Cyclone Effect [Pokemon Anime]

[bronxterror]

Clemont is seven years old when he graduates from the Kalos Electricity University, a place designed for geniuses and inventors to work alongside electric type pokemon. Having fostered an intelligent mind and a kind heart, as well as a love for electric pokemon, Clemont graduated at the top of his class a full decade ahead of the rest of his peers.

Clemont is eight years old when he takes that inspiration and love and begins his gym leader qualifications, alongside his team of well trained electric types. He is then nine years old when the certifications are completed and he becomes the youngest gym leader in Kalos' history.

Clemont is ten years old when he is installed as Lumiose City's gym leader, situated in the Prism Tower as his gym, and put in charge of maintaining and supplying power and light to the entire city.

He is also ten years old when his mother passes away.

He is ten years old when he has to step up for his father and take care of his sister. When he has to keep the gym running. When he has to keep working on machines for his sponsors. When he has to keep the entirety of Lumiose lit.

Clemont is eleven years old when he finally breaks.

And he is twelve years old before his father finally decides that enough is enough, hanging up his mask, taking in his sister, and pulling Clemont from the gym leader program entirely.

…

Or at least, that's his father's plan.

Unfortunately, Clemont doesn't agree.

"I'm fine!"

Meyer sighs, rubbing his temples. This is his fault, he thinks, because he stepped away too long. Too hands off, too far. Wanting to give his genius of a son the freedom he wanted and needed to succeed, he had pulled away.

But pulled away too hard, and far too soon.

He hadn't thought much of it, but…

Leaving Clemont alone, after the death of his mother, then leaving him with his sister…

Damn it all, Meyer had screwed up badly and now the consequences were coming home to roost.
"Clemont, come off of it. You've stopped cooking and eating proper meals for yourself - you've been guzzling supplements for months now. You're skin and bones at this point!" Meyer begins.

Clemont narrows his eyes. "I don't have time to cook and eat, dad. I can get good food for Bonnie, but anything more than that risks upsetting the schedule! I still need to get the core for the Rotom Dex working in time for the sponsors from Sylph to approve it -"

"In between your gym matches, too?" Meyer cuts him off. "Because you need time for those, too. And for so many other things. You're twelve, Clemont."

"And I've graduated from university! And I'm a gym leader!" Clemont says, face starting to turn red. "So I'm an adult already, so I can handle all of this just like an adult can!"

"Most adults cannot handle this much work! Most adults can't raise a child and run a gym and maintain a city's power supply!" And Meyer is only now realizing how far he'd dug Clemont's grave for him, years too late.

"Well, I can!"

"Clearly you cannot!" Meyer snaps, before sighing. "...Clemont, I'm worried. I messed up, badly. I didn't take care of you, or your sister, well enough before your mother passed. And I did even worse after. I'm going to do my best now, so please…just listen, for a moment."

Clemont, thankfully, waits and listens.

"You're going to hurt yourself like this. You have no friends, you have nobody to talk to but Bonnie and your pokemon, you don't go outside, and you don't eat, and - I am worried, as your father, that I'm going to lose you to that damn tower. So please. I already asked Professor Sycamore for a favor."

…

Clemont is twelve years old when he is sent out of Lumiose City, and out of Kalos entirely. After Meyer's talks with Professor Sycamore, the two decide that he needs even more distance from the situation. Before he knows it, Professor Sycamore gets a favor from Professor Oak, and Clemont is sent halfway across the world to the countryside of Kanto to relax, have time to himself, and be away from any responsibilities more extreme than having to work outside for a few hours.

But before he leaves, his father hands him a box.

"Don't open it until you get to Kanto," Meyer says. "But when you do, open it when you feel ready. One of those is for you, of course - but make sure you give the other one to somebody you know you can trust. Somebody who you know for certain is a friend for life."

Which is decidedly unhelpful and vague.

Still, he touches down in Kanto, and arrives at the ranch in Pallet Town for what is going to be the next…year of his life.

That is to say, it's something Clemont expects to be a nightmare.

He is, at his heart, an anxious, nervous person who craves to have his fingers doing something, his mind thinking about something, the urge to craft and think and consider and consume making simply living an exhausting prospect.

Professor Oak doesn't even let him help with any of the machinery in the labs, or with the research on the pokemon. He simply has him do work on the ranch, feed the pokemon and groom them and run with them and lock the gates…

…

He's surprised when he doesn't hate it. When the silence and the clean country air and the breeze running through the grass as he sits on the fence feels relaxing.

There's a nice diner in town, as well. The Pallet House, apparently, is world famous for its food - being somewhere along number forty in a list of 'one hundred restaurants to visit around the world'. Which, considering the owner is a single mother with very little other staff…it's impressive.

The food isn't anything like Clemont is used to back home in Lumiose, either. Less focused on butter,heavy sides and high quality cuts of protein, more focused on harmonious mixes of flavors and light tasting food that leaves you feeling content rather than heavy.

It's nice, especially considering he's only just getting his appetite back, now.

Clemont still wishes he could have a baguette with butter and cheese, though. That would really hit the spot, after depriving himself of something like that for over a year.

It's one of those days, where he's taking his lunch in the Pallet House, that a boy a little younger than him comes running into the building.

"Mama, sorry I'm late!" He says, grabbing an apron off of the hook and throwing it on. He has burnished, tanned skin and dark hair - and strange marks on his face that Clemont almost mistakes for scars.

He's very cute, in a wild, rat-from-the-cornfield kind of way. He doesn't look much like Delia, though, so he's a bit surprised to hear him refer to her as 'Mama'.

"It's alright, honey - I've had company this morning from Clemont. He's new in town, you should say hi!" The redheaded woman calls back from behind the counter, her warm smile never leaving her face.

The boy, Ash, blinks and turns to see Clemont.

Clemont knows he looks incredibly unimpressive. Weedy and thin - with too long limbs, like lightning bolts trying to reach to the ground. His hair is a mess, and his glasses are too big to be fashionable. He'd tied his jumpsuit around his waist and had taken to wearing a loose, black jacket. Kanto was a lot warmer than Kalos most of the year, it seemed.

But he didn't feel comfortable showing his stick-thin arms yet.

"Hey there!" Ash says, as he finally takes Clemont in. "Nice to meet you - and welcome to Pallet House. You're Professor Oak's new aide?"

"Oh, yeah. My dad sent me here to get me out of Kalos for a while…" Clemont says. There's something to Ash's voice…

"I'm jealous. I haven't gotten to do anything with pokemon in a long while…" The boy says, as he starts to wash the tables around the diner. "Are you a trainer too? I know his other aides generally are!"

"Umm…something…something like that." Clemont looks down at his food as he responds. "I had to leave my team back at home with my dad, though. So it's…kind of lonely, to be honest. Just coming home to my place by myself."

He was being boarded in one of the rooms at the Oak family's ranch, and he effectively had his own loft space. It was nice, but…definitely quiet. No Heliolisk running around and squealing for attention, no Emolga swinging through the rafters, no Magneton buzzing about the house. No Bonnie bothering him and wanting to play or asking what he's doing, or when are you going to get a girlfriend, Clem?

'Ah geeze,' he thinks, 'don't start crying now…'

"Well, how about you come over after work tonight, then?!" Ash says, cutting through Clemont's reverie with a big smile. "Tell me all about where you come from, and I can show you around town!"

"...Okay!"

Of course, before he could do that, he had to go back to work.

Luckily, as an inventor, things went a bit smoother for him than it might have for others. His backpack was still outfitted with the Aipom arms to let him carry and pick up things far heavier than he could otherwise, and the electric shower helped to soothe the aches of a lot of electric pokemon as the dry weather left them bereft of natural storms to enjoy.

…Actually, there hadn't been a rain storm in some time since Clemont's arrival. From what he knew about Kanto this time of year, the lack of rain was incredibly unusual.

…Though, perhaps not unexpected.

The climate of the greater part of the region was dictated and dominated by the whims of legendary pokemon, after all. Clemont couldn't imagine that sort of thing - the legendaries in Kalos were so hands off that he didn't even know what they were even named.

It's while he's working in the fields that he's approached by someone else.

Someone he'd be a fool not to recognize.

Shigeru "Gary" Oak is a famous name in both the competitive league circuits, and the pokemon research fields. A rising star in the former, until he quit and became the closest thing to a rising star in the latter.

He won the Indigo Plateau League Conference two years ago at the age of ten, a feat whilenot completely unheard of, is certainly rare. He then went on to challenge the Elite Four, only to be defeated…

By Lance.

That is to say, Gary Oak is a terrifying and powerful trainer, and he's only the barest bit younger than Clemont. But while Clemont might have more raw intellect, the other boy had already applied it better than he had in such a short time.

In other words, he was terrifying.

But Gary Oak did not have the oppressive aura of power that high power trainers had in Clemont's experience. And he'd met Siebold and the other Elite Four of Kalos when he underwent his qualifications testing. Instead, he had an almost melancholic set to himself as he approached - like he was going through memories.

Which is absurd, because he's not even thirteen yet, how much nostalgia and melancholy could Gary possibly have…?

…Well, a lot, truthfully, just from his own experience.

"Hey, you. You're the new guy my gramps has an aide, right?" He asks, not even bothering with pleasantries. "Clemont, Kalos' electric gym leader."

"U-ummm…yeah, yeah, that's me!" Clemont answers, trying not to let his knees buckle and wobble. Anxiety, why do you exist!?

Gary nods. "Nice to meet you. I'm Gary Oak, and I heard you were hanging out with Ash Ketchum today."

"Is…is that a problem?"

"No," Gary says, elaborating. "Ash doesn't have a lot of friends. Not since he had to skip his journey two years ago…which is part of why I'm talking to you. You seem like you're going a bit stir crazy around here, right?"

"...Maybe a little?" Clemont says, thinking about it for a moment. "It's…the country air is nice, but just…doing nothing every day is a little weird. I went from doing too much all of the time to just…not doing much of anything. I…. There's just not a lot to do."

"Then this is perfect. I have a favor to ask of you - not as a researcher, or as the Indigo League's current reigning champion." Small 'c', because he wasn't the Champion who beat Lance. "But as Ash Ketchum's last remaining friend."

What?

"Bring him to the lab tomorrow morning, and take him away from Pallet town."

What?!

"W-why, what -?"

Gary sighs. "Look. I won't go too far into the details, but…Ash gave up his dreams, two years ago. And even if we all told him to pack up and leave for good…he wouldn't listen. He'd guilt himself into staying. That's why I need you to drag him to Viridian by tomorrow night."

"...And…you want me to…go with him? My dad told me -"

"It's covered. Please, Clemont." Gary then bows to him. "I am begging you to help my friend."

Well, with an earnest plea like that, how could Clemont say no?

---

Me writing a new fic once again, because I have awful, awful writer's block and starting new projects is easier than continuing ones I'm stuck on. Yay for bad habits?

Fic is going to be Diodeshipping, mostly following anime logic but with some other stuff thrown in for fun. It starts kind of dark and sad, but it will look up later, I swear. I just...need to get there.

By the way, I'm basically burning the anime to the ground, so if you have any team suggestions or pokemon or characters you wanna see show up, please suggest 'em cuz I love hearing them.

Also, title is from Kamen Rider W, and a big thank you to World Reader and burningclaw2 for proofreading this chapter and being my usual idea bounce chamber.

 

[bronxterror]

So of course, in response to that, Clemont…

Went back to work, because he still had that to do. Plus, it was unlikely for Ash to have finished up work at the restaurant in the few hours since he'd left. Thus, work.

…And he maybe spent a bit more time than intended speaking to Gary about his scientific work, because Clemont hadn't really gotten to speak to someone else in his age bracket about this sort of thing in…ever.

But when the time came, Clemont went to the Ketchum household just as he was invited.

And by Arceus, if the Pallet House was Delia's job, then the smells coming from the open windows told Clemont that cooking at home was her passion. Foods he couldn't for the life of him name are spread out over the table, and judging by the smell blossoming forth from the kitchen, it's obvious that she isn't even done with making dinner yet when he's let inside.

It's honestly intimidating for his still-recovering stomach.

But he can't ignore the kindness, and the smells, and by Arceus he is starving already -!

"Clemont!" Ash shouts as he comes down the stairs, dressed simply and with a smile on his face, "It's good to see you, I'm glad you came!"

That's…a little sad to hear.

Clemont smiles anyway, "I wouldn't miss it. I don't have anything else to do, or anyone else to talk to. I'm glad you let me come over."

They both smile, though it doesn't quite reach either of their eyes.

Clemont pulls his eyes away from Ash's turned earth, and looks at the photos on the wall by the door. There were several, with Ash and his mom in mostly dominating them- along with a taller boy with red hair and a put upon expression on his face in every single one.

Clemont doesn't miss that the redhead always has his hand in Ash's, or on Ash's head, or his shoulders. Clemont thinks he cares, even if he doesn't want to show it.

He can't imagine why he's not here right now.

He also can't understand why, despite having pictures of two boys and Delia herself, there's not a single picture of a father anywhere.

