Recap / Infinity Train: Seeker of Crocus: The Ninjala Car

The Windchasers enter a tournament and encounter a legendary trio also participating. And in one day, the train changes forever.

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This arc contains examples of:

• Abusive Parents: Discussed; Parker asks his own father if he would hit him if Parker tried to protect his sister and Gloria notes that Chloe lived in "abusive households" since not a single adult figure gave a damn about her and allowed the bullying to get worse. Cerise is angry at this analogy: for all of his mistakes, he would never hurt his children and he loved them more than the parents of the class who didn't discipline them after the paint-can incident.
• Actually Pretty Funny:
  • Asher and Augustine snicker at Chloe's joke about Dr. Yung being young compared to Professor Oak as a comeback to Yung's insult on her being a bitch and a "brat raising her voice against her elders"
  Chloe: Am I a bitch cause I’m a girl or because I’m a Lycanroc that’s gonna obliterate you and everything you care about?! And you’re one to talk compared to how you’re so young compared to the likes of Professor Oak! Get it? Young? Yung?
  • Chloe finds Vaillant calling her a "Demon Lord" hilarious and decides that will be her new nickname. "Demon Lord of the Vermillion".
  • Asher can't help but be amused when Chloe asks if she should be worried that he's hypnotized Augustine.
• Adaptational Early Appearance:
  • The Apex don't learn about Sean's disappearance until the final chapters of the Fog Car in Blossoming Trail. They learn about it around the equivalent of what would have been Blossoming Trail Act 2.
  • Grace and Simon encounter Amelia sometime after The Debutante Car (Book 3, Episode 3) in the story whereas they won't meet her until the end of The Campifre Car/beginning of the Canyon of Golden Wing Snakes Car (Book 3, Episodes 6 - 7) Moreover, Amelia joined Chloe's group at the end of Cyan Desert Car in Blossoming Trail, whereas in Crocus she arrives before the events of the Elephant Teapot Car.
• Adaptation Expansion: Part 2 expands on aspects that the Journeys anime and Blossoming Trail never really brings up.
  • Professor Cerise's text helps give a theory as to why Yamper just loved Chloe than the anime did: specifically Yamper sensed Chloe was lonely and just wanted to be her friend.
  • Blossoming Trail never gives Cerise his chance to scream or reasons as to why Chloe kept refusing to take Ash and Goh's offers. The fic explains that Cerise couldn't hire Chloe due to risk of nepotism allegations and explained that Chloe once tried to ask her dad for something, but his choice of words and a poorly timed conference showed that it wouldn't have mattered and gave her the idea that Pokémon will always come first.
• Aesop Amnesia:
  • Chloe gets a huge reality check from Goh in Part 1 about how she was as much at fault for their broken friendship as he was. Come part 2, she goes right back to blaming everyone for her problems while confronting Dr. Yung.
  • Goh learns how to listen to others and not shut them out in earlier chapters. That goes out the window when he and Gloria decide to shut Parker up just before he can warn them about the Alex Shepherd/Pyramid Head connection.
• All Part of the Show: Chloe does a little stage show of her being a witch telling stories, but when Augustine starts bringing up Silent Hill and the Fog Car (unaware that she's just agreed to the Cage of Flauros), the conversation they have in regards to the Internal Reveal of Alex Shepherd becoming Pyramid Head (because Augustine misinterpreted London's warnings and Gloria and Goh also confirmed it even though Parker advised not to) makes the denizens belie that what's happening is made up for the presentation.
• Amazon Chaser: A PG version. Upon seeing Chloe (in her new form as Marchosias) almost completely incinerating Dr. Yung's mirage army, Lexi can only comment that "he's terrified and amazed".
• Analogy Backfire: Gloria tries to explain how Chloe has felt by stating that she's essentially an abusive victim since she's either bullied and physically assaulted at school or she has little to no support by her loved ones who should be more active. This does not go well because for all Professor Cerise did wrong, he never meant to hurt his daughter.
• And Then What?:
  • In Part 2 Yung's questioning of what happens to Chloe when she must eventually leave the train hurt her since there is no way that many people are actually going to believe that this little girl who doesn't know that Ghost-types No-Sell Tackle and has been bullied or ignored by everyone ended up on a train to stop a cult and she will never get to see Atticus and Lexi again, shatters what little trust and confidence she had to go home and nearly drives Chloe to take a Mirage Pokémon of her own.
  • Chloe fires one right back at Yung during the fight in Part 3, pointing out that he can't actually bring any of his technology he created off the Train, and he's still a wanted criminal in his world. And his attacks on Chloe will ensure that he's just as wanted on the train as off.
• Armor-Piercing Question:
  • Atticus asks Chloe plenty of these when it comes to what she wants in her friendship with Goh, and she has a hard time trying to deny that she hasn't properly talked to him on what she wants because the Goh she grew up with is "so obsessed with Mew that he doesn't care about my feelings."
  • In his tirade against Chloe's sullen attitude, Goh gives one that shakes Chloe to her core.
  Goh: And before you give me any more grief about my communication problems, I want you to answer one thing - why, in the weeks you’ve been on the train with your phone, did you never consider emailing your brother?
