Ran recalls Aria as he tries to come to grips with his loss, but he’s not given much time to do so. Because after recalling Lairon, Jasmine presses some kind of button and suddenly, from both the catwalk she’s standing on and the one Ran himself is standing on, a bridge starts to slide out towards the center of the hangar. Jasmine waits until the two ends clang against each other and lock together with an audible locking sound, before she starts to walk towards the center of the bridge now connecting the Gym Leader’s platform to that of the challenger.

  In something of a daze, his steps feeling at once impossibly heavy and oddly out of his control, Ran mirrors her movements, also approaching the halfway point. As he walks, he hears the crowd discussing the match amongst themselves, the distance and the number of talking people making it impossible for him to make out the details of any one conversation. He knows where his friends sit, but he can’t find it in himself to look their way just yet, unwilling to see their reactions to his defeat.

  Instead, Ran simply walks until he’s just a step from the center of the bridge, mirroring Jasmine’s position on her own end of the bridge.

  “Challenger, despite a respectable effort, you have failed to defeat me.” Jasmine announces calmly, “I do not find your performance to be deserving of the Mineral Badge at this time.”

  Her words, spoken in the same neutral, bored tone that’s the only one Ran has ever heard her speak in, land harshly. Yet with her perfectly neutral expression, Jasmine doesn’t appear to be taking any joy out of crushing his spirit. It’s poor comfort, of course, but it’s better than nothing.

  “For a poison-type specialist, your team appeared poorly prepared for a match in which the odds were stacked against you,” Jasmine continues at a constant pace, almost as if reading off of a teleprompter, “Your bond appears to be strong, your pokémon have potential and your battle evaluation appears to be sound. Ask yourself whether you have failed to account for your chosen specialty’s characteristic weaknesses, whether you were underprepared out of laziness, arrogance or some other emotion, whether you simply got unlucky or if perhaps there is some other factor that cost you today. I can pose questions, but the answers are not something I can give you. However, I do urge you to review the footage of this match, so that you may carefully consider your own performance as objectively as you can. Don’t do so today, let this rest and digest for a few days first, then come at it with a fresh perspective.”

  Ran nods in acknowledgement, caught off guard by the mention of there being footage of his match. But as he reflects for a moment he realizes that, yes, from the fifth-badge level on, gym matches are recorded and placed on the pokénet. With Jasmine not actually offering any concrete feedback but instead seemingly advocating self-reflection, he’s got nothing to really respond to, so he simply nods.

  “Thank you, Gym leader.” He acknowledges her words, finally drawing just the slightest of smiles from Jasmine, as her expression at last sharpens just a little.

  “Tell me, Ran,” Jasmine says, her voice now lowered to keep the crowd from listening in and his name pronounced with some hesitance, as if she isn’t entirely sure about its pronunciation, “You are an unsponsored trainer, yes?”

  “I am.” Ran acknowledges, unsure where Olivine’s Gym Leader is going with her line of questioning.

  “Yet that Croagunk of yours is a rare Sinnoh-native pokémon. How did it come to be in your possession?” Jasmine asks, voice still pitched low as she does so.

  “I got it from Chuck,” Ran answers honestly, “I’m helping him with a study and in return Croagunk is mine to keep.”

  “I see,” Jasmine hums, “And you came here directly from Cianwood City?”

  “I did.” Ran confirms.

  “I conclude that you did not come to watch any of my matches, prior to your own challenge.” Jasmine states, a note of disapproval entering her tone.

  Something tells Ran that him confirming as much wouldn’t be appreciated and so he simply remains quiet, as Jasmine continues, “Had you come to scout my Gym properly, you might have opted for a different approach to our battle and, though the outcome would have remained the same, you would at least have made it to my final team member.”

  “I could have, if I hadn’t started with Golbat and if I-” Ran starts to object, only to be coolly cut off by Jasmine.

  “I’m trying to save you the trouble of booking a rematch the moment you leave this arena, only to lose again in two or three weeks,” She states calmly, “I have nothing to gain from lying to you. Your team has potential, but it lacks versatility, experience and power. I don’t know in what fashion you defeated Chuck, but consider that his fighting-types are the single best match-up for your team. The gap between the challenge he presented you at a fourth badge level and what I put in front of you at a fifth badge level is greater than what you have managed to bridge thus far. You are free to try again, if you so wish, but I believe you would be better off with a change of scenery.”

