In the Petalburg Gym's reception room, Xia You and Misty sat looking slightly ill at ease. Before them was a low table laden with fruit and pastries, and on the other side sat Norman and his wife, Mitsuko.
After taking a sip of tea, Xia You paused, then continued telling the couple, "...And that was when Misty punched Drew in the face. Not only did she send him stumbling, she really helped May get some payback!"
What he was talking about was, of course, the unpleasant run-in with Drew before he and May had entered the Pokémon Contest in Slateport City last time.
And Xia You believed that, to keep her parents from worrying, May certainly hadn't told Norman and Mitsuko about any of this, even if she called them every day.
Sure enough, after listening to the story with furrowed brows, Norman and Mitsuko both turned to look at Misty beside him.
"May only ever tells us the good news and keeps the bad to herself. There are things she's never mentioned to us at all. If it weren't for you two, we still wouldn't know she'd been treated like that out there. Misty... thank you so much! May is truly lucky to have a friend like you!"
Misty shifted bashfully in her seat and smiled in embarrassment. "You're too kind! May and I haven't known each other long, but we really hit it off. When I saw that boy acting so high and mighty, I just did what a friend should!"
Misty's modesty only made Norman and Mitsuko like her even more.
Looking at this girl, who was the same age as their daughter and just as pretty, they both really liked her straightforward personality with its hint of feistiness.
Turning her attention back to Xia You, Mitsuko