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Chapter Text

"We seriously have a moon base?" asked Steven. "Not us, but Pink Diamond did" said Bismuth "Earth was supposed to be Pink Diamond's Colony, all Diamonds usually put bases on their colonized planet's moon...if applicable."

"So...let me get this straight...you guys aren't here for me?" asked Peridot. "Who are you?" asked The Lead Ruby (Let's call him "Doc") "Nobody, nobody in particular" Peridot said innocently.

"Well get out of here, Nobody! Now, come on, Jasper! Let's get onto the ship, bring your prisoners!" said The Ruby with a gem on her eye (Let's call her "Eyeball")

"Why yes, of course, come along you worthless Crystal Gem Scum and dirty humans!" Amethyst threw her voice to her Zoroark, disguised as Jasper. 

Amethyst had Zoroark use it illusion ability to disguise itself as Jasper while Amethyst did Jasper's voice using ventriloquism. 

"Jasper" pointed to the ship, prompting The gems, Steven and Connie onto the ship, everyone playing along, even Bismuth who admired Amethyst's cleverness.

The gems, Steven and Connie all took a seat on the ship. "Oooh! Jasper! You're so strong and fearsome!" Pearl said in a faux submissive tone.

"Oh, Jasper, she overpowered us" Connie said in a faux dramatic. "Yes, please don't hurt us mere humans" said Steven.

"Oh good, you bought humans for The Zoo! They look juvenile but they'd make a great breeding pair once they reach full maturity!" said The Ruby with the gem on her arm (We'll call her "Army") 

Steven and Connie looked at each other uncomfortably while blushing. 

"Here, have a seat over here, Jasper!" said Doc "why don't you do the honors of flying the ship?" Amethyst and Jasper approached the pilot's seat awkwardly.

"Hey! Get back where you were, prisoner!?" asked Army. "Oh, her? She's my personal punching bag! That's all" Amethyst said doing an impression of Jasper as Zoroark copied the mouth movements

"Oh! That makes sense" said Eyeball "she looks like a puny overcooked gem! The Crystal Gems love taking in imperfect gems!"

"Anyway, take your seat, Jasper" said Doc. "Uh...why don't you pilot the ship and you can sit on my lap?" asked "Jasper" "You! You mean it! Sitting on the lap of a celebrated soldier like you!? It would be an honor!" Doc excitedly responded.

Zoroark in the form of Jasper sat down on the pilot chair as Doc sat on its lap. But it sat down a bit too hard, almost enough to break Zoroark's illusion.

Zoroark's illusion ability could only be undone by damage or minor impact such as someone suddenly hopping on its lap. But luckily Zoroark managed to hold true to its willpower and keep the illusion going.

Eyeball was looking on at Doc's seat in envy as Doc began pressing all necessary buttons to get the ship moving. And soon the ship took off.

"There...there's air inside the moonbase, right?" Steven whispered to Pearl. "Yes, all moonbases are equipped with an artificial atmosphere" said Pearl "which is odd, since we don't need to breath."

"Is oxygen a part of that atmosphere?" asked Connie. "Don't worry, it's fine, you'll be able to breath just fine" said Bismuth. "Hey! No talking back there!" said The Ruby with a gem on its navel "Did I say that right?"

"Yeah, but this time a little louder, sound like an actual soldier" said Army. 

The trip was silent but rather short "Alright, we're here!" said Leggy. "Already? That was fast, I thought it would have taken four days to get to the moon" said Connie. 

"Only with primitive rocket based spacecrafts" said Peridot. "Alright, taking us into the Moon Base, our ship should be juuuuust the right size to fit in" said Doc. 

The Wandering Eye flew in through the doors of a rather beautiful tower on the moon's surface. 

As soon as the ship was inside and the doors automatically shut behind the ship, it landed and it opened.

"I can't believe I'm on the actual moon" said Connie "I wonder why none of this was reported on the moon landing?

*55 years ago, Mossdeep Space Center*

"So, about these photos the astronauts took on the moon?" asked one of the scientists. "Don't, a structure on the moon, manmade or otherwise would cause mass panic" said The chief of the space center at the time.

"Well, we can't just keep these hidden, someone's bound to find them and leak them" said another science "I hear that they're working on an interconnected network that will connect all computers, and that computers will eventually be in every home, those photos are bound to become public knowledge!"

"Which is why we're sending them to the bogus magazine, The Rumor Mill, along with fake blueprints for a TV set that will make people think the moon landing was faked" said The Chief "The best way to hide classified information is to publish it in the most bogus publication you can think of, that way nobody in their right mind will ever believe it." 

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"This is so cool!" said Steven as he made a leap in the air, forgetting that he was a prisoner. At first, Connie thought Steven was using his floaty powers again, but then she remembered she was on the moon!

