Once the exam-papers were turned in, a weird sense of relief settled over the room. Noise immediately broke out, as various people started to discuss the questions and their answers to them. Into that din, the attendant who had finished collecting the papers spoke up.

“There is a break for now. As you leave, please check the list at the door to see when and where the next part of your examination will be.” he called out.

“Let’s go have lunch together.” Ivie suggested, as we walked towards the door. Claire gave a happy nod, while I checked the sheet, only to realise that the exams would be spread over the day. Mine, unluckily, was amongst the initial set, starting only fifteen minutes after the written exam had finished.

“Can’t make it.” I rejected Ivie, nodding towards the sheet. “But you guys go ahead, I might catch up with some of you later.”

After leaving their happy group behind, I made my way to the practise-room indicated on the sheet, with a brief visit to the bathroom on the way. Once there, I simply settled down to wait, trying to banish the nervousness and excitement.still flowing in my body. There would be a battle and in battle, it was my duty to remain calm and guide my partners properly.

“You are early.” an amused voice addressed me, causing my eyes to snap open. Standing in front of me was Gym-Leader Bree, a slender briefcase in her hand.

“Dani, correct?” she asked, before I had the chance to greet her.

“Yes, I am. Good Morning, Gym Leader.” I replied, pushing down the nerves that tried to act up.

“Interesting. Let’s get this started.” she mused, entering the door.

The room inside was obviously a practice room, similar to the one I had tested in at the Sandgem-Gym, only that there was a pair of simple chairs leaning against the wall. Otherwise, it was just as empty as the other one, with only two clear shields and grates to make sure large-scale attacks didn’t impact the trainers.

“Have a seat. The first part of this is a discussion between the two of us, followed by a brief battle.” she explained, her face showing a grin as I gaped at the idea.

“Nobody expects you to win, at least not until you have most of the Badges. And even then, it’s not mandatory to win. I’ve got this job, because I managed to get into the higher ranks of the last League-Tournament and volunteered for it. Would be incredibly embarrassing if I lost a serious battle to a Trainer who barely started their journey, don’t you think?” she reminded me, and I could only nod.

“Now, we don’t have endless time, so why don’t we discuss your written exam first?” she suggested.

“Certainly. Thank you for taking the time.” I replied, sitting down as indicated.

“Eh, Rank has its privileges. Quite frankly, compared to paperwork, meeting and testing new trainers is a pleasure.” she joked, before opening the briefcase and taking some papers out.

“Your written exam.” she briefly looked at it, and a few notes near my answers, “Well, it’s an interesting piece. Excellent knowledge regarding Pokémon, especially for one with only a single badge, good instincts when it comes to survival and camping and an interesting mind for the character-questions.” she briefly shook her head.

“But those legal questions, they tripped you up. Or did you simply have no time for them?” she asked, a grin on her face.

“Both, to be honest.” I replied, not even trying to deceive her. “With more time, I could have done some guess-work but quite frankly, I simply don’t know.” I elaborated, getting a nod in return.

“Well, let’s discuss for a bit. Pokémon-Trainers not only need to be able to train their partners, even if that is their most important duty, they also need to be able to be part of society. All about the balance.” she explained, before launching into a discussion of my answers, dissecting them and guiding me to arrive at answers to the questions I hadn’t been able to answer.

A part of me was taken back to the lessons I had learned from Cynthia, their style was rather similar. Discussing a problem, letting me arrive at my own solution and conclusion and not just force-feeding me theirs. Prodding and warning, if I was on a wrong path, making me find my own mistakes and correct them. It was interesting and despite only getting through six of the questions on the sheet before Bree stopped things, it was definitely worthwhile.

“Well, that’s almost time for our battle. But before that, why did you thank me yesterday morning? How dd you phrase it, ‘for your service and sacrifice’?” she asked, as she was standing up.

“You did a necessary task, protecting the town from the Pokémon that did not retreat, even after getting knocked out. That was the service.” I explained, getting a nod in response. “A task I don’t know I could do, even if I had your power. Simply because I don’t know if I’m strong enough to give my partner such a command.I don’t believe anyone can do so, without it weighing on their mind. That is the sacrifice.” I concluded, noticing a thoughtful look on Bree’s face.

“I see. Now, we’ve got a fight to go through.” she replied, before gesturing for me to take position behind the shield, taking the chair with me.

Not certain what to expect of this battle, I decided to let Vio take the stage first. After giving the Pokéball a brief caress, I pressed the button, just as Bree on the other side released her own partner.

