PokéSync: B3 — 37. Lori; Stir, not Shaken (Patreon)

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1:  Rhea (O_o oh no, what is with that title?  Run, Rhea!)

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8:02 a.m. August 16th, Sunday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event).  Day 68.

Events:  Having made it through the rough part with her mother, now Rhea has to face the bittersweet experience of her first kiss with Jason.  He’s gone to Kalos with the boys, leaving her wondering about her own feelings.  It’s time to put all that confusion into training!  Our girl started her journey on the 9th of June, and the end of registration for the Winter Indigo Cup is December 5th (110 days away).

Not setting her alarm clock, Rhea wasn’t surprised when she opened her eyes and glanced to the right that it just hit 8 a.m.  Her Pokemon were clustered around her in a way that made getting up impossible.  Lulu around her neck, Mya on her left, Alice on her right, and the fluff ball that was Nova jailing her leg; she was totally stuck, which was fine with her.

Lying in cozy comfort, she stared up at the ceiling, processing the chaos that was yesterday.  Lori had channeled her inner Impish Nature, poking and asking questions as Amira smoothed things over and kept her leashed, to an extent.  She loved both of their approaches to things for different reasons.

Sure, the Unova party girl could make her uncomfortable, but she brought a perspective that made her think about things and pushed her to confront certain feelings.  On the other hand, Amira offered a much more balanced and moral support kind of approach, letting her say what was immediately on her mind and heart.

She was positive that her mother would still be holding onto one of the recordings, and she had the original copy that Amira had bought for her.  Naturally, she’d have to come up with the money to repay the redhead; despite her protests, Rhea knew how much Amira valued her resources, which made it all the more touching that she’d pay so much for it.

Rubbing her eyes and releasing a low groan, she reached under Alice’s floppy ears to snag her phone from beside the bed, scratching their base after.

“Pun-pun…”  the bunny mumbled, snuggling a bit closer and making her smile.

“Ne-ne…”

Lulu grew a little restless from her movements but settled in again when she didn’t get up.  Activating her 3D interface, Rhea looked through her messages, frowning upon seeing Jason had sent her a private video recording; it just came minutes ago.  The vibration must have contributed to her waking up.

Muting the audio and activating the automatic captions to read what was said, she breathed out a semi-frustrated breath, yet she couldn’t help a small smile upon seeing her best friend.  They were in new clothes, and he filled out the plaid jeans, high-neck brown shirt, and cream jacket well.

He made a quick circle, showing her a full view of a beautiful city, lined with perfectly trimmed trees and grass patches, with a giant tower looming in the distance.  She read the text in her mind, adding emotion to his animated gestures and movements.

Morning, Sunshine!  It’s nearly 5 p.m. here, and we just touched down at Lumiose International Airport less than an hour ago.  You won’t believe the number of fashion stores, cafes, and galleries!  Lucian’s going to take us to his dad’s restaurant for dinner.  Maybe I’ll learn some fancy recipes to cook for you next time we meet.

Rhea’s stomach rumbled at the offer, and she felt her pulse rise a bit.  He was a good cook, yet the next text washed the feeling away in a huff as Jason flashed his teeth and gave her a thumbs up.

I know you’ve got the appetite of a Snorlax now!  Haha!  I’m sure when we see each other again, you’ll be so starved from all that Aura Training that I’ll have to buy out half the store to satisfy you.  I mean, you’re eating for two, right?

Rhea choked, making Nova rustle and Lulu sleepily rise up to pat her cheek.  Phrasing, idiot!  It’s a good thing I didn’t play it out loud.  Lori cannot see this!

“Ne-ne?”

“I’m, ahem—I’m okay, Lulu.”

Alice nuzzled her ear, resting against her shoulder, as Nova crawled up to roll between the bunny and her, resting on her back to look up at the phone.  Lulu was quick to settle down on her chest to do the same, expecting to see the Eevee’s favorite Pokemon show.

“Pwe?”

“Nene?”

“Pwe-pwe.”

“Neee.”

Rhea unpaused the video, letting it finish out and turning up the volume a little bit for them to listen.

