Sub-Chapter One

I blame Calem for this.

Earlier today, he and I met at a café in Lumiose City and, after I was awoken to reality in the most embarrassing way possible, we agreed to help each other: I would take care of the battles that he's supposed to participate in but won't, relieving him of a burden that would've prevented him doing whatever heinous deeds he has planned while he keeps me away from any of the weird crap that's bound to happen to him.

Sounds all well and good on paper, but in practice only one of us has fulfilled their end of the bargain so far. While I've battled four or five trainers on the way – and loved every one of them, but that's besides the point – I've also encountered some freak dressed in a pink suit who did something to me, had my personal space violated by a Lucario, met three slimeballs dressed in leotards and am now chasing the owner of this palace's pet Furfrou around his garden; the garden that happens to be as large as Camphrier Town.

I don't mind helping out every now and then but this should be one of Calem's Chosen One responsibilities, not mine. If he was doing something worthwhile it wouldn't be so bad, but nope, he's off being a petty criminal. He asks me to trust him but then goes and does something that makes him completely untrustworthy. I don't get him at all.

For my first day of having my free will back, this isn't quite what I had in mind.

Well, at least I have my free will, unlike poor Shauna. She's tagged along with me but has been unnervingly silent, which is not like her at all. Then when we were asked – though it's more like coerced – into catching this Furfrou, she tells me to tell her where to stand. That is not Shauna. Shauna would be hopping around like a Buneary trying to catch that Furfrou, not taking instructions from me and obeying right from the start.

I really want to help her, but I don't know what to do. Calem seemed to think a strong emotional shock would break people out from the script, but what could I say that would shock Shauna without hurting or embarrassing her?

"Ouaf! Ouaf!"

I suppose I should focus on the task at hand for now.

The garden is made up of several hedge mazes and flowerbeds, with several members of staff scattered around tending to them, despite night time quickly approaching. I can't imagine how many people it takes to maintain a garden of this size, or how much money it costs. If you ask me, if something is so large you can get lost in it, then it is excessively large.

Luckily for us, we managed to isolate Furfrou to just one of the hedge mazes, so between Shauna, our Pokemon and myself, cornering it shouldn't be too hard... or at least, that's what I thought, before it turned out that the Furfrou is quicker and more agile than I am.

Should have saw that coming, really.

"Stay... stay..." I chant as I approach the Furfrou as carefully as I can. It's watching me as I draw closer to it, and I don't want to frighten in. I just need to get a bit closer and then..."Damn it!"

Just as I got arms length away from it, it ran off to another corner of the maze. Our plan was to corner it in an indent in the maze and then flank it so it couldn't escape, but all we've managed to do is be lead round in circles on some sort of merry chase.

Sighing, I point to a spot on the ground opposite the Furfrou. "Shauna, go stand over there."

Shauna does just that without saying a word. An obedient and quiet Shauna is downright creepy.

The Furfrou waits for us. It's weird. If it was truly scared, it would surely escape this part of the garden and go hide elsewhere, but the way its letting us chase it, and the way its tail is swishing back and fourth... it's almost like its playing with us. Makes you wonder if it gets much exercise with that rich guy for an owner. I bet he only keeps it around as a trophy to show off to the public.

Thinking about it like that makes me want to play with it for a bit longer, but I can't. I'm sure Calem will be done soon and we'll be needing to get away from very quickly before the police show up to arrest him. As tempting as it is to leave him be, he's the only other person who's conscious, for lack of a better word, right now and between him and this horribly scripted world, he may be the lesser of two evils.

It's a delicate balance, though.

Anyway, if this Furfrou is up for a play, then I can ditch this delicate approach and really go at it. I'm an athletic girl; I could run longer and faster than anybody at school, so I should be able to cross this distance and grab it before it can react.

Without warning, I sprint towards the Normal-type. The sudden action surprises it, and it tries to move away. If I just reach out my hands I can touch it-

My foot catches something and, with an undignified squeak escaping my mouth, I end up falling into the Furfrou. My momentum is enough to send us both to the ground.

"Looks like I've caught you." The Furfrou barks underneath me, then suddenly shifts its weight. "Whoa!"

I can feel its rough, wet tongue stroke across my face repeatedly, and I can't help but laugh at the tickling sensation.

"Oh, my dear Furfrou! My beloved Furfrou!" a new, irritatingly high pitched voice pierces the evening. I feel Furfrou tense. "Could you two be responsible for my wonderfrou reunion with my dear Furfrou?"

