"Phew!" Reed rolled the last stuffed bale of wool up a ramp and onto a truck. "That should be all of them, right, Meadow?"

"Did you get all the wool from the back of the barn as well?"

"Sure did!"

Reed closed the back of the truck shut and slapped the side twice, the driver looked out the window and gave a thumbs up. With a rev of the engine and the sputter of gas, the truck drove away from the ranch to be sent for processing.

It's been several days since Riolu left their ranch. Nothing much had changed since Mr. Stu Deeoh arrived and gave him a deal for a movie. Both he and Meadow were hard at work as always with their duties in Floccesy Ranch. Their herdiers, Winston and Willow, have also been working together by rounding up the mareep and flaaffy for shearing. Now that their last shipment for the month was complete, it was the perfect time for a break.

As the truck drove away into the horizon, another rectangular vehicle approached the ranch's entrance.

"Dear, did you order something? I wasn't expecting any mail."

"No?" Meadow strolled to Reed's side, staring at the post van alongside him. "If I ordered something, I would remember doing so."

The mailman stepped out of the vehicle with a letter and a small box in hand.

"Package for Mr. and Mrs. Tillmane?"

"Yes, that's us."

The mailman handed the package and left as quickly as he arrived. The couple remained planted at their spot, unsure of what just occurred.

"Look at the letter," Meadow pointed out. "Who's it from?"

Reed flipped the letter and read the other side. "It's from Mr. Stu Deeoh! Let's go inside, I'd like to read this sitting down, my legs are starting to ache."

As the two walked home, Winston and Willow noticed their trainers heading in and followed behind. When everyone entered the living room, Reed and Meadow sat on the sofa as the Herdiers sat at their favorite spot near the fireplace, equally curious about the package. Reed opened the letter and read it aloud.

"Dear Reed and Meadow, I hope this letter and my gift reaches you soon. Thanks to your care for Riolu, Pokéstar Studios has been able to recover financially and is now able to continue film production. None of this would have been possible if it weren't for the two of you. As thanks, I have sent you a DVD copy of the movie that Riolu is in."

The two herdiers' ears perked up at the mention of the blue Fighting-type. They ran up to the couple's side, eagerly waiting for them to open the package. Meadow ripped off the wrapping and took out a DVD case, the front design had a superhero kid and the retired Gym Leader-turned-actor, Brycen. A familiar face stood out next to the fictional defender, it was Riolu.

"Pokéstar has produced enough copies to finally sell to the public and I wanted to make sure the two of you were one of the first to have it. Please enjoy his first movie! From, Mr. Stu Deeoh. P.S. Did I mention I was thankful? Because written words alone can't describe how much I'm thankful!"

"Oh, Stu," Reed chucked. "He's too kind."

"Herd! Herdier!" Winston pointed at the DVD and then at the TV.

"I know, I know, I was just about to play it," Reed inserted the disk into the DVD player.

"You think we should go get this signed?" Meadow asked.

"We can ask for a signature when we go to the studio but wouldn't Riolu's just be his pawprint?"

Meadow tuned out from his question, already engaged in the movie's intro, the narrator was nearly done with his monologue. Reed decided to quiet down and watch.

~Well, it's good to know he's doing fine,~ Reed thought to himself as Riolu looked at the villain with a hearty grin.

----------------------------------------

Thanks to Ripley, Harper's tour exceeded his expected duration from an hour to multiple hours. He expected Audrey to keep the tired sneasel at her vanity van after they found it conveniently located next to Brycen's van. That assumption was far from the case when Ripley woke up with complete rejuvenation from her Pokéball soon after Harper started guiding Audrey around.

From then on, what should've been a straightforward route from one place to the next became a labyrinthian task. Ripley's neverending curiosity strayed the trio away from Harper's simple tour. In the end, Harper had managed to show all the important locations to Audrey by writing the info of each place between detours. The three of them made it back to their vans completely wiped out from the journey around Pokéstar Studios. Audrey opened the van's door and plopped herself onto the inner stairs, summoning Ripley back into her Pokéball.

"She just had to wake up right then and there..." Audrey chuckled. "I'm sorry about everything, Ripley definitely delayed the tour."

*It's alright, at least she's also familiar with the studio now.*

Audrey looked up at the sky, the sun was nearing the horizon as the streetlights activated early, anticipating the moonlit darkness to come.

"How long were we out here?" She looked at her Xtransceiver and her eyes widened. "6PM?! Oh no, I even missed a couple text messages," She began to read each one aloud, her face contorted with each text.

"Someone will hand you the script at your van in approximately 10 minutes."

