Total Pokemon Ultra Revival Chapter 5: EP 3: Dodge This!, a Pokémon + Total Drama series Crossover fanfic

Hello friends. It's time for another chapter of fun and friendship! AND NOOO, I TOOK LONG

Spoiler alert: Procrastinated… a lot. A lot happened but we're back in full swing. And as a celebration, I'll do more work with this and finish. Thank goodness for my note-taking and sheets, I am still in the know of everything and didn't forget anything like in my other TPIs.

So enjoy!

EDITOR'S NOTE: Hey… it's Nihilego from the future and this chapter was really edited compared to the last two with me kind of just redoing the pre-challenge and post-challenge content to accomodate changes in the early chapters. Thank you very much!

Bayleef looked out of breath as he was following after Empoleon who was jogging was ahead of him but stopping once in a while to allow the dinosaur to catch up. The penguin decided to be really serious about training Bayleef that he even went far as to waking him up at 3 in the morning to get an early start to the day and now, they were just jogging around camp before the sun was even up.

"Empoleon… why do we… have to… run… so… much?!" Bayleef called out, sweating profusely from all of the exertion. "S-shouldn't we be… conserving our energy or something?!"

Empoleon sighed, jogging over to the dinosaur with a simple shake of the head. "Winners never take breaks… even if they're sick!" He pointed to himself then to Bayleef while saying this. "Also, we haven't even jogged that much anyways."

"W-what!? But it felt like we've been doing this for hours now!" Bayleef gawked.

"Nonsense! We've only been jogging for 2 hours!" Empoleon assured, his energy still not having waned after jogging for that long. Bayleef paled at this, which the penguin noticed immediately. "Is anything wrong, Bayleef? Don't tell me you're sick… we don't want you to go out of commission before any potential challenge!"

"I… haven't even jogged that much before… ever…" Bayleef admitted, trying to hold back the tears… but failing as he was suddenly sniffling as he sat down on the ground. "I'm sorry… I'm just n-not used to this…"

Empoleon crossed his arms, staring at the dinosaur judgementally. "How do you expect to be strong with that type of attitude, Bayleef?! Only losers cry… winners know how to keep a calm face, you know?! Never let the opponents think they have an easy win against you!"

Bayleef sighed, nodding in understanding as he wiped the sweat on his brow with his vines. "I get it… b-but… well… how do you expect someone who hasn't really… done so many physical activities… to… do an intensive workout i-immediately?" Noticing Empoleon's gaze harden, Bayleef gulped as he avoided the penguin's gaze. "N-not that I'm complaining completely… I j-just wanted to lay down the facts for what they are, you know?"

"And?" Empoleon only said one word but that was enough to make the Grass-type even more nervous as he was starting to feel holes forming into the back of his head.

"I uhh… can we have a b-break at least? You didn't even let me drink water…"

"I offered to spray you with a Hydro Pump." Empoleon reminded him, tapping on his elbows impatiently.

Bayleef gaped at this, shaking his head. "W-what?! Is that even safe to drink?!"

Empoleon sighed as he face-palmed. "Okay… maybe we can take a… short break…" Noticing Bayleef's expression brighten, Empoleon's gaze softened as he put a hand on the dinosaur's head in an attempt to pat him… which just made the dinosaur anxious again so he removed it immediately. "Anyways… about the last vote…"

"U-uh… what about it?" Bayleef asked, looking down at the ground to catch his breath. "I was… a bit blindsided by U-Unfezant going home but at least, it wasn't me… that was really close…" He gulped, swallowing the saliva in his mouth. "I-it could've been me…"

"Hmph! For one… if I knew you would be in that much danger… I wouldn't have let them do that!" Empoleon told him in a reassuring manner as he was doing some stretching in the meantime. "... but… I'm shocked that you didn't vote for Unfezant after you told me to…"

Bayleef blinked in confusion, face turning red from confusion. "W-what!? When!? I said I w-was voting for Musharna with Pikachu, r-remember? I didn't change my mind at all…"

Empoleon arched a brow, taking off his jacket, showing off his well-toned body covered in sweat droplet and holding it over his shoulder behind him. "Really? Are you… sure? Because, I can remember you telling me to go with your plan to do Unfezant and I'm 100% fucking sure that was you since I doubt anyone else here even looks like you… so don't even try to fucking suggest that, Bayleef."

"U-Unfezant was rude… b-but you said we should vote for someone who wouldn't h-help with challenges…" Bayleef pointed out, still confused by this misunderstanding. "A-and Musharna is the one who's always asleep and-"

"HA!... are you suggesting I was seeing things then?!" Empoleon snarled, giving the dinosaur an incredulous look… before sighing in exasperation as he face-palmed. "Okay… I'm getting too worked up over Unfezant, of all people, leaving. But I hate it when people just lie to my face… so you better explain."

Bayleef bit his lip, struggling to think of any ironclad defense… before recalling his whereabouts before the vote. "O-oh! I was with Sableye after e-everyone was done discussing the vote… he can vouch for me!"

Empoleon's eyes narrowed. Sableye wasn't exactly the most reliable person so he was a bit skeptical about this. "..."

"Empoleon? E-Empoleon… are you uhm… mad at me?" Bayleef inquired, getting back up on his feet, looking down at the ground in fear. "I r-really don't know why you think I'm t-trying to lie to you or anything but… I'm serious. I n-never steered you wrong… uhhh… I'm n-not really the t-type to just… be proactive like that anyways…"

"The Old Bayleef wasn't proactive…" Empoleon emphasized, putting on his jacket again. "But you… the New Bayleef?! You're unleashing your potential and doing things you could never do before!"

"W-when?! Okay… maybe you're the one telling lies now…" Bayleef murmured, getting more nervous with every praise the penguin threw in his direction.

"Do you think I would be training you if I didn't see anything in you?!" Empoleon asked rhetorically, to which Bayleef just laughed nervously, eyes gazing into the distance where the sun was beginning to rise above the clouds.

"U-uh… I think I already told you this… but you might want to get your eyes checked…"

Bayleef stared into the camera, eyes wide as he could barely get a word out, still exhausted from all of the jogging Empoleon forced him to do for hours. "... h-he… okay… can't… ugh… g-give me a minue…"

He put a vine to his mouth as he retched before taking a really long breath. "Okay… I'm good. Empoleon is uhm… very stubborn, insisting that he saw something in me… and now, he's seeing me doing things I never even did so that's uhm… s-strange to hear?" He sighed as he stooped down. "I feel bad… since I think he uhm… w-wants what's best for me but… I t-think he forgot that not everyone is a trained athlete like him and-"

He gulped, forcing his eyes shut. "I-it's a good thing he didn't ask me to l-lift anything heavy at least… that would be awful… wait no… that would be a nightmare!"

Empoleon smirked as he punched into an open flipper, gazing at the camera with an overwhelming amount of confidence. "Training Bayleef is going well…" He frowned slightly but returned to smirking, "It's not perfect but it's definitely something. I can see the effort and his muscles getting stronger from running! Though, I'm not sure if I could train him to compete in any sport though when he can't… hold… anything normally."

He tapped his chin thoughtfully as his brows knit together. "... hmm… perhaps, I'll just have to put him through boot camp to be able to use his vines for that. Doesn't sound too hard. If anything, it'd be child's play!"

After their short break, Empoleon and Bayleef resumed their training, with Empoleon asking Bayleef to make dents on a boulder that he carried and put in the center of camp. Bayleef sweated nervously as he looked at the rock… not really sure what he'd do. It'd be embarrassing if he fails, with type advantage in mind.

"..." Gulping, Bayleef fired a barrage of leaves at the rock… which barely made a dent on the boulder. The dinosaur kicked the ground in disappointment. "N-not even a single scratch?!"

"Just keep trying!" Empoleon yelled out, scaring Bayleef with his energetic expression that didn't look too differently from him glaring in frustration.

Not wanting to welcome the penguin's wrath, Bayleef closed his eyes as he struck the boulder with his vines. It didn't even leave a mark… which Bayleef didn't see since his eyes were closed, but he just knew, just basing off his strength in battle so he continued to hit the boulder with his vines, with each consecutive strike being stronger than the last.

Empoleon watched intently, interested to see if Bayleef would actually leave a scratch on the rock. "Interesting… just keep going."

"Am I even doing anything?! I-it feels like I'm just slapping the rock gently…" Bayleef remarked as he slowly opened his eyes… which immediately closed shut, not wanting to disappoint himself. "I'm j-just not really good at this, Empoleon… maybe you should-"

"WINNERS NEVER GIVE UP, BAYLEEF!" Empoleon yelled out, making the dinosaur's eyes opened in fear as he swallowed. "JUST KEEP USING MOVES!"

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" Bayleef cried out, teary-eyed as Empoleon continued to shout for him to just keep going.

A confused Pikachu walked in on the scene, having just woken up… and the noise of the duo's training captured his attention immediately when he went outside. "Uhhhhhh…"

"Bayleef… do you not have other moves?!" Empoleon shouted, still laser focused on the dinosaur that he didn't notice Pikachu walking right next to him in confusion.

"I'm t-trying…" Bayleef said as he started a charging a beam of light from his mouth. "..."

Pikachu twiddled his fingers awkwardly, not really sure if he wanted to intervene on whatever was happening… but at the same time… "What in the world are you two doing this early in the morning!?" He then looked to the side, laughing nervously. "Uhhm… b-but I'm sure 6 in the morning isn't so early for some people, huh?! Hahaha… okay… pretend I didn't say anything."

This distracted Bayleef enough for him to look at the rodent's direction… and accidentally firing a Solar Beam over the rodent's head, barely missing him by an inch, frightening the Electric-type. Empoleon face-palmed before turning to glare at the rodent.

"Okay… what the FUCK was that, Pikachu!? You interrupted our training!" Empoleon was gritting his teeth, almost tempted to just pounce at Pikachu but was holding himself back… even if barely. "Bayleef… can you do that again?!"

"Uhm… s-sure?" Bayleef exclaimed, refocusing on forming another beam of solar energy at the boulder while Empoleon put a hand on Pikachu's soldier as he pulled him aside.

Pikachu started sweating nervously… regreting his decision to intrude in their training for no other reason than unbridled curiousity.

"Are you here to join us or..? You better have a good reason interrupting us…" Empoleon said flatly.

"I… just wanted to ask… about what you guys were doing…" Pikachu struggled to piece together his sentence, as he stared into Empoleon's harsh gaze. "... I'm regreting it now. Thank you very much. Can I go now?"

"No. That reasoning is fucking stupid… so you might as well stay and join us!" Empoleon threatened while Bayleef finally successfully fired a Solar Beam at the boulder, creating a hole in the middle.

"E-Empoleon… I-I did it!" Bayleef exclaimed, shocked that he managed to do some damage, expecting even his Solarbeams to barely leave a scratch like his other moves.

Empoleon turned to give the dinosaur a thumbs-up, nodding to show his satisfaction before turning to Pikachu. "Okay… less pissed now, but seriously… you should join us, since you're probably… wait no… scratch that, the weakest person on the team. I'm shocked nobody even voted for you last time!"

"Uhhhm…" Pikachu doesn't say anything else as he just… smiled and nodded along.

"Glad you can agree with me on that, at the very least!" Empoleon intoned as he returned to Bayleef, who looked a bit nervous about what was going on between Pikachu and Empoleon. "Anyways, good fucking job, Bayleef! I knew I was right to believe in you!"

"T-thanks!? I'm sure you could've punched the rock into pieces b-but… thank you?!" Bayleef commented, mildly proud about his little success, despite him being forced to go through all of this.

"Don't sweat it!" Empoleon said, patting the dinosaur on the head. This time, Bayleef doesn't flinch. The penguin then started walking past him back to the cabins. "I think this is good for the day, Bayleef. Great job."

"O-oh! Thank you very much!" Bayleef stammered while Empoleon headed back into their team cabin. As soon as the Water-type was gone, Pikachu inched closer to him, keeping a side glance focused on the cabin to check if Empoleon returned outside again before opening his mouth when he was sure that he was gone.

"Uhhhm… how are you already… familiar with Empoleon?!" Pikachu asked, confused. He started biting into his fingernails frantically. "I-is he forcing you to… train with him? Why are you not doing anything about it?!"

Bayleef sighed, shaking his head. "... y-yeah… but uhm… i-it went better than I expected."

"Maybe, you should learn to say no… or make better decisions…" Pikachu suggested as he looked dismayed by Bayleef's relative calm. "I mean… it's Empoleon. He's intimidating… I don't think I even need to think twice to know that talking with him… it's a lot of work." He laughed nervously as he started tugging at his sweater. "Did he talk about me? He probably did… he thinks I'm weak, hahahahaha!" The electric mouse continued to break out in awkward laughter which turned to broken sobs.

"P-Pikachu, are you..?"

"I'm fine… I'm fine. I don't sound psychotic, right?" Pikachu asked before waving his hands in front of his head. "D-don't answer that…"

"W-well… I'm still scared of Empoleon… but he is more encouraging than some people back home…" Bayleef admitted. His gaze met Pikachu's as he stared at him expectantly. "That doesn't make me sound pathetic, huh?"

"H-how would I know?! I wouldn't even be in your situation in the first place!" Pikachu gawked, face-palming. His left eye twitched as he whimpered silently to himself. "Okay… that was a bit rude… uhm… sorry… running it all in my head and I'm just feeling sick."

"I'm feeling a bit sick too from w-working hard all morning…" Bayleef admitted with a queasy expression. "Hrk…"

"Okay, let's go to the hmm… cabins? Empoleon's there… mess hall? Indeedee is scary… the beach? That might be a long walk…" Pikachu thought out loud, rubbing his arm awkwardly before forcing a grin as he put both arms at his side, clenching both fists. "You know what… where do you want to go?"

"Err…"

Pikachu stared at the camera, fearful as his body was all bunched up together with him hugging his knees close to his chest. "I'm… not really good at talking to people… Bayleef's like me… so I thought that it'd be easy talking to him since well… it's like talking to a mirror! B-but it's still stressing me out…"

"It doesn't help that I-I'm potentially in a l-lot of trouble!" He added, grimacing slightly. "I t-thought more people would agree that Musharna was a liability but only Bayleef and I voted for her and w-well… okay… s-so people actually think she brings something to the table?! O-over Unfezant?! Does that mean I'm in trouble!? B-Bayleef said he voted for me last night so…" He gulped, slamming his head on the wall. "I hate this…"

Pikachu and Bayleef were now in the mess hall, to have a glass of water. Indeedee insisted on bringing them breakfast so there were two plates in front of them… surprisingly, the food wasn't mush for once… it was literally a large uncooked Oran Berry on both of their plates.

Pikachu poked it to check if it was safe to eat while keeping his gaze focused on Bayleef, who had just downed his 10th glass of water in a row. "Errrr… uhm… about the vote…"

This got the Grass-type's attention as he turned to look at the electric rodent, sweating nervously. "W-what about it? D-don't tell me you saw me tell you something I don't remember or something… b-because Empoleon is really insistent I told him t-to vote for Unfezant…"

"O-okay.. just checking…" Pikachu said, tapping his fingers on the table to keep himself from spiralling further. "I was just… worried since nobody else voted with us and it made me think… why was the v-vote that divided?" He gulped, leaning forward, both hands gripping on the table anxiously. "D-do you think people are already making voting blocs?! I t-thought it'd take I dunno… two more episodes before alliances solidify so that I c-can decide who to trust but apparently not… everyone's just voting in different groups to get what they want…"

"T-the way you say that sounds… a bit intimidating…" Bayleef commented, preparing to grab the pitcher to pour himself another glass of water. "Errr… I don't know if this will make you feel any better but… I h-honestly only talked with… Empoleon in this game, so I don't know if there are actual groups…"

Pikachu looked disappointed to hear this as he slumped on his chair. "Really? I thought y-you'd have new information but you're just in the dark as me, h-huh?" He groaned as he slammed his face on the table for a split second. "B-Bayleef… you trust me though, right?"

