#survey corps member rei

[porkbeverage]

My favorite genre of art is putting this guy in normal animal situations

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Could I maybe get a Hisuian!Reader who came to Paldea through a space time rift? They remember everything, they still have all their old Pokemon, they like to share stories of their adventures (anything from taking on Volo to "Oh yeah, I caught this alpha garchomp after a half-hour standoff, here's her gigaton ball lol."), they've got little scars here and there from accidentally standing too close to Pokemon attacks or taking fall damage, and they give descendants of their Hisuian Pokemon to their blueberry friends (BBE4, Carmine, and Kieran) during their trades. To make things even more interesting, I wonder what that reader would think about bloodmoon ursaluna, Perrin, and modern Sinnoh - seeing their dear friend Adaman in someone alive today and seeing just how much things have changed over the years

The PLA fixation is real so YESSSIR I finally got around to this one. I separated the headcanons by region and their respective characters

.............

Paldea (Arven, Penny, Nemona)

After finishing your mission in Hisui, you decided to confront Arceus, being satisfied with everything you've done for the Survey Corps and the good people of Jubilife Village.

You fully finished the pokedex, fulfilling Professor Laventon's dreams, and were ready to return home.

After some reluctance, Arceus agreed and ensured you wouldn't lose any of your memories, as you didn't want all your feats in Hisui become lost to history.

It warned you that you'll never get to see Rei/Akari, Professor Laventon, the Wardens...or anyone else ever again.

But you've said your goodbyes and were ready to go back.

One warp through a space-time rift later, you were dropped off in Paldea-

Right where Arven, Penny, and Nemona were discussing whether to call off the search for you or not.

As it turns out, you've been missing for months, not long after the Area Zero adventure, and so it's a rather tearful reunion when they realize the person in the old fashioned clothing was you.

You looked tired, scarred, battle-hardened...and yet you smiled as you joked about being "back from the past".

Since then, easing back into modern life was..trickier than you expected.

You still had the habit of crafting pokeballs and potions as you were taught, rather than spend money buying them in bulk (even though you had boatloads because of your champion status).

You tried getting the trio to follow your directions, but they kept fumbling with the tumblestones and didn't know where to attach the iron chunks that made up the clasps.

When you start talking about feather, wing, leaden, and gigaton pokeballs they stare at you in confusion until you realize "oh shit those are outdated".

Nemona is VERY curious about the gigaton ball, however, and so you show it to her--revealing your Alpha Garchomp branded with the "Former Alpha" mark. She got to keep her height.

"Oh yeah, she was a real feisty one. We had a half-hour standoff on a slippery ice mountain slope but I showed her who's boss haha." You laugh as you share the story of how you encountered and tamed her.

Your fellow champion now thinks you're 10x cooler for actually facing a Pokémon head-on....while poor Arven and Penny are shook(TM) and wondered how you made it back alive.

Especially when they discover your scars are from falling and vicious Pokemon attacks

Introducing your Hisuian starter to your Paldean starter was...a little awkward. One recently became a champion's Pokémon and the other faced Giratina itself.

But they eventually shake hands and become besties, becoming members of your party whenever you wanna battle Arven, Penny, or Nemona again.

You keep accidentally calling out agile/strong style in your commands (ie "Avalugg, make an Agile Avalanche!"), but your Pokémon like to pretend they still know them.

Kitakami (Perrin & Bloodmoon Ursaluna)

Returning to Kitakami felt most familiar..and quite comforting considering how traditional everything is.

Festival of the Masks came back around, and while you didn't get to spend it with Kieran nor Carmine this time...you did wind up spending it with somebody else...

Perrin, who you were drawn to after seeing her Hisuian Growlithe getting into trouble with an Arbok and trying to stand up for itself.

Reminds you of a certain late lord's son..

She expresses her thanks for rescuing her buddy, and mentions how you got there "right on time".

You just look into her eyes and see Adaman: the Diamond Clan leader, the kind man who gave you the celestica flute and came to your aid when you got exiled from the village.

He may be gone now, but time didn't allow him to be forgotten.

Because he lives on in somebody else.

Perrin gets concerned when she sees how emotional you're getting, but you just wipe your eyes and say she just reminds you of an "old friend".

When you show her your other Hisuian Pokémon, she's THRILLED and wants to take all of their pictures, delighted to have proof that these creatures existed.

That leads her to ask how you acquired them, and you start talking about your adventures in the very region she's been studying...including the fact you met her ancestor who used to worship Dialga and had an easygoing attitude like her.

Girl is taking notes fr.

Together you seek out the "Bloodmoon Beast", only to discover that it was an Ursaluna who travelled alllll the way to Kitakami from Hisui, the environment causing it to change appearances and abilities.

You were fascinated, wondering what Lord Ursaluna or Calaba would think of him, and made him a member of your team after quelling his rage.

While going on more casual photoshoots with Perrin, you ask her about what Sinnoh is like now or if anyone there knew about Hisui.

She mentions how the elderly folk talk of it, and how the subway battle system was being run by one conductor due to the other going missing...

You find yourself holding your breath---until she says "oh but apparently he came back like yesterday" and you were SO relieved.

'Ingo made it back home, too. Thank you Arceus.'

She plans to invite you to Sinnoh someday, seeing as you're so curious about what it all looks like now.

BB Academy (BBE4, Carmine, & Kieran)

When you got to study abroad at BB Academy, you...sorta forgot all the beef you had with Kieran until you saw him berating a student out in the terarium.

A year later, you're Paldea's champion AND the one who saved Hisui, but you couldn't exactly tell him the latter.

But now you understood why everyone back then calling you a "hero" made you a little uncomfortable.

Ogerpon (who was worried sick about where you've gone all this time), was SO happy to see you were back and got to meet your Hisuian Lilligant. Two plant gals just vibing together.

You find a Kleavor in the canyon biome and become a bit sentimental, happy to see a descendant of the Lord of the Woods had survived to this very day.

He must've known you were the one who helped his ancestor (albeit not without receiving some scars from flying wood chips), as he bowed and began walking alongside you, loyal to a tee.

Least to say, he became a valuable ally when you finally battled Kieran in the championship.

He sees that you've definitely changed a lot, too. You look tougher and he was concerned about where that scar across your eye came from....

But he's still obsessed with winning, and his attitude when talking about Terapagos afterwards reminds you of...well...Volo.

It's such an extreme comparison, and you hate how your brain immediately jumped to that considering that was a legitimate monster of a man who betrayed you.

Yet it feels like such a similar situation when Kieran pits the turtle against you in the Underdepths, obsessed with power and wanting nothing more than to be recognized as "worthy".

At least he wasn't planning on ending the world, just yours.

After you both reconcile, you spill the beans about where you've gone for the past year, expecting him to laugh or shun you again for keeping such a big secret from him.

Instead..he has this star-eyed look and wanted to know MORE.

So during your next visit to Kitakami, you tell him and Carmine some stories of your Hisuian adventures, showing off Kleavor and your Alpha Garchomp.

Seeing that you still liked to make authentic pokeballs and potions made Kieran appreciate you a lot more. Kitakami used to have a lot of those apricorns, tumblestones, and leeks before everything became mass-produced.

Like him, you really became out-of-touch with today's technology, so while he's learning it, you're re-learning it along with him.

Eventually you tell those same stories to the BB E4, who are all just as shocked, amazed, and bewildered as the twins were.

And when they all came to offer up a trade, you knew what to do:

For Drayton, you gave him a Goomy, insisting that he trains it fully, not wanting to spoil the "surprise".

As lazy as he is, he does so and is stunned when Sliggoo is revealed to be chilling in its own shell, and Goodra had its whole shell on its tail, capable of withdrawing into it anytime

Ngl it makes him wish he had his own shell to withdraw into just to escape situations.

For someone like Kieran who likes old-fashioned stuff, you figured a Hisuian Voltorb would suit him best.

Its appearance reminds you of the olden ways pokeballs were made, and he got the hang of crafting a few himself after a little trial and error!

He gets nervous about it exploding like Kantonian Voltorbs at the slightest touch, but is happy to find out it's super friendly and discharges just to spook humans.

As for Carmine, the sharpness in her golden eyes reminds you of a certain ghost type's...and thus you believed giving her a Hisuian Zorua was ideal. You had a feeling she'd love its evolved form.

When she does evolve it, she's stunned that it has reddish highlights like she does, jokingly asking if this is her in "another life".

Least to say, she loves it indeed.

While you were adamant about giving Amarys your Kleavor, you ended up trading her a Scyther and give her a black augurite afterwards, explaining how it's the secret to its other evolution.

She mentioned deposits of that mineral existing within the canyon biome, but it couldn't actually evolve the surrounding Scyther population due to being simulated.

But thanks to you, she gets to witness that in-action because you held onto an authentic piece of it, and she gives you her thanks.

As for Crispin, well, you believed a Hisuian Growlithe was perfect for him. It was energetic, loyal, and full of fire..just like him.

He got teary-eyed at the story you told of the late Lord Arcanine, his son, how you quelled his frenzy, etc..and feels inspired to train the pup you've given him into something incredible.

One thing Kantonian and Hisuian Arcanines have in common? They love spicy foods.

For Lacey, you trade her a Hisuian-born Petili, encouraging her to use the sun stone right away.

She does and is delighted to see Lilligant as such a graceful dancer..who really packs a punch when it counts!

She'll definitely doll her up and ensure she knew Charm (the only fairy move Hisuian Lilligant could know, alas).

[monsoon-of-art]

Apologies, but I have another question about your mer au: When fighting the Nobles, does Dawn have help from anyone (such as members of the clans, the survey Corps or from animals she catches and trains to assist her)? or does she quell them all on her own? (If it's still unclear at this point, that's okay. :) )

I think the best way to go about it:

Dawn finds a frenzied noble

Goes to Laventon/Rei to learn more about animal that the Noble is

Dawn probably gets some resistance from the Warden involved

??? (Dawn and Warden get Noble into someone prone state)

Dawn plays her flute to pacify Noble

Tada

[rosiespokemontwitterau]

Volo: are you tired of being nice? Don't you want to go Annilhape?

Elio(because sunshine lol): are *you* tired of being mean? Don't *you* want to be liked?

Volo: I am very well liked thank you very much

Rei: the entire trader guild hates you, Cogita pities you, none of the Survey Corps, Diamond/Pearl clan members want to talk to you, and I heard your mother hates you

Here you go, thanks for requesting mwah :3

[realm-sweet-realm]

One For All, chapter two

In an AU where the protagonist never fell from the sky, the Survey Corps will have to pull together and make use of every resource at their disposal to face the challenges present in Pokemon: Legends Arceus. There will be surveyshipping.

I expect this story to last three or four chapters- nothing super long or complicated this time.

---

When Cyllene returned to camp, not long before sundown, it was safe to say that the mission had been an unmitigated success. More research subjects had been recovered that day than in any prior week of the Survey Corps' existence, and Laventon would be writing new pokédex entries for days.

"It's beginning to look like the Survey Corps will pull through," Cyllene stated as she stepped into the encampment and looked around at the various specimens- everything from mushroom beetles to living rocks- and at the people interacting with them. Laventon was taking footprint sketches of a rodent-like creature. Rei was stroking the muzzle of a flaming pony. "Survey Corps," she called, turning everyone's attention to her. "You have done well. It is time to pack up and return to the village. Tomorrow the real work begins."

So it did. The next morning, the Survey Corps reported to Cyllene's office. Now that the Survey Corps members had calmed down somewhat about the prospect of being disbandment and Cyllene was somewhat more confident that they could avoid it, Cyllene was able to reveal their circumstances.

"Kamado has given us three weeks to prove our worth. We're going to use that time to map out every corner of the Obsidian Fieldlands- resources, useful trails, the Pokémon that inhabit it, and perhaps even Pokémon that would be useful to take as guides. I began mapping out Windswept Run yesterday to give you an idea of what I expect. All of you but Laventon and myself will be assigned an area to map. If we prove to Kamado that we can do it once, then he'll allow us to do it for every area in Hisui."

The corps accepted their orders and filed out in way that reminded Laventon of loyal soldiers.

"And what about us?" Laventon asked.

"Desk work. Study the specimens and work on the pokédex. I want to see its updates on my desk at the end of every day. It will be the most important resource for the field guide."

"Alrighty, then. Let's get to it!"

Cyllene gave him a stiff nod, and Laventon returned to his conjoined office.

A few hours later, Cyllene knocked on the doorframe.

Laventon looked up from entries he was writing.

"Yes?"

"I'm mapping out the horseshoe plains. Do you have any information on the temperament of ponyta? Are they aggressive? Territorial?"

"I'm afraid I wouldn't know. We have a form of them in Galar, but not ones on fire! Their temperament very well could be entirely different from the ones I know."

"Understood. It will be something to ask the other survey corps members to investigate. And soon, we'll have to have a meeting to discuss the knowledge you gathered on your travels and in Galar."

"You know, you can just ask me about my travels! You don't need to feign a reason."

Cyllene looked away. "...Noted. But I am serious about putting your prior knowledge to work."

Days passed. Cyllene often popped in to ask about the abilities and temperaments of various Pokémon. Far from being a disruption, Laventon relished an opportunity to talk about his discoveries. He'd enjoyed the research he'd done throughout the years regardless of who he could share it with or what he thought its impact would be, but he'd never felt the direct impact of his studies so strongly before! And he did notice when Cyllene asked questions out of interest rather than necessity.

The three weeks came to an end, and the Obsidian Fieldlands guide was, if not complete, at least viable.

"I think will prove our worth," Cyllene said as she and Laventon gave the guide one last look over. The next day, it was to be delivered to Kamado's office, and the fate of the Survey Corps would be decided.

"I do hope so," Laventon said. "Do you want me to stay behind? I know that Kamado doesn't exactly, erm..." Laventon let himself trail off. Cyllene would know what he meant. Kamado was suspicious of outsiders. It was just who he was.

Cyllene paused and weighed their options. "No," she decided. "Avoiding him will only mean that nothing will change."

Strange lightening from the rift arced through the sky that night. But by now, Cyllene and Laventon were used to the unstable time-space of Hisui.

The following afternoon, the two made their way to Kamado's office to find clan leaders Adaman and Irida already there, the latter looking quite distressed.

"What's going on?" Cyllene asked.

Adaman gave Irida a scornful look. "Apparently the Pearl Clan doesn't take the time to look after its nobles and now it's causing a mess."

Irida's teeth clenched. "This has nothing to do with us! We might have no idea what happened to it or what to do about it, but neither do you!"

Kamado sighed and faced Cyllene. "The Pearl Clan's noble kleavor is rampaging. It seems to be afflicted with a supernatural frenzy. And neither the Pearl Clan nor the Diamond Clan want to kill the something sacred to them or sacred to a clan they have an unsteady alliance with." He turned back to the clan leaders. "You need an impartial third party to kill the rampaging beast? Very well. We'll send the Security Corps to kill it."

Irida clasped her hands over her mouth. "Kill it? It's not its fault that whatever this is is happening to it! And it's spent its life making the forests safer for us. We don't want it dead."

"Very well. I suppose we could have the Survey Corps scout out an alternative." Kamado looked to Cyllene. "You have your orders. I'll look over your guide as well, but if you are able to find an alternate solution to the frenzied noble, you will have proven the Survey Corps' worth beyond doubt."

"Understood," Cyllene said. The Survey Corps was gathered and marched to Pearl Clan territory within the hour.

-

Within the Grandtree Arena, Lord Kleavor raged. Bathed in gold light and filled with pain and energy, it dashed about, running into trees and rocks and thrashing its heavy axes- axes that were still wet from its last victim's blood.

"Release the spores," Cyllene commanded from the edge of the Grandtree Arena. Her staravia, along with the bird Pokémon of the two survey corps members at her side, each took a paras in their talons and flew over the rampaging lord, dusting it with sleep powders and stun spores in hopes of rendering it immobile. It barely seemed to slow the creature down.

"Plan B," Cyllene yelled. She and the other members returned their Pokémon. Cyllene then threw out her kadabra, which set up reflect- a shield that would hopefully allow them to get close enough to the kleavor to stop it.

The three members slid down the rockface and began throwing balms at kleavor. It took immediate notice and rammed itself towards them only to bounce off of the reflect shield. It rammed again and the shield began to crack.

"Backup!" Cyllene called out, still throwing balms along with her allies. Another three Survey Corps members slid down the opposing side of the rock face. There wasn't much they could do aside from throw balms as well.

With a third smash, the reflect broke. The survey crops members scattered. The six regrouped and Cyllene's kadabra put up another reflect. This time, the kleavor smacked into it head-first and fell backwards, dazed. Rei took out his dartrix to distract it with a battle as the other members threw balms. Finally, the golden glow lifted off the kleavor, leaving a normally-coloured and much calmer creature.

"That was close," Rei said.

