It’s a sleepy little town on the edge of everywhere and nowhere. Past the small pier are hip, trendy little seaside stores. For a town so small, the people who live in Dewford are hellbent on being on the bleeding edge of what’s fashionable. They’ve even managed to procure for themselves the hip, trendy new trainer on the block.[break][break]
Michael Navidson, Navy to everyone who truly knows him, walks down onto the pierce to greet the woman. The sight of her makes him feel like he’s really made it. The League’s sending him civil engineers, people who pull massive salaries, to help fix up the gym.[break][break]
…he didn’t expect her to be good looking. Indeed, his idea of an engineer is a middle-aged man with a well-trimmed beard and prematurely gray hair. His expectations are pleasantly subverted. Giving her a confident, carefree smile, one hand in his pocket, he waves at her. As always, he has a full contingent of six pokeballs on his hip, positioned for easy access. Despite how easy his smile is, this is a creature made for battle.[break][break]
“Welcome to Dewford, Ms. Ha. A pleasure to have you. Sheriff Michael Navidson, at your service. You can call me Navy, everyone else does.”

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Those eyes…[break][break]
Man.[break][break]
Men have drowned in blue that deep. Navy grits his teeth just enough to keep from going slackjawed. Pulls himself into reality, listens to her words.[break][break]
“Wh- oh, you probably saw the commercials I ran for my old job. Navidson Solutions, a PI U can trust.” Topped off with a finger gun, leading into a handshake. There’s callouses where the palm meets the bottom joints of long fingers.[break]
“My old gig before the league managed to snag me in a collar.” He steeps his apprehension on his loyalty in humor. There’s another place she could have seen him on television, of course. After all the recent chaos in April, they plastered interviews with him all over the news. People love a hometown hero, and the people of this town find him far more relatable than the avatars and rich folk that dominate the air waves.[break][break]
“So,” he begins as he turns to walk up the pier. His truck is parked just up the road, plastered with the county logo. “what’s brought you to Hoenn? Fan of the weather? Better beaches than Alola, don’t let anyone from there tell you different.” There’s a nod and a prideful quality that tints his smile. He loves his region, and he wears that love on his sleeve.

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Careful now, Hoenn’s sort of like a whirlpool.” It’s a good-natured warning coupled with a warm tone. “Seen it suck in all sorts. We’ve got Galarian royalty, Kalosian nobility, celebs from all over the world laying low. Hoenn attracts all sorts and doesn’t like letting ‘em go once they’re here.”[break][break]
His expression sours at the sight of his own truck. A sigh escapes his lips as he climbs into the cab. Inside it has all the marks of a new vehicle. It doesn’t smell lived-in. Navy doesn’t like that new car smell.[break][break]
“I’ll never forgive Rocket for torching my old truck.” His voice has the cadence of a wounded parent, like he lost a child when Rocket destroyed his vehicle. [break][break]
“We’ve got some surf shacks that rent boards. Mantine surfing, too.” He cranks the truck, looks at the road. Plays it cool, like his next words are just a part of the conversation’s natural flow.[break][break]
“I could show you the good spots around town to catch some waves when we’re done at the gym, Ms.

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Like an ancient warrior laboring at insurmountable tasks, he tries to keep his mind from wandering down avenues that lead to certain questions. Best not to dwell on what sort of bathing suits she prefers, especially while they still have business.[break][break]
Thank Arceus she gives him a lifeline. She tosses it to him with perfect social grace before his mind leads him off the deep end. Pulls him back to the comfortable shallows.[break][break]
“Oh, it’s gonna be crazy. Mum’s the word, obviously. Gotta make sure it’s a surprise for the kids who show up.” Excitement drips into his voice. His hand tightens on the wheel, like he can’t wait for the day when he sees this vision come to life.[break][break]
“So Hoenn’s a war zone. We like to pretend it’s not, but it is. Can’t go six months without a catastrophe. League likes to put out calls for help. Civvies with good teams volunteer. Some of them. Well…most of them, really…first time they go, they don’t know what they’re walking into.” His words shift from excited to grim, like he’s once more facing reality rather than fanciful dreams of battles in the limelight.[break][break]
“I want my gym to give ‘em a taste of war. Chaos. An opponent that doesn’t listen to rules or standards. The battle pitch drops into a big, open battlefield. I need the acoustics to be good. There’ll be lots of smoke, fog, and dirt. Ideally, there’d be systems rigged to make it sound like there are more Pokemon around them than there really are. Confuse them.”[break][break]
His eyes hide a storm, wondering not for the first or last time what starry eyed kids saw right before their demise in hellish battles like Sootopolis or Slateport’s invasion.

