Chương 53: Resolve

"So his ghosts turned on him at the last moment?" Both Janine and Silver nodded at Officer Jenny's question. Before she arrived, the two had split off, and Janine had taken the time to message their gang about the dire situation. She could not get the image out of her mind of those horrifying red eyes. The way his pupils had continuously contracted until it felt like they weren't there anymore... At her shiver, Silver actually shot her a somewhat guilty look before focusing and turning towards Jenny.

That did not stop him from reaching out to run a soothing hand across her back.

"Ghosts are always biding their time, waiting for their trainers to show weakness that they don't approve of," Silver commented. Jenny nodded in agreement.

"I don't know how ya torture a ghost, but I wouldn't put it past Team Rocket to try," she said harshly. Despite the situation, Silver rubbing her back was sufficiently calming, allowing Janine to take a deep breath and compartmentalize her errant emotions. Jenny pursed her lips, looking at the state of Petrel.

"His injuries are severe. Put up a fight, eh?" she prodded, eyes narrowed at the rather gruesome injuries. Janine nodded.

"Yes, he was difficult, so I had to get a little violent," she offered, not missing the strange look Silver shot her. The officer sighed.

"I don't like the idea of kids like you being caught up in something so violent, but you did a good thing today. Catching an Executive of Team Rocket is nothing to scoff at. Get some rest, we'll take it from here." Janine nodded automatically, eyes trained on the Petrel babbling nonsense. He didn't even seem cognizant of his surroundings. His eyes were glossy, and it sounded like he was saying something, but it just wasn't coherent. Silver craned his head for both of them and said, "We'll do that."

The Jenny stared at the duo for a little while longer before nodding warily. She turned on a dime, cuffing the unresponsive executive and hoisting him up. His limp body caught her by surprise, and the officer sighed, releasing an Arcanine that effortlessly carried him. She secured Petrel's Poke Balls to her belt, a special lock on each one that would prevent them from escaping at the wrong time.

"An Executive… caught just like that. You Colors sure don't mess around," she muttered, shaking her head and walking off. The moment she vanished, Silver turned towards her.

"You alright?" he asked patiently.

"I…" Janine shut her mouth at the question. She replayed the events in her head over and over again, blanking on anything to say. She was not alright. Not by a long shot. But Silver wasn't alright either, so she did not want him to set aside his issues to try and help her.

"We need to go to Olivine. You have to come," she said instead. Her demand came out weaker than she wanted it to, something she cursed herself for. Silver wouldn't listen to anyone without the proper resolve. But to her surprise, Silver tilted his head and said, "Sure, we're done here anyway, so we can go." She let out a sigh of relief. If Silver had fought or resisted, she wasn't sure what she was going to do.

Right now, their most volatile member had completely spiraled to a state that none of them had ever seen him reach. She prayed that Jasmine, Crystal, or even Gold could talk to him because that was not her forte.

"I didn't kill him because I'm already teetering on a thin line. If I took his life with my own hands, I don't really know what type of effect that would have on me further down the road. I can't go down that road while I'm with Green."

"Green's not here, Janine." What would have happened if Silver hadn't brought her? Would they be too late to help him? Did a small part of him still try to preserve his stability? Janine did not know. She would never know because she was not the one who could understand things like this. Janine would have revelled in doing that to Petrel. The only reason she was even concerned was because of Silver.

"Got everything?" Silver asked coolly, idly running a hand against his arm where she knew his team was. She nodded, reaching out instinctively to grab at him. He didn't react to the action, eyes simply shifting to the blood-red nature that filled her with such unease. Nothing else was said as the two of them vanished from the area. It had been almost an entire year since I last visited Johto, but not much had changed. Olivine still smelled of sea salt, calm in a way many coastal cities weren't.

I wonder if it reflected their leader, even if Jasmine wasn't the most imposing around. For a city of trade, Olivine was clean. The lack of sound gave me time to hear the distant waves, the ocean breeze cold this time of year. It was nice. Last time I had been here, I hadn't taken the time to really take in the sights. My view had been far more limited, along with a frantic sense of urgency stemming from my desire to get out of Johto. And now I was back...

Jasmine's house sat near the sea, giving an amazing view of the Lighthouse in the distance. White stone walls, gray roofing, narrow tall windows... Jasmine's house could be considered the picture-perfect image of how modest and quiet she was, if not for the sheer size of it. I know if given a choice, Jasmine would never dream of owning a house so big, but unfortunately, she owned one of the largest pokemon in the world. Even then, I expected it to be a little larger.

I knocked on her door promptly, not having to wait more than a few seconds before it swung open. Jasmine stood firmly on the other side, expression going soft as she took a look at both Janine and me. I was a little surprised to see her drag us into the house, but I just accepted it.

"Crystal and Gold haven't shown up yet. Honestly, I didn't expect you guys to be here so soon," she informed us.

"We teleported," I answered honestly. Jasmine immediately paused, turning to gaze at me once more. Her brows were furrowed, but she turned straight once more.

"I was making us all snacks. I think it's as good a time as any to spend some time together," she decided.

"That was fast," I noted.

"I'm in agreement with Jasmine. I think it's good to build up the habit," Janine muttered. I shrugged, accepting it and taking the time to inspect Jasmine's home. My earlier confusion about how I expected the house to be bigger was very quickly explained due to the interior being significantly larger than the outside. I was once again reminded that this world had mastered space in a way that you would never see elsewhere.

"I've been working on it a little since meeting you all," Jasmine explained, a small smile on her face.

"It's not much, but it did feel a little lifeless before." My eyes roved over Jasmine's sanctuary.

"I like it." The entire area was spotless, with polished floors and no clutter. A pleasant smell wafted through the air, mixing a bit with the sea air from outside. Jasmine's furniture was a mixture of sturdy and comfortable. Well-made wood, silken fabrics... it wasn't anything special, something that Jasmine seemed to embrace in full. Despite the scale of the house, my best friend made no further attempt to embrace her wealth. It was nice.

Plushies littered the house, carefully placed to blend in with the rest of the area.

"I'm glad," Jasmine replied, stopping at a desk. I watched her grab some keycards before she handed one to both Janine and me.

"Here, a key to my house. It can access every room. Please don't be afraid to visit. Even if I'm busy!" she stressed.

"You're too kind, Jasmine," Janine bowed in thanks. My best friend flushed slightly.

"You guys would do the same for me without me even having to ask!" Janine had a small smile.

"Of course! Once I inherit the gym, Fuchsia can be one of our many bases." I smiled slightly at that.

"So you're in on that base plan, huh?" I questioned. Janine rubbed her spiky hair.

"Well... I won't lie and say the idea doesn't appeal to me. Having a base in every part of the world sounds wonderful."

"Must be your ninja speaking," I said dryly. She twitched harshly.

"Don't be so offensive!" she barked. I huffed.

"You know to access our future bases, you'd have to be part of the gang, right? There's only so long you can go pretending you hate Colors." The scowl that formed on her face was far more natural.

"I'll just ask Crystal! She'll let me in regardless of whether I'm in the gang or not!"

"Crystal already knows that you're in the gang. If you ask her, she'll tell the truth," I retorted.

"No, she won't!" Jasmine giggled softly at the two of us.

"You two look tired. Why not get some rest while I finish making snacks? I've labelled every door with your names."

"So diligent," I commented, nodding in agreement. Jasmine bit her lip, turning and pulling me into a tight hug. She did the same with Janine, who sagged slightly into the hold before releasing us.

"I'll call you when they all show up," she said firmly. I stared at her. Gym Leader Jasmine was quite the force. It was hard for me to say no to her, which was rare because I had no problem saying no to anyone.... Though, I wonder how much that had to do with her status. Regardless, it was nice seeing a firmer version of Jasmine, one who wouldn't take no for an answer. I might need it for the future. Gold and Crystal arrived at the same time.

Their distress was clear, but determination was rolling off them in waves. They exchanged quick hugs with Jasmine before marching straight to the organized living room, set up for a meeting of 5. Crystal immediately took charge. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but it seemed she had long finished crying. They had not known Mason as well as Silver and Green, but both Gold and Crystal were empaths at heart, so naturally, the news would affect them.

They would mourn him; they were currently mourning him, but something drastic was happening right in front of them, and if they didn't focus on it, they'd lose far more than they stood to gain.

"Silver," Crystal said softly. He stared at her, expression listless. Much to her relief, worry was quick to enter his eyes as he gazed at her and Gold.

"Are you two alright?" he asked immediately. Crystal was touched that he was concerned for them, but honestly, she was very sure their state was the least of both Gold's and her worry.

"We're fine, Silver... but what about you?" she asked slowly. Their most volatile friend cocked his head slightly.

"I'm fine," Silver said after a moment of thinking about it.

"In fact, I haven't felt this focused for a while. I feel like I finally have a goal to put my mind towards." That wasn't very reassuring.

