Clemont was never quite like any other kid his age.

When the other boys and girls were just learning to talk, he was already starting to build up his first, simple devices. It was nothing remarkable at first: little toys for him and his friends to play with. A sign of intelligence, but hardly noteworthy. When he started to solve the house's power issues on his own, however, he and his father really understood what a brilliant mind he had.

It was then that he started to really capitalize on it. He spent almost all his day locked into his room, creating increasingly complex 'Clemontic Gear', as he called them, reading books on mechanics and general science.

Any parent would've loved to see their child becoming a willing and thorough student. Meyer, however, wasn't an ordinary parent. And not just because he spent every night dressed up as a superhero.

By studying and working so hard, Clemont barely ever came out of his room. What little friendships he had were mostly kept via internet and various social media, but for the most part, Clemont was alone. And Meyer knew that this needed to be rectified.

And that's why, for Clemont's eleventh birthday, Meyer gave his son a Poké Ball.

Clemont inspected the sphere, tapping his finger through its surface. It was smooth and undented, slightly warm to the touch. He turned to his father, head titled. "Is this an empty Poké Ball?"

"Why don't you throw it and find out?" A grin lit up Meyer's face.

Clemont raised an eyebrow, before to turn his attention back to the device. He then took a deep breath, readying his arm for a throw he had seen done countless time on television; when the Poké Ball hit the ground a blue and black small lynx appeared in front of Clemont, looking at him in confusion.

Clemont adjusted his glasses as he stared at the Pokémon in just as much confusion. He had never seen anything quite like it around Lumiose City.

"Do you like it? I got it from a friend who just returned from a business trip in Sinnoh," Meyer said, rubbing the lynx's fur. It purred softly. "It's called a Shinx, and it's an Electric-type. You like them, right?"

Clemont nodded. He had studied the various applications of Pokémon in everyday life, and he was impressed by the many usages one could have out of Electric-type Pokémon, from emergency generators to testing out breaking points of insulators.

He faced the Shinx again, filled with curiosity as the Shinx looked at him with its big eyes. He slowly rose his arm, and after a few seconds of hesitation started petting it, a big smile on his face. On the sidelines, Meyer was smiling as well.

Clemont and Shinx became fast friends, spending almost all their time together: if Clemont weren't too young to actually own Pokémon, one would never think that Meyer was the official owner of the Sinnoh Pokémon.

The pair worked on many ingenious devices, even managing to win the Lumiose City Science Fair for two years straight. His brilliancy was now pretty well-known around the city, enough to have received requests to install some of his creations around the city (even helping with a new energy plan for the Prism Tower), and serious talk of granting him a Gym Leader position once he became old enough.

Meyer had only to be happy of the current state of things. Clemont was happy and had a bright future ahead of him, his daughter Bonnie was growing into an energetic little girl, and the police had finally understood that he wasn't just a random lunatic in a gaudy costume and formally accepted his help in containing crime in Lumiose City. Aside from the occasional explosion from Clemont's room-slash-laboratory, things couldn't have gone better.

And of course, it wasn't meant to last.

Meyer had just put Bonnie to bed one evening when he heard several violent knocks at the door. Confused, he went and opened the door, finding outside a man with shoulder-length black hair, a pretty aged face, and wearing a white lab coat.

"Hello. I assume you are Clemont's father, right?" the man asked.

Meyer's glance sharpened. "Yes, I am. Did my son do something wrong?"

"Oh, not at all. Quite the contrary, actually." The man smiled. "I'm Professor Belmondo, of Lumiose University. I have an interesting offer for you."

Meyer clenched his fist. It wasn't the first time someone came to 'offer' something to Clemont, be it an exclusive contract, a scholarship, and everything in between. Most of them being all about ripping him off as much as possible while reaping all benefits from his mind.

That said, Lumiose University had a very good reputation. Maybe this one was worth listening to. And in case it wasn't, he had Ampharos ready in the other room to deal with him.

"Come inside," Meyer said, sitting alongside Belmondo at the kitchen table. Meyer stared straight at his guest. "So, what was your offer?"

