The moment someone approached, the Eevee let out a soft cry, "Buii~."
A researcher in a white lab coat sat slouched in a chair, muttering to himself:"What conditions must be met for Eevee to evolve into Sylveon…?"
Before him stood a blackboard plastered with photos of Eevee and all its eight evolutions.Eight arrows stretched from the image of Eevee, branching out to each of its possible evolutions.
The methods for evolving into Vaporeon, Flareon, Jolteon, Espeon, and Umbreon were clearly marked above the arrows.
But for Leafeon, Glaceon, and Sylveon, only three question marks were scribbled in place of instructions.
From behind, An quietly explained to Hayato,"This researcher is a diehard Eevee enthusiast. He keeps an entire house full of Eevee!"
Hayato: "…"
Just then, Brendan seemed to recall something."Eevee's kind of like Wurmple, right? It has a lot of different evolutionary paths?"
An nodded."Exactly. So far, though, we only know how five of its evolutions work—Water, Fire, Electric, Sun, and Moon. The other three remain a mystery."
(Author's Note: This story adopts the older setting where Leafeon and Glaceon can only evolve near Moss Rocks and Ice Rocks.)
The researcher, hearing their voices, finally snapped out of his thoughts. He turned around."Oh, it's you, An! Have you finished the survey on Relicanth?"
An smiled and nodded."Yup, just got back from Littleroot Town."
"That's good to hear." The researcher's gaze shifted to Hayato and Brendan. "And these two are?"
An: "Guests from Littleroot. Dr. Lund asked me to show them around the institute."
"I see!" The researcher chuckled, then noticed the boys staring at Eevee."Do you also like Eevee?"
The Eevee tilted its head, putting on an irresistibly adorable expression."Buii~!"
Brendan's eyes sparkled. He couldn't resist."Wow! It's so cute!"
Hayato: "…"
Compared to Brendan, Hayato remained calm. He studied the Pokémon and commented,"…It's not bad."
"Eevee…" The researcher lifted the little creature into his arms, beaming as he gazed into its eyes."…is the most adorable and the most wondrous Pokémon in the entire world."
"Buii~!"
Though LaRousse City was a hub of technology, its environment remained untouched by human destruction.
At night, from the top of the Battle Tower, one could see a breathtaking sea of stars.
Hayato leaned against the railing with Gengar at his side, letting the cool night breeze wash over him as his mind turned to the story that lay ahead.
Four years later, Ash and his friends would arrive in this city.
The current year was League Calendar 210.
And this year… was destined to be extraordinary.
Not only would Ash begin his journey—more importantly, somewhere in this same year, Mewtwo would be born.
Compared to the unrest brewing in Kanto, Hoenn seemed quiet and peaceful for now.At least Team Magma and Team Aqua had yet to cause any serious upheaval.
For Hayato, the path forward was simple: travel slowly, collect Gym Badges.
As for becoming Champion…
The image of Steven, always rushing around, made Hayato's head ache.
To hold a position was to bear its duties. Privileges came with burdens.
Just from watching Steven, it was clear: once you became Champion, your freedom vanished.
Otherwise, in the games, he wouldn't have stepped down to let Wallace take the throne.
Maybe, like Ash, he could just end things after winning a League?
Perhaps he should first understand all the responsibilities that came with the Champion's seat before deciding.
Worst case, he could hold the title for an hour and then pass it straight to Wallace.
That way, when the Conference ended, Steven could head off to Kalos for his stone hunts, Hayato could continue his travels elsewhere, and Wallace could settle down as Champion.Everyone would win.
…But that was a problem for later.
The truth was, anyone who could climb that high would hardly be weak.
Best not to underestimate them.
Hayato drew back his thoughts, ready to rest in the quarters Dr. Lund had prepared for them, and fly north to the Arctic the next morning.
But plans never kept pace with change.
He had barely lain down when a call came in from Littleroot.Professor Birch's voice carried grim news.
Something had happened in the Ecological Park.
Three Pokémon hunters had smashed through the outer glass wall and infiltrated the sanctuary, attempting to steal the Pokémon inside.
Hayato's chest tightened."They're not hurt, are they?"
Professor Birch replied,"Not for now. Thankfully, Gardevoir discovered them in time, or it would've been disastrous."
"But those hunters were strong. Both Slowking and Gardevoir were badly injured, though they're stable now. Officer Jenny has taken the three criminals into custody."
From Birch, Hayato learned the whole story.
The hunters had originally targeted the two Squirtle working with the fire brigade. They followed them back to the park after their shift and, in doing so, discovered the sanctuary's rare inhabitants.
At first, only Gardevoir and Slowking fought them off.But soon, Flygon, Krookodile, Squirtle, Slowbro, Magikarp, Relicanth, Slowpoke, and the Oddish flock all joined the fray.
During the battle, one Oddish evolved into Gloom in order to protect the park.Together, they finally defeated the hunters.
After such news, Hayato found sleep impossible.
He rushed to borrow Dr. Lund's video phone and called the Ecological Park.When he saw the wounds on Slowking and Gardevoir, a wave of fury like never before gripped his chest.
After a long silence, he made a decision.
Facing the screen, Hayato told Slowking:"I'll be sending Zapdos over. From today on, it'll stay there to protect everyone."
Slowking accepted without objection.
If not for Gardevoir, the losses might have been unbearable.
Seeing Hayato's grim face, Slowking spoke gently,"Don't worry. Everyone's safe."
To reassure him, the Pokémon that had joined the battle appeared one by one on the camera, each looking embarrassed but unhurt.
"Squirtle…" One little Squirtle, its shell scratched and bruised, tried to hide behind its companion, too shy to let Hayato see.
Hayato: "…"
It seemed the fight hadn't left them traumatized.
If anything, they looked happy—likely because they had driven off the intruders and defended their home together.
Hayato's heart softened."Alright. It's late. Get some good rest tonight. We'll talk more tomorrow."
The Pokémon nodded in unison.
After hanging up, Hayato returned to his room and released Zapdos from its Poké Ball, recounting the entire incident.
The thunderbird gave no dramatic reaction, but its eyes grew sharp and dangerous.
"…So, the safety of the park will rest on you." Hayato stroked its feathers.
Zapdos said nothing, but accepted the task without hesitation.
Relieved, Hayato whispered,"Thank you."
Zapdos withdrew into its ball.
Hayato placed the ball into the Poké Ball Transporter and sent it back to the Ecological Park.
At Birch's laboratory, a brilliant flash of light erupted as the Legendary bird burst forth from its Poké Ball.
Before Birch could even react, Zapdos soared into the sky and vanished into the night, descending onto the roof of the Ecological Park, watching over everything below.
Meanwhile, back in LaRousse City,
Hayato scrolled through his phone contacts until he found the sailors of the White Sea Lion.He sent them a short message:
[Help me investigate these Pokémon hunters.]
(Author's Note: By the Sword & Shield era, Glaceon and Leafeon could evolve with the Ice Stone and Leaf Stone. But if I used that here, their methods would've been discovered early—just like Water, Fire, and Electric—making the researchers look incompetent. So I'm sticking with the original Moss Rock and Ice Rock evolution setting. Otherwise, people would nitpick about timeline inconsistencies…)