Chương 64: Chapter 62

Winston found me alone in the Pokémon Center a few minutes later, after Wally had already left to prepare for Monday's battle.

"Request our battle to be changed to a single battle," he ordered. I turned to look at Winston, a little bewildered from his sudden command. He stood in front of me, arms crossed, while I sat on the cushioned couch in the corner of a seating area. His brows were furrowed and he was frowning slightly, and I couldn't help but notice the faintest bit of worry in his eyes. Winston, not yet hearing a reply on my part, sighed exasperatedly.

"I need to demonstrate the strength of the individual members of my team," he said, "but I cannot do that within a double battle. Per the League rules for 'personal challenges during a Conference,' as long as both trainers agree, a small change may be made to the ruleset. Switching from a double battle to a single battle, or vice versa, is technically a small change, and thus, I am requesting you to go along with me to change the rules," Winston said. I sat still for a moment, considering everything he was saying.

"As fun as abusing a technicality sounds, I do have to know why before I agree to anything. What's so pressing for you to demand that I change our battle?" I asked. Winston's lips pressed into a thin line and he didn't respond for a moment, clearly thinking about where or not he actually wanted to answer.

"I... it's my brother, Minston. He-""Your brother's name is 'Minston'?" He rolled his eyes.

"Yes, yes, and my father's name is Tintson and his father before him is named Glintson. I've heard it all before, I'm sure your family has completely normal names in comparison."

"... My mother's name was Madison, but went by Mandy, if that means anything," I said. Winston stared at me pointedly.

"I need to prove that I am still comparable to my brother, Minston," Winston said, continuing.

"I may not be galavanting off, exploring dangerous ruins, climbing mountains, diving the seas, or assisting the Rangers in evacuating a town from an erupting volcano, but I am still just as good of a Pokémon trainer as he." I blinked.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Now come with me and we'll change the rules for our battle to be a single battle." Winston reached for my arm, intent on pulling me away, and I snapped it back before he could grab me.

"Hey," I said, my voice harsh, "do not touch people without permission. You can't just come here, demand I do something for you, and expect me to bend to your every desire. If you want someone to do something for you, be polite, and maybe they might be willing to help you." Winston crossed his arms.

"Fine then. Please come with me to change the rules of our battle so I can finally prove to my father that I am just as good as Minston." I hummed.

"Hmm. No, I don't think so." Winstone threw down his arms in rage.

"What! Why not? You just said you'd help if I was polite!"

"I said 'maybe,' Winston. You need to listen more closely to what people are saying."

"I'll pay you." I smirked.

"I've actually had a pretty good season, myself, and I doubt that any number you throw out will be-""Ten million Pokédollars." My mouth hung open for a few seconds before I shook my head to reorient myself.

"You know, I thought you were getting better," I said.

"You weren't being as harsh and demanding, and you were even nice to me when it came to my held item purchase the other day. Why can't you just not be a bad person?" Winston looked... well, he looked genuinely hurt by that. He sat down on a nearby armchair and collapsed into it.

"You don't understand what it's like to be me," he said with a surprising amount of emotion in his voice.

"I've lived my whole life getting exactly what I want, when I want, but no one ever really sees me. They only ever see Minston's little brother."'Oh Minston's so smart, he got straight A's!'

'Oh, Minston managed to catch and evolve a Rockruff despite only being five,' 'Oh, Minston just discovered an entire island of Dragon Types!' I agree that my brother's an incredible person, he's one of the best people I know, but I just want someone to understand who I am, not who I'm related to. I want to prove that I can be a good trainer, without Minston's influence, and show everyone that I am Winston, and I am my own person."

Winston's sudden outpouring of emotion was unexpected, and despite his clear wish to have someone he could just rant to, what he was saying was making me a bit angry.

'You don't understand what it's like to be me.' Wow. I can't believe he actually said that.

"... I'll be honest with you, Winston, you're monologuing to the wrong person," I said.

"I can't say I know what it's like to grow up rich, I can't say I know what it's like to get whatever you want, and I can't say I know what it's like to have a cool older sibling. Growing up, I never had any close friends, and my mother only cared about me when I was young and cute. Also, right now, I'm technically homeless. You're here to prove you're a good trainer, but guess what, so is everyone else!

You might be suffering from self-doubts, but come on, you aren't the only one who might not have had a great family experience.

"Just... stop being so damn selfish. I get it, you're unhappy because you haven't made a genuine connection before. You're allowed to feel down even if you're rich. Just don't take it out on other people. Actually, now that I'm saying this, why the heck are you dumping this all on me?! We've met like, three times, and every time but the last you've either brushed me off or been extraordinarily rude to me. What's the deal?"

"You're the only one who sees me as 'Winston' and not 'Minston's brother,'" he said quietly. I held back a groan.

