5:30 a.m. July 18th, Saturday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event)

Events: The Joint Kanto and Johto Indigo Summer League have concluded. Saria Surge has become the new Vermilion Gym Leader, converting it to a Fairy Gym. Our girl started her journey on the 9th of June—she’s been a Trainer for 39 Days (38 officially; 39 since getting Maya and Nova). Today is the day they get their Buddy Pokemon! Yay!

The gentle sway of jazz tickled Rhea’s ears as Amira’s quiet alarm went off, making her crack open an eye and reposition on her futon, snuggling closer to Mya’s cool metal body beside her; Nova groaned from around her left leg, wet nose nuzzling her shin.

Swallowing the sticky saliva in her throat, she yawned, hearing Amira stretching out with Amber and Serenity; they’d moved on to sleeping with two Pokemon the previous night, which was a lot easier than when she’d first started doing it, and she hoped to make it all three soon.

Rhea settled back into her squishy bedding, but around the time the redhead got up, her fuzzy mind was already focusing on something that wouldn’t let her go back to sleep.

Too early… Mom’s coming today… with our Buddy Pokemon.

Twisting her hips and arching her back, squirming a bit under her light blanket, Rhea puffed out a long stream of air; Nova and Mya were forcing themselves awake with her movements.

“Pweee… pwe-pwe…”

“Maw-maaa…” her Mawile yawned, wiping away sleep tears as she rolled off the futon to stare at the droopy-eared Eevee.

Amira had somehow already slipped her dress on—it didn’t feel right to walk through the dojo halls in their nightwear/bathing suits for some reason—and was folding up her bedding.

“Did I wake you up?” Amira whispered, showing an apologetic smile in the dimly lit room; soft nightlights were placed throughout the facility to allow enough of a glow to navigate, and some of that bled through the paper-wall, sliding door. “I increased the volume a bit since I didn’t wake up last time.”

“It’s cool.” Rhea sat up and rolled around her neck. “I’m excited about my mom coming. Got any guesses on the Type we’ll get?”

A rumble moved in the redhead’s throat as she performed a few morning stretches, and Rhea got up to join her; her awake Pokemon took the opportunity to mirror Amira and clean up the bedding. Lori and her team were still dead to the world and would likely stay that way for a while.

“Well, I think your mom is more than a little savvy when it comes to building a team, and we’re already fairly balanced. If we look at your Typings, you have Normal, Fairy, Steel—eventually Fighting with Alice’s Mega form—and, well… everything else, too, hehe.”

“Pew-pew!” Nova chirped, swiftly lowering her voice as Gables groaned from atop Lori’s exposed stomach.

Rhea chuckled. “Yeah, which reminds me, Nova and I need to work on keeping her Glaceon form active for longer; I think I want to see if there’s an Aura solution or trick we can work out,” she thoughtfully mumbled.

“It’s worth a try,” Amira shrugged. “Speaking of Types, have you been looking into the new Terastal phenomenon from Paldea’s news reports?”

“No? I’m sure my mom will have some stuff to say about it, though.”

Slipping on her dress, she followed the redhead to the showers, going into her own sectioned-off booth beside Amira so they could continue to talk while getting ready. Their Pokemon happily joined them, and Alice woke up halfway through, wanting to play with the suds Nova was making.

They bounced between the topic of their new Buddy Pokemon and the unbelievable news coming out of Paldea that Amira had been privately researching the last few days; she’d mainly gotten on the subject because of her grandmother—Ariana Rocket—who had been in charge of overseeing a possible company expansion into the region.

Paldea’s former administration had a massive scandal involving embezzling funds, poor treatment of its students, and extensive overspending when it came to research involving the mysterious crater at the region’s center.

Most tried to resign, but the reformist party led by the country’s current Champion, Geeta, had them detained and awaiting trial; currently, the nation was going through a bit of a politically turbulent time, yet it could hardly be called chaotic for the average citizen. In fact, with the recovered tax returning to the school and students, Paldea seemed to be on the up.

