Chapter 130

The Viridian Gym was once under the command of the current Leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni, who served as its Gym Leader for over five years before his betrayal.

Quite a few had served as the Gym Leader here, including Blue Oak, and today, the person in charge of it was Janine, daughter of Fuschia City Gym Leader, Koga.

Like her father, she too was a Poison Master, and her goal was to one day become an Elite Four with Poison Type.

However, her second speciality was Ground-Type, which was why she was the Leader of this Gym for the last two years.

Anira and Leaf were quite interested in the Alpha Arbok that they saw in the Gym. It looked majestic, and the way it coiled around its Master protectively, was quite adorable and heartwarming.

The girl from Pallet Town had her match first, and it went smoother than what she had been expecting. Perhaps, it was because she was better prepared this time.

In the first round, Janine sent out her Marowak, and to fight it, Leaf chose her Weepinbell.

The Ground-Type Pokémon did very well, but the hazel-eyed girl had extensively planned everything, and her Pokémon won her the first round.

As soon as its result was announced, she felt as if some invisible weight had been lifted off her heart.

Next up was a Nidoqueen, and Leaf used her Weepinbell to do as much damage as possible before the inevitable happened and her Pokémon lost the round.

Exeggutor was chosen next, and it dealt with Nidoqueen with ease. It almost looked like the battle was unfair to the Ground-Poison Pokémon, even though it also had a Type Advantage against the Grass-Psychic powerhouse.

Janine's last Pokémon turned out to be a Steelix, something Leaf was apprehensive about, but she already had a plan for it and recalled her Exeggutor.

The Gym Leader was surprised at her choice when she sent out her Bellossom, but Leaf never planned on winning the round with her cute little Pokémon.

Her goal was to wear our Steelix as much as possible, and even though the Pokémon was not weak to Grass-Type Moves, it was not resistant to them either.

The Petal Dances that hit it really rattled it, and by the time Exeggutor entered the battle again in the last round, Steelix was not at its best.

It could still fight, but not as well as it would have fought when it was sent out.

The last round was hard, pushing both Steelix and Exeggutor to their limits, but the Psychic-Grass Pokémon emerged as the victor and Leaf Green had officially conquered all twelve Gyms in the Kanto Region.

She was very excited when she received her Earth Badge, the last badge of her Indigo Conference campaign, and then flashed it at her friend, who was the first to congratulate her.

"Your turn!" She excitedly wished the Orayen Prince the best and then took her seat in the stands.

Aizen's Gym Battle was a quick affair. Even though he had not planned it as extensively as Leaf, he had Pokémon on his Team who had been working hard for months and were now just yearning for the opportunities.

His first choice was Lapras, who made easy work of the Sandslash and even managed to win against Nidoking, who knew Brick Break and even Focus Punch.

Even though Aizen had a high chance of also winning the last round, especially since Lapras could use Perish Song, he recalled it before the start of the third round because it was not in good shape to continue. And he did not plan on sending it out again.

His second Pokémon was his Wartortle, who was up against a monstrously strong Ground-Type Powerhouse, a Rhyperior.

The battle that ensued between the two was a show of absolute strength against the tenacity of a weaker Pokémon, who was lucky enough to have a very lethal Type Advantage against its opponent.

No one was really expecting Wartotle to finish the round on its own, so when, against a formidable opponent, the Indigo Tortoise prevailed, it was a result that surprised Janine a lot.

The Gym Leader Congratulated him and wished both him and Leaf the best for the Indigo Conference. She also made sure to compliment Wartortle and Exeggutor for their brilliant battles.

"Let's go home!" Leaf excitedly said as soon as they exited the Gym.

"Right now?" Aizen asked as he looked at the sky, which was about to go dark.

"Yes." The hazel-eyed girl nodded her head. "I told Mom that we are coming over tonight, and if we take bicycles, we can reach Pallet Town in two hours."

"There is no bike rental station in Pallet Town." Anira reminded her, already smiling, knowing what her friend's intentions were.

"Let's go buy some!"

The two had seen the newer models of Mountain and Gravel Bikes at a store when they came to the city, and as soon as Leaf made the call, both the girls rushed out to head there.

It almost seemed like they just wanted an excuse to buy those bikes.

Aizen smiled and shook his head at the hazel-eyed girl's excitement, but he could understand how she felt right now.

She had not seen her mother for more than half a year, and this had happened for the first time in her life.

Yes, she had talked with her over calls, even Video Calls, but they were not the same as meeting people in person, especially those whom you loved dearly.

The Orayen Prince laughed when Leaf insisted on paying for his bike, and he let her do it because she felt really happy afterwards.

In her excitement, the distance that they were supposed to cover in two hours was covered twenty minutes earlier, and as soon as they arrived at the gate of her house, Leaf dropped her bike and jumped over the gate, running straight into the house.

Her action alarmed the Growlithe and the two Mightyena, who were their family guards and belonged to her mother.

However, the three Pokémon immediately recognised her scent and then excitedly rushed at her, intercepting her at the door of her house, where they pushed her down and slobbered her face with their saliva.

Her laughter echoed in the night, and soon Elaine opened the door.

The Orayen siblings smiled as they watched the mother shed tears whilst hugging her daughter, and seeing her reaction, her Pokémon calmed down, not disturbing their reunion.

"Woof!" Growlithe rushed up to Aizen and Anira, and after greeting them, it excitedly started circling them. "Woof Woof!"

