Pokémon Heroes: Champions of the Eon Dragonflight - Ongorom - Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (2024)

Chapter 1: Foreword and Acknowledgements

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This project began as fleeting fragments of ideas back in my last semester of college. Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire had just come out that previous November, and during my Alpha Sapphire playthrough, I was deeply moved by how the Latias in the game willingly joined your party—something that was, up until then, unheard of. You either captured Pokémon, or they were given to you. They never seemed to express some sort of free will, like the Latias does in Alpha Sapphire, or the Latios in Omega Ruby. I believe there was only one other similar situation that came before, and that was the Spiky-Eared Pichu in HeartGold and SoulSilver.

And so, I wrote this story. It ended up being a novel in length, but I feel that it is just right. Many years of work have come and gone—of me being motivated, demotivated, reworking my old styles of writing into newer ones, and so much more. I’d like to take this time to say thank you to everyone that’s helped this story come to life.

MintzMeat

Stark

NoiseCrush

Ayylien

Fugu

Vap

Beryl

My mother

Everyone in the arts and crafts section of the Pokémon Discord that I can’t remember their names

I hope you enjoy my story!

Ongorom

Chapter 2: Prologue

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Atop the cold reaches of Mount Coronet, there exists a place sacred to the creation of the world. Of all worlds. No mortal being has ever tread within it, though some have come close in recent memory. Higher even than the Spear Pillar, three Legendary Pokémon have gathered in a grand hall of glass and crystal: The Hall of Origin.

Do you know what Father desires, sister? one of the three, a purple and white theropod-like being with pearls inlaid in his shoulders asked as they strode forth between the columns of crystal.

I do, as a matter of fact, the one in question, a quadrupedal blue and steel gray sauropod creature, a large diamond set in the middle of her chest, replied with a certain terseness.

The first Pokémon cast his gaze at his sister, expecting, but not receiving, a more detailed answer. Care to elaborate? he asked.

Why don’t you ask Father yourself, Palkia? Stop pestering our dear sister Dialga with your inane questions, a third, flanging voice replied, belonging to a gold, gray, and red serpentine Pokémon, six wings made of shadow, not unlike tentacles, trailing from its back as it snaked through the air.

I addressed Dialga, not you, Giratina, Palkia growled at the Renegade Pokémon with some amount of annoyance.

Children, please. An immense voice boomed through the Hall, echoing off the crystalline walls. This is no time to bicker, as I require your total cooperation to prevent disaster. At that moment, as the Creation Trio reached the end of the Hall, a great, shining light appeared behind a crystal dais atop a small set of stairs. The three Elder Legends did not avert their eyes as the light took form as a great white and golden quadrupedal Pokémon, a golden ring with four points encircling its midsection. Its hooves alighted on the platform before being obscured by the dais, and it regarded its company with an emotionless stare from its crimson eyes.

My apologies, Father Arceus, Palkia offered. You know how Giratina gets under my skin.

Arceus shook his head, while Giratina seemed to grin cheekily under his golden mask. Yes, well, once this meeting is complete, you may go back to your own devices. As I have stated before, a disaster of unimaginable scale fast approaches our universe, and I cannot avert it alone.

Not even the four of us can, Dialga cut in. Palkia regarded the Temporal Pokémon with a great amount of shock and confusion.

But we’re the creators of this universe! the Spatial Pokémon cried. We control its very fabric! How can it be that we are unable to rectify anything that may be amiss?

Dialga has already seen it, my son, Arceus intoned, as have I. A great evil will rise in five years’ time, and unless we take drastic action to stop it, no one across all the worlds in the universe will remain unscathed.

Have either of you seen what exactly is going to happen? Giratina asked, genuine concern uncharacteristic of him coloring his ghostly voice.

Dialga shook her head. No, brother. Not even Father can reveal and untangle the threads of time surrounding the event. What form will this evil take? From where will it come, and why is it such a threat? How exactly is it stopping us from looking anywhere past one year from this day? Neither of us know, which is exactly why we need to prepare for what we can see.

And what, pray tell, is that? Palkia inquired, his temper growing short.

The Exodus, Arceus replied simply. One year from this day, my, as well as Dialga’s, vision into the future simply…stops. One year from this day, our world will witness the departure of every last Pokémon from its embrace, as well as a few exceptional humans. This Exodus will be facilitated by none other than us four—everything beyond it is shrouded beyond a veil that cannot be pierced.

The two Elders not capable of seeing the future gasped, with Palkia’s jaw slackening slightly. To where, Father? I may know the place, Giratina offered. Every world and every dimension is different, but they are all connected to the lovely infinite expanse that is my home. His demeanor quickly turned mirthful, and he circled the crystal dais in the air. Is it the one where heroes never die? I love that place! What about the one with the Traveler? Oh, maybe the one with the scrolls that have literally all of time inscribed on them?

Giratina, this is serious! Palkia growled, but Arceus only chuckled. Father, you can’t condone this!

No, son, it is not any of those three, I’m sorry to say, the Alpha Pokémon answered Giratina, and then his voice turned stern. Palkia, mind your temper. Let your brother be. Palkia opted simply to grunt in annoyance at being scolded like an infant Pichu.

It’s a much blander locale, brother, Dialga said, answering the question in Arceus’ stead. No magic, no time travel, no Pokémon, even. Just humans…but there is far more strife there even without any of those things than I thought was possible.

Palkia simply stared at his sister, which prompted Arceus to pick up where she left off. Humans are the only sapient species on this world, but their home is war-torn to a degree that leaves even me at a loss. Unfortunately, neither I nor your sister know exactly why this is.

So, we’re all supposed to just leave? the Spatial Pokémon asked. Separate every human on our world from their Pokémon and make ourselves at home on a new one, when we don’t know a thing about it, just to attempt to counter this evil you two have seen?

I don’t like it either, brother, Dialga answered. It’s unsettling for me, too. This is what I was born to do, and now, my powers have been stripped away…all save for the Exodus. She stomped a foot on the pristine glass below her, her confidence restored. As such, it must therefore be of paramount importance. It is the last thing we can witness in the threads of time, after all.

And what of our brothers and sisters, Father? Giratina inquired. Don’t they deserve to know about their…banishment? A very small amount of venom could be found in the Renegade Pokémon’s voice as he likened the upcoming event to his own fate untold years ago.

They deserve to know, yes, the Alpha Pokémon replied. Does that mean they should know? Absolutely not—the more that do, the more likely it is for our gambit to fail before it has even begun.

Palkia and Giratina were silent for a long while, mulling over what their sister and father had just explained. Truly, it was a great risk—departing to an unknown world with potentially hostile inhabitants for an unknown reason would be enough to put anymon on edge. But, if Arceus was to be believed, and there was no reason not to believe him, it was their only hope.

…I will lend my aid, Giratina spoke at last. I will find the location within the Distortion World and create a bridge between our world and the new one through it.

Palkia was surprised at Giratina’s amenity towards the situation, but he could hardly say no at this point. I shall assist as well in moving our charges through the Distortion World. I just wish we knew what was so special about our destination….

There is just one shred your sister and I have managed to glean with much effort on both of our parts, Arceus answered, that may put you at ease, my son. The great evil’s chief foe will not be of the ranks of humans or Pokémon we will bring with us. Instead, a human native to our soon-to-be-home will rise to be its match. With him at the helm, we will all be united to face the threat to our universe.

And? Giratina inquired. How will we know which human is destined for this fate you’ve described? How can you be so sure?

We don’t have a whole lot of options, Giratina, Dialga said curtly. We have to take what we can get, and we’ve checked these visions several times. They’re real. She paused, looking toward her father briefly. The one we have seen will reveal himself as one capable of a bond unlike any other of his kind with one of us, Dialga replied. He, and his Eon partner, will be capable of Mega Evolution, and more.

Good, Palkia nodded, that narrows it down significantly. Surely you mean the Eon Pokémon, Latias and Latios? A brief ‘mhm’ from Dialga confirmed it. That’s easy, then. Just keep an eye on every Eon on the planet and wait until one sticks with a human.

More than Mega Evolution, Dialga? But I thought…oh. I see now. Giratina chuckled softly. I forgot about that little tidbit about Eon Pokémon. Zygarde was never a slouch when it comes to his “contingencies.” A crooked smile split his face, as if he knew yet more, but was unwilling to divulge it.

Arceus nodded as well. Indeed. Once we arrive, we will scour the planet for candidates. I only hope he and the Eon will become known to us before it is too late. The Original One’s eyes regarded all three of his children one last time. This meeting is adjourned. I suggest you familiarize yourselves with our new home to make our undertaking easier when the time comes. A hint of sadness had wormed its way into Arceus’ voice. Farewell, my children, and peace to you all.

Dialga and Palkia returned the farewell and made their way out of the Hall of Origin without another word, but Giratina lingered. …Dad?

Yes, my son?

What if we don’t find him in time? the Renegade Pokémon asked, then paused. …what if he never appears?

I…. Arceus trailed off. It was unlike him to not have an answer to a question straight away. We will find him, Giri, he said, trying to comfort his wayward son. The Eon Pokémon are rare, but not impossibly so, and I have confidence that the pair will reveal themselves before it is too late. Giratina nodded, and then a portal of inky blackness appeared below him, into which he let himself sink back into the Distortion World. After he had gone, Arceus shook his head. Whoever you are…I hope you’re ready, he said to seemingly no one. The darkness will rise, and you must rise with it. Both of you. There is only so much that fate can do, after all, and we can’t take no for an answer.

Pokémon Heroes: Champions of the Eon Dragonflight

Chapter 3: The Journey Begins

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Act 1: Who We Are

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“Wait! Don’t run! I just want to….”

The small raccoon-like creature bolted away from me and into the dense forest I was walking through, its brown and off-white zig-zag tail disappearing into the foliage.

I sighed and resumed a normal walking pace through the woods that surrounded my family’s home in Hillsboro, Maryland, far off the well beaten paths. For several days, I had been venturing into them, seeing that I had nothing better to do with my time. It was summertime, I had just graduated from high school and was set to go to college in just over two months’ time. My parents weren’t around during the day. I figured it would be the best time to investigate the effects of the event that had shocked the world just a scant month prior.

Fantastic creatures of all shapes and sizes had suddenly appeared on our Earth, setting the world community ablaze with questions and activity. To say that a few people lost their minds was a drastic understatement. All across the world, chaos erupted, lasting for days, then weeks. People were afraid of the creatures, and for good reason. Some were innocuous and analogous to the animals we had come to accept as part of our everyday lives, but even they had control over powers that we could only dream of. And that was just the start—some could breathe fire, others ice. Some had psychic abilities, while others still were essentially ghosts still bound to our mortal realm.

Some tried to use the creatures as weapons. From insurgents and terrorists in the most war-torn parts of the world to the lowliest petty criminals in the United States, reports spilled from the news that the creatures were being turned against each other and other humans, leaving anyone unfortunate enough to not have their own creature unable to defend themselves. Worse still, conventional weaponry seemed moderately ineffective against them. Bullets from a handgun, perfectly able to kill small animals like squirrels, raccoons, and the like, were only able to cause the creatures pain—a deterrent, but no mortal injury. It took an extraordinary caliber, or more “antiquated” means, like an arrow from a crossbow, to kill one. In this period of turmoil, time seemed to blur together. We weren’t sure if there would be a tomorrow, and we all feared the worst, day by day, hour by hour….

Then the Elders came.

They arrived on the scene all at once across the globe. What we thought of as powerful was nothing to the nigh-divine strength and incomprehensible power that these particular creatures possessed. But even that pantheon of demigods was as varied as their lesser brethren. No one knew exactly how many there were—unofficial counts tallied no less than ten, but no more than fifteen. From the highest peaks to the depths of the ocean, and everything in between, they enforced their wills across our world, ushering in a brief and tenuous peace. What was more, the Elders seemed to occasionally possess and command their own vanguards, creatures whose power was lesser in comparison, but far surpassed anything we had come to know.

To the shock of every human on the planet, the creatures regarded us with suspicion, as if we were the monsters. They were right, after a fashion, but despite ourselves, we knew a second chance when we saw one. Two more weeks passed, and humanity started over with the creatures, which we had come to learn were named Pokémon. Rumors began to spread once more, but the key difference was that some humans had actually befriended the creatures. Pictures flooded the Internet of humans posing with their newfound friends, taking them on as pets. As time passed, however, we learned that they were completely sapient beings, just like us, with thoughts and emotions all their own. Some were even able to talk, which is how we had learned their moniker and just who had put a stop to all the chaos and pandemonium just days prior. So, “pet” wasn’t exactly the right word for the developing bonds between humans and Pokémon. They were our friends.

I was shocked, but everyone was thankful beyond belief that the Elders intervened before a third World War broke out. Our society...all societies changed irreversibly. And just like that, the Elders disappeared without a trace, relegated to mere sightings and rumors. Pokémon integrated with our ecosystems almost overnight, like they belonged on Earth all along, and were surprisingly docile creatures…for the most part. It was quite eerie, especially since I was fairly certain that our old fauna seemed to have disappeared.

After discovering that some of these Pokémon lived not a hundred yards away from our house, I started going out into the woods to see if I could find a companion Pokémon of my own. I already had two dogs, but a Pokémon would be more than just a pet. So far, though, every attempt I had made had ended in failure. Something had set the native Pokémon into a state of fearing anything remotely resembling a human, and I had a pretty good idea what it was.

No one around here must have tried to befriend them yet. They must still be afraid of us, because of those crazy strong Elders. Guess I’m the one who has to break the ice…. Distracted by my thoughts, I almost walked into a fallen tree. As I stepped over it, I noticed that the leaves on it, a sweet gum, were still green. Looking up at the sky, I considered the pale gray clouds that had just passed through the area, gifting us with a break from what was going to turn into a drought before long. This wasn’t here the last time I came through here. The storm that just came and went wasn’t strong enough to topple a living tree either. What…did this? Was it one of them?

A peculiarly bright splash of color caught my eye amidst the duller greens and browns of the woods. If I hadn’t paused to think about the fallen sweet gum, I would have missed it. Stepping forward off the beaten path, I soon walked into a large clearing. There was a small stream running at the opposite end of it as it sloped gently downwards. I held still for a moment, looked behind me past the fallen branches I had walked around, and realized that there was absolutely no sound coming from around me, save the leaves rustling in the slight breeze of the mid July day and the flowing waters of the stream I could not yet see fully. I took that time to observe my surroundings more closely: smaller tree branches littered the forest floor sporadically, tiny compared to the ones at the sides of the paths I had long since left, but otherwise, the grass was unmarked. There weren’t even any wildflowers growing there. In addition, everything seemed a bit too bright green. Something was off about that place—nothing dared touch it, but why?

My footsteps no longer made much sound at all as I made my way through the clearing, getting a better look at the bottom of the hill. My eyes widened as I saw what I assumed to be a Pokémon sleeping near the water’s edge, its left side facing me, though it was drastically different than the mammal-like ones I had caught glimpses of.

It was primarily red and white in color, with its lower body colored the former and upper body colored the latter. It had a long neck and a thin oval-shaped head, with a red rounded triangle painting the upper part of its face and an inverted white pentagon in the center. Two rather long triangular shapes jutted from the top of its head, which I assumed were its ears. Two fin-like red wings extended from its back and were currently angled down towards the ground, reminding me of a fighter jet’s wings and fins. I could also see a thin arm coming from the side of its body resting on the ground, ending in a long, red oval shaped paw tipped with white claws. Overall, it seemed more avian in appearance, or maybe even fish-like.

I very carefully took off my shoes, further silencing my footsteps—at least, that seemed to work whenever I wanted to sneak around the house. I drew closer to the creature, doing my utmost not to wake it. From the looks of it, it seemed like it could flee very quickly if it wanted to, and I didn’t want to blow the chance to meet one like I had with all the other Pokémon I had encountered up until then. Its breathing was very methodical, and I used that to time my steps.

In, right. Out, left. In, right. Out, left.

Less than ten feet separated myself and the creature, which I estimated to be about as long as I was tall, when I veered slightly to its left to avoid stepping on a fallen branch.

In, right. Out, left. In, right. Out, left.

Cautiously, I squatted before the creature, its head and neck curved inwards towards its body, wrapping to my right, its left. I then turned my body so that I was facing the way I came, and fully sat down close to its head.

Well, here goes nothing, I thought to myself as I reached out and gently stroked the creature behind its left ear. I was surprised at the way the creature felt and how soft it was—it was covered in tiny feathers! I gasped softly as it began to stir almost instantly, opening its eyes, which were a brilliant gold. It looked towards me, and its expression switched from shock, to bewilderment, then to fear. It began to rise from the ground, and I saw a deep blue triangular outline adorning the center of its chest.

No, not again! My frantic thoughts surged in my mind as I spoke to it, struggling to control the volume of my voice. “I don’t want to hurt you. I just want a friend.”

A pregnant pause passed between us, the silence deafening. An infinitesimally small flicker of movement appeared behind the creature, off to the right. What happened next was incredible—its eyes never left my own, and I became lost in them as my vision faded away to black. Soon, however, I was assaulted with images and sensations I’d never seen nor felt before.

I was flying across a wide expanse of ocean, islands dotting the water, the rushing winds sliding across me like nothing. I saw a Wingull here and there, riding thermals lazily, as I tore across the sea at blazing speeds. All I could feel was pure joy and exultation, and this feeling was doubled knowing that my brother thought the same way.

The vision ended, but was soon replaced by another.

“So, what’s the problem?” my mother asked the teacher. “Because I’ve seen his grades.”

“There really isn’t a problem,” Ms. Howitz replied. “I just think that Mason is…um, isolating himself. He never plays with the other kids at recess. He prefers to talk with me or play board games with me.”

“Sounds like you’re annoyed that he’s cutting into your time.”

“No, not at all! It’s just, he should be socializing with kids his age, not someone quadruple his age. Think of what could happen later….”

“As long as his grades stay up, I don’t think there’s a wrong way he can spend his leisure time. He’s learning, isn’t he?”

“Well, yes, but I’ve seen this before, and—”

“So, everything’s fine. He’ll manage. Was there anything else?”

Ms. Howitz pursed her lips, then looked at me. Her eyes seemed sad for some reason. “Yes. Let’s talk about his handwriting….”

My vision swam, but I could not shake my head to clear the cobwebs away from my mind.

“Lady Kyogre…how come I’ve never seen another Pokémon that looks like me or Latios? Are we the only ones, like you and Lord Lugia?”

“Absolutely not, Latias,” she answered. Her great fins rippled the water somewhat, reacting to her declaration. “But…no, it can’t be….”

“What is it, milady?”

“Nothing, my dear. I just have to talk to somemon later after I am done visiting you and your brother. How have the past six months treated you?”

A smile split my muzzle, as I was eager to turn my thoughts away from whatever gave the Queen of the Ocean pause.

Again, the visions shifted, and I couldn’t help but feel like I wasn’t the only one watching them.

“What a fantastic picture!” Bianca beamed at me, and I smiled widely at her praise. Before the two of us was an easel with my latest painting resting on it: a depiction of the Tour de Alto Mare in all its glory. “Soon you’ll be more skilled than me!” I blushed, believing that the human girl would always be the superior artist.

“Hey boy,” my father greeted as I stumbled through the front door one day after middle school. He shut it behind me, and clapped me on the shoulder, turning me around. I tried to avert my eyes, but there was no hiding the tears or the slowly blackening bruises on my arm from him. He looked me up and down with a critical eye, and I saw his fist curl for a moment before relaxing once more. “It was those boys on the bus again, wasn’t it?” He asked, and I nodded, breaking out into sobs. “Well, you’re better than them. Wanna know why? It’s because you don’t stoop to their level, something I couldn’t say was true for me. You do you, and we’re here for you.”

I was by a river with a very large tree overhanging the water. Night had fallen on the world as I settled down on a thick branch to sleep, making sure my wings would keep me steady in my slumber. Across from me lay my brother, who had just kissed me goodnight and closed his eyes. I followed suit, knowing that he would keep me, and the rest of our friends, safe.

I was in my house in the living room, watching television with my family. My two dogs were on either side of me on the floor, and I had my arms around both, gentle stroking behind their ears. I was content, knowing I was surrounded by those I cared for most, even if all my classmates were at prom.

I watched the ferry leave the port again, probably going off to either Azalea Town or Goldenrod City, or maybe even Olivine City. I felt a burning longing deep in my chest. Why couldn’t I leave the city like the humans and their Pokémon could? How was Latios so happy to stay here?

The memories kept flowing like an endless river through my consciousness.

“You know, you’re actually really cool to hang out with, Mason,” a boy said to me at a mutual acquaintance’s birthday party, the first one I had elected to attend since elementary school. “And I’ve known you since middle school.”

“Uh, really?” I asked, confusion setting in. “I…I just figured I’d come along, since we all aren’t going to see each other for much longer.”

“Your mom dropped you off, though. Sure this wasn’t her idea?”

“It definitely wasn’t!” I retorted, openly lying to him. The look in his eyes said it all—he didn’t believe me for a second.

I saw several flights through a city of water, along with all manner of marvelous creatures, my grandparents’ deaths, an older man in a darkened building, the birth of my fear of heights, my high school graduation. Everything, from the highs and the lows, danced across my memories, barely there, but just out of reach. The strange part was that I was unable to tell which memories mine were and which belonged to the creature.

I had returned home from my trip to a graduation party with people I would have never considered my friends, but they called me “friend” nonetheless. Exhausted, I flopped onto my bed, relieved that I could finally be alone. The way everyone looked at me, though, set me on edge. Pity filled their eyes, but why? What were they hiding? What had I done wrong? Was…was there something wrong with me?

The city was saved, but at a terrible cost. While its people did not know it, my brother gave his life defending theirs, and I was helpless to prevent his death. All the time we spent together, since the beginnings of our lives, and I had to live on without him. I buried my head into Ash’s arms, trying to find some semblance of comfort, but even he left me behind. I looked upon the span of ocean where Kyogre typically stayed when she visited us and sobbed openly. I needed her. I never thought the day would come, but I had never been more alone.

Blessedly, the visions ended there. My heart had grown cold from the utter sorrow that I had felt emanating from the last few memories, and I struggled to hold back the tears just beneath the surface. I certainly wasn’t ready to relive all the worst experiences in my life. From an outside perspective, they were quite tame, all things considered. I was shocked, though, to see the creature still hovering in front of me, and even more so that it also had tears in its eyes. It must have experienced everything that I had, and I was sure that it was much worse off than me.

I spoke to it first: “I…I know I’ll never be able to replace…him, but…you don’t have to be alone anymore. What do you think?”

Its eyes widened, and, rather unexpectedly, it smiled. A feminine voice rang out in my head, I’d like that, Mason.

I very visibly flinched. Yet again, I had been taken by complete surprise. “You can talk!” The creature kept smiling and nodded once. “Wait…you know my name?”

It…she smiled wider. Yes. I heard your name being used by your mother. We shared memories just now. It’s usually used in defense, and I run or hide from bad people. That’s how I got here—I’ve been flying constantly, on the go for weeks, and I guess I was finally too tired to hear you come along. But even if you were pure-hearted, I would have just left. Something kept me here, though. Instinct, I’ll call it.

“Really? Well…I suppose if you’re not leaving, that’s a yes.” We remained silent for a scant few moments before I realized something rather obvious: “I think I heard your name too, actually. Latias? You’re a Pokémon, right? And…a girl? I assume so from your voice, but you know what they say about assuming.”

My name’s Latias, yeah! she said enthusiastically. And yes, she continued, giggling, I am a girl Pokémon, as a matter of fact! She paused before asking her next question. What do they say about assuming?

I blushed lightly. “The thing about assuming is, it makes an ass out of you and me.” I pointed at my bottom, then at her, then at myself in sequence with the relevant words, just in case she didn’t know what that light curse meant. Surprisingly, she laughed quite heartily at the little saying. The sound was hard to describe—it sounded like some kind of rhythmic whining or chirping. I would have to hear it again to pin it down.

I’ll have to remember that saying for later. That’s hilarious! Breaking up the parts of the word ‘assume’ to come up with a completely different meaning!

“Yeah,” I replied, sharing a chuckle of my own. I did not realize how tense I was until that moment. It was a rare occurrence for me to make someone laugh without self-deprecating humor. Making her laugh was strangely satisfying. “There are plenty of sayings like that where that came from.” I paused for a moment, thinking of how to ask my next question. “If you’re willing to stick around that is.” She looked at me with those golden orbs of hers, and I could feel my heart clench. “As…friends?” I concluded weakly.

Of course! she replied, and relief washed over me once again. I considered doing a fist-pump, but I thought better of it. Besides, neither of us have to stay alone. From what I saw, neither of us had a choice to get where we are today, and I’d like to change that. So do you, I’d bet. I’d be happy to have you as my Trainer.

Her words startled me. Neither of us had a choice in being lonely…was it really true? No, it couldn’t be…right?

Shaking my head, I turned my focus towards the unfamiliar. “Trainer?”

Before all of us came here, humans befriended Pokémon and “captured” them in Poké Balls.

My look of confusion must have tipped her off, as she smirked and performed the equivalent of shrugging her shoulders—her wings angled forwards slightly, and her muscles right in front of her wings did indeed rise and fall. From that look you’re giving me right now, I can tell you have no idea what a Poké Ball is. I’ve never been in one, so I’ll just cut all of that out. People and Pokémon traveled together and shared very close bonds as they trained and battled. These people, these humans, were known as Pokémon Trainers.

The influx of information almost proved too much. Humans pitted these creatures together in fights? Like dogs? “Uh, I don’t know what to make of the training or…uhm, battling bits, but I think I understand what a Trainer is now. Just the human half of a bond between them and a Pokémon?”

That’s right, Latias answered, nodding.

We didn’t speak for a few moments until her voice echoed in my head once again. So, I’m guessing you live around here, judging from the lack of supplies you brought with you.

I hummed the affirmative. “Yeah, my house is on the edge of these woods that way,” I pointed back the way I had come, towards the south. “I should get back, actually. My dad will be home in a bit, and he will find it weird that I left the house. Um…did you want to come with me?”

Why would I not, silly?

“W-well, I don’t know if you prefer the outdoors,” I replied, trying to save a little face.

You know, thanks for actually considering that, because I sure didn’t, she answered, laughing a little. Being indoors doesn’t really bother me, but I’m worried that your family will find me, and I know that won’t go over well.

My face fell. The scowl etched across it was evidence enough that I was already trying to come up with a solution, and Latias picked up on it in a flash. Don’t worry, Mason! I can use my psychic power and my down to become invisible. That way, I can come indoors, and your family won’t even know I’m there! Unless they literally bump into me, of course.

I looked up from tying my shoes back on into Latias’ eyes like she had grown a second head. “You can do what?!”

Uh, come indoors?

“No, no, the other part!”

Turn invisible?

“Turn invisible!” I repeated, giddiness seizing my voice. “What an awesome power! I wish I could do that. Oh, I bet you’ve ninja vanished your way out of a ton of sticky situations.”

A blank stare was Latias’ response, immediately taking me down a notch. “Err, uhm, I mean, turning invisible to, uh—”

Mason, shh, she said, gripping my right shoulder with her left claw, but not stopping our journey back to my house. Strangely, the ivory did not bite into my flesh or even the beaten t-shirt I had chosen to wear out into the woods. Enough of that stammering. There’s nothing to worry about.

“W-well, I just realized that…well, you know,” I replied, silently cursing myself for stuttering.

She nodded twice, excusing me from having to explain myself. Yeah, I’ve had to use that ability far more often than I’d like, she explained while letting go over my shoulder. She temporarily took the lead through a narrow set of close-hanging branches before returning to my side. It comes with being a Legend, I guess.

My brow quirked when she used the word ‘legend.’ “What do you mean by that? Are…are you one of the Elders or something?”

No, but I know a couple of them. We breached the edge of the woods, and Latias paused to turn around. Looking in the same direction, I saw several other creatures, undoubtedly Pokémon, that had been shadowing us. They quickly fled from our presence, knowing they had finally been spotted, and Latias let out a monumental sigh. I don’t know how much you know about us, but we’re really diverse. We’re all unique, even Pokémon that are the same species. But, that doesn’t mean we’re all of equal caliber. She broke eye contact with me and wrung her claws out like she was trying to clean her paws of an invisible mess. You know about our Elders. I’m in the grade below them. I am a Minor Legend.

Now, before you start, I…Mason? She paused, a quizzical look on her muzzle.

“I’m listening,” I answered, taking a seat on the ground for the moment. It was mostly plush moss, the only thing that could thrive in the shadows cast by the two nearby oak trees.

Sorry, I just thought a reveal like that would really freak you out.

“I have a lot of questions, you’re right, and it’s really hard for me to not just list them all out for you to answer, but please, keep going.”

A smile reached her lips, and I was glad I could put her at ease. Anyway, she started with a brief nod, the gap between Elder and Minor Legends is huge. Like, Lady Kyogre, Queen of the Ocean, controls all of the oceans in the world! And me, I can’t really do much of anything like that. A well-trained Heracross or Scizor could beat me in a battle any day of the week. Heck, I think any Bug or Ghost Type could. While her mouth was closed, I could see Latias’ jaw gnashing from side to side. I knew enough to recognize that what she was talking about was a sore spot for her.

“Well, the title must mean something, right?” I said from my place on the ground, trying to redirect the conversation. A strange sense of endearment bloomed in my chest when Latias decided to join me by my side. “What if you were well-trained? Or maybe, it just means you’re rare?”

Hmm, she answered, contemplating my questions. I’ve never seen a ‘well-trained’ Latias fight since I’m the only one I’ve ever known. Lady Kyogre did tell me during some of her visits that I wasn’t the only one of my kind, but I think she said that there were only around five hundred or so of both Latias and Latios combined in the world.

My mouth fell open. “Oh my God, you’re critically endangered! That can’t be good….”

I trailed off, but Latias waved me off with a claw. It’s not as bad as you think. Lady Kyogre told me that we live for a really long time to compensate for our low numbers. And, as you saw earlier, most Pokémon would sooner worship me than treat me like an equal or actually try to do me harm. She sighed again. It gets really annoying, if I’m honest. It’s to the point where Trainers would actually battle each other for a chance to have me or another Latias or Latios as one of their Pokémon—not that I would let them. She huffed angrily, venting her frustration physically. I’m not that special!

“Well, you’re the first Pokémon that gave me a chance, so I think you’re plenty special,” I said, making her smile once more. “You’re just Latias, my friend. Not Latias the ‘Legend,’ or Latias the ‘look-at-the-ultra-rare-Pokémon.’ I’ve heard the whole ‘special’ thing before, too—constantly—and I think it’s a load of crap.”

You have? Latias asked genuinely, her curiosity seemingly piqued. Her presence in my mind loomed closer, like she was leaning in to hear what I had to say. How so?

“Well, I mean…you saw my memories, right? I-I think they explain it best.”

I didn’t see all of them, Mason—not even close. You didn’t see all of mine, either. Besides, I want to hear your take on it.

“I’m not really comfortable doing that, though. Not…on the spot, anyway,” I answered shakily, getting up from my spot on the moss. Latias did the same, but there was a nerve-wracking look of concern on her muzzle. “It’s just…I know I’m really good at school and stuff. Certain types of video games, too. But I feel like something’s constantly going over my head when I talk to other people. Not that I get much chance to talk to other people in the first place, since my mom….” I heaved a sigh, allowing that train of thought to come to an end. “It’s not much use being ‘special’ or ‘gifted’ when I feel like there’s so much more out there that I never learned but all my peers did somehow.”

Wow, that’s…really close to how I feel about it, besides the part about having peers. That’s actually kind of spooky. A claw pinched my right shoulder again, stopping me from continuing to walk towards the house. I turned to face Latias, and her golden eyes glittered with joy. Thanks for sharing that with me, Mason. I know it must have been hard.

Her words in my mind flitted about, and I listened hard to try and isolate whether she would keep speaking, perhaps give something in return. No such cue manifested, and her compliment went unnoticed. However, I could feel her presence itself linger for just a shade longer than usual. “One step at a time, I guess,” I answered. “I wish we could get all of our thoughts out in the open right here and right now, and find even more common ground, but…something doesn’t seem right about that.”

We’d be here all day if we did that, Latias commented. Like reading a book…and we’re not books. She fell silent, then fixed me with a peculiar look. Her presence drew closer once again, like she knew something that I did not outwardly say. I meant it when I said thank you. And I’ll be sure to return the favor when it’s my turn.

A flash of anxiety coursed through me, causing my skin to tingle. Did she read my mind somehow? “Yeah…you’re welcome,” I said, the panic leaving just as quickly as it came, knowing better than to put up more of a fuss. “Sorry. I just…this is all new to me, beyond even the whole Pokémon thing. I didn’t think there would be time for a slower pace. There hasn’t been the last times I’ve talked to other people.”

I promise, there will be this time, Latias said while nudging my shoulder with her head. Plus, whatever happened the last times will just be another thing to talk about as we spend time together!

“Right,” I answered, a trickle of confidence entering my response. “I didn’t think of it that way. Thanks, Latias!” I reached back and stroked her head behind her left ear, eliciting a satisfied coo from the Pokémon. Her response was the relief that I needed—an expression that words could not match.

We looped around the long, one-story house I called home, circling from the fenced backyard to the open front—not that we could put a fence on the side of a hill. Mom’s well-tended plants and patio greeted us as we made our way to the front door, and Latias’ eyes were particularly drawn to the mimosa tree, my mother’s centerpiece. It was still in full bloom from earlier in the summer, but its leaves were partially closed due to the rain earlier that morning. “Well, we’re almost inside, and we beat my dad back. His car wasn’t in the driveway—”

Loud barking and snarling from my right caught my attention. The living room had a perfect view of the walkway to the front door, and in the windows stood my two dogs, utterly freaking out because of the strange creature floating along by my side. “sh*t, I forgot about those two!” I cursed, then immediately brought a hand up to my mouth. “Oops, didn’t mean to say that. Latias, is there a way you can calm them down with your memory sharing or something?”

I can try to convey that I mean no harm—not really memory sharing, but it gets the job done, she answered. Hopefully this works, because otherwise, I’ll have to turn invisible now instead of when your parents come home.

Latias’ brow creased, and I could feel her mental presence push slighter harder into my own consciousness. Judging by my dogs’ confused looks, I had to assume she was communing with them somehow and having some semblance of success. Eventually, they quieted down, but continued to stare at her warily. The younger of the two stilled growled a little, but his confidence waned when we continued to approach the front door. There. That wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Really, I only had trouble with the smaller one. He’s like a snippy Growlithe that doesn’t know when to keep his mouth shut.

“Gizmo can be a pain in the ass, yeah,” giving the Keeshond a hard look. His aggressive visage morphed into a quizzical one, as if asking the question, wait, you’re okay with this? Capitalizing on his confusion, I opened the outer glass door wide and pushed on the inner, wooden door, granting us entrance to my house. “But he knows when he’s been beat. Anyway, this is it!”

Phew, I always forget that humans have air conditioning inside their houses. It’s cold in here!

“Not a fan?” I asked, leaving my shoes at the door next to the other pairs of shoes and sandals. The glass door swung shut on its own, and I pushed the front door closed after I stashed my socks inside of my sneakers. “I’ll be honest, it’s way too hot outside for me during the summer,” I continued, making my way to the living room, immediately to the left of the foyer. “Inside is where I’m at, ninety percent of the time.”

I sprawled out on the couch, inviting both Gizmo and Snow—our Great Pyrenees—to come snuggle with me. Gizmo immediately obliged, jumping up not two seconds after I sat down. He frantically tried to lick my face and get me to hug him, but a firm arm around his middle set him straight, forcing him to settle for pressing as much of his body as he possibly could into my side. Snow, being as tall as she was, simply walked up to me and shoved her head into my lap, her special request for me to scratch her ruff, a favorite spot of hers.

What are these creatures called, Mason? Latias asked, taking up a spot in the air just beyond the short but spacious coffee table.

“They’re dogs,” I replied, continuing to cuddle with the fluffy canines. “You didn’t get that from entering their…hey, wait a minute. You just communed with dogs—that’s like, a dream of dog owners the world over! What were their minds like? Oh, my mom would kill to talk to these two.”

Well, these ‘dogs’ aren’t on the same level of thought that we are, that’s for sure. It was like, a step beneath having true thoughts, but they’re definitely aware of their surroundings.

“So, maybe they don’t have the ability to think about themselves, like we can, but they are sentient, which is a word that means that something can ‘feel’ what’s around them,” I supplied, and the Pokémon nodded twice in agreement. “Another word for being like us is sapient. It’s part of our species name—hom*o sapiens—which means ‘wise man.’” I chuckled a little to myself. “No other creature on Earth was like us, so I guess the name fit.”

Well, that’s definitely changed now, huh? Latias said, tittering quietly to herself, catching the attention of Gizmo and Snow. Anyway, it was all kind of a jumbled mess of emotions, experiences, and behaviors in your two dogs’ minds. I tapped into what I thought were memories of how they feel when certain things happen. So, all I had to do was make a new association—a positive one when I’m around.

At that point, Gizmo was fed up with waiting and wrested himself from beneath my arm. He then tried to push me over and lay on my face, his particular way of requesting my undivided attention. His antics never failed to bring a smile to my face, but what I wasn’t expecting was Latias’ response. Her face scrunched up like she had just eaten something sickeningly sweet, and she let out an adorable squee. I was thus able to fully identify what her physical voice was like—chirps and trills not unlike drawn out, high-pitched whale or dolphin calls. It also bore some similarity to bird song, or even certain musical instruments, like the flute.

My heart came dangerously close to succumbing to the sugary cuteness surrounding me on all sides. I’m sorry, but that’s so adorable! Neither Gizmo nor Snow expressed any confusion or alert because of Latias’ voice making itself heard, which I took to mean that her psychic “massaging” had done its job without a hitch. These creatures…you’re special to them, just like they are special to you. I think that makes them a bit closer to sapient than sentient.

“Yeah, it does,” I agreed. “That’s why they’re one of the most popular pets to have—it’s easy to love them, and equally easy to see that they love you just as much.” I paused, calming Gizmo down enough for me to look into his eyes. “What I’m concerned about is where that leaves them in comparison to Pokémon. They don’t have the awesome powers that you do.”

You never know, Mason—they might have the potential.

Something between an amused smirk and concerned grimace crossed my features. I gave Gizmo a quick ruffle of his fur around his ruff, then stood up from the couch. “Come on, I’ll show you around the rest of the house.”

The “tour” did not last very long. We had already seen the living room, and the kitchen and dining room were close by—not that we ever used the dining room to eat dinner. “That’s Dad’s Domain past the dining room,” I said to Latias, pointing to a purposefully darkened room at the far end of the house. “Really, it’s what we call a ‘den’ or ‘sitting room,’ but that’s where he sleeps.”

But there’s no nest, she replied, to which I quirked an eyebrow. Err, bed. He sleeps on the couch? And your mother, too?

“Nah, Mom sleeps in the master bedroom. She just can’t stand Dad’s snoring, and Dad hates it when she gets up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night.”

Uh-huh, Latias hummed. We then turned to the opposite of the house, where the L-shaped hallway splintered off into three bedrooms—one for me, one for my brother, Jeremy, and one for Mom. “Jeremy’s room is filled with junk because he moved out a couple of years ago. Might as well use the real estate up here than down in the basem*nt.”

Was that your opinion, or one from your parents?

I sputtered a little, not expecting Latias to pry into that particular memory. “Err, well, I guess it was Mom’s idea, yeah.” I paused, thinking if there was anything else that she needed to see. I shrugged my shoulders when I confirmed that there was not. We ended up in my room, and I was not opposed to staying there for a time while I thought of a place for Latias to sleep. “Well, that’s about all there is up here. There’s a basem*nt, but—”

A slamming of a car door and a sudden commotion from Gizmo and Snow set alarms off in my head. “Oh, sh*t, it’s Dad!” I exclaimed, voice somewhat strangled between a full shout and a stifled whisper. “Latias, you’ve got to disappear, now!”

On it. I’ll stay out of the way, she said. The Pokémon seemingly faded into nothingness, as if she had simply stopped existing altogether.

“Wow,” I breathed, then shook myself out of my stupor when I heard an audible click—the front door had just been pushed shut. I dashed to my desk, taking a seat at my chair and waking up my computer. Not five seconds later, the moment the display turned on, Dad appeared in my doorway.

“Hey,” he greeted, then sidled over slightly, as if trying to peer at what was on my monitor. “Just checkin’ to see if you’re awake.”

“My sleep schedule isn’t that bad, Dad,” I retorted, sarcasm suffusing my words.

“I dunno, son. For you, lunch is breakfast, and dinner is lunch.” My father chuckled, putting me at ease, but I had to wonder if there was any weight to his words. “Had any opportunity to leave this dungeon of yours? Could use some sun on your skin.”

I scoffed. “If Mom or you want me to go outside, tell nature that it needs to make the humidity not as ungodly as it is now.” My lack of skill with lying was obscured by crafting the words just so. I wasn’t technically lying…just omitting various truths.

That drew out a full laugh from my father—a short, gravelly sound repeated twice. “You got that right. Just be on the lookout for the good days, eh? Don’t need you looking like a vampire for when you go off to college,” he said in a half-joking, half-scolding tone.

“I will,” I said casually, tapping into the fact that I had indeed been doing as he bade for the past few days. He nodded, leaving the room and shutting the door behind him. I took a few steadying breaths, going about my business of signing back into my computer and opening a web browser. Before I clicked on my typical bookmarks, I spoke to seemingly no one. “So, that was Dad.”

I’ll have to get a better feel of him as the days go on, Latias said. She reappeared in front of my bed in a much more spectacular fashion—in a shower of blue lights that forced me to avert my eyes momentarily. It’s hard to say for certain, though. The most I got was a certain…concern for you, Mason.

“Is that right?” I asked genuinely.

It was more than just wanting you to go outside, that’s for sure, she answered. She continued to hover in the air, choosing not to settle on my bed for some reason.

“Feel free to lay down on my bed, Latias. It’s not like it’s sacred ground or anything,” I offered, a single hum of laughter capping off my suggestion.

Oh, thank you. I didn’t know if the humans of this world took offense to others using their nests. The ones I knew from my world didn’t, but Pokémon can be really protective of them. She then alighted on my bed with an unceremonious fwump, bouncing and giggling a little. Mmm, this is really soft! A big improvement from grass, that’s for sure.

Her reaction caused a grin to part my mouth. “As it turns out, my bed is quite firm compared to the others in the house. I guess you could test them out tomorrow when we’re alone again.” I paused to consider the rest of her words. “As far as bed sharing in general, well, I’ve never had to do it…but, if my brother, let’s say, wanted to sleep in my bed, I’d be kind of weirded out, you know? But he could sit on it all he wanted.”

But it’s still reasonable for some humans to share ne—beds! Share beds in certain cases, right? She shook her head and smiled despite herself at her self-interruption.

“Well, yeah,” I answered. “Here, ninety-nine percent of the time, humans share beds if they’re in a relationship, married, or if they’re parent and child.”

And the other one percent?

I shrugged. “Gotta keep my bases covered, right? Assumptions, Latias. Assumptions!” I capped off my exclamation with an exaggerated waving of my hands.

Oh, right! She giggled a little in return, and a part of me was relieved that she acknowledged my faux obsession with the matter. What about sharing a room?

“That is much more common. Students at boarding schools or colleges very often share rooms—it’s a necessity, though, rather than something we want. Large families do it too, where they can’t spare a room for each child.”

The Pokémon perked up much more than I expected, taking me by surprise. Oh, that’s good! For a second, there, I thought I would be violating some sort of habit you all have by asking this: it’s okay if I sleep in this room, then?

My eyes widened a little and I could feel my heartbeat noticeably accelerate. Two hours after meeting each other, and she’s already willing to share a room with me? An unsettling tingle shot down my spine, and whispers from nowhere floated in my ears, just out of my range of understanding. Immediately, I fixed my gaze upon the likeliest source.

Well of course, silly, she replied. I sucked in a deep breath—she answered as if I had spoken my thoughts aloud! I couldn’t help but grip the arms of my chair quite hard, trying to restrain my burgeoning panic. Wait, Mason, pause! Don’t freak out!

“Can you hear my thoughts at any time?” I asked as calmly as I could manage, my wits about to leave me.

No, no! At this point, I have to strain to hear them. But listen, Mason—I’m not intruding on your thoughts. You did that on your own and broadcast them for me to hear.

Her look of concern was genuine enough, but the way she emphasized her words set me on edge. “I did that? But I don’t have psychic powers.”

And you still don’t, Latias confirmed, setting me at ease. The terrible images of a visibly disfigured but psychically empowered future self fled from my over imaginative mind. But this telepathic communication is part of the bond we now share. I’ve seen it before—human Trainers, talking with their Pokémon like they almost understood what their Pokémon was saying, even though it was in Pokéspeech. For you and me, though, it’s a bit more…unique. More advanced. Only I can hear your thoughts, and only if you broadcast them like you did.

“I guess…I guess I’ll have to figure out the difference between ‘hearable’ and ‘un-hearable’ thoughts, then.”

Why? So you can keep me out? Her cheeky grin prevented me from feeling the pangs of guilt. Nah, I understand. We can start playing around with it in a little bit if you like. You seem tired.

I found it strange that Latias had noticed my apparent exhaustion before even I had. It was true as anything, though—sure enough, I felt like I had been awake far past my bedtime. “Yeah. I…I guess this link of ours, this bond, is taking some of my energy to keep up. And I guess I wasn’t expecting the bond to...manifest like this. Or so fast. It’s…shocking, to say the least.” I looked up into Latias’ face, and she seemed concerned. “Not that I’m not okay with it! This is all new to me, is all.”

We’ll have time. Trust me. Not like…. Our eyes met, and an image appeared of a small, raven-haired boy with a yellow combination of a mouse and a rabbit perched on his shoulder. I recognized it as one of her memories just before the two figures warped, then dissolved into nothingness. They did so in time with Latias breaking eye contact and shaking her head. I’ll be here, through everything.

