approached her with a head tilt, the female trainer got down onto her knees.
"...Do you miss your family?" she softly asked the fox. Zarea stared at her for a second or two, then got up on her hind legs to press her front paws against Alysa's thighs. She nuzzled her cheek, quietly crooning.
Not only was that a resounding 'no', Alysa wanted to cry at the significance of Zarea's action. She stroked the fluff on her head, not at all caring how cold the Vulpix felt to the bare skin of her face.
Drayton watched, feeling extremely soft himself. He was suddenly reminded of something though, and gently placed his Cubchoo friend back onto the ground. It waddled off back to the other wild pokemon, as he reached down into a pocket in his uniform pants.
"I got a gift for you."
Looking up, curiosity had her stand. Drayton pushed a pale blue rock that possessed a snowflake symbol onto her open palm.
"An Ice Stone...?" she gasped.
"Yeah. You're welcome to use it on Zarea, if you want."
Funnily enough, after she got Zarea, evolving the Vulpix became a neglected idea. Part of her was excited, though she knew it was important to ensure Zarea even wanted to evolve in the first place. Vulpix can live their entire lives never evolving due to how rare it is for one to stumble across the stone required, so it's likely that Zarea would be naturally attached to how she is now.
Alysa did adore Alolan Ninetales though. She would for sure sit down with Zarea about this later on, but she did feel unexplainably guilty for accepting this from Drayton.
"A-Are you sure? Aren't these hard to find?"
"I've found a couple, just from spending time here. Losing one doesn't hurt my collection," he chuckled. "Don't worry about it."
Alysa's smile stretches wide. "Spoiling me yet again, mon chéri..."
Her tender remark spurred Drayton to near her, and envelop the girl in his arms. She clutched the Ice Stone and returned the embrace, not needing to think about it.
"And I'll still do it some more, too." Golden eyes narrowed with the spoken promise. The heat building up within her reached a fever pitch when he bent down to the opening in her raised hood, kissing her tenderly. The perpetual yearning her lips had for his own was revived with a vengeance. Sadly, it was short-lived, as Zarea decided to squeeze herself in between their pairs of legs.
The kiss broken, the couple took a step back but kept their arms around each other. Drayton laughed and Alysa squinted down at the Vulpix, who gazed back with her usual innocent flair. She just wanted more attention from her trainer. Another interruption showed itself right after.
"Hey, Drayster!" Two of the elite's crew in the biome, Ray and Winter, approached them. They looked troubled.
"There's some wild Fraxure fighting up on the mountain! They might cause an avalanche. Could you handle it?" Winter requested.
Now it was his turn to deflate. Groaning, Drayton let go of Alysa's waist, smile dropping and grumbling a rhetorical question. "Do I have to?"
Alysa snickered, but felt her phone start to vibrate. She checked it, seeing that her reminder alarm went off.
"I have to go to the Coastal Plaza," she told him, putting her phone away. He groaned louder, looking at his assistants and back to her. He rubbed the back of his head.
"I'll head there, as soon as I'm done here."
He was upset at them having to split apart sooner, but she was tickled by his obvious desire to stay in her company as much as possible. Depending on how long it took him to break up the Fraxure, he might end up being late for the battle should she pass Lacey's trial, but she would never hold it against him.
She nodded. Alysa returned Zarea to her pokeball, and pocketed the gifted Ice Stone. She sent out her team's flier, Sally, and the elite selected his Dragonite. They were promptly off to the location Ray and Winter highlighted on the map in Drayton's phone, and Alysa took off upon her own dragon to the Coastal Biome.
—
The stark change to warmer temperature was refreshing, but Alysa had to take off her parka along with the shirt she put on over her club tank top and arm warmers before she started sweating buckets. Stuffing them all into her backpack, followed by the Ice Stone, she rubbed Sally's chin before returning her.
Alysa entered the plaza proper, and went right to the front counter.
"Hello Alysa!" The female assistant chirped. "Here to challenge Miss Lacey?"
More and more people in the club were memorizing her face and name, it seemed. "I am."
"Great! That'll be 50 BP."
Just as the payment was completed, Alysa heard her name being called joyfully. Lacey skipped up, looking the most excited she's ever seen the pink-haired girl be.
