Pokémon: Above the Top

"Joseph, I don't see Mark. Where did he go?" Sato asked while eating.

It was indeed quite rare not to see Mark at the dining table.

"He went to be with Lapras."

"…With Lapras?" Sato froze, feeling like something wasn't that simple.

"Yeah, the Lapras group had been hunted for a long time, largely because their leader had just died. Without a strong leader, they became easy targets for poachers."

"So the Lapras group wants Mark's Lapras to join them?" Sato frowned and set down his chopsticks, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

"Yeah, Mark is still trying to make up his mind. I guess he..." Joseph let out a long sigh. None of them had the right to make that decision for Mark.

Sato turned to look toward the beach, where the Lapras group was currently resting and joyfully playing in the water. Mark's Lapras was having a great time with them.

With Peak Elite level, it was more than enough to become a leader in the wild.

And Mark was just sitting quietly on the beach with Arbok by his side, hugging his knees and watching the Lapras play happily.

"What would you do?" Joseph asked Sato. For someone as clever as him to feel lost about this showed how difficult it was.

"I'd drive the Lapras group away, pressure and bribe them to leave on their own," Sato replied without hesitation, which drew a bitter smile from Joseph.

He almost forgot… Sato wasn't the self-sacrificing type. He'd never give himself up for someone else's sake.

"What are you smiling at? Would you really just let Lapras go? What if one day it was Gogoat instead, or Gallade?"

Sato stared at Joseph, suddenly feeling a bit irritable himself.

"I… I don't know…" Joseph was stunned. After thinking for a long while, he could only shake his head and say no more.

Being granted Viridian Power was proof that Joseph's heart toward Pokémon was friendly and pure. If that day really came, he might be able to let go even more easily than Mark.

But Mark… did he not realize how hard it had been for him to catch that Lapras?

Originally, Lapras had just been a "transport" Pokémon that Sato borrowed from the Joy family. By chance, Sato encouraged Mark to catch it.

It was just an ordinary Lapras, with Ace level potential at best, probably destined to be a transport Pokémon for life.

But after Mark caught it, he gave it a dose of the expensive Potential Enhancement Serum, and spent a huge amount of time building its battle ability from scratch.

Now, Lapras had finally reached the threshold of breaking into the Ace level, but because it still cared deeply for its kind, it wanted to leave Mark.

And Mark… he was foolish enough to actually agree to let Lapras go.

Sato supported Mark, which made him unable to accept Lapras's decision.

But… in the end, it was something only Mark could decide.

---

Time passed slowly. Under the care of Joseph and Mark, the Lapras group had fully recovered to their peak condition.

And at the same time, Mark's Lapras was fitting in more and more with the group, reluctant to part from them.

The happier Lapras became, the more painful it was for Mark.

He had been a Trainer for five years and only had five partners. Now one of them was about to leave on its own… no one could truly understand what that felt like.

Not Joseph, not Sato… no one.

---

"Praaas!"

"Praas~"

"Praaaas~~"

Two more days passed, and early in the morning, the Lapras began singing a beautiful melody together on the beach to express their thanks to the three humans who had helped them.

Sato, Mark, and Joseph stood side by side on the beach, watching the beautiful and elegant Pokémon, their hearts feeling heavy.

Because Mark's Lapras had clearly swum to the front of the Lapras group, now facing the three of them from afar.

"Have you really decided? If you don't want Lapras to leave, I have a hundred ways to make it stay willingly…" Sato said softly to Mark.

Joseph twitched the corner of his mouth and rolled his eyes at Sato.

"Forget it. Let Lapras go. It belongs to the sea, to the Lapras group," Mark smiled, showing none of his usual goofy self.

"Tch!" Sato snorted coldly, not bothering to say more.

"Pras~"

Suddenly, Mark's Lapras splashed its way back toward them. Sato blinked in surprise, wondering if there was going to be a twist.

Two minutes later, as Sato watched Lapras leave Mark's embrace and return to the group, he felt an overwhelming urge to punch something… no, to punch a Lapras.

This back-and-forth farewell looked exactly like a heartless man leaving his hometown, saying goodbye to the childhood sweetheart who waited to marry him…

Ugh!

Then, Lapras suddenly felt a wave of hostility… it turned its head and saw Sato's cold, expressionless face.

Panicked, Lapras didn't dare linger any longer. It quickly led its group and swam off into the distance.

Mark silently watched them until Lapras disappeared from view. Only then did he turn around and walk away.

But the sorrow on his face was no longer hidden. It was fully visible to Sato and Joseph.

"Was it really necessary? There'll always be something better waiting for you," Joseph tried to comfort Mark, but got no response.

Mark just walked blankly along the shore. Arbok followed closely behind, not saying a word either.

Joseph wanted to go after him, but Sato held out a hand to stop him. "With Arbok there, he'll be fine. Let's not bother him for now. Let him be."

Joseph nodded and turned back toward the hotel. Since he couldn't help with words, he might as well lift Mark's mood with some good food.

Sato glanced at the two departing figures. After a slight hesitation, he had Gengar follow Mark in secret for protection.

As for himself, he sent out Skorupi and Ariados and threw himself into the endless cycle of training.

Skorupi: Life is really hard (つд)

Ariados: Hang in there, otouto (ˊˋ)

Sato: Get back to training. All of you.…

---

By evening, Sato and Joseph were standing at the hotel entrance, frowning as they waited for Mark, who still hadn't shown up.

"I sent Gengar after him. If it's still not back, he's probably lost," Sato finally broke the silence.

Joseph paused, then said, "With Lucario there, that doesn't really make sense."

Sato: "…"

'…I was just trying to make you feel better. Why are you being so serious about it?'

Another two hours passed, and Joseph had already reheated the food in the kitchen for the second time.

Then, accompanied by a wild and arrogant laugh, a white figure appeared in the distant sky.

"…Boss… BOOOOOSS! …whahaha…WAHAHAHA!"

"…Get down here."

"Okaaay~"

Togekiss landed at the hotel entrance. Mark cheerfully jumped down, holding a blue transparent Pokémon Egg in his arms.

"Boss, I got a new Pokémon!"

"Huh?" Sato was surprised. He looked again at Mark and Togekiss, both were a bit disheveled, clearly showing that quite a lot had happened during that time.