Lucas arose from his slumber. A warm weight cuddled into his cheek, Torchic snoring soundly next to him. Zorua's fur tickled against his chest too, dragging its cotton-blooded family member close, seeking warmth from both from flesh and fluffed up fabric.

  "Good morning..." Lucas croaked, carefully brushing his hand against Torchic's feathers, then Zorua's fur. Wiping away the sleepy dust from his eyes, he reached to give Shroomish a scrub on the head too. But, the now familiar tug of its vines was absent. Right. Shroomish had remained in its Pokeball for the night, even when Lucas tried one last time to coax it out.

  That little tidbit soured what was otherwise a good way to wake up. Weird how, even within only a couple weeks of knowing Shroomish, he'd grown accustomed to its weight on his head. Now, missing it felt strange.

  Reaching for his phone, Lucas' hand accidentally brushed Torchic's cheek a little too hard, sending the chick rolling, then tumbling onto its face. Soon after, it stirred awake, yawning and trodding off of the bed. "Sorry..." Lucas whispered, but Torchic didn't seem awake enough to register it, responding with nothing as it dropped to the floor.

  Lucas tilted his head, then took a look at the bright screen, checking the time. Turns out, they had a good while to be ready for the day, even with the Trainer School's early starting times. Half of Lucas wanted to roll off back to sleep, make good use of the excess time he had. But, with Torchic already awake, he wouldn't be able to. Plus, the chances of him sleeping far too long were higher than Lucas wanted to admit.

  Delicately sliding out of the covers, managing not to wake Zorua (a task easier than it sounded), Lucas slipped from his pajamas and into his school uniform. His trainer kit still laid in the corner of his room, disused and gathering dust. Oh, to be able to wear those clothes again. Roam the plains, like Harry was likely doing right now. Not that Lucas would know. No text received suggested he might've slept in. Lucky.

  With a small break to scroll (and send most reels to Harry) completed, Lucas pulled himself from bed again, finally waking Zorua from its slumber. Then, with a fox awakened, and a Torchic on his shoulder, he moved out of his room and down the corridor to Ellie's room. A couple gentle raps on the door, and Lucas listened out for a hint of response.

  "Ellie?"

  The sound of rustling bedsheets could be faintly heard from the other side of the door. Then, a small murmuring cry, before a very loud cry, and a hacking cough soon after.

  "Mudkip, don't wake-" Ellie went into another coughing fit, presumably thumping her hand against her chest. "My lungs are sensitive, you know?"

  "Take that to mean you're awake?" Lucas smiled, the mental image of Mudkip's antics lighting up his morning.

  Ellie seemed less enthusiastic about said antics, her raspy voice echoing from the other side of the door. "Yeah, I'll be out in a minute."

  Lucas shrugged, setting himself down on the floor, leading Torchic around with its favourite plush Pokeball on a stick. After a few minutes of waiting, accompanied by the sounds of clothes being thrown around, books clasped together, and zips closed up, Ellie appeared at the door. The two exchanged a brief look, woefully tired eyes setting on Lucas. "Don't say anything."

  "What's there to comment on?" Lucas smiled, keenly ignoring her unkempt hair. Not that he'd comment on it ordinarily. His was about as messy as hers, anyways.

  Ellie felt a small smile tug at her lips. "Good answer," she responded, turning on her heel, beginning to walk away. Lucas quickly scampered to his feet, trodding onwards through the long centre corridor, down and out towards the gym. Their walk mostly passed by in silence. Uncharacteristic of their recent walks. But, that made sense, considering the absence of someone else to fill in the noise.

  "Has Harry texted you?" Ellie asked, Lucas blinking and checking his phone for a sign of response as they reached the lobby of the academy.

  "Nope." Lucas glanced Ellie's direction, asking, "Why? You miss him being around?"

  "I am beginning to miss all the ways he managed to make fun of you." Ellie tapped a finger against her chin, thinking. "Maybe I've gotta manifest some of that energy in his absence."

  "Please don't do that." Lucas pouted, body visibly slumping. Ellie giggled in response. Not what Lucas wanted.

  Basking in the early morning glow, the classroom stretched out in front of them. A few new students awaited their new education, a few playing with the Pokemon they'd already caught, while a couple awaited their rental Pokemon. But, for the most part, the classroom stood with empty seats aplenty. So, the two snagged two places a row behind the front, setting down their school supplies, or beginning to doodle, in Ellie's case.

  Lucas placed Zorua gently into his lap, then scooted his chair along. "Still any progress on that Torchic I know you've got in there?"

  Ellie glanced back, clasping her notebook shut for safety, then sighing. "It's a slow process, you know, for that Torchic I definitely am drawing. Takes a lot of time to get every miniscule detail perfected."

  "But, you have the perfect model right here!" Lucas reached over to Ellie's table, arm a bridge for Torchic to trod along. Taking centre stage, the chick fluffed up its feathers, looking deep into Ellie's irises. Its eyes expanded, widening to the size of golf balls, glistening in the glow of the classroom. If Ellie didn't know better, she'd have suggested Torchic might've learned Baby Doll Eyes. Lucas let out an affectionate 'awwwww' not long after, and even Ellie couldn't deny its cuteness. She sighed.

  "Alright, maybe a quick little sketch before class." Ellie smiled, heart skipping a beat as she heard Lucas' enthusiastic gasp. She could also make out his restraint not to shake Ellie in excitement out the corner of her eye, instead biting his hand and letting her get on with her work. Flicking the notebook open, she prodded a finger at Lucas. "Just no peaking until it's all done. Sound fair?"

  "Fair as fair can be, madam!" Lucas saluted her, then turned his attention towards Torchic, chick not quite understanding the process of getting modelled. The chick hit a number of poses in only a few seconds of each other, and only after Ellie gently flattened its head with her palm did it finally settle into one pose, sat on its rear with its talons kicked out. Like an adorable sitting cutie.

  Ellie plucked a pencil from her case, beginning on the first few strokes. And, as instructed, Lucas turned away, instead staring at Torchic, giggling as he snuck a few photos of the chick.

  "Some kind of amateur art class going on here?"

