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

[Daren]

I'm glad Lux and Betsy-Ann were able to get cards to him, at least. And he knows where they are now, which is something.

And Eddie confirms that Kallisto's rep isn't entirely broken and he still has some influence, to no surprise. That sort of injury feels a bit disproportionate to his crimes, but I can't say it's not a realistic outcome for his dumb stunt.
I sort of suspect in a while he'll be held up a a heroic example of perseverance if his trainer career still takes off.
Not undeservedly, to be honest.

A lot of tension over Volkner's head being on the chopping block here. Based off game canon we already know he doesn't get permanently blacklisted or anything, though it's possible he gets a fairly serious punishment that's gone by that time, so there's still a sword hanging over the narrative, so to speak.
And of course the game doesn't help figure out what happens with Nori now.

Tono's birthday card was...something. It felt very internet, which seems appropriate for him.
Did Kallisto take out the Gym power or is this going to be an unanswered mystery?

And nice to see Nori growing a bit more out of his "no snitching" phase.

Very eager to see the finale and what happens with Nori's Official training.

They found his glory book with all his hacking exploits in them.

It turns out recording your criminal exploits is a bad idea.
Whuddaguessedit?

How poorly Claris' journey had gone was well-documented.

I definitely remember various references to Claris and her journey; I can't recall if this is the first time they mentioned something bad happened.

Crime by Starlight is getting a spinoff, and it's going to cover Tybalt's life after he left the force!

Okay, I remember this radio show was mentioned before and at this point I'm just going to ask; if this a reference to my fic or just a coincidence? A nice little shout out if it is.

 

[System Error]

I'm glad Lux and Betsy-Ann were able to get cards to him, at least. And he knows where they are now, which is something.

It is indeed something! Of course as mentioned, making sure Lux's letter gets to him is an issue of getting by his mom.

And Eddie confirms that Kallisto's rep isn't entirely broken and he still has some influence, to no surprise. That sort of injury feels a bit disproportionate to his crimes, but I can't say it's not a realistic outcome for his dumb stunt.
I sort of suspect in a while he'll be held up a a heroic example of perseverance if his trainer career still takes off.
Not undeservedly, to be honest.

That is a very reasonable guess also a correct one, but I'll say there's more to it than can be guessed from this fic.

A lot of tension over Volkner's head being on the chopping block here. Based off game canon we already know he doesn't get permanently blacklisted or anything, though it's possible he gets a fairly serious punishment that's gone by that time, so there's still a sword hanging over the narrative, so to speak.
And of course the game doesn't help figure out what happens with Nori now.

Like I said, you don't just walk away from a climax like this. There's tons of loose ends to wrap up.

Tono's birthday card was...something. It felt very internet, which seems appropriate for him.

This and Prema's were two that I almost asked others for an opinion on, but got self-confident enough to just publish. It was supposed to be something of an emotional and indeed, "all over the place" card. It's fitting because Tono has extremely mixed emotions about Nori: he likes him, respects him, understands his plight/ostracization, and thinks Kallisto is taking him too far. But he did sort of send him to jail - if Nori hadn't said that he hacked the circuit breakers they never would've investigated him that much - and indirectly lead to his best friend getting horribly injured. (Prema's meanwhile was just to sound awkward)

Did Kallisto take out the Gym power or is this going to be an unanswered mystery?

More behind-the-scenes, it was Tono at first, but his personality changed. So it is a mystery now as to whether Kallisto had someone else do it or pulled it off himself. There's equal hints for either possibility. Of course a third is thinking Tono is lying, if you can come up with a good reason for him to still do so. It's ultimately a reader speculation thing.

And nice to see Nori growing a bit more out of his "no snitching" phase.

A small detail about Nori, while he does have a temper, he's reasonable and still thinks things through. It's still something that very much bothers him if you do it for no good reason, but Eddie had one. It was sort of a backstab on his friends, but it was to Nori's benefit and he had to be honest: Kallisto probably deserved the backstab.

I definitely remember various references to Claris and her journey; I can't recall if this is the first time they mentioned something bad happened.

This is the first time it's been directly mentioned something very bad happened on it, although from her sudden shift in personality in The Question of a Journey, it was very easy to speculate.

Okay, I remember this radio show was mentioned before and at this point I'm just going to ask; if this a reference to my fic or just a coincidence? A nice little shout out of it is.

It was a reference! One you didn't notice (or didn't say) at first, but it was first mentioned it had a Tybalt character back in M1-3. The name was intended to allude to Everlight too, although now that I read the Everlight portion, I could make it more direct rather than just a name and detective implication. Wasn't going to leave a reader out of the referencefest, although Pokemon-only (and canon-only) is hard to directly shoutout. Hence why a bunch got Tweetered in M7-3.

 

[System Error]

Month 7: July of Death (fifth part)
July 14th, 2015​

A middle-aged woman in glasses and a red hair bun came to the Gym on Tuesday, accompanied by two men. All were dressed in formal black business suits.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Denzi," she said, all-business. "My name is Stacy Silverton. And these are my subordinates, Bradley and Frank."

"Good to meet you," Volkner said, moving in for a handshake.

"Likewise." She accepted. "I just came to tell you that your hearing is scheduled for tomorrow at 10am in the West Sunyshore Courthouse."

"I see."

"I should warn you now, it's not looking good for you."

"Hm."

"They just finished their final deliberations yesterday. They got testimony from several sources. I heard from the secretary that all of them had looks of anger or disappointment."

"I thought so."

Nori listened, his anger bubbling to the surface. Testimony from several sources? What sources? Kallisto?! They didn't ask anyone from the Gym as far as he knew! This was some rigged garbage!

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine."

And Volkner was just accepting it! Maybe he was playing it cool and terse, but Nori knew better. The Gym Leader didn't want to lose his position! Why else would he have freaked out so bad the first day? Was he just accepting his fate? Screw that!

"Thanks for taking it well. That's all we came to tell you, so–"

"Hold on!"

Nori boldly stepped forward. All eyes were drawn to him as he stood with his fists clenched.

"Nori–"

"No, I won't be quiet!" he interrupted Volkner. "First of all, stop acting like you're taking it well when you know deep inside this is eating you alive!"

The blond man winced. He recoiled several steps away, shaking his head. Nori knew it. Just because he was hiding it and being professional didn't mean it didn't hurt.

"And second of all, they said they got a bunch of testimonies from people?" He turned and leered at the woman. "Who did you get them from?"

Ms. Silverton was surprisingly calm, as if used to outbursts such as these. "That's strictly confidential."

"Okay, sure. But there's one person they didn't ask! The biggest victim here!" And with this he jumped atop one of the seats in the lobby, stood tall, and pointed inward with his thumb. "Me!"

The two subordinates looked surprised. "Really?" one of them asked,

The boy hopped down. "Yeah! And I want this all on record! Sure, me and Volkner have had our disagreements! More than one time both of us has treated the other unfairly! I yelled at him over things that weren't his fault, and for the longest time he was mad at me because I lost one battle! But you know what? We got over it! When Kallisto broke my arm, he was sympathetic and helped me by talking to me, driving to the doctor, and buying me a cast cover. And when I beat Eddie Hankstein on April 20th? He apologized and owned up to treating me bad!

"Since then he's been the best damn mentor I could ask for! He even stood up and took over all my training when that one-eyed woman bailed just because I don't like Kallisto! He always had my back wherever he could, even when Kallisto made almost everyone else hate me! He even bought me some birthday presents, even though he didn't have to and might be losing his money soon because you stupid morons didn't think to ask me what I thought about him! And I think Volkner's been trying. Maybe he let Kallisto go too far, but who cares? Would he even have been able to stop him? No! He even once told me dismissing him from the Gym would be career suicide! He couldn't do anything! He couldn't stop the perfect Kallisto Keravnos! So if you're going to fire him because of it, it just goes to show what thoughtless rules-sticklers you guys are!"

The boy huffed, catching his breath. There was not a single other person in the room who wasn't stunned into silence by his rant. It had even attracted the attention of the security guard and everyone else in the building.

"Was that...too much?" he hesitantly asked, suddenly self-conscious about how many people were staring.

It started with a clap from Mrs. Stetcher, She was joined by Coach Norling, and then the woman's subordinates. Soon, everyone but Volkner was applauding him for it. The Gym Leader could only stare at him, still awestruck. Grateful, yet too surprised (or not knowing how) to show it outwardly.

"Well, that's the most impassioned defense by a victim I've seen in my ten years doing this," Ms. Silverton remarked. She got out a notepad and pen. "But, I'll need you to repeat that. Slowly, so I can get it down."

The boy cringed, flush red in the face. "C-come on! I was just saying what came to mind! I can't repeat all that! Especially not with everyone watching!"

"Just give us your thoughts, and we'll let them know how you said it the first time."

Nori sighed. "Fine." He was hoping to look cool and dramatic there. He kind of ended up looking like a bit of an idiot. He just hoped these dumb bureaucrats would actually listen to a thirteen-year-old.

##########​

July 15th, 2015​

Nori had made the decision to accompany Volkner to the meeting since hearing of it, and after yesterday had affirmed that decision more than ever. The Gym Leader had seemingly been spending the past two weeks preparing for the worst.

As another present, Volkner had bought Nori a suit. A dark green three-piece that was too big for him. The Gym Leader said it was better so he'd grow into it. He had to roll the sleeves back and needed Volkner's help to get the tie on right. When he was finished getting it on, he went to the bathroom to see himself in the mirror. He struck a pose, feeling like a special agent all of a sudden.

"Looks good," Volkner remarked.

"Thanks." The Gym Leader had also went suit shopping with him a few days prior, having picked them up yesterday evening. "Oh! I never asked, did you pick that because of what I said?" The blond man was in a four-piece suit which resembled a Luxray: A black top with a blue vest beneath, pleated trousers that went to the knee, and blue pants beneath it.

The man shrugged. "Thought I'd give it a try."

---​

The two drove to an intimidating looking structure that was the West Sunyshore Courthouse. A drab, olive-colored building which was perfectly maintained despite its age. According to Volkner, it was never good news whenever the PMLH decided to personally visit a Gym Leader. He admitted to his student that he had been preparing for the worst for a while, getting ready for life after being a trainer. He had been considering opening a small automotive and electronics shop, in the likely event that he was removed from his Gym Leader position. Nori's attempts to encourage him fell flat.

They entered Courtroom Number 8. The PMLH Chairman, Masashi Shibou - an intimidating name if Nori ever heard one - sat at the judge's table. He was a towering man in a suit blacker than an Umbreon. He had no hair on his head save a neatly trimmed goatee. His glasses seemed like a one-way mirror from where they stood. A dozen others were lined up on the benches beside him, six on either side.

