"You CAN'T be serious!" Tori complained. The purple-haired girl stood at the sidelines of the Varsity Court and stared at Coach Mark in disbelief. "After all that happened, you still allow that... that PSYCHO to stay at our school?"

"She is one of our students, and the person she faced was a criminal, as well as a visitor from another world. It's perfectly understandable that she was afraid. If she hadn't reacted the way she did, maybe she wouldn't be alive anymore."

"But you heard her, didn't you?" Tori shouted. "Sasha said it, she said that she's not a human! And then her name, Wolfie... is it a coincidence that the woman she beat up was a wolf as well? I say that weirdo doesn't belong here!"

"Yeah," numerous other students that surrounded them nodded. "If she's dangerous, we better get rid of her as soon as we can. Besides, didn't you always say that this is a school for humans? Kick the wolf out before it's too late!"

"Yeah, kick her out!"

"That's ENOUGH!" a loud voice behind them shouted. Everyone turned around, it was Coach Kevin.

"Hikari Horaki is a student here at the Royal Tennis Academy and will be treated as such. Our principal agreed to take her in because of her high potential, not because of her past. He has also seen all of her records and documents, and she has ALWAYS been a human. So stop your ridiculous accusations and don't let her feel like an outsider!"

"But Coach!" Tori protested. "Did you see what she did to that wolf-woman? You can't just ignore it and say she's not a danger to..."

"Tori, stop this! You've caused enough of a ruckus already. I've had enough of your animosity towards that girl. I will not have it, do you hear me? And the principal neither! We are all players from the same academy, and we are one team! If you can't accept your fellow teammates, then you don't belong here! Do I make myself clear?"

Most of the other players muttered a meek "Yes, Coach..." and left the court. Tori, however, said nothing. She didn't dare to say anything against her coach, but she also didn't answer.

Then, a voice spoke up behind her: "You... wanted to see me, Coach?"

It was Wolfie. Of course, she had heard Kevin's words and had seen how the other players had looked at her. Now that she stood in front of Tori, she could almost feel her hateful glare.

"Yes, Hikari," Kevin said. "I called you because the principal asked me to tell you this: You will always be a part of our school, and if you don't choose to speak of what happened, that's your decision. We have been impressed by your performance at the exhibition match, and are looking forward to how you progress. And if you need anyone to talk to..."

"No," Wolfie quickly replied. "That won't be necessary."

Kevin nodded and put his hand on her shoulder with a smile. "No matter what happens, you'll always be part of the Academy, Wolfie, never forget that!"

"Th-thank you, sir!" Wolfie stuttered, overwhelmed by her feelings. No, this school was important to her. No matter what the others said. Would she otherwise be thankful for Kevin's words? Would she otherwise feel relieved that she could stay here? And would she otherwise feel happiness while imagining the many matches she wanted to win with her partner?

Her partner... suddenly Wolfie remembered that there was still something that had to be fixed before she could feel really happy.

"Now go back to your dorms, all of you. Tomorrow, the training for the Island Open will begin, and I want everybody to be in top form, even those who aren't advanced enough to take part."

The coaches turned around, and Wolfie headed towards the exit as well.

But before she could go outside, Tori came past her and hissed: "So you think all is well now, huh? Don't think you can fool me! I know you're a freak!"

"Leave her alone already!" a loud voice coming from outside yelled.

Both Tori and Wolfie looked up in surprise when they saw none other than Sasha standing in the door. She glared at Tori with fierce eyes.

"If you have a problem with my partner, you have a problem with me as well," she shouted. "So stop picking on my friend, you hear me?"

"Sasha..." Wolfie murmured.

Tori gritted her teeth. She knew that Coach Kevin was still watching her from behind, so she decided not to start another scene.

"Freaks..." she spat before she walked past Sasha and left the building.

"Man..." Sasha grumbled. "I really hate her..."

"Sasha..." Wolfie hesitantly spoke up. "What you said earlier... do you mean it?"

"Huh? Well, I know we're not Doubles Partners, but after all, we're bunkmates, so..."

"No, I meant... when you... when you called me your... friend."

"Oh. That." Sasha blushed. "Well, I mean... sure, it was pretty scary when you beat up that wolf-woman... and I still don't understand everything you said that night... but one thing I know for sure!"

"And... that is?" Wolfie asked.

Sasha smiled at her. "You are Wolfie, my best friend, and nothing will ever change that! Let the others talk, and let Tori be a paranoid bitch... just ignore them! And, well, you might have a complicated past, but I won't question you because of it. I know you will tell me when you are ready."

Wolf had never felt anything like this before. Back in HIS youth, all had been about competition. Every boy in his flight school wanted to be the best, there was no 'us', always the 'me'. And it got even worse when he became a mercenary and met Fox. The very first time they met, he had become Fox's rival... and he had tried again and again to prove that he was a better pilot. He knew about honor, true, and about comradeship... but true friendship? While Leon had been a close companion for years, Wolf had never seen the cold-blooded reptile as a true friend.