"Yes," Cyllene conceded. "We'll have to strategize a bit more should there be another situation like this."

The Pokémon approached the six and handed them a strange green-coloured plate. Rei took it. He hardly had time to contemplate it, however, as Irida, Lian, and Laventon approached. he tucked it into his bag and turned his attention to the approaching people.

"What was that?" Irida asked. "It seems like Lord Kleavor lost its aggression when the light left it. So the lightening from the rift really is the cause of all this... At any rate, thank you. Without you, our only options would have been to let our lord and protector continue to be a danger or to-" Irida looked over to her lord and shook her head. "Thank you."

"No need," replied Cyllene, "It is to everyone's benefit that we keep Hisui a safe place for everyone, and that we avoid conflicts between you and the Diamond clan. There is a way that you can repay us, however."

"And what is that?" Irida said.

"The Pearl Clan has lived here for generations. You have knowledge of the Pokémon here that we don't. Share it with us. It may even help us in any further incidents such as this."

"Oh! Sure. Gladly."

"See me in my office tomorrow morning. We have much to discuss."

With that, the Survey Corps started back for camp and then Jubilife.

"Excellent work today," Laventon said, hurrying to the front of the line to catch up with Cyllene. "I took as many photos as I could of your conflict. If this doesn't show Jubilife Village that we're doing Hisui a service, well, nothing will!"

"Yes," Cyllene stated. "There will be much to discuss with Kamado tonight on a possible alliance with the Pearl Clan. Such a discussion would be incomplete without the leaders of essentially every Corps- agriculture, gathering, security, and potentially medical since a full overlap of our medical knowledge is unlikely. But our worth is proven. I'll be sure to let Kamado know that you were the one to come up with the balms."

"Wonderful! That will warm him right up to me! At least, I do hope it does."

"Indeed."

-

Basculegion motored towards the shore of Ginko Landing, stopped sharply, and launched the riding Laventon onto shore, leaving him to wipe out face-first in the sand.

"Oof..." Iscan said, approaching Laventon and helping him up. "I hope that handling the frenzied noble went a bit smoother than that."

Laventon got up and dusted himself off as basculegion headed back to Firespit Island to retrieve his fellow Survey Corps members. "It certainly did!" he assured Iscan. "My commander even approved that I lead this mission, since our usual captain was out sick. I wasn't the one doing the fighting or the planning, but I did have a few Pokemon and some guidance to contribute."

"It sounds like you're on your way up, then... Is there anything we can do to repay you?"

"Well..." Laventon said, his face beginning to flush as he thought of the Security Corps couple he'd met the previous day. "There is a reason that I asked to be brought back first. There's this friend of mine that I think fancies me. But she's kept me at such a distance that until recently, I thought there was some unspoken rule against dating someone from your corps. Do you think I should say something? What with you and Palina, I thought you'd be the one to ask."

"Hm... Absolutely. I mean, Palina and I made it work even though we're forbidden from seeing each other. If she hadn't spoken up... well, we'd both still be pining and putting up walls. Even if the answer is 'no,' or 'yes, but let's not pursue it,' it's better to know, I think."

Laventon thought that over. By now he knew that there were a few people- namely Kamado and Zisu- that Cyllene wasn't entirely aloof with. And both he and Cyllene seemed to want him on that list. Maybe once they'd talked about it, he could be. And if not, he'd at least know to give up trying. "Yes, I think you're right!" he said.

-

The next day, Laventon asked Cyllene to finally have that talk with him about his travels. While waiting for her at their planned meeting place at the Wallflower, Laventon took a moment to appreciate the changes that had come upon Jubilife since his arrival. The occasional harmless Pokémon roamed the streets now, as they had in other lands he visited. And where there were once only the sounds of people training in the training grounds, there were now animalistic cries as well, now that the Security Corps and the Survey Corps had embraced Pokémon as a means of defence. Given the direction she was coming from, that may have been where Cyllene was coming from.

"I brought a surprise," Laventon said as Cyllene sat down.

"Oh?"

"Close your eyes," Laventon said.

Cyllene obeyed. Laventon took a wurmple out of a ball and onto his hand.

"Alright, open up."

Cyllene opened her eyes and immediately tensed. "Is there a reason for this?" she demanded, eyes focused on the bug. Laventon hesitated, and Cyllene took a careful scooch back, trying to balance between keeping the appearance of composure and keeping away from that thing.

"Well, it's... ready to evolve, and you said just recently that you'd never seen an evolution before your kadabra. I thought you might want to watch another. It's certainly a different experience than just reading about it in reports! Is there something wrong with that?"

Cyllene's nervous eyes were still on the bug. "We had those in Hoenn. They feed on our crops and on the intestines of anyone unlucky enough to contract one. All research on them should be done in the field. Not here."

"What...? With respect, captain, that's nonsense. Wurmple are insectitarians. They eat the eggs and larva of other species. That's probably why you see them around plants other bugs like to eat, and in unsanitary places that cause disease. Wurmple are harmless as they come."

Cyllene relaxed. Not entirely, but somewhat. "I... see."

"Shall we watch it evolve, then?" Laventon asked as the worm crawled up onto his neck like a scarf.

"...Let's take this to my quarters."

And so, they did. Laventon had never been in Cyllene’s quarters before. He didn’t know what he expected, but a room overflowing with indoor plants wasn’t it. There were more herbs, flowers, berries, and vegetables in there than there was paperwork in her office, and that was saying something. Cyllene moved a couple planters out of the way and led Laventon to a table. She cast a sour look at the worm and hesitantly gave it a pet. When the two were seated, Cyllene gave Laventon a stiff nod.

Laventon took the worm off his neck and passed on the nod. A sparkling flash of transformation later, the worm had turned into a cacoon- a white one, thankfully- Laventon couldn't have a toxic moth around so many well-tended plants and still have Cyllene as a friend afterward. Another flash, and the cacoon had turned into a beautiful beautifly.

"Hm. That was indeed more of an experience than reading about evolution in reports," Cyllene admitted, twitching as the beautifly began to inspect her face with its trunk. "Laventon," she said, her voice betraying a little fear. "Put it away."

Laventon chuckled and returned the creature. "You gave it your best effort."

Cyllene flushed.

"You would have hated Alola. It's just crawling with bug types! There were quite a few areas where we had to wear nets to gather specimens. Not that it wasn't worth it! It's a warm and beautiful place, some of my favourite memories come from there!"

“That’s where rowlet came from, correct? Mind if I ask about the others?”

“Not at all, so long as I can ask a few questions myself."

"Very well. We'll take turns."

"Alrighty then! So, what was your life like before Hisui?"

"I'd rather not say."

That made Laventon feel pretty stupid. She was a swordswoman from Hoenn. Chances were she'd been in the war. "Ah. Okay. Well, then, how did you manage to track an abra? They certainly aren't an easy species to track, even injured ones."

"I didn't find it by tracking. But I do think you'll be interested in its story. It was shortly after the first time-space distortion opened. We didn't know what they were at the time and had closed our walls in fear of it. A visitor from another region had locked himself outside, chasing after an injured Pokémon. And thank goodness for that visitor."

At this point, kadabra floated over and, despite nearly being Cyllene's size and barely fitting, curled up on her lap.

"I led the Security Corps to investigate the distortion and search for the visitor. He joined up with us for a while, but ran off again. After Pokémon. It was frustrating. But then a Pokémon he knew in childhood saved his life. I understood then that understanding Pokémon would help make Hisui hospitable, so I ordered that we take back a few that had been injured by the distortion. It cost us almost nothing, pleased our visitor, and gave me a small opportunity to know Pokémon better than I had. It’s from that event that I decided to create the Survey Corps. The injured Pokémon included Abra. It simply never left me after that."

“Well, then thank goodness for that visitor,” Laventon said, stroking the kadabra.

“Where did you get Cyndiquill?”

Laventon’s heart rate picked up. Somehow it seemed a bad idea to let her know he’d worked for Jhoto during wartime. Not for anything military-related, but still! “Well, I, er- I hardly remember! I take on a lot of research subjects, after all!”

Cyllene gave him a blank look that told him that he seemed a lot more suspicious than he would have liked. "Fair enough. Your turn."

"Well, if it's not too personal... is there a Mr. Cyllene?"

"No. I will focus on that once the nobles are quelled and the Survey Corps takes less of my time. Perhaps I'll be with someone from the Security Corps, or division that has little to do with ours, such as agriculture."

"Ah, I see. No time to seek someone out. Well, um, captain..." Laventon stroked the kadabra again and let his hand find Cyllene's. "What if there was no need to do any seeking?"

Cyllene took her hand away. "No, Laventon. That isn't a good idea."

"Oh. Okay. Friends, then. Right?"

Cyllene hesitated. It occurred to Laventon that she might find even that too familiar for a close co-worker. "...Friends," she conceded.

Months passed. Lands were explored, one more noble was quelled, and an alliance was formed with the Diamond Clan. Meanwhile, time-space became increasingly unstable, and the rift in the sky grew ever-wider.

[imfluentinfangirlandgay]

A Father's Resolve - Ch 5

Ingo returns after a decade - with two extra cars in tow. Years later, his kids are swallowed up by time in the same way he was. Will he be able to find them? Will they be able to make it out alive?

Word Count: ~1600

They arrived at the location swiftly. It seemed like the fields were pretty close to the village. The twins followed a few security guys in red and Laventon to a small clearing with a trunk, a campfire, and a couple tents. Some people stood around, talking. 

"This is the Fieldlands camp," Laventon announced. "If you ever need to heal up or just need a break, think of this as a safe spot." The twins followed him into the camp as he greeted some of the people here. 

"Now," he said, "your trial is to catch a Bidoof, a Shinx, and a Starly, yes? You know how to throw pokeballs, but you need to practice the ways of survey work. Some members of the Survey Corp have offered to help show you the basics." Two people in blue waved from the fire and stood. 

"Let's get started, shall we?"

–

The Bidoof was a piece of cake. Rei even petted it as he was pressing the ball to its furry head. Two others watched on, not a care in the world. 

The hard part with Starly was getting close enough to catch without startling it, but Rei remembered all those times in Chargestone, trying desperately to find the rare Tynamo and manage to hit the teeny tiny thing with a ball. Needless to say, Starly was nothing, especially after the tall grass trick. 

Shinx was a tad more difficult. The Survey Corps member showing them watched it with disdain and she described being struck by a Thunder Shock. Pokemon attacked people in this region? Now he understood why Dad was always talking about how dangerous it was. 

They battled the Shinx, but it seemed too young to have learned any electric moves. Even Oshawott excelled against it and they each had an electric cat pokemon in no time. 

"Congratulations, you two! You've completed the first trial and are well on your way to completing the pokedex! This calls for a commemorative photograph!" Laventon pulled out a box with a lens on the front. Rei assumed it was an old camera. 

The flash just about blinded Rei on impact. He had to blink back the spots burned into his retinas as Laventon shook out the photograph. "Excellent. Now, let us not keep Captain Cyllene waiting! Time to head back to Jubilife, eh?" Rei shook off some dirt from his jacket. Akari pulled a leaf out of her silver hair. They followed Laventon again, heading back to Jubilife. 

"Do you have a bad feeling about all this?" Rei whispered to his sister in Unovan. 

Akari nodded. "But what else can we do? We have nowhere else to go." 

Rei couldn't argue with that. They continued to talk to each other for a bit in Unovan, not wanting to be eavesdropped on. "I wonder what year it is… what year did Dad say we were born?" 

"I think 1836," Akari said. 

"That sounds right." Rei pondered dates. "Because we left in 1841 and he was dropped around 1830."

"Well, that doesn't make any sense," Laventon said in perfect Unovan, not looking at them. The twins both froze. He could speak Unovan? "I'm from Galar," he added, smiling back at them. "I did not mean to intrude, but I could not help but notice the inconsistency. It is currently 1831. There is no way you could have been born five years from now!" 

They said nothing for a moment. They looked at each other. Rei shrugged. Akari blinked at him three times. Rei nodded and then gestured to Laventon. Akari sighed and nodded. With that settled, Rei spoke, still making sure to be in Unovan, "We think we were taken through time," Rei admitted. "We uh… immigrated to a different region at a young age, but we were born in Hisui."

"Time, eh?" Laventon looked up to the rift hanging above Mount Coronet. "Then it must be a space-time rift." 

"Please don't tell any-" 

"Professor?" One of the guards was watching them speak. "What are you talking about?" He could only speak Hisuian, Rei assumed. 

"Oh, they believe they must have been brought from Galar. It is their homeland, as well as mine. We were just discussing where from. Galar is a rather large region!" Laventon fibbed. The guardsmen shrugged and continued to walk. 

The twins said nothing else, but nodded at Laventon in thanks, as they continued on. 

—------ 

Emmet sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew he could be difficult. He knew Elesa could be difficult. He knew Ingo could be difficult. 

But by Arceus, it was hard to get anything done when they were all being difficult in opposite ways. 

Ingo had his day bag on his shoulder, haphazardly packed, as he stood paces away from the door, a feral look in his eyes. He hadn't shaved at all, his lengthening beard only adding to the madness. Elesa was standing in front of the door, the only thing between it and Ingo, staring him down, her eyes like daggers. Emmet was trying to wedge between them to make them not fight each other. The very air was charged and electrified, a battle going on without any pokemon involved. Emmet took deep breaths. He had to be the rational one, and as such he had to keep his head level. 

"I'm going," Ingo ground out, his voice raspy. 

"Not until you take a nap first," Elesa countered, her lips pursed. "Or a shower."

"What if something happens!" 

"Then we go a bit further in time and stop it. You're acting like we can only travel to a single spot." 

"I'd rather just have nothing happen in the first place!"

"That's what time travel is, idiot!"

Ingo grinned his teeth as he huffed and stamped his foot. "We're wasting time!"

"We can't do that if we're traveling!" 

And that was enough to break his resolve. "WOULD BOTH OF YOU SHUT UP!" Emmet finally snapped. He was done being the rational one. They wanted to fight like they were children? Then he'd act like a child. Both of them jumped, surprised by his outburst. He shoved Ingo back, nearly knocking him over. "What's going to happen when we get the kids home and see you've worked yourself so hard you lost years off your life? You already look like a walking corpse! A strong gust will blow you over! What will they think," he growled at his brother, who looked at him with wide eyes. His hands trembled on the strap of the bag. "I've lost you once and I'm not losing you again." And then he rounded on Elesa. "And you! None of us knows how time travel works. None of us knows what's happening or how it's going to happen or how easy it'd be to fix. We want your help and we need your help but for the love of Arceus, both of you need to SHUT UP! None of this is helping anyone right now, least of all the twins!" He stomped off to the table and grabbed a ball, opening it and releasing Chandelure. "You wanna talk about wasting time and then just stand here and scream at each other? Fine! I can waste some time." She swirled in the air silently, taking in the scene in confusion. "Chandelure," Emmet commanded, "take Ingo to his bed and make him sleep. I don't care what you have to do." 

She turned and saw the state that her Trainer had left himself in. Ingo protested, shouting incoherently as he was suddenly surrounded by a purple glow and lifted off his feet. "You can't just do that!"

"I can and I did!" Emmet screamed back. Ingo was dragged off to the other room by the ghost, his bag falling off his shoulder and onto the floor even as he yelled. "I don't want to see you come out of that room for at least four hours! And I swear to Arceus, those bags under your eyes had better be gone!" Then he pointed at Elesa. "And you need to take a walk! Have a battle, get some coffee, do something other than just screaming in my living room. I want you back here after you've cooled off, and no sooner! Do I make myself clear?!" 

Elesa scoffed at him and threw open the door, slamming it behind her. 

Emmet stood in the middle of the room for a moment longer, his fists clenched and shaking. Then he sighed. His shoulders slumped, his knees buckling. His face lost its smile. The exhaustion washed over him in a wave as the rage drained, nearly sending him crashing down.

He sunk to the couch and sighed, propping up an elbow on the arm and holding up his head with his hand. Galvantula crawled to his lap, clicking her mandible in concern. He sighed and petted her soft fur as she got comfortable, looking up at him with her big blue eyes. "What are we going to do? It's hardly been over a week and we're already losing it." He leaned down so that he was more horizontal, laying on the couch, his head on a pillow as Galvantula moved to lay on his chest. The constant hum of static in her abdomen was comforting. "I shouldn't have shouted like that, Butternut. I want them back, too. I miss them. I'm worried about them." He sighed again as he patted her head. He could feel the prick of tears in the back of his eyes. "I don't know what to do." His voice choked up.

He continued to lay there as the sun set outside the back door. Galvantula nuzzled against his chin and tucked her pedipalps under her head as a pillow. Slowly, his eyes drooped shut, and sleep finally overcame him. 

