Stupid. He felt astronomically stupid. Looking down at his hands, he remembered the places they had roamed. It was as if they were moving on their own and rebelling against his better judgement. Every sharp intake of air, every pleasurable moan, echoed in his mind on replay as he ran it over in his mind. Had he really just done that?

The feeling of losing something so sacred for the sake of feeling close to someone, made him feel incredibly guilty. While the repercussions were uncertain at this point, there was an upside to it, and it was that knowledge that terrified him a little.

I just had sex... with Jupiter. And I was okay with that...

Gabe trembled at this revelation. The things he allowed her to do to him were both incredible and scary at the same time. It was incredible because of the pleasurable feeling he experienced, and scary for that exact same reason. Her unsubtle advances made it clear to him just how little effort she needed to exercise in order to have him wrapped around her finger. Even more sad was the fact that part of him actually wanted it and willingly succumbed to the dangerous temptation that had been presented to him.

Having left her apartment several hours ago, he found himself enroute to the Hotel Grand Lake where he would visit one of his favorite places from the games.

"Almost there Jamie," Gabe said with a faint smile as he walked down the snowladen pathway towards the Seven Stars Restaurant. "I could really use a good battle to clear my head right about now..."

Jamie canted her head at this remark. Leaning her face over, she nuzzled his cheek and gave an affectionate purr. Though she wasn't certain what was going on inside Gabe's mind, she would do her best to show that she would be there for him.

"Here we are Jamie, the Hotel Grand Lake!"

Jamie looked up at the wonder that was the Hotel Grand Lake. The entire resort consisted of a multitude of expensive bungalows. Sitting right in the center of it was the most popular restaurant in all of Sinnoh. The Seven Stars Restaurant.

As he began to walk towards the restaurant, a familiar voice called out to him, stopping him dead in his tracks.

"HEY BARRY!"

Gabe blinked and turned his head to look over his shoulder at the approaching young girl known as Mira.

"Oh hey, it's been a while... Mira, right?"

"Yep! How are you!?" the peppy youth inquired, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she looked up at him.

"Uh... well..." he stumbled, pushing the images of Jupiter in her birthday suit to the farthest corners of his mind. "I'm okay I guess... you?"

"I'm super! I finally got my fourth badge a few days ago. I've been training since then and I'm here to test how strong my team is!" Mira grinned happily.

She's as energetic as always, Gabe mused, glancing up at the establishment with a contemplative look. Maybe I need some of that energy right now...

"Hey Mira, wanna team up?"

Mira turned her head, her eyes widening at his question.

"For real!?" she gasped.

Gabe nodded.

"That would be awesome! Thank you so much. I promise I'll be a great teammate!" Mira exclaimed excitedly.

I have no doubt you will... thought Gabe, remembering how powerful her Kadabra was and how strong her team would potentially be.

"Okay then, let's head on in then," Gabe said as he began walking.

"Right behind you!" Mira beamed, following him happily into the establishment.

Upon entering, Gabe felt a sudden wave of uneasiness wash over him. The moment he walked inside, he felt almost every eye on him. The hostess looked his way and walked up to him with a bright smile on her face.

"Welcome to the Seven Stars. Table for two?" asked the hostess.

Gabe and Mira nodded.

"Perfect. Names please?"

"Barry and Mira," Barry replied.

"Got it. Okay, Roman and Kylie, please follow us to the arena. Thank you so much for waiting," the hostess called to the couple who had been patiently waiting for a battling opportunity.

"Yay! This is gonna be so much fun!" Mira chirped gleefully.

"Indeed it will be, seeing as we are up against one of the winning duo of the Hearthome City Battle Tournament," Roman inputted.

"Ah... you guys saw that?" Gabe replied sheepishly.

"Not only that, but we participated. Unfortunately we were eliminated early, but that's just life I suppose," Kylie shrugged.

"You two seem pretty chill about it," Gabe pointed out. "Didn't it frustrate you a little?"

"Of course it did! We had gotten a lot farther last year. Alas, our matchup was less than ideal," Kylie sighed.

"But, we have no regrets. It was fun, even though we didn't last long. Perhaps our luck will change here," Roman stated confidently.

"Best of luck then," Gabe said as they came to a halt.

"Same to you," Kylie replied politely.

The hostess turned her head and nodded to two waitresses on both sides. Getting the message, they released two Alakazam from their spherical homes. Without having to be told, they immediately erected a barrier that protected the customers. The hostess then cleared her throat to garner attention.

