Chloe plonked herself on the bench next to Fiona, offering the other girl some of her snacks. They were in the spectator stand of the main arena of Eterna Gym. Below them the battlefield stood silently, grassy expanse lit by floodlights. The gentle humming of the field barriers underlaid the chatter of the spectators as they waited for the next battle to begin.

  The stands weren’t packed, but there were still plenty of people crowding them. Mostly trainers, carefully observing Gardenia, cheering their friends or assessing the competition while they waited their own turns, but a number of regular spectators were here as well.

  They had watched Gardenia wipe the floor with two thoroughly unprepared challengers since they arrived, neither even being close to the level they needed to acquire a badge. But now it was time for the battles they actually came here to watch.

  “Do you think they’ll win?” Chloe asked nervously, and Fiona nodded.

  “Troy, definitely. TJ is a beast,” Fiona replied.

  “Eleanor though? If she can keep her head, I think she’ll be fine,” Fiona continued.

  Chloe frowned, “She did well in Eterna, you think she’ll struggle here?”

  Fiona shrugged, “It's a different beast,” she said, “We didn't have spectators in Eterna.”

  Chloe swallowed, “And we’ll have cameras on us,” she said, “Are you sure my hair is okay?”

  Fiona rolled her eyes, “Princess, you’re perfect. Troy knows his shit apparently.”

  They were interrupted by the dimming of the lights in the stands.

  “Now hush,” Fiona said, “It’s Troy Time.”

  “The next challenger is Troy… Troy?” came the announcement over the speakers.

  “Uhh, yes, Troy Troy, from Floaroma Town!”

  Chloe giggled, and Fiona shook her head.

  “I cannot believe he is a real person sometimes,” Fiona muttered.

  Below, Troy emerged, striding confidently into the arena, waving at the crowd. He spotted Chloe and Fiona, and gave them a huge thumbs up.

  “He's such a dork,” Fiona said, and Chloe nudged her.

  “He's enthusiastic, there's a difference!” Chloe said, and Fiona snorted.

  “He can be an enthusiastic dork,” Fiona replied.

  “Hush,” Chloe said, “I want to watch.”

  “This will be Troy’s first Gym Battle!” The announcer continued, “Let's give him some encouragement folks!”

  The crowd all politely applauded while Chloe drew some stares by enthusiastically whooping and cheering.

  “His opponent,” the announcer said as the applause died down, “facing her fifth challenger of the day, is our resident Leader, the lovely Gardenia!”

  Gardenia emerged from her side of the arena to a round of applause. She was a regular sight here, obviously, but the Grass Type Leader had a significant fanbase.

  “This will be a two on two battle, with no substitutions,” the announcer said, “The Gym Leader is to release first.”

  “I wonder what she will go with,” Chloe mused, and Fiona just shrugged.

  “Could be just about anything, not much use in speculating,” Fiona replied, “I’m more curious to see if Troy uses Salad.”

  “He will,” Chloe said, “I heard him talking about it.”

  There was a flash of red light as Gardenia released her first Pokemon.

  “Gardenia leads with Shroomish!”

  A squat Pokemon landed in the grass, staring at Troy with determination.

  “Rock ‘em, Salad!” Troy shouted, and his little Oddish appeared. Salad attempted to strike an intimidating pose, but considering that she was half the size of the Shroomish, it fell flat.

  “Begin!”

  “Leech Seed,” Gardenia began, her Shroomish leaping into action to fling a spray of seeds at Salad.

  “Dodge it,” Troy called.

  To her credit, Salad tried. Unfortunately, she got her feet caught on a clump of grass. She tumbled to the ground, receiving a face full of seeds. They immediately sprouted, wrapping themselves around the hapless Oddish.

  Chloe winced. Yeah, that was about how she expected this to go. Salad however, had the heart of a warrior.

  “Dish!” Salad grunted, struggling to her feet.

  “Yeah!” Troy cheered, punching the air, “Hit ‘em back queen! Acid!”

  Salad tilted her head back and spat a glob of acid vaguely in Shroomish’s direction. Unfortunately, Gardenia hadn't been idle.

