Leaf

  —

  When I had jokingly asked for my mother in the privacy of my own mind, I really hadn't expected her to show up two hours later! I hadn't actually asked her to come!

  Her and Erin caused a bit of a commotion when they came flying in, and luckily me and Raihan were in the cafeteria eating a late breakfast. The sight of the huge Alpha Fearow was more than enough to draw a small crowd, and by the time we made it outside Erin was already leaping off the bird, scattering trainers in her path like a wrecking ball as she charged inside. She didn't even glance at me, but I don't think she meant to ignore me. Her eyes didn't budge from the doors to the Center.

  I turned back, only to find a huge avian face staring at me. From an inch away.

  I jumped a little as my mom and Maddy both laughed at me, my mother enveloping me in a tight hug that I gratefully returned, already a bit calmer in her presence. She pulled away from me, examining me from arms length.

  "Look at you! Only been gone one day and you already have a badge!" I blushed as she pulled me in for another hug.

  "Mom, come on! Let go!" She didn't, but she did release one hand long enough to pull an Ultra Ball from her purse.

  "Okay Maddy, I'll let you out next time I can, alright dear?" The huge bird just nodded, shooting me a wicked grin as she disappeared into the red light. My mom began to pull me after her, towards the Center as Raihan stood there, deliberately ignored by my mother. He looked sad, but understanding.

  "Let's go meet up with Erin, dear. We need to go to the… police station." Her expression was determined as she spoke. Raihan cleared his throat from behind us.

  "We didn't think you'd get a call from the authorities this fast, ma'am." She snorted, but otherwise ignored him.

  He stayed quiet as we walked to Erin's room.

  "-later! All of us! For now, I have something important to do. Let's go." Erin turned to see us standing in the doorway. She frowned, but remained silent as she returned her family. She passed us and just kept on going, remaining silent.

  If I hadn't eavesdropped I might have been upset, but I knew Erin barely saw me or Raihan right now. She was thinking about what she might have to do today. What we would have to do. Raihan had texted her earlier.

  We fell in behind Erin in a clump, and she quickly outpaced us.

  "Is she going to be… okay?" I asked quietly. The two of them frowned. Raihan spoke up softly as we entered the Police lot.

  "Sometimes you don't have the choice not to be, Leaf."

  —

  It had taken Erin and Raihan almost twenty minutes of determined arguing, but eventually Erin stood alone in a Pokemon interrogation room. I had never thought about it, but the stereotypical room you saw in dramas sure wouldn't fit an Aggron, for instance. The room was the size of our room at the Center, and aside from the raised podium holding the Pokeballs, completely bare. Me, Raihan, and my mom stood in the control area, ready to intervene.

  I held Leto's Pokeball in my hand, ready to toss it out a small porthole at a moment's notice.

  A very angry Officer Jenny triggered the intercom.

  "Okay, you can start, kid! You signed the waivers, and I can't stop you, but I swear to Arceus, if you make me watch a child die today I will make you regret it from the grave somehow!" She was pissed. I could understand why.

  Especially as Erin triggered all seventeen Pokeballs at once through the podium, sending the rays of light forward, to the other side against the opposing wall, one much further away in a corner. She stood firm as it happened, hands held casually on her belt. Right next to her Pawniard blade.

  As soon as the surge of red light faded it descended into chaos. The Rattata began to run, the Ekans huddled together in a writhing pile, the two canines appearing to stand guard over them even as they shook. The Koffing just… floated there in a corner, eyes tightly closed, frowning.

  "Stop! Calm down! Remember me, most of you!?" The sound of her voice was almost physical through the small porthole, and the entire group of Pokemon froze.

  "First of all, you will not be put down! I promised you all that!" She began to very slowly walk towards them, and I heard Jenny begin to curse, even as my moms grip on my arm grew tighter.

  "You've all heard that if you were captured, you would be killed." She paused for a second. "That was true normally." Before the panicking could truly get started she continued.