The recently discovered Paradox Pokemon, as Professor Sada and Turo—the region’s premier scientists—named them, had caused a stir within Rocket’s research department; yet, the nation was using the new phenomenon to its advantage in negotiations with the United Leagues in entering the union.

Apparently, Rocket had discovered that whatever this Terastal thing was, it was a method of, in a way, giving a Pokemon a third Type while removing its previous weaknesses and keeping its STAB; the really interesting part was the multiplicative effect it had if used on a Pokemon’s existing Type.

Rhea had to admit, it was a fairly insane discovery, and she could see it totally shaking up the meta-game of battling. The ability for any Pokemon to gain the Flying-Type and just fly around sounded pretty cool, even if there was a time limit on it. Unfortunately, it was extremely challenging to combine with Mega, Syncro-Burst, or Z-Moves due to various reasons—according to Rocket’s research department—but there was a lot more coming out about the region.

Paldea hadn’t participated in the Ultra War, which was a point of contention among the citizens of the United Indigo League, and every nation had to participate in the Trainer Draft Initiative, which acted as the last line of defense against any world threats. Every region had to prove it wouldn’t become a burden on the whole and had something to contribute to maintaining each other’s peace if called upon.

Unfortunately, Paldea had a long history of imperial rule that was spotted with bloodshed and dubious figures within its political hierarchy, causing the League to put up its guard since those within the United League were required to maintain a specific standard.

She could see why Amira would be fascinated by world events, considering her upbringing, but Rhea only partially listened to the redhead talk aloud about the events happening across the sea—Paldea was close to Galar—she was too fixated on their new Buddy Pokemon.

Sure, they wouldn’t be able to battle with these Pokemon for a while, but just having a cute cuddle buddy and playmate for all her Pokemon was thrilling; the mystery her mother employed when talking about them and the warnings only stimulated her appetite to learn more.

Touching up for the morning, they participated in a bit of small talk with the female dojo martial artists and guests that entered the locker room. Nova, Alice, Serenity, Holly, Amber, and Mya were a hit; to Rhea’s amusement, her Mawile grew too flustered with the attention and returned to her Poke Ball; Nova was more than happy to take the stress off her shoulders as the Eevee replaced her steely companion, soaking up the attention.

Mallory was still in bed by 7 a.m. when they returned—spending a bit more time than needed chatting—and they giggled upon finding the violet-haired girl flipped on the opposite side of her futon; she was such a restless sleeper. Gables was hanging off her side now, Miky drooling on her knee.

Ash knocked on their door at 7:15 a.m., which made Lori groan and get up, surprising Rhea a bit when the girl grabbed her clothes and trudged off to the locker room without throwing anything over her bikini; of course, her Unovan teammate was by far the most daring when it came to showing skin, which was oddly paradoxical with how she talked about her body sometimes.

“Oh, well… okay,” Ash chuckled as she slunk past him, throwing up a fist for him to bump in passing.

“Haaa… See ya in a bit… I may fall asleep in the shower. I’m coming, hot water… I love big water heaters, and I cannot lie.” she said in a slight singing tone.

Her two Pokemon followed after her, seemingly just as dead as her, and Rhea started to wonder if she’d been doing secret nighttime training; she and Amira were quick sleepers, so Lori could get up to do some extra work under the moonlight.

“Pika-pi…”

Ash nodded with a smile, and Pikachu walked in, practically nodding off himself, wearing a nightcap and hugging a thin pillow nearly the size of his body. “We have a few hours before your mom gets here, and I wanted to go over a few things, but, heh, I suppose we should wait for Lori to finish getting ready.”

He glanced between them, Rhea waiting for something to do, and Amira glued to her phone, no doubt scanning more private information she could access from Rocket’s network.

“So… want to grab some breakfast after Lori’s done and talk?”

