Edward frowned as he looked at Zinnia.
He hadn't recognized this girl before, but now he recalled that it was Zinnia and her companions who had captured the Pokémon thieves, the Kirlia and Poochyena. Although Zinnia later betrayed her allies and helped rescue the stolen Pokémon, Edward still couldn't form a favorable opinion of her.
Now that he remembered more, her identity became even clearer. She was a member of the Draconid people and had a history of enmity with his Stone family—Edward's own lineage. She had even sent them threatening letters before.
"Mm, this child will definitely show extraordinary performance in battles!" Zinnia said with a bright, cheerful smile, showing no trace of hatred or darkness. She looked completely carefree and harmless.
"Oh? Edward, you're here too?" Lillian, the head of the Pokémon Care Center, had noticed him by now and greeted him with a warm smile. Edward smiled back and nodded, then turned to Zinnia, who also turned to meet his gaze—her eyes glinting with a subtle but clear sense of scrutiny.
"Headmistress Lillian, is this Miss Zinnia here to adopt Greeny?" Edward asked as he walked over, holding Q in his arms. Fortune the Gholdengo followed closely behind him, his eyes locked firmly on Zinnia. Even Q, sensing the hostility in Edward's demeanor, sat up and stared at her with wariness and an unmistakable tension.
Lillian nodded, but then she noticed something off about Edward's behavior. She paused for a moment, instinctively glancing at Zinnia, her own expression turning doubtful. She knew Edward's personality well—if he was reacting this way, there must be something wrong with Zinnia.
"As expected of Mr. Edward—just a few words and I've already been ostracized," Zinnia said with a chuckle, clapping her hands together. She didn't seem worried at all. On the contrary, she still had the mind to joke.
"Zinnia, are you really here to adopt Greeny?" Edward narrowed his eyes at her. His memory of Zinnia wasn't that vivid—even in the mainline games, her screen time wasn't significant. She was portrayed more like a tragic figure who'd been emotionally betrayed or slighted.
In fact, in some special editions, Edward remembered that when Zinnia confronted Rayquaza, things didn't go well for her at all. He vaguely recalled that she had even been punished by Rayquaza for harming the protagonist—yes, Zinnia could be considered canonically pitiful.
"Mm-hmm, but it seems Mr. Edward isn't planning to let me adopt anymore, is he?" Zinnia clasped her hands behind her back, tiptoed slightly, and leaned forward playfully as she looked at Edward, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.
"You and your group kidnapped Kirlia and Poochyena. I really can't bring myself to trust you," Edward said directly, not beating around the bush. Sure, Zinnia had intentionally leaked information to help him save the Pokémon back then, but that was one matter. The bad things she'd done couldn't just be forgiven because she happened to do one good deed later.
Even the law doesn't work like that—you might get a lighter sentence, but you'll still have to be held accountable.
As soon as she heard this, Lillian's expression darkened. She didn't say anything, but a Blastoise appeared at her side. Then, Ruckus the Salamence let out an earth-shaking roar as he soared in from the backyard and landed beside Lillian, eyes glaring furiously at Zinnia.
Zinnia didn't respond immediately. Instead, she looked at Ruckus, her eyes briefly filled with surprise and… compassion. She seemed genuinely saddened by the scarred and battered condition of the Salamence.
"Edward, I wasn't the one who ordered the kidnapping of Kirlia and Poochyena—that bastard next to me did that on his own," Zinnia snapped, her gaze at Edward full of frustration. Edward frowned slightly. He was aware that Zinnia held a grudge against his family, likely tied to his father's past attempt to capture Rayquaza.
He didn't know many details about that incident, but Edward believed there's rarely love or hatred without a reason. His father must have done something more than just try to catch Rayquaza to provoke such intense resentment from Zinnia.
Edward narrowed his eyes. Figuring out what to do with Zinnia was a tricky issue, but since he'd run into her here, the best course of action was to detain her. She was a Draconid. Who knew—she might be useful in future events, especially if Rayquaza was involved. Having her in custody could simplify locating it.
Even though Edward wasn't planning to let Team Aqua or Team Magma succeed in stealing the Red and Blue Orbs to awaken Groudon or Kyogre, being proactive about potential threats was never a bad thing.
Just as he was about to act, Zinnia suddenly slammed a Poké Ball onto the ground. Thick smoke burst out instantly. Ruckus roared, flapping his massive wings to blow the smoke away in seconds, revealing Zinnia seated on the back of an Altaria, trying to escape by air.
"Q!" Edward shouted. If Zinnia got away, it'd be a major headache. No family—no matter how powerful—could guard against thieves every single day.
"Kyuu!" Q leapt out and immediately launched a Dazzling Gleam attack. But Zinnia and her Altaria evaded the strike with agile precision.
"Gravity," Headmistress Lillian said calmly.
At that moment, Altaria let out a distressed cry—it couldn't fly anymore!
Beside Lillian, a Clefable stuck out its tongue cheekily at Zinnia. It had cast Gravity, effectively grounding Zinnia and cutting off her escape route.
"Looks like I won't be getting away after all." Zinnia's face fell. She glanced at Q and Gholdengo with unease, then looked cautiously at Lillian. She had clearly realized just how experienced and formidable this Center Headmistress was—Lillian had read her escape attempt perfectly and immediately deployed a gravity field to shut it down.
Knowing there was no longer a chance to flee, Zinnia threw out all of her Poké Balls. In an instant, six Pokémon appeared in the courtyard. Edward's expression twisted with amusement.
Next door in Kanto, there was Lance—the self-proclaimed "Dragon-type Master" and "Champion of Dragons"—whose team was packed with Flying-types. From a purity standpoint, Lance's team couldn't hold a candle to Zinnia's.
Zinnia had six Pokémon out now—five of them were pure Dragon-types!
Baxcalibur, Goodra, Salamence, Noivern—only that tiny Goomy wasn't full-fledged, but every other one was undeniably Dragon-type.
Oh Lance… you call yourself the Dragon Master? Your team's dragon-type purity is seriously lacking compared to Zinnia's!
"Stone…" Zinnia shot him a very unfriendly look.
But when she looked at Headmistress Lillian, her expression shifted into one of deep respect—a stark contrast that made Edward's eyelid twitch. That flip in attitude was almost too dramatic.
"Clear out the surrounding Pokémon," Zinnia said with grave seriousness. "I don't want to hurt these little ones."
Edward paused. Seeing Zinnia's expression now, some of his hostility softened ever so slightly.
Still, a battle was inevitable.
He turned to Fortune. Speaking of which, hadn't Fortune just collected fifty thousand coins? Maybe… just maybe, this was a good time to unleash a Make It Rain?
After all, Lance had only suffered because Gen I had barely any Dragon-types to choose from…
(End of Chapter)