In Lava [Pokémon Watty Awards, 2016 2nd Place Romance]

Chapter Thirty

"Combusken, Fire From Above!" May called out as her battle with Wattson drew to its climax.

Combusken sprang into the air, utilizing a Bounce for some added lift. At the apex of his jump, he loosed a Fire Spin and then spun his body like a corkscrew, down towards Magneton. The floating magnetic collage was driven into the arena floor. Combusken spun out of the attack with a flourish.

"Magneton is unable to battle! Combusken wins, meaning the victory goes to May Maple!" The judge declared.

"WAHAHAHA! That was a shocking performance! Get it? Because you're a performer, and this is an electric gym!?" Wattson laughed heartily.

May dawned a deadpan expression at the joke. Puns were not her thing and neither were corny jokes. But she did like the fact that Wattson had a sense of humor. Although, it was rather hard to take him seriously with all the jokes he made during the battle.

May gratefully received her badge and placed it in the badge case. She exited the gym with Brendan following her out.
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Courtney sat down inside her office. The battles that Brendan had participated in were playing on the screen. She took notes and kept them for reference purposes later on. She had already worked her way into Brendan's circle of trust. For the most part anyway. Now there was the issue of getting him to side with Team Magma.

There were a few obstacles however. One of them was the end goal that Team Magma possessed. She had no qualms with it and was devoted to the cause. She even had a Magma emblem tattooed on her back. She wore it with pride too. Nothing mattered more to her than Team Magma's goal.

Brendan, was a key factor in achieving it as far as she was concerned. She had been analyzing him from every angle. His actions, his speech. He was fairly intelligent and a great strategist. She saw him as a means to an end and nothing more. Yet, when she was near him or even thought of him, she felt a strange tug on her heart.

Her desire to be closed off from others was being tampered with when she spoke with him. At first he was but a small interest. Someone to keep tabs on for amusement purposes. But then, she found herself thinking and even daydreaming, of all things.

She shook her head of the thoughts that crept into her mind. She needed to stay focused. A convoluted mind was one thing she couldn't afford to have. Just the same, an unattended desire couldn't go unchecked either.
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"That was such a long battle!" May droned as she sat back on the sofa inside the Pokémon Center lounge.

Trainers were all gathered around, most discussed battle strategy while others were talking about contests. Brendan looked down at the incubater with the egg in it and sighed. He wasn't certain what it was just yet. There were several hundred different types of eggs out there. He had studied them with his father. Then it hit him. His dad would know.

"Yoohooo! You in there Brendan?" May said, waving her hand in his face.

Snapping out of his thought process, Brendan laughed. "Sorry, I was just thinking about this egg. The host said it is a week old and is due to hatch any day now."

May nodded in understanding. "Well, maybe there is a way to find out?"

"Well yeah," Brendan replied. "My dad knows all about this stuff. But I think if I want a faster answer, I should just visit the daycare. My dad is usually fairly busy at this hour."

"I know the feeling. My dad has had quite a few trainers come to the gym as of late."

"Sounds about right," Brendan replied casually.