  Jasmine hums thoughtfully for a moment, before offering a single decisive nod, “Yes, that would be for the best. Move on to another Gym. Train your team hard, push them beyond their limits. Study your own shortcomings. Expand your roster. Evolve your Croagunk. Or don’t. After all, I don’t know you, I am basing my feedback and advice on limited information. But I know pokémon well enough to say this one thing with confidence: You are not currently ready to defeat me, even if I were to use the exact same team against you for a rematch.”

  Ran frowns, wanting to argue, but before he can, Jasmine raises her voice, tone once more perfectly neutral as she speaks for the benefit of the crowd once more, “Thank you for your challenge. I believe you have the potential to become a great trainer, if you apply yourself properly. I look forward to facing you again in the future.”

  “Thank you, Gym Leader Jasmine.” Ran mutters begrudgingly, offering a stiff nod, before turning on his heel and striding away.

  As he marches down the catwalk, the metal clanging ominously under his feet, a lot of feeling war for primacy. There’s frustration, disappointment, stubbornness and shame, to name the most base ones, all present to varying degrees and all demanding that he think about what causes them in order to properly digest his feelings. However, rather than do any of that, he stows them all down in favor of marching out of the Gym and beginning to march powerfully towards the pokécenter.

  Upon exiting the Gym, he doesn’t make it more than a handful steps down the road, before he can hear the doors being thrown open behind him. It doesn’t take a genius or a look to figure out what’s happening, as a few pairs of hurried footfalls rush after him.

  Ran doesn’t speak as Josie, Grady and Doro catch up to him properly, falling in next to him as he simply continues to walk towards the pokécenter. Nobody breaks the silence at first, though Ran can feel the way Grady looks expectantly from Josie to Doro and back again, clearly hoping that one of them will address the outcome of his match. When neither does, inevitably, Grady himself cracks.

  “You’ll get her next time! She won’t be able to catch you with that trick with her Magnemite again!” The energetic kid offers encouragingly, his words finally enough to draw Ran’s eyes to him.

  The smile Grady offers him is tremulous, though Ran can’t tell whether it’s because his optimism is feigned, or because Grady is upset about the loss himself. Considering just how much the younger boy tends to idolize him, it’s really a toss-up.

  “Maybe,” Ran states noncommittally, not wanting to make any definitive statements with his thoughts still scattered by the loss and by Jasmine’s painful feedback, “Jasmine said I shouldn’t rematch her as soon as possible, she said I won’t beat her even if I know what team she’s bringing.”

  “What? No way!” Grady calls out in disbelief, drawing a shrug from Ran.

  “That’s what she said. I’ll have to let it all sink in for a bit.” Ran states neutrally, doing his best not to let his inner turmoil show through in his words or tone.

  Josie finally interjects, preventing Grady from continuing to express his disbelief or dismay, “What was up with that start, man? You gave her a freebie, standing around waiting like that!”

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  “I just got unlucky that she trained her Magnemite to start with a Lock-On without prompting,” Ran objects, “I couldn’t go try to poison it and I wasn’t expecting the electric-typing, which threw me off for a moment. I needed a moment to think!”

  “There’s five native steel-types in all of Johto and Kanto combined!” Josie declares angrily, “The Lairon - that’s what it was called, right? - I’d have accepted you being caught out by. But not having a plan for Magnemite of all things? I figured you were keeping your preparation private because you’re a mess, I didn’t think you just flat out weren’t prepared!”

  Ran glares at the blonde, but she doesn’t cower, easily meeting his angry gaze with fire of her own, “I wasn’t unprepared! Caesar and Croagunk have super-effective moves, Golbat has enough tricks up his sleeve to give me flexibility and an opening advantage and Aria or Skorupi could have contributed by using Dig, they just need a good opportunity to pull it off because they haven’t fully mastered it yet!”

  “Oh please, that’s not a plan, that’s not being prepared!” Josie counters vehemently, “You’re normally always angling to poison your opponents. Or paralyze them, or confuse them or whatever. Just having a few measly super-effective moves, none of them used by a pokémon that actually has the appropriate type, in no way compensates for that! What happened, Ran? This doesn’t fit how you prepped for Azalea or Goldenrod at all.”