  "However! I won't be doing that! I promise that I will be open and honest with all of you, but I truly don't wish to put any of you down. Not just because you were victims of those people." The Pokemon were calmer now, but they had all huddled together now. Except for the Koffing, who continued to just… hang there, motionless in a corner, eyes tightly shut.

  "Is there anyone here who just… Is there anyone here who misses their… 'trainer'?" Silence as they all froze. Her voice shook a little as she spoke next.

  "You will never have to worry about those people ever again. They're dead or in jail, maimed for life. You will never be abused again. Nobody will ever hit you, electrocute you, b-burn you…" She sniffled.

  "You've been through some horrible things, and I want to help you. I wish I could offer you release into the wild, but I'm not allowed to. Not for the former Pokemon of Team Rocket, willing or not." They were shaking now, most of them.

  "What I can offer you is a home. You won't have to battle. I have a full team already, actually. You could just come along and… travel. Live. Maybe heal." She sat down on the ground in the middle of the room, holding her knife up in a theatrical display before she tossed it towards the door.

  "Trust is earned, and you have absolutely no reason to trust me. For all I know those sick fucks did something like this before, to… condition you. What they wouldn't do is talk to you directly. I am more than willing to, however. I want to get to know you a little, before we potentially travel together. Would you all be willing to do that? Just to talk to me individually, with the help of a psychic?" Her voice was so deliberately calm even as it shook, but it seemed to be working.

  The pile of Pokemon was slowly making its way towards her, hesitant step by hesitant step. She looked back towards us and Jenny triggered the intercom.

  "Alakazam is coming in now." The instant she finished saying that there was an Alakazam there in the corner of the room. The Pokemon jumped a bit, but continued their slow advance towards Erin.

  As they drew closer, the canine Pokemon took the lead, warily sniffing Erin. She smiled softly at them, holding her hands out. I noticed they were in fists, and it took me a moment to realize why.

  She liked the fingers she still had left.

  "I know, I'm weird, huh? I look like a human, but I feel like a dragon, and I smell like Sneasel and Weavile, right?" There were confused nods as the Pokemon finally broke their clump, beginning to approach Erin.

  The Alakazam's Psychic was unnecessary, as Erin caught the flying Rattata by the tail as its fangs glowed. My mom gasped from beside me, grip tight on my arm as Officer Jenny cursed. Erin was calm as she examined it, but I had nearly dropped Leto in.

  "Why are you crying as you attack me, little mouse?" It was? I squinted my eyes, but I couldn't tell. Rattata were tiny, especially this far away.

  The Alakazam took a step forward, and suddenly reached up to grasp its head in pain. It glared at Erin fiercely before its eyes closed again.

  It was boring, honestly. I'm sure they were having a full conversation, but the Alakazam was shuttling it through its mind at the speed of literal thought. Erin wasn't talking out loud.

  Eventually she gently placed the shivering rat in her lap and began to stroke it, not even talking as she looked towards the next Pokemon. Her eyes instantly began to water, and she ducked her head down. Even the Alakazam looked uncomfortable as the Rattata told them something, and I felt sick.

  I was suddenly so very grateful that I couldn't hear them.

  It took Erin two hours. Two hours of tears, anger, and explosive reactions. Literally, in the Koffing's case. The Alakazam had contained the blast, and Erin hadn't even jumped as the poor Pokemon seemed to come out of its daze only for the briefest of moments before screaming and Exploding.

  The reactions of the Pokemon throughout the whole process had the rest of us crying. Even Officer Jenny was sniffling by the end, and she had wanted to dispose of the lot of them. I couldn't even blame her, not after Victoria's story, but… Apparently they used Victoria in Team Rocket as an example. That they could never have a normal life, so they had better fight for the only one they were allowed.

  When Erin was done we all went to meet them, but before I released Erin's mom, Officer Jenny stopped me. She walked over to Erin and bowed her head. It was short, but it was sincere.

