Rustboro’s Gym echoed with the sounds of battle and chatter—the clash of elemental attacks and shouts of effort and instruction ringing through the vast building. Such an environment wasn’t unusual. The Gym was built for such activities, from vicious battles between teams of pokemon, to awe-inspiring bouts against Roxanne herself, and even to various types of rock-themed exercise.

However, today's atmosphere was much more tense, and with good reason: in return for a mere portion of the proceeds, the gym had become host to an amateur-scene Pokemon battle and betting event. The entire layout of the gym had rearranged itself almost overnight to fit in a half-dozen separate battle arenas, each one overseen by a commentator and home to a couple rows of spectator benches. Apparently having a gym made entirely out of stone and home to a great many Rock types made rearrangement much easier.

As Astra understood it, so long as she wasn’t obviously terrible, she could simply keep entering battles over and over for visitors to wager on for the next two days. Compensation-wise, if she won, she got a percentage of the winnings; if she lost, she got a much smaller flat participation payment. Either way it wasn’t a lot, but as long as she and May won a few times, they’d be able to travel comfortably for the next week or so.

Which was how Astra found herself in the middle of her sixth battle today.

“Gloom, use Poison Powder!” a young girl yelled, fists clenched.

Astra raised her bow to her violin, striking the strings in a harsh wave.

Retreat, then sand flurry.

Astra’s Nincada leapt backwards, aborting his previous assault. A wave of poisonous purple haze erupted from Gloom—a drooling blue pokemon with stubby limbs and large red flower buds for a scalp—and the haze engulfed the center of the arena. In response, Nincada drew his claw back and infused it with pale brown energy before dragging it across the ground with all his might. A great cloud of sand billowed from the strike, meeting the purple haze halfway and dragging the toxic particles to the ground.

Dashing through his grainy cloud, Nincada buzzed past the remaining poison haze, protected by the sand on his chitinous shell. Orienting himself through his trainer's eyes, Nincada burst into the center, arm glowing with dim green energy.

The opposing trainer’s eyes widened. She called out, “Wait, no! Gloom, use—!”

Nincada struck. A flurry of blows fell upon Gloom, each cutting deeper than the last. Gloom yelled out in pain as a web of red lines opened on its back, before one final swipe sent the Grass pokemon tumbling to the ground in defeat.

“And with a masterful display of tactics, Nincada has cut down Trainer Karen’s Gloom!”

A man’s booming voice echoed throughout the gym. On the sidelines, a couple dozen spectators gasped in shock, then cheered and cursed in equal measure. Enthusiasm oozed from the announcer as he continued.

“It’s not looking good for Karen! After besting that monster of a Grovyle through sheer attrition, Violinist Astra’s Nincada has just brought Karen down to her last pokemon! Will this musical master net another victory, or will Karen pull out a last-minute turnaround for our despairing debtors? Hope you bet wisely, folks!”

Astra let the music fall to a holding rhythm, her previous tense tempo unsuited for this momentary breather. She looked to the side, eyeing the crowd. Many of them were greeting her with wide smiles and cheers, but a few were sending her dark glares. Astra frowned at the grimy pulse of negativity they gave off. Well, it served them right for wagering on her loss!

Still, she had to admit that she was having a blast. She was earning money, practicing her music, and training her pokemon all at the same time! Her only regret was that this ‘Rookie Rumble’ event wasn’t a constant; if her team was willing, Astra could have easily spent the rest of her week in the Rustboro Gym just getting paid to fight other trainers. She didn’t even have to win, but she made more if she did.

Not that she would ever do less than her best, of course. Losing wasn’t fun at the best of times, and with an audience it was even worse. Thankfully she’d won a bit more than she’d lost so far, her record currently 3-2. It would have been higher if she’d foreseen a glaring issue with her team's capabilities.

Sparing a glance across the gym, she spotted May shouting at—oh dang, May was down to Tentacool? Astra watched as the aquatic pokemon—clearly uncomfortable to be wriggling about on land—brought his arms to the small, shiny red protrusion in his forehead. A moment later a prismatic beam shot out, lancing toward—ah, a Wingull. No wonder May had sent out Tentacool.

