"Ribombee, use Quiver Dance," Dawn said in a dull, airy tone. 

As Ribombee swayed to one side and the next a yellow light circled around her, raising her special attack, special defense, and her speed. Before she finished though I made my move.

"Rock Slide, now," I said quickly and Lycanroc howled. Rocks formed above Ribombee as she danced and they began to fall, aiming for Ribombee's petite body.

"Dodge it, Ribombee," Dawn said dully and I gritted my teeth when Ribombee zipped out from under the falling rocks without hardly any effort. 

We won't get anywhere if she can outspeed us, I thought, trying to remain cool and not dwell on the fact that my girlfriend had been brainwashed by a psychopath.

"Use Rock Polish," I ordered. Lycanroc barked and a white sheen swept over her fur-covered body, boosting her speed. "Go in for an Iron Head!" I ordered. 

She immediately leaped forward and as she rushed towards Ribombee her body became metallic.

"Energy Ball, rapid-fire." 

My eyes widened as Ribombee hovered where she was but then let loose a barrage of small Energy Balls like a machine gun. The Energy Balls peppered Lycanroc's body and she stumbled, crashing to her side with a yelp. She was quick to get back to her feet but Dawn had already sent Ribombee to the other end of the battlefield. I grit my teeth when she called for another Quiver Dance but I shook my head, ordering myself to focus on the battle.

"Rock Polish again and then use Rock Throw," I ordered. 

The white sheen from before once again flashed across Lycanroc's body and a circle of pointed stones burst into life around her head. Lycanroc's aim was spot on, but Ribombee's boosted speed allowed her to narrowly miss all of the rocks that Lycanroc was trying to throw at her.

Calm down and THINK Paul! I ordered myself angrily.

"Rock Polish one more time and get behind her," I ordered. 

Lycanroc did as I said and I frowned when Ribombee hovered in the spot that she had ended up in after dodging Lycanroc's attack. Dawn didn't give any kind of order as Lycanroc dashed forward, so fast her body looked almost like a blur.

"Iron Head!" I yelled, wondering why Dawn wasn't saying anything. Lycanroc leaped, her body covered head to toe in a metallic sheen.

"Energy Ball, full power," Dawn finally said. 

Ribombee spun around and created an Energy Ball twice the size of her body. I saw Lycanroc twist to try and avoid the massive attack but Ribombee sent it hurling towards her and it slammed into her stomach where it exploded. Lycanroc fell to the ground with a yip of pain and I clenched my fists to repress my anger as her side rose and fell with her ragged breathing.

"You can do this, Lycanroc. Get up and use Rock Slide!" I yelled. 

Lycanroc's legs were shaking but she boosted herself onto her feet and howled. Rocks appeared over an entire half of the battlefield and even with her boosted speed, Ribombee wasn't able to dodge all of the rocks. I breathed a sigh of relief when one of them finally hit their mark, smacking Ribombee roughly and she flipped crazily through the air. But before she reached the ground she corrected her fall and flew back up to Dawn's eye level.

"Rapid fire Energy Ball," Dawn said in a monotone.

"Dodge it, Lycanroc!" I yelled. 

She tried. Her boosted speed let her dodge the bullet-like Energy Balls for a few seconds, but her exhausted legs gave out and she tripped. I clenched both hands into fists in frustration as Lycanroc fell to the ground and Ribombee blasted her with round after round of the tiny energy balls which all exploded on contact with her body. Once Ribombee had finished she hovered back towards Dawn and as the dust cleared it was obvious that Lycanroc had fainted.

"Well, I believe that is one win for Dawn. Are you sure you want to continue?" Faba asked with a gleeful expression and I glared at him.

"Shut up and let us battle," I growled. 

Faba laughed as if he found me the most amusing thing since standup comedy had been invented. Turning away from his aggravating face I returned Lycanroc and looked at Dawn and her Ribombee, both of them standing perfectly still and lacking everything that made them them.

"I think that I could combat any pokemon you might throw at me with them by my side." Dawn's voice floated through my mind as I stood quietly and observed Ribombee. 