"You're here! Wonderful! I'm ready to get started when you are," she cheered, though she did pause.
"Where's Drayton? Usually you two are attached at the hip."
"Hah..." Alysa blushed. "He had a wild pokemon problem to take care of, in the Polar Biome."
"Oh! He's actually being responsible with his duties, on his own?" Lacey gaped. "Incredible. But hopefully he won't be occupied by that for long, I know he wants to be here."
The elite gestured for her to follow, and led Alysa out of the plaza, and to a small clearing tucked between trees yards away.
"I'm sure you already know what you're in for, but still, I'll explain!" Lacey clasped her hands. "My Elite Trial is a trivia quiz, about some of the pokemon we have here in the Coastal Biome. You'll be asked five questions, and I won't tell you how many you need to get right in order to pass, so make sure to do your best!"
The elite pulled out a small, yellow watch from her pocket. "Additionally, you only have ten seconds to answer each question! If you run out of time, it'll count as you getting the question wrong. Are you ready to begin?"
Alysa liked to think of herself as having above-average knowledge on many pokemon, as she loved researching them in her free time. Her pokedex, while not complete, provided a fun distraction the occasional day. She was fairly confident she'd do well on paper, but knowing Lacey, she'll surely be throwing some curveballs in the quiz.
"I am."
"Awesome. I'll start having my assistants bring in the respective pokemon."
Her Rotom phone hovered before her, and she tapped at the screen. Less than a minute later, a boy walked up to the two girls with a Chikorita trailing behind. Lacey cooed for it to come towards her, and Alysa giggled at the way it hopped along.
"So, Chikorita!" Lacey began. "It can determine the temperature and humidity of the area around it, and even pacify aggressive feelings in others! What does it use to accomplish both? Please point to its body and identify what you think is the answer!"
She clicked the watch. Alysa studied the small Grass-type, thankful she's read many Pokedex entries.
She pointed to the green vegetation sticking out from the pokemon's head. "Its leaf."
"Correct!" Lacey clapped. "The leaves of Chikorita have so many uses! When they're shed upon evolution, they make for pleasant tea as well."
Its role fulfilled, the boy collected the Grass-type and returned to the plaza with it. As they waited for the next assistant to walk up, Lacey suddenly started glaring past her.
"Hey!" she shouted, hands going to her hips. Alysa jumped, and spun around to see what had her suddenly upset. When she saw that familiar purple-streaked white pompadour sticking out behind a tree, followed by a pair of gold eyes looking out, incredulous laughter spilled from her. When did he even get over there?
Discovered, Drayton left his hiding spot, grinning shamelessly. Lacey huffed, and stuck her right arm out to the side, pointing towards the biome's main hub.
"Go wait!" she shouted to the other elite.
Drayton obeyed, but not before putting one of his hands up to his mouth, blowing a kiss directly at Alysa. The entertainment she felt was then crushed into dust when her face felt as if he had physically put his lips to it, and her heart raced. A hand planted itself over her mouth, watching the teen leisurely stroll towards the Coastal Plaza.
"Ugh." The pink-haired girl shook her head, but Alysa could tell she was trying to not smile. "Let's get back to the trial."
The next pokemon subject was a Smeargle, and the question for it regarded what other Smeargle did in a pack for one that reached adulthood. Remembering this tidbit of info as well, Alysa pointed out the pawprint on its back – resulting in another correct question. Two down out of five, and she was feeling good.
Then, the next question. A Dewpider and Araquanid were brought up. Lacey asked if their species could survive on land without their bubble helmets. This did admittedly stump Alysa for a prolonged period, as nothing she could remember reading about them provided an answer. She assumed they had the bubbles to keep themselves hydrated above water, but could still breathe normally. So, her answer was a tentative "yes".
"Oooh..." Lacey waggled a finger. "Sorry Alysa, but that's incorrect! Dewpider and Araquanid can only breathe oxygen in water, so the bubble over their heads is what allows them to survive on land."
"Aw...shoot." The first missed question. "I didn't know that."
"Well, now you know! And I'm happy you learned something new about pokemon. That's what this trial is meant to do for its takers."
Two right, one incorrect. Still not terrible, but now Alysa was getting a little nervous. She hoped she didn't need to actually get all five questions right. The next subjects were Inkay and Malamar, two pokemon that had her smile. She's always been a fan of the line. The girl's smile dropped like a rock when Lacey asked the question about them though. She was so confused, she had to ask the elite to repeat herself.
