Floaroma Town — The Northern Flower Fields
Wayne and Steven rode in the police car, watching the rolling waves of color drift past on either side of the road. Grandma Honey had not exaggerated. Floaroma Town truly was a town wrapped in flowers.
The northern flower fields technically lay just outside the town's official boundaries, but everyone considered them part of Floaroma Town all the same.
As they drew closer to the fields, Wayne's advanced Scanner chimed.
[ Ding! Rare Pokémon detected in the area. ]
[ Type ]: Mythical Pokémon [ Rarity ]: High [ Capture Difficulty ]: Medium [ Risk Level ]: Low
Several more notifications followed in quick succession.
Six Mythical Pokémon had been detected in the immediate area.
Barring any surprises, they were almost certainly Shaymin.
Based on the readings, Wayne suspected that at least one of them was exceptionally powerful — potentially at Master Rank.
To the north of Floaroma Town, the land rose gently into a series of low hills blanketed entirely in wildflowers, including a wide stretch of vivid Gracidia blossoms. It wasn't until they stepped out of the car and walked into the field that Wayne realized just how tall the flowers actually were. They came up well past his shoulder.
"Shaymin, go on and find your friends."
Wayne assumed Shaymin had some way of locating its companions on its own — or at the very least, an instinct for finding Gracidia flowers. The radar confirmed that all six Mythical Pokémon were still in the area, so there was no urgency.
Shaymin was visibly overjoyed to be back. At Wayne's words, it took a few eager steps forward, and the green foliage growing across its back gradually blended into the surrounding sea of flowers until it all but disappeared.
Spotting Shaymin from above would be nearly impossible in terrain like this. You had to be inside the flower field yourself to catch the subtle movement. It was a natural form of camouflage, and an effective one.
"Lucario — lock onto Shaymin with Aura."
"Lucario!"
Wayne, Steven, and Officer Jenny followed quietly behind, letting Shaymin set the pace. It wasn't moving quickly, and even without Lucario's Aura Sense they could have kept up without trouble.
As they walked, Wayne kept one eye on the radar, cross-checking the Pokémon signatures against Shaymin's path to make sure they were heading in the right direction.
Fortunately, Shaymin was leading them true.
After winding through the flower fields for about half an hour — the path twisting and doubling back more than once — they arrived at a clearing filled with deep crimson Gracidia blossoms.
Shaymin let out a long, happy cry.
"Shay~~"
A rustling spread through the sea of flowers, and six more Shaymin, all in their Land Forme, emerged one by one from the blooms around them.
"Shay~"
(Hehe — I'm back~)
"Thank you, thank you!"
(You're finally back!)
(Where did you go?)
(Are you hurt?)
For a moment, the clearing filled with overlapping cries as the Shaymin pressed around their companion, fussing and nuzzling.
Wayne studied them quietly. These Shaymin were all noticeably larger than the one he had been caring for — fully grown adults. Their strength was remarkable too. The one that had come forward first, clearly the group's leader, carried the aura of a Champion-class Pokémon. The others were at least Gym Leader-level, without exception.
That gave Wayne pause.
When the lead Shaymin noticed Wayne and Steven, it drew itself up sharply.
(Who are you?)
The smaller Shaymin immediately moved between them. "Shaymin, Shaymin!"
(They're with me — they're friends! Don't!)
Wayne, Steven, and Officer Jenny all lowered themselves to the ground and sat down, keeping their movements slow and deliberate. They were not here to cause trouble, and they wanted that to be clear.
"We're not your enemies."
The lead Shaymin did not lower its guard entirely, but it allowed the smaller one to speak.
Speaking haltingly in a language it had not quite grown into yet, the young Shaymin recounted what had happened.
It had wandered away from the flower fields while playing hide-and-seek with a group of Grass-type Pokémon — it had gone further than intended, trying to find a better hiding spot and win. That was when the Pokémon Hunters had spotted it. While fleeing, it had eventually crossed paths with Wayne.
