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Chapter Text

The steady rattle of the train woke me up from my nap. I looked around, once again making sure that no one had gotten a good look at me. But, I was sitting on the back of the train, with no one else around, so as far as I knew, I was safe for now. I stretched and took a look out of the window. Seeing the sight that lay before me, I couldn't help but grin. There it was; Lumiose City, practically glowing in the evening light. The perfect place to disappear. Suddenly, a voice came over the loud speaker. "Attention all passengers! This is the final stop! Lumiose City!" I smiled again, then grabbed my bag. I was so eager to be off this train that I totally missed something jump inside of it as I grabbed the bag and readied to disembark.

The train came to a stop in Gare de Lumiose, and I stepped off pretty quickly. I took in the Lumiose air and couldn't help but smile some more. I had made it at last. I rummaged through my pockets for my wallet to check my funds. I swore to myself when I saw how much money I had left. Only a few thousand Poké Dollars left. Barely enough to find a place to stay, much less anything else. I slipped my wallet back into my pocket and began to make my way out of the train station. As I did, I began to make plans in my head for what I would do about money. Perhaps it was finally time I caught an Arceus damned team of my own and just battled people with them. I heard that was a quick way of getting money.

I continued to think about my issues while I walked out of the station. Then I laid eyes on the city of Lumiose, and immediately forgot about all of them. The buildings around me were huge. Much bigger than most of the other cities around Kalos I'd been to. I saw a flock of Pidgey fly overhead, and some Patrat running through the streets. Big screens all over some of the buildings displayed a company logo I didn't recognise, showing something about holograms. I wasn't really paying attention. I took another deep breath as I looked around the place. I couldn't believe it. I'd done it. I'd finally made it to Lumiose. Now all I had to do was worry about affording a place to stay, as well as food and other essentials. Luckily for me, all of my immediate problems were about to be solved.

"Hey, you there with the massive bag!" called a voice to my right. "Can you give me a hand with something!?" I turned around to see who was talking to me. And immediately froze in place. Though for the first time in my life, not from fear. Standing before me was the cutest girl I had ever seen. She had long strawberry blonde hair in a similar style to mine, except mine is brown. Her eyes were an incredible shade of blue that reminded me of the water. She wore a beige jacket over a red cropped turtle-neck, and some white short-shorts that made it very difficult not to stare at her. But stare at her I did, until I noticed that she was saying something to me, and I had completely zoned out. "Come on Harmony, pull yourself together!" I mentally chided myself.

"I'm sorry," I said to her. "I zoned out for a bit, what were you saying?" The girl laughed, a very cute laugh that caused Butterfree to dance around in my stomach, to the point that I almost missed what she was saying again. "It's fine," she said. "Don't worry about it. I know long journeys can be tiring." she spoke in a Galarian accent at was doing things to me! I really am far too gay for my safety. "Look, I just need a favour, alright?" As she said this, she pulled out her Rotom Phone and pointed the camera at me. "I'm trying to do an ad for this hotel I work at, Hotel Z," she explained to me. "I just need you to say, 'Hotel Z is the best stay in Lumiose!' ok? I'll even pay you for your trouble!"

Now this had me sold. Helping a cute girl and I got paid for it? Sign me up! "Sure, I can do that," I told her. The girl smiled at me. "Thank you so much! You're a lifesaver!" she told me, setting her phone up. "My name's Taunie by the way." "Harmony," I replied quickly. "Nice to meet you," said Taunie, smiling at me. "Likewise," I replied, blushing slightly. With that, she turned back to her phone and said, "Ok, I've got it set up now. When I say so, just say, 'Hotel Z is the best stay in Lumiose!'" I nodded. "Ok," she said. "In 3, 2." But before she could finish, one of the nearby screen changed, revealing the face of an older woman in a white dress. "Oh, talk about perfect timing," Taunie muttered to herself.

"Welcome newcomers to Lumiose City!" said the woman on the screen. "My name is Jett, and I am the head of Quasartico Inc. The company responsible for the Lumiose Redevelopment Plan! We are here to make Lumiose a safe space for both people and pokémon! And to do so, we've developed Wild Zones!" At this, the image on the screen changed, showing a number 1 around a green pentagon, with two green sticks on either side. "These Wild Zones allow for pokémon to wander freely in the city, while still maintaining safety for the residence of Lumiose. This, along with the redevelopment of Prism Tower, will allow for us to create a better, brighter Lumiose for all of us!"

At this, the image returned to Jett. "I truly hope you all enjoy everything this wonderful city of ours has to offer! Thank you for your time and attention, and enjoy your time here!" With that, the image flickers and changes to some sort of advertisement, only this time it had no sound. Taunie returned her attention to me. "Sorry about that," she said, turning her phone back on. "They play that message every time a train full of people arrives at Gare de Lumiose. Anyway, let's get back to this ad." I nodded, then returned my attention to Taunie's phone. I was so enamoured with her that I didn't even notice that I was no longer holding my bag. That is, until she said, "Wait, didn't you have a bag with you?"

I looked down and realised that she was right. My bag was gone. I started looking all over the place, fear creeping up inside of me. Then, I spotted it. My bag was being carried away by an Pancham, with a cheeky grin on its face. "Hey, get back here!" I shouted, running after it. It saw me, and started running away even faster. Now I was really mad. That thing had just ended my conversation with Taunie, and I was going to make it pay. But then, as I ran after it, I noticed that I wasn't the only one chasing it. A red pig, a blue crocodile, and a green creature were also running with me. I looked back, and Taunie was at my heels, accompanied by 3 pokémon I never noticed until now.

"What are you doing here?" I asked her as we ran. "Well, I could hardly let you run through an unfamiliar city by yourself," she pointed out. This caused me to blush slightly, but I pushed it down and focused on getting my bag back. We rounded a corner, and there it was, the Pancham that stole my bag, along with two other people, who looked rather stressed out. "What the Distortion Realm were you thinking Pancham!" The woman shouted. "Whose bag is this?" "It's mine!" I shouted, appearing before them. "And I'd appreciate it back!" The man and woman turned to face us, looking nervous. They looked even more nervous when they saw who was standing beside me.

"Oh shit, it's Taunie!" said the man, starting to back away. "You're damn right it is," Taunie responded, stepping forward. "So, why don't you explain why your Pancham has stolen this girl's bag?" The woman looked nervous. "We have no idea," she replied. "But we'll give it back!" Then, she seemed to have an idea. "But first, battle us." Both Taunie and I looked at her quizzically. "Why would I do that?" Taunie asked. "Because I'm still salty from our last battle," the woman replied. "As is my friend here." The man nodded. "So, beat us, and we'll give the bag back." "And if I lose?" Taunie asked. "We'll still give the bag back, but we'll feel better about ourselves," the woman replied.

Taunie sighed. "Fine," she replied, before turning to me. "Here give me a hand would you?" she asked. I looked at her quizzically. I mean you take her and I'll take him," she replied. "Just get your team out and help me!" "Oh right," I replied, suddenly realising what she meant. "Uh, the thing is, I don't have any pokémon." All 3 of them looked at me agape. "What?!" Taunie asked. "Wait, how old are you?" "16," I admitted, feeling my face heat up out of embarrassment. "Well, that doesn't matter," Taunie replied. "Just pick one of mine for now. You can give them back to me later." It took a few seconds for what she just said to register in my brain. "Wait, you're letting me borrow one of your pokémon?" I asked. Taunie nodded. "Just pick one and battle with it."

Smiling at my first chance to ever have a pokémon, even if it was for only a little bit, I approached the 3 pokémon before me. Taunie explained to me who they all were; Chikorita, Totodile, and Tepig. I looked at all 3, then chose the Tepig, since it was the cutest. Tepig seemed pleased I chose it, then ran in front of me. Taunie kept Chikorita out and returned Totodile. Meanwhile, the man threw out a Pidgey. "You take her, I'll take him," Taunie told me. "My Tepig knows Tackle, Ember, and Tail Whip. Use them however you wish." I nodded, then turned my attention to the Pancham. "Ok," Taunie said. "We're ready." "Good," said the woman, then my first pokémon battle began.

"Pancham, tackle!" the woman shouted. "Do the same Tepig!" I yelled. Both pokémon attacked each other with the attacks, headbutting each other with these attacks. "Tepig, Tail Whip!" I shouted. Tepig did so, bringing down Pancham's defence. "Now Ember!" I shouted. As the fireball shot at Pancham, the woman tried to get him to dodge, but she wasn't quick enough. The attack hit Pancham in the face, knocking it over. It got back on its feet, then ran at Tepig as the woman shouted, "Tackle again!" Tepig managed to avoid this attack, then with a final shout from me, used one last tackle, knocking Pancham out. I looked over at Taunie and saw that she was finished with her battle as well.