"All rise. I call this Gym Assessment meeting to order."

Nori looked over at Volkner to see what to do.

"The Council asks Volkner Denzi to step forward."

The Gym Leader did so. Nori remained standing where he was, just to be sure. They said Volkner, not him.

"First of all, Mr. Denzi." The chairman lowered his gaze, revealing frigid black eyes. "I want to start by saying the recent incident at your Gym has been one of the worst in the history of Japan's Pokemon Leagues. It ranks up there with the Viridian City Gym's ties to Team Rocket three years ago, the Ismis City Gym embezzling scandal from ten years back, and the Lilycove Contest Hall bombing by several Hoenn League members in the 1940s."

Volkner lowered his head. "I apologize, sir."

"The incidents you have allowed to go on these past months between your Gym Trainers and student were unacceptable. Their feuding escalated beyond simple rivalry or bullying. The end result of which was the crippling and denigration of one of our nation's top rising trainers. What's more, there have been statements made of habitual abusive behavior from the others. Though their validity cannot be verified, neither can they be ignored. Failure to prevent these incidents falls upon you."

Volkner said nothing in response to this. He only stood there slouched, like a kid being scolded by their parents or a teacher. One was obvious, but Nori had done a bit of studying on this part of the law. In practice, talking down to challengers wasn't frowned upon unless there were massive complaints or they needed another charge against someone. This was not looking good.

"It was very close," said the chairman. His tone grim. "A vote of six to six. The tying vote went to me. I want you to know this was not a difficult decision for me to make."

Volkner tensed up. Nori sighed. He supposed the outcome was never in question. And with this guy saying what he did and casting the tiebreaker, he was just rubbing it in by dancing around it.

"I wanted you barred from any official Pokemon League activity for life in our country, more if possible, and blacklisted for at least a year. To set an example of you. Until yesterday."

Volkner slowly looked up. The chairman continued when the Gym Leader was once more looking him in the eyes.

"Your student's impassioned plea in spite of everything that's happened convinced me that you deserve a second chance."

Volkner and Nori both gasped. The Gym Leader's eyes fleeted back at him, communing gratitude. He quickly looked back and bowed. "Thank you, Mr. Shibou, sir."

Nori...did this? They actually listened to him? He helped Volkner and saved not only his job, but his career as a trainer? The boy grinned ear from ear, a wave of euphoria crashing over him.

"That said," the chairman cut any celebration short. "You are being fined 400000P and are ordered to take sensitivity training. And henceforth, your Gym will need special approval to hire any Gym Trainers."

Volkner nodded. "I understand, sir."

"Don't make me regret this decision, Mr. Denzi."

"I won't, sir."

"Good." He banged his gavel. "Dismissed."

---​

Volkner had to fill out some paperwork, and after that, they set off back to the Gym. He hadn't spoken at all since leaving the courtroom, besides telling him to settle down when he wanted to cheer and celebrate. Still the same old stoic Volkner as ever, the boy thought. Maybe the Gym Leader was too relieved to be happy?

He did want to talk about what happened after they got in the man's convertible, however. A lot was on the boy's mind. For starters, "Denigration?" He didn't know that word.

"Character assassination."

"Ruining Kallisto's reputation, you mean? But it's the truth."

"It's complicated." The Gym Leader kept his eyes glued to the road, even though they were at a red light.

"How? Remind me?"

"Kallisto was everything the League wanted in a Champion to represent all of Japan. He may still be one someday, but he won't have the same aura."

He'd still be able to train Pokemon after all he'd done? And he still might be a Champion? Nori shook his head. Was the League really that stupidly forgiving just because they wanted a strong representative? Or did he just have to be good with Pokemon?

"They won't be mad at me for ruining him, will they?"

"Maybe." A shrug. "You'll be fine, though."

The boy sighed and leaned back. "I hope so." He just wanted to be done with this Kallisto business for the rest of his life. Even if a part of him knew that was likely never going to happen if only due to his fans.

"The League has a lot of influence, but they don't run the nation, let alone the world."

The drive continued with not much conversation on the part of Volkner. It was only when they pulled into the garage at the back of the Gym and got out did the blond man address what had happened.

"Can't thank you enough, Nori," he stated, keeping it simple and to the point.

"You're welcome!" he replied.

Volkner scratched his cheek. "I never asked, why did you stick up for me?"

"I said so, didn't I?" Maybe Volkner forgot given all that was going on, but he had no problem saying it again. "Sure, you were very harsh. But you said you were sorry and meant it. Plus you always helped me when I needed it. I figured the least I could do was speak up on your behalf. You really needed it after all."

"More of a friend than Flint." The Gym Leader chuckled. "He just sent a statement and that's it."

Nori blinked. Did Volkner say what he thought he did? "I'm a friend?"

The Gym Leader turned away. "Uh...I guess so," he muttered, twisting back. "That fine?"

"Friends? Sure!" Nori didn't see anything wrong with it. Sure, they were at least a generation apart and were student and teacher, but that didn't mean they couldn't be friends.

Volkner nodded, trying and failing to hide his smile.

##########​

July 16th, 2015​

Volkner stopped by in the afternoon the next day. The Gym was still closed and the bare minimum of staff was working, including Mrs. Stetcher, Coach Norling, a single security guard, and a person who came in and fed the Gym Pokemon.

Nori was downstairs training in the arena at the time. He couldn't decide what to do, so was simply running some laps with his Pokemon. "Oh, Volkner!" he greeted the man, using the chance to take a break. "Why'd you come in today, anyway?"

"Habit. And my workshop's here."

"Oh, right." He hadn't seen Volkner's home, but he'd been told it was a small one-bedroom home on the southwest side of town. He checked for his Pokemon. The Demon had stopped and was scratching an itch on her ears, and Pachi was still at it. "So what's the plan with the Gym, anyway?"

"It'll reopen in August."

"What about challengers?" He'd actually had to tell off someone earlier who was pounding on the doors demanding to be let in.

"Too bad for them."

Nori was surprised, particularly at the Gym Leader's apathy. "So they just can't get their badges?!"

"Blame the Japanese League committees for insisting on strictly eight Gyms and not having backups." The Gym Leader shrugged. "Viridian was short a Gym Leader for ten months after the scandal. Even heard it happened to Ecruteak down in Johto recently for a month."

"That sounds really inconvenient."

"Not our problem. Just means we can push to the end of your training."

"Already?! I thought it was going to take a couple years!"

"They want you active as soon as possible. And, they were impressed by how you handled this situation." He smiled lightly. "And, as far as I'm concerned, you're almost ready."

That was a big surprise to hear. On both levels. He was already ready? Nori didn't feel like he was, but if they said so, there was nothing to do but do it. "So what do I have to do to be ready?"

"Keep training. Your exams will be next month." He glanced at the little squirrel, which got him to stop. "You'll also be graded on how well you've trained him."

Trainer and Pokemon nodded. "Right, you said so."

The Gym Leader moved towards the back. "Come see me if you need anything."

"Okay, thank you."

##########​

July 20th, 2015​

Just after ten in the morning on what should've been exhibition day, Mrs. Stetcher announced over the intercom that someone had come to the Gym and was insisting on seeing them. Nori followed Volkner to see who had decided to come by - after all, it might've been Arumi. To both of their surprise, it was a familiar man with a red 'fro.

"Hey V! Surprise!" Flint Donaldson shouted with a wave.

Volkner sneered. For a second, it seemed he was going to turn around and leave him outside. Yet with mild irritation, he begrudgingly unlocked it and let his fellow Gym Leader in. He immediately crossed his arms.

"What are you doing here?" Volkner demanded.

"Swung by to check on ya." The red-haired man laughed. "Wanted to bring the whole crew, but everyone but Byron and Gardenia had things to do, so figured I'd just come myself." He moved in for a hearty hug, which Volkner prevented with by putting a hand out and backing away. "And I also came by to say, congrats on making it through the scandal!"

"You expecting congratulations too?" Volkner asked, deadpan.

"It'd be nice! Haha! But no, I won't ask ya. Shame our little competition got cut short, though. Was looking forward to it! Makes the victory a little hollow, but still! Flint Donaldson, Elite Four member! Woo! You believe it? Sinnoh's getting two new Gym Leaders this year! Little Row Ark and that fairy-loving boy, Sprig. Heh, surprised they went with Warutsu's pick over mine. Must be the Kannagi Shrine connections at play!"

Flint chattered away. "I was thinking either my best Gym Trainer Firuz, or this local Ice-type trainer with a warm, fiery heart. Nice girl. Real cutie. You'd like her, Nori. She's around your age." The boy blinked. Did he just suggest setting him up with someone? "And hey! Might've been one of them as one of Sinnoh's newest if you hadn't pulled through, haha!"

Volkner turned to Nori. "Can you shut him up?"

"Happy to." It was a bit...something of Flint to come in here and start rambling away. He turned to the visiting official trainer and asked a simple question. "Do you think you would've beaten Volkner if this hadn't happened, Mr. Donaldson?"

"Who's to say?" he smoothly replied. "Guess we'll never know now, huh?"

"Well, there's one thing we can do to help find out."

Volkner realized what he was getting at. "That's right," he replied with a sinister smirk. "And I know you brought her along."

Flint hemmed and hawed for several long seconds. He bit his lip. "She went off on the town, but sure, can call her over."

---​

Twenty minutes later, Sofie came stomping into the Gym. The dark-haired girl immediately sat down on the benches and pulled out her phone, refusing to make eye contact with anyone all the while.

"Don't be so fussy, Sofie," Flint asked.

"Whatever," the punk girl dismissed. Nori rubbed his forehead. Was there a rift between her and Flint? Or was she just being rude?

The newly crowned Elite Four member glowered, staring at Sofie for several long moments. He opened his mouth to say something, eventually turning back to them. "So what'll it be, V? What're we having them do?"

"Well," the blond man gestured at Nori. "He still only has two Pokemon."

"Two-on-two, then? Doubles or singles?"

Volkner glanced over. Sofie was at least paying enough attention to notice they were being deferred to.

"I. Don't. Care." She did not look away from her phone as she answered.

"I'm more used to single battles." Nori said. "I wouldn't mind trying another double battle, but wouldn't you have gone with singles had this continued to its conclusion?" Maybe not because of preference, but because of the League.

"Singles it is!" Flint clapped his hands. "You thinking which two, right?"

"He only has two," Volkner muttered. "His own and what I gave him."

"Exactly right!" Flint skipped over to Sofie with a hearty grin. "Means you'll get to fight the Demon, Sofie!"

"It's just going to be a waste of time."

