When all four of the teens had gotten off of their respective Ride Pokémon, they made their way to the stage. Moon spotted Miss Flores, a kind older woman who had lost her sight. She hurried over, tapping her her gently on the shoulder.
"Alola, Miss Flores," said Moon, trying her best to sound clear. "It's-"
"Moon!" said the woman. "How wonderful it is to see you again!"
"How have you been?" asked Moon.
"Just fine," said Miss Flores happily. "I couldn't be happier. I do love a good festival, you know."
Moon reached in her bag and pulled out Sylveon's Poke Ball. She called the fairy type out and turned to Miss Flores.
"Miss Flores, my Sylveon can help you around tonight. Would that be alright?"
She clapped her hands together in delight. "Oh, yes! Thank you so much, Moon."
"My pleasure," said Moon. She smiled at her Sylveon as the Pokémon wrapped a ribbon around the old woman's arms and gently guided her to a bench. Moon looked over to where Hau and Lillie were. Hau grinned at her while Lillie's eyes widened when they met hers. Lillie looked away quickly, her cheeks reddening
She went over to them, ignoring Hau's eyebrows as they wiggled up and down. She glanced around for Gladion, wondering where he could have gone, when she saw him face to face with a Team Skull grunt. She turned to Hau in alarm; she saw his shoulders tense and his back straighten. She called out for her Sylveon who had seen the blind woman to her grandson. She recalled her into her Poke Ball and returned to the task at hand.
Moon briskly walked to where her friend and the grunt stood, Hau on her heels, and Lillie trailing behind them. Hau took the lead and stepped in front of Gladion while Moon stationed herself at his side.
"Can we help you?" asked Hau, looking at Gladion in concern. Gladion had squared his shoulders and balled his fists, like he was expecting a fight. Moon narrowed her eyes. She had seen him quite angry, but never like this.
"Stay out of my way," said the grunt. "I'm just here to have a good time."
"Right," Gladion said, his voice cracking with anger. "I told you. You-"
"Hey, they won't mind," said the grunt. Gladion growled, a low noise deep from his throat. He was shaking, Moon realized, and it wasn't with fear. Moon stared at him, perplexed. She despised Team Skull more than anyone, but the rage in Gladion's posture was shocking.
"What?" questioned Moon, her eyes darting from Gladion to the grunt. She edged towards him, but Gladion swung an arm out in front of her.
"Don't." That was all he said. Moon froze. This wasn't like him.
"Please," started Hau. "Just-"
The grunt opened his mouth to cut in but Gladion spoke quickly. "Don't talk to them. Either of them."
Hau stared at Gladion in confusion. "Either of them? What do you-"
The grunt laughed, a course, grating noise. "Can't promise anything," he said, smirking at Moon and Lillie. Moon left Gladion's side to step in front of Lillie. She understood Gladion's anger, now. She soon found her own hands clenched into fists like Gladion's. She glared at the grunt, who met her gaze and flicked a blue curl out of his eyes.
"Like what you see?" he rasped, giving the Champion an unpleasant wink. Moon bit her tongue to refrain from swearing at him.
She heard Hau's sharp intake of breath behind her. She felt him start forward and stand at her side. She felt him touch his hand to hers, just enough to calm her. Unfortunately, the grunt caught sight of the exchange.
"Listen, girl," he drawled. "The name's Evander. For both of you," he added, leering at Lillie over Moon's shoulder. Lillie made a quiet noise of protest, barely a squeak. The grunt either didn't hear or didn't care.
"Come on out," he invited. "I won't hurt you."
"I can't say the same about you," replied Moon in an even tone, her gaze steady. "Get away from her."
"Alright, alright," he said. "Fine. Do I have to get away from you, too?"
"Preferably," said Moon curtly. She turned around to walk away when Evander grabbed her wrist. She stopped in her tracks. Gladion and Hau's voices joined to berate the grunt while Lillie let out a soft whisper. Moon couldn't quite hear it.
"Let go," Moon said, with her back still turned to him.
"Aw, come on!" he said. Moon could hear the smile in his tone. He leaned in- he was far too close, now- and muttered, "I can do it better than either of those kids."
"Let go," she repeated, her voice low and heavy with warning. When Evander did not relinquish hold, she spun around, ignoring the whimper that came from the grunt as his wrist twisted.
Moon faced him, her eyes dark and wild. "Stay away from her. Stay away from everyone here. If you ever touch me again, I'll-"
"Is there a problem?" Moon had never been happier to see her brother. Sun glared at the grunt as he ran to his sister's side. He rested a hand on her shoulder and turned to Evander. Hau was next to her, too. Gladion stood behind the grunt, ready to take action. Lillie was off to the side, watching the confrontation with worried eyes.
"No," said Evander at once. Moon was irritated. He was intimidated by Sun but the region's Champion. He probably doesn't know, realized Moon. Her mouth curled into a frown. It wasn't that he didn't know. She wasn't one to show off her position. It was that he assumed she was weak.
"I'd say there is," she said quietly. "Like I said. Stay away from them."
"And her," added Hau sharply, glancing at Moon. "Definitely her, too."
"I'd leave, if I were you," said Sun. Evander only shrugged. He seemed to have gotten over his brief fear.