“Alright!” Karen shouted, drawing Astra’s attention back to her own bout. “All or nothing, let’s go Beautifly!”

Astra closed her eyes, letting loose a brief, pained sigh. Of course her opponent's last pokemon would be a Flying type. That blasted group had been making her life difficult all day; half of her team was massively disadvantaged against them, and the rest had barely any methods to actually land a hit!

Knowing Nincada was useless here, Astra recalled him and, after a moment's thought, decided on Slakoth. Hopefully her opponent hadn’t seen her earlier fights; this trick wouldn’t work so well if her opponent knew how to avoid it.

“Go, Slakoth!” she commanded, throwing the pokeball forward. A flash of red heralded her furry companion, flat on the ground and baggy-eyed.

“Slaa...” he whined, cumbersomely rising to his feet as if weights were strapped to his limbs. Across and above the battlefield, a giant butterfly let loose a trilling cry, their iridescent black wings flittering with flashes of yellow highlights.

“And Karen pulls out a be-yu-tiful Beautifly!” The announcer cheered. “And in response, our magnificent maestro has called forth her sleepy Slakoth! Don’t let his dreamy demeanor deceive you, that tired terror is as tough as a Tauros!”

“It won’t matter how strong your Slakoth is when it can’t move!” Karen yelled, thrusting a hand forward. “Beautifly, Stun Spore!”

Beautifly trilled, rapidly flapping their wings. A cloud of sparking yellow-orange dust fell with each beat, the wingbeats scattering the dust toward Slakoth.

Astra’s eyes narrowed. Her violin sang.

Spear wall.

Earthen energy coated Slakoth’s fists, and with a heave of effort he lifted them into the air and brought them down, the stone below crunching under the force.

“Slak!” he shouted, and a wall of stone spires erupted before him. The spores fell upon the spires and stalled, the breeze that carried them breaking upon the stony obstruction.

“Eh?” Karen exclaimed, shocked. “Wh—did you Rock Tomb yourself!? Why would—hey! You blocked my Stun Spore! No fair!”

Astra raised an eyebrow. She only just noticed?

Karen fumed. “Gah! You won’t get off that easily! That wall might’ve stopped my spores, but you’re still open! Beautifly, fly up and use Gust from above!”

Acquire armament.

Slakoth trudged through an onslaught of harsh winds, claws wrapping around the shaft of one of his stone spikes. With a swift motion he tore the top half off, leaving a two-foot rock needle in his hands. From the gap a gale wind poured forth, carrying the remnants of the stun spore cloud. Slakoth winced as the combined concussive bluster and spore cloud battered at his limbs, the orange dust sending flickering sparks through his fur.

“What’dja go and do that for?” Karen yelled, smirking. “You just broke your own defense wide open! Let’s finish this, Beautifly. Bring that smelly Slakoth down with an Air Cutter!”

End it.

Beautifly rose higher, wings shining with sky-blue energy. Concentrating it along the edge, they brought down their wing and sent forth a brilliant sliver of wind, pure cutting force given form. The gleaming, razor-sharp burst of air bore down on the gap in the wall—

Slakoth threw the spike.

The Air Cutter burst apart. There was a sound akin to tearing paper and the distant crash of stone. Beautifly hung in the air for a moment, as if confused, before their eyes unfocused and they gently fell to the ground, one wing folded and crumpled.

“Beautifly!” Karen shrieked, running over to her fallen pokemon.

Astra breathed out, drawing her simple tune to a quick conclusion. The announcer was yelling about her victory, but she’d long since tuned him out as well as the cheers and curses of her small audience. She gave Slakoth a quick once-over—he was pretty bruised from the gusts, and it seemed the spores had actually afflicted him with paralysis. Good thing he hadn’t missed, Astra was doubtful that he would’ve been able to take a second shot. Astra recalled Slakoth to his Pokeball and walked over to Karen, giving the other girl a respectful nod.