The red-haired man worriedly asked, "Sofie–"

"Whatever." She stood to her feet. "I'll do it. But I'm heading back out after."

Sofie wordlessly to the battlefield, still staring at her phone and only stuffing it into her pocket upon reaching her position. Flint could only sigh and follow behind.

Nori turned to Volkner. It seemed a good time to talk strategy before the battle. "You know what you're up against, right?" the man quizzed.

"She had a Houndoom, and...what else?"

"It's going to be her Absol."

"Okay." He'd forgotten that was the Pokemon she used to fight off that street gang. "Two Dark-types, huh?" Sounded like it was time for the Demon's legs to get a workout.

"I'll leave it to you."

Nori smiled and nodded. "I'll do what I can."

"And I think I'll be happy with your results." Volkner started off towards the sidelines.

This was it. Nori was ready for Sofie this time. Although he doubted Volkner was going to call him a disappointment if he couldn't beat her, he didn't intend to lose again. He had to chuckle at himself over that thought, as well. Maybe the competitive spirit of the trainers at the Gym was rubbing off on him, just a little.

 

[Daren]

Volkner is honestly lucky the league is somewhat reasonable. Even with Nori's defense I think a lot of organizations would drop the hammer on him after everything that happened at the gym. And honestly that thing was a pretty big debacle and I wouldn't really blame them:
Assuming pokebucks are equal to Yen the fine is...about 3,500 USD under today's exchange?

Flint trying to set up a kid he barely knows with someone else is...rather tactless, even for someone like him. No brain to mouth filter, I guess.
As for Volkner saying he only sent a statement; to be fair I'm not sure what else he could do since he wasn't involved in the affair. Did he expect him to come down personally to see him? Though Volkner seems to dislike having him around.
"Hey if you got canned one of my suggestions might have gotten your job haha"
Flint, my dude: dial it down a few levels.

This Sprig person who is becoming a new gym leader: gotta say that does sound like the sort of name the games would give a Fairy-type leader. You're way better at coming up with Pokémon-sounding names than me.

I wasn't sure before if Nori would have another match with Sofie; we'll see if his confidence pans out though we have certainly seen a lot of growth since last time.

"Blame the Japanese League committees for insisting on strictly eight Gyms and not having backups." The Gym Leader shrugged. "Viridian was short a Gym Leader for ten months after the scandal. Even heard it happened to Ecruteak down in Johto recently for a month."

The Gym system as presented in the games was so clearly flawed from day one. I know it was just created as a gameplay conceit but even as they tried to put more importance on worldbuilding and story I don't think it's until Sw/Sh where there's any regions that seem to have a potential backup plan.
Giovanni just leaves his Gym to run a yakuza gang for a while and nobody can get the Earth Badge during that time.

Although it wasn't really until Galar that I got the impression the league was considered a big deal outside devoted trainers; for instance the matches all seemed to be held privately, even the championship ones, so maybe not too many people care how the league runs itself.

I'm guessing one chapter left, maybe two?

 

[System Error]

Volkner is honestly lucky the league is somewhat reasonable. Even with Nori's defense I think a lot of organizations would drop the hammer on him after everything that happened at the gym. And honestly that thing was a pretty big debacle and I wouldn't really blame them:

It's a reminder that although this fic is dark, it still has a lot of the Pokemon world's optimism in it.

Flint trying to set up a kid he barely knows with someone else is...rather tactless, even for someone like him. No brain to mouth filter, I guess.

Well setting him up with Candice was more Nori's interpretation of what he was doing. He didn't mean it like that, but he's indeed the type who talks without thinking sometimes. Ironically in some of my spitballing for what-if Nori went to Snowpoint, I had some idle scene in mind to the effect of him preferring Candice to the tsundere moody-swingy Alicia when the former brought up the latter liked him, but it was just more a statement and Candice wouldn't want to cause a rift. Haven't decided what happens when she becomes friends with Maylene.

As for Volkner saying he only sent a statement; to be fair I'm not sure what else he could do since he wasn't involved in the affair. Did he expect him to come down personally to see him? Though Volkner seems to dislike having him around.

Probably wanted him to be a character witness.

This Sprig person who is becoming a new gym leader: gotta say that does sound like the sort of name the games would give a Fairy-type leader. You're way better at coming up with Pokémon-sounding names than me.

The trick is to go with a punny name for leaders!
- Gasha Qian comes from gas and gacha, to fit her Poison-type leader status and how she runs the Game Corner. Qian is an old Chinese currency.
- Warutsu Amaya comes from the Waru-prefix, which as anyone familiar with certain evil plumber counterparts can tell you means evil. It's more to match his type specialty. Amaya means night.
- Sprig comes from spriggan, as you seemed to pick up on.
- I even did this for Sofie: she's becoming sort of a Dark-type user, and her last name is Shadden. But do the names make the type expert?

I wasn't sure before if Nori would have another match with Sofie; we'll see if his confidence pans out though we have certainly seen a lot of growth since last time.

Well, remember the previous time, Nori was not in the right state of mind for a battle due to Lux's disappearnace. And yet he almost accidentally won anyway - Volkner was not angrily lashing out when he said Nori had her where he wanted her.

The Gym system as presented in the games was so clearly flawed from day one. I know it was just created as a gameplay conceit but even as they tried to put more importance on worldbuilding and story I don't think it's until Sw/Sh where there's any regions that seem to have a potential backup plan.
Giovanni just leaves his Gym to run a yakuza gang for a while and nobody can get the Earth Badge during that time.

This was also a reference to Marvelous Journey too, which is where the Ecruteak thing comes from. There's definitely problems with a Gym being shut down for a lengthy duration for traveling trainers. It didn't get explored in the narrative of MarJour despite happening twice, small rare source of disappointment with it. I actually thought about having someone blame Nori for the delay and get pissed about it, but decided against it since I'm in falling action mode. Maybe in a future fic.

But yeah, it's a bit of a questionable thing with the worldbuilding of the games that comes up when you think hard enough. I choose to poke fun at it and point it out. The anime sort of addresses it with all these offscreen Gyms that exist, at least.

I'm guessing one chapter left, maybe two?

Five.

 

[Juliko]

Damn, Nori. You actually managed to save Volkner from a worse fate than he could have gotten. But I do think the consequences Volkner did get were appropriate. It's nice to see him and Nori getting along much better and helping each other. I do hope Nori manages to win against Sofie, but considering how their battle went last time, and that Sofie is more experienced as a trainer, I kind of doubt it. Another good chapter like always!

(Also, forgot to mention: I knew the Ecruteak gym incident was a reference to Marjour! But I wasn't sure until you confirmed it. Thanks!)

 

[System Error]

Good to know the gym trainers got some consequences for their actions. I found Ollie's in particular to be pretty cathartic. Somehow, I'm not surprised he would double down on his bullying/conformist behavior and wind up taking it out on some kid's Pokemon.

Alas, Ollie here was somewhat of a tragic character.

Tono got arrested...and is still in denial about hacking the gym.

Nori seems to believe he has no reason to lie about it. He did hack the Gym at least once in the past however, and that caught up with him. It's ambiguous and for the imagination, that said!! After I changed it because it was questionable with his character development whether he would.

At least Eddie made an effort to amend things with Nori, as did Volkner.

Funny, isn't it? I set him up as a major antagonist if not the main one at first, and he turned out to be the best of the bunch at the end of the day.

So glad to see that Nori got birthday cards and letters from his friends, including Betsy-Ann and Lux! The former is doing well, thank goodness, and I'm happy to know Lux finally managed to reach out to Nori, even if his life still isn't going well. At least Nori got some closure in regards to him. Here's hoping one day the two of them can actually reunite in person.

And maybe he will find out what it's like to kiss Lux Assuming NorixPrema isn't active at the time

Huh, had no idea Claris' journey didn't turn out well. New story idea, maybe? I'd love to read how her journey turned out after her fallout with Nori. Or maybe I missed something, like I usually do.

Not this time. There were allusions and implications, but this is the first time I've come out and outright said Claris had a horrible, news-making journey.

Hah, you put Quaxly in there for a quick cameo. That's cute. I personally like Sprigatito better, but maybe the other starters' evolutions, once they get revealed, can change my mind on them.

Starter evolution (and performance) is very important! Snivy is living proof of that. Was lauded as Smugleaf at first, then you ended up with Serperior: a not-so-superior Pokemon that could only naturally know Grass and Normal moves. Even when you factor in TMs, Dragon Tail is after eighth gym and awkward, Aerial Ace is after sixth gym, and Hidden Power is randomly typed and powered and is a late Pokedex check.

Damn, Nori. You actually managed to save Volkner from a worse fate than he could have gotten. But I do think the consequences Volkner did get were appropriate.

A bit painful, they had to do something, but they ultimately spared his job.

It's nice to see him and Nori getting along much better and helping each other.

The Nori/Volkner dynamic was one I was looking forward to presenting. It was a stark contrast from initial plan. In fact I'm going to spoil a little something: In the original draft when Volkner didn't get much character development, when Arumi asked Volkner for an interview in a forthcoming scene he said "piss off" to her, which she wrote down. He'll react more favorably when it actually happens. That said, I recycled the joke for when Nori goes to get an interview from Tono at his school.

I do hope Nori manages to win against Sofie, but considering how their battle went last time, and that Sofie is more experienced as a trainer, I kind of doubt it.

Well, also see what I wrote to Daren above: a big part of last time was that Nori was horribly depressed. Now he's ready and motivated. So he's definitely going to be stronger.

(Also, forgot to mention: I knew the Ecruteak gym incident was a reference to Marjour! But I wasn't sure until you confirmed it. Thanks!)

No problem. But yeah, early MarJour was very different to say the least. The kids had no problems with the Gym being closed for a month and the fic happily timeskipped forward. There were bound to be others in the MarJour world who were screwed over or massively inconvenienced by the incident. Which actually was another fic of a fic idea I had. I'd say a bit more on what I'm doing here too, but for now I'll just say I will explore at least one of the major ramifications.

 

[Dorothy]

Alright, finally got enough free time to read chapter 2.

Some good characterization here in the first bit, although Nori is losing me a little with those fat jokes.

Just a little too much battling for my tastes in this one. It's just my preference, but too much battling and my eyes start to glaze over. There's a reason I try to limit myself to one battle per chapter in my own work, and it's not just because they're tough to write in an interesting way.

I do like that you used some abandoned Pokemon designs, I hadn't thought to do that in my own stories.

 

[System Error]

Some good characterization here in the first bit, although Nori is losing me a little with those fat jokes.

