After a morning of training and experimentation within his Sanctum, Jason enjoyed the serenity of Ren's nap time while he and Lillie studied together in their room, the blonde-haired heiress seated atop and reclining against him as they read the same book. Lillie had purchased a bean bag themed after a Poké Ball to facilitate this, and though it had been a little awkward at the start of their cohabitation, Jason had learned to enjoy their almost constant contact, the feeling of her belly beneath his hands, and the faint fragrance of her shampoo as they read.
Interrupting the peaceful and slightly tense moment, Rotom awakened atop its charger and darted over to Jason and Lillie, keeping its voice low as it revealed, "I just received a message from Korrina. She says that she will be returning soon and that she's looking forward to seeing how much you and Ren have grown."
Despite Rotom's whispered words, Ren's left ear twitched, and her eyes opened at the mention of her name. Instead of rousing with a start and immediately shifting into her high-energy mode, however, she performed a shuddering, cat-like stretch where she had been napping atop Jason's and Lillie's frequently shared bunk.
"Then I should allow the two of you to rest or make preparations for Korrina's return," decided Lillie, nodding in approval of her own words before rising to her feet with Jason's help. When he didn't immediately follow suit, she turned curiously and glanced downward, her green eyes narrowing slightly, and a chin-raised smile playing at her lips that caused his face to warm.
Shifting her attention to Ren, Lillie's smile blossomed as she asked, "Ren, sweetie, would you mind heading to the living room and waiting for us like a good girl? Jason and I will be out once we've changed into our outdoor clothing."
"Rena...?"
Tilting her head in confusion, Ren looked between Lillie and Jason, the latter nodding his head and appending, "Korrina will be back soon, and she wants to see how much we've grown. You should go warm yourself up in the living room. We'll be out soon to get started on an early dinner."
Though she could sense that Jason was trying to get rid of her, Ren only hesitated briefly before hopping down from his bunk and skipping over to the room's entrance with her hands out to her sides. She knew there were times when Jason didn't want her around, but it wasn't because he hated her or anything. She had noticed that his Aura would become unstable at random moments throughout the day, particularly in the late evening. And to return it to normal, he appeared to require the help of the other humans that lived with them.
With Rotom habitually trailing after Ren, Jason and Lillie promptly found themselves alone. It was only then that the former stood, spurring Lillie's gaze to lower and the smile on her face to broaden as she playfully asked, "Shall we relocate to the bathroom~?"
"Mmn..." responded Jason, offering a curt nod before allowing himself to be pulled along as Lillie grabbed both of his hands and walked backward while holding his gaze. She had gotten accustomed to taking the initiative, and though it often caused the Great Sage Who Peeks Under Skirts to call him out when his broadcast was live, Jason didn't mind following her lead and going with the flow.
'That reminds me...I need to set up my broadcast in advance if I want to ensure maximum viewership...' noted Jason. For privacy reasons, he had his broadcast turned off unless he was meditating, training, or taking part in a Pokémon battle. Doing so had caused his viewer count to plunge from its initial value of 137 to an average of 19. However, as he wasn't trying to become a Lifestreamer or form a parasocial relationship with a group of god-like beings who presumably thrived off the drama and hardships of those they sponsored, he wasn't particularly concerned with their lack of interest...
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"I have just been informed that Korrina will be arriving soon~!" chimed Rotom, performing a merry spin.
"Right. Thanks for letting us know," responded Jason, offering a curt nod before rising to his feet atop the large red-and-white picnic blanket that he, Lillie, Ellaine, Wicke, and Audino had been seated on while watching Ren and Growlithe play-battling on the nearby forest-themed battlefield. His fingers trembled and his heart raced from growing anxiety, but as it wasn't the first time he and Korrina would be battling, Jason's expression remained a mask of calm.
"Thank you," expressed Lillie, beaming radiantly as Jason helped her to her feet.
"Be sure to give the battle your all. And don't forget that Korrina is a Gym Leader. It's normal for you and Ren to lose against her," reminded Ellaine, remaining seated but presenting a supportive smile. Wicke nodded beside her, snapping off the head of a Tropius-shaped Pokémon cracker with her teeth before offering a curt, "Good luck."
"Auwadinn~!" chimed Audin, waving her hand and beaming as Jason gave them all a nod and turned to depart with Lillie, who had already taken his hand.
Noticing Jason's approach, Ren ceased her and Growlithe's game of tag and ran over to him, offering her usual, "Rena~!" as, instead of leaping at him, she stopped near his feet and grasped his pant leg—her tail wagging excitedly behind her.
"Growf—!" appended the Growlithe, stopping short of Jason and Lillie to take a seat and wag its inordinately fluffy, beige-white, and very spiky tail. Lillie tensed slightly as the two Pokémon ran up to her and Jason, but she didn't retreat. Instead, she smiled nervously at the Growlith and offered a polite, "T-Thank you for keeping Ren company and helping her warm up in preparation for her battle..."
"Growf...!" responded the Growlithe, seemingly content with the praise it had received as it stood up and ran past Jason, Lillie, and Ren to return to Wicke. At nearly that same moment, a spirited voice cried out, "The famed Island Challenger, Korrina the Great, has arrived...!"
Tracking the voice to its source, Jason, Lillie, and Ren watched with wide eyes as Korrina arrived, bursting forth from the tree line in a soaring arc, flipping upside down, and performing a spinning landing reminiscent of a figure skater near the battlefield's center. It was a truly impressive feat of athleticism and acrobatics, prompting Lillie's brows to rise and compelling her to clap her hands as she chimed, "That was incredible, Korrina...!" with star-filled eyes.