  “Headbutt,” she ordered, and Shroomish dashed forward, easily avoiding the sloppily aimed Acid to crash into Salad. The little Oddish went flying. There was an audible “oof” from the crowd as she tumbled across the grass.

  But Salad wasn't done yet.

  “You got this!” Troy encouraged, the Oddish struggling to her feet again.

  “Finish it,” Gardenia ordered, Shroomish charging in for a second blow.

  “Sweet Scent!” Troy called. Salad glowed slightly, managing to shake out a small puff of pink powder before Shroomish hit her. She crashed into the ground, fainted.

  “Oddish is unable to battle!” the Announcer called as Troy recalled her, “Looks like Shroomish is the superior Grass Type!”

  “Nice job,” he said proudly, before grabbing his next Pokeball.

  “Get in there TJ!” he shouted, the Pancham appearing in a flash of light.

  “Brick break!”

  TJ raced towards the Shroomish.

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  "Dodge, then Stun Spore!" Gardenia commanded. Shroomish sprang to the side and... slipped on the small puddle of acid left by Salad. The delay cost it.

  TJ brought his hand down on Shroomish, hard. The Grass Type hit the ground and didn't move.

  “Shroomish is unable to battle! Pancham strikes back, making it 1 to 1!” the announcer called as Gardenia recalled her Pokemon. Then, uncharacteristically for her, she waited a moment, hand hovering over her Pokeballs, assessing Troy Junior.

  “Tangela,” Gardenia said, making her selection. There was a collective intake of breath. Gardenia had yet to use the Tangela this year. She was taking TJ seriously.

  “Vine Whip!” Gardenia ordered, Tangela immediately flinging two powerful vines at Troy Junior.

  Troy grinned, “Catch it!” he called.

  TJ lifted his arms, catching a vine in each hand.

  Silence.

  “Aww yeah, flip it and kick it!” Troy called.

  A gasp came from the crowd, and Gardenia's eyes widened as Troy Junior yanked, pulling the Tangela that was four times his size directly towards him.

  “Catch yourself” Gardenia ordered, Tangela attempting to grab on to the ground, but too late.

  TJ met Tangela mid-air, planting a Kick directly into Tangela. It went flying. TJ however, didn't let go.

  “Vital Throw!” Troy called, and TJ used Tangela’s momentum to whip it around in a big arc, tossing at the wall. It crunched heavily, hitting the ground.

  “Pound ‘em!” Troy yelled.

  “Sleep Powder!” Gardenia ordered, Tangela recovering enough to shake free a puff of shimmering powder.

  TJ ignored it, leaping right through to land a series of vicious Arm Thrusts.

  Thwap! Thwap! Thwap!

  Three quick strikes, and Tangela was out.

  “Tangela is unable to battle!” the Announcer called, “Pancham takes the win. Victory goes to the challenger!”

  The crowd erupted, Chloe leapt to her feet, cheering wildly. Fiona clapped next to her.

  “He did it!” Chloe said excitedly, embracing Fiona.

  “I told you,” Fiona said, “TJ is a beast.”

  Below, Troy and TJ had begun their victory squats.

  “Salad did a good job too,” Chloe said, releasing her friend.

  Fiona nodded, “Yeah, Troy will have her bench pressing Rhyhorn or something soon enough.”

  Eleanor:

  Eleanor watched Troy do his victory squats on the small TV in the locker room. Gardenia approached him, and the two exchanged some words, Troy receiving his Forest Badge.

  How the hell was she supposed to follow that? Troy had been absurd as per normal. Carefree enough that you didn't notice the careful strategy behind it. Salad had gotten destroyed, but she had fought, and Eleanor knew Troy. That was the point. Shroomish had even slipped on the damn acid. TJ would have won that anyway, but that wasn't the point. The point was that she had contributed.

  That was Troy, he motivated. He trusted. And now Eleanor had to take her turn. She wasn't sure she was ready. But she had to try, for the sake of her Pokemon. And because her new friends seemed to think she had a chance.

  “Which you do,” she reminded herself.

  “You’ve got this,” she said to herself, quietly.

  “You sure do!” Troy said from right next to her. She startled, her best friend grinning at her.

