Author's Note:
Bonjour I am back! Hope everyone had a good holiday season...didn't want this to be left so long, but things were hectic, so sorry about that. Also had those oneshots come out, which admittedly probably could've been timed better, but what's done is done. We're good to go now, though.
Might as well get onto the chapter, and this one is a little bit of a breather...except for one part I suppose. Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 37: Eggsams
"Can you show it to us again, Ash?" Shauna pleaded, leaning forward excitedly across the breakfast table they were all sitting at.
As the others around the table nodded, appearing just as excited, Ash pulled out the small box he'd put his new Key Stone in, the same one that held the ribbon he'd won in Coumarine City, and held the shiny stone up. He carefully passed it over to Shauna, while Tierno and Trevor looked at it from either side.
"It looks the same as yours, Trevs," Tierno pointed out, looking longingly at the stone, obviously still wishing that he'd managed to win the tournament. "I thought it would be a little different."
"It's the Mega Stone that would be different," Trevor told him, carefully taking the Key Stone from Shauna and looking at it, holding it up to his own which was on his camera. "As far as I know, a Key Stone will look the same as any other. The Mega Stone will be different depending on which Pokemon it works with." At that, he looked over to Ash, handing the stone over to Serena, who looked thoughtfully at the stone. "I guess you'll need to find a Mega Stone now, huh Ash? You have a few Pokemon that can mega evolve, right?"
Ash shrugged, looking up at Pikachu, who stared back curiously from his shoulder. "I do have a Charizard," he said, looking back at Trevor, the photographer's eyes lighting up in excitement at that. "There's also Sceptile...and if Gible ever evolves...I'm not really sure of all the Pokemon that can mega evolve," he admitted, smiling sheepishly.
"Maybe if your Riolu evolves, you can use it with him?" Clemont suggested, looking over at Serena as she showed the stone to the baby fighting type, while Absol peered closely at it, out of his pokeball while he ate his own breakfast.
"That'd be awesome, wouldn't it Serena?!" Ash exclaimed, immediately liking that idea, his eyes lighting up as he looked over to the Performer. "That would be good for either performances or battles. Maybe you can ask Korrina about it, Clemont?" he suggested, turning back to the inventor.
Clemont's face went bright red at that, immediately looking down at his food and avoiding eye contact with anyone at the table. "Wh-why would you...how would I...I don't..."
"Don't you call her, like, all the time?" Shauna teased, smirking over at him, holding up Skitty as it meowed in agreement.
"No I don't!" Clemont seemed to squeak, his voice surprisingly high pitched. He managed to recover, though, taking a deep breath and looking back at Ash. "If...if I do end up talking to her, I'll ask her about it."
"Cool, thanks Clemont!" Ash said, giving a thumbs up and looking over to Serena as she handed the stone over to Dawn, who was in the process of giving her Spewpa its food.
"You'll be really tough to beat if you've got Greninja and a mega Pokemon with you," Serena laughed out, Riolu looking curious next to her.
Ash didn't really know how to think about that, knowing that it would definitely change things for him in a big battle. Part of him was excited about the thought, knowing that if he had that kind of firepower, he might very well be able to fare better against opponents like Alain or Anton with their Mega Charizard or Mega Scizor. Then again, he'd defeated a Mega Lucario with Pikachu, a Mega Absol with Hawlucha, and Greninja had defeated a couple mega evolved Pokemon in his special form. The challenge was sometimes what brought out the best in him and his Pokemon.
"Whatever you get to do with it, I can't wait to see," Dawn said after a moment, finally handing Ash the Key Stone back. "I just wish I'd managed to win it," she admitted, Shauna and Tierno nodding in agreement.
"Maybe we can all find a Key Stone," Tierno suggested, looking over to Trevor. "Trevs, you never mentioned, how did you get yours?"
"Oh," Trevor chuckled nervously, turning a little and watching as the doors opened at the entrance to the dining hall, Marie walking in with her Happiny in her arms. "Well...you see-"
"Guys!" Ash looked up in surprise as Marie rushed towards them, her eyes going to him and Dawn. "Ash! Dawn! Professor Sycamore wants to see you!"
"What? About the IPL?" Dawn asked, sitting up a bit straighter. It was a bit strange, since they'd only been called by Professor Sycamore once, when they'd been declared captains of the teams.
"I guess so," Marie said, shrugging as she sat down, helping herself to some of the fruit that Dawn was now leaving on the table as she sat up. "Doesn't seem like anything bad, though. He seemed kind of excited. Some kind of special event or something."
Dawn looked over to Ash as he stared blankly, wondering just what it could be for. "Come on, Ash, let's go!"
"Huh...oh right!" He quickly got up, taking one last bite of food, and then followed after Dawn, waving to his friends as he did so.
The two of them quickly made their way through the crowds of students and then out of the dining hall and into the lobby of the Greninja building, noticing Professor Sycamore waiting for them near the front doors. He seemed to be holding some envelopes in his hands, smiling over at the pair as he finished talking to a student that had been with him. As he noticed her leaving, Ash realized she looked a lot like Jessie's disguise during the tournament. This was confirmed as he and Dawn reached the Professor.
