Author's Note:
A milestone chapter...sort of. Ah, it's nice to hit chapter 20. We're approaching the good stuff now. Just a wee bit more set up here, though. Hope you enjoy.
Chapter 62: Ninja-lola
Meowth was growing more and more frustrated each day that he and his companions remained in the cave just outside the Wetlands. They'd decided to wait and heal up after the fall from the hunter base, with Meowth's head still aching when he moved too much, and with both Wobbuffet and Skiddo still banged up as well. They might've risked finding another place, but Meowth was a little nervous about attracting attention from the Wetlands Pokemon given what he'd done with Jessie and James to their water supply. Skiddo had also noticed hunters still near the area as well, searching a forest north of the cliff, and they definitely didn't want to be caught by them.
Meowth wasn't sure quite yet if he found it comforting that the hunters hadn't targeted the Wetlands Pokemon, or ominous. He supposed it was still risky if they planned to attack trainers at the IPL Playoffs, as it would attract a significant amount of attention. With it being near their base, too, it would be more difficult to keep out of the way of any investigations. He also supposed the Wetlands Pokemon would be a bit more capable of fighting back as well, which could make future plans more difficult if they needed to recover.
The thought of the hunters' plan to attack the IPL Playoffs made Meowth think of Jessie and James as he lay on his nest of leaves that Skiddo had gathered for him. If none of this had happened, they probably would've been planning on some kind of attack of their own. They would've been targeting Pikachu most of all of course, but they would've been excited by the likely strong Pokemon that other trainers would've brought. And surely plenty of the teachers had strong Pokemon to nab as well.
Meowth sighed as he imagined what they might've done. For some reason, he couldn't imagine it being anything like what he assumed the hunters would do. Really, he couldn't imagine them succeeding in the end. Was that because they weren't as prepared as the hunters would be, though? Was it because the hunters had more people and Pokemon to use?
"Maybe we just ain't that evil," Meowth murmured to himself, clapping a paw to his mouth as the words escaped his lips. He looked to Wobbuffet in horror, hoping his old Team Rocket companion hadn't heard him. Fortunately, Wobbuffet seemed to be sleeping, lying on his side and facing the opposite wall of the cave.
A small smirk came to Meowth's face as he watched Wobbuffet a moment. Part of him couldn't help but think it was a bit of a break for Wobbuffet to not have to deal with Jessie getting angry at him for his noise, or popping out of his pokeball randomly. Of course, he knew that wasn't true. He'd seen Wobbuffet looking longingly outside the cave every night, and he knew Jessie, deep down, cared for him as well.
He looked to the entrance to the cave as Skiddo arrived, the Mount Pokemon done his morning patrol. He'd been the healthiest of the three, and seemed to be the most capable of scouting out the area around the cliff, so he'd taken it upon himself to keep an eye out. Meowth had been nervous at first, but Skiddo had done well, and since it seemed to be increasing his confidence to help so much, it seemed a good thing to continue if he was careful.
"Anything new out there, pal?" Meowth asked Skiddo, sitting up and smiling as he noticed the berries the Mount Pokemon had brought. He noticed Wobbuffet stirring as well as he shuffled over to sit with them.
"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo bleated out in answer, lying down in front of Meowth and Wobbuffet and sliding each of them their share of the berries. "Doo-oo-oo!" He sounded fairly upset.
Meowth fiddled with his charm as he thought on what Skiddo had said for a moment. "So you got a glimpse of some more hunters, huh?" Skiddo nodded as Meowth looked nervously outside the cave, where it seemed peaceful despite the situation. "And dey were in trucks?"
"Doo-oo-oo!" Skiddo bleated out again, a little more upset, before looking down sadly at his berries. "Doo-oo-oo..."
Meowth frowned, tail flicking nervously. "Transferring Pokemon, huh? I guess dey got some more, or maybe der moving some away since we got out of der."
"Wobba wob wobba?" Wobbuffet asked a moment later, eating some of his berries as he looked to Skiddo, and then Meowth. "Wobba."