“Missing you already, Sunshine,” Jason said with more of a sad voice than she would have caught over the text.  “Maybe after you win the Silver Conference, we can spend a week here or something.  I can show you around then.  We’ll see.  Anyway, have a good breakfast.  I can say that now, right?  Haha!  I remember you were so self-conscious about it growing up.  We’re—”

Rhea sat a little straighter as a very pretty and fashionable blonde in dark sunglasses took Jason’s attention; she took her shades off to fit atop her dark pink summer hat, showing sky-blue eyes as she interrupted his recording.

“Jason, right?  Ash told me you guys would be arriving here.”

Biting her bottom lip, Rhea paused the video, vision darting from her gold hoop earrings, rogue lipstick, well-groomed sandy locks, and dressy appearance.  She had to be wearing a designer, sleeveless dress; the black collar and belt looked expensive, and her pink hat, purse, and pendant all matched perfectly.

She’d followed this woman’s career for a while, and, of course, Ash would know her.  Out of everyone that Ash could have contacted to meet him, why had it been this fashion and Contest idol?

“Umm, yeah—Serena, right?  Yeah, Ash said you would guide us around the Kalos Gym Challenge.  We still need to register—oh, Rhea, I got to go.  Love you!”

Serena showed a sweet smile, waving as the video ended.

Rhea dropped the device onto her stomach, groaned, and rubbed her eyes with a yawn.  “He was always a bit of a tease, but not like this.  Ugh.  Serena’s gorgeous!  And if he’s already into blondes…  No!  No, she’s probably into Ash, like every other girl around him…  Mmmgm.”

“Pwe?”

“Uh-huh.  Oh, I know… if he’s going to be making videos like that, saying ‘he loves me’ and all, then I have to punch back!  Right, Nova?”

“Pwe!  Pwe!”

“Neee!”

“Mawile…”

“Lop-lop?  Punnnn…”

They giggled as Alice opened her eyes for a second before slipping back to sleep.

Plucking her phone back up, she tried not to think about the fashionable Kalos superstar touring Jason’s group and swiped between social media feeds.  She found photos of Lori and Amira’s day yesterday with their families, which was a good distraction.

Funnily, from Amira’s secret snapped photo, their purple-haired teammate had been passed out for three hours before they had ambushed her after her ‘jaunt’ with Jason.  The recording no doubt gave the Unovan party girl the drama-induced kick to get up.  She figured Mallory would be out for another few hours after yesterday.

Rhea’s thoughts were pulled to the warm sensation that had sustained her through the trouble yesterday, reaching up to rub her chest.  It looks like our connection is getting stronger, V…  Thank you.  Eating for two… Muk!  Why did he have to make me think about that?!  So stupid.  Wait…

“Pwe?”

Nova tapped her tail against her leg, asking what was wrong as she paused over Jade’s feed.  The blue-haired girl was with her gang at an ice cream store, seemingly depressed and trying to cheer each other up.  Swapping to her own feed, she saw all cheers and congratulations from the two groups.

“Hmm.  Did something happen with the girls?”  Looking back on their feeds, she saw some scattered comments about heading to Saria’s Gym in Vermillion.  “Did they lose a Gym Challenge?  Hmm.”

Calling Sam, she saw the girl in bed, brown hair around her and a little morning acne showing she hadn’t gotten up yet to clean up.  “Hey, Rhea!  We watched all of your guys’ battles.  Wow, Janine’s tough, huh?”

“Cut the Trubbish,” Rhea huffed.  “What happened?”

She grimaced and looked to her left, where Hannah’s bed was, the redhead face down on her pillow; Jade seemed to be in the shower.  “We suck!”

“Oh, c’mon, it can’t be that bad.”  Rhea forced a smile.  “You guys beat us, remember?”

Sam came back into view, showing a pained grin.  “I think you’re forgetting it was a four-on-three, and we had all the prep.  Yeah, we’ve had some really good wins in Bronze…  Bronze sucks, though.  Fighting you guys compared to everyone else is, uh, yeah.  It’s not the same, Rhea.”