He pointedly doesn't ask about it, but Ash does catch his eyes going over each photo.

"Oh, the redhead is my big brother, Silver! He's…not around lately, but I'm sure you'd love him if you could talk to him." Ash says with a big smile. "He's a little moody, but between you and me…"

He leans in close to Clemont with a soft voice full of conspiracy.

"He gives really, really good hugs."

Clemont lets out a choked laugh, but nods. "I bet. All big brothers give really good hugs, y'know? I've mastered the scientific art of a good hug for my little sister, myself."

Ash's eyes go wide, and he immediately opens his arms as if to ask for proof.

Of course Clemont gives it to him, wrapping the other boy in a quick hug - lasting for exactly twenty seconds, the optimal time to encourage the body to release the appropriate chemicals to induce happiness from a hug.

He's done research on this, damnit.

After Ash is released, he immediately runs into the next room. "Mama, Mama! Clemont just gave me one of the best hugs ever -!"

"Oh, has he now? I suppose I'll have to see for myself, won't I?" Delia teases, as she walks up and gives Clemont a surprise hug.

He hasn't gotten a hug from anybody but Bonnie since his mother died.

'...Oh'.

He can handle it, though.

…Even if he holds on for a bit too long. But Delia doesn't seem to mind all that much.

"Now, with that hug test all over - who wants dinner?"

And because Ash and Clemont are both teenagers who are growing into their bodies, the desire for food overcomes every other emotion, feeling, or desire. Especially food made by Delia Ketchum of all people.

It's only over dinner that Clemont broaches the subject that he's here for.

"Oh, um, hey, Ash? I had a favor to ask you if you didn't mind." Clemont says, as nonchalantly as he can. "The Professor said he has an errand for me to pick up in the next town, but uh…I don't exactly know my way around, you know?"

Delia almost looks like him, because of course she's involved in this web of lies and deception. Ash, for his part, doesn't look the least bit suspicious, which makes him feel pretty bad about it. For a moment, but…well, he was begged to help, and Clemont is what his sister called 'a doormat'.

He resembles that remark, unfortunately.

"Well, if Mama doesn't need my help at the restaurant…" Ash looks at her with a tentative smile, excited to leave town and make (what he thinks is) a day trip to Viridian City.

Delia smiles and shakes her head. "No, I don't think we'll be busy tomorrow. In fact, I might close up early just to clean the house up some…" She says thoughtfully, as if distracted by something. Clemont can't tell if it's real or not, but Ash buys it if it's fake so that's really all that matters here.

"Then let's go first thing in the morning! I'll pack all the essentials, just in case!" Ash says, a smile having blossomed into a full grin like the clouds parting in front of the rising sun.

"…Okay, Clemont, let's chill out a little bit with thoughts like those."

As they continue eating, Clemont looks around the kitchen, before his eyes catch on a number of magazines on the counter. Each one seems to feature the same girl - black hair held up by a headband, always dressed fashionably in a kimono or some other more traditional accessories.

"Are you a fan of Miss Erika's work, Delia?" Clemont asks, as he's heard Valerie rant about her 'eternal rival' and her success many times at the gym leader summits Kalos liked to hold at the Battle Chateau. The girl was native to Johto, but had moved to Kalos to try and improve her image instead of attempting to compete with Erika in the same 'genre'.

Or…something.

Idols are strange creatures to him, female ones even moreso. The only idol he really followed was the handsome blond one from Unova -

'Focus!'

In the time since he'd had his little mental tangent, Delia had started giggling and staring at Ash, who had a blush on his face. "Well, actually, Clemont…"

"...T-t-those are mine…" Ash mutters, not willing to let his mother finish off the teasing. "I'm actually…a really big fan of hers."

"...Really?" Clemont blinks, because…well. Boys like him and Ash aren't usually the type to like idols and the like. "That's a little surprising."

"Not really!" Ash says, as a bit of a sharp glint comes into his eye. "I used to really dislike her just cuz she was a really girly girl, but I realized that she's super amazing as a trainer! To have that much elegance and grace when battling, and still have the power and precision to be a gym leader - it's insane! You should have seen her last performance at the Pokemon World Tournament, they televised it! Her Whimsicott did this amazing trick with Tailwind -!"

Briefly, Clemont feels like he stepped in a topic that is going to be overwhelming. But then he also realizes - Ash hasn't been this excited since he'd met the boy.

"You…really love pokemon, huh?"

Ash nods, "More than anything, really! Ever since I was like, five! And seeing Silver train his pokemon was always so cool… I really never wanted anything more than to go on my own journey and get my own pokemon…"

He winces a bit, before perking up - nowhere near as excited as a moment before. "But watching the matches on TV is still pretty great, too!"

'Yeah, alright.'

That was when Clemont decided. He would go on a journey with Ash Ketchum, for the sake of Ash Ketchum's happiness.

But Clemont keeps smiling. "You were talking about Erika herself, though?"

That immediately gets Ash out of his funk, luckily.

"Ah, well, actually - I started really liking her because of her battling skills and style, but…I actually started to really like her poise and style and elegance a lot at some point! I've got a lot of her cosmetics products, too, though the perfumes tend to bother my nose a lot…"

Clemont laughs a bit, listening to Ash talk about it. His voice is sweet and soft, and it makes him happy just to hear him happy.

…He might be in trouble…

…

"Alright, remember, Ash! Pack all of your essentials, just in case we get lost!" Clemont calls back to him, the boy waving at him from the window with a laugh. "If you really need something, we can just buy it there!"

"Alright, alright! Whatever you say, Clemont! It's just a daytrip!" Ash laughs again, before tucking himself back into his room to continue packing.

Clemont absolutely refused to feel bad for his part in this lie, not if it would help Ash smile like he did earlier every day. Absolutely not.

…Okay maybe a little.

He goes home that night and rests easy, knowing he'll need to get up early to have a good chance of making it to the next town before dark the next day.

…
When Clemont arrives at the ranch the next morning, bright and early and ready to trek across the wilderness and have a nice dinner in the next town over, he expects Ash to meet him in front of the lab's doors.

But he isn't there.

So Clemont waits for ten minutes.

Not there yet.

Twenty more minutes.

Still not there yet.

Figuring Ash might have slept in a little, Clemont opens his backpack, deploys his mechanical arms, and begins work on a little machine he had started earlier that week. Something to quickly deliver letters, shaped kind of like a bug.

By the time he takes a break, another hour has passed…and Ash is still not there yet.

'Okay, is he alright?' He thinks to himself, concern and anxiety starting to bubble up inside of him.

It's another thirty minutes - a full two hours since his arrival - when somebody comes over the hill to the lab… and it's not Ash.

It's Professor Oak, who is only just now unlocking the lab. Which is… Which is…

"Why did I even bother coming here this early -?!" Clemont asks himself out loud, because come on!

The professor smiles as he opens the door. "Because normally I do, in fact, open my doors early in the morning. But today I'm only expecting Ash to come - and if I know him like I know I do, then he won't be here for another two or three hours."

What?

"Well, he probably couldn't sleep last night from his excitement, so he's likely slept in. He's a good kid, but not the best at his time management. Come inside, I'll get you some breakfast and you can catch a nap on my couch." Professor Oak says, leading Clemont inside.

Clemont sighs, but goes inside and eats breakfast with the professor. Not nearly as good as what Delia makes, but filling and serviceable. It's just that Delia's food would spoil anybody.

He crashes into a nap soon after, because he is not going to get much more work done waiting for Ash to show up. It's a good thing too, since when he finally does come by, it's almost lunch time.

"Sorry for being late, Professor!" The boy calls, running inside with his bag on his shoulders and panting for breath. "Mama and I had to repack all of my stuff, since I didn't do a good job last night! Then she wanted to make lunch for me and Clemont to have on the road, and well -"

The Professor just laughs, patting him on the shoulder. "Don't apologize to me, Ash, I'm well used to it. Clemont, however…"

The boy had completely passed out, drooling into the throw pillows on the professor's couch. However, with the attention on him, the blond suddenly wakes up, rubbing sleep out of his blurry eyes before donning his glasses again.

"O-oh, hey Ash. Nice to see ya!"

Ash laughs awkwardly, walking up to Clemont. "Hey…sorry, I just overslept, and then I didn't pack very well, and - y'know how it can get in the mornings, right?"

"Yeah, it's fine." Clemont says, because honestly he needed the nap anyway. "We're all good!"

"And Mama packed us a lunch to have as a picnic on the way over to Viridian!" Ash continued, pulling out the box proudly before stowing it away. "Now, let's get going -!"

"Not so fast, Satoshi." A third voice cut into their conversation.

Gary Oak walked into the room, a briefcase in hand. It matched his lab coat quite well.

"You should know by now that going into the wilderness and wild grass by yourself is going to be a death sentence. It isn't safe, especially not with the local Spearow population acting up from the lack of rain…"

Ash deflates. Clemont follows suit, because it's just a reminder that he doesn't have his team - Heliolisk, Magneton, or Emolga - there to give him a hand anymore.

"...Which is why I'll be lending you two of mine," Gary says with a smug smile. "Hell, I haven't even trained them at all yet, so you can keep them. You deserve a pokemon by now, Ash, yeah?"

Of course Gary has to give Ash his starter pokemon this way. Champion and pioneer researcher he may be - but he's still one smug jerk when he wants to be, Clemont can see.

Ash is stunned into silence though, as Gary sits the briefcase onto the table and clicks it open to reveal two white pokeballs.

One with a single red line through the center, and another with a blue line.

Looking at one another, Ash and Clemont share a nod, before reaching out to grab their pick. Ash takes the red pokeball, and Clemont takes the blue.

They open them simultaneously -

"Pura-ra!"

"Mi-mi!"

- and reveal a pair of nearly identical mouse pokemon. One red, and one blue.

Ash's Plusle, and Clemont's Minun.

New pokemon to move towards new horizons alongside.

---

Yes I got rid of Pikachu. No I'm not sorry.

Plusle and Minun's moves will be revealed later, but they will be different, don't worry.

There's a lot of fun things introduced in this chapter, but I'm very excited for us to continue into the actual fun, action-y bits. Sadly I couldn't get all of those out before Scar-Vio's release, but I'm still looking forward to that.

Speaking of, what version are you guys planning to get? I'm planning on Violet. Miraidon's way too cool!

(Though I haven't seen any spoilers, so please don't mention any...)

 

[bronxterror]

Stopping midway on Route 1 was a good idea, Clemont thinks.

Plusle and Minun are…already quite the handful, it seems. Plusle is eagerly biting into the onigiri almost the size of his head - or, well, ponigiri, if they're made for a pokemon? Whatever. Minun, meanwhile, is happily waiting for him to cut his food with a patient twitch to his ears, like the ticking of a metronome.

"Okay, Redd, you'll want to slow down. Else you'll run into one with pickled plum inside, and you'll get sick!" Ash says with a small laugh, wiping his new pokemon's cheeks clean.

Wait, Redd?

"Redd?" Clemont asks, as the thought hits him.

Ash nods. "That's his name! Cuz he's all red, and stuff. I read in a magazine that naming your pokemon helps them like you more, and I realized it would suck to just be called 'human' by everyone. So, Redd!"

…Nicknames, huh?

Challengers often brought in named pokemon, but that had never really occurred to Clemont himself. It seemed…almost like a waste of time, to past-him. Like, his pokemon would know who he was talking to, and that they were his, right? But the way Ash put it, it feels like a common courtesy he just ignored.

So he thinks a bit, as Minun looks up at him with big eyes. He's waiting, Clemont realizes. He wants what his friend/partner/brother/whatever-Plusle-and-Minun-call-eachother has.

"...Ninnu." Perhaps derivative, but it's cute. He almost went with 'Minnu', but that sounds too much like Kaloisais' "Minou". Calling a mouse pokemon 'Cat' just feels stupid. "How does Ninnu sound?"

"Mi…" A moment of thought…and then a nod! "Mi-mi! Nu-nun!"


…

Stopping midway on Route 1 was an awful fucking idea, Clemont thinks.

A storm had rolled in since their time at lunch, black clouds that choked the pleasant atmosphere and filled the air with the smell of ozone and distant rain. Lightning chained to the clouds, dancing within their cage in the sky - not yellow or red or violet.

Electric blue, burning hot against the distant roar of thunder.

"You're sure it's going to start raining soon, Clemont?!" Ash called, carrying Redd in his backpack as he ran as fast as he could.

Clemont's eye twitched, Ninnu tucked tightly into his zipped up jumpsuit. "Ash, I have never been more sure of something in my life!"

Although, there was a thought in the back of his head - where had this come from?

The weather conditions were nowhere near right for a storm to appear like this - there would have been warning at least a day in advance. There wasn't enough moisture to create clouds this choked up and heavy, and the amount of lightning lancing between them…

Something definitely wasn't right, here.

But he knew there was rain in those clouds - he'd be a piss poor electric gym leader if he didn't know how to read a goddamn thunderstorm!

