Robin's hand was roughly running over the small Eevee's head as she pointedly ignored Leon who was sitting on the window bench. They were waiting on Rose to show up to talk to the challenger. Leon finally let outa a groan, tossing his head back so it hit the wall with a thump. "Robi, if you would just listen to me, you would know I don't want you removed. But there's a chance that Rose might-"

"It's a broken arm! I can still throw with my left, Lee!"

Leon gave her a sad look, seeing the way she was breathing heavier and her eyes shimmered as she tried to fight back tears. He got up, slowly moving to the hospital bed and putting his forehead to hers. "Robi, you know I'll always be on your side. Always. But Rose is a bigger player in this game. We have to keep that in mind, okay?"

Leon gave a start when there was a knock on the door, he was stretched out on the hospital bed with Robin curled up against his side. Robin's mom was sitting in the chair next to the bed, still knitting away at the hat she was making. "Come in." She spoke, only glancing up to watch Rose walked in, a small female behind him. "Chairman Rose and… Bea?"

The girl looked at Robin as the challenger sat up, frowning some. "The Chairman said he was coming to talk to you, I asked to tag along."

"Thank you for coming, Bea. And for joining the search for me." Robin sat up straight, making sure to use her good arm as she got herself situated. "I'm not dropping out."

"Straight to the point." Rose laughed as he put one hand in his pocket while the other toyed with the fringe of hair that hung down in his face. "A girl after my own heart." He gave Robin a soft grin before looking to Leon. "From what I know of broken arms, they take time to heal."

"It can heal on the road, I've already talked to the doctor, he said I can check in at each town and see how it's coming along. I just have to be careful when running around in the areas in between towns."

"You sound as if you're worried that I'd drop you from the challenge for a broken arm."

"I'm just making sure you know you can't drop me for a broken arm."

Rose and Robin smiled at each other, it was a dangerous smile, one that said no matter what someone would walk away unhappy. "Good thing I'm not worried about your broken arm, then." Rose put both hands on the rail at the end of the bed, his eyes cool and full of warning. "You went beyond the boundaries for the challenge, Robin, you endangered yourself and others. If I drop you, it will be because you went beyond the marked areas."

Robin's smile turned into a smirk as she wiggled to the edge of the bed and slid off, having dressed herself in comfortable sweats and a baggy shirt before her nap. "That's odd, Mr. Rose, considering there were no marked boundaries out where I was at. I didn't see any signs saying don't go beyond this point." She met his gaze, smirking at him more. "Now, if that's all, I'll make my way to Stow-on-Side."

Leon jumped up and followed Robin out of the room after the challenger grabbed her pack, unable to contain his goofy grin as Bea joined him. "Robi! You can't just-"

"Robin." Bea stopped in the hall, giving Robin a wide grin. "Allister won't want to go against the Chairman's orders. He won't battle you."

Robin turned and looked to Bea, grinning. "Then… what do you say, Bea? You're a respected Gym Leader, think they'll approve of you taking Stow-on-Side back?"

"We only have to get approval from one person." Both girls looked to Leon who froze, eyes widening. "What do you say, Champion?" Bea gave Leon a tilt of her head before punching the taller male in the arm.

"Guys, I… I…" Leon let out a groan and pulled out his phone. "Once I… approve this… you'll have to stay available to all challengers, Bea. Allister can't-"

"Dual gym, we trade back and forth. Every other battle. Give our teams a chance to rest in between challengers. The Circhester gym does it all the time." Bea offered, seeing a spark in Leon's eyes. "I'll head to Stow-on-Side." She turned to Robin, giving the other girl a wink. "See you there, sugar."

Robin stared at the two, watching as Bea trotted off and left her alone with Leon. "What just… actually happened?"

"Bea has agreed to battle you to keep you in the challenge." Rose frowned as he walked up behind them, Robin's mother right behind him. "Are you approving this, Leon?"

"I am, sir. Robin did nothing wrong, there weren't any signs out where we were flying, she wouldn't have known that area was off limits." Leon put his hands on his hips, grinning down at Rose. Robin hadn't really realized how tall Leon was, or how short Rose was, for that matter. "I'll shoot the Rangers a message and ask them to put signs up out that way, and to make their patrols out that way if they can manage it."

"Then, I guess you have some catching up to do, Robin. Many challengers have already made it through this area and are headed to Stow-on-Side." Rose took Robin's hand when she bounced over to him and shook it. He watched as she hugged her mother before running over to Leon. He raised a brow when the girl grabbed Leon by the front of his shirt and pulled him down to kiss him on the cheek.