I reached up and offered my left hand to the Pokémon. She took it up willingly in her left paw, surprisingly soft to the touch. “Thank you.” She smiled giddily, and I could feel her consciousness pressing on mine once more, a feeling of intense happiness blooming from it. It was as though she had taken me up in a hug, only on the inside of my head. “Want to see how a computer works before I have to lie down for a nap?” I asked after the moment had passed, swiveling in place to face my computer monitor.

Sure! Lead the way! My excitement to show her our world buried an enormous event—while I did not know it, my Pokémon journey had just begun. And what a journey it would be!

Chapter 4: Dilemma of an Earthborn Trainer

Chapter Text

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The next couple of days passed by in a strange dichotomy. No longer was I moving from place to place, forced to abandon the lands of yesterday in search of new lodgings day after day. Instead, my days were filled to the brim with learning and teaching―action of a different sort. There was nary a resting moment where Mason and I weren’t learning from each other. The almost-pale human and I would often play a game of who could ask the shortest question that took the longest to answer. I took pride in knowing that I usually won that game, which brought a rakish smile to my muzzle every time he knew he had been beat and hid his right eye behind his light brown hair, usually swept above his eyebrow and behind his ear.

I did note, however, that he never attempted to try and steal the win by intentionally drawing out his answers. In lieu of that, he often used a simply wondrous tool on his computer—he called it the “Internet.” By typing questions into what I considered the nexus of the Internet, called “Google,” we could find the answer to pretty much any question I could possibly think of. I had never heard of such a place back in my home world. The humans back home had a lot to learn!

“The Internet is only as useful as you make it,” he had told me, “…and you’ve got to be careful when you use it. You could accidentally download a virus if you click on something suspicious, which will damage the computer, or someone could pretend to be someone they’re not and steal from you.”

And you can’t catch them or fight them because it’s all in the machine, I added. I resolved to treat the Internet like any other unknown territory and let Mason, the resident seasoned explorer, show me how to navigate it safely while he taught me the ins and outs of his world, called “Earth.”

In return, I taught him all that I knew of the world I came from—also called Earth, but referred to as my “home world” to avoid confusion. First and foremost was my brother, Latios. I only brought him up directly once, but Mason knew enough not to pry. In fact, he seemed more intrigued by the similarities in our species names, recalling my male counterpart’s name being mentioned when we first met. Learning that my species was female-only and that Latios were male-only further piqued his interest, especially after I remarked that, to my knowledge, our two species were only one of two pairs of Pokémon that were so similar yet were different species.

I told him all that I knew of Legendary Pokémon, the class to which I belonged, though in name only for me, in my opinion. Again, I mentioned the difference between Elder Legends, like Kyogre and Lugia, and Minor Legends, like me, Latios, or Entei, Raikou, or Suicune. I knew there were more Legends in the world, but I did not know their names or who they were. Perhaps, given more time, the Internet would be able to answer those questions.

My partner seemed particularly amused when I mentioned that everymon referred to Elders as either Lord or Lady in conversation, even amongst each other and not explicitly in their presence. There was no issue with the titles, though—he was preoccupied with a different word. He remarked that everymon was a “funny spin” on the word everyone, to which I replied that the distinction was definitely necessary since humans and Pokémon co-existed on Earth.

Next came as much as I knew of the different Types, something else I had mentioned on day one. Again, I had to preface that I did not know every Type’s weaknesses and resistances—only my own—and assumed that, just as with information on Pokémon themselves, the “matchups” as they were called would be organized into a chart of some kind to be referenced on the Internet.

It did not surprise Mason that I was a Psychic Type, but he was quite shocked to learn that I had a second Type—Dragon. “You don’t look like a dragon at all!” he had exclaimed, immediately showing me pictures of different types of dragons in Earth human mythology. “You don’t behave like one either.”

I shrugged, not really putting much thought into why I had the Types that I had. I simply…was. So, keep that in mind when you meet certain Pokémon, I told him. I feel like it’s just better not to question it when you might think the Type doesn’t fit with the Pokémon.

Lastly, just like Earth humans had a scientific name, we Pokémon had classifications too. Latias and Latios are both known as the Eon Pokémon. When he asked me if that meant that I lived for literal eons, I remarked that I did not know either way. That question was certainly unsettling, as it exposed a rather telling gap in my knowledge about my own species. There was not much I could do about it either unless we were to track down Kyogre and ask the Queen of the Ocean herself. In the meantime, through our steadily developing mental link, I shared with him more of my memories of my island home: Alto Mare. Seeing the city manifested a peculiar nostalgia in the boy, but he never elaborated on why that was so. Either way, he never seemed terribly interested in my past—perhaps because of my brother.

We stopped our sharing sessions only when he had to eat, sleep, and when he played “video games” with “online” acquaintances, a similarly enrapturing activity for me to watch. I had never seen a human’s hands and fingers move so quickly across a handheld device, and when he told me that he wasn’t particularly out of the ordinary, that really set me aghast. It took me a while to understand that he was playing with real people, albeit very far away, and that he often did not know their real names. Sometimes he didn’t even talk to them, depending on the game. Was that why his memory-scape was the way it was?

Finding a place for me to sleep was fairly simple. With an excess of pillows and blankets available because it was summertime, the small gap between Mason’s bed and the wall farthest from his room’s door became my personal sleeping spot. His bedframe sat high enough off the floor for me to tuck halfway underneath, and the pillows took care of hiding the rest of me from any wandering eyes before either of us woke up.

The boy had indicated that he was incredibly fearful of his parents learning of my existence, and I knew that my ability to become invisible did not work while I was sleeping. The sleeping arrangement was only as elaborate as it was because he knew that his mother typically peered into his room to check on him before leaving for work.

While a different Pokémon might have called it “spying,” I thus engaged in reconnaissance of Mason’s family while he ate or played games online. His fear had to be misplaced. Surely the two humans that raised him wouldn’t be against me, would they? But, during one such excursion, three days after I had met the human that had become my Trainer, I learned of something far more insidious.

“D’you think Mason is ready for college, Claire?” his father asked as he flipped through the images on the large, bright screened box in the corner of the den—Mason had called it a “television” or “TV” for short. I hovered unseen in the opposite corner of the room, nearer to the pair than I would have liked.

His mother paused, a sour look beginning to grow on her face. “He can handle the school part, that’s for sure,” she replied.

“What about the other parts?”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” said Claire. “He’s never really gotten the whole ‘being social’ thing. Sure, he has his games, but he never went out with friends at school. School, home, repeat…ever since he went to elementary.”

“You mean, you’ve never really pushed him to get it,” his father quipped.

Mason’s mother shot an irritated look at her husband. “I don’t see how that’s my responsibility, Brandon.”

“He listens to you like you’re God, hon. You told him to go to that birthday party, he did it. Graduation party? Did that too. All because you told him to go.”

“Not without whining and complaining about it first,” Claire added, trying to disqualify Brandon’s statement. “I swear, getting him to go out and see real friends is like pulling teeth!”

“What makes you think he wants to go out?” Brandon responded, pressing harder. “We never encouraged it, so he never did it.”

“Why does it fall to us to encourage him to do something so basic?”

“I dunno, Claire, probably because we’ve been telling him what to do for his entire life. Hard to find an original thought in that boy’s head!”

“Don’t blame this on me!”

“I’m not!” Brandon retorted loudly before his eyes widened, as if fearful that he had been heard outside of the den. “He’s had trouble with other kids in school this whole time, he’s gonna have trouble with the kids at college. He ain’t gonna go out on the weekends to the parties or the bars or anywhere but his own room, sitting on that damn machine of his. And we’re not gonna be there to say, ‘it’s alright’ or to be his friends or make him do anything else.”

“We’re not—”

“Oh, piss off,” Brandon interrupted, the words grating on my ears. “Don’t be lying just to make yourself look better in front of me. If anything, you did more to make him this way than I did.”

“Well what do you want me to do, Brandon?!” Mason’s mother hissed, her teeth gritting in frustration. “I can’t go to college with him! He’s just going to have to figure it out on his own!”

“He’s not gonna be able to, and both of us know it,” his father shot back. “That ain’t being pessimistic, that’s the goddamn truth.”

“There has to be something we can do….” Claire’s anger faded just as quickly as it had surfaced, and she buried her face in her hands. “I can go visit him on the weekends. Or, maybe, I can go pick him up and bring him here. Just something to ease him into it….”

“Whatever you do, don’t let it prolong the state he’s in now. God knows that won’t work once he gets out of college.”

“He’s not in a state!” Claire snapped, a flash of her anger returning.

Brandon shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Okay, hon. Sorry I brought it up. Maybe we can talk about this some more when we’re not all bent outta shape.”

My thoughts were swirling almost uncontrollably in my head during my swift retreat from the den, satisfied that I had heard enough from the two humans. His memories, the way he talked on the way back to the house, and the argument that I had just witnessed confirmed a very disturbing truth about Mason. From what I had gathered, he was nearing adulthood amongst humans on Earth. The unsettling part was that he had little to show for independence, far less than what was expected of a human his age. The strangest thing of all, though, was that he did not want independence—or, at the very least, he was unaware of its importance. I had just witnessed the two major causes of that deficiency.

How could they control him this way? Is…is it for his own good? I thought hard about our earliest interactions, and the primary memories he had shared with me. Is that awkward, stilted interaction permanent? I shook my head. No. It can’t be. No one thrives on being controlled, or letting others coddle and protect them. My muscles tightened in my shoulders and arms—the latter was how I lost my brother, for Arceus’ sake. I won’t let Mason become a victim like I did. Either I push him to confront his parents, or I’ll do it myself!

My roiling emotions calmed a little, and my muzzle pulled back into a frown. But I can’t just come out and tell him what I just saw and what I’ve figured out. I hung close to the front door, nearer to Mason’s room than the den, continuing to mull over all that I knew of the boy…what little there was. Interfering so early would require something similarly indirect.

“…that damn machine of his….”

“…telling him what to do his entire life….”

“…listens to you like you’re God….”

It all converged at once in my mind. The catalyst for Mason to begin his long-delayed journey resided in a choice that he himself made in the real world, not one made online. My thoughts calmed, the maelstrom dissipating as I let out a sigh of relief. It was so simple in its elegance because it centered on just one variable:

Me.

As harsh as it sounded, I could see no other option. By giving Mason an ultimatum of revealing me to his parents, their hold could begin to be broken of his own volition, rather than facing the debacle that Claire and Brandon feared. Their desire to help him proved that they were not fully malicious in their actions, but nonetheless, Mason would need help to escape the chains that bound him.

I made my way back to Mason’s room, using Psychic to manipulate the doorknob and gain entry. Inside, I could hear the furious clacking of a keyboard—he was surely engrossed in one of his computer games. Our closeness allowed our two consciousnesses to connect, causing him to briefly break away from his activity to look upon the door that was seemingly shutting itself of its own accord. “I didn’t even notice that you had left, Latias. What were you up to?”

Nothing super important, I replied, sighing a little and de-cloaking. Just wondering what your parents were doing. Not much, as it turns out. Mason had turned back towards the computer monitor while I was talking. I then settled onto his bed. Hey, Mason?

“Yeah?”

I think it’s about time we start planning to show me to your parents.

The movements across his keyboard froze for a split second before resuming. “Can…we talk about it after this game? It’ll only be a few more minutes.”

Take your time, I acquiesced, willing to observe his silent game—all of the sound had been routed to a device that he wore on his head, aptly named “headphones.”

“Thanks a bunch.” It turned out that he was already nearing the end of his session. While I could not see his eyes, I could feel a surge of elation accompanied by a short gasp and exclamation: “Sweet, the Eye of Sulfuras! Now I just need the other stuff.” A few more clicks and key presses afterwards, he took off his headphones and turned around, his gray eyes meeting my own. “I guess you’re already tired of being a secret, huh?”

I did my best to mask my relief that I could hide my true intentions—it would certainly be easier to run with a reason that Mason himself predicted rather than revealing the truth. Yeah, I am. It’s not even about whether your parents will understand, though. It’s about me, and what I have to go through. I didn’t bond with you to be cooped up in a room all day or have to be invisible. I did that enough in Alto Mare, and trust me, the Secret Garden is much larger than this room.

“R-right. I understand that. It’s only fair…and I’m getting a little sick of keeping you a secret, too. But my parents—”

—are reasonable humans and want what’s best for you, I interrupted, finishing his sentence with my own version. We just have to convince them that I am in fact what’s best for you. And no, I can’t do all the talking, because then they’ll think I’ve brainwashed you or something.

“Well, it’s not like they can say no anyway. They can’t force you to leave—you’re a Pokémon, and they’re not,” Mason said.

A show of force gets us nowhere, I replied. I want to move about the house freely, without two pairs of hateful eyes on me. Plus, they could just go get Pokémon of their own, or bring a stranger in to try and get rid of me, and need I remind you, I’ve never battled before in my life.

“Point taken. Hmm…let’s give it a few more days. I’ll start putting more news segments on TV about Pokémon, and then….”

ᛇᚾᛇ

A week passed before my opportunity to strike presented itself. It was only a matter of time before Pokémon-related media began to appear on TV in places other than the news, and Mason had just so happened to tune in to a show about a human’s escapades with an Eevee he had bonded with in the early days after the Elders had brought order back to Earth. He had very peculiar facial hair—perhaps that was what made him enough of a standout to have an evening TV show.

“From cats to Eevee,” Mason’s mother muttered by his side on the living room couch. “They’re awful cute, that’s for sure. I kind of want one now.”

“Pokémon really are amazing,” Mason replied, flicking his eyes over to where I was hovering, unseen to both him and his mother. He then turned to Claire. “Hey, mom…would you ever consider having a Pokémon partner?”

Her face displayed some hope: it did not curl in disgust, but rather, in contemplation. “Well, you know how I am with the dogs. Maybe when I know more, I’ll try and find an Eevee or something, or maybe one that’s more like a dog.”

“Like a Lillipup, or a Growlithe,” Mason supplied, which caused his mother to quirk an eyebrow.

“I haven’t heard of those ones before…did you see those online or something?”

Mason paused for a moment, then looked at me yet again. “No. Somemon told me about them.” Before his mother could reply, he continued. “Mom, what if I told you that you didn’t have to wait to meet a Pokémon?”

Claire visibly paled, then took a deep breath. “Mason…what have you done?” She heaved a sigh. “You’re not ready to have one! Wherever it is, you need to release it. I’m not taking care of it, that’s for sure.”

My muzzle scrunched up in irritation, and I could not stay silent any longer. I would educate her, one way or another. I can take care of myself, thank you very much.

“Oh my God!” Claire yelled, immediately drawing a look of horror on Mason’s face. “What the hell was that inside my head?! Mason, where is it and what is it doing to me?!”

“Calm down, mom! She doesn’t mean any harm,” Mason said, trying to assuage his mother’s fears. “Do you want Dad to see her now or later?”

“Is there a third option of—”

“No,” interrupted Mason, which caused Claire to quiver a little in fright.

“Alright…I’ll go get him….” Claire heaved herself up from the couch, slowly making her way toward the den.

Well, it’s almost showtime, I said to Mason quietly in a private telepathic link—something my brother and I used to fool Bianca and Lorenzo many a time back in Alto Mare. You know, I was more concerned with your mom.

I wasn’t. It’s why I picked her first. Plus, Mom isn’t finished yet, Mason replied, taking advantage of his ability to talk telepathically with me and me alone, projecting the illusion of sitting silently. Dad’s going to be harder to win over, guaranteed.

“Alright, Mason.” His mother’s voice floated in from the dining room as she and his father walked into the living room. They did not immediately sit down, choosing instead to loom over the boy. “So, go ahead and tell us what you need to say.”

“Maybe you’d like to sit down before I start,” Mason offered. His mother appraised him with an almost pitying eye before sitting on the nearby ottoman, while his father immediately proceeded to the armchair on the opposite side of the room. My Trainer then heaved a sigh, trying to come up with where to start. “Alright, well, I’m sure you guys already know about the whole Pokémon thing by now.”

“Like on the news? The creatures that showed up five weeks ago and almost completely replaced our ecosystem? The ones that almost destroyed the Earth before the really badass ones showed up? Those Pokémon?” Brandon said, his tone becoming more and more hostile as he went on.

“They’re not all bad, hon,” Claire supplied, electing to assist Mason. “We just got done watching a show about a few that looked quite nice to have as pets, like Gizmo or Snow. But, um, from what Mason has told me, he’s already met one and made friends with…her?”

His father leaned forward from his armchair threateningly.

“Okay, don’t give me that crap, Dad,” Mason said defiantly, preventing his father from speaking. “The only thing you know about her is that she exists, and you’re already fixing to make me get rid of her!”

“Son, of all the things you coulda done!” Brandon shouted. “Here we are, kicking ourselves on how to get you adjusted for college, and you go and do this?! It’s an alien wild animal! And I’m willing to bet it’s somewhere in our house.”

“Yeah, well, you should be happy that this is one of the things I’ve done without either of you telling me to do it!”

“This is exactly why we tell you what to do all the time! So you don’t go doing….” Mason’s father cut himself off, growling in frustration. “Where is it?”

I am right here, I said, not willing to put up with my partner being abused for any longer. As it was with any time I de-cloaked, a flash of blue light shined from my body when my invisibility started to fall away. And I’d appreciate it if you called me a ‘she’ instead of an ‘it’ or an ‘animal.’

Brandon immediately paled once I had become completely visible. Claire was similarly stunned, her eyes flicking to the dogs. “Mom, Dad,” Mason began, “this is who I would like for you to meet.” He then turned to me. “Would you like to introduce yourself, or should I?”

I’ll do it, I said cheerily, the venom from my earlier words vanishing in an instant. My name is Latias. I met Mason about a week and a half ago in the woods behind your house. We became fast friends, then bonded as Pokémon and Trainer soon afterwards.

“The dogs…they’re not bothered by you,” Claire said shakily. I noticed the marked absence of any welcome from either of Mason’s parents. “They get upset if anyone gets too close to the house. Why not you…err, Latias, was it?”

“They were upset at first, but they don’t see Latias as a threat, Mom,” Mason answered. “Because she isn’t. She’s honestly the best friend I’ve ever had, and that’s saying something for only a week and a half of knowing each other.”

“Bullsh*t!” Brandon shouted. “She’s messed with your mind, Mason. And she’s doing it to us, too! Talking inside of our heads!”

I’m a Psychic Type. That’s how I talk—inside your head. Otherwise, all you’d be hearing is this. “Would you rather me talk like this?” All three humans looked completely bewildered by my unintelligible Pokéspeech. I thought so. I turned towards Mason’s father, gaze hardening. If I’m honest, I don’t have the necessary skills to brainwash Mason. If I really wanted to hurt him, I would have done it by now, either with my mind or with my claws. I presented my paws, showing the sharp ivory to the human. So, what do you have against me? I’d like you to explain it to me.

“I…it’s just…we didn’t have a say in this, and he’s our son and—”

And you’ve wanted this, haven’t you? Both of you.

Brandon was stunned into silence. His mouth agape, he looked to his wife for aid. “You have to understand, we’re just trying to protect our son,” Claire argued. “What if you decide to turn against us some day? What if there’s a trigger that Mason doesn’t know about? But….” She paused, looking me up and down. “The way you’re talking to us, you’re no animal. You’re…like us. But still, it’s just so risky.”

It comes down to your opinion of Mason’s judgment, which, from what it sounds like, isn’t very good. What I’m saying, though, is that my judgment matters too. I hovered over to Mason across the coffee table and held out my arms. Taking the hint, my Trainer mirrored my action, and we embraced for the first time since we had met. Letting go of him, I pushed my head and muzzle against his cheek, nuzzling him. The combined action elicited a surge of contentment and joy from the human. I was elated to feel his nervousness and underlying resentment melt away, even if for just a moment. I chose to stay here for a reason. We have more in common than you think, but laying it all out would be pointless. I trust Mason, and he trusts me, I said while Mason scratched me behind my left ear. Will you trust us?

“Please,” Mason added. “We don’t have anything to gain by lying. I…I need her to stay.” I let out a soft trill in response. Just as he needed me, I needed him. I hoped that his parents realized that.

Both of Mason’s parents were silent for a long while. Brandon watched his son carefully, as if looking for any deception in his actions. Claire, on the other claw, looked right at me—that much I could see out of the corner of my eye. Eventually, she elected to speak for the two of them. “’Trust’ is too much right now…but if Mason hasn’t told you yet, then I will. One of the most important laws of the land is ‘innocent until proven guilty.’ You two seem to really care for each other. You can stay, and then we can really start learning about how Pokémon behave. What do you think, hon?”

“I think Mason’s really lucky that he met a Pokémon that can stand up for herself instead of one that needs more of his care and attention. You’re not ready for that, son, and I know you know that.” My Trainer looked like he was about to protest, but his mouth remained closed without a rebuttal. “Still, she might be the kick in the ass you need. Treat her right, you got me?”

“Yes, sir!” Mason replied without hesitation, finally withdrawing his hand from my head. I had to resist both protesting that his touch was gone and cheering about his parents giving me a chance. I was a secret no longer!

“Good.” Unbelievably, a smile had wormed its way onto Brandon’s creased face.

“Latias, you can have the guest bedroom, if you like,” Mom offered. “And I’d better get used to cooking for four again. Actually…what do you even eat?”

I’d rather just sleep in the same room as Mason, like I’ve been doing so far, but…oh, hold on! I turned to Mason with a grin splitting my muzzle. Can I sleep on your bed now? I know being in it might be a little weird, but on top should be just fine, right?

“I’ve just been sneaking Latias some of my food every day, so pretty much the same things we eat, Mom,” Mason said, answering his mother first. “And yeah, I don’t see why not, Latias. Snow has slept on Mom’s bed ever since she was a pup, and this isn’t too much different. So, are we all good now?”

“I think so. You can get on back to your room if you want, son,” Brandon said. Just as Mason turned away from his father after acknowledging his indirect command, Brandon made eye contact with me and turned his head in a ‘come here’ gesture. I waited for a few seconds for Mason to leave the living room before hovering over to his father. “You be good to him, too,” he whispered when I drew close enough. “He’s…not your standard teenager. But you’ve got a stronger bond with him than anything I’ve yet to see with any person.”

I know, I said simply. I’ve seen enough of his past to know that. I also overheard you and Claire’s…ah, argument a week ago.

Brandon’s eyes widened for a moment. “Well, no more eavesdropping with your invisibility, okay? And, just so you know, I’m not against you. It’s just that he’s a tough nut to crack.”

I’ll do my best, I replied, careful not to ream him for his earlier hypocrisy. With no more words forthcoming, I followed Mason back to his room, simultaneously satisfied and defeated. It was one thing to earn the trust of his parents by myself. It was another matter entirely for him to earn the respect of his parents. When the time was right, I would help Mason push the matter with them. Until then, I promised myself that I would do what his parents could not—bring out his true self, just as he would bring out mine.

Chapter 5: Eon Education

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

Mason….

I turned my head on my pillow, hoping that my imagination was just acting up.

Mason? It’s time to get up…your mom’s got breakfast ready….

“Ugh….” I lifted my head from my bed, and looked blearily towards the clock, which displayed ‘9:30’ on its rectangular face. As consciousness wormed its way into me, my mental link with Latias fully developed, and I noticed something pressing into my side and laying over my body. I turned my head to the other side, and found the dragoness simply lying there, her form lightly pressed into mine, a wing laid protectively over me.

Good morning, sleepy head, she said to me as she offered a smile.

“Good morning, Latias,” I replied in kind, pulling an arm out from under the covers and scratching behind one of her ears. She gave a soft coo and pressed her head into my hand, enjoying my touch. I gave a small laugh as I sat up. “I could get used to this…how long have you been up?”

Only about five minutes. Your mom left it to me to wake you up…and, oooh yeah, I’m definitely glad I’m not a secret anymore…. She panted slightly as she flopped over onto her side, and I couldn’t help but think that she was enjoying herself a bit too much. I lifted my hand and returned it to my side as I extracted myself from my bed. She whined softly in response. Darn. I was just about to ask for a belly-rub.

I laughed quietly again as I pulled on a pair of gym shorts. “Maybe later, Latias. For now, it’s time to eat!” We walked—or floated, as the case might have been—down the hall to the kitchen after I made a quick stop in the bathroom as part of my morning routine.

Two weeks had passed since Latias had revealed herself to my mother and father. While she was initially received coldly, she had done everything in her power to earn her way into the good graces of my parents, making their lives easier whenever she could. This won over my dad extremely quickly—if anyone could have an allergic reaction to chores, it was him. My mother, who was more liable to burden herself with menial tasks, was reluctant to relinquish or accept help from Latias, but all it took for her to get her proverbial foot in the door was help load Snow into the car for a vet appointment. Since then, they had come to trust her and almost regard her as a member of the family, a development for which the both of us were extremely thankful. Still, there was one thing that Latias absolutely resented—anything that involved the dogs’ hair. When questioned, she immediately cited the utter pain it was to get hair out of her feathers when she preened.

We briefly wondered about giving her a name other than her species name. “It was an extremely common practice back home,” Latias had explained, “since it was likely that two Trainers with the same species would eventually meet. It also helped Trainers bond with their Pokémon partners.” However, I didn’t feel comfortable giving her something other than the name she had gone by for her entire life, so I declined. In any case, I didn’t think it was likely that I would meet another Latias any time soon. She and I shared a close enough bond already, and I didn’t think a new name would help with that.

We entered the kitchen side by side, and my mom turned from the sink and gave a small wave before gesturing to two plates of bacon, scrambled eggs, and toast on the counter. “Hey! Sorry for not getting you up earlier. I know you’re not that hungry the second you wake up, but she was snoring in the most adorable way, and with her wing over you, I figured waking you up would wake her up, too.” I snickered and looked over at my partner, and the blush on her muzzle told me everything I needed for a grade ‘A’ teasing later.

We settled to eat, but not two minutes after we had done so, my mother came over to us again. “Your father and I were thinking this morning about how we were going to handle the move-in for you going to college, and it occurred to the both of us that Latias would obviously want to come with you, right?”

“You sure that’s the only thing you talked about, mom?” I asked, fixing her with a look that emphasized that I knew that there was almost certainly more to the conversation.

She sighed, then looked pointedly at Latias. Hey, don’t look at me! the dragoness responded, holding up her paws. I wasn’t about to lie to him, he kind of figured things out on his own!

“Still, I think it would be a really good idea if you two stuck together, honey,” Mom continued, turning back towards me. While I had indeed ‘figured things out’ like my partner had said, there was still some truth to the matter. Thus, I didn’t really have much room to talk back. Someday, though, that would change.

Of course! Latias replied in my stead, and I nodded. But…it’ll be so hard to keep me a secret. I won’t be able to see you that often at all…. Her brow creased, and a frown marred her features. Unless….

“Yeah?” I prodded, encouraging her to continue.

I would have to do the same thing I did back in Alto Mare. She paused briefly to allow me to recall exactly what that meant. As if on cue, she tittered lightly in amusem*nt when my eyes widened at the memory’s resurgence. That means I take on a human illusion using my psychic powers, she continued, addressing my mother. The only problem is I’d have nowhere to live except outdoors, and a random girl in Mason’s classes unaccounted for, following him around wherever he went would be really weird and make people suspicious before long.

“You can make yourself look like a human?” my mom asked Latias, and she nodded. “This might actually work, then.” I looked up with my mouth open, about to ask what she meant, but she held up a hand, silencing me. “See, I have this crazy idea: what if Latias became a student at school with you?”

I gawked at my mom for what I thought was a completely preposterous idea. “Mom, there are so many reasons why that wouldn’t work! It’s way too late for her to apply, she can’t speak a lick of English, and how in God’s name will we pay her way?” I then faced my food again, staring at the still-untouched toast. “I wish there was a way. I almost can’t stand even thinking about being away from her…but it doesn’t seem possible.”

My mother put a hand on my shoulder. “I know, honey. That’s why we’re going to drive down there on Monday and convince them otherwise.” My stomach dropped at her declaration. We were going to what?! “Just think of the publicity they’ll garner if they award a Pokémon a degree! The mute aspect might be a problem, though, unless you’ve got another psychic trick for that?”

I know sign language and how to read and write, Latias said. I’ve had to use my illusion form a huge amount back in Alto Mare, the city I used to live in, so I’m good at posing as a human as long as I have a reason to be where I am. It’s pretty lucky that our written language and sign language seem to be the same here as they were on my home world. Small universe, I guess!

“Wait, how d’you know that that’s true?” I asked.

I used your computer, duh.

“But I’ve got it locked behind a password!”

Well, now’s a good time to start getting used to me being in your head at all times. And yes, I do mean all times. I blushed furiously, making a mental note to watch my back at night to ensure Latias was actually sleeping.

“Well, the reading and writing is another thing we have going for us, then,” my mother replied to the dragoness. “It’s only been, what, two months since you all appeared here? People are still trying to work out what you guys are capable of. Some of my co-workers still think you’re not much more than animals, despite those Elders being the ones who put the lid on everything. Just how powerful are they, anyway?”

I’ve met two of them personally. Lady Kyogre is the ‘Queen of the Ocean’ for a reason—she could drown a continent if she wanted to, Latias replied, causing my mom’s eyebrows to shoot up.

“We should probably keep the fact that you’re a Legend hidden. That might be hard, though. A Pokémon that can talk telepathically, read, write, and sign is sure to turn some heads.”

“How are you so confident?” I asked, swallowing a mouthful of eggs beforehand.

“Hon, I’m going to be blunt: I’ve had to bullsh*t my way through many things in my life. This one in particular is crucial for both you and her. I have to assume that separating you with your minds all tangled up the way they are would be really bad.” Suddenly, she snapped her fingers. “Hey, wait a second. That could be our trump card! Without one, the other can’t function properly!” I couldn’t help but groan—I could almost picture the lightbulb turning on above my mom’s head. “And hey, if that’s not necessarily true, what the administration doesn’t know won’t hurt them.” A rakish grin sprung into being on her face. “We won’t be lying….”

“We’ll just be withholding various truths.” I finished, knowing that was one of my mother’s tried and true mantras. It mildly irked me that it had rubbed off on me so easily.

Wow, Mason, Latias said, sporting a huge grin, I didn’t know your mom was so eager to get rules bent or broken.

“I’ve worked government for years,” my mom replied. “You’ve gotta do what you gotta do to get people to do things your way. If that means not playing it totally by the books, no skin off my nose. God knows people in power love to make other people jump through hoops for no reason, even if you’re giving them money.”

I’ll keep that in mind for later, Latias said, seemingly not bothered by the planned duplicity.

“I’ve already made the calls to the college. They are expecting just the two of us to come and petition for Mason to keep a Pokémon like a pet.”

“Heh, well,” I remarked, chewing a piece of bacon, “they’re in for a rude awakening when they find out this ‘pet’ wants to go to school.”

I could always use my mind control if all else fails, Latias said nonchalantly. A look of horror scarred my features. The dragoness then held up her claws apologetically. C’mon, Mason! I’m just kidding! I already told you I can’t do that stuff. We have got to work on your sarcasm radar!

ᚱᛉᚱ

My mother strode confidently through the building with me right behind her. Unbeknownst to any but us, Latias hovered silently, invisible, off to my right. As we approached the office of residence life, I could see the faintest of smirks adorn my mother’s face. Once we arrived, she held the door open for a shade longer than was necessary for me to enter to admit our unseen companion.

The front of the office was empty, save for a receptionist seated behind a desk that had a four-foot wooden barrier on one of its sides, almost obscuring her from view. While my mother dealt with her, I sat down in one of the chairs opposite the barrier. My nervousness must have been palpable because the Eon dragoness, still invisible, nuzzled me on the cheek. Do you really think this will work, Mason?

I hope so, Latias. I’m not too worried…my mom can be really convincing. At that moment, another woman strode into our view from farther back in the office. She was on the shorter side, slightly below my mom’s height. She was dressed like she had a presentation to give later that day, unlike the other staff we had seen, and her black hair was cut rather short. She looked at us with hazel eyes through horn-rimmed glasses.

“Mrs. Feist?” she said in a polite tone, and my mother nodded in affirmation. The woman then held out her hand, which my mom promptly shook. “My name is Jan Murkel, and I am the director of residence life. You two can come with me back to my office.” We made our way past the front desk, and there was a thin passageway with smaller offices off to our left and more staff at desks to our right. They smiled at us, and one of them flashed a thumbs-up. They must have known why we were there.

At the end of the hall, we entered an office that was slightly larger than the rest, furnished very plainly. I wrinkled my nose ever so slightly—there was a distinct lack of plant life in the room. “Please, sit,” she prompted, gesturing to two armchairs situated in front of her desk. “Now, let’s get to business. As I understand it, your student wishes to keep one of these ‘Pokémon’ creatures here on campus as a pet?” My mother nodded, playing along. Ms. Murkel smiled, though a distinct glint entered her eyes. “While we are generally accepting of such a thing, the vetting process is very thorough, and we aren’t about to let just anything onto our campus without performing the necessary background checks.”

“I think she’ll make it through just fine, Ms. Murkel,” my mother said, and my heart seized up—I knew what she was about to do, since we practiced the reveal several times during the drive to the campus. “So well in fact that I want to make a proposition to you all. I’m afraid I misled your staff when I asked for an appointment today. My son’s friend does not wish to be a pet. Rather, she wishes to become a student here.”

The director’s eyes widened, and her mouth opened and closed several times while she processed what she had just heard. “Excuse me? A-a student?” She looked between the two of us, trying to find any evidence that we were joking. When she did not find any, she stood from her chair. “I’m sorry, but I must ask you to leave—”

No! You will hear us out! A telepathic shout echoed through our minds, and the woman across from us flinched horribly.

“W-who’s there!?” She said, half angry, half terrified. In the heat of the moment, I decided to let Latias take over, nodding towards her. In a flash of light, Latias dropped her invisibility, and the director’s pupils shrank to mere pinpricks. She took a deep breath, and I instantly realized she was about to scream bloody murder.

“Latias, can you soundproof the room somehow!?” I half commanded, half pleaded, unable to come up with a solid idea on the spot. The dragoness’ eyes flashed blue, and a like colored screen fixed itself onto the surfaces of the room. Blessedly, there were no windows towards the inside of the building to give away that something far outside of human power had just been cast on the office. Furthermore, Ms. Murkel chose not to scream at the top of her lungs, which was a huge relief—I was not about to get my eardrums battered by a misunderstanding.

I gave the director a mareepish look. “Uhm, sorry. I figured that if you screamed, people would have come running and seen her. That wouldn’t have been good, considering what we’re going to ask.”

“I-I’m still terrified, mind you,” she responded. “What is that? And what was that talking from…inside my head?”

My name is Latias, ma’am. I was the one who spoke earlier, she replied. I’m part Psychic Type, which is how I can use telepathy. My species can turn invisible, fly, and adopt a human illusion, if necessary.

“She’s the Pokémon I mentioned on the phone, ma’am,” my mother followed.

“Her species is the Eon Pokémon,” I supplied.

“A-and the glowing walls?” the director inquired, voice still trembling. “Are we trapped in here?”

No, Latias responded. Mason ordered me to ‘soundproof the room.’ I know how to use Light Screen, which is a status technique that protects against special attacks. Since a scream isn’t technically making physical contact, like a punch or bite, I thought Light Screen would work better than Reflect, which is the physical variant. I can drop the screen at any time, and it will fade on its own after a little bit.

“Hmm. I figured since sound waves are physical rather than some magical type of attack like fire or ice, Reflect would work. Learn something new every day, I guess,” I commented, and Latias only giggled in response.

“You ordered it….” The director’s eyes lingered on Latias for a brief moment. “Uh, her to do it? “Is she a pet or not?”

Not really, no. Pokémon are friends with humans, and as such, I am Mason’s friend. I don’t know if you know this, but Pokémon are sapient, intelligent creatures. I wouldn’t be talking with you if we weren’t! Not only that, but people and Pokémon have lived together as friends since…her face scrunched up as she tried to come up with an accurate response. Since…forever!

I gave a small chuckle, but all the director did was relax slightly. “Okay…I’m still trying to wrap my head around speaking to a sapient being that isn’t a human, so forgive my hesitance.” Her tone turned business-like once more. “There still remains the question of why you wish to attend.”

“I’ll start off by saying that Latias and I share a special mental connection, and I’d really rather not have it severed,” I offered, but Ms. Murkel waved me off.

“I’m sure you and your mother have plenty of reasons lined up to keep her here, Mr. Feist, considering how choreographed your entrance was.” I paled slightly and looked towards my mom, and her face was like stone: completely neutral. “But I asked Latias, and now I will ask a slightly different question of her.” Jan turned to the dragoness and looked her in the eyes. “What value do you see in attending, other than staying close to your…uhm, friend? Why would a Pokémon want a higher education?”

I…. I could tell the dragoness was nervous, as it was a rare sight. I scratched her behind her ear—she gave a soft coo in response, and we both smiled.

“It’s okay. Take your time,” I said, trying to encourage her. After a moment, she nodded, assuring herself of her response.

I never got to see much of my old world, since I was always confined to one island city, miles away from the mainland, she began, speaking directly to Ms. Murkel. I was its only defender and protector for the last two years before I was brought here, and before that, it was me and my…late brother. A frown crossed the director’s features at the dragoness’ mentioning of Latios. I hardly know anything about the culture of my own species, even, which is just…ridiculous! Latias scoffed a little at her own lack of knowledge.

And now that I’m here, I know even less about the way anything works. What technologies do you have? How do humans express themselves here? What sort of knowledge is there that is completely unknown to us Pokémon that the natives take for granted? Latias broke eye contact. After Mason taught me how to use the Internet, I’ve been on it a lot in my spare time, looking up whatever I can. But I know that the Internet isn’t an expert, even if I learned how to use it well. I want to learn and experience as much of the world as I can by myself, and not live vicariously through Mason and his family. I’m done being cooped up in one spot for all my life. I think it’ll be a fun challenge, but….

Finished with her speech, Latias fell silent, and looked to the director, who stood from her chair. “I think, all told, that you would have been a promising applicant, Latias.” My heart sank. Ms. Murkel was going to deny her. “Be that as it may, the time for that has long since passed. However, I believe that, despite not being director of admissions, I can make an exception, on one condition.”

Yes? My partner asked, her eyes going wide. I was forced to look away, knuckles going white as I clenched my fists anxiously.

“You may not obtain a legitimate degree from the college, even if you somehow pay for admission. As such, any degree and honors awarded to you at the end of your tenure here will be in name only, and will not assist you in qualifying for any job.” The director smiled, a roguish glint in her eyes. “But, as a Pokémon, you have no use for a job. Furthermore, there really isn’t any way for a given student to tell if another student is degree-seeking or not, save for outright telling them. How convenient! Ah, but a Pokémon would look quite out of place in classes attended by humans, yes? However, I do believe I caught that Latias here can ‘adopt a human illusion?’”

“Does she get to ‘attend’ and stay with my son or not?” my mother asked bluntly, cutting to the chase.

“Based on my appraisal, yes.” Latias could not help but give a happy squeal, and Ms. Murkel beamed at her before turning to me. “I assume you wish for her to stay in the same room as you?” I nodded, and she continued, “I will arrange for her to be your roommate for your first year, as well as begin the process of setting up a profile based on her illusion. That’ll take some doing on my end, especially with the office of admissions and the registrar, so there is something I require of you in return, Mr. Feist.”

“Just name it—I’ll do it no matter what,” I answered with conviction, and my mother patted me on the back—unspoken praise for my staunch conviction.

“I admire your loyalty to your partner, young man! Now, from what I read in your file, you show great academic promise. However, I did observe a distinct lack of extracurriculars from your high school years. Thus, I want you to remain the strong study you are while broadening your view of the world around you. My charge to you now is twofold. At no point will you be allowed to fall below a 3.0 GPA, and at no point will you fail to achieve a 3.5 at least once a year.” I ran the terms by in my head. Two semesters in a year, so only one goof allowed. “You will also become involved in the campus community in some appreciable, impactful way. If either condition is left unmet, I’m afraid I must terminate this housing deal. Otherwise, Latias attends for free.”

“Easily done. My boy was at the top of his class out of over two hundred in high school,” Mom said with confidence. Jan inclined her head, as if she already knew about that. “And I’m sure he’ll rise to the task of leaving his mark on campus.”

I, on the other hand, had a completely different reaction. “Really?!” I said incredulously, almost shooting out of my chair. My excitement was curtailed quickly by realizing that I had never participated in anything considered a community. I was sure, though, that my parents would give me some tips on how to do so, as they always did.

“I don’t see the harm in it. She’s proven herself very friendly and passionate, if a bit boisterous, so I don’t have any reason to believe she’ll be a danger to the other students. Come to think of it, I should probably prepare for many more calls regarding the very thing you claimed you were coming to see me about. She has no credentials, but we have nothing to lose because of it, as per our deal.”

Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!! Latias squealed, rushing forward and hugging the woman across the desk. She looked over the Pokémon’s shoulder and I only shrugged.

“She likes hugs. Overall, she’s really affectionate, I’ve found. Can you believe that her other Typing is Dragon?” Ms. Murkel paled ever so slightly. I could tell her impressions of dragons were being shattered on the spot as the dragoness finished her bear…Ursaring hug. “Something else, though. Can we keep her Pokémon status a secret to the faculty and students? Her species is actually very rare in the wild—you’ll probably never see another Latias. She can’t speak while putting up her human illusion, but she can sign and write.”

“That should be fine. One extra student’s work should go unnoticed to the faculty, so I shouldn’t need to alert them about our arrangement. The ball will always be in your court.” The director paused as Latias let go of her and rejoined my mother and me. “What will you be known as?”

In a shower of blue lights, Latias transformed for the first time since I had met her. When the light faded away, I was taken aback by what I saw. She was slightly taller than my mother, appearing to stand at around 5 feet 8 inches. Her physique was very lean, almost toned, as if she exercised daily, and she was moderately tanned; more than me, but less than my mom. Dressed in a green T-shirt, a white skirt, pink shoes, and dark green socks, her chestnut eyes almost shone with a golden light, and long, auburn hair cascaded down to the small of her back. A smile crossed her face, and I was almost entranced by her expressiveness, as well as the cute little dimples that formed at the corners of her mouth.

I’ll go by…Ruby! the not-a-human decided, and she stuck out a small hand towards the director. This is a human custom, right? To shake hands?

Ms. Murkel laughed and took Latias up on her offer, shaking once before letting go. “Indeed it is. We will look forward to seeing you in the fall, Ruby! Your illusory skills are quite impressive!” The dragoness then turned and gave me a huge hug, too. I couldn’t help but blush at the contact, and hesitantly wrapped my arms around her in kind. Inwardly, I was torn, and an unfamiliar sensation bloomed in the pit of my stomach.

What…is this? I trailed off, hoping that she didn’t hear my thoughts. I blinked a couple of times, trying to shake away what was spoiling the moment. Well, they’re gone now, whatever they were. Fully giving myself to our embrace, I relished our victory. Our journey would not have to be cut short after all.

Chapter 6: Trust of a Friend

Chapter Text

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My art history textbook laid open in front of me on my bed. My sketchbook sat beyond it, but it was closed, because I had just finished an assignment for my introduction to drawing class. School itself was a little intimidating, but I couldn’t wait to move on to more advanced art courses. I had already mastered the work given to me due to Bianca’s tutelage in Alto Mare. I smiled softly before my mouth opened in a large yawn—my skills had already garnered some attention from my professor, as well as a few of the other students. Dr. Byer always expected that some of his first-year students might have some skill, but he commented that he had not seen anything close to what I had brought to the class for several years. In all honesty, my intro to drawing course only showed me what I already knew and put names to the techniques I already used, but that didn’t mean I could slack off completely. One class might have been easy, but the other three, not so much. I couldn’t help but lay my head down off to the side of the splayed open textbook and release my psychic hold on my pen, letting it roll into the crook of my notebook. Again.

The past two months had been significantly more difficult than I had imagined they would be. I wasn’t stupid by any means, but I had made a big mistake in assuming that the rigors of a human college education would be something that I could conquer easily. Mason made his stay in the educational system one step below college look easy, according to his mother. Was college truly that much more of a challenge? Was I wrong in assuming that my partner and I were equals in intelligence?

No, it’s neither of those things, I thought to myself. I’m just tired, is all—things are starting to ramp up as the semester really starts getting underway. I shook my head, or at least tried to, from my resting position on the twin bed provided for me by the college. I absentmindedly surveyed our room, mostly undecorated and actually slightly smaller than the room Mason had all to himself back at home. I found it rather odd that a room of such size was supposed to house two humans as opposed to one. The off-white block walls weren’t conducive to hanging art—much to my chagrin—as his mother discovered when trying to drive a nail into them on move-in day. The small television between our beds across from the door had gone mostly unused, an oversized decoration for the end table upon which it sat. Rather, it was Mason’s computer that saw the most use. In fact, through the fog that had settled on my mind at that moment, I had a hard time thinking of an instance when Mason wasn’t using the machine.

My own tablet had seen a lot of use as well. Mason had convinced his parents to redirect his graduation money to buy me one, and it quickly turned into one of the best gifts I had ever received! A sketchbook with an undo function? Yes, please! I never thought I’d see the day, but drawing with colored pencils suddenly had a rival in the form of drawing with a stylus. I looked over toward my desk at the slim black device sitting all by its lonesome. Maybe another sketch of Alto Mare’s canals would psych me up to read this damn book—

A rhythmic knocking sounded at the door, interrupting my thoughts, and an intimately familiar consciousness brushed against my mind. After registering just who was on the other side of the door, a tenseness I didn’t know was present in my chest immediately vanished. Not two seconds later, the door to our room was swiftly unlocked, opened, closed, then locked again, and two moderately loud thumps sounded through the room. Mason had shed his book bag from his back and unceremoniously fell onto his bed, which was pushed to the opposite wall that my bed was against.

