Madam's face darkened but there was no angry outburst. It was Nurse Joy! After a quick dry greeting, Madam booked 2 rooms for them.
The Nurse Joy quickly returned to her professional demeanor but Silas could tell that for some reason, she looked down on Madam.
Madam said nothing of the strange interaction and Silas didn't ask, That night, Silas used the TM machine at the center to finally teach Monferno Acrobatics. It had to build up a certain level of strength as a non-flying type.
Silas booked a training room so Monferno could get a preliminary feel so that tomorrow would be easier.
Moferno was a natural with the move but even still could only manage a single shift before the move ended. Monferno;s mastery was at the D level but Silas was hopeful. They accomplished a lot in under an hour.
Then they got to their nightly routine. A good nights rest is about as important as training. You have to let the body recover.
The following morning, Silas met Madam in the lobby to get breakfast. As they walked towards the dining area, a short blue haired woman wearing a police outfit stepped in front of them,
"When I heard that the great Madam had returned, I had to come see for myself." The woman was clearly here to make trouble for Madam.
"You know mini Jenny, its doing things like harassing your aunt in the morning before she's had breakfast why I used to have to punish you often."
Silas was caught completely off guard.
"Madam was a member of the Jenny clan?"
The facts were right in front of him. A Jenny referred to her as "aunt".
"You dare to battle? I am not the same child I once was."
"I dare."
Madam was back to her calm and cold demeanor. She rented a training room and brought everyone inside.
Both trainers called out an Arcanine but Madam's was bigger. Silas was curious what gave this woman the confidence to act this way. He scanned the police Arcanine.
Arcanine — Level 57
Ability: Justified
Potential: C+
Moves: Rank A Growl, Rank A Roar, Rank A Odor Sleuth, Rank B Protect, Rank B Reversal, Rank B Extreme Speed, Rank B Flame Wheel, Rank C Flare Blitz, Rank C Fire Blast, Rank C Close Combat, Rank C Morning Sun, Rank C Crunch, Rank C Close Combat, Rank D Snarl
Silas made a mental note to never again underestimate the power of an old clan.
Old clans are family like the Joys with the Happiny line, the Jennies with the Growlithe line, the Stones with the Beldum line, etc..
Even the Vale family in Goldenrod city with their Miltank farms monopoly, none are to be underestimated. Unfortunately for this Jenny, Madam had recently experienced a rise in power.
Even before the boost, it would have been a close match but now Madam would win unless she was outmaneuvered.
"Arcanine use Snarl."
A widespread wave of dark energy shot out towards Madam's Arcanine and it responded by using Flamethrower to stop the attack's advance.
"Use Extreme Speed"
Arcanine blurred and slammed into the other at max speed.
Jenny's Arcanine was clearly shaken up by the attack but Madam's wouldn't give it the time to regroup. It lashed out with Wild Charge, Crunch, & Aerial Ace.
Each attack scored a clean hit and on the other side the only damage was the recoil from Wild Charge.
"I grow tired of this, little Jenny. Arcanine–Flame Wheel Flare Blitz fusion"
Arcanine ignited itself with massive flames before rolling into a ball of fire, dashing straight at the other Arcanine.
Not to be out done, it used Reversal with its whole body glowing bright red then charged at the approaching ball of fire. Both sides collided creating an explosion.
When the smoke cleared. Officer Jenny's Arcanine was on the ground, knocked out.
Jenny was horrified, she recalled her Arcanine and started to walk away. Just as Silas thought she would leave silently, she turned around.
"All that talent and you choose to waste it farming berries." There was clearly a story here to explain all this weird hostility.
"Everyone has the right to choose how they live their lives. I won't apologize for it." Jenny didn't respond, she just left.
Silas and Madam went to the dining area and went through the buffet line. Madam flashed an ID card and they didn't have to pay for anything.
They sat down with enough food for them and their pokemon. After setting up the plates for his pokemon, Silas sat down across from Madam who had just done the same.
"So, what was that all about?" Silas was having trouble containing his curiosity after witnessing this scene and last night.
"I suppose I owe you an explanation." Madam put down her fork and paid before continuing.
"I am the cousin of the current head of the Jenny family and also a member of the Joy family. My dad was a renowned pokemon doctor and breeder from the Joy family and my mom is the aunt of the current head of the Jenny family."
Now it made sense why Madam owned a powerful Arcanine. It was common knowledge that the vast majority of Arcanine are under the control of the Jenny family.
Whenever a pack appears in the wild, they tend to disappear.
"So if your identity is so special, why are Jenny and Joys hostile towards you?"
Madam sighed and seemed to be reminiscing. "I was introduced to the cruelty of the world."
Silas said nothing, just looking at Madam, he could tell that whatever happened was difficult for her to talk about.
Madam continued.
"I was ambitious in my youth, I wanted to make both of my parents proud so I strived to be a powerful trainer but also a competent breeder."
'Wait you are a breeder too?" Silas was surprised. Madam definitely took care of her pokemon but she mainly used berries and not the pokeblocks usually associated with breeders.
"No I never completed the family education, I left home with my Growlithe when I was younger and I didn't look back."
There was clearly more to the story but Silas didn't pry. Having the conversation was already hard enough for Madam and he didn't want to make it worse by asking too many questions.
They sat in silence for several minutes until Madam abruptly got up.
"Lets start shopping for supplies."
They went to the pokemart to purchase items like the revive and escape ropes. Then they went to the supermarket to purchase some travel cooking gear.
Madam chose a portable grill. It could be powered by igniting a flame below it. They also got a few pots, plates, and cups. This journey could take a long time so Madam made sure to be prepared.
She owned a mid grade storage backpack. The technology allowed the user to ignore the weight of what they were carrying. The space inside was about 15 cubic meters. There was no concern of running out of space.
Surprisingly, Madam knew exactly how to get to the Underground. She donned a cloak and gestured for Silas to do the same.
Following behind Madam, they had a smooth visit to the Underground. She went straight to a stall that sold bug pokemon and looked around for a while. A Butterfree caught Madam's attention. Silas was curious why she stopped here and scanned the butterfly pokemon.
Butterfree — Level 28
Ability: Compound Eyes
Potential: D+
Moves: Rank B Harden, Rank B Tackle, Rank C Stun Spore, Rank C Sleeping Powder, Rank C Confusion, Rank C Air Slash, Rank C Sweet Scent, Rank D Bug Buzz
This pokemon had a decent movepool but poor potential.
"If you are wondering why I want this pokemon, take a whiff."
Silas hesitated before smelling Butterfree. Surprisingly it had a sweet smell to it. The mystery remained, what value does a good smelling pokemon have?
As if reading his mind, Madam answered the questions he asked himself.
"Its actually to help you. This Butterfree is at a decent level and it knows Sweet Scent which will help us quickly train you up to the intermediate level."
Silas finally understood. Madam quickly purchased the Butterfree without the typical haggling done in stalls.
Aside from Butterfree, Madam purchased an expensive Assault Vest. This item significantly increases the defenses of the wearer but in exchange the wearer cannot use support moves.
Attempting support moves while wearing the vest would at best cause the moves to fail and at worst damage the pokemon internally.
Silas and Madam exited the underground area and immediately set out. It was now late afternoon so it was the perfect time to head out.
They walked through Route 22, allowing Silas to battle lower level wild pokemon. Madam had Butterfree constantly using Sweet Scent.
The pokemon that are attracted depend on the level of the pokemon using Sweet Scent. Arcanine drove away any pokemon too strong for Silas' team.
This continued for a few hours.
Arcanine suddenly stopped and growled but there was nobody around them.
Nidoqueen came out of its pokeball on high alert as well.