"Silver, we heard what you did to Petrel." Crystal's voice was even and straight, hiding the unease she felt. Worryingly, Silver's expression didn't even shift to anger at learning that Janine had spilt the beans. In a way, it seemed like he expected it.

"Ah, yeah... I was going to kill him, but it wasn't enough. For what he did, I gave him a worse punishment," he said casually.

"Not a smidge of hesitation," she thought, gnawing on her lip. Crystal could confidently say that none of them gave a damn what happened to Petrel. No, what she cared about was the person doing those things and the method in which they were doing it. It needn't be said, but Crystal was very overprotective of her friends. It was just in her nature, and she was not afraid to assert her authority when she was concerned.

She wouldn't want Janine doing what Silver had done to Petrel because Janine was a good person suffering from loss. She was still healing, so sending her down that path was unacceptable. She wouldn't want Gold doing that to Petrel because Gold was her best friend, and it was her job to look out for him. Subjecting him to something like torturing another was something she could not even imagine. She wouldn't want Green to go down that path because Green was so emotional.

Things stuck with her easily and left strong impressions on her... not to mention she was prone to overreacting. But the very last person that Crystal would want to cause harm in such a way to a person was Silver, because Silver was teetering on a line so thin that if not for his grounded and self-aware look at life, he'd have long since tipped over. And it looked like he was finally losing his balance. Well, Crystal was his second in command for this reason.

They were both dealing with a similar pain due to what they had done to Green; she could resonate with him a little better than the others, and that might be what was necessary.

"Silver... we need to talk about this." Silver stared at her with a clouded expression.

"I could have killed Petrel at Fuchsia," he said randomly, pulling out a sharp knife. They all flinched at the weapon, eyeing it warily.

"With this right here. I stabbed him with it... and I could have ended an Executive right then and there." Silver frowned.

"But I didn't. I didn't do it because I didn't want to become the version of myself that I'd transform into by killing him... not while I was with Green," he admitted quietly.

"I was weak to think like that." Gold scowled.

"No, you weren't, Silv! You did the right thing!" he protested.

"I did? So you're saying Mason deserved to die?" he asked bitterly. Gold jolted backwards.

"If I killed Petrel there, he wouldn't have been a problem anymore. If I were stronger, he'd be gone, and Mason would be alive... but I left him alive, and that was a mistake." Silver's eyes were stormy.

"Some people deserve to die, no matter what. The weak can't defend themselves, and trying to better themselves only puts a target on their back. I'm going to fix my mistakes so that even the weak can live in peace and contentment. They won't have to think about growing stronger."

"No!" Jasmine shouted immediately, grabbing the redhead with clear terror in her eyes.

"You can't think like that, Silver! I won't let you go around killing people. I won't!"

"She's right, Silver. We aren't letting you become the worst version of yourself," Crystal said with an air of calmness that she really didn't feel.

"We just got you back. We saved you from your hell. There's no way we're letting you plunge yourself back into that." Much to her relief, Silver actually seemed to consider her words.

"We both ran off Green," Crystal said softly, placing both hands on his shoulders.

"We both feel terrible about it. You and I understand what we did better than anyone else... so don't make me lose you, too. If that happens... Gold will have nobody," she whispered for just his ears. Silver's eyes widened for a fraction of a second before they cooled off.

"As long as Team Rocket exists, even as fragments, I'll never be able to rest easily. I can't move on as long as their members roam the planet," Silver admitted. Crystal's heart clenched at that, and she shut her eyes.

"I'm going to hunt them down. I have to," he said resolutely, taking in the crushing air with shut eyes. Maybe a battle would dissuade him. To Silver, strength always came first, so if they beat him, they could appeal to that part of him. Crystal could beat him. She knew she could. They could all beat each other, and she would want this victory more than him—"But..." Their eyes snapped open at that.

"I won't kill anyone. I'll capture them, I'll rough them up to make sure they can't escape... but I won't kill them." Silver stared at them all, a warmth in his eyes that he would have never shown so freely before.

"The only thing that bothers me more than leaving Team Rocket alone is losing you guys... and I bet losing me scares you just as much. I won't abandon our gang just yet... this is just something I have to do."

"I get it," Gold exhaled.

"You need to get rid of the baggage of your past, and this is the only way how. We'd be cruel to stop you from doing that... but just don't lose yourself, alright man?" Silver smiled sardonically at them.

"Even if I wanted to, you guys wouldn't let me. I'm relying on you to keep me grounded in reality." Gold chuckled.

"At least you're finally relying on us." Jasmine sagged, tears of relief entering her eyes.

"Thank goodness. I can't lose you, too, Silver," she admitted quietly, pulling him into a tight hug. His eyes softened a tad.

"Well, you have me for now. Why don't we all just relax a little?" Their group nodded in unison.

"Yeah! Let's relax. Jas can show us around Olivine," Gold grinned. Jasmine smiled shakily.

"Of course! I'd love to show you all around my city. We can even meet Amphy!" Janine breathed out.

"I need to sleep first. Crystal... may I sleep in your room tonight?" she asked. Crystal nodded, eyeing Silver for a long while. He was being honest. He really wouldn't kill anyone... but Silver was still going down a very dangerous road. No matter how he looked at it, there was a very real chance he'd lose himself in the process. She would keep an eye on him. Suddenly, she was glad that their siblings were traveling together, and she added the stipulation that she would visit with him every time.

Those meetings would be vital in preventing Silver from doing something unforgivable. I released all of my team. They materialized at once, all turning towards me with serious expressions.

"I promised you guys I'd be better. I refuse to exclude you guys from any decision I make, so I'll start now." I shot Metagross a look, watching my steel behemoth rumble in place before linking us all together.

"I'm sure you guys heard what I want to do. I made sure you guys heard it... now I want to hear your honest opinions about it," I requested.

"Really?" Gaia asked uncertainly.

"Of course. We're a team. Tell me what you think." My voice was earnest because I was honest. If my team didn't want to do this, then that would be the end of that. I wouldn't betray their trust again. Gaia shot Freyja a look before nodding with a determined expression.

"I think... we shouldn't do this," Gaia said honestly. Freyja nodded in agreement.

"This vengeance... I don't think it's healthy. We lost Green already, so should we really be throwing ourselves into something like hunting Team Rocket?"

"Especially with your um... state of mind? We're just worried for you," Gaia pointed out. I listened to their words, honestly mulling it over. They raised a good point. This was why I had created room for discussion. My team and I weren't a hivemind. If they didn't want to do it, I wouldn't force them—"I think we should do it." My eyes widened in slight surprise at that, a feeling shared by all my pokemon as well. Why? Because the one who had gone against Gaia and Freyja was Oberon.

My Ursaring looked resolute, his deep voice resonating through all of us. It was almost impossibly rare to ever hear a voice go against Gaia's decision. She was often the voice of reason on the team, and she was not afraid to show it. My most vocal pokemon by far... most of my members often looked to her for guidance. Oberon, especially, was someone Gaia endlessly babied. There was a reason they had such a hard time acknowledging him as anything more than my little man. I had a hard time too.

"Oberon?" Gaia, Freyja, and I said in unison. Oberon didn't look shy or afraid. My Ursaring stood tall, coursing with a confidence I didn't know existed.

"We can't let them roam free. All Team Rocket does is target the weak... They'll never stop as long as they have hope, so we need to take all of it away," he said firmly. The weak... that was right. Team Rocket would just target the ones who couldn't defend themselves. They were cowards like that. My gaze hardened slightly. While Petrel was largely to blame, I was not faultless. Beyond refusing to kill him, I made the mistake of having Mason grow beyond his designation.

If I had left him weak, he would have never intervened at Saffron. It was my mistake for dooming a weakling that should have stayed weak. Some roles needed to be fulfilled in this world. The weak should never step into the domain of the strong, where they risk getting hurt. They should stay weak. I would deal with the threats to their livelihood, and that meant taking out the villain teams like I normally intended.

"No... this isn't how we should do it!" Gaia said firmly, interrupting my thoughts. Freyja gazed at Oberon and then at me in concern.

"I agree with Gaia... I don't think we should do it like this," she said slowly. Oberon shook his head.

"The longer we leave them alone, the higher the chance they'll regroup and start again. How long until Giovanni gathers his strength and tries again? We don't even know what happened to him. What if they try to create another Legendary?" Gaia shot Oberon an astonished look. Being the baby of the team for so long, it probably never occurred to my Meganium that he would disagree with her decision.

"There are better ways to go about this, Oberon!" she said vehemently. Oberon stared incredulously at her.

"Like how? The sooner we catch them, the fewer people who get hurt! We can't waste any time!" Freyja intervened immediately.

"Guys, calm down. Oberon, I understand what Team Rocket did to you, but you're not thinking straight," she said softly. Oberon growled.