Robin quickly pulled away, her cheeks turning red when her kiss landed on the corner of Leon's mouth rather than his cheek or chin. She turned away and ran out of the hospital.

"She's going to continue?" Raihan paused on shoveling food into his mouth, brows climbing his forehead as he looked between Nessa and Leon. He straightened up when a guy with black and white hair trudged into the small café. "Piers! You made it!"

Piers frowned at Nessa and Leon. "Does this guy ever talk with an empty mouth?"

Nessa let out a laugh and shook her head, her black and blue hair was styled into thick box braids, which wacked Raihan. "No, I don't think he does."

"H-Hey! Watch the braids, those hurt!" Raihan gave Nessa a teasing growl as she shook her head again.

"Yeah? Well, you sat twenty-six inches too close."

Leon chuckled at his friends as Piers sat next to him. "How is Marnie doing?"

Piers pulled his phone out and showed it to Leon, beaming as he showed off his little sister. "Half way to Opal!"

"She's going to breeze on through." Leon grinned. "I had to tell Hop to go on ahead, Robin would catch up."

"So, she's going to continue?"

"Yeah, she should be leaving Hammerlocke here soon, Bea and Allister came to an agreement on the gym. Rose tried to tell Allister that he highly suggested to not encourage her by battling her. Allister was afraid to go against what Rose said but said he'd let Bea have the gym the day that Robin showed up in Stow-on-Side." Leon shrugged then went still when he looked over and saw Robin, looking very angry, stomping towards someone outside the café. "Now what?"

The four leaders got up and slipped outside the café, watching as Robin nailed Bede with an awkward left-handed punch. "Oooh!" Piers and Raihan flinched back while Leon and Nessa surged forward, grabbing Robin and yanking her back. "Robi! What the hell!" Leon held the challenger while Nessa checked on the other one.

"This little shit-head won't stop bullying Hop. If I hear about you going near Hop again, Bede, I'll beat you to a pulp!" Robin snarled as she pulled herself away from Leon, ignoring the pain in her arm that flared to life when she used her injured arm to push away.

"I only told him what he needed to hear! You need to stop backing him, he can't battle and you're only going to lead to him hurting more in the end." Bede took a step back from Robin, glaring at the girl.

Robin took a step towards Bede, a scowl on her face as she leaned towards him. "I can't wait to knock you down in the finals, Bede. If you even make it that far."

Bede started to bark back at Robin when the girl stormed away, leaving him alone with the three Gym Leaders and Champion. He glared at them before turning and going in the opposite direction as Robin. Leon let out a sigh and trotted after Robin, hoping to find her before she managed to leave Hammerlocke.

He grinned when he saw her standing just beyond the vault of Hammerlocke holding a Poké Ball and watching two people walking away from her. "Robi! Hey, you alright?"

Robin flinched when Leon came up behind her, she whirled on her toes, violet eyes wide and cheeks bright red as she thrust the Poké Ball at him. "Th-This is for you!" She dropped the ball in his hands when he held his hands up, running off before he could see what was inside.

"Robi!" Leon frowned when the girl took off as Nessa and Piers ran up next to him. "What the hell?"

"Were you going to mock battle her, Leon?" Nessa raised a brow at him, glancing at the ball in his hands.

"No, she just… gave me this Pokémon."

"What is it?" Nessa leaned around, staring inquisitively at the ball, not noticing the two people gawking at the three of them. Piers on the other hand, did. "What?" He put his hands in his pockets and walked over to them.

"That girl gave me her Applin for me to give to her," the boy gestured to the girl standing next to him. "But-"

"But I wanted him to give me an Applin he caught himself, I told him I would wait for that." The girl giggled, a blush on her cheeks that mirrored the redness that covered the boys entire face and tips of his ears.

Piers slowly turned, seeing a small Applin in Leon's hands now, a knowing look crossing Nessa's face as they waited for Leon's reaction. "Huh, an Applin? I've never had one myself, but I guess I can figure out how to work you into my team, right?" Leon laughed and patted the small Pokémon on the top of its' head.

"You're helpless!" Nessa groaned and walked away from the Champion who gave Piers a confused look.

Piers only laughed and patted Leon on the shoulder. "Our wise Champion, ladies and gentlemen."

Robin was huffing and puffing as she stomped towards the bridge that would take her out of Hammerlocke, almost ignoring the boy who was pacing nearby, mumbling about needing an Applin. She paused for a moment, giving him a curious look. "Why do you need an Applin?"

"Huh?! O-Oh… uhm… do you know the rumor?" He paused and looked at her, his cheeks red.