"Compared to Inkay's body, what would you say Malamar is? Right side up, or upside down?
Knowing the evolution method for Inkay, this was so obviously a trick question, and she groaned. She regarded the pokemon carefully, both of whom appeared quite amused. Lacey must've used this question on trial-goers in the past, with varying results she was sure. Alysa began to sweat a little.
"Five seconds~," the elite hummed. Breath hitching, Alysa decided to throw caution into the wind and stop thinking too deeply.
"R-Right side up."
"...Correct!"
Lacey laughed, and Alysa released the air she wasn't aware she was holding.
"Malamar stands on its feet, so it is right side up, just like Inkay! You're the first challenger who's gotten that one correct in a while."
That was a close one. Three correct now, and just one more question left. If she got this one right, she must be guaranteed to pass...
Alysa gaped as an assistant brought in a bunch of Minior, already knowing what this one was going to be. Just as she expected, Lacey told her to take note of one Minior color: the Yellow Core. Then, their shields went up, and they shuffled around in a dizzying pattern. Alysa tried to keep close watch on the right one, but she ended up losing track of it, much to her chagrin.
"Alright! Which Minior is the Yellow Core?" Lacey waved her fingers at the still pokemon. Alysa bit her lip, knowing it was between two for sure, but she was unable to definitively decide. Taking the shot in the dark, she pointed at the upper one in the pattern. The selected Minor took its shield back down, revealing...
"Correct! Bravo!" Lacey applauded, and the Minor all cried their own congratulations. Alysa was happy to have gotten four out of five questions, but was it enough? She nervously waited for the elite to continue, after the last assistant came to herd the Minior.
"Your final result: four questions out of five were right. Which means..." Lacey's eyes shone. "You passed the trial! Well done, Alysa!"
What a relief. Finally, she could relax some.
"To be transparent with you: it's usually three questions that need to be correct. Sometimes four. I like keeping that a mystery with first-timers though, so they have to try."
Lacey laughed. "But anyway: you're able to battle me now! Time to go back to the plaza."
The girls walked together. With the trial out of the way, Alysa tried to mentally prepare herself. She had an idea on what to do against Lacey, but it could easily not go according to plan.
"I have to say," Lacey began, a smile playing at her lips. "Drayton can be silly if he wants to be. Hiding like that, as if I wouldn't spot him."
"His hair does make it a little hard for him." Alysa snickered. He wanting to see how she did in the trial was flattering, but pulling an antic like that was very silly indeed. But it was so him at the same time. His moments of sincere playfulness were lovable, to her at least. That kiss he blew to her though...her heart was fluttering all over again.
When they reached the plaza, Lacey continued onto the battle court, while Alysa looked for her goofy boyfriend. He was reclined on a seat, drinking from a soda can.
"Hi...sneakster," she greeted with titter.
"Hello. It was a fair attempt, wouldn't you say?" Drayton joked, standing up and crushing the can.
"It was. I had no idea you were back there."
"Managed to creep in right after you two got there. Those Fraxure were a breeze."
They started walking together, he throwing the can away in a waste bin.
"Did you pass, by the way?"
"Yes."
"Nice." Drayton looked especially giddy. "You battle Lacey now and win, then it'll finally be MY turn..."
He's been waiting as patiently as he could, and she appreciated it. Alysa squeezed his hand. A lot of her tension for this entire challenge had been mostly reserved for him, but first, she did need to defeat Lacey. She'd dive headfirst into whatever in the world she'd do against her boyfriend afterwards.
When they neared the court, Drayton asked her something else that disrupted her concentration.
"Did you like that blow kiss I gave you?"
She cleared her throat, looking off to the side. "...Yes."
"Good. I'll do it more often."
"...If you want to slowly kill me, then go ahead."
His only response was to gently pinch one of her cheeks, then stood in place to watch her go on towards the court's center. Lacey was waiting, and she surprisingly looked about as excited as Drayton did before.
"To be honest Alysa...I've really been waiting for this moment. I want to know how my team will fare against yours." She glanced over towards one part of the crowd, scoffing. "Drayton has defeated me many times, and he has a higher win rate than me in general...but I have a lot of practice against dragons as a result!"