The difference between the two combattants was massive. While Vio was a tiny, slender thing, the Pokémon released by Bree was almost as wide as it was tall, a massive, short-limbed monster. Just like Vio, it had two arms but where hers were slim and slender, it’s arms were stubby and could barely stretch to its mouth. The legs were so short, I wondered if the thing had walking or rolling as it’s mode of locomotion.

“Vio, muddle its mind.” I instantly called out, trying to take the initiative.

“Pillow, defend.” Bree called, and for a moment, there was no movement. Vio was radiating a psychic aura, while the Snorlax on the other side was shedding the whie glow of a Normal-move.

“Disrupt, get into its mind.” I urged Vio on, realising that the Snorlax would only get tougher, as it focused on its defence.

Following my call, Vio added her song, trying to draw the Snorlax off-balance with the power of her Disarming Voice. There seemed to be a bit of an effect, but before I could start cheering, Bree called out on the other side.

“Body Slam.” The glow around the Snorlax changed, just a little, and I knew what was coming.

“Dodge!” I instantly shouted, just in time for Vio to take a half-step back, her centre of gravity shifting when the Snorlax suddenly burst forward with impossible speed for its bulk. Vio managed to dodge most of the attack, but not all, getting violently shoved aside.

“Drain it.” I commanded Vio and before the Snorlax had time to turn around, she put a finger to her lips, coated it in hot-pink energy and pressed it against the Snorlax’ side. Her strength seemed to recover somewhat, but even a glancing blow had been devastating.

“Stick close and muddle further.” I commanded, while Bree on the other side ordered her Snorlax to grab Vio and give her a lick.

Vio managed to remain near it’s back, dancing around while the Snorlax tried to turn around, her head glowing with the purple, psychic light. It was interesting, with each moment, the glow around her head intensified and the Snorlax got slower. But so did she, as the intense attack quickly drained her strength.

“Amusing.” Bree chuckled on the other side. “Swallow up.” she ordered and all of a sudden, the soft, white glow that had been around the Snorlax disappeared. Instead, it looked perfectly fine again, taking a quick step forward and turning, before Vio had a chance to chase.

“Come back.” I called, pressing the button to call back my partner, just as the Snorlax’ paw was about to grab her. She had been simply too tired to dodge, the effort of pushing the much stronger Pokémon’s mind too much for her.

“No use in letting my partner get beaten.” I shook my head, as Bree looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

“I see.” she nodded, “Let’s see what your other partner can do.”

With a soft sigh, I pulled out Prince Charming’s Pokéball. There were only limited options I could use, the difference in physical power would be too much to overcome. Avoidance and distance would be key.

“Come, Prince Charming.” I softly called, as I pressed the button to send my partner into battle.

“Smoke it.” I instantly called, the moment my partner had taken the field. I wasn’t even certain Prince Charming had looked at his opponent, the smoke went up so quickly. The looming shape of the Snorlax almost vanished and only the flickering flame on Charm’s tail gave me an idea where he was.

“Stockpile again.” Bree called out.

“Move and Let it alight.” I ordered Charm. The flame in the smoke acted like a lure, barely moving, but when he shot out his embers, it came from a different position. Most of the projectiles bounced off the massive bulk, but some stuck, outlining the Snorlax. It wasn’t enough to cause serious burns, but with time and more embers, it would accumulate.

“Body Slam, again.” Bree ordered and again, the Snorlax shot forward, causing violent movement in the smoke, as it aimed for the bright flame. Only for the flame to rapidly move aside, as Prince Charming dragged its tail out of the way,

“Burn the bacon.” I called, happy that my trick had worked. As long as the smoke remained, Charm should be able to avoid those charging attacks. And for three more exchanges, it did work, Charm got more and more Embers onto the Snorlax, as Bree ordered it to keep Stockpiling and tried to Body Slam again and again.

I almost started to believe that my tactic was working, when Bree called.

“Show her something real. Surf.” For a moment, I was confused, not sure what to expect. Other than call to Charm to evade, there was little I could do, as the Snorlax was surrounded by a blue aura, before the aura pulsed outwards, like a wave, and the Snorlax rode on the water-like aura, sweeping up my Prince Charming.

The aura faded away quickly, leaving behind a standing Snorlax and a fainted Charmeleon.

Without waiting for a signal, I ran up to my partner, to make sure nothing bad had happened.

This had not been a fun battle.