Chapter Text
Claudine awoke, once again in Maya’s house, to Nana’s Aipom batting it’s tail’s singular, mitten-like hand against her forehead. Had she trained the thing to be an alarm clock? If so, then that Aipom was almost better trained than some of Claudine’s own. It kept trying to wake the trainer up though, going as far as to leap up and down on her stomach once it’s tail was tired. So, not that well trained.
“Okay, alright. I’m awake.” Claudine forced herself up and took stock of the room around her, rubbing her eyes as the dewy bleariness faded. It’s job done, Nana’s Aipom took a seat on the bed and waited for a cuddle, which Claudine reluctantly gave them. She was in one of Maya’s spare rooms at some inordinate morning hour - ten-thirty, actually, once she took sight of the red-eyed digital clock in the corner across from her. Mostly bare, she could’ve imagined Maya was going for the ‘minimalist’ aesthetic, but in truth she probably just hadn’t gotten around to decorating. There wasn’t much to comment on, aside from the black cases and battered boxes arranged inoffensively in the corner and the dresser she’d folded her clothes on last night. It chafed at her that Maya had resigned her to what was essentially a storage room.
After remembering that she actually had to wake up, she managed to throw Aipom out of the room and get dressed, catching the spectacular scent of a Daiba Nana breakfast as she cracked the door open. As she threw on her clothes and led herself through her morning routine, she couldn’t take her mind off the elegant bouquet she’d smelled, and found herself rushing. Claudine was sure she’d messed something up, somewhere, but hopefully Maya would forgive her for looking a bit off-colour, this early in the morning.
“Good morning, Claudine.” Enjoying a slice of heavily jammed toast, Maya greeted Claudine with a tip of the head, her hands more than occupied with breakfast. Having spoken without properly looking, once she met her face, Maya chuckled amusedly. “I don’t think you need makeup, however. Pokémon don’t tend to pay attention to these things.” Claudine had worried that the problem was having applied her makeup incorrectly, but apparently she shouldn’t have bothered in the first place. “I appreciate you going out of your way for me, though.”
Seeing Maya smile at her reminded Claudine of the conversation they’d had last night. After their grim back-and-forth about Maya’s dissatisfaction, they’d managed to move onto lighter-hearted topics; the awful, but successful trial the Champion had gone through to try and catch a shiny Vanillish; the evolution of Claudine’s up and coming fanclub; and even joking about Kaoruko’s - still ongoing - chase of Cresselia. It was rare for the two to get along so well, but Maya had kept it pleasant and managed not to antagonise Claudine too much last evening. She’d clearly turned over a new leaf, since then.
“Ugh, I’d sooner try to impress Nana than you.” Claudine sheepishly brushed Maya off as she entered the kitchen, not having expected to receive a compliment for the rush job. Following her nose, she quickly found the dinner table - Nana was churning out breakfasts at a terrifying pace, piling them onto the table with no regard for whoever was going to eat them. Picking a healthy, yet indulgent, selection from the buffet Nana was generating, Claudine took a seat next to Lickilicky, and across from Nana’s Meowstic, which seemed to be glaring at her. She recalled that all Meowstic do that, but it didn’t make it any less unsettling to be stared at by someone with a full mouth. She swallowed her confusion, along with half a sausage. “But yes, good morning to both of you.”
“I like your makeup too, Claudine!” Nana called from her station at the hob. How she was able to make food that both people and Pokémon could eat with such a commonplace cooker was beyond Claudine, but the taste certainly wasn’t abject to her, and Lickilicky was throwing it down their throat like anything else.
“Thank you, Nana.” Claudine threw her hair back as she began her breakfast, not having intended to impress anyone, but appreciating the compliment nonetheless. “So, Maya. Off to Oreburgh?” Recalling where Maya had left her Zweilous - with a ‘friend’, apparently - Claudine looked over her shoulder at the trainer, chomping a croissant as she did.
“As long as you’re ready.” Maya replied, finishing off her morning tea. “We’ve got a busy day ahead of us.” Despite this, she seemed completely at peace. Claudine hoped that meant she had a plan, but it was probably just her usual cockiness showing.
Having left Nana to look after the house - instead of just Aipom, this time - Claudine and Maya departed for Oreburgh. Not far from Canalave, the two rode Maya’s bikes to the earth-bound city, taking a moment to enjoy the cool fresh air of Sinnoh’s routes. It’d been a short while since Claudine had been in Sinnoh, so she took as many chances as she had to enjoy the scenery, as well as the regional Pokémon. Having to hold herself back from catching a Shellos in the marshes of Route 218, or stopping to watch a flock of Starly fly above her in 203. Jubilife City, the bustling telecommunications city connecting the two routes, was just as Claudine remembered it, too; she wasn’t a stranger to the town’s TV-stations and radio shows, having appeared on a few herself.