Rhea pivoted to the redhead since Sam was stalling.  “Okay, Hannah, tell me what happened?!  You guys went to fight High Master Saria?  She is really tough.  I still think she went easy on me because of the Spite incident.  I’m here to listen?”

Hannah rolled to her side, plucking at her nightgown and propping her head up with her pillow.  “You know how you sparked that whole push to Silver-tier?”

“Uh-huh?”  Rhea nodded.

Sam decided to speak up next, scratching her temple and closing her eyes.  “Basically, High Master Saria wanted to give everyone in Bronze a chance to see what it was like to jump to Silver.  There was an unofficial kind of mock showcase event she put on, and it was a slaughter!”

“Is that Rhea?”  Jade’s voice came through as Sam tilted her camera to the bathroom, showing the blue-haired girl’s head wrapped in a towel, Mimi, her unique Pichu, held in her arms.  “Hey, awesome battles!  Janine’s super scary; like, I’ve seen a ton of her battles, but it’s different since I know how strong you guys are.”

“Haaaa…”

Rhea smiled at the Wooloo Gang, licking their wounds and trying to remain positive.  “I think you’re all being too hard on yourselves.  Hmm.  Okay, get all dressed up and ready!”

“For what?”  Sam asked, sitting up and brushing her bangs behind her ears.  “Don’t get us wrong; we totally know it’s unrealistic to try and keep pace with you guys, but we were just on a bit of a winning high.  You don’t need to do anything.”

“I want to do anything!”  She grinned and scooted back to the headboard.  “Let’s be fair and say that I want to do something because we’re friends.  I want to see you guys succeed, too!”

“Aww.  You’re too sweet, Rhea,” Jade whispered, plopping down on Sam’s bed to get in the frame.  “My big sis is trying to get us off our butts, saying it’s not even that bad.  We just got big heads thinking we were hot stuff in Bronze, but Bronze isn’t Silver.”

Hannah chuckled and scooted to the edge of her bed.  “I don’t think we’re going to convince Rhea not to do whatever she’s thinking.”

“True,” Sam said with a pained sigh.  “Rhea isn’t the type to back down when she gets something on her mind.  So, we should get ready?”

Rhea nodded, showing a beaming smile; this was just the distraction she needed.  “Talk to you soon.”

Hanging up, she messaged a few of her family that were asking if she was alright.  Thankfully, her dad showed her a video of him picking her mom up to take her home, giggling as he literally swept her into a princess carry.

Her grandparents were staying at their house to ensure that she didn’t try to wiggle out of her ‘timeout.’  Apparently, Seven and Wallace were picking up the slack in Hoenn in their absence.  Grandpa Drake was laughing at Sidney’s joking jabs on social media about retiring already; of course, her grandmother wasn’t so keen on being told she was, as she saw it, falling off.  Obviously, Phoebe was all high hopes and well-wishes.

She shook her head upon seeing her brother and Kate had gotten Hilbert, Bianca, and Hilda to train with them.  Everyone was pushing forward, and so should she.  It was time to take things to the next level.  Texting her targets and team, she went to get ready; however, Amira messaged her to join her in the spa salon.

Her Pokemon were a bundle of excitement at the top-tier treatment, joining their friends in the Pokemon area while Rhea met her teammates for a morning massage.  First, they had to soak in the spa, and surprisingly, when they were changing into their bathing suits, Lori showed up to join them.

All of it seemed to work out when Dawn texted her back, and once again, the Legend had questionable phrasing.

8:45 a.m. - Dawn: Ash and I are still recovering from last night.  It was a rough one!  We’re just relaxing at the beach right now.

Rhea smirked and showed Lori, causing the snickering Unovan girl to snatch her phone and return a message as they soaked in the spa.

8:47 a.m. - Rhea: Wow, Snowflake, what parts are sore?  Is Ash really that rough?  Have you asked him to give you a massage to loosen you up from all that exercise you two were engaged in?  I’m sure he’d love to make you feel better.  He’s a nice, attentive guy!  At the hot beach, too?  Please, tell me you brought your bikini and sunscreen!