Both the man and woman looked disappointed as the woman handed my bag back. "Sorry about all of that," she said. "I'll make sure to give Pancham a stern talking-to when he recovers." "It's fine, don't worry about it," I said. Both of then nodded to us, then departed. "Taunie smiled at me, which make my stomach do flips. "Good job," she told me. "I bet you must be a really good battler!" I shrugged. "I wouldn't know," I replied. "That was my first one." Her eyes widened. "Ever!?" she asked with amazement. I nodded awkwardly. "I just... never did it before," I said, not wanting to go into it. Taunie held out her fist at that. Instinctively, I flinched backwards.

"What's up?" she asked. "I was just going for a fist bump." I chuckled a bit, then held out my own fist. We bumped them together. "So, now that that's over with, think we can get back to shooting that ad?" she asked me. I nodded, feeling like I owed her for helping me. Taunie smiled in thanks, then pulled her phone out again. But before she could start filming, it grew dark. All of a sudden, a few metal poles began to rise out of the ground. "Oh no," said Taunie." "What's wrong?" I asked. "We should get out of here, now," Taunie told me. "Come with me, you need a place to stay the night, right?" I nodded eagerly, thinking she was about to invite me to stay the night at her place. "Hotel Z isn't far from here," she explained. "Follow me, I'll lead you there."

Feeling slightly disappointed, I followed Taunie through the streets, right as night fell. Suddenly, red barriers erupted all over this street, blocking some of the ways out. Taunie swore at this. "Is this one of those Wild Zones that Jett woman spoke of?" I asked. Taunie shook her head. "No, no it is not," Taunie replied. "This is a Battle Zone. And it absolutely isn't safe for you." With that, she took my hand and started leading me through the streets. Despite how suddenly nervous I was about this place, I couldn't deny the fact that I was enjoying the sensation of holding Taunie's hand. She guided me through the streets, keeping an eye out for trainers.

"What's happening?" I asked her as we went. "The Z-A Royale," she replied. "A pokémon battle tournament. I'll explain more when we're not in the middle of a Battle Zone, ok?" I nodded and continued to follow her. Eventually, we came to a stop. "Ok, Hotel Z is just around that corner," Taunie told me. "I'll go on ahead and make sure the coast is clear. Stay here and stay out of sight." I nodded and watched as she disappeared down the alley. Barely even a minutes passed before I heard someone coming up behind me. "You there!" she declared loudly. "Battle me! Now!" I turned around and saw a young woman approaching me. "oh, uh, I'm sorry, but-" I tried to say, but she interrupted me.

"No excuses!" she snapped. "I'm so close to the ticket! One more battle is all I need. So battle me before I lose my patience!" At that moment, Taunie came running back down the alley. "Ok, the coast is clear!" she was saying. "We should be able to get back to- Oh shit." She saw the woman standing before me, pokéball raised. "Hey, uh, she isn't.." she tried to say, but the woman ignored her too. "I don't have time for this!" she snapped. "Let's get this over with!" Taunie sighed. "Sorry Harmony, but I don't she's going to give up." I nodded, then let Tepig out of his ball again. The woman sent out her pokémon, a Cleffa.

Without a second to waste, she immediately started having Cleffa attack Tepig. I had Tepig respond to the best of my ability, with turned to be pretty good. The two of went on an back and forth together, with Cleffa taking more than Tepig was. Soon enough, the Fairy Type was down, and the waitress threw out her next pokémon, a Bunnelby. This one was a bit harder for me, since Bunnelby knew ground type moves, but Tepig was able to hold his own against it. I simply had him use Tail Whip over and over, before throwing 2 tackles its way, and it went down no problem. The woman looked annoyed at this, then even more annoyed when she figured out I wasn't even participating in the Z-A Royale.

"We tried to tell you," Taunie told her. "What a waste of precious time," she said angrily. She handed me my winning fee, then went on her way. "Well, I must say that was quite the battle," she told me. "Here, let me heal Tepig." Then she did, before leading me along the route. We came to a section of the red forcefield that was different from the rest of it. Fortunately for us, as Taunie explained, this was our way out. "Unfortunately, there were a bunch of trainers standing in front of it. "Oh come on," Taunie complained. "Not now guys, we're just trying to get out of here." The one in front smirked. "Oh, you can get out of here," he said. "If you battle me." His 2 companions nodded, then stepped forward as well, ready for a battle.

Taunie sighed and pulled out her 2 balls, and I did the same with my 1. But before we could send out our pokémon, another one came down from the sky. Taunie saw this one and grinned. I however couldn't believe my eyes. It was a Floette, however it was unlike any Floette I'd ever seen before. It's bottom half was blue, and it was holding a black flower. The Floette smiled at Taunie, before turning around and facing the trainers in front of us. Then, its flower began to glow. "No, wait!" Taunie called. "Don't do that here!" But the Floette paid her no mind. It pointed its flower above the trainers before us, and let off a powerful beam attack that nearly knocked me off my feet.

The trainers stared at the Floette for a few seconds, before turning and running in the opposite direction. "What was that?" I asked Taunie as she led me through the alley and out of the Battle Zone. "That was Light of Ruin," she explained. "Something only that particular Floette can do. Now come on, Hotel Z is just down here." She led me down one final alley, and we ended up in front of this old looking building covered in ivy. "Here we are," said Taunie cheerily. "Home sweet home." And with that, she led me inside. The building inside was cosy enough. There were a few seats in one corner, and a reception desk, where the tallest man I've ever seen stood.

"Hello Taunie," said the old man. "Glad to see you've made it back safe. When you hadn't returned from filming your ad, I grew nervous and sent Floette after you." It was only then that he spotted me. "Oh, hello," he said. "And who might you be?" "Uh, I'm Harmony sir," I said, nervously extending my hand. The old man just chuckled lightly. "Oh come now, there's no need for that," he said, gesturing for me to lower my hand. "My name is AZ, it is a pleasure to meet you." I nodded in agreement. "I told her that she was welcome to stay the night here," Taunie explained, before she recounted the evening's events for him. AZ chuckled at that. "My, that is quite the interesting evening," he said, before turning to me.

"We do happen to have a spare room on the 2nd floor. Room 202. I'll give you the key." Suddenly, I felt rather bad. "Oh, uh, I don't actually have much money," I told him. "It's quite alright," AZ told me. "After the day you had, I'd say it'll be fine." Deciding not to look a gift Rapidash in the mouth, I took the key gratefully. Then I picked my bag back up, and walked over to the lift, once again not noticing the little stowaway I brought as it jumped out of the bag and slithered away down the hall. I stepped into the lift, then rode it up to the 2nd floor. I stepped out, then walked over to room 202, briefly wondering if anyone else stayed in the other rooms.

I stepped into my room for the night and smiled. Even if it mightn't be for very long, I was happy I found a proper place to stay. Somewhere that wasn't pokémon centres or the sides of roads in a tent that was one strong gust of wind away from disappearing on me. It had been a long 2 years, but I was finally here. I set my bag down on a stool next to the wardrobe, then sat down on my bed. Tomorrow I would definitely need to buy some pyjamas for myself, but I was content with sleeping in my clothes for now. I stretched out, then went to get under the covers, when I heard a knock on the door. "Harmony, it's me," came the voice of Taunie. "Can we talk? I want to show you something."

Curious, I got back out of bed and stepped over to the door. When I opened it, I saw Taunie standing there, no longer wearing her coat. Now she was just in the crop top and short-shorts. I had to fight off the blush very hard as I took in the sight before me. "Hey," she said cheerily. "before you head to bed, mind if I show you something?" I nodded, finding myself too gay to speak. She smiled again, then led me up to the roof. When we stepped out onto it, I felt my breath taken from me. The city was beautiful at night. Some of the green patches around the place, as well as the red one right next to us, made it look incredible. "Wow," I said. Taunie smiled at my reaction. "I know right?" she said, before turning to me.

"So, what brings you to Lumiose?" she asked. At this, I grew tense, not knowing how to respond. Eventually, I settled with, "I'm not sure yet. I just needed a change." I turned to look at Taunie, and saw that the 2 of us were quite close. I had to fight the sudden, very strong urge to kiss her. She smiled at me, before saying, "Well, tomorrow morning, come down to the reception and meet with me. There's a few things I'd like to explain to you. They might give you a reason to stay here." I nodded to her. "I'll do that," I told her. We both stared out at the city for a while, before returning to the second floor. I went to bed that night happy, and for the first time in a while, my sleep wasn't plagued by nightmares. Instead, I dreamed of a beautiful girl with strawberry blonde hair.

