Chương 43: Preparation

"Silver!" I instinctively opened my arms, catching the giddy Jasmine with a small smile.

"Hey, Jas," I greeted. Admittedly, I missed my gang a lot... but I'd just have to crush them all with extreme prejudice for not at least messaging in the chat. I was proud that they were so focused on their training, but I could also be annoyed with those assholes. At least Jasmine was here; she was practically a member of the Color Gang, and I didn't want to kill her at all times like I did with Janine.

"I'm free from all my gym duties! We can hang out until the League starts!" she beamed, squeezing me tightly. I nodded.

"Everyone has been helping me train. You can join," I decided easily. The look of joy on her face warmed my heart immensely.

"I missed you," I said honestly, squeezing her right back. My smirk widened at seeing her face light up in embarrassment, and she immediately hid... against me. It was always so funny when she used me to hide, especially considering she was an inch taller than I was.

"Did you... Did you really mean it when you said you loved me?" Jasmine asked suddenly. Her voice was so low that I'm sure I wouldn't have heard it if not for our proximity. I blinked.

"Of course I do. Since the moment I saw you show up to ambush me in Route 3. I just don't like saying it out loud... It's embarrassing," I said honestly. Jasmine nodded readily in agreement.

"It's so embarrassing! I don't know how Green can do it so easily! I envy her!" We both nodded in agreement. Green was a different beast.

"I... I got another pokemon while you were gone," Jasmine revealed hesitantly. I quirked a brow.

"Really?" She nodded.

"I wanted something with more firepower. I remember when we talked about Dialga at Mt. Ember and realized its typing matched a strong pokemon, so I secured one too." A steel and dragon type? What the hell pokemon was that? Jasmine stepped back and held out a Heavy Ball. She held her entire team in them at my suggestion, and I watched as she released her most recent capture. My eyes widened in mild interest as a tall bipedal creature that looked like a dinosaur appeared.

It had large feet, a chunky tail, and a head that was integrated into its neck.

"This is Raily the Duralodon, Silver. He's young, but he's got a lot of spirit! I think in some time, he'll end up becoming one of my strongest pokemon," Jasmine informed me. Ohhhh, this was that one pokemon, from Galar! Duralodon huh? It looked like a real powerhouse. The look in his eyes was even fiercer than Empy's, and I watched as they immediately latched onto the two Salamence soaring through the skies. It was easy to tell which was Ares.

Not even Lance's own impressive Salamence came close to matching her size.

"He's dreaming big already, isn't he? Staring down Ares and Lance's Salamence like that?" I asked, eyes flashing in interest as I inspected the strange dragon. He allowed me to do so, rumbling in content as I placed a hand on his cool body. Jasmine nodded happily.

"My pokemon aren't typically the most eager for battle, but he seems to relish it! Honestly, since meeting you, the thought of improving myself has been a constant one. I want to be stronger... so much stronger so I can actually protect you..." My gaze softened.

"Before, I thought I was gonna surpass you in around two years... but now it might take me a little longer now that you're actually motivated." She flushed and said, "You turned me into this monster, Silver. By the time you travel through Johto, I'll be the strongest gym leader in Indigo." I stared at her unwavering determination with a small smile.

"There's a lot I wanna tell you guys. Ideally, I'd like to mention it to the whole gang at once... but if you want, I can tell you now?" Jasmine shook her head, much to my surprise.

"I wanna see them all too! We can all talk about how stupid you are together!"

"Pfft," I snorted in amusement, patting her hair and pulling her into a hug. Jasmine squeaked in embarrassment, but that didn't stop her from readily returning my affections. It was rare for either of us to be affectionate, leaving that to Green so she could just do group hugs, but we missed each other a lot. As we embraced, I felt Jasmine tense up... which caused me to tense up. I immediately grasped her shoulders and pulled back, only to see that her eyes were horribly wide.

The disbelief was evident in her gaze, causing me to tilt my head in mild confusion. It didn't take me very long to find out what she was seeing behind me as she repeatedly looked at my face and then the mystery. I turned around to find Mars staring at us. We were currently in Lorelei's incredibly spacious backyard, where my team and I were constantly training.

"Are you just now waking up? We really need to fix your schedule," I chided, noting her white and black pajamas.

"Fuck you and your efforts in trying to fix it. Terrorizing me with an illusion like that should have you jailed," she yawned, rubbing her eyes as she drank from a steaming cup. I shrugged helplessly.

"I was helping Loki hone his illusions and figured you'd be a good judge of it. How was it?"

"I don't even know what pokemon he transformed into."

"It's called Hoopa-Unbound. I'll draw a picture of it."

"You can draw?"

"It's easy... I just take what appears in my mind and apply it to paper. I'm kinda getting into a hobby of just drawing Legends."

"Fucking cheater."

"You might be right... It became suspiciously easy after my shenanigans with Mewtwo and Metagross now." Mars and I snorted at the same time before my twin gazed over at the stunned Jasmine.

"Just how many girlfriends do you have? I'm getting kind of worried."

"H-Huh?!" Jasmine gaped in disbelief.

"You sound like Gold, so I hope you two never meet. I don't have a girlfriend, dumbass... most guys just have a terrible time dealing with my ego unless they're a good bit older and stronger than me," I complained. Mars opened her mouth, then abruptly shut it.

"Actually, yeah, I believe you. I wanna punch you in your mouth all the time, so I bet they're the same way."

"They are. Too bad no one near my age can beat me in a fight besides Janine," I grunted.

"That'll change one day," Mars swore.

"Yeah, maybe I'll run into some other abnormally strong child. It definitely won't be you."

"C-Can someone please explain what's going on?" Jasmine asked in disbelief. I huffed in mild amusement, reaching over and grabbing Mars. She yelped at the contact, shooting me a dirty glare with an embarrassed expression.

"Jasmine, this is Mars. Mars, this is Jasmine. Jasmine is my little sister... Mars is also my little sister." I idly snatched the cup of coffee out of her hand, drinking it experimentally.

"Hey, you dick! That's my goddamn coffee! And I'm older than you by 6 months!" she hissed.

"That's good. Make me a cup from now on," I mused. Not too sweet, not bitter like hell. I was a fan of it. I didn't really need coffee. I tended to wake up fairly energetic, the reason becoming abundantly clear when I spent those two months with Team Rocket. They didn't really let me get much rest, always keeping me busy. Mars let out a worryingly feral noise. It couldn't be natural how similar we were because we even hissed the same. No wonder everyone always compared me to a grumpy cat...

"Children, neither of you should be drinking coffee at your age," Lorelei said calmly, holding her own steaming mug. She was dressed in a purple robe, having probably just finished affairs in her room as the day got started. I knew from experience that Lorelei overloaded her coffee with sugar. She had one of the most insane sweet tooths I'd ever witnessed, and I could not fathom how she managed to have such a perfect set of teeth. Probably the same reason all of our bodies were so conditioned.

Evolution was one hell of a thing when you're forced to live with superpowered creatures.

"Hello, Jasmine. I'm happy to see you," Lorelei greeted with a bright smile, cup floating, courtesy of Jynx, who had recovered recently from Mewtwo, so that she could pull my best friend into a tight hug.

"U-Um, hello Lorelei! Maybe you can help me better understand why there are two Silvers," Jasmine mumbled, returning it easily.

"We don't even look that similar anymore," Mars grumbled halfheartedly, beckoning to my windswept hair.

"You don't believe that," I retorted, rolling my eyes.

"... Yeah, I don't," she sighed. I shrugged.

"You're planning on growing out your hair, so we're actually gonna look the same soon." Mars scowled.

"Cut your hair."

"Keep yours short."

"..."

"..." The impasse allowed Lorelei to beckon towards us.

"Jasmine, this is Mars. She is my niece and Silver's cousin... but I just call them twins... and my children because it's easier that way for all of us," Lorelei explained with a small smile.

"She's so excited to mention that," Mars whispered to me.

"Watch this," I murmured back.

"Aww, you call us your children? Thanks, Mom. Better you than anyone else." Lorelei's cheeks flushed while her expression lit up. Her smile turned into a small grin, and my very whipped aunt pulled us into a tight hug.

"Wow. She's whipped," Mars awed, getting more and more accustomed to my aunt's affections. I wonder how much Lorelei doted on her while they went shopping.

"The most," I nodded in agreement. Jasmine gasped loudly.

"Twins?! Really?!"

"I found her in Sinnoh. She was a sad little thing that I took pity on," I explained. Idly, I held out a hand to push back the literally feral redhead across from me.

"Calm down, Mars... do we have to get you more shots?"

"I'll kill you in your sleep," she swore. My smirk widened. Jasmine looked at us with wide eyes.

"Two... Silvers?" she said aloud. Mars snapped to attention.

"Okay, seriously, how many people have you scarred? What type of demon are you?"

"Dunno. I think you can answer that question for yourself," I answered smugly. My twin let out a choking noise as Jasmine abruptly pulled us into a tight hug.

"Wow! It's so nice to meet you, Mars! My name is Jasmine, and I'm Silver's first friend and one of his best friends! I'm the gym leader of Olivine City in the Johto region!" Mars looked stunned at the giddy expression on her face.

"You're... excited? Wait, hold on, don't tell me someone actually likes the fact that there are two of you." I had a smile of amusement.

"I can do no wrong in Jasmine's eyes. She's probably ecstatic that we look so similar." Jasmine nodded eagerly.

"How could I not be?! Are you also a trainer? Do you have a steel type?!" Mars looked properly taken aback.

"Um... I only have two pokemon. I'll start as a trainer next circuit," she revealed slowly. My best friend nodded thoughtfully.

"Wow, I met Silver for the first time when he only had two pokemon. Are you going to reveal that you're a criminal next?" she asked playfully.

"Well... about that..." Mars chuckled weakly. Jasmine blinked owlishly.

"A-Are you two actually twins?"

"This is good!" Mars gasped with wide eyes, digging into her plate with gusto. Jasmine blushed with a small smile.

"Have you tried Silver's cooking? I'm the one who taught him!" she revealed. I nodded.

"She's a miracle worker. Green and I couldn't even boil rice," I revealed in amusement.

"Wow... so I guess miracles even work on the most hopeless of people," Mars mused. Lorelei pulled me back down as I stood to flick the little dork. I hissed at the smug Mars, eyes narrowed in warning.

"So, Mars, you plan on becoming a trainer?" Jasmine asked, totally oblivious to the daggers we were shooting at each other. Mars blinked and nodded.

"After the League. Lorelei wants me to stay close, but Kanto isn't the best place right now, so I'll be travelling through Johto." Lorelei nodded.

"I want to ensure her first journey goes smoothly... and since Kanto is rebuilding, I believe Johto will be better for her," she explained patiently. I nodded too.

"Gold and Crystal wanted to travel through Johto next circuit since that's where they were supposed to go initially... and Green wanted to go too, so she'll probably drag me with her. I'll drop in to make sure you're doing well," I muttered.

"Me too! Oh, you must come to Olivine... but please battle me for your 8th badge! I want to test you at your full strength before the league. Don't worry if you lose, you'll get the badge if you perform good enough!" Jasmine said, eyes shining happily.

"She'd give you a badge if you got 6-0'd," I said boredly. Jasmine looked stunned at how I exposed her. She stared at me with wide eyes before puffing her cheeks indignantly.

"J-Just for that, when we battle Silver that's what I'm going to do to you!" I scoffed with a wave of my hand.

"Good. I'm going to be stronger than all the Gym Leaders soon... so if you're still stronger than me, I'll be proud of you." Jasmine flushed immediately.

"Darn it, Silver... I'm trying to be fierce," she mumbled. I pat her shoulder.

"I know... you're trying your best." Mars looked at us all, a slight twinkle in her eyes that she tried to hide. I felt my smirk widen.

"Are you enjoying this, nepo baby?" I muttered, leaning into my seat. Her twinkle immediately vanished, and she crossed her arms.

"You always have something to say, you pest!" Mars barked in annoyance.

"How could I not? You look like you're enjoying yourself," I teased. Mars hissed at me before her expression sobered slightly.

"Well... this is just the first time I've had a dinner like this. It's... nice. Normally, I just eat at my job," she muttered. Lorelei placed a hand over her heart at that.

"I hate that you both were raised in such suboptimal situations... Mark my words, I'll do my best to give you two a proper family." While I just smiled, knowing she meant it, Mars looked at Lorelei with the wide eyes I probably gave her more than once... when I thought she was just full of shit. So that's how I probably looked when she caught me off guard, huh? I huffed in amusement.

"I'm done eating. I'm going to go back to train," I informed them. Jasmine stood up with me.

"I want to train too! After everything that happened, I'm going to become even stronger!" That conviction of hers really was a lot stronger than any other time. Previously, Jasmine was mostly getting stronger on my demands, but this time? It felt like she genuinely wanted it for herself. Good, I was proud of her. With that type of conviction, Jasmine was going to really become one of the strongest trainers in the region. I honestly didn't know when I was going to catch up to her.

"I'll come too. I'm starting a year late, so I've gotta catch up," Mars muttered, pushing herself up with narrowed eyes. I nodded.

"No sibling of mine will be weak. I'll make you strong."

"I'll help! We can discuss steel types for you to catch!" Jasmine beamed. Mars huffed in embarrassment.

"Maybe I am a nepo baby..." Lorelei smiled at us, glowing with pride. She had been smiling a lot more, especially whenever she was looking at Mars and me. It was nice. My time with Team Rocket made me appreciate the normal moments even more. Maybe the real reason I folded so quickly to the idea of getting Mars was for moments like this. I accepted the Lum Berry with a small smile, patting Oberon's belly.

He watched with an eager glint as I took out the Mini Berry Farm and planted the offered gift in my mini garden of berries. There were all sorts. Oran, Sitrus, Cheri, Chesto... even the lesser-known ones like Occa, Yache, and Bluk. I had amassed such a giant berry collection that I upgraded from a Berry Pot to a Mini Berry Farm. It was fairly large, which made it all the more hilarious that it could even fit in this ridiculous bag, holding a majority of the berries I amassed with ease.

I still had the pots, but they weren't cutting it alone.

