MATURE: Nori Carino: Official In-Training [COMPLETE!!]

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Note: This "extra chapter" is a companion to the next one. I wrote this battle out in-full, before deciding I didn't really need it in the narrative. That said, didn't want it to go completely to waste. It shows instead of tells and makes something more visibly gradual, but feel free to skip over it if you're battle-drained. These ones are the last major ones for a while, that said. The proper next chapter should be out in a few hours, if not tomorrow.

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EXTRA: Genius vs Empress II
May 20th, 2015​

The next battle of Tono Takuma day was set to begin. Many students had come to watch two of their own duke it out once more, particularly the ones unable to see their first battle. Nori was observing from a balcony.

Haruna and Tono were standing across from each other, ready for the signal to begin. It was a three-on-three with teams selected in advance. They had respectively started off with Empoleon and - of all things - Pincurchin. Haruna had openly speculated Tono was using an all-Electric team. Nori had to agree, there wasn't much reason for him to use Pincurchin in a high-level battle otherwise. Yet McCloud's injury called it into question. Did he have a fourth Electric type? Or would he be banking on Electric-type moves? And if Haruna had brought Camerupt, well...

"Start it out," said Volkner, waving his hands.

Just as before, Electric Terrain covered the battlefield courtesy of Unira. However, right after that is when Tono recalled the sea urchin. "Back, Unira. Munchie, go." This seemed to confirm his team, but what would the third be? It couldn't be McCloud, could it?

Haruna didn't seem too surprised, given how quick she was to respond. "Emp, get ready. Earthquake...now."

This was timed to perfection. The penguin crouched and jumped up, initiating the attack right as Munchie emerged, causing it to get hit right after emerging.

Tono was nonplussed. "Thunderbolt, Munchie."

"On your guard!"

Although Emp attempted to evade this, the burst of lightning found its mark all the same. The surge beneath served to amplify the move's power, and it felt it.

"Aqua Jet!"

"Thunderbolt again."

The penguin veiled itself in water and charged at the rodent. But Munchie turned as he was struck, getting off another blast of electricity. Surprising, thought Nori. Using Electric moves multiple times in a row often causes them to be weaker, simply because the Pokemon doesn't have time to generate more energy.

"Rare to see an all-out assault from you," the fiery orange haired teen slyly remarked.

Tono crossed his arms. "And it has served its purpose." He smirked and lowered his gaze, waiting their next move.

"Emp, wait." Haruna raised a hand.

Both sides paused. Neither wanting to take an action first. The trainers studied each other, trying to figure the other out. The Pokemon sized each other up, Munchie not acting in absence of orders. This went on for twenty seconds before Volkner told them, "Pick it up."

Haruna decided to bite. "Throw up some Mist around yourself!"

And that got Tono to scowl. A plan of his ruined, perhaps? "Grass Knot!" was the reply.

Instead of spreading it everywhere as it did before, the penguin used the move in the standard way of spreading it around itself. Right after, it was tripped and fell over when Munchie stomped and caused vines to lash at its ankles.

"Got you now. Thunderbolt."

This was bizarrely out of character from Tono. He was foregoing his usual tactics in favor of raw power. Unfortunately, Haruna quickly brought Emp back right before the move hit.

"Dusknoir, your turn." One of the Pokemon Tono predicted and her apparent second-best Pokemon. The Mist moved to the phantom as it emerged.

"Hmph. Disarming Voice!"

Munchie cried out in a strange way, yet Dusknoir easily endured the emotionally damaging attack. Haruna seized on the opportunity.

"Trick Room!" The dimensions twisted and contorted as a strange wireframe cube surrounded the field. "Now Night Shade!"

Tono crossed his arms, unfettered. "Counter with Thunderbolt."

The burst of lightning and shadowy beam collided with one another, effectively canceling each other out. It wasn't very dramatic, but it would've been silly if they somehow randomly exploded.

Haruna thought for a second, before deciding, "Confuse Ray!"

"Counter with Flash!"

With Flash?! Sure enough, when Munchie emitted blinding light all around itself, this caused the Confuse Ray to vanish, as if absorbed into the Flash itself.

"Try that against Shadow Punch!"

"Once more, Munchie. With copies."

One of the only ways to avoid a Shadow Punch attack is for there to be no shadows around. Tono's Pokemon timed it perfectly, producing a large amount of scattered copies of itself in the process. Volkner's words about Double Team came back to mind. How was Haruna going to counter this?

"Run them through with Darkest Lariat!"

That certainly worked. Thanks to the Trick Room, the phantom became a whirlwind as it mowed down copy after copy. "Thunderp–" Tono started, but his Pokemon was struck before he could finish. "Thunderbolt!" he said instead, before glancing down at his feet. "Argh!"

Despite the move connecting, the Electric Terrain was starting to fade away. Haruna snapped her fingers.

"Now Confuse Ray again!"

"Flash! It didn't work once, it won't work–"

"It just did!"

This time, the closer proximity of the Pokemon ensured the strange light entranced the electric mouse. As his Pokemon started to hallucinate, Tono wavered. "I have no choice." He raised Munchie's ball.

Haruna's Pokemon looked back at her, and she nodded. "Do it!"

"Yes, sure. Get it out of the way." Tono rolled his eyes as Dusknoir dashed forth and slammed a palm into his Pokemon as it was being recalled. Pursuit in action. "Unira, it is time to turn that Trick Room against them."

"Just try it!" Haruna countered as the sea urchin was materializing. "Shadow Punch!"

The electricity coating the floor was refreshed. "After it hits, Poison Jab."

Tono's Pokemon endured the attack and...suddenly rocketed towards Dusknoir. It wasn't very effective, but this was clearly about making a statement. The crowd cheered. Even Nori was a little impressed.

"Now Zing Zap."

"Block it and Brick Break!"

Dusknoir got its arms up in time to stave off most of the damage, only for Unira to easily avoid when the phantom clasped his hands and performed a chop.

"Discharge!" said Tono. Haruna's Pokemon was instinctively moving in for a strike, only to end up getting caught point blank. It was fortunate to get out of that with only damage and not paralysis.

"Damn it!" yelled Haruna. "Trick Room again, Dusknoir! Cancel it!"

As if he was waiting for this, Tono instantly made the switch. "Return, Unira. And now, Kiryu!"

With his opponent too busy to use Pursuit, Tono sent out his next Pokemon. While it was yellow and an Electric type, it most certainly wasn't a Jolteon. It was a strange bipedal lizard with a brown bottom half and a sunflower-like frill around its neck. Thanks to being around Electric-type experts for this long, Nori was able to recognize this as a Helioptile. No wait, that was its pre-evolution. What was this called, again?

"Step forward if you wanna lose!" Tono boasted, probably a quote of some kind?

Haruna snorted and snapped a finger. The boy alertly noticed the Dusknoir's eyes flashing purple momentarily, even at his high angle behind the Pokemon. It certainly didn't escape Tono. "Be ready for that..." he commented.

"Move in with Fire Punch!"

"Dragon Pulse."

Like a dragon would, Kiryu charged up and launched a blast of blue and red energy from its mouth, intercepting its target. Dusknoir was able to recover, make a lunge, and nearly hit anyway. The lizard dodged the actual punch, yet yelped as the residual flames licked at its skin.

Tono was unconcerned, particularly as the phantom had fallen over. "Now finish with Parabolic Charge."

Gathering all the electricity around and within, Kiryu formed a golden sphere between its hands. It threw the sparking orb into the hapless Dusknoir, almost point-blank. The move sapped away the last of the ghost's strength and returned like a boomerang, which the lizard absorbed.

"Dusknoir can't continue," Volkner ruled, to the delight of the audience. Tono had taken down Haruna's second-best Pokemon, the first Pokemon to fall in the battle. It was that deja vu thing.

"All right." Haruna lowered her gaze and wickedly grinned. "Emp, you're back out."

Tono's eyes stretched as big as Voltorbs before he glared like a Primeape. "What are you playing at?!" he demanded. "A foolish choice, three, no, fourfold!"

"You're a smart guy. You figure it out," she said quite simply. "But for now, Grass Knot!"

He didn't react even as his Pokemon was tripped, trying to figure out Haruna's angle. Even Nori had to admit, it was a strange choice. If he caught the effects of that Fire Punch right, did this Helio-something have Dry Skin? If so, water wouldn't have any effect.

"I know what you are up to, and it will NOT work!" the nerd eventually countered.

"Oh yeah?" She bared her teeth like a predator. "What is it?" Nori guessed, she was planning to stall until that Future Sight?

"Figure it out yourself!" The nerd pointed. "Thunderbolt!"

"Aqua Jet to escape, Emp!"

Using the attack to maneuver, the Empoleon had no trouble getting away. Tono's brow furled.

"Stop this ridiculous charade with Bulldoze!"

"Come out with Earthquake!"

Emp leaped out of its slide into a stomp, as Kiryu simply started jumping. The two attacks canceled in the strangest way: as the mutual earth-shaking moves hit the other Pokemon, they both lost their balance and weakened the effect of their own move.

"Thunderbolt, Thunderbolt!" he said, completely losing his patience at the worst possible moment. It was then that several psychic blades came out of nowhere. Kiryu thrashed about as they tore into its body. "No!" Tono yelled, slapping himself in the face.

To make things even worse for him, Haruna had gestured at her Pokemon. Emp came charging in with Aqua Jet right as Dusknoir's delayed attack happened. "Flop out and Drill Peck!" she ordered as it was halfway. The surging fluid around the penguin faded as it pushed up with its flippers. Still in motion, it ran Kiryu through with a spinning beak, knocking the dragon-like Pokemon to the floor.

"You...you...!"

Haruna snickered as her Pokemon got to its feet after impact, towering over its foe. "As they say, FINISH HIM! Ice Beam!"

While ice is frozen water, the Pokemon's Dry Skin did nothing to save it from the frigid laser. Kiryu convulsed with shivers as the penguin ran the attack across its entire body.

"You can still fight!" Tono urged. "Fight on, Kiryu! Your ultra special, PARABOLIC CHARGE!!"

Not frozen and amazingly still conscious after all that, Tono's Pokemon gathered its bearings enough to start preparing the attack. Unfortunately, Haruna's Pokemon was right in front.

"Please." She waved a hand, and Emp waved a flipper. It quite casually slapped the lizard unconscious.

"Kiryu can't continue."

Boos, no matter how earned that was out of Haruna. Or well, maybe Tono had made a mistake or two there. Either way, the score was even. Tono briefly mused between Munchie and Urina, and the Terrain fading as he was deciding helped make up his mind.

"Very well." Out came the sea urchin for the third time in the battle. "Acupressure, Unira."

As the Pokemon drove one of its needles into itself, Haruna smirked. "Now you're free to use your water moves, Emp! Brine it!"

The sea urchin did manage to boost a stat, yet it was hit by the blast of saltwater. And it didn't seem it was special defense.

"We are also capable of using water," said Tono. "Hydro Pump." He added a small gesture, waving his hand backwards.

Haruna laughed this off. "Easy to dodge."

Tono sounded too composed there. Nori had his suspicions. Sure enough, the Hydro Pump was not aimed at Emp, but used as propulsion. Suddenly, the two Pokemon were right next to each other, and Tono was more ready for it than Haruna.

"Zing Zap."

Unira expanded its sharp spines. For a moment it seemed Emp was impaled on this devastating move powered by the Terrain, yet there were no sign of puncture wounds or blood on its body.

"Aqua Jet to knock it away!" she yelled.

"Protect," said Tono, right after Haruna said her first two words, talking over her.

Tono's usual calm and calculating demeanor had returned. His Pokemon had anticipated this move before he even ordered it; Nori doubted the barrier would've gone up in time otherwise. Emp slammed into it face-first, yelping in pain and surprise.

"Shit..." Haruna muttered as her Pokemon clutched its face in pain. He had them right where he wanted them, and everyone knew it. "Get away!"

"Discharge."

A powerful blast of lightning arced out from the floor and around Unira. Emp almost escaped, but some sparks managed to barely catch it on the lower body. The penguin tripped over its flippers as numbness took hold.

"Lucky prick!"

Tono confidently smirked. "Now use the chance to Recover."

Nori gasped. Why would he do that!? Unira hadn't even taken that many attacks! A fair few of the other onlookers - particularly Kallisto - were also stunned, but none more than Haruna. Her jaw dropped, yet she regained her bearings in time to capitalize.

"We got one shot!" she rallied her Pokemon. "HYDRO CANNON!"

Unira was regenerating its wounds. Yet Emp unsteadily stood and readied itself. The telltale blue glow from Torrent surrounding it, the penguin absolutely blasted Unira with everything it had. That had to have gone critical. Even the normally aquaphobic Nori couldn't help but watch as the massive stream of water grabbed Pincurchin and carried it into the wall behind Tono. The sea urchin was left partially embedded, and there was no sign of any movement from it.

"Uh." Volkner scratched his cheek. Probably thinking about the repairs, Nori figured. "That should speak for itself."

The crowd respectfully applauding was drowned out by Tono screams of frustration. He turned back to bore a hole through his rival with his eyes, trying to call Unira without looking. He missed six times, finally turning around to do it properly on the seventh.

"Nice one, dumbass," she taunted. "You gave Emp time to recharge." Sure enough, the penguin had pulled itself together from using Hydro Cannon. Still paralyzed, yet fighting through.

"Shut up, Haruna Okazaki! Munchie, it's all or nothing!"

Out came the Raichu, one last time. While its foe was weak, it had gone through a fair bit of battling as well. They could beat Emp, maybe. But probably not Haruna's third, and if was Camerupt, he was absolutely screwed. Nori thought, he'd love to see Tono completely break down over that!

"Double Team!" was Tono's opening attack.

Haruna chuckled. "Earthquake."

Tono cringed. Yeah, that was an even bigger mistake. Munchie rode out the shaking floor, but the last thing its trainer needed to do right now in a two against one situation was give his opponent what essentially amounted to a free hit.

"Bring it close with Aqua Jet!"

The nerd pointed, although with less vigor. "Intercept with Thunderbolt."

He sounded uncertain. But they caught a lucky break when the penguin seized up when trying to flop onto its belly. Munchie actually missed at first, anticipating its foe would be in motion, but swiftly corrected its aim to hit with about a third of the blast of lightning.

Tono crossed his arms in triumph as the Pokemon toppled. "Simplicity."

"Emp can't–" started Volkner, stopping as the penguin burst into motion. It didn't even register with Tono until Munchie was bowled over despite attempting to evade. And Emp was right next to his Pokemon, ready for one final move.

"Steel Wing!" said Haruna.

"Thunder Punch!" countered Tono, deciding to fight it head-on.

A sparking fist swung, a shimmering wing swung. Both attacks struck true, but only one came out of it standing.

Volkner gave it three seconds just to be sure, before saying, "Now Emp can't continue."

The crowd lightly cheered. They knew as much as Tono that it was not looking good for him. Munchie was one of his better Pokemon, but it was no McCloud the Jolteon. Haruna's final Pokemon could dictate whether a win was possible or impossible, and Tono's slumped posture spelled out what he thought his chances were.

"Surprise!" said Haruna, throwing it out. It was a green plant-like Pokemon with a white mask and bouquets for hands. "You were right!"

Tono lowered his head, clenching his fists in frustration. If Nori remembered its moveset correctly correctly, Munchie was going to have serious trouble damaging a Roserade. Still, it was Tono. He couldn't be counted out just yet.

"Okay," said Volkner. "Restart the battle."

"Munchie, we need to act NOW!" he urged. "Thunderbolt!"

Haruna snickered with confidence. "Toxic!"

After shaking off the electricity, her Pokemon did some ninja-like gestures. Poisonous goop and gas came from thin air, enveloping Tono's Pokemon. The nerd clutched his head in disbelief.

"Tick-tock." Haruna gestured to her watch.

"No, no, no! All out! FOCUS BLAST!"

He'd completely lost his cool. He was mindlessly throwing out his strongest moves, not approaching with any sort of strategy! The battle was over, it just hadn't been made official yet. The attack missing by a wide margin only added insult, and Haruna kept going.

"Leech Seed!" she said.

"Dodge it and Thunderbolt!"

The electric rodent couldn't dodge in time; parasitic vines wrapped around its body. Its own move hit, yet Haruna's Roserade was still nowhere close to weakening, even with the move being amplified by the electricity along the ground that had been near-constant since the beginning.

"Thunder. THUNDER!"

"Venoshock!"

A bolt of lightning came crashing down. And it not only struck true, but Roserade seized up as paralysis gripped its body.

Yet the good fortune was all for naught. His Pokemon let out a final squeak as the combination of afflictions and overexertion exacted their toll. It was over.