  "Miss Erin, I want to apologize for the way I… behaved earlier." Erin was shaking her head in understanding already, but Officer Jenny kept speaking.

  "You might not believe me, but I would be willing to take in a… rescue." Her voice grew uncertain, but her eyes were soft as she looked behind Erin at the still-cowering Pokemon. "I can't take more than one, but… if they want to?"

  Erin didn't exactly frown, but her eyes were conflicted as she turned back to the Alakazam. Eventually she looked at the Officer.

  "A work Pokemon, or a house Pokemon, if you have the time off for that?" Jenny's frown grew.

  "I don't have much free time, so it would have to be for work… That doesn't necessarily mean fighting! But it… might." Her head drooped as Erin turned back to the group of Pokemon.

  Eventually one of the Ekans slowly, hesitantly slithered over to her. It looked up with wide eyes, and flinched so hard it nearly jumped when Jenny crouched, but it remained there, shaking as the officer got down on a knee.

  "Well, look at how b-brave you are!" There were tears in my eyes now, and I was far from the only one. The little snake looked up at her and slowly slithered around her arm, then her neck. I saw Jenny freeze up, but only for a second. The Ekans noticed as well, relaxing as Jenny did.

  "Well, I guess I'll have to introduce you to Growlithe tonight. You'll like him, he's kind. A bit hyper, though." The Ekans had laid its head on her chest, and she idly stroked its head as she spoke. She looked up with a soft look in her wet eyes, mouthing a thank you at Erin. Erin just smiled sadly, then spoke up hesitantly.

  "I don't suppose you know a way to Disable a Pokemon's Moves before they're used? Say for instance, Explosion?" Jenny's eyes got pained as she shook her head. Erin sighed.

  "Hopefully we can… help her. S-somehow." Oh Arceus, I didn't want to know. How could Erin stand it? She had cried, her eyes were still wet in fact! She just… kept going.

  "Well, time to meet my mom I guess." I lifted Leto's Pokeball away from myself and she released herself in front of the rapidly terrified Pokemon. She came out quietly, and she instantly took several slow steps back before crouching down.

  "Don't worry! She's my mom! Can't you see the resemblance?" Erin was smiling, but they actually looked between the two a few times and nodded. I mean, it was probably the aura, but I couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of me. Neither could mom or Raihan, and Officer Jenny quickly found herself the only person not laughing.

  Instead she was frozen in fear as she stared at Leto. Oh shit, had she not known?

  "I know I said this already, but just to say it again to you all at once: I want to help you. I am putting myself out there a little bit with this, even with my… plan. This is my mom, Leto. She's very nice, actually, and is more than willing to help you all out with any issues you have. She also just so happens to be the muscle of our little group, as you can tell." Leto growled at Erin, and Erin walked over to hug her face.

  Jenny was pale.

  "If you ever need something, let me know, and I will do my best to understand you, or one of my other Pokemon. For now, does anyone have any… requests? Last chance for anything specific while we have Alakazam here, the nice guy that he is." The psychic Pokemon glared murder at Erin, and I wondered just what she had thrown at his mind.

  Eventually she turned to the Ratata still in her hand with a soft smile.

  "You never have to fight anyone else ever again, sweetie. I promise you." My mom's eyes grew thoughtful and I grabbed her arm, shaking my head. I held up a finger, though. I wasn't opposed to the poor thing living with my mom, not at all, but it would be after a contract. I didn't want an actual nightmare to make me an orphan.

  According to Raihan's admittedly biased lectures earlier, any kind of true contract enforced by a willing, un-coerced fae would bind their participants irrevocably. There was no backing out of the contract. Not even the death of one party would break it unless specified.

  They could also control the very fabric of who someone was, what they could do. What Moves Pokemon could use. Stipulate certain times they weren't allowed to breathe. It was absolute control.