  • When Gloria hears of the Gengar incident at the Institute, she can't believe the Professor would make Chloe fight Gengar when she has no battling experience. After the Professor explains the reasons why she had to (because Ash and Goh were pinned by Psychic, Renji was afraid and Yamper can only take commands from Chloe), Cerise states that Chloe took a step forward. Gloria then asks somethin on the lines of, "Okay, not bad. So did you do anything after that to help her move forward?" Cerise can only stay silent in response.
• Bait-and-Switch: Goh's tirade towards Chloe ends with a big pause...and unlike how these speeches ended badly in Blossoming Trail, Chloe ends up crying her heart out and confessing that Goh was 100% right and she was completely wrong in how she acted towards him, leading to them making amends much sooner than in the original trilogy.
• Bait-and-Switch Comment: Professor Cerise starts getting in denial over how Chloe can't go fight the Apex. When Gloria cuts him off by asking if it's because she's a girl who can't defend herself, he clarifies it's because it's his daughter going out on her own against a cult. After all, any parent would be worried sick if their child ran away and was off to dismantle a group that murders people.
• Big Damn Heroes: Garchomp saves Chloe from falling to her death in Part 3.
• Big "WHY?!": After Gloria tries to apologize for why she and Goh refused to listen to Parker's warnings about Alex Shepherd being Pyramid Head (because no one knew at the time that Pyramid Head is a Recurring Extra and Yuri only played 2), he then screams at her, "THEN WHY DID YOU?!"
  Parker: And why did everyone ignore Chloe? Why did no one talk to her? Why did she have to run away from home? Why? WHY?! Why did everyone hate her?!
• Both Sides Have a Point: Chloe and her dad argued over Chloe being allowed to go to softball camp when an unexpected conference came up. Chloe brought up many alternatives to get there and fulfilled her end of the bargain to be on her best behavior for a week. Meanwhile, her father states that taking a bus on her own can be quite dangerous and adds that the softball season is well underway at her school so there's no point in taking it now if the tryouts aren't until later.
• Brainwashing for the Greater Good: Sycamore convinces Asher to use his skills to get the mirage Pokémon to attack each other. While he's successful, the results are...disturbing, so they work to come up with another plan to somehow turn the Mirage Pokémon good, which unexpectedly comes when Chloe taps into the full powers of her cloak.
• Brick Joke: A non-humorous one. When Parker is told to be quiet in regards to why you shouldn't trust Alex Shepherd, Gloria states that if they're wrong, she and Goh will buy him ice cream. Cut to the next chapter when he reveals that certain reason why you don't trust Alex...
  Gloria:....would an ice cream cone make it up to you?
• Bystander Syndrome: Gloria accuses all of the Cerise Institute and the teachers Chloe's school of having this as any of them could've done more to help Chloe out but actively ignored it and focused on themselves.
• The Cameo:
  • Randall makes one in an interview when he's asked why he gave Chloe her donut holer. The same with Shockro from the Shock Street Car.
  • The Apex and their leaders (plus Hazel and Tuba) are watching the final match.
  • Olmec makes one when he senses that the Cloak of Marchosias has unlocked a new power for Chloe.
  • Part 3 has added cameos from Teddie in the Junes Car, corgis from Corgnia, Titus in Azada, and Sei, China Tatsuya and Reiji from the Model Diorama Car. Specter gets an unnamed cameo as "Someone in a boat on the sea" when Yung wishes to thank whoever created the Signal Car that made the Infinet.
  • The final chapter has One-One and Tomas (the leopard denizen with the cybernetic arm from Orange Lily) getting a message from Olmec.
• Cannot Tell a Joke: Officer Helen is bad at telling jokes which made it hard for her to realize that numerous police officers in the Ninjala Car were actually Mirage Pokémon in disguise.
• The Cassandra: When Augustine mentions that Alex Shepherd is in the Fog Car and he's trustworthy, Parker immediately tries to explain that it's probably not the best idea. However before he gets a word in, Gloria and Goh (promptly creeped out when Parker discussed the ending of Silent Hill 2) immediately shut him up with a sarcastic bet that if he was right, they owe him an ice cream cone. One chapter later, he snaps at the two by stating that Alex Shepherd can turn into Pyramid Head and Pyramid Head has made other appearances outside of his debut.
• Cassandra Truth: Discussed; the woman who tells the Apex about Sean in the Fog Car state that they can't tell Grace and Simon because the monsters can only be seen by children and those two at age 18, will dismiss it as lies.
• Catch a Falling Star: Garchomp catches Chloe when she's thrown out of the WNA building thanks to Mirage Mewtwo.
• Continuity Cavalcade: Part 1 essentially becomes this to numerous incidents in Orange Lily and Blossoming Trail
  • Orange Lily: Two of the cars the Red Lotus Trio enter are The Magic Castle Car and the Shock Street Car. In the former, Queen Cutie mentions having a meeting with the previous White Rabbit (Tokio) and in the latter, Shockro is paralyzed at seeing Lexi due to Specter/Easter's enthusiasm of being electrocuted and overloading his machines. Ash also has flashbacks to many of Mallow's lines where she tried to warn him about Gladion and Gladion gets snippets of memories from his time in the Fog Car.
