"Maybe the reason you keep failing is because you simply aren't good enough. Ever considered that?"

Ursula swatted the voice of her former friend out of the air. "Quiet," she muttered to herself. "There is no question of my skill. The only question is if these idiot judges and the simpletons of this town will be able to see it."

Solaceon Town was not exactly her idea of a place to hold a major contest, despite its central location and the importance of the overall area. The town looked like a farming village, it certainly smelled like one, and as far as Ursula could tell, the people around here weren't really concerned with anything glamorous.

Other than their boots. Ursula had seen countless styles, colors, and patterns on these boots, which seemed to be what everyone was wearing, regardless if they were working or going out. Perhaps she would treat herself to a fine pair, once she had dominated the competition.

A nudge from one of her Pokémon got her out of dreamland back into reality. "Of course. This time for sure, Gible. Go for it!"

Ursula had thought up several worthy names for the technique she had developed, on the back of that demonstration from the refined, foreign lady of Hearthome and her Typhlosion. But she could not name it without the move she had come up without it being successfully performed at least once.

The problem was, Ursula was missing something for this move, and she had absolutely no clue what. Every other element was correct. Like the lady had said, Gible and her had identified two moves that would not only work together harmoniously, but could combine and become greater than the sum of their parts.

Dragon Rage, with its inability to get stronger even as a Pokémon did, was a prime candidate to try and enhance. There was already a natural synergy between dragon and fire moves, and Gible was capable of using both.

But, like the desperate attempt she had tried in order to salvage the Hearthome Contest appeal, it wasn't working. Gible created the ball of dragon fire in his maw, before chomping down with fiery fangs and swallowing the entire thing whole. What should have come out as a spectacular display instead turned into a massive burp of flames.

Ursula ran her hand over her face in frustration. She desperately needed a second pair of eyes, to see what she could not, but where was she supposed to get them? It was far too late to go back to Hearthome and try and find the lady again, if she could even be tracked down.

Of course, the usual people that would offer her advice had betrayed her. Ursula had thought it would be easy, going back to the days when she was on her own. That had proven to be a wrong assumption.

The bitter truth was, Ursula and her Pokémon had improved more in the months she had been traveling around Sinnoh with Luna and Lucas than in the years previous. It hurt her to admit, but Gible wasn't growing at all under her own direction, before she had learned to start pushing him beyond his normal limits like Dragon Tamers did to their Pokémon. As a Bug-type, Surskit was supposed to evolve quickly, yet it didn't happen until she had met those two.

But Ursula didn't want to be the type of coordinator that relied on other people's help! She didn't want a single caveat when she won a contests; not one person should mention anything about favoritism, or luck, or being a legacy coordinator, or someone spoon feeding her strategy. Basically, all the things Ursula considered to be the reasons that she continued to lose contests. When she won, it would be off pure merit, and nothing else.

On the other hand, putting all her effort into the major contests was like going big game hunting, in a way. There were only three chances left to auto-qualify, and because she hadn't been going to small towns and participating there, for the most part, not winning this contest, the Wallace Cup, or the Celestic Town Contest would mean another wasted year.

The coordinator slid her gaze from Gible to Masquerain. She really wanted to save what they were working on for the Wallace Cup, considering that it was in Pastoria City. A city on the sea, with a Water-type gym, in front of a Water-type expert like Wallace himself, was the perfect place to perform a water themed appeal.

Ursula wrestled with her pride as she passed her gaze over Meowth, who was picking his claws disinterestedly, to her newest recruit. Maybe she couldn't stomach asking anyone for help specifically about her appeals, but Helioptile's attitude, why the Electric-type had started to disobey her out of nowhere, that was something she needed advice on.

Even if Luna had been looking to sabotage her during the Hearthome Contest, the reason Ursula bought it, hook, line and sinker, was because the advice had been sound. She needed more options, both in the appeals, and in the battles.

With at least a plan in mind, Ursula recalled her Pokémon and set off for the Pokémon Center, hoping that the local Nurse Joy could give her some insight on her unruly Pokémon.

Whether it was by fate or simply an ironic coincidence, the contest hall was on the way to the Pokémon Center. Most buildings that were in Solaceon Town, Ursula had noticed, were humble and functional in design. The contest hall, however, was as grand and captivating as any she had seen throughout Sinnoh.

