Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, alerted, and faved to this story! I own nothing except for Twig, Chariot, and Ms. Lynn! Enjoy!


The group trekked along, as a cool autumn breeze shook the trees around them. Lucas was silent as he observed his surroundings, and as he thought about what he would do when his purpose for Twig was fulfilled. He was just there to help her reach her destination without getting lost, and it was nothing more. But for some reason, something compelled him to travel with Twig. She had such a terrifying attitude, in his opinion anyway, but he wanted to learn from her. And vice versa, because he believed if he could teach the girl some observation skills, maybe she would benefit in the long run.

Shinx's ears pricked upward, and Twig noticed this. He stopped dead in his tracks, so Twig walked back to where he was standing. Shinx listened a moment, before running ahead of them. Twig took off after him, while the rest of them bolted as well. Shinx led them straight into Jubilife city, while Twig tried to follow him. However, Lucas saw what Shinx was looking at, so he yanked Twig behind a building for cover. The group waited with baited breath as they looked on in shock.

A purple haired boy was standing there arguing with an older man with brown hair. Twig stared at the older man before she realized who it was. "Oh!" she face palmed. Roark clamped his hand over the young teenager's mouth, but she pushed his hand away. "That's Pyramid King Brandon! He runs the Battle Pyramid back in Kanto. I never challenged the Battle Frontier there, but I know all about the Frontier Brains!" Lucas and Roark exchanged glances before turning their attention back to the two people.

"How can you just abandon my brother and me?" the purple haired boy demanded angrily. The brown haired man shook his head and folded his arms across his chest. "You left us by ourselves! You can't be serious, and plus mom wasn't smart enough to take care of us! She kept going between us and her daughter, wherever that chick is." Twig raised her eyebrows in wonder. No, it couldn't be… Morty had always told her that she had two brothers somewhere, but she had never believed him. Now… No, this boy was not her brother. If he was, where was the other boy?

"Twiglet!" Lucas called in a whisper. Her head whipped around and she glared at him. "What, I had to think of something to get your attention! Anyways, we gotta snag Shinx before that kid and…Brandon sees us!" Twig sighed and nodded, darting out from behind her cover. Shinx was getting rather close. She ran forward and picked up the pokemon, only to be smacked in the back by an Electabuzz. The purple haired boy and Brandon saw this, and the stared at her as Elekid sneered.

"Who are you?" the purple haired boy demanded. Twig got to her feet and held Shinx close, but he climbed onto her shoulder. She was taller than this boy, so how could he be her brother? He tapped his foot in annoyance. Brandon shifted his eyes from her to him, and then back to Twig. He folded his arms across his chest.

"None of your business," she shot back. "Who are you?"

"I think that's irrelevant!" he returned. Suddenly Roark ran out to stand at Twig's side. Lucas did the same thing, arms flailing in the wind. He skidded to a halt at Twig's side. "Roark?" the purple haired boy asked in disbelief. Roark nodded and smiled in only a way that Roark can. Lucas tipped his flat cap towards the boy, who didn't return the gesture. "What are you doing with…her?"

"This is Twiglet!" Lucas declared. Twig punched him in the side. "Oh my kidneys!" Lucas cried out, his eyes watering. He fell to the ground and lay there in pain. Roark sweatdropped as Brandon face palmed and shook his head. Twig sighed as Cranidos crouched down next to Roark's Cranidos. While Lucas continued to cry on the ground, Roark replied to Paul's questions.

"I'm going with them to check out a scene in the cave just up ahead, you know, the one that leads to Floaroma town. This is Twig, and this is Lucas. Sorry to interrupt your conversation," Roark apologized, shifting from foot to foot. "Twig, this is Paul," Roark added. Twig nodded and she and Paul locked gazes. Shinx growled down at Elekid. "Let's go, we've gotta return this Kirlia, remember?" Twig nodded and turned her back on Paul and Brandon.

"Oh, you mean you're looking for that little green haired kid?" Paul called after them. Twig stopped dead in her tracks.

