Coffee Break
N and Kyurem sat across the table from each other, watching each other warily. "So?" N asked.
Kyurem, in his human form, shrugged. "It's your chapter. I'm just here."
After taking a sip of his tea, N said, "All right, but I'm not sure how to respond. The author wouldn't tell me which ship she's following here, and the next few chapters confuse the issue."
"It's still early." Kyurem narrowed his eyes at him. "You hurt her, though, and I'll make sure you suffer double."
"Are you sure you want to be saying that?" N asked. "And what's this about starry-aura people?"
"That's what I want to know."
He shook his head. "You know, I don't think this was very helpful."
Chapter 11: Persuasion Fail
morning, 12/3
Nacrene Historical Research Museum and Pokémon League Gym
Museum Hours: 7:30 AM – 11:30 PM, all days except Monday
Gym Hours: 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM, all days except Sunday and Monday
Research Library hours: 7:30 AM – 11:00 PM, all days except Monday
To challenge the Gym Leader, please call for a reservation. If you need the library during Gym hours, please be aware that there will be Pokémon battles going on in that facility. Fossil Pokémon revival is available; please speak to the archeology tech on duty for more information.
On rechecking that information, N highlighted the Gym’s number on his phone and called it. It was a damp morning, with fog hanging around the trees and in the streets. Down near his feet, the Tympole hopped about in puddles. N had come up with the nickname Lucky for him, and the Tympole seemed happy with it.
Lucky had recovered well; there was still that hole in his tail, but that would go away upon evolution. He was doing well enough that he was play-pretending. “Don’t taunt me, because I’m the mighty Kyogre!” he squealed. Then he wiggled in preparation. “And, tidal wave!” He leapt into another puddle and caused a large splash over the sidewalk and N’s shoes.
“Isn’t Kyogre’s rival a Ground Pokémon?” N asked him. The phone was still ringing.
Lucky flipped his tail in the water, disappointed. “Oh yeah, so she won’t like me much. But I’ll get strong and prove myself worthy. I’ll make it so that I can defeat Groudon!” He then set off pretending to do just that.
At the same time, the phone call connected. N spoke with the receptionist and set up an appointment to challenge the Gym that afternoon. While he was on the phone, he noticed Val approaching him. She was dressed differently than usual, in a beret, pom-pom scarf, poncho, and pants that were in a multitude of colors. Normally, she was in t-shirts and blue jeans. Lucky hopped over closer to N when she came, uncertainty radiating in his posture.
“Good morning, N,” she said cheerfully when he closed his cell phone. “How’re things going?”
“On schedule,” he replied. “What are you doing dressed like that?”
She picked one end of the scarf and twirled the pom-pom around. “I like blending into a place, and this city tends to attract artists. Could I hang out with you today?”
He shrugged. “Why? I’ll just be training until it’s time to enter the Gym. I don’t need someone else around for that.”
Giving him puppy-dog eyes, Val pouted. “Aw, but we never get to hang out with you. We’re supposed to be traveling with you, but you keep brushing us off.”
He didn’t see why he might need or want them around, and they had traveled together for some times. But Ghetsis had trusted them enough to send, so it couldn’t hurt. “All right, but I don’t know how interesting the Gym will be for you.”
She grinned. “Great, thanks! I actually saw some people a little ways from here you might want to talk to. It’s some Trainers who might benefit from your philosophy, but won’t listen to it from those obviously from Plasma.”
Wouldn’t listen? N wasn’t sure why that would be, but it would be better to ask those Trainers directly. He followed Val to the southern part of Nacrene, where old railroad tracks lay covered in weeds and gravel. Lucky wasn’t fast in hopping over land, so N picked him up and carried him along the way. Away from some of the warehouses, a group of teenagers and Pokémon were gathered around talking. From the uniforms they wore, they seemed to be students waiting for the right time to head to class.
Near one of the boys, a Whimsicott was crouched down with his tail fluffed up around him, a sign of annoyance. “I don’t want to do that,” he said.