  Examples weren't exceedingly common, but the Kalosian Kings, Galarian Queens, monarchs, dictators, and warlords alike from all over the world had used fae throughout history to commit atrocities, and to enforce their iron rule. Fairies weren't reviled, but they were certainly unpopular Pokemon historically for very good reasons.

  "We're going to go somewhere close to… enter a contract with each other. When we get there, we can make yours strict enough that you could be a house Pokemon, if you want? You wouldn't even be able to attack. It's forever, though. These can't be removed, so-"

  She cut off from the intense squeaking coming from the little rodent, and the Alakazam gasped and teared up. Erin's mouth snapped shut, the sound of her teeth clicking together ringing through the otherwise-quiet room. Leto whined lightly, a sound I didn't know she was even capable of making.

  "Sweetheart, you will never hurt another person ever again, I promise you that right now." Her voice was thick, and I shivered a little. My mom reached forward to put her hand on Erin's shoulder, and she looked up at her briefly before nodding. She stroked the little rodent in her hand gently before lifting her up.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  "This nice lady behind me is my… my other mom, basically." It felt weird to hear that, but I understood her hesitancy. Why confuse the poor thing with human terms like 'legal guardian'? "She's one of the kindest people I know, and she'll make sure you never have to… hurt again, I promise you. Can she hold you for now?" The little rat was shivering, but she nodded.

  I was nervous as my mom cradled the little rodent, and I hated that I was. The last thing this poor Pokemon wanted to do was to hurt anyone, but… she might not be able to control herself. She had already tried to attack Erin... I tore my eyes away from the sight of my moms tear filled face as a huge gasp rang out from behind us and we all turned.

  Officer Jenny stood there, blue in the face as she finally remembered to breathe around Leto. Her gaze was wild, and her new Ekans was already burrowed into her open jacket, eyes peeking above the collar at Erin's huge mother.

  Erin smiled at her as she spoke.

  "I think we're done here anyways, Officer Jenny. Unless there's any other special requests?" There were head shakes all around, and Erin slowly rose to her feet. The rescues backed off, but never too far. They seemed scared to get close to her, and scared to get far.

  Except for the unconscious Koffing, who had already been returned to her ball.

  "Okay, uhh, rescue gang? Rat Pack? Fun… Squad? I'll think of something." Hopefully something better, because there wasn't a single face happy with those horrible names.

  "Anyways, let's get going. I'll release you for a bit when we're back in the Pokemon Center to get you a quick checkup. Then, we have some hiking to do." My mother cleared her throat, staring pointedly at Erin.

  "We have some flying to do, you mean." Erin began to frown.

  "Patricia, I am not taking you-" Raihan stepped in between the two of them, facing Erin.

  "Time out! Erin, I'm sorry, but… It's noon. My flight leaves in an hour, and I need to get going, even with Flygon's speed." Her face fell, and I felt bad, too. This wasn't the best time or place to say goodbye, and for so long.

  "Sorry you… I'm sorry you've had to put up with me, Raihan." She didn't complain as he ruffled her hair.

  "You don't put up with friends, Erin. Well, you do sometimes, actually, but it was worth it. Just make sure you're alive for the Conference, okay?" His voice was soft as he asked her that, and she nodded.

  "I promise you, Raihan, I will do everything in my power to bring me and Leaf to the Conference alive." He smiled, then pulled her in for a hug. The hug started out equal, but soon Erin was squirming, then she was slapping his sides as he lifted her off the ground with a huge laugh. When he let her go she punched his arm, then went in for another hug around his waist.

  "You be safe too, Raihan. I better see you at your Conference this year, you hear me? You're not allowed to die, either." He chuckled.

  "I promise, Erin." He gave her one last squeeze, then turned to Leto. He ran a hand over her snout, just nodding at her as he turned to me.