Hi, Mason, I greeted my partner. I lifted my head to look at the boy, my drowsiness a distant memory. A muffled mumble was his response as he turned his back to me, his light brown, almost honey colored hair somewhat disheveled from likely keeping the hood on his hoodie up during class. He was doing that a lot, lately. Is everything alright? How did the biology quiz and lab go?

Yeah, everything’s fine, Latias, Mason replied with his mind a little too forcefully, not bothering to answer my second question, and I instantly knew that something was in fact not alright.

Mason, you’re a horrible liar, I countered calmly. That’s one thing you didn’t pick up from your mom. The human’s shoulders heaved as he let out a large sigh. You can tell me anything, I pressed. We’re best friends!

Fine! the human snapped, and I recoiled slightly at his burst of anger. You want to know what’s wrong?! His thin left arm moved, and I could tell he was reaching for something in one of his hoodie’s pockets—the article of clothing did its job of concealing Mason’s slim, almost frail frame well. A second later, a stiff piece of paper flew above his prone form. There’s your answer.

I caught the paper in my psychic grip and turned it over—it was the biology quiz in question from that morning. The quizzes were lenient in that the answers were hidden under some kind of material that could be scratched off with my claws; humans would likely not need something so sharp. If the space scratched had a star under the glossy gray material, the student was awarded full credit, for they had found the correct answer. Two attempts on a question awarded half credit, and three awarded one quarter. At the end of the quiz, the student would present the card to the professor, and they would record the result.

As my eyes moved down the slip of paper, the hope I held that my bond-mate’s reaction was overstated waned to nothing. Instead of the neatly scratched spaces I had seen on Mason’s early quizzes revealing the correct answer in one attempt nearly every time, all of them were made in haste, especially the ones he had to attempt multiple times. I could almost feel the frustration in his strokes as I tallied the total….

He failed the quiz.

Mason…what in the world happened this morning? I asked, genuinely concerned for the human. This was so unlike him!

You think I know what went wrong? Well, I don’t! he replied, frustration dominating his demeanor as he sat up and turned towards me. An angry glint sparked in his silver eyes as they met mine, and then he buried his face in his hands, legs hanging over the edge of the bed. I just…after the second question, I just stopped caring. Stopped thinking. And that’s what happened. I checked again, and sure enough, he spent three attempts on the question in…well, question.

I heard a muffled sobbing coming from the boy, and my heart felt like it was threatening to tear in half. I had never seen him so distressed, though his parents leaving on move-in day was a close second. It’s just one quiz. Surely it isn’t something to get so worked up about, right? You can come back from this, I know it! I offered, trying to cheer him up, but that only seemed to strengthen the sorrow I could feel emanating from my partner.

You don’t understand, Latias, Mason cried. This isn’t just a freak accident!

Then make me understand! I shot back loudly. With that, I felt our mental connection weaken significantly, and I almost wanted to vomit from the shock. It was like somemon had just Sucker Punched me right in the gut. Whatever was wrong, it was something that had been building for a long time. Mason did not say another word, nor did he look at me as he got up from where he was sitting and began to rummage through his book bag. Pulling out a green spiral notebook, he then opened it, pulled out more of the familiar card-like papers, and let them fall from his hands onto my bed. Taking the seven additional quizzes up in my telekinetic grip, I analyzed the grades one by one. A, A, C, B, A, C, D. There seemed to be no pattern…until I organized them by date. For the most part, his grades declined the more recent the date. Combined with the one from that morning, that sealed the pattern.

I then took the initiative and fished out a blue notebook from his book bag, knowing it to be the one he used for chemistry. Rummaging through the front pocket for anything with grades on them, I paled when I saw the exact same pattern repeat itself: stellar performance at the beginning of the semester, slowly declining to barely clinging onto a B minus average.

Mason…. I whispered. Why are your grades falling like this? I know you study for these graded assignments, since you spend so much time in this room, but….

No, it’s nothing like that, the boy replied in a low voice tinged with despair. I-I don’t know what’s wrong. And if I can’t find out what it is in time, you won’t be welcome here anymore, and it’ll be all my fault! There was another piece of the puzzle: the director of residence life’s deal. That would upset him, but I sensed that there was something more to it. This was supposed to be the thing I was good at. I can’t even begin to start thinking about her community requirement.

Would it help if you studied with your friends? I suggested. It certainly worked for me for art history, even if it was kind of awkward being a mute in a study group of three or four. Nobody really minded though, and the humans I had befriended were exceptionally kind despite my “condition.” When no response came, I pressed him. Mason, is there a reason you haven’t considered that?

It’s pretty hard to study with friends if you have none, Latias. His sardonic, bitter response left me speechless. I struggled to comprehend the implications of his claim, but he was, unbelievably, not done speaking. I h-hate it here, he choked out, his words coming out muddled over our telepathic link. The only ones I talk to are you, my parents, and the people I play with online. Nobody in the hall cares about talking to me, and everyone’s already gotten into their circles of friends. I…I miss my mom and dad…I just want to go home!

As he struggled and failed to hold back the tears falling from his eyes or his sobbing, I did the only thing I could think to do in that terrible moment: I lifted myself up from laying down on my bed, hovered over to my partner, and captured him in a tight hug. I was so relieved that he did not fight to break away from me, and instead laid his head over my shoulder. His chest heaved erratically in time with his gasps and his arms wrapped around my torso below my wings. We stayed like that for longer than I had anticipated.

During our embrace, I ran the past two months in my head. He almost never left the room. He always returned from dinner with a to-go box to eat by himself. Going further back, the sorrow that he felt when his parents left us here was so strong, it affected me for hours afterward, and he was never put at ease by his mother’s words during the ride to the campus, despite his constant lying that he was. So strong, in fact, that I still remember the time on the clock when they departed: 4:47 P.M. His declining performance was, I realized, directly caused by that crippling feeling of loneliness and hopelessness eating away at him. The weight of independence had been thrust upon him, and he was not ready―it was crushing him, little by little. All the signs were there, but I had failed to connect them all together until that critical moment.

I’m sorry…. The boy in my clutches whispered, and I responded by nuzzling the side of his face. He squeezed me slightly tighter, and I couldn’t help but blush faintly.

Don’t be, I cooed softly, pushing down my guilt for not supporting my closest friend and the sadness threatening to overpower me, due to our shared emotions. I should be the one who’s sorry. Your pain and grief…I should have done something about it sooner. You just need to let me in and tell me what’s wrong, like you just did, okay? That’s the only way I, or anyone else, can help you. I sighed before I continued. Why haven’t you tried to make friends?

I did try! Mason cried. God, I did…I was so hopeful at the beginning of the semester. ‘It wasn’t going to be like high school,’ everyone told me. ‘You’ll make so many friends.’ He shook his head. But as time went on, no one was interested in me, in class or anywhere else. Not even the few people with Pokémon we’ve seen around. Everyone’s all sorted into their circles of friends now, and nobody will want me ruining their dynamic. I’m alone. Again! I’m a failure!

Mason, you’ll never be alone when you have me, I countered. I was somewhat hurt that he didn’t factor me in, then considered his words. You’re lying again, lying to yourself—you’ve never truly tried to make friends while we’ve been here, and you’re trying to convince yourself it’s a lost cause. Mason lifted his head up to look me right in the eyes. A tiny hint of indignance was behind his silver orbs, but his guilt was plain as day. You’re afraid, aren’t you? Afraid to try? Afraid to trust someone?

Yeah, the answer came, almost unable to be heard, shame and guilt filling it in equal measure.

Mason, it’s because you don’t try that you always feel that ‘something’ going over your head, that the other humans you meet seem like they’re hiding something from you. Look at me! Mason flinched as he did as I unintentionally commanded, meeting my gaze. I’ve made a few friends despite not being able to speak in public at all!

That’s different! That just makes you interesting…no one’s interested in me, he mumbled, continuing his downward spiral, but, to his credit, not averting his eyes. No one cares about me either—

Listen to yourself! I shouted, giving Mason a good shake by the shoulders, and a pang of fear reverberated across our link as the boy was cut off. You’re really hurting me with those words. I care about you! I thought you’d be able to see beyond what happened in the past. I thought you’d be able to see that not everyone is out to get you, especially after bonding with me, but apparently, I was wrong!

I’m sorry—

No, I said sternly, cutting him off again. No more of that. I gently took his hands up in my claws and assumed my illusion form, appearing in a long-sleeved yellow shirt and blue jeans along with my usual green shoes. We’re going out there, right now, to meet some new people. I won’t sit by and watch you destroy yourself anymore. Taking him by the hand, I used my other hand to open the door. What took me by surprise was the male human right outside, looking as if he was preparing to knock.

“Oh! Pardon me, I’ll just step out of your way,” he said, and I saw his eyes flicker down to the point where my hand was grasping Mason’s.

Let him assume whatever he wants, I thought to myself, and spoke to Mason, well? Aren’t you going to say hello?

Another flinch from Mason was followed by one of the most unsteady strings of words I had ever heard leave my partner’s mouth. “U-uhm, hi. What…what were you i-in front of our d-door for?” As he stumbled through what I had to assume was his first interaction with a human he had done by choice, I studied the male that had seemingly been delivered by some divine intervention right to our doorstep. He had long, curly dark brown hair, similar in length to Mason’s, except for the fact that there was less down his neck and more around his ears and the front, and a rather flat nose and brown eyes. Those were rather innocuous compared to his state of dress: a button-down white shirt accompanied by black slacks, dress shoes, and some sort of loops attached to his pants extending up and behind his shoulders. I had never seen such a method for a male to hold up his pants before, and overall, the ensemble didn’t seem to belong on a college student.

“Firstly, I was not aware you lived in this hall, Mason.” I couldn’t help but let my mouth fall open; the kid knew Mason and he was being treated like a total stranger! “Secondly, and you must excuse me if this is intruding into anything personal, but…I’m fairly certain I heard someone crying as I was passing by your room.”

Before I could allow Mason to drive this boy away, I let go of his hand and quickly signed and translated my own sign language so that Mason could repeat it to our guest: Let’s step inside, because you’re right, it is a personal thing.

“Alright, then,” the boy answered after a tiny amount of hesitation. I pulled the door shut behind us while he took a gander around our room. “Seems a bit…devoid of anything. N-not that that’s a bad thing!” he said instantly after realizing the implications of his statement. “You should see my room, it’s a total mess. Ah, but I digress,” he continued as he sat in the chair that had gone unused up until then for visitors to sit in, turning to face Mason as we took our spots on our respective beds. I scanned the room for anything incriminating regarding my true identity, and I was satisfied that my Pokémon status was hidden well when the boy spoke again. “You seemed a bit distant this morning after the quiz, Mason, and left with quite a deal of haste.” My brow quirked at the male’s language—his manner of speaking was far from the norm, and he was unusually soft-spoken as well. “Does…uhm, what I heard earlier have to do with that?”

“Why does it matter to you?” Mason replied in a listless tone, no hint of anger in his voice. Either way, I was still disappointed that he was shutting the other human out. “I don’t even know your name….”

The human stood and faced Mason, who had since slumped on the spot where he was sitting on his bed, and offered him a hand. Mason was lucky the stranger’s back was blocking my line of sight because I was quite confident I had mastered Glare on the spot just then. “My name is Nigel.” The gesture hung in the air for an awkwardly long time as I scooted over to find Mason just staring at the other human’s hand.

Shake his hand! I telepathed, and after yet another flinch―which made me briefly question whether my ability really was Levitate and not Serene Grace―Mason obeyed.

“As for why I care, why should I not?” Nigel said as he resumed his seat. “You seemed to be under a great deal of stress when you left, and I can see the tear stains on your face still. Rather than mince words, I’d say you did rather poorly to elicit this reaction from you, rather than the usual lack of one.”

“Damn it,” Mason muttered as he ran his forearms across his eyes and cheeks. “Y-yeah, you’re right, I did badly. What a horrible first impression I’m making, huh? Not two minutes in and I’m already fu—err, mucking it up.” A small smile made its way onto my face as Mason censored himself, almost without success, but I was content to simply keep on the lookout for any necessity of another nudge in the right direction.

“Quite the contrary—while I don’t know how a simple quiz brought you to tears, it tells me you know something’s amiss, and you need to fix it. That means you care deeply about your academic performance, something I can appreciate. But if you need time alone to figure that out—”

“No! Don’t leave!” my bond-mate shouted, and while I could not help but cringe at Nigel’s reaction, which was a look of unabated shock at the sudden outburst, I totally understood Mason’s plea. “I mean, uhm…sorry. You can go i-if you want.”

I’ll handle this, I whispered, hopping off the bed a bit unsteadily—legs were still hard to get used to again—and moving to stand next to Mason as I signed, not willing to let the gift from Arceus walk out the door. Do you want to know where we were going before we ran into you?

“Ruby, please,” Mason said, inserting his own words after the translation, but I ignored him.

I was going to help this complete recluse I have for a roommate with the ability to talk to someone other than me. The irony is that I can’t even speak!

Mason sighed as he finished translating, but surprisingly, Nigel gave a good-natured laugh after a second or two. “That certainly would explain some things, like your silence during lecture, or why I never see you at the dining hall. Hmm…speaking of that, would you possibly entertain sitting with the group I associate with this evening? If only to spare yourself the trouble of carrying your food back here.”

I was astonished at the truly masterful way Nigel had just appealed to Mason’s pragmatism without even knowing it. Knowing he would need one last push, I gave my partner the best rendition of Baby-Doll Eyes I could muster in illusion form, and any resistance he had to the idea was quickly dashed. “Y-yeah. That’d be nice. Thanks, Nigel.”

Nigel then turned to me. “And what about you…Ruby, was it?” I answered in the simplest way possible—I walked over to my bed and held up my art history textbook and sketchbook. “Ah, you have work to do,” he responded, and I nodded with a smile. “Are you ready to leave then, or shall I wait?” he addressed Mason again.

“No, I-I’m good to go now.” The trembling in Mason’s voice had a different source. It was a trepidation that could have come from having to give a speech to thousands of people, something I would hardly expect from sitting to eat with someone and their friends!

Listen, Mason, I said over our link as he put his shoes back on, I know you’re a nervous wreck right now, but remember, there’s no pressure. There’s a reason I’m not going with you, and it’s something I would have done even if Nigel hadn’t shown up.

But what if I embarrass myself? Mason asked as he laced one shoe and moved his hands to the other, looking up at me. Nigel had since made his way out to the hall. What if my efforts backfire?

Sometimes your efforts are wasted, but you know what? You’ll never know until you try. You don’t have to make friends with all of Nigel’s friends. Just be yourself, and act like you do around me. There’s a reason I bonded with you, after all!

Finished with his shoes, he stood and briefly embraced me again, giving me a tight squeeze. Another blush crept onto my face as well as a strange feeling in my chest. “Thank you, Latias,” he whispered almost inaudibly in my ear as he let go and turned to leave. I noticed that Nigel was looking on, observing the exchange.

I’ll always be here for you, Mason, no matter what, I said as I gave a little wave. And most importantly, don’t forget to have fun!

“Let’s be off, then, shall we?” Nigel asked, and Mason gave a small nod as they walked out of the light of sight the doorway offered to the hallway. As I went to close the door, I heard Nigel ask another question, one that brought that same strange feeling into my heart: “Ruby means a great deal to you, doesn’t she?”

That feeling doubled when I heard Mason’s answer. He replied both out loud and internally, the latter clearly not intended for the other human to be heard, as they turned the corner. “Yeah, she does.” More than you’ll ever know.

Chapter 7: The Symbiotic Connection

Chapter Text

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The sterile lighting of the dormitory hallways seemed to grow harsher the further away Nigel and I walked from my dorm room. Even if it had only been less than ten seconds, we had fallen into an uncomfortable silence. One footstep after another, my eyes increasingly wandered, to try and find something to calm my nerves.

I first noticed that the other doors we walked past had become encrusted in various decorations beyond simply the names of those that dwelled within. They contrasted sharply with our own door, which had remained devoid of any such customization.

“Looking for some inspiration?” a voice said to my left, nearly enough to make me jump with fright, like I had been caught with my hand in the proverbial cookie jar. “Your two’s door was quite bare, if I recall correctly.”

I cast a cautious glance at Nigel, and I was surprised to find little evidence of silent judgment—no furrowed brow, no beginnings of a smirk. “I…no, not really inspiration, per se. Just looking at all the interesting things people have made to kind of…sell themselves?” I shook my head.

Nigel hummed in thought as we turned the corner. “Sell themselves…is that right?”

“Well, what else would it be?” I answered. My mouth had become painfully dry, and it dominated my attention. The front door of our building came into view, and I was set on edge by the students milling about near the entrance, chatting and laughing without a care. A few had Pokémon by their sides, sharing in their infectious positivity. A Growlithe was being fawned over by two female students, fluffing up its ruff. A Mareep was having its wool brushed by its Trainer as he chatted with interested onlookers. They brought attention to their Trainers—I envied them.

“Not everything needs to have a utilitarian purpose, Mason,” Nigel replied gently. “Let me get the door.” He sped up just enough to prop the door open before I had to slow down.

“Right. I knew that.” He probably thinks I’m a complete idiot already, I hissed to myself, cringing at the interaction. “Thanks, by the way.”

A short chuckle escaped the man as we stepped out into the brisk October air. “Of course. And now that you know, do you think you’ll have Ruby draw something up for the both of you?”

Again, I scanned Nigel’s face for any shred of ill intent—I could not find any. “I’ll ask her about it after we get back…whenever that ends up being.” Pinpricks of discomfort danced across my psyche, the same as they always did when the distance between Latias and I grew too great. Almost paradoxically, however, I found solace in that pain—it meant that when she was close by, it would abate.

No—that’s not the point. I shouldn’t already be looking forward to this being over and done with.

Nigel and I’s journey inevitably took us onto the concrete pathways toward the dining hall. I realized then that that was my last chance to back out. My hands began to quiver, so strong was the temptation—

“Cold? I didn’t bring my gloves, so I apologize for that.”

I shook my head, brought back out of my own little world once more. The trees, with all their auburns, yellows, and oranges, seemed to bristle with the same anxiety that shivered down my spine. Other students and Pokémon gave us a wide berth. Some regarded us with judgmental looks. “It’s not that. It’s—God, it’s so stupid.”

“I think I get it,” my companion said, turning to face forward once more. “How long have you and Ruby known each other?”

I had to resist letting out a sigh of relief—that, I could answer: a carefully crafted lie we had prepared long before ever setting foot on campus. “We’ve known each other since we were little. We met in the first grade. She told you this already: she’s mute.” Nigel nodded, acknowledging that tidbit of information. “Even when I was young, I would get picked on for one reason or another—not liking the same things as anyone else, playing different games than everyone else. But there was always one person who never did any of that stuff, and that was her.

“I didn’t talk to her at first, because I was afraid, you know? But when our teacher finally encouraged us to play a board game together, I learned that she was picked on for something that she couldn’t help—it’s not her fault she can’t talk like a normal person, and I thought that was really messed up, even as a little kid.” I cast my eyes skyward, noting the evening sun playing its ever-recurring song across the clouds on the horizon. Their hue mirrored somemon in particular. “We’ve been inseparable ever since, us two against the world.”

The path curved gently toward the left, contorting around a pronounced hill, then began to noticeably climb. The grass waved in concert with the wind, and my attention was seized temporarily by two distinct sounds—one being an ocarina, while the other sounded like a metronome. Upon the hill sat a student with her legs crossed. She was the one playing the ocarina, a real song to complete Mother Nature’s, and her eyes were closed. Next to her was a Pokémon I had never seen in person before: a Chatot, keeping time with the rhythmic swaying of its tail feathers. I recognized the tune as being from one of the games I had played during my adolescence.

“I don’t mean to let this thread of conversation die, but would you like to go talk to that girl up on the hill? You seem interested in her song.”

My heart seized with anticipation. “I-I, what? Like right now?”

Nigel laughed once. “Yes, right now! Unless you’re nervous about her Pokémon. I noticed you don’t have one of your own.”

“Oh—her Pokémon isn’t the problem, not at all. It’s…uh….” I trailed off, but that only brought a smile to Nigel’s face.

“Right. Well, let’s do it, then!” And just like that, he stepped off the path and started up the hill.

Oh Jesus—okay, Mason. Remember what Latias said. You don’t have to get it right every time. Maybe if I compliment her song, that’ll work. Quickening my pace to stay in line with my companion, we approached the woman with the ocarina.

“Hi there! Hi there!” chirped the Chatot, its metronome tail stopping when we drew close enough. That brought its Trainer out of her trance, and she glanced up at us.

“Hi there,” the woman echoed, surely where her Chatot got the phrase from. “What’s up?”

“Hi,” I said first, bravely taking the lead. My confidence waned, however, when her blue eyes met mine. Falling back on my plan, I spoke again. “E-er, that song you were playing. It was…uhm, it was Kamiki Village from Okami, right?”

In an instant, her eyes glittered with joy. “Oh my God, yes! That’s crazy that you recognized it! C’mon, sit down, if the two of you don’t mind.”

I looked to Nigel, as if for his permission. He inclined his head ever so slightly, electing not to tell me what to do, but he knew well enough that I needed the guidance.

As we sat down, I started to study the musician before us. She was dressed comfortably, in a pair of well-fitting jeans and a long-sleeved sweater, striped red and gray. Her wrists were uncovered, and on her right, I noticed a small black tattoo—that of one of the most recognizable icons in gaming history, the Triforce. That explains the ocarina, I mused to myself.

Her features were rounded, and her ears were encrusted with silver and gold rings. Her wavy black hair had a subtle red dye at the tips, and it hung down to the curve of her chest. Briefly, it got caught up in an errant breeze, and I thought I caught the scent of raspberries. “The name’s Quinn. This is Cathy,” she began, gesturing to the Chatot by her side. “Because, well, she’s a chatty Cathy!” I laughed at the wordplay; my anxiety kept at bay for the moment. “What’re yours?”

“Nigel,” the man at my side said simply.

“I’m Mason,” I answered next. Electing to dwell in the realm of something I knew a lot about, I took the reins of the conversation again. “When did you meet your Chatot?”

Quinn’s attention was captured, if her expression was anything to go by—brow raised, head tilted ever-so-slightly to the side. It made my breath hitch in my throat, as though I had offended her by not using her Chatot’s nickname. “You know your stuff, Mason! Almost nobody recognizes Cathy’s species straight away.” My held breath escaped me; that was a frightening gamble! “I met her while I was playing my ocarina here on campus just a couple of weeks ago, actually!”

“Ocarina! Ocarina!” Cathy exclaimed jubilantly, then looked at her Trainer expectantly. “Play! Play!”

Quinn giggled, then waved a hand at her Pokémon. “Maybe later, Cathy,” she said gently, which earned her a rather indignant chirp. “Do either of you have Pokémon partners of your own?”

“I do not,” Nigel answered quickly and easily. “Something about the whole thing doesn’t sit right with me.” Confusion writ itself on Quinn’s face, then she turned to me.

“I would love to meet a Pokémon and be their Trainer,” I answered, telling the truth. I’m not lying…I’m just withholding other various truths, I continued in my head. “But, er, I’m not sure if I have what it takes for that yet. I’ve been learning as much as I can about them, though!”

“I can tell. I bet you recognize nearly every species that’s wandering around campus!”

“Just about, yeah,” I answered, unsure if that fact was impressive or an indication of obsession. “I tried meeting some at home, but all they ended up doing was running away from me….” I trailed off, eyes flicking across Quinn’s figure until I settled on her wrist. “Why the Triforce?”

Quinn beamed at me, seemingly eager to explain. “Because the Legend of Zelda series is awesome, that’s why! Been playing ever since Ocarina of Time—I’ve had this since I was eight.” She held up the instrument that drew us to her, and I smiled. “This isn’t the only ink I have, either.”

“My first one was Wind Waker,” I replied. “I was a PlayStation kid over the N64, but we had the money to spare for both a GameCube and a PS2 later on.” My mind began to wander, and I let my curiosity take over. “I wonder what your other tattoos are….”

“Oh, I’m sure you’d love to see them. Later, maybe.”

Her low, even tone of voice, set apart from the rest of our conversation up until that point, concerned me. Did I say something wrong? She seemed so excited to share about the first one.

Nigel cleared his throat, reminding me of his presence by my side. “Oh! Sorry, Nigel. Uhm, Quinn, were you heading to the dining hall anytime soon? We were on our way there ourselves to meet up with some of Nigel’s friends.”

“Hmm….” Quinn vocalized, weighing her options. She glanced at Cathy, as if she would have any input, and when she simply tilted her head, the musician laughed. “Okay, sure! We’ve been out here for a while anyway. Plus, I figure we’ll have a lot of cool stuff to talk about!”

“Alright,” Nigel said, not disagreeing with the notion. The three of us stood up from the grassy hill, and with a quick flap-flap of her wings, Cathy perched herself on top of Quinn’s head. “Is that comfortable?” he continued, fixing her with a suspicious look.

“Perfectly. Cathy’s light as a feather! I was surprised, too, when she did it for the first time. Mason, wanna try it out?”

“If she’ll let me, sure!” I answered, wanting to prove that I wasn’t just all talk.

“Okay—ask her for permission, and we’ll see if she agrees.”

I nodded, then met the Chatot’s curious gaze. “Cathy, would you like to sit on my head for a bit?”

A series of soft chirps and warbles met my ears as I watched Cathy carefully consider my request. Then, of her own volition, she leapt from Quinn’s head and softly landed on my own. To my shock, Quinn was right—the tiniest weight had settled on my skull, and where I was expecting the bird Pokémon’s talons to dig uncomfortably into my scalp, only the tiniest bits of pressure appeared. As it turned out, she was doing me a favor by keeping my head warm in the chilled air. “Wow, you were right! She really is light as a feather!”

“She did it on her own, too—that’s a first,” Quinn commented, impressed. “Up until now, she’s needed me to shoo her off my head.” She then reached into her back pocket and pulled out her phone. She flashed its screen, but did not unlock it, likely to check the time and nothing else. “Well, come on then! We shouldn’t keep your group waiting if they like to get in early.”

“You have the right of it,” Nigel commented simply, then gestured with his hand down the path. “Let’s be off, then!”

Thus, we set off on the second brief leg of our journey toward the dining hall. We had fallen into a brief silence, only the chatter of other students and Pokémon nearby to fill the void. The background noise let me withdraw into my thoughts. It was tough not to outwardly show, but I was giddy with excitement. Two new people met, and I had an actual true-to-life Pokémon willingly perch on my head, for God’s sake!

In that instant, as if to bring me down to planet Earth, a twinge of pain shot across the right side of my skull, causing me to wince, and dampening my spirits. Reflexively, I brought a hand to my right temple. It would have been easy to attribute it to Cathy, but I knew better than to blame the Music Note Pokémon.

“You okay, Mason? I can call her off of you if she’s bothering you,” Quinn offered.

Damn, she must have noticed the look on my face. “N-no, I’m fine. She can stay if she wants.”

“She can get over it,” Quinn pressed. “Cathy, come here.” The Chatot huffed, but obeyed her Trainer’s command. Two wingbeats were all she needed to resume her original perch. “Better?”

“Yeah, I think so,” I lied. The pain remained, and I could feel it infinitesimally worsening with every step. It can’t be…no, that’s not possible. We’ve been clear across the campus before. Why now?

It took all my willpower to resist trying to open a telepathic link with Latias. What would I even say? That we can’t be too far apart, or else we feel some weird needles of pain in our heads? What if she wasn’t feeling the same things I was? She’d be so angry if I was already trying to back out. I couldn’t let that happen—I couldn’t let her faith in me be in vain!

If I just keep it together, maybe it’ll go away. This time’s different because we willingly cut our contact with each other, surely. My left hand clenched, out of view of Quinn and Nigel, and I focused on the aroma wafting from the dining hall—too muddled outside to discern any particular dish, but enough to distract me from my isolation. I almost scoffed at the irony.

“I know Mason’s played games before, but what about you, Nigel?” asked Quinn as we approached the multi-story brick building. We had slowed considerably, blending in with the rest of the crowd.

“Do tabletop or card games qualify?” he replied, his earlier uneasiness seemingly vanishing.

Quinn shrugged. “You mean like Dungeons and Dragons and stuff?” She earned a nod from the shaggy-haired man. “For sure! I’ve only played it once or twice, though. Are you doing any campaigns right now?”

“I’m DMing for some of the group we’re about to meet, yes. You might get to hear a little bit of our escapades if you’re curious!”

The pain scratching across my skull acquired a companion―that peculiar pressure one gets at the front of their brow when being thrust back into the unknown. I was almost too afraid to ask what in the world the two of them were talking about, but I reasoned that Nigel, at the very least, would be forthcoming with an answer. “I’ve heard of Dungeons and Dragons, but I thought it was a computer game or something, like a point-and-click adventure. What’s, uh, DMing?”

“One second,” Nigel said, turning his head to us before making eye contact with another student ahead of us that was holding the door to the building open. “Thank you.” Kindness was repaid with kindness as he ushered us over the threshold in turn. “After you, lady and gentleman,” he said in a mock-suave voice, earning a laugh from Quinn and a fully vocalized scoff from me.

“My hero,” Quinn said in an exaggerated manner, pretending to swoon―it took longer than I wanted to admit to discern that she was being sarcastic. “What a shame I can’t have you take Cathy off my head, too!”

The moment I crossed the threshold into the building, I was struck by an almost solid wall of sound, discordant in nature and unkind in its greeting. It left me perturbed; I had been in that exact spot dozens of times before, so why was it so different?

It was only when I realized that my hands were reflexively reaching toward my hood to toss it over my head that I was the one who had changed. I quickly snapped my arms back to my sides, and immediately wished I hadn’t—Nigel was behind me, and Quinn was looking back at the two of us. Her eyes had narrowed with an acrid mix of curiosity and confusion, like she had spied something just out of place. She said nothing, further damning my mind to conjure the worst possible impressions.

“Anyway,” Nigel began, breaking me away from my self-loathing and Quinn from being party to it. “DMing is short for being a Dungeon Master, or DM. In any DnD group—that’s Dungeons and Dragons for short—there is always a DM, who thinks of the storyline, or ‘campaign’ as it is called, and moderates the group’s adventures. They’re also the ones who create challenges for the group to overcome, and assigns consequences for the group’s decisions.”

“I see. I’ve played some single-player games where your choices can have consequences at the very end,” I offered.

“You mean like Mass Effect or KOTOR?” Quinn asked, and I nodded, pointing and smiling at the comparison. “Yeah, DnD campaigns are similar in scope, but with way more possibilities with where the story can go. The only limit is your imagination! And the group’s dynamic, of course…I haven’t found a group I like playing with yet.”

Nigel shrugged. “Sometimes it takes a session or three before the group clicks together. Or sometimes it takes the players trying to get each other killed,” he capped off with a chuckle.

Satisfied with the information I had gleaned from Nigel, I allowed myself to drift back into my own thoughts while the two chatted about Quinn’s brief foray into the DnD scene. As always, there were some students walking by us with boxes of food, exercising their choice to enjoy their meal elsewhere. Some aromas were familiar—the hall always had basic offerings ready to grab, like hamburgers or pizza by the slice. Other unfamiliar smells wafted from further inside, still too far to fully identify. The savory smells of various proteins often mixed together into an indecipherable profile, as did any freshly sauteed or roasted vegetables. For once, I had not checked the menu ahead of time—Latias’…suggestion to go to dinner with Nigel had been rather sudden—and that particular unknown settled on my brow, making its home where the other one had.

I leaned against the spherical metal railing that ran along the ground and up a short flight of stairs into the hall proper, and shoved my hands into my hoodie’s pockets. The procession of students was slow enough that I could slide along it, and I paid little mind to the pace of our ingress. A small shop that sold coffee and blended drinks stood to the side of the stairs, and unlike the other times I had passed through, they had not yet been swamped with customers. It was strange to see something other than a thinly veiled panic etched on the baristas’ faces, serving the slow trickle of thirsty students with genuine smiles instead of forced ones. The inevitable transition, day in and day out, saddened me in a way.

I glanced over my shoulder at the ice cream shop on the other side, meant to be more appealing to those leaving the hall and looking for dessert. While basic offerings were available inside for those with a meal plan, the shop had more exotic merchandise, like milkshakes and custom ice cream sandwiches, made with freshly baked cookies. My brow quirked when I spied a diminutive Pokémon floating behind the counter. It was predominantly white, encrusted with blue crystals, with a larger crystal on its underside–a Vanillite, if I recalled correctly. I recognized it because it quite literally looked like an ice cream cone with a face. On occasion, it would breathe a frigid blast of air at the merchandise, ensuring it remained chilled. Curiously, it also seemed to have some purple and chocolate-colored crystals encrusting it too.

It, along with its Trainer, who manned the register, were happily serving their clientele; after a brief moment, I could not recall a time when they weren’t in high spirits. I idly wondered if the coffee shop staff’s morale would be similarly boosted by a Pokémon companion.

“…Mason? Earth to Mason?”

“Huh, what? What’s wrong?” I said out of reflex.

“Nothing, you donut,” came the response from Quinn. I was briefly stunned by her tame insult. “You just completely spaced out, and Nigel was just asking you if you knew that Pokémon you’re looking at.”

“Wha—oh, yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s a Vanillite.”

Quinn grinned. “See, I told you he’d know what it was,” she quipped, folding her arms and giving Nigel the classic “told you so” eye roll on top.

“Told you! Told you!” Cathy chipped in, causing Nigel to huff.

“Well, excuse me for not knowing of Mason’s encyclopedic Pokémon knowledge before today,” Nigel replied, though there was no edge to his voice, unperturbed as he was by Quinn and Cathy’s jibes. “What do you usually get out of here, Mason?”

“Oh, you know…stuff that’s easy to grab and go, since I never stay. Pizza or burgers on occasion. Pasta holds together well in to-go boxes too, depending on the noodle used. Sometimes I make sandwiches for myself, too, if I don’t want anything particularly messy or greasy. Basically, nothing that requires cutting up with a knife is fair game.”

“Why don’t you stay?” Quinn pressed, asking the question I didn’t want to answer.

“Because it’d be weird sitting by myself,” I replied, both telling the truth and obfuscating it.

“Oh,” said the woman, her eyes immediately darting toward the floor briefly. “Well, that changes tonight!” she continued, her cheeriness quickly returning. “No compromises, you got that?”

I scoffed, but smiled all the same. “Sure do.”

Quinn fixed me with a peculiar look after I had made my comment―like she was expecting me to say more, or react differently to her given order. Then, realization seemed to dawn on her features, and the smallest of smirks crawled across her lips.

We arrived at last to the kiosk that was manned by one of the dining hall’s staff members. They ensured that no one got in without either a meal plan or paying a flat fee. Fishing out our IDs, we presented them one by one, thus gaining entrance and freedom from having to wait in line.

Though, yet more lines awaited us inside the spacious room where all the options for our meals were located—it was only a matter of choosing what food was worth waiting for. “I’m going to do a quick loop to see what’s on offer before I commit to standing in one line or another,” I said to my two companions. They nodded, and I went about my task.

At first glance, I noticed that the main line was rather sparse that day. Quickly scanning the room to check why, I noticed that near the back, where staff members would put together custom stir fries and crepes—on the left and right from my point of view, respectively—were absolutely mobbed by contrast. Already? I thought to myself. I guess we spent more time with Quinn than I thought. The hall just opened! Owing to the made-to-order nature of them, that ensured that those students wouldn’t be sitting down to eat anytime soon. Strong wills and stronger friend groups blunted that reality, however—that, or a keen interest in a smartphone or Pokémon partner.

As usual, the quick grabs were freely available, and I was tempted to slide back into familiar habits, or compromise by sinking more time into making a more exotic sandwich than just sliced ham, turkey, and provolone cheese on wheat bread. I shook my head, though, realizing that Quinn would never let me hear the end of it if I did so. Thus, I resolved for the main course, whatever that ended up being.

Upon acquiring my plate, I assumed my place in the swiftly moving buffet-style line, where a staff member was constantly replenishing what was taken by hungry students with the help of an Audino. The “normal” protein on offer was chicken marsala. While I had never had the dish before, its aroma appealed to me―faintly nutty, and savory enough to set my mouth watering slightly―and so, I was willing to try it out. It sharply contrasted with the pungent smell of the vegetarian option: portobello steaks. Even looking at them reviled me.

For side dishes, once again, there were options more familiar to me, like asparagus and couscous, and more culturally cohesive dishes, like what were apparently supposed to be Tuscan white beans in tomato sauce, and a creamy risotto. They, too, set my senses alight with repugnance, especially with what I predicted their textures to be―soft, probably mushy judging from the way they looked, and definitely not to my liking. As such, I opted for the asparagus and couscous.

Placing a good helping of each food on my plate, I then quickly grabbed some cutlery―a fork did the job for all three, but I took a knife, too, just in case. Then, I fetched a glass for my favored drink: sweet tea. Managing everything in my hands was actually a little bit easier than normal. Ordinarily, I balanced a plastic cup on top of a Styrofoam to-go box, since I did not like holding a cold drink for very long. Since I had no intention of leaving and no need to keep a hand free for opening my dorm’s door, I was free to use both hands―yet another pleasant surprise found in staying in the dining hall.

Now, where did Nigel go…. I stepped toward the absolutely massive hall where everyone sat for their meals, and started to scan for the shaggy-haired man. Not many had laid claim to the long oaken tables yet, but that would soon change as the noise level rose. God, if I didn’t already have a headache, looking for him amongst all these other people sure would give me one. At least it hasn’t gotten any worse.

Amid the needle of discomfort settling in behind my right eye, I finally spotted both Nigel and Quinn waving at me from a table that was nearly half filled with other students already. The pair had left me a spot across from Nigel and next to Quinn, with a half dozen other students closer to the aisle.

“So, how’d putting your meal on a plate for once shake out for you?” Nigel asked as I approached.

“Uh, fine, I guess?” I answered literally. “I didn’t have to worry about balancing my drink on top of a box for once,” I continued, referencing my earlier thought process.

Nigel laughed, causing me to frown. “I was being tongue-in-cheek, Mason. But, hey―perhaps those balancing skills will come in handy later. Come then, sit!”

Latias was right when she said I had to work on my sarcasm detector, I muttered to myself as I did as Nigel bade of me. Or was that sarcasm? No, not really―more just a quippy observation?

I shook my head, focusing on Nigel once more. He had started to introduce the rest of his friend group to both Quinn and I, and after quickly flicking my eyes to the right to see if Quinn had turned in her seat―she indeed had―I mimicked her move and pivoted in my seat to the left.

Nigel’s friend group numbered six in all: four men, and two women. First came Anthony, a tall, lanky, bespectacled Caucasian man wearing a flannel. Next was Ben, almost the opposite of Anthony—on the short side, of African descent, with a close-kept afro. My curiosity was piqued when I noticed that his form of dress was very similar to Nigel’s. I wonder if one inspired the other?

The next two introductions were done together: Declan and Julia, the resident couple of the bunch. Declan seemed rather unassuming, and had a hoodie on, much like I did. He was on the pale side, too. I wondered if he had anything approaching musculature underneath, because I certainly didn’t. His only standout feature was that his hair was longer than normal, being shoulder length.

His girlfriend Julia, though—she stood out much more. A shock of auburn hair was tamed somewhat with what I assumed was extensive use of a curling iron, and in a similar vein, she had used mascara and a rather fetching bluish purple eyeshadow. Her skin tone matched Declan’s eerily well. She was very slim, even more so than myself, which I could not help but be concerned about. After all, the person with the slightest build I had ever known…was me!

Lastly came Tyler and Lilly. Of the group, they were the only Pokémon Trainers. Tyler was accompanied by a small Electrike, who faithfully sat right by his side at the foot of the table, making itself comfortable in the aisle. The Pokémon was mostly canine in appearance. Its coat was a light shade of green, with yellow lightning-shaped markings extending from its muzzle and eyes onto its stiff crest extending over its back. Its hind knees bore stiff spikes of fur sticking straight up, a trait shared by its yellow tail.

Tyler himself wore a leather jacket, jeans, and fingerless gloves. He was of Asian descent―his short-kept straight black hair and facial features giving it away―but I did not want to try and outwardly guess from which country was his ancestry. Do people think that’s insulting? I briefly wondered, discovering that I had never actually done such a thing before, getting by on assumptions alone. Well, I’d rather not find out the hard way if I were to ask and then get it wrong.

Lilly was also wearing durable clothing—a leather jacket like Tyler’s as well as what looked like the sort of boots that construction workers would wear. I couldn’t tell if they were steel-toed or not. However, she also had several wire-like rings encrusting her dainty fingers. The ensemble made me think she needed extra protection just to get along with her day. Though, based on her Pokémon partner, her choices made a good deal more sense.

Lilly’s Pokémon was an Aron, and it was sitting right next to the Electrike. Four stubby legs supported a diminutive oval shaped stainless-steel clad body. A small, dull spike extended from the center of its back. Small holes pocked its armor, both on its body and on its disproportionately large head, but they did not seem to be from any injuries it had sustained. Two such holes were present beneath its large, piercing blue eyes, and they were smaller than the others―its nostrils, perhaps. The two Pokémon were chattering amongst themselves, mimicking their Trainers’ actions to an extent, as if they had known each other their whole lives.

“Did you want to get a better look at them?” Nigel asked me after I had paid his six friends short greetings. “Tyler and Lilly’s partners, I mean.”

“Oh, no―I’m fine. I’m sure you probably know that I’ve seen Electrike and Aron on the Internet before. In fact, I think seeing these two in particular inspired my research of them online.” The name-dropping of the two Pokémon’s species caught their Trainers’ attention more effectively than I would have liked. They fixed me with what I could not help but think were looks of suspicion, of all things. Even the Pokémon themselves had their attention briefly split between their conversation and me, reacting to the use of their names. “Okay, is it really that out of the ordinary to know as much as I do? Surely it isn’t, right?”

“For a non-Trainer, it is,” Nigel answered on behalf of everyone at the table. “I’m certain that will change in due time, though. You just happen to be ahead of the curve for the moment, Mason! Do you keep, say, research notes or anything?”

“Uhm, no,” I said, trying to steel myself for what I was about to say next. “I don’t need notes if I just remember most of what I read.” I cast my eyes downward toward my plate, unwilling to make immediate eye contact with anyone at the table. I wished I could turn invisible like Latias could, right that instant.

Suddenly, I felt a little nudge in my side. “Hey,” floated Quinn’s voice across my senses. “I think it’s cool. So, I’m guessing Electrike is an Electric Type, and Aron is a Steel Type?”

“Mhm…though, Aron is also a Rock Type. I remember that because Aron usually like to eat different kinds of soil for their iron content. There’s been reports of them going after railroad tracks to eat them, though.”

Quinn laughed, lifting my spirits. “Really? That’s funny as hell! Are there any other ‘mon that give humans grief like that?”

“I, uh….” I trailed off briefly, wanting to at least try to ingratiate myself a little better with Nigel’s friends. Then, I remembered Latias’ advice: be myself. For once, my hood was down, and I didn’t intend to pull it back up by the time we left. I thus focused on Quinn, one of the two that I felt had earned my fragile trust.

“Yeah, actually. For example, lots of Electric Types tend to gather around power lines and switch stations and stuff, siphoning the electricity there, and they’re a pain to remove. I think I remember reading that utility crews have started bringing certain Pokémon with them to deal with the problem.”

“Makes sense. A Pokémon problem likely involves a Pokémon solution,” Quinn replied. “Oh, Mason, don’t let me keep you from eating! It’s your first time actually sitting down in here, and it would suck to let that time go to waste.”

I nodded, then began to help myself to my dinner. The chicken was surprisingly good for something I had never tried before. Its taste matched its aroma―savory, nutty, with a pleasant dash of saltiness. The profile of the mushrooms, something I was unused to before then, was such that I wouldn’t be opposed to trying other creamy dishes that incorporated them. The asparagus had been cooked with garlic, and I could taste some citrusy notes in the sprigs, like lemon juice had been splashed over them. The couscous was buttery and savory like the chicken, but slightly underdone for my taste, judging by how firm it was.

By Quinn’s leave, I was able to listen in to a bit of the conversation going on to my left as I ate. Nigel’s attention had been seized by Ben and Julia―they were asking him about the minutiae of their next DnD session. That prompted Tyler and Lilly to join in, conveying their own availabilities amid the semester’s increasing classwork demands. I was interested in learning as much as I could about the game, but I couldn’t bring myself to butt in and have them start me from the beginning. If Nigel’s testimony was anything to go by, it would take far too long for anyone, even him, to fully lay a foundation upon which I could stand.

That’s probably why I caught those weird looks earlier, I mused while chewing another mouthful of asparagus. Get too invested into something, and people start seeing a similar commitment to get onto your level as too much to consider being your acquaintance. What made me different, though, was that I was all too willing to make those sorts of investments. Were other people as eager? Likely not, which explained my predicament rather well.

“Has Cathy given you any trouble or anything?” I asked between mouthfuls. I glanced over at Quinn’s plate―amusingly, she had opted to make herself a sandwich of some kind, though she had far more fixings on it than I would ever consider. I was never the biggest fan of sliced tomato or avocado, and I could only see the barest hint of sliced turkey.

“Sometimes, yeah. She can be real picky with what she eats. You might already know this―hell, I’d be surprised if you didn’t―but Pokémon tend to eat these fruits called “Berries” from these weird new plant species that popped up when they appeared. The plants are still kinda rare, and it’s taken a while for us humans to cultivate anything useful. It got worse when I realized that she preferred a rare Berry―the Magost Berry. So, I had to search the Internet high and low to even find one of them, and pay out the nose for it, so I could start some new plants from the seeds inside.” She had earned my rapt attention, to which she continued, “what? You’re telling me I knew something about Pokémon that you didn’t?”

Heated embarrassment suffused my face and cheeks, and I averted my gaze slightly. “It seems that way,” I answered quietly. “I mean, I thought Pokémon could eat the same things we can….” Latias eats the same things humans do, I continued privately in my still-aching head. Now I wonder if she’s just kept quiet about some Berry preference because she knows they’re rare.