The bottom half was orange and yellow like a field of wheat, while the top half was blue like the sky. Ursula wasn't the only one who found herself staring at it.

"Wow, Ma!" a young boy, with a much too large hat was shouting. "Is Paw-Paw really gon' be in there for the contest?"

"Yer darn right it is," the boy's mother told him. "Paw-Paw showed them fancy folks down in Hearthome really good. Ain't no way he's not coming out on top in his hometown!"

"He was so cool!" the boy gushed. "Makes me wanna be a coordinator, too!"

The words hit Ursula like a Golem rolling down the mountain. After all, it wasn't that long ago that she was saying something identical…

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

"Ursula, sweetie," her father was saying. "It's time for your birthday gift!"

She bounded into the room to see the grinning faces of her parents. "But you already got me one!" Ursula replied, clutching the blue egg that her friends and her had been so excited with.

"We have one more for you," her mother told her, putting a finger to her lips to indicate that Ursula should keep it a secret. Out of her mother's pocket came three shining tickets. While Ursula recognized them, she couldn't keep her voice from trembling.

"I thought Sunyshore didn't host any contests."

Her hometown had a lot of things going for it: beautiful beaches, seemingly endless sunshine, and a hotshot young gym leader, who was one of the most talented Sinnoh had ever produced. But with it being all the way on the eastern fringes of the region, it wasn't an ideal place to hold a big contest.

Except for one. "Volkner's really come through for us!" her father said in glee. "That new event hall that he's been pushing for, on the waterfront, is going to be the site for the Sinnoh Grand Festival! I went and bought tickets as soon as I heard the news!"

Ursula rushed forwards and gave her parents the biggest hug she could. This was the best birthday ever!

Of course, her enthusiasm was somewhat tempered by the fact that the venue hadn't even been finished being built, and that there was still much of the contest season to go, but it built up again as the days went by. Ursula had always been a contest fan, but she crossed that bridge into fanaticism as she'd watch on television, follow her favorite coordinators, and dream of recreating their appeals, all in preparation for seeing the spectacle first hand.

The thing was, Ursula's wildest dreams couldn't compare to what she felt upon being in the audience for the actual event. The confidence and the flair and the elegance of the coordinators, the way they commanded their Pokémon to delight the crowd…Ursula found herself captivated like never before. She went back home and laid in her bed in a daze, replaying those images in her mind for hours.

The day following the Grand Festival, at breakfast, Ursula had made her mind up. "Mommy. Daddy. I want to be a great coordinator like the people we saw yesterday."

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

Ursula shook her head. Now was not the time to be reminiscing. She had a contest to make sure she was ready for. She left the assembled tourists and locals from the surrounding farms that had made their way to Solaceon Town, and resumed heading to the Pokémon Center.

She didn't expect it to be busy, considering there wasn't a huge battling scene here, but Ursula hadn't considered the litany of injuries that working Pokémon could suffer. Performing high difficulty, repeated tasks often put stress on the same parts of the body, and therefore a lot of attention needed to be paid to joints, tendons, muscles, and ligaments.

Eventually, Ursula arrived at the front of the line. Solaceon Town's Nurse Joy wasn't immune to the accent of this place. "Howdy! If yer precarious Pokémon aren't right as rain, then we'll fix 'em right up! How can we be of assistance today, honey?"

Ursula ignored the fact that everyone she had met, nice as they were, insisted on calling her some type of nickname like she was their child. "I do not have any injuries to my Pokémon that need to be healed. I am actually here to inquire if you or anyone else here had some expertise on dealing with disobedient Pokémon, because I would very much like to reverse the way one of my Pokémon is trending."

The Nurse Joy seemed utterly confused. "Yeeeaaah, I ain't got nobody here that's a psychologist or anything. All of our expertise here is strictly on the medical side, not the mental side."

"So, there is nobody here that can help me?" Ursula asked, slightly frustrated.

"Jeez, you really must be from the middle of nowhere," Nurse Joy said, which was ironic, because if Ursula had to pick one town that definitely struck her as being backwards, it was this one. "Solaceon Town is known for helping trainers with their Pokémon! We got people from all over the region who come here for that!"

