CHAPTER 39

"CHEERS!"

Different voices filled the evening air. While not perfectly in unison, they were all as energetic as the next. Everyone was at my house for a celebratory dinner.

The Cherrygrove Gym's grand opening had been as successful as I could have hoped for.

On the sales side of things, we were sold out. Gym merch, CDs, baked goods— everything. It was all gone. Kari had already put in an order with the manufacturers for more, and the bakers had successfully advertised our city's new local specialty. Hopefully we got a permanent uptick in tourists going forward.

I'd briefly surfed the Pokenet on my phone to see what people had to say about the grand opening online. For the most part, there was nothing but glowing reviews about the experience. Everyone had fun. There were valid complaints about lines being too long for the in-house stores (I made a note to do a numbered ticket queuing system next time) and some other concerns.

There were also unpleasant posts made about the Gym, but I disregarded those and focused on the positives for the time being.

After the show ended, there was just under an hour left for people to tour the facility and gardens. I'd gone out to take a peek from one of the watchtowers and hadn't been disappointed. Dozens of glowing lights in the skies and castle moat — courtesy of Volbeat, Illumise, and Finneon — had illuminated the gardens and made it a sight to see.

I had to go down at one point and pose for pictures with Fantina and Wallace in front of ecstatic reporters, but that had been doable.

What I was not prepared for was the mini surge of visitors that came up to us and asked for pictures or autographs. Fantina and Wallace handled themselves well because they were used to it, but I found myself mentally fatigued after constantly smiling for cameras.

That was why I was glad when the grand opening finally came to an end. All the visitors were carefully escorted off the gym grounds, and everyone retreated back to my house.

I'd had to go out and fetch groceries due to our larger than expected guest list, but I had the easy job. Siebold was the one who had to cook up a storm. Judging by the look of satisfaction on his face as he took over our kitchen, though, I don't think he minded in the slightest.

Out came a variety of dishes cooked in Johtonese and Kalosian styles. Sometime during the day, it seemed Siebold had done more research on Kanto-Johto cuisine, and he happily showed off the fruits of his labors.

Everything was arranged outside on picnic tables in a glistening buffet of food. Now here we were ready to dig in.

All of my gym trainers aside from Yurie had left to spend quality time with their families in the city. The Chester siblings were also here, but it was mostly because Kari wanted to take pictures of everyone, and Yulian wanted to supervise her.

Whitney had reluctantly torn herself away from us and gone back to Goldenrod with her family, and Janine had been called home by Koga for a regular clan meeting. The Waterflower sisters had stayed long enough to fawn over Siebold and how prince-like he was. As soon as Misty exhibited signs of drowsiness, though, they whisked her home for a good night's rest. That was after they left me with thoughts for the future.

"Maybe our Gyms could collaborate sometime," the oldest sister, Daisy, suggested with a gleam in her eyes. Behind her, Lily carried their youngest sister on her back in preparation for a Teleport. "We run shows and Contests at the Cerulean Gym year-long, you know!"

Indeed, the Sensational Sisters were popular for their dazzling aquatic shows to the point where everyone in Kanto-Johto knew their names. They were also staunch supporters of Pokemon Contests and had been working hard to raise the popularity of those in our country. A collaboration sounded fun, so I resolved to keep that in mind as I waved them goodbye.

As for the other Johto Gym Leaders… they stayed behind to talk more with our guests visiting from afar. Lance stayed to 'supervise and ensure everyone's safety' or so he said, but I was pretty sure he just wanted to talk more with our visiting Dragon Specialists.

And so, our celebratory dinner began in full-swing.

"This is some excellent wine you brought," Alder remarked. His look was one of utter glee as he brought his cup to his lips for yet another swig of alcohol. Others standing near him with their own glasses in hand echoed similar praises.

The recipient of the compliments, Siebold, gave a pleased smile in return.

"I'm happy it's so well-received."

The wine in question was what Siebold had brought for his gym-warming gift. I'd gone ahead and distributed it for dinner seeing as how this was the perfect occasion for it, and it was a hit with the wine lovers in our company.

