Teddiursa: Male

Ability: Pickup

Moves: Baby-doll Eyes, Lick, Scratch, Fury Swipes, Payback, Seismic Toss

"Ursa," Teddiursa said quietly, offering me a Pokeball from who knows where.

Where did he get this from?

I took it out of his hand and ruffled the fur on his head.

"Thanks lil buddy," I said, rolling the pokeball in my palm as I inspected it.

Pickup was an ability that allowed a Pokemon to identify items of varying value.

Once a pokemon encountered something with said value, they were filled with an urge to take them. Wild pokemon even had the urge to steal those valuable items from people who already owned it.

The type of pokemon tended to affect what they stole as well. Meowth's were famous for stealing gems and coins of value, while Teddiursa used theirs for mostly food, especially honey.

Teddiursa weren't as bold as Meowth or Zigzagoons tended to be. They typically just used their ability to stock up on food. Pickup Teddiursa were typically foragers and had an easier time evolving into Ursaring, due to having the necessary nutrients needed to survive.

A Pokeball wasn't really something they'd see to much value in and I don't know where Teddiursa got this from but oh well.

Not like I had a problem with it. Pokemon with Pickup who were born around humans, typically tended to gain an interest in valuable things that were material in nature and not just food.

Green beamed, joining me in patting the shy Teddiursa. I watched in amusement as his face darkened slightly in embarrassment, blush adoring his face.

My companion squealed. "He's so cute!" she gushed happily.

He was. I would easily concede that point.

Teddiursa looked fairly standard. Nothing too impressive about it but it had a good starting point for me.

Seismic Toss implied that one of its parents was a fighting type. If I had to guess, it was a Primeape... which was a little strange considering Ursaring and Primeape tended to have disputes with each other but if Team Rocket were involved than yeah...

"Do you want a nickname?" I asked curiously, gazing at Teddiursa with a tilted head. "Something for you to differentiate yourself?"

Teddiursa had a pensive expression at that before gazing back at my team.

Gaia waved cheerfully with a vine, making him flinch shyly. He quickly turned back to me once he noticed how many eyes were on his person.

"All of them have nicknames except for Metang," I told him helpfully. "If you don't want one, you don't need one. I'm not putting any pressure on you," I shrugged.

No one said anything as Teddiursa mulled over the idea of getting a name.

He glanced back at my team, looking nervous and I almost assured him one more time but I refrained from doing so.

You couldn't coddle someone who wanted to change themselves. You needed to be a little forceful and let them take that step forward.

Teddiursa put a paw to his mouth as he continued to debate with himself if he should get a nickname. I wasn't expecting him to turn the situation into something like this but I was fine with it.

This was important to him so I'd treat it important.

Finally he glanced up at me and his features shifted into one of determination.

"Teddi!" he nodded eagerly.

I nodded with a smirk and tilted my head.

Well to be honest… Teddiursa had a few pretty good nicknames… His whole theme was moon bear after all.

But that perfect nickname was Artemis and Teddiursa was a dude. There was also Diana and Luna on the Roman side as her counterparts… but again, Goddesses.

I could just do the same thing I did with Ares, but those names sounded a bit more feminine in nature.

Maybe Luna was my best bet? I guess it sounded the least egregious.

Nah. This was important to him so I had to really try.

So I guess I should keep his name at least in relation to Artemis…

Apollo?

Nah, Apollo was practically her complete opposite…

I pursed my lips. Why did all the Romans and Greek gods of the moon have to be Goddesses? Give me at least one to work with! I didn't even know the name of the Norse one!

Well fuck them too. I'd just have to expand my sources of mythology.

"How about Oberon? You'll be a king of your species under the moon you all love so much," I informed him quietly, gauging his reaction.

A bit outta there, but Oberon was actually a pretty good name. He was most known for being the fairy king sure… but he was also heavily associated with the moon, there was a moon named after him back at my other world.

Not to mention his name origins included the word bear. I think it had something to do with nobility so it was perfectly suitable for a pokemon owned by me.

So all in all, perfect… and judging by the look in his eyes, Teddiursa quite liked that name too!

He nodded eagerly and I smiled down at him.

"Alright then. Everyone, this is Oberon. He's the newest member of the team," I introduced.

At seeing the eyes of everyone, including Green's team, there, Oberon immediately fled behind my legs, sticking one head out and gazing nervously at them as he clutched my long pants.

I refused to show even the slightest bit of emotion at how fucking adorable that was. Seriously, I had a reputation to upkeep here.

Green did not. She squealed at the cute sight and dearly looked like she wanted to kidnap and squeeze Oberon to death.