Maya allowed her these indulgences, stopping alongside her and encouraging her to take a picture or say hello to an old acquaintance. Claudine was almost able to forget about the daunting task ahead of her. That was, until they arrived at Oreburgh itself, at least.
“They’re in a small plot of land a few minutes into the city.” After their super repels had worn off - not wanting to have to deal with any cumbersome Zubat in the cave that lead to Oreburgh - Maya stopped to point her around the city. “Not too far from the Pokémon center, either.”
“I’ll hardly need to use that,” Claudine smirked as she took a breather. It hadn’t been pleasant riding a bike through the half-light of a cave, but she wasn’t about to let it show. “We’ll get through this without a scratch.” Trusting in the wits of her Espeon, and the strength of her Tyrantrum, Claudine was more than ready to show off.
“As confident as ever, Claudine.” Maya laughed, slightly worriedly. A nervous habit of most trainers, she fingered the two Pokéballs she had at her waist. She’d brought her Lickilicky and her new Vanillish, despite Claudine insisting she just wanted an excuse to play with her new Pokémon. Maya didn’t intend to use the latter, considering it could knock Zweilous out in a single hit, but after the trouble the dragon had caused her, she didn’t mind having some insurance. “Let’s hurry on, then.”
The plot of land Maya had mentioned was exactly that - a blank slate of dirt a kilometre or-so wide, with a hole reaching into the side of the cliff. Just outside the entrance were the kind of fittings one would find at a building site that would never go anywhere; a pile of bricks and tools, laying forlorn next to a white canvas tent. Maya rode up to the tent and laid her bicycle besides one of the metal lean-tos. “Isurugi!” She called, spurring some brief movement from inside.
Isurugi Futaba joined the two in the clearing, stretching and yawning as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “Wondered when you’d be showing up. She gave me a hell of a time yesterday. You’ve certainly got a good eye for strong Pokémon...” Futaba briefly met Claudine’s eyes, and nodded her a hello. “Ah, so Kuroko was the trainer you were talking about, huh?”
Maya was about to continue with the pleasantries, but Claudine interrupted instead, unable to hold her tongue. “Futaba?” She hadn’t expected to see the girl here, but there was a more important question on her mind. “What’re you doing here? Don’t you and Kaoruko live in Unova?” She’d heard plenty of the two’s exploits in the busy cities of Unova; Kaoruko always showing off, and Futaba always picking up the slack. Despite the obvious imbalance in their relationship, they managed to make it work as dual-battlers, competition entrants, and rare Pokémon collectors. It seemed they did something new every week; had they tried their hand at real estate, this time? “What is this place?”
“Kaoruko wanted a source of raw materials for ‘world domination’, and this was the cheapest spot on offer.” Futaba groaned, recalling Kaoruko’s continued insistence of her petty little quest for world subjugation. “But, well, I imagine you can guess how quickly swept the place under the rug after she found out it wouldn’t just mine itself.” Claudine could picture every second of the story. “At least we’ve got something to do with it, now. Maya asked if we had anywhere to put a Pokémon in time-out.”
“Speaking of that,” Maya took a concerned look at the entrance to the caves - she hoped it’s rugged, ruined edges were the result of shoddy workmanship, and not a rampaging dragon. “How did you two get on? Or perhaps, you three?” As she spoke, Futaba lead them into the threshold, tossing out her Jolteon and commanding it to light the place up with Spark. Just as they’d imagined, the walls were covered in scratch-marks.
“Well, I’m still alive, so that’s one thing.” Futaba chuckled grimly as she lead the two down the passageways, passing a few downed Zubats on the way. “It got a bit too much eventually and I had Mightyena use Yawn and put it to sleep before it destroyed the place.” The air became slightly tense as Maya stopped to question if Futaba had really just put it to sleep instead of leaving it alone like she’d asked. Futaba stopped as well, laughing dryly. That wasn’t the worst of the news. “And, well, while it was asleep, I had an idea.” The sudden turn of Maya’s head told Futaba she probably shouldn’t have bothered mentioning it. “I put a leash on it to stop the two heads fighting.” She blabbed out, bracing for some kind of repercussions.
“A leash?!” Maya gawked, and Claudine was tempted to join her. Rarely did trainers use such base tactics, even with problem cases such as Zweilous. Futaba only responded with a bashful sigh. “You’re aware we’re trying to tame it, not antagonise it?” She grilled the girl, her pace speeding up as she rushed in to rescue her Zweilous - how she might do that without losing a hand, however, she didn’t know.
“Well, it worked…” Futaba mumbled to herself as she followed after Maya, aware she wouldn’t be able to change her mind. It was true, though; once the dual-headed dragon had adjusted to the fact that they couldn’t bite each other, they’d seemed to calm down, surrendering to their inability to bicker and fight.