"Stop treating me like a kid! I'm not thinking about what they did to me. I'm thinking about what they could do to others! Think about Sun, or Moon, or little Lostelle!" Freyja withered in surprise at his scalding tone.

"It's not about me anymore. I'm getting strong. Team Rocket is afraid of me, but they'll never be afraid of defenseless people," Oberon said firmly.

"... He is correct. This has nothing to do with what Team Rocket did to the cub. There are very few in that organization who can withstand our might now." Freyja's head turned swiftly, regarding Ares with wide eyes.

"What? You too? Ares, now is not the time to decide because you disagree with me!" she protested. Ares, surprisingly, did not react to that as I expected her to. She just shook her head in disgust.

"Time and time again, we have been impeded by a group that is beneath us, forcing us to act cowardly because they temporarily wielded more power than we did. Now that we have the upper hand, we are to just leave them be?" Freyja went quiet. My Salamence snarled lowly, a venomous gleam in her eyes.

"Royalty does not allow obstacles to impede them. I will not allow anything to impede Silver. If they refuse to let him strike them down, then I will gladly take on that honor." We stared at her in surprise, taken aback by her claims. It might have been the first time I ever heard her call me Silver.

"We will destroy any debris in our way and clear the road for our Vassal to walk freely. We have the advantage, so we will be the ones to finish this once and for all," Ares said resolutely.

"You're not thinking straight either, Ares! I understand that what they did to Charizard was unforgivable, but right now, we just aren't in the right state to target Team Rocket!" Gaia pleaded, eyes wide. Ares and Oberon both frowned.

"The sooner we complete our hunt, the faster we can return to a life of normalcy. Vermin do not die on their own. We must stamp them out ourselves," Ares said firmly.

"Get them while they're scattered. If they regroup, we'll just be doing this same thing again," Oberon decided, clenching his fist.

"Enough," Metagross droned, silencing the four of them.

"Yeah, this isn't going anywhere," Loki said, stepping in between them with a frown. Metagross rumbled.

"Evidently, we will not reach a consensus so easily. Trainer? What are your thoughts on the matter?"

"Hm..." I muttered, head running with the conversation that just took place. They were completely split. Gaia and Freyja thought I shouldn't hunt Team Rocket, while Ares and Oberon thought the complete opposite. I didn't know what the rest of my team thought, but I was sure they had their own opinions. Alright then...

"Take a vote," I decided, much to their surprise.

"A vote?" they repeated. I nodded.

"I won't say anything, I won't vote... Don't even consider me while voting. All of you will vote for what we want to do. The choices are to hunt Team Rocket immediately or wait for a different time. Make the decision based on what you think." I sat down, leaning against a tree and shutting my eyes.

"No hard feelings, no matter the decision, okay? At the end of the day, we're still a family; disagreements are natural, but we won't let animosity form from it. Can you guys promise me that regardless of the choice, we'll tackle that 100% without holding a grudge?" I asked softly, gazing at them. My 4 most vocal glanced at one another, then at me, before nodding in unison.

"No matter the decision, we won't be upset," Gaia decided.

"Promise," Oberon said resolutely. I nodded, closing my eyes once more.

"Alright, have at it."

"I am abstaining," Metagross rumbled immediately. Freyja immediately turned to him.

"But your vote is really important, Metagross. You're our most logical member," she countered with a frown. Metagross stared at her.

"This will prevent the possibility of a tie. There are 10 of us. Not only that, regardless of the decision, it is our duty to navigate it. We will not allow anything disastrous to happen." Gaia sighed in acceptance.

"Can't say I'm surprised about that." She turned towards the rest of their team, a determined expression on her face.

"You guys... I don't think hunting Team Rocket is a bad idea. I think hunting Team Rocket with our current headspace is a bad idea. We need to destress and think properly," she stressed. Freyja nodded resolutely.

"A lot of us are hurting for obvious reasons. We need time..."

"Time that Team Rocket never gave us," Oberon said bitterly.

"We got kidnapped for 3 months, and it completely derailed our journey. As long as they exist, all they'll do is try to stop us!"

"They are a constant thorn in our side. It is time we finally rid ourselves of them," Ares agreed.

"Arachne chooses Team Gaia since she can't choose Team Big Spider Sibling!" Arachne wiggled, bouncing over to Gaia's side. Gaia smiled at the tiny Joltik, rubbing a vine against the bug and getting her to wiggle happily. Loki sighed. With Metagross abstaining, his decision was one of the most important... and honestly, both sides raised a good point. But ultimately... The Zoroark slunk to the surprised Oberon's side.

"Loki?!" Gaia repeated in shock.

"I agree with the both of you," Loki said honestly.

"But... leaving them alone will only cause us to think about them more. We'll never be at peak performance as long as they have remnants. In the long run, it'll hurt us." No matter what, Loki would always think of Silver and the team first... and while his mental state was unhealthy, it would never get better if he left Team Rocket alone. Only after finally ridding himself of them could he truly improve. Silver was no longer the only issue. Three members of the team would never be content to leave Team Rocket be.

It was Loki's job to quietly observe and keep the team dynamic straight. Gaia nodded her head at his explanation, a little hurt but accepting it. Apollo shuffled.

"I... I pick Gaia," he mumbled.

"She seems really worried... and I'm worried, too. I think a little patience to heal won't hurt." Gaia sighed in relief.

"That's all I ask for. Just some time to heal."

"But healing is difficult when the subject of your pain has a beating heart," Achlys intervened.

"I... am not sure I understand the full picture, but Teacher has not led me astray yet, and I trust their decision. If this is what will help Master, I will follow this decision." With that, the Sneasel moved over to Loki's side, shooting Gaia and Freyja an apologetic stare. Gaia smiled reassuringly at her and turned towards the final choice. It was up to Ifrit to decide for them. The original Charcadet... Ifrit looked shocked to see that he was the final decision. He stared at the expectant Apollo, only to frown.

"They... they took Green from us. Because of them, she's gone, and we don't know when she's coming back." The original Charcadet had a dark look on his face.

"We'll make them pay," he hissed, marching directly to Oberon's side. Gaia sighed in acceptance. Maybe this was for the best. She didn't realize how many of them wanted this. If they allowed their anger to stew, it would only be bad in the long run. I stood up, moving over to Gaia and Freyja. They both sighed as I cupped their faces, running a hand against their scales with a tenderness I reserved for my team.

"You two alright?" I asked softly.

"I'm not mad... just worried," Gaia admitted. I nodded at her words.

"I'm not solely focusing on hunting them down. There's still a lot we have to do." Both of them looked immensely relieved at my admittance, causing a small smile to appear on my face.

"I won't fault you guys if you don't wanna help. Just let me know."

"Don't be stupid!" Gaia interrupted with a scowl, vine snaking out warningly.

"We'll always help you! No hard feelings!" Freyja crooned, nuzzling me. I stroked them both easily.

"Thank you. I know I can always count on you." You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

"We're going to the gym today!" Jasmine announced.

"There's no way she's going to choose him!" Gold insisted. I rolled my eyes.

"You would think that, would you. But she'll definitely pick the worst option," I assured. Gold shook his head.

"Dude, no way."

"Why are you guys more invested than I am?" Crystal asked in disbelief as the island show continued to play.

"Shh! Let's see what decision she makes!" Janine insisted, eating her popcorn with interest. Jasmine blinked.

"Um... Guys, we're going to the gym today! To train!" she said a little louder. We glanced at her in unison, all attracted to the word 'train' like a moth to a flame.

"There's something deeply wrong with all of you," Jasmine sighed with a smile. We were all watching some Love Island-type show that Crystal wanted to see. It was a pretty entertaining case study of human stupidity.

"How come we're going to the gym?" Gold asked curiously, already bounding up to the door. For now, the show was forgotten, but we'd probably get back to watching it. She beamed.

"I'll be helping someone train. They're interested in becoming a gym leader! I help them on and off when I can, and they've been seriously improving!" My brain tickled at that information, but I disregarded it, just pushing myself up.

"We can train a bit in there," I muttered thoughtfully. Crystal, Janine, and Gold all looked excited at the prospect. Of course they were. We were all genuine freaks when it came to training.

"Hell yeah! Let's go!" Gold urged, pushing open the door... and slowly shutting it. He turned towards us.

"It's cold," he said bluntly. We all smiled at the idiot. Jasmine's gym, much like her house, looked like it had been revamped. Similar to her home, it was clean and unassuming. There was nothing flashy like the Cerulean sisters' gym, and it didn't look as incredible as Erika's, but the simplicity made it stand out all the more. Steel was present everywhere— metal paneling, beams, railings, and platforms...

"Not bad," I mused. Jasmine blushed happily.

"It used to be rather simple, but I've been working on it a little... I hope you like it!" Crystal beamed.