When Ursula gave her a quizzical look, the nurse sighed. "The daycare? Don't tell me you've never heard of it. If there's anywhere in Sinnoh you can go because you need help raising your Pokémon, it's there."

Ursula still wasn't convinced. "Yes, well, I need this to be done before the contest. I do not have time to give my Pokémon over to them and let them raise it for an extended period of time."

Nurse Joy waved her concerns off with a gloved hand. "Set up a consultation meeting, then. They've always been doin' that, for as long as I can remember. The trainer tells the daycare people what they want they're Pokémon to be, once they return. Stronger, faster, or having learned a specific new move, for example. You just need to tell them you want your Pokémon to take some behavioral lessons, and you'll get some advice back."

She was quickly shooed away by the nurse so the person behind her could get attention for their Pokémon. After pondering the nurse's words, she decided to follow the advice and head out to the daycare. As the people of Solaceon Town might say, this wasn't her first rodeo with learning behavior…

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

What she had wanted to do was enter the very next contest as soon as the season started the following year, but she wouldn't have been of age, still only being eleven. The egg had hatched during that time though, and the following year, when Ursula turned twelve, she could finally make her contest debut.

There wouldn't be one in Sunyshore, but there were plenty of wealthy resort towns near Pastoria that held contests every so often, and they weren't that far away.

Gible and Ursula were among the youngest and inexperienced coordinators at the contest, but she was more anxious than nervous. She wanted to do well more than anything.

Ursula thought Gible and her performed a very good appeal, but when the time came to be judged, she got a very lukewarm response. Still, she held out hope that she would at least make it to the battle stage.

Of course, she didn't, and Ursula was forced to watch the eight coordinators who did make it through with her father in the audience. Instantly, Ursula thought she knew what the people who advanced had that she didn't.

Everyone who had made it through was of the high society. They were refined and elegant, in the way they spoke, walked and carried themselves. It was no wonder that translated perfectly to the world of contests.

Even though Ursula wasn't one of them, she could emulate them, at least. As soon as she was able to meet her father, as people were trailing out after the winner had been crowned, she let him know what she needed to be successful.

"Daddy, you saw how all those people were. Can you find someone to help me more like that?

Her father hesitated, with some words on the tip of his tongue. "Are you sure, pumpkin?

"Yes," she insisted. "I want to be a great coordinator more than anything. That means doing whatever it takes, and that means I need to be more like those people who advanced past the appeals."

"Well, okay," her father relented, swallowing whatever he was going to say. "I'll find somebody for you, Ursula, don't worry."

That somebody ended up being Madam Gertrude, at the Sinnoh Finishing School for Young Ladies. Ursula didn't like the matriarch, with her scowling, severe expression, but she stood still while the lady circled her as a hungry Sharpedo might do to a pod of Wailmer, hunting for the slightest of weakness.

A single drop of sweat dripped down from Ursula's brow, and then she winced in pain as Madam Gertrude's meterstick stung her calves. "Young ladies do not sweat."

Another strike at her calves, right as Ursula was about to respond. "They do not talk out of turn, either." She bit her tongue to try and stop herself from speaking, but even that wasn't enough for the matriarch not to strike her once more for good measure.

"And finally, they do not wear their emotions on their sleeves. You will never break that habit, I am afraid. I can already see that. Everything else about you, we can fix. If you are willing, that is. Are you?"

Ursula held her tongue, knowing Madam Gertrude still hadn't given her permission to speak. She nodded slowly.

The older woman smiled, though it wasn't a kind one. "Good. Your dormitory is on the second floor, but do not get comfortable. I expect you to be dressed in our uniform and fully prepared to start the day by sunrise."

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

Back in the present, Ursula clicked her tongue in irritation. Attending that school for almost a year certainly did have its benefits. Many of the places that were previously inaccessible for someone like her now had their doors unlocked, as people bent over backwards to try and please her. Constantly wearing this persona helped her maintain her focus, and not wallow in her despair over repeatedly coming up short.

In public, at least. It also didn't make up for her looking over her shoulder every once in a while, waiting for Madam Gertrude's meterstick to come whistling down because she had a hair out of line.