"The crew member said that since you weren't there, they slipped the script underneath the door."

"Please text back once you find the script. Further instructions will be given to you tomorrow morning."

"How did I not hear the notifications? I hope the casting director isn't mad at me, day one and I'm already leaving a bad impres— wait a second, underneath the door?"

Audrey sat up and looked down, a dull yellow clasp envelope acted as a cushion between her and the metal stairs.

"I have no words," Audrey picked up the envelope and took out a stack of papers. "Yup, this is the entire script." She slid the script back in and looked at Harper. "I'm gonna end the day right here, the fact that we took an entire odyssey around the studio is enough to explain why, right?"

Harper nodded, he wanted to slump into his sofa and read himself to sleep.

"I'll try to memorize as much as I can tonight with Ripley before I sleep, she won't like being woken up again though. Anyways, see you tomorrow, Riolu. Thanks again for the tour!"

Harper waved goodbye, watching Audrey enter her van and closing the door. He sighed to himself, he planned his tour to be short and concise so that he could spend the remainder of the day to get Vacuum Wave working. But seeing as it was getting dark outside and he was tired from walking all day, he couldn't bring himself to put out any more physical effort.

Harper entered Brycen's van and to his surprise, he noticed Brycen was already asleep in his bed, already changed into his ice-blue nightwear. Harper pulled Brycen's kimono off the coat rack and hopped onto the sofa. As he threw the kimono over his body and layed down, he noticed the same colored folder on the coffee table. He sat back up and opened it up, it was the newly edited script.

Vincent's notes at the beginning explained that since production was abruptly canceled due to financial reasons, the original actors for the Sneasel Ninja and Mecha Cop's partner pokémon quit. It seemed like they gave up on rehiring the original partner pokémon, Heracross. Vincent had to rewrite the entire script to match the current actress and Mecha Cop's new pokémon.

~I need to compliment Vincent the next time I see him, writing is tough stuff.~

Harper concluded that the new people were Audrey and himself. Vincent also changed the moves that would be used during the battles, but when did Brycen tell Vincent about his new moves? Did Beartic somehow communicate his new moveset to the ex-Gym Leader? Harper began skimming through the new script and his stomach sank, he read aloud a section to himself.

"Mecha Cop commands Riolu to use Tackle and then to use Vacuum Wave... shit."

If he had just a bit more time, he would've gotten the hang of it. He'd been training Vacuum Wave alone on his own time before the audition and after Beartic gave his advice. Since his training time was taken away by his extended tour though, all he could do now was pray that they weren't filming that scene tomorrow.

Harper spent the rest of his waking hours reading the script over and over, memorizing as much as he could before falling asleep, the script still in hand.

----------------------------------------

"Riolu, wake up."

"Mmph, five more minutes."

"Riolu, don't make me ask again. We're filming today, get ready," Brycen pulled his kimono off of Harper, the sudden chilliness woke him up.

"I'm up, I'm up," Harper sat up, smoothing his bed hair... or did he have to call it bed fur now? He pushed the question out of his head, he was not willing to get super analytical about his human-turned-pokémon situation this early in the morning. When Harper and Brycen departed from their van, he noticed that Audrey left hers at the same time.

"Good morning, Mr. Brycen! Hey, Riolu!" She gave a small wave.

"Good morning, Audrey," Brycen crossed his arms. "You don't need to say 'Mr.', you can just call me Brycen."

"Oh! O-ok!" Audrey sputtered. "Uh, Brycen? I was texted that we'd get instructions in the morning and umm... I haven't gotten any yet."

"No need to worry," Brycen pointed into the distance. "Someone's on their way now."

Like the actor said, a man was on his way to the group. Upon his arrival, he handed a piece of paper to Brycen and Audrey, saving Harper's for last.

"Here's your call sheets, I don't know why the riolu needs it but oh well, Takashi said to give you one anyways."

"I see," Brycen read the call sheet and looked up at Audrey. "It says I need to put on my costume first since it's going to take the longest to set up. Riolu, help her around whenever you can, ok?"

Harper nodded, Brycen headed off to put his costume on, likely with the help of Layla. Right when he was about to read his copy of the call sheet, Audrey asked a question.

"So, what's a call sheet? Are they basically schedules for actors?" Audrey looked at her call sheet. "It says, 'General Crew Call, 11AM.' I assume that's when everyone meets up."

*Yup. Take a look at everything else as well.*

"Shooting time is 11:30 A.M., Lunch is at 1:15, Location is the Main Sound Stage," Audrey read off the call sheet. "Wow, this is really descriptive for a schedule, it even has today's weather on it."

