Night fell, the music theater’s spotlights braided with neon, and a full moon hung over Raven City’s night sky.

Elesa wore antenna headphones and a shiny yellow vest;

her black hair braided into plaits that fell to the legs beneath her hot pants. She smiled politely at the woman next to her and said, “Hello, Miss Nassi… the evening breeze is really pleasant.”

Nassi, dressed in a purple bodysuit, glanced at Elesa and nodded coolly. “Hello.”

The conversation stalled.

Elesa studied this Unova gym leader and entertainment star, curiosity prompting small talk. “Miss Nassi, why did you come to the music theater tonight?”

“Because I’m interested in Haunter’s repertoire,” Nassi said, looking forward.

Elesa blinked and tilted her head. “Haunter?”

“Is that a problem?” Nassi countered.

This senior seemed difficult to get along with…

Elesa had originally wanted to trade beauty tips, but changed topics instead.

As a model, Elesa was approachable in life, fond of old jokes and bad puns… though they often induced awkwardness, she loved them anyway.

Her cheeks flushed as if she’d thought of a funny joke;

she stifled a giggle and said, “Miss Nassi… ahem, do you know… Mareep’s wool?”

“The evolved form of Mareep? What about it.” Nassi asked.

“Mareep’s wool—it's so fluffy, hehe~” Elesa covered her mouth and laughed softly.

Nassi: “……”

That joke was colder than ‘Liu Bo’s ice’!

Elesa peeked at Nassi and whispered, “Not funny?”

Nassi’s icy face forced the faintest curve of a smile. “We… could talk about something else.”

Elesa’s eyes lit up. “Really? I want to be dazzling on stage like you, Miss Nassi… with your figure, I think you could totally be a model!”

Nassi glanced at Elesa’s earnest look and relaxed her shoulders a bit, making small talk. “What skincare products do you use?”

“To be honest, I study beauty products quite a bit!”

Elesa puffed out her chest. “But… I thought Miss Nassi wasn’t into those things.”

“That was before,” Nassi said. “Now I take skincare very seriously.”

She still remembered being attacked by Misty—called an ‘old woman’ with ‘bad skin’—the memory stung.

As trainers juggling main careers and side work, Nassi and Elesa unexpectedly found common ground.

“Do you know what happens when a bad star runs a red light? It becomes an ultra-bad star!” Elesa said with a serious face as she told a joke.

Nassi listened to the chatterty, shining Elesa and the corner of her mouth twitched, widening into a smile. She covered her mouth to hide it.

The icy Nassi from the original series actually laughed heartily at Ghost-type pranks—at heart she was a girl missing a normal childhood but full of childlike wonder.

Sitting next to a lover of bad jokes, Nassi let down her guard and, rarely, smiled.

Cheren and Bailu sat together.

Next to them, Roxie sat with studded boots crossed, white braids tied up, yawning from boredom.

Bailu whispered, “Roxie… what exactly is on Teacher Lu’s setlist tonight?”

“No idea,” Roxie scoffed. “But Teacher Lu has some skill, and with Meloetta helping… you can rest assured.”

“Meloetta?” Cheren said in surprise. “A mythical Pokémon traveling with Teacher Lu?”

Roxie turned wordlessly;

the three of them looked toward a dark-haired young man by the stage.

A Meloetta perched on the young man’s shoulder, swinging slender legs, and a cute little Victini dozed on his head.

Cheren and Bailu, who had once collected Pokedex data for Professor Cedar, both looked oddly troubled.

“Meloetta… and Victini?!”

Was Teacher Lu raiding Unova’s mythical den right here!

Caitlin arrived with a smile, one hand on her hip, greeting the Ghost-type ace Fumiko.

“Welcome~ Why isn’t Caitlin here?”

“She said she didn’t want to see you and Teacher Lu being close,” Fumiko said with a laugh.

Caitlin muttered, “She’s too sensitive to her surroundings… music affects her easily.”

Fumiko held her novel, adjusted her glasses, and glanced around. “By the way, where is Teacher Lu?”

“He’s preparing for the opening soon.”

Fumiko nodded thoughtfully, leaned close to Caitlin, and whispered, “Bamboo Lan… is the hero story going around Unova really about Teacher Lu?”

Caitlin didn’t confirm, instead looking at the mythical Pokémon clustered around Teacher Lu and smiling faintly. “Maybe for him… saving Unova and giving Meloetta a concert, the latter matters more.”

A flicker of excitement crossed Fumiko’s eyes.

“Inspiration struck… I’ll stay up late to finish tonight’s draft!”