But it was only much later that she learned the truth, that most of those coordinators that day had rented or borrowed those Pokémon for the contest, because it was a game and a way to show off for them, and not what they lived and breathed. It was, however, an early indication of things to come.

There always had to be something preventing her from breaking through. Cheating coordinators, idiotic judges, and now, one of her Pokémon disobeying her at the most inopportune times.

Hopefully, a talk with the daycare people could fix that particular problem.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

It did seem that Nurse Joy was correct, that this place was renowned throughout Sinnoh. There were an abundance of people in green aprons and bandannas, the uniform for licensed Pokémon Breeders in Sinnoh, working with a multitude of Pokémon. It was mostly young, unevolved Pokémon around her, but Ursula's ears could hear the sounds of more powerful Pokémon training and battling.

No doubt they were somewhere in this vast expanse of flat land behind the large house that was the headquarters for the Pokémon Daycare. People were constantly going in and out, but that didn't stop Ursula from seeing one person that she had absolutely no intention of talking to.

Ursula quickly looked left and right, but this was Solaceon Town, and trees were in scarcity. She surprised herself with her own agility, hopping a nearby fence and putting her back to it, praying that she hadn't been spotted in the crowd of people.

Footsteps could be heard behind her, and someone cleared their throat. "Your hair would have given you away, even if this had been a better hiding place," came Lucas's familiar voice.

The coordinator stood and turned. "What are you doing here?" she asked shortly.

Lucas raised an eyebrow. "I could ask the same of you. I'm here working with an injured wild Pokémon that will eventually be part of my team."

"Is Luna here?" Ursula questioned again, avoiding answering Lucas's. Her friend jerked a thumb behind him, towards the building.

"Yeah."

"Why?" Ursula muttered. Luna didn't strike her as someone to leave a Pokémon behind to get stronger. And she wasn't having any issues with any of her Pokémon. Both Charmeleon and Vivillon could be difficult, in their own different ways, but they were growing admirably.

"Lucas laughed. "You know how she is," he said, with a touch of fondness and exasperation in his voice. "I don't know why she thought the daycare center would be willing to hold onto the egg for the time we'll be in Solaceon Town, but she did. Now the daycare is doing a full medical evaluation and everything before they actually start taking care of it."

"Ah," Ursula said, hoping that would be the end of the conversation. It wasn't.

"I understand why you were mad at Luna, even though I don't agree with it." Apparently, Lucas wanted to get straight to the point. "But why were you mad at me?"

"What do you mean?" Ursula hadn't wanted to have this conversation in the first place, but now her temper was rising, and her voice was getting louder. "You collaborated with my rival to embarrass me in that tournament!"

Lucas sighed. "Oh, come on. You don't actually believe that, do you? Dawn was my tag partner. Of course I collaborated with her! And there was no embarrassment! You made the top four, without even being a trainer by trade."

She deflated like a balloon. "Fine," she finally said. "I just wanted another reason to leave, that day. I was not and am not mad at you."

Ursula started to get heated again as Lucas continued to ask questions of her. "So, were you actually mad at Luna that day?"

"Of course I was mad at Luna that day," she shot back. "How dare she enter a contest and then tell me at the last second, then pretend that she isn't in competition with me?"

Lucas stood this ground even though she was getting angry. "In her mind, she still isn't in competition with you. I don't think Luna has any designs on winning the contest at all."

"Then why enter at all, let alone at this particular moment," Ursula asked bitterly, to which Lucas looked behind him.

"That's probably something she should tell you rather than me. But from what I understand, it has absolutely nothing to do with putting you down or sabotaging you, to put it in your words." He said sabotaging in such a distasteful tone that Ursula couldn't help but shrink and look away again.

"She had to be sabotaging me," Ursula mumbled in a small voice. If Luna hadn't, that would mean…

Ursula couldn't even bring herself to think that thought. Lucas hesitantly clapped her on the shoulder as she was struggling with her thoughts. "Well, we're glad you're okay. It's clear that you need some time alone to figure out some things, but I'll tell Luna you didn't mean a lot of what you said, and I'm pretty sure she'll agree that our door will be open to you coming back."

