We stared at her in confusion. Her family…? I should've been happier that she found us, that we were all together. But the shock of the guards turning on each other and then Bailey's sudden murders prevented my brain from acknowledging happiness. I was completely stunned.

"You found them?" Christine asked unsurely. "You really… found them?"

She nodded, giving nothing away behind those mysterious eyes. "I want you all to see," she insisted.

"We can't," I said. I pointed at the four dead guards blocking the doorway. "We have to leave. They'll think we killed them!"

"I did," said Bailey matter-of-factly.

I ignored her. "If we stay in the city, we'll be hunted. We'll be killed."

"We can't stay here," added Olivia. "I want to see Stacy's family."

"We need to leave the city," I insisted. "Until this war is over."

"If we wait too long, we may never see them again," said Stacy.

I wasn't convinced. "If you found them once, you'll be able to find them again."

"Do you not care about my family?" She asked. "Would you be so dismissive if it was Christine's family we were searching for?"

I blinked. The sudden venom in her voice stung me. "Stacy, it isn't like that."

"Where did that come from?" Christine asked, hurt as well.

"We've been through a lot lately," I explained.

"I'm sorry if I don't sympathize," she replied dismissively.

I ignored that remark and continued. "People think that I had a part in that tower falling! They think I killed the leader of the Kanto Kings!"

"Did you?"

"No! Of course not!"

"Then you have nothing to fear."

I almost scoffed. It wasn't like Stacy to be so naïve. "Of course I do. This isn't a matter of truth. They don't care if I'm innocent. Everyone wants my head just because I'm a suspect! Now the four guards who were watching me are dead. We can't stay here!"

"Then-"

"We can't stay in the city," I corrected myself quickly. "Marcus has way too many men who can search for me. If I stay here, I will be hunted down. I guarantee I will not live."

"Arthur, I had a single goal when I joined your team. That was to reach Celadon City and find my family."

"I know, I know, and I'm glad you found them! Really, I am, Stacy, but we're running out of time, and we need to leave." I walked up to her. "Please understand."

"I understand," she said simply. I knew that she did, but that didn't make me feel any better about denying her. "You leave me with little choice. I will not leave this city."

"What? Stacy… you know how long we were searching for you?" I asked. "I traveled across this entire battlefield for you!"

"I will not leave this city," she repeated. "I'll help you all to the ground so that you don't have to face these people."

I almost dared to smile. Almost dared to dream that it would be that simple.

"But I'll leave you with only two options. You can follow me to where my family is, or you can leave this city and you will never see me again."

My heart dropped. "Stacy…" I whispered. "Why…"

"My family is the sole reason I traveled with you," Stacy replied.

"We're your family too…"

"Which is why I want you all to follow me. It… brings me no joy to give you this ultimatum. I want to know if you believe your safety is more important than your family."

I stared at this girl. This girl who had unbelievable strength and persistence and courage and grace, a girl who I respected so much, a girl I risked my entire life to see again. This girl whose emotions never guided her. Yet they were guiding her now. She wanted nothing more than to show me her family. She wanted her new family to meet her old family, to bring them together.

If we denied her, that would be the end of everything between us. All of the battles we faced, all the time we spent together, all the challenges we overcame would be nothing but history. She would disappear from our lives forever.

But if we stayed in the city, our lives would be in terrible danger. The hundreds of soldiers of the Kanto Kings would be hunting for us, and there was little doubt that they would shoot on sight. Five of their soldiers were dead, and since nobody saw them kill each other everyone would blame us. We survived earlier because we weren't a threat and nobody targeted us, but now we would have half of Celadon City searching for us.

But this was Stacy, my first catch. She supported me through all of my decisions. I couldn't abandon her now. Not when she was at her most emotionally vulnerable. I would never be able to live with myself.

I gave her a slow nod. "I'll support you, Stacy."

Stacy let out a sigh of relief and pulled me into a hug. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you so much, Arthur."

I let her have her hug, but I held her at arm's reach. "But you have to protect us. We will have the Kanto Kings looking for us. I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Of course," she promised. "Nobody will get hurt."

That was all I needed. I gave her a sad smile. "It really is good to see you again, Stacy. We all missed you."

"I missed you all," she replied. She looked at the dead bodies. "We'd better leave quickly."

I turned around. "You're all going in your balls for now. It'd be faster if Stacy only carried me."

Christine frowned. "I wanted to fly."

"You'll fly soon," I reminded her. The prospect of evolution cheered her up. "Then we'll come back here and take a flight on our own."