Don't worry about that part TOO too much. Nori's not the type to make cruel jokes by himself, but he absolutely will stand up for himself and fire barbs back at someone who insulted him. A little childish to be sure, but he is only twelve...

Just a little too much battling for my tastes in this one. It's just my preference, but too much battling and my eyes start to glaze over. There's a reason I try to limit myself to one battle per chapter in my own work, and it's not just because they're tough to write in an interesting way.

Fair. It is the highest amount of battles in one chapter, although not the most amount of battling in a chapter (those get more setup and I definitely try to make them as interesting as I can manage!). Know it's a little awkward in this case. When I have a battle in a fic, they usually serve a narrative purpose. And they oftentimes have a mini story going on within them.

In this case, it was to establish the Gym Trainers and the Demon Nidorina - "show, don't tell," after all. They were linked by the common thread of being against a group and set up by Volkner to see Nori's performance in a series of battles against escalatingly more difficult opponents. You have Ollie who got completely destroyed. Tono who seemed to outsmart himself with his choice of Pokemon (he also didn't think Nori wouldn't be put off by a Galarian Pokemon). Eddie who put up a strong fight but got overpowered in the end. And Kallisto who destroyed them without much incident. Right there, I establish what the Gym Trainers - and Nori and the Demon - are like in battle so you can have expectations of them ahead of time.

Now there was one other place I could've done this early enough and spread some of it out, but truth be told, I only thought of it literally after posting this reply. Would've caused some shuffling around due to expanding the chapter it would be in (and I'd have to rethink the motivations in this scene), although I'd have done it anyway for other reasons.

I do like that you used some abandoned Pokemon designs, I hadn't thought to do that in my own stories.

It is very sadface some of them were left on the cutting room floor.

 

[Dorothy]

In this case, it was to establish the Gym Trainers and the Demon Nidorina - "show, don't tell," after all. They were linked by the common thread of being against a group and set up by Volkner to see Nori's performance in a series of battles against escalatingly more difficult opponents. You have Ollie who got completely destroyed. Tono who seemed to outsmart himself with his choice of Pokemon (he also didn't think Nori wouldn't be put off by a Galarian Pokemon). Eddie who put up a strong fight but got overpowered in the end. And Kallisto who destroyed them without much incident. Right there, I establish what the Gym Trainers - and Nori and the Demon - are like in battle so you can have expectations of them ahead of time.

I definitely understand this desire, although part of me wishes you had found a more dynamic way to demonstrate it. For example, maybe some hoodlums are causing trouble and the Gym Trainers have to use their Pokemon in creative ways to put a stop to it, and the way each Trainer goes about it helps to communicate something about their character, personality, and strategy.

 

[System Error]

I definitely understand this desire, although part of me wishes you had found a more dynamic way to demonstrate it. For example, maybe some hoodlums are causing trouble and the Gym Trainers have to use their Pokemon in creative ways to put a stop to it, and the way each Trainer goes about it helps to communicate something about their character, personality, and strategy.

One possibility. Likely not that specific possibility, though. I'll be the first to admit, the first month of the fic is kinda rough - it's almost an artifact of earlier design, actually. Truth be told, I've considered a rewrite and know exactly how I'd do it to pace it better! Only problem and part of the reason why I haven't done it, it'd expand January to 4 or 5 chapters. And that's a pain to edit into FFNet in any smooth fashion. (I think it's easy on AO3 at least).

 

[Dorothy]

One possibility. Likely not that specific possibility, though. I'll be the first to admit, the first month of the fic is kinda rough - it's almost an artifact of earlier design, actually. Truth be told, I've considered a rewrite and know exactly how I'd do it to pace it better! Only problem and part of the reason why I haven't done it, it'd expand January to 4 or 5 chapters. And that's a pain to edit into FFNet in any smooth fashion. (I think it's easy on AO3 at least).

Damn, I didn't even know FF.net was still active, haha.

 

[System Error]

Month 7: July of Death (sixth part)
July 20th, 2015​

Volkner had insisted on being the judge for the battle, citing that Flint volunteered himself last time. Nori went and took his position. Sofie was already at hers, impatiently tapping her foot. "Are you ready?" the blond man asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be!" Nori cheerfully declared with a double fist pump. Sofie grumbled and nodded.

"Then start."

"Hellbiter, kick ass and take names."

"Okay, Pachi. It's time to do this!"

The squirrel hopped into the fray, even more confident than their previous encounter. He slapped his little paws together, and stood in a battle pose. When the Houndoom emerged with a fierce roar, he replied by sparking electricity and shadowboxing.

"Stupid little squirrel," Sofie was not amused. She commenced the battle, "Flamethrower, Hellbiter!"

Volkner nodded at the first command. "Quick Attack," countered Nori.

The devil-like canine breathed a blazing hot stream of fire at Pachi, who dashed directly forward and deftly slid beneath. Hellbiter tried to adjust its aim, but couldn't hit Pachi before the squirrel hit it. The canine and the flames sputtered as it was impacted, sending it staggering back a couple steps.

"Crunch it!"

"Agility away."

The squirrel dashed off, leaving his foe to bite the air. Sofie grumbled.

"There's no escape! Chase it down with Flame Charge!"

Hellbiter cloaked itself in flames and pursued the squirrel as he was building his speed, doing its best to corner its prey. The only reason it managed to keep up at all was due to Pachi tauntingly circling around the pillars so much, movement the dog was not fooled by.

Sofie shouted again as Hellbiter got nearer. "Dark Pulse!"

Still running, it emitted a burst of shadowy energy from its body, which actually managed to strike the white and blue Pokemon. Pachi lost his balance and tripped, but used the momentum to roll back to his feet.

"Hm. Get ready," he told his Pokemon as the hound closed the distance, putting a finger on his lips.

"Now! Crush it with Rock Smash!"

"And Sweet Kiss." He bent his wrist and pointed.

Hellbiter jumped in, aiming to land a jumping paw strike on Pachi. Yet the squirrel evaded it by jumping to the side. He leaned in and smooched his foe on its body. The Houndoom shuddered. It was a dumb play, but it might've worked because of that.

"Damn it! Stupid fuckery!" she cursed. "Crunch, Hellbiter!" The Houndoom aimlessly ran around, much to Pachi's amusement. "Inferno, Solar Beam, anything!"

Unfortunately, her Pokemon ended up hearing the last command. "No, I didn't mean fucking Solar Beam!" Hellbiter, absorbing light, looked over at her and shook its head. "If it's too late to stop, just hit hard!"

"Discharge, Pachi."

Electricity arced out of the squirrel's body. Hellbiter tensed up and whined as it was zapped, its muscles stiffening up. Shaking off the delirium with a roar of determination, it fired off the powerful beam of light...completely missing its target.

Sofie stamped a foot. "Pull it together! Crush it with Body Slam!"

Nori smiled. "Grass Knot it."

A couple stomps summoned grass to ensnare Hellbiter. The punk girl scowled. "That didn't work the first time! Flamethrower it away!"

He hoped she'd do that. "Electro Ball while it's busy."

Sofie gasped. "Shit! Hit it inste–"

It was too late. Pachirisu did a backflip and produced a perfect Electro Ball that viciously impacted Hellbiter. It was knocked free from the entangling vines and onto the floor. Where it laid still. It was over just like that?! Nori was just as surprised as everyone else.

"No! Ugh!" She spoke over Volkner. Sofie recalled her Pokemon and sent out her next at the same time. "Hellbiter, return! Shadeblade, kick its ass! Use Psycho Cut!" Sofie's Absol - a black beast covered in fluffy white fur - emerged with a strange noise, vaguely like some sort of alarm. It waved its crescent-shaped horn and fired a wave of psychokinetic blades.

"Another Electro Ball."

It was a clean exchange with both Pokemon getting hit by their respective ranged moves. Neither Pokemon was badly hurt, and Sofie's next order came right after.

"Move in with Aerial Ace!"

Pachi looked over to Nori, cheeks crackling. The boy nodded his approval. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to get off the Discharge before Shadeblade struck him with its horn.

"Good, now Night Slash!"

"It's coming..." Nori watched closely. "Right! Roll right!"

The squirrel heard it in enough time, dodging as instructed. It was a tactic Volkner had taught them. Dodge towards the direction melee attacks are coming from if you can. That way they miss, and their back is turned for your counter. Which was...

"Super Fang."

Sure enough, his Pokemon lashed forth and bit down on Shadeblade without incident. It growled, baring its own teeth at the pesky squirrel. The damage done, Pachi scurried away before Shadeblade could strike.

"Enough of this!" the punk girl yelled. "Swords Dance!"

A Pokemon had to focus hard to use this move. Meaning it would be wide open. The squirrel was getting ready, but he held out a hand. "Pachi, just wait." He turned to Sofie as her Pokemon started powering up, waving its horn around ritualistically. Maybe he wasn't a strategic master like some people, but this stood out as a blunder. "Why would you do that when you know we can confuse your Pokemon?" he asked.

"Because we won't let you! Psycho Cut!"

"Evade, forward left."

Again, the Absol fired off psychic blades, but this time, Pachi escaped from them, getting closer in the process.

"Then Shadow Claw!"

Pachi kept dodging, only to be viciously caught and knocked away. The squirrel cried out in agony as he was ripped into by the brutal attack. Nori cringed. Maybe he'd made a mistake?

"Now finish it off! Shadeblade, CLOSE COMBAT!!"

No, this was perfectly fine. "Catch it with Discharge, Pachi."

The squirrel, while heavily injured from that one supercharged blow, was able to execute the command. Absol ran right into the burst of electricity, stopping its advance on the spot. It didn't seem to get paralyzed by it, but it was still wide open!

"Now give it that Sweet Kiss!"

"NO! We won't let you! Shove it away!" Absol fended off Pachirisu's advance with its horn, pushing him back with the blunt side. "Give it a taste of its own medicine! Thunderbolt!"

Flint gasped. "Sofie, n–"

"No coaching!" Volkner cut him off. Nori bit his lip, suppressing his glee.

The Absol charged electricity in its horn and fired it out. Pachirisu just stood there and took the full force of the attack, squeeing as he was rejuvenated.

"Are you shitting me?! Fucking Volt Absorb?!"

"Now, Sweet Kiss!" Nori said, with a grin as big as his Pokemon's.

"Ahh!! No, no! Stop! Shadeblade, run back!" The Absol was surprised, but did as its trainer asked. The white and black Pokemon unsteadily backed away from the cheerfully advancing Pachirisu. It almost looked like a scene from a horror movie...if the killer was a happy little squirrel puckering his lips. Or maybe more accurately, it was like a kid running from cooties in the schoolyard. Flint was watching on, about as uneasy as someone watching a horror movie. Volkner was just amused. Nori wondered if his mentor was actually going to crack up over it. That'd be a sight.

