Allie couldn't get the night out of her head. To say that it felt as though it had all been a dream would be a grave understatement. It was difficult to look in the mirror that morning without envisioning every moment of the dance they shared while on board the boat. Her heart, while steady now, had been racing the night before. An image of Seth extending his hand in invitation, flashed into her mind, making her cheeks tint pink and her face grow hot. 

"Oh Arceus... what even is life right now?" Allie groaned, planting her face between her arms on her dresser. 

Furfrou craned her neck at the sound of her trainer's mumbling. Snickering internally, she stood up and padded over to Allie and sat down, nuzzling her head against Allie's leg. Allie looked down and frowned as she saw a grin on Furfrou's face.

"And just what is that look for, hmmm?" Allie grumbled. 

Furfrou tilted her head to the side as if to say 'whatever do you mean?' Allie wasn't having it. 

"I saw you getting cozy with him. Bet you feel real proud of yourself for muddling up my mind like you've been doing the past three days," Allie pouted, crossing her arms over her chest as she slumped back in her chair. 

Furfrou lowered herself to the floor and simply watched her trainer as she recalled the events of the previous night. From what she could hear, Seth had done a fantastic job. 

"Oh you should have seen it Furfrou! the way he moved was unbelievable. Normally I take the lead but he... he lead me! He was just..." Allie paused, placing her hands over her chest so she could take a deep breath, "so good. So... inconceivably good..." 

"Was he now?" came her mother's voice, startling Allie. 

"Mother! don't tell me you were listening to all that!" Allie shouted, her face red from embarrassment. 

The queen giggled at her daughter's expression and sat down on the bed, beckoning Furfrou to her so she could pet the canine. 

"It sounds like someone had a good time. Though I'm not sure 'good' is the right word for what you experienced," the queen mused, scratching behind Furfrou's ears as she talked. 

Allie took a deep breath, calming herself before saying, "if you must know, mother, it was quite possibly one of the most fun experiences I've had in a while. My body has not, and I mean has not felt like this in a while."

"Oh? and what of Charles? I was certain he showed you a great time on your night with him," the queen inputted, doing her best not to grin too much. 

"Oh he did. He danced as well as I had expected him to, which was fantastic. But my 
Arceus... Seth. I don't know whether I should be infuriated or happy that he was able to effortlessly keep pace with me and make me feel so..."

"Wonderful?"

"Yes!" Allie exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration. 

"I had dedicated my time to loathing the man, and then he goes and does this.. this thing that made my body experience things!" Allie huffed. 

The queen held in a laugh and smiled at her daughter. 

"Well Allie, it has been a while since you were challenged that way. While you excel in nearly everything you do, from battling to dancing, you will need to keep in mind that there are those out there who are just as good if not better. Judging by what you just told me, it sounds like you've met your equal in terms of dance. I had a feeling it was only a matter of time."

"Seth? my equal? mother, he's good, but he's not..."

"Your equal? dear Allie, back when I was your age I too had that mentality. In my mind I was a star that nobody could reach... until your father came waltzing into my life with his witty charm and perfect smile," the queen chuckled. "I was as self-absorbed as you until that happened."

"And you aren't that way now?" Allie replied with a raised brow. 

"Oh I still am at times. But that's what makes it so easy to relate to you," she replied quickly, earning a frown from her daughter. 

"I'm not that self-absorbed," Allie fired back. "I'm perfectly reasonable."

"Oh, but aren't you? was it not you who said that they should consider it an honor to bask in your presence, or was I just imagining things?" 

Allie crossed her arms and looked away. "Point taken."

"My point Allie, is this... you went into it with intent to rattle Seth, but in the end, he rattled you, and in more ways than one I can see," her mother smiled, pulling a stray lock from Allie's face, earning a smile from her. "So... aren't you glad he's on the list now?"

Allie didn't even need to think about it. Of course she was. At first she had dreaded the thought of seeing him again, and now she wanted to root for him as well as the others. Now, all she had to do was not think about their night while she was out with her next potential partner. 

"Well, I think I've said all I can say. I just wanted to check in on you and see how things were going. I'm sure you've got a lot of getting ready to do for tomorrow so I'll leave you to it."

"Thanks mother. I'll be sure to tell you how this one goes too," Allie replied with a bright smile. 