Volkner gave his ruling. "Munchie can't continue. Haruna wins."

 

[Daren]

It wasn't very dramatic, but it would've been silly if they somehow randomly exploded.

Can't believe you just calling television out like that.

"No, no, no! All out! FOCUS BLAST!"

He'd completely lost his cool. He was mindlessly throwing out his strongest moves, not approaching with any sort of strategy!

I suspected Tono might be one of the type who struggles to adjust when things start turning south.

The attack missing by a wide margin only added insult

Good ol' Focus Miss. I think that move was intentionally intended to be just accurate and powerful enough with such wide distribution that a number of Pokémon don't have other options and will constantly curse it.
*

It was a good battle but I admit I feel a bit sorry for Tono setting himself up like this in front of a crowd.

 

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Can't believe you just calling television out like that.

I just had to call out this constantly happening in the anime despite a lack of combustibility most of the time.

I suspected Tono might be one of the type who struggles to adjust when things start turning south.

It was established that he has trouble with getting caught so off guard that he has to think of something on the fly. Things like new moves he didn't account for or outperforming his expectations. And when his plans go completely wrong, yeah, this is him at his worst. That said, Tono actually can adjust and react to others' strategies, but losing McCloud and still forging ahead with mono-Electric is what really caused him problems here. And there's something else to why Tono lost too. Much more subtle, although it's discussed next chapter.

Good ol' Focus Miss. I think that move was intentionally intended to be just accurate and powerful enough with such wide distribution that a number of Pokémon don't have other options and will constantly curse it.

Aside, this was actually originally Thunder, but given what Nori was musing about Electric attacks losing potency, I tweaked it with about the same effect. Besides, it allows for this very meme to be invoked.

It was a good battle but I admit I feel a bit sorry for Tono setting himself up like this in front of a crowd.

He's 0-2 now. But will it be 0-3?!!

 

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May of Ordinance (sixth part)
May 20th, 2015​

The next major battle of Tono Takuma day was his rematch against Haruna, with nothing on the line but a chance to avenge a loss or cement a win. He had impatiently taken his position right at 3:30, wanting to get things started as soon as possible. Haruna took her time. Nori didn't ask, but didn't doubt she was doing it on purpose.

On exhibition days, the Gym always reserved some seats for the afternoon to accommodate those who couldn't arrive early for one reason or another. Today turned out to be one of those times where it still wasn't enough, and bringing out more bleachers from storage was necessary. It was no wonder given that a popular Gym Trainer was battling three times in one day.

Because so many people had come to watch, Nori couldn't get a seat next to Yuki. Since he didn't favor sitting with the Gym Trainers off to the side, he elected to watch from a balcony. He was half-tempted to pull out an extra chair for Yuki - Volkner didn't say he couldn't do anything like that for guests, but by the time that crossed his mind, the battle was already set to begin.

"Our next battle today will be a rematch from a week ago," Volkner introduced, as Tono and Haruna stood across from each other. "This will be a standard three-on-three. Switching is permitted with no limitations. The trainers' Pokemon are to be selected in advance."

The last part stood out to Nori. The conditions of even the most common of matches could vary wildly. Most battles permit a trainer to choose their team on the fly depending on what's necessary. The dynamic gets changed when you have to pick three, with no knowledge of your opponent's team or what they might be using. Volkner had said it's as much about picking your best as it is trying to outpredict your opponent. It had to be something Tono had requested.

Although it was something that surprised Haruna, she quickly smirked. Tono already had his three in mind, but she chose her own with no hesitation.

"If you're ready, send out your first at the same time."

Both trainers' first choice of Pokemon surprised Nori, not to mention a large portion of the audience. To him, it wasn't that big of a shock to see Haruna lead with her ace Emp, given what she did before. But what really stunned him was seeing Tono lead with his Pincurchin.

His choice of team sunk in right away, and Haruna even outright called it. "If you're using that, your other two must be your Raichu and Jolteon."

"Sure," he dismissively quipped. He sounded sarcastic, plus there was that talk with the coach, but Nori wouldn't have been surprised to see him use McCloud regardless. "And you must be using Dusknoir and Roserade - I can tell you haven't pulled out your Purugly for this battle, since her ball is not there."

She smirked. "Let's see if you're right or not."

"Start it out," said Volkner to signal the battle's beginning.

---​

The battle did not go in Tono's favor.

While Tono had correctly guessed his opponent's team, his third was not Jolteon, but a Helio-something he called Kiryu. Something was off about Tono throughout the battle. He was far more aggressive than usual, and making some critical mistakes - most notably, having Unira Recover in the face of a not-so-stunned Emp instead of finishing it off. He even forgot all about a Future Sight Haruna's Dusknoir had used, after saying to himself not to forget it aloud. It came down to Haruna's fresh Roserade against Munchie. The outcome was never in doubt at that point, particularly after a Toxic and Leech Seed combination. Despite landing a desperation Thunder that even paralyzed their foe, the electric mouse collapsed right after from a combination of overexertion and afflictions.

Volkner raised an arm. "Munchie can't continue. Haruna wins."

"NOOOOOOOOO!!" Tono screamed over the applause. "No, no, no! Ridiculous! Ugh!"

Haruna allowed the crowd to die down before firing off a post-battle one-liner. "I guess that answers who's better."

Tono pointed with derision. "Do not think of this as a decisive victory on your behalf! I had to adjust my strategy to use Kiryu because McCloud was injured in the battle with him!" When he moved his finger towards Nori, the boy couldn't help but yell down a retort.

"Quit your whining!"

"Shut up, Nori Carino!" he screamed. "You need to–"

"Tono, relax!" He was silenced when Kallisto stood to address him.

"Kallisto!" the nerd cried out. "This is..."

As he trailed off, the Gym Leader assured him. "No matter how it happened, you still lost to Haruna a second time. I know, you're frustrated. But you're starting to lose yourself."

"I..." He huffed, almost sniffed. He lowered his head for a moment, shaking it at himself. "You are right. Sorry." He looked up to address his rival. "This is your win today, Haruna Okazaki. But this is not over between us. Not by a long shot."

She smirked. "I never expected it to be."

"Enjoy your victory while it lasts, witch. Because you will never defeat me again."

"And you should remember your victories from last year. Because those were the last ones you'll have against me."

Tono left first, allowing Haruna to bask in her victory. While she was not the crowd's favorite, they still gave her a standing ovation. She took a bow and slapped hands with the front row before finding a place to squeeze into and sit down.

---​

At the next intermission, Nori went and found Haruna to congratulate her. Evidently, Radovan had the same idea.

"Two and oh!" the chunky childhood rival of Tono declared. He raised a hand to high-five her, which she accepted. "Great goin, Haruna O."

"Yeah, nice job." Nori made to do the same.

"Thanks," the teenage girl said. "And I heard you beat him soundly too."

"Oh um, yes!"

Haruna chuckled. "Would've loved to see that. How'd you do it?"

Nori shrugged. "I sort of stalled until he was tired. Then he knocked a pillar over with that Thunderous Iron Tail and hurt his Pokemon."

"Yeah, he dragged'em deep and drowned him," Radovan explained, making Nori tense slightly. "Ya dig?"

"I wouldn't put it like that..." He would rather not think about deep water and drowning.

After a couple seconds of silence, Haruna voiced an observation. "He made a lot of dumb mistakes in that battle."

So it wasn't just him. "I noticed that, too. He wasn't fighting like himself." There was something slightly off about him throughout.

"Dat so?" asked Radovan. "Too bad. Wanted'em at his best. How's Tono T usually go?"

Haruna explained. "In one word, analytical. The type who always keeps his cool in battle, even the rare times he gets fired up." She tapped her foot. "Least, that's what I thought."

"His Pokemon aren't super strong most of the time, but he makes up for it with his strategy." The best way to sum him up, Nori figured. "He often comes into battle with a plan."

"And he's full of himself," added Haruna. Also very true.

"Ya t'ink he's on-tilt cause of losin' to Nori C?"

The boy shrugged. "Maybe?"

After a moment to consider it, Haruna agreed. "I just know he is."

---​

After Nori said bye to Haruna and Radovan, he had a brief chat with Volkner. After that, he went to find Yuki. His friend from the news club was easy enough to locate. He was waiting in the lobby, talking with a uniformed sewer worker who wore sunglasses over her eyes.

"Hey, friends!" Nori greeted them.

Yuki blinked and did a double take. "Arumi?"

"Shhh!" she hushed, using a wacky implacable accent. "I gotta return to my seat now! See you 'round, kids!"

As she was walking away, Yuki quickly turned his attention to him. "So Nori, want to grab dinner together? I'll buy you a sandwich from the place nearby!"

If he was thinking of there, "We have those same sandwiches upstairs."

"Wow, really?" He was very impressed. "But they're better freshly made! You can even get them toasted."

He turned away, a little meek. "Well, I was really saying, you don't need to spend money on me."

"Really! I don't mind!" Yuki walked back into his field of vision. "I want to do this, Nori!"

He sighed with cheerful resignation. "I guess if you're insisting." He was rarely one to turn invitations to eat down. "But I don't know what I did to deserve this."

Yuki just giggled. Not much of a telling reply.

---​

There were three notable eateries in close proximity to Sunyshore Gym. The Wet Rock Diner, a curry place whose name used kanji too complex for Nori to understand, and a Sandoman sandwich store - an East Sinnoh based chain which Nori had recently learned was the one Ollie's parents had a minority share in. They all had a sponsorship deal with the Gym, where in exchange for promotion, the Gym received part of their profits on exhibition days.

"Nice little place," Nori remarked as they stepped inside. And what luck, there was no lineup! "I always wanted to do this sort of thing with Lux and Betsy-Ann. Well, sort of did with her once. But back home, I could only go to these places if a friend offered."

"Yeah," remarked his friend. "I always come here to grab dinner on exhib–KYAAAHHHHH!!!"

As Yuki was moving toward the counter, he slipped on the wet floor - screaming at the top of his lungs as he fell. It happened so suddenly that Nori had no chance to react or catch him.

"Oh my god!" a hefty woman with dark hair exclaimed, rushing over to check on them.

"You okay?!" Nori asked, extending a hand to help the strawberry blond.

Yuki stared at him in amazement before taking it. "Y-Yes, I'm...I think so..." He pretty much yanked his arm away after getting to his feet, turning away and holding himself by the shoulders.

"Why didn't you put up a wet floor sign?!" Nori snapped. He assumed this woman worked here.

In reply, she turned to the back. "Ordride! You heard him!" the woman barked.

Nori didn't see the man, but he heard his unmistakable voice. "Urp! Well, y'see ma'am, I was busy with–"

"No excuses! This is your third screwup in less than a week! Get your things and go!"

Yuki and Nori exchanged awkward glances. His friend in the news club had heard all about the legend of Billy Ordride, and he was now a part of the latest chapter.

"Serves that stupid moron right as always..." Nori muttered. Every time he saw him get fired it was his own fault for not doing his job! Except maybe at Kallisto's ceremony, but he had no regrets about causing that one.

"I am so sorry, young man." The woman bowed profusely at them. "What can I get for you and your friend? I'll give you half-off."

That's nice of her to do that, the boy figured. Making up for her employee's mistake. Yuki beamed. "Well, Nori? What do you want?"

---​

Nori decided on a steak mushroom melt, as that was one of the things not stocked at the Gym. Yuki went for a pizza sub with lettuce, tomato, and onions - he called it his tried and true. They also both got bottles of ginger ale as a beverage, something they had in common.

"You're right," Nori remarked as they ate part of the sandwiches on the walk back. "This really is great toasted!" They both wanted to have them fresh out of the oven, yet also wanted to get back as soon as possible to get good seats.

The strawberry blond smiled. "I'm glad you like it!"

Nori finished around half before wrapping what was left up. He'd eat the rest once they were back. "So since it's just us, want to talk about whatever you wanted now?" He was figuring Yuki really just wanted to talk about it in private.

It was a good thing he didn't ask when Yuki was swallowing a bite, as it seemed like he nearly choked on air. "Um, well..."

"Well?"

Yuki took a deep breath. He was red in the face for some reason. "Nori, I..." He paused. "I'll tell you later. After closing time, maybe."

He shrugged. "If you say so?"

"Yeah, it might take a bit, plus I'm right eating now, so..." And as they were talking, they'd made it to the Gym's parking lot.

Nori shrugged. Whatever it was, he'd find out eventually.

---​

The two managed to get some of the last seats in the front row. If that had failed, Nori had planned to enact Operation Get Two Chairs to enjoy the remaining few hours of battling. Yuki talked a lot about the battles, gushing whenever someone used a cool Pokemon or clever strategy. If Nori was being honest with himself, it was a little grating. Yet he decided he could put up with it for a couple hours. Although if Yuki wanted to watch battles together again, he'd definitely speak out.

Eventually, it was time for the main event. Radovan was grinning ear from ear. His hair was combed and he had put on a snazzy black jacket. By contrast, Tono looked like an absolute wreck. His hair was a disheveled mess, he had changed to a worn-thin hole-filled shirt with a design of a cartoonish guy in a red suit and cap with blue overalls. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.

Volkner stepped forward. "This will be the final battle of this exhibition day. It will once again feature Tono Takuma, as he takes on his childhood rival, Radovan Raines. This doubles as a qualifier for the Gym Challenge. Again, one time only thing. Due to the unusual circumstances, the usual one-half Electric guideline is being waived."

"What's that guideline?" whispered Yuki.

A question, he could answer that. "Whenever someone has a Gym qualifier, Volkner wants at least half the Gym Trainer's team to be Electric." It was simply a guideline, and in practice unnecessary - most Gym battles were standard ones where the challenger or Leader used three Electric Pokemon anyway. And only Volkner, Kallisto, and Ollie were capable of using full teams of six.

"This will be a full battle with no restrictions. Send out your Pokemon at the same time."

"A'right, Pokay Numero Uno! Ready?" Radovan's first was a huge black bird with a red tuft of plumage over one of its eyes. Nori instantly recognized it as a Staraptor. A Pokemon with a strange place in his heart, for...Claris Willins-related reasons.

Without a word, Tono sent out a black snake with scars all over its body, and long fangs. His Seviper, David. One of his rarer-used Pokemon, yet still squarely in his ‘strong’ team. Tono kept a few lower-leveled Pokemon for handling newer trainers in qualifier battles.

"Both ready?" When the two trainers nodded, he said, "Then begin."

---​

What followed was one of the most savage ass kickings Nori - or evidently everyone else watching - had ever seen between trainers of comparable strength. Yuki was among many who were eventually completely hushed by what they were seeing. Nori thought the latter half of Tono vs. Haruna was bad, yet this was far worse.

Radovan kicked things off with a fairly decisive win against Tono's Seviper. Tono was able to answer with Tiki the Flygon. A fierce aerial battle commenced that saw Tiki barely come out on top. Radovan answered with the Ice-typed Warwolf. Tono decided to keep his tired Pokemon in despite the massive type disadvantage. Tiki fought well by using the aerial advantage, trapping it with Sand Tomb before unleashing Flamethrower. Yet it was ultimately defeated when Warwolf used Dig to break free and managed to clip it with an Ice Shard. This got it closer to the ground, where it was beaten with Icicle Crash before it could be recalled. What's worse, the strange creature wearing wolf-pelt battled to a draw with Munchie.

While Tono was doing well at first, his frustrations with Radovan quickly boiled over, and that was before the taunting started. There was something off about his strategies. At first, they seemed a little too meticulously calculated. He shifted gears partway through the battle with Warwolf, but he practically threw a tantrum when the wolf-wearer used Double-Edge to defeat Munchie (and itself).

From there, the collapse was on, and everyone - especially Radovan - knew it. He brought out a Breloom, Tono answered with Gracie. Not only did he handily win despite the type disadvantage, but he had more than enough left to take down Drake as well. Tono kept making the same mistakes he did against Haruna, only much worse.

"How!" he screamed. This wasn't as satisfying as Nori thought it'd be. It was just sad. He felt...sorry for Tono? "I had you figured out, I watched all the tapes of your battles! How are you winning?"

"Heh, feel like quittin'? Crusty Tono T?"

"NEVER!"

"Tono," Kallisto hesitantly spoke up. "It's okay to throw in the towel if you know you can't win."

"You lose every battle you don't try! I need to try this!"

Nori closed his eyes. Too true, he thought.

His best friend silenced, Tono took out his final Pokemon. He stared at the capsule in quiet contemplation for the longest time before sending it out.

The crowd had already been stunned quiet at the absolute massacre that was unfolding, but for a few dreadful seconds after McCloud emerged from his Poke Ball, you could've heard a Hoppip's footsteps.

