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“Ah…,” Makoto says, calling back his fainted Venusaur. “Looks like you beat me. Congratulations, Rin!”
Rin laughs and raises a victorious fist, mirrored by Combusken in front of him. “Alright! That means it’s time to face the Champion!”
Makoto, a grass-type trainer and breeder, had been the last of this region’s Elite Four leaders, following a bubbly fairy-type trainer, a slightly overdramatic bug-type trainer, and even his old childhood friend Sousuke, now a dragon-type trainer. That battle had been a fun one-- their old rivalry was untarnished by years of separation, and Rin had barely scraped by with a win.
As Rin nods to Makoto and begins heading for the elevator, the other trainer calls him back. “Wait, Rin! Would it be alright if I accompanied you up there? My boyfriend is on that level, and he forgot his bento when he left this morning.”
“Sure,” Rin says, “why not?”
Makoto beams at him gratefully and hurries to walk by his side. “Thank you! Haruka’s so air-headed sometimes… He always remembers to pack a spare swimsuit, but forgets his lunch.”
“Wait, Haruka?” Rin says in surprise, recognizing the name. “Blue eyes? Obsessed with water? That Haruka?”
“Ah,” Makoto laughs, “so you’ve already met him?”
“Yeah! I challenged him to a battle way back near Tottori Town to get him out of this fountain in the middle of the plaza since the police couldn’t, but all he said was that it would be ‘too much effort,’ so he just got out on his own. I’ve run into him a couple times since then, but he still won’t battle me… What a frustrating guy!”
“Yep,” Makoto confirms, green eyes dancing with amusement as they step into the elevator, “that’s definitely him. Even though he doesn’t like battling that often, he almost always beats me, despite my type advantage. Ah, by the way, Rin, I’ve been meaning to ask-- Are all six of the Pokemon with you fire-types? I only saw four during our battle, but…”
Rin straightens his back, pride shining through his voice as he answers what has to be his favorite question. “All of my active battling Pokemon are primarily fire-types! I’m going to be a fire-type gym leader someday, just like my dad was. If I can’t beat everybody with just one type, then that just means I need to get stronger!”
“Really?” Makoto asks. “And you haven’t run into any problems with that strategy? Most gym leaders I know started out with a variety that they narrowed down later…”
Rin gives him a sharp-toothed smile. “I’m just more determined than most!”
Makoto laughs in defeat. “You’ll be a good match for Haru, then. He was the same way.”
“What type did he choose?” Rin asks, interest in his mysterious acquaintance rekindled.
“He--” Makoto is cut off by the soft ding of the elevator as its doors slide open. Rin hurries out, eager to see the arena, just in time to hear the roar of a waterfall being released, soon followed by another that fills the room with a cooling mist. The skylight above them slowly slides open and reveals an array of dazzlingly blue pools, slotting together in organic shapes and surrounded by mosaic tile. Rin almost misses the movement of a figure pulling himself up from one of the biggest pools near the back of the room. Is that…?
“Haru-chan!” Makoto calls eagerly, waving a hand in greeting. Haruka carefully picks his way down the central walkway, a small smile evident on his face. He’s still in the same black jammers Rin saw him in last, which… just makes the situation even more surreal.
“Makoto,” he says in greeting, a hint of affection softening the edges of his monotone inflection. Haruka and Makoto go off into their own world for a minute as Makoto kisses Haruka’s forehead and the bento changes hands, leaving Rin to process what, exactly, is happening here.
The attention finally returns to Rin right as he is about to interrupt and demand an explanation. “Rin,” Haruka says. “Congratulations on making it this far. I’m surprised.”
“Oi…” Rin says, annoyed, though he knows Haruka was just being blunt, not making a veiled insult. Still.
“I apologize for not being ready… My Pokemon and I were taking a swim. I don’t use Pokeballs, so it’s been a while since I’ve seen some of them.”
Rin glares at Haruka’s laidback expression. “Hey, you couldn’t have mentioned you were the champion back when we met? Or any of the times after that?!”
Haruka looks to the side, and Makoto huffs out an exasperated laugh, already knowing the answer. “You didn’t ask…” Haruka mutters. Rin rolls his eyes.
“Is it, like, some sort of rule that regional champions never tell anyone they’re regional champions until you actually battle them? Mikoshiba told me the champion he battled did the same thing.”
“Don’t know,” Haruka says, shrugging and turning back to the water, but not before smiling and waving goodbye to a retreating Makoto. “I just don’t like it because everyone asks for battles. I usually only travel with one or two Pokemon at once, so it’s a hassle.”
“Yeah, what’s up with that?” Rin asks. “No Pokeballs? How do you and your Pokemon get anywhere?”
