"Ka-kah, ka-kah, ka-kah~~"
In a restaurant not far from Rustboro Gym, Haunter was feasting with gusto, his previously pallid face visibly regaining its color.
"So full of energy," Diantha remarked, adjusting her sunglasses as she watched him.
Johan, however, glanced at the stacks of plates piling up on the table and couldn't help but wipe the sweat from his brow.
Full of energy?
Haunter had given Johan quite the scare when they'd left the Gym.
Without saying a word, he'd started turning pale.
For a moment, Johan thought Nosepass's magnetic field interference had somehow triggered a "trade evolution" condition for Haunter.
But on second thought, if Nosepass had interfered with Haunter's magnetism, the evolution would have happened mid-battle.
As it turned out, Haunter's pallor was just a side effect of using too much energy.
"Had me thinking he'd mutated," Johan muttered, slightly embarrassed.
"Mutation isn't likely, but evolution is possible," Cynthia suggested with a smile, stroking Vulpix's fur.
"If I remember correctly, Haunter requires a trade or a special magnetic field to evolve. Roxanne's Nosepass alone wouldn't be enough."
At the mention of evolution, Johan frowned a bit.
Haunter needed a trade or a magnetic field, and Vulpix needed an Ice Stone.
Noticing his thoughts, Cynthia spoke up again, "Professor Carolina has a communicator that Mr. Bill sent over. If you need it, I can put in a word for you."
Then she added, "Though the magnetic field isn't very stable, so you'll need some luck."
Johan remembered that communicators and Pokémon storage systems had been inventions pioneered by Bill. At this point in time, such devices probably weren't perfected yet.
Still, it was an option.
But if Haunter's evolution failed, the magnetic instability could end up harming him.
Once Haunter was full and had regained his strength, the three left the restaurant.
Cynthia then mentioned she and Diantha were heading for Sootopolis City.
"You'll be there, right?"
Counting the days, the "Youth Cup" would be starting soon.
Since it was an exhibition match, they needed to familiarize themselves with the venue and make an appearance.
"I think I'll go," Johan replied.
After all, his holiday was nearly over, and once school was back in session, he'd be busy with midterms.
As a teacher, he still hadn't even prepared the exam papers.
Though given his class schedule, sneaking away for a day or two shouldn't be an issue.
After all, he had three invitations. Not going would be quite rude.
In the end, Johan watched as Cynthia and Diantha took off on Garchomp.
He couldn't help feeling a bit envious. Having a Pokémon that could fly and carry passengers was quite convenient—no need to buy plane tickets.
When he got home, Johan sat down at his computer, ready to finalize the midterm exam.
His class was mostly theory-based, with a lot of content to memorize and review, so preparing the test was actually quite simple.
But before he got started, he took out the Stone Badge and the two TMs from Rustboro Gym and placed them on his desk.
"Gotta admit, they're pretty well-made," he mused, admiring the badge's quality—an official Hoenn League item had to be top-notch.
"Better keep it safe; wouldn't want Tinkatink trying to smash it. I might even get more badges down the line for a nice little collection…"
As for the two TMs…
"Gym TMs are definitely different from the ones from the department store or online… Wait, what's this?"
Johan noticed a small compartment in the TMs, which, when opened, revealed two tiny booklets.
He picked one up and opened it.
"To better master this move, pair it with Rock Incense, Hard Stone fragments…"
Snap!
He quickly closed the booklet.
Turning around, he saw Haunter and the others huddled together, whispering about something and not paying him any attention. Relieved, he opened the booklets again to skim them quickly, his heart sinking.
The Gym-issued TMs included instruction manuals!
Not only did they have insights from the Gym's personal understanding and usage of the move, but also advice on how to strengthen the move and maximize its power!
This was outrageous…
If he hadn't seen these, he might've been able to hold back. But now that he had… How could he resist making his Pokémon stronger?
And if he couldn't resist, his already-depleted bank account would take a serious hit!
Across the room…
"Chu!"
Back at home, Tinkatink snuck over to Haunter and Vulpix.
"Ka-kah?"
"Oowu?"
Both Haunter and Vulpix were always very patient and protective of their newly-hatched teammate.
With a look of mystery, Tinkatink beckoned them closer, gesturing for them to come in for a secret.
Haunter and Vulpix exchanged glances, then moved closer.
The three Pokémon formed a tight huddle, heads touching.
"Chu, Chu!"
Tada!