[First] - [Previous] - [Next]

[writing-time-bitches]

Let Us Depart// PLA au

Hi hi, most if not all of these will be written via Ingo’s pov EXCEPT for a smidge of this one bc we all know the player’s feelings about the entire game. I also need practice with him and limited 3rd person so

Masterlist// CHAPTER ONE

Akari was having a bad day. Or well more like several bad days.

She was essentially evicted from her home dimension just four days ago and was now forced into what was basically child labor. Her inner Unovan rattles violently against its cage at the thought. Not like she wasn’t used to doing things for high risk and little to no reward, she saved Sinnoh from the clashing of realms when she was only twelve! Twelve!! All just for some fancy title and a little too much money no child should have.

And now, at the oh so tender age of fifteen, she was risking her life once more.

“Stupid fucking all knowing god..” she muttered to herself, feeling incredibly free knowing she could curse somewhat aloud without risk of being hounded by a slipper.

“Come on bud, we have to go.”

“Shaaaaaa…”

“Oshawott.” Akari frowned. Her newest starter was definitely more difficult than her lovely torterra. The fat fucker was clearly overfed and had way too much mass for something so small. Akari didn’t know if it was because he was treated lavishly by Laventon or other or he was simply a glutton who got way too many treats.

When the overweight water-type didn’t budge from his napping position she sighed and simply picked him up into her arms. She silently thanked the clefable and torterra from her original team for preparing her muscles for such heavy pokemon. She was definitely going to fix this oshawott’s diet if its the last thing she does.

Oshawott growled agitatedly when he was lifted, tail lifting to lightly tap her arm and cracked open his bleary eyes. She ignored her friend’s protests and reached for her phone. Her fingers flinched at the strangely fleshy feeling of her Arc Phone. Akari took a moment to stare at her phone screen.

It was the same model as other roto-phones issued by the League of the future to gym challengers. It was the same screen protector. It was the same… everything. She looked at her reflection, looking at her new and unbearably itchy clothes, the thick scarf wrapped around her neck and handkerchief on her head. An uncomfortable feeling of isolation overcame her and the terrible, god awful dread came with it. She doesn’t belong here..

She was quick to pull herself away from the bunnelby hole of dark thoughts and shoved her phone into her inner breast pocket of the Survey Corps uniform. One thing she liked about this uniform was its multitude of pockets.

“Shwo?” Oshawott questioned, now fully awake and sitting comfortably on the crook of her elbow, gripping the thick fabric with his small claws. Akari smiled and ran her hands through Oshawott’s thick white fur on his head,”I’m fine. We can save existential crises for later. Preferably when we’re not being called by Kamado.” Oshawott nodded sagely.

“Akari! Come on, Kamado can’t wait all day!” Rei called from outside her quarters. Akari let out a long suffering sigh as she placed her pudgy oshawott on her shoulder,”We’re coming! Jeez!”

She stepped outside, blinking away the sunlight. She gave a little wave to the older Galaxy member. Wow that was weird to think when Team Galactic exists in the future.

“Finally! I’ve been waiting here since sunrise!” Rei frowned, eyes flicking from the pokemon on her shoulders with quickly hidden surprise before returning to her face. Akari rolled her eyes,”No one in there right mind would be up at sunrise except maybe the guardsmen. Especially not you since you adore your sleep don’t you?” She smirked triumphantly when Rei narrowed his eyes at her, god he was bad at this,”You don’t know that.”

“Yes, actually I do. Laventon always talks fondly about how he has to wake you up like some father with his kid. It’s actually really cute how he gets so smiley about it.” Rei sputtered flusteredly and huffed, pulling his shredded scarf to cover his red cheeks,”… shut up.”

Akari snickered and elbowed her peer’s ribs gently,”Didn’t you say we were late to a meeting?” Rei groaned, sucking in a breath to regain his composure and shoved playfully at Akari’s shoulder,”You are the one who’s late and I—“

“Look who’s being punctual! Finally realized you’re waisting almighty Sinnoh’s precious time by bowing to a sham?”

“There you go again, insisting on your false image of almighty Sinnoh as a ruler of time! My people follow the true almighty Sinnoh—the font of all creation and ruler of space!”

Akari and Oshawott tilted their heads. Are… they fighting over which “Sinnoh” is real? Oh is that how future Sinnoh got its name? Like how Unova was renamed from Alleos? Rei groaned as he recognized the voices, Akari gave him a look.

“Hah! You could have the space there is and still not know what to do with it.” The man in a long blue kimono sneered, leaning down the glare at the shorter blonde in way-too-big shoes. The woman bristled, not backing down and returning the other’ glare with just as much ferocity as a feraligatr,”Excuse me? Are you really suggesting that make better use of you time than we make of vast Hisui’s space?!” The man scoffed, crossing his arms,”Better than some! It’s a miracle you showed up on, oh mighty leader of the Pearl Clan. I worried you’d get lost in the pointlessly vast space you’re so fond of and never show up.” He teased, merciless.

The woman laughed mirthlessly and waved him away dismissively,”Me, get lost? In almighty Sinnoh’s great gift to the Pear Clan—in our world’s very basis?” She then snapped her eyes to him, leveling him with a stare icy enough to freeze water,”You wish!” The man flinched under the glare before putting his palm to his head with a suffering sigh,”I wish that hadn’t let myself get dragged into arguing with you. Almighty Sinnoh forgive me—what a waste of time! I’m off to Commander Kamado’s office!”

The woman clad in pink huffed, turning to the office in almost perfect tandem with the man,”I believe it was you who started this!” They shared a long look of animosity before walking to the large double doors of the Galaxy Team building.

Rei sighed with a shake of his head,”Just another day with those two, I see. The man’s name is Adaman. The the leader of the Diamond Clan, they put a lot of importance on time, as you could probably tell. And the girl is Irida, leader of the Pearl Clan. They’re all about space—you heard what she called it right? ‘Our world’s very basis.’ Whenever they run into each other, those same arguments flare up.” He mindlessly scratched at his arm with a quite frankly exhausted look,”Seems like they’ve inherited some bad blood from their predecessors’ strife.”

“But then shouldn’t we help them sort it out?” Akari questioned, her water-type companion nodded in agreement. Rei shrugged,”Yeah well, as much as it would lessen tensions between the village and the clans it’s not really our problem. But you’ll have problems if you don’t get yourself to the commander’s office, Akari! I have to go to the Mirelands for an investigation. Anyway, good luck you two!” He said as he headed for the gates that lead to the Fieldlands.

At the mention of mirelands, Akari imagined he meant the marsh around Pastoria City and shivered at the memory of her several near-heatstrokes in the humid and sweaty marsh. She called her goodbyes after him and skipped to the building next door. Beauregard and her exchanged familiar nods as she entered.

As she ascended the steps she heard the raised voices of Kamado’s guests. Are they still screaming at each other? Oshawott grumbled, deigning to crawl into Akari’s arms and buried his face into her armpit holding his ears down. She chuckled, stroking Oshawott’s fur.

“What do you intend to do about that Kleavor, Commander Kamado?!” Adaman hissed, leaning on his hands against Kamado’ desk basically all up in the Galaxy Team’s unflappable leader’s face,”He may be descended from a warrior of almighty Sinnoh’s, but look at the mess he causing. We can’t sit back and let him rage on!” Kamado let out a long sigh,”You do get right to the point, Adaman…” he grumbled from behind his desk. Adaman frowned and stood back up straight and crossed his arms,”Time wasted is lost.”

“Well, tell me—what would you have us do? Kleavor is a precious lord of the Pearl Clan, is he not?” Kamado said, leisurely cleaning his desk of papers and other documents to put into proper piles. Adaman growled with quickly declining patience,”That’s the point. My clan can’t intervene directly where a lord of the Pearl Clan’s concerned. If my people were to do something, our two clans might end up back at each other’s throats—just like we used to be.”

Adaman shook his head, genuine concern dancing in his eyes,”But even folk of the Galaxy Team have been wounded, haven’t they? Seems someone’s got to something here…” he pressed, glancing discreetly at his opposite clan leader. The glance was not as discreet as he thought it as Irida shot an affronted look to Adaman,”Who, then? Would the Diamond Clan have the Pearl Clan bring down one of its own honored nobles?” She asked with an air of offense, clenching her fists as if ready to fist fight the taller man. He scoffed and turned to face his opposite, as if daring her to raise a hand,”I don’t believe I said it. Thought it, maybe.”

“You might as well have said it, you fool!” She hissed, taking a threatening step forward. Akari finally took notice of the short girl’s musculature, limbs tensing like torracat readying to pounce on an unsuspecting pidgey. Adaman flinched slightly,”Look—we don’t even know what drove Lord Kleavor into such a violent frenzy.” She said, relaxing upon seeing Adaman take a step back. Kamado, the ever quiet man, simply stood by watching like a braviary.

“I’d like to know that myself. This is a first as far as my clan knows, too. Do your folk know anything of this phenomenon, Commander?” Kamado shook his head with a disappointed grunt. Oshawott sneezed loudly, breaking the brief lapse of silence and causing all eyes to dart to Akari. Kamado quietly let out a sigh of relief,”Hrrm. I see you’ve arrived.”

Akari tensed under the scrutinizing gazes of all three leaders. Even Cynthia had never looked at her so harshly and judgemental. Cynthia’s eyes were kind and soft, like a nurturing mother. Her pokemon yawned as Kamado spoke,”This is Akari, the newest member of our Survey Corps.”

At the mention of her name, Adaman brightened and flashed her a charismatic and warm smile,”Aha! I hear from Mai you earned Wyrdeer’s favor. Good to finally meet you, stranger from the rift! I’m ‘Adaman, leader of the Diamond Clan,’ if you want to be formal! But that’s a mouthful. Just call me Adaman.” He said and stuck out his hand for a shake. Akari didn’t return the favor and simply bowed slightly at the hip,”A pleasure, Mr. Adaman.” Adaman hummed lightly and bowed to her as well with smile.

Irida spoke up, a tone of distrust in her words,”If you came from beyond the space-time rift… could you be from the space where almighty Sinnoh is said to reside?” She shook her head and leveled Akari with a cautious look,”I’m Irida of the Pearl Clan! Caution and foresight are my watchwords. Which is why I have trouble believing in such tale. Could you really have passed through that rift?”

Akari couldn’t help but notice a glint of familiarity in Irida’s blue eyes. It was oddly reminiscent of something like deja vu. What for? For some reason, Akari couldn’t stop her mouth from moving,”Mrs. Irida, do you… have someone from the rift as well? You look like you’re having déjà vu…” Irida paused, blinking. Adaman looked at the new Galaxy girl with interest and Kamado furrowed his brows, he hurried to alleviate tension,”Akari, that is inappropriate—”

“We do. He is currently a warden up in Mt. Coronet.” Irida responded over him. The men in the room shared a surprised look. Akari nodded, a spark of hope for some semblance of familiarity in her heart,”Can I ask his name?” Irida nodded slowly, as if trying to figure out why she was telling the youth this at all,”His name is Ingo. He is an peculiar man, speaking in odd terms; his charge, Lady Sneasler, is quite fond of him. Unfortunately, he suffers from amnesia and cannot remember much outside of his name. Is he important to you?” Irida questioned softly, allowing herself to feel a little bit hopeful for her amnesiac warden, perhaps this child could assist in finding his scattered memories.

Akari, however, felt a waterfall of horror befall her. She tried to keep her voice even as she spoke,”Does… does he wear a long black coat..?” Irida sucked in a breath and excitedly exclaimed,”Yes! Do you know him?” Akari took in a deep, deep breath and nodded,”Yeah, I know him…” ‘How could I not know Ingo Whitlock?! He’s a famous battle facility head from Unova with his brother!’ Akari shrieked inside her head. Irida, now suddenly on cloud nine and hopelessly overjoyed, clapped her hands together,”After we quell our Woodland Lord’s frenzy, I will happily introduce him to you.” Akari smiled crookedly, cold sweat running down the back of her neck,”Me too..!”

The Diamond head laughed and Kamado grumbled and cleared his throat,”I have a proposition.” He stated with a purpose,”Why not send this one to study Kleavor before deciding what must be done?” Both leaders’ smiles faltered,”You’d send this child, who recently fell from the rift, to study Kleavor? A greenhorn with no experience? That’s—”

The Diamond scoffed at Irida’s irony,”Says the leader with almost no experience.” The earlier air of frustration radiated off of the Pearl again,”Being a good leader isn’t a matter of time—it’s a matter of embracing Hisui’s vastness without fear!” Adaman smirked before slinging a slim bandaged arm around Akari’s shoulders, turning to Kamado,”Well then, there you have it. If how new you are doesn’t matter, then let’s give the girl her chance. I’m sold, Commander. Let’s try this your way!”

Irida frowned worriedly,”Now hold on—“

“Hey, shouldn’t I get a say in this?” Akari piped up, gently clutching Oshawott in her arms,”Afterall, it’s me you’re sending. I think I should—“

“Child. Do not speak out of turn.” The Galaxy commander growled coldly, his eyes like a barren prairie in Orre. His hard stare sent a shiver of fear down Akari’s back and Oshawott’s bristled, lips drawn back protective of his trainer. Both clan leaders tensed at the sudden change of atmosphere before Adaman attempted to alleviate it,”This should be fun. I’ll get to see how good you Galaxy folk really are, with all your weird ways—putting pokémon in those strange balls and what have you.”

Irida jumped on the bandwagon with a genuine spark of annoyance,”That whole practice bothers me! Almoghty Sinnoh made Hisui vast so pokémon could live freely throughout. We’re meant to stand alongside pokémon, not count ourselves above them!”

Kamado let out a long sigh as he explained to the Pearl leader,”We do not use poké-balls from a desire to control our pokémon. Only so that we can live together,” he took a single step forward, hand placed across his chest sincerely,”Allow us to show you what we can do!”

She looked between the rift-summoned girl with a pokémon in her arms, her fellow clan head and the commander, weighing her options and possible consequences. After a beat, her stiff shoulders lowered a little and she nodded hesitantly,”… Alright. We will assist Akari in her investigations.”

The tall foreigner nodded his thanks and turned to the greenhorn Survey Corp member,”This is your mission, Akari. I order you to study Kleavor and help us find the truth of this situation.” He boomed, Galarian accent rolling off his tongue and command no doubt heard through the building. Akari bit her inner lip and nodded with defeat. It not like she could deny it, she was ordered to do this,”.. Okay. I’ll do it.” Adaman snuck an empathetic glance at the young girl who was basically being shoved into danger without any real preparation. It was almost as if Commander Kamado wanted to rid his unsteady village of an unseen danger.

“Remember that you are a stranger who appeared one day put the very sky above us. People are naturally suspicious of your presence here. If you wish to be fully accepted and trusted, you must work hard. Work yourself to the very bone.” Kamado’s speech was supposed to cheer her up but Akari couldn’t help but feel like he meant something else. She sighed, she’ll think on it more later, when she isn’t dealing with a pokemon gone mad.

“Well, that’s settled. And there’s not time like the present!” Adaman grinned encouragingly at the young Galaxy member. Irida spoke up, informing Akari of the subject of her new mission,”The Lord of the Woods—Kleavor—is descended from a pokemon that was blessed with almighty Sinnoh’s own power. No other pokemon you’ve yet encountered can compare to his strength. Be warned.” She cautioned. She placed a hand on Akari’s shoulder,”Do take care of yourself. I’m sure Ingo would love to speak with you.”

Both leaders nodded to her and Kammado before leaving. Which left Akari and commander Kamado alone in the latter’s office. She sucked in a deep breath, not liking the stiff air between them both,”Welp! I guess I better go get read—”

“Listen to me.” He commanded with a hard tone,”The Galaxy Expedition Team has come to the Hisui region as a group of outsiders. Some might even call us interlopers. We mustn’t do anything to threaten our relations with the Diamond and Pearl Clans. Understand?” Another dreadful shiver raked up Akari’s spine and she meekly nodded, Oshawott was quietly growling in her arms, paw on the pale scalchop shell on his stomach.

The novice Survey Corp turned with a sigh and was greeted by Cyllene’s unwavering stare,”Join me downstairs, Akari. We’ll cover the details of this new mission.”

She grumbled, shifting Oshawott’s weight in her arms and followed after her new boss. Its been almost a week since she fell here and she was already being told to help the people once again.

Ingo could not sleep. His schedule had been thrown off since that odd dream he had a week prior. Lady Sneasler has no doubt noticed his lack of proper maintenance and has forcibly laid him to rest many times. His overtime is slowly catching up to him.

Why was he avoiding sleep? He didn’t really know himself and was too afraid to look at why. Maybe it was the sheer oddity of that dream that has thrown off track, or perhaps the man in white. Upon looking back, Ingo couldn’t even describe the man’s face anymore and his voice was becoming distorted. A feeling of foreboding crawling into the back of his mind, feeling like someone or something was tampering with his memories now.

But the words spoken were seemingly seared into his mind, unable to leave like a permanent scar; “Accompany the child and ensure their safety.”