“Sounds good,” Amira grunted.

Rhea held her stomach as it growled, and a curious tilt shifted her mouth as her Pokemon looked up at her. “I… guess Aura training really does take a hit on you; I’m actually pretty hungry.”

“Great!” Ash gave them a thumbs up. “I’m gonna take Pikachu to the showers; he’s a bit—heh… you doing okay, bud?”

“Pii…” The electric rat fell forward onto his pillow, drooling a bit.

“Haha. Well, I’ll get him cleaned up and let him sleep in my hoodie; he likes that sometimes. Catch you in, like… thirty?”

“Sounds good,” Rhea called back, mind wandering as she tried to figure out how to spend her time. “Oh, Nova, let’s work on your Glaceon transformation, and I’ll look at your Aura while you’re doing it!”

“Pweee!” She jumped up and down.

Amira sank down to the floor against the wall; her Pokemon jogged over to watch them. “Good luck.”

“Thanks!”

Settling in a cross-legged position and plucking her skirt out to drape over her knees, she placed her hands in her lap, focusing internally as Ash had taught her; it didn’t take long for the blackness around her to light with the five Pokemon around her, including Mya in her Poke Ball.

She could understand who they were by their shape, and Rhea was beginning to sense a familiarity that was more instinctual than memory, identifying the Auras she’d already observed. It wasn’t so much as seeing a face and remembering it… More like recognizing the sensation of the wind against her skin.

A chuckle shook her chest upon seeing her little Eevee’s tail wagging furiously and sensing the elated emotions swelling within her breast; she loved having personal training sessions with her.

Nova’s Aura was fascinating to analyze because it wasn’t like any other Pokemon she’d come across; Roxie would be the closest second, but her Aura shifts happened around specific times of the day. The Evolution Pokemon’s little fluffy tail was so erratic that it was mesmerizing to watch.

“Okay, try transforming.”

Rhea watched closely as her Aura and Nova’s resonated together through the Master Ball, and her Eevee’s chaotic internal waves harmonized with hers; the shock of it caused her focus to collapse. Vision opening, she saw the bright light as Nova took her Glaceon form.

“Wow, does that mean… Huh.”

Amira looked up as Nova moved forward for Rhea to pet her, and the redhead pulled out a pack of gum from her skirt pocket. “Figure something out—oh, do you want some?”

“I’m good,” she returned, shaking her head and stroking Nova along her spine. “I think… Yeah, I think I’m the problem in Nova only being able to become a Glaceon right now. She responds to my wavelengths, not the other way around.”

“Huh. That’s cool,” Amira smiled, crumpling the wrapper to set it beside her and return to her phone. “You’ll be able to do some one-on-one Aura sync stuff with her to figure it out then?”

“Pwee?”

“Mhm!”

“Pwee!” Nova cheered, putting pressure against her hand with her head.

“We’ll work it out. I’m not feeling all the stress I used to, which shows we’re growing.”

“Bun-bun!”

“Pwee.”

“Bun!”

“Pwee-pweeee!”

Nova and Alice got permission from Rhea to go to one of the training grounds and practice with her Glaceon’s ice; Amber wanted to join them while Holly remained with Amira. Rhea wanted to give her Eevee a chance to push her Glaceon transformation as long as she could, so she changed positions to sit beside the redhead.

“What are you researching now—still Paldea?”

“Yeah… Did you know Ash went there not that long ago?”

“No?” She looked over to see him grinning, front and center, in front of a huge school photo dated from only three months back. “Huh. Cool.”

Amira’s eyes narrowed as she growled. “He’s Muking everywhere… I swear he’s a trouble magnet, and we’re going to get swept into some crazy trap in the next few weeks.”

“Haha. Kind of like us, huh?”

The redhead’s shoulders drooped. “Haaa. Not wrong. Anyway, what are you thinking about for breakfast?”