Belmondo leaned onward, forming a triangle with his hands. "I'm sure you understand what a young prodigy your son is, correct?"

"I've just been told that about a million times."

"Of course, of course." Belmondo chuckled, only to grin few seconds later. "Well, you should know that his brilliancy has reached far beyond the confines of Lumiose City."

He paused, gesturing as he went on. "See, Lumiose University hosts a think tank of the best minds of the country, a project funded by the government itself to ensure the prosperity of Kalos and other T.A.T.O. Nations: we can't just wait for Professor Boxer in Kanto to cough up a useful invention all the time, after all. We'd be overjoyed if you'd allow your son to join us."

"Hold on." Meyer's glare sharpened. "You want to use him to build anti-Ranger weaponry, do you?"

Belmondo clasped his hands. "It might be a possible usage of his talent, yes. I am sure you don't have any objections, right?"

Meyer balled his hands, placing them on the table. "That war ended forty years ago. My son is not going to help you restart it."

"Oh, of course you are one of those anti-war fellows. If only you knew how much the Ranger Union threatens our way of life..." Belmondo started rummaging through his lab coat's pocket. "You are lucky that my superiors predicted this eventuality. Here, have this."

He placed a blank check on the table, folding his arms with a grin afterwards. "Write your own sum. We're ready for anything."

Meyer had no words as he grabbed the check, eyes on the space he had to fill in. Living in Lumiose City was terribly expensive, especially for a family with kids, and paying the bills was becoming increasingly harder. He wouldn't have to worry for a long time this way.

He frowned and grabbed the check, ripping it off and throwing it behind him. Belmondo looked at him in shock.

Meyer shook his head. "You are not going to buy me like this. I won't allow you to use Clemont this way."

"You are kidding, right?" Belmondo bared his teeth, standing up and slamming his hands on the table. "You have such a talent in your hands and you want to just- just waste it? Clemont could change the world if he wanted!"

"And if he wants, he will do it." Meyer crossed his arms, staring through Belmondo. "But it won't be with you. I'm sure your think tank will be able to win your war anyway."

Belmondo matched his stare, until he turned around and rushed for the door, turning to Meyer one last time. "You will regret this."

He slammed the door shut behind him, leaving Meyer alone. Meyer observed the door for a few seconds, before rubbing his temple and sighing.

Meyer felt someone patting on his back, turning to meet Ampharos' worried stare.

Meyer smiled. "Don't worry Ampharos, I'm okay."

A scowl from Ampharos forced Meyer into an uneasy chuckle, looking away.

"Can't hide anything from you, right?" He sighed and turned back to his Pokémon. "Do you think I did the right thing? Maybe Clemont would've liked this."

Ampharos tilted his head, not sure of what to say.

Then, an explosion was heard from the first floor: Meyer and Ampharos flinched and ran up, seeing smoke coming from Clemont's room.

"Clemont!" Meyer yelled, opening the door and covering his mouth alongside Ampharos.

"I'm okay, dad!"

As the smoke cleared, Meyer could see Shinx and Clemont covered in soot, with Clemont cleaning his glasses and sighing, approaching his desk and a now useless mechanism on it.

"We were this close to finishing... Now we will have to rework everything," Clemont said, removing the faulty piece and putting it aside.

He then smiled, facing Shinx and putting an arm upward. "But we're not letting this stop us, right?"

Shinx grunted in approval with a determined grin, turning alongside Clemont to what was left of their invention.

He grabbed the broken piece, rubbing his chin. "Hm, looks like it just wasn't able to process the voltage we need." He then glanced at Shinx. "Get ready for another Spark, we are gonna try the next component now!"

Shinx's fur immediately lit up with electricity as Clemont prepared the new piece for the test. As the two kept working, Meyer smiled and closed the door behind him, far less worried.

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Clemont and Shinx both had a huge grin on their faces as the mechanical hand was finally complete before their eyes. Without further ado, Clemont grabbed his backpack and connected the needed wiring, and after a few seconds, the hand started to move up and down as Clemont moved it.

"We did it! The Aipom Arm is complete!" He raised his arms in cheer as Shinx jumped of joy.