"Thank you, Oberon. Gaia has been going through the berries like nothing... but don't tell her I said that because she'll think I'm calling her fat when I meant Natural Gift. I don't even know how she gets offended... she's not even eating them," I murmured, dropping a fresh and juicy Pecha in his mouth. He chewed it happily, laughing at my words all the while.

"I realize I never got to say this, but I'm sorry for bringing you back to Team Rocket," I murmured. Then I punched him with no force on the new moon on his belly.

"And you did awesome against Giovanni. I'm proud of you, little man," I said affectionately. Oberon's eyes widened at my words. My little Ursaring roared and pulled me into a tight hug, causing me to let out a wheezing chuckle.

"I want to make it easier for you to close the distance between yourself and enemies... so for now, we're learning two moves. Scary Face and Swift. Scary Face to slow them down... Swift to distract them. Not only that, we gotta learn more typed moves. I gave you Earthquake too... but I want you to learn Fire, Ice, and Thunder Punch," I murmured. He nodded along with me, gaze attentive.

"How's Focus Energy? You're making better progress than Ares is, but is it helping?" I muttered. Oberon sat down, idly fiddling with one of my Berry Pots. Peaceful activities like planting berries did wonders for him, especially considering he enjoyed the hobby. He was partially the reason I bought the Mini Berry Farm. Sometimes, the best way to find peace within yourself is to invest in a hobby, so I gave him one that he would have an easier time with. Find a berry and plant it.

Oberon already loved finding stuff, so I encouraged and intended to nurture it. He was a much better chef than Gaia, too, actually able to help me out. He was ecstatic to learn that we were getting started on making Poffins. Oberon was my gentle bear, forced to be something he wasn't. I watched him take a deep breath with a small smile. The fantastic thing about Focus Energy was that it allowed you to balance the power inside you. Sometimes, just getting a feel for what you were working with was enough.

Oberon nodded happily. I watched as his entire body glowed with a slight sheen before transferring to his right arm, and then his left. I puffed up proudly.

"I fear whoever has to get hit by you," I said honestly. My Ursaring laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head with those massive paws of his. I snorted, leaning against him with a small sigh and sinking into his thick fur. It was growing, and he liked it like this because I thought it was very comfortable. Oberon rumbled happily, only for it to abruptly stop. I perked up in confusion, turning towards him with a tilt of my head. His gaze was laser-focused on my bag.

I couldn't tell what he was thinking, but his gaze seemed a little unfocused, prompting me to snap my finger in his face.

"You alright, Oberon?" I questioned with some concern. He snapped to attention at my actions, blinking rapidly before nodding. Despite coming to his senses, I noticed that his gaze was still on my bag. What was in here that could possibly have him in a daze? Ohhhh, the Griseous Orb. Oberon had been in Turnback Cave with me, so he probably got a good feel for the heavy distortion in that cave and sensed that I had it in my bag, too. His reaction to being in there was also fairly strange.

Normal and Ghost types didn't really care for each other much... so it was odd that Oberon could feel the distortion. Hm, should I teach him a ghost-type move since he seemed sensitive to it? He did have Lick already...

"So this is the rotten little brat who's upturned Kanto in a matter of months. Who would think that he'd be a gardener of all things? Fancy a little retirement hobby after what you've done, huh?" I barely turned towards the aged voice, not very interested in them.

"Retiring doesn't sound all that bad right now. It's a peaceful style... but I've gotta become stronger and more terrifying so people don't think they can talk to me so freely," I replied coolly. Agatha snorted rudely.

"Unlike my sister, I have no interest in talking about silly things with any of you, especially not something as useless as gardening." Agatha had a sister? Color me surprised. No clue why she felt the need to mention it to me, though.

"Unlike you and your sister, I have no interest in talking to any of you, period," I replied easily. I was ignored.

"How the hell is an infant with no ghost types, seeping in enough distortion to disturb me and my ghosts, miles away?" Oh boy, straight into interrogation, huh? I couldn't help but raise a brow at that.

"Sounds like you aren't as impressive as you thought you were," I shrugged helplessly. If I were fazed, which I wasn't, by the fact that Agatha was here, I certainly didn't show it. I was more surprised that she was visiting me of her own volition. From what my aunt said, she dreaded the day the two of us would ever meet. I'm sure she'd want to be here for such a thing. In her own words, Agatha might make me disappear. Bah, who cared?

"Is there something you want? I was relaxing here, and your staring is getting in the way of that. You're a little too old for me," I drawled. Agatha sneered at me.

"Ah, so the little ghost has some bite to him! I expected that from the brat sending my brats into a stir... but I'm not as impressed as I thought I'd be." I watched Agatha's shadow stir slightly at her words, tilting my head at what was most probably her famed Gengar.

"I don't live to impress others. I'm not free entertainment," I drawled. Well, I guess that wasn't so true... considering that's what Giratina used me for.

"If you find it so offensive, we can easily consider it a partnership." Agatha let out a barking laugh.

"Hmph, you could have fooled me! Only 12 and forced to gaze upon horrors most humans wouldn't even dream of seeing. Poor fool, I almost pity you." My brows furrowed.

"I'm not very interested in people who approach me to spew cryptic bullshit. Get to the point of why you're here, Elite 4 Agatha," I said in annoyance. In an instant, her amused and crooked grin vanished.

"Watch your tone, brat. I won't allow disrespect from a fledgling soaking in his diapers," she sneered.

"I won't let some crone with one foot in the grave talk to me like I'm her bitch," I sneered right back. The two of us glared harshly at each other. My finger twitched as I watched her raise her cane... but she did not slam it down. Agatha scoffed.

"Impudent little shit!"

"Rude fucking hag!" I snarled right back.

"Ursa," Oberon interjected quietly, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Hmph, an uppity little wretch who's got a big mouth. Maybe I need to teach you some proper manners," Agatha said scornfully.

"I hope you plan on using your ghosts for that because if I shove my foot up your ass, I'm not sure you'll survive," I warned her.

"Your foot wouldn't reach, you loud-mouthed toddler. Fancy getting crushed by my cane? You're 10 years too early to talk to me like this," she shot back venomously. I scowled balefully.

"You're 10 years too old to be cranky that you haven't got dic—,""Whoa whoa!" Karen shouted, coming between the two of us with an alarming look.

"The hell are you doing here?" I questioned with a frown, crossing my arms at being interrupted. Karen shook her head in some disbelief.

"I saw Agatha heading out. It's rare for her to leave her humble abode, so I followed." She held her head with one hand.

"Just what the hell were you about to say to her?" I shrugged.

"Nothing serious. I was gonna bring up her boyfriend."

"B-Boyfriend? The hell does that even mean?!" Karen gaped. Agatha snorted and turned away from me.

"A brat with a backbone! I guess maybe you'll grow out of your diapers soon enough!" I rolled my eyes.

"I'll be sure to put yours on when you make it into a retirement home."

"Hmph."

"Hn." She stared at me once.

"Don't call that man my boyfriend again, fledgling. I'll have Dusknoir wring your neck."

"The fact you know who I'm talking about says a lot about you, huh? Don't worry, maybe I'll tell him to ring you up," I retorted. Despite her warning, Agatha simply snorted and shuffled away. Karen and I watched as Agatha promptly walked away.

"Did she really come here just to insult you?" Karen asked in disbelief. I shrugged.

"Showing up just to hurl insults? I respect that." She turned a startled gaze towards me.

"Are you... Are you happy?!" she hissed. A smirk was all she got in response.

"Now that I think about it... Agatha would have torn into someone by now. No, you would have torn into someone too... but both of you seemed pleased. Is this what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? They just refuse to kill each other?" she muttered.

"She's got a lot of bite," I noted, watching Agatha scuttle off. She paused for a moment, seeming to sense my gaze, and I watched as a Gengar poked out of her shadow. It grinned wider at me, a slight reverence in its gaze as the ghost waved... before yelping as Agatha hit it with her cane. Agatha huh? I liked her. I needed someone to match my vitriol, kept me sharp.

"What the hell did I just witness..." Karen trailed off. That actually reminded me of something...

"Hey Giratina, you can do trips for me, right?"

"You are utilizing my ability? How surprising."

"It's worth it. Don't worry."

"Hmph, very well." Joy and Blissey both let out matching yawns, entering her home in a leisurely manner. She beelined it straight to her room to get out of her uniform—"Boo." —Only to let out a startled shout at the surprise presence of a third person. Blissey shrieked louder than she did, a shrill call of her name as she leapt back.

"What the fu—," Joy cut herself off, staring incredulously at the smug, red-eyed Silver. Before she could say anything, the little demon brat reached over and violently pinched her cheeks.

"That's for attacking me while I was defenseless," Silver said smugly, ignoring her thrashing with a self-satisfied smirk. Joy hissed.

"Don't tell me you used Mewtwo just to come over here and pinch me." Silver tilted his head.

"Of course not. I used Giratina just to come over here and pinch you." The Nurse snarled, causing Silver to chuckle loudly. He waved at the confused Blissey, getting a confused one in return.

"You should be grateful. I was going to make you think your house was haunted... up until I realized you were immediately about to change clothes. I do not need to give you an actual reason to call me a pervert, so I ended my prank early," he sighed despondently. He finally released his grip on her cheek, and Joy rubbed the spot, glaring heinously at the demon brat, even as he pulled her into a hug. Silver smiled proudly, looking very much like the kid he was.

He only ever looked so childish when misfortune befell someone, adding to her theory that he was dragged out of the depths of the Distortion World to terrorize the mortal planes. Wait, hold on a minute...

"Giratina?" she said slowly, begrudgingly returning the hug because, for all her theories, this little brat was still one of her favorite people. Silver nodded.

"Long story... I guess I might as well tell you since I'm here." Joy blinked owlishly.

"Did you seriously only come here to pinch me?" He tilted his head.

"What other reason would I have to come here?" he asked genuinely.

"You're a demon posing as a human."

"You aren't the first person to say that... Based on new information, I'm inclined to believe it."

"You utilized my abilities to enact petty revenge."

"Yeah. I got no other reason to really use it." A pulse of amusement coursed through me. I like to think I was the only one who made Giratina feel amusement.

"So the legend that makes you all weird was actually Giratina and not Mewtwo?" Joy questioned, donned in a simple tee and shorts. I nodded, body splayed lazily on her couch. I even threw my legs over her lap to really get comfortable, something that caused her to roll her eyes.

"For the most part. I've had memory problems for a while. I also scare ghosts and psychics... and it's because of them." Joy nodded thoughtfully. Much like when we were on New Island, she didn't overreact to the information I gave her. She just processed it with a lethargic expression that I knew was mostly a mask.

"I'm surprised you're telling me this so willingly. It's nice, but I'm used to just figuring things out by what you say." An amused scoff was what she got from me.

"We practically spent a month together with Mewtwo. In that time, you single-handedly stopped my mind from crumbling more than it did... I'd be a jackass to bother hiding anything from you, so I won't," I shrugged truthfully. Joy pursed her lips at that.

"Fair. I'm basically one of the few who's trying to help you... because you refuse to get a therapist." I shrugged.

"Guilty as charged. I doubt a therapist can help me deal with being a vessel for a god capable of causing mayhem to the universe... and the only thing stopping them is my desire to do so," I mused. My favorite nurse shot me a mild look of concern.

"Coming here didn't damage you or anything, right? I know you wouldn't harm yourself for fun, but..."

"I'm perfectly fine, and even if they have side effects, which they don't, I don't really plan on using any ability from either legend I'm connected to. I just wanna be Silver for a while," I assured. Joy smirked, leaning over and raking my hair.

"Good. You deserve it after what you were put through." I let her get away with doing that, sighing as I gazed at the roof.

"Alright, I'm done messing with you. Get some sleep... and make sure you watch the League," I reminded her. She cocked a brow.

"The Hoenn League is going to be starting around that time, too. How arrogant are you to think I'll ignore it to watch yours?" I raised a brow as well.

"Oh yeah? Have you watched any other trainers' battles as much as mine?" I prodded. She scoffed.

"I know about some standouts in this region. None of the trainers in Hoenn are as suicidal as you, so I don't pay as much attention to them. Heard there's going to be plenty of interesting names for this one."

"Oh yeah? Like who?" I mused.

"The daughter of the Gym Leader of Lavaridge, named Flannery, a set of child twins named Tate and Liza... and a hot newcomer who just goes by Lorekeeper," she mentioned. I quirked a brow before freezing. Wait a fucking second. Lorekeeper?! That was that Zemya girl! She was the Lorekeeper, right?! What the hell was she doing participating in a League?!... Was that my fault? Hm, what was her game exactly? Last I remembered, hardly anyone knew who she was. Lorekeeper eh? I'd have to keep an eye on her.

"You should all in on Lorekeeper," I informed her vaguely. Joy raised a brow.

"I'm not a betting woman... and why would I do that? She's an unknown, and I'm better off voting for one of those prodigious little twins. They're one of the few trainers to be able to start their journey at such a young age." I smiled.

"You don't trust me?"

"I don't trust a secretive, annoying, dragged out of hell because they couldn't handle him, brat?" she asked dully. I twitched.

"Just bet on her! Then split half the prize with me because no one else will vote for her. I'll even add to your pool." Joy rolled her eyes.

"Fine, fine. It's not like I spend my money on much else, so I'll go along with your crazy little gamble," she muttered. There was a satisfied feeling coursing through me.

"Good. Oh, by the way... I just discovered I have a cousin who's practically my twin. You'll have to meet her one day," I informed her. Joy's pink hair jostled in her surprise.

"There's two of you?" she asked with a true frown of concern. I laughed loudly. Maybe I felt a little bad about what my reputation was doing for Mars. Only Jasmine and Lorelei seemed excited by the prospect of having two Silvers. Eh, my gang would be happy about it... except for Gold. But who the hell cared what Gold thought?

"I finally found you." I wiped the sweat off my head, a scowl immediately forming on my face out of habit. I turned towards the familiar voice and was met with the cool gaze of Sabrina. She made for a better image than the last time I saw her, face only slightly flushed as a natural side effect of being this close in proximity to me. This was far more what I was accustomed to, so at least Giratina told the truth when they said they would bring me back to the previous level I was at.

