"H-hey... T-torterra... H-hey..." A worn voice calling to him made Torterra open his eyes, blinking, "H-hey..."

Torterra pushed himself to his feet, slowly turning around. He had been resting on top of a high hill, enjoying the view that laid below the cliff-like edge, and soaking up the last rays of sunlight for that day. He peered father down the hill, making out an orange and gray shape slowly coming up the hill towards him. The figure huffed, trying to catch its breath, releasing a plume of smoke from his back.

"Hey Torkoal," Torterra said, smiling a bit at the sight of his old friend, "What brings you up here?"

Torkoal continued towards him, looking exhausted from the climb, "I w-wanted to see you, but you weren't in your usual spot, and S-swellow said he saw you up here..." Torkoal looked at him, awed, "What m-made you climb this r-ridiculous hill? I know from experience that lugging a shell up a slope is not an easy task. I can't imagine how you did it with practically a c-chunk of earth on your back!"

Torterra glanced back at the large tree and rough rocks that he carried on his back, then he looked down at Torkoal as the fire type finally reached him. The small tortoise collapsed at his feet, clearly exhausted. Torterra pawed the ground, feeling bad that Torkoal had been forced to make such a climb just to see him. Torkoal was right, with their large shells traveling long distances, especially uphill, was not a common trait among turtle-like Pokemon.

"I just wanted to see the view," Torterra said, looking off of the ledge at the landscape below, "I also know the move Rock Climb, it can give me an energy boost for inclines or rough terrain. Sorry you had to come all the way up here."

Torkoal gave him a smile, though he could still clearly see his limbs were shaking from exhaustion, "It was n-no problem... I can handle a little c-climb...!"

Torterra sighed, turning once more, dragging his massive weight as he faced the cliff once more. He gently lowered himself to the ground, letting out a sigh of relief as the weight was taken from his legs. Torkoal stood up, stumbling around to the front of Torterra's giant body, settling next to him. The fire type glanced up at him.

"I'm not disturbing y-you, right?" He asked hesitantly, "I can go back down if you don't want me around..." Torkoal trailed off, voice going high. Torterra snorted.

"I'm not going to force you to make the trek back down, you just got here. Besides, I don't mind the company," Torterra felt the tree on his back rush with energy as the sunlight hit its leaves. He wasn't quite sure if the tree could be considered part of his body, like Oshawott's scalchop, or simply something that accompanied him, like an Alakazam and it's spoons. But he did know that the plant drew energy from the soil on his shell, and he drew energy in return from its photosynthesis. It did make him feel at one with nature, but at the same time he hated how it weighed him down.

"Good," Torkoal sighed, relaxing instantly, "Because I'm exhausted!" Tears welled up in the fire type's eyes, "You're such a good friend Torterra," He began, sniffling, "You'd never turn your back on anyone!" Suddenly Torkoal was crying tears of joy, smoke pluming up from his shell, "A true, caring soul!"

Torterra gave a hesitant smile, "Thanks Torkoal... You're a good friend too."

Torkoal quickly stopped crying, whether from experience or the fact he was a fire type, Torterra didn't know, "Yeah, I don't know what I would have done if Ash hadn't caught you... I would have been here alone!" Torkoal paused, "I mean, I have nothing against Ash's other Pokemon, I'm just not really friends with them," He lowered his head, "I guess I just get too emotional, like they say..."

Torterra looked down at him, "You're not afraid to show how you feel, that's a definitely strength in my mind," He said, trying to cheer up the fire type.

"... I don't think Ash likes me that much..." Torkoal muttered after a moment, "When it comes to battles and stuff..."

"Ash loves all his Pokemon!" Torterra cried.

"Yeah... I know, but when I'm in battle... Ash wants to be a strong trainer, and he needs strong Pokemon... I just don't think I'm that Pokemon," He hesitated, "I can't even evolve..."

Torterra looked away, "... Evolving isn't everything, Torkoal."

"Easy for you to say! You're fully evolved!" He let out a plume of smoke, "Look at me compared to his other fire Pokemon! Charizard is his ace, besides Pikachu! Infernape is another arguably one of his strongest! Even Pignite and Quilava, who aren't fully evolved have more going for them than me! Powerful moves, speed, and most importantly, potential to become stronger by evolving again! Who knows what fire type he'll be bringing back from Kalos, but I know it will be stronger than me!"