"You're fuckin' using him?!" Eddie blurted out, saying what was on everyone's mind. Volkner actually let the disruption go, wondering the very same thing.

"I..." Tono hesitantly began. He looked to McCloud. The electric fox was wincing, yet his barks and standing taller gave assurance. "We," he corrected himself, "Both of us wanted this. McCloud wanted to help me win, and I...I really need you to come through for me now!"

That was a sentiment people could approve of. Even Nori. It was kind of touching seeing his Pokemon willing to do that much for him. It served as a reminder that as haughty and self-superior as Tono could be, he was still a person. One who was well on the way to suffering the humiliation of his life. Nori had wanted to see Tono go down, but this was...

"Yeah? Dat's a buncha pissy sissy talk," Radovan said, spoiling the moment. "One to four now. Ya can't win, Tono T."

Boos. Even Nori joined in on them. He wanted to see Tono win more than ever at this point, yet Radovan was right. Between McCloud's injury and having four Pokemon to go through - three of which were fresh - this would be a nearly impossible task for Tono at his best. And he was far from his best right now...

"If you're still going, start it up again," Volkner urged, motioning restlessly.

Suddenly noticing some weird dartboard on McCloud, Nori glanced to Yuki, who seemed too fixated to pay attention. And both trainers were giving orders, so he let him be. He was sure he'd learn its purpose shortly.

"Kay then, Breloom. Mach Punch!"

Tono wavered. "Intercept with Thunder Wave."

To his (and McCloud's) relief, this happened in time to paralyze the Pokemon and stop the move altogether. The hardest part about this was going to be how Breloom wasn't that bad off despite going through two opponents already. A couple Giga Drains and Drain Punches and poisoning itself with Toxic - leading to healing - saw to that.

Radovan seemed bemused. "Seed Bomb all over da place."

He'd done this before. Instead of throwing one or two out, the mushroom fighter shot a bunch into the air and let them rain down. Took extra effort, of course.

Tono considered this and nodded. "Set up Reflect."

Another good choice, thought Nori. It meant McCloud taking that attack - while he could've avoided it by immediately charging for Breloom, this meant taking less damage against further attacks. The only problem was, he hadn't made any headway on hurting Breloom. And of course, it was still healing...

Radovan smirked. "Move in and Fury Cutter. Okay?"

"A melee battle...Thunder Fang!"

McCloud got ready to snap forward as Breloom came in. Using the edges of its arms as a blade, the mushroom man swiped, and McCloud bit. They effectively traded blows.

"Now give'em a Sky Uppercut!"

Their best attack. It came out too fast for Tono to react to, but McCloud made the dodge all on his own. This left Breloom to rise into the air on its own...and seize up.

"Ya shittin' me now?"

"Thunderbolt, McCloud."

Happy to oblige, the electric fox zapped his foe. Breloom crashed down hard, struggling in front of McCloud's feet.

"Heh, one last shot, eh?" Radovan took it well. "Make it a Toxic!"

Much of the crowd gasped, Yuki included. "Oh no!" he said.

Did he forget?! Nori hadn't, and he was going to bet Tono wasn't so far out of it that he hadn't as well.

"Your best Shadow Ball, McCloud!"

This took time to prepare. Time that Breloom used to concentrate all the toxins in its head and neck. The dark violet fluid it spewed was as vile to look at as it seemed on McCloud's body, yet the fox pulled through to spit a ghastly sphere onto Breloom, stilling it.

"Breloom can't continue."

The crowd cheered this, albeit with reservation. Radovan stated why. "Yuk it up all ya want. Clock's tickin'. Ya got it?" He pointed to his watch.

Nori grinned, waiting for it.

Tono calmly smiled. "Refresh, McCloud."

For once, the mere sight of Tono's smug superiority didn't piss Nori off. In fact, he laughed as it happened. The electric fox focused hard, cleansing the toxins from his own body. And that made the crowd erupt.

"Wow! I forgot he had that!" exclaimed Yuki.

"You saw him use it. Against Haruna earlier this month, remember?"

"I guess so. I just forgot in the moment."

Nori had to shake his head a little. A battle enthusiast forgetting important things like that?

Radovan breathed in and out, shaking his head. The chunky teenager shrugged off this loss. "Eh, Breloom's went t'rough enough. Was my Hoenn ace for a reason, yeah?" Radovan had told him earlier that he brought his best from three of the regions he traveled through - of which Staraptor was included in, both his formal and informal starter, and one other. "T'ink I'll use dis gal next."

Tono's former (and current?) bully's next Pokemon was an orange-brown mammal with blue fins on her arms and some yellow thing around her back. As she spun to whip her two tails threateningly, she showed off the single cream-colored oval on her back.

"Should be enough for ya to handle, Tono T! Eh?" Radovan guffawed. He'd just sent out a Floatzel against a Jolteon. He was either confident or doing it as an insult. Maybe both. The audience settled on the latter interpretation. Tono for his part glared, but otherwise kept his composure.

"Do you think he has a trick up his sleeve?" Yuki asked.

"Anything's possible. Maybe it has a Ground move, but Tono's smart enough to consider that." He drummed his fingers. "But I think it's just disrespect."

Tono didn't react, not as Volkner signaled to start the battle, and not as Radovan had his Pokemon start off with Rock Tomb. McCloud glanced back to see what to do, yet all the trainer did was raise a hand. He shook the move off between bracing himself and the Reflect, but Tono was trying to think about this one. Maybe overthink.

"Crunch'em, Floatzel."

Tono nodded. "Escape with Agility."

This Floatzel was surprisingly fast, but not fast enough to catch a speeding Jolteon. Yet Radovan was ready with a counter. "Agility too!"

A brief chase occurred. The Floatzel was keeping up due to better maneuverability. "Lay down some Pin Missiles behind you," Tono ordered.

"Break through those with Aqua Jet!"

Floatzel moved even faster, ramming directly into the electric fox's backside. Normally an attack like this might've only caused McCloud to stumble, yet this was right where his injury was. The electric fox whined in agony, crumpling to the floor.

"McCloud!" Tono gasped, squinting tight.

Radovan smirked. "So dat's da weakness, eh? Whip'em, Floatzel!"

As McCloud struggled to his feet, his opponent mercilessly lashed out with Double Hit. With each crack of the tail, the fox yelped. If it wasn't for the Reflect, it'd be far worse. Tono watched on as his Pokemon was cruelly punished by Radovan.

"How's he getting away with this?!" Yuki yelled, one of many in the crowd who was angry.

"It's not technically wrong," Nori pointed out. There were certain things you could and couldn't do in a formal battle, but this was within those boundaries. "Even if it was, Tono brought in his injured Pokemon."

This was hard to watch. Especially with Tono locked up, not doing anything to stop it. And this out of Radovan was just ridiculous, as Tono himself would say. If this was Radovan trying to desperately turn things around, sure. But he was being sadistic for the sake of it.

"Finish it! Aqua Tail!"

"Double Kick," Tono finally reacted, better late than never. The wind-up was enough for the fox to get this off in time, hurting Floatzel enough to give him time to escape. And not a moment too soon, as the Reflect faded.

"Crunch its ass! Ya dig?" He probably meant that literally.

"Thunderbolt, McCloud."

McCloud was able to whirl around in time and unleash a full force electric move on the sea otter. She screamed in agony as McCloud put everything he had into this one move, perhaps out of anger.

"Fuck it. Land dat Aqua Tail!"

"Get out of melee, McCloud."

Floatzel was just stunned enough that the electric fox was able to dodge and get several meters away. But running wasn't winning, not here.

"Try dis on," said Radovan. "Rising Aqua Jet!"

Huh? Nori watched with interest, only to yelp and cover himself on instinct as the rising part of it turned out to be a Waterfall attack. Nori opened his eyes just in time to see the fluid gone but both Pokemon in midair, Floatzel way overhead.

"Now come down with Aqua Tail!"

Tono growled and pointed with determination. "Thunderbolt!"

Finally, the sort of tactic he'd expect from Tono Takuma. This lasted less than a second due to McCloud landing awkwardly on his feet, yet it caused Floatzel to lose control of herself and crash down hard. Before Tono or anyone could even respond, a second Thunderbolt was out. And this one cinched it.

"Floatzel can't continue."

The audience not only roared its approval, but started chanting ‘To-no! To-no!’ Even Yuki was getting in on it, before nudging him.

"Do you think he can do it, Nori?" he asked.

Nori gave his realist answer. "I don't know..."

Radovan still had his Typhlosion (assuming the poster was accurate) and whatever else, completely fresh. The fighting was taking its toll on McCloud. Even worse, Tono was hesitating. He was making the right moves, yet he was simply too slow about it most of the time. Even McCloud seemed to realize at the end there.

"Ya all settled down?" Radovan asked the crowd as they were quieting, to which they booed. "Sure. 'bout to crush da hero ya love."

And with the Pokemon he sent out, he silenced everyone. What appeared looked much like the Demon, only bipedal, purpler, and not quite as monstrous. Tono's eyes stretched wide in horror.

"That damn Nidoking..." Tono cursed, turning his expression into a scowl. "But we're ready."

Radovan poo-pooed this. "See dat Ring Target ya got dere, but t'ink ya can use it?"

"I don't just think. I know! And we will defeat you!"

Volkner nodded, and waved his hands to signal the restart of the battle. And the massive struggle Tono was about to endure.

---​

Unfortunately, the outcome was never in question. The match that ensued brought out the best in Tono, and the worst in Radovan. He did manage to get that Ring Target stuck onto the chunky teen's original starter. McCloud hit the Nidoking with Thunderbolts, paralyzed it, even got off several effective Hidden Powers.

But for everything he did, Radovan had something of his own. Earth Power, Sludge Bomb, even Blizzard and Fire Blast at long range. He could come in close with Drill Run or Megahorn, could use Mega Punch, and all sorts of other moves.

"Got once chance to give up," threatened Radovan as the match appeared to be nearing its conclusion.

Radovan didn't have to put it that way, yet everyone could tell the battle was all but formally over. Nidoking was weakening, yet McCloud was running on pure adrenaline. Even if they pulled a miraculous victory here, there was no way he was defeating Typhlosion.

Tono looked at him as if he were an idiot. "McCloud, Hidden Power, full force."

"Wrong answer. Submission!"

The spiky Pokemon powered through the energy balls, taking the full brunt of them. He was beginning to struggle, yet the moment the Nidoking got hold of the electric fox, it was the end.

"Thunderbolt! You can do it!"

"Land into an Earthquake!"

And there it was. Nidoking turned his spinning takedown into a ground-shaking slam. The electricity did nothing to stop this once he was in motion. There was a sickening crunch as he drove McCloud tail-first into the ground.

"Oh..." Even Radovan cringed. "Shit."

"No! You bastard! McCloud! McCloud!!" Tono rushed to check on his Pokemon. Out cold, and that fracture was now definitely a full break. "No, no! I'm sorry! Please! Please be okay!" He cradled his Pokemon in his arms, desperately looking for a sign from it. Yet there was nothing. He hugged his Pokemon tight, crying into its body. "McCloud, please be okay..." he beseeched, to no response.

Volkner glared, at both the winner and at Tono. He raised his arm and - seemingly like he wanted to mutter - called out. "The battle's over. Radovan wins."

"T'ank you, t'ank you all," Radovan said amidst the shocked silence. "Told ya, Tono T. Jus' better den you, always have been. Ya know?" This got a few people to boo, although most remained too fixated on Tono to react to his arrogance. Even Nori wasn't sure what to think. It was an accident, and Tono knew the risk, but...

"I can't believe this..." Yuki murmured beside him. "Tono lost all three battles. Really badly."

"I know..." Nori couldn't help but feel sympathy for the Gym Trainer. No matter what he'd said or did to him in the past, no one deserved to be humiliated this way. He hadn't been able to take his eyes off them, fearing the worst. It seemed McCloud was still breathing, but...

Volkner took in a deep breath, sighing. "That wraps up our battling for today."

"If I may say a few words, Volkner?" Tono asked as he recalled McCloud. From his reaction, it seemed at least the worst hadn't happened. And yet...

After a moment's thought, the man reluctantly agreed. "Go ahead."

Nori held his breath as Tono dragged towards the center of the room. What could he have to say? He spared a glance to Radovan. The bully wore a predatory grin on his lips. The boy had a bad feeling, and yet sat wondering. What could he do here?

"Today was all about me," Tono started. "This was supposed to be my magnum opus, the best day of my life. Instead, it turned into one of the worst."

"Yeah, yeah," Radovan interrupted and waved it off. "Haruna O, Nori C, get on up here."

While Haruna did so without question, Nori looked to Volkner. The Gym Leader simply shrugged and mouthed ‘your call.’ So he gave it thought. They were just going to rub it in more. He didn't want to be a part of it, not after McCloud got even more hurt. But maybe...he could make a stronger statement if he accepted?

As he was moving to stand, Yuki grabbed at him. "Nori, don't..."

"It'll be fine," he assured as he pulled away. "I'm...going to encourage him." Yuki blinked, and nodded. The strawberry blond boy put his other arm around him in sort of a hug, leaning in close.

"Okay. Good luck," he whispered with approval, sending Nori on his way. The boy lightly smiled at this.

He stood off to the side, away from the other two, as he went over what he wanted to say in his head one last time. He'd been thinking about what to say to Tono after the battle for a while, and well, may as well say it in front of everyone. It might be his chance to set things as right as they could be.

Radovan started into a spiel. "Tono T, gotta tell ya somedin'. I was lookin' forward to dis much as you was, even before dat challenge. Den you gimme like nothin'? You's pat'etic. All dis talk, couldn't back'a word up."

The crowd unleashed visceral hatred on him. Tono clenched his fists and sneered. He took a step forward, only to take a deep breath and hold it in. Radovan stepped back and let Haruna speak.

"I have to say, I'm disappointed in you," she said. "I've enjoyed every one of our battles except the one today. And seeing what happened with McCloud after you wouldn't use him against me made me lose all respect for you."

While they couldn't disagree with that last point, the reaction here was equally negative. Haruna motioned.

Now it was his turn. Nori took a few hesitant steps forward. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Everyone held their breath, seeming to realize this was going to be different.

"Tono..." he sadly started. "I'm really not sure what to say to you here. I was hoping you'd lose every battle, but I can't say I'm happy with how it turned out. You don't deserve this. And I'm really sorry about what happened to McCloud. And to you. This was way too much, and those two weren't helping with that."

The other two didn't respond to his snip. Tono's gave him a blank stare, tears still in his eyes. He mouthed something to the effect of not needing pity. However, there was a difference: none of the crowd was booing him. There were actually some cheers of agreement.

"But as for your losses, well. I was thinking about them, and if it's all right to say my thoughts?" Tono remained still, but the lack of explicit denial got Nori to continue. "I think you spent so much time figuring out how to beat us, you forgot how to be you."

That was the recurring thread in all of his battles today. It was in different ways, yet it was blatant enough to stick out to Nori. That actually got Tono to snap to. He leaned in closer with a sorrowful frown, his attention drawn.

"Like against me, well. To sum it up since I'd need to think about it more, you took me too lightly and paid for it. Not to mention, you got too impatient. Against Haruna, you ended up losing your cool. It was really unlike you, you weren't fighting like you normally do. And against Radovan, well..." That was a lot of things.

"Yeah, I whooped your ass good, 'cause ya suck," the chunky teen cut in. Nori was about to tell him off, when Tono yelled a battle cry.

"I'll end you!" Finally having heard enough, Tono made a rush for Radovan. Nori stepped back to let him have at it, and even considered backing Tono up. But the Gym Trainer's charge was stopped by a screaming voice.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!!"

Kallisto Keravnos was on his feet. He stormed over to Tono's side, standing tall in front of his best friend. He crossed his arms.

"You three should be ashamed of yourselves!" he scolded. His tone was stern, yet calm. He pointed to Radovan first. "You! That was one of the most disgusting displays I've seen out of anyone in a battle. You're damn lucky Tono and I had an agreement to let him have you, because if I knew what you were really like? I'd make sure you NEVER made it to the Sinnoh League!"

The chunky teenager turned away, scratching at his stubble. He shrugged and shook his head.

"And you, Haruna! I thought you were better than this! You're taking your rivalry with Tono too far! There's absolutely no need for you to be saying things like that to him!"

She peered at the floor. Nori could hear her mumbling to herself under her breath.

"And Nori–"

No, he was NOT putting up with this! "What did I do?! I was trying to help Tono!"