Anira laughed at its request and then smiled as Elaine walked over to her, and then pulled her in a hug.

The Princess tensed up a little but then allowed the woman to hold her like a mother would hold her child.

"Thank you." The older Green said to her, knowing well that if her daughter had not met Anira on that fateful day, things would have been a lot different for her child.

"Mom!" The hazel-eyed girl showed her the Badge Case, where 12 beautiful Badges were resting, and her mother proudly smiled at her before wiping away the tears that escaped her eyes.

"I am proud of you." Said and just when her daughter blushed at her words, her Growlithe pulled her shirt, grabbing her attention.

"Woof."

"Yes, Mala?" The woman asked as she sat down and cupped her Pokémon's face.

"She just wants this." Aizen suddenly said as he took out the Fire Stone he was carrying in his backpack. "She's old enough and ready to evolve, which is why she can sense its presence and is so excited."

"Woof!" Growlithe acknowledged his words and excitedly started circling him again, making everyone laugh at her antics.

"Let Archie meet her!" Leaf enthusiastically said, and the Orayen Prince nodded his head as he called out his Pokémon.

"Winnn!"

The majestic Arcanine announced himself as it emerged from the light, and as soon as it appeared, Mala stopped her antics and fervently looked at it.

Anira laughed when the two Pokemon brought their faces closer and started sniffing each other, and then the Growlithe even started rubbing her body against it.

"They know each other?" Leaf confusedly asked, and her friend laughed some more at her words.

"No. Mala is marking him as her mate."

The hazel-eyed girl blushed when she heard those words, and her mother covered her smile as she saw what was happening.

"Here."

"It's yours, Aizen. I cannot take it." Elaine shook her head when he offered her the Fire Stone.

"It's fine. Leaf gifted Archie her Fire Stone, and I accepted it. I hope you will accept my gift too." He said. "Consider it an early birthday present from me."

The woman sweetly smiled at him, and seeing the sincerity in his eyes, she nodded her head and accepted the Evolution Stone.

"Thank you."

As soon as Mala saw the Fire Stone enter her Trainer's hand, her excitement returned, and she called out to Elaine to give it to her.

"Woof Woof!"

"Yes, yes." Even though she could not speak or understand the language, she was her Trainer and she could just sense what her Pokémon wanted and was trying to say.

Everyone surrounded the two when Elaine leaned over her Growlithe and then gently tapped its head with the Fire Stone.

As soon as she did it, a blinding light engulfed her Pokémon, and they watched its figure start growing in the light.

Even though female Arcanine were slightly smaller than their male counterparts, Mala was actually bigger than Archie. It was because of the differences between their ages, where the female Arcanine was over a decade old compared to the Aizen's Arcanine, who was only a couple of years old.

"Winn!" Mala announced herself and then stepped forward to rub her face against Elaine's, who soon wrapped her arms around her neck and hugged her.

Leaf was actually in a trance when she saw the two Arcanine side by side.

Seeing one was still bearable, but when the two stood together, they cast a very majestic image, which made her heart palpitate in reverence.

They truly were one of the most beautiful Pokémon out there.

"Winnn.." And then Mala was off, turning into an orange blur as she rushed to the grounds at the back of the house, and Archie glanced at Aizen, who nodded to him and then chased after the female who wanted to play in the middle of the night.

The two Mightyena decided not to follow them and stayed outside the house as the guards, and after Elaine gave them some love, she invited everyone inside.

"Go, put your bike in the shed." She admonished her daughter when she learned that she had dropped her bike outside the gate, and Anira stood up from the table as well to do the same with the other bikes.

Once the young girls left, Elaine looked at Aizen, and then curiously glanced at Sabrina, who was silently eating her meal.

"I hope she has not been a trouble."

"Leaf is very well-mannered, Miss Elaine. You have raised her well. And we have all enjoyed her company."

"Thank you, Aizen..." The woman thanked him again for taking care of her child for all these months.

For mothers, sending out their children on their Pokémon Journeys was not an easy decision. She had been very tense about the idea until Aizen and Anira showed up and Leaf informed her that she would be travelling with them.

Only she knew how immensely relieved her heart was that her child would not be all alone out there in the world.

And it was not the Pokémon harming her daughter that worried her. She was more concerned about the humans, who were the deadliest creatures in this world.

Once Anira and Leaf returned and rejoined them at the table, the two girls enthusiastically informed her about all their adventures.

And Elaine, in turn, told them about her younger days, when she ventured out with Leaf's late father.

Aizen and Anira also learned that both Elaine and her late husband were friends with Red, Blue, and Hilda. And their friendship was part of the reason why the couple had decided to come to Pallet Town and settle here.

Even the land that was now the Green Estate, was purchased from Blue and Samuel Oak.

Elaine had lots of stories to share with them, and even Leaf had never listened to them before. Perhaps, her mother had been waiting for the day she turned old enough to truly appreciate them.

Under the two girls' insistence, the lady had to stay up all night to tell them about all her adventures, and when the first rays of sun pierced through the sky, Aizen picked up Anira and Leaf, who had fallen asleep, and then tucked them in the bed.

"You should get some rest too," Elaine advised, and he smiled at her.

"I will, but I want to go out on a morning walk and visit Professor Oak. You should sleep."

After saying goodbye to Elaine Green, Aizen walked out of the house and headed towards the Oak Laboratory.

Of course, a certain Pink-eyed girl decided to tag along with him.