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“You let the wrong people love you, but you don’t see that, do you?” I sing under my breath as I fold Jacinthe’s clean laundry. My bones are practically vibrating from the thrumming of the countless running washers and dryers in Hotel Richissime’s laundry room, but I can still hear my music through my earbuds as I go about my morning tasks. Once I’m done in here, I’ll nip out to make Jacinthe her morning coffee and deliver it to her, then maybe check on Ansha at Hotel Z—just because I trust Harmony and the rest of Team MZ to look out for her doesn’t mean she isn’t still my charge! “When you cry and need my comfort, I drop everything to come—”
BZRRRT! My mumbled sing-along is cut off by what practically sounds like the Ultimate Weapon firing in the hotel lobby, audible over both the laundry machines and music. I drop the clothes I’m holding, rip out my earbuds, and book it out of the laundry room in case there’s an emergency that needs to be attended to. Jacinthe could be in danger! I take the service corridor towards the lobby until I’m right behind the front desk. I peer around the corner into the lobby and see the presumable cause of the noise: Harmony’s Meganium appears to have Mega Evolved right in the hotel lobby. I see Jacinthe’s Carbink looking dazed as they desperately attempt to reorient themself in the center of a circular scorch mark on the lobby’s otherwise-pristine white marble floor, which tells me that they just got hammered with a Mega-Sol-powered Solar Beam and only hung on thanks to Sturdy.
I let out a breath I didn’t even notice I was holding as I realize that there’s no danger menacing Jacinthe—she’s just gotten embroiled in a Pokémon battle. But why the fuck are Harmony and Jacinthe battling in the lobby, for Rayquaza’s sake? We have a battle arena in this very building! Just as I’m about to barge into the lobby to figure out what’s going on, I realize that Harmony and Jacinthe aren’t the only ones battling, so I hang back to observe and gather more information.
“Vaporeon, Surf!” yells one of Harmony’s Team MZ friends—Lida, the one who’s part Hoennian, like me. I wince as water swamps the lobby, imagining the potential damage to the carpets and furniture. Meganium shrugs off the Water-type spread attack, but it easily finishes off Jacinthe’s Carbink and also drops the fourth Pokémon in the room, a Camerupt, in a single hit.
“Tch.” I recognize the annoyed woman recalling Camerupt as the barista from Nouveau Café—Griselle, I think? She turned out to be one of those ex-Flares who still clings to the team name, as if it wasn’t permanently tainted by all the attempted genocide and whatnot, but she did help out with the whole Prism Tower situation, I guess. “Burn ‘em down, Metagross!” she snarls.
I narrow my eyes at Griselle as she sends out her second Pokémon—the metallic, spider-like Metagross whose name she just called. Its claws shred through the carpet and dig into the marble floor beneath, cracking it. Ugh, this lobby is going to be wrecked by the time this battle is over, and I just know I’m going to have to be involved in cleaning it up somehow.
“Go on, Sylveon. Dance elegant circles around them!” Jacinthe calls, releasing her most recently acquired Pokémon, who I can’t help but smile at. I spent a lot of time playing with Sylveon when she was just an Eevee, and Sylveon’s close friends with my Altaria, who hatched from her egg around the same time as Jacinthe bought Sylveon from a breeder. Sylveon stares down Lida’s Vaporeon, the two Eeveelutions bristling at each other.
Sylveon’s Hyper Voice shrieks through the room, damaging both Vaporeon and Meganium and making my ears ring, but I barely pay attention to the ongoing Multi Battle, instead scanning the room for any clue as to why Griselle is here, why Jacinthe is in the lobby instead of her office, and why this battle is happening. As Meganium blasts Metagross with a Fire-type Weather Ball, my eyes alight on a tray with a single Nouveau-Café-branded cup of coffee resting on it that’s been set down on a low coffee table. Did Jacinthe… order coffee delivery? Was I too slow making her coffee and bringing it to her? I could’ve sworn I was exactly on-schedule with my morning routine!
