"Ah..." "Finally, we're back."
Saturday, April 15.
After two months of observation, Eevee had shown zero abnormal symptoms and was officially cleared as a "non-hazard" to society. Owen and his team were finally allowed to return to Fairview.
The only people who knew about Owen's discharge were his parents and a few key members of the Fairview Trainer Association. It was Ethan who personally drove to Aurelia to pick him up.
"Two months away and you've gotten a bit rounder, haven't you? Was the food that good over there?" Ethan joked, glancing at Owen and Eevee in the backseat.
"Way better than the Fairview No. 1 cafeteria," Owen sighed. "If we do well in this tournament, do you think the school will upgrade the menu?"
"Uh..." Ethan hadn't expected that. "You're about to graduate anyway."
"Oh, right." Owen blinked. He really had been training too hard. "Well, I guess I could do it for the sake of the underclassmen."
"If you perform well enough and make a request to the board, I'm sure they'd consider it," Ethan said.
Owen waved it off. "Forget it, too much trouble."
"Vee..." Eevee sighed. Poor underclassmen, stuck with a senior like you.
After a moment of silence, Ethan spoke up. "Leo and the others are training at school right now. With the competition so close, they've spent most of their energy on team coordination.
Since you missed all the group drills, it'll be hard for you to blend in immediately. Once we get back, I want to personally test how much you've grown."
Owen nodded. "Fair enough."
Upon arriving in Fairview, they headed straight to the Trainer Association. Zoe was already there waiting.
Having two professional trainers evaluate him at once was a bit of a surprise, but Owen understood: Zoe was the lead on the "Rising Star Project." She needed his updated data to rebuild the team strategy.
Ethan drove them to a private battle arena. "We'll do this as a Guiding Battle. Zoe, you handle the data analysis."
A Guiding Battle is a match where a much stronger trainer guides a weaker one to expose their flaws. Owen was used to these from his sessions, so he knew exactly what to do: go all out.
Eevee, however, was less than thrilled. Even as a Pokémon, she preferred "noob-stomping" over getting schooled. She hopped off Owen's shoulder and looked at Ethan, hoping he wouldn't use a Fire-type. Her fur took forever to groom.
"Go, Charizard!!"
Eevee: "..."
ROAR!!!!
As the massive, winged lizard stomped onto the field, Eevee shook her head. Even though she knew this specific Charizard had helped save her before, it didn't look very friendly today.
"Charizard, huh..." Owen looked at the majestic beast. Still the coolest... but man, the resources needed to raise one are terrifying.
Charizard puffed a tiny strand of fire at Eevee and beckoned her with a claw. A clear provocation.
"Vee~" Eevee pouted. She stuck out a paw and mimicked the gesture, throwing a Swagger move into the mix for good measure.
The effect was instantaneous. Charizard's eyes widened, and the flame on its tail surged, turning a brilliant blue-white. It began condensing a Dragon Rage in its maw, the energy fluctuation so intense that Eevee actually shuddered, immediately regretting her sass.
"Charizard! Stand down!" Ethan barked. Charizard snapped out of it, scratching its head in confusion.
"What was that?" Ethan was shocked. He knew his Charizard's tail flame turned blue when it was truly enraged, but for a rookie's Pokémon to provoke it that easily...
"Swagger. It's one of Eevee's biggest gains from the hospital stay," Owen explained.
Ethan signaled Zoe to record that. Both professionals knew what a Swagger of that caliber meant: it could shatter an opponent's rhythm in an instant, creating a massive opening for a team.
After the initial spat, the battle truly began. Eevee charged in with Return. To Ethan and Zoe, it looked like an incredibly high-speed Quick Attack or Take Down.
Swoosh!!
Eevee was a blur, kicking up dust. Her Return had improved in both speed and power. Owen's bond with her had deepened during the crisis, and her newfound control over "emotional energy"—learned while fighting the R-drug—made the move more efficient.
Charizard raised a claw, wreathed in flames, and swung a Fire Punch. Eevee zigzagged, trying for a flank, but Charizard's experience was too vast. The Fire Punch met Eevee head-on.
BOOM!
The collision sent a shockwave through the arena. Charizard's arm muscles actually rippled from the impact, and it looked at Eevee with genuine surprise. Then, with a casual flick of its tail, it swatted Eevee away.
"Ptooey..." Eevee rolled to a stop and spat out some dust, glaring at Charizard's tail. Cheater. Using your long tail to bully me.
"Her power and speed have reached this level?" Zoe muttered, typing furiously. Compared to Leo's Munchlax or Sarah's Growlithe, Eevee was on a completely different plane of existence.
A Fire Punch from a professional's Ace would have sent the others flying instantly; Eevee had actually held her ground for a second.
Three minutes later, Eevee was panting while Charizard stood unscathed.
"Is that everything?" Ethan asked. Knowing Owen, he felt there was a "but" coming.
"Of course not," Owen grinned. "One more move. But Ethan, you have to let Charizard stand still for a moment to see it."
"???" Ethan agreed, curious.
"Eevee, use that."
Eevee split into two using Substitute. The two Eevees hined together, condensing a dark orb that the professionals recognized immediately.
"Shadow Ball?" Ethan was confused. He'd seen her use that already.
Then the orb began to hum. It spun violently, its structure vibrating. Then, the Substitute used Helping Hand. The unstable, rotating energy suddenly solidified and compressed into a small, dense sphere of pure destruction.
Eevee flicked her tail, and the Spiral Shadow Ball screamed toward Charizard.
ROAR!
Charizard felt a genuine threat. It unleashed a Flamethrower to intercept. When the two met, the Shadow Ball didn't just explode—it tore through the fire, the "devouring" vortex shredding the flames as it continued toward the lizard. Charizard had to significantly increase its output to finally neutralize the attack.
Silence fell over the arena.
"Substitute and Helping Hand?" Zoe stood up, eyes wide. "Multitasking? A lateral application of a support move? Is this kid really a rookie?"
Ethan crossed his arms. "It's powerful, but it takes several seconds to prep. In a 1v1, a fast opponent would disrupt you before you could finish."
"I know," Owen admitted. "If I want it faster, the range drops significantly."
"It's enough," Zoe interrupted, her mind already racing with new tactics. "I see it now. We don't need you to blend into the team, Owen. We need the team to revolve around you. They just need to buy you those few seconds of cover."
She looked at the data and offered a silent prayer for Fairview's upcoming opponents. Between a mental-shattering Swagger and a vortex-like Spiral Shadow Ball, Owen was bringing a tactical nightmare to the high school league.
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