A vibrantly blue Vaporeon chooses that second to materialize in the pool beside Haruka, chirping and rubbing against his side. Haruka absently strokes it behind its ear fins.
“On land I mostly stay with Vaporeon, since she doesn’t have to swim. The others have underground rivers that lead from this tower to the ocean… It’s not hard for them to keep up with me, considering the amount of water we’re surrounded by here. They come and go as they please, since I never caught any of them.”
Rin stares, thinking he must have misheard. A Milotic surfaces and gently nudges Haruka’s shoulder, asking for a head rub, while a Gyarados splashes around in one of the waterfalls and a Relicanth swims idly in an adjoining pool. Now that Rin’s looking, he notices a Swanna perched on a sleeping Lapras off to the side, and a Mantine giving a ride to a young Mudkip. “You didn’t catch any of these?” Rin asks incredulously. “But how are they… Why are they here, then?” Haruka shrugs again.
“They chose to be here. We’re friends, I think.”
Rin eyes the vicious-looking Gyarados suspiciously. “They’ll battle for you, though?”
“Are you worried for me?” Haruka says, teasing glint in his eye.
Rin smirks. “Just worried about whether or not I should go easy on you.”
“If you’re still using a team of only fire-types, then you should worry more about this battle ending too quickly for it to be fun for you. Now get ready; I still have lunch to eat.”
In the end, Rin only manages to battle two of Haruka’s pokemon before his team is wiped out. It takes four pokemon to defeat Milotic alone, and his remaining Rapidash and Vulpix don’t stand a chance against Vaporeon. The rest of Haruka’s non-combative pokemon cheer uproariously from the sidelines all the while.
“It’s been awhile since they’ve all been gathered here for a battle,” Haruka explains afterward, between bites of fish and rice. "You've gotten farther than most."
Rin dips his legs in one of the pools and pouts sullenly as he administers the potions Haruka had given him. Already, he can see Quilava being approached by a curious Mudkip while Arcanine leaps between pools after Vaporeon. “I want to be the Champion, but I don’t want to drop any of these guys from my team, you know? Most of them have been with me for so long…”
“That winning doesn’t matter if it’s not with them. I know.” Haruka tosses a piece of fish into the mouth of his waiting Gyarados, who roars cacophonously in thanks. “Your team is good, but it will be hard to win with such a narrow selection of move-types. If you want to keep using only one type of pokemon, you have to battle in a freer way. Feel the air around you, and rely on those feelings to win. Move with the tide of the battle, and anticipate the outcome. Fully connect with your Pokemon.”
This is the guy Rin remembers from Tottori Town. He rolls his eyes and huffs out a laugh. “I’m sure that makes sense in your head,” he says good-naturedly.
Now it’s Haruka’s turn to pout. “I don’t see what’s so hard to understand,” he mutters.
Rin finishes packing his backpack and rises to his feet. “Keep telling yourself that, Champion. Next time I come here, though, I’m definitely going to beat you! You better prepare yourself!”
Haruka allows Vaporeon to clamber onto his shoulders before he stands, too. “I’ll look forward to it,” he says, a shadow of a smile turning up the corner of his mouth. “Take care, Rin.”
“Senpai!” Ai calls as soon as Rin is out the front door. Gardevoir hovers protectively behind him, as always. “How did your battles go? Did you win? I’ve heard the Champion is really elusive! What were they like?” Rin laughs at Ai’s anticipatory look.
“I beat the Elite Four, but got stuck on the Champion. I didn’t realize I’d met him before until I saw him in the arena. His pokemon are all water-types.”
Ai winces in sympathy. “Bad luck, Rin-senpai. Are you going to change your team, though? You’ve fought with all of them since I joined you back in Samezuka Village…”
“No way,” Rin says, determination clear in his eyes. Ai smiles. “This just means I need to train more! We can go back to that one beachside town with the cave maze, to face off against more water-types. Plus, I’m sure the gym leader would be thrilled to see you again.”
Suddenly blushing to the tips of his ears, Ai yells out an embarrassed “Senpai! Momo was just being friendly!”
“Sure, sure.” His teasing is put to a stop only by an incoming message on his Poketch from an unknown trainer ID. Rin taps his watch to open it, curious about the sender.
meet up with me at seijurou’s gym. i need a vacation and wouldn’t mind traveling with you for a while. hope that’s okay. --sousuke
see you there, Rin types back almost immediately, hardly realizing he’s smiling until he sees Ai giving him a sly look.
“Don’t even start,” he warns, but Ai only smiles wider.
“Well, senpai,” he says, “it looks like I won’t be the only one meeting up with somebody on the way.”