"People can construe things differently from what you intend. There's a time and place for everything, and–"

"And you like talking too much! I wanted to say what I did to Tono in front of everyone before this jerk and you cut in!" He didn't even spare Radovan a glance. "And Tono was listening!"

"Nori, you're not listening."

"What's it to you? Everyone knows you hate me, and I hate you. And you've done way too much bad to me! So why should I listen to anything you have to say?"

And this shut Kallisto up. His arms went slack. He wasn't able to give an answer to that one. Even some of the crowd murmured in reluctant agreement. Knowing Kallisto, a retort was coming anyway.

"All right, enough of that for one day." Or maybe not, since Volkner cut in as mediator. "Settle down and take your seats."

With a thankful nod, Nori went back to the stands. Talk about no good deed going unpunished. He sat down with Yuki, who nodded at him with approval. For once, it seemed people were on his side about this, or at least not against him. Who knew, it was possible to sort of get one over on Kallisto?

"That was really nice," Yuki whispered.

"Thanks." He was wondering if it went well. "So?"

"Oh, um." Yuki turned away. "Well. Meet me in the halls, I guess?"

Nori nodded. "Use the left one, tell them I sent you." Whatever this was must be a big secret or something, so over there would probably be the best way. Might even be able to use the medical room, like old times.

Volkner stepped forth to address the audience, even with Tono and Kallisto still standing around looking lost or in deep thought respectively. "That was the Tono Takuma edition of exhibition day. Come back next time for a normal one."

Yeah, this was probably never happening again. All Nori could hope right now was that Tono could get over this. And he couldn't believe he was thinking that right now.

=========
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Spoiler: Notes

I always intended to gloss over Tono vs Radovan. Warwolf is yet another beta Pokemon - I tried to come up with a proper name for it like I did with Bloomitts, but after three hours of going in circles I just used the more identifiable one. Incidentally, I use them for variety, and most have a purpose behind their use. In Radovan's case here, it was to show he'd been to a region within Poke-Japan that wasn't Hoenn, Johto, Kanto, or Sinnoh.

 

[Daren]

I felt a sense of dread the instant McCloud came out. I knew it wasn't going to end well. That poor Jolteon. I'm curious if they talked (so to speak) about it or if Tono just sent him in.

Haruna and are not making themselves look good afterwards. There is indeed such a thing as a poor winner. Of course Tono isn't a good loser, either, but...lots of things about his nerd interests make me wonder if he was bullied a lot and ended up this way as a result. I already mentioned I don't necessarily believe Radovan's story.

Hopefully McCloud will recover and Tono can grow from this experience, in the same way Ollie's begun trying to improve (and I'd say Kallisto as well if more subtly than Ollie).

Well, good job making me feel sorry for Tono despite him being a smug jerk half the time.
In any case I doubt is Volkner is pleased with how his "Tona Takuma day" plan turned out. He probably wasn't expecting a popular trainer to lose three times in a row, get mocked, and for a Pokémon to be severely injured in front of the audience.

As for Yuki...well, hopefully nothing goes wrong.

 

[Welkamo]

He was beginning to dislike this teacher.

I've been disliking this teacher for a while.

He got As in Math, Language, and PE, and Bs in everything else. The highest B was Social Studies, and the lowest was Art.

Interesting.

Could they have gotten confused and marked him wrong in places?

Stupid Scantron.

"Oh yeah! I'm the man! You're the can! It takes a plan! It's raisin bran! I'm better than!" He twirled around and pointed at Eddie. "Yoooouuuuu!"

Ollie... Ollie this is disgusting.

Check it out, man! I passed ninth grade!" With this Ollie reared back his arm. With a snap, he extended it and contorted his fingers into a claw shape. "And Eddie FAILED!" He said the last word in a comically low yet enthusiastic tone.

"Idiot." Tono stood proudly. "Straight As, with honors. Twelfth grade awaits me."

"Same here," said Kallisto.

Oh now it's setting in my head how old everyone is... huh.

"In life, you're going to meet a lot of people. You're going to have to say bye to a lot of people too. This is especially going to hold true if you ever decide to go on a journey."

That is true, but Lux just vanished without a trace. That's not good.

Ollie, freaking Ollie was being sympathetic?

Ollie?!?!

"If you're so whiny and worried, why don't you just look him up and ask him, then?!"

Like on Instagram? Oh, he probably means the phone book.

"Dumbshit." Eddie flipped the bird. "I'm crackin' open the beer and workin' out. No one bother me." Everyone watched as he stomped off down the hallway.

Eddie, the drinking age in Japan is 20.

"Graduation money."

Wow!

The boy had seen a sports store off in the distance the few times he'd used the solar walkways, and decided he'd go there.

Put a "he" after "and".

"Tonsen Land? Used to watch the waves there, yeah. But I got fired last month." So it was that stupid Billy Ordride moron! Serves him right for not doing his job! "Anyhow, you lookin' for anythin'?"

Billy??!?!?!?!?!?!??!

"I'm looking for something that'd be faster than walking. A thing I can ride around on, or something. Uh," Nori raised his cast. "Ignoring this."

Em dashes would work better for the action interrupting the dialogue.

"A skateboard, I guess."

Great. From here on out, I'm imagining this story in the style of Captain N. Or that shark ripoff of TMNT. I don't know why.

...he couldn't even describe the graffitied mess of colors in a vague humanoid shape.

That better not be a swear word. It's probably not, but you can never be sure.

"Now if you're lookin' to be a regular Marty Mukuhawk, get the Columbary 8.125. It's the kind he rides."

Nori couldn't tell the difference, aside from the tires and the design.

I'm with Nori. I don't know what any of this means. I just like the ones with pretty colors.

"But if you want to dick-drag, er, street luge, you need somethin' longer."

WHAT?!??!?!

"Whatever, clucked Barney."

"What does that even mean?" Nori muttered under his breath. And wasn't that a dinosaur?

Barney the Dinosaur is canon to the Nori Carino universe. I'm not sure how to feel. Probably good, because this means the Halloween special exists.

He reached all the way up to grab something. After getting it down, he threw it at Nori. With a yelp, the boy tried to catch it, only managing to bat it aside. It rolled across the floor, coming to a stop at the opposite shelf.

Throwing a skateboard at a kid?!?! Geez, man.

"Oh, shit! I mean, crap!" He almost fell off the board as the manager appeared, glaring furiously at him. "I-I-I..." He threw his arms out, trying to play it cool and casual. "Mr. Manager, my man! I was just showing this little dude here–"

Fire him, Mr. Manager.

He didn't have enough left over for a helmet, but he didn't need to wear one. Technically.

Nori, please wear a helmet. Your poor head has suffered enough.

That's right, they rode too.

Just like the prologue.

They continued to yell, but made no effort to follow.

Put a "they" after "but". Maybe.

The two-storey building's secondary color was orange; which was on the sides and part of the roof.

A comma would be better than a semicolon, since the second part couldn't be its own sentence.

"The Blomgrens?" the man mused. "It used to be, but they moved a few days ago."

Uh oh

He shrugged. "Got us beat. They were a fixture in the neighborhood. They kept to themselves, though the parents' fights could be loud. Suddenly, they were moving and gone within a week. Don't even know where to. I think I heard it had something to do with the kid?"

Uh oh.

Nori crossed the road without even looking, walked over to a large tree, and curled down in front of it. He was no longer able to hold back his tears. He cried until it hurt.

Great now I feel sad. The empty, quiet "ouch" sort of sad.

 

[System Error]

Spoiler: Daren reply

I felt a sense of dread the instant McCloud came out. I knew it wasn't going to end well. That poor Jolteon. I'm curious if they talked (so to speak) about it or if Tono just sent him in.

From McCloud's reaction in the medical room and after being sent out, it can be inferred it was mutual.

Haruna and are not making themselves look good afterwards. There is indeed such a thing as a poor winner. Of course Tono isn't a good loser, either, but...lots of things about his nerd interests make me wonder if he was bullied a lot and ended up this way as a result. I already mentioned I don't necessarily believe Radovan's story.

The bullied can easily become the bullies later on in life. You don't even have to look very far on the internet to find those kinds of people. It's very much ambiguous, that said. Something to think about, as without a trip into the past, there's no clear answers. That said, regardless of what happened, Radovan was most certainly being an ass.

Hopefully McCloud will recover and Tono can grow from this experience, in the same way Ollie's begun trying to improve (and I'd say Kallisto as well if more subtly than Ollie).

Character development! He's most certainly going to change, you just don't walk away from an experience like this one/

Well, good job making me feel sorry for Tono despite him being a smug jerk half the time.
In any case I doubt is Volkner is pleased with how his "Tona Taluma day" plan turned out. He probably wasn't expecting a popular trainer to lose three times in a row, get mocked, and for a Pokémon to be severely injured in front of the audience.

Surprised you made no mention of Nori's own empathy. He very much felt that for the same reasons, and actually reached out to Tono. And it was going well, until Radovan and then Kallisto interrupted.

As for Yuki...well, hopefully nothing goes wrong.

It shall be seen.

Stupid Scantron.

Ollie... Ollie this is disgusting.

The song, or the dancing?

Oh now it's setting in my head how old everyone is... huh.

The rest of them are all high-schoolers, except Eddie.

Ollie?!?!

A surprising twist, the rudest Gym Trainer is the one most willing to help.

Like on Instagram? Oh, he probably means the phone book.

Indeed.

Eddie, the drinking age in Japan is 20.

I did mention underage drinking would be a thing. Mercifully for them, they all do so responsibly, apparently.

Great. From here on out, I'm imagining this story in the style of Captain N. Or that shark ripoff of TMNT. I don't know why.

Street Sharks?

That better not be a swear word. It's probably not, but you can never be sure.

There most certainly are swears on the bottom of some boards, but in this case I was more implying it was abstract art of some kind.

I'm with Nori. I don't know what any of this means. I just like the ones with pretty colors.

Marty Mukuhawk is of course a reference to Tony Hawk. His brand of boards is Birdhouse. Columbary is a synonym, and it uses a similar numbering scheme. In short, he's offering one that's good for stunting.

WHAT?!??!?!

Dick-dragging is a derogatory surfboard term for a bodyboarder, or anyone who lies down on their board while riding a wave. There's also the female version, the clam dragger. Less rudely, they can be called boogers.

Barney the Dinosaur is canon to the Nori Carino universe. I'm not sure how to feel. Probably good, because this means the Halloween special exists.

More surfer lingo being thrown in here - Barney meaning uncool - and since that's probably where the term came from...

Throwing a skateboard at a kid?!?! Geez, man.

Probably not directly at him, at least.

Nori, please wear a helmet. Your poor head has suffered enough.

He is kind of a reckless kid sometimes...

Great now I feel sad. The empty, quiet "ouch" sort of sad.

And the brutal stab in the heart.

 

[Juliko]

Chapter 41 review: A full-on battle chapter. Interesting. But not much to say on this one, but man, Tono lost to Haruna again. I'm almost starting to feel sorry for the guy.

 

[Welkamo]

The song, or the dancing?

Yes.

Street Sharks?

That’s what it was called!

 

[System Error]

Chapter 41 review: A full-on battle chapter. Interesting. But not much to say on this one, but man, Tono lost to Haruna again. I'm almost starting to feel sorry for the guy.

Almost! Heh. But yeah, on the chapter's content: in accord to the notes, this is more of a companion to the next one. Like a cut scene in a director's cut. Kind of the consequence of how I write the months. Also see the battle not having an outro - although I gave it a little intro. But yup, 0-2. He is not having a very good day...

 

[System Error]

May of Ordinance (seventh part)
May 20th, 2015​

As the Gym Leader was about to give some final words, Kallisto abruptly spoke up once more. "Volkner, wait. Can I say something?"

The Gym Leader crossed his arms. "Is it about Nori, or Tono?"

"Both, sort of, and I promise, it's important."

Volkner narrowed his gaze. "You're going to find a way to say this in public anyway, aren't you?"

"Yes," was the quick and honest reply, which made the man sigh.

Nori was right on his feet. "Volkner, is this a good idea?!" Before the Gym Trainer could say anything, Kallisto started talking.

"Nori, I'm sorry." And that almost made the boy trip. Kallisto, publicly apologizing to him? Did he stumble through the wrong door this morning? "I know you were only trying to encourage Tono, and I shouldn't have called you out for it. I'm not afraid to admit I'm wrong."

Kallisto paced. "So I'll admit in front of everyone here, there were some things I wasn't entirely honest about earlier this month. We did chase after you during the typhoon. Yes, I should've left you alone. And yes, I panicked and worried more about us instead of trying to save you from drowning when you slipped and fell - and yes, I'm admitting I saw that with my own eyes, just as you said. I'm relieved you're okay, because I wouldn't want that on my soul."

Nori was downright stunned. Kallisto was confessing? He was admitting to all of his wrongdoing?! What happened? Did he have a sudden change of heart?

"And yes. I have been meddling in your life more than I should've been. I've been trying to control your relationships, in particular. I was only trying to look out for you, but I should've taken the hint that you didn't want me to. And for that, I cannot apologize enough." He bowed and pressed his hands together.

The audience had been unsure what to think. With this, however, they started to clap. Nori heard more than a couple remarks on his courageousness in coming clean.

"See?" Kallisto looked up with a warm smile. "They understand. I made honest mistakes, Nori. Mistakes are how we learn and grow as human beings. I should've let you make your own." Well, yes. He was finally realizing it after forever. "There was also one more thing I was wrong about, and that's my biggest regret. I'd like to make a public apology because of it, right here."

Nori was starting to get annoyed. "Well? Get to it!" Why was he drawing this out? Wait, was he actually going to talk about how he broke his arm?! That was way worse than anything he'd done, legally speaking.

Kallisto closed his eyes. "Just let me collect my thoughts first. This is difficult for me to say." He took a deep, thoughtful breath.

Was this it? Was Kallisto finally going to take responsibility for everything? If he did that, and accepted whatever came from admitting to assault...Nori might be able to forgive him. He leaned in, waiting with baited breath.

"The worst thing I've done. And biggest thing I've been wrong about these past few months..." Kallisto inhaled once more, wincing as he held the air in his lungs.

This had to be hard. He was confessing to a crime. In front of so many people. There was no way they were going to sweep that one under the rug. He was going to get community service hours at best. Prison time at worst.

Kallisto sharply exhaled. He stood and looked Nori square in the eye. "...I was wrong about you, Nori," came his cold statement.

"What?" the boy asked. "What do you mean, you were wrong about me?!"

"I've seen you at both your highest points and your lowest points. And when you're good, you're really good! You're kind, compassionate, have a strong sense of justice, and are willing to reason. But when you're bad, and you're bad most of the time, especially as of late..."

Nori could only listen in horror. He wanted to say something, yet only gurgles and squeaks emerged from his vocal chords. He wanted to act, yet his body would not listen. The most he could do was turn to Volkner and beg for help with his expression. Yet even the Gym Leader had locked up.

Kallisto's rant continued unimpeded. "You're stubborn, childish, rude, tactless, disrespectful, and rash. You go against the grain, far too much. You let anger control you. It's fine to get angry, but you're letting it run your life." He suddenly sneered, and it was terrifying. Unmasked self-superiority coupled with wintry dispassion. The head Gym Trainer stood powerfully, as if floating and ready to rain down his wrath. "Most of all, you're the kind of person who refuses to let things go."

The audience was too quiet. There was some scattered whispering, but they otherwise were listening intently to their idol's harsh, zealous words. Those whose eyes weren't upon Kallisto were on Nori, all either leering or filled with disappointment.

"I thought you were a misguided person who just needed a nudge in the right direction, someone to keep you on the straight and narrow. I thought you could grow to rival even me someday." Kallisto slowly shook his head. "But I was wrong."

Finally, Nori was able to acr. "What's your problem!?" he screamed, marching right up to Kallisto and staring him down.

"My problem is you!" he yelled, not backing down. "I've been making every effort to connect with you. I've been trying to make amends for wronging you, and you've spit in my face every time! You want revenge, don't you? You're thinking about how you can get back at me, and that's when you'll call it even, aren't you? That's a horrible mentality to have! If the Officials knew–"

"Kallisto, that's enough!" Volkner barked.

The head Gym Trainer stepped away. He took another deep breath, gritting his teeth as he exhaled. "I denounce you, Nori Carino," he continued anyway.

"W-what...?" Nori squeaked. Did Kallisto just...

"I said that's enough!"

"Shape up," Kallisto ordered as he turned on his heels. "For your own sake."

He left, and his friends awkwardly hurried to follow. Nori turned to Volkner, whose anger quickly gave way to a blank stare. And then he looked at the crowd.