“Aw, Mason, don’t feel bad! It’s not like people go writing about the diets of their partners online all the time. It’s one thing to read Wikipedia articles, but it’s totally different when you’re a Trainer and you’re living it every day.” Quinn paused for a moment, letting my thoughts sour for a scant second―as if I’d limit my studies to just Wikipedia―then returned my question with one of her own. “Did you bring any game consoles with you to campus?”

“Yeah, I brought my Wii and my 360,” I answered, my mood brightening ever so slightly. “Why?”

“I brought a Wii, too! Hey, have you played Donkey Kong Country Returns yet?” I nodded, almost finished with my food and unwilling to speak with my mouth full. “That game has co-op―would you like to try that out with me after dinner?”

My heart leapt into my throat at the suggestion, almost causing me to choke on the last bit of chicken I had just swallowed. “Wha―really? Er, I mean, of course! My brother and I never got to try it before he left to go job hunting.”

Quinn grinned. “Sweet. We’ll head back to my room and see if it’s all it’s cracked up to be.”

As if my nerves could not fray any further, that threatened to unravel any confidence I had built up until that point. It was one thing to leave my room with Nigel by my side, but actually visiting another student’s room entirely? And a girl’s, no less, one that we had met just an hour prior?

Even more notable was the fact that Nigel seemed to overhear Quinn’s suggestion, immediately turning towards us and fixing me with an inscrutable look. I tried to brush off the sudden shift in his demeanor―it was as though the ambient temperature had just dropped by a couple degrees―and answered Quinn’s suggestion. “Uh, sure. Let me just finish what’s left here on my plate, and we’ll get going….”

Nigel seized upon my trailing off, and broke into the conversation. “Before you go, could I trouble you to give me your phone number, Mason? I’d like to keep you updated about a study group I’m trying to organize for our biology lab practical coming up. Here, follow me for just a second―I want to get a fresh cup of tea.”

I nodded, glancing at Quinn and shrugging slightly. She mirrored my action, and thus, I stood up from my seat in time with Nigel and pulled out my phone. I followed him closely through the various throngs of people entering and exiting the main hall, and as he approached the section of the annex where students could brew their own tea and coffee, he turned to me. “Alright, give me your number.” I rattled it off, and he punched it into his phone, adding me to his contacts. He then gave me his number, and I repeated what he had just done. “Look for a text from me later. But, Mason: I don’t know if you realize this, but―”

“I do,” I said, cutting Nigel off. “It’s sudden, it’s uncomfortable, it’s frightening, even. But I feel like I should at least try. I’d hate it if I lost a potential friend just because I felt too uncomfortable. That’s why you pulled me over here, right?”

“Correct,” Nigel answered. Relief danced in his eyes. “Just be careful, alright? Text me if anything comes up. I’ll be there in a flash.”

I nodded, more to myself than to him. My lips pulled into a subtle smile. “Thanks, Nigel. It’s good to know I’ve got you looking out for me. But…why me?”

Nigel’s brow quirked. “That’s not something that needs answering straight away. It should become clear as time goes on.”

“If you say so,” I answered, grabbing a small glass and nabbing just a smidge of sweet tea to bring back with me.

“All sorted with your fancy teas?” Quinn asked upon our return with a faux posh accent.

“Yeah,” I answered on behalf of the both of us. “Might as well exploit the fact that there’s free refills here.”

It only took a couple more minutes for me to clean my plate and drain my glass. “Alright Quinn, lead the way.”

A bright smile split the musician’s face as she stood up―Cathy took that as her cue to hop up on her Trainer’s head. “We’re gonna have a lot of fun, even if the co-op ends up sucking!” she said excitedly, picking up her plate and glass. She turned away from me to head towards where they would be washed, and I took the opportunity to catch Nigel’s gaze one final time. He inclined his head slightly, and I mimicked his action. I then picked up my own dinnerware and began to follow Quinn, becoming absorbed in my thoughts once more.

I’m doing pretty alright for myself without Latias coaching me. I wonder what she would think about what’s happened so far….

Chapter 8: A Fraying Truth

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

“Did you want to grab a milkshake? You probably don’t do that very often either, from what you told me.”

We had just started to descend the steps to leave the dining hall when Quinn’s question slowed my pace. “Yeah, you’re right about that...hmm….”

I glanced at the frozen treat stand, and surprisingly, the number of customers had remained low over the half hour or so that we were inside. Just then, the curious little Vanillite that was helping the shop owner captured my gaze with its own, and its diminutive smile beckoned me over. “Ah, sure!” I finally acquiesced, reaching into my back pocket and preparing my wallet for the upcoming transaction.

“Hi there!” greeted the owner, a middle-aged woman with her long brown hair bound into a tight bun, nestled in the crook of her right shoulder. A flash of anxiety bubbled up inside of me, and I gave a weak little wave in response. “Need a bit more time?”

“Yes!” I blurted, heat rising to my face. “I’ve never gotten anything here before,” I added in a feeble attempt to save face.

“Take your time, hon,” replied the shopkeep, her words of reassurance almost too sweet to fully believe. However, I did as she bade regardless.

The dearth of fruit-based options was mildly surprising to me―smoothie stores were starting to gain ground amongst young people, and a college campus would have been ideal. Instead, the milkshakes on offer were simply various ice cream flavors, except converted into the frosty beverages that had piqued my interest in the first place. I scanned their offerings, ranging from the more typical vanillas, chocolates, and strawberry to things that were more exotic―one that caught my eye in particular was called “Death by Chocolate.” The name concerned me more than anything else, but I finally found an old favorite of mine.

“Okay, I’m ready,” I said aloud, grabbing the shopkeep’s attention. I subsequently placed my order for a medium cookies and cream shake. Quinn followed immediately after me, requesting chocolate peanut butter cup. The older woman smiled brightly, accepted our payments, then both she and the Vanillite got straight to work.

The diminutive Pokémon had my rapt attention as it began its task. Floating from place to place using some physics-defying power, it began by seemingly breathing over two large tubs of ice cream, which infused them with a scintillating beauty. Its tiny little arms then glowed a subtle blue, and the twinkling motes of light flashed in kind. I was amazed to see the frozen treat respond to the Vanillite’s command, lifting itself up and out of the tub!

“Little Rime’s powers over ice help so much,” the owner said over her shoulder as the ice cream found its final destination in the medium-sized cups by her hands. “I’m not as young as I used to be―it’s hard on my arms to scoop hour after hour. He’s a Godsend, that’s for sure, and he likes doing it, which is a big bonus!”

“Does the ice cream taste any different?” Quinn asked as the owner set our to-be shakes into a large metal contraption, likely to blend and beat the ice cream into drinkable form. She had already poured the milk that would produce the correct consistency.

“It does! Customers often say Rime’s special touch really brings out the flavors. I agree with them, from personal experience!”

“Rime’s crystals are a little different from what I’ve seen online,” I mused aloud. “I wonder if other Vanillite would impart different characteristics to the same ice cream?”

“Ooooh, now that’s a neat question!” Quinn gushed as the machine loudly churned our beverages into form. “That would be so cool―pun totally intended! That way, every shop with a Vanillite would bring a different experience to the table.”

“Well, here’s hoping that other Pokémon like Rime can bring joy like he can. Here you are!” The owner handed me my shake first with her right hand, then the second one was proffered to Quinn with her left. I immediately tested the shopkeep’s claims about Rime’s influence, and sure enough, there was a certain…richness to the flavor, especially from the bits of cookie―the ingredient most often relegated to a simple afterthought―in the shake. I glanced at Rime, and his little smile had widened slightly. I recognized that his chocolate-colored crystals were probably the reason the cookies were more prominent in my shake. I gave him a smile and thumbs-up, and he bobbed up and down animatedly, happy to have brightened my day.

“Add another person to your testimonies,” I piped up, repeating my observations aloud.

“And another! I can actually taste the chocolate with the peanut butter, not under it!” Quinn added excitedly.

“Yeah, peanut butter usually overpowers anything else it’s paired with. That and banana,” I remarked.

The shopkeep beamed at us, but her eyes flicked somewhere slightly to my right. I glanced that way, following her gaze, and found two other people waiting patiently for their turn to order. “Thank you for coming to Ice of Life! We hope you’ll come back again!”

“We sure will!” Quinn replied for the both of us, throwing a lance of uncertainty across my brow. I was considering saying something to that effect, but did not want to fully commit to a return visit being something we did together.

Together…what’s so wrong with that? I wondered briefly as we finally exited the dining hall. However, rather than turning right, back the way we had come, we instead turned left. Tall, thick trees flanked the concrete path stretching before us, contrasting sharply with the full-fledged road that terminated just behind us. On the right, they grew into a lonely thicket beyond a gentle downward slope, carpeted with dense underbrush. Off in the distance, I thought I spied our destination―a three-story brick building, with evenly spaced windows―if only for the fact that it looked vaguely like my own dorm. “You went beyond the dining hall to play your ocarina earlier?”

“Mhm,” Quinn answered with a nod. “It’s a better space, wider open. Less chance of us catching any unwanted attention since I can sit down with Cathy further away from the path.” She shot a furtive glance at the Music Note Pokémon on her head, one unknown to her partner. I surmised, then, that her positioning was more for her Pokémon partner than anyone else.

“Whatever works best,” I said as neutrally as I could. Taking a sip of my shake, a twinge of pain pulled my head slightly to the left, seemingly back toward the dining hall.

“Is Nigel your roommate, by the way? He’s an interesting dude―all dapper like that.”

“Huh? Oh, no, he’s not,” I replied quickly, not realizing why Quinn had asked me that question.

“Then who is?”

“Her name is Ruby,” came the near-instant answer. A look of unfettered shock crossed Quinn’s features, which coincided with the suspicion that I should have likely put more thought into how I phrased my response.

Quinn faced forward, but her pace slowed ever so slightly. “Now that’s interesting! This is the first time I’ve heard of a boy and girl rooming together. Are you…you know?”

“You know, what?”

I stole a glance at Quinn, and her lips had curled up into a rakish smile. “An item,” she elaborated.

Heat rose to my cheeks―the musician’s question evoked a very salient memory in my mind’s eye. A distinct discomfort was made manifest when I recalled how Latias and I had embraced upon her acceptance to our school. Her physique, her scent, her…satisfaction―it all tolled a clarion call to something I was not yet ready to accept. “N-no,” I stuttered. “We’re friends…but we get that question a lot.”

“’Friends’ don’t get to room together if they’re opposite sexes, so I’m dying to know how you managed it,” Quinn pressed.

I sighed, then launched into the same story I had begun to tell Nigel before, ironically, we were interrupted by Quinn’s song. She took a gulp of her shake occasionally, listening intently. “So, we figured we’d pick out a small-ish college to go to,” I finished, wrapping up my fabricated tale of two outcasts sticking together all through public school―born of a distant, desperate pining that reality had progressed a little differently in my favor, but had not. I supposed that was why fabrications existed in the first place. “Admissions let us room together during our first year to help us ease into the social aspect of things a bit more…but Ruby’s had a lot more success than me.”

“Even though she’s mute?”

“Even though she’s mute,” I repeated, casting my gaze downward. The fog of self-loathing threatened to roll in, but was beaten back by Quinn half-slapping, half-shoving my shoulder.

“Now c’mon, Mason! Don’t get too down in the dumps! Better late than never, right?”

I caught Quinn’s eye, and her cheeriness was infectious enough to bring a smile to my face. “Right,” I answered.

Quinn’s dorm swelled in our view, and my eyes quivered with trepidation, unwilling to fully accept that I was about to enter. “Relax, dude. It’s not like boys are totally banned from Marg,” Quinn said, using the common shorthand for her dorm building’s name, Margaret.

“Well, yeah, but―”

“But nothing.”

“But nothing, but nothing!” Cathy cawed, repeating her Trainer’s firm rebuttal of my vacillation. I expected another half-shove, but instead, Quinn touched me gently on the shoulder, even grabbing on for the briefest of moments. Her grip calmed my nerves somehow, and so, after flashing her ID at the scanner on the front door, I entered completely unfamiliar territory.

ᛇᚾᛇ

Arceus, my head. I’ve tried everything…closing the blinds, covering my eyes, soundproofing the room―and it still feels like a thousand Tauros just Stomped my head into mush. So much for getting any work done.

It was not long after Mason had departed with Nigel that a steadily growing discomfort began to bloom in my skull. It had held steady for some time, then grew worse once more. There was only one explanation, one that I was reticent to accept.

Cutting our link even just for this long is doing this, I mused to myself, bringing a claw to my temple. I had long since reverted to Eon form, having lost any reason to maintain illusion form. Probably to Mason, too. Ugh, that means he’s having to fight through this same thing while he’s also trying to focus on making friends. I considered my options briefly. The pain’s earlier plateau was surely when Mason was at the dining hall. However, if I was right, and it was caused by increasing remoteness between the two of us, why would it grow worse still? What reason would Mason have to go even further from the dining hall?

There’s nothing more for it but to scout ahead while no one can see me, I concluded, a plan formulating in my beleaguered mind’s eye. By closing at least some of the distance between us, I would be doing us both a favor.

It didn’t hurt that I could possibly discover what Mason was doing on the opposite side of campus, too.

I took a deep breath, then extended my consciousness slightly to encompass the hallway outside our dorm room’s door, searching for any unwanted observers. I felt a small pressure once I had done so, and recoiled out of instinct―that meant that there was indeed some passerby outside, and I would have to wait until they were out of sight, testing my already thin patience.

Come on, you damn lazy…. I trailed off as I recognized the presence moving further away from me, but ever so slightly. That coupled with a sudden burst of unintelligible sound likely meant that whoever it was had just been let in to one of our neighbors’ rooms. Finally, I whispered to myself sourly. Willing the ambient light to ignore me, a faint eddy of psychic power trickled across my down―the telltale sign that I was no longer visible to the naked eye.

I gingerly gripped our room’s doorknob, almost as though it were an angry Ekans, ready to sink its fangs into my paw. After a second or two of psyching myself up, I quickly turned the knob, opened the door just enough to let myself out, then shut it behind me as quietly as I could. My window of opportunity was narrow, and it seemed that I had succeeded in exploiting it: no humans or Pokémon were around to see my egress from the room.

Then, a thought struck me: Why didn’t I just leave through our window?

Rolling my eyes in their invisible sockets, I filed the notion away for future reference. I glided through the hall and around the bend toward the front door of the dorm. It was, for some reason, ajar―I stifled a gasp born from the realization of my fleeting chance to exit the building without any preparation whatsoever. Wasting no more time, I zipped through the top of the threshold―just in case―then turned on the spot to investigate the source of my good fortune. A laugh was next to be suppressed: someone had used a copious amount of rope to tie the door, a longboard, and a nearby bike rack together.

Not really my idea of…wait…. Upon further inspection, I spied no less than three bike locks in the arrangement, forcing me to look away for fear of actually bursting into laughter. Why anyone would expend such effort to prevent their longboard from being stolen and expose the front of the dorm to the elements and leave the front door exposed to just anyone waltzing in, I didn’t know. Rope was easily cut, too, which quickly led me to believe that I had just witnessed the result of some sort of prank. I’m sure the RAs will love coming across this―

“Oh my God!”

And that’s my cue to get going, I continued in my head, having been cut off by a very irate looking human girl.

I gently cruised across the campus, approaching the dining hall from the air. The evening sun announced its presence spectacularly against the low-lying clouds on the horizon, erupting in a fierce display of red and orange. I also tussled briefly with a noticeable breeze, one that bent the trees and leaves beneath me as well.

Even after the initial rush of students descending upon the dining hall like a horde of Spinarak, there was still a sizeable cadre of humans—along with the uncommon Pokémon partner—flowing every which way on the concrete paths. I briefly wondered about all the different purposes that guided them before refocusing on my own.

Sure enough, once I had closed the gap between our dorm and the dining hall, the pain in my head lessened somewhat, but still had not completely abated. There’s only a few places left that he could have gone that are further still from here, I thought to myself. There were only three main points of interest on the far side of campus—the foreign languages building, the visitor center, and the all-girls dorm. Mason isn’t taking a foreign language this semester…maybe he’s thinking about it, and went to go check out what’s on offer.

My flight resumed, and the path quickly became obscured by thick foliage cast by immense gnarled trees—the advanced age of that part of campus becoming abundantly clear from that fact alone. I tuned in carefully to the discomfort buzzing in my skull, continuing to wane more and more as I approached the large u-shaped building, a cylindrical glass façade at its center to welcome students inside.

However, before I could draw within one hundred feet of it, the needles of pain grew worse.

What? He’s not in there? I whispered, shivering slightly from the realization. Then…. I turned around, and faced the truth.

Behind me, three stories tall and wrought from brick, was the all-girls dorm Margaret.

A quickly rising dread took root in my stomach, and my thoughts began to race with too many questions to keep track of, least of all being why Mason would be in that building in the first place. I approached the ground, trying to think of how to parse through my discovery in a manner that did not jeopardize the important step forward Mason had taken. The amount of humans dotting the paths were far fewer, and by virtue of that alone, I caught sight of someone that only further deepened the mystery:

Nigel was walking toward the dorm as well, and he was alone.

Okay, now I’m a little upset. If Nigel is alone and Mason is not with him, that means Mason is inside this building alone, or with some stranger. I need to get to the bottom of this before Mason gets hurt!

I flicked my gaze toward the thicket of trees nearby, and chewed my lip briefly. I was not the best at shifting from invisibility into an illusion form without giving off a flash of light, something that would surely be noticed in the quickly waning light. There was, however, a healing garden nearby—a little secluded glade where students could reflect amongst the close-hanging boughs of the old trees that enshrouded much of the immediate area. I dashed off toward where I knew it to be, hoping that no student was currently there. Thankfully, likely because of the advanced hour, the garden’s stone benches were unoccupied, and no one was lost in their thoughts with the aid of the gentle white noise of the fountain at the garden’s center. Taking my chance, I shifted into illusion form as quickly as I could, duplicating my earlier state of dress from when Nigel previously saw me.

I shivered when my feet touched the ground, resisting the urge to wonder if anyone had indeed seen me. Instead, I walked at a brisk pace back toward the nearby dorm and Nigel. I had to take a roundabout way back, costing me precious time. I knew it well: the entrance to the garden was closer to the fine arts building, Hubbart―a familiar haunt for me. While it was not the longest detour, every second counted, especially if Mason was as keenly aware of our separation sickness as I was—after all, I had to briefly move away from where he was before doubling back again.

Nigel hadn’t gotten far—he had chosen to sit at a wood-and-iron bench along the path, not too far, but not too close, either. It was almost as though he was there for the exact same reason I was! There’s only one way to find out, I hissed inwardly before approaching the sharply dressed male and waving to him.

“Ruby?!” the human exclaimed, before putting his hand in front of his mouth. His eyes flicked down toward the ground, as if he had been caught red-handed for some sort of crime. “What…what are you doing here? Did Mason contact you?” I shook my head, then pointed at Nigel and shrugged, hoping he would understand that I wanted an explanation for why he was there. “I don’t understand. Can you write what you need to tell me? Come, sit. It’ll be easier that way.”

I nodded, then did as he bade me. Fishing out my phone from my back pocket, I opened the note-taking app I used to communicate with humans who didn’t know sign language. I forgot something in Hubbart, and saw you walk by as I left, I wrote, then showed Nigel my phone screen. Why are you here? Where is Mason?

Nigel’s lips pulled into a grimace, and he seemed to cringe slightly, both of which set me even more on edge. “This will take some time to explain, but I’ll try to do so as quickly as possible. We can decide what to do next afterwards.”

Thus, Nigel began his tale. Of how he and Mason met a female human named Quinn on their way to the dining hall. Mason had been entranced by a song she was playing on some strange instrument Nigel called an ‘ocarina,’ and Nigel suggested that they go talk to her. “During this initial meeting, Quinn made a suggestive comment that sailed cleanly over Mason’s head. I let it go in the moment, thinking she would get the hint as well. Is that normal for him?”

Yes—you should have known that from how he first talked to you in our room, I wrote with a sour look on my face.

“In retrospect, you’re right, and I’m so deeply sorry. Sorry for what, you might ask? Well, let me pick up where I left off….”

Nigel then explained how the three of them entered the dining hall as I had originally suspected, and how he had Mason sit with his group of friends, as we had planned. However, Mason was unable to ingratiate himself with them, instead making seemingly easy conversation with Quinn, who had accompanied them. Eventually, Quinn suggested that she and Mason retreat to her dorm room in Margaret to play video games. Before they could go, however, Nigel pulled Mason aside to swap phone numbers.

“That’s when I told him to be careful, and reach out if he needed me. But, he seemed insistent—he wanted to give making a second new friend his best attempt, and he seemed genuinely happy when Quinn was interested in all that he knew about Pokémon.”

You LET HIM GO WITH HER?! I typed furiously on my phone. She’s clearly manipulating him! She sensed the same thing you did, but unlike you, she’s *taking advantage* of it for her own ends. I should *never* have let him go alone! This is all my fault, and I’m going to fix it!

I stood up from the bench, empty fist clenched, ready to barge into every room in the damnable building before us. Before I could move even an inch, however, Nigel grabbed my arm. “Don’t,” he pleaded in a low voice. “You’ve known each other for so long, so you know him much better than I do. He can do this, can’t he?”

It took everything I had not to wrench my arm free of the foolish human’s grasp. Every second wasted was another that that vile hussy could sink her claws into Mason. No one else deserved him except—

I snapped out of my train of thought in that instant. Okay, calm down Latias. Let’s not assume the absolute worst about this Quinn girl…even if it’s still a ninety-nine percent chance she is up to no good. I heaved a sigh, and sat back down with Nigel. I then began to slowly write on my phone, my thoughts broken and full of distress.

I just—

—wanted him to find friends.

I closed my eyes, searching for what to say next. My feelings began to settle, and my fingers moved in response.

If we go in there now—

—he’ll know we don’t trust him to do it on his own.

He’s never done things on his own. Especially not social things. No one has trusted him enough to. He needs to learn—

—but I don’t want him to get hurt. Not when I can do something about it.

“I understand completely, Ruby,” Nigel said after scrolling through what I had written. “But our hesitance isn’t misplaced, either. This sounds like something Mason needs to do on his own. Whether the outcome is good or bad, we’ll be here to help him through it. Does that sound alright?”

Yes, I wrote. But let’s get to a less conspicuous spot. If Mason sees us when he eventually leaves the building, he’ll know why we were here—watching him. Doubting him.

“Indeed. Let’s get ourselves a bit out of the way, then.”

ᚱᛉᚱ

“Welcome to the Quinn cave!”

I was ushered inside by the almost raven-haired girl, but the room was mostly still shrouded in darkness. “Hold on,” she continued, letting the door close itself behind us once I had cleared it. Two steps and a bit of fiddling later, the room was bathed in a gentle orange-yellow light, courtesy of a large floor lamp draped in some sort of tapestry. I couldn’t help but be awestruck as I took in everything around me.

Cathy leapt from Quinn’s head and alighted upon a very ornate looking wooden perch. Next to her was Quinn’s desk on one side, and an unfamiliar plant on the other, situated under a grow light. Rather than owning a laptop, Quinn owned a small desktop computer, complete with a mid-sized monitor—it was not as large as the one I had at home.

It needed to be on the smaller side, owing to the sheer amount of plushies and other memorabilia arranged both on the desk and her neatly made bed. I recognized a good chunk of them, of course, like a Luma from Super Mario Galaxy, or Amaterasu, but there were others that I wasn’t as familiar with, like what seemed to be a knightly frog, and some cross between a bear and Crash Bandicoot, with a red bird sticking out of a backpack it was wearing.

Posters of all kinds adorned the walls, again showcasing both classic and more modern games, but some were more akin to scrolls. An anime fan too, I mused idly.

Across from Quinn’s bed, which sat low to the ground, was a decently sized television, sitting atop a coffee table. Her Wii was adjacent to it, and the motion bar was on top of it. I noticed a bin on the floor which had a few controllers and other odds and ends inside it.

It was then that I realized something very important. There was no second bed in Quinn’s room—it was a single. And only older students could muster the credits to have the relatively rare single rooms inside of the dormitory buildings.

“Impressed?”

The gentle question snapped me out of my inspection, focusing back on Quinn. “Very,” I said genuinely. “There’s so much cool stuff here. I’m sure it all means a lot. And, um, you don’t have to worry about someone else when you go to decorate.”

An inquisitive look crossed Quinn’s face. “Noticed that, huh? Yep, it’s just me and Cathy in here. I figured after a few years of dealing with roommates, I’d do a bit better by myself. Convenient, now that I have Cathy to worry about, too.”

“You didn’t want to go into the apartments?” I asked. I felt it was a legitimate question—most older students got together with three others to have a more holistic personal space aside from just a room to themselves.

“Eh, nah—then the same issues pop up. Who gets to put what in the living room, what gets put in the fridge. I’d have to go outside to do laundry, too…no thanks! Hauling it from one hall to another is good enough for me.”

“More of a solo person, then,” I mused aloud.

“For sure. Well, come on, let’s get started! Go ahead and take a load off while I get all the other stuff ready.”

Nodding, I made to pull the chair out from Quinn’s desk, which drew a laugh from her. “Not there, you donut—the bed’s just fine!”

“Ah, er, are you sure? The chair’s just fine with me,” I replied, a tinge of nervousness entering my voice.

“And what, you’re gonna be looking at the TV all skewed? Get on the bed if you have any sense.”

“Gotcha.” Seeing the logic in Quinn’s proposition, I moved to the bed after setting what remained of my milkshake on her desk. She traded places with me, then reached for the hem of her sweater—she then nonchalantly pulled it off, leaving her in a rather thin light pink tank top. My mouth went dry as she draped it over the back of her chair, and I tried my utmost not to let my gaze drift any lower than was appropriate. Unlike Latias’ illusion forms, Quinn had a good bit more to hide under her sweater than if my bond-mate were to wear something similar.

Instead, I focused on a freshly viewable tattoo that Quinn had emblazoned on her right arm. “Oh, is that the Sun from Okami?”

Quinn’s countenance brightened alongside a joyous smile. “It is! I just love the art style of Okami so much―like someone just painted it all by hand, rather than with a computer. When you know your stuff, Mason, you sure know it! And like I said—there’s more ink than just this,” she concluded in a low voice, her eyes beginning to smolder with something that sent a shiver down my spine.

“R-right,” I answered, averting my eyes. A distinct discomfort began to swell in my chest, and I hoped that I could hide it well enough from Quinn. She then made her way toward the television, swinging her hips from side to side as she rooted around in the bin for our controllers, humming a happy little tune. Yet again, I recognized it—it was the title theme from Wind Waker. Even Cathy joined in briefly, recognizing the tempo of the song instantly and keeping time with her metronome-tail.

However, something else had become unmistakable.

She’s doing this on purpose, I realized privately, suddenly finding the plushies on the bed very interesting. This is bad. I don’t know what will happen if I call it quits. How would she react? Poorly, obviously. Why is she doing this?

“Okay, game time!” Quinn called, having turned back toward me. A small smirk split her lips. “Here, your ‘mote and ‘chuk. Let’s try this out!” She plopped herself onto the bed to my right, close to her plushies and pillows. I took a deep breath, inhaling her raspberry-scented perfume as she navigated her way through the Wii’s home screen to finally alight upon what we had come to play. While the smell didn’t do my rational thought any favors, I at least could focus on DKCR’s logo flashing on screen to distract me from the inevitable, sitting not two feet to my right.

To my surprise, we settled into a completely normal gameplay session, identical to any given one I had shared with my brother back home when we were kids. Quinn chose to play as Diddy Kong, while I was Donkey Kong. The multiplayer was quite robust—we could play completely independently of one another, collecting anything and everything we could while defeating enemies, or we could join together as one unit. Diddy had a glide mechanic, and Quinn could support my platforming with it if necessary, like if we were going through a particularly challenging section that required precise timing. If one of us fell in a pit, we could choose to use a life to get back in the game, rather than having to start over from a checkpoint—we usually joined together when that happened, since we could bounce ideas off each other instead of going it apart.

“It’s been a while since I had someone actually good to play with,” Quinn remarked after clearing the third stage. We hadn’t yet had to backtrack for any collectibles, either.

“Same here. At least, in person—my brother hasn’t been home in a long time, and Ruby doesn’t play games,” I answered. I had not forgotten about Quinn’s little display earlier, and I hoped that the name drop would avert any kind of confrontation.

However, rather than be discouraged by Latias’ false name, Quinn seemed emboldened by it. Over the course of the next few stages, I sensed the weight of the bed shifting ever so slightly toward me, but my attentiveness to the change was lost upon our entering of a bonus stage of sorts, one that was significantly more difficult than anything we had encountered. Our strategizing took precedence, and after losing nearly all of our spare lives, we emerged victorious. All that remained was the world’s boss. Compared to the bonus stage, however, the boss fell with ease, a simple affair of jumping over it as it charged at us, then jumping on its back while it was vulnerable.

“Sweet!” I said, pleased with our accomplishment.

Quinn then did something that replaced my excitement entirely with panic: she leaned her head on my shoulder, pressing the home button to silence the game’s audio. I then noticed that she had somehow closed the gap between us, and was sidled up next to me! When I met her gaze, she spoke: “You’re sweet, Mason,” she purred. “Would you like to play a different game now?”

“Wh―I….”

“Shush. Let me show you how.”

Then, a pair of lips pressed up against my own.

My thoughts boiled over in a frenzy of activity, coalescing into a single regret. In my mind’s eye, I could see them: auburn hair, golden eyes.

Those were not what were before me.

Oh my God, no! This isn’t right! Not with Quinn!

Suddenly, the kiss was broken, and Quinn opened her eyes. “Mason? You’re supposed to return the kiss.”

Seizing my opportunity, I shuffled away from the musician as much as I could while remaining on the bed. “You―I didn’t…this isn’t….”

Instantly, Quinn’s countenance shifted into something completely new. Etched into her face was not the steady confidence or the cheeky humor she had displayed earlier. Instead, pure disgust marred her features. “You’ve got to be kidding me. I know you’re dense, but this is really on another level, too much to believe. Ruby is your girlfriend, isn’t she?!”

“No! We’re just friends, I swear!”

“Bullsh*t! I bet you wouldn’t know a friend from a lover unless she got on her knees and started fiddling with your belt!”

Quinn’s burgeoning anger and vitriol sparked my reply. “Yeah, well, maybe you should have known better than to take it this far with someone who clearly didn’t know what you were doing until we were already here! That’s pretty messed up, and you know it!”

“So you were leading me on, is that it?!” Quinn shouted.

“More like you knew what you wanted and didn’t care about what I wanted!” I snapped back.

“Didn’t care?! If I didn’t care, I’d have never asked about Ruby at all! Stop lying to yourself!”

“I’m not lying to myself!” I yelled, coming face to face with the exact words that Latias had used on me earlier that evening. “But you won’t believe me. You never will! God, I wish I could―”

“Stop! Talk! Listen!”

The clarion call for rational thought came from the most unlikely of places―Cathy. The Chatot had apparently had enough of our shouting match. It was just as well; hot tears were threatening to stream down my face. I looked away toward the door, rubbing my legs and taking a deep breath in an attempt to steady my nerves. But, before I could fully regain my composure, Quinn’s voice grated against my ears.

“Mason? Let me know when you’re ready.”

The lack of venom in the musician’s voice was exactly what I needed. “Y-Yeah,” I stuttered, continuing to eye the door. I wondered briefly if I should have just bolted out of the room, but I squelched the notion―a shortsighted reaction to a more endemic problem. Chewing my lip intermittently, I noticed the pressure in my skull had returned to assert itself, almost reminding me of why things had gone so wrong in the first place.

“Alright, I’m ready,” I said, turning back toward Quinn for the first time in what seemed like a half hour.

“Okay. First things first: You and Ruby are not together, right?”

“Right,” I insisted. Quinn paused, her eyes boring into my own, searching for any deceit. After a tense moment, her gaze softened, and a wave of relief radiated from my chest through my whole body. She believed me at long last.

“Do you like the way I look?”

“I do,” I answered almost without inflection. “Your tattoos, your hair, your body, they’re all…very nice,” I continued demurely, not wanting to go into further detail.

“So then, what’s the problem? You don’t swing the other way, do you? Because that’s totally fine if you do!”

“No, no, it’s not that!” I replied immediately, holding my hands up. “God, that’s how you know this is all messed up, for you to even think that’s a possibility. But….”

I took another steadying breath, eyes flicking all around the room―reminding me of what I had resonated with in Quinn. “I’ve never really talked to people. Like, in a ‘hey, wanna hang out’ way, rather than a ‘you do this problem, I’ll do that one’ kind of way.”

“What about that Nigel guy?”

“You’re not going to believe this, but we had finally spoken on more ‘friendly’ terms literally minutes before we met you. I think I was still riding on the high of talking to someone other than Ruby, that I was comfortable talking to you. That, and I recognized your song, of course.”

“And Ruby?” Quinn pressed, her brow furrowed. “Why’d she let you go without her?”

“She knew that if she were with me, I’d gravitate toward her and try to ignore everyone else. I have to admit, that’s kind of what happened anyway…except instead of her―”

“It was me,” Quinn finished, a look of realization dawning on her features. Her hands landed in her lap, and she turned away briefly. “Of course. All the stuff we talked about was stuff you knew better than anyone else. Stuff that no one else has ever been interested in, since Ruby doesn’t play games. And one thing led to another….” She shook her head, then met my eyes again. “Mason, I’m so sorry. I should have known better.”

“You shouldn’t have to say sorry, though!” I said strongly. “This is my fault. I should have said I was uncomfortable when I finally realized what you were doing―”

“Yeah, when we were already in my room? When I was putting on that not-so-little show?” She chuckled mirthlessly to herself. “No, Mason―if you had cut your losses in here, the same thing would have happened. The same shouting match, the same meltdown, everything. This is on me, one hundred percent.” She stood from the bed. “C’mere. Let’s end the night on a positive note, at least.” I hesitated for a moment, unsure of what her intent was. “I’m going to give you a quick hug. Is that okay?”

“Yes,” I said, appreciative that she chose to be forthcoming with what she wanted to do. Thus was solidified her willingness to do right by me. Standing from the bed in kind, I approached the shorter woman and draped one arm across her back, embracing her briefly. She duplicated the action with unerring precision, ensuring that our contact remained amicable and platonic. “Should I…go now?”

“I think that would be best,” Quinn agreed, nodding. “But Mason―I still had fun tonight. Would you like to swap numbers?”

“Sure,” I said with a smile. Despite the close call, it seemed that I had still earned a friendship after all!

As we gave each other our contact information, Quinn spoke: “Mason, I have a proposal for you.” I met her gaze, and found that same rakish smile from before. “You know so much about Pokémon, and as far as I know, there’s no one as enthusiastic about them as you. You can trust me on that one, because I see a lot of people come and go while I’m playing―hell, you’re not even a Trainer! Would you…want to try and start a Pokémon enthusiasts club, you and me?”

“I―really?”

“Yes, really, you donut. How else are you gonna start talking to people, and who else is gonna keep you out of trouble? Other than Ruby, of course,” Quinn added with a chuckle. “The way I see it, talking about Pokémon came so easily to you, so why not leverage that? Help you branch out? It’s the least I can do after…well, y’know.” She trailed off sheepishly before her expression brightened. “Plus, Cathy needs to be socialized more anyway!” The Music Note Pokémon squawked indignantly, unappreciative of the portents of Quinn’s idea.

“That would be awesome!” With my exclamation came a realization―if I played my cards right, such a club would be my way of leaving my mark on the campus community at large, ensuring Latias’ continued attendance per Ms. Murkel’s deal with us. My course was assured, then, simply by virtue of knowing my actions would benefit not just myself.

“Sweet. I know a little bit about how the whole process works. Let me re-familiarize myself with it, and I’ll text you tomorrow about what we need to do, ‘kay?”

“You got it.” Moving toward the door and picking up my milkshake, I let out what seemed to be a held breath and threw it open. Turning around, I spotted Quinn fiddling with DCKR, seemingly saving our progress. “Thanks, Quinn―it was…nice? Yeah, it was nice meeting you!”

The musician laughed and replied, “I enjoyed meeting you too! Don’t be a stranger after tomorrow―’bye!”

“Bye! Bye!” Cathy copied, offering her own farewell.

I closed the door gently, then surveyed the hallway for a trash can and the way to the exit. I hope Latias didn’t feel any of that….

ᛇᚾᛇ

For the past ten minutes, I had been awash in a heinous amalgamation of emotion. Fear, embarrassment, anger, arousal―it was maddening to simply sit and be assaulted by the deluge that was reverberating across my nascent mental link with Mason. Even cut from each other as we were, there were some things that could not be wholly quashed. It had sent me shivering with rage, knowing that I was willingly inflicting such pain on my bond-mate.

Then, all of a sudden, it stopped, alongside my physical reaction to it. Thank Arceus, it’s finally over, I hissed inwardly. All I could detect was a curious mix of hesitation and relief. No trepidation, no nervousness, no anticipation. Hopefully Mason is going to leave the building soon, I reasoned.

“Patience is key, Ruby,” Nigel said, surely taking notice. We had moved a little ways up the path, almost out of line of sight of Margaret. Night had fully fallen on campus, and it would be hard to see us from our vantage, since we were partially obscured by darkened foliage and there were no nearby lamps illuminating the path. “It’s hard to just wait, I know. Actually, I have an idea. Is Mason good at responding to texts?” I nodded emphatically―that was one thing I could rely on Mason for, was near-instantaneous replies to anything I asked over text. The more I got to know him, the more his low response time made perfect sense. “Okay, how about this: I think it’s been long enough where I can safely check up on Mason. I’ll text him first, to see how he’s doing. If he doesn’t reply to me, you go next. If he doesn’t reply to you, we’ll head inside. Acceptable?”

I held up a finger, and started writing a more elaborate response on my phone. Let’s wait another half-hour or so, just to be completely sure. Remember, if he sees us and nothing was actually wrong, that’s the worst possible outcome. I hoped that Nigel would accept my terms. While he did not know it, I knew that Mason was just fine―of course, I could not tell him how I knew that.

“If you’re sure,” Nigel replied, and I nodded both in response and relief.

Our eyes were trained on both common entrances to Margaret―one in the front, one in the rear. It was highly unlikely that Mason would use the back door into the courtyard, so I had volunteered to watch the front.

Five minutes passed without incident. A good chunk of females had entered the building, but no one had left. My heart skipped a beat when the door opened seemingly of its own accord―someone was exiting. Within seconds, I recognized the black hoodie and long brown hair, appearing black in the low light, once the door had swung shut. I grabbed Nigel’s shoulder with my left hand, and pointed with my right. “There he is!” he confirmed. “He’s alone―we’ll ascertain what happened soon.” Nigel whipped his phone out from his right pocket. “What should I say?”

Just ask if he’s doing okay.

“On it.” Nigel’s fingers danced across his phone screen, and the moment he pressed Send, our focus zeroed in on Mason. Sure enough, Mason stopped in his tracks and checked his phone, which was already in his hand. It was likely that he was already making to text either one of us. Seconds ticked by, then a message appeared on Nigel’s phone.

Yeah, I’m okay. Just leaving Quinn’s dorm now. A lot happened. Not sure how I feel about it all.

Nigel and I swapped glances, then he began typing a new message:

Do you want to meet me at your room so you can talk about it with Ruby and me?

Before pressing Send, Nigel spoke aloud. “We’d best get moving. Once I send this, he’ll be on his way, and if he walks quickly, he’ll see us.” I nodded, pleased with the dapper human’s plan. I craved the opportunity to really know how Mason did with Quinn, and to help parse through his emotions. I was the resident expert, after all!

The two of us started back toward my dorm room at a brisk pace, and after around ten seconds, Nigel sent the message. Once he did so, he broke into a light jog―I had to resist laughing at the sight as I sped up to match his pace.

No words passed between us as we made our way back to our dorm without fanfare. I let myself into my room, ironically putting up the same façade that I had originally planned before I left my room earlier that evening, albeit with Nigel waiting outside. I fixed everything as though I had never left―desk lamp turned on, and textbook and sketchbook splayed open.

Two minutes later, I heard Nigel’s voice, and I strained to understand him: “…that was quicker than I expected! Would you like to knock, or should I?”

“I’ll do it,” I heard Mason say hastily. He then knocked in a very rhythmic way, one that signaled that I needed to get into illusion form before he opened the door. I waited briefly, casting the impression that I was indeed shifting forms, then threw the door open. “Hi, Ruby―we’re back!” Feigning ignorance, I co*cked my head to the side and pointed at Nigel, as if I did not know why he was with Mason. “I want to talk to Nigel, too―we’ll explain.” Nodding, I stepped aside, letting the two males inside.

Once the door had shut behind us, I finally allowed myself the relief of fully rekindling our mental link. I sighed contentedly, and I could see the weight lift from Mason’s shoulders as his posture relaxed. What’s all this I feel? I asked him privately, continuing my act.

Give us just one more minute, Latias. I’ll get to it.

Okay, I said. Nigel took a seat at Mason’s desk, while we sat on our own beds. So, how did it go? I signed.

“She asked how everything went,” Mason interpreted for Nigel, then sighed. “God, what a trip! I’m glad I’m back in here, that’s for sure.”

Mason then launched into a retelling of the whole afternoon and evening. As he began, I got my phone out, so that Nigel could see my questions and thoughts without Mason having to “interpret” my sign language. “We were walking up toward the dining hall, Nigel and I, and we heard this beautiful song being played on an ocarina. It’s like a flute, except it’s pitched a little differently. The interesting part is that I recognized the tune as being from one of the games I’ve played. Nigel suggested that we talk to the musician because of that, so we did. Her name was Quinn, and she had a Chatot named Cathy with her, keeping time with her music.”

I noticed that a tinge of nervousness echoed across our psychic link upon Mason saying Quinn’s name. It arrived in time with a flash of envy that I viciously quashed before Mason could feel it. Outwardly, I nodded, intrigued by the additional details that Nigel had left out. A Trainer, huh? That must have been cool meeting a Pokémon up close.

Mason smiled briefly, but his countenance shifted back to neutral. He had a “job” to do, and he was going to do it. “It was indeed. So, we took her along with us to the dining hall. Cathy actually rode on my head for a little bit! We made light conversation on our way there, and for the first time, I actually sat down in the hall with other people to eat. It was nice doing that for once, if only for the fact that my food wasn’t lukewarm by the time I make it back here!”

I bet! But eating didn’t take you this long, did it? What happened next?

“Well, er…I tried to get to talking with Nigel’s friends. Two of them were Trainers too, even. One had an Aron partner, while the other had an Electrike. But time after time, it was Quinn who was interested in what I had to say. She, uh…well, she invited me back to her room to play video games. And…I said yes.”

I gasped as though I did not know that already. You WHAT? I wrote. Mason, I…I don’t know what to say. I’m *impressed* that you’d decide to do that on your own, but with a *girl?* You know what that *actually* means, don’t you? Surely you do, because we get that question all the time!

“Yeah, yeah, I know, and trust me, I’ll get to that. But I was just taking your advice! If I didn’t try, I would never succeed! And, um, I didn’t realize the implications at the time.” I resisted fixing Mason with a flat look. I knew he wasn’t pushing blame onto me, but it sure sounded like it.

“I pulled him aside before they left so that we could swap numbers,” Nigel added, echoing what he had said to me earlier. “If anything came up, he could reach out to me.”

“That made me feel better about the whole thing,” Mason said. “So, after we left, Quinn and I got to talking about other stuff, including about you, a little bit. See, she assumed that since we were rooming together, we were an ‘item,’ as she put it. I denied it, and she seemed to get a bit friendlier after that.”

I rolled my eyes from without, but within, I could barely conceal my anger. She was scouting you, dummy. Making a pass at you. You didn’t notice?

Mason sighed, and a splinter of the same anger reverberated across our link. “No, I didn’t. Again, I’ll get to that. We make it to her room, and it’s filled with gaming and geek culture stuff. It was awesome looking at all of it, but that’s when I started to notice that something was up. Quinn’s room was a single. Quinn took off her sweater, and she only had a thin tank top underneath. And while she was setting up the Wii to play the game we were going to play, she was doing this little dance that showed off her figure, which was…uh….” He trailed off, too embarrassed to continue.

*Fuller* than mine? I asked bluntly.

“Uh, yeah, that’s the word for it,” came the unsteady reply.

“Quite,” added Nigel, confirming the notion.

“That was the moment I realized what Quinn was doing. B-but, I couldn’t just get out of there, or tell her how I was feeling! I didn’t know how! I’d gone from barely speaking to anyone to that in less than three hours! I just hoped that once we actually started playing, things wouldn’t somehow get to, y’know, that point―”

I had already begun writing my response amid my bond-mate’s blubbering, wishing to keep him on track. Mason, don’t worry about it. What happened next?

“W-well, we got through about an hour of playtime, and right as we hit a big milestone, I noticed that Quinn was sidled up next to me. A-and….” A nearly gag-inducing wave of nervousness and shame washed over me upon his next words. “…she kissed me. On the lips. And I freaked out! I scuffled away from her, and she got all mad, then I got all mad, and we started shouting at each other! She thought I was leading her on, lying to her and stuff, and I was yelling about how she clearly knew that I didn’t know what was going on, and―”

“I think we get the picture, Mason,” Nigel said just as I was about to hold up a hand to silence him.

“Right. Sorry. But her Chatot, Cathy, shouted at us to stop and just talk to each other. So, we did―about how I didn’t realize what was going on until it was too late, about how she should have known better than to keep pushing the issue. We left on friendly terms.” The tumultuous emotions rippling between us began to stabilize. “And hey, guess what? Before I left, Quinn said that she wanted to help me start a Pokémon enthusiasts club!”

My mouth fell open in shock. I couldn’t express it outwardly with Nigel present, but the fact that such a thing could ensure my continued ability to remain at the school without arousing suspicion was borderline miraculous.