8:48 a.m. - Dawn: Lori, don’t you put that image in my head!  There’s no shot that this is Rhea!  I didn’t mean it was rough like that!  I’m recovering from the battle Ash and I had with someone else, so

8:48 a.m. - Dawn: Muk!  I hit send instead of delete…  Don’t take that out of context!

8:49 a.m. - Rhea: Oh, already done, Dee Dee!  I hope you don’t have dandruff after all that stress because it sounds like you really got hit in this threeso—I mean, triple battle!  Hehehe.”

8:50 a.m. - Dawn: I swear, this generation…  Give the phone back to Rhea, you deviant.  Ash and I will be fine to chat around 1 p.m. for lunch.  Lori’s treat!

Lori giggled and handed the phone back.  “Worth it.  So, we’re really doing this?”

Rhea sunk further into the spa, studying the background picture of her family, including Kate and Jason, who had been around the week before she’d started this journey.  “I didn’t take being a Trainer seriously going through school…  I’ve been out of touch with all of this, and I’ve been trying to catch up.”

She shifted to smile at her two teammates in the private section of the spa.  “You both have taught me a lot since we’ve started, and I’ve learned a lot more about myself.  I know what I want to do now.”

“That’s the spirit, Honey Pot,” Lori whispered, nudging feet.  “So, we’re going to take time away from the Kanto spotlight and let a bunch of others take the stage?”

Amira had her phone out, red eyes scanning through messages and data.  “Each of us needs to focus on our individual weaknesses when it comes to what we lack.  For me, that is my Physical Allocation.  In talking with my mom, Green, Crystal, and Leaf, our Pokemon do have an effect on our growth, but that is limited.  We need to train ourselves, as well.  And…”

She set her device to the side and shot a light glare at Lori.

“What?”

“We need money for TMs.  You can’t be gambling away everything.  We need to buckle down and work hard and smart.”

Lori’s cheeks puffed up as she looked away.  “You can gamble smart.  I was the first one to get the credits to buy TMs, if you remember, Cherry.”

“And how much money have you borrowed from me since?”

Swimming to the opposite side to sit across from the redhead, she gestured to Rhea.  “Where does Amira even get her money?  We’ve battled some, sure, but somehow, she’s been getting a lot more funds than makes sense.  Some Rocket slush fund?”

“True,” Rhea hummed.  “You always do seem to have money, but Amira wouldn’t rely on her family for it.  What’s your secret?”

A half-smile lifted Amira’s lips as she picked up her phone again to show them a merchandise site.  “It seems being attached to you, Lori, has increased my social networking and online presence skills because I had the idea to sell a few simple items.”

“What—no way!”  Lori leaned forward to look through the products.  “You sell T-shirts, mugs…  An Amber keychain?”

“Actually, one of my best sellers,” Amira chuckled.  “I reached out to a plushie site that will be making one for each of my Pokemon as a collection.  They seemed quite thrilled at the prospect, and I give them a healthy chunk of the returns since they’re handling all of the distribution.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were doing this?!”  Lori mumbled, swiping through the catalog.  “We could get in on this kind of stuff.”

Amira crossed her legs under the water before adjusting her swimming suit.  “I wanted to make sure the companies were legit and wait for the first return profit before bringing it up.  Most of my first month’s check went to purchasing that video, but it was precisely enough for what I needed.  It isn’t quite as consistent as other forms of sales or battling, but a small bump in monthly income is always nice.”

Rhea tapped on the Serenity keychain.  “And… buy!  I gotta show support.”

Lori lifted an eyebrow.  “You know… she could probably get you one for free?”

“No, I cannot,” Amira promptly returned, taking back her phone.  “If I did, then it would be out of my own pocket.  You can pay like everyone else.”

“Ever the businesswoman,” Lori sighed, scooting over to follow Rhea’s swipes, browsing the items.  “Oh, Rhea, give me your phone.”

“Okay?”

“Scoot!  Scoot!”

“What are you doing?”  Rhea mumbled, following the Unovan girl’s hip bumps to get closer to Amira.  “No, Lori!”

“Hehe.”  Holding it up, she snapped a picture of the three of them in the spa.  “Say, Moo Milk!  And… send to the boys—look what you’re missing!”