"That was Julie, in case you were wondering," he said, looking out the window as the girl walked away, a spring in her step as she reached the sidewalk and turned away. "I felt she deserved a bit of a consolation prize, given what happened with Team Rocket, so she was just collecting a Froakie, who just arrived from a breeder a few days ago."
"That's great!" Ash said, happy that the girl had managed to get something out of Team Rocket's meddling. He was sure she would've liked to participate, but getting a new Pokemon was definitely a positive, and maybe even the best prize of all. "Next time, Team Rocket won't stand a chance against her!"
Sycamore laughed at that, looking back at Ash. "Even if they do show up again, I doubt they'll have anything that can match Hala's Z-Move."
"Z-Move?" Ash and Dawn asked at the same time, before the latter seemed to realize what Sycamore was referring to. "Was that the move that Hala used with that Crabominable?"
Sycamore nodded. "Yes, it was quite impressive, wasn't it? I would love to learn more about it, as it seems somewhat similar to Mega Evolution. There was definitely a very strong connection between him and his Pokemon."
"Do you think he might teach us about it while he's here?" Ash asked excitedly, wondering if he could teach his Pokemon how to use powerful moves like that. When he'd noticed how tired Hala had seemed after using it, it had made him think of some of the moves he'd used with Greninja. It might be good training for us if I can learn to use that kind of power.
"I suppose you'll have to ask Hala about that when you meet with him this week, but I'm sure he'll be excited to talk about one of his fields of expertise." Sycamore then paused, looking at the envelopes in his hand, before looking back at Ash and Dawn. "As for today, though, we've got something else to look forward to. This morning, I received an invitation for a special event that Coumarine College will be hosting this weekend."
"Is it another tournament?" Dawn asked, smirking as Ash's eyes lit up. Even though they'd just had one, he was definitely interested in getting another chance. As much as he'd learned at school so far, he probably hadn't had as much of a chance to get into meaningful battles as he had back when he'd been travelling. And considering he'd lost both his IPL matches, he was eager to get on a winning streak.
Sycamore laughed, noticing Ash's excited look, but then shook his head, handing one of the envelopes to Dawn. Ash noticed it had her name across the front and looked over her shoulder as she opened it up, a letter on the inside. She read the first part to herself, but read it aloud once she reached the most important part. "As a fellow competitor in the Interschool Pokemon League, Coumarine College would like to invite you, along with your teammates at Lumiose Unversity, to a special event hosted by the Coumarine College staff and students. A dance will be hosted in one of our prized Performance halls, where we hope you will join us in a night of celebration, along with our students, and competitors joining us from Shalour College and Laverre University. Formal dress is required."
"A what?" Ash asked, suddenly not so excited as he looked up nervously at Professor Sycamore. "Are we...do we really need to...?"
Dawn turned, narrowing her eyes as she looked at Ash. "Don't be silly, Ash!" she said, hitting him lightly on the arm. "Just because you don't want to go, doesn't mean our team shouldn't be able to. Besides, I'm sure Serena would love this."
"Huh? What does that have to do with-"
"We're going," Dawn interrupted, taking the rest of the envelopes from Professor Sycamore, who looked a little surprised as he watched the exchange in front of him. "Thanks Professor Sycamore. You can let them know we plan to participate. All of us!"
She started to drag Ash back towards the dining hall as Sycamore suddenly called out to them once more. "Make sure to tell Marie that she's welcome to come along as well. And Clemont's sister can help take care of the Pokemon if she wants to come as well!"
Dawn gave one last wave of acknowledgement before dragging Ash back into the dining hall, hurriedly pulling him towards their breakfast table once they were inside, their friends looking surprised at the very different reactions they seemed to be having. Ash wasn't exactly unhappy, it was just that he had been expecting something battle-related. He supposed it didn't make much difference on his face, though, with the way his friends were looking at him.
"What is it?" Serena finally asked, casting a concerned look at Ash, before turning her attention to Dawn, who passed out the envelopes.
"After the IPL matches, Coumarine College is hosting a dance. They've invited us, along with Shalour College and Laverre University," Dawn explained, sitting down next to Marie, while Ash managed to find his seat as well, finally looking over his own letter.
"A dance?" Tierno asked excitedly, already moving like it was about to start. "Cool, I can't wait to move and groove!"
"I don't think it'll be that kind of dancing," Trevor pointed out, chuckling a little.
"Us performers should be fine, right Serena?" Shauna said, happily reading over her own letter, looking over to the honey-blonde, who apparently didn't seem as happy, instead looking a little flustered, her cheeks reddening a little. "Serena?"
"Huh? Oh...yeah, I suppose so. Um...Dawn...is this part about the...is the last part right?" Serena managed to squeak out, pointing to a line on her letter.
Dawn smiled, almost like she knew what Serena was referring to, before she looked at the same section of her own letter. "Yep," she said proudly, looking around at everyone, before resting her eyes on Ash, while Serena seemed to do the same.
"What's true?" Clemont asked, quickly scanning over his own letter, before seemingly picking up on it, his eyes widening as he too started to look nervous, much like he'd been earlier when talking about Korrina.