“That’s astounding!” Nigel said in my stead. “Well, all’s well that ends well, even if there was a bit of rough waters on your way there. And think about it, Mason―you made this happen. Not me, and not Ruby…well, Ruby made it happen indirectly. I can’t think of a better way to channel your passion for Pokémon. You’re the best for the job, that’s for certain. And I’m sure it’ll help you come out of your shell, just like Quinn’s song.”

I nodded emphatically, a wide smile on my face. Mason, however, still had a frown etched in his features. A whisper drifted across our link: Latias, I want to talk to you alone. About how I felt.

A shallow nod was all I showed outwardly as I began writing a message to Nigel. I want to talk to Mason, just me and him.

“Ah―alright,” he said upon my showing my phone to him. He stood from Mason’s chair, then opened the door to leave. “I’ll see you in class the day after tomorrow, Mason. And remember my offer about our study group, okay?”

“You got it. See you later!” The door shut behind him, and Mason looked to me expectantly. Is he actually gone? he asked telepathically.

He…is moving away from our door, yes, I confirmed. I finally did what I wanted to do for the past ten minutes: I dashed toward Mason and hugged him as hard as I could. Arceus, Mason, I’m so glad everything ended up okay. You must have been so scared! My bond-mate nodded, shivering at my touch. I could feel you from here. The confusion, the doubt, and a little bit of something more…instinctual, I finished with a little smirk.

Horror danced in Mason’s eyes as he pulled back slightly. I-I would have never―

Shh, I whispered, putting a finger to his lips. Of course you wouldn’t have. You’re here, and not with Quinn. She had her goals, and you had yours.

You…wouldn’t mind if we kept talking to each other? Even outside of club stuff? Because outside of all that provocative stuff, we were having fun.

I fell silent, unsure of how to respond. I cast my thoughts back to what had happened. The most prominent issue, of course, was the sickness that had been born from our separation. While he had not said anything about it, I knew that if I asked, Mason would confirm its existence. If, somehow, Mason and Quinn started over, and actually became a romantic item organically, I would have to tag along wherever they went to prevent it from rearing its ugly head once more, which I did not want to do. However, I didn’t want to completely quash their friendship, because that would make working the club that much harder.

But why would Mason have reacted that way to Quinn’s actions when things got heated? There isn’t a male human I can think of that could resist such a thing, not even him. Unless….

Suddenly, I felt a distinct warping of Mason’s emotions. A vague hope and desire manifested itself, one where he wanted me to answer in the negative. But why?

It was at that moment that I realized the tacit truth. Mason was able to reject Quinn out of reflex because someone else had already occupied his heart. And that someone….

…was me.

Mason doesn’t want to be taken by someone else. He wants me to stake a claim in him! But if I do that too soon, after what Quinn did to him…Arceus, I don’t even know how I feel about that!

I cleared my throat, finally ready to answer Mason’s question. I don’t see why not, but promise me you’ll be careful around her. She was nice this time, but I wouldn’t take any more romantic hints from her at face value.

I carefully gauged Mason’s emotional reaction to my answer. Sure enough, even though I didn’t fully forbid him from talking to Quinn, I felt unabashed relief emanating from him. It was still possible that all he wanted was permission not to have to try and think about romance, but it was far more likely that my answer was confirmation I was at least somewhat interested in him―

My train of thought was interrupted by a potent wave of shame. Quirking a brow, I continued: What, were you hoping I’d say no?

“Ah, n-no!” Mason stammered. “I just…I shouldn’t have had to ask for your permission, is all. Y’know, because I’m trying to do this on my own.”

It doesn’t hurt to ask me for advice every now and again, silly, I reply, tittering softly. What Mason didn’t know was that I had seen straight through his lies―he never was any good at it. While it was true that he shouldn’t have had to ask―I wasn’t his mother, or his social manager―he did indeed want me to say no, and keep things strictly club-related with Quinn. Thus was his short-sighted desire…

…which led me to contemplate about my own wants. I didn’t know what to think about how Mason felt about me. However, it was impossible to deny the burning jealousy I felt when Nigel told me what Quinn had done with Mason. That jealousy had to mean something.

But that’s a worry for another time, I mused inwardly, finally letting go of Mason. Well? What’re you gonna get up to?

“Engage in some fictional gratuitous violence,” came the easy reply, and I laughed as Mason sat down at his desk and booted up his computer.

Sounds like a great way to cap off the night! I answered, letting our charged emotions drift away. The time to confront them would come, but I was content to lose myself in my work until they came knocking once more.

Chapter 9: Battlefields

Chapter Text

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“This will be a one-on-one match between Lyn Singer of Rockville and Chris Slate of Ellicott City. There will be no time limit, and the match will be decided once one Trainer’s Pokémon is judged to be unable to battle by the referee. Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for the first two participants of the day!”

Once the MC finished his announcement, a massive roar reverberated through the crowd seated in the bleachers facing the general athletic field beyond the chemistry and psychology building. The excitement was palpable and warranted—the first college-sanctioned Pokémon battles were about to be underway. I couldn’t speak for all of the people gathered there that Saturday, but I was fit to burst at the prospect of learning more about battling so that Mason and I could one day participate!

“Let’s do this, Krokorok!” Chris called. He was a little on the short side, was wearing a beret, and had a prominent moustache. When the back of his head turned towards the crowd, I could see short, curly black hair. Accompanying that was a blue sweater vest over a gray long-sleeved shirt, khaki colored pants, and gray moccasins. The Krokorok at his side jumped forward, claws balled into fists as it gave a low growl.

“Let’s give the crowd a show, Kirlia!” Lyn shouted, one arm outstretched towards the air as her Kirlia leapt gracefully to the fore. Like Chris, she was wearing multiple layers in accordance with the crisp March afternoon; I could see a white shirt underneath her green sweater. She also wore blue jeans and black sneakers, which matched her raven-black shoulder length hair.

“I didn’t think you’d be so excited to see this, Mason!” Nigel said loudly to make himself heard to my partner.

“Oh, definitely! I’ve been looking forward to seeing this for the past month since the college accepted our proposal! Ruby, too!”

I smiled, marveling at how Mason exchanged words with Nigel with ease. After meeting him last October, the two hit it off almost immediately. His grades picked up almost instantaneously after making his first genuine human friend as well. He and Nigel had joined two other girls to form a group of four for the second semester of introductory biology lab. What was more, he really seemed to enjoy working with the girls.

I was also surprised when Mason came back to our room one day last December with company. After sensing two presences outside our door instead of just one, I quickly assumed an illusion form and waited patiently, busying myself with my tablet. Along with my bond-mate, another male human, dressed like a stereotypical college student—beanie, hoodie, track pants, and sneakers—entered with a small white device under his arm, one I recognized as a GameCube controller. He was a bit shorter than Mason, and yet somehow was even slimmer. Under his hat, he had dark brown unkempt hair that was like Nigel’s, and he was a good deal paler than any of us. “Ken, this is Ruby, my roomie,” Mason had said. Ken seemed a bit startled by my presence, but took up my hand once I offered my own for a handshake.

Great to meet you! I had signed, which Mason repeated to the other human.

“She’s mute. We go way back, and I translate for her if people don’t know ASL,” my partner explained quickly, then sat down on his bed, facing the TV. “We’re gonna play some Smash, are you cool with that?” he had asked me while Ken was plugging his controller into our Wii.

Of course! I was done studying for the day anyway. I might join later, actually!

“Sweet,” Ken had said in a surprisingly deep voice after another translation, and I smiled in response. After that night of fast-paced fun, Mason explained that he had met Ken at an unofficial Super Smash Brothers tournament on campus at one of the other dorms. It came down to the two boys at the very end, and Mason was shocked when he ended up losing to Ken. However, both boys—to my shock—agreed to play each other again in the future, and that marked Mason’s first genuine friend made completely without my interference, me forcibly throwing him out of our room notwithstanding. During their play that night, I sensed that Ken was not unlike Nigel, though a good deal less noticeable, for lack of a better term—similar to Mason. I thus judged that they would get along fantastically. In any case, I was relieved that I didn’t have to hold my partner’s hand anymore, but I would have done anything for the now-of-age human with which I was bonded.

True to her word, Quinn worked feverishly alongside Mason to start the campus’ “Pokémon Enthusiasts Guild,” as they eventually named it. “Guild” sounded more mature than “club,” or so Mason said when he told me of the name. Membership grew quite quickly, indicating its demand, and it was because of the two’s efforts that the exhibition matches had even become a reality, selling the idea to the board of directors by mentioning that Pokémon battling could eventually become an extremely popular sport, and that they would be foolish not to become early adopters of it. Thus, the athletic field was modified somewhat to suit such displays. Large concrete barriers were placed around the field—Mason had likened them to ones called ‘Jersey barriers,’ except they were taller by about two feet. Two areas at each end of the field were cordoned off for Trainers to stand, while the Pokémon battling had the rest of the field in which to move about.

“Are the two combatants ready?” The ref called, snapping me out of my reverie. He was holding two flags up at a forty-five-degree angle, one red, and one green. I smiled—some things never changed about Pokémon battles.

“You bet!” Chris responded.

“Absolutely!” Lyn followed.

“Then let the battle begin!” The referee’s cry was punctuated by his flourishing of the two flags downwards.

Surprisingly, neither of the Pokémon moved at the beginning of the battle. Instead, a small amount of energy emanated from the Kirlia as the two stared each other down in the first few seconds of the battle. Krokorok didn’t seem to have anything similar occur. Of the three Abilities I knew a Kirlia could have, Lyn’s Kirlia had to have Trace, and it had just copied Krokorok’s Ability.

That Krokorok must not have Intimidate, right Latias? Mason asked telepathically. I could hear him quite clearly over the crowd, which had settled into a general chatter. Otherwise, the Trace would have copied it and it would have activated, along with Krokorok’s original Intimidate.

That’s right, I replied, my eyes fixed on the two Pokémon, still not moving. Only the two Trainers will know for sure what was taken. But if it wasn’t Intimidate, which one was it: Moxie or Anger Point?

“And Kirlia seems to have Traced Krokorok’s Ability! What could it possibly be? Can Lyn use whatever was copied to her advantage?” the MC shouted loud and clear. I was glad a knowledgeable human was on the microphone, but I had to wonder where he got said knowledge. I figured he had to have a Pokémon of his own, though there was always the possibility that he used one of many guides available online to help him.

“It’s not anything a Kirlia can make use of, that’s for sure! Krokorok, let’s get this started with a Bite attack!” Chris commanded, and the Ground Type shot forward at a decent clip, jaws open wide.

“Use Teleport to dodge!” Not a half-second later, the Emotion Pokémon followed its Trainer’s command, and I was surprised that it had reacted so quickly—a rainbow sheen enveloped it as it vanished from sight. Krokorok stumbled awkwardly, trying to cancel its forward momentum. I had a hunch that Kirlia would appear behind its opponent. Sure enough, around fifteen yards away, the Emotion Pokémon popped back into existence, the blue outline of the Teleport fading as it did so.

“Go for another Bite!” Chris ordered immediately, not allowing Kirlia to exploit its superior positioning. I figured the Trainer had some trick up his sleeve to use the same move twice in a row, and sure enough, as Lyn commanded Kirlia to Teleport again, he shouted, “not so fast! Krokorok, use Pursuit!” A glint shined in the Desert Croc’s eyes, and it shot forward at a speed that put its previous charge to shame. It slammed into Kirlia with a full-body tackle right before it executed the Teleport. The crowd gasped as Kirlia disappeared; most of them were unsure of what had happened, but Mason and I were familiar with the various effects and mechanics of most attacks.

“What seemed like a novice mistake turned out to be an expert maneuver for Chris and Krokorok! Baiting a Teleport with Bite, Pursuit’s power doubles when it is used on a fleeing foe!” The crowd went absolutely nuts upon the announcer’s proclamation, and I could only imagine what was going through the native humans’ heads. Who would have guessed that Pokémon battles had this much strategy? I tittered lightly at their reaction. If they thought a simple bait and switch—literally—was something to be amazed by, their minds would truly be blown by something the Pokémon League back home would offer. Who’re you rooting for, Mason? I asked my bond-mate, whose attention was currently fixed on Kirlia, the Emotion Pokémon reappearing once more, looking moderately beaten already.

I’d love for Kirlia to pull the win. Call me biased in favor of Psychic Types, he replied with a knowing smirk, earning a grin from me.

“Did you know that Pursuit did that, Mason?” Nigel inquired, noticing his lack of reaction but not our silent communication, and he nodded. “How?”

“C’mon Nigel, think about who you’re asking,” Mason answered good-naturedly, which drew a scoff from his friend. “Kirlia will have to push the offensive soon—it can’t stand up to many more attacks from Krokorok, and they now know avoiding and evading with Teleport won’t work because of Pursuit,” he continued, giving his own critique of the situation. It wasn’t anything terribly advanced, but it seemed to satisfy the other human.

“Time to use our ranged attacks to our advantage, Kirlia! Magical Leaf, let’s go!” Lyn yelled, and Kirlia responded again with lightning speed. The rainbow-colored leaves it was ordered to use spawned from thin air, looking quite sharp, before flying at high speed at Krokorok.

“Little leaves aren’t anything to be scared of! Use Slash to tear them apart!” Chris responded, and his Pokémon’s claws seemed to glow just a bit brighter as it hacked away at the deluge of leaves like a living lawnmower. Still, it was too much to keep up with. While the attack progressed, more and more leaves snuck by and struck the Desert Croc Pokémon super effectively, eliciting grunts every so often from it. I was excited that our pick to win had just as much fight in it, despite one of its Types being completely nullified by its opponent. Kirlia could actually win!

“That looked like it hurt! Magical Leaf is a Grass Type move, which are super effective against a Ground Type like Krokorok!” the MC announced, keeping everyone up to date and continuing to help those less knowledgeable about battling. “Will Krokorok be able to stop the leafy onslaught before it’s too late?”

“Use Sandstorm to help avoid the leaves!” Chris shouted, and after a brief pause, the wind started to pick up significantly. Bits of debris started whipping about in the erratic winds, and soon, visibility was almost nothing on the battlefield.

The crowd started to descend into a panic, but before full bedlam could evolve, the announcer intervened: “Ladies and gentlemen, Krokorok has just used a weather-based technique as its answer! For a short time, the whipping winds and buffeting sand will hurt Kirlia, but Krokorok will remain unharmed! Visibility is at an all-time low, but the Desert Croc Pokémon won’t have any trouble navigating this harsh weather!”

Amid the burgeoning chaos that the Sandstorm had caused, a strange presence brushed against my consciousness for a fraction of a second. Looking around, I tried to at least isolate a general position, but it was too late—it was gone. I couldn’t put my claw on it, but it seemed so familiar….

My eyes passed over a male human while I was searching for the strange presence. Oddly, he already seemed to be looking directly at me. “Hey,” he said. “Can Pokémon really control the weather like this?” I nodded a couple of times in response. “Thanks,” he said, turned back towards the battle, but not before giving me a strange smile. It looked more like a leer than anything else.

“You can’t hide from Magical Leaf! Kirlia, use it once more!” Lyn commanded, seizing my focus on the battle. The multi-colored glint of the leaves was hard to miss, even in the terrible weather. As they flew, they seemed to turn erratically every so often before a full-fledged cry of pain was heard from their target.

“What?!” Chris shouted, confused. “Krokorok, what happened?!”

Oh man, that mistake really cost Chris! Mason said excitedly. Magical Leaf never misses! Thinking he was safe just with Sandstorm will set him really far back!

Looks like our favored pick is in line to win this! I cheered, almost making to stand up and instead shifting around in my seat with barely contained excitement. I wanted so badly to be on the field right then, with Mason at my back. I wanted to win for him and prove that our bond was stronger than any other!

“Unbelievable! Chris and Krokorok have been caught off-guard by Magical Leaf’s uncanny accuracy! Could it be that it’s one of the few techniques that never fails to strike its target?!”

By then, the crowd had adopted a three-step chant for both Pokémon, and I couldn’t for the life of me tell which one had more followers.

“We can still escape those leaves with Dig! Krokorok, underground, now!” Chris shouted, a hint of frustration worming its way into the human’s voice. The Sandstorm raged on unabated for quite some time, and there was no sign of the Desert Croc Pokémon. Meanwhile, Kirlia was still taking incremental damage from the bad weather!

Is Chris trying to stall out the match?! What a dirty trick! Mason scoffed. Meanwhile, I was alarmed that I had completely lost sight of Kirlia. What was happening in the swirling sands?

That’s a Dark Type Trainer for you—no, wait! The Sandstorm’s letting up…and look at Kirlia!

Just as quickly as the conditions deteriorated, they restored themselves with uncanny speed. Mason combed his eyes over the battlefield, and he gasped, thrusting out a finger at what he saw. An enormous sinkhole at the eastern end of the field had opened wide, and in the center of its gaping jaws, Kirlia was trapped inside it. Krokorok had, without Chris’ command, used Sand Tomb on Kirlia—it must have been a combination attack they had laid out from the very start!

A small eruption of sand to its right signaled the Desert Croc’s re-entrance to the battle, and it seemed to have a hungry glint in its eyes, like a hunter that had just cornered its prey. I noticed many small cuts on its body, however; it had sustained heavy damage from the fully-effective Magical Leaf.

“And things have taken a dire turn for Kirlia, folks! Sand Tomb prevents escape! And with Krokorok bearing down on it, this battle will soon see its conclusion after that stellar combination attack!” the announcer yelled animatedly, then a gasp sounded over the speakers. “Wait! That red glow around Kirlia! Could it be?!”

Arceus, look! I gasped in turn, my fists clenched tightly in excitement. Kirlia Traced Anger Point! And that Sand Tomb…it must have been a critical strike!

The MC picked up where I left off. “Anger Point activates when a Pokémon is struck by a critical hit! When luck takes a turn for the worse, it kicks in to even the playing field by boosting the user’s physical attacking prowess to astronomical levels! But can Kirlia take advantage of this massive boost?!”

“Yes! We can still win this, Kirlia!” Lyn screamed to her Pokémon, whose expression had turned quite menacing despite its struggling—it wasn’t able to move either its arms or legs. I was actually rather intimidated by it, and that was another Ability entirely!

“I don’t think so!” Chris shot back. “Krokorok, end this with an Assurance!”

Oh sh*t, that’s not good, Mason said, though my attention was still on Kirlia. Assurance will hit twice as hard because of Sand Tomb’s incremental damage. Lyn needs to come up with something, and fast!

“Kirlia, Zen Headbutt!”

“What?!” Mason cried out loud, clearly bewildered. “Krokorok is part Dark Type! It’s immune to Psychic attacks!”

“Either Lyn just cost herself the match, knows something you don’t, or is going for the best option available,” Nigel replied amid several other spectators agreeing with my partner. The Desert Croc charged towards the Emotion Pokémon, claws glowing a fierce purple. Suddenly, the red aura around Kirlia flared angrily and a gargantuan blue sphere of bristling psychic energy appeared in the center of the sinkhole, sending my mind reeling. I was forced to squint at the almost blindingly brilliant energies. Not two seconds later, the match’s first explosion erupted from the pit of sand, sending it along with chunks of earth flying and obscuring the battlefield in smoke.

That explosion turned out to be the last as well.

The smoke cleared, and against all odds, it was Kirlia that remained standing, and Krokorok that was sprawled on the ground, its unfocused and blank gaze giving away its knockout!

“YEAH!” Mason bellowed as he shot up from his seat along with many other humans. I joined him in his exultation, jumping to my feet as well.

“Krokorok is unable to battle!” The referee declared, bringing the red flag down and the green up. “Kirlia is the winner, and the victory goes to Lyn of Rockville!”

“I don’t believe it, folks!” The announcer cried over the maelstrom of sound that had consumed the crowd; I almost had to cover my ears as I sat back down. “The sheer force behind Kirlia’s Zen Headbutt due to Anger Point’s effect must have overcome Krokorok’s immunity to Psychic Type techniques! And with that much power behind it, it’s no wonder Krokorok lost in the clash, despite Assurance’s power boost! What a match to start off the day!”

The two Trainers approached where Krokorok was downed, and appeared to share some words between them that I couldn’t make out, despite my keen hearing. They then shook hands and knelt down in front of Krokorok, with Kirlia joining them at that time, surely to thank their Pokémon for a job well done. It warmed my heart that the native humans that had chosen to become Trainers did not seem to view their partners as anything less than the best of friends, and I smiled as my thoughts turned back to Mason. We’d make an amazing team—I was sure of it.

Suddenly, while the crowd was dispersing for the thirty-minute break between matches, I felt a tap on my right shoulder, ending my fixation on the first battle. Turning around, I noticed that it was the same male human that I had replied to earlier. “Hey,” he said, giving a little wave. “My name’s Vince. What’s yours?” His voice was quite a bit deeper than Mason’s, but was a great deal rougher, like his father. According to Mason, a rasp like that was caused by one thing: the smoking of a native plant, tobacco.

As I was about to pull out my phone from my pockets, Mason had noticed the human. He must have overhead the question. “No need for that,” he said to me before turning to the other male. “Her name is Ruby.”

“Why don’t you let her speak for herself?” Vince replied, an obvious edge to his voice.

“Because she’s mute?” Mason countered without hostility, not noticing what I had.

“Well, how was I supposed to know that?” came the haughty reply. While the two were conversing, I studied the human that had introduced himself to me. He had short, well-kept blonde hair and was quite well-built, much more so than Mason was. His jaw was almost square, his eyebrows were quite thick, and he had piercing green eyes. Truly, he would have been rather attractive to human females, but they would not know what I had picked up once I began to read the disposition of his heart. Arrogance was principle among the aspects that made up the human, something I despised greatly. There were times when Mason himself believed he was arrogant, but I knew better. Vince, on the other claw….

“Did you not notice that she didn’t make one sound during the match? Even when she stood up at the end?” Mason said, using logic to deftly put down Vince’s claim. “That’s a bit hard to pull off, don’t you agree?”

“I don’t, actually,” were the next words that came out of Vince’s mouth, and I then became utterly confused. How in the world could he justify that? “I just wanted to talk to Ruby here and get to know her a little better. Is that so wrong?”

Yes, it is, when you brush off Mason like that, I growled, allowing Mason to hear my thoughts. I succeeded in pulling out my phone and etched two words in my note-taking app to show the blonde male: No thanks.

“’No thanks’?!” Vince all but shouted, the winning smile he had on inverting itself almost instantaneously. “Is he your boyfriend or something?” he continued, pointing an accusing finger at Mason.

A pregnant pause hung in the air, and the strange presence from during the match returned for a fleeting moment. I dared not speak or try to seek it out, however. It would be gone soon enough.

Nigel, having been silent during the exchange, spoke next, stepping in for the first time: “They are roommates, not a pair.”

A strange mixture of emotions blossomed in my chest, and I could feel a similar set of confused feelings from Mason, but they were highly suppressed. They were gone before I could effectively decipher them. “They’ve known each other since before coming here, so it would make sense that Mason would be used to sparing her the trouble of writing down a response to someone or translating her sign language.”

All but my disdain for Vince remained when he stood up, looked at Mason with a poorly concealed sneer, and addressed me: “You don’t know what you’re missing.” He then walked off of the bleachers towards the northern end of the campus.

That was something I wasn’t expecting today, I said with my mind and signed, then continued without signing, intended for Mason alone: What do you think he wants from me in particular?

“Me neither. We’d better keep our guard up, just in case. This campus is probably the safest I’ve ever heard of, but it doesn’t hurt to be ready for anything,” Mason replied after translating for Nigel. And what else? Judging from what he said, I’d say he wants to make you his girlfriend for some reason. The way he acted though…Quinn’s given me enough pointers on that sort of thing to predict that he wants you in the sack.

“I fear your paranoia is not misplaced,” the other human said quietly as we began walking back to our dorm. I was sufficiently disgusted after Mason explained what “in the sack” meant that I was suddenly uninterested in the next battle, and didn’t hesitate to let that be known to my two companions. “Something was off about him,” Nigel continued, keeping his voice low. “Ruby’s quite proficient at reading people, I’ve noticed, and she was put on edge even before you explained how one would notice, given the situation, that she isn’t able to speak.”

Mason nodded. “I hope you’re wrong about him, Nigel,” he muttered, voice slightly shaky as he looked around and subsequently checking his phone, likely reading the time. What do you want to do, Latias? he asked telepathically.

There’s nothing we can do right now, I replied with some disappointment. I will say this: I can and will defend myself if necessary. I might not be a battler yet, but my claws can still do some damage to a human.

And reveal yourself to the public? Last I checked, mauling a human doesn’t just go unnoticed.

That is true…. Despite the situation, I felt another pressure in my chest knowing that he just wanted to help protect me. I guess we’re stuck with the human way.

I would hope so, unless Vince happened to be a Latios in disguise or something, he said, unable to laugh at such absurdity for fear of tipping off Nigel; I had to resist laughing as well. We entered our three-story dorm and bid farewell to Nigel until dinner as he moved farther down the hall. I’m sure it’s nothing, Mason assured me as he unlocked our door, but you never know, like we said. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

Oh, how right he would be.

Chapter 10: A Trainer's Strength

Chapter Text

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Several days had passed since our first encounter with Vince, and while they were otherwise uneventful, I was constantly reminded of why attending a comparably tiny school was both a blessing and a curse. Without fail, Vince and I would cross paths every day, and even though Latias wasn’t with me most of the time, he always gave me a disdainful look from within his group of five or six friends, all of whom were just as physically fit as he was. I knew for a fact that one or two of them were members of the school’s rugby team, and it wasn’t outlandish to assume that they all were members. I couldn’t help but fear that they would come after me if Vince didn’t get his way, even if they never joined him in giving me dirty looks. I wouldn’t stand a Gastly of a chance if they did so, which made the situation all the more frustrating.

“Vince’s way” became painfully clear almost immediately. Having no reason to believe that Latias wasn’t human, he made advances on her almost every day. First, it was at dinner later on the same day we encountered him. Next, it was after one of her classes early in the afternoon, while I was in one of my two laboratory classes. As she described their meetings, it was clear that she was under high duress because of the man, since she almost always ended her stories on the verge of tears. She would go into detail about how she thought he was following her, and how he wouldn’t back down after being told she wasn’t interested in doing whatever it was he was offering.

The intensity of said offers quickly multiplied as well. They began with offering to take her to the local bar, escalating to bluntly asking her if she wanted to “hang out in his room” later in the night, and we both knew by then that his offers bore no similarities to ones with which we were more familiar. What was most eerie of all was that he seemed to do this every time I wasn’t around, soon after we typically parted ways, like he actually was following her and keeping tabs on me as well. I never asked her what she read from him in terms of his emotions, not wanting to spawn any new distress; while I could not perceive emotions like she could, her nigh-chronic negative moods left me feeling like there was a gaping hole in my very soul. There was but one culprit.

I hated him—a genuine loathing I had never before felt in my entire life. I hated the fact that he was hurting the best friend I would ever have, and that I was essentially powerless to do anything about it. I hated that she was nothing more than a toy to him, ready to be tossed aside once he had had his fun. My fists clenched with rage and frustration as I walked back from my late morning class that had just ended, denying myself lunch until I had checked up on Latias. Her safety was no longer guaranteed—a sickening reality that I would have done anything to change.

I earned several looks of concern for the scowl that was etched on my face during my silent walk, but nothing else mattered but her. I arrived at our building, but still could not sense my partner because of what that slime had done, the growth in our connection cut down to last semester’s state. Fortunately, her consciousness brushed against mine as I turned right and entered our hall. I calmed down considerably, allowing the motions of coming into our room to flow freely from my hands, only to have my heart almost torn in half mere seconds later.

Latias was sprawled not on her bed, but mine, wings splayed flat across her body, the left one threatening to touch the wall, her back turned to me. As she lifted her head from my bed to regard me with her amber eyes, which had long since lost their light, I could see the faint shimmer of tear streaks across her face in the noontime light filtering in through the blinds. I was stunned by the sight—I had never seen her so stressed, let alone in tears!

Latias…. I trailed off as I threw off my backpack and approached her slowly. She lifted up her right side, permitting me access to the bed, and I understood what she wanted me to do: Lay down next to her, underneath her right wing. Despite something screaming at me that the act was going to feel very strange, I paid it no mind, choosing to lay on my side next to her. My left arm wrapped around her body above her wings and my right arm was tight underneath me. It was quite a snug fit on the twin sized bed, since we were essentially the same height at six feet tall.

I had never been that close to Latias before while she was in Eon form. We had hugged in the past, to be sure, and she did sleep on my bed back at home, but that bed was twice the size of the one on which we were currently resting. Those were nothing compared to what we were doing.

Latias made room on the pillow for my head next to hers. What…what are you doing on my bed, Latias? I asked telepathically, attempting to keep my voice low.

She was silent for a while before she brought one of her claws up to where I could see it, lifting my pillow. Pokémon…often f-find comfort in the scent o-of their Trainers, she answered shakily, as if it was a great struggle to find the strength to speak at all. I nodded solemnly, regretful that I couldn’t have been there for her sooner. She brought her head closer to mine and nestled it in the crook of my right shoulder, taking in a deep breath through her nose. I brought my arm up from under me and began to stroke her head and behind her ears, doing my best to comfort her. I’m so glad you’re finally h-here…I c-couldn’t bring myself to go to class, not with him around….

Not unlike a car that was unfortunate enough to be struck by a freight train, all of the emotions I had been feeling in that moment—Latias’ overpowering sorrow and fear—were bowled over and crushed into metaphorical dust. My hatred for Vince asserted and redoubled itself once again, taking control of my actions. Tia, I said firmly, and she looked up at me with widened eyes. I realized that I had just used a pet name for her for the first time. Nonetheless, I continued: This ends today. We’re calling public safety on this creep. I know I don’t stand a snowball’s chance in hell to stop him. But they can.

They’ll never believe us! Latias wailed, pushing her head back into my shoulder and chest. I should never have responded to him last Saturday!

You can’t seriously blame yourself for this, I replied, stunned that she would think such a thing. There’s nothing we could have done. We couldn’t have known, either. And yes, they will. All we need to do is prove it. I remembered what Latias had said to me in the moments after the match, about how she could have physically defended herself if she so desired. A plan thus started to formulate in my head while Latias squeezed me more tightly against her body.

Contacting public safety preemptively was probably the best idea but having an officer tag along when we confronted Vince would spook him into not revealing his true colors. I knew Latias’ route would be to flay him alive with her own claws, but that was the worst possible option. Such a thing would eventually be traced back to us. Even in the best-case scenario, it would minimally be blamed on a Pokémon, putting everything we had built on the campus at risk of collapse.

Our objective was relatively simple, though—once PS had reason to take Vince in, we were safe. What could that reason be?

Then, something really risky popped into my head.

Before I could lay out what I had cooked up, Latias spoke first: Mason, I will not let you put yourself at risk. You could be seriously hurt! Have you seen him? And yourself?!

If that’s what it takes to end this, I will gladly do anything to do so, I replied resolutely, figuring she had read my mind and discovered my plan:

I was going to provoke Vince to finally throw all pretense aside and deal with me, the only thing standing between him and his prize. If it came down to it, I would hold him off as long as possible while Latias or any other bystanders called for help. I knew I couldn’t win in any fight, but I would be damned if I went down quietly.

We don’t have any other option, Tia. Letting public safety act alone will get him to back off, but not for long. He’ll know it was us and come back ten times worse. If you take him on in Eon form, your cover will be completely blown, and any goodwill that’s been built for Pokémon here will vanish overnight. We’ve got one option left: I have to battle for you, even if I’m probably going to lose.

Her eyes seemed to twinkle as I finished speaking, and she let go of me, presumably to let me up. This sounds so wrong, but…you’re right. This is our best bet, despite the danger. Oddly, she did not assume illusion form when I made to leave the room. Instead, she hovered quite close to me, and a few seconds later, an odd sheen appeared around us. There, now we’re invisible. Open and close the door quickly, then we’ll head to the public safety office without being seen. That way, he and anyone that knows him won’t know where we’ve been or who we might have contacted. Let’s hurry—I can’t do this for long. I grinned, but my smile was only partially born from the beginning of the end of Vince’s advances. A taste of Latias’ power as an Eon, even for a moment, set my nerves ablaze. We would put that power to good use, embarking to end her torment once and for all.

ᚱᛉᚱ

Public safety was quite a deal more receptive than either of us had anticipated. To them, Vince’s behavior was borderline sexual harassment, and there was nothing they took more seriously on campus grounds since it was the most serious crime committed there on a regular basis. The lead officer on duty did concede that there was a dearth of evidence, however, and that we needed proof. They couldn’t commit to any sort of arrest unless Vince had actually laid a hand on Latias already, limited to only an initial investigation—just as we predicted.

It won’t be her that he’ll be dealing with, I mused as we walked to dinner, just the two of us. Or, rather, it was Latias alone with me following about twenty paces behind. The dining hall was perfect for Vince to lie in wait. We would have to come to eat, sooner or later.

Latias crested the incline towards the hall far before I did, vanishing from my line of sight. Mere seconds later, a readily perceptible wave of fear caused a fleeting blur in my vision. I could hear her very faintly: Mason, h-he’s here! Waiting for me!

I’m coming, Tia—keep him busy! Despite anticipating encountering him, the inevitable altercation afterwards was not made any easier. I had to remain calm—everything relied on him throwing the proverbial first punch, but damn if it wasn’t hard!

“Listen, babe, I’ve had enough of you stringing me along,” the blonde male said loudly as he reached out towards Latias’ arm; I had just regained visual contact with the two of them. “We’re gonna have a good time, trust me.”

“HEY!” I yelled, quickening my pace and closing the remaining gap. “Stay away from Ruby!”

“Oh, it’s you again,” Vince sneered as he surprisingly obeyed my command. Latias then ran to my side and clutched my arm tightly, like I was her only lifeline in a terrible hurricane. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her terrified expression. “You know, I don’t get you,” he said as he stepped closer, closing to only about five paces away. One or two other people had turned their heads as we backed off of the path onto the grass, not ten feet from the road. “You have this pretty thing all to yourself, and yet she’s not your girlfriend? Who better to fix that but me? She seemed like an easy pick up, but apparently, I was wrong.” His mouth curled upward at one corner, and his eyes had a dangerous glint. He closed the space I had put between us and him, causing my partner’s fear to blur my vision once more. “But playing hard to get won’t stop me.”

“You’ll have to go through me first!” I declared, trying to attract a bit more attention. “Ruby’s told me all about you, you slime ball. You’ve been stalking her for days! She doesn’t go to class because of you! And still you treat her like a cut of meat, still think this is some kind of—”

A fist came sailing through the air, striking me square in my right cheekbone and eye. I was quite literally punched into silence, a grunt being my final vocalization. I was sent reeling and stars popped into view in my other eye—a red hot pain seared my face where I had been decked, but with Latias’ support, I remained standing.

“I always get what I want,” the man replied maliciously as the dragoness let go of my arm. She ran to the side while I backed away quickly. Vince then broke out into a full-on run, body centered low, intending to tackle me to the ground. If he got on top of me, I was finished, but the first part of our plan had succeeded—since he struck first, I was well within my right to fight back!

Time seemed to slow, my mind accelerating while Vince continued his charge. I knew that my legs were stronger than my arms because of how difficult it was for me to move furniture without the necessary leverage and how poorly I did with arm-based exercises in high school gym class compared to ones dependent on the legs. Having no prior experience in any melee whatsoever, I did the only thing I could think of that would incorporate as much power from my legs as possible with minimal skill: a dropkick.

Jumping in the air, I brought both of my legs close to my body and shot them out as hard as I could manage once I thought that he was close enough. My reaction time, refined by over a decade of gaming, served me well—regrettably, however, there simply was not enough force behind my counterattack. Despite the full force blow into his left shoulder, he barreled into me, seemingly unfazed by the weak attack. Immediately after we tumbled to the ground, he grabbed my right ankle roughly from behind while I was rendered momentarily helpless from my all-or-nothing move. The vise-like hand prevented me from getting up, but I grit my teeth, unwilling to give in. Anchoring my right leg made the left much more dangerous, and it was the only thing I had left.

I no longer cared about breaking free, my unbound leg lashing out with wild abandon. I flipped over onto my back, and out of my good eye, I saw that I had in fact inflicted some semblance of damage: there was one mark on his face, surely caused by the random thrashing of my left leg. I began to aim for the arm detaining my other leg, landing a few blows on it, but my last stand was finally stifled when he caught my foot with his left hand.

“Too bad. That might have worked if you weren’t such a scrawny-ass bitch.” Both my legs were slammed flat onto the grass. Vince then shuffled forward, pinning me with his legs and knees. Realizing that my weakened struggling would not free me from his grasp, I brought my arms up in front of my face, a feeble defense against his drawn back fist. In that moment, I resigned myself to the beating of a lifetime. Completely helpless, I closed my left eye and held my breath, my right eye having already swollen shut.

But the attacks never came.

Suddenly, the weight on my legs was lifted and three grunts sounded off above me. I quickly shuffled backwards along the grass on my back before picking myself up off the ground. Opening my good eye fully, I saw that two large male students had tackled Vince off of me—they, two smaller guys, and an Ivysaur had completely immobilized him!

Arceus above, Mason! Your eye! Latias screamed, running up in front of me from my right. She peered closely at my right eye with a horrified look on her face. For an instant, I could feel the hottest flash of rage I had ever felt emanate from the dragoness until it was quickly drowned in relief. Immediately, a wave of euphoric relaxation poured over me. I knew then that our bond had begun to heal amid the gathering crowd checking if I was alright.

“I’m fine, Ruby,” I said, panting heavily and watching Vince warily. Latias very lightly touched my blackened eye, which still elicited a wince and hiss from me. Many bystanders that had passed by insisted that I get to the health center immediately, and one guy, presumably Ivysaur’s Trainer, actually complimented me on my attempted dropkick, which I was rather ashamed of—the execution was uncannily flawless, but the force just wasn’t there.

“Ugh, get off me, guys! What the hell are you DOING?!” I heard Vince bellow from beneath the pile of bodies on top of him and through the vines restraining him.

“Saving that kid and that girl from you,” one of them answered, a black male that had one of the widest chests I had ever laid eyes—rather, an eye—on, and an incredible afro. “We’ve already called PS, dude. This has to stop.”

“You…double-crossing assholes!” my assaulter screamed before descending into a long string of profanity. I was astonished as I recognized the two bigger guys, and I was further surprised that his friends came to my aid instead of his.

“We’ll take it from here, boys,” another gruff voice sounded from behind us after a few minutes of waiting, along with the cutting off of an engine. As we turned in sync, we saw no less than three officers dressed in black getting out of a specially marked police cruiser, parked on the shoulder of the road. Two of them, another black male and a white woman, about the same height as each other, walked off the path to place handcuffs on Vince, accompanied by an Electrike—it seemed to nod at the Ivysaur before its fur began to spark angrily with electricity.

The third walked up to Latias and me and looked me up and down. I recognized the mid-thirties white man as the one we had spoken to earlier that day. “Come with me, you two. Get in,” he said, gesturing to the cruiser. “Get someone to bring another vehicle to haul his ass back to the office,” he yelled at his compatriots over the roar of the engine as he turned the car around. The well-wishes of the rest of the students gathered were not lost on me as we drove down the road, taking a roundabout route to the health center. “So, you weren’t kidding, were you?”

“No, sir. We wouldn’t lie about something so serious,” I said before hissing again, this time from a pain in my ankle where Vince had grabbed it. The chatter from the radio in the car served to distract me from the worst of it.

“If I didn’t know any better, I might have suspected that you started the fight and let yourself get a black eye to make that kid look bad,” the officer said seriously. My jaw dropped at his words, but I was put at ease when he chuckled. “Easy, son. Like I said, I know that’s not what happened. We’ve got way too many witnesses that say otherwise. Just relax—we’re almost where we need to go.”

Within two minutes and after a series of twists, bumps, and turns, we had arrived at our destination. To our left was the health center—a small, one story building tucked near the edge of a small thicket of trees that extended about a quarter mile to one of the three central ponds. A small parking lot accommodated the center’s staff and not much else out in front. “Go get that black eye looked at, alright? And rest easy.” We took that as our cue to get out of the vehicle into the lot, and the officer gave a little wave before making the turns necessary to drive off down the road, probably intending to loop back around to the public safety office on the north end.

The first thing that happened once he had left us alone was that I was caught in an almost bone-crushing hug by Latias. Whoa, whoa, easy! I said, returning the hug. It’s over, now. We don’t have to worry about him anymore, ever again.

Latias’ chest heaved erratically, and I heard a muffled sobbing coming from within my head. I-I’m just so happy you’re okay! When he punched you and then pinned you, I was so afraid that he would… She trailed off and looked me right in the eye. This means so m-much to me. You put yourself at risk and got hurt…for me!

I will do anything to keep your safe, Latias. I swear it, I replied. Even if that means taking a few punches. At that moment, the same confusing set of emotions assaulted me once again. I reveled in Latias’ touch as she continued our embrace. She was the world to me, and I don’t know if I would have done the same thing I just did for anyone else. The dragoness always brought light to my days and was always there to support me and comfort me, and without her, I felt like I was incomplete. I knew I would have been a worse person in general without her guidance and companionship.

It was when she finally let go and I immediately wished that we were hugging again that I pieced everything together. The realization made my stomach knot itself at least ten times, and something I had seen in my mind’s eye months prior reappeared: auburn hair, and golden eyes. However, unlike then, they were real. There was only one thing my feelings could possibly mean. They had been constantly welling up inside me for as long as we had attended the school.

I could no longer deny the truth. I, a human, was in love with Latias, a Pokémon.

But instead of being ecstatic, I was sickened. I was sure that Latias would never feel the same way. She would want to be with a Latios, not a human. I hardly registered walking into the health center, talking to the staff, or even being doted on by my partner. In seconds, I was whisked away into the back by an Audino, leaving the dragoness behind in the front office. Taking advantage of our separation, I resolved with a heavy heart never to tell her my feelings unless she, by some miracle, felt the same way and approached me first.

Our friendship was too important to risk.

ᛇᚾᛇ

—Several seconds earlier—

Whoa, whoa, easy! I heard Mason say as I buried my head in his chest, squeezing him as tight as I could. How else could I possibly repay the one that had put himself in harm’s way for me? It’s over, now, he continued as he rubbed my back. We don’t have to worry about him anymore, ever again.

I couldn’t help but cry tears of joy upon hearing those words. What seemed like an eternity of misery was finally over! I could feel Mason fully again over our link! I-I’m just so happy you’re okay! When he punched you and then pinned you, I was so afraid that he would…. I looked up at my knight in shining armor, and his silver eye had glistened over with a single tear. This means so m-much to me, I stammered, a pressure in my chest keeping my voice unsteady. You put yourself at risk and got hurt…for me!

I will do anything to keep you safe, Latias. I swear it, came his reply, which set my heart aflutter. Even if that means taking a few punches. I held him for a while longer, relishing his touch. I felt safe in his arms, even if he wasn’t very well off in physical combat. I never wanted to leave his side, and without him, I felt incomplete. He had done so much for me, stayed by me for so long, and I…I….

I let go of him, immediately wishing I hadn’t, wanting to go back to snuggling. After walking into the health center to get his black eye treated, I knew exactly what it was that I felt.

It was more than the crush I had felt for a certain raven-haired boy three years ago. Accepting what had been seeded months prior after his encounter with Quinn, I, a Pokémon, was in love with Mason, a human. And…I was fairly certain he felt the same way, if what I sensed from him was what I thought it was.

I sat down in one of the chairs in the front office and leaned back, crossing my legs as well as staring blankly at the ceiling while Mason was led to the back by one of the Audino employed there. What should have been a blissfully happy moment was dampened by the one thing I knew Mason was incredibly uncomfortable with: taking things too quickly. As a human, especially a native one where they were the only sapient species for literally their entire history until less than a year ago, I knew he would have a hard time even considering a relationship with a Pokémon like me, even though we were psychically connected. Although I wanted to kiss him so badly right now, I was content to let him set the pace in our growing bond. I knew that he would come around eventually, based on how we had resolved the fallout with Quinn.

Nevertheless, unlike Mason, I still had a score to settle with the human that had caused all of that misery, even if he did help me realize my feelings for my bond-mate.

Chapter 11: A Pokémon's Fury

Chapter Text

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I’ll be back in a bit, Mason, I said to my partner in our darkened room. Night had fallen on the campus, our room intentionally dim so as to prevent Mason’s headache, caused by the right hook he had taken to the face earlier that day, from becoming any worse.

“Thas’ fine,” he slurred out loud, waving his left hand from where he was laying on his bed, almost knocking over the single crutch he was given for his sore ankle from its place leaning into the post. His other hand was currently pressing an ice pack to his face, and it seemed that the pain killers he was given had made him slightly “loopy,” as he put it when I had seen similar behavior in the past. It was like he was intoxicated. “Where ya goin’?”

A night flight, I replied, the lie of omission coming easily to me. I need to clear my head.

“Ha! Night Flight! I remember that level! Man, Spyro was a good ass game,” he mumbled as he went off on a completely unrelated tangent in his stupor. “Have fun! Don’t be out too late, now!”

I was glad he actually was able to understand my request rather than simply focusing on whatever memory had been brought forth from my phrasing. I then giggled as I replied, okay, Dad. I promise I’ll be back before curfew.

Extending my consciousness to make sure no one was behind our building, I opened and closed the window while invisible, having learned it was a much stealthier point of ingress and egress. I then focused on what I had truly set out to do, thoughts darkening in turn.

I had never known a Pokémon to regard a human with malice outside of instinct. That was what made the hatred bubbling and frothing within me all the more upsetting. Humans on Earth and back home were the same, for all intents and purposes. What made me so different? How much had I failed to grasp during my upbringing? I shook my head, clearing the questions away and realizing that my target had earned my ire. I could not help but figure that, had he bonded with a Pokémon of his own, Vince would be a strong candidate for one of the villainous teams that flourished on my home world.