When Ursula didn't respond, Lucas stepped back and waved her goodbye. "See you around. Good luck with the contest, as well."

"One second!" she finally blurted around, right as Lucas was about to hit the main road which stopped Lucas in his tracks. "Can you take a look at one of my Pokémon?"

Lucas jogged back, and when Ursula hesitated when bringing out her Pokéball, spoke up. "All this area behind the fence is training grounds, don't worry about messing it up. Besides, there's a hundred people ready to jump in if anything goes wrong."

Ursula nodded. "Right. Gible, come out and show Lucas what we have been working on." Her Pokémon was more than a little excited to see Lucas, which wrenched Ursula's heartstrings. She knew that her Pokémon had been missing the friends they had made, but only now was she seeing how apparent that was.

Still, Gible understood that he needed to get to business, and literally fired up the combination attack they had been trying in futility. Lucas's eyebrows flew into his hairline and his eyes widened as Gible consumed the Dragon Rage once again while trying to ignite it with Fire Fang.

More than a couple people glanced their way when Gible burped out the massive blue flame. "Well," Ursula prompted Lucas. "What do you think?"

"That was the move you used at the end of your contest appeal in Hearthome," Lucas said in a hushed tone. "What was it?"

"I'm trying to combine Dragon Rage and Fire Fang into one move," Ursula explained to him. "Everything works up until the final product, which comes out like that. I know you have a great mind, even though you are not exactly familiar with this, so…"

Lucas contemplated for a full minute before opening his mouth. "I don't think Gible is strong enough to pull off that move right now."

"Excuse me?" Ursula said immediately, offended. Gible though, did not refute the point, and she turned her gaze onto her Pokémon. "Is that true?"

"Maybe not strength, but stamina instead?" Lucas offered, as a concession. "Gible can't really hold that attack in his belly long enough to combine it and send it out. Right now he has to spit it up right away. You could ask the daycare people to improve on that, if that's what you're here for."

"That is not what I am here for," Ursula corrected. She didn't really want to leave Gible behind for an extended period of time, one because he was her first Pokémon, two because she was the one who wanted to perfect this, not someone else, and three because she didn't need a long term-improvement.

She needed that power immediately. But how were they supposed to get it?

Now she only had one more favor to ask of Lucas. "Can you not tell Luna I talked to you, or that I'm here?" She cut off Lucas before he could interrupt. "I will talk to her when I am ready. I just… need some time to think of what to say."

"Well, alright," Lucas says. "I'll distract her so you can get in there. Hopefully, the daycare people will be able to help you work with Helioptile."

Ursula thanked him, and went back to crouching behind the picket fence, as Lucas went back to the daycare building. In truth, she had always known that Luna had not been sabotaging her. It was just easier to think that way, because the truth was so much more bitter to swallow…

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

She had one ear pressed against the door of her parent's bedroom because they were arguing. About her.

"Declan, when is this going to end?" her mother was asking impatiently. "It was bad enough when Ursula returned from that finishing school and I could hardly recognize my own daughter. But this is too much!"

"I know you don't want to see her go, Margaret, but Ursula's plenty old enough now, and I think being on her own will do her some good!" her father replied back.

"That's not the issue. You know that, and I know that. After her first loss, it was the finishing school. After the second, you went out and helped Ursula catch a second Pokémon. After the third, you wrote that letter to the judges. You're teaching her the wrong lesson!"

Ursula pressed her ear harder to the door. What was she being taught wrong?

"It's going to be fine. Ursula's got so much heart and passion to be a great coordinator, that I can't imagine her not making it at some point. It's okay letting her land softly on her first few attempts."

"Declan," her mother said softly, so softly that Ursula's ear was throbbing as she tried to make out every word. "One of the things I love about you the most is that you love our daughter so much. But you're not teaching her it's okay to lose. Even the best coordinators and trainers lose. It's all part of the learning process. Right now, all you're doing is perpetuating the notion that when Ursula loses, it's never her fault."

"I'm not having this conversation," her father said, to a sigh from her mother. "It's going to work out fine. Let's get out of here before Ursula gets curious. You know she has that bad habit of eavesdropping when she's not supposed to."