This sudden realization made Connie want to join in on the fun, jumping in the air too, higher than she would have on Earth, thanks to the moon's lighter gravity.

"Ah! The Prisoners are escaping!" said Army "Get 'em!" All the Rubies tried jumping up to catch Steven and Connie were both jumping hire than they were, laughing all the while.

They may have been a pre-teen and a teenager, but they were acting like children in a bouncy castle they were having so much fun. 

"Curses! It's because their bodies don't adapt to the gravity of whatever celestial body their on! Cursed humans!" Doc cursed. 

Zoroark, still using its illusion ability to disguise itself as Jasper, leapt up in the air and caught Steven and Connie and carried it in its under arms. 

It looked to Amethyst and the other gems for approval but noticed they looked shocked, and Pearl and Peridot were facepalming. 

The fact that Zoroark was affected by the moons lighter gravity may have exposed it! Zoroark looked at the rubies nervously but noticed them cheering her.

"Yay! Jasper!" "You showed 'em humans!" "Only you would overcome that handicap to capture them!" and other such praiseful words were all being bellowed out.

"Ahem! Um, yes, I'm just thaaaaat good!" said Amethyst, providing a voice for Zoroark. 

"Anyway, the stairs should be right around...here!" Eyeball pressed on a panel in the wall, causing stairs to sprout out of triangular panels in the wall.

Peridot looked all around in wonder "Ah! They're all here! The Diamonds! The Matriarchs of our Empire! There's Blue Diamond! Ah! And there's...ah! My Diamond!"

"She ain't your Diamond no more you rebel scum!" said Doc. "Oh...Right..." Peridot sighed. Bismuth had seen this with some new recruits, there were gems who joined up that still retained some admiration for their diamonds, it took a while for that to fully wear off.

"Yup, all the Diamonds are depicted here in the murals on these walls, especially her" said Eyeball "the one Diamond you and I were made to serve, Jasper." 

Amethyst had no idea what the heck the Eyeball Ruby was talking about but she had to keep up this ventriloquist act.

"Um...yes...her, um, could you remind me...if you don't mind?" Amethyst threw her voice as Zoroark moved its Jasper lips in sync.

"Ah yes, you were there too" said Eyeball "you admired her the most out of all of Pink Diamond's court. You were the most loyal out of all of us. Of course the memory is too difficult for you to bear."

Garnet and Pearl froze at the very mention of that name. Steven wasn't ready to know about Pink Diamond! They were going to tell him about her, but they were saving that for when he was old enough.

"What memory?" asked Navy. "You can't be serious! Do none of you remember!? It was the reason Era 2 exists!" Eyeball scolded.

"Era 2? Just what the heck are these Homeworld lackeys talking about?" asked Bismuth.

"Pink Diamond, The Earth was supposed to be her colony...but then one of her quartzes went rogue, and that quartzes rebellious ways spread like some sort of...thing that spreads to others..."

"You mean a virus?" asked Connie. "No one asked you!" Eyeball growled, pointing at Connie "anyway, as I was saying, Rose Quartzes vile, rebellious, ways spread to other gems like a virus, which is a word I have just invented!" 

"Oh yeah, the big gem war" said Army. "Yes, it was a long and hard fought war" said Eyeball "and then..."it" happened. Jasper, I understand if it's too much for you to bare, but I must say it! It was that fateful day when Pink Diamond confronted Rose Quartz that me and Jasper witnessed it! When Rose Quartz shattered Pink Diamond!"

Pearl quickly covered her mouth, Garnet winced, Amethyst looked to Steven and worry "What!? No! My mom would- I mean, Rose Quartz wouldn't shatter anybody!"

"Rose...shattered somebody...after all she said to me about the breaking point?" Bismuth muttered "that...that doesn't add up." 

"Shut up! It doesn't matter what you think! I was there, and so was Jasper! The loss of our diamond had wounded those of us in the former Pink Court. It already bad enough that our court was never taken seriously, constantly mocked for how our diamond never measured up to theirs...and then she got shattered! Leaving us scattered and adopted into the other courts "How does it feel to work for a REAL Diamond?" they'd ask!"

"Oh yeah! I remember saying that to you! The way you glared at us was so funny!" Doc mocked. All the other rubies joined in the laughter. 

"Jasper's a part of Pink Diamond's court too, you know!" Eyeball pointed out. The other rubies paused and looked at "Jasper" who was simply staring at them. 

"Uh...yes, Pink Diamond was a diamond that bought joy to all" Doc said nervously. "Now come on, we're almost there!" said Eyeball. 

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The rubies led Zoroark disguised as Jasper, and The Crystal Gems up the stairs. Steven was still in disbelief. Rose Quartz, his mother, would shatter somebody, that's impossible. 