"Honestly, I doubt that. You have to have made some friends out in the region. Didn't you rope two other trainers into a clique in Sea Mauville? I literally have no information about you other than knowing your name was Winston, knowing you're the guy that got angry at me for no reason, and knowing you're the heir to the Pokébites fortune."" Son of the heir of the Pokébites fortune," he clarified.

"... Look, my point still stands. Consider treating people better, and maybe, just maybe, you can fix whatever it is that makes you feel so upset all the time." Winston sat in his chair for a while longer while I just sat there, half glaring at him. I shouldn't have been so rude to him, but him being so demanding and acting like he was the only person with problems really set me off. As much as I had thought he was getting better, clearly he still needed to work on his behavior.

Coming up, demanding things from me, and trying to drag me away. Just because you helped me make a single purchase doesn't mean we're suddenly friends. Once he recollected himself, Winston adjusted his suit and sat up a bit straighter from where he was slumped in the chair.

"And your decision about having a single battle?" I shook my head exasperatedly.

"If you want to show off how good of a trainer you are, a double battle might be able to show off more of your growth. Think about it, Winston. Your Pokémon working well together can say more about you than any rare moves you paid a tutor to teach." Winston frowned as I got up to leave. He didn't say anything else, and I made my way out of the sitting area and towards the stairs to return to my room. I hope Winston realizes why his actions just now weren't great.

I'm not sure I could deal with another conversation with him like this. He didn't chase after me when I got to the stairwell, and I was soon back in my room, turning on the computer. Winston or not, my last battle until the final rounds was coming up, and I needed to make sure my team and I knew what we would be getting into.

"Oof, ouch. Whimsicott, be more careful." Whimsicott giggled where he was clutching on to the back of my head, and pulled himself closer in to better give me the illusion that I had a giant white afro. I sighed, but was still mildly amused. While Whimsicott was no longer so focused on using Stun Spore, he had found a new love: grabbing onto things. He had only been evolved for a few weeks at this point, and given how he used to be a Cottonee, he appreciated actually having limbs.

His pranks were much more mild, going through with simple jokes like he was doing now, but as he spent more and more time with his new ability called "grabbing," I was sure he would eventually be far more capable at pranking than he was in the past. Right now, I had Whimsicott out in the Pokémon Center since Marty had sent me a message telling me to call him Sunday morning.

Whimsicott was the smallest Pokémon on my team, so I chose to have him out as he could fit in the small booth reserved for video calls without needing to poke out and block the hallway outside. It was either Whimsicott, Mawile, or occasionally, Ninetales if she could squeeze in with me whenever I was on the phone with Marty, Laura, or Thomas.

I was in the process of dialing a number while Whimsicott was spreading chunks of his cotton on my shoulders to look like dandruff when I heard a voice call out to me from a few feet away.

"Excuse me, young one. You wouldn't happen to be making a call with that phone, would you?"

"Uh, sorry. I am," I said, pausing my button presses.

"If there aren't any other available phones, could you give me a few minutes to finish my call?"

"Oh, I doubt you'll make the call in the first place," the voice said. What? Paying closer attention to the voice made me realize it almost sounded familiar, and I turned around and stepped out of the small space I was in to come face to face with Marty, standing in the hallway and putting on a fake voice.

"... Marty? What are you doing here?" Marty let loose a genuine smile.

"Well, I couldn't just let my sponsee fight through the entire Conference without seeing them myself, could I?" Behind him, Trubbish held onto his pant leg while looking up at Whimsicott, his jaw open. Whimsicott floated down off my head to hold out his hand to greet Trubbish, and the Poison Type carefully extended a bit of its compressed garbage to shake Whimsicott's hand.

Whimsicott grabbed his arm and rapidly shook it up and down, then swept Trubbish off to the side, most likely intent on pranking him while Marty and I talked.

"Basically, I decided to take a vacation to catch the end of the Ever Grande Conference and check up on your journey," Marty said.

"I might not be able to kick much more cash your way once the rule changes come into effect soon, but I can at least show you my physical support! How have you been, Alex? I've been great."

"Great, great! This is completely unexpected. I thought you were going to host a watch party back in Olivine?" I asked.

"I am right now, actually. With how much the Fairy Type themed merchandise has been selling recently, I've had some extra cash that I spent fixing up the back room of the Pokémart. I rented a projector, and my two new employees get to be paid 'overtime' by 'managing' the backroom while sitting around, eating snacks, and generally doing whatever they want. People can come in and out to watch, and there's just a constant livestream playing back there of all the matches going on in this Conference."

"That uh... Kind of sounds irresponsible," I said. Marty shrugged.

"Hey, I might not own the Pokémart, but I'm the person responsible for it. As long as people are able to make their purchases, and I don't damage the property, I can basically do what I want." As Marty and I chatted for a bit, a new voice joined the conversation.

"What, you couldn't wait for an Old Man to catch up? For shame, Marty." Marty and I turned to look at Old Man Harvey, whose old age meant he had moved much slower than Marty in his rush to get here.