I was of legal drinking age according to Indigo laws, but I'd already consumed alcohol for the first time years ago in Kalos. The legal drinking age over there was much lower because of how ingrained wine was into their very culture and way of life.

I wasn't the biggest fan of alcohol all things considered and preferred healthier alternatives, but that didn't mean I couldn't handle it. My curiosity and obligation to appear polite won out as I wandered over to the buffet table, intent to try some of this wine Siebold had brought. I hadn't had a chance to take a good look at it earlier, so my eyes wandered over the label now as I grasped a bottle in my hand.

My eyes nearly popped out of my head when I saw the information scrawled there in looping cursive.

Chateau Volara, red wine from the 1900s produced in the Pomace region.

Holy mother of Clamperl, had Siebold taken this from his personal wine collection or restaurant's storage?

I wasn't a sommelier, but even I knew how precious this drink was given how much time I'd spent in Kalos. This was one of the region's most famous brands and a truly vintage wine. There were probably only a handful of bottles left out there from the year this particular batch was made.

In my hand was the equivalent of a diamond mine.

I held the bottle more securely in my hand as I poured a small amount for myself, careful to not even let a single drop splash onto the table.

Talk about an extravagant gift.

Behind me, people sang praises about the wine's especially pronounced flavor. Dad was among them. He'd been shocked at first when I introduced him to everyone, but he'd quickly recomposed himself. He was cleared by his doctor to have alcohol since none of his medications had negative interactions associated with it. Despite the clearance, I was going to keep an eye on him and his alcohol intake.

Everyone from the Galovea Continent knew the worth of the wine and were drinking it with nonchalant expressions. I decided to let dad and the other Kinjoh Area folks continue drinking without knowing how expensive it was.

They'd probably faint from the shock.

We had more than a few underage guests in attendance like Bugsy or Mina, so they were drinking soda or juice instead. That didn't stop them from casting curious looks at the adults enjoying their wine.

I brought my own cup to my lips to taste this so-called vintage wine. The moment the liquid hit my tongue, I was blown away by the flavor. It was so incredibly complex that I couldn't even begin to describe what exactly I was tasting. Perhaps the best way to put it was that I was tasting dozens of unique flavors all at once yet somehow mixed together in a harmonious blend.

Burnt caramel, roasted figs, a honey-like tang— yeah, I gave up. There was no way I was identifying all these flavors. All I knew was this was surprisingly damn good wine, and I smiled into my cup as I took another sip. Internally, I was freaking out.

Fuck. I had to give Siebold something nice back in return now, otherwise this gift was going to weigh on my conscience.

"What's the man of the hour doing here by himself?" Rika sang as she appeared out of nowhere next to me. I nearly jumped out of my skin. Thankfully, I didn't spill any of my drink.

"Jeez, talk about nearly giving someone a heart attack…" I muttered. My heart was still pounding as I raised my glass. "Just wanted to try the wine Siebold brought. It's tasty."

Rika barked out a laugh as she slung an arm around my shoulder. In her other hand, she carelessly held her own cup of wine. I eyed the sloshing liquid with an almost frantic expression.

"Yeah, it's pretty good," she admitted, but her eyes took on a sharp glint as she jerked her head behind her shoulder. I followed her gaze to the table full of gym-warming gifts sitting in the corner. I hadn't gotten around to organizing them yet because of how hectic today had been. "Can't beat mine, though."

My eyes widened in realization.

"Did you bring wine, too?"

"No, but I brought the best coffee beans. Can't believe Siebold and I had the same idea, tch."

I almost drooled right then and there on the spot.

"El Zafiro coffee beans?" I asked to be sure.

The moment Rika nodded, I shrugged off her arm and power-walked to the table of gifts. I had to see this for myself. I took another sip of wine before setting the cup off to the side, and then I began sorting through the items for Rika's present.

There was a lot of stuff.