He couldn't believe it, it had to be a lie, especially after all he heard about her from the gems. Even after what Bismuth told him, he still couldn't believe it.

Connie looked to Steven, she wanted to ask him if he was okay, but the current situation made her think it was best to leave it for now. 

They passed by a huge room with a black orb hovering in the middle of it. Connie was curious, but Steven was still in a moral dilemma about his mother. 

They had then reached the top floor "Oh! There it is! And it's still working!" Zoroark, keeping up its Jasper disguise via its illusion ability, unleashed a shadow sneak attack upon the console, damaging it beyond repair. 

"Whaaaaaaaat!? What happened!?" Doc cried out in anger. "Nooo!" Eyeball cried out in dismay. "I think a shadow wrecked it" said Navy. "Oh! Wait! It's okay! I found a communicator!" said Doc holding a small prism like onject.

Zoroark then did another shadow sneak attack, busting the communicator!  "What!? How did this happen!?" Doc exclaimed. "You broke it!" Eyeball accused. "I did not! It was the shadow!" said Doc.

"It must have been a Crystal Gem shadow!" said Army. "But there's no light source behind them" said Leggy. "Then what could that shadow have been!?" Eyeball asked.

"It could have been a ghost" Connie interjected. The rubies paused. "Elaborate, human" said Leggy. "A ghost!" Steven added "they're the lingering apparitions of those who have died!"

The rubies all scoffed and laughed, not believing in Steven and Connie's little lie. "Then how do you explain the console and the communicator just spontaneously being attack by a shadow?" asked Pearl, who caught on to Steven and Connie's little ploy. 

The Rubies had no answer. "Well...let's assume you're telling the truth...who's "Ghost" could be attacking us?" asked Doc. "Maybe Pink Diamond's?" said Steven.

"Wh-wh-wh-whaaaat!?" The Rubies exclaimed. "But the ghost of a diamond sabotage those loyal to Homeworld like us?" asked Navy.

"Ghosts have no memories of who they were when they were alive...all they know is their lingering, indiscriminate resentment!" said Connie, as if she were telling a campfire story. 

Zoroark then used its illusionary abilities to conjure up a pink figure based off of Pink Diamond's mural, but with huge red eyes and a wide open mouth lined with sharp teeth and a sharp tongue!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" The Rubies all fled. The Gems, Steven and Connie followed them. Zoroark undid its "Pink Diamond's Ghost" illusions and cackled "Kishishishishi!"

The Rubies all fled right into the ship "Come on, Jasper! Hurry! Hurry!" Eyeball pleaded. Zoroark, keeping its Jasper facade up, let Steven, Connie and Gems onto the ship first.

As soon as everyone got in, Doc shut the ship's door "Okay...looks like we'll have to make this report to Homeworld in person" "No!" Amethyst threw her voice.

"What? Why not?" asked the Rubies. "Look, someone's gotta keep an eye on these prisoners, why don't you make the report for me?" Amethyst said through Zoroark's illusion "I'm trusting you, soldier!"

Zoroark pat Eyeball on the head. "Y-yes! Of course! Do you need us to drop you off on Earth?" "Yes, I'd like that very much" said "Jasper"

The rubies happily took off and landed the ship back on Earth. After Steven, Connie, Zoroark, and The Gems went off, they all waved as the ship flew off back to Homeworld/

Zoroark undid its Jasper disguise and breathed a sigh of relief. "Good job, Amethyst!" Bismuth praised as she gave Amethyst a huge pat on the back! 

"And Zoroark's illusion was very convincing!" said Steven, reaching up to pat Zoroark. "Kiiiiishishishi!" Zoroark cackled humbly. "And let's not forget Connie's ghost story!" Amethyst chuckled "you and Steven had them scared!"

The gems all laughed in relief. "Now, I would have preferred old fashioned combat, but the whole deceiving Homeworld strategy does have its entertainment value!" said Bismuth.

"And I must say, Amethyst, I didn't think it would, but your self taught ventriloquism was very useful!" Pearl praised. "Which reminds me..." Amethyst grinned "remember that little wager we made." 

"Uh oh..." Pearl realized.

Later that day, Pearl was sat at a picnic table, wearing a bib. "You know, uh, Pearl, you don't have to do this..." Greg suggested.

"I...I made a bet...and I lost, I...I have to preserve my sense of honor" Pearl answered. "Well, here we are, Pearl" said Amethyst wearing a chef's hat and holding a silver platter with a lid.

She lifted up the lid, and on the platter was a pair of Greg's used underwear. "Not that pair! That's my lucky undies! I don't even wash those!" Greg said in dismay.

Pearl's eyes widened in horror. 

Chapter Text

There was a knocking on the door that Steven answered, it was Nate, Unova Champion, Movie star, Join Avenue Owner, and Chief of Legend Watch Unova. 

