Panicking slightly, Kashiwagi rushed toward the figure with Zweilous right on his heels.
"Are you... okay?"
The thick fog had been temporarily dispersed by the flashbang.
Revealed in the mist was a purple-haired girl wearing a red hood with two golden cow horns on top. She was dressed in a red body-con skirt and long red boots.
She looked to be sixteen or seventeen at most.
Not far from her stood a Camerupt with two miniature volcanoes on its back.
Both had been caught off-guard by the sudden flashbang. One was rolling around silently on the ground covering her eyes, while the other was shaking its head violently and sneezing.
Someone from Team Magma? And that hair color... those golden horns...
Kashiwagi searched his memory. Did Courtney ever appear in the anime? He recalled that in the Hoenn anime arc, Team Aqua only featured the female admin Shelly (Izumi), while Team Magma only featured the male admin Tabitha (Homura).
This was completely different from the Pokémon Adventures manga or the games' "Three Fires" or "3S" settings.
Standard Team Magma grunts usually had black horns on their hoods. One with golden horns and purple hair was undoubtedly Courtney.
Or you could call her Kagari?
All depending on the translation used in this world!
I didn't expect to run into Team Magma in a remote place like this after his encounter with Team Aqua in Dewford.
Wait!
Is this a Team Magma base?
Come to think of it, what did she say earlier? "Finally... came?" Who was she waiting for?
Me? Was that fisherman a plant from Team Magma specifically meant to lure me here?
Kashiwagi considered his optionsand decided not to strike Courtney or Camerupt yet. Ever since his near-unpleasant encounter with Team Aqua, he had researched the current state of both organizations post-Groudon/Kyogre crisis.
Like Team Aqua, Team Magma had shed its "criminal organization" label. While Team Aqua became a marine conservation group, Team Magma was now a land development and infrastructure company.
In simple terms, they did real estate and regional construction.
They were dedicated to expanding human territory and utilizing every inch of land efficiently, under the prerequisite of not disrupting Pokémon habitats.
Much of the new tram and train network across the Hoenn mainland was their handiwork.
They were still doing what they originally wanted, just less radically and with more focus on coexistence.
So, Team Magma was technically a normal organization now.
Better to wait and see.
Kashiwagi scanned the surroundings to ensure no Magma grunts were waiting to ambush him. He pulled a spray can from his bag, pried Courtney's hands away from her face, and gave her a couple of spritzes of "Wake-up & Refresh" spray.
Courtney, her vision still blurry, thought it was poison and tried to rub it off her eyes. But as the spray took effect, her racing heart calmed, and the stinging in her eyes faded.
Lying on the ground, she opened her slightly red and swollen eyes and stared up at Kashiwagi, who was looking down at her.
"MOOO!"
The Camerupt, having recovered from its blindness, grabbed her hood with its teeth and dragged her away from Kashiwagi.
Kashiwagi didn't stop it.
Once Courtney scrambled to her feet, Kashiwagi shouted first:
"Explain yourself! Why were you trying to scare people?"
Beside him, Zweilous let out a supportive roar.
Courtney looked utterly innocent. "Not... scaring..."
She really wasn't trying to be scary. Her stiff movements were simply the result of waiting nearly all morning and through lunch; when she finally saw her target, she stood up too fast, her legs fell asleep, and she stumbled failing to maintain balance, so the unusual pose.
"Then what did 'You finally came' mean? People only say that in spooky movies," Kashiwagi pressed on, thinking she was indeed the Courtney from the games—pausing after every few words.
Courtney replied: "I've been... waiting... a long time..."
As I thought.
Having received his answer, Kashiwagi reached into his pocket with a hint of wariness.
He wasn't fooled by her seemingly dazed and innocent face. Anyone who had played the ORAS remakes knew Courtney was a person who appeared quiet on the surface but was incredibly obsessed and manic inside. Her anime personality might not be the same, but one could never be too careful.
Furthermore, she had tricked him into coming here.
She definitely had an ulterior motive!
"Why wait for me? Do we know each other?"
Courtney replied honestly: "Leader Maxie... is interested... in you. Told me... to find you. I couldn't find you... so I made you... find me."
Lord, listening to this girl speak is torture.
He rubbed his ears, feeling like she was spitting out words one syllable at a time.
But Maxie being interested in me?
Ah!
Is it because I'm doing "endorsement" work for Team Aqua? Is the rivalry between these two organizations not actually over?
While Kashiwagi was pondering, Courtney suddenly spoke:
"Let's... battle!"
"Huh? Why?"
"Leader Maxie... wants me... to test you. Let's... battle!" Her lips curled into a slight, eerie smile, and a strange light flickered in her eyes. The fragile aura she had a moment ago vanished, replaced by a sharp, eager intensity.
"Let me... analyze... you."
"MOOO!"
The Camerupt let out a low growl.
Maxie wants her to "test" me? What's the angle here?
Kashiwagi frowned. He suspected the only way to get answers was to finish the battle and follow her to whatever base Maxie was hiding in.
"...Fine! You want a battle? You've got one!"
"Good..."
Courtney looked even more excited, and then—
THUD.
She fell face-first onto the ground.
Even the Camerupt looked stunned. It looked at its trainer, then at Kashiwagi.
"Don't look at me! I didn't touch her!"
The latter raised his hands in a gesture of innocence.
A momnt later, Courtney lifted her head slightly, her dust-covered face looking uncharacteristically aggrieved. "...Hungry..."
Gurgle~
The sound of a stomach growling echoed in the silence.
"You... didn't eat lunch?" Kashiwagi tilted his head, speechless. He then looked at the Camerupt. "You didn't either?"
The Camerupt looked away, refusing to answer.
But its trainer spoke: "Forgot... the lunchbox..."
"Alright, alright."
Kashiwagi sighed deeply and dropped his bag to pull out food. "I never thought I'd have to pay a meal just to get into a fight.. Just a heads up, I only have leftovers. If you want to eat, go ahead, if not—oh, you're already eating."
He watched Courtney grab the food and immediately start sharing it with her Camerupt. He began to wonder if this girl was really the brilliant scientist from Team Magma.
Scientist or not, she didn't seem to have much common sense.
Meanwhile, after finishing her share, Courtney didn't forget her other Pokémon. She released a Mightyena and a Crobat to share the remaining scraps.
Kashiwagi noted her team:
Camerupt, Mightyena, and Crobat.
Only three.
"They really look pitiful."
He hugged Zweilous's heads, only to find both of them were drooling at the sight of the food. He gave each a light bonk. "Have some shame! I just fed you lunch!"
"Zwei-ii~" "Zwei-ii~"
Zweilous let out a pitiful, low whine.