He turned at his 'assistant', giving him another big smile. "It's all thanks to you, Shinx. I wouldn't have found the right voltage without you."

Shinx grinned back at him, puffing his chest proudly. Then, he closed his eyes and yawned, with Clemont doing the same. They looked at each other, chuckling at once.

"Guess we're both tired, eh?" Clemont rubbed the back of his head, putting his backpack on the ground. "We will test the Aipom Arm functionality tomorrow. Let's sleep for now."

Shinx nodded. Clemont searched throughout his desk, until he found Shinx's Pokémon and pointed it in his direction.

"Good night, Shinx," he said as he recalled him, smiling at the Poké Ball before putting it in his pocket.

He then glanced back at the now completed invention, before moving his eyes to the wall behind it. Clemont had attached every ongoing design he was working on there, and each and every project was filled with notes and corrections. He then noticed something, and approached one of the projects with a marker in his hand.

"No, no, the cabling won't be able to bring energy to that half of the Prism Tower efficiently... plus, that material can be munched by wild Dedenne far too easily..." He crossed away various notes, writing some as he went through every alternative. He grinned as an idea popped out, writing it out. "Sure! Reinforcing the cables with steel junctions would be fine! A little expensive, but it should maximize the output of energy this way!"

He crossed his arms as he saw the now corrected project. The next day, he would have to make sure the Gym Leader heard of the latest update.

Thinking back to him, Clemont turned to a picture they took, both grinning and with Shinx standing in his arms. They had known each other for years, since Clemont started helping in the construction of the Prism Tower. He was impressed by Clemont's almost encyclopedic knowledge of Electric-types, from the hazards they could cause and the benefits they could provide. He had repeatedly stated that if he ever were to step down, Clemont would be his first pick as the next Lumiose City Gym Leader.

Clemont just laughed it off every time. He was an inventor by trade, and he had never even entertained the idea of becoming a trainer, much less a Gym Leader. Such a position would give him a great amount of funds for his creations, sure, but it would probably also take him too much time between testing trainers, preparing various teams of Pokémon for every possible challenger, and probably getting involved in various League-sanctioned meetings. And, most importantly, it would take him too much time away from his father and Bonnie, and he didn't want to leave them.

It saddened him to constantly say no, but yeah, being a Gym Leader didn't seem to be his call.

Clemont shook off those thoughts and turned away, only to bump into something and fall on the ground.

"Ouch!" He rubbed his back and adjusted his glasses, looking at what he just hit.

Only to see it wasn't something, but someone. Someone clad in black, and staring right at him.

He tried to scream, and move away, only for the man to muffle his screams with his arm; Clemont trashed around, trying to grab something and call for help without avail.

As this happened, Meyer just passed in front of the door. He frowned, rushing to the door and opening it.

"Clemont?" he asked, only to widen his eyes.

The room was in shambles, the window was open, and there was no trace of his son anywhere.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

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Clemont was tied up as soon as he and the man put enough distance from his house, getting thrown in the back of a van almost immediately, right next to a series of boxes and something covered by a white sheet.

He barely managed to see or process what was going on, and the back pain wasn't helping. He tried to stand up, only to hear a sound of steps; he turned to the still open doors of the van, seeing a man dressed in a lab coat walk towards him.

"We're extremely sorry for these methods, but we needed to ensure you would come with us," he said, in a calm and business-like tone.

Clemont's eyes reduced to slits. "Who are you?"

"You can call me Professor Belmondo." He smiled. "A fellow scientist, working for Lumiose University."

Clemont raised an eyebrow, trying unsuccessfully to break free. "What's going on here? If you wanted to talk, you could've just sent an e-mail."

"Then you should understand that I don't want to talk." Belmondo folded his arms. "I will cut this short: your mind is truly brilliant, and the Kalos government is interested in it for the betterment of the T.A.T.O. and fight off the Ranger Union. Of course, most of them just wanted to ask you nicely to cooperate... but another part of the government thought your choice should be irrelevant. I belong to said part."

