From the time it was still a Poliwag, Poliwhirl had led its little brothers. Looking at the respectful, trusting eyes of its followers, Poliwhirl felt a warm surge in its heart, reinforcing its resolve.
Since its brothers trusted it so much, as their leader, it couldn't waver.
To wear the crown is to bear its weight—but then, it had been shouldering that burden for a long time.
With cheers from the three Poliwags and the attention of Wooper and Quagsire, Poliwhirl, free of doubt and eyes blazing, slowly placed the King's Rock atop its head.
In the next instant, dazzling evolution light bloomed, softly enveloping Poliwhirl and elevating its very being.
Moments later, the light faded.
A completely transformed Politoed appeared before Lucas, Serperior, the Poliwags, Wooper, and Quagsire.
Most of its body had turned greenish-blue, with long, beautiful curls on its head and pink cheeks reminiscent of Pikachu's electric sacs. Its chin and belly were yellow, hands and toes yellow as well, and the familiar swirl still marked its belly.
Politoed now looked much more like a real frog, far different from the Poliwrath evolution line. It had fully transformed from tadpole to frog.
Feeling the new power after evolution, Politoed was overwhelmed, feeling as if it could accomplish anything.
Following instinct, Politoed clapped its hands, puffed up its throat, and let out a resonance-piercing call to the sky.
"Poli—!"
Serperior looked up as well, sensing the air change. Water-type energy gathered in the clouds, moisture thickened, and rain began to fall!
Serperior glanced at Lucas, who was still clapping cluelessly for Politoed's evolution and hadn't even brought an umbrella, and sighed.
Well, it was in a good mood today. Might as well help out.
Serperior summoned its grass powers, causing massive roots to burst from the ground and form a circular umbrella over Lucas' head.
The next moment, heavy rain poured down, drumming a natural symphony into the stream.
Feeling the rain blocked above him, Lucas looked up at the leafy umbrella and realized Serperior had made it for him.
A slight smile appeared on Lucas' lips as he softly said to Serperior, "Thank you for going out of your way to make me an umbrella."
"Seperior~!" (Hmph, it's not like I did it for you! I just needed to get out of the rain myself!)
Serperior lifted its head haughtily, but the faint blush on its face betrayed its true feelings.
Lucas didn't call it out, but turned his gaze to Politoed and the Poliwags playing in the rain.
Politoed, who could now summon rain at will, felt its eyes light up. It knew it had truly transformed.
In the wild, the odds of getting a King's Rock were slim. More often, a Poliwag would live out its days in a pond, never evolving.
Lucas' kindness was, to Politoed, a debt of rebirth, but the clever Politoed knew to keep such feelings in its heart. Lucas hadn't caught it for the sake of repayment, after all.
Politoed let out another call—just then, something strange happened.
The three Poliwags, who had been hopping happily, suddenly stopped, curiously watching as white light began to envelop them.
Lucas' smile froze as he stared in astonishment.
This was a group evolution!
Normally, Pokémon evolve after growing sufficiently, reaching a certain level, or fulfilling other conditions.
But in some cases, evolution can happen simultaneously.
For example, Magikarp leaping the dragon gate, Slowpokes encountering Shellder, or, like here, Poliwags who have accumulated enough energy, and are inspired by their leader's charismatic call, fully unleashing their potential!
As the light faded, three Poliwhirls appeared before Lucas.
Lucas' grin nearly split his face—what an unexpected bonus! Evolving from Poliwag to Poliwhirl was a huge leap. Now he had three more Pokémon to help with chores.
"Nice, you've all learned new moves."
Lucas' eyes shone as Politoed and its three little brothers each demonstrated their newly-learned moves.
Politoed's ability had changed from Swift Swim to Drizzle—a very rare trait, shared only by Pelipper and Kyogre, showing Politoed's exceptional rain talent.
It also learned a slew of new moves: Bounce, Hydro Pump, Belly Drum, Ice Beam. Training all these would keep Politoed busy for a while.
The three new Poliwhirls also each learned new techniques—a quadruple bonus!
Before leaving, Politoed dispelled the rain clouds, then went to the stream and asked Lucas to wait a moment. It wanted to try a new skill it had just learned from Wooper and Quagsire.
For some reason, Lucas felt a bad premonition, but he couldn't refuse. He, Serperior, and the Poliwhirls crouched on the side, waiting for Politoed's performance.
Politoed crouched close to the ground, dipped its finger into the stream, and began wiggling it up and down.
Lucas: ?
Politoed… was it… fishing?
How could this possibly work? Even with all his gear, Lucas couldn't always catch fish, let alone a bare-fingered Politoed.
Yet in the next instant, Politoed suddenly straightened, pulling up a five or six pound fish clamped onto its finger!
The fish stubbornly bit down, refusing to let go even when lifted from the water.
Lucas was stunned, pinching himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
No, this made no sense!
How could Politoed catch fish with just its finger?
Impossible!
Lucas was completely defeated.