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Tristen looked on as Matteo took his leave from the cafeteria, then took a long, deep sigh. He screwed up; that much he could figure. Tristen would go back to his sandwich, though suddenly not feeling as hungry himself anymore, too in thought, trying to see if there was anything there that should have made Tristen wait on calling Matteo out like that; something that would sow any doubt that it was what it was. If there was anything, there was the fact that Matteo still held his father in such high regard somehow, though the most he can think is that Matteo made it a point that he was famous and all that such, both here in the academy and out in Pokeathelons and some such. In fact, that was all that Matteo emphasized with his father in particular, and according to some like Penny and Fela, held it over people’s heads, coming off as if he was better because he had ties to someone that was, and to Matteo’s admission, it was a severe kick in the complacency to be shown he wasn’t that special. It brought to question was Matteo respecting the fame or the family? Regardless of the answer, Tristen was almost sure that it was too soon to be drilling into such a thing. He was too hasty, still.

It didn’t take long for Tristen to finish and he still had time before he would find himself at the track…though. Tristen grimaced a little bit, having a suspicion about something. Tristen would clean up his spot, leave the cafeteria, and make his way back for his dorm for a few moments. He’d go to his laptop, turning it on, and make an exchange of Pokémon, a just in case measure. Feeling Pokémon such as Sprigatito and Rookidee was not going to cut it if Matteo decides to do something absolutely dumb. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to it, but he wasn’t sure, not with territory that Tristen decided to cross.

Prepared as he was going to get, he made his way back out of his dorm, closing and locking his door behind him, and made his way off for the track to meet with Matteo once again.

Tristen was about to approach the doors until Camp came in, cordial as he tends to be. But ended up getting a bit concerned and serious when he brought up where Matteo was and his demeanor. Tristen was in fact afraid of that. He did bring a party as a just in case measure, but it was nothing that he wanted to actually use. Tristen wanted to salvage this, but he wasn’t sure anymore if it could. “Yea, something did. I ended up screwing up. Asked him about something that got really under his skin. I tried apologizing right when I realized it, but he’s not having it right now. I’m going to try to talk him out of this because this isn’t his or my Pokémon’s concern. It shouldn’t have to be.”

Tristen shook his head. “I guess…I don’t know…” Tristen sighed. “I guess if you want. I’ll explain everything later otherwise when hopefully this calms down for the moment.” Tristen grimaced for a second then started for the door again, muttering to himself about being too stupid having to know and asking wrong questions. Once he cleared the doors and made his way to the courtyard. When it got the attention of Matteo, he made his proclamation loud and clear, for everyone in the yard to hear. This was where Tristen’s momentary lack of tact got him.

As Tristen walked onto the field, Matteo would see is that Tristen wasn’t going for the opposing trainer’s box. In fact, he walked onto the field, approaching him, but not getting close to him. Not yet anyways. The thing that bothered him about the whole entire situation however was why now? Why couldn’t Matteo talk to Tristen, at the very least if he wanted to chew him out, and perhaps deservedly so, do so in private? Tristen already was trying to own up to it, but this…was something else. Tristen was always taught to leave Pokémon out of disputes like this. It was dishonorable for a trainer to involve Pokémon in squabbles like these; a memo that Matteo didn’t apparently get, or at the very least refused to comprehend. Tristen looked over towards the other students, now getting the attention brought to him. Something was off about this whole entire situation. Tristen was well aware he screwed up, regardless if he was right or not, something that he tried to apologize for. Something that an apology wasn’t going to fix; at least not for Matteo. There was another objective here. Tristen thought back for a moment. A day form Lycanroc, a freshly evolved Floatzel that hadn’t had any opportunity to actually explore what it could do yet, a Kilowatrell, a Paldean Tauros, an insubordinate Shelgon. And potentially an unknown sixth Pokémon. Matteo barely scraped by on two of those Pokémon and completely was demolished once Dragonite hit center stage, and he doubted that was going to change now. Never mind that at last check, Matteo didn’t have the means to terastalize, which may or may not give him any sort of edge. And given that he changed his Pokémon around just before coming out here as a ‘if diplomacy fails’ situation, Tristen didn’t think Matteo’s chances that highly. Such a mismatch would make Tristen look like an absolute bully in this scenario. And with this audience? No…this was bait. Though given Matteo’s reputation over the years, Tristen was left to wonder if Matteo was either trying to make himself a hero in this situation, or setting himself up for a further fall in embarrassment.