  Ellie's notebook clasped closed, face turning flush as she turned to the set of prying eyes watching over them. A figure neither of them were particularly pleased to see, with a Machop flexing by his side.

  "She's better than an amateur, for your information." Lucas retorted, Torchic halfway between getting up and supporting its trainer, or maintaining its position for Ellie's drawing.

  "Defensive much? Was just asking a question." Cole smirked. Lucas stifled a huff. Him and his questions. Trying to act innocent. But, Lucas refused to bite. The boy turned, then looked to Torchic, continuing to smile at the starter, acting as if Cole hadn't even made an appearance.

  "No mushroom today?"

  Lucas' eyes widened. Ellie's demeanour shifted too, body tensing, her fingers going from tapping the cover of her notebook, to clenching the spine of it. Lucas attempted to hide the slump his body had taken when Cole'd spoken, sitting up straight and turning. "Shroomish is just tired. It'll be back fresh as a Sunflora pretty soon!"

  "Hmm..." Cole hummed, marking Ellie's rigidity, and the way Lucas had initially slumped. Then, he shrugged. "Well, if you say so. Thought you might've released it or something."

  Lucas' heart skipped a beat, gasping. "Releasing Shroomish? Wha-why on earth would I do that?"

  "Seemed your Shroomish sucked pretty bad in a gym it should've sweeped through. Some trainers wouldn't want to deal with a Pokemon like that weighing them down."

  Every word sent Lucas' jaw a little closer to the floor, poking the flames of the anger brewing in his heart. Maybe on another day, Lucas would've laughed it off. After all, Cole talked a whole lot of trash. But, something about the questions today seemed more inquisitive. Like, he'd genuinely expected Lucas to release his Pokemon.

  Lucas' rage mixed with something else, brewing deep in his heart. A tidal wave of sorrow. Was...was that the impression he gave off?

  "Are you insinuating that Lucas would just leave his Pokemon behind?" Ellie suddenly chimed in, voice bellowing out a little louder than she would've liked. Feeling the classroom audience setting their sights upon her, she lowered her volume slightly, keeping her voice firm. "That's a load of rubbish."

  Cole shrugged. Partly out of reducing accountability for his own words, while expressing indifference in his intent. Choosing to remain unreadable, to further dig under their skin. "Seemed to me he just threw Shroomish in there for the type matchup. If that didn't work, what need does he have for it?"

  Lucas's fingers clenched the fabric of his trousers. He didn't just do it for the type matchup. But, he did throw Shroomish into the midst of everything, without a second thought of any training so that it could stand a fighting chance. Was...was Cole right? The impression he gave off. Was it of just some kid who hoped for the best with a favourable type matchup? Then, when things went south, would ditch the Grass type just like that?

  Lucas' stomach sunk. How he wished Shroomish would pop out of its Pokeball, so he could apologise in person.

  The room remained silent for a moment. Ellie formed a response. But, with a glance to Lucas, her brain stalled. They attracted a lot of attention to themselves with their arguing. The last thing Ellie wanted to do was drag more attention when Lucas didn't want it. So, they remained silent. Waiting. Cole glanced between the two of them, neutral expression curling into a smile that he still tried to hide. Ellie bit her tongue.

  "But, if there's not trouble in paradise, I shouldn't comment on i-"

  "Do I need to beat your ass again, or are you gonna sit back down?"

  Lucas' eyes squinted, unbelieving of what he heard. But, when he turned his gaze upwards, to the sound just to his right, there he was. Harry, in the flesh, Poochyena trodding on by his side.

  Cole's face turned sour, fast. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be off on your way to get cooked by Flannery?"

  Harry inhaled deeply. "Got all your dumbass questions out of your system?" Cole gave no response. "Good. Then, sit down, and stop bothering trainers miles better than yourself."

  Cole snarled. Then, his expression curled into a smug smirk. "Ask Miss Bookworm about her most recent battle, then."

  Ellie went still again. Harry smirked. "Will do," he answered, tone dripped with sarcasm, walking past him, while doing a not so subtle barge to make it clear he wouldn't wait for Cole to move if pushed. And, not wanting to test their luck, him and his Machop retreated, leaving Harry to slide into a seat in front of Ellie and Lucas. Turning the chair to the two, he smiled. Earnestly, this time.

  "Sorry it took me a bit to get here, should've arrived a bit earlier."

  "You shouldn't be here at all!" Lucas exclaimed, giddy as could be, many a question running around his head. Whatever weight settled in his chest could wait until after he'd let loose all his thoughts. "Seriously, why are you here?"

  "Well, I figured a week's head start is kinda unfair given the other week's head start I already had with you in staying in Petalburg." Harry lifted a Pokeball out of his pocket, throwing it into the air and letting it drop down to the floor. Numel popped out, cooing and rubbing its heated head against Harry's leg. "Plus, I wanted to spend more time with this little guy."

  "Wasn't to spend more time with us at all?" Lucas smirked.

  "Narcissistic much?" Harry responded, tongue in cheek as always. Then, the two settled down, Harry turning to Ellie. She responded with an awkward wave, mind seemingly elsewhere. Harry squinted, staring at her for two seconds. Then, the realization kicked him in the teeth.

  "Wait. Wait, wait, wait. The battle you lost, you lost to that bum?"

  Ellie cringed, hesitating for a moment, giving a slow nod. Harry responded with much the same level of cringe, mentally groaning at the comment he'd made just after Ellie had lost her battle. "Man, now I have real beef with Taillow. I'll stick Grovyle on it next time I see it, how's about that?"

  "You'd have to beat me to it." Ellie sighed, with enough levity to be taken as a joke, despite the true desire to knock some sense into Taillow. For now though, they'd have to wait. Laugh at Ellie's comment, then turn to face the teacher, as their lecture finally began.

  After a largely uneventful class, far from the initial excitement of the tournament the trio had been introduced to the school with, the bell finally chimed out for a well deserved break. Harry sighed, beginning to regret his decision to stay behind a little less as they strolled through the cafeteria, then out to their usual wooden bench to eat.

