That Ninetales was very wise. It likely judged that Lucas could take good care of Vulpix, which is why it entrusted its child to him.
Lucas had considered taking Ninetales too, capturing mother and daughter both. But he knew that Ninetales was probably a Pokémon belonging to someone at Blueberry Academy.
It understood humans very well. Before leaving, Ninetales even signaled with its eyes that Lucas could capture Vulpix in a Poké Ball.
Cradling Vulpix, Lucas watched Ninetales and its kin vanish into the storm. Only then did he lower his head to look at the dazed Vulpix.
He wanted to say your mother left you to me, but that felt off. After a moment's thought, he softened his voice. "When we get the chance, I'll bring you back to visit her."
Vulpix looked up at Lucas with dewy eyes, let out a soft, sticky call, then burrowed into his chest. Its body trembled, as if crying, yet there was no sound, and Lucas didn't feel any dampness on his clothes.
After Vulpix calmed down, Lucas placed a Poké Ball in front of it. Vulpix knew it would be eating well with Lucas from now on. Without hesitation, it tapped the button with its paw.
When Lucas rode Dragonite down to the entrance of the ecological Terarium, he found Lacey Yam still there, as if she had never left.
At that moment, Lacey was brushing the hair of a Pokémon with beautiful sea-azure tresses by the entrance. She held a cute little bear-shaped brush and stroked gently and deftly—clearly skilled.
Lucas raised a brow. He had heard there were Popplio from Alola in the Terarium, and that the polar mountains even had Chimchar and Torchic. But seeing a Unova trainer with a Primarina still surprised him a little.
After all, some people cling to stereotypes, thinking trainers should only catch local Pokémon.
Before Lucas even landed, Lacey noticed him. She put down the brush, glanced over Dragonite in surprise—she'd grown up with a Gym Leader father and could tell this Dragonite was extraordinary.
Looks like the muddle-headed Director wasn't lying this time.
Then Lacey's gaze fell on the Vulpix in Lucas's arms. The instant she saw it, her eyes flashed brilliantly. She covered her mouth in excitement. "Vul… Vulpix!?"
So cute so cute so cute!
Lacey loved all kinds of cute Pokémon from the bottom of her heart, naturally turning her into a Fairy-type specialist. Though her ace was her father's signature Pokémon, Excadrill, it didn't dampen her pursuit of cuteness.
And Alolan Vulpix was Lacey's unattainable white moonlight. She'd tried more than once to find Vulpix and Ninetales in the polar region—never once encountering them.
"Teacher Lucas!" Lacey suddenly raised her voice. "Did you catch this child?"
"Ah, yes. Not just it—I also caught two Alolan Sandslash. That should be okay, right?"
Thinking Lacey was checking whether he caught them inside the Terarium, Lucas nodded.
Vulpix seemed to sense Lacey meant no harm. Instead of ostriching, it tilted its head and stared blankly at her.
"That's great. The entire Terarium only has that one Ninetales clan. The lead Ninetales seems to have belonged to a now-deceased teacher from the Academy." Lacey clasped her hands and pleaded, "The Director said you're allowed to catch, so it's fine. But… can I pet Vulpix? Just once!"
Seeing that Vulpix wasn't resistant, Lucas agreed. As the girl interacted with Vulpix, he turned his gaze to the Primarina beside her, who wore a helpless look, and spaced out a little.
He wondered if Lacey's Primarina was male or female. That line's male population ratio was notoriously high—if he remembered right, female:male was about 1:7. Hence the nickname "trap sea lion."
Wild.
After Lacey finished playing with Vulpix, she was visibly happy—her speech even picked up a singsong lilt, and she grew much friendlier with Lucas.
Because Lucas returned quite early—only half a day after departure—Nemona and the others were nowhere in sight. In good spirits, Lacey led Lucas to register the three Pokémon he'd captured, saying it would help the Academy manage and balance the Terarium.
On the way, Lacey shared plenty of tidbits and even revealed that there would be doubles battles tomorrow, with important guests from Unova visiting and a crowd of media coming along.
Lucas asked why she was telling him this. Lacey just smiled, saying it was her thanks for him fulfilling her wish.
While waiting for Nemona's group to return, Lacey occasionally talked about life at Blueberry Academy.
Whenever she mentioned Director Cyrano often dumping things on her without discussion, she would fold her arms, pout, and say things like, "I don't think that's good!" and "Teacher Lucas, you mustn't become an adult like the Director."
It wasn't until evening—after Lucas had fished who knows how much intel out of Lacey—that Nemona's group of four finally ambled back.
Each had different gains.
Penny didn't capture a Pokémon, but one of her Eevee touched a Water Stone by accident and evolved into Vaporeon.
Eri caught a Torchic. She said she met it when returning from training in the canyon area and swinging by the polar region.
Arven wandered the grassland for half a day and didn't capture any out-of-region Pokémon—he caught a native Scovillain instead, which baffled Lucas.
Nemona surprised Lucas the most—she caught an Alolan Rowlet.
All four students were very interested in the adorable Vulpix in Lucas's arms. They played till late into the evening, and only then, at Lucas's urging, did they return to their dorms to sleep.
According to Lacey's intel, tomorrow was the main event. Rest early and be in top condition.
Before sleeping, Lucas lay on the soft bed and mulled over Lacey's info.
The Unova big shot coming tomorrow was likely a Gym Leader, maybe even an Elite Four or the Champion.