"Oh yeah, Old Man Harvey decided to come too. He wanted to make sure you've been putting his journal to good use," Marty said. Old Man Harvey grunted."'Decided to come…' bah. It was my idea in the first place. How has your team been? Got good developments on your understanding of the Fairy Type?"

"I have partially, actually. This might sound a bit silly, but I'm trying to further understand just how 'whimsical' Fairy Types are. Fairy Types tend to enjoy lighter and happier activities, like simple games and pranks. It accounts for a lot of their tricks actually, since Fairy Types tend to trick and prank people with good intentions - getting people to laugh or to create some kind of positive reaction - rather than just to hurt them in one way or another," I said.

"I'm glad you're figuring things out, kid," Old Man Harvey said. He paused for a moment.

"Actually, since we're on the topic, I remember a while ago, when you called us in Mossdeep, you mentioned hearing stories about Fairy Types in the past. I looked into them and only found brief mentions of them from Galar, so I'm wondering-""Hey, before we get into that, here," I said, purposefully interrupting him. I reached into my backpack to pull out his journal, which he gave me so long ago back in Olivine.

"It was extremely useful while I was first getting started, but I think I've already learned everything I could from it. I will always be grateful to have had it granted to me, but I believe it should go back where it belongs." Old Man Harvey carefully took his journal from my hands, and his eyes glimmered with nostalgia.

"I... I always wanted to make it big," he said slowly.

"My team and I, we fought in a few Conferences, but never past the first round of the finals. Getting to the Top 32 was great, but we never made it farther. Some of my team has passed, but I hope their memory lives on in how you battle. Thank you, Alex. You better kick everyone's ass." I smiled.

"Believe me, I will. I have a certain opponent next that I have no plans to hold back against. Also, since I have a new League-sanctioned sponsor, I have a decent amount saved up. Let me buy the two of you lunch. It's the least I can do to show my thanks."

"That sounds great, kid," Old Man Harvey said.

"Maybe you could explain those myths and legends about Fairy Types you-""What are you two feeling? Itali- Pasta? Sandwiches? Whatever you want, I'm buying. Let's catch up." Old Man Harvey thankfully dropped the topic, but it seemed my poorly disguised deflections only served to increase his interest even further. Marty took it in stride, used to me doing things like this, and we headed out to get food. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

I really need to get better at not dropping clues about my origin. I don't like being forced to mislead my friends like this. I didn't see Winston until we were walking into the Ice Type battlefield building. He didn't glare at me or brush me off, but instead approached, said "Good luck," and left promptly after that. The Ice Type battlefield was a bit different than the others since it involved mildly hazardous terrain.

The edges of the field were easy enough to walk on, consisting of snow and large frozen chunks, but the center of the field was smooth ice and easy to slip on. Ninetales would have the advantage, but the rest of my team was only mildly used to terrain like this thanks to our practice freezing the ground over with Ninetales's Ice Beam. Most teams tended to stay around the edge, which resulted in the outcome of the battles being reliant on either a team's ranged attacker or fliers.

When our platforms were lifted up into the trainer box, the two different announcers started to introduce the two of us.

"In the red corner we have Alex, a Fairy Type specialist performing quite well in the last two rounds. Alex is sponsored by a Pokémart, strangely enough, so if you're ever in Olivine, be sure to check out the seventh local Pokémart there," said the first announcer, Ted. The second announcer, William, introduced Winston next.

"And in the green corner we have Winston, whose powerful team and strategies have dominated the previous rounds. Each battle, he's managed to win without revealing his last two members of his team, which we might be lucky enough to see here today." I nodded, aware of what they were talking about. Since the last few times I met Winston, he seemed to have undergone furious training, and his team was more powerful than ever.

His Linoone crushed its foes with its Silk Scarf-enhanced Extreme Speed, his Pyroar was far more powerful than I had seen in Lilycove, and he had both a Persian and Cinccino that were powerful in their own right. Although I haven't seen which member of his team he gave that Life Orb to. I'm aware his last team member is his yet-to-be-seen Druddigon, but I can't be sure if the Life Orb is its held item or not.

While I considered what Winston might use in this battle, what the announcer said NEXT caught me off guard so much it completely derailed my train of thought.

"Surprisingly, Winston is unsponsored for this match. If any of you sponsors out there are interested, be sure to inquire with him if you like what you see in this battle!"... What? But Winston was supposed to be sponsored by his family's corporation. Is this why he was so desperate to have a single battle? Lost in my thoughts, I barely paid attention to what the announcers were saying until it was time to send our Pokémon out. The referee went over the rules, same as last time, and we began.

"Go, Ninetales, Mawile!"

"Pyroar, Cinccino, show them all." The battle started with Ninetales's Snow Warning coming into effect, covering the field in a dense hail. According to the strategy we had planned out beforehand, she used a weak Blizzard to make it even harder to see through the storm, and to pepper her opponents with ice. Mawile purposefully waited until she was fully obscured before heading off towards her opponents. I didn't give my team any commands as they knew our planned strategy, but Winston did.