Regardless of the situation, Tristen had to see if he couldn’t save Matteo from himself right now. He, after all, put him there in the first place. “Matteo, this is dumb.” Tristen said. “Your Pokémon don’t need to get involved in this. Shouldn’t. I screwed up. I admit that. I tried apologizing to you back in the cafeteria for it. Challenging me to a Pokémon battle over this isn’t going to change anything and its disrespectful to our Pokémon. If there was going to be any reason that’d I’d battle you right now, it’d be out of pity. Is that what you want? A pity battle?” Tristen asked, crossing his arms. “You want to settle things with me, then settle it with me instead of making a show of it.”

Tristen felt a wave of relief, not really paying any mind to the students about when it looked like he was about to get Matteo to listen. The other students about really didn’t cross his mind after that initial moment at first when Tristen thought Matteo was going to try to humiliate him in front of them. That was however, until he noticed Matteo’s reactions; Tristen ended up quickly double-taking then looked back at Matteo once he told Tristen to meet him on Pico Path this evening. And settling it without Pokémon. “Matteo!” Tristen called out to him once he started to walk off. Tristen was left flabbergasted, more stunned than he had been before, floored in fact that he couldn’t bring himself to run, mouth slightly agape. Was this about to go where he think it is? If Matteo had relatively poor chances in a Pokémon battle, they were abysmal in straight-up fisticuffs, and it wasn’t a lesson Tristen thought he was ready to deliver. Not to someone he was trying to help instead.

Tristen closed his eyes, took a deep, long, resignation-filled breath. “No…no it didn’t.” Tristen said to Camp. “Ugh…he’s really going to do this. He’s really going to do this. That idiot.” Tristen said, clasping his hands around his mouth, nearly muzzling it. “I never thought I could meet anyone more prideful than some I’ve met in Team Snagem, rather in the team or people that I had to fight against, but I am wrong. But oh, look at me, I’m no better, because this happens because I felt I had to ask a question I didn’t realize was stupid until it was too late. A question that changed everything because I was worried about him!” He ended up having to calm down once again, taking another couple of breaths. It left a lot of questions like how Matteo had the friends he did, like Fela, B, E, and Camp for instance…but the bigger underlying question was…is it supposed to be this hard in maintaining friends? Tristen looked at Camp. Regretful, conflicted, not really sure what to do, wondering how it would affect things from here on. Worries that he hoped was buried after the first time since Matteo already had been actually humiliated once in front of students and staff during that tournament and the Growlithe hybrid already supposedly had learned about keeping his emotions in check thanks to the mushroom incident. He knew that Matteo was going to have tumbles, but this was more than that. This was a straight leap off a cliff.

“I guess I should warn you that things aren’t probably going to be all that good during class tomorrow…” Tristen said.

Tristen had to think. In truth, Tristen was sure he could effectively fight Matteo and in spite of that allow Matteo get off generally unharmed, though Matteo certainly wasn’t going to like what Tristen had in mind to accomplish it. But perhaps it would get Matteo to sit down long enough to listen to him, or for him to confirm or assuredly deny the accusation that Tristen had on Matteo’s father, never mind spell out that the whole entire thing was dumb for Matteo to even try. That once again he allowed his emotions to rule the day.

Tristen adjusted his jacket, its heavy weight shifting a bit about. Tristen’s face then turned to resignment once again. “I guess I’m going to have to go out there and drag him back one way or another.” Tristen said, taking out his SNAG to check the time. It was still a few hours before nightfall and Poco Path was just beyond Los Platos, which passes by the regional professors’ old laboratory to his understanding. It was out of the way, though, just as Matteo suggested it would be. If he was going to drag Matteo back…it was going to be a rather long walk. “I better get ready, I guess…” Tristen said, shaking his head. “I’ll…be back later, Camp.” Tristen said, walking off.