Unova's current Champion… he remembered it should be Alder. Ash was still in Kanto, and future Unova Champion Iris should be studying at Opelucid's academy.
Besides that, the most useful tidbit was that Lacey and her clubmates would also appear in the battles.
Blueberry Academy's League Club modeled their "Blueberry League" after the Pokémon League. Though it was "playing house" among students, judging by Lacey's Primarina alone, their strength might be unexpectedly solid.
Blueberry's Champion is the Dragon-type specialist Drayton, and the Elite Four are Lacey, Crispin, and Amarys—Fairy, Steel, and Fire specialists. The ones appearing tomorrow should be those four.
It might be a tough fight, but Lucas believed that with both sides still growing, Nemona's team would be stronger!
…
June 3. Clear skies—perfect for winning battles.
Blueberry Academy was jam-packed. Major Unovan media, plus a few from Paldea, had set up their long lenses, all trained on the Academy's largest arena, faces flushed with excitement.
The scandal-ridden Naranja Academy was having an exchange match with Blueberry. From any angle, it was a news bonanza. Good thing they'd been chosen to enter the Academy.
Thinking of their colleagues stuck outside, eyeing them with envy, the reporters felt a secret thrill.
Unlike Naranja's emphasis on diversified education, Blueberry was dedicated to battle education.
Simply put: a culture of universal martial fervor.
Even with varied interests, nearly all students were trainers. Blueberry was essentially a talent incubator for Unova's trainer pipeline.
Nearly the entire student body had taken their seats. The League Club members—one of the day's stars—had the best view to watch their "Blueberry League" Champion and Elite Four perform.
The League Club was the Academy's largest, with many members. In the crowd, a tall girl glanced helplessly at the timid boy huddling behind her and whispered, "Kieran, this just makes you more conspicuous."
The timid boy called Kieran flinched but refused to let go of his sister Carmine's hem. With Carmine's helpless expression, Kieran kept his head down in silence.
Carmine sighed in exasperation and looked away to the arena. She had to cheer for her friend Lacey.
Moments later, a poised woman with seaweed-styled hair strode onstage with a mic, signaling the event's start.
She introduced herself as Briar—a Blueberry Academy teacher and the host of the exchange.
Most students knew Briar; she was clearly introducing herself for the Paldean visitors and the media.
She then stated there would be three rounds of battles today: two doubles matches by pairs of students, and a showcase match between the Naranja Academy chaperone teacher and the guest.
"Now, please welcome today's guest and Director Cyrano to the stage. He is—Unova's proud League Champion, a man devoted to the next generation of trainers—Mr. Alder!"
There was a moment of silence—then an eruption of enthusiasm. Students and stunned reporters realized they'd hit the jackpot. Applause and cheers swelled like they would blow the roof off.
Any trainer raised in Unova would idolize Alder. As the dapper Director Cyrano and Alder walked out together, the students practically went wild, chanting Alder's name.
Within the League Club, Kieran peeked out from behind Carmine to look at Alder, his eyes, hidden behind long bangs, full of yearning.
His pale cheeks flushed with excitement as he "cheered" Alder's name in a voice as faint as a mosquito's.
Alder, a dark-skinned, boisterous man with a shock of fiery red hair and bold brows, responded to the students' cheers with a steady, hearty smile, even shaking hands with a few in the front rows.
It was clear he was a very approachable Champion.
Even the League Club's self-styled Champion and Elite Four—Drayton, Lacey, Crispin, and Amarys—were visibly nervous facing him.
It was Alder's first visit to Blueberry. He looked over Drayton and the others and smiled. "Blueberry League's Elite Four and Champion—nice. You've got ambition. I look forward to you becoming Unova's pillars in the future."
Everyone knew this was student role-play. But Alder still validated them, making the students idolize him even more.
Offstage, Lucas and his four students peeked at Alder. Arven sighed, "Champion Alder is really popular."
Nemona clenched her fists. "In Paldea, Chairwoman Geeta's popularity is no worse. And today Teacher Lucas is here too—he'll be battling Champion Alder!"
"A battle between a League Champion and a Champion-tier trainer—I'm fired up just imagining it!"
"But in the end, Teacher Lucas will surely win—so we four must go all out too!"
Eri nodded. Penny, the calmest, glanced sidelong at Nemona. After so long together, she had a read on Nemona's personality.
Besides being a battle maniac, Nemona was the world's No.1 Teacher Lucas fan.
As the daughter of a League Champion, Penny knew the difference between a Champion and a champion-tier trainer. But last night, with free time, she had hacked into Unova's League system.
There she discovered that after some apparent incident, Alder didn't seem to be at his peak. In that case… maybe Teacher Lucas really could beat him?
Before Lucas could dwell on Alder any longer, stage crew came to cue them on.
"Faculty and students of Naranja Academy, please get ready to go on stage!"
"Got it."
Lucas reflexively answered, then, as they walked up, realized something was off.
He had thought he would face a Blueberry teacher in doubles. After Lacey's intel, he'd assumed a Unovan Gym Leader guest.
Either was fine. Even an Elite Four should be manageable.
But the guest was Unova's Champion Alder. Did this mean he had to beat Alder to get the prize money?
Realization dawned—Lucas's eyes widened. Geeta, you schemer—you set me up!
No way—I'm demanding a bonus when I get back!