Hence, racing as fast as they could through Route 1 to hit Viridian City before it started to pour, or worse - the lightning stopped playing in the clouds and started to fall to the earth.

"...Alright." Ash kept running, but…his gaze drifted upwards.

For some reason, he wasn't afraid of the storm. It didn't feel right to - something was there that he couldn't begin to understand. Besides, Redd and Ninnu were electric types, they could handle a bit of thunder and lighting, right?

Probably!

Just as he thought that, the sky was torn open, as a massive bolt of lightning - azure blue, brighter than the sky - strikes down on the ground near them. Then, a full second later, the sound of air being destroyed and displaced fills the air. Hot ozone fills their senses, as the roar of thunder fills their ears.

Or is it the sound of a distant turbine?

Clemont doesn't even notice that he hit the ground until Ninnu is pushing at him to get back up. He's dizzy, and he can't tell if he's still tasting ozone, or if that's blood in his mouth from the fall. Or maybe it's the rain soaking him through, finally, as it makes his hair stick to his face.

He decides not to question it.

What he does have to question, instead, is why Ash seems to be so calm like this. And then, he has to question what the sound of wings filling the air must be, so he turns around -

"Oh fuck."

"You shouldn't curse, Clemont -" says his inner Bonnie, but he really can't give a damn because when he thought the sky was dark beforehand, now the sky is dark with rain and feathers. A massive flock of Spearow, the local nasty bird pokemon that could put the worst of thugs to shame.

At their front is an absolutely massive creature, with a long, serrated beak like a fisherman's spear and a simply enormous wingspan.

"Fearow," he recalls. The evolution of Spearow, and a brutal berserker of a creature.

It's like staring down the barrel of a loaded gun.

Then, they strike - diving towards the nearest targets they can see. Mindless rage, hunger, vengeance, whatever the reasons, the Spearow were coming. Swooping through the rain.

Instinctively, Clemont throws his arms up to try and defend himself -

"Shock 'em!"

"Ra-ra!"

- Only for that to not be necessary. There's a flash of lightning as Redd tackles a few of the Spearow, covered in the tell-tale shocks of a Spark attack that sends the Spearow scattering away.

Right.

He has a pokemon. A partner he can trust. And he's not a newbie trainer.

He's a Gym Leader.

Clemont takes a breath, and lets ozone and steel fill his lungs and his veins. Taking his rain covered glasses from his face, he tucks them into his pocket before pointing out to the Spearow.

"There's a lot of targets, Ninnu, but we won't miss!" He says, eyes sharp even as his vision distorts the slightest bit. "Swift!"

Ninnu almost doesn't answer him, staring at the flock of Spearow with eyes full of uncertainty. But then he looks into Clemont's eyes, and the determination bubbles up from deep within him.

"Nu-nun!"

Gathering up energy - including what his companion scattered out with his Spark - Ninnu leaps up into the air, shining like a beacon briefly. In that split second, his eyes comb over the Spearow at the front of the flock, instinctively marking them in his head.

Following the trajectories of their flight, their speed, their likely actions -

There!

The second ends, and he lets light pour out from him and take the shape of stars that arc through the air, following supernaturally precise orbits and paths that lead to them slamming into one, two, three, four - ten Spearow, bringing them down out of the air!
Unfortunately, inexperienced as he is, Ninnu almost falls to the ground himself. Luckily, Clemont dives forward and catches him, before quickly turning on his heels and running further down the path after Ash and Redd.

"What was that about it not raining, Ash?!" Clemont snaps, because he can't resist being petty right about now.

Ash just laughs - laughs, at a time like this! - and shakes his head. "I guess you really are smart, Clemont! Now we just gotta get out of this one, yeah?"

"Easier said than done…" Clemont mutters, before giving Ninnu a look. "Can you do another of those?"

Ninnu nods, eyes burning with determination. "Mi!"

"That's what I like to hear! Now, Swift once more!" Clemont says before tossing the Minun into the air - slightly ahead of himself. Ninnu follows the motion, rolling with the momentum as he spins once, twice, three times in the air as he gathers up light, aims, and fires another flurry of perfect accuracy stars back towards the Spearow!

Ash grins, and turns back towards the flock himself. Righting his cap, he points back. "One more time, Redd! Spark and Quick Attack, get 'em all!"

Redd flashes a grin as he wraps himself in a cloud of static and dashes forward - propelling himself off of each subsequent target that he slams his body into and sending them careening off of the road. He returns to Ash, his eyes spinning from the speed, but looking pleased with himself.

Until…

" - Ash, MOVE!" Clemont yells, as he dives to the side after catching Ninnu. Luckily, Ash listens - the two diving in opposite directions off of the side of the road as the Fearow they had forgotten about destroys the ground the two had been standing on. Its body, pulled tight and spinning rapidly like a drill, scrapes a deep and wide gouge in the earth, before swooping upwards and righting itself directly in front of them, preventing them from going further.

Drill Run. Because of course it knows Drill Run! Clemont had faced enough challengers using that move that he really should have expected it!

Now, the quartet were surrounded on all sides in the pouring rain - the ground shaking and the air burning with thunder and lightning that kept drawing ever closer and closer.

More of the flock began to close in, as the Fearow made for another diving Drill Run that forced Ash and Clemont to move once more. But Drill Run had the slightest bit of delay, giving them time to send Ninnu and Redd out for another combination of Swift and Spark to scatter the worst of the flock once more.

A touch and go, back and forth kind of game. One that they would slowly lose, as the flock had more numbers than they had stamina.

"Ra…ra!" Redd grunts, as he headbutts another Spearow with his lightning clad body.

Nearby, Ninnu pants from exhaustion before letting out another Swift, just barely managing to avoid the dive of Fearow this time around.

"This…is unsustainable…" Clemont mutters, as he tries to look for some method of escape. But with Fearow's speed, and the flock's never ending numbers, that looked less and less like a prospect he could hope for.

Ash grits his teeth as he hears that.

He…he refuses. He refuses to accept that they'd get stuck here!

"We'll make it out of here, Clemont! I'm not…" A beat, something like a spark in his chest. "I'm not going to let my one day be ruined by this! I won't be beaten down by a flock of dumb birds!"

Something catches, and connects. Or maybe it's just a coincidence, as ozone suddenly fills the air. Clemont barely has the time to start moving, as a lightning bolt seems to instantly begin to connect the earth and the sky right on top of Ash -

Only to be caught by Redd's Lightning Rod ability, the mouse pokemon screaming as he takes the electric blue bolt of lightning into his body, preventing it from frying his trainer and his friends with everything he has!

His cheeks flash with energy, seeming to float in the air as he's completely full of the lightningbolt's charge. Overflowing from his body, he has an almost radioactive aura of blue light around himself.

Oh, Clemont thinks.

"Ninnu, give him a Helping Hand!" He says to his starter, who nods and leaps up to Redd.

But he doesn't complete the circuit by having their tails touch. Instead, Ninnu slaps a hand to Redd's, and sees.

Much like aiming his Swift, he sees everything, briefly. And while he couldn't aim at the fast moving, Drill Running Fearow, he could aim at the flock.

And it was like shooting fish in a barrel.

"Redd, finish it!" Ash yells with a grin, his fists clenched with adrenaline as he throws his hand up and lets out a roar of a command!

"THUNDER!"

Redd lets out a wordless roar in tandem with his trainer, as he follows Ninnu's aim. The scent of ozone redoubles and intensifies, and their ears POP as the Thunder goes off.

Not a mere clap of noise, but a proper lightning bolt over three meters thick that tears the air asunder. Melting the air itself, rendering it into wicked, viscous plasma for a split second.

But Fearow goes around it.

If it cannot go through the lightning bolt, if it cannot defeat the damned rats, it will simply slam into the trainers controlling them.

With Ash completely focused on the Thunder maneuver, Clemont thinks quickly - as he reaches his hand into a bag and clenches his hand around cool metal. Something he had forgotten in it before arriving in Kanto.

As Fearow pulls its body into another spiraling Drill Run, Clemont clenches it, and reaches out - slamming his fist into the evolved bird pokemon in some mockery of a punch.

But it isn't quite a punch, and it isn't an empty fist.

The spare Ultra Ball Clemont had left over in his bag pops open, and wraps the Fearow in light. It pulls the bird in, and snaps shut.

Blinks once. Blinks twice.

Three times.

Click.

The Fearow is caught, and the flock that wasn't fried disperses.

And the rain finally ends.

At least, Clemont thinks it ends then. He and Ash both had fallen to the ground, dead to the world on their backs. And by the time they had finally, properly come to their senses - they were laughing together, as a rainbow split the black storm clouds and left a bright, open sky ahead of them.

And neither remembered Ash picking up a round, black stone at the end of it all.

---

A fun fact, I wrote over 1400 words of this chapter all last night.

This took a bit because I was playing Pokemon Violet, followed by Thanksgiving, but hoopefully you enjoy it? This is a battle chapter, which I always love writing, but I know most people tend to just skip over, so...This might end up being a whole lot of nothing.

By the way, I gave myself Carpal Tunnel from beating Pokemon Violet in 3 days. Fun things all around.

Pretty soon, I'll make a quick threadmark index just to update and have Ash and Clemont's teams always available for you guys to check. At least, once we get more pokemon than just Redd, Ninnu, and the murderous Fearow.

Please enjoy!

 

[bronxterror]

So, this is a fic I started earlier this month, and began posting elsewhere. Normally, I try and do a mirror here just because I find my different audiences like different things, and I can hear lots of feedback.


Unfortunately, I just completely forgot to post here.


Thus, all of the ANs seeming to be written at different times are, in fact, written at different times. I hope everyone can still enjoy this fic, regardless of that!


(I also still would like to hear any comments about team suggestions, ideas, or opinions, and what version between Scarlet or Violet you got!)

 

[Menthewarp]

I also still would like to hear any comments about team suggestions, ideas, or opinions,

Click to shrink...

In the face of your superb writing, why the hell would I want to risk tainting any of it with my dogshit opinions?

I'm sure other lurkers feel the same.

Watched.

 

[bronxterror]

Unfortunately, even though the skies had cleared, Ash and Clemont still aren't out of the woods just yet.

…Metaphorically at least. They are literally out of the forested area of Route 1, having just entered the city limits of Viridian City..

"Redd isn't really holding up well…" Ash said, holding the Plusle in his arms carefully.

Clemont could agree, the pokemon looked pale and sick. And he did have some idea of what caused it, though…

"His ability is Lightning Rod, right?" Clemont asked, receiving a nod from Ash. "Then it might be from the lightning bolt that hit him earlier. Even though he used it to make that attack, he probably still has a lot of it inside of him…Abilities like that have a limit to how much the pokemon can receive and absorb before they get sick."

Clemont doesn't mention that a natural lightning bolt shouldn't even have begun to approach that limit. Pokemon developed those abilities, in part, to handle things like that.

"Geeze…Talk about bad luck, huh bud?" Ash says, holding Redd closer to his chest carefully.

Redd makes a weak noise, but has a smile on his face. "Raaa…!"

Ash smiles back, laughing. "Yeah, you were amazing, bud. Took out a ton of 'em in one shot!"

Which in Clemont's opinion was an understatement. But both Ninnu and Redd did an amazing job, for both being fresh pokemon. "Yeah, Ninnu, you did amazing as well!"

"Nun~!"

After a bit of walking and talking, the duo eventually decided on a plan. Ash will take Redd to the Pokemon Center, get a room, and call his mother and Professor Oak to let them know they arrived safely. Clemont, on the other hand, would go to the shop and pick up the Professor's parcel.

Which Clemont was surprised to discover was actually real.

The parcel wasn't very heavy - in fact, it was surprisingly thin and light. About the same size as the box Clemont's dad had given him before he left (which he really needed to figure out what the deal was). It was also wrapped up in brown paper and twine, looking like…

Well, a classic parcel. The thing one would imagine being carried by Pidgey across the country.

As Clemont ponders the sheer mundanity of this parcel though, he is interrupted from his thoughts by - a niggle.

A niggling feeling at the back of his head, soon followed by a tugging at his pants. Looking down, he's surprised to see a pokemon doing it! A small, white thing with a green shock of hair almost like a helmet, easily recognizable as a Kirlia.

"Ria! Ria!" It cries, a happy expression on its face as it hugs Clemont's leg. Which, well, adorable, but um…

"...Nice…nice to meet you, little fella?" He says instead of anything else, because he has no idea how to say 'what the fuck' politely.

His thoughts on the strange situation are swiftly interrupted by another voice, soft and airy like morning mist. "Tsuru…? Tsuru, you shouldn't bother other people like that…!"

The Kirlia, named Tsuru apparently, perks up and lets Clemont go, spinning around to wave at the approaching person, drawing Clemont's attention towards them. A boy with wild green hair, almost like the petals of a flower, and dressed in white with a long powder-blue trench coat. He looked…

Really, really cute. Sweet, and comfortable. He had an air of fragility, but also a heat to his eyes that reminded Clemont of Ash, when he stood beneath that thunderbolt. It was…entrancing.