Chapter Text

When I woke up in the morning, I wondered where I was briefly. I opened my eyes to find myself in some sort of hotel room. And then the memories of the previous day came flooding back to me, and I broke into a grin. I was in Lumiose at last! And I was welcomed in by the cutest girl I had ever seen. I climbed out of bed and rummaged through my travel bag for any clothes that looked at least presentable. Unfortunately, the only thing I had that was in anyway clean and fresh was what I was wearing. So, I decided to just go with what I had. I'll buy new clothes as soon as I could. I restyled my hair to remove the bedhead, then stepped out of my room and walked over to the lift.

When I arrived in the foyer, I saw AZ standing behind the counter, with Taunie sitting on the couches in the far corner. She smiled up at me when she saw me. "Hey Harmony!" she called. "Good morning!" I froze briefly. How did she know my real name? I was sure I'd given the other one! But, when I stopped and thought about it, I remembered that, in my gay stupor, I had accidentally said my real name to her. My internal panic only increased when I remembered I said my real name to AZ as well. But on the outside, I was perfectly calm. I just needed to think of a way to get them to start using the fake name, and soon. For now, I sat down opposite her and smiled as she handed me a breakfast sandwich.

"For you, my dear guest," she said. I blushed as I took the sandwich. It was very tasty. As I ate, I spotted Taunie's Chikorita and Totodile standing before me, and I remembered something else about the night before. "Oh!" I exclaimed, grabbing Tepig's pokéball. "I just remembered I forgot to give him back to you." Taunie waved her hand. "Nah, keep him," she told me. I must've looked as surprised as I felt, because Taunie began to laugh a bit. "I saw how well you two battled together. You both have an amazing bond together. I'd say if you took on the Z-A Royale, you'd blaze through it!" I released Tepig from his ball and began to pet him, letting him know that he will be mine from now on. He seemed delighted to hear this, and began to snuggle up to me.

It's only then that I actually register what she said. "Wait," I asked. "What's the Z-A Royale?" Taunie looked at me. "Oh yeah, I suppose you wouldn't know about it," she said. "The Z-A Royale is a big competition taking place all over the city. You start at Rank Z, then make you way up to Rank A by battling people competing in the tournament as well for challengers tickets, before finishing off with a Promotion Match to go up to the next Rank." I thought about all of this. It did sound like a quick and easy way to make money. "Plus, if you're strong, you'd be a valuable asset for Team MZ," Taunie added happily.

This caused me some pause. At the word, 'Team', I felt a bit worried, as Team Flare came to mind. Taunie clearly saw the look on my face, and laughed. "Oh no, it's nothing like that," she said. At this, AZ approached us, chuckling slightly. "Taunie, did you tell the poor girl anything last night?" he asked. "I didn't want to bombard her with information," she explained, before turning to me. "Team MZ is just me and the 2 other residents here. We mostly just help out around Lumiose, and try to keep it safe. The Z-A Royale allows us to train up and get stronger so we can do just that. So, you want in?" Before I could reply, AZ spoke up again. "Now hold on," he said. "We don't even know how long she intends to stay in Lumiose yet. For all we know, it could be for a mere few weeks."

They both looked at me, and I realised they were waiting to hear my answer. "Oh, uh, actually, I'm planning on staying in Lumiose forever," I replied. Or at least as long as I can before I'm recognised, I think, but I don't day say that out loud. AZ looked surprised by this. "Really?" he asked. "Have you any relatives here?" I shook my head. "What about your parents?" he asked. "How do they feel about this?" At this, I felt the walls begin to close in on me. "My... parents," I said vaguely. Suddenly, it was getting a bit hard to breath. Taunie and AZ looked at me with concern as I began to hyperventilate somewhat. AZ must've noticed this, because he quickly said, "We don't have to talk about them. So, you wish to find somewhere to stay?"

I nodded, finally being able to regain control of my breathing. "Well, that's all the more reason to join up with Team MZ!" Taunie exclaimed happily. "There's only 3 of us so far, but all of us basically live in this hotel. So, you'd be able to stay here, battle against strong trainers, and you'll get to help keep Lumiose City safe! How does that sound?" I thought about it all. A free place to stay? A chance to actually have a pokémon team of my own? Work to protect my new home? And I get to do all this with a cute girl!? Sign me the fuck up! "I'll do it!" I said aloud. Taunie jumped in the air and clapped her hands with joy. "Excellent!" she exclaimed. "I'll get you signed up right away! I'll even put my contact info into your phone while I'm at it!"

"Oh, yes! Please do!" I said, maybe a little too quickly. Thankfully, Taunie was far too excited about all of this to notice. As she was playing around with my phone, signing me up for the Z-A Royale. As she did this, the sound of the lift came from behind us. Suddenly, another voice called out. "Taunie, it is far too early in the morning for your antics," said the voice, which turned out to be another girl. She was about my height, with long black hair, wearing a blue jumper and yellow and white leggings. "Sorry Lida," said Taunie. "I was just excited. I'm just helping Team MZ's newest member sign up for the Z-A Royale." It was only then that this new girl locked eyes with me.

"NEW MEMBER!" she exclaimed, even louder than Taunie was being. "So much for too early in the morning," AZ commented, rubbing his ear from the shout the new girl made. "Sorry AZ," she said, before turning to me. "So, you're then new member huh?" Before I could reply, Taunie leapt to her feet. "Yep!" she exclaimed. "Meet Harmony!" Well shit. Now someone else knows my real name. "Enchanté," I replied. the new girl nodded. "Same here," she replied. "My name is Lida." The two of us shook hands. Then, I head my phone go off. "Oh, that'll be the app," said Taunie, checking my phone again. "Yep, it's all finished. You just need to enter in a few personal details, and you'll be all set!"

I looked at my phone and read what the app was telling me. It basically told me everything that Taunie already explained to me, except there was a very interesting titbit that she forgot to mention. "The first person to reach Rank A shall have 1 wish granted for them, provided that it is within our powers to grant it." This gave me pause. "What does this mean?" I asked the two girls. They both looked at the screen and read what it said. Then Lida looked up at Taunie. "You didn't explain this to her either?!" she exclaimed. "Well I didn't think there'd be much point if she had no interest," Taunie admitted, scratching the back of her head.

Lida shook her head with exasperation, then returned her attention to me. "If you manage to be the 1st person to reach Rank A," she explained, "Quasartico Inc., the company responsible for the Z-A Royale, will grant you anything your heart desires. Within reason of course." This all sounded too good to be true. Could this wish help me? Was it too much to hope for?" Cautiously, so as not to rouse suspicion from the other two, I asked, "So, what kind of thing can you wish for?" Both of them looked at each other, before shrugging. "It can be anything really," Taunie replied. "A grant for research, help advancing in your career." "A career in the first place," Lida added. "Money to start up a business or to get you off your feet during an art project of any kind."

"A way to completely change your identity in every way?" I asked. Both of them looked at each other with a mixture of confusion and alarm. "I mean, I'd say that'd be possible," said Taunie. "Why?" "Oh, no reason in particular," I replied quickly. "Since you guys were spit balling things to wish for, I decided to throw in something really random, you know?" They looked at each other, before shrugging. I took that to mean they bought what I said. "Well anyway," Taunie said. "All you really need to do now is take a picture of yourself for the app, and you're all set." I became nervous again. "This won't be seen outside of Lumiose right?" I asked. Lida shook her head. "No one who isn't partaking in the Z-A Royale will see it," she replied. "And even then, they'll only see your image if you're their promotion match."

I felt relieved to hear this, then went ahead and took a picture of myself. But before I could post it, Taunie stopped me. "Wait!" she said. "Before you post that, may I give you something for your wardrobe?" I looked at her. "It's just something to show you're one of us," she explained. I nodded quickly, which made her smile. "Excellent," she said. "I'll just go and get it!" Then, she disappeared into a side door. She returned a few seconds later carrying a green and black jacket, with an insignia on it that looked a bit like the letters 'MZ' on the back. "Try it on," she told me. "I had a friend make it last night in case you decided to join our cause.