The lead Shaymin exhaled slowly.
(Hide-and-seek again...)
It had already half-guessed as much, but hearing it confirmed was something else.
The young Shaymin was the youngest of the group, still some way from reaching adulthood, and full of a child-like energy that the others had long since outgrown. The adult Shaymin were occupied with their duties — traveling, spreading pollen, carrying seeds — and could not stay by its side at all times.
The incident had happened at the worst possible moment. The others had been away to the south when the Hunters appeared. To be precise, they had just returned from the Alola region, where they had spent the winter. It was the season of new growth, and the adult Shaymin bore the responsibility of traveling far and wide, carrying pollen and seeds to breathe life back into the land after the cold months.
In their absence, the young Shaymin had been left alone in Floaroma Town.
And then it had gone missing.
The lead Shaymin had blamed itself quietly for a long time.
It pressed its cheek gently against the young Shaymin's face.
(I should not have left you here alone.)
(It's okay.)
The young Shaymin understood that the others had not meant to leave it behind. They had their own purpose to fulfil, their own responsibilities to carry.
Though Shaymin was young and loved nothing more than playing, it was also perceptive. It had wanted to come home before now — but it had noticed that Wayne was always busy, and it had never brought it up.
Even so, Shaymin had been having such a wonderful time playing hide-and-seek with so many Pokémon at the Breeding Center that it had, in truth, almost forgotten to feel homesick.
The lead Shaymin turned its gaze toward Wayne and gave a slow, deliberate nod.
(Thank you for bringing it home safely.)
Wayne shook his head. "I still want to take Shaymin with me — but only with your permission, and only if Shaymin itself agrees. That's why I brought it back here first."
The lead Shaymin tilted its head.
(Take it with you? What do you mean?)
"I'd like to catch Shaymin," Wayne said plainly. "I wanted to ask you before doing anything. But Shaymin seemed homesick, so I brought it back here first."
The lead Shaymin regarded Wayne for a long moment, looking him over carefully. Then it turned and regarded the young Shaymin just as carefully.
Then it looked back at the young Shaymin directly.
(What do you want?)
Shaymin's voice tumbled out in a rush of eagerness and uncertainty.
(I... I don't know, but — it's really, really fun there!)
The hesitation alone said everything. Shaymin was interested.
The lead Shaymin weighed things quietly. Wayne had saved this young one, cared for it, and brought it all the way back here out of respect rather than simply catching it outright. That counted for something.
(Prove to me that you can protect it,) the lead Shaymin said finally. (And bring it back when the time comes.)
Even if Shaymin was caught by a trainer, it still carried a responsibility — all Shaymin did. When spring arrived, it would need to return and fulfill its duty, spreading pollen and carrying seeds just as the others did. That was the way of things, regardless of who Shaymin traveled with.
If Wayne could offer protection and still honor that, then perhaps it was not a poor arrangement. The young Shaymin was still some time from adulthood, and they could not watch over it at all times. Something like this could easily happen again.
Wayne agreed without a second thought.
"That's a fair request. I accept."
Steven stepped forward with a quiet smile and bowed his head slightly.
"Then I'll serve as the referee."
The lead Shaymin looked at Steven for a moment, then gave a small nod.
(Very well.)
The lead Shaymin moved toward a nearby Gracidia flower and touched it gently with its snout.
A clean, pure white light bloomed across its entire body.
Within that light, the lead Shaymin began to change. Its compact grassy form grew longer and more defined, its legs extending into four slender white and green limbs. The flowers woven into its body reshaped themselves into a flowing collar of red, maple leaf-like petals around its neck, and soft white plumes fanned out on either side like wings.
In its Sky Forme, Shaymin carried an entirely different presence — graceful and swift, like the wind itself had taken shape.
"Then," Wayne said, taking a breath, "let the battle begin."