I remove myself from under Furfrou and rise to my feet, hoping to meet the newcomer with a bit more dignity. A somewhat heavy-set man, dressed in a fancy suit with squinty eyes stood in the entrance of the hedge maze, his expression completely blank as if he hadn't just gushed all over his "beloved Furfrou". I cast a look towards Shauna, and as expected, she has no reaction and merely stands there, staring blankly into space.

"That's right," I answer him.

"How wonderfrou indeed! It's marvelous, simply marvelous!" Furfrou's owner exclaims, no emotion in his tone. He sounds as if he's reading from a script and it's incredibly creepy. That girl we met earlier, Korrina, was the same way.

How this script kills all emotion is just horrible. I've only met three people under its influence and already I'm sick of it. I can't imagine how Calem coped, having to put up with this for two whole days.

"A situation like this demands fireworks! We shall put on a show- boom boom!" the man continues in the same monotonous tone. "My Pokemon and I are reunited! Our bond has been proven! We'll commemorate this joyous occasion with a tremendous fireworks display!"

Furfrou's visible revulsion suggests that this is anything but a joyous occasion.

"That's... great."

"And it will also serve as a reward for the tiny bit of trouble you went to," he says. "Rendezvous at the balcony. Do you understand? Ren-dez-vous."

"Maybe Furfrou would've been better of if we hadn't found it..."

The lack of expression killed any of the sympathy Shauna intended.


By time Shauna and I reached the balcony, night had fully descended on Parfum Palace. You really get an appreciation for how big this place is when you walk from one end of the garden to the other, cross the bridge and the menacing Golurk statue overlooking the water, re-enter the building, make your way through the marble halls, up the stairs and out to the balcony.

The signs of Calem and those guys in leotards' handiwork were easy to spot. Several valuable pieces were missing from their podiums, a fact that either went completely unnoticed or was deemed unworthy of comment by the other visitors to the palace.

Excessively large and lacking in security, Parfum Palace doesn't seem to be the best place to live.

"Um... you know... I've never watched fireworks alone with a boy before."

I give Shauna a deadpan look before heaving a deep sigh. This confirms that I've been Calem's placeholder throughout this entire visit to the palace; that I've taken his part in the play and am acting out his role. The scripted events will continue to happen so long as somebody acts the part.

It's not fair. Calem and I can switch places, so why does Shauna have to be forced to play her role? Why couldn't it have been someone else? She would love to be here, with whatever guy she's latched onto at the time, watching a grand firework display, but she probably won't be able to enjoy it as much as she is. If she were her true self, she'd be talking the guy's ear off, then, after everything, would be talking my ear off about how she's winning our little contest.

Our little contest...

"Shauna," I call out. Predictably, she doesn't register anything. "I have something to tell you."

I watch her carefully as I continue speaking. "I've watched fireworks with a boy before."

There! In flashed by in an instant, but there was twitch; a brief flicker of acknowledgement.

Incidentally, that is, technically, not a lie. I did watch fireworks with a boy... they're just not your traditional fireworks.

"I met him a couple of days ago, and we got on really well."

Another twitch, this time more visible. Now for the killing blow...

"You've met him as well. His name is Calem."

"What!" Shauna explodes. She suddenly grabs hold of my arms. "When did this happen? Where did this happen? Details, details!"

"Calm down, Shauna!" I exclaim, grabbing her shoulders. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine first."

"Okay, shoot."

"Do I look like a boy to you?"

Shauna frowns in confusion. "What? No, of course you don't. Did someone say you did?"

"You did."

"I did?" I nod. "When?"

"A few moments ago."

Realisation slowly dawns on her. "I did call you that. Why did I call you that?" I watch her as she looks around, looking more and more troubled. "Serena, what happened?"

I give her a reassuring smile and then sit down with my back against the stone railing. I pat the spot beside me. "It's a long story, so you might want to get comfortable..."

I tell her what happened earlier today in Lumiose City; how Calem broke me out of the script (omitting the part about the skirt flipping, of course), his explanation about the Magnificent One and the state of the world and how we were now working together. Shauna is disbelieving until I tell her what it was like to be scripted; how I was this trance-like state where I did things without even realising I was doing them. Turns out that Shauna felt exactly the same way.

"So Calem is like some hero then?" she asks.

"That's stretching it a bit. I'd say he's useful," I say, picking my words carefully. I didn't tell her about him committing arson and blackmailing a gym leader, nor did I mention that he was in the building stealing things as we speak.