He hissed, jerking away when his knife cut into his skin. He dropped his newest woodcarving. He wasn’t very skilled and had only recently just picked it up, so he was far from dexterous with a carving blade. He looked at his thumb, blood trickling slowly down the pad of his finger. He groaned, setting down the crude pine wood imitation of a nosepass and picked up the smooth black handkerchief on his thigh. Ingo pressed his thumb into it, he’ll clean it properly later.

His frown deepened as he stared at the wooden figurine laying abandoned on the floor, compared to the ones Melli had shown him, it looked disfigured and uneven, splintered and immaturely cut as if by a toddler. It hurt his pride in all honesty but he was a stubborn man.

“Skarrrr!” Ingo looked beside him in time to see a purple dart crash into his chest with a purr. He coughed at the impact but felt his lips quiver upward,”Ah. Gligar, where is your companion?” At the question, Ingo heard the familiar buzz above his head and he raised his uninjured hand to lower the mangeton to eye level,”Hello to you too, Magenton.” They twirled one of their magnets as their way of waving while giving a low metallic hum. All three eyes creased upward happily and returned to floating around Ingo’s head.

He smiled, a small almost shy expression and picked up his shoddy attempt at carving. Gligar had taken it upon herself to bury her little body between Ingo’s tall coat collar and his neck, chirping happily with Magneton hovering leisurely beside them. He put his carving knife inside one of his inner coat pockets along with the figurine.

The skin around his right eye started to itch again. He twitched and ignored the urge to scratch at it. That too has been frequent since the dream. He had been ignoring the feeling and only scratching when it became unbearable, it was annoying to deal with and seemingly had no cure.

Whatever the case he began his trek back to his mountain cabin. He picked up local herbs and checked the traps he had set around as he did, Gligar coming out of her favorite hiding place to assist in carrying his week’s food. The sky was a scenic twilight, the rising sun blanketing the cold mountainside in a fiery orange like a charmander’s scales. The long shadows from the pines seemed to almost be reaching for Coronet’s peak, like greedy adventurers in search of gold-plated treasure.

Reaching his home, Gligar and Magneton let themselves in. The glider leapt off Ingo’s shoulder and soared into the kitchenette, holding a couple of dead magikarp by the tailfins the little beast managed to catch on the way by the stinger and landing gracefully on the counter edge. Magneton trilled happily as they hovered around the little old copper statuette of Lady Sneasler, little electric shocks bouncing off of metal. Ingo, after setting down the buneary from a nearby trap next to the magikarp, bent down to the abra who had immediately clung to his leg upon his entry,”Hello, Houdini. You been alright? I hope my temporary departure wasn’t too sudden.” He apologized.

The abra chittered reassuringly, tail wagging happily. Ingo chuckled and lifted the psychic-type to rest atop his hat, Houdini’s preferred spot. Gligar, who saw such action, clicked possessively, crawling up Ingo’s arm to try to shove Houdini off of Ingo. The warden was quick to pull Gligar off and cradle her in his arms,”No pushing others over the yellow line.” He reprimanded with a scowl.

Gligar pouted and stuck her tongue out in an attempt to placate her human friend. Ingo was unfazed however,”I mean it, Gligar. You cannot allow your jealousy to push you off track.” Gligar deflated and belatedly curled up in Ingo’s arms, settling for that if she can’t have his hat. He sighed and went to sit on the single chair of his abode’s small table. A table that should be bigger, his heart tells him, bigger to accommodate at least two other people. He taps the old worn wood with his finger, feeling Gligar shift sleepily into the crook of his elbow and Houdini lay all his weight on Ingo’s hat that squealed quietly like a wheeze.

Eventually he, too, found himself drifting off in the chair despite knowing this was the improper station for such. He didn’t bother to move though, conscious of Gligar’s pincers that would undoubtedly nip painfully at his sides for disturbing her rest. Perhaps today he won’t have dreams.

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

my justifications for Extended Surveyfam:

rei, akari, cyllene, laventon: The Surveyfam. self explanatory. you’ve all heard this one already

zisu: listen, she’s one of the only people in jubilife who meets the 2-pronged test of being both passionate and knowledgeable abt pokemon. she’s the game’s only move tutor for crying out loud! in my heart she’s practically an honorary survey corps member. plus hisuian snow makes it canon that cyllene used to be security corps and imo probably led it, making zisu probably her former second in command. and she knows cyllene’s mysterious backstory. there’s stuff there

ingo: also hangs out at the training grounds with zisu. also is a rare person both passionate and knowledgeable. probably takes it even further than zisu does tbh bc he SAYS his goal at the training grounds is to help more ppl be comfortable with and maybe even train pokes, which is such an obviously survey corps oriented idea. plus he should also be close with the protagonist as also previously discussed which is an obvious in.

they are a squad. thanks.

[erotylidaehead]

jadu’s hisui oc guide

i’m going to try to do more active posting on tumblr which means revealing my creations. by far the pokemon project that’s stuck with me most is the hisui/pla based group! my main focus happened to be the survey corps, as i very much enjoyed the cast and wanted to explore more of them. first, i’ll introduce my recruits!

from left to right:

- Mariposa Rosales. 15 years old. A young woman who stumbled into the lives of the Galaxy Team when she fell from the great tear in the sky—according to the Professor. She is near silent but always curious, not afraid to stare or get hands-on with her object of curiosity. Due to her sometimes danger-creating fearless nature, she was a perfect fit for the aspirations of the Survey Corps.

- Yua Hayashi. 16 years old. Yua’s parents moved to Hisui as part of the Galaxy Team’s Medical Corps, and as a result she spent much time roaming the halls of headquarters. Eventually, she began hearing tales of the Survey Corps research efforts and became intrigued enough to apply. She doubles as a scribe after realizing the Professor’s handwriting was hardly legible with the tremor in his hands. She is not afraid of Pokemon because she knows how to fix the injuries and illnesses they inflict.

- Matsu. 19 years old. Matsu is a member of the Diamond Clan who is known for his willingness to branch out and understand others. As a result, he is on better terms with the Pearl Clan than most of the Diamond Clan. This also resulted in him wandering into Jubilife to scope it out and finding a Survey Corps that he deemed incompetent and directionless. Thus, he became the third member of the Survey Corps. He understands the environments and natures of Pokemon the best, and is a popular choice for higher risk missions. He secretly wishes to learn Beni’s ninja art.

Essentially, I have the “protagonist” role split into two characters; Mariposa is focused on perfecting the Pokedex and studies closely under Laventon’s wing, while Matsu quells Lords and Ladies and makes peace with both Pokemon and people. Yua is in a similar role to Akari/Rei, the fellow recruit who teaches them the ropes. Mariposa is the character that travels from the present, and is returned to her time once her work is complete.

i also have characters tied to the pre-existing members of the Survey Corps, shown here.

- Juhua “Kiku” Zhou: Beni’s niece and the Wallflower’s other chef. She was originally part of the Security Corps around the time that Jubilife was founded, but was forced to find a new path after she lost her arm in battle against an Alpha Heracross. She acts as a warm glue that helps keep the townspeople that come into the eatery together, whether it be through old stories of victory or song. She even seems to be on familiar terms with Cyllene and makes no effort to hide it—much to the Captain’s dismay.

- Dr. Ruby Tejada Rosales: A researcher born and raised overseas in Unova. She arrives to the Hisui research project later on, when an expansion of the department was contemplated at the opening of the Colbalt Coastlands. While very accomplished in her own right and credited with the discovery of Galarian Slowpoke’s evolution method, something about her expression is apprehensive when on the field in Hisui. An accident involving an Ice type attack left her with limited mobility, but her research is efficient and innovative.

These two characters carry a lot of harsh memories, but they bloom again as the story progresses :). Kiku has already begun to rediscover her value through giving back to the village instead of picking up her sword, and her not-at-all-secret relationship is both a significant support and something that melts the tension between the Survey Corps and their Captain. Ruby has had quite a lot of time to heal from the events that changed her life and led her to break an engagement, but finding that the man she ran from would work at her side so many years later is…unnerving. Adversity forces them to show their true colors, and there is eventual reconciliation.

this is pretty much something i’ve been building ever since the 31st of january, 2022! that marks the date when i first made mariposa. so it means a lot to me!

[mynamesaplant]

Love is a Cold Bowl of Soup (Part One)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

I've been working on this one for a bit. I hope you enjoy!! Thanks to Monsoon-of-Art for the beta! Don't want to read it on Tumblr? I have it on AO3!

Summary: Akari's been tasked to find some ingredients for soup and learns to ask for help from the people in her life.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

-Sootfoot root -Medicinal leeks -Vegetable broth -Moomoo milk -Wild garlic -Crunchy Salt -Pep-Up plant

Akari didn’t know exactly that the professor had in mind when he asked her and Rei to go find these things, but it seemed to be some sort of recipe. She followed in the wake of the man clad in Security Corp red, dividing her attention between the list and the path they trekked.

A grimace came to her face as she recalled the last time the professor had tried to be adventurous with foreign recipes and native ingredients. The poor captain had been sick for almost two days. Akari hadn’t fared too well herself, but she powered through like always.

Now the professor was on this new kick, and he was gleefully cryptic about it - needless to say, it worried everyone. They all knew Laventon meant well, but nobody wanted to be decommissioned by some toxic concoction.

Akari herself was already constructing her excuses. She was nervous about battling Ingo on the Path of Solitude (battling Ingo usually scared the daylights out of her- he was so tough!) and couldn’t stomach anything or Wanda had mysteriously disappeared again (Akari knew she would perform a vanishing act the second the noxious smell of whatever the professor was cooking wafted down the hall). It couldn’t be directly Pokémon related, because then the professor would be inclined to accompany the Survey Corps’ top member.

Akari’s breath began to pick up with a sharp incline that preceded that pass to the highlands basecamp. She was caked in mud from trudging through the marshes in search of some halfway decent Sootfoot. The professor said he needed about thirty or so.

“About this big.”

He had said, holding out his fist so she could get a sense of what he needed. The leeks had been easy. The fieldlands were teaming with them. Akari had also gathered the vegetables that Beni needed to make the professor’s broth. She had sent those back with some of the Security Corp as they were headed back to town, that way Beni could get started right away. With all his hemming and hawing, Akari was surprised he agreed at all, she had definitely heard him mumble something about how a new spate of food poisoning would affect business at the Wall Flower.

She couldn’t blame the old man, the influx of customers who were too terrified of any of the food served in Galaxy Hall usually meant they were streaming into his restaurant, which was good for business but bad for his back.

Akari’s eyes quickly flicked to the peak of Mount Coronet when they reached basecamp. She couldn’t help it. It was so strange to see the sky above it so empty. Not that she wasn’t glad that all she saw was blue sky, but it still made her chest tighten to think of all that happened up there.

Dialga and Palkia, Volo and Giratina - suddenly she was very conscious of the Arc phone resting heavily on her hip and its sudden weight made her shiver. Her invitation from the being who put her here was still fresh in her mind. Ever since she completed Cogita’s request to catch Enamorus, she had felt a draw toward the peak as her curiosity ate at her.

Why?

Why was she here? Why her? These questions still took up a corner of her mind, solid and unbearable to contemplate. Akari would lie very still at night and just stare above her without seeing. Not so much in Jubilife with a roof over her head. When she found herself under a blanket of stars, bathed in moonlight with a cool breeze rustling her unbound hair, she asked herself why and she could feel tears sting her eyes.

She asked an uncaring cosmos why she was here, and she was met with silence. A silent, dark phone. A dreamless, restless sleep. The silence spoke volumes, so Akari learned to stop asking… But not completely.

Her hands curled into fists as she refitted her pack and exchanged her Pokémon for ones that would be more suited to battles in the highlands. Akari’s selection included Samurott, Yanmega, Roserade, Froslass, Alakazam, and Arcanine. Samurott looked over her shoulder while Akari rummaged through the trunk containing her possessions, grabbing some extra balls and potions.

She was still trying to find some Cherrim to jump out at her from the trees and she might as well try to find as many shaking trees as possible while she was here. Last time she had come to the highland, she had spent over a month there trying to get Nosepass to jump out from ore deposits and had almost given up on multiple occasions.

Her Pokémon nudged her side carefully, doing his best not to gore her and his diligence earned him an affectionate scratch on the cheek. He grumbled his approval, offering her a playful nip which made her sour expression disappear. She thanked the Security Corp, returned her Samurott to the confines of his ball, and withdrew her flute from her belt.

The instrument had undergone a drastic change not too long ago. Although her fellow Galaxy Team members didn’t seem to notice anything strange in her flute, Akari brought it hesitantly to her lips and just as quickly lowered it.

Adaman had taught her how to use the Celestica flute, the wardens had guided her through the familiar melodies that all the Nobles seemed to respond to, but nobody taught her about this instrument. It still sounded like the original, the music still possessed its haunting and echoey tone, but this blue flute held no resemblance to the one she had been gifted.

Akari hadn’t shown a soul this new flute. She was afraid how any of them would react. She exhaled and brought the flute to her lips, playing Lord Wyrdeer’s song. Despite her hand placement feeling weird and the notes quivering with uncertainty, the lord of the field still answered her call. She could see him trotting up the pass, appearing out of the mist with a small bob of his great head, acknowledging Akari as she clambered up onto his back and patting his neck in reply. Without prompting, the noble took off in the direction of Wayward Cave.

The lady of the cliffs snickered, exchanging a few unintelligible words with Lord Wyrdeer right before he took his leave. Lady Sneasler tousled the girl’s hair and then summarily dumped Akari into her basket so she could haul the surveyor up and down the cliffs to collect salt. Akari really only needed a few chunks of salt, but she found the rocking motion soothing as Sneasler scrambled around the rock face with ease. She gave no direction after collecting all she needed and Sneasler chirped with delight when Akari gave her free reign to go where she wanted.

What was the professor going to make? It seemed to be some kind of soup, but no kind of soup she had ever heard of. Maybe it was Galarian or something? They had some very strange ideas about food and flavors sometimes… At the bottom of Clamberclaw Cliffs, she saw herself out of the basket and turned to thank the Pokémon, but the noble was already taking her leave. She did at least turn to acknowledge Akari’s announcement of thanks, dangling by one paw and snorted before hauling herself over the lip of the cliff.

On her own once again and suddenly not really in the mood to head back to any of the basecamps, Akari started wandering.

She wanted to keep her mind clear, forcing her eyes in front of her rather than on the looming peak above her. Looming was the right word, wasn’t it? It felt overbearing, like unseen eyes were burning into her and invisible hands were grabbing at her.

Come find me. Face me.

No.

Not yet.

She wasn’t ready.

Her work wasn’t done. The Pokédex was unfinished. So many people still needed her help. She folded her arms and half hunched, trudging along. She had fallen from the sky almost two years ago. She had almost resigned herself to the fact that Hisui was her home now.

Ingo had been here for seven years and still held a glimmer of hope that he might someday at least remember home. He held no delusions about returning. He had built his life, he cemented himself in his community, but he never quite gave up on the life he couldn’t quite recall.

Akari had done likewise.

She grew roots. People liked her. People relied on her. She couldn’t let them down… She sniffled, feeling her legs wobble because the weight of the world hadn’t been quite removed from her shoulders. It was a terrible burden.

“Why did you do this to me?”

She asked, voice trembling as badly as her shoulders with how hard she tried to hold in her sobs.

Akari tried so hard not to cry in front of others. Only a few people had caught her - she did her best to hide herself away when she got weepy - and they had tried to offer her comfort, tried to be supportive, but nobody really understood. Not the full extent of it. Akari couldn’t explain. She barely understood herself. An enigmatic force took her from her room in her pajamas and told her to complete a task. She was trying while more and more got piled on to her shoulders. It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right!

Laventon had clucked sympathetically when she had burst into tears after learning she was tasked with dealing with Lord Kleavor. He wrapped an arm around her, offering her a clean handkerchief from his pocket that Akari took with shaking hands.

His presence at her side felt warm and comforting, like when she had a tough day and her mother wrapped up in her arms, kissing the top of her head while she murmured that it was okay. He still didn’t know this teenager well enough to provide her the comfort she really needed, but he tried. He was one of the few she actually sought out when things really started to weigh on her, but not recently.

Not with this.

Rei had nervously shifted on his feet when he found Akari crying in her bed, still in her sleepwear and hair a tangled mess. She had been up half the night tossing and turning, suffocating under the weight of her responsibility. He didn’t know what to say, but quickly obeyed when she barked out at him to get out, especially with her then team at the time (Dewott, Lopunny, Stunky, Staravia, Drifblim, and Tangela) bullying him out the door.

He waited outside and awkwardly slapped her on the shoulder, his encouraging smile more of a grimace than anything else. She had resolved at the time not to cry in front of anyone else, no matter how much it hurt. Not too long after that resolution, the sky began to bleed.