"Razor Wind!" Sofie eventually commanded. Happy to receive a proper order, the Absol started whipping up a whirlwind in front of it to use as a sort of defensive barrier.

Pachi stopped short, looking back at Nori. He motioned. "You can just go around it. Or use Electro Ball."

Sofie gasped. Once again, she'd left her Pokemon open. "No. No, no, no, no, no!" She fell to her knees, burying her head in her arms. "This can't be happening. Not even to the Demon, but to the fucking little Pachirisu!"

Nori suddenly felt a little bad. As his Pokemon was lining up to deliver the blow. "Or! Come back."

Everyone was confused at this one. Volkner arched an eyebrow at him. Sofie looked up. Even the Pokemon stopped, Shadeblade halting its attack entirely and allowing the Razor Wind to fizzle out. Pachi came back to Nori's side. He took out the Demon's ball and sent her out.

"Why!?" his opponent screamed. "Why now?!"

The boy sighed. "I know it's not much at this point. But you wanted to battle the Demon, right?"

His words were genuine. He wasn't expecting to utterly dominate Sofie so thoroughly. He figured Pachi would beat the Houndoom, lose to the Absol, and for the Demon to overwhelm her from there. It wasn't much consolation at this point, but maybe it'd help her feel better?

"How can you be..." the young woman choked, actively fighting back tears.

"Y-yes?" Was she thinking he was being disrespectful? "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it as an insult or–"

"Never mind," she groaned. "Let's just get it over with."

All her bravado, all her despair was gone. The only thing left was a defeated shell of a trainer, waiting for the inevitable. Nori closed his eyes. This didn't feel good at all. But it's what battles were sometimes like. And he couldn't just roll over and forfeit.

"You can lead us off," he offered.

"Psycho Cut," she muttered.

"Okay." He motioned to his Pokemon. "Shock Wave."

There was no sense risking that. Even if she was much stronger, it was still a super effective move with an attack boost. The Demon tensed up and fired off a swift jolt of electricity before making to dodge the purplish-pink blades.

The punk girl grumbled. "Shadow Claw."

"You too, my Demon."

The two Pokemon traded blows, their swipes of darkness clanging off each other. They were evenly matched. Shadeblade went stumbling back from the force, but the Demon kept her balance.

"Double Kick."

The teal creature did a partial frontflip, landing on her front legs and delivering two boots to the Absol's face. It groaned, panting and nearly falling over just from that. The black and white creature defiantly stared its foe in the face, vainly thrusting its horn forward. The Demon only needed to lean to avoid the feeble attempt of an attack.

"Just finish me already!" Sofie screamed.

Nori uncomfortably turned to his Pokemon for that one. With a rictis grin, she stood on her hind legs. Their foe was too exhausted to do anything but watch. Raising her front paws, she caused the ground beneath Absol to erupt. She casually stepped beneath as the white and black creature was launched into the air, punctuating it with a mule kick as it came down behind her. A bit of flash. Nori liked it.

"Nori wins," Volkner ruled. His tone was plain and simple, with the faintest proud undertone.

Flint frowned, lowering his head. He shared in his own student's dejection. Sofie recalled her Pokemon, whispering an apology. She approached Nori. "Still interested?" she asked.

"Interested in what?" What was she talking about?

The punk girl sighed. "Never mind. Good battle." She stuck out her hand. They briefly shook before Sofie, as she promised, took her leave.

Nori watched her leave with a sigh. He thought back to Kallisto. He'd probably crushed many people's dreams like this. How could he stand doing stuff like this? It felt awful.

Volkner broke the mood with a smug, one-word question. "So?" he asked, with an evil grin. When his rival didn't answer, he specified, "What do you have to say about that?"

Flint chuckled and sighed. "All right, I admit it. You got the better student. If it wasn't for your troubles with your trainers, you would've whooped us and gotten the Elite Four spot no problem." The red 'froed man lowered his head. "Had a feeling you'd win, actually. You've always been the better trainer, and I know it doesn't seem like it, but the better official too. Heh, not to mention, the better teacher. Know I don't deserve the position, but is what it is." He wore a resigned smile. "Just have to do my best."

Volkner was taken aback by the sudden humility. "Uh, thanks," he awkwardly muttered.

"I should be thanking you," Flint said, turning to Nori as well. "Both of you. This was just the wake-up call Sofie needed."

The young official nodded. He didn't want it to turn out the way it did. "How did she get worse?" he inquired out of curiosity. "I don't remember our last battle that well, but I know she used Smog as a smokescreen. She didn't do anything like that here."

"She started believing all she needed was power and training. Didn't see the point of anything else." The Snowpoint Gym Leader sighed. "Nothing I said could change her mind on that one. Got ruder and meaner, even made one of my own Gym Trainers resign. Think she said something like, no mercy or compassion in battle. You'll get none."

"Yet Nori gave some. And still won." Volkner voiced an observation.

"Sure did," Flint agreed.

Though he was being praised, Nori could only sigh. While he won, something about it didn't sit well with him. It felt good to destroy someone like Tono or Eddie before, but not this time.

"Don't feel too bad about it," Flint assured him. "Lot of people don't take losses well. You might be the first I've seen who hasn't taken a win well, heh." Maybe true. He'd get over it in a couple hours at most, he was sure about that. "But really, V. Didn't it occur to you? About our students?"

Volkner crossed his arms. "I might've considered it."

"Sofie's a real handful who loves fighting. Would've worked better with you. Just like Nori here would've fit better with me."

"They were testing us. I knew that since February."

Flint ruffled his hair. "Only hit me recently. Another point up for you. But hey, look at you two now!" He bellowed heartily. "Getting along like matches in a box! That's why you're the better teacher."

"Thank you, Flint." This one was more genuine out of Volkner.

"Think I better catch up with her. Nice chatting with ya. See you soon." Flint waved before hurrying out to find Sofie.

---​

Volkner approached Nori after dinner to talk about what had happened. "Thanks for today. Owe you one." The Gym Leader shook his head. "No, a lot. If there's anything I can do for you, just ask."

"I guess if you're offering." He was thinking of asking this anyway, since he wasn't sure if he would be able to convince the Officials on his own. "Can you get me assigned to Veilstone? My mom, and my friends Maylene, Rashid, and Prema are there, among others."

"Prema?" the man asked, raising his voice just vaguely. "Kannagi?"

"Yeah."

"Heh. You're something else." The Gym Leader let out a low chuckle. "Kallisto practices their faith."

"She disapproved of him."

"Ironic."

"Yeah." Nori rolled his shoulders. "It's part of why I'm not religious. I mean, there's a lot of reasons. But I know that some don't practice what they preach. I don't want to be a part of anything like that." Although that said, he didn't know what the Kannagi faith entailed, so maybe Kallisto technically was. But he was still a jerk!

"Same here. Atheist." The Gym Leader shrugged. "All the ones they call gods are just very strong Pokemon."

"I wouldn't call myself that, just irreligious." Maybe there were real gods out there, but why bother? They didn't seem to be doing him any favors. He'd rather rely on himself and others than prayer.

"I see."

"Oh! But can you help me get assigned to Veilstone?" Nori once again asked. About the only other place he'd want to be is Sunyshore, and it paled in comparison with his real home.

"Yes," Volkner promised. "I'll make sure of it."

"Thanks."

"Least I can do."

That was that taken care of. One less thing to worry about. He didn't want to be sent to stupid boring Kanto or anything.

##########​

July 25th, 2015​

While neither of them would admit it, Flint's visit had served to break up the monotony. Besides training and their hobbies, there was little to do around the Gym. Nori was getting used to his new computer - he'd gotten tips on how to use it and what to do (and not do) by Volkner - but the internet didn't manage to hold his attention. Besides, from what he'd heard, most of the people on it seemed to be stupid, jerks, or both.

"How's things?" the Gym Leader stopped by the lobby in the afternoon on the 25th. Nori was splayed out on the seats.

"I'm bored," the boy said with a heavy sigh.

"Same," Volkner agreed. "Miss the heat of battle."

"I miss having others around." He hated to admit, he sort of missed the Gym Trainers. Well, except Kallisto. He'd emailed Arumi asking if she wanted to hang out, but she replied she was too busy. He'd even seen most of the immediate area around the Gym at this point. "Never thought I'd hate summer break this much."

"Just another week and the Gym will reopen."

"Ugh, why couldn't it have reopened as soon as they said you were good?"

"Reasons. Mostly bureaucratic." The blond man grumbled. "Not gonna help our workload next month."

"Yeah, there's probably going to be a lot of people who couldn't get their badge." He still couldn't believe the League was that dumb!

"The League starts in late August," remarked Volkner. "We're going to see a lot of challengers."

Which made it even dumber. "And no Gym Trainers."

"You can fill in as one."

"Sure, it'd be good practice for Pachi." The little squirrel perked up from his nap on hearing his name. "I guess I'd be using Gym Pokemon too."

There was a sudden chime. Nori sat up. "That sounded like the doorbell."

"Another visitor." Volkner walked over to answer it. Nori didn't bother checking at first. The sound of the door being opened got him to sit up.

A woman with an eyepatch dressed in casual clothing cautiously stepped inside. "Hey."

Nori glared at Rin Kakoku. "What're you doing here?"

She removed her cap and lowered her head. "I came to apologize to you. Wanted to wait until everything had settled down. You were right about Kallisto. Can't believe I didn't see that." She profanely cursed herself under her breath, before looking up. "I also came to ask if you'd like some training from me."

Was she serious? Nori glanced to his mentor, who shrugged. "Your choice," the man replied.

"Volkner's been doing a good job by himself." He wasn't going to say no outright, but he wanted to know what good could come from this. "What can you do for me?"

"There's stuff you won't learn in books," the one-eyed woman said. "Good skills to have, especially if you piss off the wrong person. It's good to be ready for it."

Nori gave it a little thought. As much as he wanted to tell her to go away, Volkner wasn't teaching him everything she had been. Plus, he was bored. "I guess it'd be something different."

Ms. Kakoku nodded. "All right. First off, have you been keeping up with your aiming practice?"

"With the laser pointer? Yes, sometimes."

"Let's review your firearms training, in that case."

Picking up a gun again. That was going to be really weird no matter what. "Okay, Ms. Kakoku."

The woman shook her head. "I'm not your teacher anymore. In fact, we'll be equals soon. So just call me Rin from now on."

"If you say so, Rin." Okay, it was really strange calling an adult by their first name. Sure, he did it for Volkner, but even that took getting used to. And they were friends now, so it made sense in that case.