The sleepless Fumiko, dark circles under her eyes, silently cheered herself on.

The Team Rocket trio sat in a back corner, whispering.

“That skinny girl is model Elesa…”

“So pretty, meow~” Meowth’s eyes sparkled with hearts.

“Soso~ nashi!” Wobbuffet nodded with a grin.

Jessie twirled a strand of red hair and mumbled, “My figure’s just as good as hers, right?”

“Hmph, if I could enter showbiz, I’d be a female star too!” Jessie said.

James peered through binoculars at the stage and said in a low voice, “The handler is amazing—he’s even close to legends like Victini.”

Meowth cupped his cheeks and smiled dreamily. “And Meloetta~ so charming meow!”

“Soso~ nashi~~” Wobbuffet chuckled.

Ping-pong!

Jessie punched the air above Wobbuffet and Meowth’s heads at the same time. “Meloetta belongs to the handler, you two, no funny business!”

“Soso nashi… o(╥﹏╥)o”

“Ouch meow… Meowth is only appreciating beautiful things.”

Meowth hugged his arms and looked toward two people who had just entered the theater, frozen.

“L-Little trainers?!” the trio blurted in unison.

Ash and Alice entered the music theater, greeting familiar Unova gym leaders warmly.

There was still some time before the opening, and Ash had seen the message in the chat group, so he and Alice rushed over.

“Oh, looks like we made it just in time,” Ash said.

Pikachu lay on Ash’s shoulder and chirped cheerfully, “Pika-chu!”

Suddenly, the stage lights went out with a whoosh.

“Find a seat fast—the concert’s starting,” Alice said.

When the lights came back up, every eye in the hall turned to the trainer on stage.

“Tonight’s concert theme is the bond between humans and Pokémon.”

Lu Ye began slowly, smiling. “It’s an oft-repeated topic… but after traveling Unova, I’ve come to a deeper understanding.”

“Tonight’s concert is informal… partners who want to perform may take the stage.”

“Lastly, thank you all for attending this concert—my deepest thanks.”

The handsome dark-haired young man pressed a hand to his chest;

Meloetta hovered beside him, their bows synchronized.

Stage lights bathing Lu Ye, Meloetta’s every movement seemed to personify beauty, blending splendor and elegance.

“Teacher Lu… a coordinator maestro?” Elesa recognized a coordinator’s flair and murmured.

Nassi nodded slightly.

With Meloetta as his partner… Lu Ye might even be comparable to Wallace’s performances.

And with Victini—symbol of victory—by his side, he could climb to great heights in the trainer world.

To have both victory and art’s favor… Nassi whispered, “Looks like Arceus isn’t fair.”

The performance officially began.

The first act: Roxie and her partner, Venomoth, launched into a heavy metal rock set.

Roxie ripped through an electric guitar, stamping in her studded boots and cried, “PoisonOrDie, poison-stage!”

The music theater instantly transformed into an underground rock club.

Lu Ye thought Roxie’s cello sounded better, but the theater director Roxie invited looked thrilled.

“Caitlin not coming was a wise choice.”

Fumiko smiled wryly. “If it overstimulates her, her Psychic might tear the theater down.”

“But everyone seems to be enjoying it.” Caitlin chuckled.

Fumiko glanced around and saw Ash and Alice nodding along to the rhythm.

Elesa pointed to her antenna headphones and leaned to Nassi. “I’ve got Roxie’s albums saved… oh, and Teacher Lu’s single too!”

A game producer who can’t write songs is no good at cooking…

Nassi sighed. “If he ever made a movie, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

Many trainers are also performers: Karine, Nassi, Hachiku… in the Black and White games there were Pokémon Hollywood and film settings, so entertainment is viable in the Pokémon world.

Meowth once met his first love Madonna at a Kanto “Pokémon Hollywood” attraction and vowed to learn human speech—only to be rejected because Madonna found a talking Meowth disgusting.

The trio’s romantic lives have been rough… yet friendship kept them together;

their bond is stronger than blood.

After Roxie’s performance, Lu Ye looked down at Meowth in the audience.

Meowth froze, reading Lu Ye’s look with his eyes, face reddening as he waved his paw. “Meowth can’t, meow—too many people meow… and, and meow sings badly meow…”

Deep inside, Meowth longed to perform, to be recognized with a song he wrote and played himself.

But Meowth knew his voice was unpleasant—like nails on a chalkboard.

Meowth felt the Power of Transcendence echo in his heart and paused.

‘No problem, Meowth.’

