[ Back at the camp ]

"You think that might have been a little too much?" Cynthia asked, preparing a concoction made of several natural ingredients for Austin and his pokémon. She wasn't sure if it would taste well, but the positive effect it would have on them was guaranteed.

And that was all that mattered.

She considered Austin's reaction to the event that had happened. Once again, he hadn't cared about his own life and jumped into the flamethrower's path, narrowly avoiding getting scorched by it to save her. And right after that, even though she had caused him to feel pain (despite her intentions being for the better), he hadn't hesitated to take Charmeleon's attack on himself, using himself as a shield to protect her.

Cynthia flushed a little, feeling unsure about what she felt for him, and what she was supposed to feel for him. Initially, it had been an attraction towards a fellow trainer, who regardless of his lack of experience, mimicked a unique yet somewhat familiar battling strategy like no other.

The next week that she had spent knowing him had only deepened the attraction she had for him. Defiant, stubborn, a natural tactician and battler, and most importantly, someone who demonstrated a real love for his pokémon beyond the concept of a team. Also, the fact that she was able to hold a conversation with him (with her anonymity intact) was a bonus.

And then she had revealed her identity as the Sinnoh Champion, and everything had changed.

He hadn't… fell on his knees to try to impress her like the others usually did, though she did notice a sort of… amazement and disbelief etched on his face. It was distinctly visible in his eyes, as he wondered why she had chosen to act friendly (Cynthia felt annoyed at remembering it) with him.

That night, he had saved her life, by summoning the King Dragonite to counter the wrath of Mewtwo. It was largely thanks to that, that she was alive.

Needless to say. Cynthia had a deeper connection, with the ten-year-old. She wouldn't have said that she loved him mostly because he was a ten-year-old, a mature ten-year-old but a ten-year-old no less. But whatever it was, it was true that she did feel strongly for him. Which was why she had chosen to spend her last vacation with him, and no one else.

If only Austin would realize that he had been talking to Cynthia, the Champion… and completely ignoring Shirona, his friend.

She liked calling Ash, Austin. It made her feel special as the nickname while just a nickname wasn't something special, all his other friends didn't call him by his nickname so it meant that he didn't tell anyone else about the nickname but her.

Cynthia snorted. Somehow, she should have expected such a form of obliviousness from Austin. It was written all over his face, but despite all her attempts, he had religiously stuck to treating her like the Champion she was, albeit one he was friendly with, and not someone who was just… just his friend.

She had been immensely annoyed by that.

And then he had to go and save her life yet again.

She added another ingredient to the concoction. When Austin would return with that Charmeleon (if it could be called one), then she would have to ensure that he drank the contents. It would increase his body's rejuvenation abilities temporarily.

Her knuckles rubbed against her leg, remembering the way Charmeleon's claw had sunk into Austin's chest and had drawn out blood.

And yet… and yet, she knew that even after all that the two of them had gone through, Austin would treat her as Cynthia, the Champion, who just happened to be his friend, and not Shirona his friend, who just happened to be the Champion.

She looked up. "Garchomp? Do you think it was too much?" She repeated.

Garchomp simply grunted, not bothering to care too much.

Garchomp's draconic senses alerted her, as she stared towards her right, and almost immediately after, a burst of dragon breath shot out of the wild, several miles away from the forests closer to the volcano.

"Guess we know where they are now," Cynthia muttered, staring at the draconic attack that shot out of the forest. Typical Austin! That idiot couldn't stay out of trouble to save his life, she thought, half-annoyed and half-lovingly.

"You think we need to help them get back here?"

Garchomp turned towards his left, watching Austin's Pikachu getting beat up—pretty badly if he were, to be honest—by Rhyperior. The overgrown rat of Pikachu had already been bodily picked up and thrown against the rocks multiple times, only for the electric type to get back up. At least they were diligent, Garchomp mused. She turned towards the forest again, as another burst of draconic energy shot out, past the trees, before letting out a sigh.

She grunted back.

"Do it."

Garchomp extended his fins outward, before pushing herself off the ground, soaring into the sky.

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Charmeleon had to agree, the Shiftry was fast. If not for his ability to leap high up into the sky, and jump off from tree to tree like he found himself able to do, he would be at a loss. Flame attacks or not, a normal Charmeleon would be able to do jack shit if he had to stand in the center of this all-encompassing forest with Shiftry able to jump all around and camouflage himself with the surroundings. Those leaf-tornado attacks, while not lethal, would have been pretty dangerous if he had to face them while standing on the ground, amidst all that shrubbery and everything.

Perhaps being an anomaly had its perks after all.

The draconian creature channeled energy through his claws and his fangs, calculating the distance between himself and his opponent, and sent two dragon claw attacks through the air, the slashes of draconic energy lacerating through the trees as Shiftry managed to barely escape it. However, the dragon pulse that had been fired just after the previous attack caught the grass-type off-guard, causing a direct hit. With an agonized whimper, Shiftry lost its footing as it fell downward.

That was all that Charmeleon needed.

He instantly leaped downward towards the ground, his maw filled with draconic energy as he belched out what was probably the most powerful dragon breath he had ever managed- slamming it directly into Shiftry's back, almost burning half of the stump that used to be its right arm or something, before tossing away the grass-type as the dragon breath made its way past the trees into the sky.