“Well fought.”

Karen looked up and glared, eyes shining with frustration and unshed tears. She opened her mouth, then closed it and rubbed at her eyes, huffing. Standing up, she recalled her Beautifly and begrudgingly returned Astra’s nod.

“Yeah, good match. Whatever.” she sniffed, clutching Beautifly’s pokeball close to her chest, turning away and leaving the stage for Nurse Joy’s aid station. “I totally had that. Stupid, lousy, cheaty violin, can’t even hear the commands—”

Astra watched her go, bemused. Shrugging, Astra gave the announcer a nod—he’d be letting whoever handled the money know about the outcome—and trundled off-stage herself. May was still trying to land a hit on that Wingull, so Astra followed Karen's example and dropped her team off to heal while she sat down on a stone bench nearby to wait for May.

Astra watched her friend's battle unfold from afar. Tentacool only managed to score two glancing hits with his Aurora Beam before Wingull knocked him out, and then May’s Lotad barely did anything at all. His Water Gun—when it hit—slid off Wingull’s feathers like faint mist instead of a high-pressure water jet. Bursts of concussive wind knocked him out shortly after.

Combusken managed a little better; his speed was enough to steer clear of the worst of the aerial bursts and his rather literal return fire managed to score hits every time. He even landed a solid kick and spiked Wingull into the floor.

Whereupon May’s opponent pulled out a Pelipper.

Afterward, May dropped her injured team off with Joy then trudged over to Astra, all while fuming.

“Flying types are bullshit,” May said, throwing herself down onto the stone bench and immediately regretting it. “Ow, fuck!”

May rubbed at her new soon-to-be bruise, grimacing.

Astra giggled. “I knew you weren’t doing well but I didn’t think you’d hit rock bottom that fast!”

May’s forehead fell into her other hand. “I hate you,” she groaned. “I hate you so much.”

“You shouldn’t lie, you know,” Astra chided, grinning. “All those contradictions will rot your mind! Still,” she sighed, slumping back and gazing listless at the ceiling. “I get what you mean. Grovyle and Nincada are both horribly type-disadvantaged and I only really get one shot with Slakoth’s Rock Tomb trick before they learn how to dodge. Marill does her best, but just using Water Gun over and over gets predictable.”

May nodded, mouth set in a thin line. “My guys aren’t much better. Sure Aurora Beam ruins their day, but on dry land Tentacool’s a sitting...squid. Half the time it’s a goddamn Wingull so Combusken gets knocked out early and Lotad just falls over! Poochyena can’t even hit the bastards—the fucks just crawl on the ceiling and fire off Gusts or Water Guns ‘till I forfeit.”

Astra hummed. “Sounds like we should do something about that.”

May sat up, lips quirked. “Sounds like you have an idea.”

Astra thought back to yesterday’s Pokemon Type lesson. “I don’t know where to find an Electric type, but we’re in a Rock gym, and there’s a mountain right down 116. I figure it’d be pretty easy to—”

“No no no,” May interrupted, waving a hand at Astra. “Type advantage won’t do crap if we can’t actually fight them. What we need to do is level the playing field.”

Astra’s eyes widened. “I think I see what you’re getting at.”

May grinned. “Yep. If a bunch of two-bit losers are giving us this much trouble, imagine what we could do if we got some of our own.”

Astra returned the grin, giving May a resolute nod. “Alright, I’m in.”

“Good.” May stood up, gaze falling on her former opponent, whose Pelipper was spraying down some hapless beginner. Her eyes narrowed, brows furrowing in determination.

“Now, let's get to hunting.”

A moment passed. Astra tilted her head.

“Aren’t our pokemon still healing?”

May slumped. “Well...yeah. Alright!” she rallied, raising a resolute fist. “After our teams heal, we’re going to find Flying types of our own!”

“Where are we going, anyway?” Astra questioned. “Just like, into the forest, or...?”

May sat back down, face blank. She stared at the floor for a moment before taking out her Pokedex and dialing a number.