I had received lacquered bento boxes from Janine, thermos bottles decorated with pearls and Dive Balls from the Waterflower sisters, famous Azalea Town herbal potions from Bugsy, neck pillows and heated blankets from Morty, nutritional vitamins for me and my Pokemon from the Oaks, scented candles from Jasmine, a set of weights from Lt. Surge that I could probably put in the gym's training room, some expensive silk tapestries with the symbol of the Fable Badge from Lance…

My most unusual gifts were probably the odd dolls and amulets I'd gotten from Sabrina and… some sort of stone from Blaine that came in a wooden box. It resembled a Fire Stone, but it didn't have a large flame trapped inside it. There was only a tiny ember instead, and when I raised the stone to the light, the ember inside looked more golden than red.

Vaguely, I wondered if this stone was from Blaine's personal collection. I never would have taken the man to have such a keen eye for aesthetics. Most likely, I'd put the stone up for display in my bedroom or office somewhere. Or I could use it as a decorative paperweight, maybe? It was surprisingly heavy enough to be one.

After some more searching, I finally located the coffee beans I was looking for.

It was El Zafiro after all. It was a luxury brand you usually had to order years in advance to get due to how difficult the beans were to grow… Apparently, they'd named it after a previous ruler in Paldea's history who was fond of sapphires. I'd only gotten to try their coffee just once before in my life.

It had been delicious, and I just knew dad was going to become addicted to this drink later.

"I need to have some of this tomorrow," I promised out loud to myself, and Rika smiled into her drink.

"Glad you like it—"

"NOOO! Look at my present, too!" a child's voice cried out.

I turned as someone dashed over. It was Poppy, and the young child tugged on my pant legs with a pouting expression.

"I also got a present," she whined.

"Don't forget about ours!" Hassel piped up in a cheerful voice. He strode over with Larry next to his side, and suddenly it felt like the Paldea Musketeers were all together again. We were just missing Geeta.

Coughing, Hassel tried not to look too proud as he gestured to the rows of gifts I still hadn't looked at. "I think you'll be very pleased with my gift… or gifts, I suppose. Plural in this case."

"Take a look at mine as well," Larry said softly.

So, I began sorting through the gifts again, this time looking at the ones from people outside of Indigo.

A tea set and hand-knitted scarves for me and my Pokemon from Opal, embroidered handkerchiefs and jeweled tie clips from Valerie, expensive spices from Kukui… I even realized there were gifts from each region's Champion that they'd evidently had their Elites deliver.

While my eyes wandered across the table looking for the gifts from my friends, I caught sight of Mina's and curiously pulled it out of the bag—

"Oh!" Hassel let out a startled sound of surprise.

Mina had given me a huge and colorful abstract painting. I would admit I wasn't too familiar with this particular genre of art, but as I studied it, I thought I could make out faint figures in the central part of the canvas. Maybe me and my Pokemon? Regardless, the painting was very eye-catching to the point where I almost couldn't look away. It would look stunning in the gym's lobby.

Hassel looked absolutely ecstatic. "Remarkable! Such bold and precise strokes. Did that young girl from Alola draw this? I'll have to pay my compliments later."

He babbled on about the painting even after I put it back in its bag and moved on.

Eventually, I located the gifts from the Paldea Elites. Poppy and her mom had picked out some expensive vases for me to 'put super duper pretty flowers in' according to the young girl. Larry had gifted me a set of trainer gloves and cuff links because I'd 'have to worry about my appearance as a Gym Leader from now on' as he so wisely put it.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Then I saw Hassel's gifts, and I finally realized why he'd been so eager to have me look at them. He'd brought me paintings as well. Not one, not two, but five of them that formed a series.

Much to my delight, I saw Hassel had drawn one of me and dad. I'd almost forgotten that I made a request months ago about that. Another painting had me by myself with a Pokeball in hand, and the other three depicted me with different team members gathered around my side.

"I'm hanging these up in my house and Gym," I said immediately, and I shot Hassel a wide grin. "I'll treasure them, Hassel. Thank you!"

He almost cried tears of joy in response.

Now that I was done looking through gifts, I followed everyone back to the center of the backyard where people were walking around and mingling with each other in groups.

Fantina was talking to Siebold and Valerie. Even from where I was standing, I could hear snippets of rapidfire Kalosian coming out of their mouths as they conversed with one another. Siebold and Valerie had surprised expressions on their faces, so I wondered if Fantina had revealed to them the truth about her upbringing. Whatever the case, the woman looked like she was having fun speaking to people from her home country.