The boy frowned at the Pokémon. “Come on, you did the trick yesterday. Don’t be a lazy bum.”
“I only did it to stop you from being mean, but you won’t do that now,” the Whimsicott said.
“I told you that he’s a dumb Pokémon,” another boy said.
“He might be, but he’s not as dumb as yours.”
The other boy’s Whirlipede muttered, “Just ignore them,” and kept shuffling around some pebbles.
N came into the group, feeling angered but working to keep calm. “Your Whimsicott doesn’t want to do as you ask, because you’re mean to him.”
Clenching his first, the boy asked, “Oh yeah? And why would you know anything about my Pokémon? You’re not the one who has to deal with him all day.”
“Eep,” Lucky said, trying to secure himself better in N’s arm. “He’s a mean one.”
“I can understand what Pokémon say,” N told them.
Some of the quieter members looked interested at this revelation, but the two arguing boys didn’t look impressed. “Oh please, you’re just some con artist like those Plasma junkies,” the second said.
“More likely he’s some escaped schizo from the nuthouse,” the first said, smirking. “Pokémon are just like the dumb animals; they can’t think at all.”
The Whimsicott came out of his annoyed posture to look over at N. “Hey, if you can understand me, then tell this idiot Gerald to shut the **** up.”
N shook his head to the Pokémon. “I’m not using that kind of language,” he said. “Gerald, he just told you, in a rather crude manner, to shut up.”
Both the Whimsicott and the Whirlipede started laughing at that, along with one of the girls. Gerald started to turn pink. “What? Oh, now you’re just lucky and rude.”
“I’m Lucky, but I’m not rude,” the Tympole said, squirming. N put him down.
“Can you guess my name?” one of the girls piped up.
The Lilligant by her side waved her leaf arms. “Oo, oo, she’s Amy! And I’m Annie!”
“Annie says that your name is Amy,” N said.
Amy squealed. “Oh wow, that is so cool!”
“You’re just easily impressed,” Gerald said, frowning. “And even if you really did understand Pokémon, it would be worthless.”
“No, it helps him understand what Pokémon really feel about us,” Val said, leaning in closer to him but thankfully not touching.
“It’s nice that somebody can understand us,” the Whimsicott said, at the same time. He checked over his tail fluff. “I’d tell him a nasty thing or two, if I could, or try to get out of this.”
“If you could hear your Whimsicott, then you’d know that he doesn’t want to be with you,” N told Gerald. “He’d rather be released, and I would say that no Pokémon deserves to be held in captivity.”
“All right!” The Whimsicott said, with a sign of agreement from the Whirlipede.
But the Lilligant and others didn’t like that so much. “But, but I want to stay with her!” Annie said. “I love my girl.”
“You’re just jealous of my Pokémon,” Gerald said. “Or you’ve been listening to those Plasma losers. Nobody’s hurting the Pokémon just keeping them; it’s nonsense.”
“It only seems that way,” N said. “There’s a subtle element of brainwashing going on that keeps Pokémon contented to stay in Pokeballs, as well as propaganda to make you think you’re doing the right thing. But you’re not. You’re being cruel in being demanding, not considering your Pokémon’s feelings.”
“Am I brainwashed?” Annie the Lilligant asked, with her Trainer quietly wondering the same thing.
“Well if you feel that way, then why do you have Pokémon,” the other boy said sharply, his fist clenching up.
“I don’t keep them for long,” N explained. “I’m out to get my ideas heard, by going along with the League and becoming known. And I’m seeing a lot of the problems first hand, in people like you.”
“I bet guys like you are just trying to convince others to release their Pokémon so you can catch stronger ones yourself. Well you don’t fool me, jerk!” He then ran at N, to punch him.
Val slipped in the way and grabbed the boy by the throat. With both of her hands on his neck, she managed to keep him still. “Nu-uh, let’s not get violent today,” Val said, in her usual sweet voice. “You’re trying to hide the fact that your Pokémon won’t help you out. You should really be a dear and let him go, m’kay? Now let’s play nice.” She then let go of him.