  • Blossoming Trail: Chloe's fights against the Erlking, Zack Foster and the trip in the Hidden Temple are referenced.
• Continuity Nod:
  • In a video of their adventures, Atticus tells Lexi and Chloe that he knows about backstage production since he needs practice for being shot in the face as he was as shot in the face by the Condcutor in the Ball Pit Car. He later brings up Khaki Bottoms barely surviving the destruction of that same Ball Pit Car and now running around with an ear missing.
  • During the talk with the Silent Hill Trio, Asher takes over Augustine. Alex then comments that he heard rumors of a "ghost with DID", referencing Knight of the Orange Lily in which Aaron Hotchner comments that Specter's issues was just a case of DID.
• Cool Versus Awesome: The idea of the Windchasers versus Red Lotus Trio in the Ninjala Tournament has become this in the train's eyes. To the point the groups having lunch at a mall food court has everyone in awe.
• "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot:
  • In Part 1, Goh sadly admits that everything that transpired between him and Chloe was because of him recording her fight against Ash. If he never had done that, or properly expressed why he was even recording in the first place, Chloe would've been more understanding instead of infuriated.
  Goh: If I knew about what the class was thinking, I’d never have made that damn video...I really thought it would encourage you to keep trying new things. I was...glad to hear that you were giving Pokémon another chance, I figured you’d be open to...hanging out with us again.
  • Professor Cerise is shocked to learn now that texting Chloe while she's on the Train is possible. To be fair, Goh never got responses from Chloe for a few months and by the time she replied, she also promptly told him to bug off.
• Deus ex Machina: Chloe's last stand against the Mirage Army unlocks a power deep within the cloak that converts the brainwashed Mirage Pokémon into full-blown denizens. While it's implied from Lexi that the cloak has been bestowed the power of a demon and a god, this wasn't foreshadowed prior to the last stand which many people note. Chloe herself assumed it was the memory of seeing Yamper one last time that did the trick. It's later revealed that the cloak literally is a wearable deus ex machina.
• Did Not Think This Through:
  • Goh had a lot of Pokémon on hand to fight Gengar (like Stantler and Misdreavus, both strong against Gengar) when he rampaged through the Institute...but never thought to use them outside of Scorbunny apparently.
  • The Professor didn't realize the long term consequences of keeping his daughter at the Institute without anything to do; even if she didn't like researching, and the Professor wouldn't let her due to her dislike and allegations of nepotism, why couldn't she just go out and do something she did like? Moreover, dismissing his daughter's desires while openly letting Ash and Goh travel to wherever they want made it look like favoritism which did not help Chloe's paradigm in the slightest.
  • Dr. Yung didn't think about the idea about how he could actually transport his Mirage System back to his world or the fact that even if he made it on the Train, he'll be found and arrested by Officer Jenny.
  • Asher commands Mirage Mewtwo to let go of Chloe...but realizes too late from Sycamore that she's still floating in mid-air and Mirage Mewtwo decides to use Destination Defenestration to hurl the girl out of the WNA building.
  • The video that exposed all of Chloe's classmates bullying her highlights how Sara doesn't mind crushing the abnormal, which means that she’d even bully a kid with Asperger's — like the one in their class. Let's just say Mrs. Borage won't stop until she gets the truth about whether or not these students would have gone after her son for being mentally disabled.
• Didn't See That Coming: Dr. Yung was not expecting Chloe to turn his own army against his own, the shock of it distracting him enough for Augustine to land an Ippon. Better yet no one was expecting Chloe to survive a kamikaze attack by the mirage army and, not only make it out unscathed, but turn them good. Even Augustine and Asher are amazed at what they're seeing.
• Double Standard: Upon learning what happened to White Gestalt from Amelia, Sycamore can only question why Amelia — the former Conductor, the apprentice to One-One before she became the Conductor, and the reason for the Apex's existence — is essentially getting away with everything while Gladion, Specter and Tokio were not only kicked out of the Train before their numbers dropped to 0, had their memories erased and aren't allowed back for the only crime on trying to clean up her messes.
• Dramatic Drop:
  • In the flashback of Part 2, Chloe's permission form slips from her fingers when her father wouldn't allow her to go to the softball camp of her dreams under very flimsy excuses of "You don't have to go now" and having to cancel it for a last-minute conference even though he promised that she could go if she promised to behave.
  • Dr. Yung drops his gun when he sees Chloe not only alive, but also with a newly converted Mirage Pokémon army. This gives the opening Augustine needs to defeat him.
• Dramatic Irony:
  • After learning Gladion was on the Train, Ash asks if Paul is next. That and combined with how the group is hoping that no one else aside from Alain and Hop are in the Fog Car...
  • Augustine hopes that Chloe doesn't end up getting involved in the Fog Car. Readers already know that she's already agreed to the Cage of Flauros.
  • Everyone — minus Parker — assumes that you can trust Alex Shepherd to protect the Windchasers from Pyramid Head...except in the Fog Car, Alex Shepherd is Pyramid Head.
  • After talking about the fact that the train doesn't seem to pick up the likes of Lysandre when it would be most helpful, Mairin hopes that Sycamore isn't encountering anyone particularly evil...while he's fighting Professor Yung.