The queen smiled and nodded as she exited the room. She was proud of how far her daughter had come and how much she'd matured. She was relieved to hear that her date with Seth went well, allowing her to feel more at peace. As she walked down the corridor, she was met by a most peculiar sight. Standing at the end of the hall was a man and woman clad in armor with swords at their waists. The duo greeted the queen respectfully, bowing at the waist. 

"It's been some time... your majesty," Mathilde said with a faint smile. "Is all well?"

The queen smiled back at her friend, a chuckle slipping out as she replied, "indeed everything is well. Allie appears to have had a fantastic time with your pupil," she laughed. 

"So the boy did good. I feel like a proud mother having fostered his dancing and all," Mathilde said with a grin. "Hear that Harbin? your son can dance." 

Harbin crossed his arms and sighed. "That is something I never thought the boy would agree to. But knowing how pushy you can be, I'm not surprised he was persuaded. I'm even less surprised that he did well because it was you who taught him."

Mathilde stuck her tongue out playfully at Harbin. "Sour puss," she pouted. 

"So this is Seth's father. I had always wondered where Seth got his demeanor from considering his mother is so relaxed and upbeat. But now that I've finally met you, I can see where all that bite comes from," the queen giggled into her hand. 

Harbin half smiled, almost satisfied to hear that the Leppa Berry didn't fall too far from the tree in that regard. While he and Seth shared some traits, he looked more like his mother. 

"But in all seriousness... your presence is rather concerning, Mathilde. I assume that this isn't just a house call," the queen said with a sigh. 

"You'd be right to assume that... Adélaïde. We should probably discuss this somewhere more... private..." Mathilde replied, beckoning her to follow as she turned to walk. 

The Lumiose Badlands, an inhospitable place for plants, was home to many hostile Pokémon, something that Seth and company found out when a few Gible and a Pupitar burst from the ground and converged on them. Pawniard repelled an Iron Head from the Pupitar and countered with a powerful Revenge that slammed it into the clay. 

"These Pokémon are really aggressive!" Serena said as Roselia drove them back.

"No kidding, it's like they're mad at us or something," Shauna called out. 

"Whatever it is... I intend to find out," Seth replied, reaching down to his belt to grab an Ultra Ball.

With a practiced arm, Seth launched the sphere at the downed Pupitar and ensnared it. He watched as the ball hit the ground and began to twitch. Finally, the light dimmed and he was able to pick it up again. The others had decided to capture the Pokémon they were fending off, adding more members to their growing teams. Seth picked up Pupitar's ball and released it. Pupitar looked up at Seth and then to her new trainer's Pawniard who stood in front of her. Kneeling down, Seth took a deep breath and began to speak. 

"Now that your head's a little more clear, I'd like to know why you jumped us like that," Seth began, hoping he'd actually be able to understand Pupitar once it spoke. 

She remained silent, however, her eyes trained on Cerise who had unraveled herself from Seth's body to hover beside him. That aside, she had been given an order, and as a newly owned Pokémon, she needed to oblige her trainer's command. 

"I apologize for that... my home was recently disturbed and all of us have been extremely jumpy as of late thanks to a certain group of humans disrupting the peace," Pupitar replied with a stern expression. 

"I'm sorry if we've caused you trouble. I didn't realize that we'd-"

"Not you, human. You aren't the one's who disturbed us. It's another group of humans who are to blame..."

"I see, well that's good to know. However... your answer makes me wonder who you're referring to," Seth pondered aloud. 

"They were a strange lot. They wore outfits that were a bright orange shade... rather easy to spot really..." 

Seth narrowed his eyes at the mention of the color of the uniforms. Rising to a stand, he glanced back at the group with a determined expression.

"So... what did it say?" Serena asked eagerly, not liking the look Seth was wearing. 

"Apparently, according to what Pupitar is saying... Team Flare disturbed her home. And considering they're still restless, I'm willing to bet that they're here somewhere," Seth said, turning back to Pupitar to speak to her again.

"Can you show us where you saw them?"

Pupitar hopped forward as if to answer his question, and kept going before turning back and tilting her body in the direction of what appeared to be a building in the distance. From what Seth could see, the structure that she was directing them to, was the power plant that kept all of Lumiose City up and running. That's when it hit him. When his journey first began, he remembered half the city being out of power. At first it didn't make sense. But now, it was all clear as to why. Team Flare was the culprit, which meant that it was time to pay the power plant a visit.