Gasping, Gerald dropped to the ground. His Whimsicott laughed at him, but the other kids stepped back, not wanting to incur Val’s retribution. After an awkward moment of silence, a bell began ringing down the street. “Oh, that’s the school bell,” one of the girls said. “Uh, we gotta go… bye!”
As the other kids left, recalling their Pokémon with them, Gerald got back up. “You two….” He looked at them, still angry but not wanting to get choked again. Then he recalled his Whimsicott and took off for the school building.
“You might have killed him there and gotten us in deep trouble,” N said, irritated at Val.
“No, I was half an inch or half a minute from that,” Val said, toying with her scarf again. Then she laughed. “It’s a joke, don’t worry. I know what I’m doing. But one of my priorities is your safety, my liege.”
“I don’t think that would have been serious,” N said. Pokémon took hits a lot and recovered just fine, so while it would hurt, he’d be able to take a punch.
She pouted. “Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to come off as overprotective, but I really don’t want to see you get hurt, N. You’re so sweet and smart; he didn’t have a right to start arguing with you.”
“I hope I at least gave them something to think about,” he said.
Afternoon, 12/3
With the defeat of the Watchog, the room went quiet. At this point, only the panting of Lucky the Tympole could be heard. He was no longer hopping in place like he had earlier. He was mostly still on the floor instead, taking deep breaths. “I, I did it,” Lucky said, amazed at himself.
N knelt down and patted him. “Yes, you did a good job.” It had been a close call, though. Peter had defeated the Herdier, but then got knocked out by Retaliate. Scar had made a good first hit, but then the Watchog had been successful with Hypnosis. That left Lucky to finish the Watchog off, and the Tympole wasn’t conscious by much.
“It looks like you and your Pokémon care very much for each other,” the Gym Leader Lenora said. “That gave you the push to win, so great job. In recognition of your efforts, here is your second badge.” Smiling, she handed over the small piece of metal when he stood up.
And it was just a piece of metal, a symbol, one won through violence. N had tried to keep up with potions through the battle, but seeing them get beaten down like that, he could imagine the pain they were in. Especially with the Pidove; his nerves had flinched in sympathy when Peter hit that wall. These badges were supposed to give authority to the Trainer who had them. But was it worth the price?
“Lenora, may I ask you something?” N said. When she nodded, he asked, “Why do you do this? You take care of lots of Pokémon, only to see them suffer in battle, and you’re supposed to reward the Trainer who has Pokémon that can knock them all out. It just doesn’t seem right.”
Strangely, she gave him a warm smile and patted his shoulder (unknowingly making him flinch inside). “It’s not that harsh, young man. Pokémon are resilient creatures, and they’d fight anyways. It’s in their instincts. We just give them productive ways to use that energy and make sure they really don’t cause serious harm to each other. And when your friendship with Pokémon grows deep, they’ll forgive you for losses. I make sure all of mine stay healthy and happy, and they give me their loyalty and affection in return.”
“Honey?” A short but neatly dressed man came into the room. “Sorry to interrupt, but Hilbert’s come by again. He wants to talk with us about one of the stones on display.”
Lenora brightened at that. “Really? It’s been a while since I’ve gotten to speak with him. Oh N, here’s your other rewards for defeating this Gym. Feel free to stay around the museum to study and observe our artifacts.” Then she left with her husband, talking animatedly with him up the stairs.
N took the items, shoved them in his bag, then pulled out a Super Potion for Lucky. Why would she assume that he didn’t know what Pokémon felt? Maybe the battle hadn’t been long enough for her to see that he could understand them. Even so, the ignorance of the four Gym Leaders he had met so far was infuriating. They were supposed to be the authorities on Pokémon, but the way they treated battles… N just couldn’t understand it. Fighting with all one’s skill in training Pokémon, but honoring those who defeated them? And she hadn’t even healed her Pokémon before leaving to meet with Hilbert! Did she really care?
No, no she couldn’t care about them. But no one questioned her because she was an authority, someone with the power of a title. They all listened to her instead. Maybe he really needed power to be heard.