"Wait, you want me to help you against the Rangers?" Clemont frowned.

Belmondo muttered something under his breath, sighing and glaring at him. "Your choice on the matter is irrelevant. You are going to help, and we have the methods to do so."

Clemont sweated as Belmondo's stare pierced him. He collected himself easily, and matched Belmondo's expression.

"You said you're a 'fellow scientist'. Then you should know that nothing good ever comes from forcing a genius. Inspiration is where everything starts."

Belmondo shook his head. "Inspiration is a minor issue. I saw your projects, they are incredibly creative and you have a flexible mind. And you are wasting it on stupid things like that silly Prism Tower, when you could save people's lives."

Clemont kept staring him down. Belmondo broke off the stare, hand on his face as he sighed again.

"Don't think that I don't understand how you are feeling. When I was your age, I wanted to work on the field of robotics, for peaceful purposes." He glanced at the side. "But there's simply nothing productive to be done in that area. Who would care for an easy to produce artificial intelligence when you can find ways to disrupt Capture Stylers instead? Which one do you think the government and the general populace would care more for?"

Clemont looked down, unsure of what to say. He never cared much for politics, and he couldn't understand how all of this factored in what one could create. He always invented stuff because he wanted to and it could've helped people, and that was all that mattered for him. Belmondo's idea was so far from his own mindset that he just couldn't understand it.

"Mister Belmondo, are you finished?" One of the men in black popped out form outside the van.

"Yes, just a moment."

He gestured at him, and the man left. Belmondo turned back to Clemont. "Seems like we will have to continue our talk later. I doubt you will get to do much tied up like that, but just to make sure..."

He took a remote from his lab coat's pocket, pressing a button on it. The white sheet on the side started moving and Clemont turned towards it, flinching as it fell to the ground to reveal a huge, seven feet tall grey robot, scanning the surrounding area with its red eye. It then locked on Clemont and stopped, raising its arms.

"Do you like it? It's one of my finest creations. A robot programmed to keep people away from certain area, currently on non-lethal setting." He patted the 'head' of the robot, smiling at it.

He then faced Clemont once more, grinning. "If you try anything funny, it will make sure you will be incapacitated until arrival. We want you alive, but it doesn't mean we can't rough you up if you don't cooperate with us."

Clemont's eyes were glued on the robot as he heard the explanation. He was unsure if to be extremely fascinated or terribly worried by what he was looking at.

"Have a nice trip, kid," Belmondo said as he turned around, closing the door behind him and leaving Clemont and the guard robot alone, as the van started moving.

Clemont gritted his teeth as he tried to break free from the binds, keeping his eyes on the robot. He had to do something to break free, but what?

He tried looking all around himself to no avail, eventually returning back to the robot that would block his way. After staring at the machine intensely, his glasses shimmered for a second as he grinned. He knew exactly what to do now.

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For Meyer, or rather Blaziken Mask, jumping from roof to roof was second nature. And that was good, since he had neither time nor patience to look where he was going; his eyes were on the van, looking for every road it took.

His Blaziken was following the same path on the opposite end of the road. They didn't need to communicate: while they could seldom spend time together, Meyer knew he could trust him, and that the opposite was true as well.

Meyer felt bad at not bringing Ampharos with him: he was worried for Clemont as well, but he couldn't risk someone putting clues together and figuring out his secret identity. Besides, someone needed to make sure Bonnie was fine and no one tried breaking into the house again.

He shook his head, turning back to the road. That wasn't the time to get lost in thought.

He counted about five smaller vehicles around the van, with some other following from a few miles away. Each one looked different enough that you could pass off the fact that they were travelling together as coincidence. If he hadn't seen them dragging Clemont inside, he would've probably fallen for the ruse as well.

That level of preparation could only mean one thing. This was all planned ahead. And it didn't take a genius to understand who was behind this.

Meyer clenched his fists, only to relax them right after. He had been through this several times, and knew that one wrong move would've ruined everything. And he couldn't afford to make mistakes when Clemont's safety was on the line.

He looked on, seeing the route the vehicles were more likely to take. Some calculations later, he traded a glance with Blaziken, and gestured at him to attack at his sign. Blaziken nodded.