"Heat it up, Pyroar. Cinccino, support." Pyroar's mane glowed red hot, visible through the white of the storm, and the fluffy gray mouse, Cinccino, hopped forward to stand next to Pyroar. Cinccino laid its hand on Pyroar's side and began to contribute extra energy to the Fire Type's move with Helping Hand. Powerful beams of fire shot through the hail and onto the ice of the field, partially melting the solid ice and mixing with the dirt underneath, turning it to slush and covering the field with steam and water.

While the hail was being cut through with Pyroar's fires, the weather effect persisted through Ninetales's efforts. She was yet to be randomly hit by the erratic attacks, and managed to sneak around the side to get closer to Winston's team while Mawile was doing the same. Her eyes flashed purple briefly to use Confuse Ray, but Winston had been keeping an eye out and shouted when he noticed her attack.

"Now, Cinccino!" Cinccino clapped its hands briefly, and Ninetales shyly turned away. In response, she used Confuse Ray again and I cursed. Ninetales wasn't supposed to use Confuse Ray again, but was now trapped by that move thanks to Cinccino's Encore. As much as that hurt her offensive ability, it actually didn't affect our strategy too badly. A layer of illusions were set onto her foes, and Pyroar started to solely aim its Flamethrower into the air, away from the floor and my team members.

Cinccino, meanwhile, still contributed its Helping Hand but started to rapidly move its head around to glance about at imaginary foes. Winston realized our strategy, and shouted at his team members to react.

"Heat Wave, Pyroar! Cinccino, Protect!" Cinccino wrapped its white scarves around its body, and Pyroar's entire body heated up and caused the hail coming down onto it to melt into water before it could touch it. A wave of heat expanded out, turning the ice straight into steam around it, and catching Mawile right when she had snuck up behind the protected Cinccino.

Ninetales was still far enough away to only be barely caught in the attack, but Mawile took it head on and stumbled, suffering from super effective damage.

"It's right there, attack it!" Winston shouted. As much as Winston wanted his Pokémon to attack the exposed Mawile, Ninetales had spent this entire time repeatedly using Confuse Ray. As a result, his Pokémon were now under so many layers of illusions they could barely hear Winston's voice and didn't react to his new order. Undaunted by the nearby Pyroar's blistering heat, Mawile clamped down on Cinccino with Crunch and pulled the mouse away from Pyroar, slamming it against the ground with an Iron Head.

Credit to Winston, Cinccino stayed conscious through those attacks and flailed in Mawile's mouth. Its tail managed to break free and hit Mawile repeatedly, each slap of Tail Slap dealing little damage, but the repeated hits slowly stacked up the damage thanks to the move being boosted by both Cinccino's Technician and Skill Link abilities. Mawile squeezed harder with her jaws, hurting Cinccino with Vice Grip, and the Normal Type fainted before it could get many more of its attacks off.

Mawile was heavily wounded at this point, suffering from dents and bruises from Tail Slap and overheated from Heat Wave, but turned her sights on to Pyroar next to her regardless. The lion continued to aim Flamethrower in the air as Mawile raised her jaws up to attack, but she was suddenly sent to the ground by an instantaneous attack as Winston's next Pokémon was sent out, fainted by an Iron Tail from a large, silvery-green opponent.

The impact of the Iron Tail sent out a shockwave that pushed back the snow ever so slightly, and when Winston's new Pokémon was revealed, the entire audience erupted into a frenzy of cheers. My jaw dropped so low that it would have hit the floor, if that was possible, when I saw what Pokémon Winston had sent out. Winston smirked at everyone's reactions.

"Absolutely incredible! Who knew Winston was hiding an ace like this! Not only is it an Aggron, a powerful but notoriously difficult to feed Pokémon, but it isn't just any Aggron! It's shiny! One of the incredibly rare, alternately colored Pokémon that drive collectors into a frenzy!" The screams were deafening, and Winston just smiled as he took in the praise. Meanwhile, his green-color Aggron lifted its tail off of Mawile's unconscious body and I returned her, frowning. That Aggron's going to be an issue.

It's one of the strongest Steel Types in Hoenn, and the number of Pokémon on my team that could deal with it is low. As for its shininess... I hope he bought it. I might scream if Winston, of all people, stumbled upon a shiny Pokémon randomly. Given how much Aggron was a threat to Fairy Types, I sent out Florges, as her Camouflage could remove her weakness to the Steel Type.

"Grass Type, Florges. Ninetales, take out Pyroar, quickly." Aggron stomped forward, trudging through the wet slush that now made up the previously smooth Ice Type field, and Ninetales carefully stalked around it to approach Pyroar. At the same time, Florges created the Grassy Terrain lightning-quick and used Camouflage to turn into a Grass Type and hid herself among the snow and grass.