Lucky shook himself when the potion took effect. “I did really great, right?” the Tympole asked. “I thought I was going to faint, but I made it so that I didn’t, and then I beat him.”
N smiled and scratched the Pokémon’s chin. “Yes, you did great. I may never meet a Tympole as great as you are ever again.” He then picked Lucky up, making him squeal happily. Somehow just that little action made them both happy. But N was soon preoccupied with those thoughts again.
Alone in Lenora’s office (as it seemed like), N took a look around before she came back. At the back of the room, there was a desk; a computer was on. Looking at the screen, she had been composing an email before he came in to challenge her. N’s eyes fell on the line, ‘They are causing a lot of trouble, but Plasma has no real authority to speak of. They don’t have a clear argument either, as Ghetsis uses scare tactics and pompous actions to bolster up the nonsense they’re spreading. Especially with having a King that understands Pokémon; it all sounds so mythic, doesn’t it? We need to find ways to undercut their popularity and keep them from getting the power to enforce their warped views.’
“They don’t understand us, so they pretend they have the moral high ground,” N muttered, heading out of the room. After seeing that, he had no desire to contact Lenora ever again.
“They don’t understand what?” Lucky asked.
“Team Plasma’s ideals and truth,” he replied. “I’m going to send you back so I can heal the other two.”
“Okay,” Lucky said, recalling himself instead.
As he walked back through the library portion of the building, N used a Revive on Scar and Peter’s Pokeballs, then a Super Potion on each. The Pokemart counters wouldn’t sell him these things, but Val had managed to get some for him. On his way out, he spotted Lenora and her husband talking with Hilbert and a boy in a strange mask. N didn’t bother to listen in and left the building. Now he had to release his Pokémon again. Going down to the field southwest of town sounded best, as they were all three familiar with the area. If only there was a stream to release Lucky in to, as he would have the hardest time getting away from other Trainers.
Next thing N knew, he was knocked down on his rear, his chest hurting some from someone running right smack into him. Right next to him was a girl with large brown hair, looking confused herself. But then she looked at him and smiled. “Oh, hi N! Sorry about that; I was playing football with my Pokémon and didn’t see you there.” She got up and offered him a hand up.
Ignoring the hand, he got up himself. “I wasn’t paying much attention where I was going myself. But why are you playing a game, Hilda? Shouldn’t you be training for the League?”
She shook her head. “Nah, we had a long day yesterday, so I’m letting everyone take a break. You got the ball, Olette?”
A Drilbur tossed the foam football to Hilda. “You get so excited,” she said in a soft voice.
“Miss, you haven’t seen anything yet,” the Snivy said, hopping over. He still had that silly-looking hat on, which he tipped up to N. “Hey there, it’s the ******* screwball again.”
“Honestly, you should teach him better manners if you mean to keep him,” N said, frowning at Fedora.
“Was that a bad thing to say?” a Minccino asked, coming over too. The Drilbur nodded. “My Daddy says don’t say bad things.”
“I’ve been trying, but I can’t tell,” Hilda said. “So what’re you doing here? Challenged the Gym?”
He nodded. “Yes, and I got the badge.”
Strangely, she clapped. “Awesome! You’re going at this way faster than me. Keep at this rate and you’ll be Champion well before spring comes.”
Why was she excited about that? It had nothing to do with her. “Thanks, but it’s a little early to be thinking that far ahead. I’ll just move on to the next Gym.”
“Aw, just like that?” Before he could get away, she grabbed at his sleeve. “Come on, you ought to treat your Pokémon after that! I saw a cute little cafe at the edge of town; you ought to go there and buy treats for them.” When he slipped out of her grasp, she added, “I’ll come with you. Let’s go!”
N thought about leaving, but then the Snivy snickered. “Aw, are you afraid of cute but crazy girls? Didn’t take you for such a rude loner.”
“I would love a treat for a celebration,” the Minccino squealed.