  “Troy!” she said, “Don't do that!”

  “I’ll stop spooking you when you stop brooding,” he countered, and Eleanor rolled her eyes.

  “I wasn't brooding!” she protested.

  “Sure you weren't,” Troy replied, “You were just staring at nothing before your big battle.”

  Eleanor sighed, Troy could always see right through her.

  “Congratulations,” she said, attempting to change the topic.

  Troy shrugged, “Wasn’t me. It was all them. I’m just the cheer squad. Speaking of…”

  He trailed off, heading to the locker where he had kept his bag. He fished a pair of enormous pom poms. He clutched one in a huge fist, holding it out towards her.

  “Knock ‘em dead Eleanor, you’ve fucking got this. I’ll be cheering,” he declared.

  Eleanor smiled.

  “Damn it Troy,” she muttered.

  Then she reached out with her own fist, bumping it against his.

  “See you in the winner’s circle,” she said, squaring her shoulders.

  Chloe:

  “Troy!” Chloe called, spotting the big lug lumbering up the stairs towards them. He spotted her and grinned.

  “That's Mr Troy to you,” he said, shaking his finger at her, “As the only badge holder in this group, I demand respect!”

  Chloe giggled, and Fiona just rolled her eyes.

  “For another five minutes or so maybe,” Chloe replied, “Eleanor will have hers shortly.”

  Troy nodded, “Yep, she’ll nail it.”

  “Are you sure?” Fiona asked from next to Chloe, “How nervous was she?”

  Troy shrugged, “Nothing that a little Troy magic couldn't fix. She’s fine. Trust me.”

  Chloe nodded, then looked at the giant pom poms that Troy carried.

  “Where did you even get those?” she asked, and he grinned.

  “Like them?” he asked, and Chloe nodded eagerly.

  “Yeah I do! I’ve always loved cheerleaders, such cute outfits! Ooh, maybe I should catch an Oricorio…” she replied.

  “Maybe later,” Fiona replied, “The battle should start soon.”

  Troy sat down next to the girls, settling his huge bulk onto the bench. Chloe eyed his poms poms regretfully.

  “I wish I had a pair,” she said.

  Troy smirked, “Well you’re in luck!” he said, reaching into his bag to pull out a second, smaller pair of pom poms that he handed to her.

  He met Fiona’s curious stare, explaining before she could ask.

  “They're for Eleanor so she can cheer for you two later,” he explained.

  Fiona nodded without a word. She was just grateful he didn't expect her to have any.

  Troy immediately handed her a pair of her own.

  Chloe giggled, “Come on Fi, get into the team spirit!”

  Fiona rolled her eyes.

  “Fine, but I’m not shaking them.”

  Eleanor:

  It was time. Eleanor squared her shoulders and walked through the tunnel to the arena. She did her best to ignore the lights and spectators, they weren't here for her anyway. She had to focus.

  “The next challenger is Eleanor Sandhurst, from Floaroma!” the Announcer said, “Just like Troy before her, she is making her gym battle debut! Will she be as successful as her friend? Let's give her a round of applause!”

  Eleanor tried to tune him out, taking her position at the edge of the arena. She did her best to remember her breathing exercises. It was okay, she had this.

  “Yeah, Eleanor!”

  “KICK HER GRASSY ASS!”

  “...win I guess.”

  A trio of voices stood out from the crowd, and Eleanor looked up at the stands to see Chloe and Troy both standing in their seats, cheering and waving pom poms. Fiona sat beside them, examining her nails and ignoring the two airheads next to her. She was still using her other hand to waggle a pom pom though.

  Eleanor grinned, focusing back on the arena where Gardenia was making her entrance. How could she lose when she had supporters like that?

  “You know her, you love her, it's Gardenia time!” the Announcer said, and Eleanor had to wonder how many times he had said that exact sentence this week. Surely at some point they would just install a light that said “Please applaud for the Gym Leader.”

  “This will be a two on two battle, with the Gym Leader releasing first!” the Announcer declared, “Whenever you are ready trainers, you may begin!”