Feeling my heart flutter at the thought of that, I threw the jacket on. I had to admit, it felt good. With this new addition to my wardrobe, I snapped another picture for my Z-A Royale profile. I had to admit, I looked good. I sent in the picture, and a notification appeared on my phone saying that I was registered. Taunie smiled at this, then began to walk towards the door. "Since you're now registered with the Z-A Royale, why don't you have your first official battle?" I shrugged and nodded. "Cool!" Taunie said happily. "Meet me out front. Let's have a battle!" Then, she disappeared out the front door. I looked over at Lida, who was clearly stifling a laugh. "Is she always this energetic?" I asked. "Only on the days ending in Y," Lida replied. "Now go on out there, she'll be waiting for you."

Blushing at the phrasing Lida used, she and I stepped outside to see Taunie standing there, bouncing on her toes with excitement. "You ready?" she asked me. I nodded and since I never put Tepig back in his ball, he simply ran out in front of me. Taunie grinned, before sending out Chikorita. Lida refereed and did the usual run through of the rules. Then, Taunie and I began our first battle together. "Chikorita, tackle!" Taunie shouted. "Use Ember Tepig!" I responded. Chikorita tried to tackle Tepig, but was buffered by the flames coming from Tepig's nostrils. But, it tried again, and this time landed a hit. But Tepig used another Ember, and took it out.

Taunie returned Chikorita and sent out Totodile. This one would be a bit more of an issue. While I barely knew anything about pokémon battles and type matchups, even a toddler would know that water beats fire. So, I tried to get Tepig to keep his distance, only going on the attack straight after Totodile used a water type move. But even with this plan, Tepig was still being worn down. Soon enough, I could tell he was on his last legs. But, so was Totodile. So, I had Tepig risk one final Tail Whip, before going in with a Tackle. But Totodile was just a little bit quicker, sniping Tepig with a water attack, and knocking him out.

I couldn't help but feel disappointed as Taunie returned Totodile to its ball in victory. As I was about to do the same with Tepig, Lida approached. "Here, let me heal him for you," she said, before doing just that with a spare Revive and a potion. Tepig jumped up in my arms, and looked disappointed to have lost. "It's ok buddy," I told him. "We'll get her next time." He nodded to me happily, then I returned him to his ball. Taunie approached me happily. "Well, for your 3rd ever battle, that was pretty impressive," she told me happily. I felt my face warm from receiving the compliment from her. "Now come on," she told me, taking my hand suddenly. "I need to show you another important thing about being a trainer." Then, she led me towards the main road.

I didn't complain about being dragged around town by a pretty girl. But unfortunately for me, before I could enjoy it for too long, we were stopped by some rocks in the way of the road. "Oh of all the rotten luck," Taunie complained. "While there are many upsides to allowing wild pokémon to roam free in the city, this is one of the downsides." She gestured to the rocks before us. "Come on, we'll just have to find another way around." Then, she led me down the alleyway we ran through the night before. I expected us to go through the full thing, but barely a few metres in, she stopped me again. "Do you trust me?" she asked. I stared at her blankly. She held out her hand. "Do you trust me?" she asked. I nodded and took her hand.

She clasped it, then pulled me over to a ladder that I never noticed until now. Then, she began to climb up. Curious, I followed her. She led me to the top of the roof, and I stared down at the city below. While it wasn't as nice as the view the night before, I still appreciated it. Taunie turned and smiled at me. "I really appreciate you joining us," she said. Confused, I shrugged her off. "Don't worry about it," I replied, trying to be suave. "It seems like fun. What does Team MZ do anyway?" Taunie looked out at Lumiose. "We protect this place," she replied. "AZ warned me of something terrible, and that he needed my help to stop it. I owe AZ so much, so of course I accepted. I'm just glad you did too."

"Well, a really cute girl asked me to, so of course I said yes!" I replied in my head, but didn't dare say out loud. Instead, I replied with, "Well, I owe him too for giving me a place to live, so of course I want to help him." Taunie smiled at me. "Still, I really appreciate it," she said. We stared at each other for a few seconds, before I started blushing. I looked away quickly, and began to look for a way down. "So what now?" I asked. "Now, we jump," she replied. "We do excuse me what now?" I asked, but she was already gone. As I watched her, she stepped off the roof and landed on the roof below, before doing the same again on the path. She landed on a patch of grass and rolled to catch her fall. Then, she stood up and looked at me.

"Come on!" she shouted. "It's perfectly safe!" "Easy for you to say," I muttered, but I stepped towards the ledge. "Ok," I said. "You can do this. You can do this, you can do this, you can do this!" Then, I stepped off the edge. I felt my heart jump into my throat as I fell to the roof below me. When I hit the ground, I felt my legs to that buzzing they do when you hit the ground too hard. Once they stopped doing that, I stepped towards the other edge. This one was definitely higher. "Try not to think about it!" Taunie called up to me. "Just jump! I'll catch you!" Then she held her arms out. I felt myself blushing again at this idea, but it was enough to encourage me to go for it. So, I jumped.

I fell through the air again, and was expecting to break my ankle upon contact with the ground. But instead of that, I felt Taunie's arms wrap around me as she cushioned my fall. I felt my face go very warm at this, but I was still quite happy with this outcome. But, I had to let go, as she had the rest of the city to show me. So, I separated from her, then followed her as she led me to a red building at the corner of the street. "This here is a Pokémon Centre," Taunie explained. "Just walk up to the Nurse there and have them download the Pokédex onto your phone. Once that's done, we can get to the bread and butter of being a trainer; catching pokémon!"

Perhaps it was Taunie's energy when she said it, but I was getting pretty excited for that. So, I walked up to the woman behind the counter and asked for the Pokédex. The woman nodded, then tapped some things on the computer in front of her. Suddenly, I felt my phone vibrate. When I pulled it out, I saw that a new app was added to it. Deciding to try it out, I released Tepig, then held my phone in front of him. Sure enough, The Pokédex scanned him and registered him into it. I smiled at this, then returned him. I turned back to the nurse to thank her, when she began to speak. "You know, there's a promotion going on right now for downloading the Pokédex app," she explained. "Simply catch 5 pokémon, and you'll be granted a reward."

Now this piqued my interest. Taunie grinned at me. "You hear that?" she asked. "That gives me all the more reason to show you the ropes." She pulled out her phone and checked her map. "There's a Wild Zone just down the road there," she said, pointing down the way we came. "Why don't I take you there so you can catch yourself a proper team!" "Yeah!" I exclaimed. "It's a date!" I mentally kicked myself for that wording. "Not like a DATE date, just a regular thing between friends. Which is what we are!... Nothing else!" Taunie giggled at my floundering, before taking my hand once more. "Yeah," she said. "Now, come on. I've got more to show you. Then, she dragged me down the street again. I gad to say at that point, that if this was going to be my life in Lumiose, I could get used to it!

Chapter Text

Taunie led me through the streets of Lumiose towards one of those areas surrounded by the weird green barriers, similar to the ones that trapped us in the Battle Zone the night before. She stepped up to the gate with the big 1 on it, and walked inside. "Come on," she said. "It's perfectly safe!" I stepped over to the gate and put my hand up to it. Sure enough, it passed straight through. I tried to do the same with the other part of the forcefield, but this time it just stung. Taunie giggled a bit as I stepped through the gate. "And don't worry," she said as I walked up to her, "those things are designed so that the only way pokémon can get out of there, is if they're inside a pokéball. Not even tame ones can get through."

I nodded at this information, then faced all of the pokémon before me. As I looked around, I saw a bird with a red head coming out from behind a parked car. Taunie smiled at it. "Perfect," she said, before turning to me. "That right there is a Fletchling," she told me. "It's a skittery little guy, so if it sees you, it may try to run. Which means, you will need to sneak up on it." Then, she handed me some pokéballs of my own. "Simply wait until it's back is to you, then through the ball at it. If all goes well, it will go in!" I nodded and took the balls. Then, I crouched and began to creep towards the Fletchling. It didn't seem to have seen me yet. So, I waited until it's back was to me, then threw the ball.

The ball connected with it's back and the Fletchling disappeared inside. The ball bounced up in the air 3 time, before falling back down to the ground and clicking. I had caught the bird. Taunie cheered as I picked the pokéball up with my new Fletchling inside. I felt a buzzing from my phone and pulled it out. Sure enough, Fletchling's data was added to my new Pokédex. I put my phone back in my pocket and attached my new pokémon to my belt. Then, I turned around to look for another pokémon. Not 3 seconds later, a bunny started hopping about out of some bushes. "Ah, a Bunnelby!" said Taunie. "These ones are useful. So, just do the same thing again, and you'll be golden!"