“Brendan!” she said into the device’s speaker, cheerily. “Say, where can a girl get a Flying pokemon around here?”

“This view is amazing!” Astra exclaimed, gazing at the distant, terrace-like rock faces that made up the far half of Route 115. They extended high into the sky, far taller than any of the buildings they’d left behind in Rustboro to the south, but the extreme hills were nothing but pale imitators of the lofty peak of Mt. Chimney to the northeast. Berry-laden bushes and tall, broad-leafed coastal trees made up the nearer half of the route, which winded through a narrow plain along the coast.

The route’s beach would be their destination today. Brendan had been doing some sort of survey of the route while she and May were busy fighting, and had been quick to tell them about a flock of birds inhabiting the shoreline. He’d met them at the route entry sign and was now guiding them toward the gathered Flying types.

Astra wondered about the distant rocky terraces. “Why is it called Meteor Falls, anyway?” she asked, turning to Brendan.

“It’s actually due to a meteorological event in the distant past,” Brendan explained, turning onto the path towards the shore. “There's a local legend about a ‘bright flash that lit up the moon’, followed by a ‘rain of stars’.”

“Bet that must’ve been one hell of a show,” May said, hands behind her head. “Think we could find a meteor if we poked around? I bet someone’d pay loads for one.”

Brendan shook his head. “Anything that easy to find would’ve been taken ages ago.”

“Tch, figures,” May grumbled, dropping her arms. She paused, raising a hand to shield her eyes from the sun as she peered ahead. She whistled. “This is ‘just’ a flock? The beach is swarming with birds. The hell is happening?”

Astra couldn’t help but share May’s puzzlement. All along the coast, Astra could see mere glimmers of golden sand peeking out from underneath the great, heaving swathes of birds screeching and cawing at each other. What seemed like hundreds of Wingull—white balls-with-wings that sported long beaks and even longer wings—were scratching and squawking at an equal number of Taillow—small avians with wide beaks and dark blue feathers, white underbellies, and red faces.

“They’re just sitting around and screaming at each other,” Astra said, tilting her head. She’d never seen so many in one place before; Taillow were common enough back home, but they’d never gathered in such numbers, and Wingull rarely ventured far from the coastline. “Is this normal?”

“Yes, though it’s a lot bigger than normal.” Brendan answered, raising his voice to compensate for the gradually intensifying din of cawing. “Taillow and Wingull sometimes flock together like this due to their capability and frequency of interbreeding. North Rustboro Cove is a pretty common gathering space since the waters are shielded from the more vicious ocean life by those rocky spires in the distance and there’s hardly any land threats. With a group this large, there’s bound to be quite a few that’d be perfect for training.”

“Hoooh yeah!” May grinned, rubbing her hands together. “Just what I like to hear. Alright everyone, it’s easy pickings, let’s catch us some birds!”

“Uh,” Brendan started, confused. “Wait, did you mean me too? I wasn’t really planning on—woah!”

“Let’s go, dumbass!” May cackled, grabbing Brendan by the wrist and charging straight at the flocks. “All right you feathery fucks, who wants to smite my enemies from on high!?”

Astra watched, amusement warring with concern as she saw her friends plow into the chaos, a wave of angry birds scattering into the air. Electronic warbles cut the air as the two released their pokemon and streams of fire and spore clouds quickly cleared their immediate area of all but the bravest.

Well. That was one way to do things, Astra supposed. Barging in, picking a fight, and taking whoever made it through the brawl. She didn’t know if she wanted to find a new teammate like that, though. In some way, all of her pokemon had come to her: Birch had given her Treecko, Marill had challenged her after beating her to a berry bush, Slakoth had stolen her soup, and Nincada had more or less demanded to come with. She’d never been the instigator.

Still, she was here to catch a Flying pokemon, and catch one she would. Astra strolled down the landside edge of the beach, looking out at the birds scattered across the sands. Maybe she could get a Wingull? Shooting off water guns from the air seemed effective enough, and they were decently quick. But they looked so silly! They were all wings and beak, and to be honest she wasn’t very fond of their screeching honks.