"It's lovely! I love how humble you are, while adding a bit of flair to show that you're still a gym leader!"

"Ah, Gym Leader Jasmine, you're here!" a deep voice called out. We paused at that. A tall, lean, middle-aged man greeted us. He had short black hair with a fringe in the middle, along with dark eyes. My brain tickled at his appearance, eyes narrowing in confusion. The man had a stern expression, but he smiled at the gym leader.

"I hope you don't mind. I decided to let myself in to get warmed up." Jasmine smiled politely, waving him off.

"Oh, it's no problem, Mr. Norman! I'm sorry for being late, I've been hosting some friends of mine," she said demurely. Wait a second. Norman? I took one long look at him again before my eyes widened in surprise. Oh, Norman! Norman was the name of the Petalburg Gym Leader... and this man looked exactly like him. Wait a second... didn't that mean—"Friends?" Norman muttered, taking a look at us. His eyes widened slightly as he gazed at our group before a small smile appeared on his face.

"Well, color me surprised. If it isn't the gang making waves across the world... Colors," he greeted. Crystal, Gold, and I looked mildly surprised but for different reasons. Gold and Crystal, because of being identified so easily... and me, because of the child standing next to him. Norman noticed my gaze and beckoned towards them with a small smile.

"My wife was busy today with my youngest, so I decided to bring my child along. Hopefully, that won't be a problem." The child flushed at my focused gaze, though calling them a child was a bit of a stretch, considering they were around the same age as our group. Thick brown hair adorned their head, the most prominent part being the thick side tails, along with a side fringe falling across the forehead... There was a red and white headband with a bow that resembled rabbit ears as well.

But that wasn't even the most notable aspect of the person. No, it was their vivid blue eyes, as deep as the ocean. They were wide in awe, gazing at our group with clear recognition. Jasmine grinned happily.

"Of course not! My friends will keep little May company—""Sapphire!" the child blurted out, interrupting Jasmine and causing her eyes to go wide.

"You can call me Sapphire!" they said eagerly. Norman looked confused.

"But I thought you hated being called Sapphire—""N-Nuh uh!" Sapphire denied, turning towards our group with glittering eyes. Norman blinked before sighing with a smile.

"This is my daughter, Sapphire Maple," he introduced. Sapphire continued gazing at us like we were famous, and well... I guess we were.

"Most people call me May because Maple, but I want you guys to call me Sapphire!" I snorted in amusement, shaking my head.

"Sapphire, eh? That means you qualify for our gang," I pointed out.

"Really?!" Sapphire gasped. Gold and Crystal took one look at her before their jaws dropped. They immediately rushed the girl, causing her to squeak, clearly overwhelmed that 3 of the most popular rookies from the Indigo League were giving her attention. Jasmine gasped.

"Oh! She does! I didn't even realize!"

"Deep blue eyes..." Gold muttered.

"And your name is Sapphire," Crystal mused. Sapphire nodded meekly.

"Do I really qualify?" she muttered disbelievingly. I imagine it wasn't every day a group that got suddenly famous just invited you to their group.

"Sure you do! Look at us!" Gold preened, dragging Crystal and me so we could stand side by side.

"Gold." He pointed at his sunny golden eyes.

"Crystal." He pointed at her crystal-blue eyes.

"Silver." He pointed at my metallic-silver eyes.

"Sapphire!" He pointed at her ocean-blue eyes. Gold clapped.

"Welcome to the gang!" Crystal turned towards him.

"Gold, we can't just force her to join our group. What if she doesn't wanna be part of it—""I-I wanna join!" Sapphire interrupted immediately, stars in her eyes. Crystal balked at how quickly she said that.

"No way... Colors is asking me if I wanna join their group. That's amazing! Gaia, Airee, Explotaro... Saury! I could list your whole team! You guys were incredible!" Sapphire gushed.

"I watched all your battles! You guys are incredible! I'm such a big fan!" We stared at the excited Sapphire with mixed expressions. Seems like our newest member was a fan... not to mention she didn't like being called Sapphire before we made our name known. May, huh? Ash's traveling companion in the Hoenn region... and she was immediately invited into our gang. Oops. It had completely slipped my mind that Norman was from the Johto Region, and quite frankly, I didn't care. In the Manga, he was from Goldenrod...

but his child had been Ruby or Brendan. In the games, it was also heavily implied that you moved from a different region, hence the start of the game of Hoenn. I guess that region was Johto. This version of Norman was May's father, much like the anime... but I don't remember anything about him being from Johto. I guess that meant Sapphire was the Protagonist of the region, leaving Brendan as the rival...

"I can't believe there's actually more of you. How is this even possible?" Janine exhaled tiredly.

"I'm just as shocked! Another member of color so soon, and her eyes are such a lovely shade of blue," Crystal gushed happily despite being a doubter earlier. Sapphire blushed a deep shade of red at the compliments.

"So am I really in?" she asked timidly.

"Yup! Welcome to the family! You're one of us now," Gold said easily, slinging an arm over the slender girl's shoulder. Sapphire pumped a fist.

"I didn't think it'd be that easy! U-Um, after watching your interview, I realized my name and eyes also matched like yours. I was actually named Sapphire because of my eyes. Not to mention, we all have pretty similar names!" It was fairly true. Besides Green, our entire group was named after minerals.

"The criteria to join are that your name has to match what your eyes reflect. Your name is Sapphire, and you have the deepest set of blue eyes we've seen yet... so welcome," I said dryly. Sapphire nodded.

"So my little brother, Max, wouldn't qualify," she pointed out.

"Not sure what someone's eyes need to even look like to match that name," Gold shrugged helplessly. Sapphire giggled.

"So, Sapphire, considering you watched our battles and became such a big fan, you want to be a battler, too?" I questioned curiously, moving our group away so Jasmine and Norman could get started. Sapphire nodded eagerly.

"Contests are cool, and I wanna try that, but I definitely wanna battle primarily! I actually didn't know what I wanted to do until watching your battles! It was awesome!" she gushed. We nodded at that.

"How old are you?" I asked.

"11! My birthday is September 20th!" she exclaimed, growing a bit more confident at our casual speak. So she was 2 years younger than us, which meant she would start her journey a year after Mars started hers.

"Got a pokemon?" Gold questioned. Sapphire shook her head slowly.

"No, not yet..." she muttered. Crystal hummed.

"Do you have a preference?" Our newest member mulled the question over.

"Um... to be honest, I really liked Green's Venusaur because of how fast it was in the sun. And then I fell in love with watching Gaia throw around so many fire techniques. I didn't even know a Meganium could do that!" she admitted, a little embarrassed. Crystal and Gold shot me a look, only to blink at seeing my lack of reaction. I tilted my head.

"Do you want to be a specialist of sorts?" I asked.

"A specialist?" she wondered. I nodded.

"Green's Venusaur had Chlorophyll. When the sun is active, they get a lot faster. Gaia's special technique revolves around the sun as well. If you really fell in love with that, you could make a team revolving around the sun," I offered. Sapphire's eyes sparked in interest at that.

"A team revolving around the sun?" I nodded.

"I call it a Sun Team. A team that maximizes the effectiveness of the sun to lay waste to others. Erika has something similar, but hers isn't really dedicated to the sun... just a byproduct of her love of grass types." Crystal, Gold, and Janine looked intrigued by that. None looked more fascinated than Sapphire. I would have smiled at the fact that the one named Sapphire looked so interested in a sun team. Kyogre would probably be pissed the fuck off at that.

"So a sun team would use a mixture of grass and fire types?" she wondered. I nodded.

"For the most part. I'd probably save one slot for a pokemon that can cover your weaknesses." It didn't take much to convince her at all. Sapphire seemed utterly attached to the idea of making a sun team now. I genuinely wonder how much that had to do with her name since... you know.

"I'll do it! I'll make a sun team! It sounds so fun!" Sapphire exclaimed.

"Didn't take much to convince you," I noted, flicking open my dex and showing it to Gold and Crystal. They gazed at it in interest before nodding in unison. She shrugged.

"I've always been unsure about whether I want to be a trainer or a coordinator... but this is the most an idea has excited me! That means it has to be the right choice, right?" I snorted at that. She sure was carefree.

"We'll help you, of course!" Crystal decided, beaming at her. Sapphire grinned, only for her smile to vanish as we stood up at once. Our group stared at the confused girl.

"C'mon!" Gold urged.

"Huh?" she said dumbly.

"You don't have a pokemon, right?" I drawled, eyeing her for a moment.

"All of us had a pokemon before getting our actual starters. It'd be a shame if you didn't!" Crystal explained. Janine rolled her eyes.

"You guys are way too happy to be recruiting a new member of your gang. Do you even have a pokemon in mind?" I snorted.

"Course we do." Sapphire gaped at us.