*They also specify which actors and actresses need to show up and what scenes are being filmed for the day.*

"One of the scenes is 'Int. Truthtech Laboratories', says it takes place during the night. The other is 'Ext. Castelia City Main Street'. What does 'int.' and 'ext.' mean?"

*Interior and Exterior. They explain whether a scene is inside or outside.*

"Figured..." Audrey continued to read her call sheet, this time to herself. Harper looked at his call sheet and realized the first scene Audrey mentioned.

~Damn it. Guess we are shooting that scene, just my luck.~

"Is something the matter?" Audrey asked. "I should be the nervous one right now instead of you."

*It's nothing. Just curious as to if the moveset Ripley knows fits the script.*

"Luckily, they all did! People expect moves like Pursuit and Beat Up to be purely for battle but I trained Ripley to learn them anyways. Hone Claws also worked out perfectly since I would usually command Ripley to use it to make her claws shinier in the spotlight. All I need to do now is have her use the moves in a combat setting."

Harper nodded at Audrey's answer and looked back at his call sheet and looked at the cast section. The only four key members that were to be in filming today were Brycen, Harper, Audrey, and Ripley. The rest of the cast were extras and background actors.

"It says to go to makeup and put on our own costumes after Brycen finishes," Audrey read. "We should go now so we don't miss the General Crew Call."

*Do you remember where the makeup room is?* Since Pokéstar wasn't crosscutting the electricity bill anymore, Layla got her old makeup station back, replacing the cramped van she used before. He had added that in mind during his tour.

"I do, you just go forward from here and take a left and a right... right?"

*You lead the way.*

----------------------------------------

With the makeup station back in working order, Layla was able to prepare the stars of the film much faster than usual. Having an entire staff under her wing helped exponentially. When Audrey, Harper, and Ripley arrived, Brycen was on his way out with his new costume. Underneath his beige detective coat was what looked like metal armor coated in a gray and blue sheen. Brycen's helmet had a large light bar on top like a police car, his blue visor made his eyes look pale.

They greeted each other in passing and began putting on their makeup and costumes with the help of the makeup team. It didn't take much longer for the staff to finish in time thanks to the increased work productivity now that Layla didn't need to do everything all by herself. Despite the accelerated pace, Harper hoped they would take a bit longer so he could reread the script again. It wasn't that he forgot his lines but that he wanted to delay the inevitable.

Since Audrey and Harper's makeup was completed first, they took advantage of their spare time to examine themselves in front of a mirror.

"This feels kind of embarrassing." Audrey turned side-to-side in front of a mirror, fidgeting with her inner jumpsuit. Her costume was completely black with dark purple linings. On Audrey's forehead was a silver headband with intricate patterns of a pokéball and two scratch marks on it. Her hair was tied up and kept together in a black net and long strips of cloth hung behind her back like thin tapestry.

Harper's costume wasn't really much of a costume. Apart from some light trimming on his fur, one makeup artist spent the majority of their time covering his scar with some kind of green dye. They explained to Harper that it was to "Cover your scar and to make you match with Mecha Cop." Looking back on the script, it did explain that Mecha Cop's Riolu was also part machine. It seemed like the VFX team did have to edit out his scar after all. Audrey continued to fuss over her costume as she mumbled incoherently.

*Do you not wear costumes during contests?*

"Sometimes, but only when there's a theme to follow like using a specific type so for example, I'd wear a light blue dress at an Ice type event. I'm just self-conscious about this right now since I'm acting in front of the entire film crew."

*How different is that compared to an entire audience behind judges?*

"I—" Audrey paused. "I don't know, it just is. I guess it's because I'm going to be behind a camera. I've never performed live, the concerts I competed in weren't televised since they weren't major, only concerts for six ribbons and above are."

*What did you say to Ripley before you did your audition?*

"You heard me?" Audrey blushed with embarrassment. "Well... pretend I'm doing a concert."

*Exactly. Just pretend the camera is the audience and the director is the judge. Easy as.*

"I don't know why I forgot my own advice, thanks, Riolu," She began to speak to herself. "This is just a concert with extra steps, that's it."

Ripley hopped off her barber chair and walked up to the two, showing off her new look. Along with getting a trim like Harper, her ear and tail feathers were much shinier in the light. Her claws were manicured and much glossier than before.

"Look, Audrey! I look so fresh now!"

"You look so cute!" Audrey patted her head. "Since we're all done now, let's go!"

