Hard Enough

We appeared in the main lounge room, only to find ourselves surrounded by chaos.

The entire room was a mess, with the couches pushed to one side. Blankets and pillows were strewn about the room and there were food wrappers everywhere, notably with food still in some of them.

Munchlax was obviously heavily involved with whatever had happened if there was still food on the ground that he hadn’t claimed. There was no way he’d have left that lying there otherwise.

“You don’t have any authority here!” shouted Suzie from another part of the apartment, alerting me to where some of the drama was currently taking place.

I strode through the turned-over room to find yet more mess everywhere. Chairs were turned over in the hallway and a table had been flipped. I could see a few piles of clothing laying out in the open with no suitcases in sight. What?

Had the thieves rummaged through our suitcases? Anger began to well up from within, accompanied by fear.

“Everyone alright?” I asked Sabrina.

Her confirming nod let me relax, the fear vanishing, only for the anger to remain.

Hadn’t I gone through enough drama this year without piling on whatever this was? I did not like the look of the rooms we walked past, but thankfully no one was crying or hurt, so that was a start.

She was brandishing it at Detective Looker. The only reason the man hadn’t been… mopped up, it seemed, was because Yolanda was holding Suzie back and coaxing her to let her handle this.

“Suzie, please just let me scan the man’s badge. We have the app for it on our transceivers for this reason, remember?” she said gently.

“How do I know you’re not a spy that stole that badge? Also! I’ve seen police be bad people in movies sometimes!” shouted Suzie, still at the top of her lungs.

“Hmmmm, I have to compliment you on your logic there young lady,” said Looker, the badge still held out for Yolanda to scan. He appeared to not be phased by either girl’s suspicion in the least. If anything, it sounded like he approved.

His eyes flickered up to me.

“What was the pokemon you discovered and then adopted in the Team Rocket Academy raid?” he said firmly.

Suzie tilted her head. “Huh, what are you…” she trailed off as she turned and noticed me. “Brock! You’re back! We have the bad guys locked down!” she said.

“Oh, really?” I said, feeling extremely uncertain about this. I dipped down to pick her up before turning back to Looker. “Gible,” I said, before deciding that turnabout was fair play. “How did the executive that attacked us try and get away?” I asked.

“Oh, he tried to pass himself off as one of us,” he said easily. He then flicked his eyes to Sabrina. “Gym Leaders, may I take a look at the would-be thieves?” he asked.

I directed my gaze to Suzie. “Where’d you lock them up?” I asked.

“They’re not locked up,” Suzie said happily, brandishing her mop like a knight would a lance.

I felt my heart rate spike only for her to grin. “We have the Growlithe pack keeping them from moving.”

Yolanda waved for us to follow and we did so. Sabrina had an odd smirk on her face that let me know that something humorous was afoot, but I was too taken in by the mess to give her any more of my attention right now.

“Did they get chased around a bit? Is that what caused all this mess?” I asked, indicating the state of the hall and lounge room.

Yolanda twitched mid stride but kept walking. “Yup! It was the crooks,” she said.

I directed an extremely doubtful stare at her back. Yolanda coughed, knowing that she hadn’t done much to mislead me. “Alright, only some of it was. They didn’t get into the lounge room, I don’t think,” she said.

We entered one of the main bedrooms and found Flint standing over a pair of hapless thieves. Each thief had several Growlithe biting them in various places. One had the honour of one on a hand and another on their leg, while another stood between their legs, muzzle over their crotch.

The thieves themselves were dressed in a manner that reminded me of hikers who had been out in the wilds for too long, with how unkempt their appearances were. Their clothes were worn and they had tears all over them. That probably also had a lot to do with the pokemon currently latched onto them.

I could see one man was missing a section of his pants, with his bare leg on display.

Standing over the thieves and the Growlithe, Flint and Munchlax stood vigil.

Munchlax just happened to have a stack of boxes and suitcases piled up, standing atop it. That explained why so many clothes were littered everywhere. I tilted my head. Munchlax’s position reminded me of a diver on a springboard.

At their feet, Bertha sat with Gible in her lap. She glared down at them, while Gible stared hungrily at the pair of men, his teeth gleaming as she stroked him.

I had a mental image of her copying a supervillain with their cat. Only for her, Gible was the cat.

At her side, Hypnotoad punched her fist into her palm while eying the pair of men. The perfect henchwoman.