Mai had seen her cry when she had been banished and she tucked a strand of hair behind Akari’s ear while she tried to stave her own tears. She held the gasping girl tight and apologized over and over again.

The warden’s heart went out to this poor girl, but there was nothing she could do with her. Not directly. Mai was the first person to tell Akari she was sorry. Not a soul in Hisui had said it as earnestly as Mai had, and it only served to make her sob harder.

She just wanted someone to treat her like the kid she was for one damn second. Not a savior. Not an outsider. Just a teenager.

Akari had buried her face in Mai’s shoulder and just stayed with the warden until not a drop remained. There was nothing the clans could do for her. Akari took her leave. Volo found her not a few hours later.

Cogita knew the most about Akari’s situation, even without her telling the woman much. Akari got the impression that Cogita knew a lot more than she let on, just like Volo, and she was as transparent as she could be with the mysterious woman.

She had spoken to her gently, calling her ‘lost one’ but not unkindly. She offered Akari a cup of tea, just like the professor did on bad days, which only made her tears grow hotter in her anguish. The life she was trying to build for herself as she tried to make the best of her situation was so abruptly and harshly torn from her that she didn’t know what to do but cry in front of this perfect stranger.

Cogita had been sensible enough to give her some space but nudged the warm cup closer to her hands in a silent encouragement to drink.

When she had been granted permission to return to Jubilife and she was able to convince herself that she could come back in relative safety, Akari started battling at the dojo more often. She didn’t want to be caught off guard again and she reasoned that by having a strong body like Captain Zisu’s and strong Pokémon like Warden Ingo’s then she wouldn’t fear being banished again.

Not without a fight at least.

She found herself battling Ingo as often as she trained with Zisu. Akari wasn’t always victorious, but the warden was always aiming her towards victory.

After one particularly grueling battle, one that had seen the change from an orange dusk to a blue-black evening, Ingo had ended up as the victor.

Gliscor had made a beeline for his trainer, screeching happily with the outcome and Ingo chuckled, scrubbing the Pokémon’s cheeks before turning to Akari. Her face had been cast down, her Abomasnow lay a few feet away, but she made no move to return her or aid her Pokémon in any fashion. It was very unlike Akari.

Ingo had already launched into a rousing speech, but his words faltered as the number of inconsistencies started to add up in his mind. The girl’s hands were curled into shaking fists at her sides. Her shoulders were quivering. She bowed her head lower, trying in vain to scramble for a ball that her trembling fingers couldn’t manage to grip, only just managing to flip the lock on the ball to have her Pokémon return to her.

“Miss Akari?”

She cringed, jerking away like she was burned. Was she crying? Because she lost? She had never cried before, but this seemed different somehow.

Ingo did not consider himself a warm and fuzzy kind of guy, but something stirred in his mind when he saw young Akari crying and trying to hide that fact from him. She rubbed at her obscured eyes with her sleeve, trying to sniffle quietly - the sight felt oddly familiar.

He was frozen for a moment, a not so clear memory coming to him because he had done this. He had comforted someone else -someone very close to him- many times before his arrival to Hisui. He returned his Pokémon and reached Akari in two strides, he started to reach for her but hesitated.

“Come this way, Akari.”

Ingo coaxed her gently, hand extended. He didn’t want to grab her, despite the ghost of an impulse to hug her tightly seizing him, he knew not to infringe on other’s space like that. Not without permission. Akari looked up at him through tear flecked lashes, her mouth drawn into a tight grimace as she attempted not to burst into tears. She took his hand easily.

Zisu was on her break with the other dojo regulars at the Wallflower, so he ushered her inside the empty building and sat her on a bench. He resisted the urge to interrogate her, she would only rebuff him until she stormed away to seek the safety and privacy of her quarters.

She hid her face in her hands, body heaving with silent sobs with her shoulders tensed up by her ears. He asked her if it was okay to hold her and she jerked her head, making a small noise of assent. Tears dribbled from the cracks between Akari’s fingers - she didn’t even know what had brought on the sudden waterworks.

She felt a sudden weight being draped over her shoulders, it startled Akari enough to look up as the warden took a seat beside her.

His coat was sun bleached and torn, but still retained heat and deflected all sorts of precipitation well and she was grateful for it on this cool autumn evening. She drew the lapels in tighter and remained huddled there for a moment, keeping her eyes firmly on the ground. Ingo didn’t ask why.

He just let her cry and occasionally rubbed her back between shoulder blades in an encouraging sort of way, like he was silently telling her it was okay to cry.

It was okay to feel sad or overwhelmed or scared or whatever she was feeling. She was safe and he was there if she wanted to talk about it. Although, that thought hadn’t quite clicked for Akari yet as she hiccuped an apology.

“I’m sorry. I… I don’t know why I’m crying.”

“We don’t always have to know exactly why we feel a certain way. Just that we feel it and that we be allowed to express ourselves. You don’t have to apologize for it.”

The words had a soothing effect, she leaned against his side and Ingo didn’t budge. There was an old ache in his heart because he knew he shared a similar sentiment before. 

The warden only left her side to light a few lanterns in the dark interior of the dojo and to brew some tea, otherwise Ingo remained steadfast at her side. The sound of brook running through Jubilife and the distant chirps of Kricketots harmonizing soothed the girl, eventually her breathing evened out and tear tracks down her cheeks had dried.

She thanked him.

She didn’t explain, but she thanked him for just being there for her.

There were no prying eyes this time, no one to bear witness to these tears. Nobody to console the girl that fell from the sky. They were kind, but it had taken so long to get there.

It had taken so long to feel safe when she was thrown into this situation. She had performed every painstaking task - she had the scars to prove each and every one. She endured and she had been thanked, but it didn’t feel like enough.

Did that make her selfish?

Did that make her petty?

Why should a seventeen-year-old have to consider such things?

A long snout nudged into her cheek. Her Samourott insisted for her attention, rumbling out his concern as he nosed her again. She felt something cool snuggling into one side and something thorny jabbing her other side, Froslass and Roserade offering their comfort.

Arcanine’s warm muzzle nudged her other cheek, whimpering and gently nipping at her hands to lick at her face.

Yanmega’s bristly, twig-like legs rested on her shoulders, his thorax running the length of her back, with every buzz of his wings making her vision blur.

Alakazam sat in front of her, the Pokémon’s hands extended Akari could see between her fingers, holding out for her to take hold of them. Samarott also started trying to nip at her hands, trying to pry her hands away, and finally Akari relented.

Her Pokémon surrounded her, and she felt a knot in her chest loosen. Air suddenly found its way into her lungs. The tightness in her throat eased. She was loved. Even so far away from her home, her true home, Akari was loved.

Her Pokémon loved her. They stuck by her through and through on this whole journey. They had their own scars to prove it. She was loved.

Irida and Adaman loved her. They risked everything to help her. They were like the older siblings she never had.

The captain loved her… In her own special way. When she got banished, the captain gave her the tools and encouragement necessary to save them all because she believed in Akari. She told the girl that she expected her back in one piece, which was probably the closest Akari would ever get to hearing motherly concern from her captain.

Professor Laventon loved her. He watched every moment of her progress with beaming pride.

Yes, it had hurt. It hurt that nobody seemed to trust her. It hurt that nobody seemed to have any sympathy for the teenager. It hurt that Arceus didn’t answer when she asked why.

It hurt to think that she would never see her mom again. Her best friend who she had made plans to go to lunch with next week. Her dad was going to visit from overseas next month. Her little Glameow she named Glitter.

Akari was allowed to mourn and cry and be upset about the injustice of it all, but she shouldn’t have to hide that pain.

When she resolved not to cry, to keep her pain to herself, she isolated herself from those around her.

How could they possibly understand?

Well, how could they understand unless she opened up and explained it to them? She had only ever done that with Cogita and the woman hadn’t overstepped her boundaries but she was wholly sympathetic to Akari’s case. How could she expect these people to understand if she didn’t give them the whole story?

Akari thanked all her Pokémon and returned them to their balls. She pushed the heels over her hands into her burning eyes and stood very still for a moment.

She had been wrong.

Trust is a two-way street, and she didn’t trust the Galaxy Team or the clans to understand her plight. She had never given them a chance.

“Still…”

Like all people who were trying to be emotionally vulnerable, Akari was hesitant to do so. She knew who to talk to first and she just so happened to have to make a delivery to him.

|| First || Next>>

[thetraveleroftime]

Hello. Ive recently found this device. You may address me as the warden

The warden have been on this thing the whole time? I found one in a space time distortion and it linked here. I’m Rei a member of the galaxy expedition team survey corps

Character info under the cut

Credits for pfp: https://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/5142407

Credits for header: https://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/5108932

The warden is of course warden ingo! He doesn’t remember much, and doesn’t exactly trust the internet so he’s decided to not give his full name. Just the warden, if you address him as ingo he may be a bit cold and more suspicious of you

Rei is 15 years old. He moved from galar to hisui when he was 10. He’s more focused on his bond with his pokemon

[huh-1260]

doublebattleshipping but PLA

I have been consumed by the brainrot that is doublebattleshipping and PLA AUs that I make at night with my other crackhead ideas. Okay so like after Ingo gets Hisu'ed, Emmet gets a therapy/emotional support Walking wake because fuck yes thank you @bottle-of-harpoons for this Crack head of an idea, because I love me some good mental health (He was in Paldea for Teracrystallisation not because of time travel Boogaloo dang it. Also to see if Emmet can make battle strategy with it or ban it from the subway because it's to big SAFEY FIRST) Most of the paradox forms are ban from the subway because too big or will fuck up the train in battle. A year pass and Evelyn and Emmet start dating in secret from the media because the media always ruins a good relationship. They marry. ( Ingo now has been gone for 4 years they been dating for 2) the media catches on, they have twins named Rei and Akari ( it was suppose to be Akira it means Ideal but Emmet was verry tired and it was Akari but it could mean like the lights in gearstation or as in "up" because one of Rei's meaning is "return, resume, go backwards" :) I'm so funny. The reason why Akari looks like Dawn is because she is her Idol much to Iris disappointment. Rei is just a coincidence. Either way Dawn is in Hisui just doing Galaxy team thing and oh look two children fall from the sky, they both look like Survey corps members Rei and Akari (dawn and Lucas) but they also look a bit like Warden Ingo? Dawn takes them to Jubilife village because what kind of sicko leaves two kids that are like 5 or 6 in the wilds. Ingo is there at Jubilife this time when Dawn kicks down the doors ( not really) going " Holy Helix! Ingo I found kids!" Lucas looks at the kids then to warden Ingo then to the two unconscious kids in Dawn's arms. " Ingo did you spawn kids?" Ingo give a face of confusion. Akari awakens and says it very bluntly that her father would be proud, " I am Akari what the heck am I." Ingo's fragments of memories are screaming because she acts like Emmet. Rei wakes up and the first thing he does is cry, because he is in a strange place that guy looks like his dad and he just got kidnapped by some look a likes. Akari bites Dawn and Dawn yelps and drops them both, the siblings run Ingo, Dawn, and Lucas chase after them they are on the pokemon battle field, Akari pulls out her Pokeball which Rei does too, Lucas is so confused right now. Dawn is hesitant about fighting two little children. Akari screams "Fight me coward!" She smells the her hesitation. " I am Akari. And this is my little brother Rei, I like to win more than anything else!" " I am Rei, w-will your tracks line up towards v-victory or will you be crushed in defeat." Both children yelled, " ALL ABOARD!" Akari sends out a strange Zorua, and Rei sends out Axew. Ingo is getting flashs, Akari sends out her Decidueye, Rei sends out Pikachu. " Zorua use sludge bomb on the bird!" " Pikachu use Iron tail." " Axew make sure it doesn't hit you!" " It has sludge bomb!!?'

_____________________________________

(Akari and Rei lost their pokemon are Level sixteen to 20 they couldn't beat 62 level pokemon. Not even with enough plot armor)

" I am Akari, I lost." She mumbled. " F-fair play," her brother said, " You were very strong trainers." Ingo was having flashbacks where have he heard scripts, (scripts?) Similar to those children.

Meanwhile: Emmet

When his kids went missing, and team Neo Plasma was trying to gain power, his first instinct was to destroy them, which he did, Rosa live streamed it. Then future Volo tries to convince Emmet to his side saying I know where his kids are at, which lead to Evelyn and Emmet beating the living crap out of him. I mean Volo it sounds like you kidnapped them or work with the person who kidnapped them. And then Arceus because he needs to get to Hisui to protect his kids. And now they in Hisui. Emmet has Chandelure out to track their soul energy, and Evelyn grabs him to check the sky for higher ground with her Latios, remember Latios pokedex says it can go to Mach 4 so it's really fast so imagine your Sabi, you are flying with Lord Braviary and your vision says hey something fast and blue is going to pass you and you turn and a streak of blue flys by and then you see in your vision that was a Ingo in white and a women in blue. Wait what.

They end up in Jubilife village, so people panic because Emmet wears white and red, you know who else is white and red, Hisuian Zoroark. Akari and Rei sees them, and scream, " Mama! Papa!" While running to them. " Rei! Akari!" They hug, family reunion. (Looks at Ingo)

" Kids" Evelyn said.

" Yes mom?" Both their children replied.

" Your grounded."

" Whyyyyyyy?" Akari

" You uncoupled your trains from ours." Their father said.

" Emmet?"

Emmet turns around to only stare at his missing brother, and is that the Chamion of Sinnoh??

"Ingo?!"

"Your married???"

"You look like you got ran over by a train?"

Cue akward family reunion Between brothers.

[iridawn]

Coming Down

this was written for @peccaberry, and takes place within SBS, so it gets posted here! this was done in exchange for the ending art - i was just asked to do a volorei piece in SBS, which honestly, i was already kinda hinting at just as a tip of the hat LOL

it's a bit of a short, semi-rough piece, but i'm very happy with how it came out, so i'm sharing it here! big shoutouts to pecca as always

"Another perspective of certain events happening in Hisui…"

“...Volo.”

“Hmm?” Volo turned with a mischievous smile at the mention of his name, perking up even more at the sight of the Survey Corps’ very own Rei. “Ah! Rei! How wonderful it is to see you on this lovely morning. How may I help you?”

Rei, however, didn’t look so cheery, almost looking cross with him. “What did you do, Volo?” He raised an eyebrow, his hands on his hips.

Volo’s expression changed to one of confusion. Was Rei mad at him? What had he done? He blinked for a moment, genuinely lost. “What are you referring to? I haven’t done anything, not to my knowledge.”

Rei crossed his arms as he frowned slightly. “Dawn looked pretty peeved while she was leaving for surveying this morning. I asked her about it, and all she said was ‘Volo is a dickhead’, which… didn’t exactly sound good.”

“Ah! My, she’s still upset about that?” Volo let out a slight chuckle. “Perhaps I laid it on a little too heavily…” He put his hand to his mouth in thought, closing his eyes to truly mull it over.

Rei’s eyebrows furrowed further. “That doesn’t answer my question.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Rei! Really, now. You look much better while smiling!” Volo gave Rei a cheery, flowery look, which didn’t seem to win him over. “But if you must know,” he said, leaning in and wagging a finger, “I simply made an offer to Dawn that she seemed quite eager to accept!”

“I’m a little doubtful of that…”

Volo began to pace around slowly, still leaning over as he did. “You see, I had found some Gracidea while on my travels, and I turned them into a wonderful bouquet – I figured it would be quite the gift, especially as the Pearl Clan’s leader is known to fancy them. However, due to the… difficulty in obtaining them,” he said, leaning back up, “I had to charge a hefty price. But 60,000 Poke is a very good price for such a rare find, wouldn’t you say?”

“Sixty thou– Jeez, Volo!” Rei’s eyes practically shot out of his head in shock. “No wonder she was so cross!”

Volo chuckled. “Surely, Rei, you understand the concepts of supply and demand! I’m simply doing what I must to survive.”

(Volo chose not to mention, however, that it was Ginter that recommended this sale to him – he seemed to have quite a knack for making a sale. It was best for Volo not to get on Ginter’s worse side, considering he already often got… distracted instead of doing his work, so he figured he wouldn’t throw him under a rock.)

Rei let out a hefty sigh, holding a hand to his head. “Volo, I know she’s being oblivious, but you can’t use that to pull a cheap trick like that on her!”

“Oh, come now! Really, she’ll thank me for it later.” Volo laughed cheerily, amused by the whole situation. “After all, someone’s got to push them in the proper direction! You’ve told me time and time again about how clueless Dawn is.”

Rei grumbled, hanging his head for a moment. “...She kind of is, but that doesn’t mean she’s not still my friend.” He looked back up at Volo, looking slightly less annoyed, but instead, a bit more hurt. “No need to rub salt in the wound for her. Dawn’s my fellow Survey Corps member – I’ve got to stand up for her. Let her be!”