A flash of insight surged through me, and images of two very particular members of Team Rocket flitted about in my skull, along with an Ariados and an Espeon. The association between them and Vince solidified, assisting me in descending into my anger. I would not be rendered helpless again.

Settling atop the all-boys dorm that was adjacent to our own, named Winston, or Win for short, I expanded my consciousness once again, looking for a distinct consciousness―one I had become very familiar with over the past week and a half. I wasn’t expecting to find anything on my first try, since I knew Vince was an older student, but sure enough, I sensed my target within the three-story building, albeit very weakly. I entered through the front double doors behind a stout, scruffy-looking male human, finding myself in the lobby of the second floor. The resident assistants were gathered in the office to the left, chattering about something; they were the reason I could not open the door on my own. The eyes of one of them, a bespectacled girl with fiery hair and a freckled face, flicked towards the human I was silently tailing. I froze in place, letting the threat of detection pass.

Right, left, left, down, right, left, I repeated to myself. A pair of swinging doors separated the lobby area from the halls. When I reached them, I turned around, facing the other set and listening hard for any footsteps behind me. Satisfied that my move would go undetected, I pushed open the swinging doors leading to the right half of the ground floor. One move down, five to go in order to find him.

I repeated my process of avoiding detection twice more. I descended the stairwell to the hall below the one I had just left, but before I pushed the door open, an almost debilitating nausea bloomed in my gut. My unbridled rage had begun to die down, leaving me with second thoughts about what I was about to do. Was it really necessary or worth it to actually assault the human? I froze after tucking myself under the last set of stairs when I realized that…no, it really wasn’t. I was about to stoop to his level; in fact, I already had. If he was hurt, the two prime suspects would be us. All the pain that we had suffered, all that Mason had sacrificed—it would be for nothing.

But he still needs to be taught a lesson… I mused, trying to come up with something that would suitably vent my still-extant anger. I racked my brain for a solution, and just one thing came to mind, one inspired from Ash’s visit to Alto Mare. While I can’t make him experience the despair that I did, or the pain that Mason did, I can still teach him the true meaning of fear.

Taking and releasing a deep breath through my nose, I entered the hall—his presence was tantalizingly close. The irony of it all was not lost on me. It was I who was stalking him. I would teach him what it meant to threaten what I held dear.

Finally, I stopped in front of my destination: room 108. Cloaking field shimmering slightly, my telekinetic power surrounded the doorknob. It was, unsurprisingly, locked as it failed to turn. Letting go, I listened very closely for any reaction from within. None came.

After a check of my surroundings to ensure no one was approaching, I then began to focus intently on the locking mechanism within the door. Knowing I didn’t have much time before my invisibility completely destabilized, I began to telekinetically push the pins of the lock up into place, keeping constant pressure with my right paw on turning the knob as I did so. One after another, the pins seized, then snapped into place, allowing the doorknob to turn ever so slightly until it suddenly gave way, the security measure breached after a scant ten seconds or so. I opened the door with some measure of haste, allowing the light from the hall to spill inside. Smiling darkly, I closed the door behind me just as quickly as I had opened it, which plunged the room back into darkness. I silently thanked Bianca for helping me refine my lock picking skills for when Lorenzo was forgetful and locked himself out of his own house.

The room was quite small, as it was a single. Usually, only older students lived in those sorts of rooms within dorms since they required quite a large number of credits to qualify for, amounts impossible to attain as a freshman, and only under extreme circ*mstances as a sophom*ore. They were also quite a bit more expensive than the standard double, but for some, it was worth it to not have a roommate. The only other student I knew that lived in such a room was Quinn, over in Margaret.

The window was closed, and the human that I had come to despise was lying on the bed pushed into the far-right corner, asleep but fully clothed, without any covers over him. A pile of undone laundry was to my immediate right, and his desk and chair were pushed against his bed; if he were to sit at the messy thing, his back would be to the door. I then enacted the next stage of my plan: coming within inches of the male, I undid the lock on his window, slid it open, and pushed out the screen onto the grass outside. All that remained was to wait until the chill of the late March night air awakened him.

Within minutes, he began to shiver, and I could see him opening his green eyes. “Christ,” he cursed, sitting up and tossing his legs over the side of the bed. “I don’t need this right now. That little sh*t is probably going to get me expelled from the school, if the hearing tomorrow goes how I think it will….” He hopped off the bed, turning towards the gaping hole in his wall in the form of the open window. I positioned myself right behind him and physically and mentally steeled myself in anticipation of what I was about to do. “I’m pretty sure I locked this window….”

You did, I said out loud with venom, causing the human to whip his head back and forth, trying to find the source of my voice. Wasting no more time, I hooked my claws underneath his arms and carried him out the window into the sky. Vince was silent for a second or two, then he found his voice again, letting out a shrill scream. His cries of terror grew in intensity and incoherence before I used a small amount of psychic energy to clamp his lips together.

I climbed high into the air, my ascent noticeably slowed by his struggling; he actually threatened to wrest himself from my grasp! Do you want me to drop you? Stop trying to break out of my grip, then! Immediately, an intense feeling of horror emanated from the human as he ceased his thrashing. I brought him to a height at which we could see the entire campus. If I were to let him go…well, that was not my intent in the slightest. I’m going to let you speak again, if only to hear you beg for mercy.

“W-What are you?!” he screamed the instant I let go of the hold I had on his lips. Unfortunately for him, we were too high up for his voice to be heard.

Who do you think? I answered. You, human, are responsible for the second-greatest pain I have ever felt in my life. You, Vince—I spat his name with all the contempt I had held inside for so long—caused the one I care for most physical pain that I wish I could return a thousand-fold.

“A Pokémon?! How do you know my name?! Unless….” I could feel the fear I had wanted to desperately impart upon him wash over me; it was pleasing and sickening at the same time. “You… you’re….” he stuttered, voice dying in his throat.

It matters not what you saw me as, but what I am now. I dropped my cloaking, allowing him to see me. First, he looked down at my claws beneath his shoulders, then up into my eyes. Utter terror was etched into his gaze, and I grinned at his fear, bearing my fangs. When no outward reaction came from him, I realized that he was unable to see me or any details of my form in the darkness. The humans on my home world had enough sense to leave Legendary Pokémon alone. Not you, I suppose. And now you’ve been reduced to nothing, like I was. I tried my best to sound intimidating, not conflicted as I truly was. I could end you right now, you know. It would be so easy, sliding my paws out from under your arms. To drive the point home, I slightly withdrew the only things that were keeping him from falling to his demise.

“NO! NO, PLEASE! I’LL DO ANYTHING YOU WANT! JUST DON’T KILL ME!” Vince wailed, and his unbridled emotions of terror buffeted me more than ever.

I don’t want anything from you, unfortunately, I replied, wanting to savor his dread just a little longer. It was at that point I caught a whiff of something rather foul. I had to reign in the urge to grimace—Vince had just, for lack of a better term, soiled himself. Nothing will ever repair the damage you dealt to us both. But feeling your unrestrained fear just now gives me some semblance of closure. Do you want to know why? No answer came save for a pathetic whimpering. Because the power I have over you right now is what I imagine you have felt time and time again. Ah, but now I have taken it for myself. He looked up again, and I could see the whites of his eyes, even in the bleak darkness. And the best part of it all? No one will believe this ever happened, I mused, referencing the fact that even though I was visible, I might as well not have been.

“P-please, I’ll leave you two alone forever. I’ll even l-leave the school if you want…just let me live!” The man began to sob quietly and uncontrollably, his fear morphing into despair.

You brought this on yourself, I murmured quietly into his skull, ignoring his pleas. But in the end, I could never bring myself to actually harm a human. Even one like you. Sealing his lips again and re-cloaking, I flew back to from whence we came: his room. Unceremoniously tossing him into his bed, hearing a faint squelching noise as I did so, I gave him one parting threat, which was more of a bluff than anything else: You’re free to do whatever you want, but if you tip anyone off in any way, you’ll learn that my claws aren’t just for show.

“I-I’m sorry,” came the feeblest apology I had ever heard once I had undone the lock on his speech.

Simply telling me that means nothing. I could see his head hang itself in shame in the darkness. You have to prove it to earn anything other than disdain from either of us. Goodbye, Vince, I said as I retreated out of the window. I hope we never meet again.

Wordlessly, I flew back to our own dorm. But, before I could bring myself to return to my room, I had to stop on the roof to catch my breath. I laid there for quite some time, threatening to vomit on the gray shingles. I felt sick to my stomach at what I had just done, despite enjoying it somewhat while partaking in it, like some kind of strange food poisoning. If I could help it, I would never do something like that ever again, no matter how much I hated the other person.

Even Annie and Oakley.

Ultimately, though, I felt relief that I had prevented Vince from possibly doing any more harm to either of us, even if it was a terrible way to do it. The same question that troubled me before exacting my revenge resurfaced: What made me so different?

That naïve question was supplanted by an infuriatingly simple answer. I was not different at all. Instead, I should have been asking myself if I could shoulder the burden of what I had done. It would take some time before I could fully develop that question’s answer beyond a simple “no.”

Heaving a sigh after my stomach had settled and undid the knots it had twisted itself into, I descended from the roof and approached our room’s window. Scouting for any onlookers, I opened and closed the window just as I did when I left, then dropped my cloaking field. “Yer back!” Mason said groggily while I pre-emptively turned the small lamp on his desk off. “Feeling better?”

Not really, no, I answered truthfully, an air of disappointment both in that fact and in myself coloring my voice. My partner then sat up and looked away from the TV, which was actually being used for once. His eyes bored into my own, a serious look on his face—something I wasn’t expecting from the not completely lucid human.

“It’ll be okay, Tia. Soon we kin just forget about ‘im, so let’s jus’ get past wha’ happened t’day.” I smiled at his comforting words and nuzzled him on the cheek, being mindful of his injury. I then settled on my own bed and pulled a blanket over me with my teeth, too exhausted to use any more telekinesis. “Hehe, yer so soft. Did I ever tell you that? I jus’ wanna cuddle you forever.” His head resumed its position on his pillows with a soft fwump, reaching for the remote to turn off the TV. “Well, I jus’ wanted t’ wait for you t’ get back before I hit the hay. G’night!”

That’s sweet, Mason, thank you, I replied genuinely, blushing lightly as his more uninhibited thoughts became known to me. Good night to you as well, and sweet dreams, I continued, laying my head down in turn. Refusing to let my unnatural behavior bother me, I quickly drifted off to blessed sleep, thanking Arceus that horrible…mostly horrible day was finally over.

Chapter 12: Interlude---Report; M-380

Chapter Text

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“You called for me, Regigigas?”

The monolithic golem turned in place, its footsteps loud and thunderous within the cavern lined with brilliant red and subtle blue crystals. They were symmetrical in nature, the line of symmetry bisecting the cave. Looking down from the raised platform it stood upon, it regarded its master with its seven eyes, never-blinking, ever-watching. “Yes, Highlord Arceus. I wish to report on my findings thus far,” the android replied in a synthetic voice; it was deep, but not terribly so. Its voice held little emotion or inflection, but enough to communicate that it was eager to share what it was about to say.

“This early? I wanted annual reports on the Eons, Regigigas. Surely you know that that time is not due for another three months?” the Alpha Pokémon replied, not noticing the urgency in the Colossal Pokémon’s voice.

“With respect, I am aware of that, Highlord. But I feel that this cannot wait.” Several beams of light shot from the red, blue, and gray gems inlaid into Regigigas’ torso on its left and right side, flanking its four lower eyes. The lights combined into a three-dimensional map of the world above the steps that separated Arceus and Regigigas, suspended before the face of the former. Red and blue dots began to pepper the surface of the globe, scattered across nearly every landmass. “As you can see, I have been tracking all known Eon Pokémon on the planet, as you assigned me to do. My subunit constructs lay dormant until they are needed—nothing has disturbed them, and they are ready to begin gathering data at my command.”

“This is hardly what I would call pressi—” The Alpha Pokémon interrupted Himself as He caught a glimpse of one particular red dot, the only one that was not in a cluster of twenty or thirty or paired with a single blue dot. It was situated on the eastern coast of the continent He had learned to be named North America, right near its midpoint. “Wait. Why is this Eon alone?”

The synthetic Pokémon lifted one of its massive white arms, black stripes appearing in a sporadic pattern along it, and pointed to the lonesome dot. “That is why I requested your presence, Highlord.” It then touched the globe with one of its three long white fingers, and the frame of reference suddenly shifted, zooming in on where it had been touched. The picture became more and more detailed, enhancing on a rather secluded collection of buildings near a river, and Arceus couldn’t help but wonder for what Regigigas had requested His presence. He did not have to wait for long, however, eyes alighting upon what the machine had observed.

Before His eyes, it looked as though two humans—one male, one female—were hugging outside a small one-story building in a parking lot. Arceus knew, however, that the female was no human.

“W-when did you observe this, Regigigas?” Arceus asked, equally excited and nervous.

“Two months ago, I observed this Latias as part of my prime directive. Since then, while I have proceeded with the general scan of the entire Eon population, I have also dedicated part of my processing power to simply keeping watch on her, and through her, her human companion. Only earlier today did I find suitable evidence to satisfy your requirements such that I felt the necessity to summon you, Highlord.” The image flashed again, revealing the human and the Latias to be embracing again. The second event, however, showed her in Eon form, seemingly crying her eyes out. The human was doing his utmost to comfort her. “This and the previous image occurred in the same day. No other Eons thus far have been observed to interact with humans in any way, shape, or form…except this one.”

Arceus stared at the Eon in the image intently as the Colossal Pokémon spoke. Why did she seem so familiar? “Regigigas, does this Latias have a bond-mate?”

“She does: that human there.”

Arceus shook His head. He had, admittedly, walked right into that one. “Obviously,” He said, slightly irked. “What happened to her previous one?” He clarified, knowing that the human before Him could not have been her original bond-mate. It had to have been a Latios.

Regigigas’ eyes flickered with a gray-white light, deep in analysis. “Record retrieved. Source: Kyogre, Queen of the Ocean. This Latias’ previous bond-mate and brother died approximately 2.8 years ago, becoming a Soul Dew in the process. Cause of death: complete draining of aura within the body.”

Arceus’ eyes widened as He connected the dots. “This is the Latias that lived in Alto Mare! The one the Chosen One met!” Everything began to make sense. The reason the Latias had no bond-mate when they arrived on Earth was because her brother had died preventing the disaster that had almost befallen the island city. He then distinctly remembered her almost crushing grief at his passing—Lugia and Kyogre, bless their souls, consoled her when she needed it most. And…she had bonded with a human? A human that shared this deep of a connection with her?

He looked intently once more at the image of the two embracing. “Are they capable of Mega Evolution, Regigigas?” Arceus inquired, a frown metaphorically splitting His face.

“No, Highlord Arceus, not that I have observed. It seems as though they lack the appropriate Stones,” the automaton rumbled.

“What about Zygarde’s Failsafe?”

“I would have to more closely observe the human to determine that, Highlord. No physical evidence of Zygarde’s Failsafe is apparent at this time.”

Arceus hesitated at the negative replies. The disaster that He and His daughter had foreseen was still three years away. If these two weren’t the ones they had seen rise to prevent it and He invested all of his resources into them, He would doom the universe to oblivion. I cannot act yet. Not without waiting and observing what the other Eons around the planet do, He thought to Himself. If these two are truly the heroes we saw, they will find the Stones on their own, surely. But…even I do not know how quickly Zygarde’s Failsafe progresses in humans. “Regigigas, I commend you on your findings,” the Alpha Pokémon said out loud. There was no outward reaction, however, from the golem to its master’s praise. “Please, proceed as you have been for the past two months. Continue to observe these two, and report back to me on your findings if anything notable comes up. I will inform you of the exact timeline of Zygarde’s Failsafe when I return for your annual report, and you may incorporate said timeline into closer observations of this human male.”

“As you command, Highlord,” the Colossal Pokémon intoned. The image before the two Pokémon faded away. Regigigas watched Arceus shine in a golden light, then vanish from the cavern. Preparing to shift into hibernation once more, it turned around, only to find a patch of oily shadows upon the floor. From it, a red, gray, and gold serpentine Pokémon with a golden mask slithered into the air. A tiny amount of apprehension entered the golem as it was regarded by the most impulsive of Arceus’ three children.

“You’re going to tell me everything you just told Father, Regigigas,” Giratina said in a low, frigid tone, his scarlet eyes boring into the synthetic Pokémon’s black ones, mere inches away. “If he won’t act despite your findings, then I will.”

Chapter 13: When Trainers' Eyes Meet...

Chapter Text

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“Excuse me, ah, Mr. Sanderson?”

I spoke rather timidly to the somewhat older, black-haired man in front of me. He turned around and regarded me with a look that bespoke a small, but reasonable amount of patience. Wearing a black trench coat befitting the chill April air and a matching beret, olive pants and black shoes underneath, his very presence spoke of authority and confidence—two things I sorely lacked. “I, uh, I was wondering if I could ask you for a…a battle?” I internally berated myself for my hesitance; I had surely not made a very good first impression.

In the past year, Pokémon battling had become an international sport and sensation that rivalled even the most popular of others, just as we had predicted it would. It was about as common to hear of a particular Trainer’s or Pokémon’s exploits as those of a football team, and I was sure that older sports would soon fall to the wayside completely, wholly supplanted by humans and Pokémon operating in sync to see who was the very best. Maryland had definitely picked up on the trend, and rumor had it that FedExField was already being repurposed as the most extravagant of battle arenas. Quinn had graduated at the end of the previous year, leaving me as the Pokémon Enthusiasts guild’s president, even as a sophom*ore. It was my dream to one day battle with Latias in FedExField, to represent our school with pride, but first, we had to prove ourselves.

Richard Sanderson was the man that the guild had tried so desperately to bring in for an interview. We had seen him on campus before, mostly in the exhibition matches that had become incredibly commonplace. He was well on his way to becoming a well-known Trainer in the state, he and his Rhyperior a force to be reckoned with. I was confident, however, that with the training Latias and I had done over the breaks we had had in the past year as well as the knowledge and techniques we had witnessed would enable us to give him a fair fight. That led up to the current moment: he came onto campus every once in a while, and I was able to catch him alone.

“You’re one of the leaders of the local Pokémon guild, aren’t you?” he asked, and I nodded fervently. “I’ve never seen you with a Pokémon before, though. Strange,” he responded, one eyebrow quirked. “What is your name?”

“I’m Mason,” I replied, offering a hand. Richard did not bother to withdraw either of his hands from his coat to shake it, and my face fell in response. “And that’s because, well…she’s rather rare, and doesn’t want to show herself to just anybody just yet,” I continued nervously. “We’re willing to go all the way, though!”

“Right….” He turned around, continuing his walk towards the southern end of campus as we passed behind Margaret. I cast a furtive glance behind me and to my right to the building proper to check if anyone could be eavesdropping. “Listen, I’m pretty busy, kid. Even if you’ve got what it takes to manage fellow fans, what makes you think you can stand up to me in a battle?”

I pushed down my nervousness, simultaneously shrugging my shoulders as a breeze cut through my black hoodie. “I’m sure she and I can give you a good match! We’ve been watching battles for over a year, now, and we’ve done a little training on our own, too!”

“Watching a battle or two isn’t the same as actually participating,” he said dismissively. “But I must admit, I’m curious as to how in the world you think you’d still be a fair match.” Richard turned around again and gave me another harrowing stare. “I’ll oblige you, if only for the fact that every Trainer has to start somewhere.” Before I could thank him, he held up a hand, finally withdrawing one from the warmth of his coat. “You say she’s rare,” he continued quietly, leaning towards me ever so slightly. “I’d be willing to have our match in a more secluded locale—say, one of the unused soccer fields across the road from the northern dorms?”

I nodded my head vigorously. “Yeah, I’m totally down for that! I know you didn’t want me to, but I have to thank you!”

“It is nothing,” Richard returned, the right corner of his lips turning up in a half-smile. “Meet me there in two hours. I need to fetch Rhyperior. And Mason?” I turned back around, having turned already to walk back to my suite on the northern end of campus. “He and I will not hold back. Whether you like it or not, you will learn what it is to truly be a Pokémon Trainer.” Instead of nodding again, I looked Richard right in the eyes and said one last thing to the man:

“I look forward to it!”

ᚱᛉᚱ

Oooh, I’m so excited! Latias said over our telepathic link. The dragoness was invisible—it looked like I was traveling all by my lonesome to the spot Richard had laid out for us to do battle. The rather dreary day had not changed; a light mist permeated the air. Because of the threat of rain, most humans seemed to be staying indoors, and it helped that there were no locations of importance around the soccer field that was to be our battlefield. I’m nervous, too, though.

It’s hard not to be, Latias, I replied to my Pokémon partner. Mr. Sanderson is really strong, and he told me he wouldn’t be holding back for us.

I’m glad, the dragoness said with a certain conviction. When I looked at her with a quirked eyebrow, she continued: That way, we can really see what we’re capable of, and improve for a real match!

True, I acquiesced, her explanation dispelling my confusion. We walked in silence for a minute longer before the older Trainer greeted us from afar.

“Hello, Mason,” Richard spoke with an even tone, then looked around. “Where is your Pokémon? I can’t oblige your request if she isn’t here.” Richard’s Rhyperior seemed to be equally confused, if the rather threatening scowl on the Drill Pokémon’s face could be construed as confusion.

Jesus, that thing is even more monstrous up close, I thought to myself. The massive Pokémon towered over me and his own Trainer in equal measure. He had to be at least seven feet tall, and easily the width of three humans put together! “She is here, sir. She’s just invisible right now.”

“Oh? A Pokémon that can camouflage itself? Is it a Kecleon?” the other Trainer guessed, and Rhyperior’s scowl then turned into a smirk as he gave a snort, presumably at the prospect of crushing a weak opponent.

“No, sir. She’s quite different!” I then turned to my left and looked at where I could sense Latias. My stomach suddenly knotted itself—I was starting to get cold feet. Tia…are you ready for this?

Are you? the dragoness countered, picking up on my trepidation, which sent a brief flush of embarrassment through me. The answer is yes, every time!

I smiled, allowing her confidence to infuse my heart. There was no place for stage fright in the competitions we intended to win! “Okay, then! Come on out, Latias.”

“Who?!” Richard exclaimed as the telltale shower of blue lights appeared to my left, revealing my partner in stark clarity. Rhyperior’s smugness all but vanished, a look of utter shock cracking its reptilian face, almost mirroring his Trainer’s. “Y-you have a…what? What is this Pokémon, Mason?” The elder Trainer glanced at his Pokémon partner and paled upon seeing his reaction.

“She’s an Eon Pokémon,” I began, a blush creeping onto my cheeks. It only intensified as Latias nuzzled me on the cheek. “She and her male counterpart, Latios, are very rare—maybe only five hundred of them total live on Earth. She’s a, uh….”

Oh, just get it over with!

“A Legendary Pokémon,” I finished, Latias’ prodding making me spit it out.

“I didn’t even know that much, since I’ve never even heard of a Pokémon called Latias before. A Legend?” I affirmed his suspicion, still moderately embarrassed, which hid my surprise that Richard even knew what a Legendary Pokémon was. “Not one of the almighty Elders, I assume?”

“Oh, no sir! She’s told me that the difference between her and the Elders is quite large.”

“Even so! Young man, I’m sorry for almost brushing you off earlier,” Richard said, both he and his Pokémon recovering from their stupors. “Do you have any idea what this means? How lucky you are?”

I’ve told him many times that he’d be hopeless without me, yes, Latias spoke to the man, who flinched upon hearing her.

“Tia!” I whined. “No fair!”

“She speaks, too! I shouldn’t be surprised, though, but even I don’t know much about Legendary Pokémon. When did you find her? Or, rather, when did you two meet?” I then told him the short version of how we met almost two years earlier near where I lived. “Amazing. Simply amazing,” Richard breathed while shaking his head, then refocused on me. “Judging from the banter, it seems you two share a very close bond, something I’m sure exceeds the friendship between Rhyperior and me.” I looked at the Drill Pokémon, expecting a growl of indignation, but shockingly, he bowed his head in agreement. “But!” My attention was snapped back to Richard, and he fixed me with another stare. “Will that strength of spirit translate to the battlefield? Let us find out!”

I knew in that moment I had been challenged. When two Trainers’ eyes meet…it’s a Pokémon battle!

My mind started to race. I considered the matchup between Latias and Rhyperior while walking to one end of the field. Richard took to the other end, reaching his place first. Rhyperior’s physical attacking prowess is monstrous, and Richard’s shown time and again that his Rhyperior knows a huge slew of physical moves. But, while its physical defense is similarly high, its special defense is quite weak!

Lucky for us, then, that I’m more suited to special attacks! Latias commented, bolstering my confidence further. Just then, our emotions began to synchronize, an unsettling feeling to experience for the first time when we were about to be embroiled in our first match! A small twinge of nervousness remained in the two of us, becoming buried under a quickly growing rush of adrenaline and excitement. If this was what Pokémon battling was like, I never wanted to stop!

“Are you ready, Mason?” Richard called, and I held up a thumbs-up high in the air. “Then show us what you’ve got!”

LOCAL LEGEND

RICHARD SANDERSON

A brief flash of shock passed through me. Richard was giving us the first move! That didn’t stop the giddiness that seized my heart when my first ever order left my lips. “Latias, let’s start off with Psybeam!” Her back was turned to me, so I couldn’t see the telltale glow of her eyes, but I could feel the power of the Psychic attack through our mental link. The thrumming energy sent the hair on the back of my neck standing on end, and a high-pitched trill echoed through the air. The rainbow-colored beam then rocketed towards the Drill Pokémon.

“Rhyperior, underground, now!” my opponent yelled, and the bulky Rock Type obeyed instantly with a speed neither of us were expecting, bulldozing the earth below him with Dig. “So, she’s likely a Psychic Type, eh? I wonder if she’ll reveal a second Type to us!”

“Latias, get away from the ground!” I ordered. Why would he use a Ground Type move? Latias can make those miss without any effort—

“Now, Rhyperior, Megahorn!” I gasped as the Drill Pokémon rocketed out of the earth below like a giant wrecking ball. His major horn was glowing white and seemingly double its normal length. Before I could issue another command, Rhyperior slammed into Latias at a breakneck speed, causing her to cry out in pain from the super-effective attack. I could see a horrific bruise already beginning to form on her left shoulder, and I could see a tiny amount of blood left behind on Rhyperior’s horn. The wailing sound was far worse than the blunt trauma of the wound; never had I heard my partner in physical pain before, and my confidence evaporated on the spot.

Latias! Are you alright?! I yelled over our telepathic link.

I’ll be f-fine, but that really hurt! she replied, voice unsteady. She righted herself in the air, having plummeted from her position but just barely not slamming into the ground.

“Always expect the unexpected, Mason!” Richard’s words echoed across the field.

“That makes two of us! Latias, Recover!” I called to my battle partner. A golden sheen of light enveloped Latias’ body, and the massive bruise that had begun to form on her right shoulder lightened considerably, reversing most of the damage from the Bug Type Megahorn. Now that we knew about that trick, we wouldn’t be fooled by it again, but the same could apply to Richard.

“Rock Slide!” I heard the older Trainer shout, and my stomach dropped at the prospect of another powerful physical attack hitting Latias hard. We couldn’t keep using Recover!

She needs to dodge before I command her to attack again, I thought. Before I could act on my intuition and command the dragoness to do so, she was strangely already executing my unspoken order. Meanwhile, Rhyperior stomped the ground and began to hurl rocks at her in the air. I thought I could hear her voice in my mind, but I brushed it off as the excitement of the battle. Her speed was shining through the mist enveloping the battlefield—miraculously, she dodged every single one of the large boulders! “Now, Latias, Dragon Breath!” Red dragon fire tinged with emerald poured from Latias’ mouth and impacted Rhyperior in the center of his massive chest, leaving behind a rather nasty scorch mark. I inwardly cheered, for we had landed our first hit! “Quick, close in for a Dual Chop!” I yelled, trying to press our advantage. Latias obeyed without question, claws glowing green and rocketing at the Drill Pokémon.

“Use Smack Down, now!” My elation quickly turned to horror as Rhyperior lifted one of his barrel-like arms, turned, and swung down hard, impacting Latias right between her wings as she arrived to deliver the Dual Chop. There was no stopping her impacting the ground the second go around—she gave a small grunt while effectively bulldozing the ground with her body, coming to a stop closer to Richard than me. “Follow up with Earthquake!” Rhyperior swung both of his arms down, then up, managing to lift his massive bulk a little off of the ground. His weight then crashed upon the terrain below, causing a very visible shockwave to pass through the grass, almost knocking me off of my feet.

No! Because of the Smack Down, she’s vulnerable! If only I had her set up Reflect beforehand! I chewed on my lip, forced to wait out the combination attack. The shockwave from earlier had rebounded, passing under my feet and finding its epicenter on my bond-mate. The moment it did, the earth cracked and split with harrowing violence, nearly drowning out another pained shriek from Latias. However, just before my partner was enveloped in the freshly hardened soil, sharp as stone, I saw her body glow the telltale blue, announcing that she had used Reflect after all! What!? Did she…did she just hear me?!

Of course I did! I’ve been able to hear you this entire time! Latias confirmed, exasperation in her voice. The Earthquake had finished, but the sound of the ground’s upheaval was deafening and thunderous, echoing in the air. The field under Latias was left in a sorry state, almost unrecognizable with the scars and trenches that had been torn in it. Against all odds, the dragoness lifted herself back up into the air, badly beaten, but still able to fight, surely because of the Reflect. I was astounded that no one had heard the devastation.

“That was a clever use of Reflect from Latias, Mason, even if you didn’t command her to use it! She has astounding resilience!” my opponent commented. It was then that I realized something: I did in fact command her to use Reflect…in my mind! We had a massive advantage over Richard the whole time—I could send my commands to Latias telepathically, catching him completely by surprise each time!

“Just because you didn’t hear it doesn’t mean I didn’t order it!” I shouted back, fully ready to take advantage of our bond. Latias, Steel Wing!

I thought you’d never catch on! It’s time to turn things around! She once again made a beeline straight at the Drill Pokémon, wings glowing white while still shrouded in Reflect. Unlike last time, Rhyperior was caught completely off-guard, not knowing there was another attack coming. The Steel Type attack struck him hard, chipping bits of rock off of his stony hide as Latias looped once, twice, three times to land the technique. Now, follow up with a Mist Ball while he’s vulnerable!

On it! Between her paws, I could see the pink sphere beginning to take form while Rhyperior was still reeling from her previous attack. I resisted the urge to cheer; we had trained hard to perfect the signature move of Latias, what Pokémon knew as a “birthright.” I knew it was her strongest attack, and it would surely do massive damage!

The first explosion of the match erupted from where Rhyperior was standing as smoke commingled with the red mist from the Mist Ball. Latias resumed her place on my side of the battlefield, preparing herself for whatever came next. “I see now!” Richard’s voice made itself heard through the smoke. “Your mental connection won’t stop us! Rhyperior, let’s end this with Rock Wrecker!”

Dodge it, Latias! I cried, but it was impossible for us to see where it could be coming from until it was too late: a gargantuan boulder screamed through the air, and before she could even move, it slammed into her with the force of a freight train. It exploded on impact, a violent reaction between it and the Reflect that still protected her. She was lost briefly in the black cloud that had erupted from the impact, my only inkling of her fate being a scream of agony. I did not have to wait for long to learn what had become of her. She fell unceremoniously out of the cloud to the field below, shuddering in pain on the spot where she landed. There was no doubt about it—she had been defeated.

No, Latias! I’m so sorry! I dashed over to her as quickly as my feet would carry me, desperate to check on her.

Her feathers were completely disheveled and matted with dirt. She turned towards me as I slid on my knees across the grass to her side. Shockingly, however, she had a smile on her face. I’m o-okay, she whispered, her amber orbs glistening despite the gloomy day. We d-did our best, and that’s what matters.

I just…I’m sorry for not realizing that we could have communicated telepathically the entire time. Latias pushed her head into my hand as her way of saying, “it’s alright.”

Richard and Rhyperior drew up to us slowly. “That was an outstanding battle, Mason…for a beginner.” I looked up to see two things, both of which deflated my ego rather quickly: Rhyperior wasn’t looking much worse for wear, all things considered, and Richard had a stern look on his face. “As I’ve said, you and Latias share an incredibly deep mental connection. However, it didn’t occur to you that you could use that same connection in battle until it was too late.” My face fell, but then, that same half-smirk from earlier in the day reappeared. “Do not be too harsh on yourself! The fact that you discovered it at all was fantastic. She has incredible fortitude—I was beginning to become frustrated that an untrained Pokémon like her kept refusing to stay down. That’s far more dangerous than any offense, in my opinion, but my suggestion to you two is to really solidify your offensive tactics. She is Psychic and Dragon Type, yes?”

I stood up from the damp grass, head down. “Yeah, she is,” I mumbled. I wasn’t expecting a hand to grasp my shoulder, or to see a smile on Richard’s face.

“What a unique typing. If I’m not mistaken, only one Type resists both of them. You two should look into how to combat the different Steel Types out there—that’s my suggestion.” He then seemed to look past me for a moment, then back at us. “There’s an exhibition next week. If you truly want to show me what a Trainer with a Legendary Pokémon can do, you will compete there and then.”

“A rematch?” I wondered out loud.

“Indeed. I hope to see you then, young man.” And with that, Richard and Rhyperior took their leave. A couple of other people seemed to be drawing close, but Latias seemed to read my mind. She did her best to cloak, but with her feathers the way they were, the invisibility field was spotty at best. Fortunately, because of the low-hanging mist, it would be impossible to see her either way.

I’m sorry, Latias. I thought we could win…. I leaned back and sat on the damp grass beneath me, seemingly stroking thin air but actually scratching Latias behind her right ear. We have a lot more training to do, I guess.

You know I don’t mind that we lost, Mason, she responded softly. In reality, I kind of expected it.

You did?

Of course. I was disappointed that my confidence didn’t extend to my partner, but a pressure appeared on my right arm; Latias was rubbing her head into it. Don’t feel bad! I’d be disappointed, on the other claw, if we won with virtually no experience, because honestly, I would never know if it was because we were able to work together as a team, or because of my status as a Legend. Could you imagine how boring it would be to battle and blow the opponent away every time? It would be unfair!

I guess that’s true. I’m just glad he’s giving us a second chance…. I then stood up and started to brainstorm. We’ll need a super effective special attack….

Chapter 14: It's a Pokémon Battle!

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

“And now, for the final battle of the day!” the MC bellowed to the crowd, which gave a small cheer in response. “Richard Sanderson has arrived on campus once again with his mighty Rhyperior, but this time, he has already chosen his opponent!”

“I wonder who it could be,” Nigel mused. He must not have noticed my growing nervousness as the previous battles came and went.

“Whoever it is, they’re about to get shrekt,” Dirk offered. That was his middle name, used in lieu of the in-his-opinion vastly inferior Michael, citing the fact that “there’s too many damn Michaels everywhere.” A friend of Ken’s at first, the short and stout male tagged along one day with Ken when the latter invited himself over for Smash. Dirk proved himself to be quite competent at the game, but he was truly fascinated with my position in the Pokémon Enthusiasts guild. He was also very into Internet memes, easily seen in his phraseology, which was no different than normal. “Richard hasn’t lost a match hosted here yet—”

“Mason Feist, please report to the battlefield!” I stood, as did Latias in her illusion form from the stands. I had picked a spot near the edges on purpose in an attempt to mitigate any confused stares I was receiving. I had enough clout on campus that most people “knew” that I had no Pokémon partner. We were going to prove everyone wrong that day.

“You?!” both Nigel and Ken cried. “But you don’t have a Pokémon!” Nigel continued, still in shock. “I’ve known you for almost a year and a half, and there’s no way you could hide that from me!”

I turned to Nigel, and the moment I did, another flash of anxiety passed through me. Sure enough, I was being stared at like I had grown a second head. “I’m bad at lying, Nigel. What you might not know is that I’m very good at keeping secrets. And thanks for the vote of confidence, Dirk,” I stepped down from the bleachers, noticing that Latias was following me in illusion form. “So, we’re really doing this, huh?”

Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts? You’re my Trainer, I’m a student here. That’s that.

Well, yeah, but the media will be all over us. You might be judged for it, too. A wide smile was her answer—she knew the risks and didn’t care. And Tia…you know I don’t like it when you call me your Trainer. It makes me feel like I’m…your master, or something.

I’ll keep that in mind…partner, the dragoness in disguise replied, tittering softly.

We took our places on our side of the battlefield. Despite everything—the crowd and my friends watching, Dirk’s omen of defeat, Richard and his Rhyperior—I couldn’t help but become elated. Our chance had finally arrived to prove to the older Trainer that the week of non-stop practice that Latias and I did was worth it. Learning new moves or coming close to perfecting old ones, becoming more in sync during the heat of battle, learning to capitalize on Latias’ blinding speed and agility—those were but a few of the many points of our regimen.

The referee walked up to us, a rather confused look on his face. “Miss, you can’t be here,” he said to Latias. “This field is for Trainers and their Pokémon only.”

“Let her stay,” I said, the official turning to me. “She’s the one that will be battling. Trust me, it’ll be alright,” I added once his confused look evolved into one of utter bewilderment. Shaking his head, he offered a single shrug to the MC, who was in a booth on the opposite side of the field from the bleachers.

“T-trainers, choose your Pokémon!” the announcer shouted, still unsure of my choice.

“Rhyperior, stand by for battle!” Richard shouted, voice clear even to me on the opposite side of the battlefield. It was like he was standing right next to me. However, what bothered me more were the murmurs skittering throughout the crowd. I could only imagine what they would be saying next.

This is it…are you ready, Latias?

As much as I’ll ever be! Let’s show him what we’re really made of. I won’t lose again! Her energy rubbed off on me. If she was raring to go, then so was I!

“I choose you, Latias!” A scant second after my declaration, the not-a-human next to me erupted in a shower of blue lights, her form morphing within it. Once her metamorphosis was complete, she took point in front of me, meeting the utter silence all around us head on.

“W-what is this?!” the MC wondered out loud. “That girl was…a Pokémon!”

“What the hell?! Ruby’s a Pokémon?!” Ken shouted, all tact leaving him. His voice carried plain as day to where I was standing. It was then that the crowd recovered from its stupor and descended into utter chaos.

“She’s a student?! A Pokémon is going to college here?!”

“What is she?”

“She’s so pretty!”

“What’s her Type!?”

“Everyone, calm down!” the MC shouted over the crowd. “Mr. Feist, could you explain to us what exactly is going on?”

“Yes, I can!” I returned as loudly as I could, then cleared my throat before I continued. “This is Latias, my Pokémon partner!” I gestured at the dragoness, hovering at my side, who gave a small bow at her introduction. “She has been by my side for almost two years now. She and I are the best of friends and share a special connection no other Trainer in the world possesses!”

I paused to let my words sink in. Whether they were true or not was irrelevant to the point I wanted to make: that nothing could separate us fully except death itself. My eyes flitted about, darting every which way; towards the clear blue sky, Richard and his Rhyperior, the psychology building to my left. Nothing was spared my nervous gaze as I decided to reveal the truth of Latias’ status, if only to get the crowd even more excited. “This is because she is no ordinary Pokémon. She is known as the Eon Pokémon, a Dragon and Psychic Type, and is a Legendary Pokémon! Only numbering in the hundreds across the entire planet, I’m honored that Latias chose me to be her partner all that time ago!”

“A Legendary?! I thought they were myths!”

“What does that mean?”

“How strong is she?”

“You lucky bastard!”

My introduction ended in tandem with the noise from the audience rising. My confidence rose in turn, empowering me to finish my speech strong. “Without her, I wouldn’t be who I am today, and the same goes for her, too! And today, we’re going to give everything we have!” As if knowing what would get the mass of humans the most riled up, Latias nuzzled me in the most tender fashion possible, rubbing her cheek against my own, causing a blush to creep onto my face.

With that, the crowd exploded into cheers, shouts, and screams. “This is really something, folks!” the announcer cried, still somehow making himself heard over the din. “No wonder Mr. Sanderson chose Mason, president of our very own Pokémon Enthusiasts guild, as his opponent―for he is truly something special! For the first time in the event’s history, we will be witnessing a Legendary Pokémon, one never before seen—one that’s hidden among us for close to two years—do battle! How will Latias, the Eon Pokémon, fare against Rhyperior?!”

“YOU CAN DO IT, MASON!” Nigel bellowed at the top of his lungs from the crowd. I was caught by surprise; I had never heard the man raise his voice before. “YOU TOO, RUBY! LATIAS, RATHER!”

“Are the two Trainers ready?” the referee asked the both of us, looking to me first. He had a knowing look on his face, one that communicated that he understood what I meant not a minute earlier. I smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. He then looked to Richard, who merely nodded once. He then turned towards the attending patrons, his back to the announcer, and raised the two flags in his hands into the air.

This is it. The moment we’ve been waiting for, Latias said aloud. We’re not going to lose this time!

You’re damn right we’re not! I agreed, adrenaline coursing through me. Time seemed to slow as the referee brought the flags down in a grand flourish.

“Then let the battle BEGIN!”

TUTELAGE REPRISED

RICHARD SANDERSON

Latias, vanish from sight! I ordered instantly. Get close to Rhyperior, then Dual Chop him from behind!

You got it! Obeying almost immediately, my partner seemed to melt into nothingness. The crowd gasped, and Rhyperior’s expression turned to one of shock. I couldn’t help but smirk in response.

“What’s this?! Latias can become invisible! And she seemed to do so without Mason’s orders! Is there more about this Trainer than can be seen?” I groaned at the announcer’s pun. The moment he finished speaking, I could feel a small amount of power thrumming through my link with Latias. Another flash of light appeared behind Rhyperior, revealing her—the telltale green glow of her claws would have given her away if she was still cloaked, but her superior positioning gave her enough to prepare it without any retaliation.

Perfect! I called, reveling in seizing the first attacks of the match. Rhyperior grunted several times, his rocky hide splintering across his back, falling prey to Latias’ ivory claws. Vanish again and return to me! Latias obeyed, removing herself from view the moment Drill Pokémon turned around and threw a retaliatory swing of his arms.

“Again, Latias acts without Mason’s orders, landing several blows with Dual Chop before vanishing once more! Just what is going on?!” the announcer shouted.

“I’ve been giving orders to Latias the whole time! Like I said, she’s a Psychic Type!” I yelled, holding up a hand—it was difficult to make myself heard over the discordant sound coming from the throng of people in the bleachers. “We can speak to each other within our minds!” I continued, my battle partner re-appearing in front of me.

“WHAT?!”

“Cheater!”

“No fair!”

“Genius!”

“Unbelievable! We’ve had Psychic Types compete before, but the connection Mason and Latias share is so strong that it’s manifested in a telepathic link, active during the heat of battle! How will Richard be able to counter this seemingly overwhelming advantage?” the announcer asked rhetorically.

“Rhyperior, Rock Slide!” Richard yelled, and his Pokémon obeyed without question, shattering the ground underneath him with a massive stomp and hurling the upturned boulders right at Latias.

Use your new Psychic attack to deflect those boulders! I commanded in retaliation.

On it! Eyes glowing blue, Latias’ psychic power expanded into an energy field around her. The massive stones and rocks flew at her unerringly until they soared too close. They adopted the same blue glow and veered almost completely off target, slamming hard into the ground and kicking up huge clouds of dirt and grass. Ngh, this is almost too much! I could feel what she meant: our telepathic link was starting to weaken under the strain of keeping the powerful Rock attack at bay.

Keep it up, Latias! You’re doing great! Wait until there’s an opening, then use Reflect!

I-I’ll try, the somewhat distorted voice sounded in my head. From the dust and dirt being upturned by the deflected boulders crashing into the ground, I did not notice that Rhyperior was steadily getting closer to Latias, his throws packing more power with the dwindling distance between them. It was only when I could clearly see his hulking form scant feet from my battle partner that I knew something was terribly wrong.

“Hammer Arm at once!” my opponent called, and I gasped, taken completely by surprise. Rhyperior ended his attack and leapt forward before Latias could dash backwards. His right arm glowing bright white, he swung it in a mighty arc downwards and to his left.

Ice Beam! I called. Another new move I had trained with Latias to use specifically for Rhyperior, I thought she would be able to fire it at the Drill Pokémon before it was too late. However, even with our reduced reaction lag, Latias was still unable to pull off the move in time—she was slammed into the ground hard by the Fighting Type technique despite her resistance to it, the frigid blue sphere forming in front of her maw dispelled in an instant. She was sent tumbling off to the right end of the battlefield, slamming the barrier right below the announcer.

“Whoa!” he cried, his voice shaking slightly. “It seems as though Mason and Latias aren’t as unbeatable as they seem! After an amazing defense with Psychic against Rock Slide, Latias was unprepared for Rhyperior’s Hammer Arm! But what’s this?! Another unspoken command!” I looked over to where Latias had impacted the low wall, and sure enough, she was back in the air and enveloped with a blue sheen. Blessedly, she had not forgotten my order to use Reflect when there was an opening. “The Eon Pokémon has just used Reflect! Physical attacks will now only do half of their normal damage for a short time!”

Are you doing okay so far? I asked somewhat calmly, trying to judge when she should use Recover.

I should be fine to take another attack—

“Stone Edge!” Spires of sharp stone shot up from underneath my partner, causing my breath to seize in my throat. They slashed her wings and chest, causing her to cry out shrilly. Amid her feathers being torn from her body, an intense pain exploded in my head, almost like I had been cut by the Stone Edge, too!

What is this?! Why…tch, Latias, Recover, now! I ordered, eyes narrowed to try and ease the headache that had suddenly assaulted me. Another searing hot pain shot through my skull, and I clamped down on my right temple hard to keep myself from falling to one knee. My head felt like it was going to rupture at any moment—was our telepathy reaping a price of some kind?

