The trio finally arrived in Santalune City not long after. It was a beautiful city, with architecture that spoke to the city’s long history. White stone buildings, flowers along the sides of the roads, elaborate fountains, and vines and platlife growing up and along the buildings, walls, and gates.
At the Pokemon Center, Crystal was grateful to sleep in a bed and take a real shower. The next day the three of them did some sight-seeing. They mostly stuck around the main downtown area, where they looked around a few boutiques and Kai scouted out a location he needed to review before they left.
The group made their way to the Santalune Gym. Mige signed up first and got a gym match for only a day later while Crystal would have to wait more than a week. Mige apologized but Crystal didn’t mind; it just gave her more time to train. Plus she actually needed the time to catch a third Pokemon anyway.
Mige went off into the Santalune Forest to train alone while Crystal went off to train with Froakie and Heracross. She was just getting to know them, and she needed to understand their strengths and their weaknesses. Froakie was fast, but fragile. Heracross was strong, stocky, and slow. She trained with them—running, push-ups, sparring bouts; her normal routine. Heracorss took to it really well, but Froakie was getting widned super easy. She told Froakie she was happy that he was trying. It’d all get easier with time; he shouldn’t push himself too much.
That night, as both Crystal and Mige returned from training, Kai invited them both to dinner with him at the restaurant he’d scouted out before. The publisher made reservations for four the next night, so if they knew anybody in the area that might want to go with them, give them a call. Crystal didn’t know anybody, but Mige called a girl named Viola, as a way to say ‘thank you’ for saving him from a criminal in the forest earlier in the day.
That night, Crystal went for a walk and found a nice bar. She texted the guys to see if they wanted to join her. Kai was busy, but Mige accetped. While she waited for him, she noticed a few guys ogling her from nearby. She minded her own business, but before long the guys came up to her to talk, and flirt, and ask if she was doing anything later. She was used to the song and dance, and while she’d gotten good at playing polite to the public, she was still relieved when Mige arrived and the group of dudes finally left her alone. The two talked; among other things, their strategies for the gym came up, as did talk about some of the events from the Indigo Conference. and overall had a really nice chat.
When Mige fought Beckett the next day, Crystal and Kai were in the stands cheering him on. Crystal observed both of them as they fought, learning some basic tenants of their fighting styles. Hey, she and Mige might have to battle one day and she wanted to be prepared. Mige eventually won the Bug Badge.
Dinner with Kai was that night. Crystal suggested the three of them have a sort of color theme. Kai was into it, but Mige revealed that he didn’t have any formal clothes with him. Well that wouldn’t do, Crystal said; they might not even let him through the door. She took Mige shopping for nice clothes, and while she did ask him for his opinions or suggestions, she eventually ended up picking out Mige’s outfit herself. She wished he’d agreed to the purple pocket square. It would have been super dapper.
Crystal had a few dresses for the occasion to choose from; she wanted something that fit in, but wasn’t too formal; something appropriate for the occasion but still light and fun. She tried to ask Heracross and Froakie for their opinions, but they seemed completely lost.
“Boys.” she playfully sighed and giggled.
The three of them were seated at the restaurant and it was one of those things she’d grown used to working in her industry and knowing the people she knew. She could tell Mige was uncomfortable with how formal it all was, so she tried to keep conversation lively and light. They were joined by Viola Rousseau, Mige’s new friend. She was super cool and down to Earth, and had the super cool job of photographer. Crystal and Viola followed each other on PokeGram.
During dinner, Viola brought up a weird situation in the forest that she was looking into. It involved the possible appearance of a thought-extinct evolution of Scyther, known as Kleavor, causing havoc in the Santalune Forest. Viola invited Mige along, and extended the invite to Crystal and Kai. While Kai was hesitant to accept, Crystal accepted pretty much immediately.
In the time leading up to the trip (they had two days to kill) Crystal traveled east of town to catch her third Pokemon. It was a sprawling grassland dotted with cottages and farm estates. It was also home to roving groups of Pyroar and their cubs. Crystal would run across a group of them while fleeing from a group of twelve angry Dunsparce. Pyroar did not like humans, but they hated Dunsparce more. They attacked her pursuers, and Crystal managed to capture one of the Litleo before she peaced out.