  “I am also disappointed by your showing,” Doro tacks on, before Ran gets a chance to respond, drawing his ire to her, not that she appears bothered, as she simply continues in her dry tone, “I did not judge your training, because I believed you knew what you were doing, but it is clear to me now that you have been slacking. From the talks we have had, it is clear that, when you put proper effort into something, you make detailed plans, with lots of thought put into them and built-in contingencies. That you did not do so here is troubling.”

  Ran shifts his glare from one girl to the other and back again, an angry snarl finally ripping out of him as he replies to their accusations, “Where were these concerns over the past weeks then, huh? We’ve been spending hours together every single day. You’ve seen my training! But now that I’ve lost, suddenly I’ve been slacking and suddenly I’m a bad trainer?”

  “What the-!? That’s not what we’re-” Josie starts to reply indignantly, only for Doro to cut the blonde off with a raised hand.

  “That is not a fair assessment. However, you just lost a match and you already mentioned wanting time to let it all sink in for a bit. We shall drop the matter here. That does not mean that your words are wise or fair, but it is counter-productive to continue this conversation here and now. I shall give you space. Josie, Grady, do either of you feel like joining me for an early dinner?” The dark skinned fighting-type specialist asks, turning her attention to the other members of their small party.

  Both accept her offer, the three of them peeling away from an angry Ran at the next intersection, as he walks the final minute to the pokécenter in an angry silence.

  Once inside, he hands over his team’s pokéballs, with the exception of Skorupi’s, before briefly leaving to go and buy a few packets of cup noodles. With dinner sorted, he stomps back to his room angrily, before opting to take a hot shower.

  The warm water does wonders for his mood, seeming to drain the tension and the tangle of thoughts and emotions out of him. Afterwards, he ever so briefly heads back to the reception area to retrieve his team, with all of them thankfully having recovered very swiftly. Then he heads to his room, puts the electric kettle on so he’ll have boiling water for his noodles, switches into his bathrobe and finally releases his team into the room around him.

  The team’s usual enthusiasm is nowhere to be found, as they exchange brief looks only to realize that not a single one of them appears happy or proud. Clearly, without even needing to say it, they all realize in short order that the match against Jasmine was lost. Still, just to be sure, Ran clears his throat and speaks up.

  “We lost to Jasmine, four to two. Golbat got taken out by her Magnemite, because it used Lock-On without me noticing, so that was on me. Croagunk knocked out Magnemite, but went down against her Skarmory. Caesar took out the Skarmory before going down against Lairon, which is from either Hoenn or Sinnoh, I’ll have to look that up. Finally, Aria also went down against Jasmine’s Lairon.” Ran summarizes briefly, expression pinched together uncomfortably as listing it out really hammers home just how uncompetitive the match ended up being.

  He glances around at his team, taking stock of their emotions. Skorupi is visibly agitated, but to his credit seems more focused on watching the others’ reactions rather than actually expressing his displeasure. Caesar is disappointed, but he retains a calm dignity as he too examines the rest of the team, which is clearly where the majority of the damage to morale has been done.

  Croagunk, usually upbeat, cheerful and eager to amuse, sits sullenly on his butt, staring unseeingly at his hands as they lie in his lap. Aria has hunched in on herself, avoiding everyone’s eyes and waiting tensely for an opportunity to retreat into the closet so she can nest there. As for Golbat… The usually proud Bat Pokémon keeps his wings wrapped around his body, a brief shifting movement enough to unveil a new Lichtenberg figure layered on top of his already numerous old scars. He doesn’t appear to be in pain at least, but the glassy look in his eye is enough for Ran to conclude that Golbat’s thoughts are elsewhere, clearly still stuck on the way he got taken out by a single attack.

  Ran clears his throat loudly, ignoring the suddenly overbearing guilt he experiences in favor of offering his demotivated team a lifeline to cling to. It’s enough to draw everyone’s attention at least temporarily, something he has to capitalize on, even if he hasn’t actually finished processing how to proceed yet.