When they entered the sound stage, the amount of bright green briefly blinded Harper. The entire sound stage was surrounded by a green screen except for where the film crew had their equipment. A few key props lay inactive in the middle of the area, ready to be activated by a press of a button. The director was talking with the camera crew, and when Harper entered, he turned to look at them.

"Ah! You're here!" Takashi burst out loud. "And just in time as well, we're setting up the final adjustments for the scene."

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

"I noticed that the sound stage is very green," Audrey pointed out. "It doesn't look like a laboratory."

"Since the scene only shows up once and the amount of practical effects needed to make it look futuristic will exceed the budget, we're using green screens as an alternative. I hope that the emptiness doesn't deter you from acting out your lines."

"It won't, I'll just have to imagine what the scene looks like instead."

"Spoken like a true actress. Now, I must leave to attend to other matters with the film crew. I'll send someone soon to help you with the rigging for the part where you jump out the vent."

Takashi walked back to the group of people he was previously speaking with. Audrey took out a pokéball and looked down to see that Ripley had disappeared.

"Where did she go? I swear she was right next to me."

Harper tugged her costume and pointed at the set. Ripley was already in the set, looking around at every angle and touching all the props with the backside of her claws with curiosity so as not to damage them.

"This place doesn't look futuristic like Audrey said."

"Well, it's because the VFX team is going to make it futuristic," Harper explained.

"How?"

"I'll explain later."

"Ripley," Audrey walked up to the Sneasel and held out her pokéball. "I need to call you back in since we're filming soon."

Ripley nodded as she was sent back into her pokéball. Audrey tucked the pokéball into a secret pocket near her waist.

"Ms. Cohen?" A voice spoke behind the two. "We're gonna need you here to wear your harness for the jump."

"I'll see you later, Riolu!"

He waved her goodbye as the crew member guided Audrey to a portion of the set. The upper section of the set looked like a vent where the Sneasel Ninja was supposed to sneak through and jump to the floor.

With nothing to do, Harper looked around for Brycen. It was an easy task with the blaring police lights turning on and off on top of the former gym leader's head. A lighting technician was testing the signals if they were functioning.

"Hello, Riolu," Brycen turned to Harper. "Have you helped Audrey around?"

Harper nodded.

"Good. And are you ready for the scene?" Brycen looked at the wall clock, it read 11:26 AM. "Seems like we're starting soon."

Harper paused for a moment before nodding again.

"Alright then, I hope you remember your lines," Brycen took out his pokéball. "Riolu, return!"

Harper was sucked back into his pokéball in a flash of red light, the comfort that the capsule provided didn't help stave off his nervousness. He definitely didn't want to ruin the shoot due to his inadequate self-training.

"Everyone!" Takashi shouted through his megaphone. "Get to your places! We're filming soon!"

All the lights that weren't angled into the green screens dimmed. Brycen walked to his spot and stood still, holding his coat together with both hands. Since Harper's pokéball was pocketed in an inner pocket, he couldn't see the outside, he'd have to mentally visualize what was going on.

"Scene 1, Take 1," The Second Assistant Camera said, a clapperboard snapped soon after.

"Action!" The director yelled.

After a few seconds passed, metallic thumps echoed above him and Brycen. Harper heard the Sneasel Ninja speak her lines, albeit muffled since she was in a vent and he was in a coat. A clang of a vent cover reverbreated when it hit the ground.

"Oof!"

"Audrey!" Brycen shouted.

"Cut!" Takashi's footsteps thumped through the set. "Audrey! Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. The harness didn't help to soften the landing, that's why I slipped. Sorry about that."

"Don't be sorry, someone please check the ropes and check her harness! We'll reshoot again!"

|[Guilt]|

|[Embarrassment]|

~What the hell was that?~

Something was gnawing at the back of Harper's mind. Was that a sense of humiliation? Why was he feeling this? He couldn't even see what was going on. This sensation was much stronger than feeling second-hand embarrassment due to a failed scene, something Harper was extremely familiar with in his past life.

Then it hit him, the dreads that hit his eyes everytime he turned his head weren't there solely to annoy him. They were what made Riolus empaths. He was a riolu. Harper put two and two together. He had felt this way but it was never this strong before. The only other time he felt something remotely similar to this was when Nate was explaining the Team Neo Plasma situation to Mr. Stu Deeoh. Harper felt how tense Nate was but since he was also taken aback by the studio owner's expression, their same emotions collided. But why was he feeling this now? Was he getting more attuned with his body?

"Ok, everyone! We're all good to go! Let's go back to the beginning and continue from there!"

The feeling lingered away as he heard the shuffling of feet around him. He heard Takashi tap his megaphone when the noise died down.