"U-uhm…"

"O-oh… so you don't trust me… you're taking your time giving me an answer…" Pikachu exclaimed as his head started spinning around out of control. "This wouldn't be happening if my 'friend' submitted an audition tape for me… wait can I even call her a friend?! She never even talked to me willingly… i-it's always me starting the conversation and you know how hard it is to talk to people…"

Pikachu sighed as he looked over to Bayleef. "Err… y-you agree with me, right?" He paused, biting his lip. "Wait what am I even saying? I shouldn't even be asking that… that just sounds so rude… I'm not on-point today…"

"Talking to people is hard… I c-can't disagree with you there… b-but… there are some nice people that are easy to talk to…" Bayleef admitted. "L-like Chansey!"

"Really?! Talking to nice people is harder since I'd want them to really love me and I just spend too much time thinking of a good opener…" Pikachu stated. "..." Pikachu's eyes glazed over over as he stared out at the distance, mouth agape.

Bayleef quickly downed another glass of water before tapping the electric mouse on the shoulder with a vine. "Pikachu? P-PIkachu? Are you-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Pikachu suddenly screamed out, hands shaking in front of him… which of course, prompted Bayleef to start screaming as well.

Indeedee, who had been walking in and out of the kitchen to check if anyone was around to eat breakfast, stared at this scene, shaking his head in confusion. "Aye yie yie… I didn't know Nihilego casted a cast of loud people… this is going to be a long summer…" He walked back into the kitchen, ominously sharpening his knife.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH-" Bayleef continued to scream before accidentally choking on his spit, retching a bit before staring at Pikachu, confused. "O-okay… why did you start screaming? That scared me… I feel like it gave me a mini heart attack…"

"I'm sorry… I was just… thinking about… what else to say then I realized I have no idea what else to tell you…" Pikachu explained, both eyes twitching periodically. "I'm sorry if that… scared you, Bayleef. This whole situation is just making me n-nervous and I don't even have Empoleon to back me up so uhhm… Bayleef… we need to stick together and maybe, you c-can put in a good word for me? Please?"

Bayleef blinked as he split his Oran Berry in two, shoving one half into his mouth. "Uhm… I will?"

"Thank you…" Pikachu said, still deflated from having a sudden breakdown.

Meanwhile, Teddiursa hummed to herself as she built a cute little sand castle on the beach. She gracefully picked off a stray shell from the sand and adorned it on top of her quaint sand structure. As she patted the sides of the castle, Floatzel walked over to her with an intrigued expression.

"Are you building a sand castle?"

Teddiursa looked up from her creation, giving the weasel a curt nod in response. "Yep, it helps with my nerves UWU! It takes a lot of work to be cute like me, tee hee~ Come on! Together now, XD! UWU! OWO! Let's goooo!"

"I'm sure it takes a lot of dignity to be able to say those… words seriously," Floatzel commented before clearing his throat. "Do you need any help?"

Teddiursa arched a brow in interest as she turned to the weasel, a bit surprised that he wasn't yelling about justice as usual. "Oh? I'm almost finished, hehe! It's my best creation yet! But I can chat, mmhm! Do you wanna talk about how much of a cutie I am?!"

"... perhaps…" Floatzel commented, putting a hand to his throat. "Aren't you tired of faking it though?"

Teddiursa blinked in confusion before mustering a weak smile. "I d-don't know what you're talking about, tee hee~"

"... you do get that I'm a private investigator?" Floatzel pointed out. "I have been conducting an investigation on everyone to suss out the culprit and well… I ended up with the conclusion that… you are suspicious."

"Awww really?! Maybe, you should look again cuz I've been nothing but genuine with everyone! Honest! I'm always like this. Maybe you should ask Klingy from the other tribe! He's smart!" Teddiursa suggested, concerned before giggling to her paws. "So yeeeeah, I'm not a villain. I'm a cutie patootie with a hawt of gawd!"

"... I didn't say you're evil. You're just obviously fake…" Floatzel explained, eyes narrowing. "You really think that you can even hide something from me?! I have 20/20 vision… okay, not really. It's metaphorical, okay!"

"..." Teddiursa deadpanned. "Oookay… maybe, I'm not too cute, but is that too much of a problem? And why are you literally confronting me about this first thing in the morning?!"

"It's 7:3-"

"You know what I mean…" Teddiursa sighed, exasperated.

"I was just taking a walk…" Floatzel admitted with a sigh. "I didn't expect to run into you here… and might as well… get some answers!"

"... okay?! UwU, my cuteness might be a tad bit exaggerated but you gotta admit… I'm still a cutie!" Teddiursa pointed, winking at the weasel. "But if you're looking for villains, I can give you directions cuz this cutie has been snooping around!"

Floatzel's face turned red from awkward embarrassment. "I suppose you are cute… but I can't be DISTRACTED… okay, my voice is slightly more here now… but if you're going to help me with my investigation here, I'm all ears!"

"So… Floatzel is sooo random. We had a really… surprisingly casual chat while I gave him deets since Musharna told me shit's shady… so wow, what a great way to deflect attention from little 'ole me!" Teddiursa admitted, rubbing the side of her arms with a pout. "And I have the random sudden alliance with Musharna too!"

The little bear then blinked as she innocently tilted her head to the side. "Gee, all of this random shit is so oh so interesting but since it benefits… I guess I don't mind."

She tapped her chin with a hmmm. "Maybe, Sableye might even make an alliance with me too! It's the benefits of being cute!"

"So basically… it's about the last vote," Teddiursa started, lying down on the sand next to Floatzel, who was hudded close to her. "Don't you think something was weird about it? I didn't find anything weird lol, to be honest. But after Unfezant left the building, yep… something was definitely weird."

"I agree. Unfezant was barely a bother and wasn't a slouch either and could've been useful to the team but four people all decided to sabotage us by taking her out!" Floatzel remarked with a curt nod.

Teddiursa blinked before giggling to her paws. "You're actually gonna believe me on that? Not gonna think I'm a lying cutie?"

Floatzel scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Oh please… I can SEE right through everyone so it would be IMPOSSIBLE for any hidden villain to slip right past me! Besides… you wouldn't be telling me this information if you were lying, knowing that I'm good at knowing if something's true or not."

"Well… glad to hear someone's confident~" Teddiursa commented, smiling sheepishly. "But yuh… Magearna, Chansey, Empoleon and I all voted for Unfezant and-" Floatzel interrupted the little bear's words, putting a finger to her mouth.

"Hold on a second… you voted against Unfezant?!" Floatzel questioned, retracting his hand from Teddiursa's face. "Why though? And… Empoleon too? I thought he said we should keep this team strong… and he voted for Unfezant? She's stronger than at least 4 other people on this team…"

"I have my reasons~" Teddiursa explained. "But uhhm… I was kinda shocked it actually resulted in her going home, cuz I didn't think there'd be so many people who want Unfezant gone ASAP… but I guess her bad bitch sour apple personality really fucked her over…"

"Interesting… that is strange… who did Sableye vote for?" Floatzel asked.

Teddiursa arched a brow, giggling into her paw playfully. "Why are you asking about him? Oh… don't tell me you have a thing for him~ Sablezel… oh, I ship it!"

Floatzel's face turned red from embarrassment as his hand went to cover his face while he waved the other around in front of him. "W-what!? No… I just think he has been acting… very odd since he arrived to the game and… I'd be dumb if I don't act on my hunches… and my hunch is telling me that he's definitely up to something!"

"Or maybe, he just smells!" Teddiursa suggested.

"What!? You think that's it?!" Floatzel spat out, pointing at Teddiursa. "Nothing is as it appears… and I doubt he's just… some guy who's smelly! Get this… I asked him about his life and he said 'What's that?'! WHAT'S THAT?! of all things… so I'm definitely suspicious of him and I'm surprised nobody else voted for him last time… he's not really going to carry us in challenges either!"

"Mmhmm! Love the manic energy but like… you're on the verge of going off the rails, bestie~!" Teddiursa pointed out, to which Floatzel's expression froze as he sighed to himself.

"... you're right. I'm just… hoping that I can do my job here and find out the secrets of this island…" He explained, sitting down next to Normal-type and removing his cap. "And for all my effort… I still know nothing! I'm sure you remember catching me in the act in the mess hall!"

"Oh, I remember~ You were so cute for that!" Teddiursa complimented, making the weasel flustered.

"What?! W-what is that supposed to mean?!" Floatzel blustered as he hid his expression behind his hat. "It wasn't cute… it was my job!"

"Well, I'd love to sneak around and crawl on the floor too!" Teddiursa teased.

"It's serious business…" Floatzel murmured, clearing his throat while his face remained flushed.

"I'm sure it is! But F-R… you need to kinda take it easy on Sableye. Poor guy hasn't even done anything!" Teddiursa said before stopping herself to add, "... other than he's smelly but like… yuh, other than that, he's pretty harmless!"

"But… I can't just ignore my hunch on this…" Floatzel said matter-of-factly.

Teddiursa gave him a look before sighing in defeat, "Y'know what… I don't think there's much use for me to defend Sableye~ I guess you'll just have to learn by experience but yuuuuuuh, that's how things are going! But enough about the game, let's talk about you!"

"I should be the one asking that…" Floatzel said, brow furrowed. "But… hmm… if you need to know about me, I'm Floatzel… and I'm a private investigator… or detective, if you want to call it that. And I-"

"Uh-huh uh-huh! I know about your job, silly! What about your hobbies? Play any instruments? What's your favorite food or travel destination or something?" Teddiursa clarified. "Hmmmm… I can start!" She clasped her paws together as she stood up to look down at the weasel. "My hobbies include baking, drawing cute cute cute art, streaming, playing cute games and maybe trolling random kids on Fortnite but you didn't hear that from me, tee hee~"

"Hobbies… hmm… I… like solving crossword puzzles on the newspaper." Floatzel shared half-heartedly, crossing his arms. He sighed as Teddiursa gave him a look of disbelief. "What? I never really… had that many hobbies, okay."

"Really? Maybe, I can teach you some~"

Floatzel's expression turned nervous as Teddiursa looked like she was about to pounce… only for her to burst into laughter at Floatzel's scared expression.

"J-K! Did you see the look on your face!? You think I'm like that OWO?! I'm more demure and mindful than you think!"

"Ah… y-yes…" Floatzel said, hands fixing his collar. "I'll be honest… it's not like I don't want to have hobbies but every time I take up a new hobby… I just drop it since it brings back… memories…"

"Oh!" Teddiursa looked mildly interested… but she decided to shake her head and not pry further. "Weeeell, I hope that you can have fun in this game then! This game can be expand your horizons or something, L-O-L!"

"I hope so…" Floatzel commented, arms stiffly on his lap.

Floatzel sat in the confessional with a surprisingly refreshed expression. "Following Sableye around for the past few days has been tedious and exhausting. I am here to DEFEAT VILLAINS… but when he's not even doing anything, I can't even do much to stop him without being ejected… so getting to chat. Not just a chat… a NORMAL chat with Teddiursa and…!" He looked to the side, a bit flustered. "It wasn't bad… I didn't really get any useful information… nor did Teddiursa explain herself about her colorful vocabulary… but it took me back to when things were simpler."

He then focused his gaze on the camera, arms crossed. "But don't think that I'll let up on trying to see what the deal is with Sableye or hell… some people on the other team, that are huge question marks to me right now! What would he think if he finds out that I'm just… spending time with strangers on this island?!" He shuddered. "So yes… I shall remain vigilant!"

Teddiursa winked at the camera, showing a playful smirk. "I think my social game is really on-point and I've struck a perfect balance between overbearing cute and charming cute! I think Floatzel actually likes me, even if he does see through me… and that's not a problem honestly. I mean, it's not like I'm a shitty person underneath all my UwUs and OwOs. It's just my aesthetic, you know?"

Her eyes then shifted to the side. "But I must say… I don't have a read on people like Bayleef or Sableye… but whatevs, they'll probably be voted off soon, if everyone's smart… oh wait, they aren't!"

Marill was pacing back and forth in the interns' compound, waiting for the newly hired nurse to arrive, now that Gallade had finished setting up the infirmary. They were supposed to be here 1 hour ago… but for some reason, they were running late and that wasn't helping stave off the blue mouse's anxieties to make sure everything was going as planned.

"... howdy!"

Marill looked expectantly at the source of the voice, only for her ears to deflate in disappointment to see Poipole, walking around, carrying a tray of cookies.

"Oh… Poipole… it's you. What are you doing here exactly?" She inquired, tapping her foot on the ground impatiently. "Shouldn't you be setting things up with Nihilego?"

"The challenge doesn't need that much set-up! I'm just here to hand out cookies!" Poipole explained. "Indeedee said that he really wanted to get things right and asked me to pass them around!"

Marill arched a brow, skeptical all of a sudden, knowing that Indeedee was notorious for being a terrible cook. "Indeedee made this?" She stared at the cookies… they looked surprisingly normal. A bit burnt but other than that, it was a stark contrast to the mush Indeedee served to the campers the past few days. She reluctantly grabbed one off the tray, eyeing Poipole suspiciously. "Have you… tried one?"

"Oh, I did! It was so good!" Poipole answered.

Marill was still suspicious… but with Poipole's firsthand information… she had no reason to not try. Plopping it in her mouth, she began to bite into it but- "OUCH!" Marill can't bite through the cookie as its texture was really hard… resembling that of a rock. She spat it out immediately, wiping her mouth with a disgusted look. "P-Poipole… you said this tasted good!"

"Yeah! Once you let it melt in your mouth, it tastes good!" Poipole elaborated, picking the cookie off the ground… and awkwarldy placing it back on the tray. "You can try it again, you know?!"

"Why are you putting it back on the tray?! It already fell on the ground!" Marill pointed out.

"But that would be a waste…" Poipole pointed out, frowning… almost making Marill feel guilty, if not for the logic of it all.

"Fine fine… I'll take it…" Marill muttered as she grabbed the cookie Poipole placed back from the ground… and burying it in her scarf. "I'll save it for later…"

Poipole nodded with a smile before he looked around. "Uhhm… Marill, do you not feel lonely being along whenn Gallade is really busy? And Whimsicott is always at work so… you don't really have anyone to talk to!"

"Trust me, I have enough to talk to." Marill said, fixing her glasses. "Besides… the new interns and Lopunny should be arriving in the following days…" Her brows scrunched together in annoyance as she scowled. "THOUGH… Lopunny should've been here by now but I guess he's taking his damn time!? Does nobody care about meeting deadlines?!"

"I'm sure he's going to arrive soon!" Poipole assured.

Just then, footsteps can be heard in the distance… accompanied by an uncharacteristically deep voice. "I'm here." It was a bipedal brown bunny with cream fur at the end of her ears, brows, feet and around her arms. She wearing a white nurse's camp, resembling the one worn by Chansey.

"Lopunny… FINALLY… where did you!?" Marill asked, arching a brow.

Lopunny rolled his eyes, grabbing a nail file from the fluff around his arms and began filing his nails. "I'm here now. Isn't that enough?"

"..." Marill's eyes narrowed at this. She was starting to regret letting him be the camp nurse. "... uh-huh? What if someone got injured today and you weren't here?"

"Just ask them to drink water and recommend bed rest…" Lopunny suggested matter-of-factly.

"What?" Marill asked.

"I said… just recommend water and bed rest." Lopunny repeated.

Marill blinked… before she turned to face Poipole, regret evident in her expression. "Poipole, how did she get accepted into this show?"

"I dunno! You're the one behind that, right?!"

Marill blinked again in realization as she laughed nervously to herself. "Oh… yes… you're right."

"You do get I can hear you two right now…" Lopunny pointed out, crossing his arms.

"Uhm… I apologize for that…" Marill said half-heartedly before grabbing the cookie from her scarf. "Want a cookie?"

"... does it have gluten?" Lopunny asked, backing away in concern.

Marill just blinked, dumbfounded. "What?"

Back at the Trubbish cabin, the men were all starting to wake up and prepare for the day ahead of them. Klinklang left ahead of the group, not really telling everyone where he was heading… with Skwovet and Dedenne both following, which left Vanilluxe and Magcargo alone in the cabin.

Magcargo was still lying down, shaking off the sleepiness… with little to no success. Meanwhile Vanilluxe was sighing dreamily to himself as he gazed at the window… which Magcargo immediately noticed.

"Vanilluxe… what are you doing?" Magcargo asked, half-asleep so for once, he wasn't really in the mood to talk too much.

Vanilluxe blushed in embarrassment as he laughed like a fool. "Oh me… I was just thinking about something, haha~"

Magcargo's eyes narrowed, surrpised that the ice cream didn't try to inject a usual pun. "Uhm… are you okay too?"

"I'm fine! Why wouldn't I be?!" Vanilluxe asked.

"You looked pretty out of it when Vivillon and Gourgeist started arguing." Magcargo pointed out.

"Oh! I'm over it!" Vanilluxe said… his tone being strained as he said this before he resumed swooning. "But I was just thinking about Chansey… don't you think she's just nice… and amazing?! She made me forget all about Empoleon knocking me out and dragging me on the ground during the challenge!"

Magcargo finally sat up at this, curious. "Wait… you have a crush on Chansey? I don't know if she'd be the type to think about having a relationship, don't you think? Though, I can agree with you that she's very nice! I saw how she patched you and Cramorant up and I think that's really impressive! I mean, she's our competition but she's trating us no differently from her patients and-"

"M-Magcargo… don't tell me you have a crush on Chansey too…" Vanilluxe remarked, paling considerably. "Can we not fight over her?"

"Oh, I don't like girls that way, Vanilluxe!" Magcargo assured. "I'm just saying that she's a really nice person and honestly, I want to be her friend… I dunno if we'll get an opportunity to talk but maybe when I'm less tired… and vegetable-like, you know?"

"Thank ARCEUS!" Vanilluxe sighed in relief before smiling awkwardly. "Uhhm… well… that's nice to hear. I wouldn't want to fight with you, Magcargo! Not only would you melt me into a powder… you're just honestly too nice!"

"Aww thank you, Vanilluxe! I think you're pretty cool yourself… no pun intended!" Magcargo affirmed, smiling warmly as he hopped off his bed to crawl over to Vanilluxe. "Do you want me to help you get together with Chansey? I'm willing to do that, you know!"

Vanilluxe's face turned red as he found himself at a loss for words. "W-what!? No… I'm fine just… being an unrequited love interest… just getting to see her face is enough, you know?! We're on different teams and I think she's very loyal to that Magearna and-"

Magcargo's warm expression faded as he looked… noticably concerned. "Errr… Magearna? Oh… I remember seeing her on the docks… hmm… I think she's fine… but maybe Chansey shouldn't be… uhh… how do you put it? It's like when you borrow someone's expensive car and you don't have any car insurance… wait… no, that was a weird comparison, but well… I think Chansey deserves to know she's a great person too, and it's not because of Magearna!"

"Yes… she's so great… and pretty…" Vanilluxe said with a giggle.

Magcargo laughed playfully as he winked at the ice cream. "Seeing you head over heelsa over someone is reminding me of when my cousin fell in love with a tour guide and really wanted to stay behind to elope with them but we told her that she didn't even have citizenship and would get deported if she just stayed behind without the proper paperwork!"

"It's something like that…" Vanilluxe agreed. He then sighed, shaking his head. "Why does life have to be so complicated though? It's so easy admiring Chansey…"

"That's just life… but that's why we need to persevere to get through the challenges we face!" Magcargo reminded him with a hopeful smile.

Vanilluxe sighed again… this time a bit pessimistically as his eyes started to look dull. "You're right there… but sometimes, it's just really hard, you know? Like… when you can't even think of a joke to make your day feel any better. That makes sense, right?"

"It definitely does!" Magcargo assured, giving the ice cream a sympathetic look. "Errr… are you really fine after Gourgeist and Vivillon fought?"

"I'm fine! I'm absolutely dandy! I'm living on the lap of Vanilluxury… so I can't really complain when I have so many jokes to tell!" Vanilluxe said, winking at the lava snail who didn't believe him… but managed to smile in understanding.

"Well, if you have any worries, you can tell me! I don't look like it but I am pretty good at listening to people… it's like learning the alphabet!"

"Uhm… thank you, Magcargo… for humoring me here! I'll be honest. I dunno how everyone feels about me but it's a bit deflating to hear everyone groan whenever I say a joke…" Vanilluxe said.

Magcargo looked to the side guiltily, knowing that he might've groan a few times at the ice cream's jokes. "You can workshop jokes with me so that we can make sure that only your best jokes get across!"

"R-really?!" Vanilluxe's eyes glimmered of actually getting someone to help him work on his jokes. "Okay… how about this?! What do Unown wear on their feet?"

"I don't think they have any… unless you count those little nubs jutting out of some forms as feet… but personally, I don't!" Magcargo stated.

"Eye SOCKets!" Vanilluxe finished. Magcargo just blinked… smiling weakly.

"Errrr… let's workshop it a bit…"

"I'm the type of person who prefers keeping my emotions on my sleeves at all costs since I think it's best to be less wishywashy about things, especially when some people would prefer for there to be less vagueness with everything I say!" Magcargo confessed. "But I know that sometimes, I need to bend the truth a little since I don't want Vanilluxe to feel terrible again if I told him all of his jokes weren't landing because he feels the need to explain them to the audience… hmmm, but maybe that'd be worse, not letting him know that he shouldn't overexplain too much…"

Back at the mess hall, more of the contestants were filing into have breakfast, with Cramorant, Klinklang, Gossifleur and Oricorio all walking in, one after the other. Klinklang took a seat in the farthest seat from the camper… but to his disappointment, everyone sat with him, due to Oricorio's burning insistence.

"Hi Klinklang!" Oricorio greeted.

"You don't have to eat with your teammates, you know." Klinklang reminded matter-of-factly.

"Well, I just wanted to get to know you better!" Oricorio explained, grinning from ear to ear. "I don't know about Gossifleur or Cramorant but I'm sure they feel the same too!"

Gossifleur smiled sheepishly as was meticulously slicing her Oran Berry into smaller cubes. "I uhm… just didn't want to end up sitting alone. That would feel too lonely."

"L-O-L! Maybe, you should put yourself out there more, girl!" Cramorant suggested, as she was rubbing her phone with a tissue. "It won't be that hard to get friends with that, mhm!"

"I think you forgot that reality and the internet are two different things." Klinklang criticized, gazing at the cormorant condescendingly.

"Uhm? I was just trying to help OMG! You don't need to be so rude!" Cramorant scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"Well-" Klinklang started talking in the background but Cramorant tuned him out as she just turned to Gossifleur.

"Errr… ignore him. He's kind of a weirdo robot thing! OMG… Gossi, long time, no see!"

"Uhm… we just saw each other in the cabin…" Gossifleur pointed out, confused.

Cramorant waved a wing dismissively as she giggled. "I meant like… we seen each other but we like… only said hi, not really chat, y'know! I'm more of a longform kind of girl anyways so like… talk to me, girl!"

"Oh… sure! What do you wanna talk about?" Gossifleur asked, not really sure what to say herself.

"I dunno… hmmmm… maybe we can make guesses on who the other team voted off! I honestly didn't really pay attention to any of them in the last few days, B-C… they were like floppas on the ground." Cramorant suggested, resting her face on her wings with a smile.

Gossifleur tapped her chin as she popped an Oran Berry cube into her mouth as she thought to herself… willing herself to even remember EVERYONE on the other team. Realizing that she was drawing a blank on over half of them, she smiled awkwardly. "Err… other than Sableye and Chansey and Magearna… I'm not really that familiar with everyone else."

"O-H! I saw Teddiursa and Musharna chatting in the mess hall yesterday and they were talking about Unfezant being gone!" Oricorio chimed in, finishing her meal in record time, wiping her beak. "So… I'm guessing she went home?"

Cramorant pouted, setting her phone down on the table. "Nu-uh! That's cheating! This is a guessing game and you basically looked at Teddi and Mushy's DM so like not really fair, y'know?"

"Oh… I didn't think you wanted us to guess…" Orocorio expressed. "But uhm… I didn't expect Unfezant to go home from that team… you'd think there were better options but hey, I don't know what they're thinking!"

"... I'm not surprised. Unfezant's heart wasn't really in the game…" Klinklang cut in, hiding his annoyance that Cramorant decided to ignore his logic.

"Uh-huh? And did anyone ask you?!" Cramorant scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Maybe you should shut up?"

Klinklang's expression remained unchanged but his tone was dripping with sarcasm. "You decided to sit with me. I don't think you're in any position to complain about my comments."

Cramorant laughed sardonically at this, wiping a tear off her eye. "Uh-huh uh-huh! Yeah, I didn't know you're a comedian, Klingy!"

"Don't call me Klingy-"

"Yeah, I don't care but… wow… you're so funny but… no." Cramorant said defiantly. "We sat here because these were the best seats in the mess hall, not because of your fat floppity ass!"

"Actually, I sat here because I wanted to talk to Klinklang…" Oricorio murmured, which immediately got drowned out by Cramorant shushing her loudly.

"So like yeeeeah…. we deserved our seats here!"

"You're incomprehensible." Klinklang stated, gazing menacingly at the bird.

"Uh-huh… so you're using tough words to confuse us then?" Cramorant derided, flicking some chunks of Oran Berry at the gear, hitting him squarely in the middle. "Bullseye!"

"Err… Cramorant, I think you don't need to be so rude to Klinklang…" Gossifleur pointed out, despite Klinklang's expression not changing. It's the fact that he remained stony faced in front of Cramorant trying to get a rise out of him. "Let's just eat…"

Cramorant scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Fiiiiiiiine…"

"Klinklang is soooo rude! Does he not know how to shut up and not post if he has nothing good to say?! Like seriously!" Cramorant said with a childish pout. "Uggggh… can we get someone to ban him from the chat?! Or does that sound too mean?!"

She sighed, putting her wings to her head. "I'm trying to keep myself together after like… my phone died but it's really tough. I'm honestly pretty lost in like these convos since like… it all happens way too fast…"

On the other side of the mess hall Magearna, Chansey and Musharna were eating breakfast and ignoring each other for most of the time until Chansey clears her throat before smiling awkwardly. "Errr… is something wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Magearna asked, stabbing her meat surprise with her fork. "We're just eating breakfast… so nothing is happening, which is a HUGE whiplash after losing the challenge and having to vote someone off personally. But… I don't mind the peace"

"Well… we've been eating together for… about an hour and I can sense some awkward tension…" Chansey explained, laughing nervously. "And well… I don't want to make anyone feel uncomfortable with my mere presence after all…"

"Don't worry… you're not making anyone uncomfortable, last time I checked," Magearna assured, patting the nurse on the back reassuringly. "And I'm sure Musharna is just sle-"

"I'm not sleeping…" Musharna corrected with an unamused expression. "I'm feeling rather awake right now even… and you know how cranky I get with sheer lack of sleep after all…"

"We don't actually know that… since well… you're asleep most of the time…" Chansey pointed out before covering her mouth sheepishly. "Sorry if that sounded rude coming from me, of course!"

"Eh… you're on-point there…" Musharna replied with a nonchalant shrug. "If I can sleep through this whole competition… I'm down for that. It's more peaceful, with Unfezant not being here to complain about camp life and us… mmmhm… probably one of the best sleeps I've had since we've arrived here…"

"I mean, you're missing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity sleeping!" Chansey pointed out before turning to Magearna. 'Don't you agree, Magearna? I mean… out of the many applicants, the twenty were the lucky ones chosen to compete. Doesn't that sound like fate and destiny?!"

"I guess you can say it like that," Magearna said with a lighthearted chuckle. "We made it through one elimination too, so this game is going by like a breeze. You voted with us against Unfezant, right? There were four votes against her and well, that vote was REALLY close."

"Unfezant asked me to vote against Bayleef and I voted with her," Musharna admitted flatly. "No biggie. As long as us and Teddiursa aren't the ones in danger, of course. I was fine with either result.. Mmmm, both Bayleef and Unfezant were starting to get on my nerves at the time."

"Oh! Hmm… then that would mean Empoleon, Pikachu or Sableye… one of them voted with us against Unfezant then," Magearna said thoughtfully. "I mean… Unfezant wasn't exactly the nicest person to be with, so I can see any of those possibilities… though, Empoleon's the type to want the team strong so I'm confused why he would NOT vote against Bayleef, to be honest."

"Everyone has their own different connections. You can never be too sure…" Musharna murmured.

"Yes… Bayleef and Empoleon both seem… close, to be honest," Chansey agreed with a nod.

"The Shuppet girls except for Unfezant have formed… an unofficial official alliance," Chansey revealed with a sheepish expression. "I'm well… not the type who's proactive so I'm grateful that Musharna opened discussion yesterday to give way to a group forming between us, though I have no idea where Teddiursa's head is at since… we haven't talked to each other much."

Chansey then sighed as she shook her head slowly. "I'm just… trying to take the pieces of my game and hope I can make it far, since… I'm new to this. Everyone is… but I'm struggling a tad bit. I want to support people. But I know that just might be enough to win."

Magearna swallowed the mystery meat with shudder before clearing her throat as she turned to Musharna, "So… that's one vote done. What do you have in mind if we lose? I think it should be a toss-up between Sableye and Floatzel personally…"

"Not Bayleef?" Musharna asked, cocking a brow.

"Well… Empoleon and Bayleef seem to be pretty close, like you said…" Magearna explained, face flushed. "And I'm a bit worried Empoleon's going to take it on us, if we vote Bayleef off. And well… to say the least…" Her face suddenly paled as she hit both of her fists on the table. "He scares me."

"... he is a bit intimidating, to say the least…" Chansey affirmed with a nervous giggle. "But I don't think he's necessarily a bad person… just a little bit overconfident and overcompetitive and that's not a bad quality to have…"

"There's… no use sugarcoating it…" Musharna whispered, eyes half-closed. "He's pretty scary… even I'm scared of him, but not to the point he haunts my nightmares obviously… that's reserved for… something scarier."

Magearna sat inside the confessional with a concerned expression, arms folded. "Empoleon is probably the biggest threat to my game right now. He's physically strong… and intimidating. I don't think anyone is interested in voting him off. It would've been easier if he was a jerk but he was surprisingly listening to Bayleef's suggest-"

Magearna paused, eyes shifting to the side, "Well… Bayleef holds some sway with him… it's as simple as that. I mean… he really did vote against Unfezant… I'm confident in that. Teddiursa was the fourth vote… though I didn't get the chance to tell her the plan was Unfezant so I'm guessing Musharna tipped her off…"

Magearna sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "The dynamics… are a bit all over the place even when I try to map it in my head, how things are going…"

"Uhmm… Musharna… you did tell Teddiursa to vote against Unfezant yesterday, right?" Magearna queried, twiddling her finger joints together.

"I did… right before voting," Musharna answered.

Magearna nodded in response, "Oh, that's good. I had a bit of doubts, especially when you said that you voted with Unfezant… and I… forgot to tell Teddiursa about the plan, to be honest."

"We all make mistakes… unless you're me, who could do anything in my sleep…" Musharna drawled with a smug smirk.

"Oh you!" Magearna laughed, covering her mouth.

"I don't trust Magearna OR Chansey…" Musharna murmured, staring right at the camera. "I'm here to play for myself… and girls' alliance or not girls' alliance, I have my tight duo alliance with Teddiursa…" She paused before shaking her head. "Mmm… well… for the mean time, we're relying on each other… but I definitely trust her more than I can trust the other two… Chansey is trustworthy… but when she's working with Magearna and kissing the ground she floats on… she's basically kryptonite."

She yawned, winking confidently at the camera. "I know Magearna is hiding something… I would read their minds… but it takes toooo much brain power… that, and I signed a contract that I won't do that without permission so…" She shrugged to herself. "I need to be more technical here."

After his failed attempt to befriend Bayleef, Pikachu was just leaning on a tree for support as he attempted to gather his thoughts. For one, he was in a lot of danger… and he was in desperate need for allies. Whie Bayleef told him that he'd tell Empoleon to try and work with him… he had a creeping suspicion that Bayleef was going behind his back, given the fact that he was also in danger.

"Maybe I should try to work with the girls… they all seem close… r-right? Or maybe I can ralk to Floatzel and Sableye… they're both basically free agents so I think I can convince them… wait that's a dumb idea though… that's not enough to get a secure majority. Why am I thinking of making bad decisions?!"

Pikachu's brain was starting to overflow with thoughts as he started sinking lower into the ground. "Ugggh… there's so many things I have to think about…"

"It'd help if you write everything down…" A playful voice said from above the tree.

"I would… but it's not like I brought a-" Pikachu reasoned before his eyes widened in realization. He was alone… right?!

"You're not alone, by the way~" The playful voice interrupted his train of thought immediately.

The electic mouse started shaking as his eyes turned to spiral in confusion as he tried to make sense of who was talking to him. "W-who's out there!? I'm not scared of- wait… no… I'm definitely scared. Don't show up…"

The leaves on the tree he was leaning on started rustling down as blackhands started sticking out… then the face it was attached to: Gourgeist, who was somehow hanging onto the tree… even though her hands were swaying with the wind over her head.

"Peek-a-boo~" Gourgeist teased. Pikachu blinked… then blinked again… before he opened his mouth, letting out the loudest scream ever.

Gourgeist looked at the camera with faux-confusion as she shrugged in indifference. "I don't know why he was that scared! I'm a nice pumpkin and mean no harm!" She put a hand to her face as her eyes darted to the wall. "Maybe, she's making assumptions again, huh? That's a pretty common trend in this game, huh? I mean, Skwovet literally dreams about being accused and being stuffed in a cage~"

She giggled to herself before waving a hand dismissively. "Just kidding, of course~ I can't look at dreams, silly! That's more of… Musharna's thing, huh? But Pikachu is funny. I hope he stay safe and tries not to overthink himself or bad things might happen~ Or… you can ignore me! It's not like I know anything!"

Gourgeist was now down on the ground with Pikachu who had calmed down since seeing her… but only barely as his left eye was twitching and his feet were still stuck in place in fear.

"Pikachu, are you alright now?" Gourgeist asked, trying her best to act concern but failing in a singsong manner.

"I'm fine… my legs can't move… and I think my heart stopped but I'm fine…" Pikachu said with a creepy smile… which immediately devolved into a scowl and glare directed at the pumpkin. "Of course I'm not alright! You nearly scared me to death! What was that about!?"

"Wow~ That's a lot of bite coming from you! It's almost cute but well… you're not my type." Gourgeist said, shaking her head. She giggled as she noticed Pikachu just gape in reply. "Awww… are you gaping in disappointment? I'm so sorry to let you know that you can't win me over even with infinite charm points-"

"W-what?! No! I was just shocked you can just joke like that after literally traumatizing me!" Pikachu pointed out. "I swear… this show… it's terrible… I hate this show…"

"I think you're being a bit overdramatic~" Gourgeist said dismissively.

Pikachu frowned, tail standing on end. "W-what do you mean I'm overdramatic!? I literally mapped out the pros and cons of signing up to this game beforehand and I don't think I have to elaborate further but… the cons outweighed the pros but sadly, some people just don't listen to you and try to sign you up for death trap competitions against your will!" He laughed nervously as his legs started to wobble. "But suuuure, I should be clearer about how I feel, huh?!"

"Hmmm… I think you made things quite clearly already, Pikachu!" Gourgeist remarked, cupping the Electric-type's face with her hair-like tendrils. "Don't worry… Mama Gourgeist is here to make it all better!"

Pikachu was silent before gritting his teeth as sparks started generating around his body, which prompted the pumpkin to let go with a disappointed look. "Can you please n-not touch me when I don't even know who you are?!"

"Oh, my name is Gourgeist and I'm a member of the other team!" Gourgeist introduced herself casually, continuing to ignore the rodent's heightened distress. "I live on this island and-"

"Does it look like I w-want you to-"

Gourgeist covered Pikachu's mouth with her tendrils as she continued speaking. "Please don't interrupt a lady when they're trying to make an introduction here! Anyways… I live on this island and my most charming characteristic… hmm… it's probably my 'I Don't Give A Fuck' attitude that helps me power through the hate and-"

"Mmmmmgmfffmf!" Pikachu was yelling underneath Gourgeist's tendrils but Gourgeist just proceeded to ignore him.

"My favorite food is basically everything… my favorite drink… pina cooladas easily… and my favorite movie… that's a bit tough since I've been loving Lady Bird recently so maybe that can be my favorite film for now!" Gourgeist listed while she slowly released Pikachu from her tendrils.

"Mmmmf- Goommgmfff… Gourmmmm" Pikachu's face was turning pale after being smothered but thankfully, he was given relief when Gourgeist finally released him. Pikachu took a deep breath, glaring at Gourgeist. "Okay… what was that for?!"

"You were interrupting my introduction!" Gourgeist explained matter-of-factly.

"You could've killed me!" Pikachu argued.

"Well, you were killing yourself with your indecision anyways." Gourgeist intoned before tilting her head to the side. "Which by the way… what is that about? Hmm… what do you prefer? Oranges or apples?"

Pikachu blinked, getting more confused by how fast the pumpkin jumped between topics. "W-what!? Don't just change the topic on me!"

"I'm not!" Gourgeist assured as she smiled ominously. "And the topic is… oranges or apples?"

"What?!"

"Oranges or apples?!"

"Can you please explain why you're asking me this?!" Pikachu queried as Gourgeist started backing him into the tree.

"What would you do if you're suddenly at the mercy of someone who can destroy this world but you have a guaranteed chance of survival if you choose to work with them?" Gourgeist said, switching her question as her expression darkened.

"I think you're losing the plot, Gourgeiost…" Pikachu whimpered as he was heaving from Gourgeist's body pushing him onto the hard oak tree. "And… this hurts… I can't… breathe…"

"Apples or oranges?!"

"OKAY FINE… ORANGES?!" Pikachu sputtered out, not wanting to get hurt even further. The pumpkin looked a bit disappointed with his answer when she took a step back. "Oh thank ARCEUS!"

"Why oranges though?"

"Do I r-really need to explain myself?!" Pikachu asked.

Gourgeist leaned closer, smiling creepily. "Of course, you do!" Pikachu gulped as the pumpkin started to push him back again… and from all of the shock, his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he collapse onto the ground from shock. Gourgeist frowned in disappointment at this.

"Aww… some toys really break easily, huh? I always knew he was fragile…" She whispered as she started cradling the unconscious electric mouse with her tendril hairs.

Pikachu just stared at the cameras, his pupils still absent from his eyes as he was just… still stuck in a state of shock. "..."

"I don't care if people think I'm 'whimsical' or spontaneous. I'm a firm believer that everything I do leads to a certain effect that I desire," Gourgeist intoned with a yawn. "I have a certain goal here and I just need to make sure I do that right and that doens't mean everyone has to like me! Though… I am worried for Pikachu's wellbeing."

She then blinked, winking at the camera. "HOKEY POKEY! Put your right hand in then your left hand but if they're both in then don't you get sucked into an endless hokey pokey? I like the ice cream… anyways, my secrets are sealed. Don't message me ever again. Don't expect me to seen you, buh-bye."

A few moments later, the loudspeakers around camp blared, "GOOD MORNING, CAMPERS… OR CONTESTANTS… WHATEVER YOU WANT TO BE CALLED, IF YOU WANT TO BE WOKE. IT'S TIME FOR ANOTHER CHALLENGE. PLEASE HEAD TO THE BEACH!"

Nihilego and Poipole faced the remaining nineteen campers with mixed feelings as Nihilego struggled to hide her grouchiness while holding an empty coffee mug.

The jellyfish Ultra Beast waved a tentacle around at the campers flippantly, tone serious, "Okay… so… we HAD a challenge planned but there were some… technical errors…"

"The equipment was EATEN!" Poipole chimed in, holding a half-eatened camera, dropping it onto the sand then revealing a stick of dynamite which he also dropped to the ground. "And the site was DESTROYED!" Poipole turned to Nihilego, who deadpanned in response

"Actually… the second part was YOUR fault," She answered flatly. "I mean… you suggested using dynamite to clear the land faster and whoop de doo, you blew up the place where the challenge was supposed to happen at. I don't know about the e-" The jellyfish gaped as she saw the smaller Ultra Beast, chewing on another camcorder. "Poipole… did you eat the cameras too?"

"Bwuh?! I don't know what you're talking about!" He replied, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, eyes gazing up to look at the sky to avoid Nihilego's persistent glares. "..." He then relented as he sighed, head drooping down. "I'm sorry… b-but the other incidents wasn't me! These camera are Marill's personal stuff… not the ones we use for the show…"

"... she won't like hearing that…" The jellyfish said.

"Uhmm… are we interrupting anything?" Gossifleur spoke up with a sheepish expression. "I thought it was time for the challenge. But it looks like you're engaging in a… discussion that might or might not be interesting, depending on who's listening." She gasped in a seemingly exaggerated way, making Floatzel scoff.

"Can you stop and just let them talk?! I think they were saying something important and I intend to get to the bottom of things!" He exclaimed, waving his arms around, making Sableye and Teddiursa who were standing close to him take a step away to avoid getting hit. "I mean… this is clear SABOTAGE, right? Wait… and Poipole even admitted to being the perpetrator but it can't be that easy, right?! I think there is something afoot!"

"Uh-huh… don't just jump to conclusions. It was just a skit we hosts do, in the entertainment business," Nihilego explained nonchalantly. "Moving on… we're here since we're on a budget and since Poipole messed things up, we have to improvise so the setting for this challenge… is the BEACH!"

"The BEACH!" Poipole repeated, accidentally stepping on Teddiursa's well-built sand castle and destroying it. The little bear's left eye twitched at this.

"M-my creation is destroyed?! OWO, I'm suing!" She said in a sing-song voice.

"Uhh… you'll be fine?" Nihilego shrugged with an indifferent question. Teddiursa rolled her eyes with a playful huff in response with Chansey giving her an awkward yet reassuring pat on the back. "Ookay… the challenge is dodge ball."

"Dodgeball?" Sableye asked. "What's that?"

"No, dodge ball, with a space," Nihilego corrected, crossing her arms. She chuckled to herself. "There's a clear difference, don't you think?"

"I do-" Sableye started to say only to be hit at his stomach by a basketball that came out of nowhere, making him collapse to the ground with a groan. "O-ouch… w-where did that even come from!?"

"See, there's a difference. You don't just dodge regular dodgeballs… you have to touch balls. Vanilluxe, think fast!" Nihilego said a warning as she pitched a round object in the ice cream's direction.

Vanilluxe gaped as he didn't know what to do, "W-what?! I don't have any hands!" Surprisingly, the ball Nihilego threw didn't go too far as it landed a few centimeters from the closest Trubbish who stood closest to the host. "O-oh… okay, Nihilego had a terri-ball aim…"

"Actually, that was an iron ball," Nihilego explained, making the ice cream's eyes widen.

"W-what?! You could've hurt me! If you had the power to throw it farther… can Iron away from that?!" Vanilluxe complained, slipping a pun in between, eyes shifting side to side, to gauge the reaction of his fellow competitors. "No reaction, huh? I didn't expect such a COLD reception. I get that I'm an ice cream and all but I'm a nice cream so treat me well." Vanilluxe could only smirk as most of the more mean-spirited campers groaned in annoyance. "I rest my case."

"Uh-huh… if you're done being a bit… cringy, the challenge is simple. You have to dodge balls. Yay? I don't know if that's an interesting challenge but we're trying to do a bit of everything."

"We played hide and seek last round and now, it's dodgeball… or well, dodge ball? But… aren't these just simple children's games?" Musharna interjected, yawning boredly into the air in front of her.

Nihilego shrugged in reply, waving a tentacle at nobody in particular, "Don't complain if some challenges can be… repetitive in theme, but we did our best to differentiate. So the challenge is basically dodge ball, but we replaced the balls with kinds of balls since we're extra and yada yada, it's different, new, unique, groundbreaking, the start of a new era, revolutionary, amazing, show-stopping and really never the same."

"Uh-huh… so… where do we play?" Skwovet queried, scratching his head with interest.

"On the beach? Are you assuming we have the budget to afford a court for y'all to play in?" Nihilego scoffed at the squirrel's question. "Haven't you heard of beach volleyball? Well, this is the beach version of dodgeball. Just stand in opposing sides of the beast so we'll get started. The rules are simple. Throw balls, if you get hit by a ball, you're out. If you catch ball, you're also out cuz we can't have anyone do anything stupid like catch every ball. The first team to lose all of their members go to tribal council. We're doing this in three rounds. Oh, I forgot to mention, you have to pick five people. OH YEAH, you can't use the same people in consecutive fights too and everyone has to play. Since the Shuppet has 1 less person, 1 Shuppet can play in 2 consecutive matches. But they can't play in all three matches. Now, you know."

"That… was not an organized explanation…" Klinklang commented flatly.

"That's just Nihilego!" Poipole said, waving his hands up in the air. "We'll cut out the footage of you guys discussing since we have TIMESLOTS and uhh… cut this out too, Whimsicott!"

And with that, the group dispersed into the two teams to discuss the challenge.

"Okay! For the Shuppet, we have Bayleef, Chansey, Empoleon, Pikachu and Teddiursa. For the Trubbish, we have Cramorant, Dedenne, Gossifleur, Oricorio and Skwovet! READY… GOOOO!" Nihilego yelled as she leaned back on her wooden recliner. "This is probably going to most boring match ever but woo, let's go!"

And the game was set. Empoleon grinned as he saw his competitors, "Nice, that crazy bitch isn't playing for the other team…" Grabbing a nearby soccer ball, he throws it full force, aiming at Cramorant who was too busy looking at her dead phone. The bird squawked in angusih as she was hit on the head, making her fall onto the court. "EASY!"

"Don't g-go too far…" Chansey suggested, approaching the penguin, holding a golf ball.

"UHHMM? We NEED to win so I don't care if I'm going all-out," Empoleon grunted, picking up a bowling ball… which Chansey stared at with an awkward chuckle. "WHAT?! Shouldn't you be more focused on winning this challenge?!"

"B-but a bowling ball? That's too… intense…"

"Hey… if it wins us the challenge, then I don't fucking care."

"But at the same time, it's a bowling ball, how far do you think can you even throw that?"

"Oh… that's a good point…"

"UWU! Stop talking to each other and throw ballsies at the other teamsies!" Teddiursa interrupted, screaming in pain as she stubbed her toe on a golf ball. "This is sooooo mindless throwing. I kinda hate it, _"

Gossifleur looked unsure before hurling an unknown ball, which hit the ground… and accidentally hits her own teammate, Skwovet in the face. "O-oops… so that was pingpong ball…"

"Ouch… does friendly fire count?!" Skwovet asked loudly.

"Uhhh… it doesn't?" Nihilego answered. "Some people are just too incompetent and we can't just have some BS of a team getting themselves out. Anyways, the battle RAGES on."

Pikachu gulped as he was looking around for any balls to throw before stumbling upon a basketball and a baseball. "What do I do?!"

"PIKACHU, JUST THROW A BALL!" Empoleon yelled, hurling a football at an unsuspecting Gossifleur, who yelped in shock as she barely dodged it. "Fuck!"

"It's a close match but it looks like the Shuppet have the upper hand and-" Nihilego started only to interrupt herself as Skwovet was also hit by a golf ball, thrown by an apologetic Chansey. "Okay, they're still currently winning this round."

"I'm very sorry…"

"Don't…" Skwovet sighed as he exited the court with a defeated expression.

Dedenne and Gossilfleur both turned to Oricorio expectantly. The bird cocked a brow in confusion, "W-why are you giving me that look?"

"Do you know any secret strategies that can turn this around and give us the win?" Gossifleur queried, twiddling her appendages together.

"Uh… there's a plan I have…" Oricorio started as the scene faded to black.

"I'm not… sure why Dedenne and Gossifleur are turning to me for ideas on how to win… but well, it would be awful to turn them away so I have to give them ideas," Oricorio admitted, smiling sheepishly. "I like to think I'm a good leader anyway… but I wouldn't want that to get into my head too much. I prefer to remain down to earth and stuff…"

Oricorio sighed as she rubbed the back of her head, eyes darting to the side. "But I guess in a game like this, I should be thankful for getting all of this attention…"

"It's ADDICTING to be on the upper hand, for once. Losing the last challenge was a terrible blow, but of course… that doesn't count on the account of Gourgeist being a crazy deranged psycho bitch. But we all know that by now… that DID NOT count. We're going to win this. Bayleef's gonna prove himself to be really useful too!" Empoleon announced confidently before his smirks faltered for a bit. "Even though… he hasn't done anything yet… but he's definitely going to matter… since he learned everything he knew from a winner, mmhm…"

Meanwhile, Sableye, Musharna and Magearna were all sitting on the docks, just staring at the water to pass the time while the others were busy, hurling balls at each other, for the sake of the game… or well, until Sableye decided to jump into the water impulsively for a dip. Musharna and Magearna exchanged a confused look at this.

"Sableye, why are you suddenly in the mood for a swim?!" Magearna queried with a concerned expression.

"Hehe… it's like a bath," Sableye explained, only to gulp as dead Magikarp surfaced on the water. "Uhh… those were already dead, right?!" He paused for a bit, before chuckling nervously, "I k-know Gossifleur said I stinked… but I don't stink that much, right?!"

"Uhmm…" Magearna commented, tugging at her headpiece with an unsure expression. "I'm a steel-type so I don't know what you smell because I'm immune to poisons."

Musharna gave her a look, rolling her eyes afterwards, "Doubt it. I mean… I'm asleep most of the time and for some reason, I can smell Sableye from the other side of the cabin…"

"... I guess so…" Magearna said, voice trailing off until it was barely a murmur. She shook her head, clapping her hands together. "That aside, let's talk about the game!"

"Hmm? I didn't take you to be the gamebotty type…" Musharna commented, eyes half-closed. "But sure, let's talk game. You did a lot for the Unfezant vote after all…"

Sableye's head popped out of the water as she said this, "Talk game? Bwuh? Oh, I'm interested, hehe… I actually voted for Bayleef yet Unfezant left, hehe… I was a bit tempted to vote for Floatzel since he keeps calling me sus… hehe, that's a funny wow. Sus, hehe…"

"Uhmmm…" Magearna stammered, eyes gazing over to Musharna nervously. "S-Sableye is here so… nevermin-"

"Nah, I'm fine with him here… he's fine," Musharna murmured with a long yawn, blowing a gust of wind towards the gremlin who winced in response. "Don't you know what they say?"

"Gremlins just might save your life?"

"No."

"Diamonds are a girls' best friend?"

"NO!"

"Sleeping is important but too much of it is harmful?"

Musharna would've face-palmed if she wasn't too lazy to do it so she just rolled her eyes at the Mythical Pokemon, "The more, the merrier. It's almost as if you're making fun of my intelligence or something…"

"Uh… huh? I wasn't… I was just not sure…" Magearna explained, laughing nervously to herself.

"Eat sea salt then," Musharna said flatly, using her psychic powers on the water to pour it on the steel-type's face. She chuckled dryly as Magearna groaned in complaint. "Sorry, I was just worried."

"What… fine… I guess?"

"Uhhmm… uhhh… so… did I interrupt your conversation, hehe… sorry, I keep doing… the wrong thing, hehe," Sableye interjected, lifting himself onto the docks, deciding to sit next to Musharna, who levitated a bit away from him to avoid his natural stench. "I uhh… haven't talked much to the folks on this team, hehe. So I'm shocked I wasn't voted off last night, hehe…"

"Do you think you should just freely admit that you're alone, in a game like this?" Magearna asked sweetly, putting a hand on the gremlin's shoulder.

"Uh… I trust you guys, hehe…"

"Okay… fine… uhhmm… well, since you trust us, well… Musharna and I have well… a relationship…" Magearna blurted out, red flushed from nervousness.

"You're dating?" Sableye queried, cocking a brow, leaning closer only to face-plant on the docks. He chuckled nervously as he struggled to sit back up. "Oof, hehe… I'm so clumsy."

"Uhmm… we're not dating… as in… uhh… we voted together…" Magearna corrected, twiddling her fingerjoints together. "Unfezant was… a terrible presence to us so we decided to vote her off together. Teddiusa and Chansey also helped out!"

"You girls are working together?" Sableye queried, expression darkening… before it brightened as the Dark and Ghost type smiled brightly at the duo. "That's pretty neat that you're all getting along. Empoleon is pretty much an overlord with the guys, telling us what to do. Floatzel hates me… I think he hates me. But he follows me whenever he's in the mood, hehe… or maybe, he's in love with me?! I'm not sure… my head hurts just thinking about it…"

"Uhmm… we're kind of working together… sorry to hear about you boys and uhhmm… I don't think Floatzel is in love with you," Magearna answered, a bit unsure with her answers. "But you can hang out with us! We can vote together and uhmm…"

"Wow, you guys are already talking about voting together… gee, nobody has approached me about that yet… well, Unfezant did tell me to vote for Bayleef last round but obviously, it didn't work out… but since you guys got Unfezant out, you guys are good at this game!" Sableye complimented with a sheepish grin. "Do you uh…"

"Are you perhaps asking to join us? We can be like an alliance," Musharna suggested, feigning ignorance. "Oh, I think Teddiursa and Chansey were also interested. Us five… that's a majority, right?"

"Woah, my first alliance!... technically second but yay!' Sableye cheered before bashfully covering his mouth. "That means I'm in, by the way!"

"Uhmm… that's great," Magearna said quietly.

"..."

".."

"Uh… is that all, hehe?" Sableye asked nervously.

Musharna cocked a brow, intrigued by the gremlin's fidgety behavior, "I mean… what else can we even… talk about? Besides, I'm feeling all sleepy already, mmhm…"

Sableye laughed shakily, rubbing the side of his arm as he gazed at the water in front of them, "Well… I figured that since we're an alliance now… we're friends and I heard friends chat with each other a lot, hehe. I mean… Uhh… of course, I know. Since I definitely have friends… h-haha…"

"Uhhmm…" Magearna tilted her head to the side, unsure how to react. "M-Musharna, what do you-" Magearna gulped and blinked as she turned to see Musharna sleeping, face-planted onto the aged wood of the docks. "U-uhmm…"

"Is she okay?" Sableye queried, confused. "Uhhmm, not that it's the weirdest thing I've seen, haha. I think sleeping in random places is kinda cute, h-haha…"

"Well…"

"AAAAH!"

Magearna gawked as she sat up on her bed to find Musharna, casually floating around the cabin, still fast asleep. "M-Musharna, are you okay?! Do you need anyone to get you d-down?!"

Chansey rubbed her eyes, woken up by Magearna's scream. "La- Uhhmm… I mean, Magearna, are you alright?"

"M-Musharna, she's doing something odd!" Magearna explained, waving her hands around.

Chansey blinked before smiling sheepishly as she stood up, "I mean… Musharna must be having a great dream, after Unfezant left. Nobody's interrupting her sleep anymore!"

"That doesn't explain why she's floating while sleeping! How does that even happen?!" Magearna intoned.

"You're friends with Cresselia, right? Maybe, you can ask her about it. Surely, she's knowledgable on sleeping and… this, right?" Chansey casually suggested, completely unbothered by Musharna floating in front of her face. "Or Darkrai… he's a nice person, right?"

Magearna blinked, awkwardly looking over to the side, hugging her pillow tightly, "Uhhm… s-sure. Yes, I can ask Cresselia. I don't know when she's avai-"

Magearna was quickly interrupted by Musharna's eyes slowly opening, her eyes paling as she realized what was happening, "OH NO, I'M GOING TO FA- Oh wait… I can float… nevermind…"

"M-Musharna, you're finally awake! A-are you alright?" Magearna asked with a curious expression.

"..."

"Are you ASLEEP again already?! That fast!"

"Uhmm… Musharna told me before that she's a sleep expert after all," Chansey revealed, pointing a finger up.

"What is that supposed to mean?!"

Magearna smiled weakly, breathing shaky, "Uhh… I guess you can say that?"

"Really! Now, I want to see Musharna sleeping in random places now!" Sableye said, eyes glimmering with excitement, making the mythical Pokemon's smile waver a little. "Is Musharna the type to be angry if you wake her up for no reason, hehe… n-not that I was going to do that, I'm curious, haha."

"Uhhmm… I think it's creepy to watch someone sleep…"

"S-sorry, hehe…"

"But uhhmm… I guess it's been 'fun' talking with you, Sableye," Magearna said, eyes darting to the side. She yelped in surprise as Sableye crept closer to hug her right arm. "S-Sableye, this is in-in-indecent!"

"I just wanna get closer to you, hehe!" Sableye explained with a clueless expression. "It's been fun talking about sleeping and strategy and I feel like we've become closer friends, if that makes sense, hehe!"

"Bwuh?! Uhm, what if I don't want to be closer?"

"Chansey said you're a nice girl so I doubt it, haha!" Sableye ignored Magearna's complaints as he continued hugging her. "Uhh… let's do this until Floatzel's hit by a ball and hunts for me again. He thinks I'm bad business, hehe."

"..." Magearna blinked, completely speechless.

Sableye blinked in unison, letting go, "Uhh… are you okay?"

"Ahem… I'm fine?" Magearna asked nobody in particular. "Ah…"

"Haha, you're so funny phrasing it like a question, hehe!"

Magearna deadpanned, face-palming. She was standing in front of the biggest idiot ever.

"I'll errr… steer clear from Sableye for now… even if he did agree to working together. N-not that I discriminate or anything, but I-I'm not used to being so close physically with anyone… it makes me so nervous and stress out so much," Magearna commented, basically hyperventilating in the confessional booth. "Uh… if he wants to hug me again… I can decline. I'm a Mythical Pokemon… though, I don't wish to exercise my authority in a way that may seem to be well… abusive of my title…"

Sableye stared at the camera with a dazed expression before he shook his head to knock him out of that stupor. "Huh… why did I come here again? Oh… yeah! Magearna pulled me into an alliance! But I think she doesn't like me… h-hehehehe… is it because I smell? I promise that I'll uhh… try to fix that?"

His eyes glazed over as he started thinking before he laughed nervously, "Hehehehehe, sorry. I was starting to think of something else… sorry!"

Bayleef and Empoleon exchanged a look, as they realized their mistake but it was too late. Bayleef smiled sheepishly, trying his best to avoid the penguin Pokemon's harsh glare, "We uhh… t-threw all of our balls to the other s-side… oops?"

"NO SHIT, SHERLOCK!" Empoleon growled, frustrated as Chansey yelped as she got hit by a barrage of assorted balls. "How the fuck are we losing to a bird, a pitiful flower and Dedenne?!"

"... aren't you a bird and I, a p-pitiful flower?" Bayleef pointed out sheepishly.

"NO, WE AREN'T! WE-" Empoleon started only to blink as Gossifleur hit him with a soccer ball to the stomach, making him fall to the ground with a thud. "URRRK!"

"Take that!" Gossifleur said, smiling confidently as she pointed at the fallen penguin. "That's on you for calling me pitiful!"

"EMPOLEON! N-NO, if y-you're down, does that mean that…" Bayleef stuttered out, starting to tear up as his teammates were suddenly being decimated. He quickly turned to Pikachu and Teddiursa who were struggling to dodge. "O-okay… it's n-not over yet!"

"S-stop complaining and throw some b-balls, Bayleef! Use those vines, _!" Teddiursa claimed, barely dodging a stray pingpong ball. Rolling her eyes, she huffed cutely, "T-this is a really boring and drawn out challenge and is a severe waste of this cutie's time!"

"A-agreed!" Pikachu exclaimed, jumping to one direction.

Sitting and watching this, Nihilego deadpanned with a long young, "This challenge… is really really longwinded. When is this ending?! Who said throwing balls was fucking entertaining?!"

"Uhhhmm… I mean…" Poipole said, twiddling his fingers awkwardly. "Balls are fun?"

"MMmhm?! It's not. I think I would've preferred to see them scramble around a haunted house and get killed one by one, but of course, I don't want to copy challenges from the original Total Pokemon Ultra what fucking ever…" Nihilego groaned, face-palming. "Just get fucking hit with a ball already!"

"UWU! My cute face would BRUISE if I got hit by a ball!" Teddiursa complained, dancing gracefully across the court to avoid the balls.

"Correction… WHEN you get hit by a ball!" Dedenne taunted, hurling a 8-ball at the little bear, who dodges it with ease. "Okay?! Wow, you're better at this than I thought…"

"Hehehe, are you flirting with me~" Teddiursa said, slowing down a bit. "I know I'm cute an-" Teddiursa stopped dodging as she got hit by a billiard ball right in the forehead. "BWWWWWAAAAAAKWWWWW" She could do nothing but collapse as she lost consciousness. Nevertheless, she was eliminated from the challenge.

Dedenne smiled weakly at Gossifleur, who threw the shot, "Uhh… t-thanks for the assist?"

"It's like archery!" Gossifleur said proudly, puffing up her chest. "Just aim for the head and they're goners!"

"Uhhm… I think we can just hit them anywhere?" Dedenne pointed out.

"Its still fun either way," Gossifleur admitted with a polite nod as she aimed another ball at a desperately hiding Pikachu, who shouted in pain as it hits his tail. "BULLSEYE!"

"P-Pikachu?! T-Teddiursa?! D-don't tell me I'm alone now…" Bayleef gulped in realization as his two teammates were escorted off the court… or well, in Teddiursa's case, carried. "N-no… I'm not ready!"

"JUST FUCKING THROW A BALL ALREADY!" Empoleon yelled with both hands on his stomach where Gossifleur hit him, only to get chided by Nihilego for 'coaching'. "WHAT?! We're fucking losing for stupid reasons… this is not fair."

Bayleef gulped as he nodded. Lifting a dodgeball with his vines, he closed his eyes.

He threw the ball, hoping it would hit something.

Anything…

But of course, hope is just hope in the end as it accidentally bounced back and hit him right on the face. "AAAAAA-AAAAAH!"

Oricorio blinked at this, smiling sheepishly. "I-Is he okay?"

"Let's just take him out while he's distracted," Dedenne pointed out, shrugging with indifference.

"It feels… scummy…" Oricorio admitted only to be interrupted by Gossifleur successfully hitting Bayleef with a miniature snowglobe on his foot. "O-okay? We're actually doing that?"

"AND THE FIRST ROUND IS OVER AFTER LIKE… SO LONG?! I don't care. That was boring. But Trubbish earned their first ever point. Woo, only one more. I'll give everyone a break since ARCEUS, I think we need it!" Nihilego announced, clapping her tentacles together. "I can't wait for more ball hitting? GOD, maybe we should've went for the ball-themed Hunger Games…"

Bayleef gulped as he avoided eye contact with a very annoyed Empoleon as he left the playing field. But he yelped as Empoleon grunted, smacking a wing on his back. "Eep!" Blinking for a split second, he quickly closed his mouth before muttering quietly, "S-sorry about that… I-I'm not… good at aiming…"

"Don't fucking worry. It's a group effort," Empoleon tried to reassure his companion but his annoyed expression and his incessant stomping on the sand was enough to show Bayleef how horrible his mood was.

"A-are you sure?" Bayleef murmured, covering both of his eyes with a thick vine.

"I'm fine… ugh! You're too much of a coward. You better fucking stop doing that…" Empoleon grumbled, one wing balled into a fist.

"W-what if I'm just too scared o-of something!?" Bayleef pointed out, voluming increasing only to decrease as he whimpered, "I-I'm so sorry for b-being useless b-but that's just who I am!"

"I'm training you to be a winner stop being such a fucking loser," Empoleon growled, making the grass-type crumple even further. "Ugh… I'm not trying to threaten you but I'm so fucking sick of losing… and worst yet, that crazy bitch wasn't even playing and we still lost. Everyone on this team is just SO useless."

Bayleef could do nothing but weakly nod in agreement, "... I-I understand…"

"NO, DON'T UNDERSTAND. We have to fucking win a challenge. This is a fucking physical challenge so I feel very DISGUSTED that we're somehow losing.

"U-uhmm-"

Putting a wing to his head, Empoleon interrupted the shortspoken grass-type, gritting his teeth in aggravation, "NOT NOW… I need to fucking calm down… we still have a chance… even if that evil bitch is playing."

"E-evil bitch?"

"Gourgeist obviously!" Empoleon explained, glare turning even harsher making the grass-type even more flushed. "She's… it's so hard to understand what she's thinking. I don't even know HOW she won the last challenge but I'm sure she's cheating."

"Are yo-" Bayleef was again shortly interrupted.

Empoleon deadpanned, interrupting him and putting a flipper to his face. "I'm fine… let's just win the next rounds so we can just fucking WIN this challenge?! We can't go on a losing streak, of all things!"

"Okay…" Bayleef muttered, still unsure if the penguin was happy with his failure to do anything useful in the challenge.

Bayleef sighed as he stared at the camera, overwhelmed by a dreadful feeling of shame and disappointment. "I think Empoleon is mad at me… I trained so hard this morning and I-I still can't help us win a dodgeball match… I should've been better… stronger… b-but I guess I still have so much to learn…"

"M-Maybe Empoleon would put me through even more training… it's… nervewracking to think about but… well… I don't want to be a disappointment to this team… 3 people already thought of eliminating me last time… t-they can do that again…"

Skwovet, Dedenne and Vivillon all smirked as they stood around Oricorio, who looked happy to see everyone gather around him.

"Oricorio, your plan to just… not throw any of the balls that ended on our side of the field was a great idea!" Dedenne commented, pushing back his glasses. "I can see the other team sweating already… especially that Empoleon." He chuckled, playfully rolling his eyes. "Ooooh, it was so nice seeing him look so angry honestly."

"Errr… thank you, Dedenne! But let's play nice with the other team now, okay?" Oricorio advised, sitting down. "I know they're our competition but let's try to practice some sportsmanship here!"

Dedenne shrugged in indifference. "I mean… they're our competition so isn't the best course of action to just beat them down so that they never get the momentum to ever get any hope of beating us? You know… ruin their morale even further." Noticing Oricorio's unsure look, he sighed. "Okay fine… I guess I won't comment any further."

"Oricorio, you were impressive out there. You and Gossifleur… I didn't even expect Gossifleur of all people, to be good at hitting people with balls but hey, it's the ones you least expect, huh?" Skwovet complimented. "Wish I could've been more useful but heh… I'm terrible at dodging things."

"You tried, and that's the most important part! And we won at the end of the day so that's enough to be proud of, team!" Oricorio declared.

"I'm not one for… team spirit, but I suppose if that'll get us the win… I suppose I'm fine with it…" Vivillon said quietly to herself.

Skwovet bounced his eyebrows teasingly as he put a hand around the butterfly's wings. "Hey! Maybe, you have a secret talent for dodging too!" He silently slipped back some of Vivillon's make-up on her body, using the butterfly's ribbon around her neck to keep them there.

"Oh please?! Are y-you implying that I would volunteer for this?!" Vivillon gawked, not noticing Skwovet discretely returning her things. "What if my face gets hit by a bowling ball and get bloody and bruised from that!? My career would be ruined if I look like the… like the… Phantom of The Opera beneath his mask!"

"I don't know… that might be a big improvement, don't you think?" Skwovet teased, yelping as Vivillon smacked him on the head. "I-I was joking, okay! Don't have to hit me like that!"

"HMPH… I just want to reiterate that… it's best if I do not perform in this challenge since I doubt I can even dodge well… and do I have to remind everyone that these wings were not made to throw heavy objects, hmm?!" Vivillon reiterated.

"I don't think we really have a choice on that matter…" Oricorio reminded. "I think everyone needs to compete and…"

"This is ridiculous… are you forcing me to compete!?" Vivillon gawked, sweating nervously, making her makeup runny. "Does nobody care about me that they want me to risk ruining my face… what if I get medically evacuated because of this stupid challenge?!"

Dedenne deadpanned, crossing his arms. "Well… Skwovet, Gossifleur, Oricorio, Cramorant and I all competed in the first round… I think Nihilego would force everyone else to compete in the second… since I think he mentioned that in the rules of the challenge."

Vivillon's face turned red as she looked around frantically. "Then change the rules of the challenge?! Nihilego, please do it for me!"

Oricorio, Skwovet and Dedenne all passed a glance at each other before staring knowngly at the nervous butterfly.

"Why are you looking at me like that!? This is demeaning behavior… I demand to talk to Nihilego!"

Klinklang was just floating on the docks, doing nothing while waiting for the first round of dodgeball to finish, only to be interrupted by loud footsteps. The gear Pokemon groaned as he knew who it was, calling out to them with a dry tone, "Cramorant, I know you're there."

"What?! How did you know?! Don't tell me you actually have eyes on the back of your head, wuh tuh faah?!" Cramorant exclaimed, stopping on her feet with a shocked look. "I w-wasn't following you or anything, b-baka!"

He sighed, narrowing his eyes in suspicion, "I'm just calling out to you. Since, you were in the position to sneak up on me without me knowing, but your loud footsteps gave it away."

"Uhhmm… I wasn't sneaking," Cramorant defended herself with a childish pout.

"Then, what were you planning to do? Everything has a certain cause and effect."

"Bwuh?! Are you like, talking about science?" Cramorant queried, face-palming herself. "Doh, if my phone wasn't broken, I could search the web about it and stuff…"

The gear deadpanned, explaining nonchalantly, "It's not a hard concept to grasp."

"Mmhm, yess?! I suppose it's so, not so hard to like hold on to…" Cramorant said out loud, trying to piece her thoughts together. "But like, I was just wanting to uhh… like talk lots about the challenge since we're winning but like, I'm not too confident if w-"

"Gourgeist."

"Yeah, she's a cutie. What's your point?" Cramorant retorted, eyes wandering to the side.

"She's a beast. You already know what she's capable of in the last challenge. I believe we only have a mere 3% chance to lose the next round, thus it gives us a 97% chance to win the challenge," Klinklang explained offhandedly.

"97? 3? Why are you saying all of these numbers?!" Cramorant stomped a foot on the docks with a confused expression. "I don't even know what a statistical is?!"

"Ugh… you're hopeless…" Klinklang muttered. "I thought there was more to you than what meets the eye… but I guess you really are a ditz." Noticing Cramorant's expression turning a little nervous, he smirked to himself, "The basic summary is that you shouldn't worry since our chances of losing is low."

Cramorant blinked, broken out of her stupor, stammering barely coherently, "B-bwuh?! What meets what now?! Sorry… g-got lost in my thoughts for a bit there, el oh el!"

"I can never really understand you… can I?" Klinklang sighed, closing his eyes, making the bird's pout grow even larger, which he turned away from to ignore.

"Klinklang is a bit mean, in a way that he's lowkey mean but it sounds so polite that I look like a jerk for lashing out in like reply!" Cramorant complained, crossing her wings with a pouty look. "Like… I don't get him. I mean, I had like a big brained idea to try to talk to everyone individually so like, I can not have my brain fried up from thinking of many diff topics in one convos but ofc Klinklang ruins it. I hate him… where's the downvote button?!"

Nihilego yawned as the challenge was back on track. For the Shuppet, Empoleon was competing again, with Floatzel, Magearna, Musharna and Sableye. For the Trubbish were Gourgeist, Klinklang, Magcargo, Vanilluxe and Vivillon. "We edited a lot of footage. Yada yada, we're back at the challenge."

Poipole nodded, cheering enthusiastically, "Let's hit some balls and get hit by balls. Let's play with balls. Have fun with balls. What a baller time this will be!"

"Ew, are you trying to emulate Vanilluxe?" Nihilego commented with a deadpan expression.

"Maybe… but let's go!" Poipole exclaimed, waving his arms around to denote excitement.

Empoleon didn't waste any time as he grabbed a basketball, hurling at Magcargo, who's easily hit. "DON'T LET THEM HOARD BALLS. HIT THEM WHERE IT HURTS!" He yelled to his teammates, who nodded in agreement, or well were too intimidated to disagree.

"You don't have to tell me twice!' Floatzel exclaimed, firing a ball… which accidentally hit Magearna. "OKAY! Get out of the way, Magearna."

"S-sorry…" Magearna stammered, rubbing her arm that got hit by Floatzel's stray dodgeball.

Vivillon growled as she dodged a few balls thrown at her, "Tch, I hate this challenge! Why is everyone aiming at me?! Hmph… I guess it's my lucky day since you lot are terrible at throwing!"

"I wouldn't be too cocky if I were you," Klinklang suggested, deadpan, flinching as he became another victim of Empoleon's ball rampage. "Sigh… this was a 87% chance…"

"W-wait, don't hit me! Think about my career-" Vivillon tried to beg only to be thrown off the field by a volleyball thrown by Sableye who flashed a nervous thumbs-up."

"I did it!" He exclaimed only to get hit by a dodgeball thrown by Gourgeist, who was just throwing things randomly, making him face-plant on the sand. "..."

Nearby, Musharna groaned as she also got hit by a stress ball, "UGH, I HATE sports…"

"Tch… useless…" Empoleon grunted to himself as his teammates were being eliminated, one by one by Gourgeist alone. "I can't believe that psycho is a dodgeball professional too…"

Empoleon, Floatzel and Magearna are left for the Shuppet. Gourgeist and Vanilluxe are left for the Trubbish.

Vanilluxe laughed nervously as he floated over to a ball, "How… how do I even grab a ball with no hands?! Do I need to break the ice or something and they'll float for me?!"

"Aw, you're so cute~" Gourgeist mused with a playful giggle before turning to the opposing team, expression hardening. "Leave it to me, of course!" Grabbing another dodgeball, she hurled at Floatzel… who gets HIT as the dodgeball ricocheted off his body, hitting Magearna in the process. "This game is so easy."

Empoleon gaped at this, "WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!"

"Sorry about that…!" Floatzel groaned as he left the court, hand supporting his back, with Magearna lagging behind him.

"UGH, it's down to me again?!" Empoleon gritted his teech, fists clenched as he faced the smirking pumpkin. "I didn't think our rematch would be this early…"

"Oh? This would be easy then~" Gourgeist said in a sing-song voice, taunting the short-tempered penguin.

"Y-you can do it?!" Bayleef tried to encourage his teammate from the sidelines with a weak smile.

"I doubt it…" Pikachu muttered, shuddering from the thought of Gourgeist finding him last challenge and their conversation earlier today.

"I won't lose TWICE!" Empoleon yelled, grabbing a pair of balls from the side.

"Correction… you lost THRICE," Gourgeist continued to taunt Empoleon with a malicious expression.

"You… DIEEEE!' Empoleon threw both balls at the other team. Vanilluxe grunted as he was successfully eliminated while Gourgeist giggled as she took a step away from the direction of the ball. "How the fuck are you still not getting hit?!"

"I guess I'm just lucky~"

"You can't be THAT lucky, right?!"

"Let's wait a see~"

Sableye yawned as he's building a tower made of rocks inside the confessional, "Turns out two hardcore players staring each other down instead of throwing balls isn't as entertaining than it sounds, hehe…" He groaned as the tower easily collapsed on his lap as he slightly fidgeted. "Darn it…"

Gossifleur's eyes were glimmering as she leaned close to the camera, "So this is the battle of all century for the first time, right? This is such an eye opening experience. I'm vaguely interested in how it goes."

"NNGGGGHHHH!" Empoleon grunted; he continued to punt at the pumpkin's direction, who just yawned in boredom as she easily dodged the balls thrown at her. "How the fuck?! You're probably cheating!"

"Wanna bet?!" Gourgeist taunted, throwing balls back at rapid-fire rate, eyes glimmering with mischief. "I'm a dodgeball pro after all. You can't beat me~"

"No, you're not…" Empoleon replied, starting to get tired from throwing.

It was a repeated process. Balls were thrown. Balls were picked up, then woah, what happened next? Balls were thrown again. Oh, they also dodged. It was a long battle as neither side was relenting. Even Gourgeist was starting to get tired of throwing balls.

"Uhmm… when is like… this challenge gonna end?" Cramorant asked nobody in particular with a bored expression. "This is like… so bored. Maybe, you need a consultant for better challenges, awks."

"Don't blame me. We had a tight budget…" Nihilego waved a tentacle at the bird, slightly annoyed that her decisions are being deemed as terrible. "I mean… dodgeball, all you need are balls. It saves a LOT of money."

"What if we had a fashion show challenge though?!" Cramorant suggested.

"Or a sleeping challenge…" Musharna made her own suggestion, half-asleep as she floated in mid-air.

"Or an eating challenge!" Magcargo added with an innocent look. "I think that would make Indeedee very happy, right?! And it can be our breakfast, lunch a-"

"STOP SUGGESTING CHALLENGES!" Nihilego groaned, face-palming. "We don't need challenge ideas. We already have plans for future challenges, thanks to Marill. And no, she has nerves of steel so don't even think of bribing her to make a challenge that is advantageous to your skills or abilities. Thank you very much."

"But what about a challenge suggestion challenge?" Skwovet drawled flatly. "It'll save you guys a LOT of budget, don't you think?"

"UHHMM… this conversation is over. We have balls to be thrown!" Nihilego awkwardly tried to change the topic with a meek expression.

"Yeah yeah… but, this is boring," Skwovet complained, rolling his eyes. He raised his empty hands as he groaned. "See… Even my hands are shaking… fuck…"

"Deal with it."

Back to the challenge. Empoleon threw a ball. Gourgeist dodged. And vice versa, the process continued until both sides looked visibly exhausted.

Empoleon grunted, wiping off some sweat, forcing a grin to weaken his opponents' resolve, "I'm not tired yet! Ready to give up?!"

Gourgeist cocked a brow, confused. "Why are you assuming I'm tired? I'm a ghost type."

"You don't look like you have energy to spare!" Empoleon countered, continuing to hurl balls only to stop as he realized that his arms were really aching. "Fucking shi-" He blinked only to be shocked as he suddenly found Gourgeist staring at him, eye-to-eye. "What th-"

"Sorry," Gourgeist giggled as she bonked Empoleon on the nose with a small golf ball. "I mean, we were fated to win this challenge so you should've given up when you had the chance…"

"..." Empoleon had no words, visibly shaken by what just happened. But before he could respond, Nihilego floated over to between him and Gourgeist with a relieved smirk.

"Thank Arceus, it's over! We're NEVER doing a dodge ball challenge again, unless we're lazy," Nihilego patted herself on the head teasingly. "But in the end, it looks like… THE TRUBBISH are the winners again. Wow, talk about reversing your fate for the second time, if you know what I mean…" The Trubbish gathered together and erupted into cheers; with some people walking over to Gourgeist to hug her only to be refused; at Nihilego's announcement. The Shuppet, on the other hand, had a dour mood as they were currently experiencing their second loss in the row. "Shuppets… I'm sorry to say this… but we'll see each other later at the campfire ceremony."

The Shuppet didn't have any reaction to this, resigned to their fate of having to send another teammate to be with Unfezant at the Loser Lounge. Though, the silence was quickly interrupted by Sableye who laughed nervously in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Uhhmm… d-don't worry, we'll win next time, hehe!" Sableye's laugh intensified as groans rang through the group. "O-okay…"

The Shining Shuppet were gathered on the patio of their cabin, facing Empoleon… who was glaring at them, sizing them up individually for the upcoming campfire ceremony they're forced to attend. Their positions are rigid and uncomfortable due to the oppressive and intimidating aura the water starter was giving off.

"OKAY… we fucking lost… AGAIN…" Empoleon started, flipper shaking in front of his face. He slowly retracted it, grunting in annoyance, "So, we have to get rid of deadweight or we'll keep heading back to the campfire ceremony and I know NOBODY wants that."

The Shuppet all exchanged a look, begrudgingly agreeing with what he said. Bayleef gulped as he tried his hardest to avoid Empoleon's harsh gaze, muttering, "W-who d-do you h-have in m-m-m-m-"

"Stop stuttering," Empoleon chided, face-palming, annoyance evident in his tone. "We don't have much fucking time to discuss. Meanwhile, those stupid Trubbish are off celebrating… I fucking hate that Gourgeist… SO… MUCH!"

"Well… Gourgeist is their strongest asset after all," Magearna awkwardly laid out her thoughts, twiddling her fingers together. "So… it's not a surprise she's our biggest hurdle to victory. I mean, we all saw how she did in the last challenge, right? And this challenge too… she looked tired but she wasn't tired… how can you even do that..?"

"I mean, you're a Mythical fucking Pokemon, right?! You should be disappointed that you lose to a fucking pumpkin," Empoleon derided the steel and fairy type, gritting his teeth loudly. "If she has secret powers hidden in her sleeve… then why aren't you fucking doing anything. I thought Mythic Pokemon were supposed to be fucking strong."

Magearna blinked, face flushed in embarrassment as she struggled to sputter out, "W-w-what?! Empoleon, stop saying the f word too much… it's making me more flustered…"

"I need to get my point across and that point is… you all fucking suck at that challenge!" Empoleon said derisively. Bayleef looked down in disappointment at this. Pikachu's eyes started darting from side to side, for any opportunity to just leave. Floatzel and Sableye exchanged a glance… before looking away immediately, realizing what they were doing.

"Guys, we shouldn't be fighting… we're a team!" Chansey said in an attempt to diffuse the situation only to be met by Empoleon leaning closer to hear, to jeer at her face.

"Bold words… from someone who barely did anything in the previous challenge," He said, unabashedly.

"W-"

"Why are you even lashing at Chansey?! Shouldn't you be more furious at Bayleef?! He did worse than Chansey. Chansey's a kind person. She doesn't deserve this vitriol!" Magearna defended her friend with a huff. "And I know I'm a Mythical Pokemon… b-but that doesn't mean I should abuse my powers to give me an advantage in this game."

"HOW FUCKING DARE YOU TALK BACK AT ME!" Empoleon yelled.

"Eeek!" Magearna screamed as she looked away, in fear that Empoleon was going to hurt her. But surprisingly, nothing came. The penguin held himself back, hand on his head as he continued to hyperventilate.

"I mean… UWU! This is too intimidating of you, Empy but like… Bayleef is useless? Sorry, by the way," Teddiursa agreed, hiding behind the larger Floatzel.

"... I'm not in any place to judge but do not SHOUT at defenseless people. Only villains do that," Floatzel added, eyes looking down.

"... ngggh…" Empoleon murmured, biting into his flipper. It almost looked like… he was nervous for once, surprising the more perceptive members of the team in Pikachu and Musharna, who didn't say anything about it. Without a word, he ran off without a sound, leaving his teammates stunned.

"Uhh… that's… an abrupt end to the meeting…" Pikachu commented, laughing nervously.

"..." Bayleef nodded in agreement, eyes darting to the side in worry. "I-I…"

"I never believed in democracy anyway, tee hee~" Teddiursa mused, standing up from her position. She grunted as she held her back, struggling to keep a straight face. "Oookay… m-maybe that wasn't comfortable, leaning on one shoulder…"

Winking at her teammates, the little bear also proceeded to leave the area. Shortly after, everyone stood up to leave as well, aside from Bayleef and Pikachu, who decided to stay longer there.

Pikachu's eyes darted from left to right, looking around to see if they're alone before sliding closer to the leafy dinosaur, "Hey… u-uh… this might be presumptuous of me to say but… even if uhh… Magearna called you out back there… I don't think you're leaving…"

Bayleef looked up from his dire shame, blinking in surprise, "W-what do you mean?"

"I mean… It's no surprise but… Empoleon is freaking scary. And well… I think that would serve as a factor for how everyone is voting…" Pikachu explained, tapping his ear. "Get what I mean?"

"A-are you saying… I-I'll be safe, j-just because nobody wants to vote me off because they'll be too scared of Empoleon?" Bayleef muttered.

"I think… uhhm… don't ask me further on that one…" Pikachu stammered, twiddling his fingers awkwardly as his mind was basically spinning, trying to think of what to do at their upcoming elimination. "But… I think if anything… people would just want to vote Empoleon off, since he's pretty much a terrible leader, who hasn't really s-shown his strength in these challenges… e-eerrr… ignore this if you actually like him though…"

Bayleef blinked, biting his lip… not really knowing how to react. "Voting off… Empoleon? I have m-mixed feelings on him but I-I think he's still the strongest player on this team… the other t-team's just more united and Gourgeist is… really strong."

Pikachu shuddered at the mention of the pumpkin. "Yeah. You don't have to tell me that twice. That pumpkin girl… scared me earlier… she's stronger than she looks and honestly, I hope we don't get any more challenges where we're forced to fight her head-on since I don't think we'll ever win with her involved."

He then forced a smile as he got closer to the Grass-type. "Errr… so I think that… we should vote together again… and I think w-we can work with the girls and-"

"W-wait… we're voting for Empoleon?"

"Y-yes! I had to make that decision on the fly!" Pikachu explained, fingers scratching his face nervously. "You can't just a-ask me to backpedal… what if… what if…" He gulped, retching. "B-Bayleef, you wouldn't tell Empoleon about this, right?!"

"U-uhm…"

Pikachu's expression darkened as he puts both of his hands on the dinosaur's back. "It's a yes or no question. Don't leave me hanging here… Don't make me regret telling you this… please?!"

"Y-yes?" Bayleef answered, uncertain. Pikachu's left eye twitched but he managed a small smile.

"Okay… g-good… I'll talk to the others…"

Pikachu was breathing into a paper bag… until it just popped from him hyperventilating. He looked at the camera weakly, hands shaking as he placed the paper bag down on his lap. "Losing for a second time in a row was terrible… n-now I have to t-think about what I'd want to do and these situations where they need an immediate response just… r-really make me even more anxious and I don't have a good track record of being right."

His hands crumpled the paper bag as he lowered his head at the camera. "My logic was… uhm… Empoleon is a big jerk and everyone knows that!? S-so… uhm… I hope this works out…"

"I w-was lucky to be s-saved last round… b-but I'm not too confident in my chances of surviving another elimination…" Bayleef admitted, head leaf drooping a bit from his saddened mood. "Pikachu c-claims that I'm safe… but I'm… n-not too confident in that… but you never know until t-the very end so hoping I get lucky a-again…"

Teddiursa, Sableye and Magearna were all gathered in the mess hall, standing behind the counter near the kitchen, having a heated conversation. Sableye was sitting on the counter, sloppily picking his nose that made the two girls avoid his direction while they discussed. Teddiursa was serving herself some coffee, using the coffee machine that she got from Gallade through a lot of 'persuasion'. While Magearna's eyes were quickly darting to the door, in case anyone entered.

"Magearna, I didn't know Sableye was in this alliance~" Teddiursa first asked, to which Magearna immediately responded.

"I invited him to the alliance earlier during the challenge."

"Ooooh! Sneaky sneaky!" Teddiursa said, giggling to her paws. "Hmm… where's Chansey and Musharna though?"

"They're both talking to Empoleon and Floatzel, I believe." Magearna answered. "Anyways… the vote… it's pretty obvious, right?" She then clasped her hands together, expression and tone both serious. "While Empoleon's behavior is quite… deplorable. We can't afford to vote off our strongest challenge asset."

"Yeppers! So you're saying… Pikapika?" Teddiursa queried, focusing on drinking her coffee. "I mean… BayBay is a bit of a scaredy-cat but are you sure we should evoke Empoleon's wrath by voting him off?"

"Well… I just think we should just take our chances…" Magearna explained. "He's the obvious weakest link. At least Pikachu is smarter than he looks…"

"UWU! That's interesting! Sableye, what do you think?" Teddiursa asked the gremlin who was just… vibing around the group, not really doing anything.

"Yeah! I'll vote with you guys, hehe!" Sableye affirmed. "I like you guys! And I agree that Bayleef's pretty useless, hehe…"

Teddiursa gasped, putting a hand to her face as she positioned her coffee cup back on the counter, "A boy?! In our girls' alliance! This is unforeseen!" Noticing her companion's deadpan reactions, she groaned, pouting in response, "Oh come on, can't we have some drama in our everyday lives, UwU?!"

"Uh-huh… as long as it's safe drama that doesn't harm anyone," Magearna commented dryly. "But that aside, if you're not too sure on voting for Bayleef, you could always vote for Pikachu. We have the majority either way, no matter who we vote for."

"You're saying that as if Musharna and Chansey are already on-board!" Teddiursa gawked at her alliance mate, confused.

"They are. Trust me," Magearna reassured, waving a hand at the little bear's face. "I don't know what the other boys would do but I'll do my best to find out. I can believe that Empoleon and Bayleef are highly likely to vote together, while Floatzel…" She turned to Sableye, smiling sheepishly. "Do you mind drawing his attention so he votes for you again?"

Sableye blinked before his face turned red from embarrassment, "Wuh?! I think he would vote for me regardless unless anyone else was even shadier, hehe… But in his words… I'm the only Dark type so by default, I'm the shadiest."

"I think that argument's… flawed but that's just so Floatzel~" Teddiursa said, amused.

Floatzel was hanging around the confessional, deep in thought. He wasn't too worried about the vote, given the fact that his tribe was so fragmented that he doubted there'd be much agreement on who goes… that, and he wasn't worried that he was going home. As he tipped his hat over his eyes, he noticed something strange happening around the Twinkling Trubbish cabin.

Vivillon and Skwovet were on the porch, having an argument… well moreso Vivillon looked mad while Skwovet was backing away, putting his hands in between them for distance.

"Looks suspicious…" Floatzel muttered to himself as he started walking to the cabin to listen in on their conversation.

What was actually happening between Vivillon and Skwovet… was an overly dramatic confrontation once Vivillon realized that all her missing things were back in her person… and she was unaware about it the whole time and she knew exactly who to suspect.

"Skwovet, can you explain why you took my personal belongings?" Vivillon asked coldly. "Don't tell me you wanted to sell them after the game, hmm?"

Skwovet smiled weakly as he was backed into the railing. "H-hey… I gave it back, didn't I? You don't have to press me further when I don't even have them with me now!"

"HMPH! That doesn't change the fact that you stole something from me!" Vivillon reasoned, glaring at the squirrel. "You need to state your intentions before I report you to Nihilego!"

"Let's not be unreasonable now!" Skwovet said before looking to the side. "Is this about me teasing you during the challenge? It wasn't even that serious and-"

Vivillon scoffed, slapping the squirrel gently on the cheek, shocking the latter with how… little it felt. "I am over that. Do you think I would let myself get frustrated over someone directing one hateful comment in my direction, hmm? I just want to know if you're someone who wants to see me go under?!"

"I don't even know who you are!" Skwovet gawked flatly.

"Excuse you?!" Vivillon looked more offended by this as she continued to glare. "How can you not know about me?! Do you live under a rock?!"

"Does it look like I care about celebs or famous people?! I don't even know that Magearna on the other team!" Skwovet pointed out.

Vivillon rolled her eyes. "Hmm?! I'm shocked… I thought you'd be more knowledgable, given the fact that you're stealing from people… you stole my things for a reason and it's because you knew they were valuable."

"Actually-"

"There's no actuallies required! I know the game you're playing!" Vivillon cut in, making the squirrel sigh as the butterfly didn't even bother to let him explain. "I think you knew… I saw a diamond sticking out of your tail in one challenge… so that confirms my suspicions."

"Well-"

"HMPH! You're lucky I'm so kind and gracious that I will not press any charges against you!" Vivillon said, while Skwovet just looked… rather deflated from Vivillon not letting him get a word in.

His troubles were soon going to be amplified, when Floatzel walked over, arms crossed. Skwovet's eyes widened. He didn't personally knew Floatzel but… with how much Dedenne talked about him, he was worried Floatzel would also pin him on the ground and start asking him questions when HE was the one, everyone knew had a habit of stealing things.

"What's going on here?" Floatzel asked.

Vivillon sighed in relief as she stood aside, letting the weasel come close. "Oh… I was just asking Skwovet about his motives."

"What happened?" Floatzel continued to ask.

Vivillon nodded as she smiled cooly, "You see… some of my possessions had turned up missing during the first few days on this island… and I only found out when I was putting on my make-up last night then realized that… they were not with me anymore and Skwovet here… is notorious for being a thief! He knew that I caught on so he returned it to me but I can see right through him!"

Floatzel blinked before shaking his head at the squirrel. "Why would you even try to steal make-up? Doesn't look like you even used it on yourself."

Skwovet's face blushed in embarrassment. "H-hey! Was that a dig for how I looked?! Vivillon didn't even let me explain and-"

"Are you really a thief?" Floatzel asked.

"I mean… yes but-"

"Then, case closed. You should just apologize to Vivillon and promise to never do it again." Floatzel advised.

Skwovet just gaped at this before gritting his teeth as he turned to the butterfly. "Fine… I'm sooooo sorry for stealing your things, Vivillon."

"Hmmm.. that apology was terrible. Can I get a redo?" Vivillon suggested with a smug expression.

Skwovet looked incredulous at this as he tried to signal Floatzel to not let Vivillon force her to repeat saying apologies. Floatzel just sighed, shaking his head.

"Skwovet, your apology was insincere." He pointed out.

Skwovet face-palmed as he forced a smile. "I'm really sorry for being a terrible person! I'm just not really good, you know? Whoop de doo! It's a wonder that I'm not in jail yet but hey, I feel really bad for making you anxious for taking your make-up! You didn't even need it in the first place with how good you already look."

Vivillon smirked as she looked up in triumph. "Now, that's better! Maybe, you're not such a bad guy after all, Skwovet!"

"You didn't even let me fully explain…" Skwovet muttered beneath his breath, just relieved that Vivillon didn't ask him to make another half-assed apology.

"Well, are things settled? Or do you still have things you haven't returned, Skwovet?" Floatzel asked.

The squirrel averted his gaze, just replying in a simple, "No…"

Skwovet sat in the confessional, face red from frustration as he put both his hands in his pocket. "That was… miserable. Absolutely miserable. I gave back what I stole… and I still need to prove something more?! Why even try to change, if it never works, huh?!"

He face-palmed as he glared at the camera. "Vivillon was very terrible for that… and past me too! Why the hell did I felt the need to grab his make-up when her shiny jewelry were also RIGHT… THERE!" He paused, staring at the camera awkwardly before looking down. "... okay, I wasn't p-planning to do that… or I'm not going to plan that either… sorry Dad…"

Pikachu mustered up the courage to walk over to Musharna who was sleeping in the cabins… despite the fact that he voted for her last time. Clearing his throat, he started calling out in an attempt to wake her up.

"M-Musharna… Musharna?!"

"... mmm…" Musharna barely stirred in her sleep, making Pikachu even more nervous.

"Musharna! Please wake up?!"

"... zzzzzz…"

"MUUUUSSSHARNA!"Pikachu finally yelled out. This finally woke up the tapir as she looked annoyed by the sudden noise. Her eyes scanned her surroundings before her gaze fell upon Pikachu.

"Oh… it's you. Why are you here?" Musharna questioned, tone pointed in a way that barely hid her disdain. "If it's about the vote… I already have it figured out…"

Pikachu looked shocked by this, pulling at his ears. "R-really?! Have you talked with everyone yet?! I thought you were sleeping and… you are!"

"Mmmm… yes… but I make plans in advance…" Musharna explained flatly. "Is that enough to sate you?"