I nodded, then crouched once more. I crept over to the Bunnelby, who still hadn't seen me, as it was too busy munching on something. Probably a berry. Once I was within throwing distance, I hurled the ball at it. Like the Fletchling before, the Bunnelby disappeared inside and the ball bounced up in the air 3 times. I approached, expecting it to stay in. But then Taunie shouted, "Harmony wait! Don't approach it!" But she was too late. The ball hit the ground, and instead of being captured, the Bunnelby broke free. Then it spotted me, and looked quite angry. "I tried to warn you," said Taunie. "Bunnelby are much more aggressive than Fletchling. They will attack on sight. Looks like you're going to have to battle it!"

"Now she tells me," I muttered, before sending out Tepig. I order him to use Tackle, but the Bunnelby avoids him. Then, it uses Mud Shot, which does a lot more damage than I was expecting. "Ground Types are super effective against fire!" Taunie shouted. "Switch to Fletchling! Ground has no effect against flying!" I thanked her for the tip, then returned Tepig, sending out Fletchling in his stead. She let out a small cry as she was released. The Bunnelby tried to hit her with another Mud Shot, but true to Taunie's word, it did nothing at all. Smiling at this, I ordered Fletchling to use Gust, followed by Tackle. This time, both attacks hit the Bunnelby, weakening it. It tried to use Tackle itself, but Fletchling dodged out of the way, before using one more Gust to finish it off.

Bunnelby stood there, looking quite dizzy from the attacks. "Now's your chance Harmony!" Taunie called. "Catch it while it's dizzy!" I nodded, then pulled out another pokéball. I threw it at the Bunnelby, and once again it disappeared inside. Only this time, it stayed inside the ball. As I picked it up, Taunie ran over and gave me a hug, picking me up slightly as she did. My face went hotter than Tepig's breath as she lifted me up. When she put me down, she was grinning from ear to ear. "That was great!" she exclaimed. "You did wonderfully!" "Th-Thanks," I stuttered out, still trying to control my blush. Then, I looked around the Wild Zone some more, spotting a few more pokémon here and there.

I was expecting Taunie to stay with me and watch as I caught the other 3 I needed, but unfortunately, that didn't end up happening. As I was about to start looking around for my next pokémon, Taunie got a notification on her phone. When she checked it, I looked over her shoulder to see that she had her promotion match, in order to get to Rank X. "Oh, sorry, I've got to split," she said. "I would love to stick around and see you fill out your team, but I need to take care of this. "I'm just glad I took care of my Challengers Ticket the night before I met you." I was disappointed that she was going to leave me for a bit, so I decided that my reward could wait.

"Can I come with you and watch?" I asked. Taunie checked her map on her phone to see where she was going. Once she found that out, she winced. "It probably wouldn't be wise," she replied. "It's on the opposite side of town to us, and you're still new here. I wouldn't want you getting lost on me." "But I want to see you battle," I argued. Taunie sighed, then thought about it. "How about this?" she asked. "You stay here and gather your team to get your reward, while I go and deal with my promotion match? If you're quick enough, you might be able to catch the end of it. How does that sound?" I thought about this for a second, then nodded. "Ok, that's fair," I said, trying to hide my disappointment.

Taunie smiled and hugged me again. "Thanks for understanding," she said. "Just get your reward quickly and come and meet me. Text me when you're done and I'll send you the location!" Then, she ran off, leaving me alone in the Wild Zone. I sighed as I watched her run off. I suppose I should've expected that I wouldn't be able to stay by her side forever. We would eventually have to split off from each other. Still, it didn't make it any less disappointing. But, I had to get this done quickly. Then I could meet up with her again and watch her battle. Feeling my heart quicken at the thought of seeing that, I grabbed one of the empty balls she gave me, and began searching for my next catch.

It took me a little over 10 minutes, but I finally managed to catch the remaining 3 pokémon. I caught a Scatterbug that ran across my path. I ended up wasting 2 pokéballs before I caught it because it kept dodging and almost running away. Next, I caught a Weedle, which was much easier as it was trying to climb up a tree. And finally, I caught myself a Mareep. This one was much more difficult to catch, because I accidentally stood on a stick when I approached it, which snapped under my feet. It heard me and began to attack, forcing me to have to roll away a few times, before I sent out Bunnelby to fight it. Once I made it dizzy, I managed to catch it too.

Now with my full team at last, I set off back to the Pokémon Centre that first told me about the promotion to collect my reward. The Nurse smiled at me when I approached. "Hello and welcome to the Pokémon Centre," she said cheerily. "How may I help you?" "Uh, hello," I replied, a bit timidly. "I managed to register 5 new pokémon to my Pokédex, so I was wondering how I can go about getting the reward?" The Nurse looked at me, before realising that I thought I'd get it from her. "Oh, no, you don't get it here," she told me. "Show me your phone." I handed it over to her, and she tapped a few things on the screen. "There you go," she said. "Just go to that building and speak with the Director. She'll give you what you want." I thanked her and left the centre.

As I did, I walked past a guy dressed all in blue. As I did, he called me over. "Excuse me?" he said. "Where you the one who threw those pokéballs willy-nilly at the Scatterbug?" Blushing slightly that someone saw that, I nodded. "Hey, don't worry about it," he said. "Everyone misses all the time. In fact, it's my job to gather those pokéballs from the missed throws and return them to their owners. So, want these back?" Then, to my amazement, he held out the 2 pokéballs I wasted on the Scatterbug. I took them gratefully and pocketed them. "Feel free to speak to me, or anyone dressed like me outside of pokémon Centres, whenever you lose pokéballs. Chances are, we'll have them for you!" I thanked him again, then left the Pokémon Centre.

The building the Nurse sent me turned out to be a Pokémon Research Lab just on the other side of the Wild Zone. It was a pretty impressive building I had to admit, and I was starting to feel a bit nervous about going in. But, if I wanted to get the reward, and meet up with Taunie again, then I had better get a move on. So, I took a breath, and stepped inside. The inside was a lot less grand than I was expecting. It was a pretty small reception, with a few people working at the desks. A young woman with blonde hair was standing by one of the desks, and locked eyes with me as I entered. "Ah, I take it you're here about the 5 Pokémon Challenge?" she asked. "Yes I am," I confirmed. "Excellent," the woman replied. "Just head on up there in the lift to the 3rd floor. Our Director will be waiting for you."

I stepped into the lift and rode it up to the 3rd floor as instructed. When I got out of the lift, I took a quick look around the room to see if I could see the Director. Suddenly, a loud voice to my right on the other side of a wall confirmed for me where she was. "THAT ABSOLUTE BRAINDEAD FUCKING MORON!" shouted the voice, startling me. "Who does he think he is? Pumping more money into that stupid redevelopment plan!?" She started pulling a stupid voice a this. "'Ooh, let's create more Wild Zones to allow more pokémon to freely live in the City!' Well that would be great, except these things need to be studied first to make sure they're safe for pokémon to live! And what does that idiot do? CREATES MORE WILD ZONES EVERY TIME I TURN MY ARCEUS DAMNED BACK!"

I heard a loud slam on a desk, and assumed that the Director either slammed her fist into her desk, or her head. So, I decided to check. When I saw the director of the Research Lab, my heart stood still. I recognised this woman. Specifically, from the news 5 years ago. "You-You're..." I trailed off, feeling a bit of fear creep up my back. The woman looked at me, then sighed. "Yes, I am Mable, former Admin of Team Flare," she said. "Let's clear the air on that one." She stood up and made her way around the desk. Instinctively, I backed away. She sighed at this. "Don't worry," she told me. "My days with Team Flare are behind me. I've turned over a new leaf, and now, I work here, performing research for this new Urban Redevelopment Project." She said that last part with a hint of bitterness in her voice.

I guess she could tell I was still a bit wary of her, because she then said, "Look, Professor Sycamore was the one who gave me this position when the Project started. Do you really think he'd do that if I had any evil intentions?" "He could do it to keep an eye on you," I pointed out, to which she laughed. "Truth be told that's probably why he gave me this job in the first place," she agreed. "But nowadays, I am here conducting research on the Wild Zones, hoping to make it so that pokémon are able to truly coexist in Lumiose with all of us. But it's slow going." A Rotom Pad appeared beside her at this, and she began tapping on it.