Lida’s Vaporeon Flip Turns out into Starmie while I reassess my morning’s timeline. Griselle sends out Pyroar, and both of the new arrivals to the room Mega Evolve simultaneously while Griselle says something dumb about how she’s just got to win this battle, even though she’s been getting absolutely smoked so far. Pyroar uses Heat Wave to cook Harmony’s Meganium while also dealing chip damage to Starmie, then it falls to Mega Starmie’s Liquidation. That chip is enough for Sylveon’s Choice-Specs-boosted Pixilate Hyper Voice to blast Starmie into unconsciousness—especially because without Meganium on the field to share any of the damage, Starmie takes the full brunt of the attack.
I guess the trainers must have settled on using three Pokémon each for this battle, as Griselle doesn’t send out her Talonflame or Aerodactyl—instead, Sylveon alone faces down both Lida’s Vanilluxe and Harmony’s Gholdengo when they emerge into the lobby. Snow begins to form near the ceiling and fall, blanketing the floor—that can’t be good for the already-waterlogged furniture.
“Vanilluxe, Blizzard!”
“Chestly, Nasty Plot!”
I start to giggle at the ridiculous nickname Harmony has for her Gholdengo before cutting myself off when I remember that I’m trying to hide. Dang, though, Harmony—Chestly? Maybe you’re the one who’s Nasty.
Lida’s Vanilluxe must be Specs just like Sylveon is, because Sylveon drops to the Blizzard even though she’s only taken a light Flip Turn so far. That leaves Jacinthe’s last Pokémon, Clefable, in a two v one. I know from experience just how tough Clefable is, and Jacinthe knows better than to Mega Evolve her out of her pure-Fairy, Unaware base form into a Flying-type with Magic Bounce in front of an Ice-type and a boosted ‘mon, but this battle is over regardless. Clefable isn’t faster than either of Team MZ’s Pokémon, and she quickly falls to the double-up of Blizzard and Make It Rain.
“What a truly magnificent battle! I applaud you and your victory!” Jacinthe says, clasping her hands in delight as her eyes sparkle at a battle well-fought. I fight off the bitter twinge in my stomach that I wasn’t the one to put that look there. Battling Harmony is fun—I look forward to our Infinite Z-A Royale matches myself, and she’s definitely a better trainer than me. If Jacinthe wants to battle Harmony instead of me, I can’t fault her for that. I just wish it had been me instead of Griselle supporting her.
Speaking of Griselle, she looks down and sighs. “Our teamwork wasn’t very strong to begin with,” she says.
Gee, yeah, ya think? Talk about Least Valuable Player—every single one of her Pokémon got one-shot, and only Pyroar even got an attack off. If I’d been there, I could’ve pressured that Meganium with Noivern’s Flying moves to keep its attention off of Jacinthe’s Carbink, or I could’ve given Tyrantrum a Choice Scarf and gone for flinches with Rock Slide to generate free turns for Jacinthe’s strong-but-slow attackers. Amateur showing from Griselle, really—I lean forward in my hiding spot, waiting for Jacinthe to tear into her and put her in her place.
“Alors, it appears we have lost,” Jacinthe starts. Then Griselle cuts her off. Oh, you’re in for it now, coffee girl.
“Blame me. We could’ve won if I’d understood your Clefable better,” Griselle says. I guess if she was gonna jump in with anything, a preemptive apology wasn’t a bad choice—but interrupting Jacinthe was still a bad play to begin with.
Jacinthe’s eyes widen and her mouth opens in a shocked expression at Griselle’s interruption. Oh boy, here it comes! “If we are apportioning blame, there certainly are things for which I must apologize as well,” she says.
Wait. What?
“How about we call it a good match and leave it at that?” Griselle asks, smiling at Jacinthe and offering her fist for a bump.
“You are welcome to join and compete in Le Super Tournoi de Jacinthe Infinite anytime, my dear,” Jacinthe replies, taking Griselle’s fist with one hand and gently pressing the knuckles of her other to it in an odd hybrid of handshake and fist bump.
“Ha, as if! I’m busy—I have an actual job. You come to the café if you want to battle me!” Griselle says, razzing Jacinthe with a smile.