"Tear it up!" Winston ordered. Following Winston's orders, Aggron charged forward, tucked its shoulder, and began rolling towards Florges. Each movement it made caused the terrain to be torn up under its attack, and Florges was caught by its Steel Roller that removed the Grassy Terrain from the field at the same time.

While the move wasn't super effective against a Grass Type, it still allowed Aggron to get in close and follow up with a sudden Fire Punch right to her gut, catching her off guard and letting the combination of moves knock her out. Thankfully, Cinccino's Encore on Ninetales had ended at this point, and she was able to repeatedly use Extrasensory to knock out the distracted Fire Type at the same time.

She ended up being unable to help Florges, much to her annoyance, and Extrasensory was not as strong as her Ice or Fairy Type moves, but Pyroar resisted both Types. Ninetales was left alone on the field, and both she and I were unhappy at how quickly Florges was fainted. I clenched my jaw as I returned Florges, and Winston just had a very punchable smirk on his face. The crowd was somehow screaming even harder than before, and I sat there, annoyed at his Aggron.

I could tell Winston wanted to banter with me, but the audience was being too loud to allow that. I returned Ninetales before she could be at too much of a disadvantage against the large Steel Type, and considered my options. As I did so, Winston confidently sent out his Persian, the pale feline gracefully landing on the slush of the field. He didn't seem worried at all that sending out his next Pokémon right now would let me choose what Pokémon to use to counter his. His shiny Aggron is the major threat here.

It's far too powerful for most of my team to handle, and has the Type advantage over Fairy Types. Its Rock Type means it's also strong against Altaria, so I need to be careful with whoever I send out. Weighing my options carefully, I ended up sending out both Altaria and Whimsicott. The hail quickly disappeared as Altaria used Cloud Nine to clear the weather on the field, and Whimsicott floated up in the air with him.

Like I expected, Aggron began forming chunks of rock in its hand and throwing them up in the air, intent on crushing Altaria with Rock Tomb. However, it was clear Aggron's specialty was close ranged attacks against grounded foes, and Altaria began to put all his focus in dodging Aggron's assault. Unfortunately, Aggron had energy to spare, and as its rock-based assault continued, Altaria barely had enough time to puff up and defend himself with Cotton Guard, but not to use any attacks.

Whimsicott occasionally tried to send forward a Leech Seed at Aggron, but the Steel Type was able to just toss a rock at the incoming seeds to crush them before any reached its position. While Aggron's attacks continued, Persian slowly moved in. The cat stalked forward, and approached Whimsicott who looked a little unnerved. Seeing the approaching enemy, Whimsicott spun in place, sending out a Leech Seed that Persian Slashed in half. However, carefully hidden spores landed on its fur with a Stun Spore that...

did nothing.

"It can't be paralyzed!" I yelled.

"Its ability Limber prevents that!" Whimsicott suddenly realized his situation when Persian leaped surprisingly high, catching him midair and bringing him down. The cat clawed into his body with Fury Swipes as Whimsicott curled into a fluffy cotton ball to defend himself. After a few more moments of scratching, Persian suddenly jumped backing, looking annoyed.

Wrapped around its center of mass were three large seeds that were slowly draining it of energy, and in front of Persian, Whimsicott climbed out from within the cotton Substitute that he had subtly set up in time. As they faced each other, Whimsicott stuck his tongue out at his foe.

"Urgh, don't let it do that again," Winston shouted.

"Use Taunt!" Before I could have Whimsicott try to stop that with a Taunt of his own, Persian moved rapidly and glared at him while smirking, causing Whimsicott's face to twist up in anger. I haven't seen him this annoyed since Azumarill criticized one of his pranks. Whimsicott puffed up and sent out a breeze of Fairy Wind, then attempted to ride that breeze to fly forward and grab onto Persian to drain it with Mega Drain.

Recognizing that his normal strategy was useless, I yelled out to stop Whimsicott before he could get himself into a bad spot.

"Don't attack, just float into the air, get as high as possible!" Still upset from Taunt, Whimsicott followed what I said and changed the direction of his wind to bring him back up into the sky. Persian missed its next jump at him, then resorted to firing beams from the gemstone in its forehead with Power Gem. However, like Aggron, Persian wasn't great at attacking from range and most of the beams went wide or missed. Aggron, nearby, was still struggling to hit Altaria.

Winston looked frustrated that my flying Pokémon were outmatching his, and called out a new order to Aggron.

"Get it down! Use Fling!" Fling? But Aggron isn't holding a held item... To the surprise of everyone on my team and to the delight of the audience, the green Aggron reached down to grab Persian, who did not look happy, and chucked it at Altaria. The cat flew through the air and extended its claws, and actually managed to land on the bird's body.

In response, Altaria tried to get it to leave with a close-ranged Dragon Pulse, but with feline fury, Persian tore into his Cotton Guard with Fury Swipes, interrupting the attack and removing most of his defense.

"Whimsicott, get it off!"