Lu Ye smiled. ‘Go on—sing what you’re good at.’

Meowth slowly lifted his head, staring at the glittering stage, eyes shining.

Back then… Meowth had dreamed of that glittering, romantic life.

But.

Meowth glanced at James and Jessie and gave a sly grin.

He had his companions, and a great handler… that was enough for him, meow!

Meowth stood on his chair and shook his head toward Lu Ye.

Lu Ye raised an eyebrow and gave Jessie and James a look.

They exchanged a knowing glance, smiled, and each grabbed Meowth’s arm.

“W-what are you doing, meow!” Meowth panicked.

“This is Meowth’s chance to shine,” James said.

“Leave a good impression on the trainers here—it’ll help with future promotions!” Jessie added.

They both knew Meowth had a painful past…

The seemingly confident Meowth wanted more than anyone to be accepted.

Now… it was a perfect opportunity.

They hurled Meowth onto the stage and laughed, “It’s decided—Meowth!”

“Nooo meow~~”

Meowth flailed midair and landed in a warm embrace, looking up to meet Lu Ye’s eyes.

“Ha-handler…” Meowth’s voice trembled.

“No problem, Meowth.”

Lu Ye set Meowth down. “Need a guitar?”

Meowth blinked and nodded, taking a small guitar from Meloetta who floated forward.

“Meloooo~” Meloetta clenched a fist and cheered Meowth on.

Meowth stared at the guitar;

memories of his days as a stray surfaced. He timidly looked up at his handler.

What Meowth saw was a mentor who had hardly told him anything, yet seemed to understand everything…

“Handler… (இωஇ)”

Applause erupted.

Meowth turned to James and Jessie;

his feeling wasn’t regret for the past, but contentment and happiness.

In an instant, a tiny flame danced in Meowth’s eyes. He gripped the small guitar and climbed the riser, lowering the microphone.

“N-next… is a performance by Meowth…”

He scratched his head, shyly. “It’s a song I wrote myself, so the title is—”

Meowth took a deep breath and said, “‘Meowth’s Ballad.’”

Another wave of applause rolled through the hall.

Elesa’s eyes gleamed. “A talking Meowth… so cute~”

Nassi folded her arms, the corner of her mouth lifting into a faint smile.

Rumor had it Team Rocket now had an elite squad… under their mentor’s guidance they’d matured a lot.

Meowth’s face flushed as he hugged the guitar and cleared his throat, looking up at the theater’s dome.

Through days of drifting, nights of learning language in attic hideaways, blue silent nights of pondering existence…

A silver disk of a moon seemed to appear before Meowth.

He sat under the pale moonlight, guitar in hand—

Gold coins scattered all over the ground, yet Team Rocket’s Meowth looked up and saw only the moonlight.

With a hoarse yet tender voice, Meowth began to hum:

“Aoi Aoi shizuka na yoru ni wa……”

The blue, quiet night, I ponder philosophy alone.

Creepy-crawlies roll in the grass, they chirp;

they look so tasty.

Tonight I will not eat them.

The moon is so… round, so round.

A vast night sky studded with stars, a clear full moon over a flowing river.

A humanoid pink Pokémon, solemn-faced, looks up at the moon.

The meaning of its existence… something Mewtwo had always pursued.

“Rounder than anything round in the world.”

The bright moon lights the road ahead.

A green-haired youth walks along the road, lifting his gaze toward the moon.

The relationship between humans and Pokémon… that is an equation N could not solve.

For thousands of years, the bonds between humans and Pokémon—everything, all of it.

Meowth looked down at James and Jessie in the audience and offered his answer.

“Rounder than anything round in the world.”

The song ended.

Meowth closed his eyes and, nervous, whispered, “My throat’s hoarse… it didn’t sound good meow…”

‘Please forgive me, everyone,’ Meowth was about to say.

A roar of applause like a tide swelled up. Meowth opened his eyes in surprise.

Jessie and James had tears in theirs as they clapped furiously.

“Where can I get this song? I want to add it to my playlist!” Elesa’s eyes sparkled.

“‘Meowth’s Ballad,’ huh.” Cheren nodded thoughtfully. “The lyrics are unexpectedly philosophical…”

Bailu smiled. “There are philosophers among Pokémon too.”

Lu Ye stepped out from behind the curtain and locked eyes with the nervous, sweating Meowth.

Reflected in his pupils was the silent dark-haired young man;

Meowth breathed out, his eyes brightening.

“Handler…”

Meowth reached up, wiped a tear from his cheek, and looked up. “This feels amazing~ Meow!”