Ursula scrambled away from the door as quickly and silently as she could. All she knew was that her father was right. She'd never be okay with losing, especially because she had never once lost fairly, in her eyes.

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

Until now, Ursula had always believed her father's words, that none of this was her fault. Every loss she suffered, she could hear her father's soothing voice, explaining it away. But the conversation with Lucas had doubt creeping into her mind.

She shook her head to clear it. Helioptile went rogue during the contest, and again during the tag battle. There was nothing she could have done. Now was the first time she had an opportunity to correct it.

Lucas was keeping his word, and letting her get inside without having to talk to Luna. He made sure he was in between Luna and where she was hiding, so the taller boy was blocking Luna's line of sight, and was talking up a storm to make sure Luna's eyes didn't wander. Ursula waited until they were far down the road, and made her way to the main house.

When she arrived at the front of yet another line, she was greeted by a kindly old couple. "Hello!" The man said cheerfully. "You can call us the daycare couple! We help trainers raise their precious Pokémon. Ma wife can give tell you more."

Unfortunately, they had the same thick, Solaceon Town accent as most everyone else in this town did. "We can raise up ta two of yer Pokémon at a time," the old lady informed her. "How would you like us to raise your Pokémon?"

Ursula lowered her voice so the people behind her couldn't hear her embarrassing story. "What I actually need help with is getting one of my Pokémon to listen to me. Do you have anyone capable of helping me with that?"

"We ain't got but one behavioral expert right now, and I hesitate to even call him that," the daycare lady grumbled. "It's my grandson, Jeremiah. Hopefully, he'll be able to help you out. Just make sure he stays on his best behavior. You'll find him in field four."

With that, Ursula handed over a small fee, which she was somewhat miffed about, seeing as nothing had even been done yet. She was handed a map and was ushered to the back door, so the next person in what was still a long line could meet with the daycare people.

She had to take a slight detour, to get past a Snorlax that had fallen asleep in the middle of the road, but other than that, Ursula made it to field four rather easily. There was no one there other than another young man in a blindingly white hat and equally white boots.

"Excuse me. Is there anyone by the name of Jeremiah around here?"

It was startling how quickly the man approached her, flashing her a white smile. "Well, if it ain't my lucky day, being approached by a purdy little thing. Name's Jeremiah, but everyone 'round here calls me Jeremy. What's your name, sweetheart?"

The man punctuated his statement by taking her hand and kissing the top of it. He was certainly handsome, but Ursula wasn't the sort of floozy to fall all over herself over some flattery. She yanked her hand from his grip, and ignored Jeremy's pouting face.

"I was told that you could help with a Pokémon that refuses to listen to me," Ursula said, determined to keep this on track. "Is that true?"

"Man, all work and no play, huh?" Jeremy sighed, backing up a step when Ursula scowled at him. "Aight, I'll take this seriously. Can't have your pretty face getting a bunch of wrinkles. What kind of Pokémon is it?"

"Currently, I am having issues with my Helioptile,'' Ursula began, but trailed off at Jeremy's extremely confused look.

"I musta got something stuck in my ear," the man said. "Did I hear you right? A Helioptile?"

"Yes," Ursula said slowly. "He's an Electric-type that's native to Kalos, reptilian in nature, and enjoys the sun."

Jeremy waved her explanation off. "I know the Pokémon. It shouldn't be giving you any trouble, is what I'm sayin'."

Well, that didn't make any sense to Ursula. "But he is," she insisted.

"I can explain it more, but you're gonna have to take a seat with me." Jeremy gestured to two folding chairs. Ursula rolled her eyes, and moved to get one, but the man was faster, opening one up and offering it to her, oozing his country charm. "Ladies first."

Ursula crossed her legs as Jeremy sat down heavily. "The main reason a Pokémon won't obey is cus' they think they've outgrown their trainer. You see that a ton in Pokémon that start off shrimpy, and then get a bunch of strength after evolvin'."

"Magikarp into Gyarados is the most obvious example," Jeremy continued, ticking them off on his fingers. "But this can happen to a bunch of other Dragon-type or Dragon-like Pokémon. I've also seen it in Metagross, and Mamoswine, and even in Dodrio!"

She wasn't sure about that last one. "Why Dodrio?"

