Head back along Route 19 to Aspertia City, making sure to grab any items and talk to any people you missed on your way through the route the first time.  Aspertia is just as it was before, though a few people have new things to say- mostly comments on how life might change a bit now that there’s a Gym Leader in the city.  The real change is that the gym is now open- and the statues out front are marked by the declaration of the new Gym Leader- Cheren, who seeks the right path.

Those of you who played the original Black or White will find this noteworthy- but don’t get too worried just yet.

The first thing you’ll notice on entering is a wall of lockers and a blonde woman- she tells you that she tried to get Alder to come teach here, but the former Champion declined because it was not his time anymore.

Going further in, you’ll discover that the gym is set up like a school, with eight desks, a blackboard, and a teacher’s desk in the top-left corner.  There are also two people here, one of them looking around and the other staring intently at the chalkboard.  The boy looking around will offer you an X Defend, an item which is sadly mostly useless but can at least be sold for a bit of pocket money.  The boy watching the board will tell you that pokemon can’t use manmade items on their own, if you distract him from his blank and zombielike trance.  For those who need a reminder or don’t know in the first place, the blackboard provides explanations of the five major status effects pokemon can have; Poison, Paralysis, Sleep, Burn, and Frozen.

Behind the classroom is another small hall.  By the entrance is a boy who will point out that Normal-type pokemon are really only weak to Fighting-types, and the only ones of those you can find are the Riolu on Floccesy Ranch- without them, battle against Normal-types is a pure test of power.  The girl in the small library room to the left will explain the method for cancelling evolution, should you decide to do so.  Speak to the two of them or don’t, then it’s time to head through the door at the back of the hall which is flanked by a pair of bronze statues.

This puts you in the yard behind the school, where you can see three people on a battlefield in the dirt- and a man with gray hair who walks up to you and introduces himself as Clyde.  He tells you that he’s the guide for trainers who challenge pokemon Gyms.  Thanking you for challenging the Gym, he gives you a Fresh Water in celebration, an item that can be used to heal your pokemon for a hefty chunk of HP.  He also points out that Gyms are a testing ground for trainers, and beating a Gym Leader signifies being a particularly good trainer.  He also explains that you lose when all your pokemon are unconscious, so it could be an advantage to have a lot of team members.