"Hmm... oh, by the way, you didn't answer my question: did you really watch fireworks with him?"

"Of course not."

"That's a relief. I think the world would've ended if you had finally started looking for a boyfriend."

I'm not dignifying that with a response.

I check my Holo Caster for the time and frown. "That rich guy is taking his time."

He didn't give us a specific time to "rendezvous", but sending us up to the balcony straight away suggests "soon". It's been longer than soon.

"Let's go look for him!" Shauna declares and starts making her way inside the mansion.

"Where would we even start?"

This place is massive, after all. It'd take a very long time to search all over.

Shauna doesn't even need to think about it. "From here, of course."

That said, she enters the mansion. Briskly, I catch up to her. Two vast corridors stretch out either side us, vacant but for two men talking to each other in quick, hushed voices. One, dressed in a dress suit, I recognise as the owner of Parfum Palace, while the other, going by his tuxedo, slicked hair and white gloves, is a butler.

As the conversation goes on, the owner's face becomes panic stricken, and he suddenly makes a dart for the closest staircase. The butler, looking troubled, follows after him.

"Looks like something's happened," I say.

"Let's go see!" Shauna says eagerly and heads towards the staircase. I roll my eyes at her enthusiasm before going after her. While it's great to have the usual Shauna back, I do wish she would calm down.


Turns out that something did happen; something significant enough to draw the visitors to the palace out into the courtyard, along with members of the staff and, worryingly, the police.

"I can't see," Shauna complained, stretching in a vain attempt at seeing over the people in front of us.

With such a sizeable crowd, it was difficult to see what was happening exactly, and all the chatter made it impossible to hear anything. We'd have to push our through the crowd to find out what was going on.

Just as I was going to suggest this to Shauna, I find that she's no longer beside me, and has instead been replaced by a blonde haired woman in white clothes.

"Need some help?" she asks to Shauna, who's now sitting on the woman's shoulders as if she were half her age.

Shauna doesn't appear at all bothered that a complete stranger has lifted her up. "I have no idea who you are, but thanks. I can see now."

"You're Korrina, right?" I ask, wondering how likely it was to have two chance encounters with someone in one night.

The woman smiles brightly. "That's right. And you are…"

"Serena," I reply. The memory of being glomped by Korrina's Lucario flashes through my mind, and I look to see if it's around. To my relief, he doesn't appear to be.

"I'm Shauna!"

Korrina beams up at her. "Nice to meet you, Shauna." She returns her attention to me. "Wasn't there a boy with you?"

"He's… busy, right now."

"Hey, it's the owner!" Shauna exclaims before Korrina can press for more details.

"What's he doing?" I ask.

"He's talking to a police officer," she says, leaning forward as much as she can on Korrina's shoulders. "I think he's saying he was robbed by three thieves."

Three thieves? Could he be referring to those guys in leotards?

"Now he's saying that they attacked a policeman and a young boy with blond hair."

A young boy with blond hair…

"He's saying the boy was kidnapped!"

Kidnapped. The word carries terrifying implications; the idea of being taken away by one or more people so they can demand a ransom or do something much more sinister… the fear felt by the victim and his friends and family… it's one of the worse crimes somebody can commit.

And I could've stopped it.

I met the three thieves. I tried to stop them from stealing, but they managed to get away. If I had been a bit more forceful, maybe even used my Pokemon, I could've stopped them, and they wouldn't have been able to hurt or kidnap anybody.

I met Calem then, too. I had the chance to stop him from meeting with them, but I let him go. What he was doing was illegal and stupid, so why did I let him? Why wasn't I more forceful with him as well?

"Are you okay, Serena? You're looking pale."

Korrina and Shauna are looking at me with concern. "Yeah, I'm… fine. Just fine."

Shauna frowns in displeasure. "You are not fine. Something's bothering you."

"Nothing's bothering me."

"Then why are you playing with your hair?"

It was then that I realised that I was, in fact, playing my hair. I guess you could say it's a habit of mine whenever I'm worried or upset about something. Shauna's known me for years, so of course she would notice. I really can't hide anything from her.

Taking a deep breath, I steady myself for the words that will solidify reality and drive home the mistake I've made.

"The boy that's been kidnapped… is Calem."


Leaning back on the sofa, I down at least half of my coffee in one go, as if taking in more at once will energise my body. It's been a long day, and it's just gotten even longer.