"Now, Steel Beam!" Whimsicott grabbed onto Persian's back to drain it of energy with Mega Drain, while the metal plating on Aggron's body wavered and bent as waves of energy were sent through it. Aggron's entire body glowed with power, and it squeezed its eyes in pain. Once the move was ready, it opened its mouth, and a massive beam of Steel Type energy was sent out and encompassed my Pokémon.

Persian managed to jump off just in time, knocking Whimsicott off of its back and forcing him to be caught on the edge of the powerful move. Whimsicott only barely managed to stay conscious thanks to the small amount of health he had drained from Persian. Below him, Persian gracefully landed on the ground while Whimsicott wobbled in the air from the damage, and Altaria plummeted towards the ground. I rolled my eyes. He was doing the same thing he had done in Lilycove.

Seriously wounded but still capable of battle, Altaria pulled up at the last moment and caught Persian off guard. He sent out a sudden Dragon Pulse that exploded against Persian's body, which finished off the cat after all of the damage it had taken previously. Winston recalled his team member and sent out Linoone as I went over my options.

"Whimsicott, return. Azumarill, protect Altaria while he uses Roost." Azumarill appeared on the field, and she let out a roar that would have put Pyroar's to shame. Aggron, detecting an easier-to-hit target, ran forward towards her, and Winston's Linoone, now sporting a stylish white scarf around its neck, disappeared and slammed into her in the blink of an eye thanks to Extreme Speed.

Azumarill positioned herself so Linoone's attack was only a glancing hit, and used the momentum of Extreme Speed to grab it and spin, chucking Linoone at Aggron. The Steel Type's slow advance was stalled as it dealt with the status condition known as "Linoone to the face," and Altaria landed next to Azumarill and began to heal with Roost.

"Linoone, step back and Belly Drum! Aggron, Ice Punch Altaria!" Hearing the order I was waiting for, I immediately recalled Azumarill and sent out Whimsicott once more, who appeared close to the ground on my side of the field. The announcers were confused at my decision, as I had rapid-fire used two of my switches, but my choice let Whimsicott no longer be under the effects of Taunt.

"Encore, right now!" Whimsicott was prepared for my sudden order, since we had planned this counter for Winston's Linoone, and clapped to cheer on Linoone as it began to use its boosting move. Linoone stood up on its hind legs to hit itself in its belly, using Belly Drum to maximize its attack. It suffered the side effect of the move, taking a large amount of damage, and blushed as Whimsicott cheered for it.

Linoone, instead of attacking with another Silk Scarf-boosted Extreme Speed, then proceeded to follow Whimsicott's request and used Belly Drum for a second time. Considering that Belly Drum greatly harmed its user, using it a second time caused enough damage to Linoone to knock itself out. I expected Winston to switch Linoone out when I had used Encore, but he had let his prized starter faint to Whimsicott's trick.

Even more so, he didn't immediately send out his next Pokémon like he had done so the last few times, and I raised my eyebrow. Why isn't he sending out Druddigon? Instead, Winston merely looked to his Aggron and shouted out a new command.

"Switch targets!" Aggron was already next to both Altaria and Whimsicott, and while I expected Altaria to muscle through Aggron's attack, that wasn't what ended up happening. Whimsicott barely had enough time to use Protect, but he was exhausted after everything that had happened to him, and was barely holding on. On the bright side, Altaria was looking much better after using Roost and managed to fly away from Aggron without suffering an attack.

"It's time," I said to both Altaria and Whimsicott.

"You know the combo." Altaria shot me an annoyed look, but flew high up into the air, regardless. Whimsicott did the same, much to the annoyance of Winston and Aggron. Should have practiced against flying enemies, Winston. Whimsicott began to use his fast utility moves from Prankster to his advantage. Like the combo we had planned out before, a fake sun appeared in the sky with Sunny Day, and Altaria barely held back his intense desire to use Cloud Nine and let it remain.

As Aggron resumed its Rock Tomb barrage, slowing down as it got more tired, Whimsicott used Growth to create pockets of stored energy for his attacks. From an outsider's perspective, it simply looked like my Pokémon were just flying around, but Whimsicott was becoming exponentially more powerful.

"Now, use Power Swap!" Altaria squawked and happily removed the harsh sunlight, even though it would have boosted his next attack even more. A light left Whimsicott's body and entered Altaria's, as the energy created by Whimsicott went into him instead. Whimsicott stayed away, both a little afraid of the incoming attack and to catch his breath, and Altaria took in a deep inhale to prepare his next move. To ready himself for such a powerful attack, Altaria did have to slow down in the air.

Unfortunately, Aggron finally managed to land a Rock Tomb against him, clipping him in the wing and causing him to fall. As he plummeted towards the ground, he exhaled and sent a few sparse embers forward. It was entirely underwhelming at first, but I closed my eyes, knowing what would happen next. The tiny embers suddenly ceased, and Altaria's eyes bulged as out of nowhere an absolutely enormous blast of flame from Flamethrower exited his mouth like a blockage coming undone.