Volo let out a small sigh, a bit upset with annoying Rei. “Very well, I suppose. However, all sales are final – I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to offer her a refund. But I shall practice more restraint in the future.”

Rei nodded, smiling. “That’s good. I have to admit, though… maybe flowers will be the kick she needs.” He put a hand to his chin, humming in thought. “Dawn’s already this deep in. She may as well commit and just go for it, you know?”

“Yes, I precisely agree!” Volo nodded enthusiastically, looking and feeling rather pleased with Rei’s statement. “I’m so glad you understand me, Rei! I was only looking out for her, truly.” He let out a light laugh, before a memory hit him once more, pausing his laughter.

That was right! He went to go find those flowers for a reason, after all…

Volo perked up suddenly. “Oh! Which reminds me. While I did sell most of my findings to Dawn, I did have something extra… Excuse me for just a mere second!”

“...Sure.”

Kneeling down and taking the backpack he wore off of his back, Volo went through his goods as Rei watched curiously. He sorted through what he had, before he found what he was looking for, letting out a small “aha!” in celebration.

“Wonderful! I knew it was around here somewhere.” Volo pulled something out of his bag swiftly – swiftly enough to hide it behind his back as Rei looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He could only grin cheerfully, which seemed to confuse Rei even further.

“You see, I did find a large set of Gracidea – a rare find, as you know – and their meaning is well known to someone like you. So…”

Volo swiftly pulled his hand out from behind his back, holding out a small Gracidea flower to a very surprised Rei.

“Consider this a gift of my gratitude!” Volo’s voice was upbeat and happy as he presented his gift to him. “After all, I have greatly enjoyed the conversations we have shared, my good friend.”

Rei stood almost completely still for a few seconds, which worried Volo much more than he wanted to admit. Was that too much on his end? 

He kept the smile on his face, wishing not to break character, but eventually, Rei blinked quickly and looked back up at Volo, smiling back.

“I...Thanks, Volo.” Rei slowly took the flower, looking it over with awe. “Gosh, this thing’s nice. You really didn’t have to go through all that trouble, though…” 

“Oh, think nothing of it, Rei!” Volo gave a smile, though this one was much more earnest. “And don’t worry – this one’s a gift. No need to pay me for it!”

“Thank you, Volo! You know, uh…” Rei rubbed a hand behind his neck. “I don’t think I’ll be out surveying today. So, if you’d like, we could spend some more time chatting. I do think hearing about all of Hisui’s history is pretty neat, anyway…” His eyes glanced to the side, and he looked a little nervous about this.

That bashful expression on Rei’s face was enough to sway Volo almost immediately. It was hard for him to say no.

“Well, if you insist!” That trademark, cheery smile popped back up onto Volo’s face. “I suppose I too can be dragged away from my work duties to spend time with someone who I’m quite grateful for.”

Volo turned around, beginning to walk off, intending to head to Prelude Beach – it was a nice, quiet place, perfect for conversation like this. “Say, have you heard of the legend surrounding these flowers? It’s merely a legend at this point, but perhaps it could happen again at some point…”

Rei excitedly walked up to Volo, an eager expression on his face. “Do tell!”

Volo chuckled happily, before beginning to speak. “Well, you see…”

The two walked and talked for quite some time, something Volo greatly appreciated. Though he and Rei had only been communicating for quite some time, it was quite wonderful.

Even if it made his future plans a little complicated, he would simply… bury those away, should they come up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How’d the surveying go today, Dawn?”

Dawn blew a raspberry as she leaned on her hands. “Eh, could’ve gone better. I got a good amount done today, but then I got a little distracted…”

“Oh?” Rei tilted his head lightly in curiosity. “Something happen?”

“...Kinda, yeah, just, um… spent time with a friend, that's all.” Dawn’s voice trailed off a little bit as she finished her sentence, looking away from Rei.

Based on that reaction, Rei could take two guesses who that friend was, and that friend likely led the Pearl Clan. Dawn was never one for subtlety.

“Fair enough.” Rei gave a nonchalant shrug. “I’m no stranger to doing that.”

The two were just sitting in the small area just south of the village, nearby Prelude Beach. It was a nice, quiet place to talk, and it was one Rei had visited quite often. The sounds of the waves crashing into Prelude Beach were quite nice to listen to from a distance, and the place being quiet, (well, it was usually quiet, until that one guy started setting up that balloon game for kids to play in the afternoons…) made it a nice place to just talk with a friend.

Dawn and Rei would often go there just to chat, away from the business of Jubilife Village. He was glad that she took so well to the idea, and now they would often do this as a way to close out certain days. And, as it was rather late, with Dawn and Professor Laventon getting back just some time ago, he figured it would be a nice time to chat. Dawn seemed like she’d rather get the space to breathe, anyway.

At Rei’s statement, however, Dawn seemed rather interested. She turned her head to him. “With Volo, right? You two seem pretty close, anyway.”

Ah, the statement that always made his heart skip a beat.

“W-well, he’s just got a lot to talk about, I suppose.” Rei tugged at his scarf lightly, clearing his throat. “But I really do enjoy spending time with him. He’s a really fascinating guy! Pretty friendly, too.”

Dawn shrugged. “Fair enough. He’s definitely been a huge help, even if he talks to me like I’m some kind of chosen hero, sometimes. Not sure what that’s about, but, I don’t really pay it much mind.” She grinned. “Kinda flattering, in a sense…”

Rei snickered. “I guess that would be kind of weird.”

“Eh, you learn to shrug it off after the 5th time or so. Bit of a bizarre compliment, but I’ll take it, I suppose.” Dawn chuckled back, sitting back up straight. “But I’m sure he’s got a lot of interesting stories to tell. Seems like a bevy of history…”

“Oh, you’ve got no idea!” Rei’s expression practically sparked up, adjusting his position to face Dawn fully. “He’s always got some interesting stories about Hisui and his past, and it’s always interesting to see him talk about it in such detail. I feel like I’ve learned a lot about it, and I’ve always enjoyed that!”

“I’ve got a friend who was kind of the same. Really big into historical stuff.” Dawn smiled to herself, looking off into the distance. “Still, always neat to talk about. Glad you’re enjoying that! Sounds like a fun guy to have a chat with.”

Rei nodded. “Of course! Honestly, I’ve only started talking to him recently, but…”

He stared off towards the distance, towards the sky that was turning to dusk, stars beginning to appear.

“...I’m really thankful for him. He’s been a really great friend, so far.” An easy smile crept up on his face as he thought about Volo, and how wonderful his time spent talking to him had been. “I’m lucky to have someone who it’s so easy to talk to, and I feel like I get along with him really well. He’s a great guy, honestly.”

Volo was just a really great guy to talk to. The way he’d spark up when talking about Hisui’s history and myths, that smile he had on his face at all times, the way he’d always do nice little things for Rei whenever they’d hang out, it really did make Rei appreciate his friendship with him.

…It was hard to deny that he was hoping for something a little more, admittedly.

“Seems like it, heh.” Dawn smiled.

“Not that I don’t like talking to you, of course!” Rei looked over at Dawn and chuckled. “Sorry, didn’t realize how that sounded…”

“Nah, you’re fine. I’m not offended! I get it, anyway.” Dawn shook her head, laughing back. “Always nice to have a friend you feel pretty strongly about. I can relate, kinda…”

…Probably more than you’d think, he thought to himself, letting out a breathless laugh as he did. 

“...I’m hoping I can tell him how much he means to me, one day.”

Rei’s smile weakened a bit as he stared off into the horizon, bringing his legs in a bit more. His heart felt a little heavy just saying that. It was true, and he really wanted to tell Volo, but…

Doing so was a big move. And he couldn’t help but be nervous about it.

Sure, he and Volo had rarely spoke before, but just before Dawn dropped in, the two had really begun to grow close, as Volo seemed to enjoy having someone to tell his knowledge to, and Rei was very happy to listen.

(...And to admire his charming expressions.)

But as they grew closer, it seemed Volo was pushing forward a bit himself. He’d make small comments from time to time, and they stirred Rei’s heart something fierce. Things about Rei’s smile, or how his outfit looked nice on him, or things such as that… 

Sure, anyone would see them as simple compliments. But from Volo, they felt a lot more impactful. Perhaps that was just his mind playing tricks on him, but his feelings felt hard to ignore. And he really wanted to tell Volo at least that he meant a lot to Rei, if not a bit more, but…

Finding the words and courage for it was hard, he had to admit.

It wasn’t even that he was nervous about being wrong, but more so that it was a big thing. Being so forward would require a lot out of Rei, and… well, he still was a bit hesitant.

Maybe someday, he hoped. But right now, it felt as if it was still quite a monumental task for him to do.

Dawn looked over at Rei as he stared out into the horizon, putting a friendly hand onto his shoulder. He was a bit surprised, but looked over to see a very friendly smile on her face.

“Hey, I’m rooting for you, dude. You ever need someone to hype you up for it, I’m your girl.” She grinned, pumping a fist with her free arm. “You’ve got this!”

Rei looked a bit surprised, but couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks, Dawn. I’ll do the same if you ever need someone to help you muster up that courage.”

“...I, uh…” Dawn hesitated for a second, clearing her throat and looking away. “I don’t know what you mean by that, but… Thanks, Rei. That’s, uh, appreciated.”

Rei couldn’t help but let out a small, airy laugh at that, quiet enough so Dawn thankfully didn’t hear.

“Any time, Dawn.” 

He wasn’t sure when he’d be able to build that confidence, but he’d hopefully do it at some point. It might take him some time, but…

Surely, he’d be able to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A couple years later…

Rei stood outside the door to Professor Laventon’s office, taking a deep breath in, and then a deep breath out. It was rather late, and the professor – unlike anybody else in the Galaxy Team – was bound to be up. The small light underneath the door to his office seemed to indicate this.

He always was one for late nights, anyway.

…Just get it over with, Rei. 

Rei swallowed his nerves and knocked gently on the door, hearing a few footsteps before the door creaked open.

“Ah, Rei, my boy!” Professor Laventon’s voice had that same upbeat energy as always, but with a more hushed tone. “It’s rather surprising to see you up this late. What brings you to my office at such an hour?”

“Good evening, Professor.” Rei couldn’t help but smile at Professor Laventon’s jolly expression. It always did lift his mood. “You’re up awfully late. Do you mind if I come in? Just something I’d like to talk about.”

Professor Laventon let out a low chuckle. “You know I get invested in my research. I’ve been looking a bit more into the different variant of Typhlosion – the one brought in from Johto. Compared to our own, it seems to be quite prone to anger… Rather fascinating, if I do say so myself.” He shook his head. “But I digress. Come in, my boy – my doors are always open for you.”

Rei stepped inside, looking around as he did. Professor Laventon’s notes were scattered about, the place looking as messy as it usually did. The chalkboard was filled with notes, as well – it seemed Professor Laventon had been quite busy. With new faces coming into Hisui, more research was being done on the Pokemon that they had been bringing in. It made his job exciting, as always.

…But he had plans, and he figured he should be honest with at least one person about it. And he knew he could trust Laventon.

“...You look rather troubled, Rei.” Professor Laventon’s voice brought Rei out of his thoughts as he looked up and towards Professor Laventon, who had already pulled up a chair next to him. “Is something the matter?”

Rei smiled warmly, walking over and sitting onto the chair. “I’m alright, Professor. Really. Just… something I gotta tell you.”

Professor Laventon sat down on the chair that was at his desk, turned to face Rei. He only looked at Rei with an expression that indicated he was happy to listen.

Rei let out a small, sharp exhale. “...I’m leaving for a bit, Professor. I don’t know how long it’ll be, maybe for a week or so, but… I figured I should tell somebody, and I figured I could trust you.”

Professor Laventon looked a little surprised, but eased back into a light, playful smile. “Well, I suppose it would be good to tell somebody, after all! But I can tell this is a little more serious than that. What makes you want to leave, my boy?”

“...I’m going to go look for Volo.”

His cheery expression changed to one of surprise, before changing to something a bit more somber.

“...Volo?” Laventon looked down. “I’m afraid nobody’s seen him for years, Rei. I… We’re not sure what happened to him. Not since he had pulled that stunt with Dawn.”

Rei sighed, deflating a bit in his seat. “...I know that. And… I know what he did was… Well, it was heinous. But…”

He looked down at his hands. “I was too much of a coward to tell him how I felt, and… I know what he’s done, and I just want to see him again. I have to get some form of closure.”

“...How you felt?”

Rei looked back up at Professor Laventon, who took a moment to observe Rei’s expression, before he eased his expression into a more understanding smile.

“It’s been so many years since Irida has disappeared, as well. And… Well, she was going to go look for Dawn. She risked everything, she put everything aside, just for the chance to see the person she cared about again.” Rei looked back down at his hands. “And, well… I guess that stuck with me for a few years.”

He frowned slightly as he thought about that. He had planned to ask Volo out proper – to truly tell him how he felt – sometime after the festival. But Volo being busy with finding the plates (and by extension, the legendary Pokemon) with Dawn had put a bit of a stop to that plan, which was okay.

But then, Volo disappeared.

He had revealed his grand scheme atop the Temple of Sinnoh, and intended to stop Dawn – to take all the plates and start a new world. But Dawn had successfully stopped him, defeating Giratina and stopping Volo’s plan before it could ever truly begin. 

Volo, however, had simply left, speaking only to Professor Laventon before disappearing. 

Rei had no idea. Volo hadn’t communicated this at all to him. The only thing Volo had said to Rei was indirect – he had told Professor Laventon to communicate a simple message back to him.

‘Thank you for your kindness.’

That was it.

That was the last Rei had heard from Volo, and it wasn’t even from him directly. It was from somebody else.

That had hurt Rei much more than he wanted to admit. Not only did he not get to hear that from Volo, not only did he not get to even say anything back, but he never got to tell Volo how he truly felt.

And that feeling can really sting, especially over the course of a couple of years. Rei had slowly felt better about it, but it was hard to deny how absolutely horrible it felt, especially right after he had learned about it.

But yet, despite all of this, his feelings for Volo hadn’t changed. Because, despite everything, Volo had cared.

His final message before leaving for good was to simply thank Rei for his kindness. That was his parting gift to Rei. Despite everything he had done, despite how he had felt, that was what Volo had wanted to do for Rei.

It had been years since that, but Rei knew Volo had to be out there.

And he wanted to find him.

“...Seeing her so dedicated to what she wanted to do, and eventually, finding a way to do that… I want to do something similar.” He gripped his hand tightly, feeling it shake slightly from how firm the grip was. “I… I know what he’s done, but I still care about him. I just want to tell him that, in-person. Wherever he is.”

He looked back up at Professor Laventon, much more serious than before. “I don’t intend to go the same distance she went, but… I do at least want to look for him. I know he’s still out there. And I don’t know if he’s changed or not, but that doesn’t matter. I… I just need to see him again. Or at the very least… try to.”

Professor Laventon looked rather surprised, his mouth hanging agape.

“...I will return, of course. I don’t intend to leave forever. I just… I need to look at least once, Professor. I hope you’ll understand.”

For a moment, there was nothing but dead air. But after that moment had passed, Professor Laventon only leaned forward, putting a hand onto Rei’s shoulder.

“...I can quite understand that emotion.”

Rei’s expressions softened, now looking more curious than serious. 

Professor Laventon continued, only chuckling gently. “I, too, hesitated on telling the man I loved how I felt before I left for Hisui… and, well, it’s something I’ve regretted for some time.” He let out a low sigh as he sat back up, looking outside the small window by his desk somberly for a moment.

Rei had no idea. He was kind of shocked to hear this so suddenly, honestly.

But it was rather comforting to hear that he had experienced something similar.

“...So, I suppose I shouldn’t stop you.” Professor Laventon looked back to Rei, a smile on his face. “It would be wrong for me to stop someone who’s dedicated to the feelings in their heart, I think, and you certainly wouldn’t want to regret it. After all, I’m well aware you can defend yourself should something come up.”

Rei couldn’t help but tear up a little, only sniffling lightly as he did. “Thanks, Professor. Don’t worry, I promise I’ll come back. No matter what happens.”

“I know you will, my boy. I’ve got complete and utter faith in you. And I’m sure you’ll get that closure, whatever you end up finding.” Professor Laventon smiled earnestly. “I’m sure he’s still out there. He never did seem like one to go out easily.”

Rei nodded firmly, wiping his eyes. “Yeah. I don’t know where I’ll look, but… I’ve got some good ideas on where to ask. I’ll go from there, and… I’ll be back. I don’t know what’s gonna happen, but I’ll be back. I just can’t go on without having that closure.”

“I understand completely, my boy.” Professor Laventon stood back up, an eager smile on his face. “It’s quite late for the both of us, though. I suppose it’s about time we take our respective leaves to catch some sleep, no?”

“...Yeah, good point.” Rei stood up once more, making his way towards the door and looking back towards the Professor.

“...Thank you, sir. I really appreciate that.”

