Hoenn Region, Fallarbor Town, Contest Hall.
Ariel had been very troubled lately.
Her Eevee just couldn't seem to learn any Fairy-type moves, no matter what she tried.
Eevee's genetics were incredibly unstable.
They evolve into entirely different forms depending on the environment, energy, and even the time of day.
Ariel and her Eevee shared the dream of becoming the world's greatest Pokémon Coordinator, and ever since Eevee hatched and gained awareness, it had been working hard to evolve into Sylveon.
But to this day, it hadn't made any progress.
"If this goes on, we're going to miss this year's Contest!" Ariel fretted.
"Bui…"
Tiny Eevee looked disheartened too. Not being able to evolve into Sylveon had put it in a very bad mood.
Seeing this, Ariel patted its little head to comfort it. "Don't be sad, you've worked so hard already!"
Still, she worried that Eevee might evolve into Espeon or Umbreon instead for other reasons.
The trainer traveling with her, Long, suggested:
"Why don't we find a breeder to help out?"
A breeder…
Ariel suddenly remembered the old daycare she had passed on the way to Fallarbor Town two days ago.
Typically, daycares could help Pokémon learn new moves too.
The problem was, that particular daycare looked rundown—like it had been abandoned for ages. She wasn't sure it could be trusted.
But at this point, there wasn't much choice. Most people in Fallarbor were trainers or coordinators—they didn't know any professional breeders who could help teach Eevee a Fairy-type move.
Forget it—they'd go check it out. If it worked, great. If not, they'd find another way!
Ariel made her decision and left the town, heading west along the path she had taken before. After a long walk, she finally spotted that familiar building.
"Huh? Is it just me, or does this place look completely different?"
As she got closer, she realized it wasn't her imagination—the entire breeding house had been renovated.
There was now a sign on the door saying "Open for Business", and a chalkboard off to the side listed the services currently available:
[Carver's Breeding House – Services]
Pokémon Daycare
Move Tutoring Available: Baby-Doll Eyes, Tackle
Rare Item Exchange: Common Stones, Big Roots
Room & Board
Ariel's eyes instantly locked on the move Baby-Doll Eyes.
A Fairy-type move!
If Eevee could learn it, it could finally evolve into Sylveon!
"Owner!!"
Ariel shouted excitedly and pushed open the door, calling out loudly.
Inside, Carver, who had been reading a Pokémon breeding manual, looked up to see a familiar green-haired girl at the door—
The same trainer who had passed by with an Eevee a few days ago.
"Welcome," Carver said.
Ariel rushed up to him, asking urgently:
"Can you really teach Baby-Doll Eyes here?"
"Of course," Carver replied with a faint smile.
"I want to learn it!" Ariel declared immediately.
But before she could go further, Long and Hui quickly pulled her aside.
The three huddled up and started whispering loudly:
"Hey, don't you think this place is a little weird?"
"It's way too empty!"
A normal breeding house would be full of Pokémon. But here? Just one Bewear.
And the "owner" looked like a little kid—was he even ten yet?
Move tutoring wasn't easy. Even experienced breeders couldn't guarantee success in teaching a specific move.
Could this kid, who looked even younger than them, really do it?
"Is he a scammer?" Hui whispered.
Ariel hesitated after that.
The three turned to look at the boy behind the counter.
Carver: "…"
But he simply looked toward the Eevee on Ariel's shoulder, and slowly spoke:
"Eevee has extremely unstable genes. Its evolution depends on its environment, and especially its relationship with its trainer."
"A Fire Stone turns it into Flareon, Water Stone into Vaporeon. With enough affection, it evolves into Espeon by day, and Umbreon by night. But evolving into Sylveon? That's much harder."
Carver paused, then asked with a smile:
"If I'm not wrong, you want to teach it Baby-Doll Eyes to evolve it into Sylveon, don't you?"
The trio froze.
As a junior breeder, Hui was stunned.
So professional.
There was no way a regular ten-year-old could say something like that!
Even researchers across regions hadn't figured out the full details of Eevee's evolution.
Sure, everyone knew Espeon came during the day, and Umbreon at night. But some Eevee evolved into Sylveon during the day too…
Eventually, researchers discovered that Sylveon evolution required a Fairy-type move.
Even so, learning a Fairy-type move wasn't a guarantee. Many Eevee still evolved into Espeon instead.
Could trainer bonds also influence the evolution outcome?
Yet this boy spoke about it so clearly… Was he just bluffing, or did he really know all this?
If it was the latter… that would be incredible.
Who exactly was this kid? Hui felt rattled.
But Ariel didn't overthink it. She quickly nodded to Carver. "That's right!"
Carver smiled. "Then shall we give it a try?"
"How much does it cost to learn Baby-Doll Eyes?" Ariel asked.
Carver wasn't sure how other daycares priced move tutoring—he hadn't done market research yet. So he casually quoted a number:
"5,000 Poké Dollars."
"Five thousand?!" Ariel gasped.
Carver raised a brow. Was that too expensive?
But the next moment, Ariel said: "That's so cheap! Other daycares charge at least 10,000, and they don't even guarantee success!"
Carver reacted quickly and added,
"Because you're our first customer since reopening—I gave you a discount."
"Wow!!" Ariel's eyes sparkled.
What a deal!