With both of the men locked down I took my time to search their faces.

One man had scruffy hair with a wiry beard. The other was bald and baby-faced with eyes like a Sentret that had been caught by… a pack of Growlithe.

They were the sort of faces that stood out and you wouldn’t forget.

I had no idea who either of these men were.

One of the men twitched, only to then stiffen as the various pokemon around him locked onto his movement. More than a few seemed to tighten their holds.

“Don’t swallow that sausage! Nice doggy!” whined the man as his eyes shot to his family jewels.

I glanced at them only to find Lady of all Growlithe sitting with her mouth open, not latched, but definitely threatening the man’s crotch. Had she always been taught to do that, or was it a recent development?

“Shut up Marl! Take it like a man and look for a way out!” snarled the other man. “Ouch! Stop it with your teeth! That hurts!” he said, glaring at Hephaestus who had shaken his head slightly to let the man know he wasn’t getting away.

“Ah, hello there gentlemen,” said Detective Looker, stepping into the room. “I recognise the two of you from some camera footage. Break and entry, petty theft, and the odd thuggery. You decided that was too small for you, did you?”

I frowned. “You know these men?” I said.

Bertha looked up and positioned her hand in such a way that she was ready to throw Gible at Detective Looker if he turned out to be a plant. I waved at her to calm down.

Looker nodded, eyes flicking towards Gible’s teeth, well aware of how careful his next words needed to be. “Lou, and Marl. Known as the Splash Bandits. Both men are small-time crooks who have served time before. They were mostly known for hitting rich people’s yachts, holiday homes and garages. They are, however, career criminals that we keep a lookout for, as they have a… predilection which has only continued since childhood.”

“I ain’t been to prison! This is mistaken identity!” said ‘Lou’, the scruffy-haired one of the pair. “We were just walking by when this mob jumped us!”

Looker scoffed. “I’m not even going to bother with that lie. We’re five stories up. This isn’t a simple step on their lawn and got jumped. This is you, in their apartment.” He waved a hand about. “Now while the place was obviously a mess before you got here, I suspect that If I had to, I could find fingerprints where they don’t belong.”

“Planted!” shouted both men, only to grimace as the Growlithe pack growled as one.

“We teach some classes on your methods at the police academy, you know?” Looker said conversationally. “It’s a class on crooks that just… don’t know how deep they’ve gotten themselves in until it’s too late.”

Both men frowned at this odd turn in their arrest. They shared a glance and then looked back to Looker. “What are you talking about?” said Marl.

Look just shook his head in a forlorn manner. “You’re going to be going away for a very, very long time indeed.”

“What? Cause we tried to steal some jewellery? So what? That’s a year or two tops!” said Marl, his bald head starting to sweat.

Looker stared. “Louise Longevile, you…” he took a moment to bark out a laugh. “Oh my! You truly have no idea whose apartment this is, nor whose family this is, do you?” he said.

Lou made a show of scoffing and glaring at the kids. “Some punk rich types with too many pokemon and kids for their own goo…” he trailed off as he turned and caught sight of Sabrina and me.

“Ah, shit,” he said.

Suzie threw the mop at him. “Language!” she said.

Looker caught it before it could hit him and he offered her a smile. “I think I’ll handle the interrogation, little miss,” he said. “Ah, indeed Louise, now, you understand your predicament. You might not have gotten the news or you might have been on the run, but Gym Leaders like Brock specifically? Well he’s a special security case that entitles police to use different measures when interrogating people looking to harm him.”

Lou swallowed. “Wait! I’m…” his eyes darted about frantically. “I’m allergic to psychic energy! Deathly so! I once rubbed up against a Jynx and came up in hives! It’s not on any medical reports, but it exists I swear!”

Sabrina floated so that she was parallel with them. From her position of height she stared the man down. “Such claims have long been debunked, and while they are constantly claimed again and again, they are very much proven to be false rumours. Something that many a lawyer has tried to perpetuate, but have been stung with malpractice,” said Sabrina firmly.

Her eyes began to glow. “Now, Detective Looker has some questions for you, and you are going to answer them, or I am going to have to draw up every, little, horrible, secret you have in that little mind of yours.”

I felt a glimmer of glee, knowing that no matter what this pair did, it would result in us learning everything we needed to know.

Suzie stared up at Sabrina. “Woooooah! Big sis is scary!” she said.