"Clemont, no, that's gay."

Tsuru gestures at Clemont, as if trying to communicate…something to his trainer. Clemont can't quite understand it, but he gets the sensation of…excitement? Why would he make it excited?

"You…say he feels like a friend…?" The boy guesses, staring at his partner - getting a wobbly hand of 'kind of' from the pokemon. "Sorry, Tsuru, I'm not good at this yet…"

Regardless, the green haired boy smiles and turns to Clemont with a soft expression. "Sorry that Tsuru…bothered you. Um, I'm - I'm Wally, and if he says you feel like a friend…Well, I'd like to be your friend!"

"Oh no he's adorable."

Clemont keeps a smile on his face and nods to him, adjusting his glasses with a bit of a nervous edge to it. "It's nice to meet you too. My name is Clemont, and I'm…sort of running an errand for Professor Oak. I have a friend waiting for me back at the Pokemon Center, so do you mind…?" He gestures to the door - and nearly knocks Ninnu off of his spot on his shoulder.

"Mi-mi-nu!!!"

He'd forgotten about the little guy, he was so quiet!

"Miii…!"

In fact, the Minun appeared to be glaring at Tsuru with some level of…animosity? Jealousy? It was a strange look on a mouse, to be sure.

He eagerly leans into Clemont's touch, though, when he starts to give him scratches on his head.

"Oh, um…actually, I was…I was going there, myself. I'm in town for the Prince's Showcase tomorrow, and, um -!" Wally rambles. "Um, well, it's going to be my first one…My friend Brendan was going to be there, to make sure I wouldn't get nervous…but he's behind on his travel table…"

Clemont frowns, thinking for a moment. Showcases…

Showcases were something popular in Kalos - something akin to Pokemon Contests, except being about showcasing your own beauty and skill as a trainer in addition to your Pokemon's. It was…

As far as Clemont was aware, it was solely for women. But a 'Prince's Showcase' implied that boys could compete, too…

…Well, he couldn't say he wasn't curious.

Clemont smiles at Wally, as the two of them walk out into the evening air. The sun was beginning to properly set there in Viridian, painting the city and its concrete jungle in vibrant oranges, reds, and yellows. "How about…I come with you tomorrow? I know we've only just met, but…I think I'd love to see what you and Tsuru can do in a showcase like that. I mean, you seem rather pretty, so you'd -"

He yelps, covering his mouth and flushing deeply as he realizes exactly what he just said.

Wally only giggles, a light dusting of red coming to his cheeks. "...Yeah, I think…I think I'd like you there, Clemont."

…

Meanwhile, Ash arrived at the center, and made his call to the professor.

But instead, it was Gary who answered, a panicked expression on his face as he was pressed against the camera.

"Ash, are you alright?! You made it safe?!" He demanded, because that was Gary for you. Ash could often forget how his old friend was one of the worst worriers and mother hens in the entire world when he wasn't trying to act like he was the coolest guy in the room. "That storm, that was - unnatural, insane, I should have come and got you with Alakazam -!"

And Ash can't help himself - he laughs. "Clemont and I made it here alright. I might not have made it without him, but together, we really made a great team."

"...Good, just like I thought." Gary says, coughing a bit. "I knew he'd be good for you, so…good job. I'm happy for you." And his voice says…a lot but not at the same time. Ash isn't the smartest person, he knows this, but he knows people and their feelings. And Gary is hiding something from him. Another reason to be happy?

What?

"...So anyway, Clemont is going to be picking up the parcels from the store. Then we'll…" Ash thinks. "Probably order take out, get something nice for lunch tomorrow, and be on the way home."

"Mmmhmm." Gary hums, looking at Ash with a vaguely interested expression - not in what he's saying, but in how he'll react to something.

Oh, speaking of somethings -

Ash snaps his fingers. "By the way, Gary, what was in those parcels, anyway? That they couldn't be sent by mail, exactly…?"

Gary smiles. "Oh, well…it's actually a pair of Pokedexes for some new trainers. They missed the time we normally start them off this year, but I figured we could allow them a chance. As for the secrecy…" His eye twitches. "There was supposed to be a Z Ring in those packages, but apparently our dropoff didn't make it to Viridian in time. So we'll probably have to get those over to them later. Which, y'know, it's not like we're super busy or anything with being at the forefront in pokemon research, at all -!"

Ash smiles, seeing Gary go off on one of his rants. Though, his chest gets tight at the mentions of it being for new trainers. Though…

Weren't most of the kids in Pallet of age at this point already, already out on their journeys?

"...Who are they, actually?" He asks, because curiosity is going to kill him at this point.

"Well, actually, this was a surprise -"

And Gary is unexpectedly cut off by the phone shutting down.

Actually, most of the power goes off in the center, just as a hole is blown in through the roof!

"Prepare for trouble from the skies!"

"Deep beyond the stars, comes a nasty surprise!"

There's a roar of a helicopter, as a pair of figures descend. Silhouetted by the lights of the chopper, against the blue-black haze of the dusky afternoon, the two figures come down on a pair of ropes.

Following them are three shapes - a massive shadow of a vulture, a strange imp like figure with tall horns, and…a cat…?

"An evil as old as the galaxy!"

A spotlight comes from the helicopter, or perhaps a nearby building, and illuminates the first figure. A woman with long, red hair in something perhaps like a ponytail. The vulture silhouette lands next to her, both wearing identical smirks promising malice.

(Ash briefly wonders how she gets her hair like that - shiny and sleek and apparently rock solid. That has to be expensive, but also it looks fabulous on her.)

"We've been sent to fulfill our destiny!"

A second spotlight appears, illuminating the man to the woman's left. He has hair the same shade of lavender flowers, and dramatically holds a rose down towards the hole. The imp lands next to him and flips its dark hair, then leans its elbow against the man's knees to look down at Ash and the Joy with a sneer.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!" The woman says, taking another pose.

The man poses as well. "And to extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"She says, as he moves to stand next to her, their bodies forming the silhouette of a massive 'R'. "James!"

The cat then leaps up between them. "And of course, Meowth is the name!"

"Anywhere there is peace in the universe…"

"Team Rocket will be there…"

"To make everything worse!"

"Vulu!"

"Gi-gi!"

"Meowth, alright!"

…

Altogether, their whole routine took almost a full minute.

Ash couldn't decide if he was impressed or irritated. Impressed, because it was an incredible amount of showmanship and practice being shown off. On the other hand, it was a performance by a group of pokemon thieves.

…He ends up clapping a little, because they kind of deserve it.

"Ahaha, yes, thank you for respecting our hard work!" Jessie smiles, looking down at him. "Now, for your appreciation, deliver all of the pokemon here to us!"

Ash clenches his fists. The only people here at the moment were himself and Joy, most of the trainers were out on the town at the moment. All of the pokemon they had left here to recover…completely unprotected. Hell, his pokemon was back there, still recovering from the fight with the Spearow!

"What am I going to do?"

---

This was actually done a bit earlier than this, but it took a while for my editors to get back to me on getting it all cleaned up.

And now we see some new characters! Wally, my favourite rival for one, and of course Team Rocket!

...Also, rewatching this episode, like a ton happens really suddenly. Freaking bikes and pika power...? Does every Pokemon Center have that kind of infrastructure?

(Btw, Jessie's pokemon is a Mandibuzz, and James' is a Morgrem. Thanks to a friend of mine for letting me take the idea!)

 

[Menthewarp]

Does every Pokemon Center have that kind of infrastructure?

Click to shrink...

I generally go by the canon-welding of @E.I.G. ; pokehuman infrastructure is made strongly robust or easily replaceable due to historically verifiable pokedisasters, and pokehumans achieve this robustness by only using local resources to meet regional infrastructural guidelines wherever possible.

Pikachu are natively common in this specific area of Kanto, so this town likely hosts a private pokemon ranch dedicated to raising herds of Pikachu, and they would make a stable living through municipal contracts to provide supplemental power to the town's infrastructural buildings with rotating teams of Pikachu.

The town likely gets reimbursed the cost of the Pikachu power-ranching by the regional government of Kanto for meeting disaster-robustness guidelines using locally robust resources.

 

[bronxterror]

"Sir, this way!" The Joy doesn't give him a chance to try anything, as she grabs him and pulls him behind the desk with an incredible amount of force. "Chansey, if you please -!"

"Lu!" Chansey yells out, as she grabs her egg and chucks it forward, towards Team Rocket - where it explodes into an Egg Bomb! She then quickly turns around and follows Ash and Joy further into the center.

Jessie sniffs, holding out an arm. "Well, if you wish to run and hide -!"

James mimics her with his opposite arm. " - I'm afraid we won't be able to abide!"

"Mandibuzz, Gust!"

"Morgrem, Dark Pulse!"

The attacks slam into the wall, but the door has already sealed itself shut. No matter how powerful their attacks, they can't do more than total the front desk.

Which Ash is very thankful for as they retreat further into the dark back end of the center. There aren't any windows to let in light, only the emergency lights. Until -

There's a hum, as the lights suddenly turn back on. There's the sound of wheels turning, and electricity flowing, and…Pikachu? Ash is briefly thrown, as they retreat further back and find a massive amount of Pikachu running and powering the center.

"Aha, you must not have ever seen Pika Power before." Joy says, as she and Chansey start hurrying to gather up pokeballs. "It's a special infrastructure we developed to help handle some of Viridian's common power outages, and now it helps in moments like this."

Ash nods, staring at them, mystified by the amount of electricity in the air. It almost makes his teeth hurt, his hair stand on end - there's something about it that is getting into his blood…

"Hey!" Joy barks at him. "If you have time to stare, you have time to pick up pokeballs! We need to get these transferred over safely into the system before they break down the door. Even if we repel them, I'd rather be safe than sorry!"

"R-right, right!"

Behind them, unnoticed, Redd slowly gets onto a table. He had crawled out of his care unit a moment prior and followed them in, and is now staring at the Pikachu powering the building.

"P…Pura!"

And they all stared back at him.

…

When Clemont made it to the center and saw that it was dark, he assumed the worst. And, quite frankly, he was right to. A pair of thieves, with powerful pokemon…

Damn it all, but he never wanted his gym team back more than right now!

"Wally, give me a hand!" He says, as he points his own arm out towards the thieves - Ninnu already running across his arm to leap into the air, firing off a curtain of Swift!

Wally startles, as he had yet to finish taking the scene in. That was fine - Clemont was used to thinking fast as a gym leader, he knew how to handle a group of thieves. "Right…! Tsuru, please -!"

The Kirlia was already in motion before his trainer could give him the command, rushing forward as he spun around, summing a cloud of flames and sending it rushing towards the two dark types that were attacking the way into the back!

"The heck -?!" Jessie shouts, as she turns her attention down to the two new interlopers. "Two more twerpy teenagers?! Ugh -!"

"Now, Jessie - come on!" James soothes his partner. "Morgrem and Mandibuzz can take them on easy, and we can go back to what we were doing!"
Meowth nods, crossing his arms. "Yeah, what's a couple of no name twerps gonna do?!"

"No name…?" Wally winces, as he pulls his bag a bit closer to himself - some of that fire Clemont had been mystified earlier vanishing under harsh comments.

That wouldn't do.

Pushing up his glasses, Clemont steps forward - letting Ninnu fall back to land on his shoulders. "I'm not somebody without a name…!"

If he was going to inspire courage, he had to act like he had it himself…!

He had to…he had to be the gym leader he was supposed to be!

"My name is Clemont! I am the Electric Type Gym leader of Kalos!" He declares, putting all the steel that he doesn't have into his voice. "Even…even though I'm the youngest gym leader, even though I'm far from home…I refuse to let you do whatever the hell it is you want here!"

"Oh, so the little twerp thinks that scares us…?!" Jessie sneers, before throwing her hand up. "Mandibuzz! Bone Rush!"

Swirling around, having brushed off the worst of Ninnu's opening attack, Mandibuzz rises into the air towards the ceiling of the center and dives down! With the bone in her hair alight, she starts to pick up speed in order to slam into Ninnu!

Wally interrupts her before she can, calling out - "Tsuru, throw her off! Disarming Voice, please!"

"Ku-ri-ri!" Tsuru replies, as he spins in place. Fairy energy gathers up in motes of pink light, before gathering in front of him. He screams - his voice distorting, as it's pushed through the net of elemental energy and reshaped into an attack! "RI-A-A-AAAAAAAH -!"

The attack spreads throughout the entire room, making the very air - alongside Clemont's vision - shimmer and shake with pink light distortions. Mandibuzz is entirely thrown off of her attack towards Ninnu, though presumably Morgrem weathers it rather well in return.

"Alright, thanks, Wally!" Clemont smiles at the other boy, before turning back to the battle. Mandibuzz is the bigger threat, he thinks, the pokemon menacing and powerful. "Ninnu, try an electric attack - Discharge-!"

But Morgrem shimmers into existence right next to Ninnu - everybody so distracted by Mandibuzz and her presence that they had completely lost track of the small fairy type.