Dawn laughed as she noticed his reaction, Shauna giggling as she read whatever it was as well. "We need dates."
The events from breakfast time were still swirling around Serena's mind, especially as she exchanged a look with Ash as they waited for Reggie to arrive to start their Breeding class. She couldn't deny that she was excited about the dance this weekend, knowing it should be a fun night. However, she knew that the next few days were going to be very nerve-wracking, and that wasn't even with her thinking about their team's desperate need to earn some points for the IPL.
Now's not the time to think about all of that, she told herself, looking back over to Ash, who was checking up on Riolu, while Pikachu watched from his shoulder. Class is what's most important at the moment. And making sure Riolu is doing well
"Dawn said that we'll probably be talking about our exams with Reggie today," Ash suddenly said, getting Serena's attention. "Apparently that's what they talked about yesterday. Seems like a lot of classes are involving our exams now. It's getting kind of crazy. I don't even know if I'll be able to pass our Healthcare class."
Serena giggled at that remembering their review class the previous day, when Ash had accidentally sprayed water, which was acting as a potion of some sort, into Hawlucha's face during an exercise. Ultimately, it had caused the table that Ash, Serena and Marie were working on, to become a few pieces of splintered wood, as the surprised fighting type lashed out with a few Karate Chop attacks.
"Speaking of that, is Hawlucha okay after yesterday?" Serena asked, managing to stop her giggling.
"Yeah, he'll be fine. I don't think Nurse Joy wants me to do any other exercises with him in her class, though. Too bad...I thought he might work for one of those bandaging ones." Serena bit back another laugh at that, remembering Pikachu's tail having been tied to his foot. She made a mental note to make sure to work a bit on those things with Ash before the exam came up. She'd managed to learn fairly well with Marie's help.
"Maybe you should do something with Riolu," Serena suggested, patting the young fighting type gently on the head. "He'll do a little less damage if something...you know...happens."
"Nothing will happen!" Ash said, looking a little indignant, before chuckling as he thought about it a moment. "Hmm...well, I guess maybe I should think about it. The others do seem to cause a bit more damage if there's a mistake. Oh well, it means they're strong! Right, Pikachu!"
"Pika!" Pikachu agreed happily, turning at the sound of the door opening, where Reggie was walking in.
Serena and Ash focused on the man, along with the rest of the class, as he made his way to his desk, placing his things on it, before standing in front to address everyone. "Hello class," Reggie greeted the group, a few students murmuring their own greeting back. "As some of you may have heard, today we'll be going over what you'll be doing for the exams coming up. I'll be checking up on your Pokemon and we'll confirm the details of what you'll be doing." Serena noticed Clemont opening up his notebook in the seat in front, already getting ready to get the information needed for his exam with Shauna and Skitty.
"Feeling good, Riolu?" Ash whispered to the Emanation Pokemon, giving him one last look over to see if anything was wrong. Serena wasn't worried, though, knowing that taking care of Pokemon was something she and Ash could definitely ace with any class.
"Ruru!" Riolu said a little loudly, getting a laugh out of some of the students, before Reggie continued.
"Exams will be starting up over the next few weeks before your break, so most of our focus will be on the status of the Pokemon you received from your eggs," the man said, looking around at some of the Pokemon that were out. "I'll give a background on some things like nutrition and healthcare which will help in other classes, but there will also be plenty of work you'll need to do with your partners, or independently if your partner isn't in the same class. Out of class, you'll also need to do some training to make sure you're ready for your battle or performance."
Serena looked over to Ash, noticing that he seemed both excited and confused. Obviously, he couldn't wait to get started on training and getting Riolu ready, but he could see there was definitely going to be plenty of classwork as well. "We'll be able to do this, right Ash?" she said, winking at him.
"Of course! It'll be just like getting my Pokemon ready for a gym battle," he said, nodding confidently. "Riolu will do great."
Reggie continued for a few minutes after that, explaining what the process would be for the different exam choices that people had chosen for their Pokemon. For Serena, Ash and Riolu, along with the others who had selected performances, their exams would be taking place at the theatre in the training facilities, where Reggie would be judging them along with Fantina who had offered her help.
"Performances will not be judged as strictly as official competitions such as Showcases and IPL matches," Reggie was quick to explain. "The most important part of all your exams is how you have raised your Pokemon, and how you work with it."
Once he was done explaining some of the exam process, he went through some of the nutrition material he'd discussed earlier. While it appeared that most of the class, including Serena and Ash, had been keeping their Pokemon well fed, Reggie was careful to inform them of some important foods and diets that were particularly helpful in the growth of young Pokemon. Serena was also interested to learn about some of the different diets that were helpful for Pokemon that were more focused on performing.
By the time he was done, there were still a few minutes left in the class, giving Reggie enough time to go around and do a quick checkup on the Pokemon. As Serena and Ash waited, they once again looked over Riolu, making sure he was doing well. Of course, he looked fine, particularly in comparison to Ash, who looked pretty tired after the class, clearly still not used to sitting through lectures like that after all the travelling he'd done. Serena couldn't really blame him, feeling a bit restless at this point herself.