  "Leaf, I hate that I have to do this so fast, but it really has been a delight meeting you." I felt myself blush as he continued. "If I'm being honest, you may have more potential as a fae contractor than a dragon tamer, but I know that no matter which you choose, you will excel. You're allowed to fail, Leaf. Everyone fails. Just don't give up." He drew me into a tight, powerful hug.

  "You're one of the most gifted trainers I've ever met, and you have it within yourself to surpass me, both as a trainer and a Dragon Tamer." I couldn't see the smile on his face as he crushed me, but I could hear it.

  "Maybe you'll even surpass Erin one day." I giggled, and as he released me I was glad that Erin was smiling. We still hadn't… talked.

  "I think I'll start with beating you as my goal, Raihan." He laughed, turning to my mom. He frowned, sadly I thought, but she pulled him into a warm hug.

  "We'll talk later, dear, relax. I'm not that mad, truly. Thank you so much for helping my daughter, Raihan. Seriously! Thank you so much!" She squeezed him, and I saw the famous Dragon Tamer wince. He returned the hug briefly before she released him, and he turned back to Erin.

  "I know you all can hear me in your Pokeballs! Maybe after you win this Conference, you can come visit Galar again, and we'll see who the stronger team is!" A wave of red light later and Raihan was saying quick goodbyes to Erin's younger Pokemon, giving Hecate a long hug.

  Then he approached the door, turned around and waved.

  "You better come challenge me after you beat Indigo, Erin, Leaf!" His smile was wide, teal eyes shining.

  Then he was gone.

  —

  "Ms. Phoebus?" Erin's head jerked towards the uncertain-looking receptionist behind the front desk. Raihan was already gone, and Officer Jenny had just dropped us off at the front desk before rushing towards her office, new Ekans still curled around her neck, its eyes looking around in wonder.

  Erin looked over with a raised eyebrow.

  "The Pewter City Breeders have requested that you and a Ms… Leaf Greenwood both come to see them at some point." Erin's face fell, and I stepped forward so she could fall back a little.

  "I'm Leaf, did they say why they want to see us?" She shook her head sadly.

  "No, but I would have to assume it's to thank you personally. It's only due to your help last night that there were so few victims." I felt a chill go down my spine at her words as Erin stiffened.

  "There were… victims?" Erin's voice was rough as she leaned over the counter. The poor receptionist leaned back in fear, but her eyes were understanding as they returned Erin's gaze.

  "During their initial attack they… broke through a wall into a nest. There were only two, ah, victims…" Erin's eyes were still sad, but she sagged in relief.

  "That was… at the very beginning?" The receptionist smiled softly at Erin.

  "Ms. Phoebas, you moving faster or slower wouldn't have changed anything." Erin nodded, turning away. The receptionist faced me and I glanced at my mom briefly.

  "We… We might. Thank you for informing us." The receptionist smiled and gave us a short bow of her head.

  "Thank you for informing us, Miss Greenwood. You too, Miss Phoebas." Erin jerked but didn't look back as we began walking back to the Pokemon Center.

  Me and mom exchanged a few looks, but we remained silent as Erin stalked towards the Pokemon Center, carrying case of Pokeballs held firmly under one arm.

  Erin barely interacted with the Nurse Joy that she met with, but upon seeing the case she got a knowing look in her eyes and beckoned Erin back. I had never seen someone go behind the counter, and couldn't help but watch as she disappeared into the back rooms.

  "She'll have to be there for any potentially volatile Pokemon, Leaf. They won't treat them unless she proves they're safe, stays with them. They might not do it anyway." My moms voice sounded so sad as she spoke. "I can't blame them, either. I still remember when they hit one of the Saffron City Centers with… planted Pokemon. All the love and care in the world doesn't help anyone if you're too dead to do anything."

  It was only half an hour before Erin returned, case missing. She saw my moms questioning look and opened her jacket, showing us the bulging pockets inside.