"Who are you to tell me that?" he asked rudely. He tossed a Poke Ball and a Larvesta emerged. Moon recognized his stance; he was preparing for a Z-Move. She grabbed Sun by the hand and tugged him away. She saw that Hau and Gladion had also realized the danger. They had cleared the vicinity along with Lillie. Moon glanced at the girl's receding back and sighed in relief.
"What's going on?" asked Sun alarmedly.
"There's no time," she said calmly. Maybe all the emergency situations she'd been in had paid off, after all. Sun opened his mouth, probably to argue. Moon shook her head and ran from him towards the grunt. He was exceptionally slow, (trying to show off for Lillie?) having only just completed his pose.
Moon threw her Araquinid's Poke Ball out, glancing behind her. She had an audience, now.
"Get back," she warned them. The crowd shuffled away, whispering to each other. She turned back to her opponent. A faint smile pulled at her lips. This grunt had no idea what he was in for.
The Larvesta unleashed its fire type move, Inferno Overdrive, and Moon looked over the scene with a smile. She knew the attack would be regularly effective on her Pokémon; the bug and water typing would cancel each other out. However, Araquinid's special and normal defense was the strongest she'd ever seen. He can take it, thought Moon with confidence.
As she predicted, the attack blasted Araquinid with great force. The power of the attack shook the ground and launched waves of heat throughout the festival grounds. Moon's hair was lifted off her shoulders as the warm breeze carried the scent of fire. Moon grinned as she saw that her huge Pokémon didn't even stumble. Moon quickly scanned him over for any injuries; she had faith in his abilities, but she was a fiercely devoted trainer. Her team would not be wounded because she pushed them too hard. He had soot on his six legs, but nothing too rough.
"Our turn," she said, narrowing her eyes. She raised her arm, pointing to the opposing Larvesta.
"Bubble Beam," she called over the hushed conversations around her. A few curious tourists had approached the two trainers. They gathered around in a circle. Moon could hear Hau and Gladion persuading them to clear the field. She felt Lillie's eyes on her as the crowd thinned once more.
A stream of bubbles shot from Araquinid's mandibles, striking Larvesta directly in the face. Larvesta was hidden from view by the rapid spheres of water for a moment. The attack proved to be too much for the smaller Pokémon to bear, and it fainted. Its trainer called it back into its Nest Ball, his mouth agape.
"H-how did y-you-" he sputtered before he was interrupted by Hau's loud cheer. All around Moon, friends and strangers alike clapped for the girl who had emerged victorious from the short battle.
Sun walked over to her, ignoring Evander. He gave her a hesitant hug.
"Moon, you're really something," he said, sounding embarrassed. "I guess I never thought you'd be this good of a trainer."
Moon smiled softly. "I never thought I'd see you again," she said in return. Sun's eyes flicked to the ground in front of him.
"Me neither," he admitted. "You're doing great here. You didn't need dad." Or me. He didn't say it, but Moon knew it was there.
"I didn't need him," agreed Moon. "But I wouldn't have minded you."
Sun laughed. "I wouldn't have minded you, either. Imagine it; we could have gone on our Pokémon journey together. We turned 11 on the same day, after all."
"Hate to break it to you, but Alola's a much better place to start your journey than Kanto," said Moon.
"Kanto really toughens you up," argued Sun. "None of this flowers and rainbows stuff."
"Flowers and rainbows?" repeated Moon, staring at her twin incredulously. "Guys, care to explain a bit about Alola?"
"With pleasure," said Hau. He grinned at Sun. "So," he began. "Alola's got four islands; there's Melemele, Akala, Ula'ula, and Poni. Each island has different Pokémon and different people. And Alolan variants are super cool, too!"
"Alolan variants? What does that mean?" asked Sun. Moon smiled, thinking of the lecture she knew Samson Oak would love to give him.
"Some Pokémon look different here in Alola," she explained. "Their typings might even be different."
"Really?" Sun asked, sounding intrigued.
"I'll show you one right here," said Moon. She pointed to a old woman's Meowth. The gray Pokémon caught sight of the Champion and padded closer.
"That's a Meowth?"
Moon laughed. "Yes, Sun," she said. "And an Alolan Persian is quite the surprise to see for the first time." She remembered her own shock at seeing such a plush and round face on the body of the elegant and refined Pokémon she used to know Persian to be.
Sun looked at her eagerly. "What do they look like?"
"I'll show you mine later," offered Moon. "She loves attention, so I'm sure she'll be behaved."
"Great!" exclaimed Sun. "Thanks, Moon!"
"Moon," Hau said suddenly. "Moon, it's almost time!"
Moon glanced over at him, startled to find that he was right. The time had flown, and Moon was due to make her big speech. She tried her best to change it every year; she always made sure to honor Hau and Gladion, the Kahunas, the captains, and the Tapus. This year would be a little different. She had made sure of that in the morning.
People and Pokémon gathered around the stage as Moon walked up the steps. She spotted Sun standing in the crowd next to their mother. Her mom beamed at her while Sun looked on with a confused expression. Hau and Gladion, like always, approached from the other side so the three met at the center, where a chair had been placed. Two more chairs were usually there, but Moon had requested three. Moon locked eyes with Lillie, standing near the professors. She tilted her head, hoping Lillie would accept the invitation. Fortunately, Burnet nudged Lillie forward, meeting Moon's gaze and smiling. Lillie trailed after Hau and Gladion; they received her well, and soon she looked like she belonged there. She does, thought Moon.