Rhea’s smile became strained as she pulled up her account details. “I’m down to, like, 7.6k credits—Silver-tier is going to be rough. We need to start picking up battles and making some money soon.”

“True… I’m doing fine due to a few investments, but that can change quickly,” the savvy Rocket girl returned, showing 16,855 credits in her account.

“Nice. Umm, I was thinking about that ramen place, since, heh, we get discounts with Ash being there.”

“Fine with me.”

Rhea talked with Amira until Ash and Lori returned; Nova broke a personal best, staying as a Glaceon for twenty whole minutes. Her awesome Eevee had provided an excellent ice skating ring for Alice to dance across and Amber to crash on—and crash she did—over and over again, trying to train her balance with Alice.

At 8:15 a.m., they left the dojo, waving at some of the women they’d met that morning on their way out. The city was lively, and she heard a few passing topics on the way to the shop, which included Paldea, how Sabrina provided a soul-crushing defeat to some Trainers earlier that week, and some excitement around an upstart in this session from Hoenn that was scheduled to face the Psychic Gym Leader this coming Monday.

Ordering their meals, Rhea waved at Kyle from the open doorway to the kitchen; he seemed to notice and gave her a soft smile, returning the gesture; she’d had a good visit, listening to his stories about Terri in the hospital the previous day.

Ash went right into what he wanted to discuss with them once they were situated, though; Pikachu speaking to their Pokemon on the table beside theirs.

“Okay,” he grinned. “As you already know, these Pokemon won’t be able to participate in official matches for a while and require a bit of attention. They have the you know what infused in them, which means they’ll need to release that built-up energy at some point and will look for your guidance.”

Rhea assumed he was talking about the Victini Cores that her mother talked about, but Ash dropped a new surprise on them.

“Also, they’ll grow a lot faster than your typical Pokemon—despite not battling—due to the Buddy Bond, and you cannot bond normally with them for that reason. Among other issues that you’ll learn shortly, it would hurt you… pretty bad, so don’t ever think about doing it. Any questions?”

Mallory chuckled and shook her head. “I think we’ll get the gist of it when we see our new little whirlwinds. I can’t wait; you’ve been hyping this up since you first told us! So, when can we battle with them?”

A short sigh came from Amira. “When we can influence the Buddy Bond. Correct?”

“Right, as usual, Amira,” Ash laughed. “When you can interact with your Buddy Pokemon through your Allocations, you’ll be ready to start gently entering battles; it also means you can ‘technically’ have seven Pokmon when all is said and done, but… you know League regulations.”

“So cool,” Rhea beamed, sitting on the edge of her seat as their order was called. “Can we eat back at the dojo to wait for my mom?”

Lori shrugged. “I’m down.”

“I’m a bit anxious, as well,” Amira nodded.

Ash’s mouth became a line, making a sound in his throat. “Well, you see… she’s probably already at the dojo, trying to set things up and settle them down; she wanted me to get you guys out.”

“Hehe. Sounds like something my mom would do. Okay, we can eat here.”

Rhea brought up a few past events that mirrored this: her mother often had had her dad or brother take her out on a fishing or hiking trip to get the house ready for her big surprise; she fretted over every detail.

Eating a lot quicker than she usually did—and a lot more—she saw her companions do the same, and by 9:12 a.m., they were on their way back to the dojo—a 30-minute walk—hearts thumping with excitement, and Ash had them slow their Ponyta to give Rhea’s mother all the time she’d asked for.

At roughly 9:57 a.m., they arrived at the dojo to find her mother standing by the front gate, showing a slightly nervous smile. “Girls! Umm, heh, I had to separate them into different rooms to keep them from bouncing off the walls; they can… get a little under each other’s skin.”

“Oh? Little Impidimps, huh?” Lori snickered with her Pokemon. “I can’t wait! Can we see them now? Oh! Hehe, our redhead should go first!”