I coughed, my glee vanishing as I realised how what was about to happen might not be considered PG thirteen. There might be things said or done that would raise questions in little minds.

Arceus above, I didn’t need Suzie deciding to play a game of ‘interrogation tactics’ with her classmates and having that take hold. That… would be a very awkward interview with the other parents and teachers.

I decided that now was a good time to drag any kids out of the room.

“I think it’s best we leave the experts to their work,” I said. I didn’t exactly want anything said or done that would… further scar the kids.

Flint nodded and moved out. “I think that’s a good idea, Munchlax… thank you for backing me up, now let’s go.” I inspected him and noted that he wasn’t shaking or white in the face.

Hmmm, so he could get aggressive without it bothering him if his family was on the line? Good to know.

“Rhy?” asked Bertha.

I waved a hand indicating that she should stay. “You’re good,” I said.

Looker squatted down and smiled gently at Lou and Marl. I could see the formation of standard ‘Good cop bad cop’ scenario forming before my eyes. “You are someone’s catspaw, that much is obvious. So, who sent you?” he asked, just as I stepped out.

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I glanced back and cleared my throat. Yolanda, who’d remained behind after Flint and I had left, stiffened and followed with slumped shoulders. I shook my head and she nodded as I shut the door.

Suzie stared at the door before glancing up at me. “Brock? Are those bad men going to go to prison?” she asked innocently.

“Most likely little sis, most likely,” I said. I eyed her for a moment. “Are you feeling alright? You’re not scared or angry or anything?”

“Oh, I’m angry!” said Suzie as she put her hand on her hips while still being cradled on my own hip. “They tried to steal my egg!” she said with a snarl.

“Really?” I said, the urge to march back in and show Suzie how to kick a man while he was down rising up before I smothered it. No Brock that would be bad parenting. Even if it would be wonderfully satisfying.

“Yeah!” said Suzie. “They tried to claim they just wanted to look at it! They were saying they were one of the other kids' uncles or something, but that was super shady and I told them! Then Yolanda came back from getting the room service and was like ‘Get them Growlithe!’ And suddenly there were Growlithe everywhere! Zubat was screaming at them and they tried to get a pokemon out but it was all loud! I grabbed the egg and rolled under the couch but made sure to kick anyone that came close!”

Yolanda grunted. “I was wondering where I got this bruise from!” she said, indicating a small mark under her sock.

“Oh,” Suzie said, her rant stalling as she realised that her amazing plan hadn’t been such a good idea. “Sorry?” she said sheepishly.

Yolanda sighed. “It’s fine, but maybe next time just get out of the room. When Bertha started throwing pillows at the Meowth that was running around it was pretty worrying.”

“Meowth?” I asked, my mind slipping to the only Meowth that I knew personally, aka Team Rocket Meowth.

“Yeah, there were two running around, both had sacks in their mouths as they darted around.” Yolanda said. “Bertha nailed one, and it dropped its sacks.”

“What did they have?” I asked.

“Mostly the cheap jewellery that the others like to wear and some of my nicer earrings,” said Yolanda. “I think they were just grabbing anything shiny to be honest, cause there were bangles and even some of the shiny toys that Billy and Tilly play with.”

“Where is this sack? Did it get put away?” I asked, my mind turning over why they would have grabbed those things.

Yolanda indicated the dining room where I found two sacks. I inspected them and found that what Yolanda had said was true. “Where are the Meowth?” I asked.

Yolanda coughed. “Uhm.. they jumped out the window and slid down the pipes before running off. I think Zubat might still be harassing them though, as she hasn’t yet come back.”

“Oh, she went after them?” I said, worried for her. While I wouldn’t have any fears for her in a normal pokemon battle, a criminal chase wasn’t the same thing.

“Yeah, a few of the parents went after them as well,” Yolanda said. “I think those cats are going to have to be very quick on their feet if they want to get away.”

I shot her a questioning look. “Why’s that?”

“Dr. Furor has a Beedrill and she looked really mad. I think she takes client safety very personally… also she’s super happy to be invited along.” Yolanda supplied.

I nodded and decided to take a step back.

Alright, the thieves were caught, or in the case of the pokemon perps, they were on the run with a mob giving chase. They mustn’t have been gone for long if a Beedrill of all pokemon hadn’t brought them back by now.

