This chapter contains story spoilers for the very end of the return to aether paradise
Lillie slowly woke, the moon shining dimly through the thick curtains. It took a moment to remember exactly what had happened the previous night, but it eventually came tumbling back. She started, realizing that at some point during the night she had ended up turning over; Moon had draped an arm over her, pulling the two girls close together. Moon stirred in her sleep, murmuring something intelligible. Lillie, doing her best to not wake the other sleeping girl, slid out from under her arm as quietly as possible.
She stood for a moment, looking at Moon's relaxed form. Lillie marveled at how calmly she could sleep, especially with the moon now shining directly in her face, not to mention everything that had occurred. The thought crossed her mind that perhaps, what had happened last night had in fact leant itself to a calming and restful night. Despite everything, the two girls had spent the night together.
Lillie blushed, quickly looking away. She needed to get dressed for the day anyway.
A few minutes later, she was standing in front of the mirror she had found in the closet. The new hoodie and skirt she had picked up in Malie seemed to fit comfortably, and while there was less room in the backpack she carried now compared to her old bag, it let her move a lot more freely. She gently pushed the sleeping Nebby into the bottom, trying not to catch a glimpse of her old dress and hat that she had shoved back into the corner of the closet. Glancing over her shoulder one last time at Moon, she smiled and headed outside.
Moon woke to the sound of doors throughout the house. It took her a moment to figure out where she was, but the earlier night's events came rushing back in a blur. She snapped up, checking the room. Everything looked just as it had when she stumbled in: clinical, pristine, and untouched. The only difference was a small pile of clothes by the door, and the moon shining through the window. Lillie was nowhere to be seen.
Moon realized that the clothes by the door were hers, along with her bag. Climbing out of bed, she began to change, hoping that whomever had set them out for her hadn't seen her and Lillie. Though, maybe she didn't care. Maybe she wanted to show the world that Lillie was more comfortable with her.
Moon finished dressing and adjusted the bag on her shoulder, shaking the confusing feelings about her friend from her head. Maybe today would bring some answers, but if the last days had been any indication, it would instead bring more questions. She was startled by a gentle knock at the door. Wicke walked in, her gentle smile not accusatory or questioning.
"Miss Lillie is waiting outside, if you're ready to meet her." As the admin left, Moon realized that she had been holding her breath, braced for something more serious. Letting out a sigh, Moon headed outside the house.
Standing outside was one of the best sights she had ever seen. Upon exiting, she immediately saw Lillie's long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail, hanging over a small pink backpack. She had gotten rid of the old white dress and large floppy hat for the sake of a white hoodie she wore above a small pleated white shirt. Lillie turned around.
"Oh!" She noticed Moon taking in her outfit. "I picked these clothes up in Malie. Do you think they suit me?"
"Sure do! You look great!" Moon replied, smiling widely. Lillie looked more comfortable, and the horrible similarity that her mother had sought was gone.
"Oh Moon, thank you!" She smiled back, but quickly sobered down. "I feel like there's so much I have to do now... To save Nebby... To save my mother." Lillie gripped the straps of her backpack a little tighter. "I... I want to be like you Moon. I want to be strong enough to face any trial. That's why I'm going to try my hardest. This is my Z-Powered form!" Raising her arms, Lillie began trying to emulate the Z-move dance she had seen many trainers do. When she reached the final pose, Moon couldn't hold back her laughter any longer. Lillie snorted, watching the trainer react to her display. She eventually had to snicker, and then full on laugh as well, the two girls giggling and smiling together.
"So this is where you were." Lillie looked up, suppressing the last of her laughs. Gladion approached them both, holding out a strange purple flute with some kind of symbol on the stem. "I found this downstairs. It's the moon flute. It's apparently an artifact from Alola's past. They say it's to be played under the moon's light." Lillie took the flute, turning it over in her hands. Gladion continued, "The sun flute and the moon flute. When sounded together, it's said that they can call the legendary Pokémon." This time, it was Gladion that laughed, short and sarcastic. "That is, if you believe in old myths anyway. Looks to me like that woman was planning to add the legendary Pokémon to her little collection here." Moon and Lillie both shuddered, remembering the frozen Pokémon beneath them.
"Here." Gladion held out one more object, a purple Pokeball with a small "m" printed on the top. "It's a master ball. It can catch any Pokémon without fail. I'm counting on you to help Lillie. This is the least I can do." As Moon reached over to take the orb, he leaned over and quietly spoke so Lillie couldn't hear. "And if you hurt her I will find you and pay you back tenfold." Moon slowly moved back, wondering if he saw something between Lillie and herself that she couldn't define.
"But what are you going to do Gladion?" Lillie piped up, unaware of the short exchange. Gladion sighed.
"Deal with this mess. I've got to clean up Aether Paradise. I'd wanted to get as far away from this place as I could, together with null. But in the end, it looks like I ended up right back here again."
"Moon!" All three looked over at Hau, who had managed to find his way outside. Moon wondered briefly how he had slept even longer than her. Hau ran over and appraised Lillie's new look. "Hey, and its Lillie isn't it?! What happened to you?" Lillie turned to him and beamed, leading something inside Moon to twinge strangely.
"Yes it's me! Now I'm ready to use my full force too!" Lillie bounced on her heels slightly, obviously wanting to get moving.
"You look..." Hau thought for a split second, then a wide smile crossed his face. "Fantastic!" Gladion spun to look him up and down.
"What was that?" Hau seemed to miss the accusatory tone that the older boy had set.
"I'm going to train even harder! I've gotta do more! I keep getting saved by moon and her Pokémon, don't I?" He placed his hands behind his head and leaned back a bit. "That's not enough. I've gotta be able to save Pokémon on my own!"
Moon wasn't fully listening. As Gladion and Hau prattled on she closely watched Lillie, who was jumping into the conversation every now and then. Moon, however, stayed quiet. The three other young teens had been a valuable group to have at her side, but something about Lillie specifically was making her head swirl. Gladion had an intense forwardness, and he had seen something that Moon wasn't sure was there or not. Hau's boundless energy was a welcome sight after a long journey, but deep inside she felt like he was stepping over her emotions somehow, twisting her feelings indescribably. And then there was Lillie...
"I can get you to the next island at least. Poni Island. I'll wait for you at the docks." Gladion said, as Moon snapped back to the real world. He stalked off, heading towards his personal boat. Hau waved to the other two and ran off after him. Lillie turned to Moon.
"Come on Moon! Let's show the world what we can really do!" Lillie chirped, surprising Moon by grabbing her hand. Moon was helpless as Lillie dragged her across Aether paradise, moving forward towards where hopefully answers would be found.
I don't like breaking story for author notes but I do want to address - Thank you for the comments and kudos. Also, I'm totally aware that Lillie is taller than Moon. I also decided to change that I guess? Sorry... Also apologies for having this chapter not contain much original content. I promise the next chapter will be back to gay shit.