I knew she was confident, but I didn't think she would have come up with multiple ways to use one move that was super effective against her pokemon's weakness. I thought to myself. Dawn was preparing herself to face me head-on for months, she must have gone through dozens of scenarios of which pokemon I would send out for each of her pokemon... so what can I do to throw her off her game?

"Any day now, Brute," Faba jeered. I ignored him but slowly reached down to my belt of Pokeballs.

"Metang, standby for battle." 

Metang appeared in front of me and hovered silently in front of me. I saw Dawn close her eyes for a heartbeat before opening them again and nodding.

"Get close and use Pollen Puff," she intoned. 

Ribombee shot forward faster than anything I had seen and I hoped this combination would work.

"Use Protect, then use Psychic and hold her still," I ordered. 

Metang got the protective barrier up milliseconds before Ribombee released a super-sized ball of shimmering green Pollen Puff. The move exploded across the barrier and I saw Ribombee trying to flee back towards Dawn. However, Metang managed to catch her in his psychic grip and even though she was flapping her wings like crazy she remained motionless in the air.

"Use Meteor Mash, quick!" I shouted. 

Metang was not a fast pokemon, but he used Psychic to shoot Ribombee towards him as his fist began to glow with a metallic silver light. As Ribombee flew towards his fist Metang jabbed, smacking her square on and releasing a burst of multi-colored stars. The stars and Ribombee flew across the battlefield where they fell to the ground. The stars disappeared, leaving Ribombee motionless on the ground.

Faba did not have a comment about this development in the battle and Dawn was also silent as she returned her pokemon. Slowly she turned her neck and looked towards Faba, her eyes blinking slowly opened and closed. I frowned when I saw the Hypno, now standing slightly behind Faba, reach out his gold coin and wave it a few times in her direction.

Is she fighting the hypnosis? I wondered. 

I swallowed quickly but Dawn turned her head back to the battlefield, not meeting my eyes, and released her next pokemon: Oricorio. I quickly returned Metang and I heard Faba chuckle.

"What? Are you scared of a little flying type?" Faba jeered.

"The more you talk the easier it is to tell how weak you really are, Faba," I called over to him with a glare. He let out an annoyed "che" sound and turned to look at Dawn.

"Incineroar, stand by for battle," I said firmly. 

For a brief moment, I wished I had kept Electivire on my team, but as Incineroar came out I felt my confidence become boosted. Incineroar glanced around him, taking in the situation and my tense body and I knew he knew that something was wrong. Turning around he let out a rumbling roar towards Oricorio, who was standing limply on the ground, her wings drooping onto the grass.

What did that Hypno do to make them like this? I wondered, feeling rage bubble up inside me.

"Feather Dance, Oricorio," Dawn said in her dull tone. 

Frustration bubbled up in me as her Oricorio snapped to attention and did a quick dance step as feathers floated from her and surrounded Incineroar, taking his attack power down by two stages.

"Fine then, use Dark Pulse," I ordered. 

Incineroar raised his hands and created an orb of dark power before shooting it towards Oricorio.

"Dodge and use Captivate," Dawn said without feeling.

Her Oricorio flipped into the air and swooped, dodging Incineroar's attack with beautiful grace. Suddenly Oricorio swooped in within centimeters of Incineroar's face and spun. Small pink hearts rushed around her body and then smacked into Incineroar. He dropped his arms and staggered back, shaking his head and I clenched my jaw. 

Both attack and special attack have been lowered? Alright then.

"Incineroar, time to use Work Up!" I ordered. 

Incineroar growled and a red column of light burst from the ground and engulfed him, raising his attack and special attack stats back up by a stage.

"Use Darkest Lariat!" 

Incineroar immediately stepped forward and began to spin, dark energy pooling from his clawed paws. Oricorio tried to dodge one of his flying fists but she banked to miss it, then he spun and whacked her with his other paw. She was flung back and rolled across the grass battlefield a few time before she picked herself back up and ruffled her feathers.

"Air Slash," Dawn rebutted without inflection in her voice. 

Oricorio flapped, taking back to the air and then set a powerful Air Slash attack towards Incineroar. He raised his thick arms to protect his eyes and rode out the attack.

"Dark Pulse again," I said once the attack had run its course. 