Maybe they would like it. Technically, he was thanking them by letting them go once he was ready to move on. “Are you sure you shouldn’t be working on training?” N asked, walking after Hilda who had already started off down the stony street.
“Don’t want to overwork them or me,” she said, grinning. “And it sounds like you could use some relaxing time too. What do you do for fun?”
“Fun?” He never got much free time, in between studying, guiding Team Plasma, and now Pokémon training. “I guess I go out in the wilderness and talk with the Pokémon there. I like puzzles too.”
“What kind of puzzles?” Hilda asked, slowing a bit so they were walking side by side. “Like jigsaw or crossword, or Sudoku?”
“Math and engineering puzzles,” N said. “Why are you asking all these questions, and going to a cafe with me?”
She laughed. “Well why not? We’re Patch Hat buddies, right?” She tapped her hat, showing that she was wearing the Reshiram and Zekrom patch today. “We could be like friendly rivals too. Wouldn’t that be awesome?”
He held his hands up, trying to figure that one out. “Wait, that doesn’t make sense. Friendly and rival don’t go together, as they stand for different ideas.”
“Not really,” she said, shrugging. “A friendly rival is someone you compete with, so you strive to keep up with or ahead of them, but you still treat them nice and have fun. I’ve already got one with Cheren, but it’s always more fun to have more friends. So anything you want to ask me?”
N was at a loss. He knew how to converse with others in Plasma, but general small talk with an outsider? Chit-chat was unimportant, or so he had thought. Now caught up in it, what should he say? “I don’t really know you…”
“So,” she said, teasing. “Get to know me. What do you want to know?”
Maybe this was something he needed, experience in dealing with these kinds of people. He asked her the first question that came to mind. “What kind of ideals do you follow?”
Raising her eyebrows, she looked at him for a second, then scratched her head when she saw that he was serious. “I dunno. I don’t really think about that kind of thing. Why have your head in the clouds thinking about what could be when you can be in the moment, enjoying life? Maybe I favor spontaneity, like today.” She laughed.
“It’s not really fulfilling to live day by day, is it?” N asked. “Don’t you have a goal, like defeating the League and becoming the next Champion?” It was the first thing he could think of; that was what League Trainers wanted.
Hilda shrugged. “That’d be nice, but I wouldn’t be too heartbroken if I didn’t make it. I do want to see the world, so maybe that. If it happens, it does; if not, I’m sure it’ll be because something else interesting came up.”
“Do you ever settle down on a definite answer?” She was speaking a lot of maybes and not picking one option. Indecision led to stagnation, possibly ruin.
“Sometimes,” she said, then pointed to a brick patio. Various tables sat under decorative umbrellas. “There it is! The sign says Pokémon welcome, so they should have some kind of treat available.”
They went inside to find a two level cafe; a large wall of windows on the west wall showed a magnificent view over Pinwheel Forest. There were a few people inside, with many open tables to sit at. Reading over the menu on the wall, it seemed that this place served mostly drinks, with a few items from a nearby bakery. N wasn’t sure what most of the menu meant, but the server was able to recommend some drinks based on the kind of Pokémon his team was made up of. When he didn’t order anything for himself, Hilda ordered something for him, herself, and her Pokémon, paying for that bill.
“You didn’t have to buy me something,” N said as he went down the stairs. The tables down there seemed to offer the better view of the forest.
“I did cause I wanted to,” she replied, following him with her three Pokémon. “And we’re here to celebrate your win, right? So you ought to have a treat too.”
“It’s only the second badge, nothing special.” He found a round table and released Lucky again.
“But that means that you’re a quarter of the way done,” Hilda said, sitting down there. “And in such a short time too. You’re doing awesome. Hi there cutie,” she said the last part to the Tympole and poked his forehead, making Lucky look at her curiously.
Wasn’t it early to really know how he was doing? But just from the look on her face, it seemed to be genuine praise. Releasing his other two, he sat down at the table with the rest. “I guess so. Guys, I brought you out to thank you for helping me. We’ll get some treats in a few minutes.”