There were no words to describe the feeling he got on sight of the sea of daggers that was their eyes.

---​

Kallisto marched through the hallways of Sunyshore Gym. He had rarely felt anger in his life. He always found it difficult to control after it started, so he tried to avoid it. Some people considered him all-loving because of this, which he wouldn't consider inaccurate. But this time, he couldn't help himself.

What was Nori's problem?! He kept pushing and pushing, no matter what. He said what he was doing was encouragement, and although he outwardly accepted that, Kallisto didn't doubt it was his way of talking down to Tono.

"Holy fuck," Eddie wheezed. His friends were tailing. "Just...what the fuck, man?"

Kallisto raised a hand. "Enough, Hankstein. I don't want to talk about this."

"Is this what you would've done if I...?" Ollie hesitantly asked.

"Not even you went this far."

"Kallisto, I feel you are going too far," Tono said.

"Go get McCloud looked at already." Why was he even worried about Nori? He crossed his arms as his best friend sulked off. "If I don't do this, someone else will. And he won't like it. If he doesn't change, it's going to get him fired, killed, or even worse someday. Either he gives up or gives in. Whichever way works."

He was shutting this down here and now. He had to do this, even if he hated it. It was going to get bad for Nori. Kallisto knew even him giving a lecture to someone could damage their reputation, so he had no doubt he'd just made Nori persona non grata just about everywhere. But it'd be far worse later on if he hadn't done this.

This was the only way to get him the message that he needed to change. And yet at this point? He wouldn't care if Nori didn't listen.

---​

As the dust settled, Nori immediately went to the stairwell area. He wanted...no, he needed to talk to a friend right now. Forget the consequences. He sat on the stairs leading down to the maintenance room, alone. He knew if he brought out either of his Pokemon, he might not be able to stop them. Or might not want to.

Whenever he heard footsteps, he would poke his head out to see if it was Yuki. For a long while, Nori thought he was going to get stood up. Yet after five minutes, he finally did appear.

"Yuki!" Nori said, motioning for him to come sit with him. This wasn't what he had in mind, but it'd be even more quiet down here.

The strawberry blond peered down into the stairwell, and shook his head. That was fine, he thought. Nori got up and stood beside him.

"I can't believe Kallisto said those things..." he said, not hiding his dread. Things were bad enough after the ceremony earlier in the month. How were people going to react now that Kallisto had actually publicly spoken out against him?!

Yuki hummed uncomfortably. It told Nori that he didn't want to talk about this any more than he did.

"But, enough about him. So what did you want to talk about?" he asked. May as well forget about this subject. "Now that the day's over?"

"Well, Nori. I..." Yuki suddenly froze, eyes going as wide as Voltorbs. "Never mind."

"Huh?"

"Well, maybe tomorrow. See you." Yuki abruptly hurried away. Nori instantly feared the worst.

"Wait!" After a few moments of getting over the shock, he tried to follow into the lobby. Yuki had already made it out, but he spotted Radovan and Haruna in conversation. He approached them, only to be met with hostile glares.

"What?!"

"Ya didn't have to piss Kallisto K off dat much."

"You pissed him off too!"

"Hey!" Radovan put his hands out. "Know I did wrong today. Ain't like dat. Ya dig?"

"Dumbass!" He turned to Haruna. "What about you?"

"Pft." She waved a hand. "I don't know what you did to make him hate you. Don't even get why you hate him that bad."

"What do you mean? Don't you hate him too?"

"As a rival," she corrected. "Kallisto's a great guy and a bit of a goody two shoes, and I hate that. But if he doesn't like you, that's a different story. Know there's more to this. Can't say what you did, but it says a lot."

Nori stormed away, not wanting to hear any more of this. He went straight to the back to talk with Volkner. Who was in fact, waiting for him.

"I can't believe him!" Nori vented.

"Yes."

"This is stupid! Are people going to hate me just because he does?!" He never even thought Kallisto would ever do this to him, especially with all he'd said in the past! "What can we do about it?!"

"We'll play it by ear."

Volkner said this, and it was all they could do at this point. But he had no idea what to expect, nor what anyone could do about any of it.

##########​

May 21st, 2015​

Nori was prepared for a hostile reception the next day. Kallisto had verbally berated him in front of a crowd of several hundred people. No doubt that word had spread all over Sunyshore, if not across Sinnoh.

He was not prepared for the magnitude of it.

The moment he walked through the doors, the air in the entire building changed. Heads turned, mouths closed, and eyes either fell upon him or shifted away. There was no such thing as a universal opinion; at least, that's what Nori had thought. It was as though the school was united in wanting nothing to do with him - at best.

His first class went poorly. He sat in the far right corner, yet that was a front row seat to seeing his peers glare back at him and whisper rumors. Some did it right in front of the teacher when called on to answer a question, and the teacher did nothing about it. Were even the staff against him, he wondered?

Nori had been anticipating lunch, where he would be able to hang out and talk to Arumi and Yuki. After what he had seen, he steeled himself for what he thought would be the worst.

It turned out to be far worse than he imagined.

He could tell something was amiss when he saw the rest of the club gathered outside the video production room. They had evidently been waiting for him to show up.

"Nori Carino," Gino was the first to address him. His tone was professional, but Nori could still tell he was not going to like the next words that came out of his mouth. "We had to make a difficult decision."

"You're throwing me out of the club, aren't you?" he bitterly spat.

Gino gravely nodded. "We shouldn't have to explain why."

"Yes, you should explain why you have your heads so far up Kallisto's ass that you're taking his side over mine."

In reply, they deferred to Arumi. "I'm sorry..." she whispered, shrinking back under his harsh gaze.

"Even you?!"

"No!" she insisted. "I was outvoted. I'm so sorry!" She wavered as she attempted to speak. With a glower towards the others, she snapped, "You tell him!" before going inside and slamming the door behind her.

That was a relief, and disproved one of the reasons the other senior members didn't like her. Ignorant or uncaring about it, Beau rolled her eyes at the display. "Then I shall say it to you."

"Yeah, yeah," Nori waved off, not in the mood to hear it. "You're just going to tell me all the ways I suck? Well, you're the ones who suck!"

"Hey..." Yuki peered up at him with a frown.

Nori flashed a warm smile. "Besides you and Arumi. But the rest of you–"

"Wait," sniffed Yuki, shuffling forth. He lowered his head, shedding a pair of tears. "Nori...I wanted to believe in you. I thought you and Kallisto just didn't get along because you thought differently from each other."

Nori lightly gasped. "No, no. Yuki, please. Please don't tell me you..." This couldn't be happening.

"But if Kallisto's saying those things about you, I...I think..." He closed his eyes tight and shook his head. He snapped up to look him in the eyes, cringing as he spoke. "I think there's a reason for it. Only a...a...a bad person would make him mad enough to say those things."

"Yuki...why?" Nori's voice quivered as he started to tear up.

"And to think I liked you! That I wanted you to...to be my...ugh! You jerk!"

Without warning, Yuki made to slap him, like a girl hitting a pervert. On instinct, Nori caught and twisted his wrist. The strawberry blond boy cried out in pain. Nori let go in shock, causing Yuki stumble back as he pulled away in the same motion. Gino and Lorant were right there to catch him before he fell over.

"Why do you have to be like this, Nori?!" Yuki cried.

"I'm just being me!" he countered.

"I guess so..." the strawberry blond boy mused. "The real you is..." He suddenly slumped and turned away with a peculiar sorrow. He saw him mouth, "Sorry."

The real him. Nori would be the first to admit, he could be prickly at times. He was acutely aware it was part of why it was hard for him to make friends. Maybe he had some personality flaws, but Kallisto was exaggerating or saying subjective things were fact. Besides, did Yuki really think all the kindness he'd seen was a facade? That side was the real...

Lorant pointed down the hall. "Get out."

Beau agreed, as did Gino. Yuki did not do so, but his silence was his answer as far as Nori was concerned. "Leave, and do not return."

"Fine!" he snapped. "I was planning on that anyway!" He gave them the finger and stomped away.

"Nori..." he thought he heard Yuki's voice cry out to him, but he said nothing else. It quickly faded into the background ambiance, in any case.

What the hell just happened?! And here he thought Yuki was going to be a good friend who'd stick with him thick and thin! But no, he was just like the rest of them! Whatever he said was probably just going to be more insults, anyway! He hoped every last one of them got what was coming to them for betraying him like this!

---​

As the hours went by, Nori's anger gave way to anguish.

Unlike many of his peers, he never asked for much from life. All he needed was food, shelter, and an education. He had few wants. He wanted to be himself, he wanted to make a difference in the world, and he wanted to have friends. Yet he had none, again.

Why wasn't he allowed to have friends?! They were so hard to make, yet life had it out for him when it came to keeping them! Every single one had been taken from him so far. Lux's parents moved, Betsy-Ann was forced away, Arumi was too afraid to support him, and Yuki turned on him. Why did Yuki have to be that way?!

And it wasn't just the ones here. There was Claris Willins, who he said some horrible things to about journeying and he never could apologize to. Sure, that one was all his fault, but still! He had a brief friend in that Prema Kannagi who didn't live in Veilstone. Numerous missed opportunities. He wouldn't be surprised if his came home to find Maylene and Rashid didn't want anything to do with him anymore! He found it so hard to make friends, that he always cherished the ones he did make. Yet they kept getting taken from him!

"Aw, is the softy cryin' his eyes out?" came a familiar voice.

Spike Caras. He could've been a friend too. Maybe. He chose helping Lux over helping Spike harass him, and even now, he didn't regret that.

He slowly turned to face the bully. There was a small crowd starting to gather. And a teacher watching.

"Spike." Nori lowly threatened. "I am not in the mood."

"That a threat?" Spike shoved him. Nori completely kept his footing, and stepped forward. "Ain't scared'a you."

"Spike," he repeated. "I am warning you. Back off before you get hurt."

"Oh yeah? Whatcha gonna do? Throw dirt in my face? Hit me with a cast? Kick me in the balls?" He pushed him again. "Little bitch, can't fight head-on."

Nori eyed the teacher. He was just watching this unfold. He probably wasn't going to do anything until he fought back. "Cut it out. I've had enough–"

The boy saw Spike's arm thrusting forward. He got his guard up to cover his face, only to be hit in the stomach instead. He coughed, winded from the blow. "Little bitch!" Spike taunted as he was clutching his gut. "Ain't so tough now, ain't ya?" He punctuated this with a jab to the eye. He flashed a sick grin and wound up for a sharp right hook.

Before he could swing, Nori ducked and lunged for the bully, tackling him to the ground. The boy unloaded on him with a flurry of punches. He heard the shout of an adult over the cheers of kids and teenagers, but paid the teacher no heed, continuing to pummel away until he was physically yanked off by some more students.

Spike coughed as he was helped to his feet by more of their peers. "You're lucky, I woulda–"

Nori broke free. The bully's eyes stretched wide as he drove his elbow directly into his cheek. In an instant, Spike was spitting up teeth and blood.

"Fucker! Mother...fu–" He sobbed violently. "Hurts...shit! This fuckin' hurts!"

"Enough of this!" the teacher stepped in. "Spike Caras, all you all right?!"

"No! This hurts. Mooooom!" Reduced to a crying mess, like one of his victims. Nori had a feeling he wouldn't be getting any trouble from this wannabe bully ever again.

The boy clutched at his own head. Throbbing, likely a black eye. But the teacher showed him none of the same concern.

The teacher angrily pointed. "Go to the principal's office, young man!"

"What about him, he–"

"RIGHT NOW!"

"School's out, you're not the boss of me!"

The teacher grabbed him, but Nori pulled free in one motion and ran away, right across the road. He heard honking behind him as vehicles unwittingly blocked any pursuers. He wasn't going to stick around and get lectured for defending himself! Especially when that stupid teacher did nothing when Spike attacked him!

All of this was Kallisto's fault! He checked over his shoulder to look for anyone following, before getting out and assembling his skateboard. He was going to tell that jerk exactly what he thought of him, as soon as he got back!

---​

"Where is he?!"

Nori stormed into the Gym, demanding answers. When no one answered after three seconds, he started moving. Unnerved Gym goers and staff alike parted to make way for him. He went down the left hall, running into Mr. Kubo. He leered at the janitor, who nervously pointed to the arena door. With an appreciative nod and, "Thank you," Nori shoved inside.

"You!"

Sure enough, there he was. Kallisto did not look surprised or intimidated in the slightest, meeting Nori's fiery rage with cold emptiness.

"You did this!"

Kallisto crossed his arms. "I didn't do anything."

His irreverent denial completely set Nori off. He started screaming, unsure of what he was even saying. It may have well been nonsense or profanities, but given Kallisto was replying, maybe they were thoughts and phrases. Whatever the case, he was brought out of it by the sudden appearance of Volkner.

"Nori," the Gym Leader called out from the far end.

"What?!"

"Come with me."

The boy looked to Kallisto, who remained impassive. He eyed the others. Eddie was biting his lip, Ollie was glaring, and Tono wasn't even paying attention - he was wearing headphones plugged into his cell phone.

"Ugh!" Throwing up his arms in frustration, the boy decided it was best if he listened to Volkner. The Gym Leader led him to the back room. "Why'd you do that?!" he complained along the way.

The Gym Leader halted. "Nori. Don't let yourself be provoked. You're bad at that."

The boy was about to protest further on instinct, when it sunk in. Was Kallisto just letting him make himself look bad? Was he trying to goad him by being calm and disinterested? Sure, there's things like fighting back against Spike, but maybe he could've confronted Kallisto with a bit more tact...

"For now, calm down, step back, and assess."

"But I–"

"Stay here and cool off. I'll handle this."

Nori took a deep breath. If Volkner was offering...he'd take that. Maybe the Gym Leader could do something about this. He entered the garage area, leaving his mentor to confront Kallisto. Long overdue, he thought. Yet better late than never.

---​

Kallisto and his friends were relaxing in the Gym's arena. The life of a Gym Trainer could be dull. You had plenty of free time, yet you always had to be ready for the possibility of a challenger, so you never wanted to do anything too engaging lest you be interrupted. So in between, you had to do things that were easy to pick up and put down. It limited your hobbies, in other words.

After dismissing talking about what happened, the head Gym Trainer had decided to join Ollie for some exercise, alongside Eddie. Funny, he thought. Several months ago, Ollie would always balk whenever Volkner ran the beep test. Now here he was working out of his own volition. Ollie wanted to do the test again to see how far he'd come. The rest of them were interested as well, though Kallisto sincerely doubted Volkner was going to run it anymore.

"Hey."

Speaking of whom. He had come back from his chat with Nori. Hopefully, a harsh scolding.

"Kallisto," Volkner sternly said. "We need to talk. Privately."

The three runners slowed to a stop. Tono looked up from his mobile game. All eyes fell upon him. Why would he need to speak with him? With a reluctant sigh, Kallisto moved to follow. Volkner guided him upstairs into the trainer's lounge.

The Gym Leader turned to address an Elekid and a Magnemite in the halls. "You two," he told them. "Stay by the doors, don't let anyone by until we come out."

The Elekid saluted, and the Magnemite silently floated over to do so.

"Volkner," the head Gym Trainer asked before they stepped inside. "What's going on here?"

He waited until the door was shut and they were standing in the center of the room before addressing him. "Kallisto. Are you trying to ruin Nori's life?"

He crossed his arms, not in the mood to talk about that. "I ruined nothing. People saw something, several things in fact, and are judging for themselves."

"Cut the semantics," the Gym Leader barked. "One way or another, you were responsible for this."

Kallisto had vaguely heard about what happened, between the rumor mill and Nori's inane babbling. He couldn't say he was surprised. "One way or another, he's throwing a fit about it instead of trying to reflect and improve himself in any way."

That was the most frustrating part about this. He'd seen his friends, Volkner over the years, and even he had thrown a fit or two in his time. Yet in all of those cases, they either apologized, dropped it, or changed for the better. Not Nori. Not yet, at least.

Volkner sneered. "What's your problem lately? Nori's done nothing to warrant this."

"There's a lot he needs to learn about the world and how it works. Believe me, it hurts me seeing what's happening just as bad." It was painfully ironic too, given how otherwise mature he was for a twelve-year-old. After a moment, Kallisto decided to add, "But I wouldn't have to if you'd done your job right in the first place."

"Don't make me fire you," was the instant reply.

"You really don't want to do that," Kallisto threatened right back. He paused. He had to calm down here. He couldn't believe he actually said that. "That was out of line. I'm sorry."

Volkner's expression remained unchanged. "I'm giving you a stern warning. No more of this feuding."

"Is that going to go both ways?" he queried. The Gym Leader had been taking Nori's side too often as of late.

