“We’re here in front of the newly christened Battle Tower, with its proprietor—Galar’s former Champion, Leon!”

The telly showed Leon smiling for the camera the way a life in the spotlight had trained him for, all gleaming teeth and roguish charm. Sitting at home, Sonia couldn’t help but smile. Since losing the Championship, he finally learned how to dress himself, she thought with amusement. The old-fashioned maroon frock and riding boots would have looked absurd on most, but her old friend had the panache to pull it off. Still kept the hat, though, she added with an amused shake of her head.

As Leon launched into a snappy speech about how the Battle Tower was a way to step out of the shadow of Chairman Rose and help Galar take a new path forward, Sonia found her smile growing a little wan. Her heart started to ache. Feeling only slightly guilty, she flipped off the telly.

The absence of noise perked up her old pal, Gizmo—the Yamper was dozing as he usually was, warm against his trainer’s side. She reached down to pet him almost as second nature.

Paradoxically, losing the Championship almost seemed to leave Leon happier. Not having to spend his whole life under scrutiny and living up to the title was doing a number on him. Sonia’s old compatriots were also doing well—and so was she! Taking over for her gran as the region’s researcher was an imposing challenge, but one she was willing to rise to meet.

So why did she feel such malaise?

You know why, she chided herself. The answer was right there on the telly.

Leon… back in the day, the two of them had been rivals—and as so frequently happened, competition in the field had turned to passion in private. But their flame had fizzled and while the two of them remained good friends, Sonia couldn’t help but feel bitterly reminded that her time with the ex-Champion, almost a decade old, was the last real relationship she’d had—romantic or otherwise.

Her phone buzzed and she sighed on picking it up. Normally her loneliness in the romance department was something she could deal with, but some things had happened recently. Gloria, the new Champion, had publicly started dating Leon’s brother. And as if in quick succession, Sonia’s best friend Nessa announced she was going out with another model—and Bea and Allister confirmed rumors that they’d been going steady for a while!

Sonia was happy for all of them, of course, but so many so fast had left her increasingly cognizant of what she lacked in her life.

A sudden weight in her lap jolted her memory. Gizmo was standing on her thighs, paws on her belly, tongue lolling happily as he wagged his tail. The little Yamper yapped a few times and gave her a friendly lick.

Smiling, Sonia scratched behind his ears. “You always know when I’m feeling down, don’t you, Gizmo?” she asked. Though he acted dopey, Gizmo had been her companion for years, and was cannier than he appeared. He cocked his head and nuzzled her again.

She laughed again. “I don’t think this is anything you can help me with, good buddy…” she said. “Here, why don’t you go outside?”

Gizmo looked uncertain but followed his trainer’s advice. She opened the door to let him frolic in the garden and harass the wild pokemon on Route 2.

Meanwhile, Sonia climbed up to the loft. With Gizmo gone, it was just her now…