  “Hoppip!” Gardenia declared, the Cottonweed Pokemon appearing in the arena to hover gently before them. Unexpected, but not unanticipated. She could work with Hoppip.

  “Echo,” Eleanor said, voice steady, “I need your help.”

  Her Chatot appeared, for once focused and ready to go. Echo may be a pain in the ass, but he knew when it was show time.

  “Begin!”

  “Fairy Wind,” Gardenia ordered immediately.

  “Hyper Voice,” Eleanor said.

  Hoppip began to gather energy, but Echo was faster, blasting the Grass Type with a massive “Caw!”, dispersing the Fairy Wind before the move could take shape.

  Hoppip was sent tumbling through the air, desperately trying to regain its bearings.

  “Keep it coming,” Eleanor commanded, and Echo released another sonic blast.

  “Bullet seed!” Gardenia ordered, yelling to be heard over the noise. Hoppip somehow managed, while mid tumble, to fire a flurry of seeds at Echo. They hit him, and he flinched back, buying Hoppip enough time to right itself.

  “Acrobatics,” Gardenia said, Hoppip blurring forward, zigzagging to crash into Echo. He tumbled away, but Eleanor smirked.

  “Mimic!” she called, and Echo performed the exact same manoeuvre, smashing into Hoppip, and winding up point blank next to the opposing Pokemon.

  “Echo Voice,” she said, full of grim satisfaction. Another blast of sound, and Hoppip went down.

  “Hoppip is unable to battle! Eleanor takes the early lead!”

  Eleanor ignored the announcer. Focus.

  It was going well, but it would depend on what Gardenia chose here.

  “Turtwig.”

  Shit, that was one that Eleanor didn't want to see. Still, they could handle it.

  “Roost!” Eleanor ordered quickly, and Echo landed, recovering some of the damage he had taken. But too slow.

  “Grassy Glide,” Gardenia said smoothly, and Turtwig exploded into motion, a whirlwind of grass trailing it as it raced towards Echo. Turtwig smacked into Echo, who was sent flying.

  “Razor Leaf,” Gardenia ordered, and Turtwig sent a hail of leaves after Echo.

  “Round!” Eleanor shouted. It was faster than Hyper Voice but might lack the power…

  She was right, most of the leaves were blown off course, but several still struck Echo.

  He fell, fainted.

  “And Gardenia quickly evens the score! What will the challenger use next?”

  Eleanor took a deep breath. She still had this.

  “Lumen, help me, please,” Eleanor said, releasing the Mareep.

  “Charge,” she said, and Lumen set his feet, gathering power.

  “Takedown!” Turtwig smashed into Lumen’s side, but Lumen kept his feet.

  “Thunder Shock,” Eleanor instructed. Lumen lowered his head and a flash of electricity raced towards Turtwig. It dodged, barely, but the move tore into the grass, exploding with enough force to knock Turtwig off balance.

  “Electroweb!"

  Lumen flung a net of crackling electricity, aiming for the point where Turtwig landed. It connected, sticking to the Grass Type and slowing it down.

  “Razor Leaf!” Gardenia called,

  “Reflect,” Eleanor countered, and most of the leaves bounced harmlessly off the glimmering barrier that sprang into being between the two Pokemon.

  “Grassy Glide.”

  “Thunder Wave.”

  The blast of electricity caught Turtwig mid charge, and it froze in place, temporarily paralysed. Eleanor smiled, that was it.

  “Thunder Shock”

  A crackling bolt of electricity struck the Turtwig, and it fell, twitching.

  “Turtwig is unable to battle! With that, Eleanor takes the win and the badge!”

  Eleanor’s knees threatened to give out as she let out a huge breath.

  She had done it.

  …she had done it!

  “Yes!” she shouted, punching the air. In the stands she could see Chloe and Troy cheering wildly while Fiona politely applauded. Eleanor had earned her first badge.

  She recalled Lumen.

  “Thanks bud,” she said, “Rest well, you earned it.”

  “So did you,” came a voice, and Eleanor looked up to see the smiling face of Gardenia.

  “A good battle, well fought,” the Gym Leader told her, “Congratulations, please, take this Forest Badge.”

  Eleanor grinned. She had done it. She had a badge.