Incineroar was just getting his Dark Pulse ready when I heard Faba tsk in annoyance.

"Switch out your pokemon, Dawn!" he demanded and I felt my throat close up slightly when Dawn immediately lifted her arm and returned Oricorio without question. But then I frowned and cocked my head slightly as I watched her replace her Pokeball. 

She could have switched out before Faba told her to... why didn't she?

My train of thought was interrupted though as she replaced her Oricorio with Arcanine. I frowned in confusion as Arcanine stood tall but didn't let out a bark or a howl or any kind of sound. The silence from this fierce pokemon was so wrong that I was momentarily stunned.

They even broke Arcanine. How powerful is this Hypno? I wondered in disgust, glaring over at Faba and his skulking pokemon.

"Use Wild Charge," Dawn commanded dully and I whipped my attention back to the battle.

"Use Work Up and dodge it," I ordered. 

The column of red surrounded Incineroar again but Arcanine shot forward faster than I had ever seen him. Incineroar sprang back, but he was too late. Arcanine slammed into him without regard for his own safety and both of them crashed to the ground. Incineroar rolled away from his attacker, wincing slightly as he stood back up and Arcanine also shook his head before standing up and silently facing off with him.

"Bulldoze."

My eyes widened when Arcanine jumped up and then slammed to the ground. A line of dirt burst up from the ground and rushed towards Incineroar as Arcanine jumped up and down four times. I gritted my teeth as Incineroar tried to jump over the attack, but couldn't avoid it entirely. I had used three of four moves already and Incineroar had taken a lot of damage. I shook my head and ordered myself to focus, but I was using up so much self-control to not go over and beat Faba to a pulp that I knew I wasn't giving this battle the attention it needed.

"Incineroar, use Drain Punch!" I ordered with a growl. 

Incineroar dropped to all fours and ran towards Arcanine. Dawn didn't give any kind of instruction and I frowned heavily as Incineroar jumped, pulling back one glowing hand and then slamming it into Arcanine's back. The large pokemon's front feet buckled and he fell to his knees as energy drained away from his body and back into Incineroar's.

"Reversal, Arcanine," Dawn said blandly. My eyes widened and I cursed inwardly as a yellow light began to glow around Arcanine's body.

"Dodge it. Now!" I cried in frustration. 

Incineroar somersaulted forward, avoiding the swipe of Arcanine's forepaws, but quick as lightning Arcanine lashed out with his back paws, and the yellow light transferred from his body into the kick and exploded, propelling Incineroar back. I watched as Incineroar tumbled end over end in the grass until he finally came to a stop, face first and completely still on the grass.

"Well done! That's my queen! Are you certain you wish to continue?" Faba mocked from the sidelines. 

I grit my teeth and tried to take even, calm breaths as I returned Incineroar and looked once more at Dawn.

Why did she choose Arcanine? If she had chosen Piplup then she could have beaten me much easier, I thought to myself with equal parts confusion and hope. Did this mean that she was somehow fighting against the hypnosis?

"Are you giving up, Brute? Because if you are I would like to spend some time getting to know my queen a little better," Faba said with a lecherous look at Dawn. 

Anger flared and I took a step towards Faba, but as I moved towards him the buzzwole and pheromosa flanking him both stepped in front of him protectively and I bit my tongue. Laboriously I turned away from him and chose my next pokemon. My throat was clenching too hard to actually speak my customary phrase, so Kingdra was released without fanfare. His large dorsal fin flapped lightly as he hovered a few inches off the ground. Looking over at Dawn's slack face I saw her blink once slowly.

"Wild Charge, Arcanine."

"Use Smokescreen!" 

Kingdra let loose a stream of black smoke that covered half of the battlefield. Arcanine ran into the smoke, electricity crackling across his body and creating weird shadows inside of the Smokescreen. After a few seconds of running though, Arcanine popped out of the Smokescreen and looked around, seeming to be confused that it hadn't run into anything.

"Hydro Pump!" I ordered firmly. 

Kingdra's smoke screen disappeared, revealing that he had been waiting on the edge of the battlefield, and he sent a powerful stream of water into Arcanine's unprotected back. Arcanine growled as the super effective move slammed into him and pushed him back several steps, but he didn't fall.