  Lucas stepped up for dishing out their Pokemon's food, growing accustomed to the diets of every Pokemon, slowly but surely. Numel would eat just about anything, as long as it had been charred to pieces beforehand. So, it and Torchic got to work blasting a bowl of kibble to a fine ash, letting the camel dig in and cover its snout with blackened powder.

  Poochyena had been served a similar bowl of kibble, with some dried out berries and chunks of Slowpoke Tail thrown into the mix. Then, Grovyle had to face the unfortunate reality of being far bigger than every other Pokemon, yet still not quite being tall enough to sit at the trainer table. So, it resorted to setting the bowl of berries into its lap, picking the fruits between two claws and tossing them upwards to catch in its mouth.

  Harry reached from the side of the bench, hand brushing against the Grass type's head. "You'll join us at the grown ups table eventually."

  "More like the barely teenagers table." Lucas snarked as he finished setting a bowl of Sitrus Berries down for Torchic and Zorua. That left only two Pokemon unfed. Shroomish and Taillow, neither of which had appeared out of their Pokeballs. Lucas still filled a bowl full of compost, freshly bought from a gardening stall nearby to the school.

  He set the bag aside, reaching into his bag and rattling Shroomish's Pokeball gently in his hand. "Shroomish?" he rattled it a little more. And, when his palm did go flat, the Pokeball did shake a little, as a small hint of response. "I've got a bowl of compost waiting for you! Must be getting hungry, right?"

  The ball went still for a moment. Then, it rolled around in a circle, before bursting open in a blur of red light. Shroomish's body spilled onto the ground, right in front of the bowl of compost. Shroomish shuttered its eyes, taking a moment to breathe in the smell, flavours of its home forest bleeding into the air. It opened its eyes, looking to the bowl, then to Lucas' beaming face.

  "We'll talk more later, m'kay?"

  Shroomish nodded slowly, satisfied enough with the deal. Then, becoming infinitely more satisfied, the moment that it dug its head into the compost, gobbling all it could. Even the fastest eaters of the group were left in the dust, Torchic watching in amazement as Shroomish scarfed down all the dirt it could.

  Harry laughed at the sight. "I'd make fun of Shroomish for literally eating dirt, if it didn't look so enthusiastic while doing it."

  "Besides, it's a mushroom, if they live in the ground, makes sense they'd eat it too." Lucas picked himself up from the floor, finally allowing himself a moment to sit down, beginning to dig into his pizza. Talking with a mouth full of food, he turned to Harry. "What would you eat if you were a Shroomish?"

  "Berries, like a normal Pokemon. Or, flowers. But, the good ones, like daisies, or sunflowers or..."

  "Rue." Ellie suggested.

  "Yeah, sure, rue, whatever that kind of flower is."

  Lucas swallowed his pizza, addressing the whole table. "I'd eat all the roses I could find!"

  "Have a nice time picking the thorns out of your mouth." Ellie smirked, Lucas slightly wincing at the mental image of picking the thorns out of his mouth. Especially as a Shroomish without any hands to reach into his mouth. Maybe he'd have to contemplate eating some other flowers.

  Finishing off the last of her pasta, Ellie slipped out from the wooden bench, stretching and reaching into her duffel bag. "Well, I think it's about time I try to speak some sense to Taillow."

  "Oooo..." Harry grinned, turning to Grovyle. "Standby, might need you to blast a bird in a couple minutes."

  Grovyle smirked, flinging a berry into the air, then giving a mock salute as it caught it in its mouth. Ellie rolled her eyes.

  "Hopefully, it won't come to that, she answered, as she reached into her bag, grabbing a handful of Aspear Berries, while holding Taillow's Pokeball in the other. Throwing the ball into the air, the swallow popped from its capsule. A moment passed for it to adjust to its environment, before it took flight, circling the air above. Ellie held out the berries into the air, the two locking stares.

  Taillow scowled. Dropping down, its claws ripped through the berries, grabbing what it could, while digging deep enough to cut into Ellie's hands.

  Ellie winced, then cried out, pulling her hand away, letting the sludge of berries slop down onto the floor. Whatever hadn't been shredded to pieces now lay in the clutches of Taillow's talons. It rose back to a tree branch above, picking the juices from its talons, squawking.

  Blood dripped through Ellie's clenched hand. Leaves swirled around Grovyle's body, staring at Taillow above. But, Harry put a hand on his Pokemon's head, muttering that they did not want to get involved in this. Shroomish retreated into its Pokeball. Lucas let it without hesitation, getting a sinking feeling in his stomach.

  Ellie let out a deep breath, body beginning to shake. "That's it then." Her eyes turned to Taillow, fierce and focused. "I am sick to death of your attitude!" Ellie's fists clenched tighter still, foot pressed firmly against the ground. A hysterical chuckle blended in amongst her shouts, making her stutter not out of nerves, but out of fury. "You know-you know what I think? I think, you're a coward. I think you're a massive coward, too scared to lose, that you act like you just don't care!"

  Taillow attempted to bark a response, but its cry came out weak. Or, maybe Ellie's shout just came out stronger, her shouting attracting the attention of the courtyard.

  "You think you're sooooo hard for throwing back every attempt at kindness made. So tough for rejecting the love of others, aren't you? Well, surely a hardened Pokemon like yourself would be good at battling, right?" Ellie laughed, cackled as Taillow's expression faltered. "So, what's your record like? Mudkip shot you dead, Ralts slammed you against a ceiling, Zorua ripped you to shreds, and that Sharpedo...that Sharpedo treated you like something you scrape off your sole!"

  "Oh! And let's not forget your amazing performance recently! Bravo! Make a fool out of me, then end up making a fool out of yourself by getting grabbed and beaten by that, by that..." Ellie stalled for just a second, biting her tongue. Then, she laughed. What use was restraint? "By that twat. You made a fool out of yourself more than anyone! You just really can't do anything right, can you?"

  Taillow stalled for a second. It opened its mouth to chitter another response. But, then, just as swiftly as it opened, its mouth shut again. The distant chime of the bell rang somewhere behind, the commotion of the courtyard long been brought to an end. But, it died completely with the bell, as Ellie finally let herself take a breath. A couple deep breaths, closing her eyes, and only opening them to stare at her bleeding hand.