  • Grace and Simon spout lie after liee in front of Amelia, the very same Conductor the Apex worships.
• The Dreaded: The Red Lotus Trio is treated this way in the Ninjala Car, as Chloe and Lexi have wrecked anyone who stands in their way...and the Windchasers just signed themselves up to fight them. Even Asher is scared of Chloe when he learns that she casts fire!
• Dumbass Has a Point: When Parker asks why Ash didn't use his Dragonite to fight Gengar, Ash points out that a Dragonite attacking indoors would've damaged the Institute.
• "Eureka!" Moment: Two in Part 3.
  • While fighting the Mirage Pokémon, Chloe comments that they're hard to control. Augustine suggests from that to have Asher use his brainwashing skills to have them fight one another.
  • Vaillant complains that it would take an army to help fight the swarm of mons. This gives Yuri the idea to distribute Ninja Gum to the denizens so that they can fight.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Despite what Lexi assumes, the Apex do not celebrate when it looks like Chloe's been killed. Even Simon looks horrified!
• Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!:
  • The denizen who signs Augustine into the tournament does this when she realizes who is entering...because the Red Lotus Trio are also in that tournament and wrecking shit up.
  • When Lexi points out that the Garchomp causing havoc looks like a mirage, Sycamore repeats this sentiment before realizing that this is one of Dr. Yung's Mirage Pokémon.
• Failed Attempt at Drama: Yung dramatically builds up how his Mirage Mewtwo will kill Sycamore and Chloe and asks for their last words. Chloe simply asks what a Mewtwo is, which makes Yung shocked since the daughter of a Pokémon Professor has no idea who this is?
• The Final Temptation: Dr. Yung gives one to Chloe by letting her have one of his Mirage Pokémon to fight back against all her bullies and everyone who hurt her. Thankfully, Augustine, Asher and a timely text message form her father has her refuse it.
• Foreshadowing:
  • The team that the Windchasers had to fight were called the Mirage Stars, hinting to their connection to Dr. Yung.
  • When the organizer mentions that bear with stuff and fluff he tries to call it a teddy before backtracking (specifically he goes "teddy...er, denizen"). Augustine uses that to realize that the organizer was from the Pokémon world since they were close to saying "Teddiursa".
  • Chloe explains how Lexi is based on the demon Naberius which is said to be based on Cerberus. She ends up getting a Mirage Pokémon partner in a Houndoom.
• For Want Of A Nail:
  • Mairin discusses the possibility of Lysandre being taken onto the Train before he created Team Flare, and why the Train never did so.
  • In his phone call with Chloe, Goh beats himself up for making her feel like she was so inferior to him because she lacked a dream when he should've apologized for not being there for her.
  • Gloria points out that any of the people in the Cerise Lab could've intervened to help Chloe at any point in time, but just chose not to for pretty dumb reasons ranging from "Fear of Chloe's hobbies" to "procrastination".
  • If that sudden conference didn't come up at the same time Chloe was supposed to go to softball camp, there wouldn't be as much friction between her and her dad. Alternatively if she and her father talked it out more and came to a better agreement, Chloe would probably would be willing to accept it and move on.
• Fountain of Youth: Sycamore and Vaillant become kids to participate in a Ninjala tournament alongside Yuri with the use of the Ninja Gum's side effects.
• Hellhound: Chloe designed child Lexi on the Ars Goetia demon Naberius, who was based on Cerberus. After the Mirage Army is free from Dr. Yung's unfluence, Chloe ends up becoming friends with a Mirage Houndoom.
• History Repeats:
  • Goh laments that he's not there for his friends which makes them easy pickings on the Train and he was always making the wrong assumptions on them/
  Goh: Arceus I’m so stupid! This keeps happening...I’m not there for people when they need me, and then that train happens...
  • Just like Trip before her, Gloria hears only one side of the story regarding Chloe, and immediately begins rapid firing harsh truths at everyone regarding how they messed up with her, focusing on telling them what they did wrong first before suggesting what they can do to fix it. At the very least, she asks to be corrected if she was wrong with her "abused child" analogy — having already heard from Goh what caused Chloe to clam up in the previous chapter — and everyone in the Institute admits that they all had a part to blame on Chloe's behavior.
• Hope Spot: Chloe has had these constantly; every time she thinks that things are getting better, she loses it just as easily. Making it even worse is that the adults, who should be aware of these problems, keep casually dismissing her concerns like they were absolutey uninmportant, thus making her believe that no one actually cares for her unless it involved Pokémon, Pokémon and Pokémon again.
  Gloria: [in regards to Renji asking why they're hearing all of this again] Because apparently from what I’m getting is that every time Chloe puts her trust in people when they make her promises or when she wants an answer on why she can’t do certain things, no one keeps their promises or actually does more to be there for her! Parker told me that Goh never arrives on time when Chloe asks him to and keeps apologizing and promises to never do it again through text. The professor, her father, didn’t keep his word to let Chloe go to softball camp even though she behaved and didn’t see how much that promise meant to her. The school didn’t keep its word to ensure the bullying would stop or took measures to keep her safe. And yet Goh can remember to keep a promise to arrive once a month for testing?! Dear Arceus, it sounds like Chloe’s life revolves around living in a multitude of abusive households with people who either neglect her, demean her or physically break her apart until she would rather jump off a rooftop to escape everything! No wonder she hated all of you.