Jasmine and Volkner sat off to the side at a small table. I was pleasantly surprised to see them having what looked like a loud and engaging conversation. Both were fairly quiet individuals, but they were smiling and laughing at each other.

My inner senses tingled. Those two had definitely either met each other before this and were already acquainted, or they were just hitting it off extremely well. I smiled to myself as I thought about teasing one or both of them later.

Winona and Wallace were talking to Kukui with wistful expressions when we passed by.

"Alola sounds beautiful…"

"It is! Perhaps on your next vacation, you could come visit our islands. I'd have to get permission from the Tapus first, but I'm sure they'd accept kind souls like you two…"

"Tapus? Your country's leaders?"

"Er… yes…"

I started refilling my plate with food at the buffet while the Paldea Elites minus Poppy stocked up on more wine. In the process, I overheard Bugsy and Alder talking somewhere behind me.

"May I see her now?" Bugsy asked excitedly.

He got boisterous laughter from Alder in return. "Sure, sure! Come on out, Vesta."

I heard the unmistakable sound of a Pokeball's release mechanism, and I turned in time to see a bright flash of crimson light. From within the light's folds, a giant figure gradually emerged.

A familiar moth Pokemon with six leaf-like wings buzzed loudly as she took in her surroundings. With every gentle flap of her wings, the air around her almost seemed to distort. There was more than a few meters of distance between us, but I could still feel the heat radiating off the Pokemon.

Bugsy was immediately enamored with Alder's Volcarona. I could practically see hearts in place of his eyes as he carefully walked around her and took in the moth's features.

"Oh my gosh, look at the size of her wings! There are six of them, too! Oh, I wonder how strong her horns are…" Bugsy rambled on, and he squealed after he got permission from Alder and his Pokemon for petting. He gently stroked Vesta's wings.

I imagined the teenager would start frothing at the mouth soon. Meanwhile, Alder noticed me staring and raised his cup of wine into the air.

"Hey, Vesta!" he called out to his old partner, and he pointed at me with his free hand. "Look who it is."

His Volcarona remained in place but swiveled her head to look at me. It took a few seconds, but the Pokemon eventually flapped her wings excitedly.

"She still remembers me?" I called out questioningly from afar.

Alder guffawed loudly. "'Course she does!" he hollered back. "Not many people make it to her, you know."

That was factually true. Everyone had trouble getting through the Unova Elites to Alder, and it was even harder breaking through the rest of Alder's veteran team. When you finally got to Vesta, well… the Volcarona was basically the last impenetrable stronghold. A Pokemon whose species was once worshiped like gods with the strength to back up such piety.

I'd made it to Alder's last Pokemon, but nothing could have prepared me for that monstrous Volcarona. Years later, I now wondered how a rematch would go. I had a feeling things would be very different.

Alder watched me with a knowing expression. He downed another mouthful of wine, and then the corners of his lips curled upwards in a smirk.

"I wouldn't be opposed to a quick battle," he said loud enough for me to hear. "What about you, girl?"

His Volcarona buzzed loudly as she floated closer to her trainer's side. Ah man, that was a really tempting challenge…

"Maybe after I eat," I finally replied. As much as I was down for an unexpected rematch, I was mentally fatigued and hungry as hell after running around all day for the grand opening. I needed a chance to recharge first. "Don't forget what you said."

"Unless I'm going senile, I won't," Alder shot back with a loud laugh. "Come find me later. I'll try not to get drunk before then."

…Arceus dammit, he better not! If he did, well, I was going to hold that over his head and get him to owe me two matches. Alder went back to talking to Bugsy about the Volcarona species, and I went back to eating with renewed vigor.

The sooner I ate, the less time Alder had to drink and the faster I got to fight a gigantic moth.

"You want to fight that bad?" Rika laughed from where she was sitting. "If we had more time, I'd challenge you to a quick match, too."

"I mean, it's Alder's Volcarona," I defended myself. "His starter. His ace. You'd get as excited if it was Geeta's Glimmora or Kingambit you were fighting."