I recalled the five of them, and Stacy jumped onto my shoulders. She sat down, wrapping her legs around my shoulders. I felt the hairs on my neck stand on end as we approached the edge. I trusted her, but even so I couldn't help but wonder if this girl who was shorter and lighter than me would be able to lift me.

"Don't drop me," I muttered nervously.

She didn't reply. She leapt off the side, her arms held out. She managed to catch the wind and leveled out while I dangled beneath her. She kept a tight grip on me, although my arms were wrapped around her knees. I felt the cold wind blow against my face, a wind I barely registered on the roof. Now that there was nothing beneath us, I was suddenly extremely aware of everything around us. Every slight shift jolted me.

I looked below, seeing the remnants of the cloud still covering the streets. A sea of brown beneath us illuminated by the morning sun. As we glided in silence, waves of shadow moved beneath us; platoons of men moving toward victory. The war was still beneath us, its sights and sounds shrouded by the cloud.

We glided north toward the apartment building that caught Stacy's eye before; another building that towered over the others. We had started high enough that Stacy only had to slowly descend in a straight path over a few shorter buildings to reach the apartment building's roof. She flapped her arms a bit to keep us level. Her determined gaze was fixed solely on that roof; she never looked down.

Once we landed safely, I let out all of my Moemon. They looked around in confusion for a moment as the roof of the apartment building was nearly identical to the roof of the Department Store. It didn't take them long to realize the differences: slightly different scenery, the Department Store far in the distance, and no dead soldiers guarding the stairs down.

"Where are we now?" Rose asked.

"We are on top of the Celadon Apartment Complex," Stacy answered. "This is where my family is."

"We'd better get going," I said, looking over the edge. I couldn't make out any shadows below, but I knew we didn't have too much time to stand around before the bodies were discovered. They might already be sending search parties. "Lead the way, Stacy."

Stacy nodded and led us down the stairs. The entire floor had been completely deserted. Doors had been thrown open and suitcases left abandoned. Clothes, toys, books, and newspapers had been strewn everywhere. The apartment building had been abandoned in a hurry.

"Were you here the entire time searching for your family?" Olivia asked.

"It took me many hours to reach this place," Stacy replied, moving quickly down the hall, not even casting a glance at the opened doors. "In the initial chaos, I had to hide in order to be safe. It has also been… a while since I was last here. I did not remember what apartment we used to own."

"Oh, you used to live here?" I asked. "How long?"

She slowed down, hesitating. "Five years."

"That's longer than I expected," I noted. "Sounds like most of your life."

"It was," she said curtly. We had reached the end of the hallway and went down the stairs, taking them two at a time. We traveled five flights before Stacy stopped in front of the door. She placed her hand on the door, took a deep breath, and turned around to face us.

"I want to tell you this before we enter," she explained. "I was born six years ago. My mother was a Starpator, and my father was a human lawyer. A well respected lawyer who supported Moemon rights and wanted to protect Challengers as well. He helped numerous laws pass and was influential in Celadon Law. But his ideas gave him enemies. During the Celadon War, he was attacked in his office by the Celadon Saviors. Everyone working in the office was killed.

"I had only just been born, and my mother had already evacuated. We didn't hear the news until the war had ended. My mother was strong, but she was a Moemon. She couldn't get an education nor any knowledge of this world's laws. We lost our house and were forced into the apartment, and my mother had to work any menial job she could to pay the bills.

"She was very protective of me, so she taught me to be self-sufficient when I was very young. I was isolated from most children. While my mother worked, I stayed with my father's younger brother and his family. He had two children around my age, but they disliked me and I was indifferent to them. I stayed with my uncle whenever I could. He spoke of my father and his accomplishments and explained his own similar work.

"I learned many things that my mother had kept hidden from me about my father's death. Just before the war began, my father had defended a bill which banned all Bounty Hunter organizations. That was the final straw, as the Celadon Saviors were supporters of the various organizations, and he was targeted. When my father died, my uncle took over his work. With his support, the law was passed, and every public organization was disbanded.

"My uncle was a proud, family-oriented man, and I respected him greatly for the help he gave to my mother. He supported us in numerous ways. He visited us often, bought us groceries, medicine for when I was sick, and books about the world. But he changed a lot over the years."

She stared at us for a few moments. Her gaze dropped to the ground.

"Nearly a year ago, my mother and I were watching the news. My uncle's latest law had been officially announced: the Challenger Identity Protection Act. We were watching President Monroe announce that he would support it after the tragedy of that year's Challengers. As soon as the announcement was over, we heard people shouting from below. A group of people were running up the stairs. My mother suddenly tensed up.