• Horrifying the Horror: The Red Lotus Trio are this for more frightening denizens.
  • Chloe scares Asher/Shadow Sycamore because she is capable of casting fire, which is an element that he's weak to.
  • Lexi scares the hell out of Shockro because he's in an appearance similar to Specter/Easter whom tanked every electrical attack from his devices and enjoyed it.
• Ignored Epiphany: Chloe discusses that even if her classmates' lives were ruined, they still wouldn't understand how they were assholes towards her. After all, if they kept continuing after she got her revenge on Sara for the paint can incident, why would she expect any different?
• Ignored Expert: The previous car revealed that Parker knows a lot about Silent Hill because its a series his sister loves. So when Augustine brings up the mention of Alex Shepherd in the Fog Car and that he's trustworthy, Parker immediately states that it's not a good idea. However, Gloria and Goh immediately tell him to shut up (mostly stemming from Parker revealing the end of Silent Hill 2) and tell him that if they're wrong, they'll give him an ice cream cone to apologize. After a series of meltdowns, Parker screams at Gloria and Goh at how they're no better than the classmates who bullied him and the adults who flat-out ignored him before he shouts "Pyramid Head is also found in Alex's game and he can turn into one if he's mean." Guess who owes Parker ice cream and an apology?
• I'm Taking Her Home with Me!: Asher's reactions to befriending a Mirage Murkrow screams this trope, even pouting when Augustine refuses.
• Instantly Proven Wrong: After a Mirage Houndoom decides to become Chloe's friend, Augustine hopes that there won't be any crazy Mirage Pokémon partnerships forming...then he mutters how he spoke too soon when he sees Asher cuddling a Mirage Murkrow.
• In-Universe Factoid Failure: Gloria and Goh name themselves the experts of Silent Hill lore and tell Augustine that he should fully trust Alex Shepherd to help them traverse the Fog Car. Too bad that neither of them properly 1) researched the Silent Hill games or 2) actually let Parker voice why they shouldn't let Alex be their guide because no one knew at the time that Pyramid Head was a bit of a Recurring Extra...
• It's All My Fault:
  • Both Goh and Chloe blame themselves for not talking about their problems sooner before Ash tells them to cut it out.
  • Professor Cerise breaks down in tears when he reveals that the reason Chloe's so broken, alone and feels like no one will ever care for her is because he's such an idiot to not realize how his daughter was suffering or how she just wanted to do things but he gave the wrong impression that Pokémon will always be more important than her. Everyone else also bring in their two cents and their inaction: Renji was a coward, Chryssa procrastinated, Goh never keeps promises, Ash never tried to even learn about Chloe beyond the surface, and Parker was afraid his dad would hurt him for standing up for her.
• I Warned You: Parker wants to warn Gloria and Goh about Sycamore trusting Alex Shepherd, but they continually shush him and tell the professor to trust Alex^note Yuri only knows about 2, Chloe learns about Augustine's talk with the Silent Hill trio chapters later. Then the following chapter has him tell him why it was a bad idea. They just made Augustine trust the man who can turn into Pyramid Head, and the two realized they severely fucked up in not giving Parker the benefit of the doubt and reminding him that big kids will always see him as a pathetic baby who can't do anything right.
• I Will Wait for You: Cerise's text explains that Yamper is the stand-in for Hachiko, waiting for Chloe to return from her trip. Bonus points since Hachiko would wait at a train station that his master took to get to work, and Chloe was picked up by the Infinity Train.
• Jerkass Has a Point:
  • While talking with Atticus, Chloe is in deep denial that Goh will ever change and even states that he's probably complaining about how she just wasn't into Pokémon enough. Sure enough, when the two have a phone call, one of the things Goh complains about is that she wasn't into Pokémon enough.
  • Dr. Yung is only trying to emotionally manipulate Chloe but he is right that most people would never believe the stories about the Infinity Train unless you actually have hard evidence of it, not to mention that Chloe's classmates already are known to mock her for anything she does, so they'd laugh at her face when she claimed she saved the Infinity Train from an evil cult. Gloria even points out that no one gave a damn about her, so why should she even confess about her adventures if they can't take a glance at her on a regular basis?
• Kick the Dog:
  • Gloria demonizes the Cerise Institute and its workers and paints Chloe as an abuse victim, after discovering she kept quiet over an honest mistake combined with Goh's inability to keep his promises, the bullying at school and not having a chance to go through her own bout of catharsis since the adults around her don't seem to notice or care to actually help her. Even if it did do some good, that was just straight up cruel. She herself realizes what she's done and goes into a Heroic BSoD in the following chapter.
  • Chloe was initially (if begrudgingly) willing to accept not being able to go softball camp after her father had to go to a last-minute conference. Then, Sara twists the knife by bragging about how she gets to go on week-long cruise while Chloe can't get her father to sign a single sheet of paper.