"We can set up the target test if you need it," the Gym Leader said.

"Wouldn't that be too much hassle?" The boy cringed as he remembered that stupid thing. "Plus I'd rather not see that ever again."

##########​

July 31st, 2015​

Over the next week, Rin not only taught Nori everything about handling a gun - from how to properly load one to safety to maintenance - but gave him some physical training and taught him as much investigative skills as possible in the short time she would be able to.

"All right, good job the past week, Nori," she congratulated him.

"Thank you, Rin." While he only accepted due to not having anything better to do, he was glad he went through with it. "This was fun! Thanks for it!"

She'd set up a mock crime scene investigation, as a sort of final exam on the fieldwork things. That was something he could enjoy! He felt like one of the detectives in Crime by Starlight! He thought to write back to Lux about it, but figured it was best to do that once he finally made it back home so he knew his home address. He also considered sending him his ElectronMail address whenever he did write that letter. He wasn't sure if Lux actually used email, but it couldn't hurt!

"You'll be just fine if they decide to throw you in the field. Good shot and good instincts." Rin deflated as she started to gather her stuff. "Meanwhile, my vacation's up, so I'm headed to Kanto for a boring desk job."

"What about me?" he asked. "I mean, you were my Official teacher, but it sounds like you're not going to be working with me."

"You'll be getting another official to report into."

Nori tilted his head. "Can't it be you?"

The one-eyed woman was bemused by the question. "I'm flattered, but they're discriminatory. Plus the fiasco with me quitting never sat well with them."

"Oh...sorry..." Nori suddenly felt a little guilty. If he'd handled that argument with her better, maybe that wouldn't have happened.

"It's fine," the woman said. "It was my choice to quit. Might even quit this job if it doesn't go anywhere, to be honest." She smirked. "Besides, they save stuff like getting reports for the lower ranked ones."

Volkner stoically watched on, though there was a bit of a slump to his posture. Nori supposed from that, it also wouldn't be him.

Rin continued, "I did hear they want you in action by autumn, so I'd say it's just another month until that happens."

"Okay. Thank you for everything." Nori lightly bowed and stuck out a hand.

"You too." They shook hands. "Good luck."

Rin walked out of the arena. Nori went to sit by Volkner, plopping down on the floor next to the Demon.

"One more month, huh?" he quipped. Just August, and his time in Sunyshore was going to be over. He never realized it until this moment, but he was going to miss being here.

Volkner nodded. "Let's make the most of it."

 

[Daren]

Nice to have confirmation Pachi is still the G.O.A.T but I was not expecting it to be that one-sided...yet it feels appropriate, in a way.

I am a bit surprised to see Rin again after she wasn't in that reaction gaiden chapter, but it was nice of her to come back to apologize and try to give Nori a last minute training course.

Still, hard to believe someone as young as Nori is going to be active as a government agent but Platinum had Looker asking a child to do his job for him so that's pretty much canon.

It makes sense that he'd wanted to be assigned close to him, and hopefully Volkner is right about being able to assure it (it feels a bit late in the story for a curveball though).

"Same here. Atheist." The Gym Leader shrugged. "All the ones they call gods are just very strong Pokemon."

I know what he's getting at but this makes me imagine someone trying to "catch" Zeus or Odin.
Then I remember Shin Megami Tensei and laugh and laugh.

He didn't want to be sent to stupid boring Kanto or anything.

Nori is now cancelled in the fandom.

 

[System Error]

Nice to have confirmation Pachi is still the G.O.A.T but I was not expecting it to be that one-sided...yet it feels appropriate, in a way.

As I was alluding to in the previous reply, Nori actually almost won anyway in their first battle - mostly thanks to an accidental super critical, but still. He only got better while Sofie pretty much regressed. Add that to Nori actually being in the right frame of mind this time around, and the result was a surprising stomp.

It also in a way brings things full circle. Nori's Pokemon and him are now good enough to win so decisively against lesser trainers like this, a la how Kallisto destroyed him the first time around. He doesn't need to rely on people being unprepared for the Demon...of course, her ridiculous power is still a thing, but it's been tempered a little.

I am a bit surprised to see Rin again after she wasn't in that reaction gaiden chapter, but it was nice of her to come back to apologize and try to give Nori a last minute training course.

Well I did want a bit of closure there too, and she needed to show up in person for that.

Still, hard to believe someone as young as Nori is going to be active as a government agent but Platinum had Looker asking a child to do his job for him so that's pretty much canon.

Also see: how Nate (or Black-Two, or Lack-Two, or whatever) in Adventures was Looker's superior in the International Police. It's unclear how old he is, but he's certainly a teenager. It's nothing special in anime, although unlike there, I do give a solid explanation and backstory for Nori being an official instead of having him show up.

It makes sense that he'd wanted to be assigned close to him, and hopefully Volkner is right about being able to assure it (it feels a bit late in the story for a curveball though).

Heh heh heh

Nori is now cancelled in the fandom.

Well, I may end up cancelled because I not only dunked on Kanto here, I also dunked on the people who hate Kanto earlier.

 

[Juliko]

Awww yeah! Nori manages to defeat Sofie this time around, with Sofie only losing because of her carelessness and cocky attitude. It was nice to see Nori at least trying to reach out to her and console her, though. Glad to see Flint and Volkner talking things out, too. I certainly didn't expect Rin Kakoku to come back, and for her to apologize as well. Good to see she's learned the error of her ways. Things are finally looking up for Nori to an extent. Here's hoping they continue to do so!

 

[System Error]

Awww yeah! Nori manages to defeat Sofie this time around, with Sofie only losing because of her carelessness and cocky attitude.

That's underselling Nori's skill a little, he's actually stronger than her. Of course if Sofie wasn't like that, it wouldn't have been that big of a massacre and she might've had a shot.

It was nice to see Nori at least trying to reach out to her and console her, though. Glad to see Flint and Volkner talking things out, too.

So this scene. Yeah, when you guys were bringing up a few things like Flint's Elite Four position being a foregone conclusion, I was holding myself back from saying anything. Because big spoilers: yes, Flint does win, but it's not because he was better. Volkner just got scandalized too hard. It was a plot point that was in since near the beginning to give training Nori some weight for Volkner. I forget when exactly I came up with the idea of them getting students to train that were better suited for the other which is how I thought up Sofie. And for Flint to technically only get it by default. Like an early version of a scene in the next chapter didn't have this factored in at all. Now it does, however!

I certainly didn't expect Rin Kakoku to come back, and for her to apologize as well. Good to see she's learned the error of her ways.

It was hard for her to believe at the time, but she's big enough to admit when she was wrong once she sees proof of it. As I mentioned (wait did I?), there will be more people showing up over the last few chapters who couldn't or didn't in the Gaiden.

 

[Dorothy]

Chapter 3 time.

Failure seemed to be a major theme in this one, and I like that. It's a very fun theme to watch characters deal with. I like Kallisto's interactions with Nori. You're setting him up as both a mentor and a rival, which is a fun dynamic.

Volkner is more of an ass than I like to see. He's apathetic, but he's not a tool.

 

[System Error]

Failure seemed to be a major theme in this one, and I like that. It's a very fun theme to watch characters deal with.

Of course there was also the school scene. I wanted a little juxtaposition there. Nori does fine with the homework to where it's barely worth a mention, and when he sees a bully he stands up to him (for someone else) and pretty much wins the ensuing fight before teacher happens. Then you have the aforementioned failures at the Gym.

I like Kallisto's interactions with Nori. You're setting him up as both a mentor and a rival, which is a fun dynamic.

Kallisto was fun to write. He certainly leans more mentor, although his friends and the other Gym Trainers are more of the antagonistic rivals. It puts him in an interesting position. Of course he's also a sort of pinnacle, one that Nori believes to be insurmountable.

Volkner is more of an ass than I like to see. He's apathetic, but he's not a tool.

Keep in mind, this is a younger Volkner. When using canon characters in this fic, I wanted them to be familiar yet different to account for the 4-5 year gap between now and DP's events. In Volkner's case, he's a lot more irritable and serious about training to the point of lashing out at his student. I will say there's a second reason he's treating Nori this way too, but it's revealed down the line.

 

[System Error]

August of Respite (first part)
August 3rd, 2015​

Bits of rock and dust were strewn across the battlefield of Sunyshore Gym. A massive scorch mark had been imprinted onto the ground, which the janitor was going to have fun cleaning up. The two trainers stood with opposite stances, one relaxed and the other flustered, as the Gym Leader and a modest crowd watched on.

"Wasn't expecting you to make a sacrifice play," Nori plainly remarked. Especially when his Pokemon was otherwise in good health.

The orange-haired teenager standing across from him twitched. He said his name was Roger Raison. "Well, I wasn't expecting your stupid Luxio to have Ice Fang!" he yelled back at him.

It wasn't his. He was just borrowing the Gym Pokemon due to only having two himself, one of which wasn't even an Electric type and way above the skill level of most. He replied simply, "Shouldn't you know by now that monotype trainers have their weaknesses covered? You panicked, you made your Graveler boom, so that leaves us with one each." He turned his head to the left, nodding at Pachi who was sitting on his shoulder. "So let's continue."

Roger's eyes stretched wide. "I'm not gonna have to fight the Demon, are I?"

He put his hand in his left pocket. "Not unless you want to." It wasn't like a Gym's type is a hard and fast rule. Just a guideline. And using her now would fall under Volkner's one-third guideline.

"I'd rather not!" the challenger shouted.

Nori shrugged. "All right." He never brought her out in these situations unless someone asked, and few did. With this, the blue and white squirrel jumped down, ready to fight.

The challenger grinned. "Just that Pachirisu? This should be a snap, then! Chimmy, you're up!"

Out came a flaming monkey Pokemon. Nori sighed. Another person disrespecting the Pachirisu. A trainer's starter Pokemon is often the first they raise, seeing many battles and growing as travel across whatever region they go to. While the Demon was his original, Pachi would technically fit the definition of a starter for him, nontraditional as it was. And this Infernape was very likely this kid's.

"Let's make this quick so we can fight Volkner tomorrow! Mach Punch!"

Pachi looked back for a command as the monkey crouched to rocket forward. Did he even have to say it? He just nodded his approval.

Standing boldly, Pachi expelled a light burst of electricity. No time to react or avoid at the velocity it was traveling. The punch didn't even land; Chimmy's body seized up just centimeters from its target.

"Wait, what?!"

"Now, Super Fang."

"Counter with Flame Wheel!"

It tried to. But Pachi was far faster, and was able to chomp into their foe without incident. The fiery attack resolved, but the squirrel somersaulted off, only being mildly scorched.

