He would never say that the visit his father paid to him at her apartment was a good thing. Not in the slightest. But maybe, there was some good that could be drug out of it. That good came mostly from the people who stuck around after the incident. This time, he didn't have to figure out recovery on his own. Where before, recouping meant waking up to pain and memories he was too lazy to do anything about, now he woke up with her. She would either do whatever was needed, like icing his black eye, or gently talk him into doing things for himself.
And though maybe he was a little loath to admit it, there was also Hala, who relentlessly seemed to see something in him, even when he was sure there was nothing left to see. Plumeria was the newest re-addition to the Guzma cheer squad, and one he was happy to have back. She would come visit now and then, and the two of them would talk of ways they could help the former grunts should they both become gym leaders, which only made him want to pursue the goal more. She'd asked him to come see some of the grunts that were holed up in Tapu Village, but he wasn't sure he was up for that just yet.
He felt grateful for the company he had between the three of them now. Sure, back in Po Town he was surrounded by grunts, but he'd still felt alone then. The only one he'd let his guard down around was Plumes. Which was why losing her friendship had been so difficult and gaining it back felt like balm on a wound.
Still, he did want to help the grunts as best he could to make up for his sudden disappearance. He wanted to make something of himself. He wanted that gym leader position. What had started off as a suggestion from her, had turned into the goal that kept him moving forward. It was his focus and he was going to keep on the path towards it. He wasn't going to let an altercation with his dad stop that. Not this time.
It wasn't always easy to find and keep that resolve. He did falter occasionally, sometimes even critically, but he was also slowly learning to forgive himself for those moments. It was, as Hala had said, a process; one he often found himself frustrated with. But then he'd think about the things he could do as a gym leader. How he could earn back the respect of the community. How he could hire grunts to help run the gym. This was for himself, but it was also so much more than that. So he kept going.
The training would also be absolutely maddening sometimes, especially in the beginning. There were many things that Hala had him do that Guzma just didn't see the point to, like helping him run errands. After a while he supposed that it was about learning patience, but he couldn't be sure. He figured it beat sitting around the apartment, so he gave in to Hala's seemingly random methods.
When Hala began trying to discuss leadership with him, Guzma got cocky, telling him, "I led an entire gang of misfits, old man, I think I'm good in this particular area."
He was dismayed when Hala completely tore that notion apart. "There's a difference between inspiring loyalty through example and inspiring it through intimidation." And so Guzma's hardest lesson started. He needed to becomes less boss, and more teacher.
It's not something that really clicks for him until Hala starts having him mentor a few local kids from the town. Parents were hesitant, but they trusted Hala, and so Guzma's training now included he himself training others. Three to be exact, two boys and a girl who'd just turned 10 and would be leaving on their own pokemon journeys as soon as the league was fully setup and open. In the meantime, they had been given their starter pokemon, and were sent to work with Hala and Guzma.
It was awkward at first. What did he know about kids? To top it off, they were clearly scared of him. They didn't warm up to him until a few days in, when Golisopod suddenly tackled him to the ground and began affectionately nuzzling at his face as he yelled at it to get off. The kids couldn't stop laughing, and the ice was finally broken.
But the real watershed moment came when he took the three of them out to learn to catch Pokemon. It was a bit of a rough day. One kid thought he was simply supposed to tackle pokemon to catch them, and the other boy would burst into tears every time the pokemon he was trying to catch would break free of the pokeball he threw. The girl was shy and quiet, which had the tendency to create it's own problems. She was afraid most everything it seemed, even throwing a pokeball as she thought it might hurt the pokemon. It was a long and trying day for Guzma.
He squatted behind the boy who liked to tackle things, talking him through an encounter with a Yungoos. "Ok, good. Now, just weaken it a little more."
The kid sent his Litten to tackle the wild Pokemon.
"Alright. Now's the time. Throw a ball."
The kid reeled back and chucked the pokeball with all of the might his little arm could muster. It hit the Yungoos and the pokemon disappeared inside, and the ball shook, as they waited tensely.
One shake.
Two shakes.
A third, and the ball goes still. The pokemon was caught!
Guzma leapt up from his squat. "Fu- heck yeah!"
The kid jumped up and down, hooting and hollering in celebration. Then he turned, and excitedly hugged Guzma.
Guzma froze, raising his arms in surprise. Then he smiled, and patted the kid on the back saying, "Yeah, yeah, alright, kid. Go get your Pokemon."
The other two kids came running over then. "Mr Guzma, we caught something! Look! Show him! Show him!" The boy who had been crying earlier yelled to the shy girl.
She fumbled with a pokeball and out came a Ledyba. "It's a bug type," she says quietly. "Just like you have."