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall: After Gloria learns what happened to Chloe prior to her entrance on the Infinity Train, she comments that she's nothing more than a "background character in everyone's lives", reflecting how Chloe has little to no focus in the anime up to that point.^ExplanationInfinity Train: Blossoming Trail took place and was written before Journeys episode 29, which would've been Chloe's second focus episode overall.
• Mass "Oh, Crap!": Everyone in the Institute has this realization when Parker reveals that Pyramid Head is found in Alex Shepherd's game just one chapter after Gloria and Goh told him to shut up and made Augustine think that Alex Shepherd is someone you can trust to fight the pyramid thing. Not to mention that there's one ending that can turn Alex into Pyramid Head...
• More Insulting than Intended: The basis of Parts 1 and 2 is how most people really don't see how their words hurt other until the damage is already done and not considering the consequences.
  • In a flashback, Professor Cerise claims that Chloe didn't need to go to a softball camp since it was too late for her to apply for the school's softball team and that she could go again next time...even though he had promised her she could go if she was on her best behavior and had to cancel it due to a last-minute conference and she practically begged him to go and was offering alternatives. This gave the impression that no matter what Chloe wants, it won't matter because Pokémon are more important than her and became one of the reasons why Chloe kept refusing Ash and Goh's offers to hang out. Moreover, Professor Cerise was trying to comfort Chloe over her loss to Ash, but she misinterpreted as stating that she was never going to be as good as Ash or Goh and that she was an idiot for even trying something (especially since this was a dare from her classmates) in the first place.
  • Asher's terrified reactions to seeing Marchosias' seal — as Marchosias is a demon associated with fire which he fears but is also Chloe's favorite demon — and questioning why Marchosias would bless Chloe with her abilities is taken the wrong way by said girl, who assumes that he's mocking her for being into demons and not the more acceptable "girly" things and starts breaking down the small trust she had for Augustine, proving that no matter where she goes, no adult would ever want to actually care for her and it's pointless to put trust in them.
  • Parker is deeply hurt when Gloria and Goh repeatedly shoot down his attempts to warn them about Alex Shepherd, as it brings back flashbacks of how Chloe's bullies mocked him for being a stupid little kid who can't do anything right along with making Goh look like a massive hypocrite as he promised to listen more and to trust what others have to say. Gloria and Goh swiftly realize how they were in the wrong when he finally airs out his pains.
  • Gloria causes Professor Cerise to snap when she refuses to cut him slack after explaining his side of the story, even going so far as to claim he's an abusive father over a genuine mistake. In fact, everyone in the Institute realizes that their excuses as to why they didn't help Chloe ended up like this — it made her feel like they never cared for her in the first place and she could not trust anyone for something this serious. Gloria herself realizes she crossed a line in Part 3.
  • Goh glumly admits that he was an ass for stating that Chloe had no dreams without realizing all the pressure she has to go through while he gets everything he wants and that his bad habit to not keep promises destroyed any faith in Chloe seeing him as someone she could actually trust.
  • Even Chloe isn't exempt from this. During Goh's "The Reason You Suck" Speech towards her, he points out that her staying mad at him for their deteriorating friendship put an incredible amount of pressure on him, making it feel like the responsibility of keeping it afloat was solely on him, and also setting off a chain of events that made everybody else in Vermillion City hammer it over his head. And her coldly telling Asher to give her the worst insults he can give brings back his traumas up to the surface.
• Mythology Gag:
  • When he sees Chloe (seemingly) die to the Mirage Pokémon, Lexi states that the Apex must be cheering at how Chloe was killed for "ruining their fun", which is what Tiffany (girl with pink jacket and shaved sides of the head) muttered in the Fog Car of Blossoming Trail.
  • Chloe's final stand against the Mirage Pokémon is similar to Ash standing up the Spearow from the very first episode of the anime.
  • Sycamore describes Mewtwo as a Pokémon that Team Rocket scientists made to be the ultimate fighting machine and adds "...and they succeeded", which reflects Dr. Fuji's notes about Mewtwo's creation.
• Near-Villain Victory: Dr. Yung would've reigned terror on the Ninjala Car with his army and killed Chloe in the process if Chloe didn't decide to take a last stand, her courage and heart tapping into a power from her Cloak of Marchosias and Wepwawet to convert the brainwashed army into purified denizens.
• Nepotism: One of the primary reasons for why Cerise gave Ash and Goh the jobs of researchers over Chloe. It's also implied that this would've exacerbated the bullying she had endured since her classmates would've taken this as proof that their assumptions of her having a "privileged life" were correct.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Gloria and Goh decide that they're the total experts of Silent Hill and tell Augustine to trust Alex Shepherd while Parker tries to warn them not to do so. The next chapter has them mortified to know that they convinced the professor to trust a man who can transform into Pyramid Head. Chloe also lampshades how stupid the professor was to fully believe this without doing proper research.
• Not Now, Kiddo: Gloria and Goh do this to Parker when he tries to warn them not to trust Alex Shepherd due to how they're creeped out at he revealed the twist to Silent Hill 2. They instantly regret this when he tells them that Alex Shepherd can potentially become Pyramid Head in the following chapter.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Augustine and Asher point out that Chloe has similar problems to Asher in that both have been broken and tortured by other people and have thoughts of wanting to end it all via suicide.