"What Pokemon do you think we should use with Riolu for the exam?" Ash asked after a moment, yawning in unison with Pikachu. "We do get to use another, right?"
"Yeah," Serena said, having almost forgotten that in all the information received in the class today. "Well...I haven't really thought about it. Riolu hasn't really had a chance to work with any of my Pokemon in a Performance yet."
"Hm...I guess Braixen is probably our best bet," Ash said, looking thoughtful. "But maybe...maybe we should try using another Pokemon that hasn't performed before."
"What do you mean?" Serena asked, surprised at the idea, although she didn't want to disagree just yet, knowing Ash must've had a reason for suggesting it.
"If Riolu is working with an experienced Performer, like Braixen, it might be tough for him to keep up. I bet he'd learn more, sure, but maybe he could learn just by having your other Pokemon helping us in training. If we have another Pokemon who hasn't performed join in on the exam, they can learn along with him, and then they'll know what to do together." He stopped for a moment, looking at Riolu, the fighting type looking interested in what he was saying. Serena, although a little hesitant, could somewhat understand as well. "I was thinking Hawlucha might be a good idea. He likes to put on a show, and he and Riolu get along really well."
Serena knew that Braixen, Sylveon or Pancham would probably be able to perform very well alongside Riolu. Really, she wasn't worried about the exam, knowing she and Ash could likely figure out a routine that Riolu would be able to perform quite well. However, she did want to make this easy on the young Pokemon, and Ash had a point about giving him a partner that could learn alongside him, and also encourage him. And Hawlucha definitely had some kind of Performer's blood in him. "I think it's a good idea. Yeah, Hawlucha should be great!"
Riolu seemed quite pleased by that giving a little cheer as Reggie appeared at their desks, smiling at the small fighting type. "Looks like Riolu is doing very well," he said, leaning down and examining the Emanation Pokemon a little more closely. "Eating well?"
"Any Pokemon of mine always eats well," Ash assured the Pokemon Breeder. "We'll make sure to try some of that stuff you were talking about in class, though."
"That's good, although if he's doing well, there's no need to change things too much," Reggie pointed out. "Do whatever you do with Pikachu and it should be fine."
"Maybe with a little less ketchup, though," Ash joked, exchanging a smile with Pikachu. Serena had definitely noticed Pikachu's love of ketchup, with the electric mouse grabbing a packet whenever he could from the dining hall before many of their meals.
After another moment of checking over Riolu, Reggie appeared to check them off on a list, before looking up at them curiously. "So, any ideas for how the exam performance will go?" he asked, directing the question at Serena.
"We were just talking about maybe using Ash's Hawlucha with Riolu, since they get along so well, and it might be easier for Riolu to work with another Pokemon that isn't experienced with performing," Serena explained, starting to like the idea more and more now that she thought of it. A few routines were already on her mind. It seemed like a good opportunity for her to work on something different that could help her out in her future official performances.
Reggie looked interested in the idea as well, nodding. "It could certainly make things more comfortable for him."
"Serena's the best Performer there is, so I bet she'll help them do something awesome!" Ash said confidently, looking like he wanted to start performing right then and there.
"Awww, that's too bad that you didn't win," Korrina said sadly, giving Clemont a sympathetic look. "I can tell you gave it everything you got, though! Good for you, Clemont!"
On the screen in front of her, Clemont's face was a mixture of happy and confused. "I thought I was supposed to accept nothing but losing," he said, although not very seriously as he did add a short laugh to the question.
Korrina jokingly narrowed her eyes. "You know that's not what I meant!" she told him. "I just wanted you to go in there with confidence, knowing you had a chance. And besides, it was a close match, right? You easily could've won."
Clemont chuckled nervously at that, rubbing his nose a little. "I don't know...Ash seems to find a way. Even you know that, right?"
"I guess that's true," Korrina laughed out. "But hey, the real victory is that your Pokemon evolved! How's Grotle doing?"
"I don't know," Clemont admitted, looking slightly worried. "He's a bit too big for the dorm room now, so he's kind of down about that. Lost some speed, too. Ash says his Torterra went through the same thing when it evolved, so hopefully he'll be okay. He's still trying to eat my notebooks."
"He'll be fine, I'm sure of it!" Korrina said encouragingly. "Maybe I can help you train with him when I see you this weekend."
Clemont jumped a little in surprise at that. "See me? Wh-what do you mean?" he asked, fidgeting uncomfortably in his seat.
Korrina smiled, amused by his nervousness. "The dance, Clemont! The one in Coumarine! You're going, right? You and the others?"
"Um...yeah, I guess so," he muttered, now avoiding eye contact. "But...uh...I don't dance. And apparently we...um..."
"Need a date?" Korrina finished for him, smiling brightly. She wasn't going to make this hard for him. "You've got one! We're going together, aren't we?"
"Huh? What? I...to-together? Us?" If he hadn't been so shocked, Korrina was sure he'd be as red as a Tamato Berry.
"Please, Clemont?" She waited a moment for him to recover a bit, before persisting. "Do you need to check with your sister?"