"Fine. You've got a point."

I swallowed a bite of steamed shrimp. Tasty. Hassel had wandered off to go talk to Mina at another table, and the two were stuck in a lively discussion about painting. I kept eating with a thoughtful expression.

Now that I was thinking about it… "How long are you guys staying for anyway?"

"Not too long, sadly," Larry spoke up, and he tugged tiredly at his tie. He'd slumped down into a chair of his own. "We'll all be leaving in the morning. As much as we'd like to stay longer, our Champions decided it wouldn't be proper given the temporary treaty and the… situation in Indigo."

As sad as the answer made me, it made sense. We hadn't formed permanent diplomatic relations with the Galovea Continent yet. Lance might have been fine having guests visit in order to strengthen bonds, but the rest of our government was probably much more cautious and didn't want them to stay for too long in the country.

As for the situation in Indigo… I was relieved nothing had happened during the grand opening. That relief only grew once I realized we had important guests in attendance. It would have been an international catastrophe if anything happened while they were here. Any chances of future relations probably would have been set back by decades.

Damn Rockets. The sooner we got them out of Indigo, the better. There were so many things we couldn't put in place otherwise.

Rika saw my distorted expression and slapped my arm playfully.

"Cheer up. We can come visit again in the future, or you could come to Paldea," she said.

I nodded absentmindedly. "Right…"

This was supposed to be a joyful occasion and not a glum one, so I snapped myself out of any dark thoughts concerning the Team Rocket situation and talked about happier things instead. Poppy hopped up onto a chair to cuddle next to me at one point, and she fell asleep within minutes.

I left to get a blanket for her and paused briefly on my way to the house. Morty and Valerie were standing behind some trimmed hedges and trees with neutral expressions. It seemed a bit tense between them for some reason. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I overheard their conversation as I kept walking. Neither of them noticed me walking in the distance.

"Thank you for agreeing to talk in private. I wanted to ask… are you from the Hachiura Clan?" Morty asked, and he hesitated before continuing. "You resemble someone who used to live in Ecruteak."

There was a moment of silence and then—

"I don't feel comfortable answering that," Valerie responded in a polite tone. "I have a question for you, though. Are the Kimono Girls doing well?"

"They are. Some praise them as the most skilled dancers in generations."

" …I see."

I squinted my eyes. It was hard to see from a distance, but it looked like Valerie was smiling.

"Perhaps I'll… Ecruteak… someday. I'd… to see a performance…"

The rest of the conversation faded away as I got out of range. The Hachiura Clan… That was the name of the Clan the Kimono Girls were from. While the Clan was not on the same level as the Sacred Eight, it was still a widely respected group known for their achievements in the cultural arts. Many of their members had been recorded in history as great singers or dancers.

I had a better inkling of Valerie's origins now, but I resolved to erase this conversation I'd accidentally overheard from my memories. This was a private matter, and Valerie's background honestly didn't matter to me.

She was just Valerie, plain and simple.

I finally retrieved a fluffy blanket from the house for Poppy. When I came back out to the party, things were a little more lively. Alcohol had loosened tongues, and people were acting less stiff in general after getting some food in their bellies.

I walked over to the table with my stuff and draped a blanket around Poppy's sleeping form. She had Larry and Rika to watch over her, so I wandered off to get more food from a different table and see what other people were up to.

The Dragon Specialists had gathered together in a corner.

"Haven't seen you since… last year's summit? The year before? Can't remember anymore," Drake said, lips curling into a crooked smile. He eyed Lance with a challenging gaze. No normal person would dare look at the Champion of a foreign nation like that, but like always, Drake couldn't have given two shits. "How is your Salamence doing?"

Lance lifted his head and met Drake's gaze with a regal one of his own. "He's doing well. I'd like to extend my thanks again for your generosity."

"Ha! It was a fair fucking trade, so no thanks necessary," Drake snorted. He jerked a thumb at his chest. "My team had fun breaking in the Dratini you sent over. Reckon my Dragonite could give yours a run for its money now."

One of Lance's brows arched delicately. "Really now?" he drawled. He sounded decidedly unamused. "I hope you're not talking about my starter."