Peter’s eyes went wide. “Really? Oh gosh, that’d be great! Thanks!”
“We’re just here to hang out,” Fedora said, settling himself near the window to sun.
“Well if it ain’t something I can get in the wild, I can live with it,” Scar said, sitting in one of the chairs but keeping his log close.
“Where’s your Purrloin?” Hilda asked. “She was pretty cool at the Gym.”
At that question, N felt that misplaced guilt again. How was Pricilla doing? No, he was doing the right thing. “I released her and that Pidove after we won. That was the agreement we had.”
She looked surprised. “Really? That’s too bad. You’re not even keeping one around as a buddy?”
“Oh yeah, same thing with us,” Peter said, then fluffed his wings in a show of nervousness.
“Dude, what if you find out you like the weirdo in that time?” Fedora said, leaving his window for the tabletop. “Then you’re screwed.”
“Well it seemed okay at the time,” Lucky said.
Something wasn’t right, a quiet thought said in N’s mind. But he shut it and the Pokémons’ conversation out quickly. Outside forces were conspiring against him. “It’s better to keep them from being captive long. If I could, I wouldn’t even capture them. I’m making a point in the League, though, and for that, I can’t avoid catching them.” N shook his head. “But as it seems, that may not be enough. If things keep going the way that are, I may need to get the support of the legendary dragon Zekrom.”
“Zekrom, huh?” For a moment, Hilda seemed serious.
And then a server came up to them. “I’ve got your orders right here,” he said, passing out the drinks or snacks, including, “And a root beer float for the both of you,” he said, setting down tall glasses of dark creamy drink in front of them.
“Thanks, man,” Hilda said, smiling at him and taking a straw.
“Root beer float?” N asked, looking suspiciously at the beverage in front of him. The very bottom of it was black, while the top was capped with a brown foam. Globs of white floated in the middle, while moisture coated the outside.
“Yeah,” she said, carefully taking one end of the paper sleeve off the straw. Then she blew the rest at N so that it hit his forehead.
He wasn’t sure whether to be mad or not. “What was that for?”
Hilda giggled. “Geez, lighten up. You ever do that?”
“Well, no,” N said, taking the cover off his straw in a neat fashion. “But I didn’t think you were old enough to order beer.”
Unexpectedly, this caused another fit of laughter from her. “It’s root beer, not beer. Totally different; no alcohol for one thing.”
“And what’s the float part of it?” he asked, tapping the side of the glass here one of the globs was.
“Vanilla ice cream,” she said, then looked at him. “What, you’ve seriously never had root beer or ice cream before?”
“No,” he said, feeling self-conscious because she talked of them as normal things. “It’s a dessert thing, right? I always avoided that kind of thing, and sweets. It’s rather worthless in terms of food.”
“Well no wonder you’re so serious,” she said, rolling her eyes. “That’s the point of a treat, right? To be an indulgence for something that just tastes good. At least give it a try.”
She had bought it for him, so it would be a waste to not try it. It was cold, both stronger and sweeter than he had expected it to be. But creamy with a spice, or some kind of taste he wasn’t familiar with. While N liked it, he didn’t think he’d tell anyone else. It wasn’t acceptable… but it was just food, or a drink, wasn’t it? Then it wasn’t important in the grand scheme of things.
They ended up talking about their Pokémon, as that was the easiest common point between them. Then someone familiar came down the stairs. N looked over at the strange masked boy and realized he’d been he one with Hilda the other day, and Hilbert earlier this morning.
But from where she was, Hilda couldn’t see him. “Well I caught a Basculin once, but a fisherman wanted to buy it off me. And I helped a kid catch his first Pokémon, a Woobat. That was fun.”
Wait… N looked back at Hilda. She had sold a Pokémon to someone? That struck N as terribly thoughtless and cruel. It was bad enough to capture Pokémon for use, but to sell them? This League was truly embracing Pokémon slavery.
Before he could properly get mad, though, the Minccino at the table noticed the strange boy and squealed. “Daddy, you’re back!”