“What the heck is going on here?” Oops, I didn’t mean to say that out loud. Harmony and Lida both look up and make eye contact with me from where I’m leaning out of my hiding place. I gesture frantically at them, trying to convey that they shouldn’t draw attention to me.
“By the by, what brings two Team MZ members to Hotel Richissime?” Jacinthe asks. I’m more interested in what brought this Team Flare hussy here, but I guess I have been wondering that too.
“Uh, we… um…” Lida fumbles as she tries (and fails) to not stare at me. “Help, Harmony!” she whispers harshly, giving up entirely.
“We’re here to investigate something,” Harmony says with a firm nod and her usual dopey grin.
“Business regarding Hyperspace Lumiose, no doubt! Thank you for working to keep us all safe. Should you encounter trouble, I am happy to lend my support!”
Harmony and Lida both beam at Jacinthe.
“Now, moving on…” Jacinthe starts. “There is no use in hiding, Lebanne. Come on out.”
Uh oh.
~~~
“Fire Blast!”
Altaria chirps and gathers fire in her mouth. Jacinthe’s Mega Mawile readies an Iron Head and prepares to attempt a dodge, but Altaria tracks her movements precisely and nails her with a fireball. Mawile cries out in pain as the Fire Blast erupts into its signature five-pointed explosion, superheating her metal body, then she faints and reverts to her base form. Jacinthe claps delightedly and withdraws her final Pokémon. Altaria files over to me, nuzzling into my hand as I pet her. Her fluffy down recedes to a more manageable volume as her Mega Evolution ends.
“Most wonderful, Lebanne—that’s twenty-six wins, non? More than a quarter of the way there!” Jacinthe says. After she’d called me out into the lobby the other day, she lectured me about letting Ansha stay with Team MZ instead of me and told me I had to win against her a hundred times in a row to earn forgiveness. Thankfully, we’ve been doing three-on-three battles instead of using our full teams. I still haven’t beaten her even once in a serious match with all five of my Pokémon against all six of hers, so if she wanted to do full battles, I’d be in the doghouse eternally. Even with the number advantage eliminated, though, I suspect Jacinthe is going easy on me based on my win streak.
“Twenty-six, yeah,” I sigh. I get out my Revives, Max Elixirs, and Full Restores. “Shall I heal our Pokémon for round twenty-seven?”
“What’s wrong, dearest?” Jacinthe asks.
I look up from my healing items, startled. “Huh? What do you mean, what’s wrong?”
“I just… I thought you would be enjoying this more? Battling together?” Jacinthe asks. “Le Super Tournoi de Jacinthe Infinite, it is our thing, is it not?”
My eyes widen slightly. Damn, she’s perceptive. “No, yeah, I love battling with you, Lady Jacinthe,” I explain. “I kind of think of the Super Tournoi as our thing, too. And I mean, I get why you invited Harmony to do it with you back before all this Hyperspace stuff started happening. She’s the savior of the city, the winner of the Z-A Royale, the strongest Mega Evolution user. She can beat you in a full battle and I can’t…” I mutter that last sentence under my breath, letting it trail off, then I continue: “I just don’t get why you’d invite Griselle of all people to do the Super Tournoi with you. She totally choked that Multi Battle. I could stomp her no problem—heck, I’m a punk, she’s a fascist, beating her would be a delight for me. And why were you so buddy-buddy with her after she threw that battle for you?! What can she give you that I can’t?”
Jacinthe raises an eyebrow as I rant, then her face breaks out in a beatific smile. “My dearest Lebanne… could you be… jealous?”
“What? No!” I deny, blushing furiously.
Jacinthe strides over to me and strokes my flushed cheek with her gloved hand. “Ah, cherie, pink does look good on you,” she says. “But you appear to have some misconceptions. I think you of all people should understand just how completely people can change, non? We should not judge Griselle too harshly for her past, considering all she has done to atone for it. Rather than a fascist and a punk, it would be more accurate to say you are a barista and a lovely, wonderful maid.”