Drake's previous smile took on a vicious edge.

"And if I am?"

He and Lance stared at each other with battle-hungry expressions. I wondered if an impromptu battle was going to break out in our backyard, but Raihan stepped in to defuse the situation.

At least, I thought that was his intention, but the asshole just grinned and egged them on.

"Oh, this'll be good!" he whooped out loud. He flashed sharp, almost fanged teeth at his spinning Rotom Phone and sauntered toward Lance and Drake with the gait of a predator. His hands were stuffed into his pockets. "I don't suppose I could get an invite to this showdown? My Dragons are raring for some exercise."

"Oh?"

"You wanna say that again, you cocky brat?"

Both Lance and Drake swiveled their heads towards him. Drake even downed the rest of his wine in one go and set it down on the table. I thought I could almost see electricity crackling in the air between the three of them.

Thankfully, there existed a man named Hassel.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen," Hassel said soothingly, and he cleared his throat as he stepped in the middle of the group. "Tonight's for celebration, let's not get too carried away…"

After some more careful talking on his part, the other three settled down to the point where Raihan and Drake actually struck up a conversation about their respective Flygons. Hassel shot me a wink as I passed by, and I offered him a relieved smile in return. I heard a conversation start up between Lance and Hassel as I plopped fried dumplings onto my plate.

"Ah, you're… Hassel Hassaku, yes? The Dragon Master and Elite Four of Paldea?"

Even without looking, I could hear how interested Lance was.

"Yes, that's me. It's a pleasure to talk to you as a fellow Dragon Specialist. I hear you're from a notable Clan of Dragon Tamers here in the Kinjoh Area?"

"…That's right. The Blackthorn Clan. We have a long history as a family of Dragon Tamers, a history that spans hundreds of years in fact," Lance replied. It was hard to miss the pride in his voice.

"That's wonderful. You must be close with your clan members."

Lance didn't respond for several seconds. When he finally spoke, his voice had taken on a more subdued tone.

"I am, though… sometimes with such a large Clan, it's difficult to see eye-to-eye," he said after carefully choosing his words.

"Forgive me if I'm stepping out of line, but would you like to talk about it?" Hassel asked. Oh, here it was. He was using the soothing Hassel voice he saved for important conversations with pupils or friends who needed to get something off their chests. I think he and I both realized Lance had been carrying a lot of burdens lately. "Although the circumstances may be different, I can relate. I come from a Clan of Dragon Tamers as well, and we didn't always see eye-to-eye either. In fact, I eventually left home."

Lance hesitated. "Well…"

With a plate full of food in hand, I walked away. Lance was in good hands with Hassel. I didn't know what exactly Lance was going through, but Hassel was the best person to talk to when it came to venting emotions or needing advice.

I did cast a wayward glance over my shoulder, though, when I heard loud sobbing. Hassel had broken down in tears and was patting Lance's shoulder vigorously. The Indigo Champion looked at him with an absolutely bewildered expression, and I snickered to myself as I turned back around.

I don't think Lance had ever met a Dragon Specialist like Hassel before, someone who felt whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. He was a man who let his emotions run wild because he had the authority to, but that's what made Hassel so respectable.

He knew himself, and he wasn't afraid to show it.

On my way back to my table, I passed by Steven and his father. Surprisingly enough, they were sitting at a table with Opal. I had just said hello and walked up to them when a sudden motion made me blink twice.

Steven nearly dropped his fork. "Excuse me?"

His father was in a state of similar shock as he peered at the phone on the table, or more precisely, the video that was reflected on the screen.

A gigantic cake as tall as a skyscraper waved its arms around happily as an elderly woman posed next to it.

Opal merely smiled as she leaned back in her chair.

"That is a Pokemon, yes."

Steven calmly wiped his mouth with a napkin, but his eyes darted back and forth between Opal's phone and the woman herself.

"How fascinating," he finally said when he was finished. Even as he said that, it looked like he was struggling to keep himself together. "And you said this was because of a certain phenomenon? What kind, if I might ask?"