Still, it's annoying that they didn't just banish it altogether, but oh well. I was surprised to see how casually Sabrina was dressing, wearing the same white pants with the purple spaghetti-strap shirt she had on when I forcibly kidnapped her for Green's birthday.

"Were you looking for me? What the fuck?" I grunted, raking a hand through my hair.

"You look better, Freak. Less like shit," I mentioned. For all our animosity towards each other, I didn't want Sabrina to suffer from some illness at the hands of a legend. Only I had the right to terrorize her, and I bet she was the same. Sabrina's expression... didn't quite soften, but it did look slightly less harsh.

"I could say the same to you, Abomination." The Gym Leader gazed at me.

"I had no idea you were a psychic," she mentioned. I snorted in amusement at the slightly ill look on her face.

"By no choice of my own. I can hardly use it anyway." Bummer, I kind of liked Teleporting... who wouldn't? But beyond that, I wasn't too fond of the powers forcefully awakened inside of me. Sabrina shook her head.

"Every human has psychic power. They simply fail to realize it," she informed me. I pursed my lips at that, gazing at her.

"Others just have it easier. I call those people the Freaks." A tiny scowl instantly formed on her face, slight pleasantries gone as a familiar charge pulsed through the air.

"A battle. Let us have one." I paused at her demand.

"Oh! You're still so mad about that letter I sent, aren't you? Why? It was really thoughtful of me, so I thought you'd actually like it!" I chuckled, sneering at her. Her eye twitched ever so slightly, causing me to puff up smugly.

"No thanks. I am not battling you. I have to prepare for the League, so I can't entertain a woman child," I said decisively.

"I see… I knew you would be too afraid to accept. I cannot say I am surprised by such an outcome. After all, my very presence makes you nervous. It is no wonder you continuously compliment my appearance." … I mechanically turned towards Sabrina with a soulless look in my eyes. That was quite possibly the most visible bait on the fucking planet… but goddamn did it work.

"You're on. Prepare for battle, team!" I scowled. I hissed at the smug look on Sabrina's face. She, expectantly, trashed the fuck out of me. Sabrina was infuriatingly powerful. It wasn't very close at all. She had utilized a Delphox for a majority of the battle, claiming that she would, "show you that I can use a fire type just fine." Fortunately, I actually managed to faint it with a combination of Loki, Freyja, and Ares... and then she used her Alakazam.

A genius didn't have to tell you that Alakazam was her starter. The absolute nerve of this stupid fucking— There was no chance I was going into any more detail about that battle. You could go fuck yourself if you thought I was gonna do that.

"That felt good. While I despise what you have done to my character, I do appreciate my sudden love for battle. You've ignited a passion I never thought I had," she decided, smiling at her apologetic Alakazam.

"You're a fucking toddler. One more round!" I snarled. Sabrina raised a brow; that smug smile never vanished.

"One more round? You already utilized your strongest members against me. Do you wish to use yourself?"

"Accept and I'll show you!" I barked back.

"Giratina! Prepare for battle!"

"You are not seriously planning on utilizing me for this human, are you?"

"I'm dead fucking serious. I saw your eyes poking out of my shadow. Either I'm using you or I'm fucking calling over Mewtwo, and I know you'd hate that."

"... Very well." I would have felt more proud normally, at hearing Giratina of all pokemon sigh... but I was a little pissed that Sabrina of all people got one up on me. Before Giratina could properly show itself and make Sabrina piss herself, a tired sigh caused me and my arch nemesis to turn towards them. Lorelei, Mars, and Jasmine stared at the battle with varying expressions. Awe on Mars, surprise on Jasmine, and tired acceptance on Lorelei.

"I thought Green was joking when she said Silver and Sabrina hate each other. Wow..." Jasmine trailed off.

"It feels nice to see someone knock him down a peg," Mars noted with a small smile. My aunt rubbed her forehead, exhaling slowly.

"Sabrina, I understand… but please do not stoop to Silver's level. Trust me, I truly do get it... But please," Lorelei requested patiently.

"Yeah, Sabrina, don't stoop to Silver's level. He's only 12 and you're 43," I mocked. Sabrina twitched harshly.

"I have come here to offer… training as well." Lorelei paused in surprise.

"Pardon?" she asked slowly.

"She's lying! She just doesn't want to admit that she got caught acting like a kid!" I hissed. Despite being exposed completely by me, Sabrina pushed on with a neutral expression.

"I am fond of his Metagross, so I came to offer it my assistance… However, I see no reason why I cannot offer general training as well. I've recently found myself quite fond of battles." This bitch... Somehow, Lorelei didn't realize that Sabrina was just trying to save her own ass. My innocent, utterly naive aunt just nodded in agreement.

"Actually, Sabrina, Silver has recently discovered he's a psychic! I think your assistance could be vital in both helping him and mending whatever issues you may have." I balked in disbelief.

"Hell no! I don't even plan on using them! You don't even want me to use them!" I pointed out. Lorelei smiled.

"It's... not right for me to restrain a part of who you are now. While I don't appreciate the side effects, I still love you all the same, no matter what happens to you. Therefore, it would be most beneficial for our premier psychic to assist you." I hissed at her. That was cheap. Very cheap. I wasn't good at dealing with my aunt's earnest words.

"I would gladly teach Trainer Silver, Elite 4 Lorelei. It's rare for me to meet a psychic who could teleport so seamlessly, but of course... I can only teach someone willing to learn," Sabrina said, a small smile on her face. She stared at my incredulous glare with a satisfied smile. I hissed at her.

"I'm not interested in using those abilities. It's not like I can when I want anyway." Giratina was not keen on letting me use them so freely. There was no point in training them. She was only insisting on being my teacher so she could have some authority over me. The absolute audacity...

"You know what, you're right, Aunt," I said serenely, smiling suddenly.

"This should be good for both of us. Let's get along, Sabrina." Sabrina's smile vanished at my smile. Her expression turned puzzled as I suddenly grasped her hand and squeezed with enough force to make her squirm slightly, physically weak scrub that she was. Lorelei smiled.

"You've matured so much, Silver. I'm glad you're receptive!" she encouraged, running a hand through my hair.

"How is she so oblivious? I think it's adorable, but this can't be good for her," Mars whispered to Jasmine.

"U-Um... Lorelei has the hardest time seeing how rotten Silver is. I have the second hardest time..." Jasmine whispered back. Sabrina's gaze suddenly snapped to Mars for a moment, and I watched her eyes widen in surprise... along with a bit of horror. I idly snapped a picture of that for future purposes before focusing on the gym leader.

"Don't tell me... There are two of them?" she asked herself in disbelief. Mars immediately gnashed her teeth.

"WHY DOES EVERYONE SAY THAT?!" I smiled victoriously.

"We're both gonna terrorize you. Trust me," I assured. Sabrina watched with a begrudgingly impressed look as I effortlessly bent the spoon. It took a lot of coaxing from Giratina, but they eventually let me use some of my abilities.

"So it wasn't a trick of the eye— ah!" Sabrina abruptly yelped as the spoon crashed against her forehead.

"Sorry, I have no control over it," I said dully, glaring at her. She scowled balefully, glaring at me with a lot more venom than the last time I saw her. It was impressive how much I unraveled this woman because I'm sure in half a year alone, she was making more unique faces than she ever had.

"It appears I am not the only one disgusted that you have these abilities," she hissed.

"I hate them. I don't want to be similar to a freak like you in any way," I snarled.

"Um... please don't fight," Jasmine requested timidly, sitting on Metagross as they conversed with each other. Sabrina huffed.

"I am in high spirits after the battle; I will allow you your tantrum," she muttered, all pretenses dropped now that Lorelei wasn't here.

"I will make sure you never have a good night's sleep again," I assured.

"Hmph. You say you cannot use your abilities at will?" she asked curiously.

"No. It takes a bit of coaxing and even then, there's not much point," I drawled. Sabrina tilted her head.

"It does not appear you need me to teach you. New psychics are rather unrefined, yet you seem capable."

"Happens when you're juiced up on one of the strongest psychics you've ever seen," I muttered. Jasmine flinched, while Sabrina looked mildly disturbed.

"I cannot fathom how any psychic could be in the presence of such a powerful pokemon. I felt its actions in my body, having fallen ill in a matter of moments. Reports mention many other psychics fell victim to it, though none quite to the level I did," she mentioned with a frown.

"Makes sense. You felt him more than the others... which is a curse I wouldn't even wish on you," I sighed, thinking back to Mewtwo. Sabrina gazed at me with a blank look. Then, she turned towards Metagross with a curious expression.

"Your Metagross is a deeper shade of blue. Is it okay?" she asked.

"Metagross is fine. He's been siphoning from that psychic for a while, and well, his evolution was controversial," I muttered, raking a hand against its head. Sabrina looked interested.

"Siphoning without succumbing to madness? I cannot even fathom how that is possible. Like drinking from a raging waterfall with a tiny straw." I grunted.

"Metagross seems to have increased psychic stores. I imagine they'll increase more as time goes by, since they're still siphoning and whatnot... but I think the evolution forced them to take in more than they were supposed to."

"I see," Sabrina mused. She placed a hand against Metagross, eyes flashing slightly. At the same time, my Pokegear began ringing. I blinked in curiosity at who it was before picking up.

"Yeah, Aunt?"

"U-Um... Silver? Could you come to me for a moment? I believe this is an urgent matter, and I need your assistance." I blinked in concern. My aunt rarely came off as agitated, but she was evidently quite antsy right now. Also, why would she need my help specifically?

"I'm comin', hold on," I muttered, sighing tiredly.

"I'll come too!" Jasmine beamed, rushing to my side in an instant.

"I will stay here with Metagross. There is much we have to discuss," Sabrina informed me. I rolled my eyes.

"Pokemon stealing asshole," I grunted, marching out of the room.

"Do not be jealous. You are my one and only trainer," Metagross assured. He got a dirty glare in return. A strong chill washed over my body about 5 minutes into my walk to Lorelei. I instinctively hissed at it, almost ignoring the pressure that accompanied. Almost. The moment I felt that pressure, my eyes narrowed into something dangerous. I immediately rushed the rest of the way there, dragging a surprised Jasmine with me, and arrived in record time. Lorelei looked helplessly lost...

something I couldn't really blame her for, because there was an Articuno perched right next to her.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" I hissed in annoyance.

"W-Wow!" Jasmine gasped. Lorelei turned towards me, confusion coursing through her body even as Articuno passively remained there.

"Articuno, what the hell are you doing here?!" I demanded, glaring at the bird with all the venom in my body. I watched the ice legend perk up before it turned towards me with clear recognition in its eyes. What surprised me was that instead of venom... There was glee?

"Greetings, Uncle named Silver!" I abruptly stopped, aggression draining out of me swiftly. It was replaced by confused horror because why the hell was Articuno looking at me like that? That alarming feeling continued for a split second before I realized what was going on.

"Artitwono?" I said in surprise, finally taking note that this Articuno was a deeper shade of blue than the one I hated so much. While I didn't know the cloned birds that well since Mewtwo hid their existence from me, I knew that clones weren't exactly the same personality-wise as the originals. Despite his goals, most of Mewtwo's clones, much like he had been at first, were rather passive. They hardly seemed violent by nature. I'd say it was the complete opposite.

Artitwono shrieked, lowering its head for me so that I could pat it on its beautiful crown.

"What brings you here?" I muttered to the bird, watching as Lorelei slowly approached. I beckoned for Jasmine to do the same, and she hesitantly did so, gasping in delight as the clone of Articuno let out a melodious croon. Who woulda thought that Articuno would be such a charming pokemon if it weren't such a massive bitch?

"Father, my siblings and I have returned the routes to their previous states to the best of our ability. While time is still needed, they will once again flourish." I nodded at their explanation.

"Mewtwo didn't want to explain himself?" I mused.

"I offered to relay the message... for I have ulterior motives that he has accepted," Artictwono explained. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. I tilted my head.

"Ulterior motives? Is that why you came to Aunt instead of me?"

"Correct! I find myself attracted to the Human named Lorelei. As such, I will remain in close proximity to them," Artitwono said matter-of-factly. Well, it was certainly as audacious as Articuno was; Artitwono just a lot more polite about it. Hm... was that so? I do remember Articuno calling Lorelei a follower of ice, not to mention its gaze lingered on her the first time we met it.

"What do they want?" Lorelei asked slowly, gazing at the bird with wide eyes.

"Artitwono fancies you. Wants to stay by your side," I said offhandedly. Lorelei blinked owlishly.

"H-Huh? What did you just say?" she asked in disbelief. I sighed.

"Some ground rules, Artitwono. First, you gotta lessen the pressure. Second, you're way too cold, and I visit Lorelei a lot. I don't do good with the cold, so please don't freeze me by mistake."

"I will try my best, Uncle named Silver," Artitwono said kindly. I smirked.

"You're much better than the other Articuno, by the way. Never change." The clone shrieked happily at my praise.

"Hold on a minute, Silver. Can you please explain to me what is going on?" Lorelei asked desperately, adjusting her glasses over and over again. I blinked at my Aunt.

"Artitwono wants to be your pet."

"Not so offensively, Uncle named Silver."

"Artitwono wants to be your friend," I corrected.

"Thank you, Uncle named Silver."

"Wow, what an honor!" Jasmine clapped supportively. Lorelei did not share my aloofness to the situation, nor Jasmine's happiness. My aunt's mouth just flapped uselessly.

"Artitwono?" she repeated slowly, watching as the bird perked up.

"It's what I named the cloned Articuno. There's also Zaptros and Molseis," I said offhandedly.

"They would also like to find a trainer they would like. I believe Fire named Molseis has already done so, while Lightning named Zaptros has been lazy."

"Is Mewtwo okay with this?" I questioned curiously.

"Father is aware we can visit him at any point. He has no issues." I nodded thoughtfully.

"Okay, send that lazy one to me... I'll find someone for them." Artitwono shrieked again, turning towards Lorelei with a pleased smile. Lorelei was gazing at me, glasses off her face as she wiped fruitlessly at it.

"So this is... Mewtwo's clone?" she asked softly. My eyes narrowed slightly, focusing on the sight of her tremors.