Taillow, on the other hand, would be...fine. She’d seen their fierce Pecks and cutting Wing Attacks often enough today to be sure they would do well, and they’d hung around the village's treetops often enough. She recalled the long, lazy days spent in the company of birdsong, occasionally levitating berries up towards the ones that sang the best. She’d try for one of them.

Astra nodded to herself, absently coming to a stop and leaning against the cliff face. She examined the birds scattered across this stretch of sand; it was less crowded this far down, but she didn't lack for choice. Her gaze flicked from one dark-feathered bird to the next, skipping past the Wingull. Which one would she get? They were all so...similar. If she had a complaint, that would be it; none of the Taillow here really stood out. It might have been a bit petty, but she felt the species was just kind of...plain and ordinary.

But just because they were common didn’t mean they couldn’t be great! May’s Tentacool with his Aurora Beam was a prime example. She’d just have to polish them until they shone, just like the pebbles in her rock collection. Now if she could just pick one out of the crowd—

A commotion caught her eye, and Astra looked to see that one of the flying Taillow had scuffed their landing and embedded themselves in the sand. She watched as the gathered birds milled around the trapped one in confusion, until another Taillow hopped over and pulled their flailing kin out from their hole. The freed bird shook the sand from their feathers, then chirped gratefully at their savior.

Astra eyed the Taillow that had saved the trapped one. Well, compassion and beak strength were as good a place to start as any. Pushing herself off the rock face, she started walking toward the—

There was something on her shoe.

Astra jerked back with a startled cry, staring down at the wriggling white-yellow blob attached to her feet. The blob wobbled, then unfolded.

A curious, innocent yellow face looked up at her with two shining black eyes to either side of a small white beak. Two long yellow feathers protruded from the top of its head, waving cheerily in the ocean breeze. On both sides, large, white, cottony wings retracted with an audibly soft fwish, surrounding its body in a poofy mass of fluff.

“Swa!” it chirped, looking for all the world like a warm, golden sun resting in a bed of feathery clouds.

Astra let out a low keening sound. “Oh my stars you’re adorable!” she squealed, bending down and snatching it into her arms. She squeezed, hugging the pokemon for all she was worth. Seeming to enjoy this, it happily snuggled against her face, chirping excitedly.

“Blu!”

“And so soft!” Astra marveled. It felt like she was burying her hands in silky fuzz. “Ah, I could bury my face in this forever!”

She squeezed the pokemon once more before pulling away, cradling it in her arms and smiling.

“Gosh, you really do look like a cloudy sun, don’t you?” she said, rubbing the top of its head to much preening. “What were you even doing—oh!”

She looked down. Her left shoe, previously coated in dirt and sand, was now spotless. Astra blinked, then looked back at the pokemon in her arms.

“Did you...clean my shoe?” she asked, surprised.

The yellow bird chirped again, unfolding one of its cloud-like wings and waving it. Astra saw a patch of gray where the grime on her footwear had apparently been wiped off.

“Swablu!” the bird cheered proudly.

Astra blinked, then smiled. “Heh, well, thank you! Swablu? Is that what you are? Let me just—”

Pulling an arm free, she retrieved her Pokedex and scanned the creature in her arms.

“So you are!” she said, reading the passage that popped up. “Cleans things with their wings, not afraid of people—hah!” she barked in laughter. “Sitting on people's heads like a hat? Oh that’s so sweet! Here, let me—”

Astra lifted the Swablu up to her head. The yellow cloud-bird tweeted in joy and clambered aboard, perching on the crown and wrapped her wings around the brim. Astra laughed, reaching up to stroke the bird.

“I guess it really is a sunhat now!” Astra laughed, grinning. Something in the Pokedex had caught her eye. “You’re a Flying type, aren’t you?”

“Swa!” Swablu affirmed, chirping happily.

What luck! If Swablu came with her, Astra would have a Flying type and the most adorable sun-puff she never knew she so desperately wanted! Judging by how friendly Swablu was, Astra didn’t think it’d be a particularly hard negotiation either. She smiled.