"Perhaps if we forge more permanent diplomatic relations in the future, our region could share more information at that time," Opal said cordially in the response, and she clasped her hands together with a polite smile. "We have many interesting stories and Pokemon in Galar."

Steven smiled back politely, but he couldn't hide the curiosity burning in his eyes as he clasped his own hands. "My, I hope that time comes to pass sooner rather than later. There are so many intriguing things I wish to inquire about. I'd be happy to talk more about Hoenn culture as well."

They stared at each other with smiling expressions, but for some reason, it looked scary to me… like two leaders pushing for an unseen advantage. Then again, they were masters of Steel and Fairy respectively.

While Steven and Opal went back and forth trading small tidbits of harmless information, Mr. Stone waved me over with an excited expression. I knew what he was going to say before he even opened his mouth.

"The advertisements?" he asked with a childlike gleam in his eyes. Ever the businessman. "My apologies. I know this is a dinner party, but I'm too excited. Your gym's battle hall is stunning! I'd love to have our business logo featured somewhere during matches in the fall."

In a way, I found it funny. A decade later, and I'd gone from the person being sponsored to the one who was giving away spots for company sponsorship.

"I can offer you the central spot in the battle hall to display the Devon Corporation's logo," I conceded, and Mr. Stone smiled. I tried not to smile as I laced my fingers together. "If you want to air ads on our Gym's channel in between breaks, we can discuss that too… for the right price."

Mr. Stone nodded approvingly. His smile sharpened as he leaned back in his chair, all at once transitioning from an excited man to a cool businessman.

"Then how about this?" he asked.

Fifteen minutes later, I walked away with a huge smile on my face and an extremely lucrative deal. The money would keep pouring in from here on out. Bless Mr. Stone's generous soul and his eye for opportunity.

Alright. I was no longer hungry, and I was in the right headspace again for a Pokemon match. It was time to take Alder up on his previous offer—

My good mood disappeared when I spotted said Unova Champion.

His flushed face and the way he swayed slightly in his chair said everything. Just how much did he drink?

More importantly, what about our rematch?!

I stomped up to him asking as much, and Alder hurriedly raised his hands in surrender.

"My bad, I ended up having more than I thought," he apologized with a laugh, but his words slurred a bit. "Can we take a rain check on that match?"

I wanted to hold him up by the collar and shake him back into a more sober state of mind, but I sighed instead and nodded glumly.

"Fine, but you owe me two matches now—"

"ARIN! COME OVER HERE!" Raihan hollered excitedly in the distance. I snapped my mouth shut and turned to look at him. He and the other Dragon Specialists, including Hassel, all had Pokeballs in hand. They waved me over with impatient expressions, and I had a feeling I knew where this was going.

It turned out that yes, they hadn't given up on the idea of fighting each other. Even Hassel was fired up after succumbing to the battle fervor the other Dragon Specialists emitted. We ended up doing an abridged Battle Royal style match in a team format that was fun.

(It was also full of friendly trash talk from all sides, and Drake impressed me once again with the number of expletives in his vocabulary bank.)

So, while I was disappointed about Alder, I at least got my fill of Pokemon battling that night. Even after the impromptu Battle Royal ended, everyone was still fired up enough that we raced with our Pokemon in the skies (anyone who was slightly drunk was forced to sit out).

Winona joined in for that and kicked our asses.

Overall, it was a pleasant party. I got to see people from different regions interact with each other and develop tentative friendships, and it made me hopeful for the future in spite of everything else going on in Indigo.

Eventually, the night of festivities drew to a close. I waved goodbye to everyone, patted the sleeping Poppy's head one last time, and then watched the guests Teleport back to the League HQ or their respective Gyms.

I wasn't too sad watching them go. I knew there would always be chances to meet up again in the future.

Once they were gone, I walked back to the house with dad and all my gym-warming gifts in tow. Both of us were too tired to clean up the picnic tables tonight, so we resolved to do that tomorrow instead.

I don't know how I managed to get through showering and brushing my teeth without falling asleep, but I did. My last thought before I collapsed on my bed and passed out was of the League Circuit in the fall. There was not that much time to prepare yet so many things to do.

Summer, sweet summer was upon us.