Although generally busy for the next few hours, it felt like an eternity to the Manectric hybrid. Tristen still was completely dumbfounded that Matteo would even want to try this. Pride coming before the fall, as one would say. With all said however, Tristen still couldn’t help but feel that it was all his fault, moving too fast, too soon, in trying to get to the root of Matteo’s issues. He constantly told himself to move slow ever since things were smoothed over earlier this past week, where Matteo expressed his jealousy of Tristen and understanding of what he had been through in the wake of the mushroom incident. Though as he went on through the day and finally set out to Cabo Poco to meet with Matteo, Tristen started to think and wonder just how long could he walk on eggshells around Matteo? The fact that perhaps nearly anything could have been a proverbial trigger in ruining everything, rather it be Tristen’s excelling in Ms. Dendra’s classes or Gloria’s antagonizing. Truthfully, anything could have set anything off in the worst way, rather it be a botched Pokémon battle or just someone saying something that didn’t gel at all with him, just as it was now. For all the talk of being better, Matteo was still struggling with the idea of doing so in more than one way. Perhaps a fight such as this was inevitable, rather it be from Tristen’s lack of tact or Matteo’s short fuse or anything unforeseen like those rumors from his first week at school.

Tristen would eventually arrive, hands in his jacket pockets, seeing Matteo there who had been waiting on him. He still looked livid as all get out; Tristen assuming that he had not stopped and thought once in the entire time in the past few hours on his own. It was quiet between the two of them, Tristen looking resigned for the most part, remorseful still that it had to come to this. Effectively convinced that no matter how this was going to pan out, this night was not going to end well at all and won’t be better for a while. A sea breeze whisked its way down the path as the two looked each other for a moment. Part of Tristen wanted to apologize again, try again, try to appeal to reason again. Though after what happened at the courtyard back at the academy, Tristen thought against it, perhaps assured that Matteo’s temper is too flared up to care. With a soft sigh, Tristen would finally speak. “Do we really have to do this?” Tristen asked, all concerned to be sure, but also could easily double as a warning that Matteo was probably not going to recognize in his state.

“Mind my business?” A weird choice of words to Tristen. If it was taken as a mere insult, then surely something else should have been said, right? That Tristen would have been called out for rudeness or insulted honor or something of that sort. No…Tristen actually did touch on something back in that cafeteria. “Wait, so I was right!?” Tristen felt agitated, this made the entire situation so much worse and he really didn’t know how to get Matteo see reason. As Tristen noticed Matteo going down into his sprinting pose, ready to come in after him, the Manectric hybrid realized that there was no talking him out of this. Matteo, in spite of the initial hesitation, was committed to this. His emotions won out, a defiant act of denial perhaps.

Tristen shifted his body, only a little bit, eyeing Matteo down. His training kicking in full gear. The objective, little harm as possible. Neutralize him. Matteo was angry, nothing more. Tristen had more tools than what most did in Snagem, which was crazy at his age. He watched every step that dug in the dirt by Matteo, remembering what he was taught. Every move spelled had intent, from feints to committal to attacks. This was a reckless endeavor. He couldn’t go all out against Matteo. He shouldn’t. Matteo then kicked into high gear…going after Agility. That hard burst to give him every bit of speed, to cause all the force he can put behind him. He was going to try to drive Tristen into the ground. Tristen could see it still…that lackluster Agility that Matteo still relied on. That burst of speed that was going to do more harm than good in the immediate term, almost as if Matteo was trying to convert it into a makeshift Take Down attack, if nothing else, just to get the edge on the teenage Snagem. That instant that Matteo kicked in his Agility, he committed. All or nothing. Matteo wasn’t going to be able to dodge, never mind see or realize what was coming until it was far too late.

Tristen stepped forward, bracing himself, catching Matteo. To the Growlithe hybrid, he might have that instance thought he ran into a brick wall with how he lunged out at Tristen. Tristen didn’t care. He had Matteo in his clutches for barely a second before fighting through the forces that Matteo tried to build up against him and slamming him down into the dirt. Tristen then slammed his hand in Matteo’s face and discharged his electricity, a hard, potent Thunder Wave to wreak havoc all up and down him. Tristen wasn’t sure if Matteo ever experienced ever the likes of a strong grip of electrical paralysis. Perhaps from his Kilowattrel, maybe, if nothing else. Nothing from another hybrid, he could only assume, never mind one experienced and as strong as Tristen. “You asked me on my second day of school if all I knew how to do was zap and leave!” He shouted as he focused his discharge. Once he finally stopped the discharge, Tristen stood up straight again and looked at Matteo, disdainfully, regretfully, at his handiwork. Tristen huffed, crossing his arms as he looked down at Matteo. “You weren’t wrong.”