• Now You Tell Me: When Augustine somehow shrinks to the size of a ten-year-old, Yuri decides to explain that it was due to the gum Augustine chewed on, something Yuri tried to warn him about but shrugged his shoulders and said nothing else. Yuri admits that this is kinda his fault.
• Oh, Crap!:
  • The Windchasers are horrified to learn that not only the Red Lotus Trio are participating the same tournament they're going to enter, but how terrifying Chloe and Lexi are in a Ninjala battle.
  • Chloe has this reaction when she learns that Alain and Hop are in the Fog Car...because she, Atticus and Lexi agreed to unleashing the Cage of Flauros.
• Oh, No... Not Again!: The video from the Shock Street Car has Shockro terrified at seeing Lexi and not wanting another incident with someone like him^ExplanationHe's referring to Easter from Knight of the Orange Lily. Lexi has no idea who the madman is talking about.
• Pinky Swear: Chloe, Augustine and Asher do a three way version of this.
• The Power of Love: In Part 2 Chloe unlocks a new power from her cloak thanks to Augustine and Asher's reassurance that they are there for her and Professor Cerise's text on how they always will love her and Yamper is waiting for her, making her realize she doesn't need Dr. Yung's overpowered and hacked mirages. The following chapter implies her love for Yamper help
• Poor Communication Kills:
  • A minor one comes from Yuri deciding to not warn Augustine about the Ninja Gum he ate which would cause him to de-age to a child.
  • Profsesor Cerise declaring that Chloe can't go to a softball camp — after he promised her that she'd go there if she behaved but had to cancel it when a last minute conference arrived — made it seem like Pokémon are more important than her very well-being.
  • Goh never told the Professor that he's been attempting to text Chloe but he quickly points out that he had no idea if it could even reach the Train (since no one knew about the Infinet, Gloria, Victor and Trip left long before One-One set it up and Chloe was deliberately deleting his texts as payback for always breaking his promises via text).
  • Gloria and Goh cut Parker off from telling them that you shouldn't trust Alex Shepherd and told Augustine the go ahead to believe Alex. One chapter later, they realized how badly they messed up when Parker shouts Alex Shepherd's game had Pyramid Head in it^note At that point, Yuri only played 2 and Chloe would learn about this conversation a few chapters later and that Alex can turn into the Bogeyman in one ending. Goh then has to double check online to prove that Parker was right. This gets brought up later when Chloe subtly tells Augustine that he was an idiot for listening to Gloria and Goh and not getting the full information from them sooner. Gloria admits that Augustine is going to have her head for the wrong assumption.
• The Promise: Chloe, Augustine and Asher make three of them. Chloe promises to make sure Augustine makes it to Alain, Augustine promises to stay by Chloe's side to stop the Apex, and Augustine also makes a promise to Asher that in return for Asher's services, Augustine will ensure that the Persona can move on from his trauama.
• Rain of Arrows: When Chloe taps into the full power of her Cloak, a rain of holy arrows pierces the hearts of the Mirage Pokémon, turning them good.
• A Rare Sentence: How Sycamore described London's journey in the Fog Car:
  "He apparently visited Silent Hill in what is called The Fog Car and saved his ghost partner [Specter] from being brutally massacred by a giant monster with a big knife and trigonometry for a head before the Mad Hatter nearly died of blood loss. (Yes it sounds wrong from someone like me)"
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech:
  • Goh really lays it onto Chloe about how she shouldn't be blaming everything in regards to their friendship deteriorating on him as she could've just said something about her situation and not closed herself off all the time. However, unlike the times in the Blossomverse where this goes wrong, this actually has a positive effect on Chloe as it gets her to open up about her fears of getting left behind and conforming to what everyone wants before the two bury the hatchet and resolve to do better.
  • Chloe tears down Dr. Yung's desires to have his Mirage System be seen in the Pokémon world by pointing out anything he made on the Train can't go back and that he will either be trapped on the Train forever or be arrested when he finally makes it out, stating that his life's work is rendered useless.
• Red Herring: Both groups assume that Dr. Yung was disguised as one of the Ninjala contestants. He's actually disguised as the WNA Organizer.
• Significant Wardrobe Shift: Chloe, Lexi, Sycamore and Vailant all get new outfits to blend in more with the Ninjala Car, all four outfits relating to clothing found in Ninjala.
• Sneeze Cut: When Yung wishes to thank the "ghost in the machine" that made the Signal Car and Infinet possible, it randomly cuts to someone in a boat on the sea [Specter] sneezing.
• Stating the Simple Solution: When Gloria learns of the time Gengar haunted the Institute, she is shocked that Ash and Goh only used Pikachu and Raboot to fight it and then asks why not to use their other Pokémon to help. Ash makes a valid point that the only Pokémon he had at the point, Dragonite, would cause too much damage to the Institute. Goh, however, can only stammer that he never thought of that idea while Raboot facepalmes at his trainer's short-sightedness.
