“Wow!
It really is so beautiful!
Hehe!
I’m definitely going to enter Pokémon Contests too!” (＾▽＾)
May happily held Ash’s Ribbon.
“Sis, how many times have you said that already?!” Max covered his ears.
“Hmph!
Mind your own business!”
Then suddenly—
Ε=ε=ε=(ﾟ◇ﾟ)ﾉ
“Aah!”
“What happened, May?” everyone asked.
“Something… something suddenly appeared right in front of me!
L-look, over there!”
May pointed toward a bush.
Everyone looked over and saw a red, worm-like Pokémon crawling into the undergrowth.
“That’s a Wurmple.
May, don’t you like Beautifly?
One of Wurmple’s evolutionary lines can evolve into Beautifly,” Ash explained.
“Huh?
It can evolve into Beautifly?
Looking at it closely, it’s pretty cute too!
Great!
I’m going to catch it!” (✧▽✧)
The moment May heard the words “Beautifly,” she rushed after it.
“Hey, wait, May!
I’m not finished!
Wurmple doesn’t always evolve into Beautifly!”
Ash shouted after her, but May had already disappeared.
“It’s still too early for lunch.
How about we rest here for a while?” Brock suggested.
“Agreed!”
Ash spread his Aura and sensed a special Aura signature.
“You guys rest here.
I’m going to check something out.”
With Pikachu, he ran in the opposite direction from May.
“Ash!
Honestly!”
Following the Aura, Ash reached another part of the forest.
“Pika~”
Pikachu pointed toward a Pokémon resting beneath a tree.
It was a golden Silcoon.
The moment it saw Ash, it became wary.
“Gasp!
A golden legend!
And since it’s a Silcoon, it’ll definitely evolve into Beautifly!”
[Silcoon (Shiny)]
[Gender: Female]
[Type: Bug]
[Ability: Shed Skin]
[Strength: Late Normal Tier]
[Moves: Harden, String Shot, Bug Bite, Poison Sting, Tackle]
[Tera Type: Bug]
“All right!
I’m catching you!
Pikachu, take it down with Quick Attack!”
“Pika!”
Silcoon immediately lost the ability to battle.
Ash threw a Poké Ball and successfully caught it, then sent it to Professor Oak’s Laboratory.
Meanwhile, while Ash’s capture had gone smoothly, May was engaged in a battle of wits and courage with Team Rocket.
———————— Professor Oak’s Laboratory ————————
“Oh?
Ash sent over another Pokémon.
It seems his journey is going very well!
Let’s see what Pokémon it is.”
After releasing it, Professor Oak took one look.
“Oh!
A golden Silcoon.
I should prepare some material for my introductory class… Wait.
A golden Silcoon?!” Σ(⊙ω⊙)
“Hehe!
Research into the evolution of Shiny Pokémon begins now!
Don’t move!”
Silcoon: Who is this strange old man?!
Help!
When Ash returned to the camp, he found a guest waiting for him—Forrester Franklin.
“Ash, you’re back.
Where did you go?” Brock asked.
“I caught a special Pokémon!”
“Huh?
A special Pokémon?
Let me see!
What is it?” Max asked excitedly.
“Hehe, it’s a secret!
I already sent it back to Professor Oak’s Laboratory!”
“Aww, tell me!”
Max ran over and began acting spoiled.
“Get lost.
If you were a girl, maybe.”
Ash pushed him away in disgust.
Ash then got acquainted with Forrester and had a battle with him.
Phanpy and Taillow faced Ariados and Yanma.
Both of Forrester’s Pokémon were at the Early Elite Tier.
However, even at the same level, Ash completely overwhelmed him.
Brock invited Forrester to join them for lunch.
“Everyone, I’m back!
I caught a Wurmple!”
May happily returned.
“Well done, May!” everyone congratulated her.
Then they noticed someone behind her who looked exactly like Forrester.
“Huh?
They look identical!” May exclaimed.
“Brother!
I didn’t expect you to be back!”
It turned out that they were twin brothers—Forrest and Forrester Franklin.
One had traveled through the region while the other had remained behind to watch over the forest, and they had now decided to exchange roles.
“Great!
Now that everyone is here, it’s about time to eat,” Brock said.
“Agreed!” ×5
“Come on out, Torchic and Wurmple!
Time to eat!”
[Wurmple]
[Gender: Female]
[Type: Bug]
[Ability: Shield Dust — Prevents additional effects from moves.]
[Strength: Mid-Normal Tier]
[Moves: Tackle, String Shot]
[Tera Type: Flying]
Before long, everyone witnessed something shocking.
Wurmple could eat.
A lot.
And after eating, it immediately fell asleep.
“This Wurmple has amazing compatibility with my sister,” Max commented.
“Oh, really?
Though I think so too!”
Everyone: (・_・;)
After saying goodbye to the Franklin brothers, the group continued their journey.
Meanwhile, after losing her competition with May, Jessie and Team Rocket ended up in a tree growing out from a cliff, where Jessie successfully caught her own Wurmple.
Along the way, Ash explained Wurmple’s evolution to May.
“Huh?!
It’s not certain?
Aren’t evolutions always fixed?” Σ(ΩДΩ)
“Of course not.
Most are, but some Pokémon have branching evolutions.
Eevee has eight different evolutions, and there are also Pokémon with regional evolutions.
Wurmple is one such Pokémon.”
Ash used his Pokédex to show May a picture of Dustox.
“Ah?!
Dustox and Beautifly are complete opposites!”
“Sis, you should have caught a Silcoon or Beautifly directly!” Max said helplessly.
“May, if Wurmple evolves into Cascoon, will you abandon it?” Ash asked.
May took a deep breath.
“No.
No matter what it evolves into, it’s still my Pokémon!”
Ash and Brock smiled at each other.
Ash knew May’s Wurmple would most likely evolve into Beautifly, but who could truly predict the future?
“Don’t worry, May.
Your Wurmple eats so much that it has a good chance of evolving into Silcoon,” Brock comforted her.
That made May feel somewhat better, though she probably would not truly relax until she saw Wurmple evolve.
At last, the group reached Rustboro City.
Their first stop was Rustboro’s sightseeing tower.
From the observation deck at the top, they looked down over the entire city.
“Wow!
This is amazing!
It’s so beautiful!” May exclaimed.
After they had enjoyed the scenery, Brock spoke.
“Rustboro Gym should be nearby!”
“Really?
Great!
I’m definitely getting the Rustboro Badge!
Let’s go!” Ash shouted.
The group left the tower.
Suddenly, Max noticed a Poliwag beneath a bench, looking around as though it were lost.
“If you’re having trouble, I can help.”
Max crouched down with a gentle smile and opened his arms.
Poliwag looked at him.
After a while, it slowly crawled out from beneath the bench, and Max picked it up.
“Nice job, Max!” everyone praised.
“It was nothing.”
Max first acted modestly, then spoke to Poliwag.
“I’m guessing you’re lost.”
Then he noticed something tied to Poliwag’s tail.
“Huh?
What’s this?”
At that moment, a blue-clad girl with two braids hurried over.
“Poliwag!
Thank goodness!
We’ve been looking everywhere for you!”
To be continued…
….