Winston's entire half of the field was engulfed in fire as Altaria used every bit of the energy from Whimsicott's Growth to sear Aggron. The Steel Type disappeared from view within the attack and the psychic barriers flared white as they held back the flames. Altaria landed on the ground, panting from the exhaustion of using such a powerful move and preening the feathers on his wing where he was damaged. Next to him, visible once the flames died down, lay the unconscious form of Winston's shiny Aggron.

The audience screamed in excitement at seeing such a powerful combination. Winston was yet to send out his final Pokémon, and it was nearing the limit of how long a trainer could wait to do so. While trainers were generally limited to thirty seconds, they were still allowed a brief grace period if they went over for their first time offense. The referee looked to Winston and frowned, speaking over his microphone to let everyone hear what he said.

"If you do not send out your last Pokémon, you will forfeit the match." Winston had a variety of emotions flash across his face. Annoyance, anger, hesitancy. He didn't want to send out his Druddigon, and the pieces snapped into place for me. Druddigon was a gift from his brother. He doesn't want to send it out because he wants to win on his own. I pressed the button on my platform that would let the entire audience hear what I had to say, and readied myself to put on a bit of showmanship.

"I understand if you don't want to send out your Druddigon," I said, revealing his last Pokémon to the audience before he could.

"It's hard to use a Dragon Type against Fairies. If you don't think you've trained your Druddigon well enough, I understand if you wish to pull back." The audience's response was a mix of cheers and boos, but it got the reaction I wanted from Winston. His face changed from a mixed set of negative emotions to that of determination, and he pressed his own button to reply publicly to what I said.

"You've beat me twice before, Alex, but this time, I'm not going to let you do what you want. You've faced my Druddigon in the past, but you didn't beat it. It may have been a gift from my brother, but I've trained it to be a powerhouse. Once you see it in action, you'll understand why I was hesitant to send it out." He was focused but smiling, realizing my intentions to get him to continue.

The referee nodded, acknowledging the fact the battle would continue, and Winston tossed forward the only Ultra Ball that was in his pocket to send out Druddigon. The blue and red Dragon appeared on the field and let out a roar. It was harsh and low, and almost sounded like someone was rubbing sandpaper at the same time. Around its neck was a simple amulet that indeed held the Life Orb that Winston had bought at the beginning of the Conference.

Altaria was still low to the ground, having just used Roost again, and Whimsicott was high up but a bit lower than before, forced to reduce his altitude to avoid the hot air from Altaria's massive Flamethrower. Druddigon took a step forward and glared at Altaria and Whimsicott. Recognizing a fellow Dragon in Altaria, it moved towards him first, and Altaria began charging up a Dragon Pulse. Druddigon was a slow moving Pokémon, so I doubted it would reach him in time to interrupt the attack.

However, this was when the unexpected happened. Druddigon lifted up its back tail, gaining a shining purplish hue of Dragon Type energy, and slammed it down. The Dragon Tail wasn't an attack, but instead the impact allowed it to be launched forward as it slammed into Altaria, Druddigon's entire weight crashing into him. Altaria tried to release what Dragon Type energy he had, but Druddigon slashed with Dragon Claw, fainting him, and its head snapped toward Whimsicott in the air.

I returned Altaria, only for a sudden, powerful Flamethrower to hit Whimsicott where he was floating. I grabbed his Pokéball, expecting him to have fainted, but a quick use of Protect prevented him from being damaged, although he was now far too exhausted to properly fight. Using one more switch, I returned Whimsicott and looked between the judge and Winston.

"How about we change this to a single battle?" I asked. Winston opened his mouth to object, but processed what I said, and closed it to nod his head once to show his approval. He looked over to the referee who frowned but also nodded, and I sent out Azumarill, and only Azumarill, instead of sending out both her and Ninetales. It might be a poor choice to restrict my advantage, but I trust my Pokémon to win.

Winston hadn't had a proper chance to show off his Pokémon yet, but I'm honestly more interested in letting Azumarill have this battle for herself. Druddigon is clearly strong, but it has never been subjected to Azumarill's incredible strength. Seeing such a strong opponent in front of her, Azumarill let loose a vicious smile and stomped on the ground like a sumo wrestler. Druddigon, a proud Dragon Type, saw her challenge and roared as Azumarill breathed in for a quick boost from Work Up.

Once more, Druddigon slammed its tail onto the ground and was launched forward. Azumarill ducked underneath the dragon hurtling towards her and used the brief moment of respite to set up Aqua Ring. Druddigon hit the ground rolling and, using the momentum to get back up to its feet, charged at her where she was waiting.

"It's a Fairy Type, Druddigon. Dragon Type moves won't work," Winston quickly said. Druddigon shifted its stance ever so slightly and jumped forward at Azumarill. She brought up a Liquidation-infused arm to block the incoming Metal Claw, and it brought up its other hand only for her to block it again.