"I'm a bit short on researchers at the moment," she explained. "Which is why I set that challenge in the first place. Speaking of, let's see how many different species you managed to obtain." The tapped some more, then her eyes widened. "Wow, 6 species of pokémon in that space of time! I must say, that's quite impressive." She looked up at me again. "You might be just the person I'm looking for," she told me. "See, I need some people to head into the Wild Zones and conduct research on the pokémon that live there. If you do so, I can see if these Wild Zones work as a means of integrating pokémon into the city, the pokémon don't get hurt, and you get more rewards. Everybody wins!"

I had to admit, the promise of more rewards was pretty tempting. "So, what kind of rewards would I get?" I asked. Mable smirked. "I knew that would get you," she commented, before turning her screen around. On the screen was a bunch of different TMs, as well as some EXP Candies for strengthening pokémon. "Each time you do enough research for me," Mable explained. "You'll gain a, let's call it a research level. Whenever you go up a research level, I'll send a TM over to you, directly into your bag, it's simple. In fact, I believe you've earned one right now for completing my challenge." With that, she took out a device and held it out to me. "Just put this in your bag, and watch this."

Deciding to trust her, I put the device in the satchel Taunie gave me along with my jacket. When I did, Mable tapped a few things. Suddenly, I felt the satchel shift at my hip. When I opened it up, a TM for Rock Smash had appeared inside. "There you go!" she said happily. "You'll get more of those each time you help me out. So, what do you say?" She held her hand out for me to shake. I considered what she was offering me. If this really gave me some more TMs, they could really help me out in the ZA Royale. Really, my choice was obvious. I shook her hand. "It's a deal!" I said. Mable smiled at me gratefully. "Thank you so much," she said. "Trust me, you won't regret this! Now, be on your way and conduct that research!" I nodded, then made my way out of the building.

When I stepped back out onto the streets, I got my phone out ready to let Taunie know I was done. But before I could, she called me. "Hey!" she said. "Sorry to let you know, but my Promotion Match is over. I won though!" I smiled despite how disappointed I was that I couldn't see her battle. "That's great!" I told her. "Good job!" "Thanks," Taunie replied, sounding almost bashful. "So, did you get your reward yet?" "Yep!" I told her. "It was a TM for the move Rock Smash." "Ah, that's a handy one that!" Taunie replied. "I'd say your Tepig or Bunnelby will be able to learn it. It'll smash through those rocks blocking the way to Hotel Z!"

Now this was good news. "Awesome!" I replied. "I know right?" Taunie agreed. "Actually, speaking of Hotel Z, I'm on my way back there now. Meet me in the main reception, ok?" "Ok!" I told her, before hanging up. I was about to make my way back to Hotel Z when I heard a new voice call out to me. "You there!" the voice called. "The one in the green jacket!" I turned around to see a boy my age approaching me. He was accompanied by a small Scraggy, which was waddling behind him. "You're with Team MZ, yeah?" he asked. I nodded awkwardly. He smiled. "Cool, as am I," he replied. "In fact, I'm the one that made your jacket."

my eyes widened at this. "You did?!" I asked. He nodded. "The name's Naveen," he said. Figuring since he was Team MZ, and therefore would be with Taunie, Lida and AZ, there was no point in giving him my fake name. "I'm Harmony," I replied. "Yeah, I think Taunie mentioned that already," Naveen replied. Then, he looked me up and down. "You know, I think that outfit of your is missing something," he said. Then, he began rooting through his bag. "Aha," he said, pulling something out. "This should help tie it together well." Then, he handed me a white trilby hat with a red stripe going round it. "Try it on," he said. "I have no need for it."

I took it and placed it on my head. It fit surprisingly well. "Thank you," I said, but Naveen waved me off. "Don't mention it," he replied. "You're one of us." Then, he turned away from me. "I'll see you around then," he said. "Since you and I both stay in Hotel Z." Then, with a wave of his hand, he walked off, with Scraggy tumbling behind him. I meanwhile turned back towards the Wild Zone. No doubt I had to go through that again in order to make it back to Hotel Z. So, I pulled out the new TM I won, and managed to teach Tepig Rock Smash. Spotting some rocks not far off from us, I sent him over to them and ordered him to use the new move. Tepig charged himself up, before launching himself at the rocks.

To my surprise and immense delight, the rocks were smashed to pieces. I jumped for joy at this and picked Tepig up, spinning him around with delight. "Well done buddy!" I told him. "I knew you could do it!" Tepig let out a happy snort at this, before I returned him to his ball. Then, I made my way back through the Wild Zone. Along the way, I decided to catch a Pidgey that flew by me, which I managed to without difficulty. I also had a quick look around the rest of the Zone to see if I could find anymore new pokémon, but no such luck. So, I made my way back to Hotel Z. As I walked over to the alley where it lay, I saw the rocks that blocked Taunie and my path this morning. But now, I had a way around them.

So, I released Tepig, and ordered him to use Rock Smash. Just like before, the rocks were utterly destroyed, leaving no trace of them behind. I patted Tepig's head affectionately, before returning him to his ball. Then, I walked over to the Hotel again. Before I stepped inside, I stopped to take in the building properly during the daytime. It was a pretty building, even if it looked a little rundown. But still, I couldn't help but smile at it. When I looked at it, I felt safe. I felt that, deep in my heart, I will never be found here. So, with that comforting thought in mind, I stepped back into the building. No, I stepped back into my new home.

Chapter Text

When I stepped into the Hotel, I saw Taunie waiting for me with a grin on her face. "So, I take it you won your Promotion Match?" I asked. Taunie's grin broadened and she nodded at me. "Yup!" she exclaimed. "I'm now Rank X!" Seeing her broad, happy grin on her face caused more Butterfree to flutter through my stomach, but I pushed them down and sat across from her. "Well done!" I told her happily. She smiled at me, then registered the hat on my head. "Wait, where did you get that?" she asked, pointing to it. "Oh this?" I asked, taking it off my head. "Naveen gave it to me. Said it helped with the outfit." "Well, it certainly does," said Taunie, leaning forward in her seat. At that comment, I felt my face heat up.

I said something very intelligent as a response, which sounded a lot like, "Ehbluh!" Suddenly, I heard laughing from behind me and turned to see Lida and Naveen approaching us. "What was that Harmony?" Lida asked. "I couldn't quite make that out." "N-Nothing!" I said quickly. "I was just clearing my throat." Naveen just shrugged and joined us on one of the couches, but Lida looked at me suspiciously before she sits down too. "We heard about your Promotion Match," Naveen was saying. "Congrats!" Lida nodded in agreement. "Yeah, well done Taunie! Rank X already! I'm still stuck on Y." Naveen nodded in agreement. "Well, at least now we have someone below us," he commented, nodding in my direction.

Lida shot him a warning look, before glancing over at me. "Don't mind him," she said. "But also don't feel too put off either. It's difficult to get out of Rank Z, especially on your first try." Taunie nods in agreement. "Yeah, but I'd say if you keep at it, you'll be Promoted eventually. Just don't be expecting to Rank up immediately either." I decided to bear that in mind, and thanked them for their advice. At that moment, I heard a notification ping from my phone. When it flew out of my pocket and into my face, I saw that I had received a notification from the Z-A Royale app. I was expected for a Promotion Match. "Well, talk about perfect timing," I commented, before showing the others my phone.

On the picture across from mine was the man who I was supposed to battle. He was generally unassuming, with short brown hair and slight stubble for facial hair. When the other 3 saw who I was battling, their jaws all dropped. "Well, you can forget everything we just said about being patient," Naveen told me. "You're going up against Zack 'Le Z Éternel'." "Who?" I asked. Lida giggled at this. "I suppose it's not fair to laugh about this guy," she said. "But he's been stuck in Rank Z since the start of the Royale. Every single person he's faced has beaten him." "I mean, is it really a bad thing that they have?" Naveen asked. "His wish is just annoying."

"What's he wishing for?" I asked. "I believe he wants Quasartico Inc. to abolish all forms of transport in Lumiose except for Taxis," Taunie explained. "The guy works as a taxi driver, so he thinks this would increase his revenue." I couldn't help but giggle at this. "Wow," I said. The others nodded. "But no one will have to worry about that," Lida pointed out. "Because this guy has never gotten out of Rank Z." We all laughed at that, then I stood up. "So, where do I find this guy?" I asked. "It's not that simple," Taunie replied. "Before you challenge someone to a Promotion Match, you must first acquire a Challengers Ticket." "And how do I do that?" I asked. "By battling in the Battle Zones," Naveen replied.

