Miho Chan
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Chapter 36: Spooky Sequel
🕑 Added 2024-09-01 14:06:29 +0000 UTCIllya ascended to her spot at the podium, letting a smile stretch across her face. “Hello, everyone!” She waved to the crowd, drawing a round of polite applause.
Fantina looked across at her with a smile of her own. “Magnifique, young lady. But no matter how cute you are, I know your strength.” She flicked her wrist, Gengar passing her three new Pokeballs. “I will not underestimate you.”
Illya let her smile transition into a wide grin. “Good.”
“The challenger has two switches available, the gym leader has none. This match will be a three-on-three battle, fought at a fifth-badge level.” The referee raised his flag. “On my signal, both trainers will send out their first Pokemon!”
Illya waited for the flag to fall, then cast her ball forward. “Matilda, you lead!” The Sylveon materialized on the battlefield, tendrils waving, as a Mismagius did the same across from her. The witch ghost reached up with her own ragged cloth arms, touching her hat as if to give it a tip. She then began to cackle softly, dark energy gathering around her mind in the trademark haze of Nasty Plot. “Calm Mind, Matilda.”
The Sylveon responded to the command immediately, eyes closing as she adopted a more meditative stance, her body relaxing as her mind cleared. As both Pokemon ended their setup, Mismagius whipped her arms, sending a pair of Shadow Balls whistling towards Matilda. Responding to her trainer’s command, Matilda expertly intercepted the pair of ghostly orbs, flinging two instances of Mystical Fire from her feelers. For a few moments, both parties simply sat there assessing each other, waiting for the other to make a move; or a mistake.
Mismagius was the first to move, darting to one side as she spun one of her arms, forming a magic circle featuring a lightning bolt. An oddly slow burst of electricity rolled towards Matilda as she launched her own counter-attack, breathing deeply before she screamed, the Hyper Voice commanded by her trainer slamming into the Mismagius despite her best efforts to prevent it. Accepting the Thunder Wave in turn, the Fox grimaced as electricity danced across her limbs, yet…
For some reason, she was grinning.
“Refresh!” Illya called more than a little smugly, her research into the moves her team could learn paying off. She’d wanted the opportunity to do this ever since she’d lost Matilda to a poorly calculated acceptance of a status move during her battle with Roark. It was always a good idea to have a fallback plan, after all~
“Fantastique! Wide-ranging utility, powerful moves; I see why your brother named you stronger than him.” Fantina snapped her fingers, causing Mismagius to vanish into a swirl of purple light. “But then, we knew that.”
Illya narrowed her eyes, not recognizing the move for a moment. Then she called out once again. “Misty Terrain Matilda, and then prepare a-” She paused, then cursed. “No, Protect won’t work… aura sight, and be ready to dodge!”
Matilda looked about, eyes shining blue as she strained to catch a glimpse of her opponent, barely glimpsing Mismagius’ return in time to leap aside, though she was only able to partially avoid the attack. Not about to let her opponent escape before she could get her own licks in, she lashed out, tendrils dragging her opponent in for a kiss, draining her opponent before the Mismagius could break away.
Down below, Illya could barely hear the words spoken by the ghost-type. “Taking a maiden’s purity like that, have you no shame?”
“None whatsoever!” Matilda chirped, reminding the ghost that talking was not, in fact, a free action with a fast Bite to her opponent’s torso. Mismagius responded with a point blank Shadow Ball, hitting her opponent twice before a second bite laid her out into unconsciousness.
As Matilda hopped back, wounded but still able, Fantina returned her signature Pokemon, frowning. “Hmm. I meant to leave him for last, but needs must as the devil drives.” The ref raised his flag, then dropped it as Fantina cast out her second Pokemon. “Go, Dusclops!” The bulky form of the second ghost of Illya’s match materialized.
