Zach asked Zinnia. A few feet away, Zyk and Zebo were sparring under their trainer's guidance.

"Well..." Zin said, running a hand through her chin-length hair. She still wasn't used to how short hair felt; she'd gone so long with her long locks. Her head felt a lot lighter. "It's just, Zach, I don't want you to get hurt. You're so small, and these guys have been training for years..."

Zach begged, pink eyes sparkling.

"Well... All right... Shadow, could you help him? I have to keep an eye on those two or else it'll turn into a real battle..." She shook her head as she watched her boys. The rivalry between them could be concerning at times, but allowing them to spar every now and then seemed to let off steam and help them work as a team later.

The gray mew nodded silently and flew a off a safe distance. Zach ran to keep up, nearly tripping over his own skirt. He squared off against Shadow and said nervously,

Shadow responded. Without warning, the mew shot a blast of psychic energy toward to ralts.

"Aaaaa!" Zach shrieked as he dove out of the way. He landed hard in the dirt, the shock of the rough landing forcing the air out of his body. He scrambled to his feet again just in time to dodge the mew's next attack. Zach cried.

Shadow responded relentlessly.

Zach said. This time, he was too slow and the psychic attack blasted him back. Though his affinity for psychic energy shielded him from the attack, it still hurt, as did landing hard on his bottom.

real battles, not stadium-regulated ones,> Shadow said in a voice that was almost harsh, for the normally monotone legendary.

Zach tried to gather all of his strength and courage as he ran from the mew's onslaught. Finally, he managed to control himself enough to call upon his telekinetic powers. He sent a blast of energy toward the mew, and watched as she fell from the sky. The mew nearly hit the ground, but she caught herself just in time to hover a few inches above the ground.

Shadow managed to say.

Zach's eyes grew wide with alarm, and then pride. He'd taken Shadow by surprise! He'd single-handedly defeated her, even after tasting her true power! His excitement at the prospect of telling Zinnia and the others made him seem to glow. In fact... he was glowing!

Zyk, Zebo, and Zinnia all stopped what they were doing to watch in amazement as Zach glowed bright white. His shape changed; he grew larger and more graceful in leg and limb. When the light faded, a kirlia stood in his place.

"Wow, Zach! You evolved!" Zinnia exclaimed, running over to hug and oggle her pokemon. Her emotions of pride and happiness quickly spread to him, and he danced and showed off for her.

"(I heard you and Zach scuffling over there. ... You knew he was about to evolve, didn't you?)" Zyk asked as he sidled closer to the mew. When she remained silent, he accused, "(You pretended to lose to push him over the edge. There isn't even a scratch on you.)"

Shadow said mysteriously. She floated away to congratulate Zach on his first evolution.