Shauna and Korrina are sitting either side of me, silently waiting for me to talk to them. For the sake of convenience and comfort, we had made the short trip to the Pokemon Centre in Camphrier Town. With it being late, the lobby was empty but for ourselves and a tired looking nurse with her nose in a book.

"Calem was working with those thieves," I say.

Shauna gasps. "No way."

"I don't know what, but he was planning something; something about a 'noble cause'." I can't help but snort. "As if stealing is noble."

"Why would he steal from Parfum Palace?" Korrina asks.

I shrug my shoulders. "Beats me. Whatever he was doing, though, I don't think he intended to be kidnapped by the people he was supposed to be working with. Something went wrong somewhere."

"Are you upset that Calem has been kidnapped?"

I have to think about that one. "A little, I guess. I only met him today, so I barely I know the guy. We did plan on travelling together, though, and I don't wish for anyone to be kidnapped."

Shauna shoots me a suspicious look.

"Serena, you're not feeling responsible for his kidnapping, are you?" she asks.

She really does know me too well.

"Of course I am. I had the chance to stop him, but didn't. I had the chance to catch those thieves, too. This whole thing could've been prevented."

"You're such a vigilante."

"I'm not a vigilante. I just don't like standing by when there's a crime happening in front of me that I can stop."

"Like all those times you chased down shoplifters after school."

"Those who can, should."

"Nice attitude."

The new voice startles me so much that I drop my coffee onto my lap. I wince as the hot liquid spreads across my thighs and stains my jeans. My new jeans that weren't cheap.

"Ah, it's you!" Korrina says, pointing at the newcomer. Standing on top of the table is a small, bipedal Pokemon with blue fur and black markings. A piece of cloth is tied around its neck, looking like a make-shift cape.

"Yes, it's me: Riolu the Hero!" it proclaims loudly. I cast a glance over at the nurse. She's too absorbed in her book to notice the commotion over here.

"Did that Riolu just talk?" Shauna asks, staring in amazement at the small Fighting-type. Having already met Fennekin, a talking Pokemon doesn't shock me much, though it's still amazing.

"Not only can he talk, but he can fight, too. He gave my Lucario a tough fight," Korrina says, oddly proud. That explains how she's completely unfazed by the talking Pokemon in front of her.

"I need to be able to fight to defeat evil-doers," Riolu says gravely, as if he was carrying a great burden. "Although, I wasn't able to defeat them. That's why I'm here."

"'Them?'"

"The Equipe de Magikarp. They're three thieves I've been fighting for the past month. I tracked them down to Parfum Palace, but couldn't stop them from escaping."

He must be referring to those guys in leotards. Just when I thought they couldn't get any weirder, I find out they're named after Magikarp, of all Pokemon. This fact, though, may not be as strange as the fact that a talking Riolu has been playing superhero and hunting them down. It's all so... bizarre.

That aside, them escaping is not good news.

"I bet they're long gone by now," I say, unable to keep the disappointment out of my tone.

Riolu shakes his head. "Not necessarily. They went down Route 7, which means they must be heading towards Ambrette Town. I would go after them, but unfortunately there's something else I need to do. Something important."

"So you want us to go, instead," Korrina says.

"That's right. Since I fought against you and your Lucario, I know you're capable."

"I want to go, too," I announce. It's selfish of me, but this is not an opportunity I can miss. "I made the mistake of letting them go and I need to put it right."

Riolu look at me with a calculating gaze. I hold his stare. Then, seemingly satisfied, he nods. "I like your determination. I'm counting on you."

"Wait wait wait," Shauna says. She looks worried. "Serena, are you sure about this? These guys are criminals. We don't know what they can do."

"Even still, I want to help."

"Because you can, right?"

I nod. "Exactly."

She doesn't look happy about it, but Shauna sighs in resignation. "Then I'm going, too. You'll end up going off and trying to save the world if I don't."

I may have said this before, it's great to have my friend back.

"Thanks, Shauna."

"Then it's settled. I'll leave everything to you," Riolu says before dashing out of the Pokemon centre.

With everything decided, the three of us hurry to get our belongings together. Things really are happening quickly. Who'd have thought that after just a couple days of travelling I'd be chasing down a bunch of crooks?

Yet, despite the dangers I may face, and despite this decision being selfish and reckless, I can't help but feel excited at the possibility of taking down some thieves.

And most importantly, this is my decision, made with my own free will.