Illya paused as the ghost manifested, single red eye fixed on Matilda. After a few moments where both sides held their breath, Dusclops’ hands began to move, its hands and eyes glowing pink with psychic energy. In response, Matilda immediately threw up a Protect shield only to tilt her head as the energy vanished, Dusclops bouncing the energy elsewhere.
“Future Sight is set up. Get in close, hammer her with Shadow Punch!” Fantina commanded, her Pokemon darting forward with shadows gathering around both fists.
“Hop into Hyper Voice!” Illya called out.
Matilda hopped up, letting loose a “SYL!” at the top of her jump and letting the recoil from the move push her back. Dusclops hit the pink wave of energy without slowing, the hit staggering but not stopping him from closing to melee with a savage uppercut. Matilda barely managed to retake her feet before Dusclops was on her again, his other fist clipping her as she staggered aside. As he straightened from the second punch, she spotted a black ribbon held around his throat, cradling a pink gemstone. “My queen, that’s…”
Illya grimaced as she recognized the item held by her opponent. “An Eviolite, no wonder he took that hit. Tag out, Baton Pass!” With a pop, Matilda shifted into white light, compacting and bouncing back to her Pokeball. Illya already had a ball ready, tossing it out to accept the inherited boosts. Fubuki materialized over the battlefield, sleeves flapping. The snow woman immediately spun her hands, the roof of the battlefield rapidly obscured by a fluffy layer of dark clouds. Before either side could move further, Fubuki rocked in midair, psychic energy enveloping her as the attack cast into the future found its mark.
As the snow began to fall, Fantina called out. “She’s a fragile one, dearest, and has already taken a hit! Phantom Force, do not let her guard!” Dusclops nodded, vanishing into the shadows, while Fubuki slid into the thickening snow. For a few moments, no one in the audience could see either combatant, before a detonation occurred on one side of the arena. Blue-white met purple-black in a blast of force, Fubuki countering Dusclops’ return with a Blizzard. Duscops landed in a kneeling crouch before standing up, while Fubuki was drifting limply.
Fantina snapped out one last order. “Leech life.” Dusclops slammed one buzzing fist into Fubuki before she could recover, stealing the last edge of her life, and bringing him enough energy to stand solid once again. “Dusclops is a tough one. To be honest, I’d hoped to use him to wear down your Matilda. Bring her back out, and I’m sure–”
“Don’t count out my last teammate,” Illya nearly hissed. “Feebas.” She said, tossing out the small fish, who immediately shaped the melting snow into an Aqua Ring cloak.
“I do not discount her. Thunderpunch!” Fantina called, Dusclops moving to cut through the rising snow with one electrified fist.
The crowd gasped as the punch landed– only to be blocked by Feebas leaping from her water orb to counter with a blue-glowing tail strike, the blow turned aside with grace and ease. Dusclops’ single eye flickered, then it lashed out a second time, Feebas turning the second strike aside with a near effortless leap and swish of her tail. The fish somersaulted, bouncing off her opponent before slamming into him with an Aqua Jet and then bouncing back into her water globe, maneuvering it to stay mobile as Dusclops swung once again.
“...I was not expecting that,” Fantina allowed, Feebas maneuvering her aqua orb while firing Scale Shots to harass her opponent. Dusclops, in contrast to the liquid movements of his opponent, lumbered and stumbled, attempting to close in for an easy knockout but meeting nothing but air. Fantina shook off her confusion, then gave her Pokemon new orders. “That poisson is grace incarnate, Dusclops. Take her at a distance, you’ll not lay a hand on her.”
The little fish couldn’t help but wiggle happily as the comment reached her. “Thank you for the compliment. It’s nice to be recognized by such a–” Feebas’ words trailed off as her fins began to glow a brilliant white. “Oh. Oh wow~”
“Incredible,” Fantina murmured as the light came to a crescendo, watching as the water spilled out on the floor. Milotic uncoiled from her evolution, tail flicking around to catch another Thunderpunch, then retaliated with a slash. “Well done! Beauty in battle is just as magnifique as in a contest!” She frowned as the newly evolved Pokemon attempted a flip and nearly brained herself on the floor. “On the other hand, now she will need to relearn her body type. Hmm.”