"I'll tell him, yes."

With this, Volkner left. Kallisto waited around thirty seconds before he did the same. He was only dignifying this because Volkner was his boss. But if Nori still wouldn't learn, there were going to be consequences. Cruel as he was being to the young official in-training here, it was to be kind. Nori was inevitably going to anger the wrong person some day. And they would not be as compassionate as him. It was going to be no one's fault, the cause of no one but Nori himself.

---​

Nori laid down in the hallway as he waited for Volkner to return, simply relaxing with Pachi. He had sent the Demon out to do the same, though she opted to rant to Volkner's Pokemon and use some of the Gym Leader's personal training equipment in one of the side-rooms.

He was actually close to dozing off when the door opened. He sat up against the wall, holding the electric squirrel like a plush toy. The Gym Leader rounded the corner with a forlorn expression. Volkner shook his head as he caught sight of him.

"He wasn't hearing it."

"No...why? Why?" He squeezed Pachi tight. Why did Kallisto not feel any guilt?! Why did his life have to be this way?!

Volkner walked over. "The officials don't care. You're still in this. Remember that."

"What's the point if everyone hates me?!" the boy cried.

"The Pokemon?" No, that didn't help! The man scratched his cheek. "Sorry. But, not everyone does. I don't."

That was...maybe the only thing keeping him going at this point. He still had someone supporting him, someone to open up to. Someone who cared, rather than having to vent to anyone who might listen like he'd had to in the past. But how long was all this going to go on? Nori was fearful, and not only for himself.

"Aren't you worried about yourself? Arumi's afraid to even associate–"

The Gym Leader's reply was plain and simple. "It'll be worse if I give up, for not doing my job. I lose either way, so I'm doing what I want."

What he wants. And he loses either way. So he's sort of being spiteful? That was...that was good to know. Volkner wasn't planning on going back on his word. The Gym Leader was going to do his best to see him through this. And yet...saying that and being able to do so were two different things.

Nori was able to get to his feet. "Why is it like this?" he quietly asked.

"You'll find few people who don't love Kallisto. And few people Kallisto doesn't love," the blond man explained. "Anyone he doesn't, people assume the worst about them."

"Anyone?" He picked up on that, right? He wasn't just talking in the hypothetical. "You mean, there's other people?!"

Volkner was caught off guard. He looked away and quickly answered. "...Ollie, in the past."

Nori opened his mouth to demand answers. Yet he ended up saying, "I sort of got that impression."

A lot of things about that added up. What Arumi had mentioned about him being far worse than he was today, some of the things Ollie had said, how the others treated him, even his recent quest for self-improvement. He could see Kallisto calling the pudgy teen out over something.

"It was more a stern talking to in public, but it had the same effect," the Gym Leader elaborated. "Ollie quickly changed, for the better in his case."

"But I'm not wrong!" Nori was absolutely sure about this. "Kallisto ruined my life, and he thinks he's right!"

"I can try to get you reassigned, if things get too bad here." Nori was hoping it would never come to that. "But we'll take things day by day. Until then, it might be best to avoid contact with him."

"Yeah..." Nori conceded. "Especially if he was provoking me today."

Pachi nodded in agreement. He also noticed the Demon had poked her head out, and after a nod of acknowledgment, went back to her workout. This sort of made sense. Maybe Kallisto was simply letting him dig his own grave. Maybe the best way was not to bother with Kallisto anymore. As best he could, anyway.

"So what happened after school?" the Gym Leader suddenly asked.

"Oh." He should've figured Volkner would get a phone call. He explained it simply. "There's this dumb incompetent bully, Spike, who hated me ever since I stood up to him for my friend, Lux. He tried to pick a fight after school, right in front of a teacher. They didn't do anything until I fought back. I hurt him pretty bad, too."

Volkner scoffed. "Typical."

"I just left since I knew they were going to suspend me anyway."

"For the rest of the month," Volkner stated. In a simple matter-of-fact tone, maybe a little dismissive.

Nori tilted his head. "You're not mad at me?"

Volkner shrugged. "You probably should've stayed, maybe it would've been for less." He chuckled slightly. "But I don't blame you. Would've done the same at your age."

Nori nodded, finally finding it in himself to smile for the first time today, even if only vaguely. He was more like his mentor than either of them thought. "I think I needed some time away from school anyway. But I'm going to have a lot of work to catch up on..."

"You'll manage." The Gym Leader patted him on the back. "We'll use the time to push your other training."

Pachi squeaked in agreement and hopped to the floor, eager to get started. He chirped out a sentence while grinning. Nori swore he heard the rhythm of his enemy's name in there at the start.

"Kallisto?" he asked, guessing on the second half. "You don't like him?"

The little squirrel devilishly flashed his front teeth and nodded. Volkner laughed heartily at this. Nori smiled genuinely. They were all willing to fight for him. Maybe with their support, he could come out the other side of this. And it was a pipe dream, but maybe there was some way to get back at Kallisto after all, no matter how futile it seemed. He just wanted to see the head Gym Trainer get what he deserved.

##########​

May 24th, 2015​

Nori generally kept to his room or the back for the first few days after the incident. Outside of Volkner and the Pokemon, he barely spoke with anyone else. He especially distanced himself from the Gym Trainers, as planned. They similarly didn't want anything to do with him, or were giving him his space. Which helped.

But on the evening of the 24th, there was something that was unavoidable. The boy opened the door to the trainer's lounge, only to find Kallisto and Tono inside. He immediately turned around and left for his room. He fired a lethal glare behind him as he heard the door open, unchanging when he saw it was Tono.

"What do you want?!" he barked to the nerd. Pachi angrily squeaked as well.

I shall keep this brief," came the reply, as they kept walking. "Well done on your victory."

Nori slowed, but he didn't stop. This was too convenient. "Thank you," was his tentative reply, but he knew something else was coming.

But no, that was all Tono had to say. Just simple congratulations. This only made Nori worry more. Was this Tono acknowledging his victory in retrospect like Eddie did? Or had Kallisto made him change his tune?

As Tono turned to leave, another thing came to mind. "How's McCloud?" he stopped and asked. Truth be told, Nori was wondering and worried about the Jolteon.

"He is looking at up to two and a half months to heal," the glasses-wearing teen replied while walking away. "But he will eventually make a full recovery."

Nori nodded. "That's a relief..."

Tono paused and spun back around. He gave a frank look. "Nori Carino. Loathe as I am to admit, you have your own special brand of talent. Do not waste it."

There it sort of was? Actually, it felt more like a compliment and plea. "Are you fine with what's going on?" he demanded.

"As his friend, I support Kallisto," came the simple reply. With that, Tono got on his way.

Those were his words. But his sorrowed expression and his reluctant tone both ran counter to them. The possibilities spelled themselves out.

Nori closed his eyes and thought. Tono really was a loyal friend to Kallisto. The head Gym Trainer was stupidly lucky to have someone like him. What Nori would give for that. For a while, he thought Lux would be that person. Or maybe Claris in the past. He was never as close to Maylene or Rashid like he was to either of them. Yet both of those friends were gone, and Nori figured he'd be lucky to still have the other two.

On a different note, there was something else on his mind in regards to the Gym Trainers. Particularly, remembering some of the things they'd done for him at his low points. Though he supposed it was nothing worth stressing over. In multiple ways.

##########​

May 31st, 2015​

All Nori was able to do for the rest of the month was train and work on his Official lessons. He didn't mind for the first few days, but it quickly became painfully lonely. Even the staff at the Gym didn't want anything to do with him. Some turned away or left whenever he entered the room, or even pretended he didn't exist. Others were more confrontational. It got so bad that Volkner called a staff meeting to discuss professional conduct.

On the final day of the month, Nori kept to upstairs. He briefly went out onto the balconies. There were the maintenance crews, slacking off again. They made clear they weren't going to listen to him anymore, not after what Kallisto had said about him.

At around 3pm, he was sitting in his room studying, when there was a knock. "Mail for you," came the voice of Mrs. Stetcher, who slipped it under the door.

The head receptionist was the only person in the Gym who hadn't been treating him like human garbage since the 20th. Yet she had been keeping her interactions with him strictly professional. Another who didn't want to associate out of concern for themselves, most likely.

Pachi fetched the letter and brought over. It was addressed to him, but had no return address. Could it be from his mom? Perhaps Betsy-Ann? Maybe...just maybe, could it be from Lux? He wasted no time tearing the envelope open and having a look.

To Nori Carino

You are one of the worst people I've ever seen. The world would be better off without you. So I'm going to kidnap you, take you up the hill, and put a bullet in your head.

The printing was crude. Nori placed the letter down on the table. This was a death threat? Did people really want him dead? Were they actually willing to kidnap and murder him? All because of what Kallisto had said?

He nervously glanced around the room. He quickly shut his drapes, made sure the door was locked, and pushed the desk in front of it. Pachi wasn't sure what was going on, and neither was the Demon when he brought her out.

Nori gave his Pokemon a solemn, terrified look. They seemed to get some of the message at that. He no longer felt safe. And he feared that no one or nothing could - or would - protect him from these maniacs.

##########
=========
##########

Spoiler: Notes

Needless to say, this is a major tipping point, particularly for Kallisto. We're heading towards the endgame from here, so strap in.

Also since I forgot to mention it last time, happy belated BDSP release day! Hope you've all been enjoying the glitchiest games in the series since the originals. I still need to get back to playing them.

 

[Juliko]

Chapter 42:
First off, Happy Thanksgiving! Second of all, poor Tono, losing all three battles. After this, I don't find myself liking Radovan anymore. I can see why Tono doesn't like him. It was nice of Nori to try and sympathize with Tono and encourage him, while pointing out his flaws in a way that's not demeaning to him. Third of all, seriously, Kallisto?! You're right to be mad at Radovan and Haruna, but you're mad at Nori for simply wanting to cheer Tono up?! Good lord. It's like he's actively looking for reasons to hate Nori at this point. I'll review the next chapter shortly. Great job as always!

Chapter 43:
Oh my God. Words absolutely cannot describe how pissed I am at Kallisto. Just when it seems like he's going to actually admit to his mistakes, instead he turns it around and does so as a means of utterly degrading and humiliating Nori in front of a crowd of people! And all because he got it in his head that Nori was somehow talking down to Tono when he wasn't? Good God! I just want to hug Nori so bad. Volkner should have fired him on the spot. I don't care about Kallisto's reasons for doing it, he shouldn't have to get away with all of this. Nori absolutely does not deserve to be treated like shit just because Kallisto's too much of a whiny prick to accept that he's not the best person in the world. Seriously, I am genuinely worried for Nori. I can only pray things don't get worse, as now he doesn't have anyone except for Volkner. At this point, nothing can convince me that Kallisto can redeem himself at this point, because he just crossed a line, and I don't think I can ever forgive him.

 

[System Error]

Chapter 42:

First off, Happy Thanksgiving!

It was a month ago, but thanks.

Second of all, poor Tono, losing all three battles. After this, I don't find myself liking Radovan anymore. I can see why Tono doesn't like him.

Indeed, it was revealed that Tono's childhood bully? Really is a bully. And even if his claims about Tono being self-superior hold true, it doesn't excuse how far he goes.

It was nice of Nori to try and sympathize with Tono and encourage him, while pointing out his flaws in a way that's not demeaning to him.

Nori deciding hey, maybe if I do this in public, people will think better of me? And just when it looks like he's getting through to Tono... (but as the next chapter shows, it worked)

Third of all, seriously, Kallisto?! You're right to be mad at Radovan and Haruna, but you're mad at Nori for simply wanting to cheer Tono up?! Good lord. It's like he's actively looking for reasons to hate Nori at this point.

Behind-the-scenes, this was actually another artifact I had to scramble to find a solution to. Originally, Nori absolutely deserved to be yelled at. But I threw that out in favor of some positive character development, since it fits themes better and where his character was going. My solution ended up being Kallisto going after him for doing it at the wrong place and time, and Nori successfully arguing that. And...

...for some in-between commentary: I grappled with how to split this one up. In one draft when Haruna's battle was still in the formal narrative, the chapter ended on this. I decided to end it where I did and unexpectedly open the next chapter with a confession of a different kind than was set up.

Chapter 43:

Oh my God. Words absolutely cannot describe how pissed I am at Kallisto. Just when it seems like he's going to actually admit to his mistakes, instead he turns it around and does so as a means of utterly degrading and humiliating Nori in front of a crowd of people! And all because he got it in his head that Nori was somehow talking down to Tono when he wasn't?

This was a scene I actually had a friend look at. Given the occasional wrestling influences in my writing, this was modeled after a wrestling promo. It started off fine, but then had a horrible twist in the middle of it. And he justifies it to himself, like any misguided person would.

Good God! I just want to hug Nori so bad.

His rant about not having friends was intended to be particularly heartbreaking.

Volkner should have fired him on the spot. I don't care about Kallisto's reasons for doing it, he shouldn't have to get away with all of this.

Alas, Kallisto is still a Sue, and while Volkner can reprimand him, it's toothless.

Seriously, I am genuinely worried for Nori. I can only pray things don't get worse, as now he doesn't have anyone except for Volkner.

He's seemingly at the bottom. So there may be nowhere to go but up at least. But alas, death threats are now a thing. So...heh heh heh.

At this point, nothing can convince me that Kallisto can redeem himself at this point, because he just crossed a line, and I don't think I can ever forgive him.

A big theme of the fic is indeed, what warrants forgiveness? I pretty much spit in the face of the idea that it should be given by default. But this is more importantly: the point where Kallisto goes too far. He did this of his own volition. When he assaulted Nori, that was in the heat of the moment. Same for fleeing after Nori fell into the sea. His heart was in the right place when 'protecting' him from Betsy-Ann. Harsh as they were, those were understandable mistakes. But not this.

Another thing that makes it extra tragic: Kallisto had been previously going on about how he wanted someone to keep him in check. He wanted that to be Nori, and Tono was stepping up to do so in lieu of this. And when all of his friends are uncomfortable with what he'd done here, he dismisses them.

 

[Daren]

Good news: Nori's attempt to reach out to Tono seems to be working.
Bad news: Everything else.

And now Nori is the victim of a public shame mob organized by a single person. The wrath of the Sue is a terrible thing.
...not that this is limited to fiction, sadly.

And even Yuki has turned against him. I know it was foreshadowed but it still hurts.
Maybe this sort of thing is why Red isolated himself on a mountain?

That fight with Spike was nasty. Nori seems to guess he's "exit, stage left" now but I'm not as sure.

There seems to be something funny about Volkner having two Pokémon guard the door but it makes complete sense. You can trust your Pokémon far more than you can human employees.
At this point I think Volkner is pretty much the only human in Sunnyshore both on Nori's side and both willing and able to act on his behalf in any way that can help.
...if this whole thing made it to television (at least I'm sure Kallisto's ceremony did) I wonder if Prema may have heard? Not sure how much she could help though.

Not gonna lie if I were in Nori's place even cuddling with Pachi probably wouldn't help.

So many questions:
*Is the death threat serious or an idle idiot?
*Will the truth ever come out?
*Just how much worse will things get?
*Will Billy Ordride return?

Nori was inevitably going to anger the wrong person some day. And they would not be as compassionate as him. It was going to be no one's fault, the cause of no one but Nori himself.

Ah, irony. Thy name is Kallisto.
One of the most dangerous thing you can do is make an enemy who hates you and then hurt them so much they decide they've nothing to lose and will willingly go down if it means taking you with them.
That's a lesson Kallisto may one day learn to his shock.

Hope you've all been enjoying the glitchiest games in the series since the originals.

Well, they said it was a faithful remake, and the original DP had that thing where you could surf through walls and find Arceus.
I don't actually have them I'm on team "we have Sinnoh at home".

 

[System Error]

Good news: Nori's attempt to reach out to Tono seems to be working.
Bad news: Everything else.

This made me laugh, heh.

And now Nori is the victim of a public shame mob organized by a single person. The wrath of the Sue is a terrible thing.
...not that this is limited to fiction, sadly.

A sad truth indeed, although it's rare it's one person in real life.

And even Yuki has turned against him. I know it was foreshadowed but it still hurts.

Aside, I actually dialed this back from a full turn. Yuki feels regrets very quickly, but he isn't brave enough to stand against them. Aside, I almost promised last time this chapter would be opening with a confession, but I thought it would potentially spell things out for the sake of some wordplay. It's ambiguous whether he would've anyway. The thought of him staying around regardless occurred, but I'd have had to have done a lot of rewriting for that and it would've caused long-term problems.

That fight with Spike was nasty. Nori seems to guess he's "exit, stage left" now but I'm not as sure.