"Oh, hello, Steven, are your housemates here? I need to..." Nate paused when he noticed Bismuth. "Who's that, Steven?" asked Bismuth. 

Nate was stunned for a moment but then facepalmed "Please tell me she was always part of your group and I just didn't notice..." "Well, you're half right...Bismuth was one of the original Crystal Gems" said Steven.

Pearl then emerged from her room in the temple "Oh! The Monthly report! Sorry, I forgot all about it!" "Forget the monthly report, care to explain this?" Nate presented an image on his Rotom Tablet.

It was an image of the Wandering Eye spaceship landing on Earth and of The Gems boarding the ship. 

"Oh...that, you see...Homeworld came looking for..." Pearl tried to explain. "You let another gem spacecraft land on Earth, this is very unacceptable, you hear me?" Nate scolded. 

"I mean, nobody was in any real danger" Pearl said. "No excuses. You are in violation of our agreement" said Nate. "Who's this upstart little human?" Bismuth said in an upset tone. 

"He's...he's the leader of this region's branch of Legend Watch, a human run worldwide coalition group that monitors Legendary Pokemon activity, and more recently, our activity" said Pearl.

"Why do we need monitoring? We're The Crystal Gems! We've been defending this world from Homeworld for years, if anything, these humans should be thanking us, not monitoring us" said Bismuth.

"Well, keep in mind we are natives to this planet, Earth was our home first and we have a right to assess whether or not you Crystal Gems are a threat to us even if you did rebel against your own kind" said Nate. 

"How are we a threat!?" asked Bismuth. "There was an incident involving one of your kind, whether or not she was a Crystal Gem, who almost caused a worldwide problem with her control of the oceans, not to mention catching the attention of Kyogre and Lugia, both Pokemon with potentially catastrophic abilities."

"That gem...Pearl, is that the Lapis Lazuli you were telling me about?" asked Bismuth. Pearl nodded. "How is Lapis doing, by the way?" asked Steven.

"According to the reports from Warden Bruno, she's been as close to a model prisoner as one can get. Very cooperative, taking part in recreational programs, both things that might give her leverage should she apply for parole."

"Thank goodness" Steven breathed a sigh of relief "Oh! I'm going out for a bit! See you!" "Alright, have fun, Steven!" said Pearl as Steven ran out the door. 

Garnet came out of her room in the temple "Oh! We forget to tell Bismuth about our deal with Legend Watch. I assume this is because of the Ruby Ship" 

Meanwhile, Greg was finishing up the Mayor's Mayormobile when a man approached him from behind. "Excuse me" The man said in a gruff sounding voice "You busy?"

"Just finishing up, I can work and talk" said Greg, not turning to face the man. "Oh, okay, so...do you just wash cars?" The man asked. 

"Nah, I can wash other things, cars, trucks, boats, you name it!" said Greg. "What about airplanes? Can you clean those?" asked The man. "Do you have an airplane I can wash or is this a joke?" asked Greg turning to face the man.

Immediately, the two men recognized each other "Wait...Andy!?" "Greg!? No way! I wasn't expecting to find you in this town!" said Andy.

"Holy Miltank! I haven't seen you in years! I wasn't expecting to see you in this town either!" said Greg. "Yeah, I was flying around the world for a bit, but I decided to return to The Homestead, but then I got hungry, this town was the closest to there so...here I am! But what bought you here, and why are you a Car Wash?"

"It's a long story" said Greg "You see..." "Hey! Am I paying you to wash my Re-election Mayormobile or to have a reunion?" The Mayor impatiently called out.

"Actually, Mr. Mayor, I just finished" Greg explained. The Mayor took one quick glance at his Mayormobile "Oh. So you have. All right, here's your money, carry on" The Mayor's tone immediately changed to a more positive one as he handed Greg the amount money Greg normally charges for a regular washing.

As the Mayor got in his newly washed vehicle and drove away, Andy noticed Greg's Rillaboom on the other side "Say, that Rillaboom, that used to be the Grookey my parents gave ya on yer tenth birthday, isn't it?" 

"Sure is" Greg nodded. "Heh, it was a Thwackey last time I saw it" Andy commented. "Yeah, I remember" said Greg "Oh, I've got another Pokemon too!" 

Toxtricity was hanging inside at the register waving. "Oooh boy, must have been tough catching a Toxtricity, what with poison being super effective on grass and all" Andy commented.

"Actually, Toxtricity was also a gift" Greg pointed out. "Heh, well it seems friendly enough" Andy waved back at Greg's other Pokemon. 

"So, you mentioned an airplane you needed washing?" asked Greg. "Well, I don't have it with me right now, it's back at The Barn" Andy explained "you see, my plane is a fantastic piece of equipment, a marvel of Unovan engineering, but it's not what you'd call "street legal", can't exactly taxi it all the way into town."