That seemed to do it. "What?! No!" He quickly shook his head, managing an awkward smile as he leaned forward. "Y-yes. I would like to go with you."
"Awesome! Well, I guess I'll see you on the weekend after the matches then. Our school should be there by Sunday! Make sure to wear something nice!" With that, she ended the call, feeling her own sense of awkwardness now that all of that had been arranged. Had she just asked Clemont on a date? Did this mean they were...?
A bell suddenly rang out from the front desk of the Pokemon Centre she was in, and Korrina quickly looked up, noticing Nurse Joy walking out with her pokeballs. "You're Pokemon are all in fighting shape, Korrina," she said happily as the Shalour Gym Leader approached.
"Great! Thanks Nurse Joy!" She quickly took the pokeballs, eager to get started on the rest of her day, now that classes were done, and she still had time before one of her grandfather's training sessions at the gym. With another wave towards Nurse Joy, Korrina turned and made her way out of the Pokemon Centre, and set off on the path towards the forest.
Over the past few weeks, she'd continued to do mini searches whenever she had time. With Officer Jenny and the police having moved their investigation out of the surrounding area, it had been easier to search more recently. However, Korrina had been disappointed with the results so far, finding nothing that could help, with the exception of an abandoned site that had already been found by police. Even with Elekid helping most of the time, all the best locations where people could've been hiding appeared to have no signs of activity.
It was a little discouraging, especially since Korrina had hoped to inform Clemont and the others of some kind of progress, but she supposed that working on her own with just her Pokemon and Elekid wasn't going to be as effective as she'd hoped. She'd considered asking some of her IPL teammates to help, but knew it wasn't a good idea to attract too much attention. They had been told to stay out of it after all.
"Bee bee bee!"
The sudden shout, accompanied by a spark of electricity shooting into the air, brought Korrina out of her thoughts, and she looked up, noticing Elekid emerging from the forest, waving his little arms in greeting. She quickly called out Lucario, who stepped forward to exchange a fist bump with the electric type, before greeting it herself. They'd become fairly good friends with this Elekid, and Korrina was definitely glad to have its support. He definitely seemed to know the forest fairly well, and even though they hadn't found much, at least Elekid had helped them to avoid searching the same places too much.
"Hey Elekid, doing okay?" Korrina asked, kneeling down and giving the electric type a pokepuff that she'd picked up at the Pokemon Centre, before handing over another to Lucario. From what she'd heard of Serena's pokepuffs, these probably weren't nearly as good, but the two Pokemon seemed to enjoy them.
"Bee bee!" Elekid thanked her, before turning around, apparently deciding to get to business right away. He pointed ahead, not even looking back before starting to march forward. Korrina exchanged an amused glance with Lucario before the two of them followed after the Electric Pokemon.
With that, they were on yet another trek through the forest, one that was becoming quite familiar to them by this point. Korrina was definitely still glad to have Elekid with them, though, knowing that she could likely still get lost if she spent too long looking around, and ventured too deep. It definitely seemed like Elekid had learned about all the best places to go. From what Korrina could see, he had probably been here quite a long time, and didn't seem to spend much time with other Pokemon.
Korrina had considered trying to catch Elekid a few times, but she'd realized fairly quickly that he wasn't too comfortable leaving the forest. It was likely the reason he'd attacked her and Clemont back when they'd been searching for Absol when he'd run away during Serena's performance. It had almost made her wonder if perhaps he'd had some kind of run-in with the hunters that had been around here, but she knew from Absol that if a Pokemon managed to escape them, they'd be scarred quite severely, and not just physically.
With the thought of the damage these hunters could do on her mind, Korrina picked up her pace, noticing Lucario and Elekid walk a little faster in front of her once they noticed. Perhaps they wouldn't find much more in the forest, but they had to try. The least it would do, was eliminate the possibility that they were still lurking near Shalour City. If they could do that, people in neighbouring cities might be able to stay on higher alert, knowing the hunters could be near them. It wouldn't be a big victory, but it was her duty as a Gym Leader to give her best effort, and help in any way she could.
As they continued walking, Korrina made note of some of the places they'd searched previously as they passed them. When they passed the original clearing they'd found with Clemont and the others, she noticed that it had been cleaned up, the police apparently done with the investigation completely in that area. A few Pokemon were peacefully playing there, and it did make Korrina glad that it wasn't such a gruesome clearing anymore. She did wish she'd had a better chance to look over it before, though, not able to help but wonder if Officer Jenny and the others had missed some important detail.
When they'd been walking for a little over half an hour, Elekid began to slow down, apparently deciding they were nearing an area they could look around. Korrina was happy with that, noticing that they were in a fairly unrecognizable part of the forest at this point. She couldn't help but notice the cautious looks from some of the Pokemon around as she looked, getting the feeling that they were distrustful of her. While she wanted them to know she was no threat, she did feel this could be a sign that the hunters may have been around this area, and perhaps recently.
"Bee bee..."
"Something wrong, Elekid?" Korrina asked, stopping as she noticed the electric type halt in front of her, looking around curiously.
"Ru..." Lucario growled out, narrowing his eyes and tensing up.
