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[@Crimson Flame][@Yasha]

[i](Sometime later...)[/i]

Pete cradled Luna in one arm and listened patiently to Director Clavell's speech. He remembered the gist of the speech from last year, and even more so remembered the cold feeling of dread that came with having no idea what he was supposed to make of the Director's words. The concept of a treasure had seemed so intangible and shrouded in mystery. Now he listened with a confident grin and a solid plan of attack. Find the herbs guarded by the titan pokemon – definitely no small feat, but even an attempt could make a world of difference for global healthcare.

[color=ed1c24]“Hey boulder brain!”[/color] An arm wrapped around Pete's shoulders. Pete looked over to see his classmate Adam and grinned back as the other student declared his imminent champion status with a tower of flames from his charmeleon.

[color=d6baae]“Hell yeah!”[/color] Pete cheered, and Luna howled and wagged her tail at the display. [color=d6baae]“I'm going out the east exit, so if you're heading that way, sure, why not?”[/color] Luna wriggled out of Pete's grasp and bounded ahead toward the exit with an eager bark. [color=d6baae]“Oh, hang on Luna, there's someone else who wanted to go with us too.”[/color] Jean had wanted to join after hearing Pete was looking for rare herbs. Who knew his goal to find a miracle cure would overlap with Jean's goals of discovering new recipes? [color=d6baae]“Can you go find him for us, Luna?”[/color]

Luna nodded and tore off, sniffing aggressively to catch the scent of that weird sandwich from before. She followed her nose straight to Jean, jumping on him with a happy bark then spinning back in the direction where she'd come, bowing her front legs playfully down to encourage him to follow her.