"I won't let you do that! Morgrem, my friend, Sucker Punch!"

Sucker Punch is less of a punch, and more of a brutal slash that leaves deep gouges in the very air itself, before slamming hard into Ninnu and sending him careening through the air to hit a piece of furniture.

"Minuuu…"

Clemont winces, as he runs over towards Ninnu to pick him up and help him recover quickly. "Come on, it's alright, we can do this…!"

"...Mi, mi!" The little mouse nods his head, as he recenters himself on Clemont's shoulders.

Across the way, Tsuru spins once more, gathering up elemental energy - flickering red instead of shimmering pink. He flings it forward, almost like the slash of a blade, and lets the flames stream over towards Morgrem!

"Take this…!" Wally speaks, clenching his fist. "Mystical Fire!"

The attack impacts against Morgrem - at first.

But then the smoke clears, revealing that he had already produced a Light Screen shield…!

"Sorry to disappoint you, green-kid," James taunts, "But Morgrem's ability is Prankster. Anything you try and do to him, he has already prepared for. You can't outpace his tactical advantage!"

Except, Clemont thought, they can.

Moves like Reflect and Light Screen have a limited threshold on the amount of power they can take before the attack bleeds through or shatters the shield.

"Wally, try a different move! I'll back you up!"

Wally blinks, but nods. "Alright…Tsuru, Disarming Voice, please!"

Tsuru begins the process of gathering up fairy energy once more - the air already beginning to shimmer as he does so. It's just as powerful as last time, but Morgrem took that easily. He'd take it even easier if he blocked it once more…

"James!" Jessie calls - and is immediately answered.

"Already done! Morgrem, Light Screen!"
…But Clemont was counting on that.

"Ninnu, Helping Hand!"

The Minun quickly leaps over to Tsuru, landing on his head and touching his tail to the Kirlia's emotional receptors.

The connection is instant, as Tsuru is flooded with further power, and Ninnu adjusts his firing conditions.

"Kiri…ri, ri - ri - RI - AAH - AH - AAAAAAAAAH!"

The air turns so pink from the power of Tsuru's voice, that Clemont thinks his vision is going to be green afterwards.

The sound echoes off of the walls, resonating with Team Rocket's pokemon in a visibly painful way. It makes glassware break, and a window crack.

And yet, when it clears, the Mandibuzz and Morgrem are looking worse for wear…but also still ready to fight.

"Ughghg…You think…a bad singing number will take us out?!" Jessie hisses, as she raises a hand. "Mandibuzz - Mandibuzz -?!"

Mandibuzz lets out a call, as she attempts to right herself.

"She and Morgrem need a breather, Jessie -!" James says, as Morgrem tries to get his bearings back from the assault on his ears.

"Disarming Voice is a direct attack on the ears!" Clemont says to Wally. "The inner ear controls your balance, and can make you sick if you experience exceptionally loud noises."

But even still, they don't have a way to capitalize on this advantage -

And then the door opens, and the air is filled with the smell of ozone. Thick and greasy, filling the senses.

Redd leaps onto the front desk, looking scratched up and burned, but crackling with power. Not yellow lightning, but lightning as blue as the sky. Behind him, Ash stands - a strange glow of blue in his eyes.

While Ash and Joy had been distracted by shipping out the pokemon from the center, he had asked the Pikachu in the generators to give him their power. And with that power, he had dug deep, deep down into himself. Finding that which made him sick, finding that deep, deep well of blue that he had swallowed in the field.

It still hadn't emptied.

Maybe it never would.

But to grab it, and wrench it out into himself - it took power and stamina, to unlock yet greater power.

Redd wasn't sure if it was his, now that he pulled it out.

…But Ash knew it was theirs. Instinctively, in his heart, in his chest. He can feel it, bubbling up as he wishes for it just the same as his pokemon.

The same blue light that climbs over Redd - is it on his skin, too? Or is it beneath his veins? Roaring, crackling, begging to be let free?

He can taste it. It tastes like nothing. Like clean air, like the open skies.

It tastes like home, as he opens his mouth. He's positive he can feel it, crackling in the open space of his lips. Dancing between his teeth, making his gums ache.

He knows the name of this power, knows what it takes to bring it forth.

Deep black shadows lengthen.

Its name is…

A bolt of blue light overtakes Redd, as he soars through the air - catching Team Rocket with him as he soars out through the hole in the roof.

Its name is…!

"H-hold on, hold on - this was all just a joke, right?!" Jessie says, as she tries to swim free of the electrical storm they're trapped in. "Meowth, tell them!"

"THAT'S RIGHT!" The cat yells, panicking. "Just a joke, ahaha, a prank -!"

James joins in. "We weren't going to do anything bad!"

But it's too late.

Its name is -!

"FUSION BOLT!"

"PU-RA!"

With a simultaneous scream, the energy of the attack tears open the air itself. Connecting the earth to the sky in a pillar of blue light, the air itself burning and becoming acrid as the cloudless sky is filled with darkness.

After an instant, the light vanishes…

And Team Rocket is sent flying off into the distance.

"THIS FEELS BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAD -!!!!!"

…

Redd lands back on the ground, and collapses. Ash follows soon after, hitting the ground with a thud.

Clemont almost follows them, because by god was that a lot to process. He commends Wally for keeping his cool, at least.

Suddenly, a girl with red hair kicks the door down, a strange dragon pokemon at her side. "THIS IS INTERPOL! PUT YOUR HANDS UP, TEAM ROCKET -!"

Wally blinks, and then with all of the sass Clemont didn't know he had, says "...You just missed 'em."

She blinks, then curses and kicks a garbage can over.

"Mototo…" The dragon rumbles as it nuzzles her on the leg.

…

A bit later, after more trainers return from dinner and help to clean up the center and get everything reasonably operational, Ash and Redd have recovered, and the girl introduces herself as Misty.

"Oh, and this is my partner, Cyclizar. He's how I get around."

Cyclizar gives a little salute. "To-to, ge!"

"...Clemont. Former gym leader of Kalos, currently on vacation." Clemont responds. "Ninnu is my pokemon here."

"Minu!"

Ash waves, where he's eating the cookie he got for free for saving the pokemon center with Redd. "Ash Ketchum! And Redd, of course."

"Ra!"

"Oh, um…Wally. I'm from Hoenn." Wally responds. "This is Tsuru, my starter pokemon."

"Ri-ri!"

Misty smiles. "Well, it's nice to meet you all. Technically, Interpol isn't my real job or anything - but I help out when I can. I'm impressed that a trio of new trainers were able to handle them - even if one of them was a gym leader."

"Oh, yeah. Clemont was a big help…" Wally says with a flush and a smile.

"He must have been where that lightning bolt came from. That was incredibly powerful for a Minun, but as a gym leader's pokemon, it makes sense!" Misty continues, not noticing how Clemont winces and Ash perks up.

"Actually…" Clemont says, "I only got Ninnu this morning. Ash and Redd did that - but they've only been together for the same amount of time."

Misty blinks. "...Eh?"

Which, really, is a totally fair reaction.

Ash can only shrug. "I just…did it. It felt right. Originally it was going to be Thunder, but then…"

Something, in the deep black of his shadow, told him the words.

But he doesn't say that out loud.

Another shrug. "It worked out, so who cares!"

"...I guess. So, uh…what did you get for that, anyway?"

Ash perks up more. "Oh, I got a cookie! And a free drink from the vending machine, and I think our rooms are free tonight!"

Misty sweat drops. "We really don't give Joys enough funding…Well, whatever!" She reaches into her bag, and pulls out three capsules - one blue, one yellow, and one green. "Take these! I carry extras, and they'll make good rewards!"

Clemont tentatively takes the yellow one, and presses the button on it. It unfurls, revealing a fishing rod - the kind used for pokemon fishing, specifically.

"Tomorrow, I can take you guys to the river and show you how to fish!" Misty says, not waiting for a response, as she and her Cyclizar get up. "See you there!"

"...But I have a Showcase tomorrow…" Wally responds weakly - but she's gone. "...Maybe I can use it to relax a bit, before I go…"

"Oh, a Showcase?!" Ash says, excitedly. "Clemont, Clemont, we gotta go to that!"

"That was already the plan, Ash -!"

"...Then I guess we can go home after…" Ash mutters, looking down. Then, a beat. "...I forgot that I hung up on Gary -!"

"YOU BET YOUR ASS YOU HUNG UP ON GARY!"

Ash, Clemont, and Wally all immediately turn around to see Gary standing in the middle of the lobby, a disheveled mess as his Hatterene stares at him with an expression promising that, if not for the laws of this land, Ash would be in a smoking crater on the ground.

"...I can explain?"

---

PHEW!

Sorry that one took so long to get out. I got really stuck on writing a specific part of this...before realizing I didn't have to write it at all.

So you'll notice that it isn't in there at all. Pragmatism.

Anyway, please enjoy this little bit, as next time...probably fishing, then the Showcase after that!

 

[bronxterror]

Gary Oak knew he wasn't always the nicest person. That he hasn't been the nicest person, and even though he's been trying hard to improve, he still has his moments, and he can't erase the moments of his past self either.

Gary Oak also knows that a lot of that isn't his fault, intellectually. The way he was raised, with everything he could ever ask for and nothing to worry about as part of one of the most famous and affluent families in the region didn't do him any favors. Neither did what he now knows is an unfortunate case of anxiety that spurned him into reacting rashly and aggressively when his fears came rearing their head.

Still, he thinks he's reasonable in chewing out his best (and only) friend for hanging up on him. Gary's only regret is that he got stuck in his own anxiety loop and didn't teleport into the center immediately upon the power outage. He could have prevented quite a bit of trouble that way, he thinks.

"You know, Ash," He begins, seated on the couch of the center. Sylveon is sitting in his lap, and Hatterene is standing behind his shoulder. "When I decided I'd send you out of town, I was filled with countless fears about it that nearly stopped me from doing so. And I said, no, Gary, those are all absolutely irrational."

Gary pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a deep inhale.

"So of course, of course you have to go and prove every single one of those fears absolutely correct!"

His pokemon take different methods of trying to soothe him. Sylveon nuzzles in close, wrapping ribbons around his limbs to share some of his frustrations.

Hatterene, on the other hand, makes a point of shattering a chair and picking up one of the legs to use as a shiv…Or, at least, she would if she wouldn't be scolded by the Nurse Joy. Hatterene was prepared to fight gods, men, and beasts alike for the peace and quiet she appreciated from her trainer…

But that thing. That thing which masqueraded as a human nurse… It frightened her.

So she didn't. But she made it clear she would.

Ash sheepishly hides his face behind the cookie he'd been eating earlier. "I really didn't mean to, Gary." He says, trying to soothe the nerves of his…

…Oldest friend. First friend. Closest friend. Maybe best friend, if not only friend. Not anymore, not exactly. Both of them wished things hadn't become so complicated, but they couldn't change it.

"I know you didn't, Ash," Gary says with a sigh. "That's what makes it worse, honestly."

Gary's fingers absently stroke his partner's fur. Sylveon had been his partner for a long time, second only to his starter. Strong willed, determined, and brave. He gave Gary the ability to be all of those things alongside him, too. Sylveon was the reason Gary had begun investigating fairy types and their benefits when it comes to mental health issues as therapy pokemon.

A lucky evolution had given him the motivation and credibility to springboard into becoming the leading name in Fairy type research in the entire Tohjoh-Sinnoh sphere. Or rather, on his way to it. He was still young, but so was the Fairy type as they were aware of it.

If only it didn't come from Gary having to rely on his little Eevee for everything.

"Hey, if you're going to scold him, scold us too…!"

Gary then looks to Clemont, the blond gym leader from Kalos, as well as the green haired boy sitting next to him. Wally, he has been introduced as.

While Gary knew very little about Wally, he knew a lot about Clemont. More than he would probably like Gary knowing, probably. The youngest gym leader in Kalos' history, and the youngest solo gym leader in the world at the time of his appointment. Lumiose Gym famously provided power to the entire city, and its gym leader was required to maintain it.

Certainly a steep request of a ten year old, Gary had thought.

He had also hoped that Clemont would have helped to keep Ash's worse impulses leashed….but it moreso seemed that he was willing to follow him and drag him out of the wreckage when the smoke cleared. He could do worse for a friend.

"Look, even if Ash was irresponsible…that doesn't mean you can be rude to him. Not to mention that the Misty girl from Interpol said we did a good job." Clemont says, with arms crossed as he tries to look serious. "Ash and Redd were incredibly impressive. The type of power and unity that's impossible to replicate - so…don't start."

And they could do worse for important things, too.

"She wasn't just with Interpol," Gary starts, as he reaches over and takes his drink in hand. "She was supposed to be delivering something from Alola for the two of you, but apparently nothing came of that. It's a shame, because it makes what I'm about to give the two of you a bit less impressive…"

Both of the boys blink, turning to look at each other while Wally and Tsuru - his Kirlia - lean in closer to Gary. The green haired boy speaks first. "Eh? Is there something special for Ash and Clemont?"