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“I just don’t want more kids to die, going off playing hero.” It’s funny she calls him that word. Hero. In another lifetime, his ride across the poisoned plains of Galar marked him as one worthy of that title. Here, in Hoenn, it feels hard to accept that he could be that. He’s just a warrior who thinks with his fists, his heart, and his gut.[break][break]
“But, thanks. I’m glad to have you on board. Every little bit helps.” This town isn’t very big. They drive for a sparse mile or two and they’re already there. Hardly long enough for him to get to know her, or steer the conversation anywhere fun.[break][break]
Dewford’s gym has seen better days. It will soon see them once more. Tall men built like bulls from the mainland are here repairing the place. Its roof is almost finished. New windows have been set in. Down by the beachside, a battle pitch has been constructed.[break][break]
“My gym trainers’ll be down there on the beach pitch, warming people up. Giving ‘em their bread and circuses. The real challenge is inside.” He leads her inside, where the renovations are almost complete.[break][break]
“Here, the way the trainers will see it is like this.” There’s a pitch in a room just beyond the reception area. Truth be told, the building isn’t very big. The PA system isn’t up to snuff, but how could it be? The building has been out of commission for over a year.[break][break]
The ride down the pitch takes them to the real star of the show. Navy wasn’t lying. This is a proper battlefield. Rocky outcroppings, places where someone could set up a good offense or defense. War. Chaos. The real stuff the League doesn’t normally like to talk about.[break][break]
“So, whatcha think you can rig up?” Navy asks with that damn smile.

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Yeah, don’t think I wanna stick many of my guys on the sidelines during the battle. Hmm…interesting idea, though. Making them think that I’m about to throw a Pokemon at them when they’re just there to look scary…” While no engineer or scientist, sometimes, when the ball of the mind’s eye gets to rolling, words spill freely out of the mouth. His eyes find hers at some point, now that her sunglasses are off.[break][break]
“Arceus…” He says, stumbling through the conversation, gunmetal meeting a blue so distinct it puts Kyogre’s blue orb to shame. Catching himself, he threads the loose prayer into a continuation of his point.[break][break]
“…there’s a lot of work to do, huh? No offense, but this town’s never seen anything like what I had in mind. The only other gym that’s been here in recent memory was a stadium with an obstacle course just off shore. Had to haul a lot of that off before you get here, it fell into disrepair.”[break][break]
A scoff slips into his voice, unmistakable intimate vulnerable honesty. A weary sound, that of a warrior dismissing those who would play at his craft without understanding its intricacies.[break][break]
“…bombings, gods descending from the sky, whole cities getting taken over, and people’s idea of a gym challenge is an obstacle course or a race.”

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“So what I’m hearing is that you want me to take you out on the town four nights in a row. People are gonna start talking – especially the kids that live around here. They love to gossip.” He doesn’t mind, it’s all in good fun. A bunch of trendy college kids and high schoolers don’t make for bad company. “Lucky for you, I know all the good spots around here. Somehow this town gets the latest trendy spots before Slateport does.”[break][break]
He takes pride in the town already. Slateport is his hometown, but it can never truly belong to one man or be a source of pride. Cities exist long before you arrive and persist long after you move away. Any mark left will fade before the years out. They change like clouds in the sky. Towns have permanency.[break][break]
“They got this little video arcade, all retro, where they serve drinks and pizza. I pray the rest of Hoenn never figures out it exists, ‘cause it’s gonna be packed if they do! I’ll show you after work, if you’re into that sort of thing at all.”

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+ Yujin Ha

[attr="class","pokeclass"]