"Oh yeah, I can imagine" Greg chuckled "well, I don't normally do this kind of service, but I can come with you back to The Barn and wash the plane. Heck, I'll do it for free, we are family after all!"

"That's the spirit, cousin!" Andy playfully smacked Greg on the back. "So, you planning on doing anything now that you're back?" asked Greg. 

"Yeah, I might go to Mistralton City and check up on my old apprentice, Skyla, I wonder how she's been doing as Gym Leader since I left her in charge" said Andy. 

"Heh, that's right, I forgot you were the previous Mistralton Gym Leader before Skyla" Greg admitted "she's been pretty popular among plane enthusiasts and trainers alike."

"Good to hear! Man, I remember when she was still a kid! Smart for her age, could fix an engine in no second flat!" Andy recalled. "Dad! Hey Dad!" Greg heard Steven call.

"Hey! Steven!" said Greg "so good you came just now, there's someone I'd like you to meet!" "Wait, did that kid just call you "Dad"!? You're a dad!?" Andy exclaimed. 

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"Steven, I would like you meet My Cousin Andy" Greg announced. "Your cousin?!" Steven exclaimed. "You've, you've went and had a kid! That's...! That's great!" Andy praised "Good for you! I don't believe this! I've got a second cousin! Nah, you what just call me "Uncle Andy!" Ha! I got a nephew!"

Andy suddenly lifted up Steven and hugged him tightly, a bit too tight for his liking. "Wow...so, we're family, huh?" asked Steven. 

"Yup! Remember that barn we were at last year? That belonged to Andy's parents!" said Greg. "Ah, you showed him the family barn, huh?" said Andy "well, as long as family was using it!"

"Say, Steven, I was going to help Andy wash his plane, think you can give your old man a hand?" asked Greg. "Sure. I want to get to know Uncle Andy a bit more" said Steven.

It wasn't long before Steven was with Andy and Greg in Greg's Van. Steven sat in the back, watching Greg and Andy reminisce. He had Sylveon out of its Pokeball.

"Well, he certainly smells like Dad" said Sylveon "and beer..." "So, uh, if you don't mind me asking, where's Steven's Mother" said Andy "I'd like to meet the women who got my cousin to settle down." 

"Oh, well...you see, Rose isn't around anymore" said Greg. "Oh...oh, gee Greg, I don't know what to say, I'm sorry" said Andy. The Barn was coming up in the windshield.

"Wow, I heard from Dad that this barn belonged to his aunt and uncle" said Steven "so, I'm guessing those were your parents?" 

"Right you are, kiddo! My parents were aviation enthusiasts" Andy explained "and they passed on that love of flying, and their plane, to me! And I've been keeping up that baby ever since!"

"Our grandparents actually helped establish Mistralton Airport" Greg added. "Heh, my family connection to that airport is what made me Gym Leader back in my younger days" said Andy.

Steven's eyes immediately lit up "You were a gym leader!?" "And a damn good one too!" said Andy "if you're itching to battle, I can take you on after we finish cleaning that plane."

Greg parked the car out in front of the barn where Andy's plane was. It was an older looking plane to be sure, but you wouldn't be able to tell from the good condition Andy had left it in.

But, of course it was in need of a washing, slots of mud from landing and the droppings of various flying type Pokemon littered on top of it.

"Well, let's see if the pluming still works here" said Greg as he went to the spigot and twisted the nozzle, there was a lot of sputtering at first but eventually a steady stream was coming out of the hose. 

Greg immediately began hosing down the plane. Steven had a squeegee for the caked on flying type droppings. "Man, the wingull, it's like they saw this ol beaut as a flying toilet" said Andy.

"Yeah, they're easily my least favorite Pokemon" Steven agreed. Suddenly the hose was sputtering again and shutting off "Okay, the plumbing is officially shot"

"Well, I guess it's been a while since the pipes here have been last used. They must have atrophied or something" said Andy. "It was working fine before, it may not be the case" said Greg.

He went around the back of the barn. Even though it was his relative's home, Greg knew the place like the back of his hand "Here's the problem, the well's dried up! We may have used the last of the water in there."

"Well that stinks, what do we do now?" Andy complained. "Oh! I have a water type on me!" said Steven. "Ah! That's using the ol' noggin, Steven, show me what you got!" said Andy.

"Palafin, come on out!" Steven let loose Palafin, which was in Zero Mode. "Palafin, think you can help us clean the plane?" asked Steven. Palafin used Hydro Pump on the airplane, but to a lesser extent.

The blast was strong, but not too strong, leaving the part of the plane that was hit looking sparkly clean as if it were brand new. "Holy smokes! That looks like you ran a power washer on it!" Andy praised. 