I hummed. No, that wasn’t what I needed to be doing right now. “Where are the other kids?” I asked.

“They’re in my room, it was the least trashed… cause I had unpacked everything, so the thieves didn’t have to dig around,” said Yolanda, with a weirded-out look on her face.

I marched towards her room. “Something wrong?”

“No, it’s just weird thinking that thieves would have a harder time searching my stuff if I was messy.”

“Ah, but you’d also have a harder time noticing anything was missing if they had gotten in and out without you keeping things tidy.” I made a show of looking at the various clothing piles. “As it is, I’m going to have my work cut out checking if other things didn’t get pinched,” I said.

Yolanda looked a bit vindicated at that logic. I opened the door and found my other siblings sitting around with Salvadore and Olga standing close. Both of them relaxed when they spotted me.

“Brock’s back!” they shouted and everyone rushed in to hug me.

“Hey family!” I said, reaching out wide and hugging them as my eyes darted around their various forms. With six more kids to check over it took a bit but I eventually relaxed even more. “I’m glad to see you’re all okay!” I said.

“Brock! Brock! I told Sirius to bite and he did it!” said Timmy proudly.

Flint ruffled his hair. “Ata boy!” he said as I nodded proudly.

“I threw a pillow!” “I shouted for help!” “I called the police!” chimed in the other children and I dutifully nodded along. I chuckled as they continued to make claims which only grew in the retelling. Timmy made exaggerated claims of using ninja moves that Janine had taught them to kick butt, while Salvadore and Olga claimed that they’d set up an elaborate trap for the thieves which they’d fallen into.

I shot Salvadore an amused look. I was pretty sure that was part of the Home Alone plot and while a couple of thieves had come in and been thwarted… I paused in thought.

Relatively rich, check. Pair of thieves looked like second-rate hacks. Check. A family that had… a lot of kids. Check.

Huh, my family totally could be stand-ins for a Home Alone style story if things went aspear shaped.

I glanced around, noting that Flint was also getting a lot of praise for storming in and ‘directing the chaos’ so to speak. “And then daddy was like! Growlithe pack! Attack!” and they all sprinted out of their sleeping spots and pounced on the thieves!” said Salvadore, shooting Flint a proud look.

Flint grinned giddily and I wet my lips. “Good job,” I said, looking him right in the eyes and nodding.

He met my eyes and beamed. “Thanks son!” he said, and for once it didn’t feel bad to have him say it.

I nodded, deciding to let him say it this time and he, if anything, stood taller at that.

I looked around at the others only to find Cindy sitting off by herself looking morose. I deposited Suzie into Flint’s arms and moved over. “Hey, are you alright?” I said making sure to crouch down as I did so.

I hadn’t seen a bruise or anything that meant she was hurt, but perhaps she was feeling shocked or even scared now that someone had broken in like this.

“....” she whispered.

I leaned in. “Sorry, I didn’t hear that, are you alright?” I said. Behind me, the other kids paused in their chatter and I could feel their collective gaze turn upon Cindy and I.

Cindy looked up and I found myself staring into tear-filled eyes. “I let them in! I thought they were just someone’s uncle!”

“Oh,” I said, realising what the issue was. “Well that’s—”

“I forgot the safety talk you made us do last year! I thought you were just being…” Cindy stomped her foot, tears still streaking down her face. “I don’t know what I was thinking, but I just wasn’t! I was waiting for my friends to come up and thought it was their weird uncles or something I let those two into the apartment to go through our stuff! I didn’t even question them!”

I pulled her into a hug. “Hey, no. It’s not your fault that they’re bad men,” I told her, making sure to be firm with my words, but say them in as kind a manner as possible. I held her for a moment and felt someone else approach.

“I… might have also let them in, ‘cause I haven’t really thought about the safety talk in a while… even with what happened earlier this year…” Salvadore said. “It’s not your fault Cindy,” he said, before leaning in and joining the hug.

Tommy was next. “I would have made the same mistake! And I’m smarter than you!” he said before smashing his body into mine and wrapping his arms around me and Cindy.

Cindy laughed wetly. “Liar! I scored better than you on reading and writing!” she said.

“I scored better in pokemon studies and math!” Tommy replied before he laughed. I got the feeling these two teased each other about this a bit. I smiled. I hadn’t known they did that.

The other kids moved to hug Cindy and ‘forgive her’ for making an honest mistake.