  "I'll get some more clips to attach to the inside later… They're not even fully healed, they won't do most of it, just sprayed some sort of healing mist on them from a distance, and I almost can't blame them…" Her eyes were tired as she spoke. Dry, but so red still.

  "Ms Phoebas?" Erin looked up at the new Nurse that was staring at her.

  "We have a package for you here. We just need to see your ID." In short order Erin was holding a box larger than her forearm, and she was glowering at it.

  "So here's where all my damn money went…" She dodged the flick from my mom without even looking, then caught another in the temple a second later. She sighed heavily, beginning to rip the box open as she walked to our room. I saw what looked to be a very thick, detailed handbook flop out, and I managed to grab it even as Erin burst through the door to our room.

  "Erin, dear, remember your-" Erin bitterly laughed, cutting my mom off.

  "I promised, Patricia. I won't do it again to soothe your little worries." My mom frowned at her and Erin stuttered a bit.

  "Y-your completely valid worries! I promise I wont threaten my Rotom." She was scowling, but I couldn't help myself.

  "What about bribing?" Her glare felt like it was flaying me as my moms eyes widened.

  "Thank you, Leaf! Erin, promise me you wont coerce your Rotom." Erin's eyes were glowing now as she stared at me, and I couldn't help but compare the feeling to Leto. They even had the same look in their eye, like they were wondering what you might taste like…

  "I promise that I won't attempt to coerce my Rotom into treating me like a free person instead of a dangerous monster on parole!" I winced at her choice of words, and she didn't wait before pulling the purple phone out of its box. It looked like… a Rotom phone? Obviously, but it was huge though, almost twice the size of Raihan's, but other than the size it seemed unremarkable.

  Then it turned on, and a ghostly, lightning-rod face appeared on the screen. It smiled, then the phone began to chime as messages popped up. It was big enough that I could actually read some of them as she dismissed them.

  "New Rotom Phone? Call this number to-"

  "Warranty expires in-"

  "Promotional offer-"

  "Play me, Erin."

  She clicked on the last message, and a man's voice began playing. Looker's voice.

  "Here it is, Erin. Your friendly personal surveillance system. Don't even try to threaten, bribe, or coerce it. This Rotom has been specifically trained for situations like this, for people like you. I can imagine the giant scowl on your face right now, but I truly mean it when I say this: I don't give a fuck. I'm recording this before I ship this off, but I guarantee you've made more work for me since now! This will save us all headaches later." I heard him sigh.

  "Don't kill anyone without proof, Erin, and happy hunting… Rotom, can you delete this message after you play it? Thanks. Yeah, I'm sorry about throwing you into the deep end of madness, she's fucking insane, but sh- is that a light? Are you still- You little-!"

  The audio file seemed to shrink itself, and Rotom drifted over to the Delete button in the corner… then Rotom dropped it on the interface, turning to Erin with a wink. She grinned at it.

  "Well well well, the first thing you do is endear yourself to me. So, real quick, do you have a preferred set of pronouns, or should I use 'it' since you're genderless?" A very basic, clunky texting program popped up, and I watched the Rotom laboriously zip to each letter before appearing to slam into them.

  "it or they for now." There was apparently a text to speech option, but the voice that came out was horrendous, and Erin winced.

  "That almost physically hurt… and that seemed really hard to type. Is there a better, uhh, app to buy for that?" It nodded at her. "Tell you what, you're already linked to my bank account, right?" Another nod.

  "Go ahead and buy yourself a better program, and anything else you might need or want. You can use… ten percent of my money if you need to." The entire phone vibrated for a second before the screen went completely white. A moment later another message popped up.

  'can i use 13%?" Erin smiled warmly.

  "You can use up to twenty five percent if it's a huge upgrade. This is how you interact with the world, don't cheap out. Don't bankrupt me either, but get the best you reasonably can." The ghostly face on the screen smiled before the entire phone shut down. Erin grew concerned momentarily before the phone shot out of her hands, hovering in the air.