Meyer gave one look at the vehicles, and then jumped on the road alongside his Pokémon, ready to strike.

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Belmondo's plan was really well-thought out. He had Clemont with him, his father couldn't do anything about it, and made sure Clemont had nothing to help him escape the van. However, he had committed a fatal mistake. He had left Clemont alone with a robot.

Sure, he was still tied up and unable to move... But he was literally moments from starting his plan. He just had to stop splashing like a Magikarp first.

As Clemont kept thrusting his body upward, he could see what he needed slowly edging outside his pocket. A few splashes later, he grinned as a Poké Ball hit the ground.

The van's movements brought it closer to his head, and Clemont head-butted it on the central button. Clemont's headache would probably last until morning, but seeing his furry assistant popping out of the Ball made it worth it.

Shinx stared at the unfamiliar surroundings before shifting to Clemont, only then noticing the binds and rushing at him, worried.

"Don't worry, I'm fine." Clemont moved slightly so to put the binds in front of Shinx. "Please, use Bite on these."

Shinx's teeth glowed as he shredded the cord, letting it fall to pieces at Clemont's feet. He stood right away, stretching legs and arms.

"Whew, finally." Clemont sighed, turning serious and facing Shinx. "I don't have time to explain, but we're in big trouble and I need your help. Can you do as I say?"

Shinx nodded, getting ready to move.

"Alright. See that robot there? Tackle it with all your strength."

Shinx sent a puzzled look at Clemont. He sighed. "Just trust me on this."

Shinx didn't seem at ease with the plan yet, but still turned around and rammed straight towards the robot. The robot saw him and tried to catch it, only for Shinx to jump over its hand and pounce its eye, strong enough to take down the robot.

All the electricity gathered in Shinx's body went through the robot at once, shutting it down completely. Clemont grinned; good thing he had studied Shinx's biology extensively.

He rushed to the robot and looked around its body, until he found a small compartment. A ramming from Shinx later, Clemont gained access to various cables and panels, starting to work on them.

"Uhm, quite a fine handiwork here. Let's see, how do I reprogram it...?" he asked, moving various wires and adjusting his glasses.

As he worked, Shinx noticed one of the robot's arms twitching. He jumped and rushed at Clemont, bringing his attention to it. Clemont tilted his head, only to hear various activation sounds and seeing the panels and electronics he exposed lighting up.

Clemont sweated cold and widened his eyes. He hadn't thought the robot might've had an emergency power supply.

"Oh, damn-"

The robot grabbed Clemont and threw him to the other side of the van. Clemont yelled and held his left shoulder in pain, while Shinx rushed at his side.

"Get away!" Clemont did, with Shinx stopping just in time to avoid a punch by the robot, strong enough to leave a mark on the floor. Clemont gulped; the shock Shinx gave it likely took out the non-lethal protocols as well. As he barely avoided another hit, he understood how screwed he was.

The robot kept attacking, bringing Clemont with his back at the wall. The robot was approaching him again, ready to strike, when the van suddenly stopped. Clemont and Shinx barely hung to the ground, only for the robot to crash on the opposite wall. The arm was ripped off by the impact, only for it to start falling towards Clemont. He widened his eyes and put his arms in defense, expecting to be hit.

However, the hit never came, as something crashed on the arm and made it fall the other way. Clemont lowered his arms, seeing Shinx land in front of him.

"Shinx?"

Shinx gave a smile before to turn around, taking a battle stance. Clemont was confused, only to show a determined grin and look on. They never tried battling before, but there was not much choice now.

He observed the robot carefully, until he noticed that its back was still open. He pointed there. "Alright, use Bite behind it!"

Shinx jumped and tried to hit it, only for a close brush with a punch to derail that plan. Clemont bit his lip and thought of an alternative. He then saw the uncovered cables of the fallen arm.

He grinned again and indicated them. "Use Spark on those cables!"

Shinx sent out the electric move as requested, hitting the cables. The discharge wasn't as strong as Shinx's previous tackle, but it was more than enough to fry the remaining circuitry, and causing the robot to adopt jerkish and erratic motions.

Clemont's grin only widened. "Now, just move around the robot! Let it try to hit you!"

Shinx started jumping on and off the robot's surface; the robot obeyed what it could of its programming, constantly trying to hit itself as hard as it could while Shinx kept jumping away. The damage piled up as this went on until the other arm was broken down, forcing the robot to try charging at Shinx, strong enough to deform the walls.

Clemont grinned, as his glasses shimmered. The future was now, thanks to malfunctioning science!

"Now, there!" Clemont pointed to the doors of the van, still mostly unscathed.

Shinx ran there and remained still, leading to the robot charging his way. Shinx jumped out of his spot, and the robot crashed and broke down on the asphalt, leaving a rather large hole on the doors.

Clemont observed to make sure it was done, then pumped his fists and turned to Shinx. "Great job!"

Boy and Pokémon shared a smile, then turned around to the destroyed doors and the road outside. There wasn't anything more to say as the two jumped out, ready to escape.

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Various men in black and Pokémon of all kinds were laying on the road, in pain and unable to fight. In front of the few remaining ones stood Meyer and Blaziken, back-to-back and ready to fight them. The van and the other vehicles had stopped, their wheels now reduced to black goo by carefully aimed Flamethrowers, and Belmondo and his partners in crime were now all focused on taking them out.

"What are you waiting for? Do something!" Belmondo yelled, glaring at the men.

Some of them nodded, and quickly released their Pokémon, mostly Golbat and Diggersby, before sending them against the superhero and his Pokémon.

Blaziken dashed at them, knocking out every single one with precisely timed Blaze Kicks. As their trainer looked on speechless Meyer rushed at them and threw them on the ground, with the same precision of his partner Pokémon.

In no time, the only man among the kidnappers left standing was Professor Belmondo, with Blaziken Mask and his Pokémon staring straight at him. He sweated hard, wondering how things could get any worse now.

His prized robot crashing out of the van and Clemont and Shinx coming out of it answered that to him.

Belmondo had no words, while Meyer turned to his son. Seeing him with no particularly bad injuries made him mentally sigh in relief.

"Huh?" Clemont flinched as he turned to Meyer.

He didn't know what to say, until Clemont continued. "Wait, you are Blaziken Mask!"

Meyer would've probably laughed if this happened at any other time. He smiled at his son, pointing onward.

"Get to safety boy, I will deal with this," Meyer said, in a gruff tone completely unlike his usual one.

Clemont and Shinx nodded and took off, as Belmondo could only watch, unable to comprehend. Then he saw that Blaziken Mask was still there, and turned around to escape. His plans were squashed as Meyer slammed him against the van's door, pressing him there and holding him by the arm.

"I will say this once," he whispered at Belmondo's ear. "That kid and his family are under my protection. If you- If anyone else tries pulling another move like this, you will regret it."

Belmondo glared at him. "As if you can do it! You are one of those hero of justice types, aren't you? I bet you don't have the guts to-"

Snapped bones were heard, with Belmondo screaming in pain. Meyer still held him by the broken arm, his expression unchanged.

"Don't try me." He held his face closer to Belmondo's. "If any of you try this again, I will know."

Belmondo sweated cold. Meyer threw him on the ground and folded his arms, towering over him. "Now go, and know I was merciful today."

Belmondo stared at him, mouth agape, then he turned and ran away in fear. Meyer stood still and observed him leave, sighing once he was out of his sight. He didn't want to become one of those dark and violent anti-heroes, but life doesn't always goes like one wants.

He glanced at his Blaziken, finding his partner giving him a stern look. Meyer rubbed his neck and sighed. His Pokémon really resembled each other.

"I don't like it either, but it had to be done," Meyer said, sadly looking at the ground. "I don't know what I'd do if they dragged Clemont away from me."

Blaziken kept staring, only to shake his head and turn in the direction Clemont went. Meyer did the same, nodding.

"You are right. Let's go."

The two jumped to the roofs again, taking the fastest road to come home before Clemont did.