“Hey Swabu?” she asked, drawing out a pokeball and showing it to the bird. “Would you be interested in coming with me? I’ve actually been looking for a Flying type, and even though we just met I think you’d fit right in! You’d have to fight, but there’s yummy food and—whoa!”

Astra stumbled as Swablu abruptly jumped off her hat. She shook her head and pulled her hat back into place, confused. “Swablu?” Astra asked, turning around. Had she rejected the offer? But they’d gotten along so well—

Astra recoiled. Behind her, a gargantuan blue bird was staring at her intently, a mere step away. They looked like a Swablu, except the two feathers on their head were much longer and there was a white circle enveloping each cheek. Their entire body was hidden inside a massive cloud of fluff, with two legless feet poking out of the bottom and four tail feathers sticking out the back.

They were also as tall as Astra. The giant Altaria peered at her, and Astra stared back, eyes wide. She got the distinct impression they were measuring her, and something in the back of her head told her that she would very much regret the next few moments if the Altaria didn’t like what they saw.

On the ground, the little yellow Swablu ran toward her parent.

“Swablu!” she chirped.

The Altaria blinked and bent down, their sinuous neck lowering until they were eye-level with Swablu.

“Swa swa!” the Swablu said, waving her wings around excitedly.

The Altaria considered her. “Tair,” they said, drawing themselves back up. They looked at Astra again. Astra gulped.

“Um, hello!” she started, uneasily waving a hand. The Altaria tilted their head. Astra gave them an uncertain smile. “I...was just, you know, uh...” she tailed off as a thought hit her.

Why was she using words for this? Straightening, she looked the Altaria in the eye and spoke her intent.

Her and Swablu, hugging. Herself, feeding the small bird berries, soup, and strips of meat. Swablu, flying at foes under her command and striking them down, and then herself tending to Swablu’s wounds with gentle care. Swablu playing with her other pokemon, sleeping on her hat, even turning into a golden version of her parent.

“Your daughter is adorable, and I think we get along,” Astra told the Altaria. “I would like to take her with me.”

Altaria stared at her. They were quiet for a long moment.

“Ria.”

They looked down at Swablu, the golden bird digging into her parent’s fluff. Altaria bent down and grabbed Swablu with their beak, then, raising their head, leaned forward and gently deposited the confused bird into Astra’s arms.

Swablu looked around, confused. “Swa?” she chirped, looking up at Altaria.

Altaria brought their head down again and nuzzled Swablu, then stepped back and looked at Astra.

Astra looked back, then gazed down at the Swablu in her arms. Swablu looked up and chirped happily. Astra smiled, then turned back to Altaria and nodded.

“I’ll take good care of her,” she promised.

Altaira stared at her for a moment more, then dipped their head. They took one last glance at Swablu, then raised their wings and burst into the air with a sudden gale. Astra yelped, holding onto her hat as the sheer force of the takeoff threatened to send it flying, then watched as Altaria began soaring off over the ocean. Astra smiled softly at the sight.

Altaria then reared their head back and screamed, a bright purple beam erupting from their mouth and spearing through the ocean below. There was a heavy thoom as the waters erupted into a violent geyser. Altaria dived into the parted waves, a moment later reappearing with the smoking remains of some blue pokemon half again the Altaria’s size, and then shooting into the distance with a burst of super-speed.

Astra stared, her smile suddenly feeling strained. Swablu shifted around in her arms.

“Blu!” she said, looking up at Astra. Astra looked down at the cloudy ball of sunshine in her arms. She shook her head, then chuckled.

“Well, welcome to the team, Swablu.” she asid, hugging her close. “Maybe one day you’ll be that scary too.”

“Swa!” Swablu cheered.

Astra deposited Swablu on her hat and turned back the way she came. She saw May and Brendan in the distance, surrounded by fallen birds and fussing over what looked to be a Taillow and Wingull respectively.