"You think so...?" asked Korrina, rubbing her right index finger under her nose with a broad, toothy grin. Then, turning to meet Jason's gaze, she skated over to him, stopping short to bend over with her hands behind her back and her bright blue eyes upturned as she asked, "Did you miss me~?" in a playful tone.
"I did..." confirmed Jason, nodding affirmingly before shifting his gaze to the white and red-trimmed Rotom drone that trailed in Korrina's wake. As he did, the energetic blonde waved her hand in front of her face, stating, "No need to worry. It knows not to record anything that takes place here, and unless I'm taking part in a public event, everything I film is reviewed and cleaned up before broadcasting."
Without waiting for Jason's response, Korrina took care not to clip Ren's feet with her skates as she glided forward and placed her right hand on his chest, appending, "That means we can do things like this as often as we please..." before shifting to the tips of her toes and giving him a peck on the lips.
"Duly noted," responded Jason, unable to keep a smile from his face, even as a text-to-speech message sounded in his ear, stating: [The Great Sage Who Peeks Under Skirts sponsors you 1,300 AP and the message: Flip her skirt.]
Noticing Jason's brows crease slightly, Korrina's smile broadened as she asked, "Let me guess, the Great Sage sent you a message asking you to flip my skirt, right?"
"Some things never change..." sighed Jason, glancing in the direction of his chat so Korrina knew where to face as she gave a peace sign, stuck out her tongue, and chimed, "Thank you for supporting Jason's stream, but I can't allow you to see under my skirt so easily. You're welcome to try and sneak a peek during our battle, though."
[The Great Sage Who Peeks Under Skirts laughs heartily and smacks his knee, contributing 1,000 AP to the Aspirant.]
[The Blue Star That Refutes Its Flatitude nods approvingly and donates 500 AP to the Aspirant and wishes him luck in the coming battle.]
"Thank you both for your continued support," expressed Jason, adopting a practiced smile and inclining his head in the direction of the chat. The Great Sage and Blue Star were his top contributors and the most active members of his chat by a significant margin. There were a few others that appeared regularly during his broadcast, particularly The Wanderer of Myriad Realms, The Rabbit Who Meanders Between Mountains, and The Dragon Who Slumbers Beside a Hearth, but the aforementioned duo were practically lurkers.
"Alright, now that that's taken care of, how about it? Are you ready for our second rematch? I've caught some new Pokémon, but if you want to see them, you and Ren will first have to get past her arch nemesis!" exclaimed Korrina, beaming excitedly as she produced a familiar pink Poké Ball with a heart on the front.
Recognizing the Love Ball, Ren promptly performed a guts pose, her red eyes blazing with force and determination as she responded with a loud, "Rena...!" and produced a faint cerulean haze from her body.
"Though I'm not qualified to do so in an official capacity, I will serve as the battle's judge," stated Lillie, glancing at Jason with her hands folded neatly over her lap.
"Thanks. I appreciate it," responded Jason, offering a nod and presenting a somewhat forced smile. He still wasn't used to battling, but with a Poké Ball in his black and silver hip pouch that belonged to Ren, he didn't have to worry as much about her sustaining fatal injuries. Thus, as Korrina and Lillie headed to their positions, he waited for Ren to climb up his back and onto his shoulders before heading with her to their starting box...
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"Alright, Stufful! Let's show Ren how much you've grown...!" exclaimed Korrina, winding up and flinging the Love Ball in her hands like a Major League Baseball player. Trainers were allowed to release and, in some circumstances, recall their Pokémon as long as they remained on their side of the 50m battlefield. In Korrina's case, this allowed her to release Stufful near the center of the battlefield, denoted by a five-meter-wide white circle resembling a Poké Ball.
"Gowaaaaa—!" cried Stufful, appearing from her Poké Ball with her arms flexed. Her cry wasn't particularly loud, but as the pale, flame-like pink energy that fueled her Pokémon Powers surged outward, it produced a shockwave that pushed the loose dirt on the ground away from her and caused the trees adorning and encircling the battlefield to rustle.
Though she was keen to charge forward, Ren waited in a low, four-legged pouncing posture with her butt raised, for Jason to strike a pointing pose and shout, "Ren! Let's kick things off with a Quick Attack! And don't forget to watch for her Payback!" before accelerating forward with cerulean blue light trailing behind her.
Seeing Ren approach with extreme speed, Stufful's doll-like eyes flashed as Korrina shouted, "Stufful, tank the blow with Endure and counter using Brutal Swing...!"
'Why Brutal Swing...?' Jason wondered, feeling confused as Dark-type moves like Brutal Swing weren't particularly effective against Fighting-types like Ren. This was the main reason Stufful hadn't been able to deal much damage to Ren in the past, as its most powerful attacking move at the time, Payback, was also Dark-type.
As Jason wondered what Korrina had planned, Ren zigzagged to get around to Stufful's exposed flank before landing a heavy Quick Attack that, unsurprisingly, dealt little damage due to the inordinately cuddly-looking Pokémon's Ability, Fluffy. Endure further increased its ability to take a hit, so with its body hardly budging, there was virtually no delay between its counterattack, its arms becoming coated in dark purple haze and appearing to increase in size as it launched a powerful backhand that sent Ren's body flying backward nearly as fast as when she used Quick Attack...
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