"She told me to go to the window and open it, and she barricaded the door. I did what she asked, and when I turned around my mother was holding the door closed with her body. She shouted at me to fly, to escape for my life. I didn't hesitate. I jumped out of the window and soared out of the city. I never saw… my mother again. I didn't know what happened to her.

"I flew and flew just to escape from whatever scared my mother so much. I flew for hours in silence, letting myself slowly drift to the ground. I landed in Route 2, tired and hungry and alone. I lived in isolation for months until I saw your group of Challengers leaving Pallet Town. I remembered watching the Challengers' progress on television, and I was excited whenever they reached Celadon City. That is why I approached you. And that is why I wanted to return to Celadon."

"To find out what happened to her," I whispered understandingly. Stacy looked up at me, her face as expressionless as always despite telling me all of this. She kept the façade, but I knew inside it hurt her to recall. "We're with you."

"Thank you," she turned around and opened the door. The hallway was similar to the one above: abandoned and destroyed. There was one major difference, however, and that was apparent as we neared the center of the hallway.

"I had forgotten which apartment we lived in," she explained as we stared at the door. "I spent many hours combing through each room. It was only when I came to this floor that it became obvious."

The door we were staring at, the door to Stacy's old home, was covered completely in black and yellow police tape. It was coated in dust, as if it hadn't been touched in a long time. There were scratch marks on the door frame, and the top hinge had been completely broken off.

Stacy took a deep breath and then kicked the door open. It crashed into the wall, hung a little, and then fell to the ground as the bottom hinge broke off as well. The door sent up a cloud of dust that escaped into the hallway.

We waited for Stacy to enter, but she stared at the door silently. Finally, she said: "I hadn't entered when I found it. I wanted to enter it with you all. I… I'm hesitating…"

I felt it appropriate to place a hand on her shoulder. "Don't hesitate. You deserve to know."

I didn't think what I said mattered, just that I said something and that I showed I was there for her. She nodded at the room and then stepped inside. I was immediately after her.

The apartment was small: A single living room that branched off into a side kitchen and a separate bedroom. It was also completely destroyed. Police tape had been placed around pieces of broken furniture – the overturned couch, the shattered vase, the smashed television set – but they couldn't place tape around every small thing that had been scattered around. Picture frames and books covered the floor, and the ledges they had once been placed were on the ground nearby.

Stacy turned slowly in a circle to survey everything. Her gaze settled on the television, and she stared at it longingly.

"She isn't here," Stacy noted, her voice betraying hope. "She may have escaped…" She moved to the other room, but as soon as she passed the doorframe she stooped. "No… she didn't."

The bedroom was even smaller. The king-sized bed took up the majority of it, with only enough room for a single dresser and a walk-in closet scrunched into the corner. It, too, was covered in dust.

Of course, Stacy was staring at the bed itself. Black tape had been placed onto it in the shape of a young adult. Its arms and legs were stretched outward toward the bedposts. Dried blood had pooled underneath the adult's head, abdomen, and chest.

Stacy walked up to the bed and placed her hand on the outline's head. She rubbed the figure longingly, moving it slowly down until she had covered every inch. She remained absolutely silent. Her expression never wavered. She simply stood and tried to feel as much of her mother as she could.

"She was strong," she whispered. "She never showed me any emotion but love. She never lost her façade of happiness despite all of the trials she had to go through. She cared for me, protected me, taught me. She did everything she could to make sure I was safe and happy."

She shook her head slowly. "This is what happened to you. Tied up… murdered…"

"She didn't deserve this," I muttered. "She deserved better."

Stacy made no motion of having heard me. She stared at the blood.

"They didn't clean the room," she whispered. "They left the entire apartment in shambles. They abandoned it completely."

She turned to me. "Why did they do this? Do you know? Can you guess?"

"I don't know this world's legal system," I said defensively. "I don't know if they're corrupt or noble, if they just wrote this off as a gang-related murder or if they couldn't get evidence to convict anyone."

"I'm not blaming you," she said. "I… I'm still trying to comprehend this."

"I know," I replied. "If you want to vent, I'll listen. God knows you've done enough for me. This is… this is a lot to take in at once. You don't have to bear it alone."

"Talking won't solve anything," she said. She tried to move past me, but I caught her arm and she looked up at me indignantly. "We don't have much time to stay."

"Stacy," I said sternly. "You never tell me how you're feeling. How are you feeling?"

"I feel like everything I worked for was for nothing," she muttered. "Like I spent months wondering and worrying only to have my worst fears realized. My entire family is dead, and I have nothing to remember them by but my memories and this abandoned apartment."