"On that note, everyone… this is Dree! We all met him but we may as well do it formally!" She beamed, officially introducing the Dreepy to us all.

Dree wasn't as nervous as Oberon but that probably fled as he laid eyes on both Loki and Ares, not to mention me. He was still a bit of a wreck around me but at least exposure therapy seemed to be going well.

Our older members all made various noises, greeting the two newest members of the team with general cheer.

Oberon stuck his head out a little further at that, looking stunned by the greetings. His black eyes were wide in nervous awe

"Bay," Gaia encouraged happily, ever the social butterfly.

"Don't be afraid of them," I reassured. "They're your new teammates after all. Most of them are nice."

He nodded slowly and hesitantly walked from behind me.

"Try waving," I offered.

Oberon nodded and raised one of his paws to wave at the crowd.

He immediately let out a panicked yelp as Gaia immediately wrapped him in her vine and dragged my newest member into the team.

I rolled my eyes and let it be.

Let them get acquainted. Better for it to be now than later

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"Hello!" Gaia beamed, bringing their new teammate close to them all. "I'm Gaia! I heard you managed to follow us all the way here from the Game Corner! That's really impressive."

"U-Um..." Oberon stammered, looking like a Deerling caught in headlights.

Loki rolled his eyes. "Gaia, did you miss the part where Silver said he's shy? You're scaring him."

Gaia's eyes widened. "Oh oops!" she exclaimed, gently placing him down.

"Sorry about her. Gaia is excitable," Loki apologized, peering at him with curious eyes.

"That's... okay?" Oberon muttered, not looking too sure of himself.

Loki didn't look bothered by their new teammate. "I'm Loki, I was Silver's first pokemon. Gaia was his second. That's Freyja, his third, followed by Metang and Ares," he introduced, pointing at each with his muzzle.

"N-Nice to meet you!" Freyja greeted shyly.

"N-Nice to meet you too," Oberon replied.

"Two pests who are afraid of their shadows. My vassal truly knows how to select partners. Wonderful," Ares grunted neutrally, eyes glancing between Oberon and Freyja.

Oberon wilted slightly at that and Freyja instantly glared at the giant dragon.

"I'm surprised you still know how to speak. I thought evolution took the last of your intelligence!" Freyja scowled.

The Shelgon's eyes narrowed. "The audacity for you to dare speak to me when the gap in our strengths is this vast. Were I still my previous form, you'd already know your place."

Freyja snorted. "Look at you, acting like you've actually changed! Isn't that rich?! Once a dumb brute, always a dumb brute!"

Gaia sighed. "There they go again."

"They... do this often?" Oberon asked.

"Multiple times a day," Loki replied, ignoring them easily. "You get used to it. Neither of them are going to hurt the other because Silver will let them hear it."

"W-Wow," Oberon muttered. "I didn't think Freyja would have what it took to stand up to... Ares," he tested the names on his lips.

"None of us really get it," Gaia explained. "Maybe Metang does but Metang doesn't talk to anyone."

Metang chanced a glance at their team. "The animosity they harbor stems from the battle with the tusked dragon long ago," they explained.

"Figured," Gaia and Loki replied at the same time.

"Tusked dragon?" Oberon asked curiously.

Gaia nodded with a small scowl. "Yeah! It was a while ago but we ran into a tough dragon called..."

"Fraxure," Loki supplied.

"Fraxure!" Gaia repeated. "Wanna hear about it? Actually we can tell you about all our journeys so far! Metang can use that big brain of theirs to help too!"

"Do not drag me into such meaningless conversation," Metang rumbled.

"Too bad! You're joining! We need more team bonding!" Gaia said decisively. "Freyja! Ares! Stop arguing! We're gonna get to know Oberon better!"

"Oh... okay!" Freyja said, shooting Ares one final glare.

"Must I join such ridiculous endeavors?" Ares scowled.

"You will! How else can anyone explain how truly amazing you are?!" Gaia beamed.

"...I suppose you have a point. Very well," Ares grunted.

"W-Wow, Gaia is..."

"Effective?" Loki finished Oberon's train of thought.

Oberon nodded and the Zorua smiled.

"Gaia's nice but don't get on her bad side. She's got a mean streak," Loki advised. "Just be yourself, it'll be fine."

Oberon nodded and watched as his new teammates got ready to break him in...

"Y-You're our trainers first pokemon, right?" he asked timidly.

Loki nodded curiously.

"Um... do you think he's a good trainer?" the Teddiursa eventually asked.

"..." Loki pondered the question, looking a little troubled for a bit.

He looked down at his body and eventually said, "I think Silver is the best trainer a lot of us could have asked for. Whether you think the same is up to you... spend time with our trainer and maybe you'll love him as much as we do."

Oberon looked stunned. "O-Okay! I wanna be as brave as him one day!"

Loki smiled slightly. "He'd call you an idiot for that. Silver doesn't think he's brave at all but I didn't say that."

"R-Really? But he never smelled afraid even once!"

"What's on the outside of a person doesn't always match the inside," was all Loki said.

Oberon nodded slightly at that, looking a tad confused. "O-Okay... you're really nice. Do you want a berry?"

Before Loki could answer, Oberon shuffled about and pulled out a Pecha Berry.

The Zorua looked at the Pecha in surprise. "Where did you get that?"

"I-I found it," he mumbled.

Loki burst into tiny chuckles. "You'll fit right in I think. Now c'mon. Gaia gets impatient quickly."

"Loki! Hurry up! Stop hogging our new teammate!" Gaia urged.

"Coming coming," Loki rolled his eyes.

Oberon looked confused but nodded all the same, trailing after the Zorua into his new team.

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Green sidled up to me with a smile on her face and I glanced at her.

It was the morning of the day after our Game Corner raid so the commotion was likely still going strong.

"You alright?" I asked, gauging the way she walked and declaring it good enough.

She nodded eagerly and showed me her flashing Pokedex.

We both peered at it and I raised a brow at the contents.

On it was the news.

The Celadon Game Corner had been shockingly exposed to be a rocket hideout by an unknown source. A group of Officer Jenny's had investigated the random report and had encountered dozens of Rocket Grunts and pokemon, both wild and captured alive.

"The owner of the Celadon Game Corner is currently under investigation and fire. Currently, he has declined to respond to any questions," the reported finished.

Nice. I hadn't left anyway for them to track my anonymous note back to me (I had Metang use his shoddy psychic skills to write it) and they actually followed through on it.

But...

"Doesn't seem like they caught Proton. He's wanted after all so that would have made the news," I scowled.

"He somehow got away," Green frowned with me. "Maybe he fought his way out."

"Doubt it. There would be a bigger commotion," I pointed out. "Between you and me... I'm assuming he got teleported out," I muttered quietly.

Green's eyes widened. "By the..."

"Yeah, likely," I replied with a frown.

"But can't you feel when he's close by?" she asked in shock.

I sighed. "His power is just that great."

To be honest, if I tried really hard... I'm pretty sure I could locate Mewtwo. I couldn't understate how strong the Legendary was... if I focused, I'd be able to feel it like a beacon of sorts.

What a disturbing thought. It was better for my health if I just ignored it like I had been doing this entire time.

"That's really scary," Green mumbled nervously. "I thought it was because I didn't swing hard enough. I was already thinking of ways to up my strength."

I snorted loudly.

"I still can't believe you used my bat before me," I commented in amusement.

I was just a little slighted by that but it was fine. I realized something about weapons the moment I stole this knife.

It was created... weapons really were excruciatingly difficult to get so if you couldn't buy them... just create them.

Green shuffled nervously and leaned into me.

"Please don't tell anyone, but I don't think that's the last time I'm gonna use your bat," she whispered so quietly, I nearly couldn't hear.

Oh but I heard alright and it caused me to erupt in laughter.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Her cheeks dusted red at the sound of my laugh and I pat her head. "You're a good person, Leaf. Thanks for saving my ass back there."

She beamed with rosy cheeks, clearly not used to me complimenting her so earnestly and grabbed me in a crushing hug.

"Of course I'll save you, Silvy! I know you'd do the same for me!"

I rolled my eyes in amusement. "Yeah yeah."

Green sobered up slightly. "Um... I saw you stab that Proton guy. Are you okay?"

I blinked and frowned. "Yeah I'm good... well as good as someone who stabbed someone can be."

My companion bit her lip at that. "I dunno how you can do it..."

I clenched my fist. "Anything to win," I said firmly.

Stabbing him hadn't been hard at all... and that was the problem.

It was far too easy. I didn't like how easy it felt to stab Proton because one move, and that stab would turn into something fatal.

But... I wasn't moral enough to think that I shouldn't stoop to Team Rockets level. That wasn't me. I wasn't some hero that believed myself better than my opponents.

I'm not the type of person to say, "You won't be any better than them if you do this."

That wasn't who I was. If stabbing Proton was the best way to get outta that situation, then I'd stab him again.

I was a boy who desired freedom. And I would get that freedom.

Let's just hope I got to earn it without becoming a murderer... and if I couldn't? Then oh well. It is what it is.

I would do anything to free myself from the Rockets. I'd even make deals with the Devil to do so.

Green glanced at me in some concern and pulled me into a hug. "You can talk to me about anything you want to Silvy. I know you don't wanna talk to anyone else so I'll listen to your problems," she said in determination.

I sighed at that and pat her on the head. "Thanks Leaf. Now, let's get our day started. We've got a Gym Battle to prepare for."

The both of us would be fighting Erika in 2 days so it was good to prepare for that.

"Alright! Let's spend today training while the noise dies down!" Green grinned. "We can check out the department store another time!"

I perked up at that and nodded.

The department store was a great way to get resources…

"Alright let's get to training," I instructed. "We've got a big battle two days from now. Practice the moves you struggle with and when you get them all under control…"

I pulled out the TMs I stole and showed it to them.

"...You'll learn some new moves to perfect," I smiled.

"Yep!" Green beamed. "We did a great job yesterday but it's time to focus up for the gym battle! Our opponent is a grass type gym leader so for this battle I'll use…"

I listened to her enter trainer mode and snorted, turning to my team in the meantime.

"Alright you guys. Get to it and I'll check you all soon. Oberon, with me. I need to understand more about you," I stated, pulling out my dex and gazing at it.

My Teddiursa jumped at that and nodded, scuttling over to me as quick as his little feet could take him.

I absentmindedly crouched down and caught him with one hand, as he stumbled and tripped from the speeds.

He yelped as he fell into my hand and my eyes flickered back over to him.

"No need to rush," I assured, hoisting him back up. "You won't get in trouble for taking your time."

"Teddi…" Oberon said quietly, gazing at me in surprise.

I watched as he shuffled around, before he pulled out an Oran Berry to hand over to me.

I erupted in a slight chuckle and took it out his hand.

Where was he getting these from?

"Thanks little man, now let's see what Pokeblock you prefer…"

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Gaia's eyes narrowed slightly as the bush near her ruffled and she immediately launched of flurry of leaves towards it.

Vee burst out of it and growled, shooting out a flurry of stars that collided with the Light Screen Gaia immediately conjured.

At the same time, a jet of piercing water nearly crashed into Vee, but the blue figure of Lapee intercepted it, absorbing the water and rejuvenating her slightly.

She began setting up to sing, but a dark aura washed over her that abruptly stopped anything from coming out.

Her melodious voice turned scratchy and Lapee shot a dark glare of embarrassment over at the smug Loki, opening her mouth to blast him with scalding hot water.

The Lapras only felt more anger as the water washed over Loki with no effect, revealing that it was an illusion the entire time.

Gaia let out a battle cry, pinpointing Lapee's location immediately and shooting Magical Leaf after Magical Leaf after her.

The Bayleef's eyes narrowed at seeing a burly figure step in front of the leaves, taking the attack without so much of a flinch.

Saury rumbled, shooting a toxin sludge at Gaia without any hesitation that the Bayleef hastily blocked with Light Screen.

They both shot out a flurry of leaves that collided with each other, ignoring the sharp leaves that made it through.

Lapee didn't remain silent, opening her mouth and shooting out a pulsing cold beam that Gaia swiftly ran away from.

As Saury positioned to catch her location, he let out a grunt of surprise as a psychic sheen suddenly surrounded him.

The giant Ivysaur was launched back across the clearing and right as he caught himself, a fiery turquoise beam crashed into him.

Saury let out a roar of pain, right as Ares, boosted with Dragon Dance, launched herself over to his position. There was an eager gleam in her eyes as she lumbered over with her enhanced speed while the Ivysaur attempted to recover.

She gave him no respite, smashing her full weight into the Ivysaur and sending him soaring through the air at incredible speeds.

Metang watched coolly and intercepted Saury's flight, claws shining to ensure the Ivysaur was put down.

The attack didn't connect however, as Metang was suddenly hit by a stream of flames.

It's eyes flashed in annoyance and it regarded Larvee for a split second, encasing her in a shell of psychic energy.

"Tang," was all it said, before a thin jet of steaming water crashed into the Larvesta.

Larvee cried out in pain but was silenced as Loki burst from the shadows with a dark aura, crashing into her with a purpose.

He didn't even wait to see her fall unconscious, dipping back into his illusion with a predatory look in his eyes as he immediately went for Togee next.

The Togepi activated Metronome, waving his tiny little arms about as they glowed white and he opened his mouth, firing a massive burst of fire that shifted into Kanji.

Loki's eyes widened and he hastily jumped out of the way of the Fire Blast, fur singing as the heat washed over him slightly. He narrowed his eyes and slipped into Agility, immediately rushing the exhausted Togepi.

Togee saw his approach and clumsily tried to activate Metronome once more, shooting out a weak Air Slash that Loki deftly jumped over.

Finally, the Zorua snarled, shooting dark energy, before following up with a dark tackle.

Togee flew back a few feet, unconscious on impact and Loki once again, vanished, avoiding the flurry of leaves.

Saury grunted warily and Lapee attempted to rejuvenate him with Life Dew to no success because of Loki's administrations.

The kindhearted Lapras actually scowled in annoyance, gazing at the Gaia who just shot out a Heal Pulse as well.

She opened her mouth and attempted to use Freeze-Dry on both the Bayleef and Shelgon but was met with complete resistance as the green shield of Protect erupted from Ares, protecting them both.

A metallic beam of energy crashed onto the ground beneath both Saury and Lapee, separating the two very briefly and giving an opening.

Gaia's eyes gleamed and she immediately lunged, vines snaking out of her body and grasping Lapee without any hesitation. The Lapras let out a cry of panic as the vines mercilessly wrapped around her.

Vee saw and attempted to assist, only to cry out as Loki burst out of the shadows again, tackling him with his full weight.

As Vee tumbled, Loki's eyes glowed purple and he opened his mouth, shooting forth an Extrasensory to seal the deal.

"Eev!" Vee shouted, crumpling on the ground.

At the same time Lapee let out a cry from Gaia's assault and collapsed, unable to sustain herself at all due to Loki.

Saury grunted and attempted to stop the charging Ares, failing as the dragon bulldozed his defenses and crashed into him full force.

The accumulated damage was too much and the Ivysaur eventually fell.

"Shel," Ares rumbled in satisfaction.

As the rest of them relaxed minutely, they suddenly stiffened as Vee shakily got up.

"Vee..." he said in determination, glaring at the healthy pokemon.

Ares would have raised a brow if she had one but she was swiftly silenced as Vee began glowing a bright white.

A stunned silence washed over the field, as they watched the Eevee begin changing before their eyes.

No one dared interrupt such an important milestone so they witnessed with bated breaths as Vee's body underwent evolution.

He lengthened, brown fur turning into lilan and smoothing over. It's ears remained large, as a tuft of fur formed near his face. A red gem conjured from the evolution, embedding itself firmly in his forehead and his tail turned slender, splitting at the end.

"Espeon," Vee said finally, gem glowing brightly as his eyes flashed.

Then, he shut his eyes and let out a distressed cry, collapsing abruptly at the new surge of psychic powers.

"Alright, that's enough!" Green shouted, making the Dreepy next to her jump. "Oh geez, he decided on Espeon? I was expecting to consult this a bit more!"

I frowned, Oberon looping his arm around my neck, as I slowly approached. "We should take him to the Center fast. Evolving into an entire new type, especially one as a psychic is overwhelming him. If I knew, I probably wouldn't have been in the area either."

She nodded hastily and returned Vee to his ball, along with the rest of her team.

I followed suit and our little spar officially ended in favor of us rushing to the Center at record speed.

The Center was fairly close to the outskirts of Celadon, so we made it there fast at our pace and entered the building without hesitation.

"Nurse Joy!" Green called urgently, handing her Pokeball over. "My Eevee just evolved into Espeon!" was all she said.

Nurse Joy did not need any further prompting. She easily grabbed the Pokeball and smiled reassuringly at Green. "Don't you worry. It's natural for evolved psychics with weak stores to get overwhelmed, especially if they weren't a psychic before. They can perceive the world easier but I'll make sure there are no complications."

Green smiled in relief and nodded, before the two of us handed our Pokeballs over to the inquiring Chansey.

"Sorry for calling the fight off early... though I think we both knew how that was going to turn out," Green said as we took a seat nearby.

I waved her off. "It's cool. It was just a spar anyways. Evolution is way more important. We can spar anytime," I mentioned.

She nodded thankfully. "I'm shocked though! Our fights are normally 50/50 these days but that group battle wasn't close!" she exclaimed.

"My team is a little more independent than yours," I replied easily. "With Loki doing his thing as well, it was overwhelmingly in my favor from the start... also we fought as a team before."

Green nodded in awe at that. "It's definitely your win. I don't even think Vee's evolution woulda helped in the long run."

The two of us had decided to dabble into doing full team fights instead of 1 on 1s. It was in preparation for our future encounters with Team Rocket and it helped build teamwork not just between our members, but us as well.

That's why Green and I didn't give too much orders out. It was too chaotic and the noise would drown out our orders both in spars and the real thing.

Like Green said, it wasn't really close. My little soldiers were well used to me giving them some of the reigns, not to mention in an all out battle, Loki and Gaia were incredibly frustrating to deal with.

Saury's power had been overwhelming before but he wasn't unstoppable. I had caused him to faint on many occasion and with Ares evolution, it actually became much easier to do so.

The gap between Green and I had completely closed. In fact, I edged out on her just a little... though with Vee's evolution it might have shifted back into her favor.

That was fine. I liked this power struggle between us. It made things all the more exciting.

"Was Espeon Vee's preferred?" I asked curiously.

Green mulled it over. "Espeon or Jolteon. That's what he wanted the most I think..." she explained.

I nodded at that and took a sip of water. "What about you? What did you want?"

Green blinked before flushing slightly. "I brought up Sylveon with him once and he bit me," she admitted.

My laughter turned into abrupt coughs as the water made its presence known. "Y-You deserve that," I coughed, resisting the urge to snort.

She rubbed the back of her head bashfully. "It was worth a shot! Espeon and Sylveon were tied for me but I was really fine with anything he wanted."

I nodded thoughtfully at that and we fell into a comfortable silence.

On our way to the Center, we heard quite the commotion. It appears the addicts weren't very happy that their precious Game Corner was shut down. I had already seen plenty of Jenny's forcefully bringing people down due to their disruptive nature.

I rolled my eyes.

They were all pathetic. You bring down the stronghold of a notorious organization who kills and kidnaps for fun, but all you can think about is no longer being able to gamble.

I guess it's a good thing Green and I remained anonymous. The attention after that, would turn me into a public criminal.

"Miss Green, Mr. Silver. You're Pokemon are ready!"

The two of us perked up at that and immediately approached the desk to greet the polite Nurse Joy.

"Your Espeon will be fine. Just give him time to get used to his new body. Espeon's are some of the most sensitive psychics there are so evolution is especially jarring for Eevee's when they turn into one," she explained.

Green nodded, relief clear on her features and the two of us accepted our teams. "So is there anything I should do?"

"Just let him get used to his body. Increase his diet as well and if you wouldn't mind, have him speak with Silver's Metang on how to best control psychic energy. Due to also having lacking to almost nonexistent reserves, Metang should be able to explain how to utilize psychic energy quite well to Espeon," Joy said quietly, making sure none but us could hear it.

I nodded appreciatively at that. "We can do that."

Green beamed. "Awesome! Okay! Thanks so much Nurse Joy!"

"Of course. You two have a wonderful day," Nurse Joy smiled, waving us off.

I mulled over her words. "Alright back to training. This city is insufferable right now," I muttered.

"Agreed," Green nodded. "I'm so excited! Vee finally evolved!"

I nodded. "Espeon's are real strong too. A valuable addition," I mused.

She nodded eagerly as we headed back to our base. "I saw Metang coordinating somewhat with the team. I wanna do that too!"

"It'll get better with time for sure. He just needs to get used to it," I shrugged. "Let's just hope he can function around me. I imagine just evolving into a psychic type is gonna be rough but with me around..."

Green frowned at that. "Maybe we should stay a good bit away from each other for now? I can get Vee accustomed for the remainder of the day and then maybe expose him to you..." she mulled.

"Smart," I nodded. "We can just train separately for now."

"Kay!" she beamed in agreement. "I'll go this way."

With that, she marched off with a beaming grin.

I watched her go until she disappeared and grunted, releasing my team right after.

"Hey," I greeted. "You all probably know but Vee evolved and since he's a psychic, we decided to train separately for today."

They let out noises of understanding and easily got to work.

"Loki, are you okay?" I asked curiously. "You've been lost in thought for awhile now."

Loki jumped at that and gazed at me with wide eyes.

I narrowed my eyes slightly. "What's up? What's got you conflicted?"

My first pokemon frowned slightly and shook his head. "Zor, zor," was all he said.

I perked a brow. "Just thinking about Vee's evolution huh. You two are kinda rivals..." I mused, nodding at that. "Don't worry. You'll evolve when you're ready."

"...Zor," Loki said and I missed the way he glanced down at his body.

I ruffled the tuft of his hair that was growing bigger by the day and smiled. "I was gonna get you started on Sucker Punch... but I think we can hold off on that for now since you're so focused on Night Daze," I muttered, pulling out a disk.

Loki perked up and I smirked.

"I don't plan on giving anyone else TMs just yet besides Ares... but you need a bit more variety before evolution so here, the TM for Shadow Ball," I muttered. "Wanna learn it?"

When he evolved, I planned on teaching him Flamethrower but for now, Shadow Ball would be good to give him some type variety.

While it wouldn't help him hit things he couldn't before, variety was useful and he wouldn't have difficulties using the strange ghost type, especially considering he could already use Dark and Psychic moves.

Loki nodded at my question and I returned him to his ball. It didn't take me long at all to get things ready and I slotted the Pokeball against the disk, watching as the ball glowed with the ghostly purplish energy.

I grunted at the strange sensation but ignored it, releasing Loki from his ball and watching as his brows furrowed slightly.

Finally, he conjured a small purplish ball that he fired against a tree.

I whistled at the impact, noting the hole with an impressed eye. "Great. Practice that along with Night Daze."

"Why have you not given me that TM," Metang asked immediately. "I already know that I can learn it."

"When did you steal my Pokedex? How do you even know how to operate it?" I asked in exasperation.

"Simple affairs. I've already consumed the knowledge on my species. As for operations, it was slightly difficult to operate but it was a good exercise in psychic abilities."

I blinked at that. "You used your psychic abilities to use the Pokedex? How... the hell did you do that?"

"I have been improving somewhat. It just requires a tad amount of pressure. Now, you may stop changing the subject."

I sighed and made my way over to Metang. "You still aren't proficient in your psychic capabilities. Learning a ghost move would only throw that further into disarray. You're clearly improving more than i thought but it's still not enough..."

I paused. "Alright, how about this... you're already making good progress so I imagine it'll be sooner rather than later, but once you can fully operate this Pokedex without struggling, I'll teach it to you and we can get started on Psychic."

Metang mulled that offer over. "Very well. I accept your terms. This benefits me as well... I quite enjoy using this device."

"It's a deal," I said, watching in amusement as they failed to rip it out of my hand with their psychic abilities. "You got your work cut out for you."

"Your attempts at humor have failed miserably. You should remain aloof."

"Dick," I muttered under my breath.

"You are not quiet either."

"Quiet enough to catch you!" I barked back.

"...Touche."

I snorted at that and stopped in front of Gaia.

"You are not learning a new move," I said immediately, patting her gently as she pouted in outrage. "I know. I know."

"I've been thinking of ways to help you beat Saury," I muttered to her, making her perk up at that. "It'll take a bit but I got a solid idea. But that's for later... for now I want you to master Body Slam... and then we can get started on learning more grass moves, like Grass Whistle."

Bayleefs were unable to learn Petal Dance and Petal Blizzard until evolution so Gaia was pressed to find a really hard hitting grass type move... and Solar Beam required far too much energy that we didn't have right now. As a result, I'd have to focus on her utility...

Though, I could probably try and teach her Energy Ball at some point. It was difficult for them to learn but we could achieve it.

Gaia beamed at me and nodded eagerly, trotting off happily.

I smiled and made my way to Freyja. "Hey girl," I greeted, running a hand against her scales. "You've been making good work on the moves you have, so I think it's time to learn a new one."

She nodded eagerly and I mulled over if I wanted to teach it to her.

"It's called Confuse Ray. Instead of relying on Water Pulse to confuse opponents... we'll just do it ourselves. It'll make battles for us much easier but this move is hard to learn," I explained.

Confuse Ray was a scary move. It was far more sinister than say... supersonic, which just jumbled up your senses due to piercing noise.

Confuse Ray, while messing with your senses, made you see things that weren't there. It messed with senses by utilizing the strange ghost energy. It forcefully pushed ghostly energy inside of you.

Considering Freyja didn't have an ounce of ghost energy inside, this move was going to be a hassle to learn and I couldn't cheat by teaching her Shadow Ball because she couldn't learn it.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting much progress on this one but there wasn't much else I could actually teach her, barring like Dragon Pulse.

She didn't have enough stores for that though... which was why I hadn't given her the TM for Ice Beam yet.

"No sweat if you can't make fast progress on this move girl. Take your time with this one and continue mastering your previous moves," I encouraged.

Freyja nodded happily and I smiled at that.

She had been getting much better lately. It was harder to get her down.

Even Ares evolution didn't do much besides making her angrier that the brute had become a bigger brute.

Metang translated that for me. I would never call Ares a brute! I was her glorious vassal after all.

"Love the optimism girl," I praised, running a hand against her scales again. "Confidence is a good look on you."

Freyja blinked before blushing happily. My adorable little fish nuzzled me and I laughed at the ticklish sensation.

"Fee!" she beamed, turning away to focus on her task. I watched her dive into the pond with a fond smile.

As I got up to approach Ares, I'm very sure I heard a groan of disgust leave Freyja's mouth.

I chuckled at that and stood in front of Ares so she couldn't glare over at my water type.

Hard considering she was only a little shorter than me but hey.

"Ares," I greeted, pulling out a disk. "Wanna learn Flamethrower?"

She tried very hard to mask the unsavory gleam in her eyes. Evolution had made her more aloof but she was upping it to look cool.

Dork.

"Alright then," I rolled my eyes, returning her to the ball and connecting it with the disk.

I released her from the ball and watched those wide yellow eyes light up.

"Don't you dare," I said immediately. "You were about to aim at a damn tree weren't you?"

Ares' silence was all I needed to hear to know her answer.

"You're an even bigger troublemaker than me," I sighed, pointing at a large boulder. "Hit that instead."

She nodded and opened her mouth, firing off a stream of flames.

I watched in visible interest as it crashed into the boulder, swiftly scorching the surface area to the color black.

"Not bad," I whistled. "Practice that move. We're gonna be using it very soon. Shoot in the pond over there and do not hit Freyja... unless you two want to train."

"Shel," Ares rumbled, trotting off over to the pond with Freyja in it.

They shot each other looks of disgust and I snorted in amusement.

"Finally," I mused, turning towards Oberon. He had been trailing me the entire time and I smiled down at him, handing him a pink pokeblock.

Oberon liked the sweet flavor of blocks by far. It must have been attributed to his love of honey but he adored whenever I gave him some.

"Alright little man, you're stronger than I expected... but there's always room for improvement," I began, walking off to an isolated area. "You have three types down already and you can learn a lot more so we'll definitely be leaning into that."

Oberon hung onto my every word.

"But for now, we'll start easy. The first move you're gonna learn is Slash," I informed him. "Once you learn it, we'll combine it with Fury Swipes and target important parts of our opponents body."

My Teddiursa's mouth opened in shock. Maybe he wasn't expecting me to have already had a plan for him...

Or maybe he wasn't expecting me to be so ruthless.

"You're small right now Oberon," I said truthfully. "And unlike Loki, you don't got the speed to back up your size. So we'll have to handle battles a little different. We're gonna make every hit count, so every time you land one, they're gonna regret it."

Thankfully, he could learn many types of moves so it's not like he'd be starving for options at his peak. I didn't really care for Normal Type pokemon but they did have the benefit of typically being able to learn a lot of other typings.

Oberon looked up at me in awe and nodded hastily.

"Right. Cycle through your moves. We're gonna get you used to them until it's second nature," I ordered. "Then, we'll get you started on Slash. You'll understand all your moves well and based on what you can learn... Fury Swipes might be really good for us."

As I mulled over the move set I wanted for Oberon, he hung onto my every word and I smiled as he immediately charged forward.

I crouched and caught him before he could fall, standing him upright.

"You're pretty clumsy huh? We'll work on that," I assured.

He nodded, before handing me a Sitrus Berry and getting into it.

I chuckled at that, idly pulling out my Berry Pot to plant the Sitrus in.

I think Oberon was going to be a good addition.

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

"Loki."

Loki perked up at that, turning his head towards Gaia with a curious look.

His friend was looking at him with a suspicious glint and he tilted his head at that.

It was currently the two of them with no other member around. Silver was in the distance, cleaning Ares shell, along with Freyja's scales as they both fought for his attention.

"What's up?" he asked curiously.

"Why aren't you evolving?"

He froze at the question. "What do you mean?"

Gaia's eyes narrowed. "You're ready aren't you? I can tell. You've been resisting it," she pointed out quietly.

Loki pursed his lips at that. "No point lying about it. Yeah, I'm ready," he admitted quietly.

The Bayleef looked somewhat confused. "How come?" she asked curiously. "I didn't think you would stop yourself from evolving. You and Silver are really similar so I expected you to want to be stronger."

The Zorua sighed. "It's nothing so serious, Gaia... I just don't know if I'm ready yet."

Gaia looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze. "You know you don't have to be nervous you'll disappoint Silver. I'm sure if you talk to him, he'll help solve your problems," she whispered encouragingly.

Loki mulled that over. "When the opportunity comes, I'll talk to him and see what he thinks... but I imagine he'll think I'm being dumb for not wanting to evolve as quick as possible," he muttered.

Gaia sighed and pat him gently with a vine. "You can be just as dumb as him too. It's all in your head, Loki. I'm sure whenever you two talk, it'll be fine!" she encouraged.

Loki wasn't used to being called dumb. He liked to think he was only second to Metang in terms of intelligence.

Maybe he was being silly.

"Next time it gets brought up, I'll say something and we'll go from there," Loki said finally. "Now stop bugging me."

"Don't wanna! Silver doesn't want me learning any new moves so let's spar," she grinned. "Maybe the beating I give you will motivate you to evolve."

Loki sighed tiredly, glaring flatly at her. "You're more like Silver than I am. You two are practically made for each other," he said, rolling his eyes as he got up.

"Of course! That's why he took me! Silver is my chosen trainer!" Gaia beamed, snatching Loki up with her vines. "Now let's go!"

Loki sighed again and just let it be.