"Did you say green hair?" she asked.

"Yeah. He said his name was Wally. He's stuck in there."

"Why didn't you help him?" Twig demanded angrily. Paul shrugged indifferently. The brunette turned around and sprinted off, as her pokemon followed her. Roark called after her, giving Paul a fleeting glance, before taking off after his friend. Lucas was still on the ground, and it didn't help when Elekid shocked him. Twig, meanwhile, ran into the cave, her eyes shifting from side to side. Roark ran in after her, and together they looked around. "The body of water! That's where we found Kirlia!"

The two ran down the slope, barely avoiding tumbling into the water. Roark held Twig back as they both looked around. The cordovan haired boy pointed to an opening on the other side. There was no way around the body of water, so they had to swim across. Roark was deathly afraid of water, and Twig wasn't fond of deep water, no matter how much she loved her water types. The brunette sighed and jumped into the lake, surfacing as she started to swim to the other side. When she managed to get across, she was dripping wet and cold.

"Don't be a sissy, Roark!" she called over her shoulder, shaking like crazy. He shook his head and looked for another way across. Twig sighed in frustration, "Ugh!" She ran into the opening, as it slowly got darker. Her pokemon, all besides Prinplup and Starly, were stuck on the other side with Roark. The two of them bolted for the end, no matter how dark it was. The Zubat still scared the crap out of Twig, but she didn't care. She kept running until she collapsed at the end of the tunnel.

Prinplup and Starly looked around in shock, as they were in a cave filled with glowing green crystals. Twig sighed and tried to catch her breath. She looked around, finally getting to her feet. Her footsteps echoed around the cave as she looked around. She hated caves, and this one was giving her the serious creeps. But way in the back, she saw that some of the crystals had fallen over into an awkward position. She sighed and ran over to them, her feet splashing in puddles of water. She couldn't move the crystals at all, but she could tell that someone was trapped behind them, because a shoe was lying in the middle of the cave room.

"C'mon Prinplup, help me!" Twig grunted, straining to push the crystals away from each other. Both of her pokemon helped her push, but nothing was working. She sighed and sat back, wiping the sweat off of her brow. "Prinplup, use metal claw! Starly, keeping wing attacking it!" Twig called out to them. She looked at the shoe and realized that she had to keep trying. The crystal now had a huge crack running through the side. "Again!" she yelled ferociously. This time, the crystal shattered into pieces.

On the other side, curled up in a ball, was Wally. She ran to his side and picked him up, for he was rather light. She turned around and ran back out, as Starly picked up the boy's lost shoe. She ran all the way back through the tunnel and she finally came to the body of water again. Roark was waiting on the other side, and Lucas was with him. Shinx and Cranidos jumped up happily as Prinplup hopped in the water. She placed Wally on his back, because that was about as much weight as Prinplup could possibly carry.

Starly flew back across and Twig swam back across with Prinplup, keeping her hand on Wally's side. The boy was like her little brother, because he was only twelve. That's what was so awkward about the kiss, because she only thought of him as a brother, and she had thought that he had thought of her as a sister. But apparently she had thought wrong, so she was determined to change the boy's mind, and make sure he knew that they were only friends. Lucas hoisted Wally into his arms, and Twig collapsed against Roark in exhaustion.

Her head was pounding, and she felt her eyelids drooping closed. She slipped into darkness, so Roark picked her up and carried her back out of the cave. The closest place was Jubilife, so they ran through the fields and headed straight for the pokemon center. Nurse Joy was shocked to see those two young people knocked out like that, so she immediately admitted them. Lucas and Roark rented a room and they realized exactly what time it was. It was already eleven o'clock at night.

The two boys gave each other glances, before crawling into their beds and passing out from exhaustion. Twig's pokemon curled up with Roark, while Wally's Kirlia curled up with Lucas. Wally was unconscious, barely alive, and it wall because of Gengar and Haunter – Morty's Gengar and Haunter, to be exact. Twig was exhausted, but she was only just sleeping now, hoping to sleep away all of her fears and worries. She couldn't shake the image of a broken Wally from her mind, or of her father, Morty.