  "Good! You're silent! Then, maybe you'll think for one second, instead of..." Ellie stammered, searching for an insult. But, in the end, she let out an aggravated growl, then snatched her duffel bag from the floor. With a furrowed brow, Ellie stormed the opposite direction, straight to class without waiting a second for Harry and Lucas.

  Lucas watched with an agape mouth. Harry took a deep sigh of relief. "Wow. Yeah, not messing with her right now." his gaze fell onto Lucas. "Ever seen her like that before?"

  "Not even once." Lucas watched Mudkip run after its trainer, cries presumably telling her to slow down. Ralts shivered, the weight of Ellie's emotions bringing it to tears. But, when Lucas tried to reach out, Ralts shook its head, drying its tears and teleporting away.

  "Should we chase after her?" he asked. Harry nodded, gathering his team by his side, the two trainers walking along to find Ellie.

  Turns out, they didn't need to go far. Ellie had marched into class as normal, only with a storm cloud very visible over her head. But, her anger didn't bleed out into anything other than the pages of her notebook. Literally. Harry swore he saw her pool the dripping blood from her hand onto the page, then swiped at it with the ink of her pen to continue writing. Commitment to the arts, or plain edge, Harry didn't quite know. But, whatever the case, he had to concede that it was the coolest thing she could've done in this situation. Whoever called her a nerd had no idea what they were talking about.

  Lucas stole anxious glances at her whenever possible, pressed between talking to her, and just letting her get all the angst out in the comfort of her own environment. Arceus knows he didn't want to get blown up at just like Taillow. Not that he could think of a reason why she would, compared to the ever growing lists of grievances to be had with the swallow. Still, he didn't tempt fate. Keeping his head forward, he focused on the lesson at hand.

  "Now, Pokemon battles are an extremely common part of our culture. But, given the violent nature of these battles, you'd expect more accidents to happen in the League and League mandated battles. So, how do Pokemon avoid such injuries?"

  Lucas, admittedly, hadn't questioned the logic of it. Just trusted that everything would be okay, that his Torchic would never be truly hurt in a League battle. But, once the question had been placed in his mind, he listened intently, picking up his pen and scribbling down all that he heard.

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  "Now, as many of you know, Pokemon have a stat known as HP, or Hit Points. However, a common misconception is that HP is indicative of a Pokemon's physical health, when this isn't true. HP is a barrier Pokemon make around themselves, formed of excess Infinity Energy, protecting themselves from incoming attacks. And, with incoming attacks, that barrier begins to break, and their HP dwindles. If their HP reaches zero, they will then faint."

  "However, Pokemon can still fight, even after reaching the point of fainting. But, after the point of fainting, the Pokemon will begin to draw energy from their own physical health to remain fighting. As a result, they can begin to bleed and take severe injury," the slides flickered, showing a slide of small scars and scratches formed on a Pokemon. "These scars are common in League battles, as most Pokemon will at some point subconsciously derive energy from their life force to continue fighting."

  "But, larger scale injuries, such as broken limbs or deep wounds, are strictly prohibited by the League, and will get the trainer involved in lots of trouble, often leading to a ban or their Pokemon being stripped from them." The teacher blinked, then rephrased. "But, these situations are rare. Officials will often stop battles before they reach this level of severity, anyways. So, have no worries about leading your Pokemon into battle!"

  The bell chimed, this time for the end of the day. The teacher clasped her hands together. "Alright, that's all we have for you today! Enjoy the rest of your day!"

  The rustling of school bags built throughout the room, as trainers collected themselves and their pets, before escaping out the door. Lucas and Harry were much the same, gathering their supplies and awaiting Ellie to do the same. She did so slowly, Ralts gently helping her along, bundling together her school supplies and slipping them into her duffel bag.

  "Ready to head out?" Lucas chose not to mention Taillow at any point, even if they would have to make the stop to get it eventually. Ellie clasped her notebook closed with a nod, standing tall with her duffel bag over her shoulder.

  "First, can we go to the library?" she asked.

  Harry clicked his tongue. "What's there that's better than freedom?"

  "A book I've been meaning to take out for a while." Ellie took a path different from their usual exit, not so subtly suggesting she was going regardless of whether the others tagged along with her. But, just to sweeten the pot, she added, "it's a book about Hoenn's native Pokemon. I imagine they'll have some information about Shroomish."

  "Sounds good to me then! Lead the way!" Lucas hustled into step alongside her, while Harry hung at the back, Poochyena and Numel trailing his side as they strolled the corridors. They wandered parts of the school the two boys had never even thought about stumbling into, Ellie leading them with practiced efficiency. A downwards sloping flight of stairs, then a quick right, until they arrived at their destination.

  The smell of dampened tapestries hit the group as the aged oak door creaked open, unveiling a labyrinth of bookshelves laid out before them. Uniform in their arrangement, they stretched out for Arceus knows how long, all seemingly arranged alphabetically, with labels attached to each corridor. Then, at the library's centre, stood a small desk, surrounded by a few dimly lit tables for reading.

  "Oh, hello Ellie!" the receptionist greeted Ellie on a first name basis, a slight flush coming to the young girl's face at the librarian's familiarity. But, shaking her head, she moved forward with pace, hoping to avoid the prying questions. But, accompanied by two boys, the librarian couldn't keep her nose out of her business. "Oh, we've got your friends too! Pleasure to make your acquaintance!"

  Adjusting her glasses and snapping her fingers, a green bipedal bird suddenly appeared before them. White wings held close to its body, barely showing two eyes on its chest, underneath where a black zigzag pattern undercut its neck. Didn't take a genius to know what type it was. Especially as it hummed with some form of psychic energy. Lucas felt a pang in his soul, as Xatu glared deep at him.

  The librarian adjusted her glasses, turning to face Xatu's unsettling gaze being directed towards her. But, her expression didn't falter from that same jovial smile. "Lucas...and Harry! Well, aren't those some splendid names?"

  "I'm sorry, HOW?"

  "Shh!" she responded to Harry's question with a finger to her lips. "This is a library! People are trying to work!"

  "There's no one here..." Lucas observed, finding the desks and long corridors empty.

  "Yes, I know, but dear, can't you let an elderly lady dream?" she sighed.