Jeremy gave her a cocky grin, reached into his pocket and flung a Pokéball backwards. Out popped the three headed, flightless bird itself, and Ursula found herself having to look away from its six-eyed stare.

One head leaned down for some pats from its trainer. "I'm sure you've heard about getting a big head, but imagine getting an extra head! Made ya think you knew everything, huh?" Jeremy swatted his Pokémon none too gently on the bum, and the bird began racing away with an excited squawk.

"So, the way I usually deal with those Pokémon is by having them battle and lose to a powerful opponent, and then to come back with their trainer and beat that opponent. It teaches them that they still need that partnership in order to be their best."

He certainly sounded like an expert, despite what his grandmother had said. "The second main one I see is if a Pokémon feels betrayed by its trainer."

That statement sent a pang of fear straight to Ursula's heart. "What does that mean?"

"Sometimes it happens when ya make a promise to a Pokémon, and then don't fulfill it. Or, the Pokémon might think you've stopped caring about them. Whatever the case, they retreat behind the shell like a Clamperl, and stop listening to what their trainer has to say."

Some of the tension that was building inside Ursula melted away. "I only want the best for my Pokémon," she said firmly. "I try to treat my Pokémon as well as I possibly can. Having trust is extremely important for a coordinator and their Pokémon, even more so than other professions."

"Oh, you're a coordinator? I'll make sure I'm in attendance the day of the contest, then."

Ursula fixed Jeremy with a very unimpressed look. "Fine. So you telling me that you ain't had any major events that have changed your relationship with your Pokémon? No evolution, no major battle loss that caused Helioptile to lose trust with you?"

The coordinator shook her head. "Nothing like that happened. Helioptile was listening to me when I first caught him, but one day he started to refuse to listen to me out of nowhere, and it has been like that ever since."

"I believe what you're saying," Jeremy said, putting a hand to his forehead. "It just don't make any sense. Pokémon are too smart for that. And if he had your respect before, and there wasn't any major event, he should still be obeying you."

"So where does that leave us?" Ursula asked quietly.

"Well, I'd be remiss if I didn't try everything to put a smile on your face. I ain't super practiced in this, but we can try it out. First though…" Jeremy whistled sharply and loudly, and a cloud of dust in the distance told Ursula that Dodrio was coming back.

The three-headed Pokémon was by their side in an instant, standing at attention. "Sorry," Jeremy apologized. "Insurance, in case something goes horribly wrong." He withdrew another Pokéball from his pocket. "Send your Pokémon out."

Right as Ursula flicked her wrist to summon Helioptile, Jeremy did the same with his second Pokémon. She couldn't see it right away, but Ursula eventually spotted a small white Pokémon with green hair in the shape of a bowl and a red horn splitting the hair.

"Come on, Ralts," Jeremy urged his shy Pokémon. "I know she's got a lot going round her head right now, but try to block it out and focus on Helioptile, okay?"

Her curious Pokémon was trying to get a better look at Ralts, and while Ursula couldn't stop him, one of Dodrio's clawed feet was planted in front of him, and Helioptile decided better than to mess with any thing that had six eyes, three heads, and three very sharp-looking beaks.

"Can your Pokémon actually talk to you?" Ursula asked, intrigued. That was usually a power reserved for powerful Psychic-type Pokémon, and even specific ones at that. Gardevoir and Gallade, perhaps would be able to, but a Ralts?

"Naw," Jeremy said, as sheepish as she had ever heard him. "He can read emotions, and sort of sends me a jumbled picture of what's going on inside someone's head. I may have exaggerated to Meemaw a bit about our skills, which is why she doesn't have the highest opinion of me when I do this, but..." He trailed off, concentrating as Ralts was relaying whatever was inside Helioptile's head about her to Jeremy.

Finally, he looked at her confusedly. "Did you trade for this Pokémon?"

"No?" Ursula answered slowly. "Helioptile was brought to Sinnoh because the owner loved exotic Electric-types, but he was allowed to run around as a wild Pokémon in the man's garden." Her Pokémon wasn't listening at all to his backstory, instead having the two frills on either side of his head extended all the way out, soaking up all the sun that would not be impeded by trees on this flat land.