Roark stretched and rolled over, but he was jabbed in the shoulder by Cranidos' spikey head. He opened his cordovan colored eyes, and through his rather blurry vision, he could see that it was Twig's Cranidos. He sighed and sat up, noting the dark hue of the room. There was a thunderstorm going on outside, and he knew he'd never be able to get back to sleep. The eighteen year old got up and stretched, his joints popping. It felt good to loosen his muscles up that way, and he pulled on his black tank top and threw on his short sleeved jacket.

Soon it would be time to trade that in for a long sleeve jacket, but now, he was comfortable in short sleeves. Roark spied Lucas, who was asleep in the other bed, curled up with Kirlia. He smirked and chuckled under his breath, picking up his glasses. He put them on his face gently and pushed them up so that they weren't slipping down his nose. The rock type gym leader's thoughts snapped to Twig and the little boy. He hoped that they were both OK, as he had grown rather fond of the brunette.

Lucas shifted awake and sat up, rubbing his eyes. His spiky black hair was a mess, so Roark laughed at him. "Shush up, Roarkie boy," Lucas grumbled groggily. The boy swung his legs over the side of his bed and stretched, just as Roark had. His side still hurt from where Twig had punched him, but he didn't really mind that so much. "Let's go…" – yawn – "…check on Twig and her little friend, shall we?" Roark nodded and after waking up all of the sleeping pokemon, they headed downstairs.

Nurse Joy let them see Twig first, as she was in better condition than Wally was. The brunette was hugging her pillow, but her dark blue eyes opened slightly when Roark and Lucas and the pokemon walked in. She sighed and sat up, stretching. Her muscles ached, so she winced in pain. "Feeling better, Twiglet?" Lucas asked jokingly. When he received a death-glare from Twig, he shied away. "Sorry… I just had to say that." Twig sighed in frustration and flopped back down on the bed.

"Don't act happy to see us!" Roark muttered under his breath, going and sitting in a small chair. Lucas sat in one of the other small chairs, and Kirlia climbed up into his lap. Twig's pokemon climbed up onto the bed and sighed as they settled in with their master. Twig said nothing to either of them, as she just wanted to be alone with her pokemon. Traveling with other people had never suited her, because they were either too needy, or she just wanted to do things at her own pace and her own way. "How do you feel?"

"Like crap, are you happy?" she snapped back. Roark sighed in defeat and said nothing more, as Lucas patted Kirlia on the head. The cordovan haired boy stood up abruptly and walked out, slamming the door shut behind him, causing Lucas to jump in surprise. Roark walked out of the pokemon center and stood outside. He pulled out his pokegear and dialed a number he had only just recently acquired. It rang for a few moments before the man he was calling finally answered.

"Roark?" Morty asked in surprise as he answered the call. The cordovan haired boy nodded, and then reminded himself that Morty couldn't see him, so he said yes. "What are you calling for?" There was a hint of surprise mixed with distress in Morty's rather calm voice, so Roark figured he needed to tell Morty what had actually happened. After explaining what had gone on a day earlier, there was a long pause on Morty's end. "Should I come out to Jubilife?"

"I think so."

"Then I'll be there as fast as possible," Morty responded. Roark thanked him and then the two of them hung up. The cordovan haired boy walked back into the pokemon center and led Lucas back out of Twig's room. The brunette looked up at Roark, her eyes suspicious. He gave her a fleeting glance and then shut the door behind him, leaving her alone with her pokemon. She shifted so that she was on her right side, and she kept the pillow in front of her. Her pokemon were asleep, still exhausted from the previous day's ordeals.


When Morty arrived in Jubilife, it wasn't hard for him to find the pokemon center. The blonde gym leader walked through the doors and found Roark sitting with Lucas and Kirlia. The blonde walked over to their booth. Roark directed him to his daughter's room. Morty was an adult, and he was going to handle this like an adult. He opened the door and stepped in, shutting it quietly behind him. Twig's dark blue eyes opened slightly and she pulled the covers over her head and tried to ignore her father's presence in the room.