  The Rotom face that appeared on the screen was much more detailed this time, and there was no typing interface that popped up.

  "Thank you for this, Erin. It's nice to be able to talk almost as fast as I can think, even translated- Why are you all frowning? Oh! I'm sorry! I can't really stop this until I'm calibrated, though!" The poor Rotom looked nervous and uncertain, but it looked a lot better than us.

  It was so disconcerting to hear dozens of different voices speaking as they shifted through their options. Male, female, robotic, young, old. There was even a voice that sounded more like clicking than words!

  "It should require only an hour of continuous speech to calibrate myself! I'm still not sure which ones I like more, but I'm leaning towards the deeper on- wait, that high pitched one wa-" The phone was vibrating at this point, and when Erin reached out to grasp it the Rotom flinched back.

  "Oooh, there's that dragon aura I heard about! Looker told me to keep an eye on that!" Erin scowled.

  "I might not blame you for your assignment, and I won't try to… coerce you, but we're going to have a long discussion about boundaries when we have the chance." She ignored the bobbing Rotom and turned to me. My mouth felt dry as she stared at me for a long moment.

  "Remember when I named my Pokemon, and I had you wait, Leaf?" I nodded at her. "Same thing, more or less. I need this done so I can relax, and I really don't care to get into an argument beforehand. We can… talk tonight." She turned her gaze to my mom.

  "Patricia, you really-" My mom cut her off with a raised finger.

  "Erin, I am more than capable of riding a Pokemon up a mountain. Clefairy can lead us right to them from where you met her, right?" My little horror had agreed to lead us there willingly enough.

  "I'm not worried about the hike, Patricia! I'm worried about you in a den full of fairies!" Erin's face was growing redder by the second.

  "I'm worried about taking your daughter in there, and she has a fae! I can't protect two people from a fucking tribe of fairies!" There was no flick as my mom stared Erin down.

  "Dear, do you think you could stop me?" Erin's face grew furious, glow springing up in her eyes as she tried to loom over my mom. She was far more than a few inches too short for it, so her attempts fell short, but she tried! My mom didn't smile at her, but she did nod firmly.

  "Exactly, Erin. I am coming. Besides, I want to be there for that poor Rattata… Erin, what did she-" Erin cut her off with a raised hand and the saddest look I had ever seen on her face before, voice catching.

  "Patricia, you will never finish that question. You will never ask me again. You will never ask her that question. You will never think about it again, and you will be grateful. Some traumas are easier to deal with when shared. Some… some are worse. Not everything can be talked out." Her eyes were so full of pain, and her voice was hoarse as she spoke.

  It was a very silent group that stepped outside a few minutes later.

  Maddy was released, to her thunderous announcement of course, but we quickly ran into a problem.

  Most flying species large enough to physically hold a single person could carry up to two people with no issue. Flygon could easily carry the weight of a dozen people, but three was his limit without harnesses and equipment. Maddy could easily carry all of us.

  She just didn't have arms.

  So I was somehow less than surprised when I found myself holding tightly to my mom, who was holding tightly to Maddy, as we made a long, slow approach to the Pokemon Center. Erin stood on the roof, head hung low in defeat, arms held out to her sides.

  She didn't scream when Maddy latched onto her raised arms, and she didn't scream when we shot through the bottom of the clouds for absolutely no reason with what felt suspiciously like Agility. She didn't scream even as she was dropped from almost half a story's height to land on a small plateau on Mt. Moon's northern side, before we gently landed in front of her.

  She very much screamed when Maddy dropped her briefly to reposition her stiff claws halfway there, however.

  My mentor was not having a good time, and her scowl only grew fiercer when Clefairy bounced out of my ball on the small wooded plateau we found ourselves on.

  "Lead us to them, fae. You two, not a word to any of them inside. The less you speak, the better." Her eyes were already glowing faintly as she stared at my fairy, and they didn't so much as twitch away from her.