Korrina immediately felt a sense of danger, but when she looked around and listened for any sign of trouble, she couldn't spot anything. It made the activity of the surrounding Pokemon more understandable, though. She had the sense that something had happened in this area, and that it hadn't been pleasant. Fortunately, though, it appeared there was no current sign of danger, so her suspicions about whatever threat, which may very well be the hunters, being gone, was likely true.
"Think there's anything around here, guys?" Korrina called out to Elekid and Lucario. Both Pokemon remained tense as they looked around, studying their surroundings closely. They watched some of the Pokemon rustling through the bushes, or scurrying up into the trees, but other than that they didn't seem to notice anything else. Eventually, they both relaxed a little, each looking to Korrina and shaking their heads.
The three of them waited a moment longer, a bit more cautious now, given the behaviour of some of the Pokemon, but eventually Elekid led them a little further ahead and into another clearing. While no hunters were around, Korrina was becoming more and more certain that they had, indeed, been around this part of the forest. Perhaps not even many of them, but there had likely been some activity recently. The Pokemon were too nervous for it to be anything natural.
Taking a look around the clearing they were in, Korrina didn't notice anything sticking out, but she knew it was probably a good place to start. With the very clearly nervous Pokemon around, they had a better chance than most days of finding some sign of activity. She doubted they would find a scene like they did on the day of the IPL match, though, considering that had likely been a site where the hunters had needed to leave quickly. It was possible they'd been a little more hidden in this part of the forest, at least for a smaller number of them.
"Anything sticking out, Elekid?" Korrina asked the electric type, wondering if he'd be able to lead them to anything specific.
Elekid didn't seem to be too sure of anything, though, turning around and shrugging in her direction. However, just as Korrina was about to start looking around, noticing Lucario already starting to do so, she noticed something approaching from the trees. Lucario quickly stopped his searching, noticing the movement as well, and the two of them watched as a Fletchling came to a stop, hovering in front of Elekid.
"Fletch! Fletching fletch!" the Tiny Robin Pokemon chirped out, sounding a little panicked, but looking a little relieved upon seeing their group. "Fletchling!"
"Bee bee!" Elekid's eyes widened, and he turned to Korrina. "Bee!" he said, pointing at Fletchling, who turned around and started flying into some bushes.
Korrina looked over to Lucario, who nodded back, having understood whatever was said between the two other Pokemon. "All right, let's go!" she said, nodding and quickly following after Elekid and Fletchling.
It was about another five minutes as they made their way deeper into the forest, going through thick bushes and muddy paths. However, eventually Fletchling brought them to a large tree, where a nest of leaves lay on low hanging branch. The Tiny Robin Pokemon looked to Korrina with a pleading look in its eyes, before flying over towards the branch, and looking inside. It was then that Korrina heard a small, very soft, whining sound.
"Vi...vi...vi..."
She took a few steps forward, holding her hand up for Elekid and Lucario to wait. When she approached, the noise grew a little louder, and she quickly started to recognize what kind of Pokemon it must've been. And when she finally looked into the small nest of leaves, her suspicions were proved true, seeing the very sickly looking Vivillon, with the Elegant pattern, lying there, breathing heavily. It looked poorly fed and badly scarred.
"Was this Vivillon with the hunters?" Korrina asked the Fletchling, her eyes wide with the horror of what she was seeing. The Fletchling nodded, looking pleadingly at her, and she knew it wanted her to take it to a Pokemon Centre as fast as possible. She nodded back, very carefully reaching into the nest and scooping the Pokemon up into her arms, before looking back towards Elekid and Lucario. "All right you two, we need...Lucario?"
She was surprised to see the Aura Pokemon approaching her, looking down, apparently noticing something at her feet. He seemed to be almost drawn to whatever it was, his ears raised up a little and his eyes sharpened. As Korrina held up the Vivillon in her arms, keeping it close and ensuring it was comfortable, she watched as Lucario bent down, picking something up off the ground in front of her.
"Ru ru..." he growled out, slowly rising and holding up the item he'd picked up.
"Fletch fletchling..." Fletchling squeaked out fearfully, apparently signalling that the item had come from the hunters.
Korrina narrowed her eyes at that, examining it closely as Lucario held it up to her. "What are the hunters doing with a Lucarionite?"
"Hawlucha, I choose you!" Ash tossed out the pokeball as Serena and Riolu stepped forward onto the stage in front of him, Braixen out there with them. The fire type seemed to be excited about her coaching role, and Serena seemed just as excited to work with some different Pokemon for a Performance routine.
"Lucha!" Hawlucha shouted out, emerging from the pokeball with a flip in midair, before striking a pose in front of the trio before him.
"Looks like Hawlucha's all ready to get going!" Serena laughed out, Braixen smiling next to her as Hawluch bowed.
Ash nodded, chuckling a little as he made his way forward and knelt next to his fighting type. "Hey Hawlucha, we've come up with something a little...unusual, and I think you might be able to do a really great job with it."
"Haw...hawlucha?" Hawlucha said questioningly, tilting his head.