"You guys are helping me catch a pokemon?" she asked dumbly.

"Duh," Gold and I said in unison. I flicked open my pokedex again, nodding at something.

"Jasmine, we're heading out!" Janine announced.

"Oh... okay! Be back before dinner so we can all eat together! If you buy snacks, bring me some too! Nothing too sugary! If you spoil your appetites, I'll be upset!" she shouted, not taking her eyes off the battle.

"Got it!" we shouted back. Our group spared the battle a glance, watching as Skarmy bit the tail of a Tauros.

"I-I'm going with them, Dad!" Sapphire announced. Norman simply waved a hand in acceptance. The future gym leader looked stressed, belching out orders to his Tauros as Jasmine pushed her advantage.

"Alright, let's go!" Crystal exclaimed.

"So where is Green?" Sapphire asked innocently, arm latched around my midsection as Ares leisurely flew through the air. I glanced back at her.

"She needed some time to herself, so she's going solo." She nodded curiously, watching as Airee flew closer to us. On his back were Crystal and Janine, which was the reason Sapphire was with me. Airee was more comfortable than Janine's Crobat, and it was a leisure ride, so here we are.

"So, I'm gonna research the members I want... will you help me?" she asked in hope.

"We'll add you to the group chat!" Crystal assured.

"I think we're all gonna help you, but I like your initiative," I replied honestly.

"Yeah! You're part of the gang now, and Silv loves spoiling us!" Gold cackled, something that Wartaro mimicked. The two just began laughing their insufferable laughs, only for it to turn into twin squawks as Ares blew a stream of fire at them. Sapphire gaped as Wartaro hastily flew away from it, slowing the stream down with psychic energy.

"Dick move, Silv!" Gold shouted.

"What do you mean? I didn't tell Ares to do that," I drawled, scratching the top of her head in satisfaction.

"Please don't try to kill each other while we're flying!" Crystal reprimanded in exasperation.

"Tell that to the feral animal and his dragon!" Gold barked. Sapphire laughed cheerfully. It was good to see that her trepidation at meeting somewhat famous people had worn off. She nearly fainted when she saw that she'd be riding Ares with me.

"You guys are... not that different than what I expected, but still not what I expected!" she beamed, grin splitting her face as the air brushed against her.

"You'll get used to it. The longer you hang around us, the better!" Crystal reassured.

"Or you never get used to it," Janine said dryly.

"She's still convinced she's not part of the gang." Gold waved Janine off effortlessly.

"Sometimes I hear her wake up in a cold sweat because she didn't believe me when I said we'd start raking it in big." Janine twitched.

"God, do you ever shut the hell up?! It's you and Silver, just unable to keep your mouths taped!" she hissed.

"You should be grateful we're so forgiving. We could have easily pretended like we didn't know you," I pointed out.

"We can still do it, by the way!" Gold chimed smugly.

"I'M GOING TO BE A GYM LEADER! I DON'T NEED YOUR FAME!" she howled. Sapphire laughed again. She made no attempt to hide or shield the carefree noise, prompting us to look at our most recent addition.

"So what's the deal with hating your name?" I asked coolly. She jumped, prompting me to lunge out and grab her lest she do something like fall.

"I-I don't hate my name!" she insisted.

"You had people calling you May because your last name is Maple," Gold pointed out.

"Which means you didn't even consider something like Saph," Crystal chimed in.

"We're calling you Saph by the way," I added. She gaped at the three of us, going through extra efforts to make sure we all saw it on our respective pokemon. It was a little adorable.

"Well... I don't hate it anymore," she admitted.

"It's just a weird name! My parents named me Sapphire because of my blue eyes and the fact that I was born in September... but it's just I dunno," Sapphire sighed.

"But then I heard about you guys! You all had such strange names, just like me, and when I realized I was the same... I started thinking that maybe my name is kinda... cool." By now, her voice had become a mumble, her embarrassment clear as day as she basically admitted that we were the reason she liked her name now.

"I'm used to being called May, so I'll just let others call me that... but I wanna be known as Sapphire like you guys!" We nodded thoughtfully at her words.

"I'm glad we could help," Crystal said earnestly.

"Dork," I snorted.

"Stop! You guys are embarrassing me!" she whined. Gold cackled.

"Of course we are! Besides the lil babies, you're the youngest in our group now, so that automatically means you get teased because we will each kill for our respective kids!" he said honestly.

"I'm still waiting on mine," Crystal sighed despondently.

"You'll get one eventually. Don't worry," I reassured. Sapphire moaned in distress.

"Can we just focus on that catching a pokemon for me thing?" Crystal giggled.

"You get used to it. Just wait until Silver starts terrorizing you!"

"Get out before that happens," Janine recommended stonily, no hint of a joke on her face.

"Never meet your heroes," I said idly. Sapphire groaned. There weren't many people alive who would have no reaction to the sight of a Dragonite, Braviary, and Salamence landing. Wild pokemon were no exception. They were all top predators after all. As we arrived at our destination, the noise went silent, while the air became charged with something more nervous. Like the impending doom of knowing you were going to have your life upheaved. That was fairly fair.

This wasn't a place where predators like our three pokemon tended to reside.

"You three should fly off for a bit. You're making the pokemon nervous," Crystal murmured to the flyers. Ares snorted derisively before flexing her wings. She said something mocking to the other two flyers and took off through the sky. I watched Wartaro and Airee huff before they immediately pursued.

"You know, I never asked... but what pokemon did you have in mind?" Sapphire wondered. I craned my head.

"I never told you?" Huh, that's right. I only showed Gold and Crystal. Gold and Crystal laughed at Sapphire's dumbfounded look.

"It's called a Cherubi," I explained, flicking open my dex with one hand while releasing Gaia with the other. Sapphire sagged as Gaia's aroma began filling the air. She stared at my starter in awe, something that Gaia noticed.

"Holy... Gaia, I'm such a big fan! You're amazing!" she gushed. Gaia let out a cheerful noise, wrapping Sapphire in a viny hug and getting our newest member to squeal. She reluctantly broke the hug after a while to regard my Pokedex. While not completely convinced by my choice, especially after showing her Cherrim... Sapphire's tune completely changed when I showed what Cherrim looked like underneath harsh sunlight.

"It's... so... CUTE!" she gushed, staring at the Sunshine Form with a look of awe.

"I thought you'd say that. Cherrim is a pokemon whose true power is revealed underneath the sun. Cherubi have Chlorophyll, which they'll still have traces of when they evolve into this form. Flower Gift will allow it to provide proper support for your team too... under the right circumstances," I offered. What I didn't say was that since she was going to Hoenn, the region of Double Battles, Cherrim would have a lot more value with her Sun team. She'd be able to buff them rather nicely. Sapphire looked amazed.

"You thought of all that already?" I nodded, turning towards Gaia. She had been calming the nervous air of the pokemon, filling the area with her aroma. We were currently located at the National Park, a place popular for its weekly Bug-Catching contests. It was a nice place, with people all over... though most of them stared at our group in awe, mixed with terror. Our pokemon were very noticeable after all. Though I imagine it was Ares who made them feel like this.

"Gaia, can you call out for a Cherubi?" I requested gently. Gaia nodded a smile on her face.

"Surely it's not that easy?" Sapphire questioned, listening to Gaia's cheerful bellow with a doubtful look.

"Gaia is a popular girl," I said confidently. She opened her mouth to question me some more, but shut it instead as a small group of little cherry-like pokemon approached, led by a larger pink pokemon covered by a petal. Gaia beamed at them, reaching out with her vines and stroking all the little grass types with a pleased smile. They let out cries of happiness, completely soothed by my starter. Gold patted her shoulder sympathetically.

"Seriously, you get used to it." Crystal stepped forward.

"Hello, Cherubi and Cherrim! We called you all here because we were wondering if one of you little ones was interested in joining our friend here as one of her pokemon." Right on cue, I shoved Sapphire forward. She yelped, stumbling slightly before catching herself. Deep blue eyes glared at me before turning nervously towards the curious family of Cherubi.

"Um, hello! My name is Sapphire, and I want to be a t-trainer." Crystal shot Gold and me a scalding glare as we snorted in unison. We didn't acknowledge it because Janine smacked us both, causing us to whirl towards her. Sapphire's face was a colorful shade of red now, not that I could see it. I imagine that for her own sake, she was not looking at the action taking place behind her. Crystal definitely wasn't. She just leaned closer to Sapphire with a smile of reassurance.

"You can do this! It may seem a little nerve-wracking, but we believe in you!" Sapphire nodded, taking a deep breath.

"I... want to make a team revolving around the sun, and I'd like one of you to join me! I'm interested in contests, but I'd prefer to battle. I know how much your species loves the sun, so I think we'd be a great match!" The Cherrim's petal shook slightly before it turned to face the small group of Cherubi. They immediately dissolved into chatter with one another. Sapphire took a deep breath, chancing a glance back to see that Gaia had separated the three of us.

