New Year and New Beginnings

On the third day after leaving Aromatic City, Yuga's ghost ship arrived in Petalburg City, carrying May and Max. After safely escorting the siblings back to the Petalburg Gym, Yuga returned to Verdanturf Town.

The first thing Yuga did upon returning to Verdanturf was to find Nana and ask for help in erasing the memories of the Mewtwo experiment from the gloomy man and the scruffy man. Afterward, he handed both of them over to Masato Shirai.

Regardless of whether they remembered the Mewtwo experiment or not, one of them was from Team Rocket and the other from Team Plasma—both indisputable facts.

At the same time Yuga returned to Verdanturf, the White Leader, who had dragged himself back to the Heaven Organization's headquarters with severe injuries, received word of Archie's arrest. He immediately reported the news to Giovanni.

After informing Giovanni of the Black Leader's situation as well, the White Leader suddenly said, "Boss, I want to return to Kanto."

"Then come back," Giovanni agreed after a brief moment of contemplation.

"What about Team Aqua? With Archie captured, the team is currently leaderless. Should we recall Ariana?"

"No need, Ariana has more important tasks to handle," Giovanni shook his head on the video screen. "I'll send Archer instead."

"Make sure your people stay quiet for the time being; we need to keep a low profile in Hoenn," Giovanni added after some thought. "I'll also instruct Archer to keep Team Aqua in check."

"Got it, I understand," the White Leader nodded earnestly, thinking about the organization's recent string of failures.

Meanwhile, following Giovanni's orders, Ariana appeared near the largest prison in the Kalos League. Using her excellent disguise skills, she successfully infiltrated the prison and then quietly left, with no one ever realizing she had been there.

On Yuga's side, he returned with Alakazam, Gothitelle, and Spoink.

These three Pokémon had already woken up during the journey back, but due to being experiment subjects in the fake Mewtwo project, each one had significant problems.

The first to awaken was Spoink.

Spoink likely hadn't been subjected to the experiments for too long. Aside from being physically weak, it was otherwise normal.

However, because of its frailty, Spoink had become a "delicate Pokémon unable to care for itself," relying on psychic power to walk and perform tasks. It probably couldn't lift a brick with just its physical strength.

Even the pearl on its head wasn't being held up by its physical strength, but by its psychic power.

Fortunately, due to the experiments, Spoink's psychic power had been greatly enhanced. Though its body was weak, its movements were not impaired.

Gothitelle's condition was the exact opposite of Spoink's. Her body was healthy, but she couldn't release any psychic power. Not a single Psychic-type move could be used. Even someone as skilled as Nana couldn't detect any psychic power waves coming from her.

Both Spoink and Gothitelle accepted their current states well. They felt fortunate just to have escaped the clutches of the gloomy man and the scruffy man and were very grateful to Yuga.

The most troublesome case was Alakazam. Its body was fine, and its psychic power was incredibly strong, but it had become "mindless."

Yuga wasn't sure if Alakazam was truly mindless, but ever since it woke up, it had been in a dazed, vacant state, not even moving its eyes. Nana attempted to communicate with it using psychic power, but her consciousness was actually repelled.

Despite its dazed appearance, Alakazam's psychic power was exceptionally powerful—far stronger than Spoink's. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to fend off Nana's psychic intrusion.

When Yuga delivered the gloomy man and the scruffy man to the police station, he took Alakazam and the others to the Pokémon Center to have Nurse Joy give them a physical check-up.

Unfortunately, Alakazam and the others had issues at the genetic level, meaning they all had genetic defects, so Nurse Joy was powerless to help.

However, she promised to consult with experts in this area and would inform Yuga if she learned anything useful.

Thus, Alakazam, Gothitelle, and Spoink settled into the YoYo Day Care.

Gothitelle adapted well to life at YoYo Day Care. Although she couldn't use her psychic abilities, she maintained an optimistic personality and wasn't disheartened or discouraged. She not only helped the Audino and Wigglytuff with chores but also assisted Suzuki Koen and Ayaka in greeting customers in the shop, making her quite popular among everyone at the Day Care.

Spoink had a lively personality. Although it wasn't in great shape, it still enjoyed floating around using its psychic power all day. The new life was very enticing for it.