"Can you guys give us a sec?" I questioned quietly. Artitwono crooned in acceptance at my request, gliding over to Jasmine's position and wrapping a tail around her surprised frame. She squealed in surprise, which quickly turned into a shout of excitement as the clone of Articuno promptly placed her on its back and flew off. Gentle snow landed across my body, not eliciting a negative reaction out of me, and I watched them go with a small smile before my expression quickly turned serious.

"Where's Mars?" I asked curiously. Lorelei watched them go.

"She is... with Janine. I think they get along rather well." I nodded. The gym leaders were all here in preparation for the League. Security had been increased all over the region in preparation, while Indigo lost a majority of them because no one would be willing to attack this place with all the strongest trainers here. Lorelei jumped as I grasped her hand softly, raking a thumb over her knuckles like she did to me when I was agitated.

I gently guided my Aunt to the grassy floor of our backyard, sitting cross-legged in front of her.

"You're still afraid of Mewtwo," I said softly. She inhaled a deep breath.

"That's not—""It's okay, I understand," I interrupted easily, making her go quiet.

"Of all the things that Mewtwo has done... the one thing that scares you the most about him isn't the fact he almost killed you. It's the fact that he took me away from you so easily," I observed. Lorelei shut her eyes.

"... Yes, it's true. I know I've been slightly overbearing lately, but I just can't stand the thought of waking up one day, only to see that you've disappeared off the planet again."

"That's okay... I understand completely," I soothed. She almost crumbled right then and there.

"I am one of the strongest trainers in the world, but I was utterly helpless to stop my poor nephew from being taken back into his abusive home. It haunts me, knowing that something is strong enough to take you as easily as they did," she admitted quietly. My gaze softened. I pulled my Aunt into a tight hug that she sagged into, tremors growing stronger by the second.

"It's okay, Aunt. That won't happen again, trust me. I wish... I wish I could have done something different to avoid this..."

"Don't." Lorelei put up a hand immediately.

"Don't you dare blame yourself, Silver. I can't allow you to do such a thing, no matter my current state." I smiled softly at my aunt.

"That's why I had to do what I did. I had to save you at all costs because you're the only adult who's vowed to help me no matter what. It sucked separating from you... But in the end, it's all worth it because no one can take you away from me again." There was a brief silence. Lorelei just stared at me with wide eyes before I saw her lips wobble ever so slightly. She pulled me into a crushing hug that I easily returned.

"Do you remember what I said, right before I left?" I asked quietly.

"I said, I'm not the best judge... but I think you were a great mom. Now I know that even the worst judge could see how amazing you are." Lorelei let out a weak cry at that, squeezing me tightly. I made no mention of the tears falling on me, just smiling fondly and rubbing her back.

"You don't have to be afraid anymore, Aunt. I'm not going anywhere again because I'm happiest with you," I reassured, listening to her quiet cries with a soft expression. I was hopelessly whipped when it came to my aunt. There was something so earnest and adorable about her actions that just tickled all the right spots of my bruised heart. She helped me out way more than she had to, so I would help her in return.

"I'm sorry, Silver... You shouldn't be seeing me like this. I try to be strong for you so that you can have a proper role model," Lorelei said quietly.

"Everyone has their moment of weakness. There's nothing to be ashamed of because to me, you're the strongest and coolest person I know," I replied soothingly, reaching for the napkins in my bag that I normally reserved for Green when she was getting emotional. My aunt made no complaint as I cleaned her face with a level of patience I rarely exhibited. The only person to ever really see this side of me was Green and Jasmine, but lately, I had been getting too soft.

"Mewtwo is done. He won't hurt you again, I promise."

"Truly?" Lorelei asked.

"He's my dumb little brother, one misguided by Team Rocket even worse than I was. I want to pass on the goodwill you showed me and try to do the same for him. So far, it's going well... but we both have a lot of atoning to do," I explained.

"That... is correct." Lorelei stiffened immediately, watching with wide eyes as Mewtwo seamlessly appeared in front of us.

"Elite 4 Lorelei," Mewtwo greeted quietly.

"... Mewtwo," Lorelei said, body tense. I watched as Mewtwo nodded, feet touching the floor as he banished all his power.

"While I have exiled myself for the time being... I feel as if it is necessary for me to personally speak with you... and apologize for the atrocities I committed to both you and Silver." Lorelei looked stunned.

"While I can make excuses for myself, claiming that Team Rocket fully manipulated my actions, the truth of the matter is that I had long questioned Team Rocket's goals, but ignored them due to my interest in Silver. As such, I attempted to take your life when you did not deserve that." Mewtwo bowed deeply.

"You may never forgive me; that is alright... But do not let your hatred of me cloud your judgment of my creations. They are far gentler than I. They did not exist when I committed my most terrible of crimes. I am a monster; they are not." I said nothing at that, knowing that Mewtwo was just echoing what I thought about myself. We were both monsters in this world. Lorelei said nothing. She gazed at Mewtwo, then turned towards me.

"I will find it difficult to do such a thing, but Silver is the one most wronged by your actions, yet he does not scorn you for such a thing. Your apology is the solace I needed to understand that for the time being, my nephew is safe for me... so as long as he is willing to forgive you, I will try to find the strength to do so," she eventually said.

"You may take all the time in the world. My journey will be a long road of self-discovery, one that I hope will give a more gentle outlook for life." Mewtwo turned towards me.

"It is good to see you are able-bodied, Silver. I once again would like to apologize for what I did to you and your friends." I smiled crookedly.

"Just keep doing what you're doing, Mewtwo. As long as you try, I'll support you." The psychic stared at me, expression thoughtful. Then, he nodded his head and whisked himself away.

"I will try my best... and I am not stupid. Refrain from calling me that." I huffed in amusement at that, turning towards my aunt with a small smile. Lorelei stared back at me, her gaze shifting over to where Mewtwo was. Eventually, she just shook her head with a small smile.

"Very well then... I suppose I have made a new friend. You are the most vindictive person I know, yet you're showing patience that I would never attribute to you. It's only right I attempt the same," she sighed. I chuckled.

"Look at that, you've unofficially become the strongest trainer alive..." She deserved it. My aunt was awesome, so being the strongest trainer in the world was fitting for her.

"I have no interest in battling with Artitwono. I suppose now is as good a time as any to tell you that I am retiring by the end of the year," she sighed. Huh? I blinked in surprise at her words, gazing at my aunt in confusion.

"I'm also in the process of securing an isolated island for us. It is near the Sevii Islands... and I imagined it would have been great as another spot for you and your Color Gang to meet, especially when you grow stronger and as a result, your battles become a bit more... rowdy," she mentioned to me.

"You're retiring?!" I asked in surprise. Well, actually, that wasn't too surprising. Lorelei wasn't part of the Elite 4 by the time Johto rolled around. She was bound to retire soon, regardless... and I remember Lance mentioning something like that. Lorelei smiled.

"I want to direct all my focus towards you and Mars. That is why I offered to become your Sponsor instead of your Master. Typically, members of the Elite 4 become teachers to trainers, not sponsors. It also typically means that the individual will be joining Indigo, something I'm sure you would vehemently disagree with." Damn, she really thought about all of this.

"You're retiring to pay more attention to me, huh? This takes stalking to a whole other level. Now you have nothing holding you back," I murmured. Lorelei coughed.

"Please stop saying that. It's for both you and Mars. I had already contemplated it, but this merely solidified it. I want to pour my attention into you twins... as well as the rest of the Color Gang," she said thoughtfully. I groaned, even as I pulled her into a hug.

"Please just start calling us Colors. Have you met Sun, Moon, and Yellow by the way?" I mused. Lorelei shook her head in confusion.

"Don't tell me... Do their eyes also match their namesake?"

"Yup," I drawled, raking a hand through my hair in amusement.

"I think we might have to update the requirements to join our group. If your name matches what your eye reflects," I said thoughtfully. In that case, Mars also qualified. Lorelei chuckled in amusement.

"I did not imagine that your group would grow even more. Reducing the name to just Colors... I like it." I rolled my eyes. I couldn't imagine what the hell we were gonna do if X and Y, or what was the other game? Sword and Shield? Actually existed. Maybe it would be smart for me to verify the existence of all of them. Hm... yeah, I would do that after the League. Verify the existence of them all. Just see if they exist and what form they're in. In fact, that just gave me another idea too...

one involving a special ball I had yet to use.

"You have a knowing look in your eyes. Don't tell me... are there more that actually exist?!" Lorelei hissed.

"Would you believe me if I told you there's some for every region?" I informed her, sitting back down on the comfortable grass. Lorelei sat next to me.

"I'm a little curious." I nodded.

"So each member of Colors is associated with a region. We're basically the focal points of that region in the alternate universe," I explained. My aunt looked fascinated.

"So all of you are always connected." I nodded again. Part of me was kind of pleased that I could share this information with someone else...

"Kanto is centered around Green. She's the central point, and her rival is Blue," I explained easily. Lorelei opened her mouth to comment, only to pause.

"Not you, Gold and Crystal as well?" she asked.

"Nope. Kanto isn't our original region," I revealed.

"Fascinating... I suppose it is Johto?" she guessed.

"Exactly. I separate the members of Colors by their status as Protagonist and Rival."

"So Green is a Protagonist and Blue is a rival. Is Gold a Rival while you are the Protagonist?" Lorelei wondered. I held up both my hands.

"Green is a Protagonist, Crystal is a protagonist, Gold is a Protagonist, Blue is a Rival, and I'm a Rival." My right hand had three fingers up, while the left had two. Lorelei gazed at me with wide eyes.

"You're a rival?!" she balked. I looked amused.

"I sent everything very out of order. I was supposed to travel through Johto after taking a starter... but that was around the time I got saved by Giratina and had those memories implanted. Afterwards, I decided to go to Kanto."

"And Gold and Crystal followed you..." she gasped in realization.

"Yep. Because of me, I turned Kanto on its head," I sighed. Lorelei pursed her lips.

"But you did a good thing as well. Team Rocket was a ramping threat that needed to be dealt with."

"Mewtwo probably would have betrayed them long before. I doubt he'd even have been there to attack the S. S. Anne if he wasn't curious about me," I muttered. She shook her head.

"Ifs and buts do not matter. What matters is that you did." Hah. She was good at making me feel good.

"So Sun, Moon, and Yellow are also not Kanto?" I scratched my head.

"Yellow is complicated. I didn't even know she existed, and she's significantly younger than what she's supposed to be. Right now, I would just consider her a wild card that I can't account for." At the rate it was going, I wouldn't be surprised if she just followed Sun and Moon to Alola if the time ever came. She was very attached to them already.

"Sun and Moon, on the other hand, are central to the Alola region."

"Alola... We are very familiar with that region. I never imagined they'd have problems..." Lorelei trailed off, nodding to herself.

"Forgive me for being so nosy; I just find all this fascinating." I waved her off.

"It's nice to tell this to someone. What better person than my sponsor?" My aunt's cheeks looked distinctly rosy.

"What others do you know of?"

"The Hoenn region should have a boy and a girl with Sapphire and Ruby somewhere in their name. Whether that be first or last name... There's also Sinnoh, who should have Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, but something strange is happening with that region... Kalos may or may not have some person with an X or Y in their name, but I want to check their existence soon anyway, same with Galar."

"You plan on seeing what you can glean from that little information? Very well, I'll support you as I can."

"You're the best, Aunt. I'll tell you what I can without... ruining things." My aunt and I continued to discuss general topics. She didn't seem interested in learning about the plot, and I was content to share general knowledge like the names of the Protagonist and what originally happens in Kanto. It was a nice bonding moment. Neither of us even realized we had dozed off on the comfy grass, just resting against one another until Artitwono came back...

By the time we awoke again, we were surrounded by a cool bird and my first friend... and my twin. It was nice. I did not react as a presence seamlessly appeared to my left, just watching my team with a focused gaze. I was currently perched under a large tree, leaves granting me proper shade from the sun above.

"Mewtwo? Back already?" I questioned idly, not paying too much attention to my little brother. Mewtwo said nothing for a moment. I watched his eyes flash before my members let out unanimous grunts of surprise, gravity increasing in varying degrees to each of them individually.

"I have not come for long. There is something that has been persisting in the back of my mind... and I wish to ask you." I turned my gaze towards him for a moment.

"I guess it's a question only I can answer?"

"Correct." I nodded my head.

"Ask away."

"How do you deal with it?" Hm? How do I deal with it? I paused in my observations and fully faced the tall psychic.

"How do I deal with what?" I asked curiously. Mewtwo looked honestly puzzled.

"I am a clone, one whose purpose in this world was unclear for a long period of time. Despite that, I have given myself allies, clones just like myself."

"But you are different. You are not clone, human, or pokemon. You are something else entirely, Silver. My clones assist me in filling the lonely void that this world consumes me with, but how do you deal with being the only one of your kind? Is it not lonely?"... That was not the question I was expecting. Mewtwo genuinely sounded curious about how I coped with my existence.

"... Do you know that whenever someone tries to compare me to another person, I tell them not to do that?" I asked in return. I exhaled with a small smile.

"I hate being compared to others. Why would I want to be similar to another person? My existence is my own. The moment I was created, I became my own unique individual, something that no one else will ever be able to be the same as. No one person is exactly the same." An amused laugh escaped me.

"So what, I'm a little different? Even if I were just a human, I'd still consider myself one of one. I like being my own person, and no hitch will get in the way of that. Life is all about showcasing your unique talent to the world. Monotony is mundane, uniformity is lifeless... being your own individual is the essence of living a proper life." Mewtwo stared at me in wonder.

"That... that is not what I was expecting. You do not hate that you are different; you take pride in it. Much like how I should take pride in not being an exact copy of Mew. I am Mew two after all, the template may have been similar, but the outcome was vastly different than even my clones."

"Exactly. I'm not a clone of Ariana and Giovanni. I'm their child, Silver, my own person who gained the strength to turn against my parents. If I were just a clone of them, I'd follow their demands to a T, always a slave to Team Rocket. Why would I want that? To have the individuality to strike out as my own person is why I'm here now, as the victor of this war," I said honestly.

"I see. If I had not been so hung up on being the clone of Mew, instead choosing to do things as Mewtwo, I would have been able to do things I wished to do far earlier," Mewtwo realized. I smirked easily.