“Fee- Milotic, Aqua Tail, smack him around as much as possible!” Illya called out, her newly-evolved dragon-eel responding quickly, lashing out with her tail.
“Fall back, open the range, then Shadow Ball!” Fantina called out in response, Dusclops slipped backwards, the ghost blasted by a shower of Scale Shots as he tried to open the distance. However, even with her awkward new form, the lumbering ghost was too slow to make any meaningful progress through the hail of moves, eventually resorting to using Shadow Sneak to get enough distance to matter. As soon as he pivoted to fire a barrage of ghost attacks, he caught another barrage of cutting scales. He managed to connect with a pair of Shadow Balls before Milotic got back into quarters, sweeping her tail across in another Aqua Tail. Rather than trying to dodge, he retaliated with a Thunder Punch uppercut.
The serpentine Pokemon reeled backward, shaking off the heavy hit with difficulty. Her opponent did not rise from where he’d fallen, the slow build up of strike after strike wearing down even his enhanced bulk. Fantina returned her second pokemon with a smile. “Well done. You are certainly worth five badges in this challenge– perhaps even more.” She lobbed out her last Pokeball as the ref dropped his flag. “Sableye, time for a surprise!”
Milotic almost smiled as the small gremlin appeared, before the little bastard leapt up and smashed his hands together, a flash blinding her while the little ghost leapt forward and bounced off her head. Shaking off the flinch from the Fake Out, Milotic opened her eyes just in time to take a rabbit punch coated in electrical energy. The second Thunderpunch in as many seconds was too much for her; especially after so many Scale Shots, and she collapsed.
The Referee raised his flag. “Challenger is down to her final available Pokemon. This will be the final bout.”
Illya nodded, returning Milotic. Pausing, she whispered to the ball. “You did awesome, Milotic. We’ll have to decide on your name, and celebrate your evolution.” She shrunk the ball down and cast out her last Pokeball once again. “Matilda, finish this.”
The signature, toothy grin on Sableye’s face vanished the second Matlida returned to the field, somewhat recovered from her time off it. “Aw hell. Weren’t you supposed to already be down by the time she called me out?” they squeaked incredulously.
“I’m in no mood to banter, so SHUT UP!” Matilda responded, letting loose a Hyper Voice on the last two words. As Sableye desperately sank into his shadow in an attempt to avoid the sweeper move, Matilda immediately set up Misty Terrain, nullifying her opponent’s follow-up Will-o-wisp. Sableye grimaced, before darting in close with a Shadow Sneak.
Matilda took the hit with a grunt, staggering as the hit took its toll – but the pain wasn’t enough to stop her from wrapping her opponent in her tendrils and leaning in for a kiss. As the Draining Kiss restored her, Sableye’s struggles grew weaker and weaker, until he turned to shadow once again to escape. Emerging from his shadow, panting and stunned, the gremlin looked up to see another wall of pink Hyper Voice roaring towards him. “This is why I hate fairies,” He mumbled seconds before the wave of sound struck him unconscious.
Matilda let out a sigh, her rear hitting the floor as she took a moment to compose herself. She looked up as the Referee raised his flag. “Leader Fantina is out of usable Pokemon! Challenger Illya is victorious!”
Illya returned Matilda, stepping off the podium to walk across to where Fantina awaited her in the center of the arena. The gym leader extended one hand. “This has been a wonderful experience and performance, Illya. Merci.”
Illya smiled at her as she accepted the handshake. “It was a wonderful challenge.” She accepted the badge she was passed, glancing down to peer at Gengar, who gave her a grin. “Between myself and my brother, I don’t think we were as shaken as most people are when exposed to ghosts.”
