"I'm glad we got more of the clothes completed." Rina said.

"Me, too!" Nina said, "They're turning out great, Rina! I can't wait to wear them!"

The pink-haired girl smiled at the redhead.

It was the next day, and the others and I agreed to do some more exploring around Johto. As Rina said, I'm glad we were able to get more done before the fashion expo!

"So, what's our next destination?" Kat asked.

Eric hummed in thought as he pulled out a map from his pocket.

"Well, the next place after Cherrygrove is Violet City, the city of nostalgic scents," Eric said.

"Interesting slogan," Elsu said, "Well, we're not gonna find out what it's about walking like Torkoal. Let's get moving!"

Our native friend smiled as he skipped along the path ahead of us. The others and I chuckled as we sprinted to catch up to our friend.

I wonder what Violet City has in store.

After passing through Cherrygrove City, the six of us traveled along a dirt path that ran through a small woodland area. Like in Ezonia, Rattata scurried across the trail, and Pidgey pecked at the ground.

"Hey, I think we're getting close!" Nina cried from atop a hill.

When the others and I reached the hilltop, we saw a cityscape in the distance.

"That's gotta be it!" I said, "Let's go, gang!"

When we reached the bottom of the hill, we sprinted down the dirt trail, the Pidgey in the road flying off into the sky as we ran past them. When we arrived, the bluish-silver buildings glimmered in the morning sun.

"Am I the only one who expected Violet City to be... y'know, violet?" Nina asked.

"Nope, you're not." Kat said.

I couldn't help but laugh as my eyes scanned the city. Nothing much was going on, just people and their Pokémon enjoying the day.

It's really quiet here.

"Hey, why don't we have a battle?" Elsu suggested suddenly.

"I'm game," Eric answered, "Plus, I've been itching to test my mettle against you, Elsu."

"Right back at you! Let's head to the Pokémon Center to have our battle!"

With a nod to each other, we scoured the city in search of the Pokémon Center. Eventually, we found it and walked inside.

"Welcome to the Pokémon Center!" Nurse Joy greeted.

The Chansey at her side smiled and let out a cry. After resting our Pokémon, the six of us went to the battlefield. Elsu and Eric took their positions while the girls and I sat on a nearby bench to spectate.

"Samurott, let's go!" Eric cried, throwing out a Pokéball.

"Scolipede!" Elsu said, doing the same.

At once, the Formidable and the Megapede Pokémon appeared.

If I remember correctly, Samurott and Scolipede are from Eric's home region, Unova. That's pretty neat!

"Hm... A Water-type up against a Bug/Poison-type," Kat said, "This battle can certainly go either way."

"I've battled alongside Eric and his Samurott once, and it's strong," I said, "But you're right, Kat. This battle can go either way."

I wonder how this battle's gonna turn out.

"Samurott, use Aqua Jet!" Eric said.

The Formidable Pokémon let out a cry before cloaking itself with water and charging toward the Megapede Pokémon.

"Rockslide to slow it down!" Elsu cried.

The Scolipede let out a cry before summoning large boulders above Samurott.

"Dodge 'em!" Eric cried.

Samurott obeyed and smoothly weaved through the falling boulders. Its luck soon ran out when a boulder fell on top of it, causing it to fall to the ground.

"Samurott!" Eric cried.

That must've hurt!

When Samurott stood up, Scolipede's body glinted red.

Wait. Does Elsu's Scolipede have Speed Boost as its ability?!

"Megahorn!" Elsu cried.

The Scolipede let out a cry, and its horns started glowing bright lime green. The Megapede Pokémon then charged toward Samurott at amazing speed.

"Razor Shell!" Eric cried.

When the Formidable Pokémon pulled out one of its seamitars, it started glowing bright blue. As the Scolipede drew near, Samurott raised its seamitar and waited. When it was close enough, Samurott brought down the seamitar and stopped the Scolipede in its tracks. The Scolipede growled as it tried to push the Samurott back, but as its name suggests, it stayed formidable.

This is really invigorating! I wonder who's gonna win!

"Ice Beam, quick!" Eric cried.

