The New Normal - 15-16 - Interlude - Other Participants

The New Normal – 15-16 – Interlude – Other Participants

(Brock POV)

Truthfully, when he found out that he was to be paired with Bertha, he didn’t know all that much about the Sinnoh Elite Four outside of the fact that she was a Ground type specialist.

He really regretted not having studied up more about the Gym Leaders and Elite Four from the other regions. But in fairness, he had been legitimately busy with running the Gym, so it wasn’t like he had been slacking around.

Fortunately, he didn’t make a fool of himself when he met Bertha for the first time. Karen had told him that Bertha was a kind and patient individual, and it really showed with their first interactions.

Even though she could tell that he wasn’t very familiar with her or her achievements, she didn’t let any of that show on her face as she always maintained a friendly expression with him. Her words were gentle and welcoming, helping him to quickly overcome the initial bout of awkwardness when meeting someone you weren’t familiar with.

Furthermore, their Pokémon got along well too. With their Rock and Ground types respectively, they were able to quickly adapt with each other, since they already fought so similarly anyways.

And if that wasn’t enough, she even took the time to ask him a very important question.

“Brock, what are your ambitions for this Tournament? I know everyone wants to win the whole thing, but it’s always good to set realistic goals for yourself.” She advised, “Some of my peers are also using this Tournament to forge and establish connections with the other participants, some are trying to prove their strength to the public, so what is it that you want out of this Tournament? And how can I help you with achieving those goals?”

Brock already had his answer. In the first Tournament, he wasn’t ashamed to admit that Sidney had practically carried the two of them to the second round. Compared to the competition, Brock had been far too weak and was little more than an anchor around Sidney’s neck. He knew everyone could have seen that Sidney would have gone much farther in the Tournament if he had been paired up with anyone else but Brock.

So he vowed that this time would be different. He had gotten so much stronger since the Tri-Regional Tournament, and he felt ready for the opponents ahead. This time, he promised not to be a weight that would push down Bertha. And he said as much to her.

She gave off a motherly smile, “You don’t have to worry about that with dear old me. Just look at these old bones – one look at me and it’s clear that I’m way past my prime. So you don’t have to feel bad about ‘dragging me down’; pride and glory are things of the past for me. I’m only still in the Elite Four because I know my younger colleagues might need the wisdom of an elder from time to time.”

“Still, I want to prove myself.” He stated firmly, “I was pitied last time – given the chance to fight again thanks to the audience vote. And while I’m thankful for the public for the second chance, I’m not going to allow myself to rely on the pity of the public once again. I want to prove that I can compete with the best trainers in the world. So while I don’t need to win the whole thing, I want for us to be at least seen as strong challengers.”

Bertha nodded, “Then that is what we shall do. I like the fire in your eyes, Brock. It reminds me of myself when I was your age. Just remember to not let your ambitions consume you. There are far more important things than prestige and glory.”

“I know.” Brock nodded, “I’ve had good people reminding me that.”

“Good. Then I shall speak no more of it.” Bertha said, “Now, our competitors are no pushovers, so if we want to make it far into this Tournament, then I think this is the way to go…”

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(Roxanne POV)

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Roxanne.” Samson extended a hand to greet her, “I hope you are looking forward to our partnership as much as I am. Though seeing how well you and John did last time, I suppose I have nothing to worry about on that front.” He chuckled to himself.

“Of course, but I don’t really deserve much of the credit for how far we got last time. That was all John.” She replied truthfully, “I know for a fact that I was next to useless in our fight during the Finals against Agatha and the psychic twins. And, even though John doesn’t like it when I say it, but his strength was practically the sole reason we made it into the Top 3. I was just along for the ride.”

“Perhaps that might have been the case then, but this is now.” Samson said, “You’re more experienced now, and I know just how far people can progress in a short amount of time.”

He let out a proud chuckle, “I mean, just look at my daughter and her friends. Not too long ago they had just started their journey. Now my daughter is looking poised to succeed me as Gym Leader very soon, Whitney’s looking to angle herself to become a new Head Gym Trainer, and Janine’s already become one. So don’t think too badly about yourself based on what happened then. I’m sure we’ll be able to do just as well this time.”

“Yes, sorry if I sounded like I was being pessimistic about our chances, that was not my intention.” She quickly replied, “In fact, Flannery and I have a bit of a friendly rivalry going. She was disappointed with being knocked out in the first round last time, and she’s vowed to do a lot better. And as one of the winners last time, I’m determined to not do any worse than her.”

She clenched a fist, “I want to prove that my past victory was not solely due to John’s efforts – that I have the ability to stand up on my own two feet as well.”

“Good – because speaking of Flannery, I’ve already been studying Will’s strategies from the last Tournament too.” Samson said, “I think with our team we could be able to replicate the Helping Hand strategy that he made use of with Flannery. I know they lost in the first round, but let’s face it, it was only because they got unlucky with their first opponents. So I believe that having you do most of the active fighting while I focus on supporting you would likely be our go-to strategy for the Tournament.”

Roxanne easily agreed; the strategy played to her team’s strengths well.

Ever since the previous tournament, she had done all she could to fix and improve her team’s sluggish speed. And now, while her Pokémon were still on the slower side, they were at least far more mobile and agile than they were previously. Furthermore, her Pokémon’s defenses had improved so that, barring a supereffective move from an extremely powerful Pokémon, her Pokémon would be able to endure through it.