Well for Spike's sake, hopefully he does.

There seems to be something funny about Volkner having two Pokémon guard the door but it makes complete sense. You can trust your Pokémon far more than you can human employees.

It kind of holds true in real life for pets and such too. And especially when even those human employees are turning against Nori for the most part.

At this point I think Volkner is pretty much the only human in Sunnyshore both on Nori's side and both willing and able to act on his behalf in any way that can help.
...if this whole thing made it to television (at least I'm sure Kallisto's ceremony did) I wonder if Prema may have heard? Not sure how much she could help though.

A very good question indeed...

Not gonna lie if I were in Nori's place even cuddling with Pachi probably wouldn't help.

Cuddles only take you so far.

So many questions:
*Is the death threat serious or an idle idiot?
*Will the truth ever come out?
*Just how much worse will things get?
*Will Billy Ordride return?

Find out next time, on Dragon Ball Z!

Ah, irony. Thy name is Kallisto.
One of the most dangerous thing you can do is make an enemy who hates you and then hurt them so much they decide they've nothing to lose and will willingly go down if it means taking you with them.
That's a lesson Kallisto may one day learn to his shock.

He's seemingly expecting Nori to simply cave or go down in flames. But yes, heh heh heh...

Well, they said it was a faithful remake, and the original DP had that thing where you could surf through walls and find Arceus.
I don't actually have them I'm on team "we have Sinnoh at home".

Very true. A lot of jokes have been getting made in that regard. Been trying to make progress before the inevitable patch, not doing so well but technically it just means no online. Should also figure out the requirements for said glitches too...

 

[Welkamo]

I was going to reach the rest of the March arc, but focus issues got in the way.

Lux Blomgren had made a mistake.

Uh oh

He was a short, slim man with tawny hair in a crew cut.

I had to look up what a crew cut is and all I can imagine when I think of when imagining Lux's dad is this image of Billy Harris, expression unchanging.

"Hey, son!" his dad greeted immediately with a hearty wave and wide smile.

Great now I feel tense. With all the mystery juxtaposed with this friendliness, I'm scared.

"An...old baby?"

Benjamin Button.

His father tried, oh how he tried, especially when it came to him and his brother. Lux could count the number of times he'd convinced her of something with just two fingers, three if you count her conceding his friendship with Nori, which external reasons played a larger role in.

I'm guessing the her is referring to Lux's mom.

"Now, there's nothing wrong with it, Lux. It's fine if you like other boys. There's nothing strange or unnatural about it. Some people are just attracted to the same gender."

Well it's good that his dad supports him.

Minutes later, he heard the lock click from the outside.

Oh shit that's not good

Day turned to evening, and into night. Lux hadn't been allowed out, not even for dinner.

I'm going to fist fight Hikari.

"Do you want me to throw you out again, Felix? This time, it'll be for good. And I'll take everything you have."

Oh my goodness poor Felix. Also what happened before?

His tests were today and tomorrow, at his kitchen table.

Just like Zoom classes.

he was in his dad's truck

Just like Brendan/May.

A god. His mom went to a shrine, his dad to a church.

Ooooh religion.

He had experienced, and was disinterested in both.

Experienced religion? This sentence is a bit confusing.

If there was a god or gods out there, did they hate him?

There's a writer who's writing drama.

To his utter shock, it was a chestnut-haired boy with eyes like cherries. Dressed in a green t-shirt and jeans. "Nori?!"

NORI!!!!!!

Lux fell over, banging his head against the side of the building.

Oh no not another head injury.

Nori grinned smugly. "I already called the police."

On cue, two muscular officers and a blue-haired woman in a red sweatshirt walked out from behind the bushes.

This is both funny and rewarding.

"Lux is being removed your custody!"

GOOD!
...Also there should be a "from" after "removed".

"We're getting a divorce."

GOOD!!!!!!

It was just a light peck on the lips. He tried to make it as quick as possible.

Oooooh getting brave

"I, uh...guess I love you too, Lux?" Nori was completely flustered, his face beat red. But he said he loved him! Nori really wanted to be his boyfriend! Lux couldn't be happier.

Woah how are the boys going to react?

Nori silently nodded. In sync, the two moved together for a more proper, mutual kiss.

Awwwww that's good.

Lux woke up. He turned over, pulling the sheets a bit closer as he groggily reached for his watch. It was 5:36AM. He was in his new house, in his new room, with just his bed, his radio, his plush toys, and a small bag of clothes. He was sweating, breathing heavily, and his pyjamas were tight just under the waist for some reason. Like he'd grown down there overnight. It was all a dream. A cruel, cruel dream. But he wished it wasn't. Or that he could've dreamt forever.

Because in reality, he was alone, in a new town, in the middle of nowhere, with no friends, and no hope of making any.

No.


No.


NO.

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!

Why would you toy with my emotions like this???????


I feel like I got a hug and hot chocolate and then a Tentacruel flung me out of my house and into a brick wall (like that one scene in PokéSpe with Archie's Tentacruel flinging Wallace but somehow even more of a gut punch). I don't know if you're a genius or a madman. I don't think I'll be able to recover from this chapter /hj

 

[System Error]

I was going to reach the rest of the March arc, but focus issues got in the way.

Very understandable. And even if you didn't have focus get in the way, well. See the end of the review.

I had to look up what a crew cut is and all I can imagine when I think of when imagining Lux's dad is this image of Billy Harris, expression unchanging.

Heh. Torontonese?

Great now I feel tense. With all the mystery juxtaposed with this friendliness, I'm scared.

BE VERY AFRAID

Benjamin Button.

Jokes aside, this is in fact a real kind of vacuum.

Oh shit that's not good

I'm going to fist fight Hikari.

She is very much a wicked parent.

Oh my goodness poor Felix. Also what happened before?

They had a strong argument that led to Hikari throwing Felix out of the house for some period of time. He had to come back on his hands and knees.

Ooooh religion.

Experienced religion? This sentence is a bit confusing.

Maybe a little, probably could change this to "had been to both".

There's a writer who's writing drama.

This is a reference to a friend of mine who said a similar thing, wondering if God hated them.

Oooooh getting brave

Woah how are the boys going to react?

Well they only said not to get a girlfriend. They said nothing about getting a boyfriend. :>

Awwwww that's good.

Love!!

No.


No.


NO.

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!

Why would you toy with my emotions like this???????

Exactly the sort of reaction I was hoping to get from this chapter. Means I'm doing well, if you were that attached to the characters to feel the feels like that.

I feel like I got a hug and hot chocolate and then a Tentacruel flung me out of my house and into a brick wall (like that one scene in PokéSpe with Archie's Tentacruel flinging Wallace but somehow even more of a gut punch). I don't know if you're a genius or a madman. I don't think I'll be able to recover from this chapter /hj

Well genius and madman aren't mutually exclusive. And there's still more fic and possibly more suffering to come...

 

[Welkamo]

Heh. Torontonese?

I mean I know about Canada (part Canadian, kind of), but I don't know about hockey. I just searched "crew cut" and that was the first image that caught my mind.

Jokes aside, this is in fact a real kind of vacuum.

Woah really

Well they only said not to get a girlfriend. They said nothing about getting a boyfriend. :>

:>

 

[System Error]

Woah really

Yup, Baby Daisies were the first vacuums, and were operated with an air pump rather than electricity. "Old Baby" was just a bit of fun wordplay.

Also I wrote this down in relation to M3-1 but didn't quote whatever the context was - so to get back to this, now that you've gotten this far and probably seen the notes/behind-the-scenes. With Kallisto and his friends being different people, the original reason for the then-Spike and co attacking Nori was him mocking them over their looking at dirty magazines of Cynthia. I changed it for a couple reasons, one of them being what I decided on simply working better - since it actually tied into things. That said, in the original version of this scene even after the change, Nori was really asking for it. Everyone was toned down to make it more of an ambiguous heat-of-the-moment situation.

 

[System Error]

Spoiler: Note

Either 17 or 18 chapters away from the end of this particular fic, if you need a count. Although they're of variable length.

#########
========
#########

Month 6: June of Despair (first part)
June 1st, 2015​

The first thing Nori did when Volkner returned on Monday was show him the death threat he had received. After making a copy of it, the Gym Leader said he'd send it into the police as soon as possible.

Nori's suspension had lapsed, but for the first time in his life, the boy dreaded going to school. Not only because of the possibility of people literally trying to kill him, either. He had gotten unchecked hostility before, and there was no reason to think it would be any different today.

He was wrong.

The boy skated to school, as he had been doing on most days. He did remember the rule of skating, look where you're going. Pachi was out of his ball, something he decided would be near permanent moving forward. A Pokemon might not be the best protection, but it was all he could manage. The squirrel would alternate between riding with or running alongside, and presently he was on the boy's backpack. Luckily, this was far from the first time he'd skated with Pachi atop him.

Whenever he came to a stop, Nori became aware of the world around them. He was catching the attention of almost every pedestrian around, and not in a good way. Everywhere he looked, he saw hostile glares, disappointed gazes, and suspicious whispers. This went on and on, with no end in sight. It was like he was an infamous criminal or something!

"What's going on..." he groaned. "Do people hate me this much?"

Pachi gently patted him on his shoulder. The boy looked back at the squirrel with a melancholous smile. At least, Pokemon wouldn't judge him for it. Maybe he should go out and get a few more. But, no. If he did that, he might not be able to give them the attention they needed once he became a Pokemon Rehabilitator.

The light turned green, and he started out again,. This whole thing was surreal. It felt like the nearly the entire world was against him. At least there was Volkner, but it didn't mean much. The Gym Leader was a professional, not a friend. And everyone else had either moved away, weren't here, or weren't his friends anymore.

He paused to think as he came to a stop sign. There were few people who tolerated him, but would they still do so after Kallisto's denouncement? Betsy-Ann obviously would, but what about Maylene and Rashid? What about Lux? Could his mom even hate him now?

He caught something out of the corner of his eye. It was coming right for him! The boy yelped. He went to step away, and for a moment, he had one foot on his board and one in the air. It slid so abruptly that he panicked, managing to flip the board up yet falling over in the process.

In the same moment, Pachi leaped off his backpack and did a picture perfect Electro Ball, intercepting the object. The metal can exploded, raining liquid and shrapnel down on the road. His Pokemon landed smoothly on the sidewalk, striking a threatening pose before going to check on his trainer.

Nori somehow caught all of that, even while falling over like an idiot. He stared at his Pokemon in amazement. All the training was paying off.

"Thanks, Pachi," he said, getting to his feet. "Nice shot."

The squirrel happily chirruped, hugging his leg. Yes, that's right. Pokemon weren't people, but he still had his Pokemon. Something was better than nothing.

"Who threw that?!" the boy yelled. Pachi went to point, but it looked like whoever it was had already made themselves scarce. And no one was going to snitch on them. With a grumble, he picked his Pokemon up, placed him on his shoulders, and continued on.

Not even one block later, something else happened.

Nori was waiting on the next red light, on the right side of the road. The boy was more alert this time around, just in case someone tried to throw something at him again. Nothing happened. Soon, the light changed and he kicked off...

...only to notice an orange car to his right rounding the bend.

Nori reacted fast. He jumped up, did a handplant off the turning vehicle, and made it to the safety of the sidewalk. He froze up as he realized, he'd jumped off his skateboard. As the vehicle made its left turn, his board turned up in one piece beneath it. He quickly grabbed it before anyone could think of running it over.

The vehicle pulled over and a very angry looking man got out. Nori assumed he was foreign by position of the wheel in the car, and the jersey that said Angel City Emperors on it. But his rage was nothing compared to Nori's.

"You puto–" he started to threaten.

"Shut up, jackass!" he screamed. "You can't turn left on a red here like you can turn ri–!"

"Don't give a fuck. You gonna pay if you smudged my paintjob."

"No, you're gonna pay! You nearly hit a kid and future official!" Pachi leaped off his shoulders. "And looks like my Pokemon wants to battle you, if you got any Pokemon."

"Don't got time for this, holmes. I remember you, though." With a point, he jumped back into his car.

The boy flipped him the bird as he sped off, making a mental note of the license plate in the process. He checked his skateboard, noticing one of the wheels was wobbly. He turned to some salarymen who had witnessed the incident. "You saw that, didn't you?! He almost ran me over!"

They immediately ignored him and went about their business as if nothing happened. The boy could only scream in frustration. He took out his binder, wrote down the plate number in case something else happened that made him forget, and got on his way.

---​

Nori decided to walk the rest of the way, just to be sure. He arrived at school with only minutes to spare because of it. Any hopes that things would be better there or that time had healed the wounds from May 20th were dashed from the moment he walked in the front doors.

As his peers began to notice his presence, a wave of silence rippled through them. It went completely quiet save for whispers and the chatter of people who weren't paying him any heed. But many were. It was like he was on-stage, except not a single one of the eyes upon him had any amity whatsoever.

"What the hell is this?" the boy demanded. "Is there something wrong?"

The bell rang, and they all turned and left. The boy laughed slightly at the insanity of the situation. That was crazy. He heard of making heads turn when you walked into a room, and he'd just done that. And yet he couldn't laugh for long.

People had avoided him in school before, but this was a whole different level than that. This was a horrifying new reality where no one wanted anything to do with him, and at worst, thought he was better off dead. And he had to suffer through it.

---​

Classes that day went about as well as he could expect. At lunch, he went to the battling cage. "If you have a problem with me, then fight me!" he announced. Yet people hated him so much that no one took him up, and completely ignored him when he made some challenges himself. All he ended up doing was making himself look idiotic before the teacher overseeing things told him to leave.

When he got back to the Gym that afternoon with Pachi at his side, Volkner was waiting for him in the lobby.

"What took you?" he asked. Nori hadn't been able to find Eddie after school to say he was going to be late. Thankfully, the Gym Leader was more concerned and curious than angry.

"I walked. My skateboard almost got crushed." He took it out, showing off the wobbly wheel. "It wasn't, but I decided I shouldn't ride it."

The Gym Leader gave him a grim look. "What happened?"

"Some guy was turning left on a red. He nearly ran me over, and I guess damaged my skateboard. I got the plate number, though." He wrote it down so he wouldn't forget.

"Let's talk." Volkner motioned for Nori to follow him into the back.

Ambipom waved to them as they went inside. They returned the gesture and kept going. In another side-room, he caught a glimpse of Volkner's Lanturn alongside a strange tube-like blue eel Pokemon called Eelektrik - one of the Gym Leader's newer Pokemon. The room had a pool around 50cm deep; actually some repurposed bathtubs welded together by Volkner's ingenuity. The fish and eel had a camaraderie alongside their fellow aquatic Pokemon Octillery, which wasn't with them.

The first to greet them in the actual garage area itself was Volkner's Minun. Pachi immediately hopped off and greeted the fellow Pika-esque Pokemon with a tailshake. He squeaked, maybe asking if he could go play? The boy motioned an agreement.

Octillery was dozing next to the speedboat and what looked like a work in-progress scale model of the city. The boy looked up, seeing Chatot up perched up on the rafters. Galvantula was with the colorful black parrot as it sometimes was. Two others, his Electivire and this weird blue and purple humanoid called a Toxtricity, were sparring off in a corner of the room. Finally, Luxray and Raichu came running up to greet their trainer as they were nearing the vehicles. The blond man gave them both pats before heading to a table near the corner.

Volkner pulled out a seat for Nori, and went over to his workbench. He rolled the swivel chair over and sat down, quietly waiting for Nori to speak.

"So, yes..." the boy started. "When I went to school today, no one wanted anything to go with me. Nobody even wanted to battle me when I went to the cages."

"Hm."

"And then there was that car that almost hit me. I know he did it on purpose. Some people saw it, they didn't do a thing." Nori sighed. "I don't know anymore. I didn't think it'd be this bad. I don't feel safe..."

The Gym Leader scratched his chin. "Can help with that. I'll drive you to and from school from now on."

"What about the Gym?" he asked. "No, no, no. What about your car? Aren't you worried about it?"

He shook his head. "They'd be stupid to hit a Gym Leader."

The boy nodded. "I still don't like this. You're risking so much for me. Thanks." The Gym Leader only replied with a faint nod. "What if it doesn't stop, though? What if everyone keeps hating me because of Kallisto?"

The Gym Leader sighed. "Leaving Sinnoh will help. Leaving the country would be even better. The Officials should understand." He scratched his cheek. "Kallisto's popular, but not as popular overseas."

"I really don't want to do that..."

"You might have to," said Volkner. "I don't like it either."

"Can't you do something?"

"I tried. He's dug in his heels."

"What about the Officials? Aren't they doing anything?"