"So, uh, I never really met any other people Dad's family" said Steven. "I figured you might not, the whole family kinda fell apart after yer Dad left with those showbiz dreams of his" said Andy. 

"Really, huh?" said Steven. "Yeah, ours was a tight knit family" said Andy "I remember every autumn we'd meet up for a big family dinner! They were great...but after your dad left...well, I mean we did have one more but it wasn't the same. The following year Aunt Deb and her partner got an RV, no sense staying around when you have that thing. Grandpa moved to The Keys, too old to make the drive anymore. I was the only one who tried to keep everything how it used to be. I remembered how to be a family...but in the end...I just couldn't do it, everyone up and decided that the tradition was over. After that, I retired as Mistralton's Gym Leader and left my apprentice in charge. Now look at me, I guess I got nothing left."

"Not true, you found my Dad and you found me" said Steven.

"Hey, you're right! Hey, with the two of you, maybe we can revive the old tradition! It's been long enough! I bet if we work at it, we can bring The DeMayos back together!" Andy realized.

"DeMayo? What?" asked Steven. "DeMayo. You know, Andy DeMayo, Greg DeMayo, Steven DeMayo? We're The DeMayos!" Andy explained. "DeMayo? Not Universe?" asked Steven.

Andy's eyes widened in confusion and anger, that's when he noticed Greg "What did you do?" Andy growled at Greg. 

Chapter Text

"Greg...don't tell me...you ditched your family name for your dumb stage name!?" Andy growled "you've already torn apart the family but now you ditch the family name altogether!?" 

"It's not like that, Andy" Greg tried to explain. "ZIP IT! I don't want to hear it!" Andy growled "Gah! It was a mistake coming back! I'm leaving!" 

"Andy! Stop!" Steven got in between Andy and the kid. "Outta the way, kid, I don't got no beef with you! So don't make me have any!" Andy threatened.

"I challenge you to a Pokemon battle!" Steven took out a Pokeball. "Really? You can't be serious..." Andy scoffed. "I win, you stay, you and Dad talk this out. If you win, then you can go!" Steven wagered. 

"You realize you're challenging a former gym leader, right?" Andy pointed out. "Well I'm not afraid of a challenge" said Steven.

Andy showed Steven to the homemade battlefield around The Barn, it was a slab of cement with the typical Pokeball symbol in the middle of it. Of course there were cracks and patches of grass sprouting out of various areas due to years of no maintenance. 

"Steven, look about what you've just learned..." Greg tried telling Steven. "It's okay, Dad. I just need to focus on the battle right now, you can tell me after I win" said Steven.

"I appreciate the confidence, but trust me, Andy's good. I've battled him several times back in my younger days" Greg advised.

Steven nodded "Just have faith in me, Dad. A good trainer never backs down from a challenge, no matter how tough the opponent. You remember who taught me that?" 

Greg smiled a bit, because he knew he didn't have to answer.

"Alright, Steven, just so ya know, I may have been travelling around the world on an airplane for more than a decade, but I haven't been slouching on my Pokemon training! My team is still in tip-top condition!" Andy warned. 

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Uncle Andy!" Steven answered "whatever you throw my way, I'll throw back!" "Heh. Well, you've certainly got a pair, kid. Not like your old man!" Andy trash talked.

"H-hey!" Greg called from where he was sitting. "Alright, enough talk! Let's get down to it!" said Andy "Go Unfezant!" Andy sent out a male unfezant which made a powerful sounding cry upon release.

"Diancie, come on out!" Steven threw out Diancie from its Pokeball. "Heh, looks to be rock type. Good choice!" said Andy "but you don't become a type specialist like me without learning to counter type-weaknesses!"

"Diamond storm!" Steven commanded. Diancie sent out a barrage of diamonds towards Andy's Unfezant. His Unfezant countered by dodging with an amazing array of aerial maneuverability.

"Swagger!" Andy commanded his Unfezant. Unfezant looked Diancie in the eye and gave a smug smirk whilst bathed in an orange aura. Diancie was furious in responce to the smirk as it was bathed in a similiar orange aura, but then immediately went into a daze.

Steven knew all to well what that meant. The move swagger raises the physical attack power of the opponent while also inflicting the confusion status! And when a Pokemon's confused...

Diancie did another Diamond storm attack, but it was attacking itself!!! "Heh, Swagger may be a cheap trick, but it's a perfectly valid one!" Andy mocked as if he were using swagger himself.

Steven was counting on Diancie to be the big hitter in this battle, due to its type advantage, so he had no choice but to switch it out and use Diancie later in battle.

Alright, go Pyroar! Steven let out Pyroar. "Whoa, now that's a Pyroar of a different color! But that won't stop me!" said Andy "Aerial Ace!"

