"There's almost no fighting in Greenlight City. Life moves slow. You'd have a hard time even finding somewhere to spend money."
"As long as you love Bug-types—as long as you've got no prejudice against them—you can live your whole life here happy."
Hikaze walked Akiyama through his city, and there was nothing but pride in it.
Compared to a place like Twin City, all money and motion, Greenlight was an outlier bordering on an anomaly. It was hard not to wonder how a place like that stayed alive at all.
It was also impossible to hear about it and not want it. If Akiyama ever retired, this was the short list.
No wonder it pulls in all those self-described artists.
The ride wasn't long. Soon the bus rolled into the city, and the first thing Akiyama saw was the wall.
"They used to be much, much higher," Hikaze said. "But things around here got peaceful, so nobody bothered repairing them, and this is what we ended up with."
Akiyama looked. The wall was half-collapsed, choked with grass and saplings, climbing flowers blooming all along the top of it. It looked less like a fortification than a ruin somebody had lost interest in.
The bus stopped. Hikaze turned to them. "Want me to show you around? You're here for the Gym anyway."
Akiyama had no reason to refuse. He took Gardevoir's hand and followed him off.
The first thing his shoes touched was grass.
"Go ahead, walk wherever. The Mother Tree puts it all back by tomorrow," Hikaze said, smiling.
"Huh." Akiyama looked toward the center of the city, toward the tree, and started running the logistics of the place in his head.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Hikaze was already walking. "Long time ago, whenever anybody paved anything here, the weeds swallowed it. Eventually the people of Greenlight City decided to stop fighting and join in."
"That's a hell of a call to make."
If they hadn't, somebody would have taken an axe to the tree instead.
The Pokémon Center wasn't far. Its outer walls were covered in the same climbing flowers, opening pink and white all the way up.
"Go get yourself a room. And maybe a change of clothes?" Hikaze stopped at the door.
Akiyama's shirt made a strong case that it had been on him for a while.
Gardevoir's gown was, somehow, still spotless.
He thanked him, went in, and checked in for a key card. Upstairs, he got his laundry going, took a quick shower with Gardevoir, and the wash cycle finished right about when he did.
He hung everything up to dry in the room, threw on shorts and a T-shirt, and headed back out.
Greenlight ran warmer than everywhere else he'd been. His travel clothes had been on the edge of too much. Shorts and a tee turned out to be exactly right—it was what nearly everyone on the street had on.
He left the backpack behind. It was more trouble than it was worth here.
Outside, he found Hikaze surrounded.
A cloud of Butterfree wheeled around him while he fed them. The big case of mystery boxes had a second tier, and that one was packed with dried Berries.
"They really like you, Mr. Hikaze," Akiyama said, walking over.
Every Butterfree in the swarm relocated behind their host at once—bashful, or possibly on guard.
"Your Gardevoir likes you plenty," Hikaze said pleasantly, and let his eyes touch the incomplete heart on her chest without lingering on it at all.
He turned and patted the head of the largest Butterfree. "Go on and play. I've got work. See you tomorrow."
Butterfree nodded and led the rest of them off.
"Come on. Let's keep walking."
He took Akiyama and Gardevoir deeper toward the heart of the city.
Gardevoir drew a lot of eyes on the way, and a truly unreasonable number of dried Berries and other small snacks were pressed into her hands.
Apart from the buildings, there was almost nothing modern anywhere in Greenlight. Even the vendors' carts were wood.
And nobody charged for anything.
Hic.
Akiyama burped and reflected that he had probably blown past his daily sugar limit by a factor of four.
There were nectar sweets everywhere. They were good.
And free.
Nobody could be expected to hold the line against that.
It wasn't until he reached the city center that he understood how big the Mother Tree really was.
The Gym had been built at its base, and next to that trunk it looked like something assembled out of Legos.
"Big, right? Its light reaches a long, long way. Almost all the forest out there grows the way it does because of her." Hikaze looked up with something close to reverence.
He was grateful to her for creating this natural paradise for Bug-types. To the people here, the Mother Tree was a living god.
"I'd love to know where she came from," Akiyama said.
"That's beyond recovering now. There are a few scraps of legend left, and none of it matters much."
"Come with me. Let's get our battle out of the way first—you'll never feel how peaceful this place is with something hanging over you."
He led them toward the Gym.
"Fair point," Akiyama said.
Gardevoir was already having trouble waiting. She wanted that second badge for him now.
Inside, nature had gotten to everything: the ceiling, the floor, the door handles.
"Somebody has to come clear it every day. Show up in the morning and you can't even get into the main hall—things grow too fast in here," Hikaze explained.
The Gym stood closer to the Mother Tree than any other structure, and it was the only building nearby. The plant growth was so aggressive that a person who slept inside would wake up wrapped.
Hikaze crossed to the far side of the battlefield and appointed himself referee.
"All right. The Gym battle begins now."
"Go, Caterpie."
A profoundly harmless Caterpie appeared on the field, blinking its enormous eyes.
"Gardevoir." Akiyama gave the word.
She stepped out from beside him onto the field.
"Caterpie, String Shot."
"Gardevoir, Fire Punch."
Predictably, the soft thread melted the instant it touched the flame, and Gardevoir crossed the field in a blink.
One punch sent Caterpie flying. It landed and did not get up.
"Garde?" She actually looked startled.
She hadn't expected the opposition to be that weak.
"Nice work, Caterpie." Hikaze recalled it and sent out his second. "You're up, Joltik."
A tiny spider covered in yellow fuzz dropped onto the field, eyes blinking like blue gemstones.
"Gardevoir, Fire Punch again."
"Joltik, Electro Ball."
Joltik spat the sphere out and Gardevoir sidestepped it without effort. Her fist was harder to sidestep. It caught Joltik square in the face.
One hit. Swirls for eyes.
"So the rumors are true." Akiyama put a hand over his face and laughed.
Gardevoir was more bewildered than ever. This is it? This is the whole thing?
"Your Gardevoir looks a little let down. I suppose I should take this seriously."
The Gym Leader whose annual badge output could reportedly circle the Seichu region three times decided to take it seriously.
He drew out a Poké Ball that had long since lost its shine and held it up.
"All right, old friend. Let's stretch those legs."
Scy—