Rhea’s cheeks flushed at the angle Lori knowingly took it, and she tried to snatch it before she could send it; she was too late.

“Lori!  T-That’s so embarrassing!”

“Oh, c’mon,” she snickered, smirking and pointing at the heart, blush, and thumbs-up emoji that came from Jason.  “Bet.  He’s going to put that as his background, and who’s he going to be thinking about every time he opens his phone?  You’re welcome!”  she sang.

Rhea’s brain cooked at the thought that Jason was putting her on his background; then again, he was on her background, but that wasn’t the same.  It was with her family!  It wasn’t the same.

“W-We’re in our bathing suits, a-at a spa!”

“Oh, c’mon, Sunshine!”  Lori laughed, nudging her thigh before tapping her photos app to scroll back a week.  “You don’t think he didn’t save those pictures of us at the beach in Vermillion?  They’re boys!  You’re too innocent, Goldie!  I love you!  Never change.”

Amira wore a small smile.  “You do have a way of taking provocative pictures, Lori.  It isn’t bad.  Rhea’s blushing panic is adorable.”

“Not you, too!”

Rhea groaned, sinking to her nose in the water to glare across the pool; these weren’t the type of pictures she thought Jason wanted when he said he wanted updates.  Then again, she didn’t think he was looking at her curves all that much, either.  Maybe she was too innocent and blind.

Amira rubbed her arm comfortingly.  “Haha.  Lori showed me that pretty blonde that was with them.  You can’t tell me you aren’t a little worried, even though you shouldn’t be.  You know you shouldn’t be.  But you are.”

She responded by blowing bubbles and looking down at her hands, clasped against her tight stomach.  It was more like if there were so many pretty girls in Kalos, and Jason obviously would have his ‘type’—she wasn’t that innocent—then he was sure to find other gorgeous blondes to awaken something within him.

Pushing herself up a bit, she mumbled, “I just don’t want to give my hopes up before figuring out how I feel…  Am I being stupid?”

“Pfft!”  Water dripped off Lori’s body as she got up to squeeze out her hair, marinated enough for the massage.  “Girl, you’re too trusting!  Boys are animals.  Why do you think I’m launching missiles at him with that picture?  You gotta punch him in the eyes every so often if you catch my drift.  I got you!”

“Haha.  Thanks, Lori…  Haaa.”

Amira got up to join Lori.  “Be patient with our Honey Pot, Violet; she’s doing amazing considering the whiplash Jason left her with.”

“Oh, no, I’m totally shocked at your game, girl!”  Lori said, getting out and grinning down at her.  “You pull off the cute bombshell blonde look like a weapon!  Combee to Honey!  You work it with the way you use those assets.”

“M-My assets?”  Rhea stammered, getting up to join them and doing her best not to blush.  “What do you mean the way I ‘work it,’ Lori?!  What am I doing?”

Amira held out a hand to help her up.  “It’s the way you carry yourself and how attentive you are when talking to people.  You’re very caring, and the way you talk to people makes them feel like they’re important.  You uplift people, and sometimes, you’re actually quite assertive.”

“Right!”  Lori pointed at her as they went to the next room to lie down on the massage beds.  “She doesn’t even realize it half the time, I swear.  She’s all cute, big-eyed, and curious one minute, being a bundle of sunshine.  The next, she’s timid, sweet, and quiet, pulling you in, and then, she’s jabbing a finger in your chest, telling you to treat yourself better or complimenting you.  You’re a natural, Rhea.”

“Really?”  Lying on her back, she saw three big Machoke enter the room, their touch a lot gentler than their muscles suggested; gradually, they became firmer as Rhea loosened up.  “I don’t try to do anything weird…  I don’t want to be weird.”

Amira shifted her head the opposite way with a soft puff of air.  “Mmm.  She’s not saying you’re weird, Rhea.  You’re naturally a wholesome, true, welcoming, and encouraging person to be around.  Yes, you have your flaws… such as letting Lori boss you around at times.”

“Hey, I’m pulling back,” Lori defended.  “Wait, yeah…  Okay, I can see what you mean with the whole pushing the photo thing.  I’m trying to help.”