"You wanna try rescuin' some of dem?" Meowth asked, flicking his tail nervously again. It would make up for failing to get out the ones that had accompanied them before when they'd escaped. It could even be a way to better understand what the hunters were planning with the school attack. If he could figure more out about that, Meowth thought it might even be worth telling the twerp and his friends what he knew. "Tink it's possible, pal?" he asked Skiddo, turning to the Mount Pokemon.
Skiddo looked very uneasy, but seemed to consider it as he chewed on one of his berries. After a moment, he swallowed, and looked Wobbuffet and Meowth both in the eyes. "Doo-oo-oo," he answered, nodding. "Doo-oo-oo."
"Yeah, we'd need ta be super careful," Meowth agreed, scratching his chin as he thought. Their wounds did seem to be healing, so if they took another couple days to recover, they might just be able to do something. "How soon do ya tink we'd need ta act?"
Skiddo didn't seem to know the answer to that, looking uneasy once more. "Doo-oo-oo," he bleated out sadly.
"Yeah, we probably ain't got much time," Meowth agreed, looking to Wobbuffet, who still looked tired and beaten up. The Patient Pokemon gave him a determined look, though, as though willing to fight regardless of how beaten up he was. The idea made Meowth nervous, especially considering his head still didn't feel too great.
"Wobba wobba wob," Wobbuffet then said, gesturing to him and Skiddo, before shaking his head at Meowth. "Wobba."
"No way!" Meowth argued. "I ain't lettin' you guys go out alone for this. If you guys try ta rescue those Pokemon, I'm gonna help ya."
"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo said nervously, shaking his head as well, before reaching out a vine to pat Meowth's shoulder. "Doo-oo-oo."
Meowth narrowed his eyes, which unfortunately made his head hurt. "We gotta stick this out together, you guys. I ain't lettin' you get in danger and leavin' me safe and sound. I'll be fine. We just gotta come up with a foolproof plan ta sneak some of dem Pokemon outta der."
"Wobbaaa," Wobbuffet then cried out, lunging at Meowth to hug him awkwardly. "Wobba!"
"Yeah, same here," Meowth told him, patting his back. "We're gonna be okay, guys. Besides, we'll be able ta fight off more hunters if we can get some more backup."
"Doo-oo-oo!" Skiddo said, sounding a little more confident. "Doo-oo-oo!"
Meowth grinned, putting a paw out, his companions reaching out as well. "So are we agreed? We're gonna take on dem hunters again, and dis time, we're gonna win and free some Pokemon!"
"Wobba!"
"Doo-oo-oo!"
James looked up towards the cliffs in the distance for what must've been the hundredth time that day. For some reason, he felt drawn to it. Jessie had been telling him he was crazy, yelling at him to pay more attention as they worked on their various tasks, but he'd caught her staring a few times as well. He supposed that they might both be crazy, though. He'd seen a couple of shapes up there from time to time, but according to Keanan, Pokemon often moved into the caves on the cliffs at different points, moving on after awhile, or simply coming to live in the Wetlands after seeing the Pokemon there and deciding it was safe.
The thought of Keanan brought James' attention to the warden, seeing him attending to a garden by his house with his Bellsprout. While he had been quite cautious of Jessie and James, which James supposed was understandable, he had surprisingly been fairly welcoming after coming to see them with the twerp's Goodra. After hearing their story and learning what they were up to, he had kept an eye on them for a couple of days while allowing them to rest up. He'd obviously heard of the hunter activity himself, and had decided to put their issues aside for the time being, and had even had some of the flying type Pokemon in the Wetlands set out to look for Meowth and the others, and potentially the hunters.
James had been relieved to have some help in looking for Meowth, and considering they had better searchers looking, he and Jessie had eventually decided to help Keanan with some work around the Wetlands. It wasn't the typical warden work that Keanan did, however. With the situation being what it was, they had decided the Wetlands would need to be some sort of base to prepare for what they needed to do next about the hunters. The Pokemon in the area had also decided they needed to be prepared, and James had suggested he and Jessie help to train them up a bit.
Keanan had been hesitant at first, but he was clearly worried about the hunters eventually attacking the Wetlands Pokemon, and had agreed in the end. With the twerp's Goodra and the Florges that they had once manipulated, they had developed a fairly good training program after a couple of days. James was quite pleased with it, and while he didn't want to admit it to Jessie, he was happy doing something somewhat good for once.