Flint was last. “I probably would have fallen for their tricks, and I haven’t sat through any safety talk. Maybe we can revisit that?” said Flint.

Cindy giggled at that and as the hug broke off she wiped her face. “You’ll find it super boring. Brock tells us about stranger danger and not letting people into the house. Or that if people claim to be police it’s alright to check their badge number, or what to do in fires, or wild pokemon,” she said.

This time it was Flint’s turn to look my way. “That… sounds like a very important talk that I think I need to learn. How about you teach it to me, Cindy? That way I won’t find it as boring?” he offered.

I sniffed in a manner that let him know I was mock-offended by his insinuation. “I’ll have you know I use sock puppets and everything! It’s very interesting!”

“No you don’t and it is super boring!” said Cindy.

I scoffed and decided to move along. I gave her another hug and whispered. “If you need to talk to me or anyone about this, you’re more than welcome,” I said.

She nodded and hugged me back before wetting her lips. “I’ll be fine, I’m your little sister, after all! I have to be rock tough!” she said, adopting my fighting pose with my arms crossed over each other.

I smiled and shook my head. “Not all the time, and sometimes you need to be soft,” I said as I rubbed my hand over her head affectionately.

Flint decided to speak up. “How about we go down to the pool before it closes for the night!” This got most of the kids to cheer, and while Cindy didn’t seem super for it, she let herself be dragged along.

I sighed and let them go, knowing that I would need to talk with Looker about his findings. I glanced about at the mess and grumbled a bit before perking up. “I might not have to clean it yet, since it’s a crime scene,” I said.

I moved back to the bedrum-cum-interrogation room only to find Looker directing Jenny and another police officer on how to handle the two men. “You’re to sit with them on the ride to the station, as while they are gifted escapists they are also non-violent. If they do get physical, you can handle them as you need,” he said.

Marl stiffened at that. “Hey! Woah now! There’s no need for police brutality! I’m a lover! Honest!” said the hairy man.

Jenny grabbed the other man and frogmarched him out the door. I raised an eyebrow at Looker and he gestured to a nearby table. “It seems that someone had hired them to attempt to steal your Megastone or Keystone.”

I blinked, having not expected that. “Really? They thought that two thieves could waltz in and take it?”

Looker glanced around. “Admittedly, they did get into your family apartment…” he raised a hand when I glowered at him. “They are confidence tricksters, so it’s not a mark against your family. Others have fallen for their ways before.”

I nodded before glancing around. “Where’s Sabrina?”

“We discovered that whoever hired Lou and Marl decided that a dead drop would be appropriate as a method of skirting any risks that might present themselves. I suspect they at least knew that they’d be risking yours and Sabrina’s ire, if not a lot of police.”

“You make it sound like I’m a protected species of pokemon or something,” I said, amused at the idea of the police mobilising for me.

“You helped us root out some very crooked cops that had been hiding under our noses. If not directly, then at least indirectly,” he said, tapping his nose. “I am well aware of how, through a chain of events, you’ve helped push certain dominos that have led to Team Rocket’s fall from grace,” he said.

He waved a hand at me. “There’s also the fact that you operate somewhat as a policeman yourself, and have a good working relationship with the Pewter department. That means something to police, Brock, trust me, it does,” he said seriously

“Huh,” I said, scratching the side of my cheek. I’d been joking, but learning all of that… well, it kind of made sense.

“Any clue who was pulling the strings?” I asked.

“Someone looking for a quick power up,” replied Looker. “That, or they were looking to deny you your power up,” he said before sighing.

“Sadly… motive is something that can be attributed to several people at this event. This tournament having some shadowplay taking place behind the scenes or having it dragged into the open like this? All too common at big events,” Looker said with a shake of his head.

I frowned in thought. Just on that statement everyone that I had a shot at fighting were potential suspects.

I frowned. Kaede, in the brief interactions I’d had with her, hadn’t struck me as duplicitous. Neither had Corey.

Just because I had beaten him didn’t mean he was excluded, though. If anything, there was more of a risk he could have been involved. Me being rattled or having to forfeit the match due to family dramas would have been an easy way to advance.

I chewed my lip. It might have worked.

Something else Looker said bothered me, and I turned his words back over in my mind. “The Megastone and Keystone I use for evolving Jormungandr, my Steelix,” I said slowly. “It’s not a quick power-up. It’s something you have to work at for… at least a few months,” I said.