"Sure is, kid!" Guzma beams at her. "Great job!"
The girl smiles at the praise.
"I'm gonna come back later," says crying kid. "I'm gonna come back at night."
"Why's that?" Guzma asked.
"I wanna catch a Spinarak! And one day, it'll be an Ariados. Like yours!"
Guzma scratches at his undercut, feeling touched that these kids would idolize him even in the slightest. He also felt... proud of them. They had started out knowing absolutely nothing. But here they were learning, improving, and catching pokemon all because of what he'd shown them. Maybe there was something to be said for guidance over intimidation.
"Hey," he tells them. "You kids want malasadas?"
They cheer, and Guzma leads them off towards dessert for a job well done.
The flame inside him that had started off as nothing more than a lit matchstick had grown. Every laugh, every touch, every morning waking up with her was tinder for it. Every word of praise from Hala fanned it. Every visit from Plumes and every time those three kids succeeded made it burn brighter. It warded off the shadows of doubt that had once controlled him. There was nothing he'd ever let put it out again.
Almost nothing.
He'd got back from training to find that she wasn't there. Well, that wasn't that unusual. Sometimes he got back first, and sometimes she did. So he waited. And waited. Now it's about an hour and a half past the time she's usually home. There's no answer when he calls her phone. He paces a bit, rubbing the back of his head, wondering if it's too early to panic yet.
When it's now become two hours and there's still no sign or call from her, he knows something is wrong. It's almost palpable. But, what to do? The last place she would have been is Mount Lanakila. He had to get there - fast. But how? He had no ride pager. Who did? Who would help him? Hala. He throws his jacket back on and takes off back towards Iki town.
He pounds on Hala's door, now sweating and breathing heavy, but there's no answer and the house is dark. No one's home. Who next? He could call Plumeria, but she had borrowed her ride pager from Nanu to make her visits to him. He wasn't sure she could get it from him again at a moment's notice. Which leaves... Kukui?
Groaning at the wasted time and additional distance to run, he sets off for Kukui's lab.
He knocks on the door, then bends over, panting, with his hands on his knees.
Kukui slowly opens the door. "Hey, cousin," he says apprehensively.
Guzma makes motions with his hands, but he's unable to talk, still catching his breath.
"Guzma is this - is this about my decision on you being a gym leader?"
His eyes widen and he manages to pant out, "What?!"
"I already explained to her that I just don't think it's a good fit. I know you've been working hard, but-"
He stops as Guzma falls to a sitting position on his porch. He just couldn't keep standing. Not in that moment. It was too much bad news all at once. It feels as if his heart itself has dropped into his stomach and is dissolving. Had it really all been for nothing? Was he really back to square one? Was this it? No. It's not ending this way. None of it. He gets to his feet, catching his breath and trying to compose himself.
"I don't think I can... change my mind on this one," Kukui says slowly. He seems as if he's expecting a blowout argument. He looks at Guzma uneasily, like he's unpredictable.
Maybe Guzma would have been at one point. Maybe he would have started ranting and raving right there outside Kukui's house. But not now. "This isn't -this isn't about that," he tells the professor. "She never came home today."
Kukui eyebrows furrow. "I just saw her not too long ago. Maybe she had some things to take care of?"
Guzma shakes his head. "No, somethings wrong. You saw her on Mount Lanakila, right? Where's your ride pager? I need to go!"
Kukui blinks at him like he's not sure what to think. Did he really still distrust him that much? Then again, it wasn't like Guzma was around him often. What reason did he have to trust him?
And now there is a choice to make. He can see past Kukui and see the ride pager sitting on a table behind him. He's got to either convince him to move, or force him. He looks his childhood friend in the eye. "Kukui, please."
There's a tense pause between them, and then Kukui moves, letting Guzma inside.
He runs to the pager and grabs it, breathing a sigh of relief. He turns and leaves, pressing the button and addressing the professor. "I'm gonna do whatever it takes to change your mind."
Kukui leans on the door frame. "You want this that bad, huh cousin? It's not going to be easy. There's still a lot in your way here."
"Yeah, well," he can see a Charizard descending, silhouetted in the night sky. "Maybe the roadblocks aren't there to stop you, maybe they're there for you to prove how bad you want it."
Kukui smiles. "Go find her. Make sure she's ok. Then we'll talk."
Guzma nods, and the Charizard takes off in the direction Mount Lanakila.
It's been hours now. Your voice is horse from shouting. When the snow died down a bit, you could see the side of the league building, and the ledge you fell from. You really hadn't fallen all that far. But far enough. If anyone had been outside the building, they couldn't hear you. None of the Pokemon you had with you were capable of flight or climbing up the side of the mountain. Your Incineroar had tried and failed. The ice, snow, and steepness of the cliff had been too much for the fire type. You kept them all in their pokeballs now, and close to you, hoping that warmth would be enough. But you had no ball for the Charizard.