"Alright everyone, we have another battle for your enjoyment! customers Barry and Mira will face off against Roman and Kylie! the winners will receive their choice of the remaining tables while the losing team settles for a smaller table that we give them."

"Oh! If we win, can we get a booth!? They're so comfy and also good for naps," Mira requested, prompting a chuckle out of Roman and Kylie.

"She's quite enthusiastic isn't she? have you two been together long?" Roman asked.

"What!?" Gabe sputtered. "Hold on a sec, Mira and I are-"

"Buddies! I think... maybe? anyway, we're just friends. Dad won't let me date until I'm sixteen," Mira giggled.

Roman blused from embarrassment. Kylie stifled a giggle so as not to embarrass her fiance any further than he had done so himself.

"A thousand pardons Barry. I couldn't help but assume considering how the two of you entered together," Roman added apologetically.

"It's no problem... really," Gabe replied with a nervous laugh.

"If you four are ready, we can begin. Each side is allowed one Pokémon only, so choose carefully, and send it out now," the hostess instructed them.

"Lickilicky, it's time to battle!" Roman called out, releasing the long-tongued Pokémon from its chamber.

In all my years of playing this game... I will still never understand what they were thinking giving that an evolution. Even its tongue is shorter... well unless it stretches it that is. Still, who decided that was a good idea?

"Clefable, the honor is yours!" Kylie declared.

"Those two look strong! Okay, my turn. Porygon-Z, let's have some fun!" Mira shouted gleefully.

The Virtual Pokémon floated onto the field and looked around at its surroundings. Uon seeing its foes, it began to analyze them, in order to determine an appropriate course of action. 

Gabe analyzed the duo before him as well and knew immediately who he would use.

It's been a while, but you're perfect for the job...

"Aron, let's go buddy!" Gabe shouted upon releasing the tiny ironclad Pokémon onto the dining room floor.

Aron materialized and glanced back at his trainer, an excited coo echoing from his mouth as he spotted his friend.

"Ready Aron?" Gabe asked, getting an excited "ron!" from his companion.

Gabe grinned and focused his eyes on his opposition. However, just as the battle began, the sound of rattling metal was heard. Gabe and the others looked down to see Aron wiggling out of his cumbersome armor.

He's... shedding? I forgot they did that. Wait... whenever Aron shed they--

Aron's body soon began to bulge, growing larger and longer with every passing second. Thick, armor plating began forming on Aron's stony flesh, replacing the discarded steel he formerly wore. His legs grew thicker and now had actual claws attached to them. A small tail protruded from his backside. Instead of a cute coo, a more intimidating roar was heard upon the evolution's completion.

"Lairon..." Gabe said breathlessly as he beheld his new metallic beast. 'Bout time...

"Oh wow! that's so cool, he evolved!" Mira chirped.

"And just in time too," Roman commented. "He looks fierce."

"Both sides ready?" asked the hostess, earning a nod from either side. "Since Roman and Kylie were waiting, they have the first move. Also, here at Seven Stars, we have one rule to make things fair. When one of you loses, the match is immediately over. This is to avoid double-teaming an opponent. That being said... you may begin!"

"Clefairy, use Focus Blast on Porygon-Z!" Kylie commanded.

"Lickilicky, follow her lead! Focus Blast that Lairon!" Roman shouted.

"Lairon, let's try out that new body of yours. Defend with Iron Tail!" Gabe riposted.

As others were dishing out commands, Mira remained silent and patiently waited as Clefable powered up and launched a massive orange orb of light towards her teammate. While Gabe's Lairon planted his feet and prepared himself, her Pokémon remained still... and took the assault head on, creating an explosion that made the barrier vibrate.

Lairon bashed the blast away with his tail and glanced worriedly over at his partner who was encased in a cloud of smoke.

"Uh... Mira?" Gabe began, his eyes fixed on her face as she watched the cloud disperse slowly.

Even Roman and Kylie were just as confused as he was about the course of action she took. But when the smoke cleared to reveal Porygon-Z still afloat, Gabe gave a sigh of relief. Mira however, was grinning.

"Thanks! I needed that," Mira announced, cracking her knuckles. "My turn now. Conversion Two!"

Porygon-Z's eyes lit up and it's systems began processing the received data.

So that's what she was after! That's... so evil...

An audible beeping sound signaled the conversion completion.