Amira looked a lot more nervous than Rhea expected, hands held tightly behind her back. “Eh-heh… Ash has made me question a lot of things with his responses. I suppose it’s best to meet challenges head-on.”

“We’re here with you.” Rhea bumped shoulders with her, showing a reassuring grin. “Is it okay if Amira goes first, Mom?”

“Umm. Haha… Sure, but I’m more worried about yours staying in the room, Rhea; I didn’t want them to see anyone but who they would be bonded with first, so… we should hurry!”

A little taken aback by her mother’s rushed approach, now urging them to follow, Alice and Mya ran ahead with the other Pokemon, seemingly able to hear an unusual sound that caught their attention. Sure enough, they were standing in front of the sliding wooden door of their room, and she suspected their other Buddy Pokemon were in the next two rooms over.

“Go ahead,” her mother urged the redhead, wearing a strained smile and showing bags under her eyes that spoke of sleepless nights. “Compared to Rhea and Lori’s, yours is a darling.”

Amira swallowed the lump in her throat as Rhea gave her a reassuring nod, and the girl forced herself to laugh, sounding a bit breathless. “I feel like it’s Christmas at my grandparents… They save the big gift for last and have me search around the tower for it, leaving clues. Huu-haaa. Okay… just open the door, and…”

She cracked it open but locked up part-way through, breath held as she centered on her Pokemon, just out of sight to Rhea, but Lori gasped, on the opposite side of the redhead.

“Melelele?”

“What?” Rhea asked, hearing a musical voice from within. “Amira—Amira!”

The girl fell back, hair fanning around her face as Ash caught her fall, gently taking her to the ground as an elegant Pokemon tentatively moved through the door to look at her Trainer with concern.

“M-Meloetta?!” Lori gasped, dress rising a bit as she dropped to her knees. “She’s so pretty, and that color!”

“Melo-lelleta?” she asked, concerned hand resting on Amira’s leg.

“She’ll be alright,” Ash reassured, Pikachu nodding.

Rhea was speechless; her mother had given Amira a Mythical Pokemon originating from the Unova region, and all the warnings they’d received now made sense. They couldn’t bond normally with these Pokemon because they would cause too much pressure on their spirits.

Unlike the typical Meloetta, this one appeared to have taken on specific characteristics of the Victini infused into it; instead of her turquoise-themed hair and the Pokemon’s usual color design, this small Meloetta’s flowing hair was red with burgundy spots. She had Nova and Mya’s salt and pepper theme to her dress and body, sporting piercing light-pink irises.

Rhea had to wonder how her mother got her hands on a real Mythical Pokemon, who were far shyer and more reclusive than their Legendary counterparts.

“No way!” Lori cried. “No way! What about mine? The next room?”

She darted to the door as Rhea’s mother pointed to it, and flung it open, shouting in surprise as a little red, white, and black ball of fur jumped into her arms—the adorably cute fighter gave her a leery-eyed, challenging stare that made Lori scream, hugging the Wushu Pokemon against her chest.

“Perfect! I love her! I love her! She’s so fluffy? And so ferocious, too! Arceus! Arceus! I love her! Thank you! Thank you!”

Showing a similar design as the Meloetta, the Kubfu chirped at Gables and Miky as the two greeted their newest companion, and Amira began to regain her senses, having been totally overwhelmed by her new gorgeous Melody Pokemon that truly mirrored the elegant Rocket girl.

“H-How is this… legal?!” was the first thing out of her mouth, yet everyone’s attention shot to a floating ruby-hued nebula that materialized out of rainbow lights in front of Rhea, wearing a cute smile before releasing a soft, radiant cry that rippled through her bones.

“Nee!”

Rhea’s mind blanked; it wasn’t loud, yet the focused pressure hit her like a wave as her Pokemon obliviously chipped from the floor to welcome their new friend. This darling, cloud snuggle buddy had to be hers, and all she could do was whisper “Cosmog?” before the world went black, unable to cope with just the Alolan legend’s greeting.