"Goodra goo!"
James turned at the sound of the dragon type Pokemon's cry, seeing it firing off a small Ice Beam towards a rock, demonstrating it to a group of Wooper. Jessie was at his side, nodding as though she had something to do with it. While he and Jessie had helped, James still couldn't deny that Goodra had likely been the most influential when it came to the training program. He seemed to have taught some of the Pokemon a few things already, but with it having been peaceful for so long, they likely hadn't been pushed too hard. The urgency was there now, however.
"Wooper!" the lead Wooper then cried out. It was the one that had brought Jessie and James in from the forest, and it seemed to be Goodra's best friend. At its cry, it and the other Wooper fired out a joint Water Gun attack towards the rock that Goodra had hit. James was impressed with the force of it, seeing that while it wasn't as powerful as Goodra's attack, the combined Water Gun definitely had improved since the intense training had begun.
"Goodra!" Goodra cheered happily once the attack had finished, looking pleased as the Wooper responded with their own cheers.
"Yes, well, it was fine," Jessie muttered, folding her arms. "But if you expect the hunters to be afraid of that, you're in for a surprise. All our Pokemon were taken from us with attacks far stronger than that just on their own."
"Jess..." James looked awkwardly over his shoulder, seeing Keanan watching them now. The warden didn't look pleased. "We agreed not to-"
Jessie snorted, dismissing his words with a wave of her hand. "They need to be ready for what's ahead. If those hunters attack this place, we're finished. Even if we had ten times the Pokemon that are here, they'll have more. And each one will be stronger than all these Wooper combined."
James frowned. The terrifying thing was that she wasn't the least bit wrong. Considering what had happened with the attack that had led to Meowth and the others being kidnapped, James wasn't even sure that if all the Wooper were as strong as Goodra that the Wetlands would be safe. He knew they had to try, though. At the very least, if the hunters did attack, they wouldn't find Pokemon that went to them without a fight.
He was about to respond to Jessie when he heard Keanan approaching them. "I thought we agreed not to intimidate the Pokemon for these training exercises. If I'm to continue trusting you to help these Pokemon, I don't want to see you scaring them half to death."
"If they're not scared, they're not ready," Jessie argued, glaring at nothing while Keanan studied her, appearing frustrated as his Bellsprout moved to his side. "Those hunters won't be held back if they come here. Not with attacks like that."
"Goo goodra!" Goodra snapped, narrowing his eyes as he looked to Jessie. "Goodra!"
James gulped nervously at that. "Jess, I think we should listen-"
"Wooper!" Everyone stared in surprise at the lead Wooper as he hopped in front of Jessie, first looking determinedly up at Goodra, then Keanan, and then his fellow Wooper. "Wooper! Woo woop wooper!" it cried out, apparently giving some kind of speech as it gestured at the rock they'd sent their attacks at, before looking to Jessie and James, and then back to Goodra. "Wooper!"
"Bellsprout sprout bell bellspout," Keanan's Bellsprout then said, looking up to a surprised Keanan. James had come to realize that Keanan appeared able to understand, at least roughly, what his Bellsprout said to him, particularly when it gave emphatic gestures like it was doing now.
Keanan paused a moment as he considered the Wooper and a surprised Jessie. He scratched his chin as his eyes returned to Bellsprout, who nodded to him, before he stared ahead to Wooper. "So Wooper, you're saying you want to be pushed this hard? You want to know the truth so that you can be prepared to fight these hunters whenever and wherever they may show up?"
"Wooper!" Wooper nodded in agreement, looking seriously towards a surprised Goodra, before hopping down to join his group.
"Wooper!" the rest of them added, nodding as well.
Keanan sighed at that, but shrugged as he noticed a few of the other Pokemon that hadn't been training in this exercise now emerging to voice their own agreement. "Well, I suppose if you all feel the same, there's not much that I can do. You are all wild Pokemon, and can do as you wish. I'll do what I can to protect you, and if you feel that means allowing these two to help you train, even with what they have to say...very well."