We were all dangling from a vine while the Meganium chastised us for trying to ruin her work of calming the pokemon down.

"Does this happen often?" she asked Crystal. The oldest of our gang nodded.

"You... get used to it," she said lamely.

"You guys say that a lot..." she trailed off.

"There's a lot to get used to." Sapphire moved to say more, but an excited Cherubi practically leapt forward, jumping up and down in excitement. It leapt into the surprised girl's arm, squealing its name and nuzzling her.

"Looks like you got one," I muttered, dusting myself off. I approached her and handed her a Luxury Ball.

"We'll turn the exterior into a Great Ball eventually, since that fits you." Sapphire grabbed the ball reverently before showing it to Cherubi.

"This is a Poke Ball. I'm going to capture you with it." Cherubi nodded cheerfully. In moments, it was captured by the ball. It shook once before settling easily. Sapphire took a deep breath, bowing to the family of grass types. Gaia said something to them and patted them with her vines once more, getting happy cries out of the Cherubi before they wandered away. Sapphire watched them go with a composed expression that remained even as she clambered atop Ares.

Finally, as our group took to the sky, she took a deep breath and let out an excited scream that I'm sure the masses below could hear.

"YES! I CAUGHT A POKEMON!" she squealed.

"Good job, but if you ever scream that loud next to me again, I will hurt you," I said blandly. She squeaked.

"Welcome back!" Jasmine waved happily.

"How was training?" I asked through my smoothie, handing her one as well, which she gratefully accepted.

"Eventful!" she replied, putting the straw to her lip and sighing in bliss. Norman chuckled shortly, rubbing the back of his short hair.

"I thought the gap between us was supposed to be closing. It feels like I did even worse than normally against you," he pointed out. Jasmine puffed up.

"There's no shame in your performance, Mr. Norman. I've been training quite a bit in recent times! It's not that you've gotten weaker, I'm just growing exceptionally, and your normal types are a bad match against my team."

"As they should be," I muttered, watching Jasmine place a hand over my mouth to shut me up.

"Stop, I'm drinking a smoothie." She huffed.

"Don't be so rude, maybe!" Norman chuckled shortly, turning towards his daughter.

"I take it you've been having fun with your friends?" he questioned. Sapphire nodded happily.

"I'm part of their group now! I'm gonna be a Sun team specialist, and I even caught my first pokemon because of them!" she gushed. Norman looked more than pleased by that.

"You want to be a trainer then?" he asked, unable to hide the fatherly excitement. He paused as he registered all that she said.

"Hold on... Sun team? Wait... you caught a pokemon?!" Norman asked in disbelief. Sapphire grinned, showing off her Luxury Ball while she eagerly drank her milkshake.

"My gang helped me get the first member! It was so awesome!"

"Look how happy she is to be claiming us," Gold whispered to Crys and me. He had long finished his milkshake, chewing on some gummies that he shared with us. He withered slightly at Jasmine's astonished glare before offering her some as well... to which she reluctantly accepted.

"It's really adorable," Crystal whispered back, smiling with the straw of her smoothie to her lip as Jasmine silently reprimanded Gold.

"I can't believe people actually want to be part of your group. What do they see that I can't?" Janine shook her head. She leaned against a wall with a sigh, enjoying her own smoothie.

"A lot. You might be blind. How will you ever hit anything with your shurikens?" I mocked.

"They're just for show. The only thing she's good at is that disappearing trick," Gold shrugged helplessly. She twitched violently.

"I'll show you just for show," she said darkly, grabbing her very sharp and very real shurikens. Gold gaped at her. Norman looked a little dumbfounded. He shot us an incredulous look.

"A lot happened during training, huh?" Jasmine patted him on the shoulder, which was funny considering she was much shorter than he was.

"You get used to it," she said soothingly. Sapphire gaped.

"She says it too!"

"Saph qualifies for our gang, so she's part of it now," I said easily, patting her on the head. Little did she know, I was using her as a shield to prevent Janine from throwing those shurikens at me. Judging by the incredulous look she was shooting me, it was immediately spotted.

"A hidden rule of our gang is that you have to have a first pokemon before you pick your starter... so we got her one!" Crystal explained happily to him.

"You cannot protest our decision... because she's part of our gang now," I drawled, tugging her cheek with a straight face.

"Shtop dat!" Sapphire protested, fruitlessly pawing at my hand.

"Nah, messing with you is kinda fun," I drawled. Norman was at a loss for words.

"Well... She's getting close to the time when she becomes a trainer. Truthfully, I'm just happy that she decided to be one like her old man... Now, I just have to explain to Caroline about our daughter having a pokemon... and being in a gang," he muttered. If I had to guess, Sapphire just looked way too happy right now to deny. I'm glad he understood this was inevitable. It was either protest until she became a trainer and we kidnapped her, or go with the flow and consent to her kidnapping.

"Don't worry. Colors is set to take over the world soon! Since Saph's part of our group, she's gonna hit big!" Gold reassured.

"We're inevitable!" Crystal said confidently. Sapphire squealed.

"They're so confident! I'll do my part and become the best, too! No one will have a Sun Team like me!" Norman chuckled shortly.

"It's good to know my daughter is in safe hands. Your group is rapidly growing in popularity; lately, you're all everyone is speaking about! For good reason, too! You guys displayed a level of dominance that no rookie has ever done... and there are 4 of you!" he explained.

"We're gonna get bigger!" Gold exclaimed with a wide grin.

"Yeah, we're gonna shake the foundations of this world! Hopefully, we find more members, that'll shake it with us!" Crystal beamed.

"We still have work to do before that... but we should get started soon. Eventually, everyone's gonna know us," I muttered. Hunting down Team Rocket was not my only goal. I made my gang a promise that I intended to fulfill... so it was time to go to work.

"See you guys soon?" Sapphire questioned with big puppy dog eyes.

"You have our numbers, plus we're visiting Jasmine every weekend, so you can hang with us when that happens," I responded dryly.

"We mostly just stay in her house or train. It's fun!" Janine assured.

"She has a Pokegear?!" Norman asked in shock. Crystal nodded easily.

"We got her one!"

"We have a lifetime 50% off at all Silph Companies. Really not that expensive," Gold shrugged.

"Just how many things did you kids do in the span of our training?" The future gym leader's question made us all snort. Well, no one could ever say we treated our gang members badly. The doors of the lab slid open with a damning noise, not that I paid any attention to it. I strolled inside slowly, a set destination in mind already.

"Professor Oak," I greeted, knowing the man had already known I was here from the moment of arrival in the town. Oak stared gravely at me.

"Young Silver... are you alright?" he asked slowly.

"I'm fine," I dismissed, holding out a Poke Ball and handing it to him.

"But she isn't." Oak stared at the ball with wide eyes, gingerly accepting it.

"That's Mason's Charizard... she's in a terrible state. I can't imagine how many drugs she's been injected with... and she was still capable of crying for her trainer."

"That's..." Oak trailed off, at a loss for words.

"Thank you for retrieving her, Silver... I take it she was with Executive Petrel?" he asked slowly. I inclined my head.

"He won't be a problem anymore. He's been captured and shipped off," I drawled. Oak stared at me.

"Young Silver... you do not seem okay," he pointed out slowly.

"I haven't been okay since the moment I was born, but like always, I'll manage it," I dismissed, turning on a dime.

"I just came here to drop off the Charizard. I hope she can get the help she needs. I'll visit her when I can." With that, I briskly walked away from the professor.

"Silver." I paused, not turning to face him.

"You should not blame yourself for any wrongdoing that involves you. That is destructive. You are not to blame for what happened to Green and especially for what happened to Mason," Oak said firmly. I resisted the shudder that wanted to rip through my body at that.

"Noted," I said instead. Cold hands dragged me into a tight hug, courtesy of my worried aunt. Her red eyes were lit up in concern as they roved over me.

"Silver... we need to talk," she said immediately, dragging me into our home. We were in her far more manageable, albeit still massive, house in the region of land between Johto and Kanto. I docilely let her drag me inside. She sat me down immediately, sitting to my left.

"Is that Silver?" the voice of my twin called out, rushing downstairs. She had a smile on her face that was wiped off as she took one look at my face.

"Someone's happy to see me," I said dryly, smiling at my twin.

"What happened?" Mars asked immediately.

"That's what I hope to find out," Lorelei said calmly, eyeing me as if I would vanish in a moment.

"You don't gotta look at me like that," I said smoothly. Lorelei took a deep breath.

"I know. It's just... what happened, Silver? Please speak to us," she said softly. I blinked at her.

"What do you mean? You need to be a little more specific." My aunt exhaled again. The worry on her face became more obvious, and she removed her glasses to wipe them clean, a clear sign she was distressed.

