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It wasn't like Lida to be down for so long.
That was something Yvonne noticed while taking a walk with her Raichu by her side. She found her and her Starmie seated at a café table. Although her Starmie was by her side and she couldn't tell what they were feeling right now, Yvonne guessed that Starmie wanted to help her in some way. Especially after she let out a dejected sigh.
"Lida! Hi!" Yvonne began cheerfully.
That quickly got the girl's attention, and she turned to find her good friend with her Raichu by her side. Raichu greeted Starmie once they approached them.
"Oh! Yvonne!" Lida began with surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I was taking a walk with Raichu and we saw you here," Yvonne explained. "Is something wrong?"
"Oh, don't mind me!" Lida replied with a nervous smile. "Just thinkin' some thoughts. Like about Ansha. She's on her way to achieving her Rayquaza dream! Isn't she impressive?"
The darker-skinned girl and her Raichu looked at one another with concern. Somehow, Lida believed they knew one another so well, it was easy for them to be on the same wavelength. They looked back at Lida.
"Seriously, what's on your mind?" Yvonne asked her. "It's not like you to feel this down."
"Yeah...well..." Lida began.
Once Yvonne took a seat with her Raichu, Lida began spilling what she was thinking about lately.
"I guess I feel...like I'm falling behind," she admitted. "Remember when I told you about my friend and former roommate? How she tried out for a talent agency and got in?"
"Yeah, that's pretty impressive," Yvonne confirmed.
Raichu nodded "yes," wondering where she was going with this.
"Then, there's my brother-well, half-brother," Lida revealed. "We've got different Moms. Sort of like you with your Mom being a Nurse Joy."
"That's right, I told you guys about Mollie. How we're cousins thanks to what Jacinthe revealed after our battle. Anyway, what's he like?"
"Well, I've never met him or talked to him...but his name's Tierno, and he's a successful dancer in Unova. All these people in my orbit are achieving their dreams, and it's like...how come I'm not?"
Yvonne stroked her chin for a moment. True, she started out loving battles, but over time, she felt she began mellowing out. In fact, what she wanted to do the most...it felt like that was starting to change.
"I think you've made strides as both a Trainer and a dancer already," the other girl told her with a smile. "I wanted to take up battles full time at first, but then I realized there was more to being a Trainer than that. Traveling around the world will broaden your perspectives."
"That's very true," Lida said, nodding "yes" to confirm it. "Thanks for saying that. But also, like...you're a pretty great Trainer, too, Yvonne. Confidence comes naturally when you're already doing well, y'know?"
Yvonne never realized this until now, but until Friede suffered an uncertain fate, she was pretty confident in her skills as a Trainer. Even when she realized her own style of battling, she felt she could handle things with her Pokémon and her friends by her side.
A "hoh!" got their attention, and they looked to find Starmie's gem glittering like a rainbow after the rain. That seemed to give Lida some pause for thought.
It took a few seconds, but Lida got an idea.
"Would you do me a favor and battle me, Yvonne?" she requested. "I think a good battle would help me feel more sure of myself."
Raichu squeaked to get his Trainer's attention. The other girl looked to find Raichu nodding "yes" in response.
"We'd be happy to help a friend," she agreed with a friendly smile.