Samurott gaped its mouth and released an icy-cold blast upon the Scolipede, causing it to stagger backward. Once it regained its posture, the Megapede Pokémon glinted red again.

"Its speed rose again," I said, "Scolipede's way faster than Samurott now. What's Eric gonna do?"

"Don't worry, Era. I've been with Eric for a while now, even before we met you and Kat," Nina said, "In times like these, this is where we get to see how Eric's versatility comes into play. Plus, since it's from Unova, I'd imagine Eric has fought a Scolipede."

I nodded as I turned my head back to the battle to see both Pokémon having a stand-off.

"Aqua Jet!" Eric cried.

Samurott growled before cloaking itself with water. The Formidable Pokémon then charged at the Megapede Pokémon a second later.

"Superpower!" Elsu cried.

Superpower!? Scolipede can learn Superpower!?

Then, the Scolipede started glowing. It then charged at the Samurott with incredible speed.

"Ooh, this is gonna be close!" Kat said, biting her nail.

Libby, Angel, and Snubbull let out cries as if they were cheering on their friends. An explosion occurred when the two Pokémon collided, covering the battlefield with smoke.

Who won?

When the smoke cleared, both Pokémon were left unconscious.

"It's a draw!" the others and I exclaimed.

That's insane!

The two boys looked at one another and shared a laugh.

"Now, that was an incredible battle!" Elsu said, "That was so much fun!"

"I agree!" Eric said, "You and your Scolipede certainly had Samurott and me on our toes."

When the two Pokémon regained consciousness, they walked to each other and shared a friendly cry.

"That was an awesome battle, you two!" Nina said, walking up to the boys.

"Yeah! I thought for sure Scolipede would've won since its speed raised twice in battle." I said.

"But it ended in a tie," Rina said, "That was truly a spectacle, you guys!"

"Thanks, Rina," Elsu said, "And thank you, Eric, for the awesome battle!"

"Right back at ya, buddy!" Eric said.

The boys smiled and sealed their battle with a handshake. Then, we heard someone applauding. Turning to the sound, we saw a woman with light skin, short navy hair, and red eyes.

"That was a wonderful display of battling, you two!" she said.

"Oh, thank you, miss." Eric said.

The woman smiled before walking up to us.

"I'm Miss Priscilla, a teacher at Earl's Pokémon Academy here in Violet City," she said, "Again, that was a splendid battle!"

"Thanks," Elsu said, "I'm Elsu, and these are my friends Eric, Kat, Nina, Rina, and Eragona."

The other and I, along with the Pokémon, all greeted Miss Priscilla.

"It's wonderful to meet you all," she said, "Say, if it's not too much trouble, do you think you can come back with me to the Pokémon Academy to show off your Pokémon? I'm sure my students would love to meet them!"

The others and I looked at one another and nodded.

"We'd love to!" I said.

"Wonderful!" Miss Priscilla said, "Please, follow me!"

After Eric and Elsu retracted their Pokémon, we followed behind the teacher.

"By the way, where are you kids from?" Miss Priscilla asked, "I've never seen Pokémon like yours before,"

"The Pokémon you saw battling are from my home region, Unova," Eric said, "But we've all traveled here from Ezonia."

"Eragona, Elsu, and I are native to that region." Nina said.

"And Rina and I are from the Kalos region." Kat said.

"Oh, my! You're from all over! That's wonderful! How's Johto treating you so far?"

"So far, our time here is nice," I said, "We were able to be a part of some annual events that happen around Johto."

Miss Priscilla listened with a patient smile.

If Miss Priscilla's this nice, I wonder how her students are?

When we arrived at the academy, we saw it was a small building with a lot of open space. Miss Priscilla opened the doors and told us to wait outside. After some time, Miss Priscilla came back with seven little kids.

"Alright, class. I'd like you all to meet Eragona, Eric, Kat, Nina, Rina, and Elsu," Miss Priscilla said, "They agreed to show you their Pokémon for today! Doesn't that sound fun?"

The little kids all cheered and jeered us to show them our Pokémon. All at once, the sky filled with Pokéballs, and our Pokémon appeared. The kids' eyes sparkled in awe at the Pokémon before them.