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It was hard for Meyer to appear frightened and worried as he saw Clemont arriving at home. However, the smile he had at seeing him return with Shinx in tow was completely genuine.

"Clemont!" Meyer hugged his son tightly, then looked at his body. "Are you hurt? Did they do anything to you?"

"I'm fine, don't worry." Clemont turned and patted Shinx's head. "I had Shinx with me, thankfully."

Meyer stood, an arm across Clemont's shoulder as he faced the door. "You can tell me everything inside. Better be safe."

Clemont nodded, and father and son entered the house, with Shinx trotting in tow.

Meyer tried to do his best to appear concerned and interested as Clemont related his tale. He nodded and stroke his beard, appearing pensive, only growing genuinely interested as Clemont said stuff he couldn't have inferred.

"And that's what happened." Clemont crossed his arms and looked at the ceiling. "I knew my creations were getting popular, but I didn't expect it'd turn to this."

"This is a dangerous world, Clemont." Meyer looked at the table, saddened. "When some people want something, they will stop at nothing to have it."

"I can't understand Belmondo, though." Clemont adjusted his glasses. "He wanted to protect Kalos, but was ready to throw away his dreams for it. Why?"

"I assume he thought the country was more important than himself. That it was a higher call." Meyer frowned. "Honestly, I don't understand him either."

"Do you think he's going to try kidnapping me again?"

Meyer barely suppressed a grin. "I doubt so, and I'm sure the government will deny any involvement. They'd have to be crazy to try this again."

"But you said it yourself, some people would do anything to get what they want." Clemont's glare sharpened. "What if next time they will go after you or Bonnie to force me to comply?"

Meyer remained silent, clenching his fists. He glared at the table. "I won't let things come to that. I will make sure we're safe."

"I can't let you shoulder all the burden, though." Clemont rubbed his chin. "Maybe I can start installing a security system all around the house, maybe some cameras and-"

"No."

"Huh?" Clemont tilted his head.

Meyer grabbed his son's shoulders, giving him a stern and worried look. "You don't have any fault in this. I should've been more careful. Please, don't start thinking you have to make up for this or anything. Can you promise me that?"

Clemont stared back at his father, unsure of what to say. After some pondering, he nodded.

Meyer smiled, sighing in relief. "Thanks."

He then glanced at the clock. "I think now it's time to rest and to put this bad night behind us."

"I agree." Clemont rose up, walking up to his room. He stopped and smiled at Meyer before entering. "Good night, dad."

Meyer replied with a nod, and Clemont closed the door behind him. With his son away, Meyer sighed and rubbed his forehead, trying to calm himself down.

He thought he had a responsibility towards Lumiose City, but he never expected things to get so personal.

He punched the table. He needed to become a better protector, a better hero. Someone that people could count on.

Someone that could make sure their city, and their family, was safe.

He looked outside the window, glaring into the distance. The night was young, and he still had much work to do.

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Clemont had jumped on his bed, and was now staring at the ceiling, deep in thought. He would've probably kept doing that until he drifted asleep, if a black and blue furball didn't jump on his stomach.

"Ouch!" He winced, rubbing his abdomen and looking down, meeting a worried Shinx's glance.

He smiled, rubbing Shinx's fur. "Hey, don't worry, I'm fine. I was just thinking."

Shinx walked closer to Clemont's face, giving him a lick on the cheek. Clemont giggled, putting himself on a sitting position as he placed Shinx at his feet, looking at him.

His expression turned serious as he thought back to what happened and to his conversation with his father. Sure, he promised that he wouldn't think he needed to make up for what happened, but he still wanted to prevent anything like this from happening ever again.

Clemont thought back to the showdown between him, Shinx and Belmondo's robot. They were busy fighting to save their skin and escape, sure, but he felt something else too. He had fun, and knew Shinx did as well.

"Hey, Shinx." Clemont's 'assistant' perked his head at him. "Once I become fifteen, would you like to fight some more with me?"

A firm nod was Shinx's answer. Clemont smiled, turning to the Prism Tower.

He probably had something else to tell the Gym Leader now, aside from design changes...