  "You don't look old." Harry answered bluntly.

  "Why, thank you darling! You're also right, I am only thirty, but it feels nice to have people reinforce that! Besides, have you heard about that Aethe-"

  "Elodie." Ellie cut through before things could get any worse, the librarian blinking twice before chuckling to herself.

  "Gosh, I can get carried away with these things! What can I help you with, sweetheart?"

  "I wanted to take out a book on the Pokemon of Hoenn. Had certain moves, signs of evolution, diets and whatnot?"

  "Oh, of course!" Elodie reached under her desk, retrieving a thick book immaculately kept, with not a speck of dust on its spine, despite the cobweb laden desk it had been held under. "Allow me to just check our inventory to make sure no one has taken it out."

  But no one comes here, Ellie didn't respond, biting back her snappiness, waiting for Taillow to come along again so she could hurl whatever remained of her anger at someone who deserved it. For now, she just resided to wait, looking to the other two. Lucas looked flabbergasted by the way she'd taken the conversation, while Harry folded his arms, squinting at the Xatu. Ellie almost opened her mouth, to warn against such a thing. But, Harry got there first,

  "So, how did you know our names when we came in?"

  Elodie stopped, finger tracing the worn pages of the book, then shutting it, mind instantly drifting from the task at hand. "Oh, that's a special ability me and Xatu have worked on for ages! Ever since we were young and it was just a little Natu, we'd practice mind reading together! Natu would pick my brain until its voice became almost like a second consciousness!"

  "Sounds...terrifying," Harry admitted, Ellie hastily nodding in agreement from where Elodie couldn't see her.

  The librarian shook her head from side to side. "Oh, don't be so harsh, it isn't bad at all! Even for other people, we can help them see the best path forward for their very soul!" Elodie's eyes glimmered. She believed every word, and Lucas couldn't tell if she was crazy, or if Xatu really had capabilities beyond just name taking. Harry opted for the former, stifling a laugh as she continued. "We stop at name reading for strangers. But, if you'd allow us, we could search your soul! Help you find the true meaning of yourself!"

  Harry smirked. "Yeah, sure, whatever you say lady."

  What started as a sarcastic statement, soon turned into an agreement in Elodie's mind. She squeaked, jumping from her seat, a purple energy engulfed the duo. Soon, they reappeared at Harry's side, dragging him with Xatu's Psychic power to one of the desks for a deep dive into fate, friendship and destiny. Or, a load of bullshit, as Harry may have described, if he wasn't stunned into silence by the turn of events.

  Ellie pinched the gap between her eyes, dried blood peaking out through her fingers. "He just had to open his mouth."

  "I mean, surely it won't be that bad? Self discovery, and stuff."

  "Maybe it's not that bad to the deranged. But, as any sane person would, I said no." Ellie snapped back. But, upon seeing Lucas shrink at her tone, she turned away. Her tone lightened slightly. Or, at least, she tried to lighten it. "No matter, that book'll be here somewhere. I think I can remember vaguely where I picked it up from, too. So, we don't have to wait for her."

  Ellie gestured for Lucas to follow, walking through the library, sills upon sills of books standing at either side. From what he could tell, this section, on one side, had more research papers and academic research, of which Ellie seemed to peruse in pursuit of the book she'd taken out before. Lucas' eyes, however, were drawn to the other side of the wall, to where the history and mythos books lay.

  Ducking down to one of the sills, he blew away the dust from the spines, spluttering his lungs up shortly thereafter, and wondering why on earth he even did that in the first place. Especially as he pulled away an undusted spine, only to find the cover still thick with muck. Choosing to wipe it with his sleeve and worry about the dust on his blazer later, he inspected the cover closely.

  On the left side of the page, a peak covered in erupting magma, with a giant shadowed monster at its base. On the right, a storming ocean, ripping waves hiding a huge whale beneath its surface. Each side had their own logo, a red and brown spiked M on the left, while the one on the right resembled that of an A, with a spike out of its top and what looked like the ends of bones for the legs of the A.

  Lucas smirked. Looked like a cool fantasy book that someone must've left in the history section. But, the more Lucas thought, the more he doubted such a thing. Especially with Elodie busy as a Combee keeping her library in order. A book in the wrong section? Couldn't be.

  "Found it!"

  A book thudded onto the ground, Ellie leaping back as the sound echoed through the rom. Bending down to grab it, she found herself beaten to the punch by Lucas, smiling and saying. "Elodie'd probably kill us if we got blood on the book, right?"

  Ellie stared at her hand. It'd mostly dried, but she couldn't help but feel a little extra caution around treating Elodie's books right. Last thing she needed was her invading her mind as some kind of tax for displacing or damaging the book. So, ultimately, she nodded and walked along, Lucas heaving the book with him.

  "It's heavy, alright. Whatever's in here better be worth it!"

  Ellie shrugged. "From what little I read, it seemed useful for all sorts of Pokemon. It'll have something to help the both of us, I'm sure."

  "Good, you guys are done." Harry appeared at the end of the corridor, a scowl visible on his face. Elodie had none of that sour expression, however, smiling bright with Xatu stood by her side.

  "Did you find what you were looking for?" she asked, Ellie giving a small nod. "Wonderful! Apologies for not helping as much as I could've, but I can never resist the excitement of digging into a new soul!"

  "Glad at least one of us had fun..." Harry grumbled.

  Elodie looked blankly at him, then shook her head, focusing her attention onto Lucas. "Well, should we get you checked out?"

  "Of course!" Lucas dragged the book up, dropping it onto the book with a heavy thud. Elodie flickered to the first page, made a log in the computer system, while Xatu emblazoned a due date into a record keeper at the front of the book. She double checked Xatu's work, smiled, then flicked it shut.

  Ellie quickly stuffed the book into her duffel bag. "Thank you, Elodie."

  "No, thank you for visiting, darling! Maybe next time-"

  "No," Ellie flatly declined. Elodie chuckled.

  "Worth a try." her eyes dragged over to Lucas next. "Ooo, but perhaps you have a story to tell..."

  "We're leaving." Harry dragged Lucas by the arm, assisted by Ellie, before he could think of wilfully agreeing to a soul search. The concept did intrigue him, a look deep inside his soul. But, he also supposed that Harry hadn't the best experience, so maybe it wouldn't be all it was cracked up to be.

  Regardless, he didn't really have a choice, as they soon emerged from the library doors, Lucas finally allowed autonomy once more. "You didn't need to drag me."

  "Didn't want to take any chances of you making a big mistake," Harry answered.

  "Was it really that bad?"

  "Mostly boring. Then, after the long and uncomfortable staring session with some bird was over, all she does was spout a load of nonsense."

  "So, nothing of the truth?" Ellie asked.

  "Maybe some truth, hidden amongst a bunch of riddles."

  Ellie hummed, seemingly more open to the idea as soon as Harry described what the actual process was like. But, Harry didn't voice his very clear bafflement at her being more open to the soul search after he described it, choosing to ask of the reason they even came. "So, you said it was some book on Hoenn Pokemon?"

  "Right you are. So, there'll likely be stuff on all our Pokemon, to help us train them." Ellie led them away from the classroom, or the usual exit, drifting towards the courtyard.

  "You getting it for Taillow?" Harry hazarded a guess.

  Ellie nodded. "At some point, but, for now," her eyes glanced over to Lucas. "I think we could use some more information on how Shroomish battles."

  Lucas nodded, fishing through his bag as they walked, until his hand emerged clenched around Shroomish's Pokeball, just as they entered the courtyard. Taillow, somewhat surprisingly, hadn't moved from its perch. Ellie had expected it to fly far away and strop off somewhere else. But, rather, the bird watched from above, without its usual cutting eyes.

  Ellie looked back for a moment, then shook her head. Dropping her bag to the floor, she dug out the thick book. "I think there's a content page at the front, you should be able to find it pretty easily."

  Before Harry could tease her on why she couldn't just do it, if it's so easy, Ellie reached into her bag. Out came her first aid kit, grabbing wipes and bandages to finally clean the gash in her hand. Right. Bite back that witty retort, he thought.

  Lucas dove into the book without hesitation, eyes scanning through the hundred or so names listed down in the contents page. His finger skimmed through them slowly, nearly jumping to the Torchic page first, before shaking his head. Couldn't get distracted now.

  "Shroomish, Shroomish, Shroomis- Ah! There we go!" his finger skimmed the pages, rejoicing in the sound of paper flipping through, until he finally landed on page 106. There, a few photos of Shroomish, posed front back and sideways, greeted him on the left. And, to the right, was the part where Lucas' brain slowed, trying to take in so much excess information at once.

  Harry peered over, letting out an exasperated 'pfff' through his lips. "It's informational, alright."

  "There's a lot there, isn't there?" Ellie finished wrapping her hand, shuffling behind Lucas to glance at the pages. "Still, plenty of information means there's gotta be some stuff useful in here, like..." Ellie gestured for the book to be handed to her, of which Lucas quickly obliged. Flickering through the couple of pages extra for Shroomish, her eyes scanned with great efficiency, before slamming down the book in a triumph. "There!"

  Above Ellie's finger sat an extensive list of all the moves Shroomish seemed to learn naturally. In particular, chains of moves bundled together. "A lot of moves that a Pokemon learn typically build on another," Ellie explained, turning to Harry, "your Grovyle forgot Leafage when it learned Magical Leaf, right?" Harry nodded an affirmative. "Right, so this book gives a load of different paths, and ways that moves build on one another."

  Ellie's finger traced Shroomish's page, before settling onto Absorb. "So, here, it says Shroomish should naturally learn Absorb, which it does. But, as that move gets stronger through use, it'll grow into a different move, Mega Drain."

  "Just like my Grovyle's."

  "Exactly."

  "So, what does it say about actually improving the move?" Lucas asked. "Any specific technique?"

  Ellie read through the blurb quickly. "I think we'd be better off just trying through attrition, considering we don't know Shroomish's capabilities much, due to its lack of training."

  Lucas winced, but ultimately nodded. Another reminder of his foolish (or stupid, if he was being appropriately harsh on himself) plan to bank exclusively on the type matchup to win.

  Harry gently knocked Lucas out of his thoughts, clipping his shoulder against his friend's, breaking him from the slightly downtrodden expression too. "I think Shroomish will pick it up pretty quick. I mean, Treecko picked it up so quickly, you never even saw it using Absorb."

  "Right, yeah!" Lucas' smile picked up, cradling Shroomish's Pokeball in his hand. "You're gonna do great, buddy!"

  "Besides, we've got a teacher right here!" Harry uppercutted the Pokeball into the air, Grovyle popping out. "So, how about we get to training?"

  "You two ok if I hang back and read a little?" Ellie asked.

  "Go ahead, bookworm!" Harry laughed, running to the battlefield. Ellie's unamused expression passed over to Lucas, who folded in a second, awkwardly chuckling,

  "Uh, have fun!"

  Lucas quickly sprinted off to meet with Harry, lobbing Shroomish's Pokeball out onto the battlefield. To Lucas' surprise, the Grass type didn't take more than a second to appear, ball rattling slightly before bursting open. Lucas screeched to a stop in front of the mushroom, crouching down to its level. The two shared a look, before Lucas began.

  "Well, I guess I should apologise for throwing you into the gym battle so soon." Lucas sucked the air between his teeth. "Obviously, stupid of me. So, I'm sorry about that. Sincerely. I should've let you work at your own pace, and built up to the gym battle. But, that's what I'm hoping to do now, if you'd let me?"

  Shroomish thought for a second. It glanced down to the ground, eyes setting upon the white marker that ran around the battlefield. Then, it turned, nearly jumping out of its skin at the sight of Grovyle. Lucas' heart thudded, as Shroomish shot to scamper off, only to find its way in Lucas' hands. "Wait, wait, you won't be fighting Grovyle!"

  Harry's head tilted. But, looking at Shroomish's shivering, he quickly adjusted his expectations of training, allowing Lucas to continue explaining. "Grovyle's learnt a Grass move that you should be able to learn pretty soon. So, its here to help you train!"

  Sensing where the training session was heading, Harry called out. "Grovyle, Mega Drain!"