My mind flashed back to the night before, when Taunie and I were caught up in that red zone. "So I have to battle in there?" I asked. "Just until you get enough points to acquire the ticket." I looked at my phone and saw that there was a meter below my name and picture. According to it, I needed 1,000 points to get the ticket, and then I could challenge Zack. Wait, my name? I looked at the spot where my name was written and sure enough, the name Harmony was written there. I had forgotten that Taunie had entered my details in, not me. So now all of Lumiose knew my name and face. It suddenly became quite hard to breathe. The room began to spin and I practically fell back into my chair.

I could just about see the looks of concern on my friends' faces, and I could see their lips moving, but I couldn't hear them over the ringing in my ears. Soon, breathing became impossible. I gasped for air, but almost nothing entered my lungs. I gripped the sides of the chair as my eyesight spun. I closed my eyes and tried to breathe. Suddenly, I felt weight on me and began to thrash, trying to throw them off. But then, I felt Tepig's snout brush against my hand. I began to scratch his head, and focused on him. Suddenly, breathing became a bit easier. I continued to do it, and the ringing began to die down. Suddenly, I could hear my friends again.

"I think she's coming back," said Taunie's voice. I opened my eyes and saw them all looking at me with concern. "Are you ok?" Lida asked. I nodded, still getting used to having air back in my lungs. "What happened?" Naveen asked. "Panic attack," I replied. "I get them sometimes." I looked around, briefly wondering where Taunie went. Then I registered the weight that was on top of me, and looked down. Taunie was practically lying on top of me. She was hugging me, and looking up at my face with worry. And she was within perfect kissing distance. I blushed scarlet at this, but didn't try to push her off. Instead, I made it clear that I was ok, and she climbed off me.

"Why were you lying on top of me?" I asked. "I saw you going through that and thought a hug would help you," she said, also going a bit pink. I ignored the hammering of my heart. "I would advise against that in future," I replied. "That only makes things worse." "Duly noted," Taunie replied. "May I ask what caused that?" I became nervous at this, not wanting to explain this to them. So instead, I settled with, "Oh, they just happen sometimes. I remember something bad, and then boom! That happens!" The others continued to look at me with concern, so I decided it would be best to change the subject. "So, we were talking about Battle Zones?"

Thankfully, they acknowledged that I didn't want to talk about it anymore, so the conversation moved on. On the outside, I was perfectly fine. But on the inside, I was a mess. my mind began to spiral as I worried about who would see my profile. If the last 2 years of my life came crashing down because I am a gay mess, I would never have forgiven myself. But then, I thought of a way to stop my spiralling before I had another panic attack in front of them. "Wait, so, who exactly sees my profile?" I asked. The others looked at me with confusion. "Oh, I was just wondering in case I decided to change the picture and make it a funny one. I obviously wouldn't want all of Lumiose to see it."

"Oh, only those that you face in a Promotion Match will see it," Taunie explained. Everyone else will just see your rank when they approach you." I could have laughed out loud with relief. I even very nearly let it show on my face, but I managed to reign it in. "Ok," I said. "That's fine. So now we just wait for nightfall yeah?" Taunie nodded, getting back into the swing of things. "It's about late afternoon now, so night should fall soon. Let's all meet outside and see get ready to head to the Battle Zone once it appears." We all nodded, then the 3 of them left. I was about to follow them, when I saw Tepig looking at me with concern in his eyes, as if he knew I wasn't being truthful. "I'm fine buddy," I told him. "Really." Then, I returned him to his ball and followed the others out.

They were waiting for me when I showed up, clearly discussing something. Concerned that it might be about my panic attack, I approached them. But then they looked up at me and grinned, or in Naveen's case, looked a little less sullen. "So, since this is your first time in the Battle Zone," said Taunie. "The 3 of us have decided to help you out." "We're not going to do any battling ourselves," Lida explained. "Instead, we'll just teach you the basics of battling in these Zones." I smiled at them. "Thanks you guys," I said. "Anytime," Naveen added, before looking at his watch. "The Battle Zone should be coming up soon, we should check to see where it is."

The other 2 nodded and the 3 of them pulled out their phones. I however looked at them with confusion, waiting for one of them to explain what they were doing. Eventually, Taunie realised I was totally clueless. "Oh, sorry Harmony, I forgot you're new!" she exclaimed. "Just pull out your map and look for the red zone. It looks like the Wild Zones but highlighted red instead of green." I thanked her, then checked my map. Sure enough, at that moment, a spot right next to us suddenly became highlighted in red as night fell. "Looks like it's in the same spot as last time," I pointed out. "Well, that's handy," said Taunie. "So, let's get down there and get you your Challengers Ticket!" Then, she ran off down the road. The rest of us looked at each other, then followed her. "You were not kidding about her energy," I commented to Lida as we followed her.

When we arrived, Taunie was already inside the Battle Zone. We walked inside then gathered in a group. "So, you just walk around here and find trainers," Lida explained. "Once you lock eyes with one, you battle them. Understand?" I nodded. At this, Taunie put her hand on my shoulder, causing me to blush. "And don't worry," she said. "If your team gets hurt, I'll heal them up for you, ok?" I nodded again, then I looked down the road. I didn't see anyone yet, but I grabbed Tepig's pokéball, just to be safe. Then, I walked down the path. Taunie stood next to the ladder that we climbed up this morning, while Lida and Naveen went on ahead. Considering neither of them got caught in a battle, I assumed there was no one there and rushed in.

Unfortunately, there was someone there, she just didn't see them. She did see me though. And unfortunately, I didn't see her until she called out for me to battle, giving me such a fright that I wasn't prepared, allowing her to have the advantage. But luckily for me, her first pokémon was a Bellsprout. Which meant Tepig was able to take it out really quickly. She sent her next pokémon out, Bunnelby, but I swapped to Fletchling and took that one out pretty quickly too. Despite her having the advantage, I had managed to win. She looked annoyed by this, but accepted defeat. I checked my phone and, sure enough, I had earned some points.

I continued down the path, eventually coming by Lida. "Thanks for the warning about the trainer there," I said grumpily. "Sorry," she replied. "But I needed to show you why you should be on guard. But luckily for you, you have your chance to do the same to someone else." Then, she pointed down an alleyway, where I could see another trainer, standing with his Bunnelby by his side. "If you sneak up on him and get your pokémon to attack his before he sees you, you get the advantage," she told me. I released Tepig, then the two of us approached the trainer standing with his back to the alley. I did feel a little bad for doing this, but after all, all's fair in love and war, and it's this guy's fault for not paying attention.

At my order, Tepig jumped out of the alley and tackled the Bunnelby to the ground, doing a lot of damage to the rabbit. Bunnelby tries to fight back, but Tepig dodges the attack and uses Ember, finishing it off. The trainer returns Bunnelby, then sends out Fletchling. At first, I struggled against it, since the bird kept dodging all of my attacks. But then I heard Lida call out behind me, "Flying types are weak to electricity!" Thanking her, I returned Tepig and sent out Mareep. 1 Thundershock later, and the bird went down. The trainer I faced was clearly miffed that I had gotten help from Lida, but accepts defeat nonetheless. Now I was up 700 points. One more victory and the Challengers Ticket will be mine!

After thanking Lida, she sent me down another alley where Naveen would be waiting. I followed the directions she gave, and saw Naveen standing there, staring down an alley at another trainer. "Hey," he said when I approached. "The final trainer you need to battle is down there." I thanked him and was about to sneak up on him, when he stopped me. "by the way, something we forgot to tell you about," Then, he handed me some medals. "Collect these when you see them," he told me. "You also get them from winning battles. At the end of each night, the medals you earn is automatically exchanged for cash. You gain a bonus for the amount of battles you win."

This caused me to grin. Finally, a way to replenish my depleting funds. I thanked him again, then headed towards the last Trainer I needed to battle. Just like the other guy, he wasn't looking at me, which gave me the opportunity to send Tepig back out and use Ember. To my surprise, the Weedle was defeated easily. To my even greater surprise, that Weedle was the only pokémon he had, which meant I had won the battle before it even started. Still, despite how easy that was, I couldn't help but feel bad for the guy. But that feeling didn't last for long as I saw that I had obtained the Challengers Ticket I needed to battle Zack. I grinned, then called Taunie and told her the good news.

"Great job!" she told me once I had finished. "I'll call up Lida and Naveen. We'll meet up at the Pokémon Centre just outside of this Battle Zone. You know the one I mean!" I did, and told her as such. We ended the call, I returned Tepig, then ran all the way to the Centre. When I got there, I saw the other 3 waiting for me. I quickly healed up my Team at the Centre, then ran up to meet them. "Good job Harmony!" Lida said as soon as I joined them. "We knew you could do it!" "Thanks guys," I said. "Now, I just need to figure out where to find this guy." "No need," Naveen replied, looking down the street. "Zack, Le Z Éternel, is a taxi driver, if you couldn't tell from his wish. Which means, he should be over there at the depot."