That threw him right out of anger into confusion. “Daddy?”
Hilda blinked. “Huh, your dad?” She looked back and smiled. “Oh, hey Kyurem.”
He caught Mimi as she ran up to him. He was smiling in a strange toothy manner. “Hilda.”
“Oooo, what have you been up to now?” she asked, in a mockingly mad voice.
“Pardon?” He sat down in the chair Mimi had been using.
She poked him. “You don’t smile like that unless you’re up to something. Who’d you eat this time?”
The boy then leaned over and whispered something to her. Hilda briefly looked serious again, then whispered back. Something was going on, but he couldn’t hear what.
“Kyurem?” N asked, hardly aware that he was doing so aloud. “That’s really Kyurem?”
“Sure is,” Fedora said. “Make him mad and he’ll freeze you solid and eat you.”
“He doesn’t eat everybody,” Mimi said defensively.
The Snivy pulled his hat over his head. “Aw, don’t ruin my fun.”
“Yeah, this is Kyurem,” Hilda said, leaning forward on the table. “He’s my starter Pokémon, not Fedora.”
His eyes were like ice and that mask might have been directly attached to his head. Still, it didn’t make sense. “Really Kyurem, the legendary dragon? Why do you reduce yourself to look like a human?”
By now, that smile had disappeared, replaced with an unreadable stony expression. “I need to be near her as much as I can,” he said. “Except in hunting and scouting out an area. It’s more convenient to be like this.”
“Wow, he gave you a straight answer!” Hilda said, amused. “Yeah, with all the buildings sized for humans, he couldn’t manage to be around if he were in his true dragon form.”
“But why her?” N asked. Hilda didn’t seem like someone who would attract a legendary Pokémon’s attention.
“You don’t need to know,” the dragon boy answered. Then his eyes appeared sharper. “But I do need to know something from you. What do you want from all this?”
“What do I want?” N echoed. “I want to know the truth about the ideals that Pokémon hold. I want to know how they feel about being held in captivity in Pokeballs. I don’t want them to be hurt, but no… not many others are speaking up on their behalf. I want to show that it doesn’t have to be this way, but it seems no one is going to listen unless I have the right authority.”
By this point, he was speaking loud enough for the whole cafe to hear. Some of the other patrons looked to their group curiously, wondering what the fuss was all about. Others hunched over and grumbled about interruptions to the peace.
“And I will get that authority, no matter what it takes to get it. I will find the right way, and teach everyone what they’re doing wrong. And I hope you aren’t around to ruin things.” N got up from his seat, picking up his Tympole from the table. “Don’t let yourself be fooled by the illusions, Hilda. You seem nice enough, but if you don’t think what you’re doing carefully, you’ll end up hurting the Pokémon you love.” Then he left the cafe, calling his Pokémon to come after him.
Peter flew alongside him. “Whoa, are you… mad?” the Pidove asked.
N took a deep breath as he opened the door for Peter and Scar. Back outside. “Probably,” he said. “I just don’t know what to think about her. Too much conflicting information, and yet where she’s wrong…” that really made mad. Selling Pokémon… but then why did the group with her seem affectionate and friendly? They should be afraid that she would get rid of them too, just for money. Yet she’d been playing with them, and bought a drink for him to celebrate his team’s win… and Kyurem choosing to be with her. Many people were simple and N could quickly judge them good or bad. Hilda… was both?
“She seems nice,” Lucky said after he’d been quiet for a while. “She took you out on a date.”
That caused N to stop in the middle of the road to Pinwheel Forest. “She what?” he asked, startled.
“Oh yeah, she did,” Peter said cheerfully. “She took you somewhere and bought you something. We were all there, but you were the only two actual humans. That’s still a date, right? I used to watch couples go on walks in the forest. They seemed so happy.”
“Don’t look at me,” Scar said, starting to toss his log up to catch. “I don’t know how your kind goes about courtship rituals.”