"Scene 1, Take 2," The slate clapped again, filming began.

"Action!"

The beginning of the scene played out again, this time it wasn't stunted by an improper utilization of her harness. Audrey now landed on the ground silently, sticking to the script perfectly.

"And just on time too! How ideal! Now to steal the engine," The Sneasel Ninja snuck around the set, moving behind each prop.

Harper's pokéball lurched forward within Brycen's coat as he walked forward, it seemed like it was time for the pokémon equivalent of Robo Cop to enter.

"Found an intruder. Verifying its biometric," Mecha Cop announced.

"Is that... a security robot?" The Sneasel Ninja questioned.

"Verification complete. The identity is confirmed to be the serial robber, the Sneasel Ninja. Surrender immediately!"

"It's a human cop! Is his entire body reinforced by mechanics?"

"Code name, Mecha Cop! Activation sequence... Action!" Mecha Cop swings open his trenchcoat from one side and grabs Harper's pokéball.

~Let's do this.~

"Riolu! Go!"

Mecha Cop threw Harper's pokéball into the air, releasing him and landing in front of him. Harper held up his paws close to his chin, ready to throw hands.

"Is his Riolu also reinforced with tech?" The Sneasel Ninja stared at Harper with curiosity and started shaking her head. "No! I can't let myself be distracted right now! I won't let myself be caught here!"

"Sneasel, go!" The Sneasel Ninja took out her pokéball from her pocket and threw it.

Ripley also stood in front of her trainer like Harper, crossing her arms with a smug grin as she looked down on him.

"Sneasel, use Hone Claws!"

"Hee he he, I can't wait to cut that Riolu up!" She snickered in the same manner as she did during the audition, this time her claws were looking much more threatening than usual.

"You show resistance, I'll regard it as hostile behavior!" Mecha Cop raised his left arm and aimed it at the Sneasel Ninja. "The handcuff launcher! Aim, Fire!

An imaginary handcuff flew at the thief and hit her arm. The Sneasel Ninja fell to the floor and pretended to lift it back up but failed.

"What the?! What did you do?"

"I don't tolerate crimes. I'll bring you under control by force!"

"What?!" "I only use pokémon for stealing, but you use weapons like that! It's not fair!

"Hmm... I see," Mecha Cop lowered his arm. "My justice will be tainted if a villain criticizes me. In this situation, I should solely depend on my pokémon and arrest him.

Ripley looked at Mecha Cop and back at her trainer, her superior look was now replaced with anger.

"Now I'm really gonna rough you up!"

"You can try," Harper threw a punch in the air. "I won't allow it in the name of justice."

"Sneasel!" The Sneasel Ninja yelled. "Use Pursuit!"

Ripley made a mad dash and swung her arm at Harper's side. Upon impact, all Harper felt was a dull pain, the type disadvantage of the move gave him confidence against the sneasel.

"What?" Ripley looked at Harper with surprise. "How did my attack bounce off you like that?"

"I won't be beaten by a thief like you!"

"Riolu! Use Tackle!" Mecha Cop commanded.

Like he practiced, Harper tackled Ripley with his shoulder while covering himself with Normal TE. Upon impact, Ripley got knocked back and created distance between the two pokémon.

"Now use Vacuum Wave!"

~It's now or never.~

Harper summoned Fighting TE into his fist, the muscles tensed and his arm shook. He punched the air as fast as he could, imagining the energy leaving his fist.

Nothing.

"Cut!"

The silence of the movie set was suspended by the murmurs of the crew. The ambience of the sound stage grew but none of it was registering to Harper.

~Shit, now what? I still don't understand the move at all.~

"Riolu, what happened?" Brycen knelt down on one knee. "Why didn't you use Vacuum Wave?"

|[Curiosity]|

~Stop it!~ Harper slapped his feelers.

"Riolu?"

|[Unusual]|

Ignoring the emotions, he pretended to write on his paw.

"Right, can someone get him his whiteboard?" Brycen asked a nearby crew member.

When someone handed him his whiteboard, Harper wrote his answer down.

*I still don't understand how Vacuum Wave works.*

"And you didn't tell me or anyone here?"

Harper didn't respond, Brycen breathed out a deep sigh.

"I thought you had the moves for today's filming ready, we all did. Did you believe that the move would've worked by pure chance?"

|[Judgemental]|

"Your silence tells the truth," Brycen stood up and walked over to Takashi. "Mr. Pokémi, can you call for a break? It seems that Riolu here was unprepared for today."

"I see, I'll give the two of you 20 minutes then," Takashi aimed his megaphone to his mouth. "Break time! Come back in 20 minutes!"