Exactly as Futaba had said, they found Zweilous at the end of the tunnel, after almost ten minutes of walking through the dank passages. With a brace around each neck, their heads were seperated a ‘safe’ distance by a metal beam connecting the two. Despite looking somewhat barbaric, it certainly wasn’t a painful contraption - in fact, it was probably saving the thing some pain. Maya paused when she saw it, forcing herself to admit the reality that Futaba’s plan might have actually been a good one. The dragon was, however, chasing itself in circles, snapping at each other occasionally in an attempt to drown out their aggression. Maya looked on, concerned, as Futaba and Claudine caught up.
“Never said it was a perfect solution, though.” When Futaba had last checked, Zweilous had been sitting still, and almost looking comfortable. She didn’t know if it was possible, but perhaps one of them had insulted the other since then.
“Better than any idea Maya’s had!” Claudine cackled with laughter - usually, she wouldn’t enjoy watching a Pokémon being treated this way, but there was something comical about the expression on Tendou Maya’s face. “Speaking of that, what is your plan, Maya?” She turned to the trainer, waiting impatiently for an answer as Maya tried to get close enough to remove the brace on Zweilous’ neck.
Maya finally gave up on trying to approach her own Pokémon, the dual heads snapping at her hands whenever she tried to get close. She gave Claudine a confused look, and they both immediately knew what that meant. “ My plan ?” She crossed her arms defensively, not able to see Claudine’s expression spoil through the dark of the cave. “My plan was to getyou. You’re the one who needs a plan, now.”
Claudine let the words sink in for a moment. True, she was considered a ‘professional’, but the same word could be applied to Maya, as well. “You seriously just expect me to waltz in and fix all your problems?” Claudine growled, even more bitter than usual. “What happened to challenging yourself?” Recalling their conversation from last night, she had a hard time admitting Maya had given up - or that she even considered this a part of the challenge.
“Well, I tried that.” Maya replied bluntly.
“You’re as dim-witted as ever.” Despite Maya’s genius, she was ever-so prone to moments of bullish stupidity. Dense, perhaps, was the right word.
“Excuse me for thinking you could handle this, Claudine.” Maya baited her with yet more devious words, aware she was in the wrong but not about to admit it. “Clearly you aren’t as capable as I first thought.”
“If you’re going to treat me like that, you might as well pay me.” Claudine choked back a more biting retort, not wanting to walk into any more insults. “But… Ugh. Of course I can handle this,” She took a look at Zweilous and considered taking back that she’d just said. “I just didn’t expect the situation to be this bad.” Taking stock of the picture in front of her, Claudine thought for a moment, trying not to let Tendou Maya interrupt her. “Hmph. Make yourself useful and get out Lickilicky. Futaba gave me an idea.”
Her sour mood fading, Maya did as she was told and tossed out the Ultra ball at her hip, watching as the seal burst and her loyal Lickilicky emerged. “An idea? I knew I could trust you.” The venom she’d spared earlier was all but gone, and Tendou Maya was watching Claudine, awaiting further instructions.
“Don’t get your hopes up yet, Maya. I’m sure you’ll find a way to mess it up.” It was a hurried plan Claudine had rushed together to avoid arguing with Maya anymore, but she had at least some faith it would help the situation. From her Premier Ball came Espeon, as eager for orders as the other Pokémon in the cave. Futaba’s jolteon jumped when they saw them, recognising the friend instantly, but staying back for their own safety. “Make Lickilicky distract Zweilous, I’m going to have Espeon cast Hypnosis on it. I assume he does know Follow Me, right?”
“But of course.” Maya mulled over Claudine’s plan for a second. “I don’t see how having it sleep will help, though.” Assuming her stance and pointing Lickilicky ahead, Maya commanded her Pokémon toward the Zweilous. Although hesitant, Lickilicky wasn’t afraid of Zweilous - it had more than enough meat to take a few good hits.
“Wait and see, Tendou Maya.” Claudine chided, her eyes narrowing as she watched for Lickilicky to make an opening in Zweilous’ guard. “I’m sure my genius will leave you stunned.” The dragon’s jewelled eyes caught the pink teddy in a second, and it leapt forwards with intent to strike. “Now, Espeon; Hypnosis!”
It didn’t take long for Zweilous to clock out - probably tired from all the in-fighting, it fell asleep before it could even sink a tooth into Lickilicky’s belly, much to Maya’s thanks. She took a breath and stepped back, calling the puffball to her side to give her a checkover. “A bit late, Claudine. But well done.”