Torterra didn't take his eyes off of Torkoal for a minute, then he spoke, "Torkoal, every trainer has a battle style, along with every Pokemon. Trainers and Pokemon often work together the best in battle when these battle styles match," Torterra sighed, "Ash's style... is using fast Pokemon that hit hard, similar to his energetic personality," He hesitated for a moment, "But Pokemon species like us... That's not how our body type battles. We're s-slower Pokemon, and bulky. We're supposed to tank hits, then deal heavy damage right back," Torterra looked down, "S-so, the reason why you may not find yourself working with Ash well in battle is because you rely on a d-different battle style than he works well with."

Torkoal pulled himself inside his shell, "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Torterra flinched, realizing his friend was right, "W-well... Um, the thing is, Ash doesn't care about stuff like that. Ash loves all of his Pokemon, no matter what. He'd never give up on you, no matter what..." Torterra went quiet, "He'll always give you another chance..."

Torkoal remained in his shell, "Hmph. At least you have power due to evolution to back you up, even if our "styles" don't match Ash's he'd use you long before me. I'll never evolve, I'll always be the same weak Torkoal."

Torterra closed his eyes, taking slow breaths, then finally he muttered, "If I had a choice..." Torterra whispered, "If I could go back in time... I'd chose never to evolve."

Torkoal pulled himself out of his shell, staring up at the grass type, "What?!"

Torterra looked down at his feet, "Not counting training or things like blasting off Team Rocket, I have never won a battle since I have evolved into a Torterra... Not once... I even had the type advantage in most of those battles too..."

"Wha...?" Torkoal muttered, "B-but... But you're a Torterra! A fully evolved starter Pokemon! You guys should be unstoppable!"

Torterra took a deep breath, "As a Turtwig I was a very fast Pokemon. I worked very well with Ash, our styles matched up perfectly, I won many battles. Then one day I felt the rush of evolution... and I couldn't wait. I let it engulf me, I wanted the power and strength that I had heard about that came from evolution," He sighed, "What I got was a brick wall for a back and thick, sturdy legs that halted my mobility. My body was built for another fighting style, one that I wasn't use to," Torterra looked at Torkoal, "Pokemon gain strength in many ways, one of them can be evolution. But evolving means change, and not all Pokemon can handle change. That's often why personalities can shift during evolution, it's a coping method, the body's way of handling the mental and physical changes it just went through."

"But... But you get stronger-"

"Yes, you do. But it only means something if you can use that strength," Torterra shifted, "I just never adjusted to this form, battling this way... It just doesn't have the same feel, the same excitement," Torterra looked right at Torkoal, "You're lucky, you never had to change."

Torkoal chewed his lip, then let out a small laugh, "I guess we'd be happier with each other's evolving capabilities, huh?"

Torterra smiled, "Yes, I guess we would," Despite this comment, Torkoal still seemed to be down. Torterra closed his eyes at his stupidity, some way to cheer up his friend, telling him about how he hated the very thing Torkoal craved, but couldn't have, "Torkoal, you have to learn to be content with who you are."

"What's the point of being content if I can't even battle well with my trainer?" Torkoal muttered.

"... You know what I'd say was one of Ash's toughest battles ever?" Torterra asked Torkoal, "His battle with Darkrai, against Tobias. Ash knew he was going to be facing a undefeated opponent. And with a lot of fire types at his disposal, which one of them was he going to bring? Well, there was Infernape, who was fully evolved and was part fighting type, perfect for facing a Darkrai. There was his newly evolved Quilava, who had just learned the powerful move Eruption. Then of course there was his Charizard, a Pokemon who had defeated a legendary before. Fully evolved, arguably his strongest Pokemon!"

Torkoal didn't say anything.

"But what fire type did he bring to that match...?" Torterra smiled, "He brought you, Torkoal. Out of all the fire types he had at the time, he chose you. And in all his fights with Brandon, who used legendaries, what Pokemon did Ash chose to go up against Registeel...? He chose you."

"... I never won though..."