"Silver... I know the departure of Green took a heavy toll on you. None of us expected such a thing, but please don't take it too harshly. People grow apart, but it's only temporary—""Green has nothing to do with this," I interrupted immediately. Lorelei paused in surprise.

"She doesn't?"

"Well, not majorly," I said honestly.

"I knew someone. His name was Mason, and we were... acquaintances," I revealed, leaning against my palm. Calling him a friend was false. Friends didn't leave each other in the lion's den all alone after throwing them in there.

"He was a good kid. Weak, so weak... but he was someone who strived to better himself. I guess I saw some of that desire to grow stronger in myself, so I gave him advice." Lorelei and Mars listened, neither saying a word.

"Because of my advice, he got stronger. He wasn't even able to defeat Flint, but because of me, he made it all the way to his 7th badge. In his own way, he was making his own stamp on the world..." My expression flattened even further.

"But that was a mistake. He should never have gotten that strong. If he stayed weak, he'd be alive." Lorelei jolted violently at my words, eyes widening.

"What?" Mars asked in horror.

"Mason got in Team Rocket's way at Saffron. He was killed because of it," I said numbly.

"Oh..." Mars trailed off, shifting uncomfortably. I shook my head.

"Ultimately, Mason died because I threw him into a situation that he wasn't ready for and left him alone to deal with it himself." That's all there was to it. I had given Mason a gun, taught him to shoot it, didn't teach him where to aim it, and he ended up aiming it at a big-name mafia member. In the first place, he should never have been given a gun.

"Oh, Silver, I had no idea," Lorelei murmured sadly, engulfing me immediately.

"You can't possibly blame yourself for helping someone. That's not fair to you at all. There is only one group to blame." I listened to my aunt with a blank expression.

"You're right, I'm not only to blame. Team Rocket is... so I'm going to hunt them down properly now," I said firmly. Lorelei pulled back, grasping my cheek with both hands. We stared at each other for a long while before she nodded gently.

"Nothing I say will stop you, so I just need to remind you that you're grounded." I paused.

"Ah, right... I forgot." She smiled shortly.

"Um... are you still gonna help me?" Mars asked tentatively. I stared at my twin.

"Of course I will. I still plan on visiting you throughout your journey," I assured. She smiled at that before reaching over and engulfing me in a hug.

"What are you doing?" I asked slowly.

"Just felt like you needed this," she simply replied. I made no move to comment at that, nor did I move to acknowledge Lorelei engulfing both of us. Our little ragtag family of three just remained there on the comfortable couch, bunched up against each other as the time passed by. Crystal and I sat on a comfortable couch.

"How did you set up a meeting so quickly?" she whispered. I glanced at her.

"We're the Heroes of Saffron, plus I asked Lorelei to help us out since I had no idea who to contact. Setting one up was pretty easy." Crystal nodded curiously, prompting me to speak up.

"I think we're gonna need a proper assistant in the future to manage this stuff."

"You think so?" she wondered, mulling it over.

"We'll think about it for the future. For now, let's see what we're working with!" I nodded shortly, right as the door opened. A pretty secretary stepped out, bowing to the two of us.

"Trainer Crystal, Trainer Silver. President Silph will see you now," she informed us politely.

"Oh, thank you!" Crystal bowed in return. I just inclined my head, strolling into the room without fanfare. Crystal was quick to follow, and soon we were face-to-face with the President of one of the most famous companies in the world. He was middle-aged, erring on the older side, with neatly combed dark hair, already showing signs of gray, and sharp eyes. Despite the expensive suit, which probably cost more than everything in my bag that people were allowed to know about, he didn't particularly stand out...

President Silph smiled politely at us.

"Well now, I can't believe this is the first time I'm meeting the Heroes of Saffron!" I hummed.

"Life's been busy," I said vaguely.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, President Silph! We aren't the full gang, but half of us should be fine, right?" Crystal greeted cheerfully. The president tipped his head.

"Please, the pleasure is all mine. After all, not only did you all selflessly save my company along with the city, you've gone and made quite the name for yourselves!" I smiled thinly.

"That's right. Our Team Colors is quite the hot topic... It's the perfect time to capitalize on it." He leaned forward slightly, perfectly neat brow raised.

"Oh?" he asked in interest.

"That's right," I drawled. Crystal took the chance to speak.

"We're thinking of capitalizing on our performance at the League. All of us had a wonderful performance, drawing the gaze of the whole world, and we want to take advantage of all the eyes that are on us." The older man looked intrigued.

"I don't intend to sound rude when I say this, but I never expected trainers of all people, especially one so young, to come to me with a proposal like this. There tends to be one thing on your mind only!"

"As you can probably tell, the members of our gang aren't very normal. We're trying to improve in all aspects, so that's why we're here," I explained easily.

"Seeing as you're the President of one of the most famous companies in the world, you probably understand how much potential we have, right?" The President mulled my words over.

"That is true. I'd be a fool not to see that," he admitted. I smiled.

"And unlike Devon Corporation, Silph Corporation does not have a notable trainer backing them. Champion Lance is a bit too much of a wild card, right?" That got all his attention.

"You two are far smarter than I initially believed," he stated bluntly.

"I'll take that as a compliment," I replied, beckoning towards Crystal and me.

"We want to create a platform that allows us to broadcast our day-to-day affairs. A livestream of sorts."

"A livestream?" he asked, surprise evident on his features.

"What goes on in the lives of Colors? How did they get so strong? What do they do?" I listed.

"That doesn't just apply to us... I bet people wonder what the Champions and Gym Leaders do in their free time as well. We'll be the first to give them a glimpse, and we have hope that it'll catch fire," Crystal proposed.

"In exchange for watching us, people can subscribe to our content or donate money to us. A way to show support to your favorites," I explained. Silph looked at us with wide eyes, surprise evident on his face.

"You said support for your favorites. You wouldn't relegate it to just yourselves?" he wondered. I shook my head.

"No. Anyone could become a streamer if they want... that way it'll get popularized even faster. Streaming, making videos, and content creation like that for anyone interested. We'll just be the pioneers to put it on the map."

"If it takes off, I imagine it'll net quite the profit. A website endorsed by every member of Colors... I think it'll stick!" Crystal beamed. I shot her an impressed look. Crystal and I bounced off each other very well. She was perfectly capable of acting as the second spokesperson of our proposal.

"So you want us to create the website for you," he observed accurately. I cocked my head.

"No, you don't have to. I have a friend who will... What we want is your endorsement and support. You have a strong hand in the business aspect of the world, so I'm sure you have ways of spreading the name of our new platform." Bill could probably make a website better than anyone in this company could. Having him do it would be the most optimal outcome. President Silph rubbed his neat beard.

"For the Heroes of Silph, I'll accept! Something about this idea seems too well thought out for me to think it's a simple flash in the pan. Your confidence has swayed me," he said good-naturedly.

"Good. You can discuss more business aspects with Lorelei. I'm not that well-versed in it," I said bluntly, high-fiving Crystal behind our backs. He held up a hand.

"Hold on now... while I am more than willing to help, you're absolutely correct in the speed at which your name is spreading." We both raised our brows, beckoning for the man to continue.

"I propose a more professional relationship, if you would."

"You want to sponsor us," Crystal observed immediately.

"Precisely!" he clapped.

"I will not be the only one to offer such a thing. Why, I imagine, that you're being offered sponsorships as we speak. While I have you here, I may as well benefit even further!" I hummed.

"We aren't opposed to that, but we have some stipulations."

"We want freedom," Crystal said immediately.

"While the idea of being sponsored by Silph sounds good, none of us will feasibly chain ourselves down in any capacity for your company. No matter how much money you offer us, we won't accept," she explained bluntly. President Silph unleashed a decidedly unprofessional laugh.

"Chaining down trainers? I would not even dream of it! Devon cannot even chain down Steven Stone, and he is the man's son," he guffawed.

"We simply want to capitalize on your names as well. Toys, clothing, costumes... all manner of merchandise associated with Team Colors!" Crystal and I shared a look.

"We've recently acquired the company Poke 'R' Us. I imagine they'd be rather eager to get started on creating plushies of your entire teams, along with the trainers! Of course, royalties will be given to you!"

"Poke "R" Us?" I mouthed to Crystal.

"Lorelei loves that company. They make a lot of the most popular plushies," she explained. So the Toys "R" Us equivalent in this world was a Pokerus pun. Not to mention... I'm 70% sure that used to be a cover for Team Rocket. Hm.

"Alright, you want to merchandise us," I said, leaning casually against a wall.

"That's fine with us! As long as you don't scam us and make sure we get the proper benefits!" Crystal smiled.

"I may be a businessman, but even I wouldn't go so far as to harm the group who saved us from disaster!" Silph grinned earnestly.