Gary nods. "Mmhmm. Gramps wanted them to test some special stuff, but one of those special things never made it here. Sorry, Wally, if we knew about you we probably could have sprung for an extra." Not that Gary particularly cared about Wally, personally. He didn't imagine he'd be staying around long - just because Ash had the tendency to make others tired of him.

Luckily he shakes his head with a smile. "Don't worry about it. I have other stuff on my plate."

Ash, however, looks puzzled.

"But…how can I test it? We were just here for a day trip, right?" He says, confusion written on his face.

Clemont coughs and looks away, while Gary laughs before speaking. "Well - that was the story we told you. Because we knew we couldn't get you out of town without you taking the first step. Clemont, the package, please?"

With a bit of confusion, Clemont hands the package over to Gary - the one he had acquired earlier that day at the Professor's request.

"Inside of this box is something Gramps wanted you guys to have. There were going to be Z - Rings, but that clearly fell through…" Gary mutters, before opening the package and handing over two, slim devices to the boys.

With shock (in Ash's case) and awe (in Clemont's case), both simultaneously activate the devices.

"Greetings. I am Dexter, a Pokedex AI programmed by Professors Oak for use by Masters Clemont and Ash. My directives are to provide information and advice regarding pokemon training to my respective users as well as to catalog all forms of pokemon. If lost or stolen, I may be replaced, but it would be very inconvenient!"

Gary smirks, crossing his arms as the two boys look their pokedexes over. "This is Dexter, an improved version of the original AI used for the older pokedex models from a few years ago. It's threaded through both of your terminals simultaneously, and has cloud backup storage and a satellite internet connection! …Much of which was pioneered by yours truly."

A beat.

"You're welcome."

Gary doesn't get a response. But he didn't really expect one, considering Clemont is a famous science and technology lover, and Ash is…probably going through some mental gymnastics.

"A real Pokedex…!" Clemont says, voice full of awe as he looks it up and down. Opening it, he starts rapidly going through its functions. His glasses have fogged up completely. "Laventon pioneered the invention of the original concept, but Professor Oak's refined digital concept remains amazing as ever! The slim design as conceptualized and refined by the Unovan electric companies! It's all wonderful!"
With a tiny laugh, Gary pushes up his pink glasses. "Of course it is! I couldn't help it - I sprung for the most recent, easy to use model from Unova. We have the original chassis, of course, but I wanted to spring for the more modern models that could work as a phone. That way, Ash can always call me."

Or so Gary can always call Ash.

Y'know, he has to keep some degree of deniability about these sorts of things.

"Oh, that is convenient…! And I noticed these have the electric type chargers, so Ninnu and Redd can expel excess into them!" Clemont's eyes are wide as he says this. "Of course, though, that's just common sense with electric type trainers…"

"Gramps had your starters in mind already, so it was only logical to spring for it."

"Speaking of things like logic - how long has the Pokédex AI been in development?! It's much more advanced than my personal Citroid AI!"

While the two discuss specs and histories together, Ash…stares at Dexter.

Something about this doesn't feel real. Something about this…

Feels like beginning something he should have started a long time ago.

"...I mean, yeah it sucks not to have those Z Rings," He begins, finger slowly running over Dexter's edges. "But…thanks for going on this journey with me, Dexter."

Because…

That's what this is, isn't it? His friend, his mother, everyone, shoving him out of town because he wouldn't leave of his own free will. Wouldn't be so irresponsible as to leave his mother and family behind just on a whim, on a desire to -

He very pointedly doesn't think about Silver.

"Happy to be aboard, Master Ash! Just as promised, I will give you everything you need to know!"

…A promise, huh?

...Yeah, he remembers it.

"Happy to have you, Dexter! Let's become Pokemon Masters, together!"

---

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

THIS TOOK SO LONG TO GET OUT.

Basically I accidentally started and finished the chapter that came AFTER THIS ONE first, and just...my brain got completely stuck trying to finish this one so it didn't feel weird and jarring. I'm very sorry it took so long!!!!
However, the next two should come faster cuz they're both pretty much done, so I should have them out in like, 2 weeks.

Please enjoy Gary's appearance here, I like him a lot!

ALSO DEXTER MY DARLING WONDERFUL POKEDEX YOU ARE A CHARACTER IN YOUR OWN RIGHT. I'M SORRY THE ANIME KILLED YOU OFF.

 

[Menthewarp]

Something about this doesn't feel real. Something about this…

Feels like beginning something he should have started a long time ago.

Click to shrink...

Hey. Look on the bright side Ash, at least you live in one of those timelines where all the world ending disasters could be and were handled by someone else, or maybe even never happened at all.

 

[bronxterror]

Hey. Look on the bright side Ash, at least you live in one of those timelines where all the world ending disasters could be and were handled by someone else, or maybe even never happened at all.

Click to shrink...

That or they're all loaded up like cutscenes and will immediately start as soon as he enters the loading zone.

 

[bronxterror]

Every time I'm like "Oh I'll write a bunch of chapters and get stuff done so my updates aren't so sparse" I get SICK -

Well, regardless of that bad luck, please enjoy this chapter. It's more...slapstick and silly than usual, but that might be because I've been watching a lot of shonen anime lately. I'll try and get back into my usual writing style with the other stuff, hopefully? Just wanted to do something fun and chill.

---

It's after a while of talking with Gary, Ash, and Wally, that Clemont remembers something from a while ago.

"…Hey, hold on, I need to get something from our room!" He says, standing up and moving before anyone could stop him.

His dad had given him a box and said something about sharing it with a close friend when the time came. And, with those Z-Rings off the table…maybe that time was now?

Grabbing it, he quickly brings it down. He can hear something that sounds like shaking glass inside, so he's…perhaps more careful than usual.

Clemont may be one of the greatest geniuses in Kalos' history…but he's also one of the most destructive. Easily, actually.

When Clemont sits back down, Ash, Gary, and Wally are all looking at him with some mixture of expectation, surprise, and confusion. Wally and Ash at least look genuinely curious.

Gary looks more like Clemont is trying to steal his thunder, but it's not his fault, really! Boys just love a good mystery, and Clemont has an actual mystery box!

…That he doesn't know the contents of.

But, well, it was something his dad gave him. And his dad…didn't do a lot for him, admittedly. Sending him to Kanto was…one of the first nice things his dad did for him that wasn't giving him even more expectations. So!

Hopefully it isn't something awful.

"My dad said to open this box when I met a real friend who I could really trust," Clemont says, looking down at his lap. "I'm…uh, still…new to this whole friend thing. But I think…I think Ash is a friend I'm going to have for a long time. So…"

Determined to stop his own preamble, he swiftly opens the box, revealing two spheres inside. They have completely clear glass (or crystal) tops paired with a black, almost opalescent bottom, and a shimmering scale inside - making for a glittering sight that is briefly breathtaking.

That moment swiftly passes as Clemont is then promptly shoved to the ground by Gary as the soon-to-be pokemon professor begins fawning over the objects inside.

"Tera Orbs?! Real, honest to god Tera Orbs?!" Gary says, voice full of desire. "Oh my lord they're authentic, these were actually created by Professor Sada directly…!"

Ash and Wally can only sweatdrop as they see Clemont slowly begin to rise from the floor from behind Gary, much like a Sharpedo. His glasses glint brightly within the light of the room, his hands coming up…!

"MUON!"

- Only to be smacked back down by Gary's Hatterene.

"My glasses…"

Gary then turns to Wally and Ash, adjusting his pink glasses as he holds one up. "These are Tera Orbs! A semi-recent invention by Professor Sada of the Paldea Region, using unique resources from the Paldea Region's Area Zero. Normally, they're exclusive to government and league trainers, with some exceptions…How did you get these?!" He asks, looking at Clemont on the ground.

"My dad…?" Clemont offers, as he repositions himself carefully behind Gary.

"...Huh. Ask him next time you see him!" Gary says, tossing the orb up and down a few times to get a feeling for its heft. "These let pokemon perform Terastalization - which empowers their typing, or changes it to something else entirely. We don't know exactly how or why it works - or what determines it. But it's pretty fascinating stuff -"

Gary is interrupted as Clemont suddenly jumps him, throwing both of his arms around Gary's neck and strangling him briefly to grab the Tera Orb back from his hands.

"WONDERFUL, NOW GIVE IT BACK!"

…

"So…who is Professor Sada?" Wally asks quietly, rolling over a Tera Orb in his hands next to Ash.

Gary winces, scratching at one of the bandages Nurse Joy had applied to him after…discouraging…his and Clemont's fight. "Professor Sada is one of the two Pokemon Professors in the Paldea region, alongside Professor Turo. They both pioneered research into Tera Energy, which is what causes the Terastal Phenomenon that Tera Orbs use. We…don't really know a lot about it, like I said. Or why some pokemon change types, and others get their type strengthened instead ."

The other Tera Orb is being played with by Redd, who is rolling around and balancing on it.

Clemont is filled with much anxiety watching it, even as he rubs his bruised shoulder.

"I don't actually know what Professor Turo is working on right now, but I heard Professor Sada has been going around the different regions and doing research. She was in…Johto, last I checked?" Gary shrugs. "It'll be interesting to see what they work on next - they've always caused some massive paradigm shifts when they publish their work."

He does snort a bit, though.

"Too bad they're both famous for loving weird magazines." Gary says with a snicker. "It's always a joke that they have their nose in Occulture more than they do in any books or research."

Clemont, vaguely, recalls that Occulture is a magazine about strange, occult events and unnatural or unique pokemon sightings. Most of it is rubbish - though Clemont was surprised to hear that a majority of their articles on the Holon Region were right.

"Hah, sounds pretty crazy!" Ash says, picking up the Tera Orb from Redd. "So, Clemont, what are you gonna do with two of these babies?"

Clemont blinks, staring at Ash. "...One of them is for you. Because you're my friend! My friend who I trust and want to keep spending time with for the foreseeable future!"

…Did he say that out loud?

Judging by Gary and Wally looking at him…he definitely did.

He could feel the red climbing up his cheeks already, as he hid his face…

But Ash didn't comment on it. He simply laughed. "Thanks, Clemont. I…I definitely appreciate that! Let's do our best together!"

There's a comfortable silence between the two of them, until Wally speaks up.

"By the way, Gary, would you like to join us when we go fishing tomorrow morning?"

Gary's face wrinkles as if smelling rotten. "What, and go outside?! Ugh, ew, gross, no! I had enough of roughing it outdoors on my journey, thank you very much! I'm not leaving my air conditioned lab space for another two years if I can help it!"

"...Roughing it?" Ash says, blinking, "Gary…you took a car. You drove the whole way, that barely counts."

"I STILL ABSOLUTELY DECLINE!"

 

[bronxterror]

It turns out that fishing is nowhere near as easy as Misty said it would be. Or as easy as Clemont's colleague Siebold always said it was.

But then again, that man was a professional chef who outstripped almost every other cook in the region. So he was some sort of weird, enlightened man in a way that Clemont couldn't exactly match at his age.

(Siebold was also maybe his cousin or his uncle or something, but the man was always oddly distant to Clemont in a way that spoke of a lot of unspoken drama.)

But that's not what he's here to think about.

Instead, he needs to think about fishing.

There is, supposedly, a thrill to fishing that one cannot replicate with machinery or video games or anything of that sort. Clemont thinks the person who said that should actually try fishing. He's been staring at his neon yellow rod for what felt like hours.

Nearby, he can hear Wally and Ash chatting to each other as they comfortably fish on the banks of the river that cuts through Viridian City and goes off towards Route 22 and Victory Road.

Or at least, that's what Ash was talking about.

"Viridian City actually has a pretty convenient placement in terms of its location," He's saying excitedly, even as he keeps his line perfectly still and yet ready. "While you can do any gym in the region in any order, there's a 'suggested order' in terms of seating."

"Seating…?" Wally asks, as he adjusts the slack on his line.

Ash smiles, because he's talking about his favourite thing in the world - battling. "Well, every gym leader has multiple teams and members that they swap around - but in terms of general skill, some are just…better. That's the seating order, which you're generally suggested to follow."

Wally thinks for a moment, before perking up. "Oh, Clemont said…he was the fourth chair in Kalos…?"

"Really -?!" Ash squeals, as he turns suddenly towards Clemont - almost yanking his line in with him. "Clemont, you were the fourth chair?! The fifth best gym leader in Kalos is a big deal!"

He laughs it off awkwardly, picking his line up out of the water just to find it's still untouched. "Well…not exactly a big deal. I mean…everyone else was pretty great, and Korrina's new still and is only just finding her balance -"
"Clemont." Ash says, very serious. "You were the youngest gym leader Kalos has ever had on record. I think that having the fourth chair in spite of that is amazing. You are amazing."

And Clemont has to actively fight to keep his face from turning red, thank you very much.

"You…you were saying about Kanto's seating, Ash?" He says instead, to get the heat off of himself.