"Now then, let's do this! Psybeam!" Mira cried out.

"Lairon, attack Clefable with Iron Head!" Gabe roared.

"Clefable, drive him back with Flamethrower!" Kylie defended.

"Ice Beam now!" Roman ordered sharply.

Porygon-Z channeled psychic energy into its mainframe and produced a multicolored orb before its mouth. After a moment, a beam erupted from the orb and clashed with the chilling blast from Lickilicky.

Meanwhile, Lairon rampaged towards Clefable while leaping away from streams of fire. Having closed the distance, Lairon lunged, reinforcing his cranium with a thicker layer of steel mid-jump. Taking the opportunity, Clefable loosed a close range Flamethrower. The flames licked at his body as he pushed though. Too close for her to dodge, Lairon rammed Clefable in the gut, catapulting her backwards into the barrier.

Lairon winced as he landed and shook his body vigorously. Of all the things he had expected to do, jumping straight into a Flamethrower was not one of them.

Porygon-Z floated idly as a Focus Blast went right through it. Roman palmed his face, shaking his head at his own blunder.

"Of course, Conversion Two... silly me. Lickilicky, Flamethrower please!" Roman commanded.

"Zap Cannon!" Mira countered.

Lickilicky blasted the air with a thick stream of fire in attempts to scorch his opposition. However, the sentient, manmade Pokémon had other ideas. An unstable sphere of electrical energy formed in front of Porygon-Z, gathering more power before it was swiftly launched towards the foe. The blast hammered into the cone of fire and pushed it back completely, making a solid connection with the adversary, knocking him back into the barrier as he convulsed from the shock and the flames. After hitting the barrier after being fried, Lickilicky fell flat on his face.

"Lickilicky is unable to battle! Therefore the match is over. Barry and Mira are our winners!" the hostess declared.

"Yay! we won!" Mira squealed excitedly as she jumped up and down.

Lairon powered down his Mirror Shot attack and backed away from Clefable and sat on his haunches, letting out an exasperated huff of air. A beam of crimson light soon returned him to his home.

"Good work Lairon, you did great!" Gabe commended his friend before hitching the ball back onto his belt.

Clapping was heard as the barriers were let down and the Pokémon were returned.

"That was rather fun. The two if you made a good team," Kylie complimented, reaching out to shake Mira's hand while Roman shook Gabe's.

"Thanks! you two were awesome too!" Mira beamed, withdrawing her hand after a moment and politely bobbing a curtsey to her opponents.

Kylie smiled at the gesture and returned it.

"Enjoy your meal you two. Perhaps we'll battle again sometime," said Roman as he turned to walk towards a small table off to the side.

"Thanks, you too," Gabe replied, turning to follow the hostess to the booth they had earned.

Time went by and during the meal, Gabe was able to, for a little while, forget about his night with Jupiter and the stress it put on his mind. It wasn't because he didn't enjoy it that caused him stress. It was because he did enjoy it. And what made it worse was the fact that he wanted more. He didn't know why.

He wasn't experienced, as Jupiter could readily tell after exploiting his lack thereof and extreme sensitivity. He had always imagined his first time with someone as inexperienced and awkward as he was. Jupiter took things to a whole new level. After Gabe and Mira finished, Gabe picked up the tab using some of his winnings from the tournament. With that done, the two headed out, thanking the hostess for a wonderful meal.

"That was so fun!!!" Mira shouted gleefully. "Wasn't it awesome?"

"I'll say, you were great Mira," Gabe stated with a grin.

"Your Aron evolving was cool! I had never seen one evolve before," Mira admitted.

"Me either," Gabe chuckled. "So... I guess I'll see you around huh?"

Mira nodded. "Yup! I'm heading back to Veilstone to see a friend. Oh! can we swap numbers? we could totally video chat."

"Sure, I've got no problem with that," Gabe replied, swapping contact information with her before putting his gear away.

"Sweet! thanks Barry. I'll see ya around!" Mira called back as she took off running.

Gabe waved to her as she ran and breathed a heavy sigh.

"Well... Pastoria City is just a little farther from here. I could go straight there... or I could go check out the Pokémon Mansion! I always liked that place in the games. Especially the Trophy Garden," Gabe said to himself as he snapped off Tropius's ball and released him.

Hopping onto the sauropod's back, the two lifted off as Gabe gave the command to fly, and soared through the air towards their newest destination.