With both arms held in Azumarill's tiny hands, Druddigon slammed its rough head forward with the Steel Type Iron Head, catching Azumarill off guard and causing her to stumble back, the move being unexpectedly strong due to Druddigon's own Sheer Force ability. After that attack, Druddigon jumped into the air to bring down its claws with a brutal Slash, and Azumarill only barely managed to move out of the way with Aqua Jet. Azumarill looked... not happy.

Ever since Norman's Vigoroth, she strove to always be able to overpower her opponents. Winona's Skarmory was an exception, but that Pokémon was more of a possibility for her to reach rather than an opponent at her level to compare herself to. Winston's Druddigon was different. It was at her approximate level of power, but its physical strength far outclassed her. She was frustrated, annoyed, and honestly, looking a bit emotionally defeated.

She dodged a Metal Claw that was aimed right at her stomach, and as a few more angry emotions flashed across her face, she finally settled on a single one: mischievousness. With a cruel smirk, Azumarill hopped back and held up her paw to make a "come at me" gesture. Infuriated by her casual attitude, Druddigon charged forward, its claws held up, ready to carve her apart in its confused rage given by Swagger.

With her opponent not thinking straight, Azumarill easily moved out of the way, and, invigorated by her Aqua Ring, grabbed the charging Druddigon's tail. The Dragon Type was stopped in its run, and tried to turn around, but Azumarill stayed back and pulled, the sudden force knocking Druddigon to the ground. Using both Play Rough to empower herself and Aqua Jet to increase her speed, she began to spin in place as Druddigon was subjected to a massive amount of centripetal force.

Her rotations slowly increased in speed until Azumarill was spinning at a ridiculous pace, Druddigon unable to reach back and hit her thanks to the forces pulling it away from her. Once she felt ready, Azumarill let go and Druddigon flew off into the distance, the momentum carrying it far enough that it slammed into the psychic barrier on the edge of the field, causing it to fall down onto the slushy field below.

Druddigon tried to stand up and defend itself with a quick reactionary Metal Claw, but Azumarill's classic Aqua Jet into Play Rough combo finished it off before it could do anything else. The crowd cheered for the end of such an exciting battle, and Azumarill smirked and crossed her arms. Winston returned Druddigon, and while he looked upset, he did look to be feeling a bit better. I returned Azumarill, and whispered a quick praise to her Dive Ball.

Once they were extended, I walked down the stairs to meet Winston on the field.

"I hope you're feeling better now, even though you didn't win," I said. Winston sighed and shook his head defeatedly.

"It was a battle that I lost. I simply need to train more. I appreciate you switching to a one on one battle in the end. My father should see how well Druddigon has trained, even if he ended up losing." I smirked.

"If he doubts Druddigon fought well, tell him that Azumarill managed to dent Winona's personal Skarmory. That's impressive in its own right." Winston seemed to agree, and chuckled at my comment. After shaking hands, we headed off the field as the audience cheered. As I walked, I searched around to find where Marty and Old Man Harvey told me where they were seated, and waved to them as I left the field.

Since this was the final week, there was a battle each day, so while I might have beat Winston today, I would still have another battle tomorrow. Once more, Wally and I were sitting next to each other, waiting for the next round matchups to be announced. We weren't in the Pokémon Center this time, since the main one didn't allow non-challengers to loiter for too long, but we were instead eating at a nearby diner. Since Wally and I made it into the top 32, we actually ate for free.

Marty and Old Man Harvey were also here eating with us, but their meal was just heavily discounted instead of being completely free. Marty was quietly chatting to Wally about Wally potentially going to Johto next year, while there were some simple advertisements on the television in our private room while we waited for the next round names to be announced.

Wally and I both had our Pokémon with us, all fully healed, since for the final rounds the League actually broke out the Max Potions and Max Revives to fully restore trainers' Pokémon between the daily rounds. Trubbish was currently talking to Whimsicott on the floor, and Ponyta was sitting next to the pair, listening in. The room quieted down when the stream on the hanging television switched to list the matchups for tomorrow.

There would be sixteen battles then, and since the number of trainers had been reduced to thirty-two, tomorrow would be a slightly longer day as all battles would take place on the main battlefield, instead of one of the Type-themed ones. Wally and I shifted our focus to the television and held our breaths as we waited to see who would be fighting. Thomas was the first name to show up, and I recognized who he was fighting, but only barely. It was a generalist from Sinnoh that was apparently decently strong.

After him, the next pair was unfamiliar, and I didn't recognize the names after them, either. The fourth pair had names I recognized, and when I saw them, I froze. I glanced over to Wally, who looked back to me, his eyes wide. He stood up and quickly returned his Pokémon. While he did so, I noticed his hands were ever-so-slightly shaking.

"I need to go, Alex. I'll see you tomorrow." Wally rushed out of the room, leaving me in stunned silence. I had a lot to think about, and almost wanted to leave as well. After all, Wally would be my next opponent.