She clapped, grinning. "Naturally, I'm pumped to see your fairies in action personally too! Let's made this a good battle, regardless of what the end result may be."
The fluffy, black-haired girl nodded. Determination hardened her features. "Agreed."
To their court positions, they went. This song and dance was familiar to the girl, but thinking this would hopefully be her second to last official battle against the Elite Four made her feel antsy. The pokemon she sent out, Thea and Mims, picked up on her energy in seconds. Lacey led with her Granbull and Primarina.
An aura blasted from the canine as she growled, affecting Mims but the translucent charm tied around Thea's head blocked it. Normally, Mims getting Intimidated was a bad thing, but she wouldn't have him be a direct damage dealer in this battle.
Having the first go, Alysa gave her orders. Thea powered up with Swords Dance, and to the shock of Lacey along with multiple present, she had Mims use Curse. The Mimikyu slammed a hand against the neck of his fake head, causing a miasmic power to seep out. The same dark aura manifested around Primarina, and her head immediately fell, expression twisting up.
"Primarina's on a time limit now..." Lacey crossed her arms, brows slanting. "That's very convenient for you. Though, sacrificing most of your Mimikyu's stamina this early is an interesting choice."
"I weighed my options," Alysa shot back, a side of her mouth curling up. "I think I still have the advantage here, in the long run."
"We'll see." A smirk pulled a corner of the elite's lips. She had Granbull leap forward in a Play Rough attack towards Thea, but the Rapidash was very nimble and evaded with minimal effort. Primarina used Shadow Ball to break Mims' Disguise. Following this, she again invoked a surprised reaction from her opponent when Thea lunged while turning, striking Granbull with Iron Tail. The fairy was sent sliding across the court, coming to a stop near Lacey. Her eyes were in spirals.
A one-hit knockout, against a major damage dealer to boot. Primarina fired off a Hyper Voice, and while Thea was hit, Alysa had Mims use Protect to avoid damage. She needed him to stay active on the field for a while longer, until Lacey sent out a specific pokemon. Primarina's Throat Spray burst from the Hyper Voice, giving her an offensive boost, but stamina continued to drop; the aquatic fairy showed signs of delirium from the pain of the Curse. Lacey's next team member put onto the field was Galarian Slowbro.
She instantly lived up to her infamy in the League Club, as her Quick Draw ability activated. Thea had no chance in dodging the sudden Shell Side Arm, resulting in her being knocked out. Mims raked Slowbro with a Shadow Claw, but due to the Intimidate from earlier, her fairy's attacking power was nonexistent. Lacey sought the knockout on Mims with Primarina's Moonblast, but her pokemon was exhausted already from the Curse. Her aim was poor, allowing Mims to avoid the attack.
Alysa's next pokemon was Sally. She unleashed a Dual Wingbeat on Primarina, finally knocking her out and putting her out of her misery. Mims hit Slowbro with another Shadow Claw, and their opponent fired an Ice Beam at Sally. That would've likely been a one-hit knockout on her side, but Sally's Yache Berry went off, casting a blue aura around the dragon and preventing it. Lacey tsked in displeasure as she recalled Primarina and tossed another pokeball out, this one containing her Whimsicott.
Alysa had Sally Crunch Slowbro for the knockout, and the dragon smirks wildly - her Moxie activating. Lacey didn't prioritize the Salamence however, focusing on the fairy who's stuck around for longer than she apparently liked.
"Whimsicott, Moonblast Mimikyu!"
The pink orb of fairy power would be too fast for Mims to evade. There was Protect, but there was nothing stopping Lacey from repeating the same action afterwards. Alysa wouldn't have told Mims to use Protect again anyway, as the opportunity finally presented itself.
"Mims, Destiny Bond!"
Lacey gasped. A purple orb appeared before him, then burst into wisps that disappeared into his body. Suffering a direct hit from the Moonblast, Mims fainted, but the same energy suddenly reappeared and darted towards his attacker. Whimsicott's Focus Sash couldn't prevent her from being swallowed up, and her stamina completely taken away. A knockout on both sides, but her own stung less.
"I didn't know you could be this crafty Alysa," Lacey commented. "Though I guess I should have expected it, from a fellow Fairy user."