"Hey," Ripley tapped Harper's shoulder. "Are you ok? I hope I didn't hit you too hard."

"You didn't," Harper brushed off where she hit him. "Dark Types are weak to Fighting Types."

"What's going on?" Audrey asked. "Why did Mr. Pokémi say cut?"

*It's my fault, I failed to use a move. I'm a lousy senior, aren't I?*

"W-what? No! Of course not! Don't think that! Look at what happened to me earlier, I was so embarrassed when I slipped up. I knew we weren't going to finish this in one take, did you?"

|[Respect]|

Harper gave a faint smile, he didn't need to read her emotion to know how she felt.

*It just feels like something I could've prevented from happening if I did better.*

"Then we can do better right now," Brycen walked towards the exit. "Let's figure out Vacuum Wave with the time Mr. Pokémi provided for us."

Harper waved Audrey goodbye as he exited the sound stage with Brycen to an empty lot.

"Now, tell me why you failed to use Vacuum Wave. I'm not mad, I just want to know the situation here."

*I haven't trained it enough.*

"Alone?"

Harper nodded.

|[Perplexity]|

"I thought Beartic was helping you?"

*He helped with everything else but Vacuum Wave.*

"Did it ever occur to you that you could've asked me for help?"

It never did occur to him.

"Riolu, you do know I used to be a Gym Leader, right? Do not be afraid to ask for training from me, I know Beartic is capable as a teacher but he shouldn't be your only teacher. I know I said I wouldn't use you in legitimate battles but despite being my seventh pokémon, I still have to set a level of standards like how I do on my other six."

Harper stood in silence.

"Don't take this badly, at least you learned your lesson. Now, since the break is only for a short while, let's make the most of it. Let's start with how Vacuum Wave works."

Brycen stood in a martial arts position, sliding a leg back and placing an arm forward.

"Vacuum Wave is a fast attack that shoots a force of low pressure at an opponent. Many mistake it as a Flying-type move at first glance since it looks like a cyclone of wind but that isn't the case. Fighting-type pokémon use Vacuum Wave either by spinning their entire body or a specific body part and shooting Fighting TE at their target. What I want you to do is spin your arms, condense your energy, and let it go at the right time like so."

Brycen spun his arms in front of his chest and pushed his hands forward in open palms like a certain anime protagonist with yellow hair. Harper couldn't remember his name, it's been years since he'd seen it.

*How do I know when it's the right time?*

"You'll know."

Harper threw his whiteboard aside and copied the posture that Brycen was in. He closed his eyes and spun his arms, imagining the sensation he felt when he used Force Palm. The urge to battle grew within him as his arms spun faster.

"Good, now imagine attacking your opponent. Relieve the urge to attack your opponent that's out of combat range!"

He was now visualizing a target in front of him, the hunger for battle and not wanting to disappoint everyone grew stronger and stronger. Eventually, the desire reached a breaking point. His arms grew heavier as he spun harder, it was like pressure was increasing inside himself, if he continued any further he'd feel like he'd collapse from the weight.

"Use Vacuum Wave!"

Harper stopped spinning his arms and pushed his paws forward, the sensation left his body as energy shot out. The Vacuum Wave sped through the empty road of the lot until it dissipated out of their field of view.

|[Contentment]|

"Good job, Riolu. That was an effective Vacuum Wave, remember the sensation again the next time you use it."

Harper nodded, he definitely should've asked Brycen for help before filming. He wasn't trying to diss Beartic, but Brycen is a better teacher than him.

"Since you learned the move so quickly, all you need to do now is reduce the time it takes to use it. We still have some time left before we get back to filming."

Harper got back into his stance, already summoning Fighting TE in his spinning hands.

----------------------------------------

"So how did it go?" Takashi asked Brycen.

"We're ready for the next scene now, there won't be any incidents like this ever again."

"That's good to hear, now don't worry, Riolu," Takashi leaned down to Harper. "We'll splice the footage together so we can continue the scene where we left off without rerecording everything over again, we'll start at the part where you use Tackle."

Takashi tapped his megaphone, the feedback echoed through the sound stage.

"Ok, everyone!" Takashi announced through his megaphone. "Break's over! Get back to your positions!"

"Before we go back, Riolu," Brycen stopped walking to his spot. "Have you mastered the other moves needed in the future?"

Harper shook his head.

"Were you intending to learn them by yourself?"

Harper gestured "kinda" with a paw.

"We're now going to be training daily whenever the two of us have free time, understood?"

Before he gave his whiteboard to someone else he wanted to ask a question.