Jeremy considered, tossing his head back and forth, before he gave her his verdict. "I don't really know how to say this, but Helioptile doesn't consider you his trainer. He doesn't know who you are, so he's doing whatever he feels like until his real trainer comes back."

That statement brought a scowl to Ursula's face. "That makes no sense," she said, which gets a shrug out of Jeremy. "I have been Helioptile's first and only trainer. I caught him when I was…"

When she was playing maid for a day. And she had been speaking and acting normally, not as she had been taught.

It wasn't possible that Helioptile had been waiting all this time for her to revert. When had this even begun? The first time her Electric-type had shown that he wasn't interested in listening to her was when…

When the lady had given her a demonstration with her Typhlosion. And she had gone back to acting as soon as she had seen the woman. Her Pokémon was looking up at her with intelligent eyes.

"Is that true, Helioptile?" Ursula asked, voice trembling even though she was speaking normally. "You've been waiting on this the whole time?"

Her Pokémon's wide smile made Ursula feel like she wanted to sink beneath the ground and never come back up.

That feeling was only compounded when Jeremy opened his mouth. "Well, would ya look at that! You never know whose fault it is when this sort of thing happens, but apparently it was all yours! Sure was an easy fix, though."

"Apparently, it was all your fault!"

"You need to teach her how to lose!"

"Stop hiding and let people see the real you!"

"Have you ever considered that the reason you fail is that you're not good enough?"

Ursula's head was spinning with voices, to the point that she couldn't remember who said what. But there was one theme to all of them.

For once in her life, Ursula had no one to blame other than herself. The entire fiasco that was the Hearthome Contest was all down to her, not understanding her Pokémon. And where anyone else might have left, Helioptile had stayed by her side.

She had been running and running and running from the truth, but with it staring her dead in the face, Ursula had to admit it. And not only for this time. Every time she had failed, it was because she hadn't deserved to win.

The last time she had wanted to cry was after her failure in Hearthome City. That time, with everyone looking at her, Ursula had managed to hold back her tears. Now, though, they flowed freely.

"Whoa!" said Jeremy. "Come on, sweetheart, this is no time to be down! You're going to ruin my perfect record. The tale of Jeremy and the pretty girl always is supposed to end with her smiling!"

Ursula did laugh at the country boy's attempted humor, but that only caused the tears to fall down harder.

Jeremy glanced at his two Pokémon. "Let's go y'all," he murmured softly. "We've done all we can. The rest they need to figure out on their own." Ursula hardly noticed Jeremy climbing onto Dodrio's back with his Ralts, or the flightless bird trotting away.

The coordinator didn't know at what point she had stood up, but she crumpled to the ground, missing the chair entirely, sobbing until her face burned and her body ached, until her eyes had nothing more to give.

Or so she thought, because when Helioptile squirmed his way into her lap, a fresh wave of tears came forth. "I'm so, so sorry," she apologized between hiccups. "All this time, I've been frustrated with you, and you've been so patient with me!"

She couldn't even bear to look at her Pokémon, but the slightest static shock got her attention. When she glanced at her Pokémon, the message was written clear on his face.

I forgive you.

Ursula doubted she'd forgive herself until she'd heard from all of her Pokémon. Once they were out of their Pokéballs, Gible and Masquerain looked at her in concern, while Meowth seemed confused by the whole thing.

"I haven't done right by any of you," she admitted to her Pokémon. "I've blamed you, and circumstances, and my friends, and bad luck, but I've never once taken responsibility. But I will do, from now on. Win or lose, I'm not going back to the way I was. That's a promise."

Not even a second after she was finished speaking did her two oldest friends rush to her side, loudly voicing their happiness. "I don't deserve Pokémon as good as you," Ursula mumbled to herself before seeking out the last member of her team. "Meowth, I know you've never known me like this, but…"

She didn't need to worry. Meowth approached her carefully, but as soon as she offered the fickle Pokémon a treat from her pocket, Ursula knew that Meowth couldn't care less about the way she acted. As long as she continued to show him love, he'd follow her.

Still, Ursula's job wasn't finished. She had one more person to issue an apology to, as soon as she managed to find the words to say.

And she knew where to find her.