Early the next morning, after finishing breakfast, Nova called all his partners together. The six Pokémon sat in a neat row outside the tent, munching on Berries and waiting for Nova to lay out the day's training plan.
But Nova did not begin training right away. Instead, he sat cross-legged in front of them, holding his Rocket Backpack, and looked at each of them with a serious expression.
"There's a thief among us."
The partners froze.
"Last night, an Everstone I had stored in this backpack went missing," Nova said, opening the bag. The collection of low-grade stones inside was untouched, but only a single Everstone remained where there had been two before.
"We're in the middle of the wilderness," Nova continued. "There's nothing for dozens of kilometers in every direction. It had to be one of you. So, who was it?"
After saying that, Nova let his gaze rest on Nidoking.
Nidoking snorted and crossed his arms. Why are you looking at me? If I had gone through that bag, there wouldn't be anything left. I'd have chewed through the whole lot.
Nova shifted his eyes to Corviknight.
Corviknight ruffled his feathers. Don't drag me into this. I've already reached my final form. What use would I have for that thing?
Nova then looked over at Growlithe.
Growlithe let out a sharp bark. It wasn't me! If I had done it, the place would be a complete mess. You think I'd rummage through one bag and leave everything else alone?
Nova turned his gaze to Sprigatito.
Sprigatito held her chin high and looked away. It certainly wasn't me. If I want something from Nova, I simply ask for it. What is there that I can't get?
Nova held back a smile and glanced at Marshtomp.
Marshtomp shook his head. Definitely not me. I just evolved. Why would I need a stone like that?
Finally, Nova looked at Lapras.
Lapras tilted her head. Me? Really? I don't even remember touching your bag. And our species doesn't evolve anyway, so I'd have no reason to.
Nova let out a quiet laugh. "Interesting. You all make a convincing case. But one of you is lying."
Who is it? they all seemed to wonder at once.
Nova said nothing more on the matter. He sent the other five off to begin training and kept only Sprigatito behind.
The little Grass Cat paced nervously on the sand, her small paws pressing soft prints into the ground.
Nova reached out his hand toward her. "Hand it over."
Sprigatito knew she had been found out. She stopped pretending, puffed out her cheeks, let out a quiet hmph, and turned her head away with an air of wounded dignity.
Nova crouched down, gave her head a firm, affectionate rub, and then scooped her up into his arms.
"It's fine," he said. "If you don't want to evolve right now, then you don't have to. I'm sure you have your reasons, and you don't need to explain them to me. No matter what you decide, or what you end up looking like, you'll always be my Sprigatito."
Sprigatito had braced herself for a scolding. She had even resolved that no matter what he said, she would never give up the Everstone. It was too important.
But Nova didn't press her. He simply let the matter go and quietly allowed her to keep it. The kindness caught her off guard, and even as warmth spread through her chest, a small knot of guilt followed close behind.
The truth was, she had been ready to evolve for ten days now.
Back then, Nova had been busy flying all over the region searching for Pokémon with the Damp Ability, and he rarely had time to check on her. Sprigatito's growth had been swift. The moment she hit Level 16, she felt it clearly, a deep, stirring change moving through her body like a current she couldn't name.
But she had pushed it back. Using every bit of her will, she had suppressed the evolutionary instinct and kept even the faintest glow of Evolution Light from escaping. She couldn't let Nova notice.
That alone said something about her. Even Bulbasaur from the old tales, who was well known for resisting evolution, had only managed to hold it back after the Evolution Light had already burst out. Sprigatito had stopped it before it even began.
Nova had noticed she seemed a little quiet during those days, but he assumed it was tiredness from all the travel.
The real reason was simpler and far more important to her. If she evolved, she would no longer be small enough to ride on Nova's shoulder. For Sprigatito, that thought alone was unbearable.
The feeling had only grown stronger after watching Marshtomp's evolution the day before. Mudkip had evolved, grown larger, and now had to walk on his own rather than being carried. She had watched carefully and made up her mind.
Every moment of closeness with Nova was something she treasured. The warmth of sitting on his shoulder, the steadiness of being held, these things meant everything to her. The thought of losing that felt like losing the best part of her days.
She didn't want to evolve. She had begun to quietly resent even the part of herself that could.
But Pokémon were made to grow. That was simply their nature. And as her level climbed higher, Sprigatito noticed with growing unease that holding back was becoming harder. The evolutionary pressure built with each passing day, and she was quietly terrified that one day she might lose control of it entirely.
Then, yesterday, Nova had pulled the Everstone from his bag and mentioned it by name. Something in her lit up at the sound of it.
There's actually something like that in the world.
She hadn't wasted a moment.
Sprigatito knew, of course, that Nova had high hopes for her. She understood he saw her as a future ace. But she had also seen what that looked like up close. Nidoking was Nova's strongest partner, and yet Nova was always careful to keep a certain distance when interacting with him. Nidoking was simply too large. A casual flick of his tail could send someone flying before either of them even realized what happened.
If becoming an ace meant giving up the small, quiet closeness she had with Nova, then Sprigatito wanted no part of it.