Only Alakazam sat in the main Ecopark all day in a daze. Thankfully, it still knew to eat when food was offered; otherwise, it might have starved to death.

As the year-end approached, Verdanturf Town became increasingly lively, with various businesses holding activities, and even the town government organized several events.

However, Yuga's Pokémon Paradise and Gym had already closed down for the holidays. The staff at the Pokemon Day Care had also been given time off. Non-local Lain returned to Mauville City, and Misaki went back to Lavaridge Town. Even Cheren returned to Unova the day before Yuga got back.

Initially, Cheren had planned to stay in Verdanturf Town throughout the New Year, but Yuga thought that would be too inhumane, so he took the initiative to send him back.

On the day before New Year's, Yuga was in the shop doing a thorough cleaning with the Audino, Wigglytuff, Gothitelle, and the Mr. Mime couple while Suzuki Koen and Ayaka were on vacation at home.

Suddenly, someone tapped Yuga on the shoulder from behind. When he turned around around, he saw no one there, but then Luna jumped out and startled him.

"Hahaha… surprised, aren't you?" Luna's mischievous laughter echoed in the shop.

"You little brat, causing trouble as soon as you return!" Yuga hit her on the forehead lightly and then turned to Audino and the others, questioning, "You all saw her already, didn't you? How could you hide this from me?"

Audino and the others burst into laughter, feeling proud of successfully tricking Yuga.

"Why did you come back so late? Was your school that busy?" Yuga asked while mopping the floor. "You're in my way; move to the side."

Luna jumped aside and pouted, "Why do you say that? I'm busy too!"

Yuga glanced at her out of the corner of his eye: Take that as you will.

Seeing that Yuga didn't believe her, Luna huffed, "I'm serious! I can take the entrance examination for the Investigation Bureau next year!"

"So soon?" Yuga looked at her in surprise. "When exactly next year?"

"Late spring," Luna replied.

"So soon?" Yuga straightened up from mopping, astonished. "That's just a short while after you return to school!"

"Yeah, it's coming up soon." At this point, Luna's expression became much more serious.

"How are you preparing?" Yuga asked with some concern.

"I'm doing alright. I discussed it with a few classmates, and after the New Year, we'll go out for some intense training together," Luna shared her plan, noting that many students at her school were preparing for the selection of the Investigation Bureau and the Supervision bureau.

"Doesn't that mean you won't be home for long?" Yuga frowned. "But have you really thought it through? The Investigation Bureau has dangerous missions." He couldn't shake the feeling that if Luna did get selected, her aunt and uncle would have a lot to worry about.

"Is that even a question?" Luna shot Yuga a glare, though her expression was serious.

Yuga sighed in resignation. "Alright, then good luck. I can't really help you with this." He never expected that his once spoiled cousin would firmly choose her own path.

Children grow up and no longer listen to their parents!

While Yuga was tidying up, he chatted with Luna until she left for home around noon.

After lunch, Anya found Yuga, looking flustered. Yuga couldn't help but ask, "Anya, just say what you need to say. You're making me anxious just watching you."

Anya's face flushed bright red. "I… I have a favor to ask of you."

"Go ahead," Yuga replied curiously.

"I want to invite Mr. Harrison to our house tomorrow for the New Year's celebration. He's all alone at the ranch," Anya explained.

Yuga suddenly realized, "Oh, is that what it is? I completely forgot. Sure, you can take care of inviting Mr. Harrison to our home."

"Great! Thank you, Gym Leader! I'll go tell Mr. Harrison right now," Anya cheered before darting out like a little rabbit.

The other helpers had long since stopped assisting Mr. Harrison. Once they returned, Yuga took Anya to the ranch.

Mr. Harrison was genuinely devoted to teaching Anya, planning to impart all his knowledge of cultivation to her, which earned her deep respect for him. Anya was diligent and learned quickly, demonstrating high aptitude, which was why Mr. Harrison was willing to share so generously.

Before long, New Year's Day arrived. The entire YoYo Day Care was bustling early in the morning, with both adults and children busy with preparations.

Meanwhile, Yuga was called away by Mayor Ishida.

It turned out that Mayor Ishida had organized a blessing ceremony for the town's residents to summarize the year's harvest and wish for even greater prosperity in the coming year. Yuga was invited to officiate this blessing ceremony.