"Wow! I've never seen Pokémon like these before!" said a little boy.

"Can I hold your Eevee, miss?" a little asked me.

"Of course!" I said.

Libby let out a cry as she hopped off my shoulder and onto the little girl's.

"She's so cute!" the little girl said.

I smiled as I turned to the other kids as they admired the giant Pokémon in our group, such as Jet, Charcoal, Samurott, Yanmega, Scolipede, and Goodra.

"Wow! These Pokémon are huge!" exclaimed a little boy.

Charcoal let out a groan with a warm smile on his face. The little boy held his hands, and Charcoal rested his head in the boy's palms.

"Wow! He's so warm!" he said.

I smiled before looking over at Goodra and Samurott to see them getting attention from two little girls. Goodra let out a friendly cry before picking up one of the little girls.

"Whoa! He's strong!" she said, "And slimy!"

Goodra let out a cry before embracing the little girl, completely covering her in slime. The Samurott glanced down at the other little girl to see her admiring its seamitars. The Formidable Pokémon let out a cry as it unsheathed one of its seamitars to show the little girl.

"Wow! That is so cool!" she exclaimed.

I smiled as I glanced at Miss Priscilla. I then noticed a little girl with dark skin, black hair, and golden eyes huddled behind Miss Priscilla's leg.

She looks scared...

I walked up to the little girl and knelt at her level.

"Hey there," I said softly, "What's your name?"

"D-Destiney." she answered.

"Destiney! Nice to meet you! I'm Eragona!"

Destiney nodded as she huddled closer to Miss Priscilla.

"Forgive her; she's timid and often scared when meeting Pokémon she's never seen before."

That explains it.

I hummed in thought as I glanced between my Pokémon and Destiney.

"I think I know how to get her to overcome her fears," I said, turning around, "Hey, Jet!"

When my Garchomp stomped over, Destiney hid behind Miss Priscilla.

"It's okay, Destiney," I said, "Jet here wouldn't hurt a Weedle, right, buddy?"

Jet made a friendly cry as he nuzzled his jaw against my cheek.

"See? He's really gentle once you get to know him." I said.

Destiney peeked from around Miss Priscilla and looked up at my Garchomp.

"He looks s-scary..." she said softly.

At first glance, Jet does look intimidating, but he's not like that at all.

"A little, yeah, but if you give me your hand, you'll see that he's not," I said, holding out my hand, "Do you trust me?"

Destiney stepped out from behind Miss Priscilla before looking up at her teacher.

"It's okay, honey," she said, "I'm right here."

Destiney looked back at us before placing her hand in mine. Jet soon hunched over as I guided Destiney's hand towards his head. The young girl flinched when her fingers grazed Jet's head.

"It's okay; he won't bite." I said.

Destiney nodded as she placed her palm on the yellow spot on Jet. My Grachomp let out a cry as he leaned into Destiney's touch. The little girl's face soon broke into a wide grin.

"Wow! His head is really smooth and hard!" Destiney said.

Jet groaned and nuzzled his face against the little girl's cheek.

"He is really nice!" Destiney said.

"Told you!" I said, "Do you want to meet the other Pokémon?"

"Yeah!"

Destiney sprinted past me toward the other Pokémon and her friends.

"Thank you," Miss Priscilla said, "It means a lot to me that you helped out Destiney."

"Don't mention it, Miss Priscilla," I said, "I just wanted to show her that not all Pokémon are big and scary, like Jet here."

Jet let out a cry before placing his claws on his hips and sticking out his chest. I couldn't help but laugh as he stomped over to the little kids. I smiled when I saw Kat walk up to us and stand by my side.

"Jet certainly has a mixture of natures, doesn't he?" I asked aloud, "He can be gentle when it comes to little kids and then get real sassy,"

"Well, Pokémon are known to act like their trainers," Kat said, nudging my arm.

"Oh, hush, you!"

"Case and point!"

I promptly rolled my eyes with a fond chuckle. I sighed as I watched our Pokémon play with the little kids.

I'd love to come back here to help more kids like Destiney overcome their fears of meeting new Pokémon. Maybe volunteer for a short time...