He led the way over there and, sure enough, there was Zack, just climbing out of a taxi cab. "There he is," said Taunie. "Just go up there and battle him. You can do it!" I smiled at my friends, then approached Zack. He saw me coming and recognised me from the app. "So, you're who I must battle," he said. "I suppose you joined this tournament with the hopes of being the greatest trainer in Lumiose. Well, let me be the first to tell you that that is much easier said than done. You think you can defeat me?" I grinned cockily at him. "Piece of gateau," I replied, which made him scowl. "We'll see," he replied. "This is my 100th attempt at reaching Rank Y. I will not let you be my 100th loss!"

Then, our phones flew out of our hands and lightly crashed into each other, registering that the Promotion Match was set to start. So, without anymore delay, we sent our first teams out. I sent out Tepig, while Zack sent out Slowpoke. Seeing this, I very quickly recalled Tepig and sent out Mareep instead. Slowpoke had charged up a Water Pulse and fired it. But since it was Mareep standing there, she was perfectly fine. I had her use Thundershock, which did a lot of damage, but not enough to defeat the Slowpoke. So, I ordered a Tail Whip, while Zack had Slowpoke use Confusion. Luckily it only did a little bit of damage, and thankfully didn't cause confusion. I quickly ordered Mareep to use another Thundershock, which managed to take out Slowpoke.

Zack growled with annoyance, then sent out his next pokémon, a Fletchling. I stared for a few seconds, utterly flabbergasted. Then, I grinned. "Big mistake," I said, before ordering another Thundershock. At the move hit Fletchling and did a lot of damage, I couldn't help but remark, "I suppose that's why they call you Le Z Éternel!" Zack glared at me and tried to get Fletchling to hit Mareep with Gust, but Mareep tanked the hit, then used another Thundershock, taking Fletchling out. By now, Zack looked absolutely furious. "No!" he shouted. "I will not lose 100 times!" Then, he sent out his last pokémon. This time it was a Pikachu.

This made me nervous, as I didn't have a Ground Type. But, I knew Tepig was my strongest pokémon, so I brought him out. When I did, I noticed that he'd learnt a new move: Rollout. While it was a Rock Type move, it was better than nothing. So, I had him use it. Thankfully, it did a lot of damage. Pikachu used its own Thundershock, but it didn't do much to Tepig. It tried to use Tackle, but Tepig dodged it, then used Ember, followed by one last Rollout at my instructions. Both attacks hit in quick succession, taking Pikachu out, and giving the match to me. I danced around in delight, and Tepig jumped into my arms happily. When I looked at Zack, he was furious.

"Well, that makes 100," he said. "Congrats on the promotion. I guess my wish will have to wait a little bit longer." I didn't say anything to that. I just turned around and returned to my friends. "Well done Harmony!" Taunie exclaimed, pulling me into a hug and causing me to blush. To make matters worse, Lida saw me blush, and a smirk appeared on her face. But before I could say anything to her about it, we all heard another voice from behind us. "Well, I must say, that was an impressive battle." Taunie let go of me and we all turned to see who was speaking. It was a young woman about our age, wearing a skin tight bodysuit with a beige coat over it.

When Taunie saw her, she grinned and waved at her. "Emma!" she exclaimed. "How are you!?" "I am doing well," she replied. "I heard the sound of battling and came to investigate. Quite impressive work." I thanked her. I had to admit, this girl wore that bodysuit very well. If I wasn't already head-over-heels for Taunie, I might have been drooling a bit. Well, a bit more than I already was. "So, who's your new friend?" the girl asked Taunie. "This is Harmony," Taunie said, before I could snap back to reality and say anything. "She's Team MZ's newest member." "Charmed to meet you Harmony," said the girl. "My name is Emma. I am the resident detective of Lumiose."

I must've looked quite surprised by this, because Emma chuckled. "I do look a bit young for it, don't I?" she asked. I shook my head. "I didn't say that," I said quickly, which caused Emma to chuckle. "I know, but many people do," she said. "So, I was just being prepared." She checked her watch, then turned to look at Taunie. "By the way Taunie," she said, "I'm sorry to say I was unable to find any information in regards to what you asked of me." Taunie waved her off. "It's fine, don't worry about it," she said. "I didn't expect it would be that easy." "Well, I will keep my eyes peeled," she said, before turning away. "Well, I must be off. See you all around." Then, she took off.

We watched her go, then regrouped. "Well, I'm hungry!" said Lida. "Why don't we return to the Hotel and let Taunie cook us something up!" "You cook?" I asked. Taunie nodded proudly. "I consider myself to be pretty decent at it," she replied. "Please for the love of Arceus, make something normal this time," Naveen said. "I've got something in mind," she replied. "But, you'll have to wait until we get back." Then, she began to lead the way back to the hotel. As she did, I walked up to Lida. "What did she ask Emma to look into?" I asked. Lida shrugged. "She's never told us," she replied. "Apparently she arrived in Lumiose hoping to find someone, so AZ took her in while she searched. But she's never told us who it is she's trying to find." I accepted that and decided not to push it further. After all, I was keeping things from them.

When we got back, AZ was waiting for us. Taunie said a quick hello, then disappeared into the kitchen to make food. "So, Harmony," said AZ cheerily. "How was your Promotion Match." "I'm rank Y now," I replied happily. AZ looked thrilled to learn this. "Good job my dear," he said. "You do seem to be a natural at battling." "Well, she was facing off against Le Z Éternel," Naveen pointed out. "So that's nothing to ride home about." "But for someone so new to pokémon battling, it's pretty impressive!" Lida pointed out. "Give her some credit!" Naveen shrugged. "I suppose that's fair," he said. "Well done then." I Decided it would be easier to accept the praise than comment on the way he congratulated me.

Soon enough Taunie's dinner was ready. I sat at the table and stared at what she made. "What even IS this!?" I asked, before I could stop myself. Taunie chuckled. "I call it, 'Croissant Curry'!" she said. "It's a blend of Kalosian croissants, with The Galar region's famous curry!" I looked between Lida and Naveen to see if she was being serious. Lida looked at the dish like she was about to devour it, while Naveen had pushed his away and pulled out a sandwich. "There is absolutely no way I am eating that monstrosity!" he said. "You really are a picky eater," Lida said. "No I'm not!" Naveen argued back. "But there are some foods you just shouldn't combine, and croissants and curry is absolutely one of them!"

I privately agreed with Naveen, but I didn't want to hurt Taunie's feelings. So, I picked up my spoon and took a bite. To my surprise, it was really tasty. "Damn Taunie, this is really good!" I exclaimed, as I continued to eat it. Naveen stared at me like I was crazy, while Kida coughed, although I was pretty sure I hear the word "simp!" within the cough. But before I could call her out on it, Lida picked up her own spoon and started eating. "Harmony's right, this is amazing!" she said. "I'm glad you like it," Taunie said. "I'm hoping to make this Hotel Z's main dish." "Are you trying to scare customers away?" Naveen deadpanned. We all laughed at this, then tucked into our dinner.

After we finished eating, Lida took the plates, and brought them into the kitchen, claiming that she'll wash them. I meanwhile was feeling tired, so I decided to head to bed. But before I could leave, Taunie called out to me. "Wait, Harmony, I just realised something!" I turned around. "Did we ever explain to you what Team MZ means?" "No," I replied. You also never told me what you're trying to do either," I said in my head. "Well, The M stands for Mega Evolution," Taunie explained. "And the Z is for Hotel Z." "So, wouldn't it be Team MEHZ?" I asked. Naveen snorted at this. "I suppose," Taunie agreed. "But Team MZ rolls off the tongue nicer. Anyway, I won't keep you longer. Night!"

Despite the fact that I did want her to keep me longer, and bring me into her room, I bid the her and Naveen goodnight, shouted the same into the kitchen to Lida, then headed to the lift. As I passed AZ, he waved at me cheerily. "I truly am grateful that you joined us Harmony," he said. "We will need all the help we can get." Deciding it would be pointless to question all this, I bid him goodnight and headed to my room. As soon as I reached my bed I collapsed into it, after stripping down to my bra and underpants. I was too hot to sleep in my clothes again. I fell asleep pretty quickly, bringing an end to my first full day in Lumiose. As I drifted off to sleep, I couldn't wait to see what my next one would bring.