Fantina gave a chuckle. “Ah oui. Your Fubuki is well-developed.” She accepted several TMs from Gengar, fanning them out. “I believe you heard what options your brother had. So, which move would you like? Froslass cannot learn Shadow Claw, but the others might add some variation to her natural abilities.”
“Will-o-wisp, if you’d please, Leader Fantina,” Illya bowed, giving each of her Pokeballs a gentle pat. “All of them did well, but I really need more moves in my arsenal that afflict my opponents with negative statues.”
“A good choice.” Fantina flicked the disc out of the stack and passed it off to her. “You have done a wonderful job raising your Pokemon, Illya. I wonder if you’ve given any thought to joining the contest circuit? Between the skill and grace you showed with your team and your own appearance, I think you’d do quite well.” She gave a grin. “The battle alone would’ve been worth at least a top eight, anywhere but here. Discounting the evolution, of course; unless you planned it?” Fantina slid the remaining discs back down to Gengar, placing her other hand on one hip.
The albino girl shook her head. “I didn’t plan it, Leader Fantina, and I’m not planning on entering the contest circuit. I want to focus purely on battling this year, and see where I am after the conference.”
“Understandable. One thing at a time, then?” Fantian asked, leading the young lady over towards the box. “Not a poor choice.” She looked up, and for a moment, her smile dropped as she peered Emmanuelle. “Honestly, I’d like to be able to show off the city a bit more for you all, but I have more matches and a performance after. You’re welcome to stay and watch the next match if you’d like,” she offered as some members of the audience rotated out, a trickle of new spectators coming in to fill empty seats.
“I think we both need to get our teams checked out, thank you.” Shirou said as their party rose up, Kiritsugu standing alongside his son.
“Ah, that is fair.” As they began to leave, Fantina coughed slightly as Elle stepped beside her. “While I know it was likely not your intention, I know of how your partner took his second breath.” She looked down at Haboo, who peered back at her with lidded eyes. “You are a magnifique partner, I can tell. But one I would never seek.”
“I’d be worried if you wanted to try,” Elle agreed. “Though, have you had any luck in other methods?”
“It’s not something one tries to pursue. I can at least say the normal methods, Reaper Cloth, Dusk Stones, and the like do not work,” Fantina said quietly. She knelt and ran one hand over the ghost-eevee’s cool back. “Guard your lady well, chevalier.”
“I always have, guide.” They said in response.
--(0)--
The living space of the rented townhouse was crowded, what with the presence of nearly two dozen pokemon and half a dozen humans. As the various Pokemon talked to each other and Shirou held a quiet conversation with Elle, Yagi walked over to the most recently changed Pokemon, gazing up at her with polite attention. “Yosh! I wish I had not missed your evolution, Milotic. It was well-earned.”
The former Feebas nodded her great head, a pleased smile plastered upon it. “Thank you, Yagi. It feels fantastic, having the body I have desired for so long.”
“What does evolving feel like? I am looking forward to it, myself,” Yagi admitted. “Though my transformation is not going to be as… transformative as yours.” He admired the new scales of his friend. “And how long will it take you to adjust to your new body, do you think?”
“Likely the foreseeable future. It will be an adjustment, being able to function fully on land without Aqua Veil, though I do not believe I will fully give up on that quite yet. I have… ideas.” She smiled, wistfully looking towards the sky. “The Magikarp can eventually fly, after all. Why should I not also be able to?”
Yagi’s eyes erupted into blue stars, and he pumped his fists. “I look forward to seeing you soar, Milotic!” He stopped and tilted his head. “Ah, speaking of which… have you put any thought into a new name? Given that you’ve evolved, I can’t imagine you want to keep using Feebas, and the meaning behind it in our tongue.”
“... I have put some thought into it, though like all of Illya’s other Pokemon, I may opt for a nickname instead, Yagi. I haven’t quite decided yet, and would like to get the rest of the court and our allies’ opinions on the matter.” Milotic uncoiled slightly, slithering across the floor towards the buffet Shirou had set up. “And it’s not a decision I need to make right now. Fafnir took her time on her name.”