Now it was just time to see if her training had truly paid off.

“But we’re going to need more than just that if we’re to overcome the level of opponents that we’re going to be facing against.” He continued, “And we’re going to need to be extra prepared if we want to have a good showing against some of the tougher opponents – I’m sure you don’t need a reminder of how powerful John and his team were.”

“We’re going to need to think up countermeasures to deal with John, especially since there’s a pretty big chance we might get him during the preliminary stage.” She agreed, “We need to find some way to neutralise the incredibly strong bruisers that he and certain other trainers have.”

Drake was another trainer that came to mind on that front.

He nodded, “We should get started on that right away. A week isn’t as much time as you think it is.”

And so the planning begun.

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(Roark POV)

Of all the people that he could have gotten paired up with, he had to be paired up with the person that most resembled his father – in the worst way possible.

Even from their very first conversation, he knew that he would hate every single moment of this partnership.

“So you’re yet another kid that wants to escape out of their parent’s shadow.” Pryce said this to him with a dismissive scoff, “Typical. But I hope you at least know how to follow instructions.”

“…I do.” Was what he eventually said, a little shocked by Pryce’s harsh greeting. He wanted to say more, but Pryce interrupted him.

“Good. Then if you listen to me, perhaps we will be able to turn over your previously lacklustre performance at the last Tournament.” Pryce frowned, “I remember that you didn’t even make it out of the first round. Well, now that you’re partnered with me, we aren’t going to let that happen again. I won’t allow myself to be seen as washed up. So we will need to whip you into shape to make sure that you won’t be a disappointment. Is that understood?”

Roark bristled at Pryce’s condescending and borderline insulting tone. The man didn’t even see him as a partner, merely a subordinate that he could command. It was just like dealing with his father again, but without any of the awkward family relation between them. At least he knew his father cared… somewhere in his heart. But Pryce had none of that.

It was strange to admit that he had finally found a man that was more abrasive than his own father.

But despite how much Pryce rubbed him the wrong way, he did his best to resist the urge to snap back at his partner. For better or worse, he was saddled with the ex-Champion of Indigo now. And, for what it’s worth, Pryce was the far more experienced member between them. On paper, listening to him and his advice would probably translate into them being able to go further in the Tournament.

That was, if he had the patience to endure through Pryce’s condescension. And that was far easier said than done.

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(Giovanni POV)

“Juan, it’s a pleasure.” He greeted his partner warmly, making sure that he made a good first impression.

In truth, he had been a little disappointed to be partnered with Juan. Unlike his younger peers, he wasn’t very interested in becoming the final victor of this Tournament. As long as he used this opportunity to prove that his strength had not faltered, he was more interested in spending this time to forge further connections with those from Unova. So it was a little disappointing that he had not been partnered with one.

…Maybe that was being unfair on Juan. By all accounts, Juan was the leading Gym Leader in Hoenn, who had a strong and deep connection with Wallace. Moreover, he had heard a few rumours about Wallace replacing Juan as the Gym Leader of Sootopolis City if he lost his impending battle against Steven.

He didn’t know if there was any truth to that rumour, but he did intend to find out more from Juan. After they had established a better rapport, of course.

“Hoho, likewise, Giovanni.” Juan smiled, unaware of his own thoughts, “I did not expect them to pair a Water and Ground specialist together. Should make things interesting, no?”

“Well we are both the 8th Badge Gym Leader for our respective regions. It only makes sense that they would find some ways to weaken us in order to make it fair for the others.” Giovanni replied, “Nevertheless, we can only work with what we have. Tell me more about your team, and let’s see what we can come up with…”

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(Karen POV)

“Karen!!” Karen had to brace herself as the small missile that was Iris ran up to her and glomped her in a tight hug, “You don’t know how happy I was to get you as my partner!”

She smiled, “Me too, Iris. Out of everyone I could’ve gotten, I wanted to partner up with you the most.”

“Hehehe.” Iris giggled into her shirt, before she pulled away and stared up at her with eyes shining with excitement, “In that case, let’s not waste any more time! I want to win this whole thing!”

“Woah, win the whole thing? Aren’t you ambitious?” She joked.

Iris’ head bobbed up and down, “Of course! Drayden always said that I should aim for the top, so why would this be different? Besides – I have you on my side, right? I know you’re strong enough to overcome any opponent!”

Before she could respond, Iris grabbed her by the hands and began dragging her along, “Come on, this way, this way! We don’t have time to waste! We need to get started right away!”

Karen chuckled to herself as she let herself be dragged along. Yes, this Tournament was definitely going to prove exciting. With someone as enthusiastic as Iris by her side, at least she didn’t have to worry about her partner’s will to win.

And since Iris fully believed that they would be able to win this whole thing together, she couldn’t possibly let her down now.

Sorry John. Looks like that trophy won’t be yours this time around.

A.N. I had a bit more time than usual, so I hope you enjoyed the slightly longer Interlude. Like I promised, here are many different perspectives from several of the Gym Leader pairings. While I couldn’t cover all of the partners – as you can see, some will get along well, some are neutral, while others aren’t going to get along great.