“Mason seems to be experiencing some issues, ladies and gentlemen! Could it be that the strain Latias is feeling is mutual because of their telepathic link?!”

I don’t know, Latias’ voice sounded in my aching skull, which had settled on a dull throb. There’s no way that was a normal Stone Edge, either! Our minds haven’t been this entangled before…we can’t risk it again, Mason! A golden sheen enveloped her body, taking precedence over the blue colored Reflect. She quickly surged high into the sky, aiming to get away from the Drill Pokémon to restore her health uninterrupted, then looped back down towards me, the energy coating her briefly glinting in the afternoon sun. The lesser of her injuries had been reversed—however, the more severe cuts from the Stone Edge and the large bruise from Hammer Arm remained. Recover can’t restore my missing feathers, so I can’t cloak again. So, don’t bother commanding me to do it!

“Got it,” I muttered under my breath. Our hit-and-run tactics had been destroyed—a cunning plan from Mr. Sanderson, more likely than not, since he already knew Latias could cloak herself from when he first met her!

I knew, though, that she still had a lot of fight left in her.

“We can’t use telepathy either,” I continued aloud. “No more tricks then. Just ‘mon to ‘mon! Latias, go for another Ice Beam!” She nodded once, then answered my command with a high-pitched trill. The blue sphere from earlier re-appeared in front of her maw—three thin, jagged blue beams rocketed from it towards the Drill Pokémon with deadly accuracy, and that time, there was nothing to interrupt her.

In keeping with the icy attack, my expression was frozen in shock when the lances of frost struck Rhyperior full in the chest—he was blasted clear off of his feet and sent tumbling backwards, vocalizing his first real groan of pain. The force was such that the Drill Pokémon did a complete backwards somersault before crashing to the ground on his stomach.

“Rhyperior!” our opponent yelled, his voice betraying his concern. “Stand up, Rhyperior!”

“After a final silent command in the form of Recover, reversing some of the damage that Rhyperior has dealt to Latias, Mason has abandoned them in lieu of a more traditional approach. And what an introduction it was! The Eon Pokémon knows Ice Beam, super-effective against a Ground Type like Rhyperior, and it shows! Just how diverse of a special attacker is she?!” the announcer half-proclaimed, half-questioned as the Drill Pokémon drew up to his feet, bits of frost clinging to his rock armor. He was looking rather worn out, panting heavily, and for good reason: one of his crippling weaknesses, his poor special defense, had been blasted wide open by my battle partner.

“One more Ice Beam!” I shouted, hoping to end the battle on the spot.

“Dig!” countered Richard, and his Pokémon dodged the Ice Type attack with fractions of a second to spare, burrowing into the ground. The spot where he was standing became covered in ice, barely escaping Latias’ icy assault.

“Latias, get to the center of the field, now!” I commanded, then was struck by an odd feeling in my ears. Peculiar vibrations seemed to shake my eardrums and feet, the pressure rising and falling with an odd cadence. The roar of the crowd fell by the wayside while I struggled to comprehend the vibrations. I could only describe them as an extremely deep, almost imperceptible rumbling sound beneath my feet. It was moving in a circle, then suddenly stopped to Latias’ right.

Then, it hit me. A huge breath flushed through my lungs, and I could feel the blood drain from my face once I deduced what the odd sensation was. I realized I was hearing Rhyperior underground somehow!

My eyes flashed to Richard, and I caught him doing something rather odd with his left leg. He stomped the ground in a distinct rhythm, like he was sending some sort of code. The sound then became ever so slightly louder, like it was coming closer. My eyes widened—that was our chance to counter Rhyperior’s attack!

“Latias, to your right! Use Protect!” The instant the words were finished leaving my mouth, a huge plume of dirt erupted exactly where my uncanny prediction suggested. Rhyperior soared through the air, horn glowing white, intending to strike down Latias with a super effective Megahorn. “Yes! Zero damage taken!” I gave a short laugh as he instead ran dead into the green shield that had formed in front of Latias. While our opponent plummeted back to the ground, a persistent question flitted about in my mind: just how did I hear the Drill Pokémon coming?

“Impossible! How did you know?!” I did not answer my opponent’s question. It was obvious that Rhyperior was underground, to be sure, but no normal human should have picked up where he was....

“Incredible!” the announcer commented once again, hyping the crowd up. Rhyperior finished his descent, landing on the ground with a heavy thud. Latias put some distance between herself and him in response, preparing for the battle to be rejoined at any moment. “Mason somehow predicted where Rhyperior would emerge from underground! That Megahorn didn’t stand a chance of landing with that prior knowledge, and Latias avoids all damage with a timely Protect!”

“Dragon Breath, Latias!” I yelled. If we were lucky, Latias could use her monstrous resilience to her advantage and whittle away at Rhyperior until we took the win. A mistake was what we needed at that point, or another miracle.

“Rhyperior, overwhelm it with Rock Wrecker!” Richard shouted in response. I knew those words, and a primordial terror took hold in my heart. Latias’ Reflect had long since faded away—if she was hit, we were finished!

I knew the best option was to have Latias attempt to dodge it, and I knew she could do it with ease. However, I could feel something else awakening deep within my mind and soul, guiding me to the ultimate risk. This is it, Tia! Give him everything you have! Show him what we’ve trained for! I screamed mentally, not caring if the telepathy would burn my mind and giving her leave to go all-or-nothing.

In that moment, images began to flicker and weave through my mind. A beautiful Venetian garden passed before my eyes, filled with ponds, trees, walkways, and Pokémon of all sorts. The locale was immense, far larger than any garden I had ever seen. Then, night fell on the serene locale, advancing in the blink of an eye. Two female humans arrived, alongside them an Espeon and Ariados. They attacked, causing my vision to become blurry and distorted, and I faintly registered pain as well as an overwhelming feeling of utter helplessness. Realization dawned on me—I was witnessing a memory that had never been shared with me. The blue shape being stolen away before my very eyes, roughly similar to Latias’ own form, confirmed everything I needed to know.

THIS IS FOR MY BROTHER! the dragoness screamed with terrific rage and desperation, snapping me back to reality. I was taken aback by the sheer emotion filling her voice, both physical and mental, surely audible to every last spectator in the stands. I WON’T LOSE ANYONE EVER AGAIN!!

With a cry I had never heard the likes of before, the energy she was building in her chest and mouth—burning with a passion that seemed to bathe my soul in a searing heat—was finally unleashed. My jaw dropped as something very different from what I commanded her to do lanced through the air, impacting the gargantuan boulder Rhyperior had formed from the holes in the palms of his hands. To my complete shock, the red-purple beam tore through and disintegrated the mid-air Rock Type attack like it was nothing, continuing to make a beeline straight for the Drill Pokémon, the end of it turning into the shape of a ferocious dragon roaring with all its might.

Rhyperior stood no chance against the technique. He was blasted right off his feet and sent careening into the barrier behind Richard, a roar of pure agony erupting from him. The beam continued to bore into his chest, unrelenting in its fury. Upon impact with the wall, a giant explosion and a great crash of sound rippled through the air and ground, sending the nearby buildings shaking and silencing the crowd.

“No, Rhyperior!” Richard cried, turning around, trying to see through the smoke that had erupted from the explosion. My heartbeat began to accelerate—did the miracle we needed just arrive?

“I can’t believe what I just witnessed or heard, folks!” the MC bellowed, equal parts excitement and astonishment in his voice. “Mason ordered Latias to use Dragon Breath, but something entirely unexpected took us all by surprise! Instead of Dragon Breath, the Eon Pokémon used one of the most powerful attacks I’ve ever seen: a full-fledged Dragon Pulse, mastered in the heat of battle with a great cry of retribution! It tore through Rhyperior’s signature move like it was nothing!”

Way to go, Latias! You learned Dragon Pulse! I cheered, and my partner gave an elated trill in response. My expression then hardened once more once the smoke began to clear—I tensed up, ready for anything. Once I caught a clear glimpse of Latias’ opponent, however, I relaxed, for my heightened guard was for naught.

Rhyperior was slumped against the barrier, unmoving. His eyes were completely glazed over. It took a few seconds for everyone to register it, but the Drill Pokémon had been knocked out! We had won!

“Rhyperior is unable to battle!” the referee shouted, pointing the green flag in his right hand towards the ground and the red flag high in the sky. “Latias is the winner, and the victory goes to her and Mason Feist!”

“OH MY GOD, WE DID IT!” I screamed, not caring how I sounded to the spectators in the bleachers. I ran to the center of the field to my battle partner, glancing over to the crowd during my sprint. Absolutely no one was seated, and I would not have been surprised if the sheer force of sound coming from them had enough power to shatter windows. No sooner did I return my gaze to Latias did she catch me in a bone-crushing hug. “We did it…we won! I’m so proud of you, Latias!” I was then caught off-guard as the red Eon’s chest started to heave and I felt a peculiar wetness on my shoulder, where Latias had bowed her neck. “Latias? Why are you crying?”

It’s j-just…I’m so happy! Latias let go of me for a brief moment and did something she had never done before: she licked my cheek, which brought a fierce blush to my face for reasons I didn’t want to reveal to the dragoness. Our spectators gave a collective “aww,” which only further deepened my blush. Four years ago, my b-brother was taken from me because I couldn’t defend him, she whispered. Because I couldn’t d-defend myself….

“And now you’ve shown everyone that you’re powerful enough to protect those you care about….” I nodded, my eyes becoming watery also, her emotions washing over my own. I wanted to say, “those you love,” but I didn’t know how she would react. Clearing my mind of that train of thought, I continued: “This is only the beginning, Tia. Just you wait!”

I looked past the dragoness as we embraced once again to see Richard striding across the battlefield—he was forced to step around the massive amount of debris left behind during the battle. “Mason, Latias,” he spoke softly. Latias’ head lifted from my shoulder and she let go of me to face our elder Trainer. “That was an incredible match. I hardly recognize the Trainer and Pokémon I defeated a week ago. And that Dragon Pulse…such inconceivable power.” He reached into one of his trench coat’s pockets and pulled out what looked like a stone of some kind. “This was entrusted to me by the organizers of this event. I know not where they obtained it, or what it does, but it was to be the reward of whomever emerged victorious in our battle. It is yours now.”

Both Latias and I took a closer look at the stone in the palm of Richard’s hand: about the size of a large marble, it was rainbow colored with an intricate, stark-black helix design within it. I looked over to Latias to see if she knew what it was, but her confused expression revealed that she knew just about as much as I did. Richard handed the stone to me, and somehow, I could feel that it was not just a human-made gemstone. There was real power contained within—it was only a matter of unlocking it.

“We’ll definitely keep it safe, Mr. Sanderson,” I said, tucking it into my jeans. “Who knows—I might wear it, or something like that, to remember today.”

“I’ll keep in touch as I try to figure out what it is. Actually, do you mind pulling it back out?”

“Sure thing,” I replied, doing as he asked. The stone, not quite cold to the touch, laid in my open palm for Richard to observe. He then reached into his trench coat and pulled out an older-looking smartphone—scuffed with a cracked screen, it appeared to have seen a lot of use. He aimed the camera at the stone in my hand and tapped the screen a couple of times from multiple angles. I decided to give the man my own phone number, so we could communicate from afar.

“I’ll be sure to show these pictures to anyone that might have seen similar stones. That design is very distinct—maybe there’s more out there somewhere.” He and I pocketed the phone and stone away respectively. “A bright future is ahead of you, young man. Never lose sight of what’s important between you and Latias—your connection is to be treasured, to be sure.” I tensed involuntarily; that was something I would never do, despite the potential risks for harboring such feelings for my partner. Richard then turned around—with his back turned, he held up a hand. “I must tend to Rhyperior. Farewell.” With that, the more experienced Trainer took his leave.

Latias and I made our way off of the battlefield and into the maw of reporters that had gathered there. I was heartened by the revelation of the next step of our journey and our development as human and Pokémon. I briefly wondered how difficult it would be to uncover the secrets of the mysterious stone, but my musing was interrupted by a veritable flood of questions:

“Mr. Feist! How does it feel to be victorious over one of the more well-known Trainers here in Maryland? Do you plan to continue your career?”

“How did your Pokémon come to be a student here? What is her performance compared to other students?”

“What is it like to be the Trainer of a Legendary Pokémon?”

“Why is a Dragon Type so affectionate with you?!”

Latias and I groaned in unison. I glanced off to the side and saw Ken, Dirk, and Nigel all standing just far enough away not to get accosted by the reporters. Nigel was giving the most pitiable look possible, Ken a thumbs up, and Dirk had a sh*t-eating grin plastered on his face. I could only glare at the three of them, knowing that we were going to be caught up with the media for a long time.

ᛞᛖᛞ

Unbeknownst to anyone gathered on the battlefield, there was another spectator watching from the shadows underneath the bleachers. If one cared to look there, though, they would see only two things: a pair of red eyes and a golden mask.

So, the Latias of Alto Mare and Mason claimed victory after all, Giratina thought to himself. Good. I had hoped to accomplish this with a bit of subtlety, after all. It would have been unfortunate to have planted that Key Stone with that other human only for me to have to take it back by force. The freshly christened champions of the day being assaulted with questions quickly lost the Lord of Antimatter’s interest. Thus, his mind began to wander. I wasn’t expecting her to have mastered Dragon Pulse like that. Though, I can’t say it wasn’t for lack of inspiration. From what Kyogre and Lugia mentioned of her, she definitely has the motive to become stronger. I also must remember to thank Diancie later when I go to see her again to find the Latiasite. Her aid was invaluable here, and I’m sure it will be again. I’d do it myself, but this new planet is still unfamiliar to me. A whole new set of regions to learn—what a pain.

A brief flash of doubt passed through the Renegade, but he shook his incorporeal head. No. Father is wrong to not act on these two. While the other humans may not have noticed, I most certainly did recognize the inhuman hearing Mason just exhibited. Zygarde’s Failsafe is coming along just as I had anticipated three years ago, with the exact Eon I had predicted, too. It’s been a year since Regigigas…informed me…of the situation, as well, and still no other Eons have bonded with a native human. They must be the ones. Unless…hmm. Unless I’m actually supposed to take a role in pushing them towards achieving Mega Evolution despite Father’s warnings not to interfere. A low chuckle escaped Giratina as he began to sink back into the Distortion World. Or perhaps I’m being guided myself. Fate sure can be amusing sometimes. His humor quickly soured, though, when one last thought begged for deliberation:

If Mason and the Latias of Alto Mare were the ones destined to save the universe, why bring everymon to the human instead of the other way around after sending a small scouting party to find him, or simply send all of the Eons? Why plunge both of their worlds into chaos?

Chapter 15: Get Hype!

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

“You’re on in just a couple of minutes,” one of the event organizers told us, her hand falling from the earpiece hidden behind her honey blonde hair. “Man, I can already imagine the crowd’s reaction when we get you in there.”

“That’s what we’re here for, right?” I commented with a confident smile on my face. Latias trilled happily, obviously looking forward to the show we were about to put on for the thousands of people in attendance and the millions across America watching. “Oh, did you have a music track for us planned?”

“We thought it’d be your usual—Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins, right? And Latias’ sigil graphic up on the big screens?”

I nodded once, smiling as the music surged in my mind. “Even more appropriate for the occasion.”

The event organizer grinned. “I figured as much. The instant everyone hears that song, they’re going to go wild!” She turned and strode toward the door out of the small room we were in, filled with lockers. “Right this way.”

As we were led through the underbelly of FedExField, Latias nudged me on the shoulder. We hardly ever get to pull stunts like these. It’s so exciting!

I know, right?! And at FedExField, too! It was hard to contain my excitement. Unbeknownst to the patrons in the stadium proper, we had come in secret to an otherwise run-of-the-mill tournament put on for Marylanders and Virginians alike. If they had not gotten their money’s worth by then, they sure would when we came onto the scene. As regional champions, we had a certain amount of clout within our expansive territory across the central east coast—it was not unheard of for people to pay double, easily, for tickets to shows where we had committed to making an appearance. The scalpers made even more, which sent shivers down my spine. I could make two entire car payments with the amount of money some of those tickets cost!

“Hold up right here,” the woman told us, stopping us before the gaping mouth into the field proper. “I’ll tell you when you can go. Just listen up to our man, and you’ll get a good idea of when it’s your cue!” She then lifted a hand up to her earpiece, speaking into it softly.

“Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for our top three winners of tonight’s tournament!” The MC’s declaration was matched by a subdued roar from the crowd. “Coming in third, hailing from Baltimore, it’s Keith Connin and his almighty Armaldo!” Each syllable of the Pokémon’s name was sounded out. “In second place, coming in from Salisbury, Ann Tammath and her savage Salamence!” I laughed at the sudden deep pitch of the announcer’s voice when he said the Dragon Type’s name. “And finally, all the way from Pittsburgh, our grand champions: Craig Leddett and his wily Weavile!”

Amid the crowd’s uproar, I asked my battle partner one simple question: We’re going to win, right!?

You’re damn right we are!

Suddenly, the light spilling in from the stadium dimmed, and fog seemed to drift in, obscuring the view. “And now, it’s time for the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the special match! Who could our mysterious challenger be?! Try to stay in your seats, because we’ve got one hell of a battle for you tonight, folks!”

In the seconds that followed the announcer falling into silence, the sting of the keyboards descended into the stadium, surely stunning the crowd into a dumbfounded silence. The organizer waved us up. “Knock ‘em dead—it’s show time!”

Everything united in glorious synchronicity. The guitar rang out just as we rushed onto the field. Latias’ Eon sigil dominated the jumbotrons at the opposite end of the field, along with footage of her past exploits. Last, but most certainly not least, the crowd roared at a fever pitch, putting anything we had heard before to shame. “THAT’S RIGHT!” the MC bellowed. “From sleepy Hillsboro, Maryland, it’s our very own regional champions: Mason Feist and his partner! You know her…you love her…it’s the Fatal Dragoness! The Supersonic Skyterror! The Mind-Killer! Adorable but fierce, cute but cruel! The Legend in the limelight, IT’S—”

“LATIAS!!!” Her name echoed into the night courtesy of the crowd and the announcer alike. The pure wall of sound caused my entire body to vibrate, but somehow, Latias was unfazed. Before I knew it, she had already tossed a Mist Ball up high into the sky. The telltale red glow at her mouth told me everything I needed to know. Right when her signature move reached the apex of its flight, it was forcibly detonated by the red-purple Dragon Pulse that was rocketing out of her maw. A makeshift firework was born, glowing the component colors of the moves uses to create it: deep red, royal purple, and a brilliant pink.

“Already starting off with a bang! Our special guests never fail to disappoint—now, the rules of the special match are simple. It’s a 4- ‘mon free for all battle! Whoever is the last ‘mon standing is the winner!”

The music died off, and the four of us contestants took to each corner of the perfectly square battle arena that was standard fare for stadiums in that day and age—raised about six feet from ground level, made of the toughest materials that money could buy and Pokémon could make. It was a stark white, almost glowing underneath the floodlights in the stadium. Gridlines spanned the entire surface of the expansive arena, and four obelisks rose from each corner. In front of the spires was a small space for Trainers to stand—Double Battles were common enough to warrant such accommodations. Otherwise, Trainers stood at the center of a given side.

“Who will emerge victorious? Will our surprise guests reign supreme? Or will they be dethroned?”

Mason, I’m already sensing a good amount of hostility towards me from all three of the other Pokémon, Latias warned, ripping my attention away from the spectacle unfolding before me.

Then we’ll cut the crap and put on a show later, I replied instantly, knowing the portents of her declaration. Three on one was hardly fair…but three on none would shake things up. I smirked and wondered if the other competitors even knew about the information that Latias had gleaned from them. I saw it myself, even from dozens of feet away—a flick of the eyes from Keith, a small nod from Ann and Craig. If they didn’t know already, they would soon learn what it meant to do battle with us.

The massive screens spread across the far reaches of the stands went dark, save for a massive number five, orange in color. “Battlers at the ready!” the MC declared. It seemed that in lieu of a referee, an electronic countdown was chosen.

“Ready!” Craig shouted, his Weavile brandishing its claws.

“We’re good!” I called, wringing out my hands and arms while Latias chirped in affirmation.

Keith and Ann said nothing, but Salamence and Armaldo let out twin roars—they were ready to unleash their rage. With that, the number on the screens began to count down. The instant it reaches zero, vanish. Wait for a bit, and if nothing happens, attack the Weavile, I suggested.

Bummer that it’s come to that, my partner commented. Only three seconds remained before the match began. Though, I’ve got a better idea for the ‘after’ part.

Oh? What’s that? I asked.

The clock struck zero, and just before the crowd responded, Latias turned to me and smirked. Just wait and see…or not!

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED

FREE FOR ALL

With that, Latias vanished from sight, immediately eliciting an indistinct roar from the crowd. “What’s this?! Mason and Latias have already chosen to vanish! They can only do this once per match, but look at the other three battlers!” I allowed Latias’ smirk to find its way onto my own face, and it turned into a cheeky grin once I made eye contact with our three opponents. “They’re not moving an inch! A plot is unfolding on the battlefield, folks—but what if Latias doesn’t reappear? Will they remain loyal to each other or will the promise of glory be too hard to ignore?!”

The audience had already had enough of the unscrupulous alliance. Boos surged in the stadium, raining verbal castigation upon the seemingly dishonorable tactics at play before their very eyes.

We knew better than to be offended. They wanted to win, and so did we. Even while cloaked, I could still feel Latias’ intent, a natural evolution of my own. It was only a matter of tapping into that ideal of victory, the seed of which was already planted by the MC, to provoke our opponents into abandoning their shaky truce.

I sensed Latias skirting the edges of the arena, watching the Weavile carefully. The Sharp Claw Pokémon’s discipline was quickly eroding, and, lulled into a false sense of security, it finally turned its back to the Armaldo. Knowing I was being watched, I said absolutely nothing, for I had still not perfected the art of emotionless communication with my partner. Even so, the stage was set, and I knew Latias would capitalize on that fleeting weakness.

Suddenly, the Weavile’s left leg buckled, thrust upwards by a small piece of the battlefield itself. Losing its footing, it fell flat onto its back, its head crashing hard against the stone. “What the hell!” Craig shouted, his brown eyes immediately focusing on Keith and Armaldo.

“It wasn’t us, it was her!” Keith yelled back. Armaldo, on the other hand, had already prepared itself for a counterattack, which just so happened to make it appear like it had dealt the first blow.

“Bullsh*t!” Weavile’s Trainer shot back, the frail Dark and Ice Type quickly jumping back to its feet. “A rock tripping up Weavile, and you’re the one with the Rock Type! Weavile, the deal’s off! Let’s go!”

“Stone Edge to defend!” Keith shouted. Armaldo instantly obeyed, slamming its arms and claws hard into the surface of the battlefield. Mighty spires of alabaster rock erupted from their tranquil sleep, their razor-sharp points doing their utmost to prevent Weavile’s misguided retribution. The Sharp Claw Pokémon was too quick, however, evading each pillar of stone and drawing uncomfortably close to its opponent.

The battle had already reached a turning point. I flicked my eyes towards Salamence and Ann, and they were still content in watching the battle between Weavile and Armaldo unfold. We had a choice to make: a surprise attack on the unaware Salamence, the only other flight-capable Pokémon on the field, or attempt to remove the biggest threat to nullifying Latias’ speed.

I’m all in on the Weavile if you are! Latias declared. Up close and ‘mon-to-‘mon!

One hundred percent, I replied after hearing her decision, knowing from past matches what she had planned. Throw it for a loop!

No more words passed between us as I focused intently on the Weavile’s speed and position, feeding my partner crucial information that would ensure its elimination. It was too late for Weavile to change course, harried as it was by its chosen foe. It had just jumped high into the air to avoid Armaldo’s increasingly frenzied defense, a bloodthirsty look in its eyes—it was anything but forgiving about its embarrassing fall in front of millions. It would have landed right on top of the Fossil Pokémon, ready to cut its armor to ribbons, but in its rage, it forgot about one thing: us.

The blinding lights illuminating the stadium began to catch on an indistinct airborne object, the beginnings of an aquamarine sphere forming on its right side. As it looped around the field and gained detail, the crowd roared with a primordial clamor—their stars had finally re-entered the battle. Before Weavile had touched the ground, Latias had fully de-cloaked, a swirling sphere of draconic energy in her right paw: our newest innovation, the concussive Dragon Pulse. In an instant, she was upon the Sharp Claw Pokémon, blindsiding it and smashing the compressed aquamarine energy into its side.

A wave of force and a harrowing crash of sound set the stage. Weavile was blasted clean out of the air at a blinding speed, soaring far beyond the bounds of the battlefield and ruthlessly slamming into one of the stadium’s far walls. Cracks spread from its point of impact, and the Pokémon itself left an appreciable dent in the reinforced concrete.

“PULSE ‘IM!” I bellowed, making my intent known for the first time in the match. Latias followed through without hesitation. Red-purple energies formed at her newly opened maw, and with an impassioned trill, she unleashed the more traditional form of Dragon Pulse. It ripped the surrounding air to shreds with a fierce thunderclap and slammed into Weavile before it had a chance to recover, consuming it in a massive blast of flames and smoke.

“A quick one-two combo of energy blasts from the Supersonic Skyterror annihilates our freshly crowned champions after her long-awaited entrance!” the MC announced, his lively voice making the crowd roar with excitement. My eyes flicked up to the massive screens scattered about the stadium. One was playing Latias’ attacks back in slow motion. Another depicted the four combatants in portrait form—three lines, not unlike slash marks, sliced through Weavile’s portrait, its features washed out in a red hue. The green circle next to its picture had changed to a grey question mark, distinguishing its status from Latias, Armaldo, and Salamence. “I don’t see Weavile getting up after that one, folks. Even that first attack looked nasty!”

ᛇᚾᛇ

“X-Scissor!”

“Fire Blast!”

Two on one still, I breathed, the words but a faint whisper in my mind. I knew I could withstand the Salamence’s attack, so I focused fully on dodging the Armaldo. A rush of adrenaline seized me, though, when I saw that the Fossil was much quicker than I had anticipated. Dashing forwards in a single burst of movement, it brandished its claws, glowing a sickly lime green. It was far too late to dodge—in a desperate defense, I lashed out with a telekinetic blast directed from my right paw, attempting to deflect the hulking Plate Pokémon’s attack.

I was not left unscathed. While the brunt of Armaldo’s offense flew off its intended course to my left, the very edge of its claws still bit into the underside of my left wing on the back edge. Worse, I could feel a searing heat approaching fast from behind. I grit my teeth, bearing my fangs to the Plate Pokémon when the Fire Blast slammed full force into my back. The flames washed over me from behind, scorching the alabaster floor of the arena black. Even Armaldo knew enough to retreat and allow the licking flames to exact their price in pain—it was all I could do to keep a shrill scream from escaping my mouth. It was then that I realized something sinister: if Salamence was ordered to use Dragon Pulse, I would have dodged it instead, which would have gotten Armaldo hit…

These two are still working together!

I refused to allow my foes the pleasure of seeing their trap succeed for long. Instead, my gaze bored into my fleeing foe’s eyes, and I focused on my claws. My psychic energy was still primed, and I enveloped my claws with its power. They took on a glittering purple sheen, just as large as the Armaldo’s, ready to cut it down to size.

“Good Lord, these two are ruthless! No mercy is being shown to the Fatal Dragoness, and while she executes a superb psychic deflection of X-Scissor, she takes the full brunt of a hide-melting Fire Blast from behind. But watch out, Armaldo—she’s out for revenge, ready to atomize her foe with Psyshock!”

Go for it, Tia! Claw-to-claw with Armaldo! Look for an opportunity to stun it with Dragon Breath!

With pleasure, I hissed mentally and out loud, a menacing growl rumbling in my throat. In less than a second, I was upon the Armaldo, the power of its X-Scissor still empowering its claws. I clashed against them with my own, causing a feather-tingling sizzle and screech to scream out into the superheated air. Not once did my eyes leave Armaldo’s own—within, I could see confidence, but also a small amount of hesitance, even fear. I could only imagine what was going through its head. Why was she so close? How is she pushing me back?

I grinned and could see its eyes flick towards my fangs. Those were the questions I could prey upon to win my bout against a vastly superior foe in terms of physical strength.

Where is Salamence, Mason? I asked, a tinge of panic entering my voice. I desperately needed my bond-mate’s intel before continuing the fight. If he’s prepping a Dragon Pulse, I need to know!

Weavile’s back in the fight, targeting him—don’t worry about it!

Perfect. I withdrew my paws, causing Armaldo to stumble forward, not expecting the force holding back its advance to disappear so quickly. Even with my mobility cut down by the throbbing, searing ache beginning to grow across my back, I still had full use of my arms. I thus rejoined the clash, throwing a swift under-paw blow straight at Armaldo’s gut. It sensed the danger, using both its claws to block, but it staggered backwards all the same when my piercing Psyshock slammed against them. The sizzle and flash returned, but blinding though it was, I could see my next move clearly in my mind’s eye. Right paw still committed, the left sang through the air in a vicious diagonal slash, scoring a direct hit on Armaldo’s armored neck.

An enraged roar and impassioned trill erupted from it and me, respectively—findings its strength, Armaldo finally mustered the power to push me back. However, giving itself over to offense was a grave mistake. A gouge on its chestplate, a slice through its plated left claw, and two cuts on its armored legs were the price it paid for trying to match my still-superior speed. Further and further did it descend into a towering rage, and finally, I saw it. The way its stance splayed outwards, the way its neck reared up—I knew the makings of a Giga Impact when I saw one. Unfortunately for Armaldo, that was the exact moment I had been waiting for.

A searing heat surged up and out of my maw, bathing the Plate Pokémon in a brilliant mixture of emerald and ruby flames. I could see Armaldo’s muscles visibly seize and spasm beneath the stifling inferno—it seemed my luck was turning around. That wasn’t just a stun, it was full-blown paralysis!

Armaldo roared in indignation, struggling to move from its position and follow through with its intended attack. I had been on the receiving end of paralysis before, though, and knew that a Pokémon that bulky wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

“What a trooper! Weavile rejoins the fight and immediately hunts down that lost glory with a one-track mind, coming dangerously close to landing a flurry of Ice Punches on Salamence! Over on the other side of the field, the Supersonic Skyterror is left to run house with Armaldo, landing a crippling paralysis—will she finish the job this time?!”

Weavile isn’t going to last much longer against Salamence, Tia! Mason confirmed, further informing me of what was going on behind me. We’ve got to hurry and knock Armaldo out!

As long as you’ve got tabs on those two, I’ll get it done, I shouted back. Pulse again?

No! Use Hidden Power! It’s the only special move you’ve got that Armaldo is weak against!

But the energy drain—

We’ve got Salamence on lock and Weavile’s already badly hurt! You’ve got this!

I said nothing in return, allowing Mason’s confidence to lead me through the match. Using Hidden Power in the heat of battle, however, was a risky move. I knew I did not have the practice to use it without it taking a significant toll on my remaining stamina, and that would remain true for years to come. Still, my partner was right—with luck, Weavile would be taken down by Salamence, leaving me to finish my fellow Dragon Type off. Otherwise, Weavile itself would be an easy takedown, weakened as it was.

The roaring audience, the lights and sound, they fell away from my consciousness as much as I could will them. I instead focused on a memory: my island home. The canals, the fountains, even the surging seas. Water connected all life in Alto Mare. I could feel its gentle caress across my feathers, but knew to respect its fleeting beauty, for it held allegiance to none but the Queen of the Ocean.

A steadily blooming fatigue arose deep within my very soul. I knew, then, that I could open my eyes. Between myself and Armaldo, a swirling tendril of water orbited around my body, undulating in the air. It seemed almost innocuous, more of an interesting parlor trick than an attack to wield against an opponent. I knew, though, that within the water surrounding me slept a very potent power. I wasted no time in brandishing it against Armaldo, spinning in a grand flourish and allowing the band of water to rocket forward unabated. Still battling its paralysis, it had no hope of dodging.

I knew what came next, and so dashed backwards as much as I could—my attack exploded on impact, and through the gray mist that erupted from the detonation, I glimpsed the heavy Plate Pokémon hurtling through the air, blown clean off its feet and off the raised battlefield. At the same time, a second crash caught my attention, my ears flicking in reflex.

“The Fatal Dragoness graces us with a rare sight—water born from nowhere, bristling with destructive power! We know it well: that’s her Hidden Power! Oh, oh! Look at the other side of the field, ladies and gents! Could we be seeing a double knockout? Was that Dragon Tail the finishing blow on Weavile?!”

Yes it was, Tia! called Mason, closer to the action than me and able to get a better visual. Honestly a better outcome—I don’t know how much fight Salamence has left, though. It’s on the ground, so it’s your move!

I’ve got just the trick, then, I replied, feeling the strain of our telepathic link much more clearly because of what I had to do to Armaldo. Within seconds, I had already devised my next move. It was true that I could not cloak more than once per match, an understandable handicap in favor of my opponents, who could not do the same. Nothing in the commonly accepted ruleset, however, prevented me from becoming impossible to see by other means.

A glowing pink sphere formed between my paws, but in order for Mist Ball to have the effect I desired, I had to overcharge it with psychic energy. The strain to both stabilize it and correctly modulate my quickly draining energy came more quickly than I thought, however, and I was forced to unleash it early, slamming it down near the center of the white battle arena.

The compressed cloud of mist erupted from the sphere, covering nearly the entire field in an opaque cloud of white haze. I took refuge within it immediately, having bought myself precious seconds to catch my breath. “Whoa! I can’t see anything on the field! This is why Latias is known as the Mind-Killer, folks—where could she be lurking, Salamence? Will you find her, or will she find you?”

“Defog, Salamence! Don’t let her scare you!” Ann cried, keeping her cool despite losing sight of her partner. It was a fine tactic, all told—however, I was not about to let my own move be for naught. It was partly comprised of my own psychic power. As such, all it took from me was to reach out with my mind and become one with my birthright to firmly root it in place.

A furious flapping of Salamence’s broad wings sounded off to my right, alerting me to its rough position in the fog. Despite its efforts, the fog remained, stifling as ever. “What in Distortion? What is this stuff?! Why won’t it CLEAR?!”

I smirked: just as I thought, Salamence was male, confirmed by the masculine sound and fury with which he roared. This is no ordinary Mist, I said telepathically, making it impossible for him to isolate where I was.

“Come out and fight like a real dragon, you filthy Mismagius!”

Tia, you can finish this, Mason broke in before I could feign being insulted. Since he’s male, you can Pinch ‘Em Slyly!

Oh, but you hate it when I use that combo!

It’s fine, he replied, albeit a little shakily. I don’t want to risk you going up against another Dragon Type on equal footing after the gang-ups earlier in the match. He’ll fall for it, guaranteed!

Oh yes, he sure will, I confirmed with a half-sinister, half-playful air. I then cut my telepathic link with Mason temporarily. While I was comfortable toying with a foe’s more intimate feelings, he most certainly was not. Curiously, though unsurprisingly, jealousy began to cloud his mind whenever I went through with the combo I was about to execute—it spoke volumes that he brought it up first.

I approached where I had heard Salamence from before. He still had not moved. Using the mist that surrounded him, I could tell that he was swiveling his head in almost every direction, trying to find any trace of an offensive from me. It would have been so easy to simply attack him there and then, but I had no idea how much damage he could withstand. I had one in mind, but Mason and I both knew that I had to guarantee the knockout in one blow, and the only way to do that was to attack point blank.

It took far longer than I expected for Salamence to drop his guard. I did not sense Armaldo or Weavile, either. It was twisted in a way, but I gave silent thanks to Salamence for knocking Weavile out before I made my move. Moving slowly, I could finally see his silhouette through the mist, his tail swaying rhythmically. Oh, you big hunk of a dragon, I began, starting by whispering sweet nothings into his mind.

Salamence’s body froze, but he said nothing. Don’t be afraid, now. I just know you want to get to know me better after our little tussle.

“You…you’re lying. You want a Latios, not me!”

But Latios are just so rare. And you’re right here, without me having to search all over. I’m sure you’d be able to…satisfy me. You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t strong and powerful. Drawing closer, Salamence’s emotions were palpable to me. His lust for victory had almost been totally replaced by a lust and desire for me. The heat emanating from his psyche was almost stifling, and my lips parted into a toothy smile—he was oh so close to being fully wrapped around my claw. I could see that his breathing had started to quicken, and I drew closer, taking advantage of his dulled senses. “Your broad wings, your rippling muscles…oh, I’m looking forward to it. Yes…we’ll have so much fun, won’t we?”

The mist had started to fade, but it was already too late for Salamence. My whispering aloud into his ear elicited no aggression whatsoever. When the audience became able to see us once more, they saw him completely under my control. I circled to his front, and even I was surprised by how enraptured he was—his eyes were totally blank, delighted to see the object of his infatuation. To cap it off for the crowd, showing them just how in control I was, I ran two ivory claws across Salamence’s face, pinching his muzzle slightly and flashing him a seductive smile.

“Oh ho, ladies and gentlemen! The mist hid many secrets, but now it’s plain to see—during their one-on-one, the Fatal Dragoness has used her feminine wiles to put Salamence under her spell! He’s a sitting Psyduck, immobilized by love and without the strength to fight back!”

“NO, SALAMENCE! SNAP OUT OF IT!” Ann screamed at her battle partner, causing his muzzle to twitch slightly. I showed him my teeth, smacking my lips like a hungry predator.

“FINISH HIM!” I heard Mason cry from across the field in a dramatic manner. The crowd joined in his shout, repeating it in a three-step chant.

Wordlessly, I obliged. A fiery orange sphere began to coalesce in front of my freshly opened maw as I dumped all but a sliver of my remaining power into an overwhelming finishing blow. Almost searing the feathers clean off of my muzzle, I unleashed an almighty Draco Meteor directly at Salamence’s face. Knowing that a simple dash backwards would not spare me from being caught in the blast, I turned tailfin and soared as quickly as I could away from my opponent.

Despite my speed, I was almost not quick enough to escape what I had wrought upon Salamence. Though I could not see the outcome of my finishing blow, the deafening sound crashed over me, the shockwave threatening to knock me out of the air. Next came the searing heat—the tips of my tailfins would surely sting the next day, but I didn’t care. Still, I was acutely aware of a particular trope that the audience would definitely enjoy. Once I had come to a stop and without turning around, I winked with one eye, flashed a confident grin, and turned my head slightly. I also held up a paw, splaying out two of my claws as I did so, completing my pose for the crowd.

“Don’t worry, we won’t spoil the moment—Salamence is going to really feel that one in the morning! He’s down!” The smoke and soot from my attack was starting to drift in front of me, and I looked up at one of the massive screens in front of me before they were obscured. With a quick glance, I confirmed that the match was over. While Armaldo and Weavile had been knocked out at similar times, Salamence lasted a little bit longer. The clock was still ticking on only one competitor, and that one was me. Victory was ours! “Though she had to pull out all the stops, a seemingly unbeatable versatility scrapes the win for our regional champs!”

That’s right, I heard a familiar voice say in my head. I turned towards my partner, somewhat startled that he had managed to re-open our telepathic link on his own. Never mind the fact that you had almost nothing left, yeah!

Well, that just means that everyone will keep practicing and training to chase down their own glory, I said jubilantly, joining Mason at the center of the arena. And I wouldn’t have it any other way. That was so much fun!

“Give it up for Mason and Latias, everybody!” That was our cue to hold our arms high and wave to the audience, happy to have put on a show for them. Our musical theme blasted through the stadium once more, setting the place ablaze with light and sound. Mason wrapped his unused arm around the upper half of my back above my wings, and I did the same, pulling him tight to me by grasping his shoulder. Amidst the roaring, cheering crowd, I could hear several distinctly pitched whistles, implying something not entirely indicative of a wholesome friendship between the two of us. I paid them no mind, however, since they suggested something that was already true.

In any case, though, I wished that my brother could have seen me then. I would have done anything to meet with him once again, shown him just how far I had come. If only….

Chapter 16: A Bond Incarnate

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

“Thanks for giving me a hand, Mason. For the last time, regrettably,” Nigel said with some remorse.

“It’s no problem, dude,” I replied to my closest human friend. “And yeah…time sure does fly, doesn’t it?”

“It seems like just yesterday that you and Latias earned your first victory.”

I nodded, remembering it plain as day. The mysterious stone that I had earned on that day almost two years before hung around my neck to about halfway down my chest on a nigh-permanent basis. I only took off the stately silver amulet—the rainbow stone set in it, typically hidden beneath my clothes—when I went to sleep. Even then, I kept it in a special lockbox that only responded to my partner’s Psychic signature. I silently thanked the Alakazam we had met in Baltimore that had created the locking mechanism for us.

The two of us had continued to reign as something like celebrities in Maryland. Our reputation preceded us most everywhere we went that had to do with Pokémon battling. Because of us, our school enjoyed rather exclusive reign over hosting near-constant local tournaments and interviewing prolific and up-and coming Trainers alike. Soon, it would be time to begin transferring full control of the Enthusiasts Guild to my other officers―a bittersweet result of our looming graduation from the school. Their passion for Pokémon, battlers or no, would ensure the Guild’s survival. It was why Latias and I had selected them, after all.

Of course, that did not spare us from performing; we received swaths of invitations to battle on the regional level across the country, as if daring us to test our mettle against all comers. We declined all but those in neighboring states, merely out of practicality. School still came first, no matter how large the prize pools were.

Though, they had paid for my amulet…and paid off my car…and helped Mom remodel the kitchen…just to name a few things.

Still in all, we went to as many regionals as we could, unrivalled in our win to loss ratio, but in doing so, we had a secondary objective: find the meaning of the stone that hung around my neck. I could not remember how many Pokémon I had shown it to—it had to be at least seventy, maybe even a hundred—and the closest we had ever come was a chance meeting with a Carbink. Its eyes sparkled, but the only advice it had was to contact somemon called “Lady Diancie.” We knew from the title that it was referring to a Legend of some kind, but Latias had no idea who Diancie was. Mr. Sanderson had updated us with some regularity on his findings, but all his leads had also always ended with a Carbink. Without that critical piece of information, one that the Carbink did not possess either, we were just as reliant as ever on seeking answers from an Elder.

Latias and I were no slouches in academics, either, passing through our classes with high marks just as we had promised. My parents couldn’t have been more pleased, though they still held reservations about the lives we were leading, poking their heads in where Latias firmly believed they did not belong. I knew it would not be long before she and they had another go at each other, much like they did when they first met her.

The media had long since gotten off our backs about Latias actually being a student, and the administration could not really say no to a Legendary Pokémon. In fact, there might have been a reason why enrollment at the college went up so sharply following her entrance to the public eye….

Of course, with publicity came naysayers, and I honestly was not expecting as many as we had gotten. Much like racism still pervaded the world, species-ism had also reared its ugly head. Protests ranging from rather uncomfortable glares to full rallies decrying Latias’ abilities as a student occurred with regularity. They persisted no matter how many times we reiterated that she was carrying a GPA that put more than ninety percent of the student population, about three thousand strong, to shame.

They also insinuated more…unsavory happenings between her and me, so close to human was she. They were uncomfortably close to the mark, inflaming the feelings I held for her, buried deep inside. However, as our academic tracks progressed, it became ever easier to not focus on the fact that Latias was more to me than just my best friend. Luckily, biochemistry and art were on almost opposite ends of the campus. Our free time dwindled because of our senior projects, and we did not spend the vast majority of our time with each other anymore, despite our friend circles beginning to merge in our final semester. Yet all throughout, I would have been lying if I said that I hadn’t gotten my fair share of mixed messages from the dragoness over the years, but I always brushed them off as something I didn’t fully understand about how Pokémon expressed friendship.

That was an amazing day indeed, Latias spoke to the two of us with her mind, breaking me away from my reverie. She was in the right corner of Nigel’s room, shifting through some boxes with Psychic, closest to the door. I was on the opposite end of the small, rectangular shaped room, lifting a few boxes of my own and setting them into the center for Nigel to sort through. The process continued, and we helped our friend move all of his bulkier items—his unusually heavy lamp, his mini-fridge, and his favorite chair, just to name a few, into his room. His roommate had not yet arrived, so we were finished for the time being.

“Hey, well, that’s it then,” I said suddenly, my partner having already stopped what she was doing. “We’ve got to go sort our own room across campus. We’ll be seeing you, of course.”

“Don’t let me keep you. You’re doing me a favor, after all. Hopefully January will not bite you too hard on the way there.”

My eyes flicked towards Latias, and her golden gaze met my own. “C’mon, then.”

What’s on your mind, Mason? asked Latias privately after she had followed me out of the hall’s door leading outside, opening around the corner from the rear courtyard of the building. Nigel and his roommate had remained in the dorms, even as seniors, to save money. My thoughts drifted a little as I turned left, away from the trees and underbrush, and started down the small path that ran circuitously around the building. Classes, the Guild, our battles―it made everything else so easy to ignore.

I paused, trying to collect my thoughts. The chilled air nipped at my nose and fingers, allowing me to relax a little, like a shroud had just been lifted from around my shoulders. I idly ran my fingers across the back of my neck, touching the loop of my amulet. What Nigel said just…got to me a little, is all. Like, yeah, I said time flies, but…I can never stop myself from thinking every once in a while that time has gotten away from me.

Doesn’t that imply that you spent your time in the wrong way? she replied, by my side as I meandered towards the courtyard. Well, we know that that’s not true…but, I can see what you mean. Well, we can always make this last semester our best one yet—

Another chill washed over my body, but it was not like the one that sharpened my senses mere seconds earlier. It wrapped around my face, almost stealing my breath away, and seemed to tighten its icy grip around my very soul. My eyes were inexorably pulled toward a patch of unnatural shadows nearby, in the corner of the courtyard. They seemed to beckon towards me, like there was no other path for me but into their gaping maw.

It is close…come with me….

A shiver born of fear rippled across my skin. Forcing myself to turn towards the dragoness by my side, I was put at ease by a peculiar comfort when I saw that she had seen, heard, and felt what I had.

