Chapter 35: Care

Author's Note: For anyone who might be wondering, this is not a novel about an OP MC. He has just been fighting below his weight class. The Pokemon he has been training have 2 years of experience compared to most newer trainers and are comparable to Pokemon used by an Intermediate or even very weak Advanced Trainer. The battles later on will become much more difficult and evenly matched where more strategy is needed. 

The next day, Xander and Cynthia finally remembered to register for the Gym Battle but there was a long wait for it. With the festival bringing in so many trainers, it also caused the Gym to be overrun with requests. They could only battle the Gym a week later.

With nothing to do, Xander and Cynthia called up Marley to go exploring the city together. Since she was going to be their new companion, the duo wanted her to get used to their presence. 

They went around the city and visited the different sites. There was the Croagunk Statue that was in the city. Croagunks were famous around this city and considered a protected species. Even in the Great Marsh where trainers could catch any Pokemon as long as they didn't use violence, Croagunk were forbidden from being caught. 

The trio also went to the aquarium that was filled with countless fish and dozens of Water Pokemon. The entire place was filled with a bunch of tourists so the two girls held onto Xander's hands while walking through it, Marley blushing with her head down. 

'I hope my hand isn't sweaty! I don't want to gross him out. He just invited me to join them. Will he change his mind because of this? Calm down, Marley. The more you think about it, the more you will sweat,' Marley kept trying to ease her mind, afraid that her sweat would scare Xander away

Xander wasn't paying attention to her hand though. To him, she was simply sweating because the AC was not hot enough and there were too many people around. 

After a few hours of walking around, the trio finished with the aquarium and went back to the Pokemon Center to train and play together in the public area. 

The moment Marley saw Cynthia and Xander's Pokemon, she let out a gasp in surprise. They hadn't told her about their Pokemon the previous night so she didn't know that they had such strong Pokemon with them. 

"W-Wow. Those 4 are so strong. And she is so pretty," Marley reached out to touch Tamamo's fur but held back as she thought it would be inappropriate. Tamamo noticed this and pushed her head into Marley's hand, letting the girl touch the fur on her head.

"So fluffy. Must be what clouds feel like," Marley muttered, enchanted by Tamamo's soft fur. Tamamo heard this and looked back at Xander with a smirk.

'I already tell you that are the most beautiful Pokemon all the time,' Xander shook his head at the arrogant Pokemon. 'Looks like her evolution only calmed down that attitude for me. She will still have that queen personality to her.'

Once their Pokemon were out, Marely summoned hers. Cynthia immediately walked over to the Growlithe and began to stroke the fur of the little puppy while Xander was appreciating the Zubat that was flying around perfectly without eyes.

"This is a nice group. They all seem to be well taken care of and healthy," Cynthia complimented the trio. This just reaffirmed their belief that she was a good trainer.

Everyone got out their supplies and began to groom their Pokemon. Xander had special brushes for each of his Pokemon, perfect for taking care of their different fur and scales. Fenris was pretty easy since his shell was constantly shedding and regrowing itself while Mothra put up a fight. He hated being brushed the most.

Tamamo required the most attention, not because her fur was hard to brush but because she liked it brushed in a very specific way. Tamamo loved the care that Xander gave to her fur so she would lean into his body and relax while he carefully ran the brush through her fur. 

The only one who did not have their own brush was C.C. since Xander got her after they left Veilstone City. She was small and obedient so Xander could prop her onto his lap as he used Tamamo's brush to brush the bowl-cut hair that she had, cleaning out any dirt or debris that may have gotten into it. 

Once he was done brushing all of his Pokemon, he turned to the other two to see how they were doing. Marley seemed to be doing well but Cynthia was having trouble with Feebas. The little thing immediately swam off in the water, enjoying that it could swim for the first time in days. 

"Just leave her be," Xander told Cynthia who looked ready to jump into the pool. "She hasn't gotten the chance to swim in a while."

Once they were done grooming their Pokemon, the trio began to train together. Sneasel joined Lucario and Gabby in CQC training under Cynthia's lead while Growlithe joined Fenris and Mothra to practice its Fire moves. Marley only had to train Zubat since the other Pokemon had their training partners.

While the rest of the Pokemon and trainers were practicing on their own, Xander, C.C., and Tamamo were practicing with their Psychic powers. C.C. had grown stronger and was able to use her powers more easily while Xander and Tamamo were still trying to unleash their powers.

'Guess this is why she is a Psychic Pokemon before a Fairy. Her Psychic abilities just come more naturally to her,' Xander was glad that C.C. was making such improvements since she could help Tamamo and Xander improve once she was more experienced. 

The trio continued training until it was night and repeated the process the next day. It was on the third day that they gathered together early in the morning to take part in the Great Crusade. 

'Wait for us, Roselia. We are coming for you,' Xander knew it was time to get Cynthia's 4th Pokemon and that would help her beat the Pastoria Gym.