“I did, and I don’t regret it,” The dragon-shark rumbled. “Have I said it’s good you evolved? It’s nice to have another dragon around,” she said, raising a mug of foaming liquid.
“I don’t count?” Ritsuka said from the couch, his tail lashing.
“You do, but more dragons are always better. Unless they start crowding each other,” the dragon acknowledged.
Shirou ambled over, his conversation finished. “Everyone enjoying themselves? This is going to be our last party for a while; tomorrow is going to be focused on resupplying after dad leaves.” A chorus of affirmatives greeted him like a wave, and with a smile, he waved them over, “Come on, let’s go speak with Illya and dad.”
At his gesture, everyone piled up near the couch, where Illya sat beside Kiritsugu. The man smiled, seeing everyone together. “This has been a wonderful vacation, and it’s…” He paused, then let his head drop. “It’s been good to see you both again. I didn’t think I would, back on Earth, and I’m very happy to be proven wrong.”
Everyone nodded, Illya grabbing her dad’s hand. There was silence for a few moments before the ex-assassin continued. “I almost wish I could stay, but what’s happening in Kalos reminds me of both of terrorism and Magi predation. I don’t know how much you’ve heard–”
“Team Flare, right?” Everyone looked at Isabella, who shrugged. “I keep an ear out for info about Teams in general. We’re too close to Rocket territory for anyone’s comfort, and the clans don’t want anyone similar causing trouble here. Sounds like there’s a lot of them coming out of the woodwork right now,” she said darkly.
“Indeed. Flare needs to be stopped, and our boss has asked us to stay on the case; it seems the investigative skills I use are different enough to circumvent their counter-intelligence.” At the blank looks from half the room, Kerry sighed. “I come at them from angles they’re not used to.”
Illya kicked her legs petulantly. “I wish you could stay longer. I get it, but I don’t like it.” She huffed. “You’d think they wouldn’t need outsiders to do their job for them.”
“Could be Arceus’ fault,” Shirou interjected, Isabella clasping her hands for a moment at the mention of the god’s name. “They put dad in a place he could do good.”
“Maybe,” Elle acknowledged. “Wouldn't be the first time.”
“Getting back on topic, this will be our last night here for some time,” Kiritsugu said firmly. “Hoopa will be here tomorrow to pick us up–”
“Hoopa will be spending the night,” Hoopa said, every eye in the room whipping around to look at the little mythical as he filled a plate from the buffet. “This is very good!”
“...ah, Hoopa, I don’t suppose you’d be willing to bring Papa back sometime?” Illya asked, getting over her shock in seconds. “It’d be nice to see him again sooner than however long it’d take to charter a flight or get a strong enough psychic.”
“Hoopa can do that!” The little ghost said with a grin. “For a full ring cake!” He bit down on a slice of pie. “Shirou is a very good cook. Once a moon, too! Not something Hoopa should do too often, get Palkia mad.”
“I’d be happy to cook for you, Hoopa.” Shirou smiled. “So, this isn’t really good-bye, then. Just ‘see you later’.” He looked back at his dad. “Please stay in touch, old man.” Left unsaid was the same sentiment his sister had voiced days before: and stay alive.
“Of course,” Kiritsugu replied to the words said and unsaid, then stood up, pulling his son into a hug. Letting him go, he looked between them both. “Ah, and I suppose I should ask, do either of you need any money? The hazard pay from our last encounter came through, and I can afford to send you some if you need it…”
As the group collapsed into planning and small talk, Elle gave a tiny smile under hooded eyes. “...family meetings, huh?”
“Yeah, and you’re invited,” Illya said back, shifting to sit beside the older girl. “Dad’s… well, I don’t know if he’s adopted you yet, but I think it’s only a matter of time.”
“...let me think about that, then,” the woman said to her prospective little sister, watching their teams intermingle. “Though on the surface, I don’t think I’d mind.”