  Ordinarily, Grovyle had a target to actually latch onto. But, with only a shivering Shroomish in front of it, and a Torchic that it'd have to swipe from its trainer, Grovyle assumed this would be an attack without a target. Digging its clawed fingers into the concrete, a green aura surrounded its body, followed by a few stray vines bursting from the ground. They reached into the sky, before arcing back down and striking into the concrete. For a couple seconds, it held the pose, before standing up, letting the vines wilt and disappear.

  "Usually, we'd have some actual life energy to suck with the vines, but that's how it works." Harry walked closer to Shroomish, Lucas finally letting the Grass type go. "So, I imagine you've got something similar?"

  "Go on then, use Absorb!" Lucas encouraged Shroomish. The mushroom slowly nodded, closing its eyes, tensing its body. A fainter green aura surrounded Shroomish, followed by the slow growth of vines from the ground. One strenuous effort later, and the couple vines finally turned, and shot back into the ground. The Grass type huffed, then looked to what it had actually done.

  The vines soon wilted afterwards, a small red tint coming across its cheeks. All that effort, only to produce a wimpy couple of vines, that paled in comparison to what was obviously effortless for the gecko. But, Lucas smiled, patting Shroomish gently on its head. "Good effort! Did you practice that move much in Petalburg Woods?"

  Shroomish shook its head from side to side. It didn't practice much of anything in the forest.

  "Then, yeah, good effort for a move you don't know very well!" Lucas insisted.

  "You'll only get better at it, too, as long as you practice." Harry nudged Grovyle for its encouragement. The gecko didn't give it immediately, looking down at Shroomish. Then, it crouched down onto the ground, extending its arms forward, gesturing to them with a tilt of its head. Shroomish exchanged a nervous look with everyone, before ultimately staring into Grovyle's unwavering eyes, and hopping into its arms.

  Grovyle gently lifted Shroomish up, murmuring something to the Pokemon as it rose. Then, it dropped Shroomish atop its head, standing steady to prevent its new student from toppling off. Shroomish glowed a lighter green, vines popping from its body and fastening to Grovyle's head, with more practiced ease than before. Lucas smiled. Seemed his silly charade of having a mushroom hat helped in the end.

  Grovyle muttered something, catching Shroomish off guard. Its vines shook slightly, but Grovyle remained insistent, raising its voice. After a moment of deliberation, Shroomish murmured an agreement, glowing a lighter green. Grovyle's body shone a similar shade, vines pulsating, small dots of energy travelling through the vines to the mushroom's body, while some seeped out of the vines and floated into the air.

  Lucas watched for a second. "Absorb training?" he asked. Grovyle provided a tense nod, riding out the attack with a fierce expression. Then, the aura disappeared from around its body, Shroomish huffing. Grovyle nodded, lifting Shroomish from atop its head. Then, a darker aura surrounded their bodies, as Shroomish squirmed. But, ultimately, Grovyle's Mega Drain didn't last long. Just long enough to match Shroomish's strength. Were they...sharing their HP?

  Grovyle repeated the process, planting Shroomish onto its head, secured with a couple of vines. Then, again, Shroomish used Absorb, falling into a routine of repeating attacks. Harry chuckled, watching for a second before turning to Lucas. "Looks like we don't need to be here much for this. Grovyle's got it all handled."

  Lucas looked around for anything else they could do. But, with Grovyle and Shroomish seemingly handling themselves just fine, all they had were their other Pokemon. "Zorua versus Poochyena?"

  Harry looked back, his dog instantly barking at the mention of its name. Giving the pooch a ruffle behind the ears, Harry agreed. And, so, they battled. Numel and Torchic fired off Embers at each other on the sidelines, Grovyle and Shroomish shared murmurs of advice, as well as their HP. And, Zorua and Poochyena fought as tirelessly as they could, blackened fur shedding all over the battlefield.

  Shroomish toppled from Grovyle's head first, hitting the floor with an exhausted whimper. Which, to the rest of the team, was perhaps a sign that they should take a rest. Zorua whapped Poochyena with one final swipe across the face, before turning to the shaded tree where Ellie sat, collapsing onto the ground. Lucas slipped its plushie between two paws, and the fox rolled off to sleep not soon after.

  Mudkip and Ralts huddled close to Ellie, Mudkip attempting to read along (to little success), while Ralts slipped into feeling Ellie's emotions, gaging a reaction. But, her emotions seemed stilted, for now. Flipping back and forth, hoping to gleam more information. Lucas and Harry soon wound up right by her, Grovyle placing Shroomish into its lap and beginning to talk, while Torchic, Numel and Poochyena stuck close to their trainers.

  "Anything helpful?" Lucas sat right next to her, dragging her attention away from the book for a second. Ellie took a deep breath, slamming the book shut.

  "Yes. I think I know what I have to do now." Ellie patted down her skirt as she rose to her feet, Mudkip bounding to follow after her, while Ralts waited a moment until Ellie came to a stop, then teleported to her side. Her head craned up to the sky, where Taillow sat atop the highest peak of the tree. It cocked one eye open, feeling Ellie's gaze settle upon it. Its expression still seemed lighter than before. But, still not open.

  Ellie pointed to the bird.

  "Water Pulse."

  "Huh?"

  "Huh?"

  CAW?!?

  Mudkip didn't even take the time to nod, forming an orb in its mouth, before letting it rip. Taillow swiftly fell from the tree, flapping its wings to keep itself in the air, while narrowly dodging the spinning projectile. It let out a shriek of frustration. But, Ellie's expression refused to budge. "Again."

  Another Water Pulse flew Taillow's way, the swallow once more avoiding the attack, expending a little energy for a boost of speed from Quick Attack. Then, it burst forwards with that same momentum, aimed straight for Mudkip. "Confusion," Ellie commanded, just before Taillow's beak struck her Water type. Ralts' telekinesis stopped Taillow effortlessly. Then, with its mind dizzy, Ralts flicked the bird back into the air with its telekinesis.

