This girl…[break][break]
…she’s a natural. Watching Gubli fade into the sandstorm, Navy can’t help but be impressed. Not for the first nor the last time, he looks at her, tries to see what secrets are there behind her eyes. A brain like that didn’t just appear out of nowhere. She didn’t materialize out of the aether. There’s a story there, one that led her to this moment, whether fate has her consent or not.[break][break]
Erin takes a few timid steps back, away from the whipping winds. It’s not a fun game anymore when your play partner kicks up a sandstorm. She’ll be hard pressed to find Gubli in the midst of this whipping frenzied sand.[break][break]
“You’ve gotta be brave, girl.” Navy gets down on one knee and pats the Buneary on the head. She is no great beast of legend, nor is she the next big thing. She’s just a lost little girl, rescued from a bad home by Melody Miro and delivered there to him. Yet all the same, the man who has made a career out of being a big brother agrees with her.[break][break]
“Smart play, Kara. Real smart. You were probably a trainer in your past life.” He shares his deduction with her. “But you’re not out of the woods yet! C’mon, Erin! Show ‘em how fast you are! Play Rough!”[break][break]
Erin’s off in a streak of pink light through the sandstorm. It cuts into her, but she has faith in Navy’s instructions. It’s about being a shooting star – never staying in one place for very long. Zooming across the battlefield, bouncing, hoping that somewhere along the way, she hits her opponent.[break][break]
Navy doesn’t tell her this second part, but it’s also about drawing out Gubli. Once the shark emerges, he can’t just dive back down quick as he jumps out of the sand.

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Good thing for you that your buddy’s so good at hiding.” Navy chimes in, watching the performance of the two Pokemon. “That move’s fairy-type. Fairies are natural predators of dragons. Erin’s only a normal type, so it’s not as strong as if somethin’ like your Ralts, who’s psychic and fairy, used the move.”[break][break]
…but Navy saw the writing on the wall. Try as she might, Erin wasn’t quick enough to react to Gubli. She’s a rabbit, without a warrior’s instincts. Wanting to spare her the pain of fainting, he pulls out his pokeball and recalls her.[break][break]
“I think we’re good. You’ve got the basics down really well. Think it’s safe to say that you won your first match.” Funny, this is probably the closest he’ll ever get to a traditional, conventional gym match. It feels good. All the underhanded tactics that will be part and parcel from his own gym are absent. It’s nice, in its own way.[break][break]
“Congrats, champ in the making.” Punctuating the words with a thumbs up, he turns to walk out. “…we should probably get our Pokemon to a Pokemon Center to heal up, our ‘mons got kind of intense there for a second.”

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]