((Dear guest who gave the last review:

What's taking so long to update is this thing called 'life.' I'm not a machine who produces these stories off of a factory line: I'm a human being who is working on several other projects, is constantly busy with school and works I'm actually being paid for, and writing stories such as this for my own enjoyment alone. I'm glad you like reading it, but stop complaining about how long it's taking when you don't even have an inkling about how much time I actually have to put into it. Not to mention that writer's block, inspiration, and putting things together so that they flow in a logical manner are all also heavy influences when working on stories. A lot of research goes into writing—both studying from outside sources and looking back at one's own past works—and reviews such as yours, where you're only griping about updates, aren't exactly what anyone would call 'inspiring.'

If it hadn't been for following an already set up plotline thanks to the game and having a nice, long vacation as I wrote it, I wouldn't have been able to finish the first book of this series as quickly as I had. Plus, there are some stories that I've been working on for several years now that still remain uncompleted, so I like to think I'm doing pretty good on this one timewise. Learn to cultivate patience: I'm doing the best I can. Thank you.))

"Hey…

"Hey.

"Wake up."

I feel my body drop like a lead weight only to be caught a split second later from beneath, rattling me in place and shaking me back into the world of consciousness. Did I really fall asleep? When? The last thing I remember is walking through the forest with Ri. The sun had already risen: I was looking at the sunrise as it curved above the treetops, then… Nothing. Everything seems to halt there, leaving a gap in time between then and now, when I feel the soft warmth of some object spread before my chest and nestle closer to it, with something supporting me from beneath as I do so.

"Iliana, wake up. I mean it."

My form is rattled a second time, just as it was the first, and I finally break free from my slumber. With a groan, I blink open weary eyes as I raise my head and look at the moving world around me. No wait: I'm moving… How come I'm moving? As I shift my head I find Ri's merely a few inches from my own, looking back at me with deadpan impatience.

"Wake up or I'll drop you."

"Mmm… Huh?" It takes me another moment to pause and piece together reality. The warmth spread before me, the hold beneath me, my moving even though my feet aren't even touching the ground… I turn pale as I find my arms limply wrapped around Ri's shoulders from behind and his are held under me in order to carry my weight against his back. My shock is all it takes to bring me back into full awareness. "W-What happened?! Why are you—?!" I can barely finish the exclamation because of my flustering. How long have I been out? How was he even able to carry me in the first place? Though Ri seems a bit taller than the average Lucario, he's still not as tall as a human adolescent.

He gives a small smirk before kneeling down and allowing me to stand on my own two feet, much to my relief. "You were basically a zombie this morning: It was slowing us down," he explains with a slight tone of amusement, "You barely even reacted when I finally decided just to pick you up. You need to get more sleep."

Honey, you have no idea… I think with some grievance, both because of the near impossibility of his decree and the fact that I was so tired that he had to drag my sorry butt along without me even knowing it. When the branches part enough above for me to catch a glimpse at the open sky, I find the sun halfway along its course: Midday. That means Ri was carrying me for some six hours or so. My mouth twists into a frown at the thought, even as I feel a piece of my heart tug at the sentiment.

Still, I can tell that the extra hours have done me good—for now, at least: I can't say how good it'll be when I try to get some sleep tonight. Peaceful, empty, dreamless sleep: When was the last time I was free from some sort of nightmare, or memory, or vision reaping my mind as I slept? Actually, when I think about it, I think it was back before I turned back into a human: Back when I still had Ri sleeping by my side... I try to brush away the idea, but a part of me can't help but believe that he can chase away the nightmares just by being there with me.

Pfft! It's so cheesy that it even sounds stupid in my head. Sleep deprivation is probably just leaving my mind more than a little muddled.

"How far are we?" I ask out of curiosity, hoping some discussion will lead my thoughts back to the matters at hand.

"We'll be at a human town soon enough," he answers as he pauses briefly to stretch his muscles, his back turned to me. "Normally, I'd say we should stop to eat, but we can make it within an hour or less."

An hour or less to town: An hour or less until I might can slip away. He can't follow me into the city, right, or else people might try to catch him? And surely there's some way I can mask my aura signature when I have to leave town so he won't be able to track me. I look away toward the expanse of foliage to my right. It still hurts, but this is for the best. The way things are, he's better off not knowing I'm still alive and all the trouble I'm in just because of it. No matter what, I have to keep him safe.

"What's the plan once you're with your own?" he asks, casting me a momentary glance as we walk.

I shrug, "I know a guy. I'll probably contact him at a Pokemon Center before anything." Honestly, at this point, my plan simply consists of finding Grovyle and Celebi—if I can even get near them anymore without guaranteeing them harm—and not dying in the process. I know that I'll need to talk to Max though, if only to let him know I'm ok, and also tell him to protect himself and Gardevoir from Darkrai's influence. Since Gardevoir's a Psychic-type, even without a Lunar-Wing, maybe they'll be able to fend him off if it comes to that.

Ri nods once in response, but says nothing. Then we're back to our usual silence.

Actually, I might want to find a way to contact the cruise company and local authorities while I'm at it. I've probably been reported as dead or missing: It'll be better to clear things up before I'm given a burial at sea that I don't even know about.

