'Liam' turns, curious—

—and narrows his eyes behind dark shades.

"DANNY HALL. You're a friend of Serena's."

There's something in the way he says friend that hints he knows more than he's letting on. He tilts his head and chooses his words carefully.

"We've worked together before. Nice girl."

His Pokemon takes the field. Something seems a little... off... about the Lucario that bares its teeth in challenge.

[attr="class","danny"]danny's caught off guard as evident by how he stumbles on his next few words.

"o-oh yeah, i am! and cool! i knew she knows a few pro trainers but i don't think she's ever mentioned you."

not that it's suspicious in any way, it's just...small talk, let's say.

danny calls out his choice for the battle as well.

"alright! thanks for accepting the challenge, liam! we'll be sure to give it our best."

it's grimmsnarl. it's always grimmsnarl.

"same thing as always, grimster."

somewhat weirded out by the lucario, grimmsnarl lunges forward to throw a POWER-UP PUNCH.

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

Nervous, isn't he? Wonder how much he knows...

He's not talked to Serena Malcolm about her love life beyond perhaps a teasing comment upon hearing about their public relationship. For all he knows, it's some publicity stunt and they don't actually give a damn about each other.

"Wouldn't consider myself a pro," he chuckles. "I'm from across the pond, might be she never thought to mention me."

He knows the real reason, of course.

Zoroark DETECTS the incoming attack; as it lifts its arms to block the punch, the ILLUSION shatters.

[attr="class","danny"]danny knows nothing at this point; not that it'd change much.

"yeah maybe! but it's great to meet you anyways. big fan of your battles so far. i especially like the one against that dude with the noivern. MATIAS SILPH, i think!"

spoken like a true fan boy.

his jaw drops when the ILLUSION shatters.

"holy that's so cool."

grimmsnarl certainly thinks so as well, stunned for a moment, but he's quick to recover to throw an uppercut of a POWER-UP PUNCH.

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

Dark brows lift in surprise; DANNY HALL was keeping tabs on him.

He wonders how the other's opinion might change at the end of the tournament when Liam King sheds his skin to reveal the villain beneath. Would that admiration turn to fear? Disgust?

The second punch connects, Zoroark growling as it's thrown back by the force of it. A quick U-TURN sees it skid in the sand before launching itself back at its foe.

"How's your own record holding up?"

[attr="class","danny"]"it's uh..."

slightly distracted by the battle, danny watches as the zoroark launches back around with a U-TURN that strikes against grimmsnarl's body.

tensing, grimmsnarl is quick to chase after to throw another POWER-UP PUNCH; muscles growing in size with each punch.

"all wins so far! doing pretty well."

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

In comparison to DANNY HALL, whose attention remains on the battle, Gavin's attention is on him. His Zoroark isn't given the amount of direction it needs, being a relatively new member of his arsenal; it shows in the way it struggles against a second punch.

"That so?" He sounds impressed, but, "How many matches?"

A no-loss record was a lot more impressive if it wasn't only a couple of bouts.

With a huff, Zoroark chooses to COPY its opponent's strategy, curling its claws for a POWER-UP PUNCH.

[attr="class","danny"]"just four so far, but we're on our way, i hope!"

now looking buff as hell, grimmsnarl snarls as he takes a POWER-UP PUNCH in return, almost flinching from the brute force of it. but he lunges back, takes a moment to breathe, then claps his hands together to FLATTER the zoroark.

"how about yourself?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

"Think I'm about half-and-half, but I've lost track of how many matches."

As part of his recruitment efforts for Rocket, he was investing a lot of time and effort into this tournament. He hated battling for sport. He'd rather be doing almost anything else. But he'd do whatever Rocket wanted him to.

Flattered by her opponent, Zoroark's BURNING JEALOUSY toward its swollen muscles backfires on the trickster fox. She yelps and growls as the embers singe her own fur, leaving her open to another attack as she flaps a paw to extinguish them.

Gavin's attention flicks back to the battle momentarily and he scoffs, amused.

[attr="class","danny"]"no idea how you could do so many! it's tiring for sure."

grimmsnarl's boosted stat comes back to bite him in the ass. or at least it would've if not for the CONFUSION. his bulky form fires up zoroark's BURNING JEALOUSY, which spreads like a wildfire over the zoroark's own fur.

seeing this as an opportunity to further their lead, grimmsnarl swings a HAMMER ARM across zoroark's head.

bonk!

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

A sharp whistle seeks to get Zoroark's attention.

"Focus," Gavin instructs, curt. "Again."

In her confused state, he doesn't trust her to correctly interpret his clicks. She's still new to his roster.

His words see greater success; as the hammer arm sends her skidding in the sand, she forces herself back to her paws and snarls as a fresh wave of BURNING JEALOUSY floods the battlefield with flames. This time, they target her foe.

"It'd be less taxing if it weren't so bloody hot."

[attr="class","danny"]the BURNING JEALOUSY fans towards them this time. grimmsnarl's quick to hit the ground which scatters just a bit of sand up to help ease the flames. but it still burns, hurting, and it leaves grimmsnarl in pain.

"keep at it, grimster!"

nodding, grimmsnarl stands back up and bows his head, FALSE SURRENDERING before a spike of hair shoots out towards the zoroark.

[attr="class","noodles"]Cillian Quinn

To think he used to think naming Pokemon was a silly tradition. Grimster was still hilarious, to Gavin, but he's starting to understand.

His Zoroark isn't important enough to have earned a name, and this battle isn't doing her any favours. Though she attempts to DETECT signs of danger from her opponent, her CONFUSION sees her buy into the other's false surrender.

"Guard up!"

But his warning comes too late, and she's ensnared by her foe.