Roger growled. "Get on out of there using Acrobatics!" The Infernape obeyed as best it could. It was kind of sad, yet impressive at the same time. The paralysis was making it turn out more like failed cartwheels and half-twirls rather than backflips and leaps, but the fact that it was still going moderately quickly spoke some volumes.

Still, it wasn't quick enough. "Chase it down."

Pachi did so, punctuating it with some playful hops and tiny bursts of electricity. He was having fun, but it was proving unnerving to their opponents.

"No, get away!" Roger panicked. "Close Combat!"

Nori giggled. That never got old. "Grass Knot."

Pachi tapped his foot. Before Chimmy could change gears, it found itself ensnared by numerous vines that burst from the ground. It was tripped to the floor in the process.

"What's that gonna do? Break out with Flame Wheel!"

They failed to notice Nori mouthing something to his Pokemon. The Infernape again cloaked itself in fire, easily burning away the grass. At that same moment, Pachi ran towards it and leaped high into the air - mimicking what McCloud had done in the past with his own Agility. Roger tried to yell a warning, but there was no stopping it.

Nori clasped his hands and pointed. "All right, Electro Ball."

Chimmy was blindsided, being hit right in the face as he looked up. To Nori's delight, Pachi came down with his tail, smashing it into their foe's face without being asked. While it wasn't a proper Iron Tail, the good takeaway was him starting to pick up on taking initiative in better ways!

"We're not gonna lose! Close Combat!"

So much for their momentum. With utter fury, the fire monkey unloaded on Pachi with a blindingly fast combo of punches and kicks. Nori's Pokemon was ravaged by the attack, intricately aimed as to not send him flying away. Roger stood with a hand on his hip.

"Yeah! You go, Chimmy!"

The Pokemon stopped to catch its breath. That gave the opening.

"Give it a Sweet Kiss."

Hurt but far from finished, Pachi rolled forward and planted a smooch right on Chimmy's forehead. The monkey's eyes dilated.

"Keep it together, Chimmy!" Roger encouraged. "Finish it with another Close Combat!" Ordering the same strong move twice in a row, when it was already tired. The boy smirked at that desperation. He had this in the bag.

Pachi started to crackle with electricity, but Nori raised a hand. He saw those wobbly movements! There was no need to take action here. Indeed, their opponent fumbled around, nowhere close to hitting them.

"Flamethrower!"

Momentarily shaking the delirium off, Chimmy took a deep breath and reared back...and stopped, seizing up. Pachi instinctively dodged anyway, looked back at his very bemused trainer.

"This isn't funny, you know!" Roger complained in frustration.

Nori shrugged. "Well, okay." Though it actually was pretty funny, that was enough. "Finish with Discharge, Pachi."

"Stop it with Mach Punch!"

Battling through the paralysis and confusion, the Infernape took off towards its foe at high speed. It reached Pachi right before the Discharge went off, going right by him. Every head in the room turned to see the fire monkey charge headfirst into one of the pillars, recoil backwards, and fall flat on its back. Even worse, it didn't move afterward.

Now Nori could not help but chuckle, though he turned and covered his mouth in a vain attempt to hide it. The small audience was not as merciful, a short yet sharp burst laughter flowing through it.

Even the referee had some initial amusement in his tone as he raised the flag. Volkner had been forced to hire one after the incident. "Infernape is unable to battle. This match goes to the Gym Trainer, Nori Carino!"

Roger collapsed on his knees, burying his face in his arms. That had to be an embarrassing loss for him. Well, there was one thing Nori could do for him. He walked over as the teenager moped.

"I'm so sorry, Chimmy. I should've done better," Roger whispered as he recalled his Pokemon.

"Hey." He looked up at Nori, seeming to shrink back a little on sight of the younger but more experienced trainer. Nori smiled and assured him. "Don't feel so bad. You did okay."

"But not good enough to battle me." Volkner, his expression blank with disappointment, had risen from his chair and was walking over. "You lost your cool when faced with something unexpected. And when faced with an unorthodox strategy, you had no answer. Once you've learned to how handle those things, come back and try again."

Roger sniffed, wiping an eye as he rose. "I guess I have a long way to go."

"Just keep it up," Nori said.

"Thanks, you know I will." A bit of his bravado returning, the orange-hair boy issued a proclamation. "Next time I'm in here, you're going down!"

Nori put a hand on his hip. "Think you'll be good enough to fight the Demon, then?"

Roger scoffed. "Hell no. I'll take the regular Electric-types, thank you."

---​

Later on in the day, Nori found himself lounging about the Gym with Volkner. His Pokemon were both outside of their balls. Pachi was dozing quietly on the stands, whereas the Demon was sparring with the leader's Luxray.

The Gym was presently operating without Gym Trainers. It wasn't as easy as getting new applicants, either. In fact, new measures to hire them were being brought in nationwide. Background and personality checks were going to be required, although current ones were allowed to stay in their position. For Sunyshore specifically, approval from upstairs would be required on all of them. Nori found a loophole by offering to take up the role in an unofficial capacity, remembering that any resident of the Gym could act as one. It was good practice as well. A few of the staff also agreed to pitch in.

The blond Gym Leader made a sudden quip. "First time I've seen you have fun with a random battle."

Nori looked from the textbook he was engrossed in. "May as well sometimes, you know?"

"In general, I meant. You always saw battles as a job before. You only enjoyed them when there was something to them."

Volkner was right, he had to admit. Nori actually found that kind of fun. He only really enjoyed fighting the Gym Trainers until now. He had some rushes of excitement when winning against random challengers, but they were just that: rushes. Plus he was battling because he wanted to, rather than because he had to.

He knew why he felt that way, too. "It's because there's not as much pressure on me. So I can relax and be who I want to be." He looked out at the battlefield. Volkner's Luxray was crouched down, covering himself. The Demon stood tall over him, huffing in superiority. The Luxray stood. They nodded in respect and walked away from each other, the Luxray approaching his trainer. "Plus, I feel a lot better now that Kallisto's not around."

Volkner stared at him for several moments before looking away. The Gym Leader gave his ace Pokemon a pat as he laid down beside him.

Nori went back to the textbook. Pokemon law, chapter five. It dealt with how trainers are responsible for their Pokemon's actions. The books had many court cases in them providing examples of applications of the law. He was presently through reading SC-81 No.201, aka the Stray Primeape case, where a released Pokemon was responsible for damaging property. The trainer, Dakota Durian, was found to be accountable for it. An obscure court case at the time that nonetheless established a precedent.

"You've been blazing through that," Volkner said. "You don't have to."

It was true. He'd started late last month, in between training with Rin. The whole thing was six chapters, but the bulk of it was in chapters two and three. There was only about a quarter of the book left.

"I'm motivated," he explained. "And I need to eventually."

The leader chuckled with sarcastic derision. "Wish I still had some of that."

Nori tilted his head. He made a guess as to what it was, "Still mad about Mr. Donaldson getting the Elite Four position?"

"Tch."

Right on the mark. Nori couldn't speak to Volkner's relationship with him, even with all he knew, but it looked far more than an ordinarily rivalry. Still, there were upsides. He spread some optimism to his mentor. "That just means you can challenge them yourself someday."

The Gym Leader seemed to smile wryly for just a moment. Nori blinked, initially unsure if he was seeing that right. It was rare to see a genuine smile from Volkner.

"I'll think about it." The Gym Leader paused, his lip curling. "But one question for you. How can you still smile like that after everything you've been through?"

Nori nodded. He wasn't hiding his good mood right now. "Yes, I've been through a lot. But it's over now. It's behind me. I can smile about that."

"Still remember the day you came here," the Gym Leader muttered, shaking his head. "Pissed me off seeing how positive you were. Reminded me of Flint. Thought for sure you'd change from it all."

"I almost did, probably for the worse. I doubted myself several times. But I knew I'd end up hating myself for it." Nori serenely leaned back. "But I have changed. I've learned and grown a lot these past seven months. Like, you helped teach me, I don't need to be provoked so easily. And I learned I don't have to impress certain people." He folded his textbook, stood up, and stretched. "All that doesn't mean I have to stop being who I am."

"Heh. Glad to hear that," the Gym Leader replied with a snort.

Nori tilted his head. "You don't sound too glad."

"Just wish I figured some of that out at your age."

"Did something happen?" What could've happened when Volkner was– "Wait, it's about Flint, isn't it?"

"Nothing gets by you," said Volkner with a bitter laugh. "No matter what he says, he's always been the better person. All I had for the longest time was being better at Pokemon."

Having been in a similar spot, he knew exactly what to say to encourage him. "Well, you can just do what I did. Who cares about comparing yourself to him? Just be yourself. Besides, it's not too late, isn't it? You can still grow and change at your age. You don't have to be the way you are."

"It's who I am," replied his tutor. "I'm Volkner Denzi. Apathetic jackass."

"I guess. But if you're unhappy with who you are, aren't you going to keep being unhappy? I mean, sometimes a little change isn't bad..."

"I was getting to that." The Gym Leader leaned back. "Maybe I've learned a thing or two from you. Maybe I can change myself, just a little, while still being me."

The boy nodded. He was different from when he came to Sunyshore Gym. But he was still himself. There was nothing to say Volkner couldn't do the same.

##########​

August 6th, 2015​

As a challenger left the Gym without a Beacon Badge, Nori Carino got up from his seat and approached his mentor.

"There's a lot more challengers lately," the boy remarked. "Before it'd be like, one every three days, but now it's like three every day." On average, of course.

"League's this month," the Gym Leader answered.

"Oh, right." It'd slipped his mind.

"And with them closing the Gym for all of July, there's a bunch of people trying to cram in the last badge."

"That's...not very smart of them. The League, I mean."

"It wasn't, no. Like I said, dumb for insisting on just eight, no backup Gyms."

Nori chuckled. "Funny enough, always forget it's in August."

"Because you never had reason to," the Gym Leader cut in with understanding. "It's this month because the League insists on outdoor stadiums, and Sinnoh's, well. Sinnoh."

"I imagine it's been messed up by August snow sometimes."

"Yes," came the blunt reply.

It was funny talking about these sorts of things with Volkner. He never imagined having conversations about stupid morons with an adult. If only they knew they had this much in common sooner.

There was a chime over the intercom. "Someone's coming your way," came the voice of Mrs. Stetcher.

"Right back to work," remarked Nori.

The Gym Leader shrugged. "Don't mind. Least they've been entertaining. But thinking of restricting battles to people with six or seven badges."

The boy nodded. "That'd help take the workload off." As he said this, the right side door opened.

People who walked in that way were most often friends of a challenger or random spectators, but in this case, it turned out to be Arumi Schrader. Clad in a simple dress shirt and beige dress pants.