I smell the faint scent of salt water mixing in with the pine and cedar before we do finally reach the town. The trees give way to a long, sand and cobblestone path with a pair of simplistic, wooden fences barricading it on each side. All we have to do is follow it until we reach a sign that reads Welcome to Terracotta Town. Beyond it lies a small city situated alongside a beachfront, the buildings set around a collection of streams and rivers that weave their way throughout it. Good riddance! I think I'm done with big cities for a while; It's good to be somewhere quiet like this—it feels more like home. With now some sort of point to go by, I pull out a map of Hoenn, only… it's not anywhere on there.

"We're in the Kanto region, you loon," Ri states as he peers over my shoulder, "You should know your kind's territories better than me."

"Excuse me for being flung off a boat in the middle of the ocean!" I pout, annoyed. After all that, I consider myself lucky that I can even remember where I was. But really, not even his snappy remark can deter the giddiness that bubbles at my stomach. Kanto! I actually made it all the way to Kanto! I'm almost there!

Refolding the map and stowing it in my back pocket, I look around eagerly for a Pokemon Center and immeadiately take off in the direction of its wide, red roof. Ri, however, does not follow, and instead stops along the edge of the tree-line separating the woods from the town—lunging up into the high branches. As expected. When I pause to watch him, he calls out to me, "Meet me back here when you're done with business. We'll work out a plan then."

"Understood," I nod before resuming my jog to the Center once more. I understand alright, but that doesn't mean I'm going to do what he says. I've got my pack back now, and he's protected by the Lunar Wing I gave him: All I have to do is sneak off.

Is it too optimistic of me to wonder that, if I stay in town long enough, he'll simply get impatient and leave on his own?

The Pokemon Center here is a lot different than the ones I came across back in Hoenn. It's more than just the decorum, but the people and layout as well—which I blame largely on the fact that it is in such a small community. The left half of the main lobby makes up the waiting area and PC terminals while the right side forms a sort of diner, and beyond that a stairwell I've no doubt leads to lodgings for trainers. Not to my surprise, there's a cloned, apparently immortal, Nurse Joy standing on the other side of the desk, along with a Chansey as her aide. If I didn't know any better, I think with some amusement, I'd swear her entire family bred by Dittos.

Maybe it wouldn't be a problem to just go to one of the PC's and get down to business, but a part of me feels it's only polite to ask first. Besides, I'm still not entirely sure if I know how to work the things completely anyway. Therefore, I approach her before anything, waving a hand in greeting to pull her attention from the computer before her, "Excuse me, I was just wondering if it would be ok to use the PCs, and… also if I could have a bit of help using them?" I scratch my head, feeling a bit stupid for the question despite needing to ask it. Compared to other humans, I'm beginning to realize I'm more of a Neanderthal. "I'm no tech whiz." At least, I think that's how Roger put it…

"Sure thing," she answers with a shrug, still furiously typing at her keyboard, "Just give me a second loner on this report." After a moment she looks up with a friendly smile, but pauses before speaking any further. As she peers at me incredulously, her neck staining forward and brows furrowing from concentration, I shift uncomfortably in place and take a small, tentative step back. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Um… n-no?" I answer, half sure. Maybe? I think in my head. I don't know who I do and don't know, what I have or haven't done, or where I have or haven't been in this world. However, I'm not getting any sort of flashback, and I don't think any of my badges or ribbons were from the Kanto region. So, we couldn't possibly have met before… right? Arceus, help me…

Literally hovering over the desktop now she cranes toward me with a scrunched up, scrutinizing face. I uncomfortably look from her, to the far walls, and back as she continues her silent investigation of my features. Soon enough, her eyes widen as she gives a small gasp—all but lunging at me and taking me by the arm, "Now I know! You're that missing girl from that cruise line: You were on the news! They thought you were dead!" Rapidly looking me over, she darts around my form while Chansey, apparently used to such antics, pulls a medical kit from behind the desk and stand readily at the former's side. "How did you survive?!" Nurse Joy frantically continues to ramble, "I don't see any defined injuries, but you couldn't have gotten out of that unscratched! How are you feeling? Any pain? How did you even make it this far?!"

The onslaught of questions leave me too flustered to answer at first, but I eventually somehow find myself uttering that I'm fine—that I'm healthy, and that any wounds that I sustained during the event are gone now. I mean, I understand that she's a nurse and it's her job to look after people and Pokemon, but this is a bit ridiculous. Isn't it obvious that I'm alive and well? Or as well as I can be, given the circumstances…

I have to argue with her a moment longer over letting her drag me into the back of the Pokemon Center for a check-up, "just to be safe," as she put it. In the end, however, I win and it is with some begrudgement that she takes me to the PCs are guides me through the steps on how to work it. When she asks if I have the number of the person I'm trying to contact, I remember a list of names and numbers among the papers in my backpack and tear them free from the front pouch. They have to be it.

She then leaves me to my talk as the video chat begins to connect, though I can still feel her eyeing me carefully from the other side of the room. I resist the urge to roll my eyes. I've battled legendaries, caught outlaws, and saved the planet! I've experienced more near-death experiences than there are fingers on my hands! Why is it that now I'm being somewhat babied? I just hope Max isn't so overbearing about the matter.

Maybe I never had the chance to really know my parents in order to understand the fear that makes me tense up all of a sudden, but no sooner does that thought come to mind that a very angry professor and Physic-type appear on the screen while my muscles clench in abrupt panic, "Where have you been?! It's been days: We've been worried sick!"