"Well, if that's that," Jessie said, sniffing to show her frustration with the interruption. "I think it's time to continue. Goodra, show them-"
"Swanna! Swanna!"
James jumped at the sudden noise, looking up and seeing three shapes in the sky, rushing towards them. For a moment, he was worried they were under attack, but he quickly relaxed, at least a little bit, when he saw that they were Swanna from the Wetlands. It did appear, however, that they were quite upset, and from the look on Keanan's face, he was worried by their upset appearance.
"Is something wrong?" the Warden asked, as Jessie, Goodra and the Wooper came closer to hear what was going on. "Were you attacked?"
The lead Swanna shook its head, before looking to Keanan's Bellsprout, obviously aware it could somewhat help Keanan understand the situation. "Swanna swan swanna!"
"Bellsprout!" Bellsprout cried out in surprise as Swanna continued, wildly flapping its wings. He turned to Keanan, looking very alarmed and began to gesture wildly himself. "Sprout! Bellsprout sprout bellsprout!"
Keanan's eyes widened, and he glanced at Jessie, James and Goodra, looking uneasy, before returning his gaze to Bellsprout. "The hunters have been spotted?"
"Sprout!" Bellsprout nodded, Swanna voicing its confirmation as well.
Keanan nodded, swallowing nervously, before looking back to Jessie, James and Goodra again. "There's activity nearby from the sounds of things. It's unclear if they're planning an attack on the Wetlands, but we need to be sure."
"We can go check it out," James suggested. "A small group of us so we won't be noticed."
"You'll need strong backup as well," Keanan said, looking to Goodra. "Not that Goodra's small and easy to miss, however."
"Goodra goo!" Goodra said, looking determined to help out regardless.
"Do you think you can stay close enough in case we need you, but hidden enough to not be noticed?" James asked Goodra, thinking they should at least be able to find some coverage. Goodra would definitely be useful to have around in case anything went wrong.
"Goodra," Goodra nodded, his expression serious.
"Wooper!" the lead Wooper cried out, clearly wanting to join as well.
Keanan looked unsure, but Jessie appeared to have developed a soft spot for the Wooper. James supposed that because it agreed with her, she would think highly of it for awhile now. "All right, we'll bring Wooper and Goodra with us, along with the Swanna. Any more than that and we might be seen. If we find out they're planning an attack, we'll get back as soon as we can. If we're caught, the Swanna can get back here to warn you to flee."
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Keanan said uneasily.
"It won't," James promised, taking a deep breath as he looked towards the cliff in the distance again, feeling like he could see some kind of movement there. "We'll be careful."
Keanan nodded. "Well...good luck. It's good to have you guys on our side this time."
And with that, the scouting mission had begun.
Hala sat back in his chair at his desk while his students made their way out of the classroom, the day's lesson now finished up. It had been a long one, and he'd needed to explain much. Fortunately, his grandson's eagerness had appeared to rub off on the other students, and they'd all appeared to enjoy the lesson.
It always felt good to teach eager to learn students, and Hala never wanted to let them down when they wanted more information. In that, today's lesson was a success. Unfortunately, he couldn't help but feel there was an eager to learn trainer out there that he was currently failing.
As the last student left his room, Hala pulled open a drawer at his desk, removing a couple of books and a collection of notes he'd been taking throughout his research. When he layed the books and notes out on his desk, he paused to peer at one of the books. It was one of Professor Sycamore's books on Mega Evolution, and it had been very engrossing. Unfortunately he couldn't seem to find what he needed in Sycamore's work. Not everything at least.
"Mega Evolution...the Bond Phenomenon..." Hala leaned back in his chair, holding the book up and continuing to look at it. "There's clearly a connection, but what could it be?"
Sycamore's work clearly demonstrated that the connection was clear. It seemed the bond required for Mega Evolution brought out the hidden strength in a Pokemon. The Bond Phenomenon required the same, although the powerful Key Stone and Pokemon specific Mega Stone were not required.
Hala thought back to his training battles with Ash and his Greninja. As Professor Sycamore had said, the bond being as strong as it was appeared to be part of the reason no stones were needed. There was something unique about Ash that could bring about that connection and power with a Pokemon. "But what is it in Greninja that brought about this ability?"