Professor Laventon, who was now blowing out his light, only shook his head lightly. “Of course, Rei. Any time you wish to speak, I’m always happy to.”

Rei couldn’t help himself, turning around and walking up to Professor Laventon and bringing him into a hug.

The professor was surprised, but returned the gesture, chuckling lightly as he did.

It felt nice. Rei was very appreciative of that, and it was just another boost to his confidence in seeing out his mission.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A considerable amount of time after…

It had been a few weeks since Rei had set out to try and find Volo.

He had started small, heading to the one area he thought would give him some answers – Cogita’s Ancient Retreat. He had already asked Ginter and Tuli if they knew anything, but they couldn’t provide any answers on where he had gone, simply stating that he disappeared with everything he had. 

So, asking Cogita was perhaps the next best option. And she had only made one, somewhat cryptic suggestion…

That there was a small island out in the distance that could contain the answers he seeked. It was an area that hadn’t been explored by people, mostly being viewed as an area where wild Pokemon roamed.

She spoke no further on it, and seemed to know just as much as anybody else did – but that clue was all Rei had to go off of, so he was set on doing so.

Seeking out the help of an old man named Deza, who had brought a Wingull with him from his home region of Hoenn, Rei had set sail for the island, which was a bit of a distance north of the Cobalt Coastlands. 

He had been there for a few weeks now, living off of the materials he had packed, as well as making do with what he could find on the island, with foods such as berries and other resources. 

Deza had said he would return in time should something go wrong, and Rei could send one of the Pokemon he had with him over to the shore should he need to return early. This was the plan, and he was ready for whatever was ahead of him.

Rei wasn’t exactly confident in his chances here, but if it was the best chance he had, then he had to do something.

It was an uninhabited island, thick with forestry and various Pokemon. Some of these hadn’t been seen in Hisui before, so Professor Laventon’s alibi of Rei going on a surveying expedition wasn’t exactly wrong. Seeing a place that was so natural, filled with Pokemon he had never seen before… It really was something else. 

Some were native from Hisui, but others seemed to be entirely unique to this small area. He would have to report his findings when he got back – he still wanted to figure out if that ground-type Pokemon he caught, the small creature that seemed permanently buried into the ground, had feet or not. It was truly hard to tell, and he didn’t exactly want to pull the poor thing out of the ground.

Based on his accounts, and keeping track of the area by making a map, Rei was now approaching the southeast area of the island. He had made some good progress so far, almost entirely looping around the island, and it seemed that someone was here. 

Rei wasn’t sure if it was Volo, or if it was someone else entirely, but…

It was worth a shot, at the very least.

The path he was taking was thick with wildly growing trees and grass, however, making it a pain to navigate. He also had to be weary of wild Pokemon as he made his way through, which made maneuvering quite a pain. He nearly got caught in a territorial fight between Pinsir and another Bug-type Pokemon, which had powerful spikey pinsirs on the top of its head.

If somebody was here, they had to be quite fierce to live in such a place.

But there seemed to be at least some semblance of a trail, and these and other small hints were what pushed him forward to find what he needed.

Eventually, after what felt like an eternity of pushing through tall grass and plants, Rei came to a small clearing in the forest. He wiped his face of leaves and other material in his face, and just in the middle of it, saw…

…A small tent.

It seemed untouched, silently sitting there. It looked rather plain, almost beat up – as if it had been there for quite some time. He was shocked to see anything like this here.

Despite this, Rei wasn’t sure if it was lived in or not. He very, very slowly approached the tent, trying as hard as possible not to make any noise. If there was somebody in there, he didn’t wish to startle them – but he also wasn’t sure if there was anybody in there, and he didn’t want to make noise to disturb and alert the local Pokemon, if there were any.

As he very slowly approached the tent, he made his way to the front of it, barely grabbing the front of it to try and peek inside, and…

“Excuse me. I do not wish to know who you are, but I only ask you leave me be. And I do not wish to see anybody else.”

A voice from behind made Rei almost pause in place.

He knew that voice.

His eyes widened in amazement, as he slowly turned around to see…

A man with tattered clothes, looking slightly worse for wear, but… that same blonde haircut as always, and the same look in his eyes.

Volo.

Who, upon seeing his face, looked rather surprised to see Rei, as well.

Rei was just shocked to see him. Despite all the time that had passed, seeing Volo in person still caused his heart to leap in the same way. Despite everything Volo had done, he still cared for him. He still loved him.

And that was okay, because Volo was right here, and now he could tell him that.

The air was still for what felt like an eternity, no sounds being heard as they simply stared at each other in awe.

“...Have you come to finish the job that your fellow Survey Corps member did not?”

Rei paused for a second. “I… I came looking because I wanted to see you again.”

Volo’s eyes widened in surprise, before easing into a light smile.

“I suppose you didn’t come just to hear some stories of Hisui, though.”

Rei shook his head, smiling back. “Just… I’m glad you’re okay. I didn’t know what happened.”

Volo walked up to Rei. “Well, I suppose I did leave without warning. I had my reasons for that.”

Rei could only nod.

“...It’s much nicer inside, if you’re willing to come inside.”

“Absolutely. Because there’s something I need to tell you, too.”

As Volo walked past Rei and stood at the entrance to his tent, that same, upbeat laugh could be heard.

“Perhaps, then, we have the same thing we’d wish to tell one another. If I can wager a guess why you’d come all this way to see me, anyway…”

Rei’s heart felt as if it was doing loops, now.

“...Probably.”

And with that, Rei headed inside.

Whatever had happened, Volo was here, and Rei could finally talk to him again.

Rei could tell him how he felt.

[a-tale-of-legends]

For the friendship headcanons, how about Akari and Rei?

Ooooooh, okay. admittedly, I'm not super familiar with this two, so sorry if these are a bit ooc! Also, I'm going off the npc versions of them here, but I'll try to add some protag stuff too.

From what I can gather, these two are pretty blunt and sassy, but Rei is even more so? When Akari merely implies the how hard it is for a survey corps to go out there, even with a pokemon, Rei over here just goes "uuuuh, you do know you would die out there, right? Even with a pokemon you can just die," Because of this I imagine Akari constanly having to reel Rei in cause he seems to have no filter. She's no better, they're both pretty blunt, but ultimately Rei seems to be even more so. Akari weaves her bluntness with her polite demeanor.

I think this is funny, and based on no context at all, but Akari has a fake galarian accent. She uses it cause she thinks it makes her sound dignified and cool. Rei gives her so much shit for this but the next thing he knows, he's slipping into it himself, which then Akari gives him shit for it. Laventon doesn't have the heart to tell them that their accents are bad lmao.

Rei almost lost a family member to wild pokemon( they were apart of the corps before him actually) and because of that he has a deep wariness around pokemon. Akari was the one that helped him ease that tension between him and pokemon. It was hard, very hard, but over time the he was able to form meaningful bons between them! I like to think akari actaully gave Rei one of his pokemon. Possibly clefairy?

They're both very into fashion! Rei was very insecure about it at first but between's Akari's encouragement and Adaman pretty much being an inspiration for him, he's been growing more confident! The two love having little fashion shows for each other. It usually devolves into them wearing silly outfits and making each other laugh.

Protaginst! Akari, after the main events, would have trouble being within the village. Re understands, but doesn't want Akari to feel so alone. So he offers for the two to go camping together, as often as they can. It would be near one of the settlements so they can be wacthed over. They spend most of their nights just talking about anything and everything. Whenever Akari feels comfortable being in the village, she would have Rei sleepover at her place. ( honestly this still applies to protag rie and npc akari)

Do not be fooled by her politeness: Akari is the master prankster. In every prank war the two had, she has won. Every single time. She is incredibly clever. Rei swears up and down that he'll win the next one, but he doesn't. In general I can see them being a bit competitive with each other. Who catches the most pokemon in a day, who can make each other laugh more, who's laventon's favorite ( its the both of them), etc, etc.

That's all I can think of. Hopefully these are okay!

[realm-sweet-realm]

One For All, chapter four

In an AU where the protagonist never fell from the sky, the Survey Corps will have to pull together and make use of every resource at their disposal to face the challenges present in Pokemon: Legends Arceus. There will be surveyshipping.

Sorry for the long wait between chapters- the next one should be up in about a week.

---

The Survey Corps members moved aside for Laventon as he approached the pastures, each understanding that the quest of the lake guardians would take precedence. Laventon didn't have many Pokémon that were trained as anything but research subjects, but he gathered his typhlosion and beautifly nonetheless, along with some particularly mysterious specimens he hoped would come in handy. He then stuffed his backpack with healing items, food, and crafting materials and met the others at the gate. It wasn't long before the six were gathered.

"According to Cogita, the materials we need to forge the red chain can be obtained from beings in the three lakes," Cyllene reiterated once everyone was present. "Splitting up seems inadvisable until we know what exactly the trials will entail. We'll start at Lake Acuity, as it's the furthest from any route Kamado is likely to be taking. I've gathered enough flying Pokémon from the pastures to transport those of you who do not have your own. My staraptor is fit to carry two. Laventon?"

"Alright, you'll ride with me. Let us be off." Cyllene took out the staraptor and mounted it. Laventon got on behind her as the other four got onto various flying creatures themselves.

With that, the staraptor took off into the air, the other four following. Afraid of falling, Laventon grabbed onto Cyllene's waist. If she minded, there was no sign of it. Everything looked so small from the sky, and the air rushed past them as though they were going a thousand miles an hour.

In less dire circumstances, this might be very pleasant, Laventon thought. Then he took a closer look at the world below.

From the up high, the disarray caused by the bleeding sky was already apparent. Grasses were beginning to wilt and turn brown, and normally docile Pokémon were running about, agitated and confused. Worse was that in the distance, Kamado's army could be seen marching up the trails of the Coronet Highlands. Laventon looked up at the hole in the sky, two massive shining creatures seeming to peer through it, and it dawned on him that he might not live to take a recreational flight.

The group landed on the island in Lake Acuity, returned their birds, and entered the small cavern without much thought, only to be faced with a ghostly maned fox that was larger than an ursaluna.

"Is that- the vengeful fox?" Irida exclaimed, terrified. It was so much bigger than the legends had said.

Whatever it was, it charged towards the group, teeth bared.

Volo ran to the front of the group and threw out a Pokémon- a strange, ghostly thing Laventon didn't recognize. "Dark pulse," Volo ordered. The second the dark beam caught up to the charging zoroark, it went down. That was another disturbing thing about Volo- he always seemed to have just enough power to handle any given task, and no one quite knew how he'd acquired it.

In a flash of light, a small, blue figure appeared in the center of the cave. Though the creature was small, power could be felt emanating off of it in waves. Cogita had described the being with a yellow hood as being the representation of knowledge. Was this it?

R e i came a voice. It was like a horrible vibration in Laventon's skull, but somehow he could tell that it had come from the lake guardian. S t e p  f o r w a r d.  M y  t r i a l  i s  y o u r s.

Rei stepped forward.

S h o w  m e  h o w  y o u  h a v e  u s e d  y o u r  c a p a c i t y  t o  l e a r n.  I  w i l l  j u d g e  i t s  w o r t h i n e s s.

Rei hesitated, trying to work out what exactly he'd learned that might impress the being. It wasn't though he was terribly intellectual- wouldn't Laventon be a better choice for this? But he had to try.

"Well... I learned how to make a pokéball," Rei said. "I guess I could show you."

Rei knelt down and took out his crafting kit. "Basically, you just have to make something hollow. The nuts are already hollow, and I take the ores to a smith to make the top half. You just put the two parts into the seal belt, and that’s all they need to be functional,” Rei explained as he cobbled together a basic ball. “There's other stuff you can add, though. One thing that’s a really good idea is the spark release on top, so you know when a catch has been successful. Without that, you might think you’ve caught something only to have it burst out in your face when you go to pick up the ball. Aside from that, there’s different types of ore for different weights, and iron for better quality. And that's pretty much all I know."

The strange pixie twirled in the air and then lowered itself down to Rei's level, presenting him with something in its tiny hands: what looked like a fragment of claw.

T a k e  t h i s  p i e c e  o f  t h e  s p i r i t  a n d  b i n d  t h e  s k y  o n c e  m o r e.

"Is this... for the chain?" Rei asked. But before he even finished speaking, the Pokémon was lifting into the air and was already fading away- perhaps teleporting, or simply destroying what had always been a mere representation of itself controlled from elsewhere.

"Wait! I have so much to ask you! We need your knowledge to fix the sky!" Rei called out, chasing after the form. A few steps into the chase, the creature had faded entirely, and Rei stopped.

"You did well, Rei," Cyllene assured him.

"Indeed you did," Laventon added. "I'm sure it has its reasons for not granting us its knowledge."

The trip to Lake Valor was uneventful, and this time the group had a better idea of what to expect. Cyllene led the group in, on alert for a Pokémon standing guard. No sooner did she poke her head into Valor Cavern then were a barrage of poisoned quills shot at her. She scrambled out and took out her alakazam, which put up a forcefield.

"Laventon, can you identify what Pokémon these barbs are from? I didn't get a good look at the Pokémon that shot them."

Careful not to exit the safety of alakazam's forcefield, Laventon picked up a barb from the ground. He squinted as he looked at the quill, trying to place where he'd seen anything similar.

"Those are definitely from an overqwil," Adaman cut in. "Looks like a big one, too. Their only weakness is ground."

"Then I know something that might help," Irida said, taking out her Celestica flute. With a few notes, an ursaluna came running over the hill. It swam through the lake and shook itself off once it washed up on the island, soaking the six humans.

"Hey, big guy," Irida said, giving the bear a stroke on the cheek and ignoring the grime she was now coated with. "I know you're usually a finder, but would you mind fighting something for us today?"

The ursaluna grunted in acknowledgment and shuffled into the cave. After taking out a few additional psychic-types to bolster Alakazam's forcefield, the others followed in and watched as the bear charged the enormous pufferfish. The overqwil expelled its quills, but most of them bounced off the bear's thick hide as easily as they bounced off the forcefield, and those that did prick it didn't seem to bother the ursaluna in the slightest. The ursaluna roared, reared up, and took the giant fish in its mouth, shaking it around as it deflated. It threw the fish against a wall and then ran to it and slashed with its claws until it was satisfied that the job was done.

No sooner had the bear returned to Irida's side did a light begin to shine in the middle of the cave. From the light, another sprite appeared- the one Cogita had called "Azelf."

L a v e n t o n, came the spirit's voice, s t e p  f o r w a r d.  M y  t r i a l  i s  y o u r s.

Laventon glanced nervously at the others and then stepped forward.

Y o u  m u s t  c a t c h  m e, Azelf stated. A large bag of ultra balls appeared in Laventon's arms. Then, Azelf turned into a shiny zubat and flew out of the cavern.

Laventon continued to cast nervous looks at his companions. He probably seemed on the brink of panic. "This is much more suited to any of you, I mean-"

"Laventon," Cyllene said, "We will help you however we can, but Azelf wanted you. It must have its reasons. You can do this."

Rei gave a nod of agreement. "I had the same thought with my trial. If I could do mine, you can do yours." Behind Rei, the clan members were nodding as well.

“Jolly good,” Laventon said, straightening up. “Irida, I’ll need use of Ursaluna’s nose.”

"You have my blessing," Irida said.

Laventon mounted the bear. Ursaluna didn't wait for orders. As soon as Laventon was securely upon it, it took off back into the lake and began swimming across. Laventon had to pray it knew what it was doing. As the bear neared the opposite shore, Laventon looked back at his companions, following him on various flying Pokémon. Ursaluna ascended over the hills, and that's when Laventon caught sight of a glimmer of hope: to their left was a colony of zubat flying about in the shade of a forested area.

The bear took an aggressive right.

"No!" Laventon told it. "Ursaluna, you have to turn around!"

Then, Laventon saw it. A shiny stantler in the fields was looking at him with a competitive gleam in its eye.

"Oh my, Azelf has taken a new form! Ursaluna, you're a genius!"

The stantler took off at a run. It was faster than Ursaluna.

"Stop," Laventon ordered. The bear skidded to a stop. Moments later, the other five landed. "I need something swift enough to catch up to Azelf. Cyllene, may I borrow your alakazam?"

Cyllene handed him the pokéball. Wasting no time, Laventon released it and used the creature's teleportation to catch up with the stantler just as it transformed into a buizel and scurried into a thick, wooded area. The woods were too dense for a riding Pokémon, so Laventon took chase on foot. He was hardly the fastest runner, but the weasel stayed within his sights, looking back at him periodically as though to mock him. Laventon fumbled for an ultra ball, took aim at the creature as it watched him from atop a log, and then promptly tripped over a tree root.

Laventon laid in the dirt, trying to catch his breath as Azelf scampered away and his companions caught up to him, none of them half as tired as he was. He really was terrible at this, wasn't he?