• Stopping the Blame Game: The first part is essentially making sure the blame game doesn't start again. However there are still some kinks to iron out as shown in the second part with Chloe reiterating that everyone had let her down, that she hated that Ash never "put the effort to get to know her," and that her only crime was liking things other than Pokémon. She nearly accepts Dr. Yung's deal out of hatred of 'Black Hole' Ash and the fears of being seen as weak and a nobody when her train trip ends because no one would ever possibly believe that the daughter of a Professor did so many amazing things on a therapy train. Meanwhile, back home Professor Cerise is left convinced that everything was his fault, and every other character at the Cerise Institute list out the ways that they had wronged Chloe. Thankfully Gloria can see that they're all regretful and that they can stop beating themselves up and move on, Professor Cerise sends Chloe a text reassuring her that everyone loves her and Augustine and Asher help convince Chloe that this devil's deal is not worthy it.
• Strange Minds Think Alike: Both Professor Cerise and Chloe think the same about teachers: they'll only see Chloe's dislike of Pokémon as a phase she'll grow out of and not be supportive of her own hobbies.
• Swallowed Whole: Atticus ended up like this in the Joyville Car, entering the giant puppet to chew on its heart to make it stop.
• Take That!: One video has Chloe in a car based on PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale and her opponent is a Polygon version of Reboot Dante. Just as he whips out the pistols, she incinerates him with a flamethrower.^note This is also a reference to the opening of PSASBR in which Reboot Dante gets assaulted by Heihachi Mishima when he gets his guns out.
• Tempting Fate:
  • When Ash learns Gladion was on the train he then asks, "Who's next, Paul?!" Yeah about that...
  • When Parker tries to warn Gloria and Goh about Alex Shepherd, they keep telling him to just shut up. Gloria then makes a remark on the lines of "If we're wrong, we'll buy you an ice cream cone. Happy?" Cut to the next chapter when Parker explains why you shouldn't trust Alex so quickly...
• Third-Person Person: During the group chat in Part 1, Sycamore suddenly starts doing this. Then it turns out it's just Asher typing his own text using Sycamore.
• Tournament Arc: The basis of the Car is one of these, with the Windchasers and Red Lotus Trio — actually only Chloe and Lexi as only bipedals can enter — set to participate.
• Wham Episode: It's safe to say that this car is the car that changes the direction of the story.
  • Part 1: The Windchasers and Red Lotus Trio encounter one another, Goh finally gives Chloe his two cents that gets the both of them to open up and move forward and Garchomp is arrested by a mysterious figure.
  • Part 2: Everyone in the Cerise Institute can finally air out their faults in Chloe's disappearance and hope to heal, Dr. Yung, Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon is on the Train with a brand new army and thanks to Augustine's reassurance, Chloe unlocks a new ability of her Cloak of Marchosias.
  • Part 3: A battle between Ninjala denizens and the Mirage Army ensues as Chloe decides she's going to stop running away from her problems and confront them head-on, which causes her to somehow convert the mirage Pokémon into denizens. Dr. Yung escapes justice and becomes hired by a sinister group and the Apex are heading off into the Fog Car to save Sean.
  • Part 4: Sycamore learns the truth about what's really going on in the Fog Car when Chloe tells him this, and both of their parties vow to end the Cage of Flauros. Meanwhile, Amelia learns that Hazel is with Grace and Simon and both Apex leaders have been captured in the 400 Rabbits Car.
  • Part 5: Chloe has accepted Amelia as part of the newly named Red Lotus Uprising, Amelia reveals more as to what happened with the White Gestalt's plan to stop the Apex, she tasks Kisaragi to take Hazel and Tuba far away from Grace, Simon and the Fog Car in general and Kisaragi makes London the new White Rabbit in his steed. Augustine gets confirmation on what's going on for the Cage of Flauros, Chloe reassures him that they're going to stop it and back in Alola, something is definitely wrong with Gladion.
• Wham Line:
  • An in-universe example. As Parker breaks down at how no one ever wants him to talk, he points out how Gloria and Goh didn't allow him to say two important things to Augustine. 1) Pyramid Head is a Recurring Extra. 2) Alex Shepherd can transform into one. The two look horrified at how they acted like assholes toward the boy.
  • The Windchasers are wondering why everyone is freaking about them entering the Ninjala Tournament. Then the sign-in denizen reveals why:
  Denizen: A-are you sure you want to join this season? Of all seasons it’s when you three and those two…
  Yuri: Um… Yes? A-Are we expecting someone in the tournament?
  Denizens: Not just someone, someones. The Demon Lords! The Crimson Terrors! The Red Lotus Trio is also participating!!
  • After Chloe decides to tank the attacks of a superpowered Mirage Army, everyone assumes that she's been killed. But Yuri sees through the smoke and notices something wrong.
  Yuri: If she’s dead, then...then why is she standing alongside the hacked Pokémon right in front of us?!
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Part 3 is dedicated to this trope.
  • Victor assures Mairin that she is helping Sycamore and Alain, and that she doesn't need to board the train to do so.
  • Sycamore assures Asher that he can use his power for good if it's in the right hands.
  • Goh repays Gloria for her support by making an effort to comfort her when her guilt starts getting at her.
• Zerg Rush: The invasion of Mirage Pokemon is likened to a Zombie Apocalypse, with thousands of fighters overwhelming the heroes. It also doesn't help that the group of Mirage Pokémon that are going to kill Chloe become hard to kill since Yung made them use Recover.