"Pyroar, intercept it!" Steven commanded. "Intercept? With what? Unless..." Andy thought for a moment "AH! Unfezant! Wait!" But it was too late. CHOMP! Pyroar bit down on Unfezant's head with a super effective thunder fang!

Unfezant fainted immediately. "You're not the only one who prepped his Pokemon with moves effective against their weaknesses!" Steven called out. 

"Well look at you, you mean business, don't you?" said Andy "Here's a friend I picked up in Kalos...go Hawlucha!" "Haaaaaaaw!" The new Pokemon cried. 

"Pyroar, Thunder fang!" Steven commanded. Pyroar pounced with its teeth bathed in electrical energy. "Flying Press!" Andy ordered. Hawlucha leapt in the air at the last minute and struck down on Pyroar's back on the way down!

Steven's Pokemon was badly damaged by the attack but was still able to battle. "Hawlucha may look like a lightweight, but it's a heavy hitter!" Andy pointed out.

"Pyroar, think you can still give it a go?" asked Steven. Pyroar gave a reassuring nod. "Well, I'm not giving up yet!" said Steven.

"I wish a lot of the challengers from my days as a Gym Leader were more like you!" Andy praised. 

Chapter Text

"Pyroar! Noble Roar!" Steven commanded. Pyroar let out a powerful roar that made Andy's Hawlucha shudder in fear. It's attack and special attack harshly fell.

"You think lowering my stats is gonna stop me? You wish! Acrobatics, Hawlucha!" Hawlucha moved at rapid speed around Pyroar. 

Although Hawlucha's stats were lowered, the damage to Pyroar had already been done. Steven watched as it fainted. "Heh heh heh. You don't need super effective moves to win!" said Andy.

"Oh yeah, I know, but it still doesn't hurt to have them!" said Steven "alright, Sylveon, you're up!" Steven let Sylveon out of its Pokeball. 

Sylveon immediately took its battle stance "Oh yeah, been a while since I've seen some action!" "I gotta say, Steven, your "never give up" attitude is making this fun!" Andy complimented "but I'm still going to win this! Hawlucha, Flying Press!"

Hawlucha leapt up high in the air and quickly descended. "Dazzling Gleam!" Steven ordered. Sylveon unleashed dazzling gleam, it was a direct hit against Hawlucha, but it was undeterred, staying the course of its attack!

But instead of hitting Sylveon, Hawlucha belly flopped right onto the solid ground where Sylveon was just standing before it did its dazzling gleam attack. 

"What the-!?" Andy exclaimed. "Now moon blast!" Steven then commanded. Right beside Hawlucha, Sylveon unleashed a direct hit Moon Blast! Instantly fainting Hawlucha.

Andy smirked, he was really having fun with this "Alright then, come on out Sigilyph!" and out came the strange glyph shaped flying type Pokemon.

Steven was bewildered by this new Pokemon. "Nobody expects me to use a Sigilyph!" said Andy "Now! Confuse Ray!"

Sylveon was all confused. It began firing moon blasts haphazardly. "Now, Psybeam!" Ordered Andy. A bright purple beam fired from the eye of Sigilyph.

One of the haphazard moon blasts made contact with the psybeam, causing the two beams to struggle against one another until both beams gave way and caused a shockwave that knocked out both Pokemon.

"Wow, that match up was a tie!" said Andy. "Although it was by luck, Sylveon was confused" said Steven, calling back his Pokemon.

"Well, whether or not that was a fluke, you're pretty good. Go, Archeops!" Andy sent out a prehistoric Pokemon. Steven switched out Sylveon for Palafin.

"Jet punch!" said Steven. Palafin, in Hero Mode, let loose a watery fist towards Archeops. But it was nimbler than it looked, dodging quite easily. 

"Can't rely on type advantages to win every time!" said Andy "Dragon claw!" Steven didn't even need to tell Palafin to dodge, it had such battle instincts, it knew when to dodge. 

Archeops was flying around the room "Palafin, Pursuit!" Palafin was engulfed in a dark aura and took off after Archeops and struck it from behind, knocking it down. 

Palafin quickly pinned it down as soon as Archeops his the floor "Close range Jet punch!" Steven ordered. With one blow, Archeops was down.

Andy first growled in frustration but then began laughing "Well, look at you, got me down to my final Pokemon...well, I've saved the best for last...Braviary!" 

Out came the powerful looking red white and blue Pokemon "This old boy has been my partner since I was a kid. And like me, he's not the spring Combusken he used to be, but he's still got plenty of fight left in him!"

Chapter Text

"Crush claw, Braviary!" Andy commanded. Palafin was unleashing jet punches to try and defend itself from the imposing flying Pokemon as it swooped in, but it was a very skillfull flyer, dodging each attack with the precision of an air show pilot.