"No? What rumor?"

"The one that says that if you give an Applin to your crush, you'll be together forever. The girl I like is moving over-seas tomorrow… and I wanted to give her an Applin… but I can't seem to find one."

Robin watched him for a moment before shrugging, digging a ball out of her bag. "Here, you can have mine."

"What?! Are you serious?!"

"Yeah, but you had better call her and tell her-"

"Trevor! What are you doing out here?" Robin and the boy looked over, seeing a girl trot up to them, grinning at him.

"I-I uhm… what are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be packing?" The boy gripped the ball in his hands tight, his nerves making his voice shaky.

"I'm pretty much done; I was going to come find you, but your mom said you were out running errands."

"Yeah, I… I wanted to uhm…" The two didn't even notice Robin as the trainer slowly backed away from them. "to give you this Applin."

"Did you catch it?!" The girl gasped, taking the ball from the boy.

"No… she gave it to me to give to you." He frowned when the girl handed him back the ball. "Eli?"

"I can't take that Applin, Trevor. I want an Applin that you caught." She smiled when the boy walked over to Robin, handing her the Poké Ball back. "I know I'm leaving tomorrow, but that doesn't mean you can't give me an Applin that you caught all on your own!"

Robin watched the two for a moment, her heart in her throat when she heard Leon behind her, calling out for her. "An Applin… to your crush…?"

Robin slumped against a tree; her eyes wide as she tried to control her breathing again. "I'm… I'm an idiot. Why did I do that?" She rubbed her face, letting out a groan as she pushed off the tree and began her journey to Stow-on-Side.

It didn't take her long for her and Aquo to add a handful of Pokémon to her roster. After a while though, she decided to take a break and set up camp, it wasn't too late, but her stomach was growling and Aquo had been working hard with Deino and Eevee to do good in Stow-on-Side. Robin was stirring the curry when the ball Deino and Aquo had been playing with bounced by her. She turned, feeling her cheeks heat with a bright blush as she watched Leon walk up to her camp.

"You should keep an eye on your little monsters, that ball was out there a little bit." Leon caught Aquo when the water-type Pokémon jumped into his arms. "You made it quite a ways, I'm honestly surprised you stopped."

"I don't want to push my teammates, they haven't battled in a few days and I didn't want to over do it, you know?" She felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. She felt like an idiot, she had never been nervous around Leon, ever. If anything, he was the one that tripped up around her or did stupid things to show off in front of her. But as he sat down next to her, her stomach knotted up as butterfrees swarmed her belly.

"Eevee seems worried about your arm." Leon pointed out, though his eyes locked on the curry that Robin was working on as her Eevee continued to nuzzle against her injured arm.

"Yeah, she's been doing this since I let her out. She won't hardly battle right now because she keeps looking back at my arm." Robin sighed and leaned back, watching as the Eevee nipped at the brace on her arm. "I wonder what she'll evolve into, I'm thinking Umbreon, but Espeon is also a-"

"I'll put my money on Sylveon." Leon cut in as he reached over, brushing a few stray hairs out of Robin's face and behind her ear. "Fairy-types have been known to show a lot of concern over small injuries so a big injury like this is probably driving the poor thing nuts. Did the doctor say why Celfable couldn't heal the break?"

"He said the Clefable's available couldn't focus on the break itself, they could heal the bruising just fine… but if they couldn't get the bones to line up just right, I would have a warped arm and…" Robin leaned into his hand, unable to help the small smile that formed on her lips. "Lee, why are you all the way out here?"

"Wha- I- well- I… uhm…" Leon pulled away, scratching his cheek nervously as he pulled a Poké Ball off his hip. "Uhm… I was going to wait until after the final battle to give you this little guy but… Nessa told me about Applin… and…" He gave her a sheepish smile as he held the ball out to her, waiting for her to call out what was hiding within.

Robin tossed the ball up, surprise written all over her face when a Charmander landed in her lap next to Eevee. "A Charmander? Lee?" She looked at him, seeing Charizard curled up behind him, watching them. "Is Hop getting one?"

Leon gave a small chuckle as he called out the Applin, a grin spreading on his face as he watched her. "Is Hop getting one of these?" He laughed when she gave him a playful shove. "You're a strong trainer, Robi. Not that I think Hop isn't, he is, but I have gut feeling I know who the next Champion is going to be."

Robin looked away from him, feeling her heart skip a beat. "I have to make it to Stow-on-Side first."

"You'll make it, of that I have no doubt." Leon reached over and cupped her chin, making her look at him. "You're doubting yourself, though."