"You're understanding. There are things you can do better than Mew, and there are things you do worse. I don't have the patience and tolerance to command a group of idiots like Giovanni can. I don't have what it takes to enslave, torture, and kill pokemon for a living. I haven't been raised with a sibling that I'm inferior to, giving me insecurity for days... My strengths lie in other things, and I use those to prove to the world that I am 'Silver'."

"Not anyone else. Your actions define you as just Silver..." Mewtwo pondered.

"If I have to be remembered, let them know me for my own name and accolades. Silver, son of Giovanni, the traitor who led Team Rocket? Silver, nephew of Elite 4 Lorelei? I don't want to be known by that. It devalues what I've fought for." I stood up and dusted myself.

"I'm all of me. The good and the bad... but that's still Silver and I wouldn't trade any of it for anyone else's pieces." Mewtwo said nothing for a long while.

"I wish... I had met you first and not Giovanni. You would not have left me disillusioned with humans. You would have helped me solve my burning question since the moment of my birth. You are correct in everything you said because if you were not Silver, and simply a clone of Giovanni, you would not be so kind." I jolted at that, turning towards Mewtwo with wide eyes.

"Thank you for taking the time to explain this to me, Silver. I wish you luck in the League. I will be watching and... rooting for you," Mewtwo said awkwardly. I stared open-mouthed at the legend.

"Yeah... right. Thanks," I said eventually.

"I will leave you to train. You have enlightened me much. Thank you." With that, Mewtwo vanished once more. I stared at the spot he was at with a stunned expression before shaking my head. The last thing I expected was to be getting complimented by Mewtwo. It threw me for a loop. Man, I really needed to learn how to take compliments. At the very least, I was pleased to see Mewtwo making an earnest effort to change.

He had apologized to Lorelei without me telling him to, and now he was asking questions that helped him get closer to finding his new purpose. In the future, I bet he was going to be a really annoying person. Psychics loved asking questions, and Mewtwo seemed to think I was the one who would answer all his inquiries. I shook my head in mild amusement, turning back to focus on my team.

"Ah, Silver! You visit me so often, I'm so happy to see you!" Delia beamed, pulling me into an increasingly familiar tight hug. I grunted mildly. Pallet Town was becoming familiar with my presence, because they didn't even scream... nor did any of Oak's pokemon visit when Ares announced her arrival. Though I really think they should have at least checked in this time around.

"Delia. Did you get the other pokemon?" I questioned. Before she could answer, a red blur rushed me. I watched with a dull gaze as it snarled at me. Before the Growlithe could pounce and attack me, it froze from the thunderous shriek that warningly pierced the air. Delia froze in horror as a flash of yellow appeared behind me.

"U-Um... what pokemon is that?" she asked meekly. I huffed.

"I'll tell you in a bit. These are the pokemon from Lavender, right?" I asked, watching the Cubone clutching the back of her skirt. It stared at me in blatant terror, tears immediately forming in its eyes, causing me to mercifully drop my gaze. Delia nodded slowly, a somewhat sad look on her face.

"Oh, these poor little things lost their caretaker. Don't be too upset with them... they're still warming up to strangers." I shook my head, watching as Dragonite soared into view at the piercing sound. It stared at the culprit with wide eyes on its normally serene expression before shooting off to tell Oak, no doubt. A snort left me, and I regarded Delia.

"It's okay that they aren't a fan of me. I'm part of the reason they've lost their caretaker in the first place." The woman froze.

"What? What do you mean...?" she asked quietly.

"Fuji was part of Team Rocket. He experimented on me and the legend who kidnapped me... and the legend came back for revenge." Delia put a hand over her mouth.

"What...?" she whispered in horror.

"His past caught up to him, and these pokemon were caught in the crossfire. That's why I sent them to you because they didn't deserve that," I said honestly. I stared at the bitter Growlithe and Cubone, shaking my head.

"Let them hate me. That's fine with me, and that's not why I'm here." Zaptros landed next to me, squawking curiously at Delia. It had been staring at Oak's Dragonite before with a bored expression, but now it was all ears.

"This is the human who will feed me?" they asked.

"Yeah. You'll love her. She's a bit of an idiot... but so are you," I muttered.

"I'd prefer it if you did not call me stupid, Rude Uncle." I raked a hand through the sparking feathers, unfazed by the mild sting.

"Um, Silver... I normally don't question you, but... what's going on?" Delia asked timidly, gazing at Zaptros with wide eyes.

"This is the legendary bird of lightning, Zapdos, but I call them Zaptros. They wanted a human friend, and I decided you'd be a good one for them. They'll probably show up from time to time so that you can feed them, but other than that, they'll just be flying around."

"A-A legendary?" Delia stammered in awe.

"Mhm," I nodded.

"Wow... when you told me to find a new hobby, I didn't think you'd help me so much!" Delia laughed a watery laugh, pulling me into a tight hug. I waved her off.

"Opportunities are just falling into my hands, and I'm sending them your way."

"You're such a sweetie!" Delia gushed, ignoring me completely. Yeah, I expected that. Delia was as dumb as her son.

"It's nice to meet you, Zappy! I'm Delia! If it's food you want, I'll be sure to give you a stomach full!" Zaptros shrieked in satisfaction, allowing her to pat him. Thankfully, the clones of Mewtwo had exceptional control over themselves.

"I'm leaving now. I have training to get back to. If Oak asks, tell him after the League," I muttered, patting Zaptros once more.

"Oh, wait, stay for food! Maple and Solari will be coming over soon!" Delia beamed.

"No, I want to train," I denied. No good. I hastily attempted to step away... only to freeze at the voice screaming "SILVYYY!" Would you believe me if I told you I was unable to say no to Maple, almost exactly like how it was impossible for me to say no to Green? Combine that with Delia's very pathetic puppy dog look, along with Solari's gentle coaxing... I sighed tiredly, even as Delia beamed and Maple pulled me into a gleeful hug. Guess I was eating food.

"Boss Silver! Big Boss Jasmine!" Jasmine let out a sigh of misery, while I huffed in amusement.

"Bikers, I heard you were helping the citizens of One Island out," I greeted, crouching down and catching the speeding Lostelle. I watched in amusement as a Teddiursa rushed behind her, instinctively catching the little thing as well. They squealed in excitement as I stood with them, bringing a crooked smile out of me.

"Yeah, we were, Boss! We've been cleaning up this place, corralling the wild pokemon, and making sure no one's hurt!" the former biker leader saluted. He was a big guy, towering over me and Jasmine by a lot. Jasmine looked surprised before smiling proudly.

"Well done, you all! I bet it feels much better when the citizens appreciate you!" She shrieked and leapt behind me as the bikers screamed.

"YES, BIG BOSS JASMINE! IT FEELS GREAT! WE'LL HELP THEM ALL WE CAN!"

"I hate you, Silver. I hate you so much," she whispered in my ear. Despite that, she clutched the back of my coat with almost crushing force... which was nothing because it was Jasmine doing it. I laughed softly, allowing her to hide behind me.

"You got a Teddiursa, Lostelle?" I mused. Lostelle nodded eagerly, leaping into Jasmine's arms next.

"Yes! Lostelle loves Teddiursa! I will get a Snorlax next!" she beamed. I laughed loudly at the horrified look on her father's face.

"Maybe when you become a trainer. If you want another, try a Stufful or Cubchoo. Then you can catch a Pancham and a Munchlax." Lostelle practically glowed at my advice, missing the way her father collapsed.

"Lostelle will do that! Can I see Oberon?" she pleaded. I nodded, releasing Oberon from the ball and getting a squeal of excitement out of the child. Oberon being so popular with children wasn't on my bingo card, but I'm convinced it played a massive part in him gaining better control of his self. They seriously tended to love him as much as Gaia, and he loved them too. My Ursaring materialized with a small yawn, only to let out a surprised roar as Lostelle happily crashed into him.

Oberon's eyes widened in recognition before locking onto the Teddiursa gazing up at him in awe.

"Look at that, Oberon. She got a Teddiursa because of you," I said proudly. Jasmine clapped happily.

"I'm not surprised! Oberon's a little sweetheart!" she gushed. I watched with an amused smile as Oberon's cheeks flushed. He crouched down, hoisting up Lostelle and Teddiursa in his massive paws, and getting the two of them to let out excited squeals. Good for him. Oberon was my most troubled pokemon... so for him to see that others didn't care about how scary he could be was good for his mental health. He was my little man. I'd always watch out for him—"Silver...?" I paused at the voice.

It sounded familiar, but I must not have heard it often because it took me a bit to recognize it. Oh, but the moment I did, I snarled hellishly. I just came here to verify the state of the Sevii Islands after my trip. The volcano had erupted after all because of me, prompting who knows how many pokemon to evacuate from the apocalyptic lands of Mt. Ember. But of course, I'd get harassed even now.

"What are you doing here?" I nearly hissed, turning and facing off with my grandparents. Atenea and Primo stared warily at me. They looked tired, with some bags under their eyes that signified restless nights. My eyes narrowed, causing my grandparents to cough nervously.

"We didn't mean to startle you..." Atenea said slowly.

"We were helping the citizens of One Island, you see. After the sudden eruption, we've assisted where we... could," Primo explained. I raised a brow.

"You two? Helping? Forgive me if I don't believe a word you're saying." My sarcastic tone would have normally been met with scorn, but I just watched with mild confusion as my grandparents withered away. Atenea let out a deep breath, something that caused my already foul temper to flare further because she really did look way too much like my mom.

"Silver... we just want to talk," Atenea informed me quietly. I was utterly unmoved.

"Lemme guess. You wanna talk so that you can get back in Aunt's good graces, so you can keep using her benefits for your own interests." I shook my head with a small scowl that was steadily growing.

"I didn't come here to see either of you, but I'm glad you guys found me first. There's no way I'm gonna let you manipulate her into forgiving you again," I hissed. After our previous talk, I was in an extremely protective mood regarding my aunt.

"You think I'll just sit here and let you keep messing with her? Haven't you done enough damage to her? You shattered the relationship she had with her sister, you keep telling her what to do, and now that you can't control her anymore, you're suddenly sorry?!" Primo shook his head.

"That's not it—""Bull. Shit," I interrupted coldly. Quite frankly, I was fed up with this nonsense. I had been put through too much shit to deal with even more family drama. You could literally count the entire events of Mewtwo as family drama. For the moment, I was tired of it. I don't even know when I'd stop being tired of it. My family was a mess, one that I was better off ignoring. Mars was the exception because she did nothing to me.

My twin was the only other member of my family besides Lorelei who made me feel happy, and I liked her. All my other family members could kindly go fuck themselves. Except for... Ash, I guess. I already told Delia I won't do anything to him. Speaking of which, a piercing howl filled the air, causing both my grandparents to jump in fright. They watched with horrified eyes as Ares crashed down with my aforementioned twin. Mars was grinning wildly, hopping off my dragon.

"Yo, Silver! That mansion is seriously huge! Why the hell do you have that one and the one in Viridian?" Mars shouted, rushing up to me with wide eyes. I turned towards her with a roll of my eyes, raking my hand against the eager Ares' cheeks.

"A friend let us use that mansion. It's not mine, but I'm allowed to crash there from time to time."

"But the one in Viridian is yours, right?" she pointed out. I huffed.

"A lady I met named Solari is using it, but we're allowed to crash there, too, since it's mine. I should have you meet those mothers soon... they're monsters of affection and I can't deal with it." Mars nodded thoughtfully, only to pause at the sharp gasps. She turned towards the voices and raised a brow in shock. I huffed in annoyance.

"Mars, these are our scumbag grandparents. Lorelei and I don't talk to them."

"Aunt too? Wow, that's a shock... I guess they do sorta have that rich and pompous look to them," Mars noted with a small frown.

"W-What?! You're..." Atenea stammered in surprise, eyes shooting open as she got a good look at us.

"Well, I don't suppose you have any relatives we should be aware of?" I asked with a small frown. Atenea shuffled.

"I'm originally from the Sinnoh region and... I have a twin sister. We don't speak to each other any... any..." I looked utterly unimpressed.

"So you've been pushing family away since even before you had kids. Honestly, that's just incredible. I can't even fathom how unaware two people can be. Just two dumbasses telling each other yes." Mars looked put out.

"Well, at least I know it's my grandma we're related to. I dunno if she had a son or a daughter though," she mused. She shrugged.

"Well, I guess we'll never know."

"That's the spirit," I smirked wryly. I still didn't understand how we were practically twins, but just like Giratina said, there was no point in questioning it. We would just chalk it up as a weird anomaly of the world of Pokémon.

"Two children... that we did not know about. Look at what we've done, Primo," Atenea whispered, distress on her face. Primo hung his head.

"To think we've made such mistakes over the years without fail. Truly, I'm ashamed..."

"Well, take your shame and shove it up both your as—mghm," my words were muffled as Jasmine patiently placed a hand over my mouth.

"Silver... look how guilty they are. I'm not telling you to forgive them... but at least let them work hard for it?" she suggested, not even flinching as I licked the hand blocking me from speaking.... How did she not even react? Was she that used to it? I snarled as she finally released me.

"I'm not telling Lorelei about this. She'll forgive you too easily, and you don't deserve that," I said bluntly. Mars nodded slowly.

"They must have really messed up, huh? Fine, I agree with that then... but I'll ask Aunt what they did to her." My grandparents looked shocked before they both bowed.

"We'll do better. I assure you of that... While we want Lorelei's forgiveness... Ariana is the one we should truly apologize to," Atenea said in sorrow. I twitched violently.

"It's too late for that. You've done enough to my mother, I'll deal with her," I said darkly, glaring at them. They flinched at the venom in my eyes.

"D-Deal with her?" Atenea whispered, a look of dread on her face.

"What does that mean?" Primo couldn't help but ask. I stared at them for a moment.

"Save your curiosity. Just know the damage you caused, brought us to this point." With that, I turned away.

"We're leaving, you two. Let's go."

"Oh! Bye big brother!" Lostelle waved happily. I smirked idly and waved once. Mars shot me a questioning look, leaning close.

"Ariana is the name of your mom, right?" she whispered. I nodded minutely, even as I turned and marched away from my stunned grandparents.