"Good. My Aunt is very vengeful," I said idly. I hummed.

"You'll sponsor Gold, Crystal, and me. Green is currently off on her own, so I can't in good conscience put in her name as well," I explained. It was fine. We'd probably make a joint account for the Colors name, along with our own personal stuff, of course. Silph looked mildly disappointed by that. I couldn't say I was too surprised. Green's escapades had caught fire all over the world.

"While disappointing, 3 out of 4 is more than enough for me!"

"It's a deal. We look forward to working with you!" Crystal bowed. The President nodded, the pleased air of a man who got handed gold radiating off him. We both benefited from this in ways that would only be a net positive in the future. By sponsoring us, we'd start making a good amount of money as well.

"If you want us to showcase your product, feel free to send us free stuff. We'll even incorporate it into our future streams. Not that you need it." He laughed at my words.

"That was never in doubt! This is still a business. Every little bit of publicity counts, and I imagine you will benefit from the gifts! We may even use you to playtest newer product! Having three notable trainers using our items would be fantastic!" Crystal and I smiled in unison.

"Perfect." With the promise to discuss business later, we both exited the man's room.

"That went well," I said idly, patting her for a job well done. She beamed at me in a way that almost made me say, "Adorable".

"Silver..." I hummed questioningly.

"I think we're gonna need that assistant," she finished. I chuckled in amusement.

"I'll start looking for an exceptional one. They're gonna have to deal with Gold and me after all."

"Smart thinking... but it's you, so will you really actually hire anyone?" she questioned.

"If I do, then we'll know they're really the best choice, right?" I replied. She sighed, pinching her nose.

"I'll be looking too." I smiled wryly, reaching out and ruffling her hair, pleased to hear her protesting immediately.

"How'd it go?" Gold asked, tossing the two of us a burger each before placing two drinks on our side. We caught it easily, taking a seat at the bench and unwrapping it.

"Pretty great!" Crystal replied, biting into her own immediately with a sigh of content. The juicy burger was pretty damn good. I bit into it with a contemplative hum.

"We managed to get sponsored by them with a bunch of benefits, so it went exactly how we expected it. The money will start coming quickly, I think." We expected to get offered more things. It was obvious, but we just waited to see what they would give us. Being sponsored by Silph meant that we'd also be getting a stipend. It was a bit of a steal, but we'd soon outgrow Silph anyway, so maybe it was a steal for them for the time being. Gold grinned.

"Sponsored by Silph Co? Sick! I guess they liked that streamer idea?" he mused. Crystal smiled.

"I think he more than liked it. By the sounds of it, he's planning on turning us into quite the profit!"

"No restraints, right?" Gold asked seriously.

"None. We made it very clear that any attempt to limit our freedom will not end well," I stressed.

"Yup! We're free to journey around without being expected to do anything we don't wanna do. At most, we'll probably just show that we're sponsored by Silph. Hearing that the 3 of the best Rookies of this year are using Silph products so readily might help," Crystal explained. Gold shook his head.

"Man, you guys are good at this," he praised. I smirked.

"Our first step in World Domination is completed. We'll buy a nice place in Johto first since that's the region we're traveling through. Then we can branch out."

"Let's get something close to Olivine?" Crystal suggested. We nodded in agreement.

"And then Warp Panels," Gold said. I rolled my eyes.

"And then Warp Panels." Crystal flushed happily.

"This is so fun! Look at us go! It doesn't sound far-fetched at all... I think we can really stamp our names into the world!"

"Of course. I wasn't joking around when I said it. Colors will be the most well-known name in history," I said firmly.

"Yeah, we will!" Gold cackled before his expression sobered.

"So what do you guys have planned before the circuit starts?" he asked suddenly. Crystal leaned back and hummed.

"I want to expand my team a bit. I'm thinking of catching maybe 2 or 3 pokemon for Johto since our restriction has been lifted," she rationalized. I nodded curiously.

"What types in particular?"

"Something more versatile. My single types are doing great, so I'm going to maybe catch some dual types and another single type," she expressed, an interested look in her eyes. Crystal flicked open her Pokedex.

"I want a steel-type and a psychic first and foremost... so I've been looking at some options." I stared at her first choice with appraising eyes.

"A Klefki? Explain your rationale." Crystal looked pleased by that.

"Well, to be honest. It was a toss-up between Klefki and Kingambit, but I ultimately decided on Klefki because I'd have to warp my style too much to accommodate Kingambit. Not to mention, I could really use a dedicated defensive pokemon, and I don't have a Fairy-type either." Her reasoning was flawless. Kingambit was a pokemon I had recently learned about. Imagine my surprise when I learned that Bisharp could actually evolve.

It was a unique pokemon that actually grew stronger with the more allies defeated, leaving it as a fantastic cornerstone. Champion... uh, what was her name again?...

"You forgot someone's name, didn't you?" Gold asked in amusement. I nodded.

"Paldea Champion?" I tossed out.

"Geeta," Crystal supplied helpfully. Geeta! That was her name. She owned a Kingambit as her cornerstone. It was a damn impressive pokemon. But again, it required accommodation. One that Crystal was reasonably not willing to do.

"Klefki is a great choice. It'll be ridiculous to deal with if played right." Crystal nodded with a smile.

"I like it. As for my psychic... I would have gone with Gardevoir if I opted into using Kingambit... but maybe I'll go for like a Medicham or Gallade or even a single type like Musharna," she muttered. I hummed.

"Both Medicham and Gallade have megas." Crystal's jaw dropped.

"W-What?! Seriously?!"

"Mhm." She sighed, leaning back.

"I'll have to think about it some more, I think. Other than that, a ground type might be vital. Maybe I'll actually catch a Claydol? Another defensive pokemon, that helps with my lack of ground types. Oh, but what fighting type would I get? Maybe a Mienshao..." she mulled, brain racking with idea after idea. It was best to leave Crystal to her own devices when she got like this.

"What about you? You planning on expanding?" I asked Gold, who just chuckled sheepishly.

"Always... I'm thinking of an electric type. Would fit my style... but I also need something a bit defensive since my team is kind of full of maniacs," he reasoned.

"Nothing, huh?" I asked in amusement.

"Nope!" he cackled shamelessly.

"I'll figure it out as I go! Probably gonna explore a bit to see what I stumble across." I rolled my eyes.

"I bet. I'm not gonna be catching anything for a while. I have 4 babies to take care of, and I don't want to add more," I sighed.

"Once we catch our own babies, we can train them together!" Crystal smiled.

"Like always! We'll have to consider including our other members." Gold laughed. With that, we let the peace and lull of the moment envelop us until it was time to go. Giselle sat at a table with an expectant expression. There was a small smile on her face because Silver had gone out of his way to call her! She wondered what he wanted... Silver had become quite a popular fellow after all. Everywhere she went, there were whispers about his group and their performance.

It made her feel a little better losing to Crystal. The girl had been a terror to fight. Giselle had thought she would be easier to fight compared to the others, but that Feraligatr had dissuaded any such notion. It fought with a ferocity that left her reeling. That Colors group... they were formidable. Really formidable.

"Hey." She jolted in surprise, head shooting up to meet Silver.

"Oh, hello, Silver!" she greeted with a smile. He did not smile back. The standout of the Conference stared dully at her. Giselle shuffled a little awkwardly.

"Um... you called me on such short notice. I didn't think you'd ever actually use my number!" Silver hummed.

"I at least owe you an explanation. I told you I'd figure out what happened and let you know," he said honestly. She felt a pit form in her stomach at that.

"Silver?" she asked cautiously. He stared at her.

"I talked to Oak. He told me that a Team Rocket Executive killed Mason." You could hear a pin drop. Giselle's insides churned uncomfortably. There was an odd ringing in her ears, her heart jammed against her chest, and the ability to breathe evaded her.

"Mason is... what?" she asked softly.

"I won't repeat it for your sake," Silver replied stonily.

"I hunted down the Executive and delivered justice, but I called you here to let you know." Giselle didn't register Silver's words.

"But we had just battled at Cinnabar," she mumbled disbelievingly. Silver's gaze didn't soften... but he did sigh.

"I'm sorry you had to find out like this. If you want to talk, you have my number." He placed a hand on Giselle's shoulder, and she jolted backwards.

"I-I'm sorry... I think I should go!" she exclaimed hastily, pushing herself up. She bowed to the expressionless Silver before dashing off. If he noticed the tears forming in her eyes, he did not comment on it, just watching her run away. I watched Giselle dash away, tears in her eyes, and exhaled. That went about as well as I expected it. I stared at her retreating form before shrugging. Oh well. If she wanted to say anything else, she had my number.

I'd probably reply because, evidently, she was closer to Mason than I had anticipated. I sighed.

"We've got work to do," I muttered, red bleeding into my eyes. I was no longer with my gang for the time being; it was time to make a few visits.