*I've started feeling others' emotions recently. How do I learn to do it on command?*

"How recent?"

*When Audrey fell.*

"Really? I wonder if this means you're starting to remember things, we'll talk more about this later."

Harper nodded, handing his whiteboard to a nearby crew member and heading back to his spot with Brycen.

"Scene 1, Take 3."

"Action!"

"Riolu! Use Tackle!"

Harper slammed his shoulder on Ripley and knocked her back a considerable distance away. Before she could get back up, Mecha Cop ordered another command.

"Now use Vacuum Wave!"

Remembering the training session, Harper spun his arms and compressed Fighting TE to his paws. At the peak of intensity, he aimed at Ripley and fired the energy vortex out of his palms, knocking her down on the ground again.

"Such a violent cop," The Sneasel Ninja scowled. "He's been modified into a cyborg... Is he a secret agent for the World Police?!"

"I won't allow a villain like you to have the Dynamatronic Engine!" Mecha Cop shouted.

"Sneasel, get ready to flee after you hit his Riolu," She whispered.

Ripley stumbles back up, almost losing her footing in the process. She raises her claws back up threateningly.

"Sneasel Ninja! I'll make sure to put you in jail and make you pay for your crimes!"

"You can try! Hit Riolu with Beat Up, Sneasel!"

Ripley began to throw consecutive dirty punches on Harper. He guarded himself by placing his arms over his face.

"Use Force Palm while Sneasel is close!"

Harper charged Force Palm during Ripley's constant delivery of strikes. The pain was accumulating, but he ignored it to focus on the move.

Ripley began to sweat as she continued punching Harper. "Why? Won't? You? Go? DOWN?!"

"Because I fight for justice!" Harper exclaimed.

He slammed his palm on Ripley's abdomen, the sneasel was launched into one of the green props, knocking it down as she flew across the set.

"Eeek! Without thinking about the surroundings, what an attack!"

Ripley tried to get back up after being hit by the super effective move but after kneeling up, she fell face flat on the floor. The Sneasel Ninja growled in defeat.

"Mission accomplished," Mecha Cop summoned Harper back into his pokéball and put him in his coat pocket. "Sneasel Ninja, you didn't lose to me. You were defeated by law and justice!"

"Argh! I lost to such a scrap cop..."

"And cut! That was great!"

After Brycen released him back out, Harper's first action was to get the berries from the craft service and rush to Ripley.

"Ripley!" Harper sat next to the injured sneasel and held out an sitrus berry to her. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Ripley grabbed the berry and took a big bite, talking between chews. "Why are we battling so seriously though? I thought moves would be weaker."

"I was curious about this as well and from what Beartic told me, A rival studio called Pokéball Pictures, tried a movie with weaker-looking moves and used CGI to make them look strong."

"CGI?"

"Computer Generated Images. People immediately saw through it and gave the movie really low reviews. Real moves look way better on-screen and a fake-looking finishing blow would look way less dramatic anyways."

"Yeah, you're right," Ripley grimaced in pain, rubbing her stomach. "A fake Force Palm from you wouldn't look nice, moves that are used with more intention always impress the judges at concerts."

Harper handed Ripley another sitrus berry and a leppa berry, he saw Layla making her way to them with his whiteboard in hand.

"Are you ok, Ripley?" Audrey knelt beside the two pokémon.

"Never better," She nodded.

*How about you, Audrey? Are you ok? I never got to ask when you fell.*

"I'm fine, it turned out that the rope that was connected to my harness was too long. I still feel guilty for messing up my first ever scene though."

*Don't worry, you more than made up for it with your performance after it. Both of your performances were better than mine.* Harper spoke the last sentence aloud for Ripley.

Audrey and Ripley beamed with pride.

"In the third take, I was surprised at how similar acting was to pokémon contests. I'm just commanding Ripley to use her moves like how I do in concerts and I say some lines in between. For my first time acting, it's really fun!"

As they talked together, Takashi walked around in search of something. "Where are they?" Takashi asked a crew member. "Where are the background actors? We need to start the next scene."

"They should be arriving any minute now, I'll have everyone set up the scene right now," The crew member turned back to the others and explained the instructions. Soon enough, everyone was moving equipment around for the next scene. A fake doorway was pushed through the garage entrance, and a police car followed soon after.

"What was the next part about again?" Ripley stared in amazement at all the commotion.

"It's a short scene, Mecha Cop leaves the lab and sends the Sneasel Ninja to jail," Harper explained. "We're not going to be in it so we can just watch from the side. Speaking of which, we should move over now."