“Late?!” Claudine coughed, unable to believe Maya had the gall to insult her timing after that. “You’re insufferable.” She eased on the gas, aware Maya was teasing her. “Either way, it’s asleep now.” Approaching the downed Zweilous to ease the brace off it’s leathery neck, Claudine was shocked by the red marks it’d left. Futaba couldn’t be blamed, but it made her heart ache to see that Zweilous would go so far out of the way to attack each other.
“Now, Espeon, use Dream Eater.” Pointing at the downed Pokémon, Claudine’s Espeon padded up to it and closed its eyes. As they worked, Claudine turned back to Maya. “Usually, I’d just give them a poffin if they did what I wanted, but I don’t think that’s going to work here.” She took an unsure look at Zweilous, sure it would bite her whole arm off if she tried to give it a treat. “We need to figure out what Zweilous really wants. And by inspecting it’s dreams, we might be able to figure that out.” Claudine felt like a teacher having to explain this to Maya - especially considering she was more focused on rubbing a spot of dirt off Lickilicky’s tummy.
Maya responded with an impressed smile, once she was done. Claudine’s prediction had been on point - she was, if only a bit, stunned. “Impressive. I never thought you could use Dream Eater like that, but it makes sense.” Maya looked down to Espeon, her brow furrowing for a second. “But, how will Espeon be able to tell you what Zweilous wants? I know you two have a deep connection, but at the end of the day, they can’t speak human.”
Claudine bristled, not having thought that far ahead. “Well-- We’ll figure something out.” She crouched down next to Espeon, rubbing it’s fur as it concentrated. “Espeon and I will do our best, like always. It’s not like the butterball has a better plan.”
Maya looked offended in Lickilicky’s stead.
It was a few minutes before Espeon’s eyes opened again; long enough for Maya to bring out Vanillish and show of the tasteful purple of it’s unique coloring. Futaba was impressed - she and Kaoruko had only managed to scrape together a tiny pile of ‘shinies’ - but Claudine wasn’t having any of Maya’s showboating. As Maya and Futaba jokingly discussed how the shiny coloring might’ve changed Vanillish’s flavour, she gritted her teeth and covered Espeon’s ears, afraid the noise of Maya’s voice would ruin their concentration - it certainly had that effect of her, after all.
As soon as they were done, Claudine pulled her Pokémon away from the sleeping beast, keeping her eyes on it whilst Espeon considered what it’d just seen. The glow of the jewel on it’s head faded, and Espeon hopped out of Claudine’s arms.
“So,” Maya pulled Vanillish back into their Pokéball and turned her attention to Espeon, walking up to them and letting them rub their head into her hand. “Did she figure anything out?” Maya’s tone became distinctly sing-song, almost whispering ‘ aren’t you so smart! ’.
“Step back and she’ll show us.” Once Maya had stepped away, Claudine clicked her fingers, Espeon responding instantly and snapping to attention. Seeing their training had paid off, she couldn’t help but smirk as Espeon slowly, knowingly walked over to Claudine.
That smile faded, however, once Espeon began hissing and clawing in Maya’s direction, much to the trainer’s dismay - even if it was for charades, seeing the adorable feline angry at her broke Maya’s heart. “Hmm,” Claudine crouched down, trying to catch what Espeon was trying to get at. Her eyes darted between them and Maya. “Maya, did you do anything to Zweilous?”
Maya was, frankly, shocked. “Why would I--?” Unable to find the words, she chose instead to huff and cross her arms, becoming irritable as the frustrations of the past few weeks caught up. “I took her straight to the Pokémon center after I caught her. I’ve been nothing but kind to her.” Her gaze flittered over to Zweilous, still rather asleep on the floor of the cave, feeling a pang of confused compassion for it.
“Well you’ve done something to make it mad, of course.” Claudine stood, ready to confront Maya for the second time today. “Maybe you fed it something it didn’t like?”
“I don’t think I’ve been able to feed it anything.” Maya tried to recall a time Zweilous had eaten something with her in the room, coming up with nothing. Espeon had stopped hissing, but every time one of them caught it’s eye, they lunged a paw at Maya to reiterate it’s point; Zweilous was not one of her fans.
“You’ve really been at a loss without me, haven’t you?” Claudine would’ve been amused by Maya’s awful circumstances if she wasn’t currently a part of it.
“You haven’t made much progress, either.” Maya bit back, getting caught up in Claudine’s acid. “You’ve trained your Espeon so well, you’d think you’d be able to keep up with them.” Unable to see fault in Espeon’s performance, she placed the blame entirely on Claudine.
As the two bickered, Futaba looked down at Espeon, who had began to swipe at Maya with yet more fervor, almost in time with Claudine’s snapping. “Oh,” she laughed. “I think I get it.” Satisfied she’d won their little game of charades, Futaba leant back, watching the two and making a bet on how long it’d take for them to figure it out.