"Use Outrage," Dawn intoned without feeling. My eyes widened and I clenched my jaw.

"Use Dragon Pulse to keep him back!" I called out quickly. 

Kingdra released his super-powered Dragon Pulse and I felt a growl of frustration escape me as Arcanine ran in a zigzag, avoiding the attack, all while orange and red steam began streaming around his massive body. He reared onto his hind legs and smacked one of his forepaws against Kingdra's neck, blasting him back closer to Dawn's side of the battlefield. Kingdra shook his head and shuddered but glared angrily over at Arcanine.

"Hydro Pump again!" I said as Arcanine once again began charging towards Kingdra. 

With a shrill, angry whistle Kingdra let loose another powerful Hydro Pump and I felt a bead of sweat slip down my neck as it connected. I sighed when Arcanine howled and then dropped to the ground. The glow from using Outrage began to fade and soon it was obvious that Kingdra was the winner. 

But that Outrage attack did way more damage than I was expecting, I thought frustratedly. You need to focus, Paul! I should have the advantage in this battle, so why am I losing?

Dawn returned her Arcanine without comment and as I was silently berating myself she released her next pokemon. Before it had even materialized completely Dawn had uttered her first command.

"Dazzling Gleam."

Ninetales solidified with her muzzle and tails stretched to the sky, already calling in the wall of pink sparkles. Kingdra, unprepared for the attack, was pushed back by the powerful fairy type move and fell onto his side with a crash. I clenched my hand into fists in frustration and tried to think of what pokemon to use for Dawn's Ninetales as Kingdra jerkily began hovering and straightened once again.

"Use Brine!" I yelled, knowing that the move would be twice as powerful now that Kingdra was so low on energy. 

Dawn told her Ninetales to dodge, but there was nowhere to go as Kingdra blasted a sheet of water towards her. Ninetales coughed delicately as the explosive sheet of water ran off of her body and for a moment I thought that she was going to wake up. But after she finished coughing she returned to her silent sentry's post, awaiting Dawn's instructions just like her other pokemon.

"Dazzling Gleam again," Dawn instructed. 

Knowing Kingdra couldn't take another of those attack I fumbled for his Pokeball on my belt, but I was too late. Ninetales had already released the super effective move and I watched as Kingdra fell to the ground.

"Dawn, please wake up!" I yelled over at her, but she only blinked, keeping her eyes turned down towards the ground.

"Are you ready to give up, boy?" Faba jeered and I whipped around to glare at Faba.

"Shut up!" I growled as I returned Kingdra back to his Pokeball. Years of training to keep my emotions hidden was crumbling as the situation was getting more and more out of my control.

Shaking my head I released my next pokemon. Lucario appeared in front of me and glanced back over his shoulder at me, furrowing his brow in obvious confusion. I couldn't even explain to him before Dawn raised her head slightly and nodded.

"Aurora Veil," Dawn commanded. I gritted my teeth, regretting for the first time having taught Dawn to battle strategically.

"Use Flash Cannon, Lucario," I said through gritted teeth. 

Lucario instantly obeyed, seeming to understand by my body language how serious this battle was. He placed his paws side by side and after less than a second a silver beam of power shot from his paws and towards Ninetales. The attack was half the size of his normal Flash Cannon, thanks to Ninetales Aurora Veil, and I growled with frustration when Ninetales leaped at the last second to Dawn's instruction. She had jumped a little too late though and the move connected with her back legs, knocking her off course mid-air and causing her to crash to the ground. She got back up to her feet quickly though.

"Return her, Dawn. You should know better than to leave a fairy type in this battle," Faba called and I frowned when Dawn once again immediately moved to follow his instructions. 

Ninetales bowed her head as she was engulfed in red light and was sent back to her Pokeball and I blinked rapidly, wondering if that had meant anything. Dawn reached for another Pokeball and I blinked in surprise when I saw which pokemon she sent out.

"Into the air," Dawn said airily and her Oricorio flapped once, shooting herself up into the air where she circled, awaiting further instructions. 

Why didn't she send out Mirageon? She would have had an advantage against Lucario so why.... I searched Dawn's face, wishing more than anything that she would look at me, but she kept her eyes half-lidded and seemed to be waiting for me to make a move.