*We're gonna go now since we're not in this next scene.*

Audrey gave a thumbs up and walked to her next position. Harper pulled Ripley up from her seated position by her arm and led her behind the cameras. They weaved and zigzagged through the busy film crew as they moved around the movie set. After dodging a multitude of legs, Harper and Ripley sat on two spare seats behind the director's chair.

"Are we all ready for the next scene?" A collective sound of agreeance vertebrated across the set. "Perfect, Second Assistant Camera? Whenever you're ready."

"Scene 2, Take 1," The clapperboard snapped.

"Action!"

The set was lit up by the fake police car's glaring red and blue lights. Officers surrounded the entrance with police tape while extras acting as reporters tried to get through to find answers for what occurred.

"What are the details of this crime?"

"What was the thief trying to steal?"

"Could you please tell us everything that occurred?"

"Please, please!" The police officer pushes a mic away from his face. "Stand back from the police tape! Questions will be answered shortly!"

As the reporters continued to push through the barrier, Mecha Cop opened the entrance door wide open. The Sneasel Ninja, who oddly wasn't saying a word and with a slight grin, was handcuffed and held beside Mecha Cop.

"There he is!" One of the reporters shouted. "It's the Mecha Cop!"

"And the thief!" Another reporter yelled.

"Please stand back" Mecha Cop raised a hand in a "stop" motion. "The Sneasel Ninja must be detained immediately."

The reporters and police officers stepped back as Mecha Cop led the Sneasel Ninja to a police car. After closing the door and locking it, he turned around to the reporters.

"Your questions may commence."

"Mecha Cop! Could you explain the details of this crime!"

"A sleazy thief known as the Sneasel Ninja attempted to steal Truthtech's Dynamatronic Engine, a fuel-efficient power source that would help provide energy for Unova's cities."

"And what is the condition of the engine?"

"The Dynamatronic Engine has been destroyed but my scanners dictated that it was a prototype. The Sneasel Ninja was after the wrong version." Mecha Cop began to walk through the reporters. "Questions are now over."

"Speaking of question, Riolu," Ripley whispered. "I still don't get why we're acting in this green room" Audrey said the battle would be in some future-looking lab or something, why doesn't it look like that? The director's answer didn't make sense."

"Well, I'm not an expert in this stuff since it wasn't in my field of work, but the green screens are basically where the people in VFX can change the look of a scene after recording is over. To us, it's just a boring blank space but think of it like a canvas for them to make a fake area look real. When the movie's finished, you'll see how much better it looks."

"So it's like how when I compete, I would use Icy Wind to make the stage more beautiful!"

"Is that one of your contest tricks?"

Ripley nodded again.

"Sure, it's like that. We use our moves during filming and VFX artists have their own moves to make our battle look more entertaining."

"And what did you mean by 'wasn't in your field of work'?"

"Uhh... wel—"

"And cut!" Takashi shouted.

~Phew.~

The moment the director ended filming, a bell rang over everyone in the set. Harper looked at the clock next to it, it was time for lunch.

"We should go to Audrey now." He waved to Ripley as he made his way to the fake police car. Audrey stepped out and was greeted by Takashi.

"Audrey!" Takashi exulted. "I wanted to tell you before you go out for lunch but you absolutely nailed the devious nature of the Sneasel Ninja!"

"T-thank you, Mr. Pokémi," Audrey blushed, placing her hand on her neck.

"We'll be recording the final scene after lunch but you probably knew that from your call sheet. Eat your lunch and be ready before lunch ends, ok?"

"Yes, Mr. Pokémi," Audrey responded. She noticed Harper and Ripley walking towards her as the director left the set.

"So we are filming the final scene later," She spoke to herself. "I thought it was a mistake on the call sheet," She turned to Harper. "Are movies not filmed chronologically?"

*Never. Scenes are filmed out of order for convenience. Since the main cast is here right now, we're doing the final scene.*

"What about the battle scene on the beach? We're all here right now."

*We might film at an actual beach since this set is too small. We can ask Takashi when he comes back.*

"Ooh, a beach? I'll be so happy if we're filming at Undella Town, I heard it's a perfect place for a vacation."

~I could also kill for a beach trip, I never had the chance in my old life even though I lived like an hour away from it.~

Harper started to drift off into a daydream, the idea of relaxing on a beach chair with the ambience of the ocean waves. He could almost hear the Undella Town theme that helped calm him down during his childhood.

~That'd be the dream. That's the first thing I'm doing if we ever go to Undella after we finish filming there. I just wonder if it's legal to give a pokémon like me a margarita...~