Torterra shook his head, "Only three of Ash's Pokemon have defeated a legendary, but that doesn't matter. What matters is Ash knew you could handle an opponent that strong. Ash knew that you had the bravery to face legendary Pokemon," Torterra looked down at Oak's ranch below, 'We have an amazing trainer Torkoal, one that recognizes potential. Perhaps Ash is an all out attacker- but he understood your defensive capable of doing. He uses that when he battles with you, he changes his tactics so he can fight with your battle style, not just his. You don't need to evolve for Ash, when has he ever demanded from us? Look at Pikachu, his starter, who chose never to evolve. You have powerful moves, like Overheat," Torterra took a deep breath, "Where are you going to get in life if you look down at yourself? You are a powerful Pokemon, maybe not the strongest, but still strong. You must learn to be content with who you are, because who you're stuck with that," Torterra looked down at his small friend, 'You climbed up a hill just so you could be with me, despite physical limitations. You are an amazing Pokemon, and my best friend. I don't want you to change Torkoal, and I want you to be happy with who you are."

A burst of smoke from the small orange Torkoal and the sound of crying showed that he had managed to move the emotional fire type. Torterra tried hard not to cough on the thick smoke that was filling the air.

"Thank you so much Torterra!" The fire type sobbed, hidden in a veil of smoke, "Man, you know how to cheer up even the gloomiest of Pokemon! I just can't help but-" He choked out another wave of tears, and more smoke filled the air.

"You're welcome," Torterra coughed, and luckily a strong breeze blew away the smoke. Torkoal's crying soon slowed to a stop, and it was quiet on the hill top. Neither of them said anything, simply enjoying the peaceful moment.

"Torterra..." Torkoal muttered after a minute, "You... You said you wouldn't chosen to evolve if you had the choice now, but..." He trailed off, looking up at the giant tortoise, "But you're happy as you are still, right? "Content", as you put it. You like who you are, don't you?"

Torterra didn't say anything back right away, and worry quickly took over Torkoal's concerned face. Finally after a long silence, Torterra spoke again, eyes glued to the sky.

"... Of... Of course I'm happy..." He said, "What kind of person doesn't follow their own advice? I'm happy the way I am."

Relief washed over Torkoal expression, "Oh, thank Groudon! I don't know what I'd do if my friend wasn't happy!" Torkoal grinned up at Torterra, "Thank you once more, I really needed to hear what you told me today. It helped me a lot," He let out a yawn, "H-hey... You don't mind if I doze off here, okay...? I'm still worn from coming up here I think a quick nap would do me good..."

"Go ahead," Torterra said, and Torkoal retreated into his shell.

"Night!" He cried from within the shell, voice echoey.

"Goodnight," Torterra replied, and soon he could hear loud snores coming from the shell. Torterra shifted, and Torkoal snored on. The heavy grass type pushed himself to his feet, testing the burden of his own body. Heavy. Slow. Bulky, "Content... Huh...?" He muttered to himself, and he looked at Torkoal, "Wow, look at where you are in life, Torterra... Lying to your best friend..."

A particularly long snore came from Torkoal, and Torterra collapsed to the ground. He looked out over the view that this hill had to offer; a beautiful forest he could never enter. A silvery lake that he'd sink in. The blazing hot climate for the fire types that his leaves would wither in. The rocky fields and caves for rock types and his fellow ground types and he'd only stumble though.

Then there was the sky, vast and blue. Endless and bursting with hope.

A sky that he could never reach.

"Heh," Torterra snorted, "I'm sorry Torkoal, sorry for lying... But after comforting you about your body, how could I tell you that I wasn't happy with mine...? How could I tell you to be content with you who are now, when I can only dream of the past...?" He lowered his head, "I'll tell you the truth now, while you're asleep. I guess that makes me a coward, but here it is: I hate who I am. I hate this form, I wish I was a Turtwig again. I can't battle like this, and battling is what I love. I feel so useless like this. While we may be built to battle the same way- I just can't do it like that. I know for a fact that Ash will probably never call on me for a battle again. You know how to battle with who you are, but I just can't!" He closed his eyes, tears slipping down his face, "I come up here to remember, to remember who I use to be."

Torkoal snored on.

Another gust wind blew across the hill, and Torterra sighed. He knew he couldn't change back- this was his new life. Perhaps he wasn't happy, but no one else had to know that. He could look content with no trouble. It was just a mask he needed to put on, and never take off.

Torterra settled down, perhaps a nap was what he needed too. It would give the tree on his back to sit in the sun, and him a break from this world.

Because only in his dreams, could he be a small, speedy Turtwig, racing through the forest.