  "Stay in the air," Ellie's voice came out firm, snapping her fingers. Another Water Pulse. Taillow shook off the temporary mind fog, needing again the momentum of Quick Attack to blitz out of the way. The swallow panted, but didn't have time to take a breather. Another snap of the fingers, another Water Pulse. Taillow blipped out the way again. But, when the next attack came soon after, it struck the bird in the torso, wings suddenly stopping.

  Taillow fell to the ground. But, it didn't land with a thud. Ralts' telekinesis held it above the earth, before gently letting it onto the ground. Ellie wandered over, Mudkip trailing by her side. Taillow grimaced, a weak cry seeping out of its mouth, likely cursing out Ellie. But, Ellie refused to shout back.

  "I won't lose my wick like last time. All I can do is give you the truth." Ellie sat down in front of the bird. "Do you remember back in our first battle, when you could dodge around Mudkip's Water Pulses just fine?"

  Something like that, Taillow did recall. Although, it didn't give much of a response, averting its eyes from Ellie's stare. She didn't let it deter her. "Well, if you've gotten stronger at the same rate as Mudkip, then you should be able to dodge it just the same, right?"

  Taillow didn't respond, wings sticking closer to its body, slightly tensing. "But, you can't. It takes a Quick Attack to get the speed to do that. Sure, I might've caught you by surprise, but are you really satisfied with blaming just that?"

  The swallow finally responded. A shake of its head. "Are you satisfied losing every battle, just because you want to be stubborn and not listen to me? Lose to that...jerk, who punched you into the ground?"

  Taillow gave a fiercer shake of its head at that. "Then, we're in agreement. I don't want to see you lose either. But, to do that, you'll have to put an effort in with me, as I have for you."

  Ellie pointed to the sky. Taillow didn't take a second more to think, fluffing up its feathers, growling and leaping up into the air. Droplets of water from the Water Pulse trickled down its feathers, leaking onto the ground below. But, the attack didn't slow down Taillow much. The swallow let out a caw, and Ellie's team took a step back.

  Another snap of her fingers, and another Water Pulse. Taillow fluttered away, trying its best not to use Quick Attack a crutch. And, every time it fell, Ralts would let it down gently, then Ellie would help it up.

  "Again."

  They repeated the process for some time, Taillow refusing to give up on the task of dodging. Even as its body lagged behind, cleaned dry of energy to burn, the gutsy Pokemon trucked on, soaring into the air. If it got struck down, it'd get back up. Until, finally, a Water Pulse struck its side, and Taillow fell lifelessly. Swirls appeared in its eyes, and Ellie settled by its side. Whatever small marks of friction remained were swabbed with Potion, before she tapped its Pokeball gently against the bird's head.

  "Thank you," Ellie muttered, before climbing to her feet, stretching and returning to her friends.

  Harry chuckled. "Did the book tell you to sneak attack Taillow, or was that just letting your frustration out?"

  "A little bit of both."

  "The book told you to attack your own Pokemon?" Lucas exclaimed. Ellie shook her head, laughing.

  "No, no, but, it did tell of trainers like me, struggling to get Taillow to listen." Ellie flipped the book back open, to Taillow's page. "But, they could always try and convince their Taillow by catering to that gutsy spirit. If there's one thing that Taillow hates more than me, it's not being able to stand up to something stronger than itself."

  "The rougher training was just my idea. My previous Pokemon needed gentler training, Ralts, and Mudkip." Ellie's hands brushed against both their hands. Ellie's eyes settled onto Mudkip for a little longer, thinking of its training in the past. Rough as could be. But, this wasn't like that. She'd never stoop that low to get Taillow to listen to her. "But, Taillow just needed something a little more...forceful," the word didn't sound right spoken, leaving Ellie with a sour aftertaste. "I don't like it. But, Taillow needed the reality check."

  "Think that reality check will stick?" asked Harry.

  Ellie thought for a second, but Lucas answered for her. "Let's just hope so, right? Shaymin knows you've put in enough work."

  "Got that right." Ellie collapsed back into the grass, letting out a long sigh. "Don't think I'll be doing any more training for the day. The bird's took its toll enough."

  "Speak for yourself," Harry turned, his Pokemon walking beside him. "Gonna join me, Lucas?"

  "Would it be alright if I just...looked in the book for a little bit?" Lucas asked, looking to Ellie. "If that's alright with you, too. Just, wanna see what it says about Torchic, and stuff."

  "Of course." Harry rolled his eyes as he trodded away, Poochyena, Numel and the new tag team of Grass types following closely behind. "Tell me if you find anything interesting about my Pokemon!"

  "Will do!" Lucas waved away Harry, before checking on his own Pokemon, that they remained at his side. Zorua clung closer to its plushie, and Torchic tucked its talons into Lucas' shoulder, staring at the page expectantly. Ellie's Pokemon both remained in front of her, Mudkip and Ralts seemingly taking part of some act combining telekinesis and rushing water.

  Lucas smiled, then huddled closer, shoulder brushing against Ellie's. Ellie's body tensed slightly, at the sudden contact, and Lucas shuffled back. A moment of silence fell between them, before Lucas' expression curled into a smile. "You m'kay?"

  "Uh, yeah." Ellie nodded, eyes drifting back towards the book. Her bandaged hand brushed against its cover, wincing slightly, before quietly murmuring. "Sorry."

  "Hm?" Lucas shuffled forward ever so slightly. "What for?"

  "Snapping at you, being moody, making a big deal shouting on in the courtyard."

  Lucas shook his head. "No need to apologise, you were understandably angry, so, I can't blame you. I'm sure I'll get like that at some point and I'll..." Lucas stopped, chuckling. "Probably apologise too."

  "But, that's just it, isn't it? That time never comes, you'll just keep trucking on and being brave. It's like you'll..." Ellie stopped for a second, expression slipping into a frown. Then, just as quickly, a widening of the eyes, before she coughed away the flush in her cheeks. "So, the Torchic page?"

  "Yup, I'm listening."

  "But, you won't be reading from all the way over there," Ellie teased. Lucas responded promptly, knocking his shoulder against hers, peering over her shoulder.

  "How 'bout now?"

  "Now's good." Ellie smiled, looking back to the book. Her finger skimmed the aged pages, flicking through, then reading aloud, from the comfort of that shaded tree...