"I made a mistake that could have cost me my team, Lee. That could have cost my mom her daughter. If I want to be Champion I can't make mistakes like that again. I never should have gone to that cave…"

"You also can't punch people out of anger." He grinned when she gave him a small laugh. "Though, I'm glad you hit him. I can't, it's frowned upon for me." He moved his hand, so he was cupping her cheek again, his thumb brushing over her cheekbone as he met her steady gaze. "Thank you, for watching out for Hop."

Robin gave a small nod as she leaned into him again, she wasn't sure if her cheeks were warm from the heat of the fire or from the way the tip of his nose brushed hers as they leaned into each other. She ignored the way her head spun as she closed her eyes. She could feel the warmth of his breath against her lips, then he started to pull away as if teasing her. Robin opened an eye, seeing the smirk that was perched on Leon's lips as he pulled back a hair. She grinned at him and leaned in quick, her lips almost brushed his when his Rotom Phone went off.

The two gasped as Leon yanked it out of his pocket, staring at Raihan's name. Leon glanced to Robin before answering. "Raihan-"

"Robin's curry is burning-"

Robin's face exploded into ever shade of red known to mankind as she yanked away from Leon and over to her pot of curry. "I'm such an idiot-"

"Where?" Leon gave an annoyed click of his tongue as he looked around camp, a flick of his free hand had Charizard up and looking around as well.

"To your left, Charizard is blocking you but we can see the oh-so frantic Robin at her curry."

Leon pointed to the tree and Charizard moved to it, sniffing at the bark before leaning down and taking a bite out of the tree. "Thanks for the heads up. How long?"

"Mmmm, long enough that-" Raihan was cut off by a snickering Nessa and Piers who had apparently grabbed the phone from the Dragon-type Leader. "I'm betting Sylveon with you, but Piers is leaning towards Umbreon, though he's biased to Dark-types." Nessa giggled into the phone.

Leon hung the phone up and watched as Robin nervously set plates out for all the Pokémon and thrust one towards him. "Robi-" He grumbled when she didn't slow down in her jerky movements. He looked down when Charizard dropped a chewed-up camera next to him, it wasn't big, and it was painted to blend into the tree. "Thanks, Charizard." He groaned when his phone rang again, he answered without looking at the I.D, knowing it would be Oleana.

"Do you know how much that camera cost!?"

"Too much for my Charizard to make a snack out of it."

"Exactly! And what are you doing fraternizing with challengers? That was live-"

"That's what you get for bugging the trails, it's not like I'm playing favorites-"

"You gave her a Charmander, bred from your Charizard!"

"Your point?"

"Leon-!"

Leon clicked the phone off and tossed it to the side, returning his attention to Robin who made herself a small plate from the leftovers. "You should eat more."

"I'll be fine." She stared down at her plate; her cheeks were still bright red as she returned to her spot next to him. "I-I never eat that much anyways-"

Leon knew that, when their families would gather for bar-b-ques, she would only eat one burger or hotdog with chips. He reached over, hooking his hand around the back of her knee and dragging her closer until she was hip to hip with him. He didn't say anything as he began to eat, his hand moving and rubbing her knee every few bites.

Robin watched Leon, seeing the way his shoulders tightened in annoyance. She instantly regretted the large bite that she swallowed, she thumped her chest a few times, waving meekly at Leon when he raised a brow at her. When she could finally breathe again, she set her half-finished food down, smiling when Deino trotted over and started to finish it. "Do you… do you want to stay with me… tonight?"

Robin woke the next morning as someone shifted under her cheek, she looked up, seeing Leon idly scrolling through his phone. She froze, having forgotten momentarily that he had stayed with her at her camp. She slowly sat up, easily slipping out of his arms. "Uhm… good morning."

"Morning, sleepy-head." Leon grinned at her as he sat up as well, stretching his arms over his head. "You gonna finish the trek to Stow-on-Side today?"

"I think so, yeah." She gave him a smile as she got up and stepped around the small horde of Pokémon that were still asleep in the tent. "You're not in trouble, are you?"

Leon got up and followed her out, shaking his head. "Nah, Oleana will just rip me a new one for letting Charizard eat the camera." He wrapped his arms around her, keeping her against him as he put his nose against the top of her head. "Robin, I know you'll do great in Stow-on-Side, just… make sure you watch your back around other trainers, okay?"

"Now that we've painted a target on my back?" Robin grinned as she carefully turned in his grasp, tilting her chin so she could give him a small kiss. "I have a trick up my sleeve, and his name is Aquo."