[attr="class","spiral"]Time to kill they might have, but Lillian struggles to come up with a good way to spend it. She wants to catch the cable car so going too far isn't really an option, and the cell service out here is awful so things like work emails are off the table. It's too early to eat the lunch she has packed . . .

"Keep others away," she commands her Pelipper as she comes to a somewhat silly, but still productive idea. As her pokemon flies a few feet off the ground and begins running a rough perimeter around her she gets seated on the ground.

She takes one more look around herself, and then lays down on the stone. She looks at the sky with her legs bent, sighs one more time, and then places her hands behind her head before curling up.

While its trainer begins an embarrassing set of public sit-ups Pelipper feuds with a Litleo that's decided to come and investigate. Well, feuds might be an exaggeration when a single WATER PULSE hits hard enough and leaves it soaked well enough that it goes running without hesitation.

[attr="class","spiral"]20 . . . 21 . . . 22 . . . 23 . . . 24 . . . 25 . . .

Lillian's set count slowly draws to a close. If she wasn't already slick with sweat from the bike ride, she certainly is now after the impromptu workout. Is about to be even sweatier, too. She sits up, looks at her watch, and groans at the time. The cable car still isn't due yet. Whatever. She flips onto her stomach with a sigh.

While she starts working on some pushups, Pelipper continues surveying the area within a few feet of her. Throughout this set there's even less to do than last time. A few Growlithe pass by and poke their heads up over a bit of rock, but the moment they catch sight of the larger pokemon they hightail it out of there.

Bored, Pelipper opts to ROOST on one of the stones jutting out of the mountain and train its KEEN EYES on the perimeter from there.

[attr="class","spiral"]Sweat streams from Lillian's forehead, down her cheeks, and pulls at her chin before dripping to the stone below as she pounds out her last few pushups. At the same time, a Heatmor approaches. It climbs over raised sections of rock before making its way slowly towards the distracted trainer.

As it approaches it drags its fingers along the ground, bent harshly so that it can subtly HONE its CLAWS. When it thinks it's close enough it breaks into a run. Its body sparks and flashes for a moment before lighting -- FLARE BLITZ. Its target is Lillian, but it catches something else halfway. Pelipper, body shimmering with PROTECT intercepts the attack effortlessly.

The combatants bounce apart as Lillian rises to her feet (alerted to the battle breaking out by the noise). She could leave this to her Pelipper, but she's sore and frustrated and needs an outlet.

"Pelipper, to me," she commands and it obeys, abandoning whatever plan it had for dealing with the wild pokemon to instead defer to Lillian's judgement.

"We're going to practice space control, don't let that Heatmor move more than a foot in any direction," she orders coolly. Pelipper takes flight and begins circling the Heatmor from the air.

Unaware of the strategy in play, Heatmor only sees Lillian unguarded. It begins to charge at her again but finds its path cut off by a WATER PULSE. It jumps back to avoid the spray. After a second it tries again, but is clipped by an AIR SLASH this time. It buckles a little but is undeterred. This goes on until the Heatmor is thoroughly frustrated and absolutely exhausted.

Desperate to do something it turns its eyes from Lillian to the Pelipper that's been pestering it for minutes now. Stubborn, gutsy, it abandons its original target to make a running leap towards Pelipper. Heatmor's body ignites again but once again the FLARE BLITZ proves fruitless in the end. A WATER PULSE puts it and the Heatmor out.

Lillian tosses a pokeball onto the pokemon's unconscious body.

"Good job," she praises Pelipper, patting the side of its beak, "Now let's catch that ca--"

As she turns to walk back to the small station she is cut off by the sound of machinery moving and grinding cords. The cable car she was waiting for arrived while she was taking her stress out on the Heatmor and is now leaving without her.

She quietly returns her pokemon. Then silently unlocks her bike. Then heads home, where she can curse in peace.