"She's an executive of Team Rocket," I said shortly. Mars looked surprised, mouth opening in an o.

"Oh... you did say they're kinda criminals. I guess those two played a part in that?"

"The biggest. They're the reason my life is so fucked because they didn't know how to raise a daughter," I huffed. Jasmine frowned sadly and pulled me into a warm hug.

"But at least we got you out of it. I wouldn't trade you for the world, even with all your faults!" I paused before shaking my head violently.

"Shut up, dork. Don't go saying mushy stuff like that." Mars cackled.

"Aww, he's bad with compliments! Is the little baby gonna blush?" she mocked.

"You realize you're the exact same way, right?" I replied incredulously. She shrugged.

"This isn't about me. This is about how adorable my baby brother is!"

"I'll show you adorable." Jasmine giggled at our bickering, only for a shriek to replace it as I leapt at Mars. She held her head in despair, grabbing Empy's ball.

"Twister is an easy move for you to learn. I want you to master it so that you can suck up other elements with it. I'm going to have Ares eventually do the same thing with Hurricane, so you two will be throwing around a lot of shit. For now, we'll focus on combining it with water and ice," I explained to her. Freyja nodded curiously, eyes lighting up fiercely at hearing that Ares would be learning a similar technique.

"I wanted you to start learning Fairy techniques... but your draconic side might disagree with that," I muttered, frowning in contemplation. While Freyja was capable of using ice techniques from her time as Feebas, Fairy might disagree with her a little more strongly. I wouldn't waste time trying to crack it now, just waiting until after the league to figure that issue out, because Milotic, as a pokemon, tended to have a fairly good affinity with the techniques of Fae.

"In the meantime, we'll continue to hone your water and dragon moves. We'll be learning Dragon Tail since the League forbids switching out, Aqua Tail since you're already learning Dragon Tail, Flip Turn so you can also switch out, and Coil to augment all three of them. You'll need to be a more balanced fighter." I had a thoughtful look on my face.

"Do you remember how you used to make yourself fly around as a Feebas? You're a lot bigger as a Milotic... but we can still augment some of your speed with water." Freyja nodded thoughtfully, causing me to smile.

"After the League, we're gonna focus on making you immortal, by the way. We'll be mastering Recover, Life Dew, and Aqua Ring... then we'll learn Refresh too, so that only the strongest pokemon can faint you and so you can choose when Marvel Scale is necessary to shed." It would be incredibly taxing. I doubted she'd be able to maintain it for long, but Freyja could learn three healing moves for some reason... so I was going to go overkill. But that was for later.

For now, I would make sure Freyja wasn't totally helpless in close quarters, while teaching her a simple move like Twister that would be deceptively powerful in the future due to how versatile we could make it.

"I heard your Milotic has strong draconic genes." I stopped in my rubbing of Freyja's cheeks, turning towards Lance with a raised brow.

"It was a mutation during her evolution or something," I muttered, half convinced Giratina had some part to play in it.

"Likely." Lance looked fascinated by that.

"You know, it was only a few months ago when I met you. You were interesting, but I never imagined this was how things would turn out."

"Neither did I." I looked mildly amused by that detail, calling back to so long ago when I met Lance for the first time. Funnily enough, despite how much stronger I grew... I bet the results would still be as one-sided as they would have been before. Lance Wataru was a monster of a trainer even amongst this generation of young champions, as exceptional as both Cynthia Shirona and Steven Stone.

"I was planning on leaving you be while you trained for the League, but you're making that very hard," Lance mused.

"Figuring out you had a twin was one thing, but being told that Lorelei is friends with an Articuno, that same bird we watched freeze an entire route, is something else entirely. What is going on?" I shrugged.

"They're the clones of Mewtwo, and they wanted a human partner for their own reasons. Artitwono was probably a little envious of my synergy with Mewtwo, so they found their own person to resonate with and picked Aunt." Zaptros just wanted someone who could feed them... and I don't know what Molseis wanted. I don't even know who they picked. Lance shook his head in mild amusement.

"It's never a dull day with you, is it?"

"All I want for a while are dull days," I sighed, smiling as Freyja nuzzled me. Lance chuckled, placing a palm on my head and making me buckle.

"You deserve it... But I bet you won't stay quiet for long." The champion drew his hand back just as I prepared to bite it.

"Salamence is quite fond of Ares. Seeing that you basically have two dragons, let me give you some input," he decided. I raised a brow.

"Did you help my gang?" I questioned. Lance laughed.

"All three have dragons, so yeah, I did. Green was the hardest one to advise, since I don't own a Dreepy, and Crystal was the easiest... since Dragonite. It's only right that I extend that courtesy to your dragons, too. I'm no expert on Salamence like Drake is, and I'm definitely not familiar with training a Milotic... but if someone can help with dragon techniques, I'm your guy." I mulled it over before finally nodding.

"Alright, I accept. Lead the way, Flying Master."

"I told you to stop calling me that!" Lance insisted.

"Nah. I call it how I see it," I shrugged. The Champion grunted before his expression shifted.

"What do you plan on doing after the League?" I tilted my head at the sudden question.

"Search for remnants of Team Rocket, travel through Johto with Green, and keep an eye on my cousin." Lance nodded thoughtfully.

"Why not team up with the League to hunt the Rockets?" I raised a brow.

"Are you inviting me to work for you?" I asked bluntly. The Champion of Indigo chuckled heartily.

"I'd be a fool not to offer you or anyone in your gang a position." A snort escaped me.

"No thanks. Signing up for a position where I have to listen sounds like a one-way ticket to losing my sanity and then causing my superior to lose theirs." Lance laughed despite my refusal.

"I expected that. Well, the offer remains. Depending on how you do at the League, it might even upgrade."

"I'll still deny it. I'm not ready to be chained down by duty. I might never be. I'm someone who works better in the shadows," I drawled. Lance ruffled my hair.

"We'll have to balance you out, you introvert. Maybe I should have you meet my mom... When I was younger, I used to be a little shyer, so she forced me out of my shell by siccing her Garchomp on me," he mused. I scowled at him.

"As hilarious as that story sounds, if your mom is as annoying as you, I'll pass! Stop touching my hair with your big ass hands!"

"Nah. I'm good." I lunged. Achlys purred in delight as I ran a hand against her head.

"Metagross, let me hear Achlys' voice," I said aloud, staring curiously at my most recent capture. She mewled in mild confusion.

"My voice?" Achlys repeated, prompting me to tilt my head. It was low and quiet, almost a whisper in parts, but carrying hints of sweetness to it. It was definitely youthful, a thought that put a small smile on my face. Sneasel didn't seem super young, so maybe with enough work, I could use her in the earlier rounds of the League. Not like anyone would know her type... and I did plan on using the Charcas as well. I nodded to myself.

Janine had been teaching her the fundamentals of poison-type moves, all while advising me on potential things she could learn. It was mostly a matter of trial and error; I knew Sneasels tended to be physically dominant... and after running a quick physical, I verified that yes, Achlys was startlingly similar to her counterparts. There weren't many physical poison-type moves I could think of, so I figured Poison Jab or Cross Poison would be good ones.

I doubted she could learn Poison Fang or Tail, and Janine told me Poison Sting was also a no-go, so that left a few options. Figuring out poison moves she could learn wasn't the easiest, but you could eventually narrow it down. Fighting moves were a lot more difficult since they were so numerous. Maybe I'd keep it simple with, like Low Kick or something. Close Combat seemed like something that maybe her future evolution into Weavile could learn, since I fear it would be a little difficult to execute now.

Other than that...

"Maybe we can teach you Agility and Bulk Up? Surely you can learn both of those," I muttered contemplatively. Achlys listened attentively.

"I will attempt to learn anything you teach me, Master," she swore, nodding once with conviction. I raised a brow.

"Master? I guess I am your teacher," I muttered. She nodded readily.

"You are strong... stronger than me. You saved me, so my loyalty is yours." What a respectful and polite girl Achlys was. I patted her with a pondering expression.

"I'll reward your loyalty with strength," I assured. Achlys nodded in content, sinking further into my body.

"Arms... safe," she murmured, dozing off easily. She looped her arms around me, and I huffed. Why were they all so adorable? Weren't Sneasels supposed to be little demons? Achlys was just cute as shit. There was an almost serious air to her, stoic, unlike most of the members of my team. Despite that, she was still childish at heart. I'm glad whatever happened with the Weavile didn't seem to affect her or her brother too deeply. I mulled over what I could do with Achlys.

Janine and Koga would be vital here because of their vast knowledge of poison types... and I guess I could ask Bruno for help down the line. Having an unknown pokemon was a double-edged sword. Sure, my opponents wouldn't know how to prepare, but I didn't quite know how to prepare her. Well, that was part of the fun. I'd do what I could for her.

"I'm relying on you to help us communicate properly, Metagross and Loki," I informed them.

"Hmph, naturally."

"On it," Loki assured. I smiled easily.

"Alright, Loki. We're learning U-Turn for Shenanigans. Since switching isn't allowed, it'll be perfect for us. Freyja is learning Flip Turn already, and I feel like with your shenanigans, we can really make the League players lose their minds." I fished a TM out of my pocket.

"I also want you to learn Toxic and Calm Mind. You already have Nasty Plot, but this is more for when your aggression makes you lose control. Nasty Plot will make you more aggressive, while Calm Mind will slow you down. We'll pick one depending on what we wanna do." Loki nodded with a small smile.

"Karen has been helping a lot. I've learned a lot from her team... I wouldn't mind learning more." I nodded thoughtfully.

"We'll talk to her after the League if that's what you want. For now, it's time to talk strategy. You're going to be one of the most vital pieces of this team, after all." My Zoroark groaned.

"Talking strategy is boring," he complained. Metagross rumbled in amusement at my rolling of eyes.

"If Karen suddenly made you say that, I'll kick her ass, and it'll be your fault. Now sit down so we can talk strategy," I warned. Loki balked at my shameless words.

"Hm, yes, while rare... I do enjoy your moments of tormenting the Guardian Fox." I laughed loudly. Metagross being my most vindictive pokemon, practically summed up the entirety of my strange life. I loved my eccentric team. I wouldn't trade them for the world. My eyes flitted to my door as it burst open. While the action of someone breaking in didn't much surprise me, the person behind it did.

"What the hell do you mean you have a never-before-seen Sneasel? You didn't think to tell the only trainer here with a Weavile about it?!" Karen hissed, glaring at me. I raked a hand through my hair.

"She's a fighting and poison type. Why would I need to tell you about her?" I asked slowly. Achlys, who was curled up on my bed, opened a single eye.

"Do you only tell people relevant information? You never heard of small talk?!" I tilted my head.

"What the hell are you on about? Why else would I talk to you besides relevant information?" Karen took a deep breath.

"You... genuinely have the social skills of a rock."

"Did my irresistible charm clue you into that?" I asked sarcastically. Before she could say anything, I spoke up again.

"I found her getting hunted by a pack of Weavile. I don't want to expose her to them so soon," I explained. Karen's expression turned serious.

"A pack of Weavile? I guess they don't take too kindly to a Sneasel that's technically strong against both their types... I understand, though eventually, she'll have to deal with that. I'll help out. Weavile's a gumball, promise." I nodded.

"I'm not sure the specifics, but the Sneasel we know may be an evolution of sorts from Achlys here, changing to Ice to adapt to the cold and Dark to better help with hunting food?" The Dark Master looked thoughtful.

"That makes sense... but Sneasels tend to frequent near Mount Silver or Sinnoh. How in the world did you find a pack of Weavile?" she asked suspiciously. I snorted.

"I've got no reason to answer that question, so I won't." Karen shook her head in mild amusement.

"You know I'm an Elite 4 member, right?"

"My aunt is one too. Never stopped me from fighting her."

"Pfft... whatever, I'm sure you told Joy, so I'll just ask her," Karen shrugged. My eyes narrowed slightly.

"You said Joy with too much familiarity. Are you talking about my Joy? Since when are you so friendly with her?" I asked with narrowed eyes. Karen laughed unexpectedly." Your Joy? Holy shit, she was right! Your Joy is neat; doesn't take shit from anyone, even me!" I twitched violently. I would have to find and assault Joy again next time I saw her.

"Are your pokemon with you?" I asked randomly. Karen missed the warning bells.

"Huh? No, they're outside relaxing. Why—" She let out a strangled shriek as I lunged, blood in my eyes.

"Hey... Chase, right?" Ace Trainer Chase jumped, wondering how someone managed to sneak up on him so quickly. He whirled around, eyes slightly narrowed... only for it to turn owlish at seeing me. My expression was neutral, head tilted as I gauged him up and down. Next to me, Mars and Jasmine both had puzzled expressions on their faces.

"Yeah, that's... wait, I know you!" Chase exclaimed.

"You're Silver! Imagine my surprise when I found out that the boy and girl I battled would become the #1 trainers of the first year!" I raised a brow at that, nodding thoughtfully.

"So you remember battling me."

"Hard not to! You and Green had pretty unique pokemon," he praised.

"Nice. My team and I have actually been itching to battle you," I said seriously. For those of you who don't remember... Way back when I was still new in Kanto, Green and I were traveling through Route 3 to get to Mt. Moon. On that Route, we fought an Ace Trainer by the name of Chase, and he crushed us. I made a vow to myself that I would come back because, like I told Green in Oak's lab, I would go out of my way to make whoever managed to beat me live a life of hell...

And what better way to test if I was ready for the League than to battle an Ace Trainer? Most Ace Trainers got recruited before they won a League. They tended to be Top 8 and below, because anyone higher tended to get scouted more personally.

"Sure!" Chase smiled, completely missing the malicious aura roiling off me. I smiled too, promptly turning on a heel and marching to an open field in the distance.

"U-Um... Silver, why did you come all the way over here to battle an Ace trainer?" Jasmine asked slowly.

"Revenge," I said shortly. Mars snorted and shook her head.

"You're genuinely a freak."

"So, I heard Elite 4 Lorelei is your mom," Chase conversed easily. He was unable to hide the excitement in his voice, prompting me to gaze back at him.

"Yeah, she is," I said blandly. He nodded.