"See...Riolu is going to be doing a Performance for one of our exams," Ash explained, looking over to the young fighting type. "He gets to perform with another Pokemon, though, and we thought, even though you're more of a fighter, you would work really well with Riolu. I think it might even help to give us some ideas for our battles in the future. You never know what kinds of strategies we might come up with."
Hawlucha didn't seem too sure as Ash finished his explanation, looking somewhat hesitant. Ash knew that, although Hawlucha loved his theatrics, his true calling was a hard fought battle where he could exchange blow after blow with his opponents. He did seem to think it through, though, looking over to Riolu and Serena, each looking excitedly back, the latter adding an encouraging smile. Eventually, Hawlucha looked back at Ash and gave him a confident nod, clearly ready to prove he could be successful in this unusual task.
"Awesome! Thanks, Hawlucha!" Ash said, giving the hawk a fist bump, before getting to his feet and going to the back of the stage. He would do his best to contribute to the Performance, but he knew that letting Serena test things out to begin with was their best way to start their training.
"I'm sure you'll do a great job, Hawlucha!" Serena said encouragingly to the fighting type. "And don't worry, I'll help you and Riolu as much as I can."
"Ru ru!" Riolu added, looking excited to get started.
"Haw hawlucha!" Hawlucha nodded, flexing his muscles as he looked up at Serena.
"All right, so what I was thinking, was trying to focus on Hawlucha and Riolu as fighting types, since they aren't as well known for their special attacks," Serena suggested to Ash. "Maybe their Performance can be more like...a mock battle."
"Think that could work?" Ash asked, surprised at the suggestion. He knew that they wouldn't be able to do anything quite like Serena's regular performances, but he'd expected something a little more "Performance-like".
"The idea of a Performance, and even just the exam, is to show how close we are to our Pokemon, and how we've raised them and grown together" Serena pointed out. "It's not always about being the flashiest. It's something I've thought about ever since watching your battles."
Ash didn't expect that, looking up in confusion at Pikachu on his shoulder, before returning his gaze to Serena. "My battles? How can they work for performances?"
Serena paused for a moment, looking thoughtful. "Your battles always show how close you are with your Pokemon. Especially with your Pokemon like Pikachu or Greninja, or even Hawlucha here. You're always fighting as partners, and it never really seems like it's a trainer and a Pokemon. It's almost like you're out on the field with them, encouraging them through all the toughest moments and enjoying all the best moments. I think that's something that we can show in a Performance. And I Hawlucha and Riolu would be perfect to do it with!"
Ash thought on that for a moment, immediately liking the idea. He always liked to think of himself as a trainer that fought with his Pokemon, rather than simply commanding them from the sidelines. That's what training had always been about. It was something he particularly enjoyed about his special bond with Greninja. He loved the idea that he was out there with his Pokemon, battling as one. The idea of showing that off in a Performance seemed like the perfect way to involve him, and he was sure that if anyone could pull something like that off, it was Serena. She'd definitely come to know him very well, and he couldn't have been happier to be working with her on this.
"Yeah, I think that could be awesome!" he finally said, Serena smiling brightly at his answer.
"Great!" she said, turning and looking at Braixen. "Okay, well the first thing I think we should do, is have Braixen help demonstrate. Maybe Hawlucha should go first as well, so Riolu can see how he does it."
Ash nodded in agreement, stepping back a bit as Braixen and Hawlucha both stepped in front of Serena, each preparing to get started. He couldn't help but laugh as Braixen faced out towards where the audience would normally be, while Hawlucha faced Braixen as though she was an opponent in battle. The fighting type seemed to realize it quickly, though, turning and facing the imaginary audience as well.
"All right, Braixen get things started with Flamethrower! Spin and start to approach Hawlucha!" Serena ordered, stepping forward and starting a pirouette of her own as Braixen began, her branch extended outwards as small bursts of flames began shooting out. "And Hawlucha, you...um...use Flying Press and fly over Braixen to extinguish the flames."
"Lucha?" The Wrestling Pokemon quickly glanced back at Ash, who nodded for him to listen to Serena, before he leaped upwards while the spinning Braixen approached, circles of flames left behind her. The fighting type spread his cape-like wings midair, posing proudly, before rocketing himself downwards and straight into the flames. The speed at which he moved was perfect for what Serena had apparently envisioned, creating a gust of wind as he darted through the circles of flames, blowing them outwards as Braixen finished on one side of the stage and he landed softly at the other end. When both Pokemon looked back, the flames had died, a few embers dropping down as Serena and Ash cheered for the successful start.
"Perfect! Great job, Hawlucha!" Serena called out, the fighting type looking quite proud of himself as she did so, posing to the imaginary crowd and bowing, already starting to enjoy the performing he had seemed hesitant about. "Do you want to try something now, Riolu?" Serena asked, kneeling down next to the younger fighting type, who looked awed by his idol's immediate success.
"Ru ru!" Riolu nodded quickly, clearly ready to start as soon as possible. Riolu didn't know many moves yet, with being so young, but in a little test earlier, he had shown off some talent that Serena had been sure she could work with, so Ash was excited to see what she had in mind.