"Are you alright?" Morty asked, for that was the first question that came to mind. Twig opened her eyes and stared at her father. He waited by the door, arms folded across his chest. Twig finally nodded, shifting her deep gaze away from his eyes. "Twig please…I just…" He found himself struggling to find the right words. Twig waited, staring at the wall, deep in thought. "I just need to understand where everything went wrong." Twig shook her head and sighed, so Morty waited for her to give her answer.

"Mom died," Twig replied flatly. "And you weren't there." Morty began to realize what Twig meant.

"I was there, you just never bothered to come looking for me," he replied cooly.

"No you weren't. You were too busy at the gym to even come home when I needed you. I got stuck with Uncle Eusine," Twig shot back. Morty sighed. He had been at the gym, trying to overcome the pain of losing Twig's mother, and he knew he had neglected to check on his daughter. But he had been hoping that she would've gone to him, instead of staying locked up in the house. "So, just go back to Johto, and don't wait up for me." Morty sighed and stared at the floor for a moment, before pulling out a pokeball.

"Fine. I'll leave you alone now. But I want you to keep this pokemon with you," Morty replied, walking to the bed and placing the pokeball in her hand. He curled her fingers around it. She couldn't help but look up at him curiously. "He's your Umbreon, not mine. You're pokemon aren't strong enough yet to protect you, so you should carry around a pokemon that already knows you well enough and trusts you well enough. And promise me that you won't forget where you come from." Twig stared at the pokeball that was resting in her hand. Finally, she nodded. Twig couldn't let herself forget where her roots were.

The blonde gym leader turned and walked away, opening up the door and walking out. Twig sat up and held the pokeball in her hands. So Morty had brought her Umbreon all this way with him? She sighed and called out Umbreon. The little dark type pokemon crawled into her lap and sat there obediently. Her other pokemon just gave him glances, returning to a peaceful slumber. "You guys can't sleep!" she declared, frustration clear in her voice. They all sighed and got up, stretching. "We have to get on our way. I'll check on Wally and then I'll head off to Floaroma town. I don't need Lucas or Roark, because I've got a map! Are you guys ready?" Her pokemon nodded and she got up, stretching.

Twig packed up her bag and made sure she had everything, as she slipped on her shoes, smoothing the wrinkles out of her maroon sweater and smoothing the wrinkles out of her tan cargo pants. They walked out of the room, and she pushed the door open to Wally's room. He had on his respirator suit, which made Twig feel guilty, deep down on the inside. She shook away the feeling, reminding herself that getting attached to the young boy was a bad idea if she was about to leave. He opened his eyes and smiled up at her.

"Hi," she said weakly. Twig was only here to check on him, but she sighed and walked over to the bed, sitting down next to him. "I'm sorry you had to come rescue me again." Wally's green eyes filled with tears. Twig shook her head and rested her hand on his shoulder. "And I'm sorry I kissed you before you left. I felt weird after I did that. You're too much like my big sister." Twig sighed in relief. At least she wouldn't have to explain it to him. "So can I travel with you now?"

"No."

"But Roark and Lucas get to travel with you! They told me so themselves," Wally pouted, giving her a puppy dog face.

"They're not coming with me. I'm leaving right now, and I'm going to the next gym on my own. I need you to go back to Hoenn and stay with Brendan and May. You'll be a lot safer there, and plus the air out here in Oreburgh is bad for you. There's a lot of coal mining going on, and Jubilife is only a little bit better," Twig said, in a rather soothing voice. Wally sighed in defeat and nodded. "Just ask Roark and Lucas to keep an eye on you while you wait for the boat. Who brought you here?" Wally sighed and shook his head.