"That's cool! I had no idea she had kids! She strikes me as married to her job," he mused. I idly hummed quietly to myself, breathing in and out.

"I'll go first," I said. Without prompting, Freyja materialized from her ball with a gentle croon. Chase grinned.

"Alright! I've heard about your team! A Milotic is really rare!" I said nothing, basking in the rain with a mulling expression.

"3 on 3. No swapping since I'm prepping for the League."

"Hm... in that case, Exeggutor, let's go!"

"Why does Silver want revenge on this guy? He seems nice," Mars murmured to Jasmine. Jasmine shook her head.

"I'm 99% sure Silver lost a battle to him and marked him as a target. He made me battle a trainer who beat him back at Kindle Road." Mars looked stunned.

"T-That's it? He looks like he wants to maul him!"

"Don't try to understand what's going on in his head. Please don't, because there's still hope for you, Mars," Jasmine pleaded.

"Dude, I really have no idea what he did to you all. He's an asshole, but... he's also pretty nice to me," Mars muttered, scratching her head.

"You're lucky... for now." Jasmine patted her gently. I ignored them, focused on the Exeggutor that swept my team last time we fought.

"Seed Bomb!" Chase shouted, seeing that I was content to stay silent.

"Flip Turn," I drawled bluntly, eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Freyja giggled at my command, shrouding her whole body in water and shooting forward at surprising speeds, judging by Chase's wide eyes. She still had traces of Swift Swim after all. Freyja just wasn't a melee fighter. My Milotic effortlessly weaved through the exploding seeds, then crashed her full body into the surprised Exeggutor. It was more surprised than in pain, but before it could retaliate, Freyja's body shot towards her Luxury Ball.

"Hm?" Chase muttered in interest, eyes wide in fascination... only to pause in disbelief as I released Metagross from the ball.

"Holy... a Metagross too?!"

"Shadow Ball," I muttered.

"Energy Ball!" Chase retaliated. The two balls of energy crashed into one another, making no headway on the other.

"Agility." I was already focused on the next move, simply testing the waters with my opening. Metagross sped across the field, eyes laser-focused on the alert Exeggutor. Chase's eyes narrowed, realizing how pinched his options were with Exeggutor. Not only that, the rain was visibly slowing it down.

"Sunny Day! Get rid of the rain!" Exeggutor looked relieved at the command. One of the heads summoned a ball of light that it attempted to fire into the sky, only for it to blink dumbly as it spluttered out.

"Huh?" Chase muttered in confusion. I smiled easily.

"U-Turn."

"What the hell's going on?" Chase spluttered, even as Metagross crashed into the defenseless Exeggutor with devastating force. The grass type flew backwards from the attack, all three heads crying out in pain, even as I easily pocketed my ball. Not enough power to defeat... but a four times effective move still did a tremendous amount of damage. Heh. While his brain was still scrambled... I'd snowball this into an unsalvageable situation.

"Ares," I said confidently.

"He's not giving him any time to think," Jasmine said in awe, watching as Chase stepped back, confused, terrified, and awed at the sight of Ares.

"What did you feed your Salamence?!" he asked in disbelief.

"The souls of my victims who defeated her when she couldn't fly. Dual Wingbeat." Ares roared so loudly, I watched the trees in the distance shake with the urgent retreat of a family of Pidgey and all its evolutions. A Pidgeot instinctively shrieked at the noise, prompting my Salamence to roar even louder, successfully scaring it away. Fairly sure if a battle hadn't been taking place, Ares would be having lunch...

Chase could only watch with a stunned look as she nearly cleaved through the Exeggutor, wing carving through him as she sped past... only for her to immediately pivot and deliver another slash of her wing to the back of the grass type. I watched Ares' eyes pulse with bloodlust at the wail of the grass type. As the body collapsed to the floor, my Salamence visibly bulged up, eyes glinting red as her adrenaline spiked...

"Ares, are you good?" I questioned calmly, right before she let out a truly hellish roar. Ares huffed and faced me. She took a deep breath and reapplied the Focus Energy, turning towards the stunned Chase. The move tended to go out of sorts when Moxie took effect, so I was pleased to see she prioritized getting herself under control quickly. I smiled.

"Next." Chase's smile was suddenly gone, realizing that I was actually here to win this battle, and that was a very real prospect. He clutched a ball and immediately sent out his next member. My eyes narrowed at the sight of a ball of ice with a mean mug. The Glalie faltered at the sight of Ares glaring at him, but soon its harsh expression only deepened.

"Up," I commanded.

"Ice Shard!" Chase said at the same time. Ares was a blur, shooting through the rain and into the sky to avoid the speeding bullets of ice trying to carve into her. With the heavy rain, which was steadily growing weaker, and her vantage point, it was hard to make out where exactly she was, but Ares didn't have that same issue.

"Dragon Breath."

"Double Team!" A stream of draconic fire flew through the air like a laser from a satellite. It continuously razed the battlefield, Ares attempting to catch the Glalie and going through them one by one.

"Ice Beam Glalie, try to stop that Salamence!" I snorted as Ares immediately swapped to Flamethrower, heedless of the fact that the Ice Beam would do a dreadful amount of damage to her. The attacks clashed against each other, the rain dampening the effects of the fire, and they held for a while, neither side faltering. She would keep that up if it were up to her. Her ego was something else alright.

"Missile Strike," I instructed. Chase only had a moment of confusion before his eyes widened as dozens of Dragon Pulses fell from the sky. They were being fired in salvos, attempting to turn the battlefield into a wasteland. This was the prelude to me teaching her Draco Meteor. Lance told me he'd teach it to all of us after the League because that would be a little too unfair... like it wasn't already. Regardless, I could start workshopping some variations of other moves into it.

They were smaller than normal Dragon Pulses, which allowed us to fire them faster. I watched coolly as all of the Glalies got a green ball of energy smashed through them, until the real one let out a groan of discomfort. That was the green light for every Dragon Pulse to hone in on that noise in a way a predator latched onto any weakness prey showed.

"Holy... Protect, Glalie!" Chase roared hastily, eyes wide in disbelief. I couldn't blame him. I was keeping him off his game since the start of the match. He was still struggling to get a foot in... A green shield formed after 3 more dragon pulses slammed into the Glalie, protecting it from the bombardment. As this happened, the power behind the rain continued to dwindle until soon it was gone. I nodded in satisfaction at the exact moment it vanished.

"Fire Blast." Ares and I were exceptionally good at timing when Freyja's Rain Dance would end when she wasn't powering it. Although I could not see her, I knew Ares had a wild gleam in her eyes. A 大 shaped blast of fire careened through the air with deadly precision, shooting towards the Glalie whose Protect just dropped after weathering all the Dragon Pulses. This flurry of moves was intensive, but no one quite had the stamina that Ares did on my team.

She was empowered by her love of battle, something none but Ifrit matched. My little Charcadet was a mix of Green and me for sure, inheriting both our love of battles, whether that be Green's general enjoyment, or my absolute desire to win. That was why he decided to switch to Ceruledge, because he realized it would give him far more avenues for victory. Glalie desperately flung itself out of the way, roaring in discomfort as the flames tagged it.

The force sent it careening, and it only had a moment to catch itself as a figure launched itself through the sky. Ares' eyes gleamed, flames licking her maw as she prepared to bathe him— I smiled.

"Protect."

"Explosion!" Chase commanded instantly, only for his eyes to go wide as he registered my words.

"No wait, Glalie! Cancel that order!" Glalie glowed white, missing the way both Ares and I grinned cockily. I had a feeling he was going to do a double suicide move. I mean, it was actually pretty smart after all. Not only do you probably faint Ares, in the off chance that she doesn't faint, Moxie doesn't take effect because she didn't deliver the "killing" blow. Unfortunately, Ares had been forced to remain a Shelgon for a very long time.

Her barrier conjured almost effortlessly at my command, right as Glalie blew up. The sound was deafening, a strong wind blowing as the area lit up white.

"Nice effort," I praised, watching Chase numbly return Glalie to the ball. Ares huffed, bruise marks all over her because not even a Protect could fully block the devastating effects of an Explosion. Ares flew to my side, allowing me to rub her face with a small smile.

"I wanted to see how in control you are with a double dose of Moxie... but this is good too. You're getting better," I praised. She rumbled in content, curling around me and allowing the adrenaline to wear off slightly.

"What are you doing? I still have one more!" Chase pressed, slight frustration on his face. I smiled at the emotion.

"I know, but I'm done using Ares for now." Chase pursed his lips and mulled over his options before nodding to himself. He clutched his next ball, a serious expression on his face, and released his final pokemon. It was a large dragon, blue in color with medium-sized wings. The head of the pokemon was red, contrasting with the rest of its body but matching the red spikes that adorned it. A Druddigon... that wasn't a pokemon I saw often, if ever, over here.

I nodded easily, choosing Freyja once more and sending her out of the ball. She crooned gently, gazing at the Druddigon with a bored expression.

"Dragon Pulse!" Chase shouted immediately, taking initiative before I could start my shenanigans. Druddigon roared aggressively, firing its own turquoise ball of energy. Freyja deftly dodged it, floating away from the ball.

"Fire your own Dragon Pulse," I said idly, swiping a hand sideways through the dry air. She crooned in agreement, forming the ball swiftly before firing it.

"Dodge, Druddigon!" Chase commanded, satisfied at seeing his dragon deftly lumber to the right to avoid the attack. Despite that, his eyes narrowed in confusion as Druddigon let out a roar of discomfort. The dragon glanced wildly in every direction, looking for something that was not there...

"Again." I smiled as Chase panicked.

"You too, Druddigon! Match that Dragon Pulse!" he shouted urgently. As Freyja charged her Dragon Pulse, Druddigon attempted to do the same, only for its eyes to widen in confusion as the turquoise ball spluttered out of existence, leaving it open to take the Dragon Pulse. Druddigon flew backwards, snarling in both pain and uncertainty. Chase was much the same.

"Why is... what's happening?!" he exclaimed, eyes shooting towards the smugly grinning Freyja. I smirked proudly.

"Freyja, U-Turn."

"U-Turn again?! But can Milotic even learn that move?! I thought it was Flip Turn!" Freyja closed the distance between herself and Druddigon with far too much speed for a Milotic, especially considering there was no rain right now. As she crashed into him with that sickly green energy, she shot to my ball and I pocketed her with one hand, the other already raised to release... Another Freyja. She crooned gently, rain instantly forming on her arrival.

My Milotic shot the Druddigon an unimpressed look, scoffing as it gazed at her form in confusion. That look then turned into a sneer of contempt as she turned back to see Ares getting all cozy with me. The two snarled violently at one another, causing me to roll my eyes. I resisted the urge to laugh aloud as Chase's brain short-circuited.

"But... wha?" he spluttered helplessly.

"Dragon Breath!"

"Urgh, Flamethrower!" he shouted, naming anything. Freyja's Dragon Breath met the Flamethrower, gaining headway immediately as it collided with the inferior type. It eventually smashed through, weakened from the clash, but still meeting its target. Druddigon let loose the loudest roar yet, having somehow taken more damage from the Dragon Pulse previously. It snarled, eyes bulging in rage. The Druddigon lumbered to Freyja's position, claws glowing with Dragon Claw— Only to freeze as Freyja winked at it.

My Milotic giggled softly, fluttering her eyes coyly. I watched as practical hearts formed in Druddigon's eyes, even as the Dragon Pulse exploded directly in its face. It fell backwards with a dumb smile on its spiky face, prompting me to laugh loudly. Freyja scoffed, which caused Ares to rumble something under her breath. I wasn't surprised at all to see Freyja instantly close the distance, the two snarling at one another. With both fully evolved...

along with having draconic blood flowing through them, it seemed like their rivalry only grew more intense.

"That's that," I called, smiling in satisfaction. Chase scratched his head.

"I have no idea what just happened. You have two Milotics?" I snorted in amusement, putting a hand on both Ares and Freyja's heads to calm them down.

"No. My "Metagross" was actually my Zoroark; I used them again as the first Milotic. That's why there was no rain."

"Zoroark... Zoroark! That's why! Everything makes so much more sense now! You really had me there!" Chase exclaimed. He laughed, causing me to scowl at him.

"Be more miserable. That frustration isn't good enough," I demanded.

"While I'm definitely frustrated at not even putting up a fight, I'm more in awe at the fact that I'm getting handily beaten by a kid I crushed a few months back! It's no wonder you're considered the #1 trainer of this year!" Pft. Some people. I rolled my eyes and sprayed down Ares, healing her back up. Getting my revenge still felt good... It also showed my progress. Training had paid off swimmingly.

Gravity had helped in dividends; my team had tackled it with a fervor that showed they were as ready to win this thing as I was.

"Good luck at the League, Silver! Afterwards, come back here and we can have a 6-on-6! Now that I know your tricks, I think I can put up more of a fight!" Chase grinned leisurely. I snorted.

"Sure. Leaving the score 1-1 isn't good enough. I'm going to solidify that victory and wipe that stupid smile off your face." Jasmine took that moment to begin dragging me away.

"I'm so sorry about him. That was a great battle!" she apologized on my behalf, pushing me towards Ares with an exasperated expression. Chase nodded eagerly before pausing.

"Wait, are you Gym Leader Jasmine?!" he balked, saluting immediately. She shook her head immediately.

"Oh, don't be so formal! I'm just here to make sure Silver does nothing rash!" I stuck up my middle finger, only for Jasmine to gently push it back down.

"Come, let's go!" Jasmine insisted, clambering atop Ares with me. Mars was already there, raking a hand against Ares with an awed smile.

"You're... not bad at battling," Mars said reluctantly, turning towards me with a small frown.

"I wouldn't believe I could win the League otherwise," I drawled. Jasmine nodded in agreement.

"It's a good thing you're trying for the Indigo League instead of the Silver Cup... because I heard there's an Elite 4 prospect by the name of Will challenging it this year. While the trainers this year are definitely good, I think you have a great chance!" I mulled that over, nodding to myself. Lucky me. Will was definitely going to win that League. It didn't seem like Kanto had anyone else, or Lorelei and Jasmine would have told me by now. There were veterans, of course...

but I was confident I could beat them because the League had already recruited the really impressive vets. Those who got recruited in such a manner rarely competed in the League again, comfortable with the cozy job they got from putting up an impressive performance in their showing. The other vets would definitely be strong, but I'd be stronger. The battles would be hard, but I was prepared to put on a show. Yeah, that's what I would do.