Tinkatink held out her hand, revealing a dark blue stone in her pink palm that seemed to emit a faint magnetic pull.
"Ka-kah?!"
Nosepass's stone?!
Recognizing it instantly, Haunter opened his mouth to exclaim but quickly clapped a hand over it.
Tinkatink looked proud, pointing at Haunter, then the stone.
"Chu!"
Her meaning was clear—didn't Haunter need a special magnetic field to evolve?
This stone was magnetic!
"Ka-kah~~ (ノ_<.)"
Haunter's eyes turned watery with emotion.
Tinkatink's instinct was to smash any metal she came across into her hammer. Yet she'd resisted the urge, saving the rare metal instead and bringing it home just for him.
"Chu?"
Tinkatink tilted her head, looking puzzled.
"Oowu?"
That's when Vulpix's serious voice sounded.
You… didn't steal it, did you?
They'd all seen Tinkatink's "pickpocket" ability in action.
Though her intentions were good, stealing wasn't a good habit. If Johan found out, Tinkatink would end up in big trouble.
Tinkatink quickly shook her head.
"Chu—Chu—"
She'd found it while the Gym staff was cleaning up, tossed aside as garbage.
They didn't want it… so it wasn't stealing, right?
All three Pokémon glanced over at Johan.
Seeing he was too busy with a tiny booklet to notice them, they let out a collective sigh of relief.
"Oowu…"
Probably not… Maybe it's… just recycling?
Of course, this stone alone didn't have enough magnetism to trigger Haunter's evolution—Haunter had tried licking Nosepass directly before.
But the gesture still touched him deeply.
He gave Tinkatink a pat on the head, signaling her to keep it for herself.
"Chu?"
Really?
Tinkatink blinked her big lavender eyes in surprise.
Getting approval from both Haunter and Vulpix, she excitedly took out her tiny hammer and began tinkering with the stone, clinking and clanking.
"Phew…"
Johan sighed with relief, stretching his back.
The first draft of the midterm exam was done, and he'd add to it as ideas came to him.
For now, it was a simple test. The questions were easy, covering only material from the book. As long as his students studied, they'd do just fine.
"Man, I really am a nice teacher…"
Turning around, he saw that the three Pokémon were behaving and not causing trouble, which improved his mood instantly.
"A peaceful day… this is nice."
He casually picked up his phone and started browsing comments online.
His popularity had dropped recently, so there weren't many new "clients" looking for advice, and the questions he got were all fairly simple.
But as he scrolled, one message caught his eye.
[Who Am I]: How can I meet…
Only half the message was there. Mewtwo's avatar was already grayed out, meaning he wasn't online.
Meet… who?
Meet a new friend? Or maybe Mewtwo No. 2?
Johan had always kept an eye on Mewtwo, this "troubled case," in particular.
But now that it was clearly under Team Rocket's control, it probably wasn't easy for it to get online, let alone reach out.
As Johan pondered ways to help Mewtwo learn to restrain its "Id," a new friend request popped up.
[King of the Earth]: Accept.
"Didn't this person try to add me before?"
Once again, Johan hit "Decline."
His profile stated clearly that anyone wanting help should specify their Pokémon's condition.
He'd had plenty of random friend requests in the past, but they'd mostly stopped as his popularity dipped.
This person was persistent.
Meanwhile, at the Team Rocket HQ beneath Viridian City in Kanto…
"Boss, we intercepted Mewtwo's communication, and we've managed to trace the other user's account," reported Matori, holding a tablet.
Her gaze lingered on the tray of carefully made Meowth-shaped cookies on Giovanni's desk, her eyes hopeful.
"Oh? What cut it off?"
Giovanni looked up from his files, noticing the cookies on his desk. He was feeling a bit peckish, so he grabbed one and bit down.
He'd never been picky about food.
Matori's cheeks turned pink as she tightened her fists
.
"Hmm?"
Seeing she hadn't answered, Giovanni turned her way.
Snapping back, Matori stammered, "I-it was a power outage. Someone pulled the lab's main breaker."
Giovanni nodded thoughtfully.
"So, it's that Grain in the Field user?"
"Y-yes."
"Give me the phone."
Taking the phone from Matori, Giovanni sent a friend request directly to "Grain in the Field."
Seconds later, he laughed.
He'd been declined.
Thinking a moment, he sent another request.
This time, he was clear about who he was.
[King of the Earth]: I am Giovanni.
Johan stared at the friend request notification on his screen, mind blank.
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Powerstones?
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