"Oh, right," Ash says, easily distracted. "Well, the thing is - Sakaki, the Gym Leader here, is the first chair in Kanto's gym leaders. So it's kinda expected that you face him last on your way towards Victory Road and the Indigo Conference. Of course, that's assuming he's here…"

Clemont blinks. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, well - Sakaki has the worst attendance record in Kanto when it comes to accepting challenges. He apparently has full League approval for his leaves of absence - the official statement is that he's a family man." Ash then shrugs. "But I can't really say for sure - I've never met the guy."

"...Wait, um, then who does the challenges when he isn't…?" Wally asks, face scrunched up softly.

"Agatha, a retired member of the Elite Four, actually does it." Ash says, picking up steam for a different subject matter. "She's an old rival of Professor Oak, and specializes in Ghost pokemon. She and Sakaki apparently are at similar skill levels, so it's not that different?"

He adjusts the slack on his line again.

"Well, she's sort of retired? I don't actually know that situation - but there's been a big change in the Elite Four for the shared Kanto-Johto League, and right now it's pretty shaky?. But currently the list of the six Elite Four who are kinda active are Lorelei, Will, Bruno, Koga, Agatha, Karen, and Lance." Ash stops for a moment, and corrects himself. "But Lance is also the Champion?"

"...Wow."

Because that's a lot.

Clemont thinks for a moment, before responding - "Our Champion is just an actress…"

"And Hoenn's Champion is gay," Wally says, not a moment sooner.

"..." Clemont is silent.

Ash, however - "...Which one?"

Wally's expression becomes haunted. "Both."

Ash and Clemont both snort, coughing and laughing at the same time.

…

Unfortunately, fishing is not nearly as easy as they thought it would be. And, since Misty had ditched them after getting them set up when Redd sent a stray Thunder towards her Cyclizar, they didn't have anyone to really help them out.

Or, well.

Ash and Clemont didn't have anyone to help them out.

"Good job, Maru! You're already getting the hang of a Water Gun!"

Wally, on the other hand, had already caught a Marill and was excitedly running through attack drills with it on the side.

Clemont was vexed but also thought it was cute. Wally had a really, really nice smile, and his laugh was a sweet thing. He wanted to keep eating, and eating, and eating that sweet sound until he got himself sick.

…But that! That is a thing he is not going to look at any deeper!

Instead, he's going to keep thinking about plans and ideas for a fishing machine, because while he may not have parts or tools or energy to make one, he sure has spite. Spite that increases in ferocity as he checks his line once more to find nothing!

And more than Clemont has spite, Ash has perseverance.

Because while Clemont was trying not to think about Wally, Ash was wrestling violently with his fishing pole that had apparently gotten caught on something - though Clemont couldn't be sure it was a pokemon or a particularly sturdy rock.

Clemont is thus rather surprised when the (potential) rock gets the memo that it's being caught, and pulls back on Ash's line, dragging the boy down the incline and into the water. Redd ignites his body with electricity, leaping in after his trainer!

"I'VE GOT YOU NOW!"

"PURA-RA!!!"

He can only watch mystified and awed as the somewhat quiet boy he'd met the other day starts to wrestle something in the water with almost bestial ferocity. Clemont could swear he can see the electric blue sparks from last night dancing over Ash's skin again as he does so, as water sprays up and out and around in big splashes (though it's probably just Redd). Whatever he's wrestling is a ferocious beast.

…So Clemont gets up, and takes his fishing elsewhere. He likes Ash a lot, but he isn't going to catch anything with all of that going on next to him.

…

Or, well, he isn't going to catch anything at all. Because no matter how long he's stuck in this part of the river, with this stupid Super Rod, and with Ninnu trying to give him a helping hand.

Clemont gives his line another check, and finds yet again there's nothing on the hook.

He flops hard onto his back, as his partner nuzzles into his side.

"Minu…"

"Yeah, I know…I'm getting worked up over nothing…" Clemont sighs, because normally he'd work all this anxiety and stress into a machine. And even if that machine didn't work or exploded, the explosion would at least be cathartic and he'd have less of those feelings in his head. But he couldn't quite bring himself to do it.

"Ah…I just give up, this isn't gonna happen…"

"Well, not with that attitude…" A voice comes from behind him, making Clemont bolt up with a start as he turns to see who it is.

A boy dressed in green and black fishing gear, with a black hat on his head. He has pale blond, almost green, hair. And floating around him is…

Clemont takes his (new) pokedex out and checks it.

"Castform, the Weather Pokemon. Its water-like cells transform like clouds to match the weather. Ability: Forecast. Type: Normal. Current Forme: Normal."

Clemont blinks, not quite recognizing the term. "Formes…?"

"Query - Formes?" The pokedex seemingly asks itself, which startles Clemont - and the other person, who was waiting politely. "Answer - Formes are the different shapes pokemon take on to gain new abilities, stats, or types. Permanent Forme changes include regional variants and shiny pokemon."

"...Huh." Clemont nods with a smile. "Thanks, Dexter."

Both the other boy and his pokemon stare at Clemont and Dexter with a bit of a daze, before the boy speaks up. "...So, uhm. Do you want any help with the fishing, or are you just going to stare at Castform…?"

"Oh, uh, sorry!" Clemont says, laughing awkwardly and adjusting his glasses. "I love new stuff like this. I got this from Professor Oak, and I've been trying to catch a new pokemon while I'm here…"

One that would, you know, actually be an electric type. Which…

Chinchou is local, right?

"Well, if you want to do it right, you'll need a lot of patience. Here, let me show you…" The boy said, getting on his knees next to Clemont.

He couldn't help but notice, as the boy went to work, that he had a very handsome and symmetrical face. The kind that would be amazing for TV, with a little beauty mark near his lip. His palms were calloused lightly, but his nails were well manicured.

And his clothes actually hugged his body nicely -

Oh no he's saying things.

"...and that's how it works." He says with a soft smile, before looking back at Clemont. "Need me to go over it again?"

"...Kind of. Yeah. Please?" Clemont responds with an awkward laugh. "...Oh, I'm Clemont, by the way. From Kalos."

"Curtis. I'm from Unova, and I'm on vacation. Or, well…break from work, I guess." Curtis elaborates in turn.

The two of them keep talking, as they set up Clemont's line again.

…and are interrupted, briefly, by Ash reappearing with a pokeball in hand, soaked from head to toe. Nearby is Redd, equally soaked but incredibly proud.

"Clem! I got the pokemon I was going for!" He shouts excitedly, jumping up and down - Redd mimicking him down by his feet. "It's a water type, I think!"

Clemont laughs, adjusting his glasses. "Probably a good guess if it's from the river, Ash! But you should ask Dexter. He'll tell you everything you need to know."

Ash perks up - having forgotten that Dexter could do that. He had mostly talked to the pokedex so far, it seemed. "Thanks for the idea, Clem! I'll be training with Wally, meanwhile!"

And then he ran off to do just that, swiftly followed by Redd. He was a bit single minded sometimes, but Clemont really didn't mind. He kind of appreciated it, actually. He always knew what Ash wanted.

"...He seems pretty excitable." Curtis says, as Ash leaves. "A friend of yours?"

"...Yeah!" Clemont responds, with a smile as he pets Ninnu's head. "My very first one, I think. Now, uhm, you said it was about patience, right?"

Curtis nods. "Yes. That's the most important part, really…"

…

Clemont did in fact manage to catch a pokemon on his line, in the end. Though he didn't end up keeping it - a Wooper with a strange color, according to Dexter. The pokedex was undetermined as to which type of Forme was the cause, and seemed vexed by it.

"So, Clem, why didn't you keep it?" Ash asked, carrying his new catch with him towards the colosseum. Which was crazy, considering the size of the slumbering Slowpoke Ash had caught. "I mean, if he's anything like Duude here, it could have been great!"

Clemont thought about it for a moment, before shrugging. "...I dunno. It just…felt wrong to catch it. It's…I've always been an electric specialist, you know? So…anything else…"

It would have felt wrong, he thinks. A bit too soon to say goodbye to his well loved specialty.

"Don't worry about it, Clemont." Wally says, squeezing him on the shoulder. "I'm sure you'll find something that works for you. You can do anything, with how smart you are."

Whoops, now his face is red again.

"Now, I should run ahead to the venue…" The green haired boy continues. "I need to prepare. Please cheer me on!"

Clemont and Ash both nod, and wave at the boy as he leaves to prepare for the Showcase - both of them already having decided to go and support him.

…Meanwhile, unseen behind them both…

"...Wooper?" A little head pops out of the water, watching in confusion as the boy who caught him on his line walked away.

What a silly person. You caught the pokemon when you reeled them in! His new friend must have forgotten to do so. That was okay, though! Wooper knew he could just remind his new, big, silly friend how to catch him!

Hobbling out of the water, he began his slow, waddling walk towards Clemont.

"Big friend! Please wait! You forgot to catch your small friend!" He calls, waddling after him…before falling face first in the grass.

A few moments pass.

…

And he stands up again, beginning his journey of friendship once more!

"Big friend! Big frieeeeend!"

---

Y'know, I didn't think I'd still be in Viridian City 5 chapters after leaving Pallet Town, but I just keep having ideas here, man.

Introducing Curtis, my favourite niche pokemon character of all time. He'll only be around sometimes, but I wanted to include him. This chapter also introduces Ash's new Slowpoke, Duude, and the Wooper Clemont didn't catch.

Wooper is not aware, and does not care if that's how Clemont sees it. His big friend will catch him in the future. Sometime.

Next up is Wally's showcase, which Ill probably divide into some smaller chapters for ease, and then finally move on to Viridian Forest. Here's hoping we make it to Brock before September!

 

[bronxterror]

At the Viridian City performance hall, Clemont and Ash had finally gotten seated - luckily together. It would have been awful to be separated, both for the obvious reasons and also because Clemont might just detonate if he had to be in a huge crowd by himself.

"...So, uh, Clem?" Ash asks, "What is a Showcase?"

Clemont blinks, before realizing he and Wally hadn't really explained it well. "If you've ever heard of a Pokemon Contest like in Hoenn, it's like that. But the intentions are different…sort of."

How do you even explain this kind of thing?

"…It's like this - you have two rounds. A themed round, and then a freestyle performance round." He explains as best he can. "The themed rounds are focused on using your talents and adaptability to entertain the audience, and then your freestyle round is about working with and performing alongside your pokemon so they can bring out your best qualities. Or…something to that extent."

He had never watched a lot of them, just caught them out the corner of his eyes and ears while Bonnie was having a blast watching them.

Ash hums, though, as if he follows. "Good on Wally, then. I know whatever they have as the themed round is going to be a piece of cake for him."

"Traditionally they're a surprise that you can't plan ahead," Clemont adds, "But he would have had an hour or two to prepare for it. I'm sure he'll do great."

And even if he bombs the performance… Wally's so cute he might just get past on pure charisma.

However, soon the lights dim as the showcase begins…

…But there's nobody on the stage.

At first, the crowd is confused, until a voice calls out from the rafters.

"Welcome, one and all, to one of the very first Pokemon Showcase Spectaculars to grace the shores of the beautiful Kanto region!" A boy's voice cuts through the shadows of the contest hall, before spotlights come onto him - revealing a boy in black and green, with blond hair dyed green at the edges.

He kicks off from his spot in the rafter, and goes into a freefall - only to descend gracefully in a long arc, trailing glitter and light behind him as he does so. His foot was caught in a barely visible cable, letting him go slowly towards the ground. Trailing behind him in that same arc is…

A Castform, but not in one of its standard formes. Instead, it was pink, clad up in glittery clouds in a tight spiral.

"Today, the lovely Princes have come to Showcase the beauty of themselves and their pokemon! Today's theme, which they will use to demonstrate their creativity and performance prowess, is the Fairy Type fresh from Kalos, just like the Showcases themselves!" He looks at his Castform, excitement and passion in his eyes as the duo curve and arc through the air. "Give them a show, partner! Weather Ball!"

"Wa-lu!" His pokemon responds, drawing up the winds and atmosphere within the contest hall - full of passion and joy, mystical fairy energy coalescing into a physical form.

It's launched, high into the air, where it explodes and scatters glittering pink light and a pleasing scent all across the contest hall. Just in time as the cable ends and the boy and his pokemon land firmly on center stage.

"I am Christoph, a performer and idol from Unova! It will be my pleasure to announce, attend, and present at these lovely Prince Showcases!" He smiles and poses, holding his arms out to the crowd with a wink. "Now, some of you may be disappointed that my partner and opposite Nancy will not be presenting these lovely men to you all, but we thought we'd give all the ladies and men who come to see the handsome boys and beautiful women an extra treat!"

There's a bit of laughter in the crowd, before he continues.

"But that's enough about me! Today, our contestants will be demonstrating the Fairy Type, both in their freestyle performance, but also in today's opening themed performance!" Christoph throws his arm to the side, producing a key from his sleeve. "The Prince who performed the best will be voted on by you, the audience, and receive the Fairy Key!"

