Chương 159: Chapter 138

I always felt like this after leaving a city, but it was good to be back on the road. This — the traveling aspect— was what being a trainer was all about, and I'd grown to truly appreciate the process, at least as long as I wasn't in a deadly forest or some eldritch mountain. Route 209 was nothing like that, and it was the safest one after the 214, 222 and 213 trio that linked Sunyshore, Pastoria and Veilstone. Those were a bit of an exception, though.

Since so many new trainers passed through there, the rangers kept it as clear as possible. Larvitar and Togetic were walking with me, while the others all had one or a few of their Pokemon out. Justin walked with his Audino, who was carrying a flower he'd found a few miles back. Cecilia's Fletchinder screeched and flew high up in the sky while Slowking stuck by her side. Pauline was off in the distance, walking with her Gothorita and practicing her tolerance to telepathy.

She seemed quite down at the fact that we had to leave Emilia behind, but there might have been something else to it. Either way, she was uncharacteristically quiet. Denzel, meanwhile, was being hogged by Sylveon.

"I think we can stop here," he said, nudging his head forward. The large system of rivers and small ponds that route 209 was the most known for sat in front of us. Long bridges ran through each body of water, and trainers were fishing all along the streams. This was a common spot to get a water type. Larvitar ran up to the edge of the water, and I released Tangrowth to keep an eye on her.

The entire team would have a strategic meeting later, and I still needed to have that one-on-one talk with Sweetheart, but she could play around for now.

"Yeah, this is probably fine," I said, dropping my backpack and sitting down.

"We made good progress today. Four more days, and we should be good?" Despite the enjoyment I got, I was mostly excited about getting to Solaceon and fighting in the tournament. There were many potential trainers and strategies to go up against, and I'd finally see what Craig's sister was all about. Louis' group would sign up too, apparently, but like Chase had said, he wouldn't stick around. As soon as we made it there, he'd leave for Celestic.

Well, I also had to review the footage of my battle against Fantina, but I'd do it when we got there. With all the events that happened after the fight, I had completely forgotten about it somehow. I was sure I'd see a lot of improvements, though. Thinking back about the battle made it impossible for me not to smile. It was a testament to how good I'd gotten over the last few months. I stared up at Justin, who walked up to me. Audino followed behind him and winked at me, eliciting a chuckle.

"Grace. I see you're deep in thought," he noticed.

"Nah, I'm good. What's up?"

"I was looking for advice." I rested my head on my palm and hummed. Justin and Pauline were going their separate ways now, battling-wise, so we weren't exactly their teachers any longer, but I was always willing to help a friend in need.

"Sure, shoot!"

"It's about confidence… or my lack of it, thereof. I'd like to try to be a little bit more sure about my capabilities come the tournament, but I'm not sure how." Togetic landed on my lap, and I pet her head as she nuzzled it against me.

"Well, I don't really know. You've got three badges, Justin. That's no joke, you should be proud of yourself. You realize not many trainers reach this point, right? Plus, you won pretty handily."

"Yes, but I feel like I'm still missing something…"

"Something? You've figured out your style, right? Now you've just got to refine and perfect it, and eventually branch out in case you need to pull something else during a battle. That's what I've been trying to do… learning to improve and think of stuff on the spot, things like that," I explained. The boy sighed.

"Well, that's fair, I suppose. I've been itching to try out new things, but I haven't really had the opportunity to. What I did against Fantina wasn't exactly stalling, but more like a proto version of it."

"Pauline not up for a friendly fight?" I asked.

"She's been down."

"I noticed," I said, glancing at her.

"You know what, I'll talk to her." I let Togetic out of my arms and shot up. Pauline tended to help her friends a lot, but I couldn't recall the last time she'd asked for it. She was keeping her distance from Denzel a little bit, which was odd too, but I was starting to get the impression that some relationship drama had gone on between them beyond the fact that Pauline and Emilia were dating, like Cece had theorized. Gothorita shot me a look that reminded me of Turtonator as I approached her trainer.