“But for now, let’s go show off. And tomorrow...” Astra chuckled, a vindictive grin crossing her face. “We’ll show those pests at the gym who the air really belongs to!”

Swablu beat her wings, with swirling trails of wind coalescing behind her. Across the arena, a small, teardrop-shaped pokemon with diamond wings and two large eye-like fronds flitted about frantically, its body marked with numerous small bruises.

“It can't end like this!” a young boy cried, fearfully watching his pokemon. “C’mon Masquerain, we can turn it around! Use Bubble Beam!”

Masquerain stalled in mid-air, drawing back its diamond-like wings and then thrusting them forth, a speedy barrage of concussive bubbles shooting forth.

On her side of the arena, Astra’s eyes narrowed in satisfied triumph, her song rising towards one final crescendo.

Dash-peck.

Swablu trilled and dove into the attack, her Tailwind boosting her speed. She dipped through and around the bubbles, her winds brushing the booming spheres away like so much froth. Descending upon Masquerain, she drove her beak into the flying bug’s fragile torso.

Masquerain fell. A dozen spectators roared in approval.

“With a prompt pecking, our sunlit Swablu has massacred Masquerain!” The announcer cried out. “Once again, our velvet violinist takes the victory! What a show!”

Astra set her violin down and raised a hand, cooing to Swablu as the bird alighted on her arm.

“Aw, good girl!” she said, stroking Swablu’s soft wings. “Yes you are, yes you are! Good job!”

Swablu trilled, tired but joyful. Astra grinned. Then the wind picked up, and Astra heard a shout from another arena nearby.

“Taillow!” May yelled, “cut him from the sky!”

Astra looked over to see May’s Taillow glow with Flying energy, before diving down at the opposing Wingull, wings shining. The sea-bird screeched in pain as Taillow collided with them, crushing their wings with his own, then Wingull fell to the ground, unconscious.

“Hell yes!” May cheered, raising an arm in victory as another announcer hyped up her victory.

Across from her, Brendan pulled a hand down his face and sighed, recalling his Wingull. Astra walked over and patted him on the shoulder.

“You’ll get a win someday,” she consoled. Brendan gave her a little shrug.

“Maybe,” he said. “I’ve been more focused on research than training right now, so I’m not surprised. I only meant to spectate until she dragged me out there anyway.” He looked at May, who was stroking the back of Taillow’s head and rapid-firing praise. Brendan huffed, the corner of his mouth twitching up. “It’s kinda incredible how quickly you two got a handle on your new pokemon. We only got these guys yesterday afternoon.”

“Oh it’s nothing, really,” Astra said with a laugh. “Swablu is a real sweetie, and she’s a quick learner!”

It also helped that she was literally feeding Swablu psychic visions of what she wanted Swablu to do. Just a bit. If anything, May was the really amazing one; the other girl didn’t have a shortcut like she did. That was pure talent.

“Swa!” Swablu chirped. Brendan looked at her and smiled.

“I suppose she is, isn’t she?” he said, proffering a finger to the bird. Swablu nudged into it, and Brendan obligingly began to stroke her feathers. “I still can’t believe you found a solar Swablu. I looked it up and the odds for yellow feathers are something like one in a hundred thousand; people in ancient times took their appearance as a sign of good fortune from the sun itself.”

“Well, I certainly feel lucky!” Astra cheered. A loud gurgle rumbled out from her midsection. “And hungry,” she added, flushing slightly. “Wanna wrap it up here?”

“Might as well. We have a big day tomorrow, and if I recall, you two were out of food.”

“Yeah.” Astra nodded and returned Swablu to her pokeball. “It’s still early enough to pick up some supplies on our way to the hotel.”

“More than you planned yesterday, I take it,” Brendan said, looking amused. He shook his head. “You know, maybe you’re having such a hard time with supplies because you’ve been catching so many pokemon. It’s barely been a week and both of you have five teammates already; that’s ten mouths to feed!”

