It was hard enough trying not to think about the life she had left behind in Alola. It was even harder when the girl Lillie missed most was plastered over every other building in Kanto. The region had just loved Moon climbing to the top of the new League; she was one of theirs, many in Kanto had claimed. Moon had tactfully brought it up on one of her interviews (which Lillie watched in spite of herself), telling the world that she was proud to represent Alola, and she was glad her mother had introduced her to the other half of her heritage. Lillie had been fairly sure she'd heard Hau's laugh in the video; it wasn't out of the question for the Kahuna's grandson to accompany his best friend to such interviews, after all. Nevertheless, Kanto held on to Moon's image, and Lillie saw it everywhere she went. She missed her more every day that went by.
She wasn't isolated from her friends and family in Alola. Miss Wicke sent weekly care packages that somehow always found their way to Lillie no matter where she was. Moon, Hau, Gladion, and the professors all wrote to her whenever possible. It wasn't the same. Seeing Moon's picture in a magazine, sometimes alongside her brother's or Hau's, but not being able to reach out to her hurt. Lillie began to fear her and Moon's friendship would suffer from the distance and time. Letters became briefer as Lillie moved on with her Gym Challenge and as Moon continued defending her title.
Then she saw it. She was in a Pokémon Center in Saffron City. In a section of a trainer's magazine Lillie read regularly, Alolans would share pictures they took with their Poké Finders, a feature of the Poké Dex that many regions did not implement. Moon enjoyed the magazine, too; she'd gotten Lillie interested all that time ago in Alola. As Lillie skimmed over the pictures, one caught her eye. It was clearly taken by a professional, leagues apart from the amateur shots of other trainers. It showed a Jangmo-o, tiny and adorable, along with a larger but still young Hakmo-o. The two Pokémon appeared to be siblings. The smaller dragon was beaming at everything around it while the Hakmo-o scowled. The caption read: My favorite siblings. The setting was strikingly familiar; Lillie gasped, ignoring the strange stares she received by passerby. She recognized that view. She would recognize it anytime and anywhere. She had once looked across Vast Poni Canyon to that exact location. She'd been with Moon, on their way to the Altar of the Moone. It had been the first time she'd crossed a bridge since her disastrous incident near the Ruins of Conflict. Lillie smiled and took out a sheet of paper from her bag.
Dear Moon, she wrote.
Over the time that passed, Lillie checked the photo section every week. Sometimes there would be nothing, but other times she would be pleasantly surprised. A picture of pretty Corsola from Kala'e Bay, one of the most scenic places in Alola where Moon knew Lillie wanted to go. A picture of a swarm of Cutiefly taken in Melemele Meadow, where Lillie had once requested Moon to find Nebby. A picture of Clefable on the trail of Mount Hokulani, which surprisingly did not fill Lillie with dread; rather, she remembered her mother's prized Pokémon with fondness. She wondered how Moon knew she would like to see a Clefable, before chalking it up to be pure thoughtfulness. Moon was nothing if not considerate.
She found a picture with no Pokémon in sight. The focus of the image was a small cave behind long green grass. A sliver of sky was visible at the top, and Lillie's eyes unerringly found the lower half of the altar she knew was there. Eggsecutor Island. Lillie knew it well. It was carved into her memory. She blushed, remembering the rainy afternoon she had spent with Moon, huddled together with her in that very same shelter. When Lillie had divulged her special memory of her mother, Moon had smiled at her in a way differently than ever before. She'd insisted that when the situation had passed, the two of them would come to Eggsecutor Island and dance together in the rain. "We don't have time now, but one day."
Lillie, nervous in her excitement, had stammered her way through the conversation, echoing the Seafolk Village Chief's words of caution regarding the heavy rains the island bore. Moon had simply flashed a charming grin. "I'll keep you safe, then."
The thought of Moon fulfilling that promise to dance with her sent a thrill of anticipation through Lillie.
And then one day Lillie found a picture of not a Pokémon but of trainers. Three trainers, all looking drastically different from each other. A young man with platinum blond hair and striking green eyes. A young man with green hair pulled into a Ponyta-tail with a wide smile. In between them was a young woman with dark skin, dark hair, and a red hat. Gladion wore an expression similar to that of a disgruntled Glaceon, frigid and unmoving. Hau beamed, his shining smile as bright as an Ampharos' beacon. And Moon was somewhere in between, her soft smile both reserved and warm. Moon's image in the picture reached Lillie in a way nothing ever had before.
The three young trainers wouldn't seem to be friends, but Lillie knew they were. They were her friends, too. She couldn't stop smiling at the picture in the magazine; she must have appeared insane to the passing Kantonians. The caption read: We miss you. I love you. Lillie blushed furiously.
It would be a long time until she would be able to return to Alola. But she'd have snapshots into the lives of her dear friends while she undertook her journey. For the first time, Lillie was acutely aware that when she went home at last, she would be welcomed back with open arms by her family. And maybe there was something more waiting for her in Moon's arms, too.
Dear Moon, she wrote. I love you, too.