"What's got you so down in the dumps, little one?" I playfully said.

"I miss Emi… and some other stuff," she shrugged.

"You weren't that down when we left her in Eterna," I said.

"That's because— things were different. Can we just change the subject?" I considered pushing on, but it was probably best to let it go for now.

"Why don't we talk about your team then? Any idea for a fourth member? Anything catch your eye so far? It'd be cool if you could catch something on this route. The earlier you can start training them, the more prepared they'll be for the Conference. And don't forget, if you don't have a fourth, you won't be able to participate in the—""I know," she rolled her eyes.

"I just wanted it to fit, but I think I'll try to catch something if I can't find anything that catches my eye."

"Why don't you just do what Denzel does and look it up in advance? Well, not like you can now that we're out of Hearthome, but y'know."

"I don't know how he does it," Pauline said, looking at our friend.

"I find it horribly dull. I had to chew on Rufflet for weeks until it clicked for me, and at that rate, it'll be too late. Maybe if I only needed one more, but I need three."

"Well, maybe he found it dull too, but he had years to do it," I said.

"Why don't you ask him about it then?"

"No way."

"Are you guys fighting?"

"No."

"Okay, then why are you just glancing at him every few seconds, but not actually going to speak to him like you want to?" She clicked her tongue and then ruffled my hair with a frustrated groan.

"What was that for?!"

"For being annoying," she deadpanned.

"Anyway, I'll catch something, so stop being such a worrywart."

"Worrywart? Are you eighty or what?"

"I'm going to kill you."

"Yeah, yeah," I grumbled, fixing my hair. Well, since she didn't want my advice, it was time for the group meeting with my team, then! I asked Togetic to call Angel and Sweetheart over, and released the rest of my Pokemon, excluding Sunshine, because too many trainers frequented this part of the route, and he still despised them with all of his being. I'd release him when we got further in and toward the edges of the route. Larvitar pulled at my jeans and complained that she had to go out of the water.

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"You'll go back later, Sweetheart. I've never seen a rock type like water this much," I smiled, crouching to pet her rocky head.

"Anyway, I think it's about time to get started on some new moves, don't you think? They'll come in handy for the tournament. Remember the one I talked about?" Grunts and nods came out of their respective Pokemon. I heard a faint screech and paused when I saw Fletchinder fly overhead.

"Uh, they should be pretty easy for you to work on. Some of them, you've already been practicing. We only have a few days, so I picked ones that you'd be able to easily learn and possibly master. Let's start with you, Honey. You've got the hardest move, but I know you're up for it." Electabuzz shot me a thumbs-up and grinned. I had deliberated between two moves for Electabuzz: Cross Chop or Hammer Arm.

They were fighting type, so they'd be excellent for coverage, and it'd improve his physical capabilities that had fallen behind his ranged ones recently. Honey was meant to be a mixed fighter for the team, so he needed to stay excellent at both ranged and close-range fighting. Hammer Arm was the more powerful of the two, which meant it was more difficult to learn. In fact, it was so powerful that your Pokemon would be slowed for a while after using it due to exerting too much energy.

The more a Pokemon had used and mastered the move, the less the side effects would show. The sheer amount of power behind the move would have put anything any of my Pokemon currently had to shame. Unfortunately, we were lacking in time, and I wasn't sure if Honey would get the move to a usable state before the first battles started. Cross Chop, meanwhile, was slightly weaker, and easier to learn.

The move could be devastating in its own right of course, and if Electabuzz or I could identify a Pokemon's weakness during a battle, then it would deal a lot more damage to our opponents. In the end, I had decided on Cross Chop.

"You've been getting stronger, but you'll need to get stronger physically for this," I explained to him. Fighting type moves tended to demand a lot out of the user, which meant that a certain amount of bulk was needed.

"Ele!" He responded, flexing his arms.