Somehow, watching this, Clemont was absolutely spellbound. Captivated by the style and charisma. The absolute passion rolling off of the announcer - Christoph. His cheeks were flushed, and his breathing was fast…

Ignoring Clemont's situation, because of course he wouldn't notice one person in a crowd like this, Christoph raises his hand.

"Now, today's themed performance, focused on the themes of the Fairy Type's elegant mystique, graceful mischief, and refined chivalry…" He pauses for effect, "Shall be pokemon styling! Using the provided costume and clothing pieces, our Princes will have to style their pokemon in a way that matches and compliments their own personal aesthetics!"

…Which sounds like a fashion show, to Clemont. And normally he wouldn't be bothered, or even care. But…the point of this sort of thing was to appeal to the audience as much as possible. So…He'd have to stay strong not to turn into a puddle of blushing mess on the floor.

"Now, let's meet our contestants for our first round! We'll go through these in groups of three, and we'll see nine Princes come down to three for the freestyle performance!" Christoph finishes. "So, please, be ready to give all of our performers a hand - and keep your eyes peeled for your favourite! Keep your biases at bay as best you can, alright? I'll know if you start throwing votes my way, after all!" He adds, with a wink.

And, with that introduction done, Christoph begins to introduce the contestants for the first round.

Starting boldly, and very loudly, is a boy from Sinnoh, performing with his team in a rock-like ensemble. Clemont doesn't catch his name at first, but he does catch the massive, powerful Empoleon he boldly parades around with, as he and his team do air guitar to show off their brightly colored outfits. He completely outshines the local's simple and understated ensemble with his Absol and Kadabra, and the poor foreign boy with a Lycanroc and Mincinno looks like he could barely color match anything together and basically washed out.

It's really not a surprise that the first boy, apparently named Barry, goes up ahead. Clemont was taken by his energy, throwing himself into the performance. Though, if he were to do it…

…If he were to do it, what? What would he do?

That thought persists to the next round, as the next set comes on.

A boy named Keo from Alola, fielding a Roserade and a Jangmo-o while doing some sort of circus themed performance, alongside a local trainer named Angelo with his Abra and Slowpoke attempting a sleek 'cyberpunk' look. They were then followed by a boy named Wade from Johto, who had a Beedrill and Butterfree that did a spinning ribbon look.

Keo went the extra mile, doing tricks with flowers and birds on short notice alongside his pokemon to put on a quick magician's performance - easily stealing the win away from Wade and Angelo as he uses the theme literally. If not a bit aggressively.

"...We could do something better than that, Ninnu." Clemont says to his new starter as he looks down at the Minun - who likewise looks mystified by the proceedings. "A good electrician's outfit, some gears and some overalls, and we could set up a full circuit of electricity together…"

His Minun seems to agree. "Minu!"

But that thought is quickly pushed away as the third and final set comes on stage - which has Wally in it. And the knowledge that Wally was coming on next didn't do a single damn thing to actually prepare him for the boy's appearance.

Stepping onto the runway wearing a white and green suit, a red bowtie around his neck. The entire ensemble was styled to resemble the petals of a flower, and he had slicked his normally fluffy hair back slightly. It revealed Wally's face, painted with a confident smile. Almost a smirk, really, as he walked across the runway with his Kirlia and a little Cyndaquil at his side, both with matching ties and flowers to match.

"Shirou, Tsuru, show your own style!" He says, voice firm and burning hot with energy as he throws his hand forward. "Mystical Fire, and Ember!"

Tsuru responds first, twirling and conjuring rose colored fire that spirals out from him, lingering and spreading out slowly. "Tsu!"

"Rashi!" His Cyndaquil, Shirou, responds soon after, as he spits out small black-red sparks straight up.

The two attacks mingle, Mystical Fire catching the Ember sparks in their movements, like leaves in the wind, and drawing the audience's attention up and away…

Until the sound of metal being unsheathed fills the air, and Wally wrenches attention back to him as he sunders the flames with a flash of a dull rapier. The metal flashes with the light of the flames, and reflects Wally's face.

It's really no surprise that Wally progresses on to the next round alongside Barry and Keo, at that point.

"...I'm in so much trouble, Ash…" Is all Clemont can say as he puts his head in his hands. Without quite understanding why, Ash pats him on the back with comfort anyway. He's a good friend like that.

---

I'm really happy with this chapter. I'm sort of getting into a better rhythm and pacing, I think? Or at least I hope. I'm EXTREMELY happy with Christoph's intro, especially.

I don't really have a lot to say, except, uhm, please enjoy?

Oh, also, Keo is my friend's OC from a pokemon roleplay. I wanted a character of the day for this, and he offered, so there he is. Don't worry much about it. I'll post his art if anyone wants to see it. Wade and Angelo are trainers from in game, tho.

 

[Menthewarp]

Clemont is in dire straits.
Help him.

 

[bronxterror]

Clemont is in dire straits.
Help him.

Click to shrink...

Going to showcases where boys try and impress and wow the audience when you're a gay teenager? Yeah, maybe not the best move when you REALLY think about it.

It's sort of like the boy band effect but with powerful trainers.

 

[bronxterror]

After moving on from the themed performance round, Barry, Keo, and Wally then needed to complete the freestyle appeal round.

"During the freestyle round, they need to do some kind of performance to impress the crowd with their pokemon," Clemont explains during the intermission while scratching Ninnu behind the ears. "Then when they're done, we'll be asked to vote for the winner by lighting our sticks in their colors!"

"...And their colors are?" Ash asks, having completely forgotten already.

Clemont…admittedly has to double check. "Oh, um..I think Wally is pink, Barry is blue, and Keo is purple."

Ash blinks, eyes narrowing a bit. "...But isn't Wally's hair green…?"
Clemont shrugs in response.

Before the two can continue talking, though, the lights dim, and music begins to play throughout the hall.

The stage is then lit up by spotlights, as Barry appears - dressed in white and blue, small yellow details on his costume as he holds up two pokeballs. "Alright! I'm done, done, DONE waiting for the show to start!" He yells, grinning, before tossing the two balls into the air!

"Teller, Staller, take it up a notch!"

Emerging from their balls in scattering blue and white lights, a massive Empoleon and a lithe Staravia settle upon the stage. Teller, the Empoleon, is broad and strong, with gleaming, glistening smooth feathers and plumage. Staller, meanwhile, is equally well groomed but makes agile loops through the air.

Barry raises one arm, pointing up into the air. "Teller, let's show them the beauty of pure power! We aren't gonna wait for anything less! Hydro Cannon!"

There are soft gasps in the crowd as Barry declares such a powerful move, before Teller takes a stance and unleashes the attack straight upwards. It creates a towering pillar of shimmering, spiraling water that pulses with white and blue and scatters rainbow spray against the stage lights. As it reaches the ceiling of the hall, the water falls, becoming a rain that hits the stage in thick sheets of fine droplets.

Excitedly, Barry starts to run and slide around in the water - intentionally slipping and skipping around in it, scattering as much water spray as he can. "That's it! Now, now, now - let's cut to the chase! Staller, let's throw it around with Tailwind!"

The Staravia makes a call of response, before unleashing powerful winds that blow through and around the pillar of water, scattering rain and spraying it further in more colorful splashes.

It also seems to send Barry slipping, skating, and sliding around in the water, but that didn't seem actually planned.

Now that Clemont thought about it…

"...Ne, Clem?" Ash speaks up from beside him. "Isn't it getting…y'know. Hard to see?"

Clemont nods. "Yeah, it looks like his team is using full power…and now it's just kind of a hazy hurricane on stage." Which is cool to watch, but it's not exactly pretty, and nor does it actually show off Barry's unique style or attitude.

Except his love of pure power and speed, apparently.

"That's pretty cool though!" Ash says with a smile. "If it's about showing off your pokemon, that's gotta be impressive for everyone!"

Clemont thinks for a moment, before shaking his head. "Not really. The point of a Showcase is that you want to use your pokemon to accentuate you and your good sides. Barry's…basically just a plastic bag in a rainstorm up there."

Which may have been putting it generously.

-

Coming on soon after Barry was Keo, a boy from Alola dressed up as a stage magician. But with his arms bare, because that was apparently the style?

Clemont certainly didn't mind the sight.

Keo smiles at the crowd, before taking out his own pokemon. "Alright, everyone - it's time for you to meet tonight's lovely assistants!" He calls, before tossing them into the air to release the duo in beams of light. "Roseanne, Melody, it's showtime!"

A small Roselia and a stocky, strong Noivern appear, the Roselia posing primly and the Noivern letting out a call that shakes the air of the auditorium.

"That's my girl." Keo says, patting the Noivern on her snout, receiving pleased purrs in response. "Now, for our trick of choice! Melody, take off! Roseanne, give us a nice backdrop for a good flight - Petal Dance!"

Roseanne coos, before beginning to spin round and round, leaving a trail of petals in her wake that scatter up high into the air, and drift slowly down. The front side of them are shiny, but the pack of each petal is matte, giving a shimmering effect.

The petals then scatter further, as Melody takes off and creates a whoomf-crack of displaced air. Her looping flight path keeps the petals created by her fellow 'assistant' aloft, as Keo takes out a bouquet of flowers.

Holding one out, a perfect rose, he tosses it into the air!

"Melody, Flamethrower!"

The Noivern keens, then dives - breaking her flight path with a smooth transition, shedding height for speed as she opens her mouth and produces rose colored flames. The flames nearly overtake her, as they catch the rose in their path just in time for her to dive through it.

The ashes and embers of the rose scatter in her wake, joining with the falling cherry petals from Roseanne's work as Melody rises up into the air again, just in time for Keo to take another flower from the bouquet.

And another, and another, as Melody quickly burns through each of the flowers, leaving Keo with only the cloth wrapping that the bouquet came with.

"Now for the finale!"

Keo takes the last bit of cloth, and throws it over to Rosanne, who produces one more burst of Petal Dance that sends it high into the air.

He reaches out towards it, and gives one last command to his flying pokemon - "Catch it!"

Melody does not respond, but instead increases her speed as she moves into a spiralling dive, cutting through the air like a missile before diving for the cloth. She barely skims the bottom of the stage, before curling around to return to Keo - presenting the unharmed cloth to her trainer, who takes it carefully with a smile.

…Needless to say, there are quite a few cheers going up from the audience as the performer waves with a smile, before taking a bow.

"...Compared to Barry, it's almost no contest…" Clemont mutters, going over the entire performance. "It wasn't just a matter of power, it was a matter of control and movement. And while it was outlining his pokemon's own talents…he was at the center of it, calling out commands perfectly. It's…really impressive."

He couldn't blame the man for having a confident smile as he left the stage.

…To be frank, he'd smile like that too if he had those arms.

-

Finally, the time comes for Wally to take the stage.

Stepping in front of the crowd, Wally maintained much of his costume from the previous round, the rapier at his hip. And, summoned up from their pokeballs, his pokemon are much the same as well. Shirou the Cyndaquil and Tsuru the Kirlia take the stage, making their respective calls.

"Alright, Tsuru! Shirou! Let's ride on!" Wally calls, unsheathing his rapier and holding it aloft. "Shirou, use Flame Wheel!"

The determined Cyndaquil nods, before rolling up into a ball, flames building up on his back before he takes off, spinning rapidly and leaving a small trail of embers as he moves quickly around Wally.

"Now, Tsuru!" He continues, "Use Confusion!"

The Kirlia spins, his entire body glowing, before picking up the spinning, rolling ball of flame that was Shirou and helping him get into the air.

"Energy Ball! Then, fling it towards me!"

With practiced ease, Tsuru wraps the flaming Cyndaquil in a shell of grass type energy, which catches flame and begins to produce a golden flame that leaves sparks of light in its tracks. Then, with a spin, he flings the ball at his trainer!

With confident ease, Wally swipes out with his rapier - knocking the pokemon-attack hybrid back towards Tsuru, who then flings it back towards Wally with a twirl and a pose.

Back and forth, rapidly picking up speed, light beginning to build around Shirou as the tension builds.

Wally never missing a 'hit', Tsuru easily catching it, even as it gets faster and faster. A tenuous balance, a rising momentum, until -

"Now!"

Wally 'strikes' upwards, as Tsuru focuses and sends Shirou high into the air!

"Let's see a shining finish!" Wally calls up to his partner, "Use Sunny Day!"

At the apex of his launch upwards, the ball of light burning around Shirou explodes - and is then scattered in all directions across the stage as beams of sunlight scatter from him, right at the center of the sunlight.

It's breathtaking, but…

Shirou then begins to fall, and Wally yelps as he runs forward and has to catch his partner, completely breaking character.

But no one really sees it, too focused on the light burning in the rafters, before it goes out.

Clemont doesn't know how well Wally did, but he knows for sure that even if everyone else was cheering - he and Ash surely must have cheered the loudest.

---

So, chap's up late! I had to take a break in the middle of writing it for vacation - since all my friends basically held a gun at my head and told me
no working or writing. Thus, this took a bit for me to get back into the swing of things.

Next time, we'll wrap up the contest, and get going on towards the next town!

...HOPEFULLY. God I hope.

Please enjoy!