"Use Force Palm to get into the air and then use Ice Punch," I said after a tense pause. 

Lucario ran forward and touched his paws to the ground, flipping himself into the air, but before he had begun to form his Ice Punch Dawn's head cocked slightly to the side.

"Mirror Move," she said flatly. 

Glancing up, I saw that both of the fan-like appendages on the ends of Oricorio's wings had begun to glow exactly like Lucario's Force Palm and I narrowed my eyes.

That is clever. And the Aurora Veil is still in effect so Lucario's moves are at half power. What is wrong with me? Why can't I come up with a strategy? I thought with more desperation than I had ever felt. I couldn't take Lucario out because my other two pokemon were weak against Oricorio and even if I did recall Lucario, when Mirageon came out I was going to be in trouble.

Oricorio swooped down to meet Lucario, who was still traveling up towards her. I watched in frustration as Oricorio reached out both her wings and pushed them into Lucario's ice-covered fist. The two moves met and exploded, causing both pokemon to rocket backward crazily through the air. Lucario managed to straighten out before he met the ground and Oricorio caught herself and began flying in circles above the battlefield again.

"Feather Dance," Dawn ordered quietly. I clenched my hands into fists, frustrated at losing even more of Lucario's attack stat.

"Use Sword's Dance," I growled and then instantly realized my mistake. 

As Lucario raised his arms and images of sword's appeared above his head, signaling his raised attack stat, Oricorio dropped to the ground and copied him, raising her own attack stat. Oricorio's ability is Dancer, Paul! She can copy any dancing move, idiot! I cursed at myself, rubbing my fingers across my eyes briefly. This isn't like you, Paul. This battle is to save Dawn so snap out of it!

"Air Slash."

"Use Shadow Ball, Lucario!" I growled angrily.

A small Shadow Ball formed in front of Lucario and he fired it. I watched with satisfaction as it sailed through the rough wind caused by Oricorio's Air Slash and slammed into her belly. Oriciorio briefly stopped flapping and dropped a few feet to the ground, but she soon straightened out and flew back up into the sky.

"Keep using Shadow Ball," I ordered.

Frowning, I saw that Lucario's legs were shaking slightly and I wondered why he was acting so fatigued. Then I clenched my teeth. When I had been handing out super potions and oran berries I had run out and Lucario insisted that he give his to the other pokemon. 

He isn't fully recovered from his battle with the Ultrabeasts. Shaking my head I tried not to curse out loud so that Lucario wouldn't hear. I believed in him, and I knew he would fight as long as he could. As he launched several Shadow Balls they began to grow a little bigger and I realized that Ninetales Aurora Veil must have worn off finally.

"Dodge and use Mirror Move."

Oricorio swopped and spun, avoiding almost all of the Shadow Balls as they blasted past her. After dodging the fifth one in a row she stopped flapping and held her wings out so that a large Shadow Ball could appear in front of her and she blasted it towards Lucario. He jumped, barely missing the attack, but both of us had lost track of Oricorio and I growled when she suddenly flew into Lucario's face.

"Captivate and then Air Slash," Dawn intoned. 

Lucario growled as large hearts burst in front of his eyes, temporarily blinding him, and then Oricorio's Air Slash, which was aimed low, swept his feet out from under him. He landed hard on his back and growled in pain.

"You can do this, Lucario! Use Ice Punch."

Lucario rolled over and boosted himself to his shaking legs. Even though he looked exhausted he still ran forward stubbornly. Oricorio was swooping up in the air and as Lucario leaped up she once again unleashed an Air Slash attack. Lucario howled in pain but managed to slam his fist into Oricorio's stomach. Both pokemon fell from the ground and landed with loud thumps.

A few seconds passed and neither of them got up. Frustration at myself and rage at Faba for making me fight Dawn in this way boiled inside me and as I looked at one of my strongest pokemon fainted on the ground I wondered if I was really strong enough to win this battle.

A/N I'm sorry this is another cliffhanger! Poor Paul. Even though he appears strong, with the trauma from his past and his newly discovered feelings his emotions are overwhelming him and clouding his judgment. :'(