  So, he speaks from the gut as he addresses his team, “None of you are to blame for this in any way. I lost us this battle. I didn’t prepare properly and I wasn’t sharp enough once the battle actually started.”

  The words feel right as he forms them, giving voice to the half-formed thoughts helping them to crystallize into proper realizations. The reactions from his team make it clear that they won’t stand for his trainer putting blame on himself, as they all start to express their dismay or disapproval over his words, but Ran cuts them off before they can do more than let out the very beginnings of their hisses, croaks, chitters and screeches.

  “It’s true,” Ran insists, “I didn’t scout Jasmine’s Gym, even though the steel-type is a terrible match-up for us. Just because not scouting worked out against Chuck, thanks to the advantage we had there, as well as training alongside Doro, that shouldn’t have been enough to make me think that we’d be able to handle Jasmine in the same way. Plus, I didn’t go into the battle with a proper plan! I knew relying on poisoning wouldn’t work. So I should’ve come up with multiple alternative, flexible plans. But all I settled on was starting with Golbat because he’s mobile and then trying to figure it out from there. That’s not on any of you, that’s overconfidence and laziness and that’s entirely my fault.”

  Clearly, the team still isn’t happy to hear him reprimand himself, but at least they remain silent now, obediently listening to their trainer, though from the way Caesar’s eyes narrow slightly, Ran can tell that his starter at least realizes that the other shoe is waiting to drop.

  “But it’s not just about my approach to the Gym itself,” Ran declares, as even the brief mention of battling Chuck draws another obvious difference between his approach pre- and post-Storm Badge to mind, “I’ve been slacking on training as well, and letting you guys off too easily along the way.”

  It’s a realization that, in hindsight, is obvious. Between himself, Josie, Doro and Grady, his own training has undeniably been the least demanding for the past few weeks. Asking the others to work together a few days ago was a step in the right direction, but outside of that he’s generally not been pushing his team as hard as he could or should have. Both in training, where training sessions have been too short, too low in intensity and too close together in the day, as well as in battling, with his decision to let the others claim the majority of battles now having proven arrogant and foolish. Fortunately, there’s easy fixes for both of those problems.

  “So, we’ll be going back to a proper early morning training session, have everyone get at the very least one battle in through the course of the day and then, after dinner, we’ll get back to having late evening post-dinner workouts.” Ran announces his solutions, to mixed reactions.

  Caesar, Aria and Golbat, the ones who spent years with daily post-dinner training, take the announcement at face value, the prospect of harder training actually enough to draw both Aria and Golbat out of their funk, as they both perk up slightly. Skorupi and Croagunk however are far less collected about things. Skorupi skitters around excitedly, with the combination of hard training and the promise of being active closer to nighttime combining to leave him bursting with eager energy. Croagunk’s reaction is the opposite, with the easy-going and ever-relaxed Toxic Mouth Pokémon clearly far less enthused about more intense training.

  “You must be the laziest fighting-type in the world.” Ran mutters teasingly to Croagunk, considering that out of his five team members, he’s visibly the least excited.

  Croagunk seems to consider that for a moment, one hand coming up to rest under his chin for a moment, eyes narrowed pensively. After a few moments’ thought, he finally lets out an assenting croak, nodding once for good measure. The proud smile he offers his trainer is clearly meant jokingly, but Ran still feels like it’s important to offer some extra encouragement.

  “You did a great job, Croagunk,” Ran encourages his newest team member, “You’ll definitely be pivotal when we face Jasmine again. But I know you can do a lot better than what you showed today. I know you all can. But we’ve got to put the work in. I forgot that. The only reason we even made it this far, this fast, is because we worked hard to succeed. I got overconfident and we all paid the price for that today. That can’t happen again, I won’t let it. So I’ll be pushing myself and I’ll be pushing you guys just as hard. Do you understand?”

  Ran notices the way Croagunk’s gaze sharpens for a moment, as he examines his trainer properly. After a few seconds, the poison-fighting-type’s expression clears up once more, as he offers a firm, approving croak.

  “Excellent.” Ran accepts happily, “In that case, all of you take a moment to relax whilst I get all of you your dinner. Then, we’ll relax for a bit, whilst I think about some other stuff and then, in an hour, we’re going out for post-dinner training!”