You tied a piece of fabric ripped from your bag around your leg and it seems to have stopped the gash from bleeding. You spent the time looking around and wracking your brain for ways of getting out of this mess, but every idea, every attempt was a dead end. And it was so cold. You weren't dressed for this. The only thing keeping you from freezing is the injured Charizard that had kept itself wrapped around you. You notice, with distress, that the flame on the end of its tail is getting smaller and smaller as time goes on. What happens if it goes out?
You feel so guilty. You had been in such an angry, rash rush to leave, and now both you and this pokemon might die out here. The sun has set, making it even colder. How much longer could you last? How much longer could the Charizard last? It seemed to be getting weaker. If it dies, it'll be completely your fault. You hug it by its neck, holding it close to you and sob. It gives a low, weak grumble, trying to comfort you.
You know Guzma must have noticed how late you are by now, but he has no ride pager to get to you. He doesn't have many people to go to for help, but you're hoping either Hala or Kukui will come through. You're hoping something comes through. Anything.
The Charizard lowers it's head onto your lap now, no longer able to hold it up. Its so weak, and the flame on its tail is so small.
You check your phone for the millionth time, hoping by some miracle that it's regained signal. But not only has that not happened, now the phone is dead. You get out the ride pager and press it again, jamming the button down as hard as you can. Nothing. You throw it away from you in frustration.
The Charizard groans weakly. You can barely feel the rumble in the chest behind you. This isn't looking good. It wasn't made to withstand this kind of environment. "Please, please hold on," you plead with the pokemon, and with the world itself.
There's a whisper of smoke as the tiny flame on the end of its tail extinguishes. The Charizard gives a small sigh, and then it's gone.
You collapse into it sobbing with guilt and fear as you sit cold and alone on the mountainside.
When Guzma lands at the top of the mountain, it's dark and quiet, and there's no one around. He tells the ride Charizard to stay, that he might need it again soon, and then goes toward the building. He knocks, but there's no answer. There's no lights from inside. Everyone has left for the day. Maybe there's something outside here to clue him in? he has nothing else to go on.
He begins searching around in the dark, for something, anything, that might give him a direction to go in. But there's fresh snow all around from an earlier snow storm. Any tracks she would have left behind have been covered up.
The Charizard notices him looking around and squinting into the darkness and decides to be his torch. The two of them investigate, Charizard lighting the way, and occasionally gently blasting away ice and snow.
He's nearly about to consider the mountaintop a dead end, when he sees it. Blood is smeared all over a jagged rock at the cliff edge. He goes over to it and inspects it. The streak of red seems to be going over the side. He panics, and scrambles past the rock, looking over the edge and into the darkness below, but he cant see anything. He beckons the Charizard over, and by its flames he can finally make out the scene beneath him.
She's there, on a surface jutting out from the mountain. She's leaning on a Charizard that's wrapped around her. The flame on its tail is out and she is unconscious... or worse.
He yells her name, but there's no response. He quickly gets a pokeball out of his jacket and calls out his Ariados. He has the pokemon carefully lower him down the mountainside by its webbing.
The snow crunches under his feet as he lands. He can see her face flickering in the Charizard's flames up above. It's completely still. He runs over to her, separating her from the cold and lifeless pokemon she was against. All he can think, is a steady stream of "please please please please."
He holds her in his arms, brushing hair out of her face. She's so cold. He says her name. No response. Please, please, she can't be gone. He can't handle that. Everything in his chest feels like it's sinking down. The flame inside is dimming. Was he too late?
Her eyes flutter open. "Guzma?" she says.
He nearly lets out a sob in response.
She weakly hugs herself to him and he latches his arms around her back.
"Guess you were the one to find me this time," she whispers.
He can't do anything besides laugh a bit, tears of relief sliding down his face.
He carries her away from the deceased Charizard, and calls for his Ariados to lower more webbing. He makes sure they're both secure, and the spider pulls them up.
His ride Charizard gets as low to ground as it can, trying to help him onto its back with her in tow.
They fly back to Melemele. She'll need a hospital visit.
"I'm sorry," she says as he holds tight to her.
"Hey, hey, no apologies."
"No, you don't understand. Kukui-"
"Yeah, I know," he sighs.
"I'm sorry," she says again.
"Don't worry about that ok. Let's just get you back."
She looks him in the eye. "Thank you."
He smiles down at her. "Hey your boy's got you. Guess it's my turn to take care of you."