Rhea smiled.  “Thank you… both of you.”

“Any specifics?”  Amira asked, showing a gentle face as they stared at each other.  “What praise have I earned?”

A weak laugh shook her frame.  “Oh, I don’t know, maybe spending 10,000 credits and getting your awesome mom to save me from a life of embarrassment?  Maybe for teaching me a lot about things most girls learn from their moms.  Maybe coaching me through battle strategy, which helped us win against Janine, and so, so much more…  For being my friend.”

“Awww.  I’m crying,” Lori sniffed.  “I want to smother you right now and never let you go!”

Amira’s lips became a line, looking toward the floor as the Machoke worked out their tense back muscles.  “No one has ever been a real friend to me before I met you, Rhea.  There are very few people I trust… but I do trust you, and that’s earned, not given.  Thank you for being my friend, Rhea.”

Rhea held back her own tears, throat too thick to respond.

“What about me?!”  Lori sniffled.  “Am I just the 3rd wheel in this friendship duo?  I can leave you two the room.”

“Oh, shut up,” Amira chuckled.  “You’re our problem friend that has a dirty mind, always gets in gambling debts, corrupts Rhea, and has a mouth that can’t be filtered.”

“Aww, you do love me!”  Lori giggled.  “I’m going to make Rhea an absolute terror for the male population!  Wait… she’s already stealing Jason’s soul with the way she flips that skirt when she walks.”

“I do what?”

“Hehehe!  Oh, Rhea, you’ve still got a lot to learn.  You’re troubled waters, girl!  I’ll show you how to curve that little spine with a checkered skirt and thigh-highs, Babe.  It’s all about the game, and you can flaunt it!  Jason’s wandering eyes prove that.  You’ll be a Nidoqueen with Rivalry when I’m done with you!”

“H-Huh?!”

“Machoke…”

“S-Sorry,” Rhea squeaked, trying to loosen up again as Amira and Lori snickered.  “You’re the worst, Lori…”

“Guilty!  Oooh—that’s the spot,” she hissed as the Machoke began working on her neck.  “Eeesh…  I am sooo stiff.  So, on another note, hehe, Ash and Dawn went at it rough late last night, huh?  Anyone up for spotting bruises?”

Rhea hung her head, knowing the truth about the matter.  “Lori…”

“Haha.  Seriously, Dawn’s framing is always deviant!  She has to know what she’s doing.  There’s no way she doesn’t.  Woman’s got it hot for Ash.  I’m telling you.  She can say they’re ‘friends’ all she wants, but there are obvious benefits there.  You know it, Amira!”

“She… does make some dubious comments from time to time, but it isn’t our business.”

“Boooo.  Bring the drama!  I bet there is bruising.  You’ll see!”

Rhea kept quiet, face red and trying not to think back to Kate and her brother’s physical relationship.  Lori really was a completely different breed to the female Masters she’d grown up around that only talked about Pokemon battling.  Still, she did have insights that she had to ponder.  This was a whole new world she was being introduced to.

She dodged a lot of the questions and implications the Unovan girl made throughout the hours they spent at the spa.  By 12:45 p.m., they were on the sidewalk, making their way to the cafe Dawn had pinged, sharing their location.

Her Pokemon ran around on the beach walkway, getting attention from joggers and a lot more food than they normally got; it seemed a lot of the Fuschia residents carried treats for Pokemon they liked.  Mya was enamored by the city residents, who had seen her battle the previous day.

Making it to the seaside cafe, she let Nova and her teammates’ lead Pokemon chaperone the rest of their gang as they went to the sand to play; they’d gotten plenty to eat on the way here.

Lori’s eyes were all over Dawn, giving her an eye when the woman groaned with a pained smile upon being hugged by the taller girl.  Amira smoothly sat as Rhea went in for a gentler hug.  Ash appeared less bruised, but Pikachu was snoozing next to Piplup in a chair, totally exhausted still from their battle against Mewtwo.

“Hey, Rhea…  Eee-mmmgm.  Yeah, my back is… yeah.  Ack.”