The elite's last two, Alcremie and Excadrill, appeared. Alysa sent out her Hydreigon. This was where the true deciding factor of the entire battle would be.
Both girls pulled out their Tera Orbs, to the cheering of their audience. Rei was the obvious choice to change the typing of, as he was at a severe disadvantage otherwise. Additionally, his Poison typing made him more adequate to take on Lacey's Fairy Excadrill. Not even letting her get the chance to set up Excadrill with Decorate, Alysa had Salamence ram into Alcremie with an Iron Head. A one-shot.
Next, her Hydreigon blasted Excadrill with a Tera Blast, but he managed to hang on. The pseudo Fairy-type used his own Tera Blast, knocking out Sally. Alysa was on her last two with Rei and Lulu, but Lacey just had her ace left. All it took was a Helping Hand boosted Tera Blast to seal the battle, and give her three wins in total over the Elite Four.
"My my..." The elite recalled her fainted Excadrill. She looked understandably disappointed, but there was no mistaking the lighter shine to her eyes.
"Your pokemon are truly just as cute as I knew they were! Congratulations on a battle well fought, and a victory well earned!"
"Thanks Lacey." Alysa graciously accepted the praise after returning her pokemon. The two girls walked to meet back up at the court's center, as applause filled the air.
"I learned you won 3-0 against Amarys and Crispin! I'm happy to be the first to get a slightly better score in a 2-0!" Pride had Lacey smile haughtily, in a light-hearted way that had Alysa genuinely feeling happy for her. The girls gathered to take a commemoration photo as per routine, and Alysa was gifted a TM for Alluring Voice.
"Though," the elite continued from her previous sentence, "I wonder if Drayton will get an even better score..."
She trailed off, giggling at something behind her. Alysa was expecting the Dragon Tamer's embrace this time, but not he pulling her flush against his chest. Air was pushed from her lungs in surprise, but she relaxed into him within the next second.
"We'll see, won't we?" Drayton dropped his head as he responded to Lacey, so he could speak directly into Alysa's ear. She shivered against him, able to pick up on the sheer amount of excitement he was keeping under wraps.
"You've gotten so far now Alysa! You have to see this through," Lacey urged. She squinted at the boy.
"I just hope you won't let Drayton's charms throw you off!"
Alysa tittered nervously, aware that Lacey's worry there wasn't unwarranted. Having to stand across the court from the boy she found highly attractive would test her in many ways. Drayton chuckled warmly, arms tightening around her in a squeeze.
"That's a fair point. You sure you won't gawk at me too much?"
"I won't." She puffed her cheeks out defiantly, but she knew Drayton didn't believe her for a second. Neither did Lacey, if her doubtful stare was a sign.
"I hope not! I suspect there'll be a lot of people in the audience...like myself, Crispin, and Amarys." Lacey grinned. "We all want you to be on your a-game!"
They'll...all be there, among possibly over a dozen or two students? Alysa blanched, as Drayton began to rock her to-and-fro.
"It'll be a good time. I can barely keep waiting..." A hand of his slowly rubbed one of her forearms. "But I know it'll be worth it."
The pressure on her shoulders kept building. So not only did she have to battle her boyfriend, a trainer who held the title of second strongest in the League Club and subsequently in the entire academy, all of her friends would be spectating too? If Drayton wasn't holding onto her, she might have fallen down.
"I have something to go take care of, so I'll catch the both of you later."
Lacey said her farewell, and exited the court with many students following suit. Drayton kept hugging her, resting his face on her shoulder.
"You're real tense," he pointed out, and her embarrassment spiked. "Are you actually worried?"
"...Not exactly worried." Alysa tried to explain, but as always, words were hard. She absolutely didn't want to lose, but losing would feel less terrible if it was just her and Drayton at the plaza. The many, many pairs of eyes that will be watching is what's mainly turning her stomach.
"More like I'm...full of anticipation."
"That's fair. I am gonna be the finale in your run, so there'll be hype surrounding it."
Drayton pulled away, taking hold of one of her hands. He gently spun her around to face him, grinning warmly.
"Let's do something calm for the rest of the day. Get your nerves down."
He used his free hand to cup her cheek, rubbing it with a thumb. This brought out a wider smile.
"Yeah, let's."