In Lava [Pokémon Watty Awards, 2016 2nd Place Romance]

Chapter Twenty-Seven

It was on the road again for May Maple. She had stayed a few extra days in Slateport City and hung out with Lisia for the remainder of her time there. She even trained her team a bit more. Her Shroomish was now a Breloom and was able to spar with Combusken on more equal terms. As she walked along, she came upon a peculiar house just under the Cycling Road.

Curious, May makes her way towards the house and knocks. No answer. She raises a brow and looks over to see a sign that says: Trick House. Raising a brow, she opened the door and stepped inside. The room was quite plain to say the least. There was a coffee table with a black leather couch behind it, facing the door. A matching chair was beside the couch, facing the head of the table. There was a lamp in the right corner of the room and a scroll of some sort on the wall. A grandfather clock was in the left corner behind the couch.

"Hello?" May called out.

"Ah, welcome weary traveler!" Said a voice from within the room.

May jumped a bit at this and looked around.

Oh ho! I startled you didn't I? But that is to be expected of the great Trick Master!" The masculine voice declared

"The...Trick Master?" May queried, glancing around in order to figure out where the voice was coming from.

"I see that you are perplexed, amazed even, at my skill. You stand in awe, wondering where the voice might be coming from. Am I everywhere? Or am I even in the room at all? You don't know if you will ever find out!"

May placed her chin in her hands as she looked over the couch to see a crouching man who appeared to be in his mid-forties. A giggle escaped her lips as he prattled on.

"You laugh, are you perhaps so vexed that you find this humorous?" The Trick Master inquired.

"Nope. Just laughing because I see you and you look really funny crouched behind here," May snickered.

"Impossible! I picked the perfect hiding spot. Nobody should ever be able to-" He looked up.

"Hi there," May smirked.

"Wahaaat!? How is this-" he cleared his throat. "I see, you are no novice. The craft of trickery is certainly not foreign to you. I must say that I am impressed," the Trick Master stated, giving a sage nod as he folded his arms.

"You weren't that difficult to find. Plus, I could see your feet," May replied with a chuckle.

"Gasp! You could see me!?" The Trick Master exclaimed. "Ahem. Well, it appears as though you are far better than I thought. Your powers of observation are quite strong indeed."

May blinked. She had no idea what he was on about, but she decided to go with it.

"You have proven yourself a worthy opponent. That being said, perhaps you would be interested in challenging my Trick House!" The Trick Master stated.

"Well, I do like games. Sure! Why not?" May grinned.

"It's settled then! But first, how many badges did you acquire?" He asked.

"Just two so far, why?" May asked.

"Hmmm...level two it is. You see, difficulty is determined by the number of badges you earn. Since you have two, you start at level two. So, are you prepared?" He asked.

"Sure! Bring it on, Trick Master!"
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Brendan stood on the sidelines as the tournament began again. This was the third round and he was in the latter half. They were no longer doing two battles at once. He was the fourth battle, however the current battle was what had him interested. A woman named Katrina, who was much like Abby, was battling using a Trevenant against a young man named Maxwell, who owned a Staravia.