"Hey, Nor'! How've you been?" she asked with a wild wave.

"Much better. How've you been?"

"Fantastic!" She vigorously clapped her hands over her head. "Just really busy. I've been getting a ton of interview requests!" The reporter in-training chuckled. "My parents said the same thing you did, though."

"Which is?"

"That I'd make a great investigative journalist. So I've decided, that's what I'm going to be, instead of a reporter!"

"Um, well, I was sort of just saying that, but that's good to hear!" It was a random remark, he didn't think Arumi would actually take it seriously.

"And thanks again for the great summer project idea!" She nudged him, before walking out onto the battlefield, making dramatic gestures. "Nori and Volkner! The True Tale of the Pokemon Rehabilitator and his Mentor!"

Volkner's expression went blank. He sort of stared at Nori in a funny way, to which the boy could only shrug. Turning his gaze to Arumi with an exasperated sigh, he asked, "I assume you'll want an interview?"

"Heh heh heh! You read me like an open book!" The teenager winked.

The Gym Leader softened. "All right, I'll make time for it on the weekend."

"Thanks so much!"

"Leave you two be for now." The Gym Leader made for the back, faintly grumbling the whole way.

Arumi skipped over and plopped down beside him, commandeering the chair Volkner had been using. "So what've you been up to?"

"I've been really busy, like you. They want me working by autumn." Arumi seemed momentarily surprised. "My Officials' tests are later this month. After that, I'm headed back home to Veilstone, hopefully."

"Aw." The girl drooped, albeit with energy. "Can't say I'm not disappointed, but you gotta go where you have to."

"We can still talk," he assured her. "I have your email. Plus, I know how to use it, now."

"Yup, yup, yup!"

"I might even be able to come visit you and Volkner."

"And vice-versa!" She rubbed her hands together deviously. "The life of an investigative journalist could take me anywhere! Maybe I'll catch some more Pokemon to help with the job! What'd you recommend?"

"Er, I don't think I'm the best to ask about that..." He awkwardly rubbed behind his ear. "But you already have a bird in your Pelipper, so that's a good start."

"Maybe I'm just overthinking things." Arumi shrugged. "After all, not like Pokemon run our lives." Too true. They were a big part of it, no doubt, but not every job had to involve Pokemon in some way. Despite what some people thought and tried to force.

"So how've you been doing, project aside?"

"It's mostly been the project!" she declared. "Besides that, I've been reading books. But I still haven't got Sato to notice how I feel..."

"Just give it time," he assured her. "He might not be thinking of love just yet."

"Wait until he's ready and don't mess things up, then?"

Nori nodded. "That could work. I'm sure he'll notice eventually. Maybe ask him next year when you're in the same school again?"

"That could work! Ahhh..." She dreamily sighed. "Hey, I'm curious. You have anyone you like?"

This question again? "Well, Claris Willins and me were almost a thing. But that didn't work out. Besides that, nothing, really." He briefly considered. "Well, I had a few chances, and there's this younger girl with a precocious crush on me at home." Maybe in a few years if Maylene still did. "Plus, probably, maybe a friend of mine who moved?" He wasn't entirely sure what Lux's status was. "But right now, no one. Not in a rush, either."

"Hey, did you know Yuki liked you?"

"Yuki?!" he asked. "As in, Yuki from the club?!"

"The same one."

"But he's...we're..." Was that what he wanted to talk to him about on May 20th?!

She chuckled. "Yeah, I know. But if you're not like that, that's fine."

"I don't think I am, but..." He didn't look at guys and think they were cute, like he did with girls. But he might've said yes to spite Kallisto, had everything not gone to hell. Probably good nothing happened, due to that uncertainty. "Not worth worrying about now."

"Probably not," agreed Arumi, suddenly sighing. "I am worried about Sato, though..."

He patted his friend on the back. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll do just fine."

"Sorry, dunno what came over me." Arumi laughed. "And I know you'll do fine with whoever you get."

"Maybe you can be my wingmate when the time comes," he half-joked. He was half-serious about it too, for that matter.

"Sure!" she agreed. "We're besties like that, after all!"

Nori grinned and nodded. It was hard to refute Arumi was his bestie. She stuck by him when no one else would or could. A shame she was one of the many in Sunyshore he'd be saying goodbye to soon.

##########​

August 8th, 2015​

Nori was hanging out in the lobby in the afternoon, one day before the temporary new restriction on challengers was to be put into place. They had been slowing down since the initial rush, yet Volkner was implementing it regardless.

A bare-chested man wearing trunk-like shorts, an open dress shirt, flip-flops, a cap, and hip sunglasses came waltzing into the Gym. Another challenger, from his self-confident (maybe exaggerated) stride. And a person Nori recognized at that.

"Billy Ordride," he called the ex-lifeguard out by name.

"I see my reputation precedes me, bro!" the man declared. "Decided to drop in to try my hand at the fine art of Pokemon training." He laughed. "I know. Certainly you weren't expectin' a rad dude like me to be here. But I ain't no hollow Quimby when it comes to Pokes. Have a bunch of juiced dudes I ride the waves with sometimes. Ain't no shubie here, we got some sick skills, bro!"

---​

It took Nori only six minutes to utterly destroy him - after helping him through the puzzle so he was actually able to challenge the Gym. A solid 3-0 in which he only needed to use Pachi, obliterating the guy's Mantine, Dratini, and even his Sandygast ("I've rode waves all over the world, bro!").

"That's for Tonsen Land!" Nori declared right as the sand castle Pokemon fell into itself.

The judge gave his formal boring ruling, but nobody paid any attention. Ordride scratched his head. "Uh, whaddya mean, for Tonsen Land, little dude? Been a long swell period since I worked there..."

"You really don't remember?!" Nori snapped. "You weren't watching me, and I nearly drowned!"

"Wait, that was you?!" Ordride gasped. A flash of recognition came over him. "Wait, you're also that mental kid from Kallisto's ceremony!"

"And from the school! And the sports store! And the sandwich store! And the observatory! And...well, here! Twice now!" Nori counted up all the incidents on his fingers. "I'm uh, not forgetting anything, am I?"

The man's jaw dropped. "All the jobs I lost this year! How'd you know all those?!"

"Because I was there every time!" Nori declared. "So take that for real this time!"

Ordride fell to the ground, bawling in tears? "Damn it! Not again...I'm not cut out for this. I just want a steady job that's easy and I don't have to worry about!" He punched the floor as he sobbed violently.

Nori and Volkner stood still, both more than a little dumbfounded. The judge shook his head and left, muttering he wasn't being paid enough to work here. The boy and his mentor exchanged glances.

"Well, if you had ‘make a grown man cry’ on your to-do list, well done," Volkner snarked.

"This is pathetic." Nori sighed. "He somehow made me feel bad about it."

Until now, Nori had never seen any challenger get reduced to curling up and crying. He couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the surfer. And he supposed it wasn't as if this stupid moron had personally wronged him. He was just that: stupid.

"Okay, look," he said. He decided not to bother taking on any sort of comforting tone, just being direct about it. "Why are you doing all these odd jobs? You should be doing what you do best! What Billy Ordride does best!"

"Surfing doesn't pay the bills!" Ordride cried. He wasn't even injecting his weird nonsensical lingo into his speech like he normally did.

"Does too!" he said. "Just win!"

"There's only so many a year, and travel expenses would blow right through that!"

The boy sighed. "Isn't there anything else you're good at?"

"Well, got a language degree."

"You WHAT?!" This idiot had a degree?

"And I..." He suddenly snapped to. "Wait, that's it! Was right on me the whole time. Total kook in the brains."

Nori blinked. It worked, maybe?

Ordride hopped to his feet. "Thanks, little bro! You're my reformer! Gonna jet to it tomorrow, like the Dawn Patrol would! See ya!" He did a handpose, stood tall, and powerwalked off.

Again, the young official and the Gym Leader were left in awkward silence. "Er, what did I just have him do?" Nori had this strange sense of dread, but he didn't know why.

Volkner shrugged. "Not our problem."

##########​

August 10th, 2015​

For all of August, Nori had been studying. He had finished off all his textbooks, and had decided to double down on going over them again and again. His tests were coming up, and he wanted to make sure he was ready for all of them. He had decided to get some fresh air and study outdoors at a nearby park. Both of his Pokemon were out, Pachi frolicking around as the Demon simply relaxed.

"Mooom!" came the cry of some random kid in a tacky green, black, and pink jacket, who had been playing with his brother. "My police car got wet!"

He was worried about a little water?! Besides that incredulousness, Nori didn't pay it much attention, focusing on his textbook. He was reviewing the History of Competitive Battling, Volume 3 - the last of them, which covered everything modern.

"Why don't you make-believe, sweetie?" the woman asked. "Here!" She proceeded to hold a pretend car in her hand and made sound effects as she ran her hand around the edge of the sandbox.

The kid giggled and started to follow suit. "Look, it turned into helichopper!" he said, making plane noises. Did he not know what a helicopter sounded like?

"Grkh."

Nori snapped to attention when he heard a familiar grunt. The boy's twin brother had accidentally kicked the Demon while running around. She instantly snapped to, glaring furiously at the kid. Everyone in the park either looked to him or his Pokemon. Pachi squealed something. A couple other people actually told their own Pokemon to get ready to stop her.

As a stern-looking Wyrdeer trotted over, the Demon muttered something at it - no doubt some obscenities, if not a taunt from how the white-furred Pokemon got into a battle pose - before getting up and sitting back down beside her trainer. Nori chuckled and patted her.

He overheard a few whispers of praise. Mostly impressed that the Demon hadn't done anything. Which they shouldn't have been surprised at. He did rehabilitate her, after all! Maybe the old Demon would've, but she'd grown beyond that. Just like he had, his Pokemon had grown over the course of the year.

"Yo, Nori C."

The future official glanced up to see a familiar person. Radovan Raines.

"Er, what are you doing here?" he idly asked.

"Is my hometown here. Ya dig? T'ought I'd stick 'round till the League starts next mont'."

"Uh-huh."

"Nice goin'. Ya sent Tono T to the slammer."

"Anyway, I'm studying." Nori raised the textbook, using it to block his view of Radovan's face.

Tono's former bully sighed. "Yeah, whatev'." Thankfully, leaving him alone at that. Good. He didn't like Radovan, and preferred to interact with him as little as possible. He'd rather speak with any of the other Gym Trainers save Kallisto again. Particularly Tono. Going to prison felt like a bit much for him.

There was a lot for Nori to look forward to in life, especially with how things had worked out. He could only cross his fingers that the others could find the same hope eventually.