"W-what!? No! At least, tell me who you're voting for!" Pikachu pleaded, falling to his knees. "I'll vote with you, if you tell me!"

"Hmm… fine" Musharna said, in between yawns. "I'm voting for Magearna."

Pikachu gawked. He hasn't even heard the Mythical's name up to this point. "W-what!? Nobody would do that! Nobody even voted for her last round!"

"Mmmm… I had conversations with people… and well, they agreed with me so… if you want to be in the majority… you might want to consider that direction as well…" Musharna said ominously.

Pikachu gulped. He was planning to make his pitch to get Empoleon off… but maybe there was merit to just going with her plans. It would save him from having to make a choice anyways.

"Uhm… s-sure?! I'm fine with that…" He commented. "I'm not r-really close with Magearna anyways…"

"Nobody is." Musharna corrected. "... aside from Chansey, but I think that's a bit too one-sided."

"Aww… y-yeah?" Pikachu agreed half-heartedly.

"Wait… if we both voted for Magearna… who else would vote with us? Chansey isn't… I doubt Empoleon would do that too…" Pikachu asked.

"Don't worry… I have it covered…" Musharna assured as she closed her eyes.

"What do you mean!? You're just going to sleep again! Musharna, the time is ticking and-" To Pikachu's disappointment, the sleeping tapir had decided then and there that sleeping was more important than trying to sway the voters. He sighed in exasperation as he turned to leave. "I guess I'll go then-"

As he was leaving, Musharna's eyes half-opened as she mumbled, "Mmmm… good luck with that…"

Musharna was floating around in the confessional, half-awake. "Mmmmmmmm… the beds are just too comfortable… and fluffy… huh… about Pikachu? Well… honestly… I was just feeling him out… he feels… flaky. I don't think he's ever really going to commit to a plan… I mean… he didn't even tell me his original plan so… yes…"

Pikachu sighed as he walked out of the Shuppet cabin after his conversation with Musharna. He twiddled his fingers awkwardly as he looked up, "OKAY… N-now, I'm now having second thoughts… Should I even try to target Magearna just because Musharna said so? Empoleon feels like an easier push… Oh no, I didn't fucking think things through…" His thoughts were then interrupted by Sableye, who waved wildly at him. He waved politely in response. "O-oh! Sableye, hey… have you talked with Empoleon?"

Sableye stopped waving, gaping at Pikachu's words. "Say what now? Was I supposed to talk with him?"

"W-what… oh uhhmm… who are you voting for?"

"I'm voting with my friends Magearna, Teddiursa, Chansey and Musharna against Bayleef, hehe!" Sableye answered with a clueless look.

Pikachu blinked as he started to sweat, "W-what!? You're all voting for Bayleef… I thought nobody wanted to make Empoleon mad?!"

Sableye looked confused by this as he tapped his chin. "Well… I think he should know that Bayleef is pretty useless at challenges anyways. Besides, it's not like you have any better ideas…"

Pikachu sighed as he face-palmed. "I did… but now… I'm starting to overthink things, okay. It's so awful being forced to make a decision in the course of less than 5 hours…"

"Is that why you were in the cabin? Were you talking with Musharna? She was sleeping there, I think…" Sableye stated.

"Well… she was barely any help…" Pikachu whispered in disappointment. "But if you guys are voting for Bayleef… uhm… is there room for 1 more?"

"Of course!" Sableye said.

Pikachu sighed in relief. "T-that sounds great!" While Pikachu wished it could be Empoleon… he really wanted to not embarrass himself by getting voted off… so agreeing with every plan that wasn't him seemed like the smartest move now. "It was nice to talking to you, Sableye. You don't smell bad right now either."

"I… uh…. had a bath!" Sableye said, sweating nervously.

"Yeah, you did! Okay… I'll uhh… confirm things with Teddiursa and Chansey then!"

"Good luck with that!" Sableye muttered as the Pikachu left the area. His expression then darkened as a large grin appeared on his face.

Magearna smiled sheepishly as he walked over to Empoleon and Bayleef, who were involved in a serious conversation in the mess hall. Empoleon glared to her direction, upon noticing her but begrudgingly allowed her to sit with them.

The scene transitioned to show Pikachu talking with Teddiursa and Chansey who exchanged an unsure look before fading to black.

Bayleef awkwardly approached Sableye, who was waiting outside the confessional booth with a confused expression. Bayleef then quickly had second thoughts so he decided to quickly walk away, only to be stopped by Empoleon who grunted for him to not leave.

Groaning, the dinosaur was forced to initiate a conversation with Sableye… only to be frightened by Gourgeist who exited the confessional with a bored expression.

Nevertheless, the conversation continued until nightfall came and it was time for the campfire ceremony.

"I don't know what's going to happen tonight… but all I know is that… it's probably going to be a mess…" Chansey admitted with a nervous laugh. "I m-mean, I heard a LOT of names circulating. I'm honestly only relieved my name wasn't in there…"

It was time for the second campfire ceremony. The nine remaining members of the Shining Shuppet sat on their stumps, facing the raging fire pit. They all shared worried expressions after a whole afternoon of discussions that went many ways. Nobody truly knew what was going to happen and nobody really did want to be the second boot, after seeing Unfezant leave in their last trip here.

Nihilego faced them with an ominous expression, the eerie lighting adding up to the overall vibe as she held a tray of eight marshmallows, leveled to her shoulders. "I have eight marshmallows."

"There were originally nine since I wanted the loser to have a consolation prize but I got hungry…" Poipole added with a sheepish expression, gulping as Nihilego glared in his direction before turning back to the campers.

"Anyways… you all casted your votes… so no takesies backsies. Whoever receives the most votes will be the 2nd person voted off of the game and well… sucks to suck, I suppose," Nihilego said with a shrug. "So… be scared… or not? It's not like you'll die from getting eliminated from a reality tv show…"

"The first person with a marshmallow is… Floatzel…"

Floatzel smirked as he stood up to receive his marshmallow, "While justice faltered, you will never break my spirit!"

"Yeah yeah, now's not the time for inspirational quotes since Teddiursa is also safe!" Nihilego continued, hurling a marshmallow at the little bear's direction. Teddiursa had her mouth open but groaned as it flew past her. "Chansey…" The nurse hastily stood up to receive her marshmallow before Nihilego could even throw it.

"Empoleon." The penguin didn't react as he looked to the side, a bit meekly, confusing Chansey and Musharna who exchanged a look. "Magearna." Magearna cheered as she successfully caught her treat, greedily plopping it right in her mouth, making the non-marshmallow havers a bit jealous. "... and we can't forget about Sableye!" The gremlin looked mildly shocked that he's safe for yet another round, graciously standing up to receive his marshmallow.

"Three are left hungry… because I told Indeedee this was your dinner… but only two marshmallows remain," Nihilego revealed, increasing the tension in the area. Pikachu gulped as he slouched on his seat. Bayleef was close to tears but tried his best to stay strong for his sake. Musharna cocked a brow in confusion. The rest were deadpanned, more worried by the fact that they'll have to sleep only having eaten marshmallows that night. "Two of you got votes… but Musharna, you are not one of them them! You're safe!"

Musharna sighed in relief as she levitated a marshmallow to her direction, "Thank goodness. I was worried everyone collectively made the wrong decision…" Pikachu looked mildly shocked but tried to stay calm, gazing at Bayleef, who was barely keeping himself together. He sighed as his plan failed but at least, he survived and that's what matters, in his opinion.

"We're down to two… only one left…" Nihilego dragged the scene longer for more shock value.

"W-what!?" Pikachu looked shocked by this… even though he also saw it coming.

"P-Pikachu, did you try to vote me off?" Bayleef asked, narrowing his eyes.

"What no!?" Pikachu lied, laughing nervously.

"R-really? Since Magearna told me otherwise…" Bayleef whispered.

"Huh?!" Pikachu's eyes widened as he started to get even more nervous about the results.

"The last marshmallow goes to…"

Pikachu was processing all of the possible scenarios in his head but groaned as it gave him a huge headache.

Bayleef was holding back tears, using his vines to wipe them off.

"... Bayleef…" Nihilego finished with a shocked expression, throwing a marshmallow at the dinosaur, who broke into tears in realization that he was safe for another round.

Pikachu, on the other hand, was shocked as his eyes were bulging out of their sockets. "W-what?! Sableye, you told me that the group was v-voting for Bayleef?!"

"I did?" Sableye looked confused by this.

"Well too bad! Bayleef told me you wanted me gone the moment Magearna came forward with information that you were trying to flip flop between your own targets… seriously, pathetic." Empoleon grumbled, glaring at the electric mouse.

"B-b-but… everyone… they… what?!" Pikachu fell to his knees as he was still trying to comprehend what happened. He then looked over to Musharna. "Y-you told me that you were trying to-"

"Well, I lied. I'm sorry to say." Musharna pointed out.

"Y-you guys… you guys all lied to me this entire afternoon?!" Pikachu yelled out. "B-but why me?! Was this vote unanimous?! I-I…!"

"Word of advice…" Empoleon started before his gaze intensified. "Make up your fucking mind. You were fucking flip flopping between everything."

"W-what… but I…" Pikachu murmured, body falling completely on the ground, only to be helped up by Poipole who was ready to lead him to the boat. "T-this…"

"Look on the bright side! At least, you don't have to make another decision again!" Magearna commented cheekily, giggling into her hand.

"..." Pikachu's eyes narrowed in suspicion as he followed Poipole to the docks. Bayleef tried to wave goodbye but was still crying tears of happiness from surviving another vote.

"I'm gone… it was easy as that… w-wait what?!" Pikachu commented in disbelief. "Sigh… t-this is why I didn't want to sign up for shows like this… I w-was just going to embarrass myself. I bet my friends will keep reminding me that I'm the second boot… but I guess it's my fault for not trying to talk to people and thinking I had the authority to steer the direction of the vote but at the same time, I didn't think it would snowball that fast…"

His eyes narrowed as he tapped his chin. "It's almost as if… you know what?! I don't care. It's not like I'm still in the game…" He smiled weakly. "O-okay… maybe this might be the first decision in the game that I'm happy with! Good riddance to m-my team!"

While the campfire ceremony was taking place, Gossifleur looked anxious as she and Oricorio were sitting in front of their cabin, staring at the sunset in the distance. She felt… intrusive, just joining the bird without any context but… she just really needed to ask something.

"U-uhm… Oricorio?" Gossifleur spoke up, staring the cheerleader in the eyes earnestly. "I have something to ask…"

"Hmm? Really? What is it?" Oricorio asked, relieved that someone would actually turn to her for advice.

"Errr… I had a talk with Vivillon and it made me wonder… how does it take for one…" Gossifleur stuttered, still unsure if she wanted to go through with it before shaking her head to steel herself. "... to be a bad girl."

Oricorio gave her a confused look. "Excuse me… what? Can you speak up?"

"I want to be a really bad girl but I don't know how!" Gossifleur explained, flustered. "I don't think I can copy Vivillon since I don't really have a career to ruin but errr… how do I be a bad girl?!"

"... errr… why are you asking? Is anyone pressuring you to do this?" Oricorio asked. "You don't have to let yourself be pushed around so much, Gossifleur!"

The flower shook her head, determined. "No! This is my decision and mine alone. Nobody pressured me to say this, Oricorio! I really want to be a bad girl!"

"Why though?" Oricorio continued to ask, folding her arms. "Everyone likes you! You don't have to change-"

"I promise it won't be a drastic change… I just really want to be a bad girl!" Gossifleur explained. Oricorio just blinked in response, not really understanding where the Grass-type was coming from. "I mean… being the perfect daughter is err… good but it's stifling, I believe. I want to show another side of myself!"

"And you think being a bad girl is that?" Oricorio asked. "I think you shouldn't just… rush into this rashly, Gossifleur."

"I'm not! Promise!" Gossifleur assured as she stood up. "Anyways, I'll go on a walk!"

Oricorio gaped, reaching out. "Wait… are you not going to elaborate further on…"But it was too late, Gossifleur broke into a run, to the direction of the woods. "Okay… guess she's not going to tell me…"

Gossifleur hummed to herself happily as she started taking a brisk woods through the forest after her conversation with Oricorio didn't really help her like she hoped to. In the distance, she can see the Shuppet returning from their campfire ceremony. Lagging behind, Sableye looked exhausted as Floatzel continued to prod him for information he didn't know. Gossifleur had a sympathetic expression for the dark and ghost type for all his troubles.

Though, she stopped as she noticed a figure in the distance. Upon closer inspection, it was Sableye.

Smiling widely, she decided to wave at him, "Sableye! I'm so glad th-" She stopped as she had a sudden realization. "Wait… wasn't SABLEYE with the Shuppet heading back to camp. Nervously, she took a step back only to bump into something, making her scream. "MOOOOONSSSTEEEER!"

"Ouch… I guess monster's not the worst insult you could think of…" A voice told the small flower.

Gossifleur blinked as she turned around to find a… blob-like creature with an uncharastically cold smooth texture. "M-Magcargo, is that you?! I think I saw Sableye and-" Her eyes narrowed… then widened as she started doubling back. "W-wait… you're not Magcargo."

"..." The unknown creature doesn't respond as it retreated into nearby bushes.

"What… was that?" Gossifleur muttered to herself as she felt to the ground. "That wasn't normal… right?!"

"BOO-BERRIES!" Vanilluxe shouted suddenly from above her. But unfortunately for him, it was enough to scare Gossifleur away, leaving him alone. "That's a ghost's favorite… fruit? DARN IT! G-Gossfleur, I'm sorry for making you c-cringe… but where did you go…"

With an annoyed sigh, the ice cream floated back to the direction of camp, as the camera panned over to a thicket of bushes where the blob had retreated to.

Vote Count:

Pikachu - Bayleef, Chansey, Empoleon, Floatzel, Magearna, Musharna, Sableye, Teddiursa (ELIMINATED)

Bayleef - Pikachu

Shining Shuppet - Bayleef, Chansey, Empoleon, Floatzel, Magearna, Musharna, Sableye, Teddiursa

Twinkling Trubbish - Cramorant, Dedenne, Gourgeist, Gossifleur, Klinklang, Magcargo, Oricorio, Skwovet, Vanilluxe, Vivillon

Eliminated: Unfezant, Pikachu

THE STORY

Hello! It's been so long. I'm glad to be back. It's three-four months but eh, I guess I loved Unfezant too much? But anyways, to the story. The last scene I was working on before my hiatus was the Pikachu/Gourgeist scene so it's relieving to finally continue after that. But onto personal thoughts!

FIRSTLY, it was obvious which team was losing personally since the scenes got funneled to them… it was mostly because the type of challenge felt a bit stifling and putting too much scenes DURING the dodgeball challenge makes them feel more shoehorned in, thus I had to minimize everything that happens from the start of the challenge, up to the end.

SECONDLY, I literally am crying since this is the like… first time in forever that I made it past the second boot so that's an achievement on its own. Though, I literally struggled so hard on who to eliminate since I made a barebones bootlist with description but WHOOPS, there's a change… or not?! I literally went back-and-forth until I finalized. Oops "/

ALSO, about the Trubbish tribe, they'll get their development and some cross-development soon. This chapter focused more on their respective teams but expect a chapter with more of what I said a few seconds ago.

THE BOOT (Pikachu - 19th Place)

Okay… wow. Pikachu's position in the draft fluctuates… a LOT. He was actually guaranteed to make it past this round, until adjustments were made. And his greatest undoing was his overthinking and flip flopping behavior. As he tried to commit to a side in Bayleef after losing, he struggled to go through as he felt nervous about his own position, leading to him backtracking AND unknowingly walking into a trap carefully made for him.

Pikachu was always meant to be an early boot… but his boot method is CHANGED from the original so that's fun. And his boot is more telegraphed since the last episode so he doesn't just… exist and do nothing but get eliminated.

In the end of the day, Pikachu left because he was expendable. Nobody cared for him. While he had conversations with some of his tribemates, it wasn't meaningful enough to matter and with nobody to protect him, he was sent packing.