And Palafin was caught in the grip of the crush claw, causing it to faint. "Palafin, good job...alright, go Diancie!" said Steven.

"That again, huh? Very good choice, but don't get cocky kid!" Andy taunted "Metal Claw!" Steven and Diancie simultaneously gasped. Braviary swooped down with its talons now having a metallic sheen to them!

Diancie dodged out of the way from its onslaught of attacks, but he knew there were no chance of getting out of the way.

"Rock Polish!" Steven quickly ordered to increase his Pokemon's odds of escape. Diancie's body shown brightly, indicating the attack worked, but it was too late, the metal claw struck Diancie!

It wasn't enough to make it faint, but the damage was still pretty harsh. It was down to a mere sliver of health.

"Your move, Steven, make it a good one!" Andy called out from the other side of the battlefield. With Diancie at low health, Steven decided to pull out the big guns. 

"Alright, Diancie, they're giving us a hundred percent. Let's give them a hundred and ten!" said Steven as he tapped the keystone on his Mega Ring.

Diancie was bathed in the reddish pink light associated with Mega Evolution and Diancie was now Mega Diancie. Andy could feel the sheer power of Steven's Pokemon

"I won't be intimidated by some power up! Metal Claw again, Braviary!" said Andy. Braviary came in again, its talons once again bathed with a metallic sheen.

"Diamond storm!" Steven commanded. Diancie sent out hundreds of bigger diamonds headed straight towards Braviary!

Braviary did its best to dodge and block some of the diamond barrage, but the boost the attack got from Diancie's Mega Evolution proved too much for the experienced Pokemon and it was down for the count. 

"AAAAAH! Braviary!" Andy cried out. Diancie reverted back to its base form. "Well, Uncle Andy? A deal's a deal" said Steven.

Andy sighed "Yeah...alright, I'll stay and hear your old man out. Besides, it's not like I wagered anything big like my plane. And I think this battle helped me cool off a bit..."

Steven approached Andy and offered his hand, Andy grinned a bit and shook Steven's hand "Not bad, kiddo. If I were still a Gym Leader, I'd have thrown in a badge along with staying. 

Greg awkwardly approached, but noticed Steven looking at him, nodding reassuringly. "Let's uh...let's sit down and talk" said Greg. 

Greg and Andy sat beside each other on the nearby bench. Steven decided to appoint himself as a mediator in case things got ugly, he may not have known Andy long, but from what he could see, things looked as though they could get ugly with Andy's temper.

"Look, it's not the family name I was trying to disrespect...I just, I just had enough. Enough of my parents. I didn't want anything to do with them anymore" said Greg.

"What? Why not? You had a nice big house in the Suburbs of Drifveil! What more could you possibly ask for?" asked Andy. 

"Dad, you lived in a nice house? You told me you grew up in a prison" said Steven. "I was speaking metaphorically" said Greg "I guess I never really liked talking about it."

"But why? What would make you want to leave your own family?" asked Andy. "Come on, Andy, you knew what they were like" said Greg. 

*33 Years Ago, Greg's 7th Birthday* 

Young Greg was being jostled on either side by his father's arm and his mother's arm in front of his birthday cake. "BLOW OUT THE CANDLES! BLOW OUT THE GODDAMN CANDLES!" His father shouted at the top of his lungs.

"STOP IT AURTHUR, YOU'RE KILLING HIM!" His mother's shrill voice shouted back.

"What, that's not so bad" said Andy.

"Well you have no idea what they were like when it was just me and them. You have no idea how restrictive they were. When you and your folks came over, they allowed you to do things that they'd never allow me to do." said Greg.

Steven watched the back and fourth between Andy and Greg, as Greg went into detail about why he ran away from home and about how he met Rose and eventually had Steven with her. 

"Yeesh, that was heavy. I thought Uncle Arthur and Aunt Marie were just loud" said Andy "well, they should at least know they have a grandson."

"I sent them letters" said Greg "but I never heard back from 'em."

"Didn't hear back you say?" Andy answered. After continuing their conversation, the two men seemed to make up and Andy sort of respected Greg's decision.

"Well, I better get going, I wanna see how Skyla's been running the Mistralton Gym" said Andy "but I'll be back before long, good to see you again, Greg. And It was great to meet you Steven. I'll talk to Skyla and see if I can talk her into giving you a badge after that awesome battle we had."

"Thanks, Andy, but I'd rather earn that badge by battling Skyla myself" said Steven. "That's the ticket, kiddo!" Andy praised. 

Steven and Greg watched as Andy got into his plane and took off into the sky. Steven looked to his father "So...My grandparents, they were really that bad huh?" 

"You have no idea" said Greg "It's a shame I never heard back from 'em though...they're missing out on a terrific grandson. Oh, and thanks for challenging Andy to that battle, Steven. I really appreciate that."