Astra shrugged. “I dunno what to tell you. Half of my team basically walked up to me and asked to be caught, and May had to get a second water type for—well, a few reasons. Hey,” she said, eyes narrowed, “don’t you have five too? Hypocrite!”

Brendan looked at her and half-nodded, lips upturned. “Well, you got me there. Though, my situation isn’t exactly ordinary either. I’m training to be a researcher, and I’ve got some funding from Dad’s lab to help me through.” He pulled out his pokeballs, gazing at them fondly. “Marshtomp was my starter, I found Slugma very far from her natural habitat and freezing to death, Shroomish was simply a genetic oddity that merited a closer look, and, well, you two were there for Whismur.”

“I take it having this many isn’t normal?” Astra guessed. Most of her opponents had three or fewer pokemon, and even Roxanne only used Nosepass and two Geodude in their fight.

“Average trainers have two or three pokemon by the time they get their second badge,” Brendan answered. “Usually they only get up to and over six once they’re near the end of the gym tour, which is when people get really serious about training as a lifestyle. Every pokemon you have is another time slot filled with training, another few hours of enrichment, and another load on your finances.” He looked at Astra, face serious. “Can you honestly say you’ll be able to treat all five of your pokemon equally? Will you be able to give each one the attention they deserve? What if you catch more?”

Astra blinked, taken aback by the sudden weight of the conversation. She looked down, staring at her own pokeballs thoughtfully. It was true that she hadn’t had much time to train her newer partners, but it had only been a week—one filled with utter nonsense at that! She’d have more opportunities once they were on the move again, surely.

On the other hand, dividing her attention in so many ways would lessen their individual progress, wouldn’t it? She’d only just gotten Nincada and Swablu, would she have to focus on them more? Would Grovyle resent being ignored? Wouldn’t Marill get frustrated at being sidelined? Astra still hadn’t found her that TM she’d been promised.

Astra sighed. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Maybe there will be a point where I catch too many Pokemon and overwhelm myself, but until then I’ll just have to do my best. If people like Steven can manage to handle all of their Pokemon fairly, then so can I.” She met Brendan’s gaze and smiled. “Even if treating them fairly is hard, or time consuming, or expensive, I’ll just have to do it anyway. Not just for my Pokemon, but for me, too. I can’t do anything less.”

Brendan considered her words, then nodded, returning her smile. “Well said. Say what you want about our Champion, he didn’t get where he is by giving up. Still,” Brendan said, sighing. “Maybe hold off on throwing pokeballs at every pokemon you meet. Life in storage is no way for a pokemon to live, and actively taking care of so many is a nightmare on your finances until you get higher-paying opportunities. Though the food cost hits a soft plateau once you start buying in bulk.”

“Did I hear someone say food?” May asked, having strolled over from Nurse Joy’s med-station. “Good timing, I’m starving.” She stretched, raising her arms high over her head before dropping them with a pleased groan. “Tomorrow's Thursday, yeah? Guess that means we’re finally ditching Rustboro. Fuck, it feels like I’ve been here for like, three years.”

Astra tilted her head. That was...oddly specific, but she could understand it. A lot had happened over the past week. “Yeah, the room expires after tonight. Once we get the package and payment from Devon we can travel down to Mr. Briney’s. I’m kinda excited to get my hands on that PokeNav.”

“Forget the toys, I’m more excited about getting a fat stack of cash!” May said, rubbing her hands together. “Easy money!”

Brendan frowned, peering at May. “Wait, if you were getting money from Devon, what was all this battling about?”

“I still needed to feed my guys today, man.” May said, rolling her eyes. “Nevermind that, what are you getting there?”

He blinked, then bit his lip in thought. “I don’t think I ever asked for anything, actually,” he said. “Do you think they’d let us take a tour? I’ve heard they’re working on some really cool new tech.”

“That sounds interesting,” Astra agreed. A close look at the freshest human devices? Yes please! “Maybe we can go together!”

“Might as well,” May said.

Brendan nodded, smiling. “Alright then. Tomorrow, we set a course for Devon and then get out of here! All in favor?”

“Aye!” Astra and May cheered.