We have to go, she said simply, shattering that comfort on the spot.

Uh, what?! Last time I checked, we didn’t go wandering into pits that lead to Hell itself.

No, Mason. I can feel him. My brother is in there.

I was speechless, trying to wrap my head around just how she got that impression from what seemed to me to be a very obviously malevolent manifestation of…something. If she could sense him, the thing clearly knew who we were. But that made it all the more sinister—how did it know that? Why was it there? What was stopping it from being some kind of trap?

Latias said nothing, instead placing a claw of my shoulder, twisting it so that I turned towards her. Her eyes begged one thing: trust me.

Alright, I said, heaving a sigh. But if I die and you don’t, I’m coming back to haunt you forever.

I’ll take it, she answered, an air of humor suffusing her voice. Her claw dropped to wave me forwards to follow her.

We approached the shadowy mass slowly, and it seemed to react to our proximity, crawling up the side of the building and across the nearby glass doors of the downstairs common room. It widened, morphing itself into a tunnel—a dark passageway to who-knows-where. It seemed to be one-way, as the students milling about in the common room did not notice anything anomalous about the doors. We accepted the shadow’s invitation without delay, crossing the curiously shimmering threshold into pitch darkness. No light remained once the opening behind us sealed itself shut, and then I could no longer feel anything solid beneath me, sending me adrift in nothingness.

At last.

ᚱᛉᚱ

The moment I began to lose track of how long I was adrift in the eerie darkness, the world became illuminated once more. However, our entrance was unceremonious—I landed hard on my front, my head rebounding and hitting the hard floor underneath me twice. Another, similar groan sounded off to my right, echoing my own. I scrambled to face it, and Latias was there, seemingly as unharmed as I.

So, you have brought them here to me, my son. Alas, I should have expected you to interfere…but we shall see if your gambit has paid off.

The voice set me on edge, the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. It was painful to suffuse my lungs with the air that had been knocked out of them from my fall, but something was almost pulling me up, like I had to get up to my feet or risk offending someone.

What I saw was nothing short of breathtaking. We were in a chamber of some sort, carved out of unusually polished stone, almost like glass. It was translucent, and beyond it, I could see a vast expanse of a realm that defied reality. Stone and rock floated aimlessly in an endless grey-and-purple colored abyss, eventually fading to black at its farthest reaches. Trees and vines grew in all directions, and what water I could find flowed against the flow of gravity.

While I wanted to be thankful that we were insulated from that twisted place, we were not alone. I was forced to behold the form of a white, gold and gray quadrupedal creature. Its hooves ended in golden points, and its neck was long and tall. It had a long, rigid-looking mane and tail, similar in shape. While its face was visible—black, accentuated by red and green eyes—it seemed to have no mouth. Most notable of all, though, was the brilliant golden ring around its barrel, four points spread equidistant across its circumference.

Next to the first creature was a second, almost its antithesis. It had a long, serpentine body, floating in mid-air. Red, gray, and golden bands of color alternated across its form, and jutting from the red bands were rather menacing looking gray and golden spikes. Six tendrils made of oily shadow undulated from its back, and they were tipped with sharp scarlet spikes. The ‘wings’ were bound to the creature by bands of gold on its back that wrapped around towards its front. Lastly, its jet-black face was obscured by a golden mask—only its glowing red eyes and the upper halves of its cheeks were visible behind it.

“Who…who are you?” I whispered aloud. The creature with the medial ring did not react to my question in the slightest. The eyes of the masked one, however, turned upwards with glee—it was smiling behind its mask. “Are you Pokémon?”

Indeed, the masked one said telepathically, revealing a masculine voice. Three of his tendrils wrapped towards the front, and both they and his neck bowed in introduction. I am Giratina, the Renegade, Lord of Antimatter and Master of the Distortion World, the realm you see beyond this chamber. I have been watching you for some time, Mason and the Latias of Alto Mare. I have brought you here to prove yourselves to my father.

And before you ask, that would be me. The white Pokémon’s head bowed slightly to get a better look at us. I am Arceus, the Original One.

My knees threatened to buckle under his voice’s weight. While I did not know much of anything about him, I knew enough. I was in the presence of one akin to God!

“I…I don’t know what to say,” I stammered, immediately staring at the floor, bowing my head in deference. Latias had remained silent throughout the two’s introductions, as if she instinctually knew who they were—Elders, at the very least.

You needn’t say anything, Giratina said. You only need to show us that you’re ready to take up your destiny. There is no more time to waste, after all.

“Destiny?”

The details are unimportant, Arceus remarked, causing Giratina’s eyes to flick towards him. What matters is that you are capable of standing against the tide of shadow that I and my daughter Dialga foresaw a year before we arrived on your world. Amongst those Pokémon that we saw fighting valiantly in the name of the universe’s salvation mere weeks from this day, there were several humans, too, all of whom were regarded highly by the Elders. All except one—a human not born of our home world and an Eon, capable of Mega Evolution.

Latias and Latios are rare species, Giratina continued. It was simple for us to find you, Latias of Alto Mare—

Just call me Latias, my partner interrupted. That’s what everyone else calls me.

Very well, the Renegade assented amid my alarm that Latias had the guts to stop him mid-sentence. It was simple to find you because you were the only one with a human bond-mate. As time has worn on, the promise of destruction drawing closer with each passing day, I only ever became more convinced that it was you two that my father and sister saw. Alas, Arceus has remained hesitant about overtly interfering in such affairs, but the divinations never explicitly stated how you would come across the tools to execute Mega Evolution.

“What even is this ‘Mega Evolution?’ You’ve mentioned it twice, and we have no idea what it is. And, ‘bond-mate?’ What’s that?”

Giratina fell silent, as if stymied on how to respond. We shall remedy this lack of knowledge now, then, Arceus said, stepping in for his son. However, I will answer the second question later, should you prove worthy. He paused, waiting for us to confirm that that was an acceptable trade. After we did so in the form of a synchronized nod, he continued. Mega Evolution is a state that some Pokémon may achieve during battle. It drastically alters a Pokémon’s form as a result of the process drawing out every ounce of that Pokémon’s latent energy, thus also conferring a massive but temporary power increase. However, in order to achieve this state, nearly all Pokémon capable of it require a catalyst or a pair of resonance artifacts. The latter were what were commonly used on our home world by human Trainers and their Pokémon. These are the ‘tools’ that Giratina mentioned earlier—one of which is currently hanging around your neck, Mason.

On cue, I drew out my amulet from behind my navy-blue shirt and black hoodie. “This?”

Indeed. That is a Key Stone, one of the two artifacts required to induce Mega Evolution. It is the stone that is wielded by the Trainer. Have you never known what it was before now?

“No…I won it from a local tournament a little less than two years ago, and I’ve worn it to commemorate our first win ever since. All we ever figured out was to find somemon called Lady Diancie to ask about it.”

The Original One nodded. That is because she is the one in charge of keeping track of these special stones. Now, the other half of the resonance pair is wielded by the Pokémon. Many such Mega Stones exist, but only one species of Pokémon can ever use a particular ‘species’ of Mega Stone. Latias and Latios are capable of Mega Evolution—thus, a Latiasite is what we require for this proving of your mettle.

This is where I chose to intervene, said Giratina. Rather than leaving your encounter with a Latiasite or with Diancie up to chance, I have taken the liberty of bringing one here. One of his tendrils reached behind his back, and then he produced a medium-sized stone, about the size of an orange. It was lavender in color, and it had a helix design embedded within it, colored a deeper violet and vivid red. The design’s shape matched the one in my amulet perfectly. The tendril extended towards Latias, much like Giratina was holding out an arm, and she plucked it from his grasp. With the resonance pair united, all that remains is a strong bond between human and Pokémon. But I have a good feeling that you two have that one under wraps. For the first time, Giratina chuckled—it was not low and sinister, like I was expecting, but conferred a good-natured humor to his flanging voice.

I was shocked when I felt a peculiar energy begin to emanate from the stone around my neck. It began to glow softly with a golden light. A form of Evolution that was completely unknown the world over, and we were just given the piece needed to complete our set so casually! I looked towards the Latiasite in my partner’s grasp, and it, too, was thrumming with latent energy, waiting to be tapped and unleashed. Then, my gaze moved upwards to meet hers.

Within her golden orbs, I saw a fiery determination, a burning need to settle the mystery of why we were brought before Giratina and Arceus themselves. Our mental link began to sear with the energy contained within the stones we had in our grasp, and it was then that I realized that our bond was about to take physical form and become tangible power for Latias to wield as she saw fit.

But there was more.

Amidst the roiling raw emotions beginning to resonate between us, I felt something very distinct, drawing very close to an aspect of myself I had tried so hard to conceal from her senses. It was a love for the time we had spent together, for the connection that we shared. It was genuine to a fault, transcending any sort of romantic feelings I harbored for her. That alone made the last three and a half years worth it. I tapped into the purity of that love as best I could and snapped my right hand shut around my necklace with finality. Latias did the same, bringing the stone in her grasp close to the sigil on her chest.

Tendrils of orange energy exploded from between my fingers, with similar streams of blue light erupting from the Mega Stone in Latias’ claws. They crashed into each other in the air, and upon their joining, a golden hue spread back across them. I let go of my amulet before the newly-golden tendrils reached it—but upon reaching her, something vastly different occurred. The details of her form became blotted out, and her body took on shades of brilliant purple and pink. Then, her form itself began to change.

Runnels of pink and purple electricity ran across her body as it morphed before my eyes, the Latiasite seemingly becoming absorbed within it. The wings on her back shockingly receded into her body, and her tailfins grew and repositioned themselves on her underside, taking their place. Her entire form enlarged significantly, her paws in particular—they grew to become almost four times their original size. On their sides, sizeable wings sprouted; if she held her paws firmly to her sides, they would serve the same purpose as her old wings once did. Her claws enlarged dramatically, completely outclassing their previous incarnation in both utility and menace. Her ears became longer, their tips spikier, and small tufts of feathers grew in at the sides of her face.

The glow of her body began to fade at long last. I gasped, bearing witness to the changes I was trying my best to comprehend. A rainbow helix flashed in front of her, the same design within the Key Stone embedded in my amulet. I was taken aback when she cried out with a keening trill, the sound sending my spine shivering with the power she had coursing through her.

Gone was the adorable Latias I had come to know and love. Instead, she was something else entirely. She hovered before me, paws and claws facing the floor of the chamber, wings jutting out to the sides. The ruby color of her feathers was gone, replaced by a soft lavender hue.

Only one thing spoiled our achievement, and it was revealed the moment I looked into her eyes. They were different—her pupils had narrowed and sharpened, no longer rounded. Despite the fact that I had never seen her Mega Evolved state before, I knew deep within my heart that something was terribly wrong.

“Latias…are you a-alright?” I questioned tepidly, hesitant to even approach her. She towered over me—she must have been at least seven feet tall!

I…n-not really…. Alarm bells began to clamor in my head. I grimaced when I felt her unbridled power begin to sear our mental connection. Her lips peeled back, revealing freshly enlarged and sharpened fangs. Her muzzle had morphed into a grim visage, equal parts pain and determination. I…I don’t know what’s happening to me!

Don’t focus on the power, young Latias, Giratina said, revealing himself to be as invested in our success as we were. If you do, your mind will succumb to it, leaving nothing but a violent hatred behind.

“Just keep talking to me, Tia. We’re all here, you can do this!”

It’s j-just…so hard! My heart’s beating like crazy, and there’s this red tinge on everything. Her breathing accelerated—she was trying and failing to take deep breaths, instead descending into hyperventilation. Everything feels like it’s on fire. I don’t know how to make the burning stop….

“Then send a little along to me, Tia. I can take it. You can count on me, I promise!”

Are you s-sure?

“Absolutely. We’re a team, and we always have been. Just focus on me, on our friends, on your art. We’ve gotten so far, and no stupid stones are gonna take that away from us—and don’t you dare look away!”

I mustered up the courage to approach Latias slowly, and on the third step, I had to stop. She had just widened the link between our minds, bleeding off some of the excess energy just like I had offered. It was enough to briefly send my muscles spasming with foreign energy. My knees buckled momentarily, but I did not fall. Surely the energy had no place coursing through a human body, but I withstood it all the same, resuming my inexorable journey to the lavender dragoness, step by agonizing step. However, the closer I came, the more intense the hindrance on my own body, until I was completely paralyzed by its weight. I was rooted in place, and neither Arceus nor Giratina elected to interfere, leaving us to our trial.

Mason…please…. The urgency in her voice spurred me on. Positive memories were not enough—I needed to give her something more tangible, more real. Until that moment, my adoration for her was overpowered by the very real threat of being torn to shreds by her huge claws, sharp teeth, or flayed alive with her mind alone. Amid the searing headache that had exploded in my skull, I found the strength to overcome my fear. All at once, I closed the distance between us and wrapped my arms around her chest as best I could, taking her up in a fierce embrace. I was far too close for Arceus or Giratina to save me if anything went wrong, but I trusted my partner. She would not hurt me.

A tense moment passed. Then, finally, something gave way.

Her paws rose, slowly but surely, and encircled my body, mimicking my embrace with her. It was surprisingly gentle, not one befitting her looks. Her neck craned down, and she nuzzled my cheek with her muzzle, careful not to prickle me with her newly grown feathers. Her tenderness brought a blush to my face, and the burning ache in my skull began to fade away. I breathed a sigh of relief—her Mega Evolution had finally stabilized. She was in control!

Thank you, Mason, she whispered, licking me on the cheek and deepening my blush. Then, a distinct set of emotions echoed from her to me. Yet again, they duplicated sentiments with which I had become intimately familiar, locked tightly away and never to be revealed. It was then that I realized that the risk I deemed too great to take had morphed into something that was not much of a risk at all. Perhaps, after all, my love for the dragoness holding me tightly against her body wasn’t something that I alone felt. Maybe, just maybe, a confession would end in something other than a gaping rift being torn in our friendship.

She let go of me, breaking me from my reverie, and I could see a dramatic change in her eyes. They were exactly the same as they were when she was in her regular form, no longer sharp and feral. I don’t think I’ll lose control like that again. But, wow, it feels like I can fly twice as fast now!

“I-I’m just glad it worked, and that I could help. Our bond can do this to you…it’s crazy how far we’ve come.”

Yeah—I’ve never been happier to be your partner!

Well done, said Arceus, ending our heart-to-heart. Many a Pokémon experiencing Mega Evolution for the first time are left to succumb to a destructive rampage, so unfamiliar are they with their hidden potential. What Mason did was very brave indeed—your connection alone was enough to reign in your new power. After some time, it will embed itself within you once more, but you can release it yourself if you will it to be so.

Well, sounds like every other time I use Psychic, she mused, and in an instant, her body glowed a bright orange. In a scant second, she had returned to her standard form, the Latiasite mysteriously reappearing in her left claw, as if it were the concentrated form of her new shape. She made to return it to Giratina, but he shook his head.

Better that you keep it, considering the circ*mstances.

As promised, we shall now explain to you the other half of your being brought to this place, Arceus began, pulling our focus onto him. There was more to the visions that we saw, beyond what you just demonstrated to us….

Chapter 17: Zygarde's Failsafe—The Eon Legacy

Chapter Text

ᚱᛉᚱ

We now move to the concept of a bond-mate, said Arceus, the Alpha Pokémon. One that runs deep into the culture of the Eon species, axiomatic to your existence. I shall leave the more intricate details for when you choose to reunite with your lost heritage, for I am not ignorant of the circ*mstances of your upbringing. It is not our place to explain such things, clinically and lifeless.

Consider it one of the next steps of your journey together, Giratina added.

What I will say is this: There are, without fail, always Duos of Latias and Latios, and they are always bond-mates with each other. Most choose to live in herds of twenty to fifty, but there are rare exceptions. These exceptions, however, are much more vulnerable to outside threats.

My father…my brother…. Latias trailed off. Her muzzle wrinkled in sorrow, but any full-fledged despair was well hidden.

Indeed. And from the death of your father, it becomes possible to postulate what became of your mother. Without her bond-mate, she was forced to attempt to find another. But, judging from the fact that she never returned—that you never knew her—we may assume that she did not find one in time.

She died alone, said Giratina, a peculiar glint of resentment in his eyes. Such is the fate of all Eons without bond-mates. It is because of this that your species remain in balance, morbid as it may be.

For a time, it seemed that you, Latias, would join her in her fate, Arceus continued neutrally.

“But she still hasn’t found a Latios,” I responded, my heart beginning to race once more. “How much time does she have left? Is she going to die?!”

No, human. Giratina’s voice had an air of derision about it. She will not die because she has a bond-mate—you! And while the order of the species has not yet been restored, it shall be…by you.

My world came to a screeching halt almost instantly. That was impossible—if only Latios could restore balance, and I would do the same someday, then….

We’ve been monitoring the process for some time now. Your keen hearing, your sharp eyesight—they are distinctly inhuman traits. The Lord of Antimatter’s words invoked the memory of hearing Richard’s Rhyperior underground, of the countless times I could see the intent of our opponents etched on their faces. That is because you have become less and less human ever since you and Latias bonded your minds together. You are her brother’s successor.

“I…I’m being changed,” I whispered, burying my face in my hands for a moment. I spread them out and away, as if trying to wipe something clean from my skin and eyes. “Into…into a….”

A Latios, finished Latias, my bond-mate. Mason…I’m so sorry. Her apology was wholly unexpected, shocking me from my stunned state. I’ve never had any idea that any of this even existed…except on a deep instinctual level. And now here I am, robbing you of your humanity, and there’s nothing we can do to stop it!

“Hey, don’t go and do that, Tia,” I said, trying not to let her growing agitation get the better of her and me. I reached out and touched her shoulder, then my arm moved up to scratch her behind her right ear. A feeling of doubt dissipated from deep within me, surely coming from her to begin with. “None of this is your fault. It’s just the way it has to be for us to…you know, stay partners?” I hesitated to say, “stay together.” “And besides…what if I want to be a Latios? That sounds pretty awesome to me.”

B-but, your friends, your family…you’ve only ever been human. There’s no turning back once it’s done, and being a Pokémon, you’ll lose everything you thought you’d do in the future and have to start all over. I don’t even know if you’ll have the same personality….

“Tia, there’s nothing we can do about any of those things,” I said, heaving a sigh. The prospect of losing my humanity was still quite the shock, but somehow, it was pushed aside by the need to comfort my partner. “Yeah, all of that is going to be hard to deal with, and I’d rather not take the risk of losing what makes me who I am, but if the alternative is you dying? No way—I’m going through with it. And besides…the only place I need is by your side.”

You mean it? You’re not mad?

“Hell no! I’ll be able to train and battle with you, and fly with you, too! We’ll be a real Eon Duo! And it’s not like I’m going to just wake up tomorrow and be a Latios. You’ll be there to help me if my personality starts to change. We’ve got time—”

On the contrary, Arceus interrupted.

“Oh, well I just had to say something, huh? Just my luck, then!”

Haha! I like you, Mason, Giratina said after chuckling heartily. But yes, Father did say that the frustratingly vague ‘tide of shadow’ was only weeks away. Your metamorphosis will not be complete in that amount of time—after some interviews, I’ll call them, we’ve deduced that you still have a decade and a half, maybe a little longer, before the process naturally comes to its fruition.

“You’re going to accelerate the process, aren’t you?”

Indeed, confirmed Arceus, nodding his head once. You’ve caught on quickly. I will take this lack of hesitance as a form of consent, though I must warn you—neither Giratina nor myself know any more about the process than you two do. Converting a human bond-mate to an Eon, to my knowledge, has either never come to fruition or is a closely guarded secret amongst your species. Fortunately for us, however, we have in our possession something that I believe will assist in the catalysis of your transformation.

When Arceus finished speaking, a mote of light appeared on the floor of the chamber, perfectly separating us and the Elders. It grew in intensity, and then it began to rise, shaping itself into an oval, roughly five feet tall. It became a distinct mixture of blue and purple, and then it began to melt away from top to bottom. A simple pedestal was left behind, and upon it rested a moderately-sized like-colored jewel, slightly larger than the Latiasite that my bond-mate had wielded not long before. A ball of mist appeared to be swirling inside of it, glowing softly.

The Soul Dew…you’ve had it this whole time?! Latias shouted. I knew I could sense him—that’s my brother! His crystallized spirit! How dare you keep him from me! And you’re going to use him like a tool, with no regard for what he was. I won’t let you do this!

As far as I am concerned, he is a tool, waiting to be used for just the right moment, Arceus countered, unperturbed by Latias’ justified outburst of anger and rage. Her brother meant as much to her as I did. He was the reason we won our first match. He was the reason she sought to become stronger. Because of him, she took her fate into her own claws, starting with bonding with me. And Arceus and Giratina were just going to sacrifice what was left of him in the name of some prophecy that suggested a universe-ending destruction? There had to be some other way. The price was too high to conform to something that Giratina himself said was vague!

His soul has served no purpose, but we shall grant him new life by bringing Mason’s metamorphosis to its completion.

And destroy the Soul Dew in the process?! Never! I’d rather die than let him bear another ounce of burden on his own!

Giratina hovered forward, peering at the gem resting on the unremarkable pedestal. His proximity to her brother’s soul immediately caused Latias to flinch. It would indeed be a shame to drain the Soul Dew’s power in its entirety. His spirit lives and breathes, and it can regenerate, much like one might donate blood. I think we can strike a deal, Latias.

Giratina, this is no time for your games—

Father, your mind has been narrowed as of late, his son remarked, cutting the Original One down to size. He then turned to the dragoness by my side, his scarlet eyes fixed upon her golden ones. Latias, you are willing to bargain with your own life. I propose that we use both your brother’s soul and yours, sparing a guaranteed destruction for his at the cost of endangering your own.

We get the Soul Dew in return, Latias retorted instantly, her terms non-negotiable. She would be reunited with her brother—anything less, and Arceus wouldn’t see the creation of the Eon Duo that he foresaw. Considering how invested both he and Giratina were in the fruition of whatever visions they had witnessed, that gave my partner an unexpectedly large amount of leverage over the two of them.

Very well, Arceus said abruptly, suddenly speaking on behalf of his son. The prophecy must come to pass. We cannot take any chance that it may only partially be fulfilled to combat the encroaching darkness.

I don’t like this whole ‘prophecy’ business, Latias muttered aloud. In time with her statement, Giratina’s tendrils twitched restlessly—like he wanted badly to say something, but just barely restrained himself from doing so. His eyes then flicked towards the direction of his father while his head remained still, not revealing to him what he had done. What was in those scarlet orbs of his? Was it a frustration at having his voice stifled, unable to tell the whole truth? Or was it a keen hope that Arceus would continue speaking on his behalf? What were the two Elders hiding, and why?

We have committed too much not to follow through with what we have seen, youngling. The strength of spirit that the two of you have demonstrated to me minimizes any risk. At this juncture, we have everything to gain if it is true, and nothing to lose if it is false.

“Seems like a win-win to me, Tia,” I said, offering my own view on the matter but remaining silent about my observations of Giratina, and Arceus for that matter. My bond-mate’s brow creased, deep in thought. Eventually, however, she shrugged, wordlessly offering her consent.

Excellent, Arceus replied, though no joy or happiness colored his voice. Giratina retreated from the Soul Dew, allowing us a wide berth. I will start the catalysis once you two are ready. Join hand and claw around the Soul Dew, and I will start you on the road to fulfilling the legacy that has been bestowed upon you.

Latias and I hovered and stepped forward, respectively, stopping on opposite sides of the pedestal, with Giratina and Arceus off to my right. She set down the Latiasite nearby, allowing Giratina to pick it up. I did the same, slipping my necklace over my head and allowing one of his inky tendrils to take it from me. Latias then reached towards me with her paws, and I grabbed onto them without delay. Between us, the Soul Dew seemed to glow with a bright, harsh light. Curiously, that same light was somehow soothing to me.

I’m ready, Mason. Are you?

I took a deep breath, doing my best to let go of my reservations. As ready as I’ll ever be.

Do not falter, younglings. Good luck. The ring around Arceus’ barrel flashed with a golden light, causing the Soul Dew to flash a brilliant white in turn. I saw a tendril of blue and purple light erupting from the jewel between us—it immediately split in two, sliced through the air, and burrowed into my chest and eyes.

A great fire began to spread through my heart and mind, proliferating to every iota of my body. I was immediately brought to my knees, but I did not let go of my bond-mate’s paws. I knew that to do so was instant death. My five senses were battered into submission by a vast, incomprehensible maelstrom, a force that was savagely embedding itself into my flesh and spirit. More than fifteen years of development was being compressed into a tiny fraction of that time. The merger of everything that I had to become, to fulfill my place as Latias’ counterpart, was threatening to drown out my very existence!

The light that I could comprehend only increased in intensity—there was no immediately apparent end of my body and mind being shattered on the spot. The fire that had spread through my body had transformed, intensifying into an indomitable inferno. I could no longer feel my legs or portions of my arms and hands. A new searing agony flared up on my back and my neck, and my limbs continued to feel as though they were being sliced to pieces by an edge hotter than the sun. The pain was unreal—I wanted to cry out, to scream, to weep…but I could not even tell if I had done any of those things, or if I even still had a mouth with which to do them. Only one certainty remained: No matter what I did, I would not be spared. The explosive agony ripping through me, forcibly unmaking and reforming my entire body, had to be endured. But I was already at my breaking point, struggling to even keep my mind safe. Amid the endless torture assaulting my psyche, I tried to forge a twisted communion with the pain, remembering what I was, rather than being overwhelmed by what I was becoming.

My name’s Latias!

“Ruby means a great deal to you, doesn’t she?”

I will do anything to keep you safe, Latias. I swear it.

“There’s an exhibition next week. If you truly want to show me what a Trainer with a Legendary Pokémon can do, you will compete there and then.”

“We did it…we won! I’m so proud of you, Latias!”

“Give it up for Mason and Latias, everybody!”

I’ve never been happier to be your partner!

My most powerful memories were given freely, but all I received in return was the complete loss of contact with my physical form. I tried to open my eyes, and although they felt like they had melted shut, they had never been closed in the first place. The only things that I could still feel were Latias and the Soul Dew. However, even they began to slip away, slowly but surely, as my offering was rendered too feeble to protect me. Out of instinct, I tightened whatever hold I had on Latias’ claws.

Mason, don’t give up! Her cry and her presence reasserted itself in my beleaguered mind, but she, too, seemed to be battling an intense struggle. Just…just stay with me! It’s almost over! Don’t…let go…whatever you do….

Her parting words accompanied my senses beginning to return to me in utterly foreign places. Finally, I felt like I had begun to fall. I tried to fight it, but nothing could stop my inexorable descent to wherever it was. Then, everything faded to a single black void—but when the darkness took me, I found solace in that it was not death’s caress that welcomed me.

ᛇᚾᛇ

I barely clung to consciousness when the pain finally stopped. I felt something slip from my claws, but I was too exhausted to be concerned. I fell unceremoniously to the floor of the chamber, a creeping numbness crawling across my body.

I fought against the promise of sleep for just long enough to be sure of two things. The Soul Dew, while glowing dimly, was still alive. Knowing that my brother still existed was a massive weight off my wings.

Another pair of wings immediately seized my attention, injecting a couple seconds’ worth of energy into my mind. On the other side of the pedestal, lying on his side, was a Latios. His feathers were not blue—they were several shades lighter, leaning more towards a silver than a blue color. His chest had been etched with the Eon sigil in red, an equilateral triangular outline. And his wings—I knew just by looking at them that they were larger than normal—but I did not know by how much.

Steady, regular breaths suffused his form. Mason had survived, sleeping soundly. And with that knowledge, my head fell to the floor, all of my energy drained from my body. Sleep took me as well, but the moment before it did, I could see our two Elders approaching.

ᛞᛖᛞ

Astounding that all three have survived, Arceus muttered out loud for his son to hear, craning his neck to peer at the two young Eon Pokémon and the jewel between them. A good sign, all told. Giratina, bring them back to Earth. They will know when they are needed. Leave them with at least some instruction when you get there.

Sure, the Renegade said nonchalantly, extending two shadowy tendrils for each of the Pokémon before him and one for the Soul Dew.

I did not say to take the Soul Dew as well.

I’m taking it, Giratina replied simply. We had a deal. They have far more need of it than you do. Don’t tell me the high and mighty Arceus is a lying Seviper as well?

Arceus’ medial ring glowed softly, and Mason’s Key Stone and the Latiasite hovered toward him, taken up in his telekinetic grasp. Then they will have no more need of these, he said. They will be returned to Diancie.

Are you bargaining with me? Giratina did not just chuckle—a full-blown laugh echoed from his mouth, his mask bisecting to reveal it. Oh, Father. Those two rocks were never on the table. The two Eons and the Soul Dew safely in his grasp, a hole melted into the chamber beneath him, allowing him access to the Distortion World. The Renegade slithered through the hole, his cargo in tow, to parts known only to him.

Arceus stood motionless in the chamber, with only one thought on his mind: he and Giratina were going to be seeing each other again very soon.

End, Act 1

Chapter 18: Awakening

Chapter Text

Act 2: What We Fight For

ᚱᛉᚱ

A brilliant sunset filled the sky, setting the billowing clouds ablaze with reds, oranges, and yellows. A beach stretched endlessly from one side of my view to the other. Every so often, I saw what looked to be large, black scorch marks in the sands, marring the alabaster surface’s perfection. Strange trees sprouted from the sand’s surface as well. Some were utterly barren, their triplet interwoven trunks and branches devoid of life. More had foliage on them—perfectly triangular green leaves adorned their limbs. And a rare few were in full bloom, their cerulean flowers arranged in triplets, just as the leaves were.

I did not know what to make of the barren trees and the blackened sands. They interrupted the natural beauty of the scene, blemishes upon it. What were they flaws of, then? Or…maybe they weren’t flaws. Were they something else? I turned around, and the scene repeated itself. There was no transition—it was like I was forced to look upon the beach and the lapping waves of the ocean.

I looked down and was shocked when I saw nothing. I had no body of my own. How, then, could I see, or even be alive?

The sun grew brighter in the fiery sky. I realized, then, that I was not looking at a sunset, but a sunrise. A feeling of warmth bloomed in my soul. It had to be there, since I had no body…but then, I could feel something that belonged to me. I lifted my left arm and saw a phantom of a limb. Wisps, apparitions of two different beings appeared before me. As the sun rose, the hand that had risen slowly faded away.

As the sun rose, the paw that had risen gained corporeality, finally awakening from a distant, years-long dream.

ᚱᛉᚱ

Sunlight struck my eyelids full force, poking me awake. Before I could even open my eyes, I took note that the horrible anguish that I had felt the last time I was conscious had disappeared completely, and that my body felt…new. Unused. I inwardly braced and prepared myself for what was probably the simplest task possible: opening my eyes.

One eye creaked open, then the other, and I quickly found that I was back in our room somehow. The sun was poking through the cracks in the blinds. Over on my desk, next to the keyboard for my computer, I spied two new additions. The first was the Soul Dew, nestled in what was seemingly a bundle of my own clothes, easily accessible from one of the open bins in the room. The second was a sheet of paper—though I could not quite make out what was written on it, the words seemed to glow with a ghostly pallor. Other than that, I noticed that the room was in great disarray, like someone had searched it and didn’t bother hiding the evidence that they had done so.

I glanced at the clock—its red numbers spoke to me a worrying matter. 11 AM? Have I been unconscious for a whole day? What would the guys think? Where is….

I then looked down to see my partner snuggled very tightly against me, breathing softly in her sleep.

What the hell! A fierce blush rushed to my face. We’ve never been this close before unless Latias really needed me to comfort her. Wait a minute…everything’s so much sharper now. Does that mean…?

I threw back the blanket that was covering both of our bodies, lumping it mostly on her. I then confirmed that what had happened the previous day was indeed not a dream. I had used a paw to uncover myself. I had no legs whatsoever, replaced with short, jagged tailfins. I was a Latios—Arceus and Giratina’s gambit had worked!

Okay, okay, I said, half giddy, half terrified. Tia isn’t holding me in place, so maybe I can, I dunno, try to move around? I tried my absolute best to become acquainted with my new body, but it was not working as well as I had hoped while sitting utterly still. Eventually, I gathered the courage to attempt to roll slightly from side to side.

However, I wasn’t expecting a massive weight on my back to pull me hard over the edge of the bed.

“Uh, oh, GAH!” My growing panic ended in a loud shout, which instead came out as a keening chirp. I then completely flopped off the bed, crashing onto the floor. As if to add insult to injury, I slammed into it twice—once with a righteous pain shooting through my back, and once with an unceremonious thud onto my side.

Wha…What’s going on? Latias said sleepily, peering up from the bed, eyes half closed. It struck me just then, but her eyes seemed so much more…astonishing. Mason? What are you doing on the floor, silly?

Trying not to yell from all the pain going through my back, I managed to eke out of my mind. God damn, that hurts! I fell three feet—three! And it feels like someone is trying to claw my back open!

Well, that tends to happen if you land on your back without bending your wings outwards, she replied with a touch of sarcasm. You tried to move while I was still asleep, didn’t you?

I didn’t think I’d be pulled off so easily!

You’ve got wings almost as long as you are sticking out of your back, and you don’t look too heavy yourself, so yeah, you’re gonna be pulled around by their weight pretty easily.

I sighed in frustration, resisting the urge to curse under my breath. I guess getting my body and mind unmade and reconstructed comes at a price, what a surprise! I frowned, feeling my new muzzle and brow crease and wrinkle for the first time. My exaggerated features drew out a soft trill from the dragoness above me, one that was easily comprehensible as laughter. Stop laughing! I can understand those chirps of yours now!

I’m sorry, but it’s hilarious to see you sitting there like a beached Wailord!

The pain in my back had subsided enough for me to try and crane my neck—an incredibly odd sensation in it of itself, since it was so much longer than it used to be—to get a better look at myself. Alas, I was unable to do so, and my frustration began to rise again when all I could manage on the floor was a rather pitiful wiggling from side to side. Tia, I honestly cannot move. How do I levitate?

But Mason, she said in a fake whine, you could be the very first land bound Latios! Just think of the fame and fortune! Glaring daggers at her didn’t work either, as it only made her laugh harder. Alright, alright—since you’re new to this, I’ll cut you some slack. But, hmm, how do I explain it?

Tia, come on!

No, Mason, wait, she said between giggles, I’m not pulling your tailfins, I’m being serious! I’ve never had to think about it before now. I stifled a groan at Latias’ successful adaptation of the human version of the idiom. She pondered the question for about twenty seconds, which felt like twenty minutes to me, stranded on the rug covering the tile floor. Alright, I think I’ve got it. Try to imagine yourself simply coming up off the ground like a balloon would. Force of will is the name of the game with Psychic Types, and doing that should tap into your psychic power and lift you up.

I did as she instructed, and sure enough, I could feel the shaggy carpet fall away from me almost immediately. Unfortunately, I passed right by my partner at a decent clip. A quick glance upwards revealed that the overhead light was approaching quite quickly. Oh, no, NO—OW! I yelled upon bashing the cover over the light hard with the top of my head, my face becoming flush with embarrassment. Despite bracing myself, the cover made me wonder just what those things were made of.

The heat in my face became even worse when I heard Latias tittering at my misfortune below me. It’s not funny! These things are as hard as a Steel Type!

Sorry again, but it just is, and you know it! Latias said between laughs. Okay, okay, give me a minute, I just…wow! Her laughing was contagious, and I couldn’t help but chirp once or twice along with her. Alright, let’s try this: Imagine that you’re being pushed in the direction that you want to go until you’re satisfied with where you are. Then imagine an equal force pushing you in the opposite direction until you’ve stopped.

Okay, I’ll try, I said with some amount of doubt, closing my eyes. Her latest advice sounded to me a little bit like driving a car—use the accelerator until I was okay with how fast I was going, hold it steady for that speed, and then hit the brakes to come to a stop. With that in mind, I imagined going downwards slowly and hitting the proverbial brakes in front of Latias. When I opened my eyes again, I found myself staring right into the eyes of the red dragoness. I was enraptured by how vibrant they were, and my muzzle started to heat up in a light blush. I noticed that she was blushing a little, too. We both looked away, and I coughed lightly.

So, uh, looks like you’ve got the hang of it now, huh?

Yep, sure do! I said a little too quickly. I did not fail to notice the awkwardness of our exchange. Was it a byproduct of our trial, or a continuation of it? I dared not assume the feelings I sensed from her were permanent…not yet.

Well, the mirror’s over there, if you were curious about how you look now, Latias said. I nodded, and began hovering very carefully towards the door, which had a mirror on the back of it. It was my first movement in a horizontal direction, and I was not about to shatter the mirror with my skull like what would have happened with the light had there not been a cover over it. Though, before you freak out, you’re not exactly species standa—

What the hell, I’m silver! I gazed at my reflection, stunned. Your brother sure wasn’t silver, was he?!

Well, no, but I have to imagine that that’s normal. I’d hate for us to all be clones of each other! Though, he sure as heck didn’t have wings as big as yours. Maybe they were a bit wider proportionally. Latias hummed quietly, pausing momentarily. You know, your feather color is the same as the color your eyes were when you were a human.

Oh yeah, you’re right! I continued to drink in the details of my new body, trying my best to remember what Latias’ brother looked like from her memories. I knew straight away, turning in place to get a good look at everything, that I wasn’t nearly as bulky as he was. She was right about one thing, though—my wings looked almost comically large compared to my overall size. Though, it was already difficult to gauge how large I actually was. Hey, Tia, do you usually go by how long you are, or how tall?

Either or. You’re basically straightened out right now, so, move your rear towards the floor for me? Look up and straighten your neck. I did as she bade, rotating my body and feeling my tailfins brush the floor. Okay. Your head is above the mirror a bit more than mine usually is. I’d guess you’re about…six feet, three or four inches from nose to tailfin? A little smaller than my brother all around, but I guess it’s only fair, considering your wings!

I looked back in the mirror, beginning to test the expressiveness of my face. Fortunately, I could still contort it in familiar ways, though the lack of eyebrows would take some getting used to. Thinking back to Latias’ comment, I could clearly feel that I was not weak. While my arms were thin, and my body on the edge of lean and petite, I could feel substantial muscle flexing and stretching as I turned and observed my body. It was a vast improvement from my old physique, that was for certain, though I had the feeling that other Latios would still have me beat in bulk and physical strength, just as most males did when I was human.

Despite that, there was at least one similarity between my bond-mate’s brother and I—my freshly scarlet eyes. It seemed that, at any moment, I would pierce my own soul with them. Damn, I muttered out loud. I think I came out pretty alright, if I do say so myself.

Always the humble one, I see, Latias replied, getting up from her place on the bed and hovering within arm’s reach. She then started to circle around me as best she could, considering the smaller size of our room. Oh yeah, she giggled, the Soul Dew oven definitely cooked up a good looking Latios.

I did a double take at that comment, which seemed to catch her off guard for a split second.

Okay. Next up, we need you to be able to leave this room, Latias said, back to business and brushing off our interaction like it never happened. I’ll get you up to speed on all the things I’m able to do in the next couple of days, but right now, we need you to either learn invisibility or the illusion. Since nobody knows what happened to you, I’m thinking the illusion. Cool with you?

Yep!

Good! Now, the first thing you need to know is that it isn’t so much an illusion as it is a total shapeshift. If it were a trick of the light, as most Pokémon think it is, I wouldn’t have been able to touch anything while in illusion form. Still, though, my feathers are what allow me to do it, which is why other Psychic Types can’t shapeshift.

Alright, I said, confirming my understanding. What’s the basic idea behind it?

Well, it’s kind of like anything else derived from our psychic powers. Just as you used your force of will to tap into your energy to move around, you also use it to make real an imaginary form you’ve created in your mind. Imagination is another simpler way to put it, but you don’t need that, since you’ve already been human for twenty-one years.

Oh, that’s true, I mused. It’s like a template now, instead of my real body. Well, here goes. Can we move to telekinesis after I get this down?

Latias gazed at the clock on the nightstand, then frowned. I think you might be needing to get to Dr. Kole’s lab to work on your research soon. Maybe after you’re done, we’ll start on that?

I frowned in turn. Senior research project strikes again! I announced with faux annoyance. Well, either way, here goes nothing! I focused very deeply on the body I once had, the one I had seen countless times in the mirror. I then imagined that I was that human male once again.

It started as a strong tingling across my entire body. It bloomed into a very strange sensation, like being smothered in a blanket and being covered in a viscous, slimy substance, but it was nothing compared to my metamorphosis. I got lost in the feeling for a moment, almost able to be the sole catalyst for focusing on my old body, rather than let my thoughts run wild and potentially create a half-breed amalgamation of human and Pokémon. Just a little further conscious input for me was all that was needed.

The process finished unexpectedly quickly for my first attempt. My newly formed feet touched down on the floor silently, and I looked in the mirror once again to appraise my handiwork. Alas, there were some details that I had gotten wrong—my nose was a bit flat, instead of having the ridge in the middle; my eyebrows were noticeably thicker; and my long hair that could potentially conceal the mistake I made with the eyebrows was sticking up on the sides.

None of those minor details compared to the most glaring difference between my old self and my disguise. So, uh, does this count as a mess-up? I turned toward my bond-mate, making a point to widen my eyes and make eye contact with her.

What are y—oh, Arceus, Mason. Yes, I’d say so! Your eyes are still scarlet! Though, credit where credit is due, you did a pretty good job on your first go!

I looked at the mirror again. I had appeared in my ever-common black hoodie, with a solid green polo underneath. On my lower half, my blue jeans and black, gray and white tennis shoes with white soles had been replicated perfectly.

“Hey, Tia?” I turned my head to the side to ensure that I had gotten her attention. “Is it normal to feel so…restricted in this body? Like, this was my body not even twenty-four hours ago, and now it feels like I need to take a shower to get it off or something.”

I feel the same way when I use mine. You’ll get used to it. In fact, it’s good that you already prefer your Eon—wait a second! Latias interrupted herself with a gasp. You just talked while in illusion form! And here I was, thinking we’d have to make up a reason why you were suddenly mute like I am while projecting an illusion. This means I can eventually learn to articulate English too. Oh, this is so exciting!

“Wow, yeah! That way, you won’t have to be passed off as a mute whenever you use your disguise. I’m all for teaching you when we have the time. I wonder what your voice sounds like?”

I guess we’ll find out soon! Now, before we leave and test-drive your illusion form, we should probably look at that letter over there. It feels like it’s been staring at me somehow.

“Right,” I affirmed, walking over to my desk. Before picking up the letter, my eyes alighted upon the Soul Dew and its unusual perch. “At least they followed through with their end of the deal,” I thought aloud. “I’ll try to find a better stand for it, or commission one, or something.”

I’d rather you commission a necklace out of it. I knew that tone of voice. That was not a request, it was a borderline command. I filed my partner’s statement away for later as I picked up the strange parchment from the desk and began to read the flowing text aloud:

I’ll keep this short. Our great enemy has almost arrived—be ready for it. Learn as much as you can of the ways of Pokémon and of battle before it is too late. You will know when it is time to seize your destiny. Until then, I would highly advise not revealing your true colors unless strictly necessary.

I’m counting on you two.

—G

P.S. This room is meant to house both of you? I suppose the idiocy of human architecture strikes again. Also, sorry for the mess. All you had was the mirror and the window, and I’m not the smallest ‘mon, you know?

We both had a good-natured chuckle at Giratina’s postscript—that explained our disheveled room. However, my amusem*nt faded once I noticed something that was conspicuously missing from our belongings. “Tia…I don’t have my Key Stone anymore.”

Her laughter ceased almost immediately upon my observation. We both fell unconscious before being brought here, I guess by Lord Giratina, judging from the letter. Do you think he took them…well, no, because he told me to keep the Latiasite.

“So, either he was lying, waiting for a chance to take both stones back, or Arceus made him do it, maybe as payment for the Soul Dew.”

I don’t think the Highlord would do such a thing, would he?

My frown and the crease in my brow deepened. “I don’t know, Tia. He didn’t seem like the most benevolent Pokémon. Lord Giratina was pulling for us more than he was at times. I got this weird feeling from him, like he tried his absolute best to help us in the least direct way possible.” I peered more closely at the jewel nestled in my clothing. It still glowed, albeit its light was dimmer than when we saw it back in Arceus’ chamber in the Distortion World. “Maybe the Soul Dew is one of those catalysts that Highlord Arceus was talking about,” I proposed, taking care to use his honorific. “It’s just frustrating, is all. What happened between those two while we were out? What does all of this mean?”

I’m not about to be tied to some ‘destiny’ unless it literally comes to fight us, Latias said bluntly. You matter more than those two—yeah, I’ll show you how to battle, but only because you’ll get to see how much fun it is! Let’s get going.

“You’re really sold on making sure nothing goes wrong, huh?” I asked while putting together my things to go into the research laboratory across from Dr. Kole’s office—my notebook and goggles went into my backpack, and I bundled up my lab coat to carry it in my right arm. I turned to my bond-mate and saw a hard look being sent my way. “Alright, okay, I was just kidding!”

How are we going to explain your eyes?

“I…I’ll just say I was hit by a stray Extrasensory or Psybeam by a wild Espeon or something. That might cover the reason we’ve been gone for almost a day, too.”

Do Espeon even live around here?

“Espeon, Meowstic, their range goes all the way up into Canada,” I said, shrugging. “Even if I’ve never seen a wild one around campus, it’s less weird than if I said something like Drowzee, since they like hanging out near cities.” Flexing my fingers momentarily, I gripped the doorknob and opened the way into the rest of our apartment as quietly as I could manage. “Well, let’s be off then?” I added quietly, holding the door open.

If you say so, Latias said. She then hovered over the threshold. Such a gentlemon! I coughed lightly at the teasing tone of her words, noting her referral to me as a Pokémon. Once we were both through, she cloaked herself while I locked the door behind us. The jewel that waited within was too valuable to leave unprotected.