G i v e  u p.  Y o u r  s t r u g g l e  i s  i n  v a i n.  R u n  f r o m  t h e  g r o u p  y o u  a r e  o n l y  a  b u r d e n  t o  s o  t h a t  a n o t h e r  m a y  s u c c e e d  i n  y o u r  p l a c e.

If it was the only way for them to pass the trial and save Hisui then perhaps that was for the best...

Cyllene offered Laventon a hand up. He took it.

"You know, individual strengths are often less important than the ability to use the strengths of others," Cyllene said. "Kamado has issued commands while injured that led the Galaxy Team to success. You are a field researcher. How have you caught slippery Pokémon in other regions?"

Laventon thought on that. "Well, there have been other species that I've had to flush out of their hidey-holes, and this isn't a big bush," Laventon mused. "If the five of you surround it with your Pokémon and move inwards, we can force Azelf out no matter what form it takes. I'll stand outside the bush, you get it to come towards me. Does that sound like a plan?"

"That sounds like an excellent plan," Cyllene said.

Laventon stood at the edge of the bush and waited as the other five and their Pokémon marched inwards. Bugs, birds, bats, rodents, and the occasional stantler were flushed out, and Laventon watched for any that showed signs of being Azelf, ultra ball at the ready. Azelf wanted to test him on willpower- on not giving up- so surely this was the correct course of action. Yes, he was sure of it.

Finally, a shiny buizel emerged from the bush, grinning at Laventon with pleased determination. Laventon hucked a ball at it. It bounced out of the way. He hucked another. It wasn't even close. Then, a number of other buizel emerged from the woods, scampering about as though Azelf had ordered them to make this trial even harder. Laventon trained his eyes on the white collar of the shiny and kept throwing.

Ten balls later, one hit. The ball shook once and then sparked.

Laventon let out a sigh of relief. Blood was coursing through him, and he felt more alive and keyed up than he could ever remember being.

The buizels dispersed, leaving behind only one- a second shiny. To Laventon's horror, the creature turned into Azelf. But then it picked up Laventon's ultra ball and handed it to him, along with a small horn.

T a k e  t h i s  p i e c e  o f  t h e  s p i r i t  a n d  b i n d  t h e  s k y  o n c e  m o r e, said the spirit before it vanished.

"That was some leadership, professor!" Rei explained.

Laventon was stunned silent. "I caught a swift and slippery little buizel all by myself," he mused. "A shiny one! My God, that was... I don't even know what that was!"

"It was a fine performance," Cyllene said.

Before long, the group was on the move again, and not long after that, they were on the island of Verity Cavern. Before heading in, the group took a moment to heal their Pokémon.

"So, if Uxie's trial was showing knowledge, and Azelf's trial was showing willpower, Mesprit's will be showing emotion? That sounds like a really lame trial," Adaman stated.

"Maybe it'll go to someone who struggles to control their emotions, and they'll have to do something frustrating," Irida suggested.

"In that case, it's definitely your trial."

"Oh, please. You're the drama queen. And anyhow, I fought overqwil, so I had my turn."

"Ursaluna isn't your Pokémon, and you didn't give it orders," Adaman countered.

"Hmph! well-"

"Now is not the time," Cyllene said, leading the group in.

Within the cave was an alpha goodra. Rei took out his decidueye, but Cyllene stepped in front of him. "Allow me," she said, taking out her staraptor. "Close-combat."

The bird struck at the armoured dragon, denting its shell, but the goodra struck back, hitting Cyllene's staraptor with its massive tail and knocking it into a nearby wall.

Cyllene gave her bird a stiff nod to let it know to continue, and took out her samourott. "Ice beam," she commanded.

Between the two attackers, the Goodra was giving out far less damage than it was receiving, but Laventon found Cyllene's choice to step in baffling nonetheless. With the amount of office work they had to do while the other members were in the fields, he and Cyllene were among the weakest of the Survey Corps when it came to their Pokémon's levels, and Rei had long surpassed them. It wasn't like Cyllene to fail to delegate when it was for the better.

Is she trying to make sure she won't have to face the trial? Laventon wondered as the Goodra finally hit the ground and Cyllene's Pokémon returned to her for healing.

Just as had happened in the previous two caves, Mesprit appeared to the six in a flash of light.

C y l l e n e, Mesprit said telepathically. M y  t r i a l  i s  y o u r s.

[imfluentinfangirlandgay]

A Father's Resolve - Ch 8

Ingo returns after a decade - with two extra cars in tow. Years later, his kids are swallowed up by time in the same way he was. Will he be able to find them? Will they be able to make it out alive?

Word Count: ~2600

Red tendrils shot around Rei, holding him in place and constricting his movements, even as he struggled. He cried out for his pokemon, his sister, his uncle, his father, but no sound came from his throat, no cries echoed in the darkness. He saw red eyes above him, staring into his very soul, coming closer, a golden maw widening and- 

Rei gasped awake. His heart was pounding in his ears as he gagged on air, whipping his head around. The pounding stopped. “Kamado wishes to see you two!” 

Akari groaned and rolled over. Rei tried to control his breathing, rubbing his arms to try to get rid of the goosebumps. He shivered as he thought about those red irises watching him in the black… 

He shook himself and hurriedly got up, roughly shoving his sister to get her up too. She looked at him funny as he did. “Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?” 

“I'm fine. Kamado wants us.” Akari knitted her brows at him, but said nothing. She didn't seem to want to push him this early. She lurches around and sloppily got dressed as Rei carefully kept his eyes averted from hers. It did not take long to get out of their quarters, Akari's eyes still droopy with sleep. 

Outside was a shouting match. As the twins walked towards the Galaxy HQ, two figures dressed in Clan-wear in opposing colors shouted at each other. He locked eyes with his sister in exasperation as the two bickered. 

“Are you seriously implying that you make better use of your useless time than I do of Hisui's vast space?” A blonde woman in pink and white was shouting, bangles dangling on her thin pale wrist clinking together. 

“I'm just saying I know why you're always late. I'm going to see Kamado! No time to waste!” The man in blue with a tall top-notch of blue and yellow responded just as loudly, marching away. 

“I do believe you started this!” The woman kept up with him. The doors slammed behind the pair as Rei and Akari watched the space they had been in. 

“She looks so much younger,” Rei murmured in Unovan. 

“She's what… eighteen? Nineteen? Last time we saw her, she would have been nearly ten years older than she is now.” Akark smirked. “It is funny to see how much they fought before everything happened.” 

“Yeah. It's crazy to think that there was ever a time that they legitimately hated each other.” Rei sighed. “We should probably go up, too. Do we give them a minute?” 

“I don't think they're cooling off anytime soon,” Akari pointed out. She led the way into the building. 

Even as they climbed the stairs, they could hear the bickering. The further they climbed, the louder it became. They waited a few steps down the stairs to listen in before announcing their presences. 

“He's a Pearl Clan Noble. The Diamond Clan cannot do anything without risking being at each other's throats again, like we used to be…” The man in blue's voice trailed off. Rei almost rolled his eyes. He knew about the Clan Wars and knew it really could be worse. He really did. But hearing it like that was nearly laughable. 

“Then what do you suggest? The Pearl Clan take down one of their own beloved Nobles?” the woman's voice asked sarcastically. 

“I don't recall saying that. Thinking about it, maybe.”

“You might as well have said it, you fool!” 

Rei led the way up the stairs. It was time to break this up. 

“Ah. There you two are,” Kamado greeted them. Rei and Akari stopped at the doorway to the office, watching the three in the room respectfully. “These are the two newest members of the Survey Corps, Rei and Akari.” 

“I'm Adaman of the Diamond Clan if you wanna be formal,” the man in blue introduced himself with a smirk, crossing his arms. “But that's a mouthful. Just call me Adaman.” 

“You two are the ones said to have fallen through the rift? Perhaps having come through the space Sinnoh inhabits?” The woman shook her head. “I am Irida of the Pearl Clan. Caution and foresight are my watchwords, which is why I have such trouble believing such a tale. Falling through the rift?” She shook her head again. 

“I propose we send these two to study Lord Kleavor and understand why he is acting as he is. Allow them to gain information on him to decide the next step.”

“You would send a pair of strangers that fell through a rift to study the Noble?” Irida asked, horrified. Truthfully, Rei was not liking where this was going. 

“Sending these two? You know, I like your plan, Kamado. Let them decide how to proceed. I can learn some more about your silly balls and other inventions and what not. Let's try this your way.” 

“That bothers me too!” Irida cut in. “Pokemon we made to run free in Almighty Sinnoh's vast space! We should not see ourselves above them!” 

“We do not capture pokemon to control them, but to gain equal footing,” Kamado responded calmly. He turned his attention to the twins. “Remember that the locals here are naturally suspicious of you both. Do not act rashly on this assignment. I hereby order you both to study the frenzy of Lord Kleavor and report back later.” 

Both twins nodded as the Clan Leaders left, still bickering with each other. When they were out of earshot, Kamado approached the siblings. “The members of Jubilife Village are all new to Hisui and may even be seen as interlopers. Do not act in ways that may reflect on the people of the village or strain our relationship with the native Clans. Understood?” They both bobbed their heads again as Cyllene's voice from the stairwell called to them to come to her office. 

Rei and Akari left Kamado’s and walked in tandem to Cyllene's. He whispered to her in Unovan. “I don't like where this is going.” 

Akari said nothing. She nodded her head slightly. They made their way to Cyllene's to get debriefed. 

—---------

Emmet rolled over, noting the light coming under the doorway. He rubbed sleep from his eyes and squinted at the alarm clock, his glasses frame magnifying a small portion of the screen from where they sat on the table. 2:35 am. He sighed as he slowly stood, doing his best to not disturb the Joltik and his Galvantula that always made their way to his bed as he wobbled. He grabbed his glasses and popped them on his face as he cracked open his door, feeling his eyes adjust to the light. 

The hall light was on, throwing a golden hue over the light walls. He trudged down the cool hallway. Was his bedroom just warmer or was it cold out here? Emmet rounded a corner and noted the living room light on, too. He peeked into the room, still rubbing at his eyes. 

Ingo sat at the couch, head in his hands. On the coffee table was a book, a photo album, by the looks of it. He was staring very intently at one page. Two little toy cars - one red and one blue - sat on the table as well, their paint faded from years of use. 

Emmet slowly rounded the coffee table and sat beside his brother in silence. Chandelure hung from the ceiling just above their heads, making the ambient temperature a little warmer. Up close, Emmet could see the shadows under Ingo’s eyes. His lips were white from being pursed for so long, the forming wrinkles around his frown even more pronounced. His eyes were shockingly dry - not that that was a good thing. If his thinning silver hair made him look a full decade older than he was with the pensive expression he had. His elbows rested on the coffee table, his head in his hands, his silver eyes staring intently at a specific photo, unblinking. Emmet looked at the photo. 

It was not too long after Ingo had returned with the kids. Their sixth birthday had just passed, and as such, the brothers had decided to put their new language skills to the test by taking them to the Nimbasa City Amusement Park. A kind passerby had taken the photograph of the four of them, Ingo holding Rei and Emmet holding Akari. Each of them had a wild grin on their face (excepting Ingo, of course), the kids with face paint on to make them both look like Emolga, a large stuffed Lillipup was clutched in Rei’s small hands. Emmet had won it for him at the ring toss game (he would never admit it had taken thirty dollars worth of tries for him to win it). Akari was holding a blue balloon with a Cubchoo’s face printed on it. It had been taken just in front of the Rondez-View. They had just gotten off the wheel when the kids had begged to take a photo. 

Emmet said nothing, instead opting to rub Ingo’s back as he stared silently at the photo. A long time passed in silence, Emmet trying to fight off sleep to stay awake with Ingo. He floated along the awkward line between consciousness and sleep, the line sometimes waltzing to the left or right and forcing him to shimmy along just to stay coherent. The room was just pleasantly warm enough with Chandelure’s presence and it was so quiet…

Ingo took a breath. Emmet shifted a bit. That seemed to break the spell. 

“I’m a horrible father.” The sentence startled Emmet out of his silent battle for wakefulness that he finally crossed the full threshold into consciousness. And in doing so, he fully grasped the meaning of the statement that had been presented to him. He scrunched his eyebrows and began to voice his dissenting opinion when he was cut off. “I never provided any idea of what to do if I wasn’t there. If they couldn’t rely on me. I didn’t reach out enough. They could have been in danger for much longer than this and I wouldn’t even have known. Had they been followed by something? I could have protected them better. I could have been around and gone with them. I could have saved them, maybe returned myself and kept them safe. This is all my fault.” His voice was raspy, his throat thick with unshed tears that simply weren’t there anymore. 

“Ingo-”

“And now I’m just sitting here. Going back to life as usual as if nothing is wrong. As if they mean nothing to me. I’m not even looking for them. I go to work like I used to and I cook dinner and run errands as if my children aren’t now missing persons and are still just at home. As if they haven’t been missing for well over a month. The best we have on any whereabouts is an assumption that they might have been taken to the same time and place I was, when we really have no idea. What if they’re beyond our reach, Emmet? What if they’re gone for good?” 

“Ingo, I really don’t think-”

“Emmet.” Ingo finally turned to him. If the movement had been accompanied by the sound of a stone being dragged against stone, Emmet would not have been shocked. He had no idea how long his brother had been in that same position, but his bones must have been aching. Emmet could see the raw pain radiating in Ingo’s dulled eyes. “What if they forgot about home. About you. About me. What if they’re gone for good? What if they aren’t coming back?” 

Emmet laid his hands on his brother’s shoulder and looked him in the eyes. “Ingo, I am going to make you a promise. We will find them. I do not care how. I do not care if we have to travel to the ends of the earth and meet Arceus itself. We. Will. Find. Them.” 

“You can’t promise that,” Ingo murmured, his voice sounding smaller and flatter by the second. If Emmet didn’t know any better, he might think that he was talking to himself. “It’s impossible.” 

“You came back, didn’t you?” 

“I wasn’t going to,” Ingo admitted, his eyes and voice flatter than sanded wood. Emmet paused as he took in this information. “I had given up. My wife had died. I had twin children to watch and a job to fulfill. All I had of my previous life was foggy feelings. Nothing to go on. Even though it hurt, I had nothing I could remember to return to.” He blinked. “My returning to this station was an accident. A creature overrode my path and thrust me through a portal with the twins. I had no idea what was happening or why.” Emmet thought over this information. He had, of course, mentioned that he had no idea how he’d gotten here and he’d implied that he hadn’t been actively searching for a way home, but Ingo had never said point-blank that he wasn’t going to come home. 

“You had nothing to go on,” Emmet pointed out slowly, his fingers still gripping Ingo’s shoulders as he ignored the pit forming in his stomach. He shoved away those thoughts that had plagued him during Ingo’s absence - the ones that said that Ingo hadn’t wanted to come home and how those thoughts had just been confirmed directly, without any room for wondering if he was just overthinking it. “No pokemon. No items. They have each other for sure. And we looked through their PC boxes. All their pokemon were there… except their starters. And their balls weren’t at the scene, right? So where else could they be?” Ingo said nothing, simply staring at him with that same blank expression. “My point is, they do have things to remind them of home. Maybe not their Xtrans or any photos or anything, but they have something. And they do know things about being on their own. That’s the whole point of a pokemon journey! To learn how to be self-sufficient. They’ve camped out, they’ve trained up a team of their own, they’ve taken on gym battles and opponents of all kinds. They can fend for themselves.”

“Can they forage?” Ingo cut in. “Can they deal with life-threatening situations? Not just pokemon-on-pokemon battles. Pokemon-on-human. Being attacked on their own person. Assuming it even is Hisui they were sent to, can the handle not having a pokemon center around?” He shook his head. “I can’t be sure.”

“But we aren’t sure they can’t, either.” Emmet sighed, bringing his hands down. “And that’s the thing. We have to have some faith in them. In their abilities.” He stood, closing the album gently. “I believe it is time to retire for the evening. Staying up all night until you can’t even think isn’t going to help anything.” He took his brother’s hand and hauled him to his feet, dragging him back to his bedroom, Chandelure trailing behind him as they left. Emmet made sure to shut off the light on the way out. 

Ingo sat on the bed as Emmet bid him goodnight. He whispered to Chandelure, “Please try whatever you can to get him to sleep.” Then he shut the door on them and returned to his own room, sighing to himself as he climbed under the covers, placing his glasses back on the nightstand and reading the angry green LED numbers on the clock. 3:53 am.

[First] - [Previous] - [Next]

Author's Note: Hey yall! Hope you're enjoying so far. I wanna make a note about the way time is flowing between Hisui and Unova. It is going much faster in Unova than Hisui - so more time passes for the submas than it does for the kids. That will likely continue to be a trend, but its hard ot say for sure. I'm already at 30k words on my end and i'm not even halfway done. Keep on enjoying and I'll be back with another chap soon!