Looker quirked an eyebrow. “Really now? That isn’t something that’s written in the brochures that Devon Corp are sharing around,” he said.

I frowned at that before huffing. “Might make it less attractive for people if they realise there’s a bit more to it,” I said.

Looker, if anything, relaxed. “While it’s not great news, it is good to know that not anyone with ideas of quick powerups can snag one. It also means that any criminals that appear with Mega Evolutions are likely to be the ones that are highly skilled at what they do. For trainers, it will mean that they need riches or connections, for thieves? You just need to break and enter against the right trainer,” he said.

I nodded. “After me, Sabrina, and Steven Stone revealed our Mega Evolutions, I know they are very hot topics right now. I wonder how many have made deals with Devon Corp so far?”

Looker shifted and I got the impression he knew. I decided to not press, I could probably ask Koga and he’d tell me. I decided to send a message later about that.

“So, do I need to let people in to take photos?” I asked.

Looker sighed and nodded. “We can be quick,” he said. “Give us an hour.”

I nodded. “My pokemon will remain, just in case, “ I said, and he nodded in understanding. Trust, after all, was rather limited right now.

I decided to join my family down by the pool. I opened the door to do just that, only to encounter a familiar trio of faces.

James, Jessie and Meowth all blinked in surprise. James lowered the hand he’d been about to use to knock on the door. “Oh, you’re in, hello!” he said.

I was about to say something, only for a roar of growls to erupt from behind me as the Growlithe pack caught sight of Meowth.

Meowth stiffened. “Stolen stuff? I ain’t been anywhere near here!” he said with his nasally tone.

The Growlithe obviously didn’t trust him, and the growling increased in volume.

“Heel,” I said, which cut off the growling. I waved for the Growlithe to return to their patrolling inside before stepping forward and shutting the door. I sighed. “Sorry about that,” I said.

Meowth eyed the door. “Sounds like something big has happened. You uhmmm, need us to come back later?” he said.

I was about to nod before an idea formed in my mind. I smiled, and the trio stepped back as one.

“I don’t like that look in your eyes!” Meowth said, narrowing his own eyes like he was being a copycat.

“I resemble that remark!” I said gleefully. I waved for them to follow me. “Come, tell me what you were here to talk about and then, I think I have a job for you,” I said.

After all, while Sabrina would have the best shot at finding the catspaw, I didn’t doubt for a second that they had set up other fail-safes to negate her.

So, what I needed was my own thieves to go hunting.

Fortunately, I just so happened to know three such individuals.

I glanced out at the sky, hoping that I could spot Zubat. Hopefully, with the mob giving chase, she wasn’t in over her head.

Zubat dove, a screech tearing from her mouth as she did. “Filthy thieves!”

She hammered her wings into one Meowth before sweeping back and knocking the other pokemon over.

“Hey! Lady, we’re just doing as we were ordered! Stop beating on us!”

“Yeah!” said the second Meowth as it staggered back to its feet and growled. “If anything, we’re doing a public service! That family had too many nice things! We taught them the value of appreciation!”

“You did no such thing, villains! Now cease your chatter and allow yourselves to come quietly!” Zubat screeched back, hovering in place.

When both Meowth shared a smirk, Zubat prepared herself.

Both of them blurred into a Quick Attack, their claws slashing at her, only for her form to vanish with a snap of her wings.

“Eh!?” “Impossible! She escaped our double attack?” shouted both Meowth.

Zubat slammed into the first Meowth with Aerial Ace. She then whirled about on the second with Supersonic. “Silly villains! I have been training with two of the strongest flyers in the world!” she claimed proudly.

She also regularly fought Teddiursa who was much stronger than these two! But… well, it wasn’t as awe-inspiring a claim.

“Who do you think you are, you psycho? Your trainer isn’t even here to tell you to track us!” said the second Meowth as he shifted from foot to foot.

Zubat bared her fangs. “I am vengeance! I am justice!” she screeched, committing to the fight, meeting him head to wing when he tried to pounce on her.

"Justice Wing!" she cried as she blew back the Meowth.

"That's not a pokemon move!" shouted the beaten fool.

Zubat ignored her foe. It was as Bertha said, renaming some of your moves did make them more powerful! She lined up another swipe at the thief.

By the time the posse of humans caught up, Zubat had both Meowth knocked out.