Hala set the book down and picked up a book on the history of Kalos. Again, it had been an engrossing book, but there had been little information on Greninja's past. A few trainers of note in Kalos' past had fought side by side with Greninja, but there appeared to be nothing significant about the powers they had. There was certainly no suggestion of anything like the Bond Phenomenom.
Hala glanced at some of his notes, which ranged from research on known abilities of Greninja such as Torrent and Protean, to notes on water type Z-Moves and instances of Mega Evolution crossing over with Z-Moves which appeared to essentially never occur. He did have a few notes on one other thing, however. The research was thin, but it was the only true connection to the topic he was looking into. Ninja Village.
The difficult thing with Ninja Village, was how the people guarded their secrets. It seemed Ash had gained their trust in the past by helping them with his Greninja, but he still hadn't learned about the transformation from them. Of course, from what Ash had said, that had been where it had first occurred. With all the mystery around it they may not have even known exactly what to make of it.
As Hala sighed, looking over his notes once more, he heard a knock at the door. "Come in," he said, glancing up and setting his notes back down on his desk." He grinned as he noticed Professor Kukui poking his head in. "What can I do for you, Professor?"
"Brought some visitors!" Kukui answered with his own grin. Hala raised his eyebrows in curiosity as Kukui then stepped in, followed by three women.
"Professor Burnet, Doctor Wicke and President Lusamine!" Hala greeted each, nodding first to the white-haired woman that was Kukui's wife, and then to the purple-haired woman named Wicke, who was assistant to the third, a woman with long blonde hair like her daughter Lillie. "What brings you three here?" Hala asked, inclining his head to Lusamine last. "No trouble with the Aether Foundation I hope?"
"Oh no," Lusamine said with a chuckle, taking a seat along with Wicke, while Kukui and Burnet remained standing. "No trouble at all. We're actually here for you and the project you've been working on." Hala could see her eyes shift towards his notes.
"I've been doing some digging of my own," Burnet explained to Hala, bringing his attention to her. "When Kukui mentioned the trouble you two were having, I looked around to see if there was any connection with my own work." She shrugged, knowing it was unlikely. "Of course, I found nothing to suggest any connection, but Wicke got wind of what I was looking into, and Lusamine was already aware of your trip to the Kalos region to meet with Professor Sycamore and those two students at the school in Lumiose."
"We found some old research that Mohn had been working into," Wicke said, a little uneasily with a glance towards Lusamine, who had shifted her gaze outside briefly, before looking back to the two other women. "It seems...he may have looked into...something."
Hala raised his eyebrows in surprise, and he looked to Kukui, who flashed him a grin, appearing quite excited. He returned his gaze to Lusamine, however, as she began to speak. "It appears my husband had come across some connection between this...Ninja Village that you and Professor Kukui have been interested in, and the Alola region. A trainer from there must've completed the trials here, or the earlier versions of them anyway."
"Do you think they brought Z-Crystals back to Kalos?" Hala asked, wondering what could've been done to give Greninja the powers it appeared to have. He felt the energy around Z-Moves might very well be part of it, along with Mega Evolution, but this was the first time that there was any chance of there being a crossover.
"The notes don't seem to get into that," Lusamine answered, looking sadly out the window again. Hala didn't push her, knowing it was hard for her to talk of her husband's work sometimes. "Mohn did seem invested in the topic, though. It seems this trainer had become interested in Decidueye after coming to the Alola region. It's possible some sort of rivalry developed within this Ninja Village between those who desired Greninja and those who desired Decidueye."
"The assumption appears to be that there was briefly a new village set up in Alola, maybe in the Mount Lanakila area," Burnet added. "I found some mention of different signs in the area, but of course, it would've been hidden and quite small. It seems it didn't last very long either."
"Mohn seemed to think there was some sort of conflict that arose between the Kalosian Ninja Village and this one," Lusamine then continued. "Perhaps some battles were fought, but again these are very secretive people. It would've been difficult to find the signs. At some point, though, the Kalosian Ninja Village leader may have come here...with a Greninja."