"Obviously, you'll make it work," I laughed. He probably wouldn't be able to use it on a whim, even during the tournament, but it'd probably be a nice option to have. I also told him to keep working on Protect so that he could use the move more, and then I moved on to Sweetheart. She waved her arms around excitedly.

"Sweetheart, you'll keep working on Sandstorm, alright? You're almost there, but you just need a little bit more control." The rock type stared at me disappointedly, and her arms slumped.

"Aw, don't be sad. You've already got everything else you need."

"Larvi…" she mumbled to agree. Despite this, she was angry with me. I'd get back to her soon.

"Princess, I've got a TM for you to learn called Shadow Ball, just like what Buddy uses," I said.

"You should have no problem learning the move, and he can help you master it. I don't think we'll be using it too much, but more coverage can't hurt." The fairy type nodded, smiling at Jellicent. It looked like she'd enjoy the time they'd spend together.

"Angel, you're on the cusp of something great," I continued.

"Sunny Day. Keep working on it, and I'm sure it'll be useable during the tournament." He wriggled and blinked twice, gently petting my head with a vine. He was already a monster in battle, but if we could double his speed with Chlorophyll, I was sure he'd be able to dominate even the five-badge trainers I'd be fighting at the tournament. I let out a trembling, excited breath. Just the thought of him destroying our opponents would be awesome.

"Buddy, what I need with you is Whirlpool," I said.

"Brine is great, but the way the tournament's set up… the ones that will dominate are the ones that can control the field, I think." The Solaceon tournament's format was doubles, meaning that each trainer would fight with two Pokemon at a time, and with a total of four Pokemon. I had a lot of synergies I would need to consider, but for now, I'd be content to just let them practice their moves.

Jellicent nodded, and after describing what each move roughly looked like, and teaching Shadow Ball to Togetic, my Pokemon went to their respective spots to begin their training. I'd be there if they needed help, of course.

"Sweetheart, wait up. I need to talk to you," I called out. She huffed at me and turned away, and I felt my chest tighten. Was this how it felt all the time, dad? Sorry.

"What's gotten into you lately? I felt the sun brighten slightly and stared at Tangrowth. He was almost there.

"Tar," the Pokemon grunted.

"Don't brush me off. I've noticed something about you lately, but I never asked until now. I'm sorry, it's my fault. I should have paid more attention… but I'm here now. Do you have something you want to tell me?" The rock type launched into a tirade, causing me to wince. She wanted to get stronger faster. She wanted to be like Turtonator. Arceus, I was tearing up. This was like having my kid yell at me for the first time, and I was not ready.

"You've been making good progress, though," I said, blinking rapidly to chase the tears away.

"And I told you that I'd use you a lot in the tournament, didn't I? Plus, Sandstorm is a powerful move. Just because it doesn't hit the enemy directly doesn't mean that it doesn't make you stronger, you know? It hampers visibility, hearing, and it deals damage little by little. Meanwhile, you'll be like a fish in water. Doesn't that sound cool?" Larvitar wanted to retort, but she thought for a few seconds and relented.

"See? Winning isn't always about hitting things. Why do you want to get stronger so quickly anyway? You're already growing at a fast pace as is—" I stopped, noticing her look away from me.

"Don't even try to hide it! I know you." What she said next made my heart sink. Revenge. She wanted revenge on the Rhyperior that had killed her parent. First of all, that Pokemon was incredibly strong. It had to be, to take down a fully-grown Tyranitar, but that wasn't it. I just thought that it was a terrible idea in general. Nothing good would ever come of it. I hated revenge as a concept, and I felt like she would just be empty afterward if we somehow succeeded. But… Larvitar didn't belong to me.

She was her own person. What would I have done if it was my dad that had gotten killed? I didn't think I'd try to murder the person that did it, but I certainly would have wanted them to suffer consequences, at the very least. I sighed.

"Look, I think this is a bad idea, and I don't even think we'll be ready to do this by the end of the year," I explained. That Rhyperior had probably been elite level, from the little I had seen of it. It had to be, to beat a pseudolegendary without sustaining that many injuries like it had done. My Pokemon would maybe be ready to take it down, but I didn't think I would be. Larvitar protested, but I stopped her.