“Still,” I grumble. “There’s no way she’s a better trainer than me. Why would you ever need to partner with her for a Multi Battle? And why would you ever want to battle against her in the Super Tournoi? You can ask me instead. For either. Any time.”
Jacinthe boops my nose with a finger and I sputter. “Perhaps now you know how I felt when you battled Harmony and Naveen alongside Gwynn, instead of me?” she says.
“It was for Miss Ansha,” I protest weakly. “I wasn’t gonna go all the way back to Hotel Richissime to try to find you when Miss Ansha was missing!”
“You shouldn’t have let her go missing in the first place,” Jacinthe says primly.
“Her partner Pokémon makes wormholes! How was I supposed to stop her from leaving?” I complain.
“I’m sure you could have thought of something,” Jacinthe says. “You are my best employee, after all.”
I blush again.
“Speaking of which, it appears necessary for me to clear something up for you, my dearest Lebanne," Jacinthe says, putting her hands on her hips. "Tell me: how many Pokémon does Harmony have?”
“Doesn’t she work for the director of the Pokémon Research Lab? So probably hundreds, if you count her PC Boxes. I don’t know how many are fully trained and battle ready, but it’s gotta be more than six—she didn’t have Chestly the Gholdengo during the Ange crisis,” I say, trying to keep a straight face when I say the silly nickname.
“And how many Pokémon do I have?”
“Six, my lady.”
“How many Pokémon do you have, dearest?”
“Five.” I’m not really sure where Jacinthe is going with this.
“Do you understand my point?”
“No?” I say, hesitantly.
Jacinthe sighs and reaches out, patting my cheek condescendingly. “I am saying that Harmony has an indisputable advantage when it comes to full battles. That she is able to beat me in a six-on-six, usually with at least one Steel-type on her team, says nothing about her skill in comparison to yours, when you are battling me five-on-six with only Dragon-types. Comparing you to her would be like comparing des pommes et des poires.”
I start to protest, excuses filling my mind about how I should be able to win anyways if I’m actually good enough, but Jacinthe shushes me before I can start my self-deprecation.
“And besides,” she says. “Harmony may have a positive win record on me, but I’ve never even used Mega Mawile against her. I save the full extent of my Huge Power for you, my dearest.” She winks at me.
I fall silent, opening and closing my mouth wordlessly a couple times like a beached Magikarp gasping for air. My face turns from pink to red, no doubt increasing my resemblance to the Fish Pokémon.
Jacinthe takes a moment to grin at my speechlessness, appreciating her own work. Then she continues. “As for Griselle, you need not worry—while I would not mind battling her, I invited her to Le Super Tournoi merely so we can converse. I imagine you did not see the beginning of our conversation, before she insulted me with her incorrect coffee opinions and Team MZ arrived?”
“No, Lady Jacinthe,” I confirm. “So, you didn’t order delivery coffee from her?”
Jacinthe scoffs. “Why would I ever do such a thing when nothing she serves out of her truck could ever come close to the perfect cup you make, my dearest?”
I beam, relief filling me as my earlier anxieties are put to rest.
“No, Griselle came to me with that inferior coffee as an offering. She wanted, ah, how to put it… girl talk? Love advice? Romantic commiseration?” Jacinthe fishes for the correct phrasing, looking upwards and tapping a finger on her chin with her left hand while she cradles her left elbow with her other hand.
“Huh?” I ask eloquently.
“She was hoping for my guidance in her romantic travails," Jacinthe expounds, making eye contact with me. "Did you know she’s been trying to get the savior of Lumiose into a collar? Or at least a Nouveau Café apron.”
“Wait, Griselle has a crush on Harmony?” I ask, intrigued by the prospect of hot goss. Then my brain catches up to the rest of Jacinthe’s words. “Oh, ew, TMI!” I say, waving my hands back and forth in front of my face. “Eugh, I do not need to know that Griselle is into pet play and unhealthy workplace dynamics. That’s between her and Harmony, I guess. And you? Why is she going to you for advice on this?!”
“That’s obvious, n’est-ce pas?” Jacinthe asks, reaching up to adjust my Key Stone bowtie. “She came to me because I already have the girl I like in a collar.”