Hala leaned forward, making a few quick notes on what Lusamine was saying, before looking back to her. "Did Mohn find anything out about this Greninja using a special form? Or even a special Z-Move?"
Lusamine shook her head. "There was nothing about that in the research we found. However..." She paused, looking like she was considering something. "He mentioned that some kind of peace must've been formed, and that the Alolan Ninja Village likely returned back to Kalos. In his notes he mentioned Totem Aura quite a few times. Always on its own, with a question mark. He seemed to be asking if there was any connection to various things within the story."
Hala frowned at that. He supposed that made sense, given that Z-Moves appeared to be connected to the issue. "Lusamine...would I be able to look at Mohn's research?"
Lusamine smiled at that, nodding instantly. "Of course. I've brought it with me. Although...I hope you can look over it on the plane. We might be busy when we arrive."
Hala looked curiously to Kukui, who grinned mischievously. "What do you think of another trip to Kalos? I'm thinking Ash might like to know what we've learned here. Might be worth having a look into the Totem Aura thing. Might be we can trigger that special Z-Move with a Z-Crystal."
"Maybe..." Hala wasn't so sure, but he definitely did think they were on to something. At the very least, it would be a good chance to see Ash and Greninja in action again, and see if they'd made any progress on their own.
"It sounds as though their school is going to be hosting the playoffs for their school competition," Lusamine added. "And they seem to have qualified for it as well. I'll be interested in seeing this Serena girl and her Absol after what you've told me of her."
"I'm sure you'll be impressed," Hala said with a grin. "She and Ash are each one of a kind."
"Then I guess we'd better get packed and get ready for a trip to Kalos!"
"WOOOOO!"
The cheers were loud as Serena and her friends entered the dining hall, their fellow Lumiose students applauding them as they stared ahead in surprise. Marie had warned them it might happen, after hearing about the heightened enthusiasm from some of the students at the Pokemon Centre. It was pretty clear that their IPL success hadn't gone unnoticed, and their classmates were quite proud to have been represented so well.
As they made their way through the crowds, accepting high fives and fist bumps, Serena couldn't help but feel a little like she didn't deserve the praise. While each member of the team had been important throughout the season, she still couldn't forget that she'd lost points in both of her last two matches. And losing to Gabby in the last one had stung quite a bit, especially after seeing her flawlessly use Mega Evolution with her Altaria.
I have to figure out Mega Evolution, Serena told herself, embracing the brief moment of quiet as she and her friends reached the line to get their food. People were still cheering and calling out to them, but it seemed the initial rush for high fives had subsided. When they'd gotten their meals, they still had a few people come up to congratulate them while they found their seats, but otherwise, they were able to sit in relative peace.
"It looks like it's a pretty big deal we made it in, huh?" Trevor said, looking to the others. "I wonder if this'll be as big as the Kalos League once the playoffs start."
"It might be," Clemont said, looking around and appearing to blush as a few people told him how cool he was. "Professor Sycamore even mentioned Diantha might be coming for it."
"The Champion might be here?" Trevor asked, looking surprised. "That's huge! Hopefully I'll do better than I did at the League then."
"I heard Aria and Wallace might be coming as well," Marie added, not paying too much attention as she absentmindedly ate her food and tended to her Happiny at the same time. "Leagues, Grand Festivals and Masterclass showcases get most of the hype, but the IPL is still pretty big for a lot of people. You can't watch that battle between Ash and Anton and not realize that it's a super high level competition."
Ash rubbed his neck in embarrassment at that, but then looked to Serena in excitement. "If Aria's going to be here, you must be pretty excited, right Serena? I wonder what she'll think of what you've done with Absol."
"Hopefully she'll think he performs well," Serena said hopefully, although she noticed Dawn glance at her with a hint of worry in her eyes. "Same with Popplio."
"Popplio was great in your performance on the weekend," Shauna told her, giggling at the mention of the Sea Lion Pokemon. "Even Laverre's crowd loved how excited she got being on stage. She was born for this kind of thing." She gave Serena a knowing look. "Must be nice to know Ash was thinking of you when he met Popplio in Alola."