N felt his stomach squirm. Was that a date? And what did it mean if it got out that he, Plasma’s King, had gone on a date with a person who might be their enemy? No, was their enemy, as she was a League challenger, Pokémon Trainer, and so on. “I don’t really know that either,” he admitted.
“Oh N!”
He cringed at the voice and looked down at Lucky. The Tympole looked concerned, but uncertain of what to do. And then Val and Carol came up on either side of him.
“There you are,” Carol said. “We lost track of where you were. Don’t sneak off on us like that.”
“What happened?” Val leaned over and tried to look him in the face. “Why’re you turning red, huh?”
“Just leave me alone,” he snapped at her. “I, I’m not sure what happened.” When they still tried to follow him, he held his free hand out to them. “Go; I need to say goodbye to these Pokémon.”
“What?” Peter asked. “But we were doing so well together.”
Thankfully, the two girls went back to town. The Timburr nodded. “Yeah, that was the arrangement,” he reminded the others. “We do this one Gym and then we get let go.”
“Right,” N said, glad to find firmer ground to talk about.
“Bu-bu-but…” Lucky started sobbing, putting his face against N’s shirt.
“But I feel braver around you,” the Pidove said, cooing sadly. “I’m getting better! I want to stay with you, and Lucky too.”
N closed his eyes. He had avoided using the Pokecenter at all with these three, hoping to break them out of the brainwashing cycle. That should have made things easier than last time when Pricilla tried to talk him out of releasing her. But now, it was two of them who didn’t want to be let go.
Down near the swampy area, he determined that Lucky was afraid of being hurt again, like the last time he had been released. That got Peter panicky, so N took out the release device and let go of Scar first. In good nature, the Timburr saluted him, then walked off into the woods. Despite that, the Tympole was still crying and Peter was flitting about anxiously.
Was he hurting them by letting them go?
No. He was preventing hurting them worse. If he kept them, he would be putting them through more battles. They’d win some, but they’d also lose some and the Pokémon would be knocked out. And that still made N feel horrible about doing this.
And idea came to him. It was sneaky, maybe underhanded. But he had to keep his word. It was time to test Anthea’s words. “Peter, could you use Fly to get me back to my home?”
Seeming relieved, the gray bird bobbed up and down. “Yeah, I can do that! Just keep the location in your mind, okay? I’ll have us there real quick.” Peter then began to glow light blue before he shot into the sky.
N watched him as the small bird rose up, then looped back down towards him. Holding onto Lucky, he braced himself as Peter rushed for him. The blue light then surrounded N; a sense of vertigo and movement like a helicopter taking off washed through his mind. “What’s going on?” Lucky asked, his sobbing slowing down.
After looking around him, N said, “We’re flying along with Peter. But, I don’t know how he shrunk us.”
And that’s exactly what seemed to have occurred. N found himself standing on the Pidove’s back, just behind his head. The landscape around the blurred by, trees and grass rushing underneath. Despite the obvious speed, neither N nor Lucky felt any movement of air. Or Peter himself, as N found out when he knelt down and tried to touch the feathers he was standing on. It seemed to be a solid floor with definite but invisible edges.
“You’re in a little pocket of air outside normal space,” Peter said, his words coming from all around them. “At least, that’s what the disc thing said to me. That’s how I can find a place that you know that I’ve never been there. You can see the area, right?”
“Yes,” N said. Lucky was shaking, so he kept hold on him. “But it will be further north.”
“I know. I hope you like the ride!”
While it was a little unnerving, N knew that Peter wouldn’t hurt them. So he tried to calm Lucky down until the right forest came into view. After another disorienting moment, N appeared outside of the building that Anthea used to heal Pokémon. Peter appeared out of his Fly glow a moment later, looking proud of himself.
He would release Lucky here, and leave him with Anthea. N trusted her to look after him and help him become part of the forest population. After that, he would have Peter return him to Nacrene and release him there, with the offer to fly back here for safety. That solved everything, it seemed. He would keep his word to respect and release them, but would know that they would be safe from recapture.
Even so, the tears on his shirt hammered irrational guilt back into his heart.