  My little horror smiled, then began to slowly bounce towards the rocky wall in front of us.

  After a few minutes of walking we found a small, dark cave entrance. It doubled back on itself at the entrance, and once we had gone around the bend the light almost completely disappeared. I began reaching for my phone, but Erin's Rotom phone flew up, a large light illuminating the path ahead of us. She distractedly thanked it, before quietly following my fae.

  After a long hour of branching paths, thin stone paths over dark chasms, even a dilapidated old rope bridge that we had crossed one by one with Rotom ready to grab us should it break, we finally reached what looked like an entrance somewhere.

  There were no doors, no guards, but the way the stone seemed to almost billow out from a certain point in the tunnel just looked too… structured. Not man-made, but something had caused what honestly looked like a controlled explosion of magma leading to this spot, connecting to the rough, probably Onix-made tunnel we were in, judging by the notch in the ceiling.

  Clefairy bounced ahead quickly, turning and holding up a finger before bounding into the darkness. Erin sighed, looking at me and my mom with dread in her eyes.

  "Remember, not a word. Leaf, you should be fine, honestly. There is an agreement between you and the tribe through your fae. Patricia, you are the one I'm worried about. I don't even want you to nod at these Pokemon, do you understand me?" Her voice was deadly serious as she spoke, and my mom didn't even flinch as Erin spoke to her like that. She just nodded tightly.

  "Good. No matter what happens, I don't care what, you remain calm. That goes for everyone here. Mom. Team." Her Pokeballs rattled on her bandoleer.

  "-aaaaaAAAIIIIIIRRRRYYYyyyyyyyy…" It felt like my stomach leapt into my throat as I heard my fairy sing happily in the distance. Sing? Happily? Was that happy? It had been… a sound, that was for sure.

  Erin's face seemed to set in stone as she put that mask of hers back on. I hadn't seen it all day, now that I thought about it. My little horror bounced back into the light, and her eyes gleamed as she beckoned us inside.

  As we followed her the sounds began. A giggle here, a chuckle there. Murmurs. Faint singing that never finished, never repeated, and never began. The stone around us began to lighten, and I noticed Rotom was dimming, its light barely enough to illuminate the path anymore.

  Not that it needed to.

  The walls glittered with crystals and minuscule minerals, and after another minute I realized that Rotom had turned its lights off and slipped into Erin's jacket. We were walking down what felt like a tunnel of stars, the walls themselves glowing, glinting, shining. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my life, magical in a way I don't think I can adequately describe. I'm not sure if it was possible to describe it, to describe the stunned awe I felt in those moments.

  We turned a corner and abruptly reached our destination.

  It had to be our destination. The cavern was so large that I couldn't see the other side through the gloom. Gloom, because despite the very walls, ceiling, and the floor itself shining like the night sky, there was a deep darkness between each tiny pinpoint of light. In the very middle of the cavern, or what I assume to be the middle, stood a wavy, striated Stone.

  It was very much a capital S Stone, too. I'd heard the legends of Mt. Moon, obviously. Of how the broken peak was caused by a huge chunk of the moon itself crashing into the mountain. I'd heard the legends that it was in fact a Moon Stone so large it had acted as a vehicle for the Clefairy line to cross the void between the stars. A veritable horde of Clefairies bounced around it, shepherding adorable little Cleffa, with a few Clefable standing stoic guard.

  Not a single one was looking anywhere but at us, even as they twirled and danced.

  Standing there, gazing at the enormous Moon Stone larger than my living room, I could very well believe the rumors. Especially as I noticed a little detail about the space, Pokemon, and the lights I saw.

  None of them cast a shadow.

  None of us were casting shadows.

  There was no light here.

  So what was the shine in their eyes, in the floor, in the walls? Why could I see? What was I seeing?

  I had my answer when something grinned at me from each of the countless shining pinpricks at once.

  Everything went dark.