"Shauna!" Serena squeaked, face reddening as she looked at Ash. He didn't seem to have noticed what was said, though, now busy eating his food, while Pikachu dug into some ketchup.
That seemed to be the signal for the others to focus on their food as well, and they had a couple minutes of quiet as they ate, other than a few more cheers and congratulations in their direction. After a couple minutes of slow eating, however, Serena paused as Dawn nudged her from her side. She didn't seem to have eaten much either.
"Feeling down about losing?' the coordinator asked, giving her a knowing look.
Serena glanced at the others, seeing most still eating, while Trevor and Tierno were talking about their battles. When she turned back to Dawn, she nodded. "I feel like I nearly let the team down. I really thought I had a chance to beat Gabby this time, but...that Mega Evolution. If only I'd worked harder with Absol, I could've responded."
"Hey, no need to worry," Dawn told her. "Seems like Mega Evolution is pretty tough. And if what Ash does with Greninja is some version of it, it's kind of scary, too. I don't think it's supposed to be easy."
"Maybe," Serena said, sighing as she looked at her plate of food. "I just...I really want to make it work. I can tell how much it means to Absol, too. It would be like...like proving how far we've come together. It would be proving to Raphael and those hunters that he couldn't be beaten. That he never gave up and made it through whatever they tried to do to him."
Dawn smiled at that, appearing to appreciate what Serena was saying. "It would be pretty cool to knock some sense into Raphael with a Mega Absol." She paused, thinking for a moment, and then looked to Ash, who was now joining Trevor and Tierno in conversation about the weekend's battles. "What does Ash think about your problems with Mega Evolving? He's still struggling with Greninja's special attack, so he must feel the same."
"He thinks I'll figure it out," Serena said, not sure if that frustrated her or made her feel better. "I think he feels he'll figure it out with Greninja as well."
Dawn laughed at that. "Of course! I guess he'll just battle his way to an answer." She then looked to Serena again, appearing unsure of what to say next, but eventually speaking up once more. "Speaking of battles, do you think you might try another one if you had the chance? It might've ended in a loss, but I thought you did really well when you battled against Brian when we took on Coumarine."
"Well...maybe next year," Serena said with a laugh. "I'm not sure I would want to risk it in the playoffs."
"That's crazy!" Dawn argued. "You did fine against Brian. It was your first official contest battle and you could've won with a couple small changes. I already noticed the effect Fantina's training had on you. And you and Absol work really well together. You nearly beat Ash of all people at Professor Sycamore's tournament! And didn't you say you beat a bunch of trainers at the Battle Maison? Ash said those are League qualified trainers."
"Well...I..." Serena hadn't thought of that. She noticed that Ash had heard what they were discussing, and had turned in her direction.
"Serena was awesome at the Battle Maison!" he said, causing her to blush and look away. "You could win eight badges for sure if you wanted to."
"I think you'd be able to get five ribbons if you wanted to," Dawn countered, grinning as Serena looked between the two trainers.
"I have thought about it..." She then admitted, looking back at Ash, who blinked curiously. "I mean...I want to be a performer and do showcases, but...sometimes a battle seems like the best way to grow with your Pokemon. And to learn something about another person. If I want to be a good performer, I need to do what I can to do that."
"If the chance comes," Dawn said, putting a hand on Serena's shoulder, "I think you should battle in the playoffs."
Serena took a deep breath, looking back to Ash again, who nodded encouragingly. "I bet you'll do awesome if you do it!"
"Maybe I will..." Serena smiled softly, pulling out her pokeball that held Absol. I'll show Gabby the power of dreaming.
Author's Note:
Does Serena want to have a contest battle with Gabby? Well, that would certainly be more fun than a performance showdown, wouldn't it? Mainly because performances are absolute hell to write. Anyway...
Also have some Alola stuff in there. Nothing really significant. Just giving some kind of made up background for Greninja that works into the special shuriken thing. Hopefully it seems interesting enough, though. And as for Meowth and Team Rocket...well, we'll see what happens with them next time.
Taking a mini break to write a Bonnie chapter for later this week, but then we'll take this thing on till the end. Hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next time.