This was a stepping stone for me to test how strong I was, and for Team Rocket to understand that they were next.

"To Indigo, Ares," I murmured. She roared in acceptance, flapping once before flying off.

"Good luck, Silver. I'll be rooting for you... but not so obviously. I'm still an Elite 4 member, after all." I rolled my eyes as Lorelei planted a gentle kiss on my forehead and tidied up my outfit with a proud smile.

"Luck is for people not good enough to win with their own talent. In a tournament like this, the only thing that matters is skill and strategy." She smiled softly.

"You've utilized the best resources to catch up to the rest of Colors. I cannot understate how brilliant an idea it was to utilize Gravity for your endeavors." I chuckled.

"I'll tell the rest of them about it after the League. It's a great way to train... though I'm not sure which of their pokemon can learn it besides Vee," I mused.

"I'm rooting for anyone but you," Mars said decisively, only to yelp as I flicked her forehead.

"Sure you are. I can't believe you let Janine poison you to say things you don't believe," I scoffed, not believing my twin for a second. She snarled warningly.

"If you weren't getting ready to go, I'd attack you right now."

"You'd lose without me having to mess up my outfit. Feel free if you want," I waved her off, tightening my gloves. Lorelei smiled at the two of us.

"We should not hold him any longer. You'll have lodgings provided to you while the League goes on. Make sure you take a look at your bracket, and if you want, you are even allowed to research your opponents. Many people will know you now, Silver. Your element of surprise is gone for the most part." I snorted.

"That's what they think. I'm very different from the last recorded footage they saw of me. If they prepare for that version of me... they'll be out of the League, wondering how someone as unfairly dashing as me could exist." Mars snorted as well.

"Arrogant prick."

"You have my face, you should be just as arrogant as me. If I'm good-looking, so are you," I chided. She opened her mouth and shut it.

"Will I only ever get compliments from you because we look the same?" she asked incredulously. Lorelei chuckled softly.

"I've recently secured the island as well. Afterwards, regardless of your placement, let us go there to celebrate. Everyone is invited." I smirked in mild amusement, ruffling my outraged twin's hair.

"I'm going now. I want to be early so that I can miss the crowd," I waved, dusting off nothing as I turned on a heel. The Indigo League... previously, I only wanted to battle it to test my skills against powerful trainers. Now though? I wanted to win it all as a statement. To the world, to Team Rocket, and of course... To my Gang. They were the most important ones... because it was my gang that directly impeded me from victory, and it was my gang whose lives were so intertwined with mine.

My body thrummed in excitement. I wanted to test my team against theirs. My monsters against their monsters, my soldiers against theirs... This was just a prelude to the types of battles we'd have in the future. Casual spars would shatter the internet when we all grew enough. But for now? We'd just use this League to make those waves. This new era of champions would be a short one because Colors would quickly take over, and there was no stopping us. Bonus!

"C-CYRUS SIR!" Cyrus slowly turned away from the window, expression unchanging. Even the visible distress on his subordinate's face did nothing to alter his mood.

"Saturn. Jupiter," he greeted simply. He gauged them with a blank face.

"You're distressed. Why is that?" he asked coolly. Saturn shuffled, eyes filled with confusion. Jupiter looked no better, arms crossed with a frown of concern.

"Well, sir... Mars is missing," he said slowly. If Cyrus was surprised by that, he did not show it. He merely shifted his stance fully, facing his commanders.

"Mars has disappeared? Elaborate." Saturn nodded.

"Well, she did not come in today... so Jupiter and I went to check in on her. However, upon arriving, we noticed that her lodgings were completely bare."

"We doubt it was a kidnapping. Everything was too clean... no mess. The only thing missing was her valuables," Jupiter explained with a small frown.

"You say that she has left of her own accord?" Cyrus questioned.

"We can't be too sure... but the evidence may lead to that," Saturn replied shortly.

"I see..." Cyrus mulled that over. Mars vanishing was an unexpected development. Whatever it was that caused her to leave must have been a matter of importance because Cyrus had never doubted her loyalty. He was all she had after all... How peculiar.

"That's not all, sir... here," Jupiter muttered, placing a card in his hand. Cyrus accepted it, turning his head down to stare at the paper. On it was a very short but very alarming statement. If you stay on this road, you'll eventually collide with me. I hate roadblocks, so count your days.

"..." Cyrus said nothing, gazing at the note with a neutral gaze.

"What could this mean, Cyrus?" Saturn asked, unease clear on his face. What could it mean, indeed. Cyrus did not know, but there was a person out there who seemed to be aware of Galactic's schemes. Curious... was it Mars? Unlikely, she was not aware of his goals yet. No one was yet aware of what he planned on doing because he was not ready to act.

"It appears that someone does not appreciate our efforts in helping with energy. No matter, we will continue our course of action as intended. Empty threats do not matter until they are acted upon," he dismissed.

"But what about Mars, sir?" Saturn asked hesitantly.

"If it is as you say, Mars has made the decision to leave on her own accord. There is little we can do about the matter but adjust. It is a loss, but not one so heavy. She is still young after all," Cyrus stated. If the goal was to weaken Galactic, it was a failure. Mars showed promise to be a commander, but Cyrus would not allow his emotions to impede him because she had chosen to leave. In moments like this, he would continue as he was but simply add more caution.

Dismissing this empty threat would be foolish, but treating it as if it were serious was equally as. For now, Cyrus would observe.

"Was it wise to leave such a note for that man?" Giratina questioned. I hummed, stuffing all the materials for Poffin making in my bag as easily as breathing.

"Villains are easy to read. He won't take my threat seriously, and this was mostly so he wouldn't bother searching for Mars. Maybe he'll be a little more cautious, but at the end of the day, admitting that he's in trouble is admitting that he should be worried... and you should never bet against a villain's ego," I murmured through the connection.

"You believe he will not adjust?" I smirked easily, grabbing another pack of Gyararade to actually buy. The name was stupid, but they were good, okay?!

"For someone who prides himself on being emotionless, I can tell without even meeting him that it isn't true. He'll continue his course of action, treat me like I'm not a threat, claim to be a little more cautious... and then get caught off guard when I do come and smash all his plans apart. He'll adjust for sure, but it won't be enough," I sighed.

"I see... You seem quite confident." I hummed thoughtfully.

"Maybe I'm as arrogant as the villains are. After all, things go south when I get involved. But if that happens, I'll deal with it."

"It certainly invites a more entertaining aspect. I approve."

"Sure does. They don't have the resources to act yet. Funds needed to capture the lake trio are probably steep, not to mention that accessing them will require a lot of information that they don't have yet. By the time they're ready to move, I'll be ready to stop them." My eyes glinted.

"And if he wants to step on my road so boldly, I'll have to stamp him and his silly little commanders out. Can't have any hitches after all."

"Efficient and ruthless. I was right to believe you are a more competent partner." I laughed aloud, garnering a strange look from the cashier.

"My father is the biggest narcissist around, and the other villains aren't far behind him. If I can deal with him, I'm sure I can deal with the others... now let me pay for this stuff and go to Mars. She'll probably flip after telling me not to leave," I mused. Wallace barged into the room with his typical fanfare.

"Well, Steven! Any updates on our new interest?" he asked with a wide smile. Steven's eyes flickered over to him.

"Don't speak of him as if the attention we are giving him is positive, Wallace," he scolded. Wallace blinked.

"It isn't? I had no idea I harbored such a grudge against him!" he exclaimed. The Champion of Hoenn twitched. Ever since first figuring out his interest in Silver, Wallace had not left him alone. It was surreal how the two strongest trainers of Hoenn had wildly different views of a literal thief!

"I don't have much information on him. He went off the map for a long period of time and was only spotted recently. Interestingly enough, Kanto has been very tight-lipped about him, along with a group of trainers he tends to travel with," Steven listed, frowning in contemplation. Most peculiarly, his friends happened to be the sponsors of Elm... along with the sponsor of Professor Oak. Surely they were aware that someone as suspicious as him was a thief?!

Perhaps if Steven informed him that his Beldum was missing, they'd connect the dots?

"Yes, I remember you saying that he was gone for quite a while... I do hope our friend is doing well," Wallace muttered.

"He is not our friend, Wallace!" Steven practically hissed. Wallace ignored him.

"Well, the Kanto League is beginning soon. Perhaps he will participate." The steel master rubbed his nose.

"Yes, perhaps. The Evergrande Conference is also beginning soon, so I will have to put a hold on this investigation." Wallace nodded thoughtfully.

"After the conference ends, you will have some downtime. I imagine you will take that opportunity to visit Kanto?" Steven sighed.

"Perhaps. While keeping it under wraps, it is evident that something major has happened in Kanto. Many natural disasters have struck at once, to a point where I do not believe it is natural." Wallace chuckled.

"Then go there as a friend offering assistance. You and Lance are good friends. In fact, I shall come too!"

"Why would I bring you with me?" Steven asked dully. Wallace patted his friend on the shoulder.

"Steven, my friend, you have the social skills of the rocks you fancy so much. You will put your foot in your mouth faster than Metagross likes to end their battles." Steven flushed, indignation clear on his face.

"Very well then. We will go there and offer our assistance to Kanto."

"Then we get to meet our friend properly!" Wallace clapped cheerfully.

"He is not our friend, Wallace!" The water master laughed easily. Crystal wiped her brow, sweat pouring down her face. After stressing the importance of keeping your own body conditioned, Crystal had thrown herself into training as well at Silver's demands. She found out some fun things about herself! According to her most belligerent friend, if they were all on equal footing, she'd be the fastest of their gang! She was already faster than Gold, and could keep pace with Green...

so she'd keep up the work to become better.

"Alright, team! It's time for a break!" she clapped cheerfully, preparing to cook for them all. All her members stopped immediately, lining up after giving each other words of encouragement after a job well done. As the girl rifled through her bag, she paused in surprise as a peculiar glow caught her attention.

"Hm?" she mused, grasping the object with a curious gaze. The Fire Stone that Silver gifted her? What was going on? Why was it glowing like this? Actually, why did it feel so unbelievably hot?! Crystal hissed and dropped the stone, pursing her lips in mild confusion as Totoree easily doused her hands in water. As she tried to make sense of the odd Fire Stone, Crystal let out a loud gasp of surprise at the sight of Archeree leaping straight for it.

There was an almost manic gleam in his gaze that snapped Crystal out of her daze.

"Ah, wait, Archeree! I said we'd evolve you a little before the League, and this Fire Stone is really weird!" she stressed, only to gasp as he ignored her and touched the glowing stone. What in the world?! Archeree was her most excitable pokemon, but he was a good boy who always listened! This was out of character for him! As a glow surrounded her fire type, Crystal hastily stepped back a healthy distance, knowing how big Arcanine could get in comparison to Growlithe.

The Growlithe let out an excited howl, as its body changed before her very eyes. Despite the suddenness of the situation, Crystal still felt a pulse of excitement coursing through her body at the prospect of evolution. Silver had said to train her Growlithe to the limits so he could reap the full benefits of evolving into an Arcanine, and Crystal had done just that.

While she was confident he was ready to take it to the next stage, the perfectionist in her wanted to milk out just a bit more training to really get the full benefits. But this was fine too! Truthfully, she was sure that he was more than ready for this! She and her team watched with an excited gaze as Archeree's howl turned far deeper in pitch, going from a playful yip to an intimidating rumble. His body began to change as well, growing significantly in size.

Archeree had been a healthy 3 ft, plenty bigger than the average Growlithe because of the effort Crystal put into him. But even that paled in comparison to the Arcanine before her. He grew so much that even Crystal, who used to tower over him, looked small in comparison. To her astonishment, he was growing to be only a little shorter than Airee, who was also bigger than the average Dragonite.

"Silver was right! Training him so much as a Growlithe means he gets to reap so much more benefit when he's finally ready for evolution! I'm so glad I listened because this is what separates a Jenny's Arcanine from one like Professor Oak's!" she gushed. Crystal's excitement swiftly diminished, however, transforming into one of confusion as she noticed something peculiar. That being Archeree's metamorphosis was painting a different picture than what she expected.

D-Did holding off on evolving Growlithe give it a different appearance? Her Arcanine did not look like a standard Arcanine. Crystal gazed in astonishment as Archeree let out a deep howl of excitement, sending a shudder through her body. He looked magnificent, she would never deny that... but what kind of Arcanine was this? He was huge, a solid foot taller than the average Arcanine, with red-orange fur that contrasted the normally bright orange of the normal Arcanine.

Instead of having beige colored fur in key areas, it was gray, appearing like clouds... It even looked far bulkier than the normal Arcanine.

"Bwah?" she mumbled, watching as Archeree unleashed an excited yip, utterly unmindful of his very strange evolution. He rushed her happily, almost sending her crashing if not for Totoree grabbing the giant dog... Crystal stared dumbly at her fire type. He didn't even look like a pure fire type anymore... She and Silver had discussed the benefits of having single-type pokemon when he made the observation the first time, something Crystal had been taking great advantage of... Wait a second.

Crystal immediately thought back to two of Gold's pokemon... two pokemon who also evolved into something strange. Her eye twitched, and she looked around wildly. Silver wasn't even here! What did he do?! Was it the Fire Stone he gifted her? B-But it had looked so normal before! What changed so suddenly?! Crystal moaned in distress, holding her face.

"I think a trip to the Professor may be needed. Airee, to me," she said quietly. Archeree let out a confused yip; it sounded like a landslide crashing.

"Why are you so amused?" I asked Giratina, going through my pushups with a tiny grunt.

"I have done something you may find amusing." I raised a brow.

"What is it?"

"Nothing to concern yourself with. You wished for me to even my treatment, so that is what I have done. I will not ruin the surprise any further." I opened my mouth before shutting it with a shrug. I couldn't be bothered to give a shit. I'd figure out eventually... Though, even their treatment? Did that mean Giratina did something to Crystal? Hm, I would just ask her next time I saw her. I'm sure it couldn't be that bad.