"A lot are on his side." Volkner shrugged. "You're lucky the ones that matter are neutral. Uh, higher-ups and top trainers, that is."

Nori groaned. "Why? How? Just how is Kallisto so popular? Why are they so stupid about it?"

"Just how it is."

"What about his cousin?"

"She hasn't said anything. Doubt she'd say much if she did. Probably something carefully worded that doesn't condemn or condone it. For her image's sake."

"It was a long shot..." He was even willing get to help from her at this point.

"Flint said sorry to hear, wish he could do more, but he's really busy himself." Nori rolled his eyes, which did not escape Volkner's notice. "Yeah. Sentiment won't help now."

"What's Kallisto trying to do? Does he really think this is helping me?"

"I think so."

"Well, it's not helping."

A nod. "Yeah."

Nori sighed. "Sorry for complaining so much."

"It's fine. Hear to listen." Volkner leaned back. "How's training?"

"That's the one thing that is going well." Nori eyed Pachi, who was over playing with Minun and Galvantula, which had come down from the ceiling. The spider was playfully shooting electrified strings, charging up the two Pika-esque Pokemon as they frolicked. "Oh, a funny thing happened. On the way to school, someone threw a can of something at me. I fell over trying to avoid it, but Pachi shot it out of the air with Electro Ball."

The Gym Leader snickered. "Not bad, little guy," he called to it. Pachi wagged his tail at the praise.

"How've you been?" the boy asked Volkner.

"The usual."

"That's good to hear." At least, it seemed his own reputation wasn't dragging Volkner down.

"Just stay here if you want," the Gym Leader offered.

"I was going to ask if I could, thank you."

---​

Nori hung out with the Gym Leader until a challenger came along. Volkner took Galvantula, Lanturn, and Raichu to face them. He allowed Nori to decide what he wanted to do. The boy figured he may as well watch. From the balconies, that is, to interact with the Gym Trainers as little as possible.

That was his plan. However, as he went out into the halls, he found Ollie waiting for him. The hefty teen didn't seem angry, at least.

"Did you want to talk to me?" he asked.

Ollie nodded and lowered his head. "Please, man," he said, barely loud enough to be heard.

"What?"

The hefty teen ran over to him and grabbed his shirt. Nori pulled away ready to fight, but Ollie beseeched him. "You gotta say sorry to Kallisto. It's not worth it, man! I've been through it before. I was just like you. Young and dumb. Thinking I could surpass him someday."

And this caught Nori off-guard. Ollie, of all people, trying to help him? Again? He knew the Gym Trainer had compassion in him, ever since March. This was not how or when he was expecting him to show it, however.

"I know what you're going through," Ollie said. "Didn't have it that bad. But it's not too late! Things can go back to normal! Just reconsider Kallisto!"

And yet, Nori could not accept this. "How about you reconsider him?" he asked, with a firm yet restrained tone. "I still don't know what it is you were like back then. But one thing you told me was you know the others were bullying you. And I know this includes Kallisto in some way."

It was then Ollie's turn to be taken off-guard. Nori read his expression. He had a slumped, sorrowful posture that defied his guise of confused and angered disbelief.

"Come on, Ollie Gooch!" Nori urged, not sure where he was going with this. "I know that hasn't sat well with you the whole time. Stand with me!"

As if he had flipped a switch, the hefty teen lashed out with an attempted shove that Nori easily stepped aside from. "Shut up!" he screamed. "What do you know about me?!"

"Not a lot. But I know enough!" The boy admitted. "And I know a lot about Kallisto!"

Ollie sighed, shutting his eyes tight. "He's just the best," he lamented, thinking back on earlier times. "He forgave me for everything dumb I ever did. I know I have a long way to go, but I'd never have gotten this far without him!" He looked at Nori, anger shooting through his body. "But you kept pushing and pushing! He can help anyone, but he can also do the opposite, like you're seeing!" And shifted back to concern. "Just apologize. Please!"

"No!"

"This is so like you!" he snapped. "I see what they're saying now. You need to open your eyes!"

"Why don't you open yours?"

"Fine! I'll show you!" Ollie reached for his belt and removed two Poke Balls from it. "I want to battle you! A double battle!"

"Like the others?" Nori asked. "On exhibition day, right?"

"No, I don't want to wait. We'll battle on the 6th!"

"Okay." Well, he supposed Yuki was right about this after all, just not about when it was going to happen. "I accept."

"Good, you're going down like a bitch, bitch!" The hefty teen blew a raspberry and marched off, muttering to himself.

Moments later, Volkner opened the side door. "Hey," the Gym Leader said. "Heard everything."

Nori nodded. "I can win this."

"I know you can."

Nori looked down the hall where Ollie had gone. "It's him I'm worried about." The more he heard, the more it seemed like Ollie was in the same boat as him at some point. The only difference was, he broke down. "What was he like?" he asked the Gym Leader.

"Nothing like you. He was a huge jerk. Big ego, little to back it up. If there was anyone who Kallisto did need to whip into shape, it's him."

The boy shook his head. Okay, maybe his assumptions weren't completely correct. "That doesn't mean Kallisto's right to do this to me."

"I know," the blond man agreed. "Loyalty is a powerful thing."

"Yeah. I could never do anything to betray a friend. Never again. Not after what happened with Claris and Lux." He should've been more of a friend to them. He should've done more, stood by them when he needed to. "But loyalty isn't just blind support. You have to accept your friends, but you do sometimes have to say hard things no one else will." And Kallisto's friends might be the only ones who could change his mind about this. That's why he was hoping for their support, or at least for them to step back from supporting him.

"Heh." Volkner smirked. "You're very mature sometimes."

He got that a lot. "I had to be, growing up as I did."

"Go up and watch." The Gym Leader motioned. "I'll teach you about double battles after." He was halfway through the door before catching himself. "Uh, ever had one before?"

Nori shook his head. "Besides the multi battle with Kallisto, I've only seen them."

"Okay. I'll show you." The boy blinked. Was he going to change the challenger's battle into an impromptu double battle, just for him? "Just take notes and I'll explain after."

##########​

June 3rd, 2015​

Over the next few days, Volkner taught Nori as much as he could about double battling. As he explained, it was all about cooperation and teamwork. A lot of trainers got into the habit of turning them into separate single battles, with the occasional bit of teamwork. There was far more to being a true double battle expert, such as isolating opposing Pokemon, how to get your Pokemon in sync, and proper use of moves that hit a wide area.

Nori actually was able to get some practice with it at school on Wednesday. It started with trying to hang out with the school delinquents. If anyone would, it would be a group of rejected misfits like them, right? But no, not even they liked him. With a bit of provoking, and he got not one, but two to come over to the battling cages to face him.

His two opponents had chosen one each, a Lickitung and a Magmar. Thankfully, the former didn't know any water moves like Eddie's did. While they were hopelessly inexperienced compared to him, the problem was the Demon refusing to cooperate with Pachi. She managed to get paralyzed by one of his Thunder Waves by accident, and had refuses to get clear of Discharge when Pachi had a perfect chance to zap both of them.

That said, the battle was still firmly in their favor. And it was worrying the two delinquents.

"We need to try something!" the goth guy yelled.

"What?!" asked the skinhead female.

"Like this! Attract on them both, Glosso!"

With the Demon distracted with the Magmar, Nori could only watch as the Lickitung put on a...not very cute display as it spread hearts everywhere. They had no effect on Pachi. They sure caught the Demon's attention, though. She took one look at Glosso and went berserk. The old Demon came out as she grabbed it by the tongue, reeled it in, and let loose.

"What the fuck!?" the goth exclaimed.

Nori warily eyed his Pokemon. "Take it easy!" he yelled as she was slamming the Lickitung into the ground.

"I mean, what the fuck is that?!"

"Psychological moves don't affect every Pokemon the same," he explained, feeling strange to be giving a lecture like this. He had a feeling that not only was the Demon not interested in romance in the first place, she was offended by the attempt.

"Stop it with Fire Blast, Magmar!" shouted the skinhead, although she cast a wary eye to Pachi as she gave this command.

But the one who acted first was the Demon. With Glosso still firmly in her grip, she whirled the Lickitung around and threw it at Magmar as it was reeling back. Seeing this, Nori gave a speedy order.

"Pachi, quick! Discharge!"

The squirrel didn't have to be told twice to get in there and zap the two Pokemon into unconsciousness. The Demon just barely stopped in time, and seeing her foes were in a heap, she took a swat at the only Pokemon still standing.

"Enough, stop!" he yelled, as Pachi retreated to the safety of his trainer's shoulders. The Demon glared up at him. "We're fighting Ollie soon, and you need to start getting along with Pachi!"

The teal creature turned away with a huff. The boy sighed as he recalled her, tuning out the boos and apathetic ruling from the teacher. He might've overpowered these two, but the same trick wasn't going to work on the more experienced Ollie.

Was this Ollie's game? Take advantage of how different his two Pokemon were? It had never really come up before. One was serious and battle-hungry, and the other was playful at heart. The Demon had always tolerated Pachi, but was this her true feelings coming to the surface? The boy suddenly felt far worse about his chances.

---​

Nori went to the square after the battle. One tiny advantage about his social situation was having plenty of table space to himself, if he could secure a spot. Furthermore, he wasn't the focus of attention wherever he went anymore.

"Future Official Condemned by–"

That is, unless the attention was drawn to him. He had been in there for about five minutes, sitting there and thinking when he heard the unmistakable voice of Arumi. He turned to face the reporter girl, who met his gaze with stunned surprise.

"Well?" Gino was right in behind her, much to Nori's surprise. He nudged her.

Arumi again looked at Nori. She frowned and sighed. "I can't do this."

"Arumi?" Nori asked.

"I'm not doing this," she repeated at Gino, a bit of firmness in her tone. "I won't."

"So are you supporting me?" the boy inquired.

"I...I can't do that, either. I'm so sorry." The girl ran off in tears. It was evident she wanted to stick by him, and that was a tiny comfort. Yet not even she, a member of the prestigious Schrader family, could defy the social hatred brought on by Kallisto's denouncement. Although maybe she would still be willing to help him with something...if he could find a way to reach her.

"Very well, let's see if I can pull this off." Gino cleared his throat. He boomed, with the same energy Arumi as would. "Future Official Conde–"

"Are you trying to start something?" Nori stood and got up in his face. "I've just finished kicking the delinquents' asses. You want a battle, too?" It was too bad Pokemon weren't allowed indoors, or else Pachi likely would've punctuated with some sparks.

"All right, break it up you two," a teacher came in and intervened. "Nori Carino, that is unacceptable behavior."

"Whatever you say," he dismissed as he walked off. He wasn't going to listen if they were going to be blatantly biased like that. It was an immature reaction, sure. Yet anger was the only thing keeping him going right now. He had to cling to it. No matter what.

##########​

June 4th, 2015​

"All right! We're getting it down!" Ollie Gooch declared. He gave a nod to Stunfisk and Lanturn as he brought them back to their balls. Tono did the same with David, although Kallisto simply allowed his Zebstrika to remain out for some stretch time.

"Yes, you're doing great, Gooch," said Kallisto as he patted his Pokemon. He hadn't been able to give her as much attention as he wanted the past month. So he let her in on the practice sparring they had been doing to prepare Ollie for the battle in two days time.

Ollie chuckled. "Thanks! Man, this is awesome! I can't wait for this! He's gonna be all washed up by the time I'm done with him! Literally!"

Tono facepalmed. "This is sadism," he remarked.

"Well." Kallisto decided to play devil's advocate here. "When you can seize an advantage in battle, you have to take it. Sometimes, this even means an advantage over the other trainer. Of course, there's things that are disallowed in official battles, such as use of psychic powers. But taking advantage of a phobia isn't one of them, especially given that it can happen incidentally."

"I want to do anything I can to win this!" his friend chimed in. "Including that! Besides, like you said, I shouldn't have to not use Lanturn's best moves just 'cause he's a pussy!"

"This sort of thing is a touchy subject. You can't well ignore these sorts of individuals, but it's not fair to their opponents to restrict them, either. Official League rules don't cater to them at all." Kallisto even recalled this coming up a few years ago, with Preston's Exploud causing problems for a challenger who hated loud noises. "That said, it doesn't reflect well on people who go out of their way to do things like this. So try not to do it too often."

Ollie received the message loud and clear with a salute. "Yeah, only in special, heated cases like this!" He understood well.

Tono leaned back against the wall with a smile. "All told, this will be your first major battle since the tournament. I am looking forward to how much better you have become."

"Thanks, Tono!" Not gonna disappoint anyone!" Ollie again laughed. "Except him, when he loses!"

This made him and Tono chuckle. Ollie's recent drive for self-improvement had started in-part due to worrying about being a worse trainer than Nori. This was going to be his chance to put his skills to the test.

"Though I have to say," Kallisto spoke up. There had been something on his mind since the start of the month. "I am surprised Nori's even in the mental state to do this."

Tono crossed his arms. "I am not. Nori Carino has always proven himself to be a person willing and able to stand up against adversity."

"But against this much?"

"Yes," his best friend bluntly replied. "It is simply how it is."

"Heh, once I show'em who the stronger trainer is, thanks to you, Kallisto," Ollie winked. "He'll have to rethink everything!"

Kallisto wondered about that. Eddie had told him how Nori was being treated at school, to say nothing about what he'd been hearing around in public. And yet the young official in-training had shown no signs of being dissuaded by any of it. The head Gym Trainer couldn't shake the bad feeling he was getting. This was going to come to a head eventually, in a way Nori wouldn't be able to brush aside. And no one was going to be happy with the results.

##########​

June 5th, 2015​

Nori was spending more and more time in the back area of Sunyshore Gym. Volkner had been allowing him to use his personal training area. It was much more quiet compared to anywhere else, and there was zero risk of anyone but the Gym Leader coming by.

He had been sparring with Volkner's Pokemon and making no progress on getting his to cooperate. He had been aware of the problem since March, but he never thought he'd have to work it out in so little time.

Their most recent one had just come to a close. Pachi had rushed in with Quick Attack, but the Demon simply sat there watching. The little squirrel hit Toxtricity, but was quickly knocked down by a Karate Chop by Electivire. He squealed something, and his opponents nodded. The tiger-patterned monster extended a hand to help Pachi to his feet, as Toxtricity shook his head at the Demon.

"Take a break," Volkner announced, stepping back inside. He had temporarily left to go see someone in the lobby. "You have a visitor."

Nori recalled the Demon as he pondered. Who could be coming to see him? Hopefully no one malicious. The Gym Leader motioned to follow. He opened the door next to garage at the far side, revealing a young sumo wrestler...scratch that, young woman in a fat body suit and mask. Her chocolate brown hair gave her away, even before her peppy wave.

"Hey, Nor'," she greeted, peeking out from under the mask.

"Oh, Arumi!" he said. He didn't actually think she would go along with what he'd asked. He nodded at Volkner and stepped outside with her.

"I'm sorry about Wednesday," the reporter girl said with a sigh. "And a couple weeks ago."

"I know. I don't blame you."

"Thanks for understanding." She reached into her body suit and pulled out a set of papers that had been stapled together. "Here. I dug up everything I could on Ollie's history for you. It's all in this report."

"I could've told him that," remarked the Gym Leader. When they looked at him, he shrugged. "Sorry, curious."

He had thought about asking Volkner, but he decided to take a chance on Arumi, just to see where they stood. Knowing that she always stayed in the video production room after school, he slipped a letter for her under the door after school on Wednesday.

Nori gave them a quick glance. There were about ten pages. News articles, gathered statements, her own notes, and so on. "This looks really detailed. I really didn't expect you'd do this, let alone so much."

"Hope this makes up for things. I shouldn't stay long, though."

"Thanks for this." Nori paused, thinking to ask something. "Hey. We're...still friends, right?" Even though she had done this for him, he was still worried.

She flashed a wild smile before putting her mask back on. "We are, Nor'. Just don't tell anyone."

"Thanks, that means a lot more to me than you doing this." Just knowing he had some support - that he still had an actual friend here - meant the world to him. Even if they couldn't be real friends. "Lips are sealed, off the record, I saw nothing."

With this, Arumi returned to her sumo wrestler disguise as she stomped off. Nori couldn't help but laugh at her exaggerated walk. Her acting could be so over-the-top at times that it was impossible to think she was faking. That's apparently how she fooled a lot of people, actually.

After Volkner let him back inside, Nori sat down beside Volkner's Octillery to look Arumi's findings over...

"Let me know if you need any blanks filled in," the Gym Leader offered.

He nodded. "All right."

Maybe some of this would help plan for Ollie. At the very least, it would help to understand him...