Lori lifted her eyebrows, taking visual note of her red bikini.  “Yeah, your neck, too, huh?”

“Mmm-hmm-hmm-hmm.”  Dawn’s eye twitched as she sat, and Lori leaned in to whisper.  “She doesn’t seem to be a biter by Ash’s visible skin; girls typically do it to show ownership, ya know.  Territory won by mark.”

“And what are you whispering about?”  Dawn asked with a suspicious glare while smoothing her bangs behind her ear.

“Hehe.  Nothing!”

“Mhm.”

Rhea forced a grin.  “Eh-hehe.  Anyway, umm, Ash…”

“Hmm?  Yeah, what’s up?”  He turned off his phone and set it down.  “Sorry, just checking up with Serena if she met up with Jason’s team.  They asked for a tutor in Kalos who could push them, and Serena’s a brute!  She’ll get them whipped into sh—ouch!  Dawn…”

The woman smacked Ash’s arm with a dirty look.  “Don’t call her that!  Serena is so lovely and caring and dropped everything with Calem to help you, so be nice to her.”

“Wha—I am nice?”  he defensively mumbled.  “Serena is a brute in battle.  She plays dirty and uses so many attraction-based moves.”

Dawn smirked.  “That’s strategy!  Pikachu is just a sucker for elegant Pokemon.”

“Pika-Pi!”  the rat weakly protested, groggy head lulling to the side.

“Pip-pip!”  the penguin chided before both fell back asleep.

“Say what you want, Bud,” the Sinnoh woman laughed before working around her stiff neck, “but you and Pikachu know your weak hearts.  No, the true brute is Iris.  Muk, I forgot how much of a Dragon she can be…  Oh, sorry, Rhea.  You were saying?”

“Yeah, umm, Ash…”  Everyone zeroed in on her as she took on a more serious tone.  “I want to really start training.  How long do you think it would be before we’re fully ready for Silver?”

Ash sat back, slinging his arm over the chair to give Dawn a thoughtful look.  “Two months… probably, but not for Silver.  You should be pushing yourselves to be ready for Gold.”

Dawn sat straighter.  “Ash is right.  You should always be aiming above your weight class.  Growth comes from pressure.  Do you really want us to push you?  I’m guessing you also are speaking about your Aura Training…  All three of you?”

Rhea shook her head.  “Not just us.  If possible… can we also include my friends?”

Ash scratched his neck, gaze wandered to their Pokemon, playing in the surf.  “Hmm.  The two teams we met in Lavender?  They have potential, and should be on a good trajectory after your Helping Hand… but if you want them to reach Silver, then… they’re going to have to work twice as hard as you girls.  It’s up to them, and I won’t say it won’t be dangerous.  It’s going to require risk.”

Rhea set her ground.  “I’m willing to do whatever I need to.  Can we at least give them the option?”

Dawn’s focus drifted to Amira and Lori.  “You two feel the same?”  They nodded, making her sigh.  “Well, if that’s the case, then what do you feel about an Orange Island Challenge, Ash?”

He drew in his bottom lip and slowly nodded.  “Mmm.  Challenges they need to complete on each island, individually and as teams.  Initial guidance and then let them figure it out?  It will build their confidence, coordination, and bonds.  It could be just what their Buddy Pokemon need,” he whispered, gaze centering on Lulu as she teleported a big chunk of sand over Mya’s head, Alice spiriting her away from the pursuing Mawile.

“Yeah.  I can see it.  Although, Rhea, the first part is all on you for your friends.  Jason had the benefit of you refining his Aura throughout his whole life.  Your friends have had you by their side for months now.  It’s going to be rough and solitary for the first week as your friends get ready.  Are you okay with that pressure?”

Rhea didn’t hesitate.  “Yes.”

“Okay.  We’ll start after dinner…”

Amira stood to order some lunch for them.  “Why dinner?”

“Eh-hehe.  Mimey has housework to do on Sundays,” Ash said with a short hiss, “and he’s very big on housework.  My mom and he do a deep clean of the house each week.  My mom’s always been like that…  Ugh.  It was part of the reason why I was late to Professor Oaks when I first started my journey…  So many chores.”

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