"You know none of that is true," I said. "You-"

"You asked how I was feeling," she wrenched her arm free. "I feel lost and confused, and I need time."

She stormed out of the room, and I stared at her as she walked out. She was holding back all of her emotions like she always did. She didn't want to show the slightest bit of weakness, not even at her most vulnerable moment. Not even to us. To the people who wanted nothing more than to see her get through this.

I looked back at the bed. She had brought up a good question. This had happened months ago. Why did the police just tape off the evidence then completely block the apartment? I was curious enough to search for an answer, but we didn't have the time. The police might have had the answers we needed, but they were fighting a war, and they wouldn't be willing to give us them.

There was a picture frame on the bedside table. It had been turned over, and as a result the picture itself was one of the few spotless things in the apartment. It showed two pairs of young adults smiling and holding infants. The two men had their arms around each other's shoulders and were smiling brightly. The women were off to the side. One was wearing a modest red dress and had her brown hair pulled up in a ponytail. The other was wearing a gorgeous black and white dress that complimented her waist-length black hair.

"She looks so much like Stacy," I whispered to myself. I saw the family resemblance; the black-haired woman looked exactly like an older, carefree Stacy.

The men were her father and her uncle. They looked extremely similar, and the uncle in particular looked incredibly familiar. I stared at the uncle, trying to pinpoint where I saw that face before. It was recent, or I would've forgotten.

"Fuck…" I muttered. "I… I really should know this."

I took the picture frame into the other room. The girls were all going through the room and cleaning it as best as they could. It crossed my mind to tell them not to tamper with evidence, but then I realized no investigation would bother with something so old. I walked over to Stacy and held out the picture for her.

"It's a beautiful family," I said, smiling.

She stared at it, and the ghost of a smile crossed her lips. "They must have been so happy."

"What were their names?" I asked.

"My mother was named Patricia," she replied. "My father Nigel. My Aunt was Dalila… and my uncle was Ronald."

I blinked, looking at her strangely. Suddenly so many pieces were falling into place. "Ronald… Quill."

She looked up at me, her face rivaling mine in curiosity. "You knew his name. Did you meet him?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but Stacy interrupted, too eager to wait. "My uncle is alive? He's still here? Arthur…"

I nodded, and the rarest thing happened: Stacy's face broke into a grin. She grabbed me and hugged me tight. "Arthur… my uncle's alive… my family's alive… I didn't… I couldn't… Where did you meet him? How is he doing? Are my aunt and cousins well?"

"Your aunt and cousins evacuated," I explained. "Your uncle's living in a house in the Mewtwo Apostle's territory. He stayed so that he didn't have to abandon his work. His legacy, which was your father's as well, was all he seemed to care about."

"He's well, then?" She stared at my eyes with such intensity that I couldn't lie. She must have known I was hiding the fact that we were attacked.

"He was when I last saw him," I said with as much honesty as I could. "His house was in Celadon Saviors' territory when I left – the front lines shifted a lot – but with the fall of the tower, and the Celadon Saviors being weakened, he may be protected again."

"I need to know if he's okay," she said to herself. "I need to see him. I need him to know that I'm okay."

"Stacy…" I sighed. "We can't."

"Arthur, you've done everything I asked, and I'll always remember you," she said, removing the photograph from its frame and putting it away. "You all helped me brave this. But if you're going to leave the city, then we are going to part ways."

"No!" I shouted. "We're doing all of this so that we can stay together! We aren't separating!"

"But you're all in danger," said Stacy. "You can't stay, and I have things I need to do."

"Can you not do it after the war is over?" I pleaded. Her eyes were filled with such determination that I knew the answer. I just wanted her to forget everything and come with us. I wish I hadn't shown her the photo.

"I can't wait. Too many things may happen in that time," said Stacy. "You may find me after the war, if you wish. I will be fine; I can protect myself."

The others started to plead with her to stay. Annie clung to her leg and cried, Olivia and Christine stood in her path and refused to move, and Rose clutched her arm and spoke reassurances into her ear. I wanted to join them, but my watch erupted in noise, making me jump in surprise.

I looked down at it and saw Eric's name flashing on the screen. I stared at it in surprise. It meant Eric was awake. I clicked the screen and held it close to my face.

"Hello?" I said cautiously. "Eric, is that you?"

"Hello, Arthur," came a voice who was unmistakably not Eric's. "I have some news for you."

"Who is this?" I asked. "What have you done with Eric?"

"You don't recognize me?" The voice feigned hurt. "I'm Marcus, you murderer! And if you don't surrender yourself to me, this friend of yours is going to die!"


Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee