I Admit I Want Its Body

Late February, early March.

The snow at the peak of Mt. Silver had silently melted away in places, exposing bare rock walls. Trees everywhere had sprouted tender green buds, signaling that the first season of the year was quietly arriving.

And by now, more than two weeks had passed since the Pokémon Nature Preserve had been burned down.

The end of winter meant wild Pokémon would become more active. They were no longer as sparse as before, when one might not see even a single one for half a day.

But for Heiduo, the end of winter and start of spring did not matter, because today was an extremely important day.

—The promise Tyranitar had made over a week ago, to take him to her clan, was finally going to be fulfilled.

"Roar roar roar roar roar! Tyranitar! Roar roar roar roar roar!"

"Ee ee ee ee ee!!"

"Woo woo woo woo woo!!!"

Umbreon, Golden Sparkle the Charmander, and Riolu were even more excited than Heiduo himself. They circled wildly around his feet.

Heiduo was happy too, his face beaming as he looked forward to meeting Larvitar.

After a full two months, he could finally fill the last empty slot on his team today.

Still, with only seven months left, he wondered whether he could raise Tyranitar's Friendship to the maximum.

Naturally, maxing it out would be best.

Heiduo glanced at Riolu. The little guy was exactly Level 40, with 219 Friendship—just one point short of the 220 needed for Evolution.

It was about to evolve.

He wondered if they could have two happy events at once, just like when it had been born.

Golden Sparkle the Charmander was still the same as ever. Perhaps because it had never evolved even once, it had shown no reaction at Level 36.