Hawlucha and Riolu then switched places, Braixen remaining out front to help guide Riolu through his first try. When the two of them were ready, Serena and Ash looked at one another, Ash nodding to signal he was ready, before Serena called out her orders. "Let's test out Riolu's speed first. Braixen, use Hidden Power! Riolu, use Quick Attack and jump over it!"
"BraiiiXEN!" Braixen shouted, forming the orb quickly, before launching it forwards towards Riolu, who tensed up, ready for his first real test of his abilities.
"Ru ru!" he cried out, breaking out into a run. Ash clenched his fists, a little nervous to see the young fighting type charging towards the incoming attack. He remained confident, though, trusting that Riolu could be successful. "Ru!" the Emanation Pokemon cried out once more as he reached the orb with his speedy run, before suddenly jumping and flipping right over it, his body seemingly rolling over the orb as he did so. He came to a stop, stumbling a little, before rising up and looking proudly over to Serena, and then Ash.
"You did it!" Ash called out, quickly running up to the fighting type, along with Serena and the other Pokemon. When he reached Riolu, he knelt down, quickly picking him up and smiling up at him. "That was an awesome Quick Attack! You might be as fast as Pikachu someday!"
"Pika!" Pikachu said in agreement, looking just as pleased.
"I was pretty nervous at first, but that was a great start, Riolu," Serena added, looking happy for the small success, but also relieved.
"Lucha lucha!" Hawlucha said as well, almost looking like he was tearing up as he held a clawed hand up to his eyes, before reaching out with a fist, which Riolu happily bumped his own against as Ash put him back down.
"So what do you say, Riolu?" Serena asked, standing back up. "Want to try a few other things? And you as well, Hawlucha?"
Ash smiled as both Pokemon nodded excitedly. Performing wasn't something he would want to do forever, but he could definitely see why Serena enjoyed it, just from this small practice session so far. He couldn't wait to see what they came up with for a final routine, and he could already tell that their Pokemon were going to pull off something great.
They spent the next two hours practising little mini routines, making sure that both Riolu and Hawlucha could get a proper feeling for what performing was like, before they would begin with something more complicated. Ash supposed it was also for his benefit, as he wasn't exactly experienced with it either. Serena was definitely a good teacher, though, being very patient with all of them, no matter how many questions Ash had, or no matter how many times Hawlucha would start trying to pull Pikachu into a training battle when he got frustrated with some of his mistakes.
It was becoming more and more apparent to him that the more time he spent with Serena, Ash was enjoying it more and more. He enjoyed spending time with all of his friends, of course, but he had definitely enjoyed just the two of them working with their Pokemon for a few hours today. It was something different, and a good learning experience when it came to performances, but it was also something...special. It was like the night they'd gone out to dinner together, just the two of them. It made him wonder about what was happening on the weekend. Dawn did mention we needed to go to the dance with someone...maybe I should...
"I think that's probably good enough for today, Ash," Serena suddenly said, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Riolu seems to be getting pretty tired." She then laughed upon looking at Ash. "You look kind of tired too. I don't think you were even paying attention to our last routine."
"Huh...no I...I was thinking about something," Ash muttered, scratching the back of his neck nervously. He was definitely a little more uncomfortable than he'd been a couple of minutes ago. Stopping for the day was probably a good idea, before he got too lost in his thoughts. His stomach rumbled loudly as if in answer, and he was grateful for the excuse.
"I guess that's what it was," Serena said, giggling as Ash blushed, rubbing his stomach. "Let's go eat, then!"
Ash nodded, pulling out Hawlucha's pokeball and recalling the Wrestling Pokemon back into it, while Pikachu jumped up onto his shoulder. Serena recalled Braixen as well, before she picked up Riolu. With that, the two of them made their way out of the theatre, out into the lobby of the training facilities and out onto the streets of Lumiose City.
As the two of them walked, Ash a few steps behind Serena, he couldn't help but imagine what she would look like at the Coumarine dance.
Author's Note:
Oh Ashy boy...is something on your mind?
Obviously not too too much happened this chapter, but we now know that a dance will be coming up after the final IPL match of the semester, and that our heroes need to bring a date. I know, I know...kind of cheesy and maybe a bit cliche but it gives us an opportunity for some you know what moments that have been very minor in comparison to GCTO. And...other things may connect to it.
And of course, Riolu is now in training, learning some Performance tricks along with Hawlucha for their exam. Not super important, but it gives him an opportunity to get some focus, along with developing him as a Pokemon that can have a style that's a mix of Ash and Serena.
Most important of course, was Korrina's little adventure, and finding the Vivillon in the forest, along with a Lucarionite. How very mysterious...I wonder what all of this could mean.
And with that, we wait till the next chapter. Don't worry, it won't be a crazy gap. There is a special surprise for everyone, though. Today is a special day! My new story, which is actually an old story, debuts today! "Generation Z – Hoenn Alone" which is a reboot of an old cancelled story, "Pokemon – Generation Bonnie", is out now! I've published the prologue and the first chapter, and you can expect chapters 2 and 3 on Wednesday. I hope you'll all give it a shot. I think it'll be fun for anyone who misses the adventure aspect of GCTO that you can't quite get in a story like this. So, bye for now, and hopefully you enjoy.