"I can't tell. He said you'd get angry," Wally replied, his lower lip quivering. Twig raised her eyebrows in skepticism. "Please don't make me tell. He'll get mad and he'll take back the Rhyhorn he gave me!" Twig's lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to ask Wally another question, but she closed her mouth and nodded. Wally could use a strong rock type pokemon like that, but whoever had brought him to this region was going to get a butt whooping later on. "I'll be good while you're gone, but you never called." Twig nodded and sighed. She stood up and walked to the door. "Bye Twig!"

"Bye Wally," she whispered, opening the door. She slammed it shut behind her and walked out of the pokemon center. Umbreon climbed onto her shoulder and sat there, observing the world around him. "You ready to go, team?" she asked her pokemon. They all nodded and yipped their agreement. "Let's get a move on, then." The brunette and her pokemon made the trek out of Jubilife city. They trekked across the field, keeping quiet the whole time. Twig was almost grateful that her father had brought along her Umbreon, but she hoped her pokemon back home were alright. The sky was gray-white, so an autumn rain was soon to arrive.

As she walked through the cave that led to Floaroma town, her thoughts shifted back to Paul. She wasn't sure what to think of him, but she found him rather annoying. But he had the same demeanor as she did. It appeared that Brandon was his father, but how could that be? Brandon would know if he had children. And who was Paul's brother? She exited the cave as she thought, not paying attention to where she was walking. She slammed into someone, getting knocked onto her butt in the process.

"Huh?" the person asked, turning around. She looked up, only to find that it was Brandon who had uttered the phrase. He extended his hand to the young trainer. She stared at it for a moment, before ignoring it and getting up on her own. Brandon's hand returned to his side as Paul came to stand next to him. "So it's you again." Paul looked away in disgust, closing his eyes. Twig was about ready to deck him, but she wouldn't, this time, anyways. "Where are your little friends?" Brandon queried. "Don't you travel with anyone?"

"I travel alone," Twig replied, a hint of annoyance in her voice. Umbreon sensed his trainer's emotions and glared at Paul and Brandon. The Pyramid King nodded, turning his gaze to her five pokemon. "Except for my pokemon, that is," she added. "If you'll excuse me, I must be going now." She pushed past Brandon, and continued walking.

"Why didn't you challenge me while you were in Kanto?" Brandon asked, smirking. The words caused Twig to falter, and she tripped and fell. She got to her feet and turned around, staring at Brandon. She was about to ask how he knew when she was in Kanto, but he answered her question before she even spoke it. "Don't think for a second that I don't know who you are. It's not because you're famous, because girl, you're not. But I know things that you don't, and when you come to find out what they are, I'll be the one to tell you. Now, answer my question."

"I was only twelve. And I just wanted to leave Kanto before I went back on my decision to go to Hoenn," she replied. Brandon nodded, as Paul looked up at him in shock. "Who do you think you are?" Twig spat, before she could stop herself. Brandon just laughed her question off. Paul glanced at her and then returned his gaze to Brandon. "I don't want riddles, especially not from you! How do you know who I am? Wait, you don't know who I am! You have no idea who I am, and you don't know anything about me!" Twig was getting angrier by the second, and her Umbreon tensed on her shoulder.

"Believe me, I know more than you think. Run along now, little one," Brandon ordered, walking past her. Paul followed him but stopped when he reached Twig's side. Brandon kept walking.

"What do you want?" Twig snapped at Paul. His face was hard, the shocked expression gone.

"You and I seem to have a common enemy," Paul replied. "I hate traveling with people as well, and I know you feel the same way. But consider this: If we train together, maybe one of us can beat Brandon and put him in his place. I don't need your help, but you need mine. And my brother thinks highly of Brandon, so there's no use traveling with him." Twig chewed her bottom lip. "You'd better hurry up and decide, girl."

"Alright, I'll travel with you. But you follow me, and abide by my rules. When I say get up, you get up. And when I tell you to keep moving, you keep moving," Twig replied. "AND you have to call me by my real name, Twig!" Paul sighed and clenched his fists into balls, but he finally nodded. He was biting his lip so that he wouldn't say something he'd regret later on. "Now, let's get a move on to Eterna city."


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