"Let me finish. I don't think this is a good idea, and I don't even know if we'd be able to find it again," I continued.

"But believe in me. I'll help you get stronger, and if you still feel this way by the time you're fully evolved, then we can talk about it again." I was really hoping that she'd change her mind. I heard Honey call out to me, and I stood up. He probably needed some help to get started with Cross Chop. I stopped when I felt Larvitar grab at my jeans.

"Larvi… Larvitar," she said, avoiding my eyes and hiding her face. She was apologizing for yelling at me.

"Don't worry about it, Sweetheart," I smiled.

"You were just feeling emotional, that's all. I yell at my dad all the time— ah, sorry." The rock type stared up at me confusedly.

"For the dad comparison thing," I said.

"I don't want to replace your parent. I promised you that when I caught you, didn't I?" Larvitar mumbled something, and she had to repeat herself twice for me to hear her.

"You… don't mind?" She huffed and ran away in embarrassment. She… She didn't mind. Wow. I felt so happy. — After helping Electabuzz with his form and checking in on the others, I happily skipped toward Denzel, who was working on something with his Lopunny while the other members of his team were training on their own, although they were kind of slacking off to hang out with Feebas. With all the water around, he'd be able to spend a lot more time with his teammates.

The normal type happily waved at me, showcasing how much she'd changed since she'd been that shy Buneary that he'd caught in Eterna Forest. The scar on her ear from those Paras was still visible, albeit smaller thanks to her evolved form being a lot bigger.

"Woah, you look happy," he noticed.

"Yep. Larvitar just called me mom." His expression morphed into one of confusion.

"I just won't even ask. I thought that was just between you and Togetic?"

"No, I'm everyone's mom," I deadpanned.

"I wanted to ask you to show me your Froslass' Blizzard? I know you tested it out without telling me before we left."

"How do you even know that?" I grinned.

"I didn't. But now I do."

"Ugh. I specifically wanted to hide it from you, though."

"I paid for your ride back when you had no money. You owe me."

"You wouldn't have left me stranded!" I peered at him, my smile widening.

"Damn, you are ruthless. Fine. Froslass, come on over! Lopunny, you keep on working on the thing."

"Ouch," I said, feigning emotional pain.

"Still keeping your secrets?"

"Well, so are you," he said. The ghost type appeared beside us, and I jumped. I still felt cold, but it looked like she had gotten her temperature problem under control. Denzel, meanwhile, felt no change at all. I was still wondering how that even worked, but I was no professor, so I'd probably never figure it out. I called Togetic over just in case, and Denzel led us to the edge of the route. Froslass was so excited about using Blizzard that she was quite literally leaking cold.

She'd probably be able to do what Turtonator did in battle, only with cold instead of heat.

"Go make sure no one's here before you accidentally kill a kid," Denzel sighed. Froslass cheered as she disappeared into the unmaintained woods.

"She's been so hyper since evolving, it's like she's not even a ghost."

"Don't overgeneralize them now," I chided.

"She was already like this before, it's not like her whole personality was going to change."

"I'll still have to watch out during the tourney, I don't want any accidents," he said.

"I don't know how it works, but whenever I have her out with strangers, she's freezing. With friends, she just emits cold, and with me or my Pokemon, we feel completely fine."

"I was just wondering about that!" I exclaimed.

"I wanted to record a video of her at Amity Square before we left, but I had to recall her because people way away from us were starting to feel pain from the cold. The tournament will have barriers like the gyms, so at least she'll be useable there." I nodded.

"Well, I'm sure you'll figure something out."

"Toge," Princess agreed. After five minutes, Froslass came back and confirmed that the area was clear. Her eyes shone with a pale blue as she started to use Blizzard. Before, it would have taken almost a minute for her to charge it up. Now? It barely took ten seconds. The whole area in front of us was covered in frost and ice like we were back on route 216.