The ceremony took place at the town's shrine, where Verdanturf Town's festivals and large events were generally held. People of all ages from the town gathered, creating a densely packed, impressive scene.

The blessing ceremony itself was not complicated; as the host, Yuga essentially just went through the motions. However, because there were so many participants, he still ended up quite exhausted by the end of the ceremony.

As soon as Yuga returned home, he was informed by Audino about something that shocked him: his granddaughter had been born.

He had to admit that Vivillon really had a knack for picking auspicious days, choosing New Year's Day for the birth. Bug-type Pokémon have a short gestation period and don't take ten months like humans.

Yuga hurried go to Ecopark and found that in one of the nests of the Insect Nest Sub-Ecopark, Vivillon was looking benevolently at a red Pokémon egg speckled with black dots, while a Volcarona flitted its wings outside the nest.

The freshly delivered Vivillon didn't seem very energetic.

Rather than choosing the Flower Sea Sub-Ecopark or the Volcano Sub-Ecopark for the birth, Vivillon opted for the Insect Nest Sub-Ecopark. This special Sub-Ecopark is very beneficial for the hatching and growth of Bug-type Pokémon. It's likely that Vivillon wouldn't leave with its child until after hatching.

The cave chosen by Vivillon was small, so Yuga couldn't enter. He could only stand at the entrance and ask, "Are you alright, Vivillon?"

"Vivillon, Vivillon!"

Vivillon called out reassuringly twice, confirming to Yuga that it was healthy and well.

Generally, Pokémon don't have issues during childbirth, and besides, during Vivillon's delivery, there were a Miltank and a Blissey standing guard, so Yuga was just overthinking things.

Seeing that Vivillon was otherwise fine aside from being a bit fatigued, Yuga turned his attention to the "freshly hatched" Pokémon egg beside it.

The egg was completely fiery red, marked with a few white stripes and speckled with starry black dots. To be honest, Yuga couldn't discern whether this was a Vivillon egg or a Volcarona egg.

Vivillon has many varieties based on their patterns, totaling twenty different types. The appearance of the Pokémon eggs they lay varies accordingly; for instance, Vivillon with Meadow patterns, modern patterns, or sun patterns can also produce red-looking Pokémon eggs.

And Volcarona eggs are also red.

Don't think that Yuga's Vivillon, which has an Icy Snow pattern, can't lay Meadow, modern, or sun-patterned Pokémon eggs. The appearance of a Vivillon's egg is influenced not only by its parents but also by several generations of ancestors.

This means that if Yuga's Vivillon has ancestors with Meadow, Modern, or sun patterns, then there's a high probability that its offspring will inherit those patterns.

So, it's still uncertain whether the egg contains a Vivillon or a Volcarona.

However, this didn't matter much because, through the Insight skill, Yuga discovered that this was, in fact, a Pokémon egg with indigo potential.

An indigo potential Pokémon egg, and it's completely natural—how rare is that!

However, this wasn't too surprising, considering that its mother had purple potential, and its father had blue potential. Both parents were also top-tier Pokémon, so it was entirely normal for it to be born with blue potential given these circumstances.

No matter whether this Pokémon egg eventually hatches into a Vivillon or a Volcarona, Yuga wouldn't be at a loss. Having a Volcarona would be great, but he would be satisfied even if it was a Vivillon.

As he gazed at the Pokémon egg, Yuga fell into deep thought.

When this Pokémon hatches, should he raise it in the Ecopark as a breeding Pokémon, or should he find it a reliable trainer? The idea of raising it as a main Pokémon for himself hadn't crossed his mind at all. He already had enough main Pokémon, and if it were a Grass-type or Ghost-type Pokémon, he might consider it since he had special abilities in those two types. Other types, he decided, could be overlooked.

Whether it was a Vivillon or a Volcarona, neither was within Yuga's consideration. He already had a Vivillon for Bug-type, a Charizard for Fire-type, and plenty of Flying-types, so he didn't see the need to raise another one.

He also didn't think of raising Chatot, which had indigo potential, as a main Pokémon.

As a child of Vivillon, Yuga secretly didn't want to see it waste its time in the ecological park.