Auron listened carefully, then turned to Serena Elm.
"What about you? Anyone we need to watch out for?"
Serena nodded. "Yeah. There's one Trainer with a Lilligant. Her Ability is definitely Chlorophyll—she always opens with Sunny Day, and her Speed goes way up."
"As for moves, she's a pain to deal with: Sunny Day, Growth, Ingrain, Leech Seed, Giga Drain, Synthesis, Teeter Dance, Quiver Dance, Solar Beam… The worst part is with Sunny Day up, Solar Beam doesn't even need to charge. She can keep healing, inflict statuses, and her Trainer's commands are sharp. I barely won, even though I had a type advantage. If I hadn't gotten lucky with Icicle Spear—two critical hits out of five—I'd still be stuck fighting her."
"But at least Lilligant's a Grass type," Serena continued. "Most of our Pokémon have a good matchup. As long as we don't get worn down by all the draining and healing, we should be fine. The only real risk is for slow Pokémon—like your Munchlax, Auron. You'll need to watch out for status moves and their Trainer's tactics."
Serena spread her hands and tilted her head. "Honestly, that Trainer was strong. More than once, my Shellder was pushed to the brink. If it wasn't for the Egg Moves—Life Dew and Aqua Ring—I probably would've lost."
Auron crossed his arms, nodding. "Yeah, sounds rough for Munchlax. He's slow, and really struggles against status moves. If he faces a ranged attacker like that, his best bet is Earthquake, or hoping for something good from Metronome."
Jace looked curious. "But can't Munchlax learn ranged moves too? His Special Attack isn't bad. Stuff like Thunderbolt, Flamethrower, Ice Beam—he can use all those, right?"
Auron shook his head, a little exasperated. "I just haven't had the time! Look at all the moves Munchlax has learned lately. His Attack is so much better, I had him focus on physical moves. After this tournament, I'll definitely teach him some Special moves. Otherwise, it's too passive."
Jace stretched and yawned. "Alright, good luck then. Meeting over? I'm going home for a nap—woke up too early."
Auron laughed. "The nerve of you. Always the last to show up, and you still complain. Alright, meeting dismissed, everyone back to their place."
The three teased Jace as they left. After seeing them out, Auron stayed behind, waiting for Ashen Vale and Mrs. Vale to finish work so they could all head home together.
The night passed quietly.
The next day, the main event began. Auron came to the venue with his parents, just as promised. After all, Ashen had said if Auron made it to the finals, they'd all be there to watch him.
But someone else had arrived even earlier.
"Grandpa Flint, you're here early!"
Auron spotted Flint Jonas waiting outside and hurried over, a bit embarrassed. Flint smiled, ruffling Auron's hair.
"When you're old, you don't sleep much. I woke up early, so I came early. Come on, let Grandpa see your strength."
Auron nodded. "Alright, Grandpa. You'll see!"
"Let's go, Ashen. We need to find seats. He's a competitor, he'll be fine," Flint called, waving Ashen Vale over.
Ashen walked up, knowing Auron was waiting for his friends and didn't say much—just a quick "Good luck!" as he passed. Mrs. Vale followed, echoing the encouragement. The three adults entered the arena, leaving Auron to wait outside.
He didn't have to wait long. Soon all four friends had arrived—and as usual, Jace was last.
Inside the competitors' lounge, Lena Greaves quickly spotted Auron and waved, "Auron! Over here!"
Auron waved back and walked over. Serena Elm asked curiously, "That's the Ghost-type Trainer you mentioned? Are you two close?"
Auron looked confused. "Not really. We just met yesterday and exchanged contacts."
Serena gasped, "You exchanged numbers?"
Auron was baffled. "Huh? What's so strange about that?"
Serena chewed her lip, looking flustered. "No reason!"
Auron shrugged and kept walking toward Simon and Lena Greaves, Serena playfully shaking her fist behind him while Jace and Tim Wynn nearly burst out laughing.
Back when they were at the Love Pokémon Store, Tim had always wondered why Jace was trying so hard not to laugh at Serena and Auron's little dramas. Later, he'd messaged Jace, and Jace had spilled the entire story. So now it was a running joke for both of them.
Auron reached the Ghost-type duo. "You met Jace yesterday. This is Serena Elm, and this is Tim Wynn. They're my friends."
Serena: "Hi."
Tim: "Hello!"
Lena noticed Serena staring and, a little puzzled, still smiled warmly.
"Hi, I'm Lena Greaves, and this is my fiancé, Simon Greaves."
Simon blushed, "Hi, I'm Simon. Lena's older brother."
"Fiancé?!" Serena's eyes widened as she turned to Auron.
Auron looked genuinely confused. "What? Didn't I tell you before?"
Serena punched his shoulder. "No! You never mentioned it!"
Auron scratched his head. "Oops. Guess I forgot."
Simon and Lena both chuckled. Lena especially was happy to see Simon laughing and chatting. The night before, she'd noticed Simon not only opening up with others, but getting excited whenever he mentioned Auron. For the first time, he seemed to have a real friend outside their little world (since Lena, as "wife," didn't count, and Gengar, of course, was his first non-human friend).
Lena resolved to spend more time with Auron's group. If Auron really was a good guy, maybe Simon would finally have a true friend for the first time since he was born.
"Oh, right—Auron, you never gave me your address! I bought all those supplies last night, but there's so much, I'd rather have them delivered. But I can't do it without your address."
Auron slapped his forehead. "Ah, I totally forgot. Just have it sent to the Pokémon Store in the south of town—that's my family's shop, and where I make all the treats."
Lena smiled and began entering the address on her phone. After a moment, she looked up, embarrassed.
"Wait, Auron… I just realized, I've been buying from your shop this whole time." (σ'ω')σ
To be continued…
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