Was Sasha... really the first true friend in his life?

"Wolfie?" Sasha asked when she saw the empty stare of her friend. "Are you all right?"

"Um... yes, I am... it's just... thanks, Sasha! I'm... I'm glad to have you as a friend."

Sasha grinned. "Aww, that's a nice thing to say! Come here, girlfriend..." And she gave the pigtailed girl a big hug.

'Warm, fuzzy feelings...' Wolfie thought while closing her eyes and returning the hug. 'Warm, fuzzy feelings...' Part of her felt like she should be repulsed by those sensations, but she wasn't. She felt happy and content, for the first time in many, many years...

'Wolfie... that's who I am now,' she said. 'Wolf is a thing of the past. Let that impostor have my body, my Wolfen, my identity... I have a new one!'

With crossed arms and big smiles on their faces, they left the Varsity Court.

Outside, they ran into Leon. "What the heck?" he yelled. "Dammit, Wolf, I thought you ditched that irritating brat! And what's with the girly giggling? Have you no shame?"

Wolfie glared at the spectacled boy. "Go to Hades, Kensuke-baka!" she said... and stuck out her tongue.

With another giggle, the two girls ran off, towards their dormitory.

Leon's mouth stayed open for a while. "Who is that girl and what has she done to our wolf?" he murmured.

Mario and the principle smiled as they looked out of the window and saw the two girls happily skipping along the path leading to the dormitories.

"That-a was a good decision, principal," Mario said.

"Well, I couldn't just throw her out," the principal coughed. "Not after the great game she showed us... besides, it would put the Academy in a bad light, wouldn't it?"

"Of course it would, principal..." Mario winked. "Of course it would..."

Just then, the telephone rang. The principal picked up. "Royal Tennis Academy? Ah, good to hear your voice, Your Highness! Yes, he's right here, just a moment..." He handed he phone over to Mario. "Here, it's Princess Peach."

"Thank you." Mario accepted the phone. "Hello?"

"Mario, it's me!" said the voice of the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. "I was hoping to talk to you before you returned from the Academy. I heard you have some unusual guests over there?"

"That's-a right, and hear this, they claim to be visitors from another world."

"I thought so," Peach said. "Because here in Toad-Town, a few other refugees from another world have appeared. They all look like little, talking animals, just like a Koopa, but of many different species. They claim to be residents of a town called 'Spaceville', and they appeared here after being sucked into a dark place. I think it's possible that they have crossed over into the Mushroom World by using something similar to a Warp Pipe, but I can't say for sure... One of them also says that he knows a woman called 'Samus Aran'. Mario, have you heard that name before?"

"I don't think so, Peachy..." Mario murmured. "But wait a minute..."

He recalled what one of the maids who always cleaned the rooms told him this morning. She was dusting off the heavy armor Yui had in her room, and accidentally touched one of the buttons. An electronic voice then had come out of the suit and said 'Property of Samus Aran. Please do not touch without authority.'

"Maybe I do know her, Peachy..." he finally said.

"Really? Could you please bring her and her companions here? Because I can't make head or tails out of what those 'Animal Crossers' are trying to tell me."

"I already wanted to suggest that," Mario said. "See, they have a prisoner with them, and there was already a troublesome incident where she broke free and threatened one of our students..."

"Oh my!" the princess gasped. "Did anybody get hurt?"

"Well, only the criminal herself," Mario grinned. "The little girl she threatened must-a have taken self-defense lessons or something like that. But the principal agrees, this is not a prison, this is a school, and it would be dangerous to keep her here for much longer."

"Than bring her here. It's about time you came back, too. Bowser's kids have been seen near the borders, and they were accompanied by a couple of strange individuals. From what one our Lakitu observers told us, they have been carrying several strange, life-sized statues... I wonder what Bowser is up to now."

"Oh boy! Will he ever learn? I'm-a on my way, princess!"

"Guardian?" Asuka asked in a puzzled voice. "What... what do you mean?"

"You, Shinji and Rei are children of fate," Mew smiled. "From the day of your birth, guardians have been appointed to watch over your lives. For Shinji, it was guardian angel Pit and fortune fairy Navi. For Rei, it was wishing star Twink and sea prince Manaphy. For you, it originally was light spirit Lanayru and flower fairy Lip, but unfortunately..." The little Pokémon sighed. "Lip was forced to resign after her magical wand has been stolen by an unknown thief. Afterwards, the high council was forced to elect a new guardian for you... and the only one available was me."

Asuka sat down on a big stone next to the lake. Her head was spinning. "So... you're like my guardian angel or something?"

"Something like that, yes," Mew nodded. "Although originally, we weren't allowed to directly interfere. And we probably wouldn't have ever done something like this if not for Master Hand's plan..."

A deep frown instantly appeared on Asuka's face. "That's the freaky, floating hand that brought us into this mess, right?"

"Please, do not judge him prematurely," Mew said. "I agree that certain aspects of his plan are quite objectionable, but all he really wanted was for the good of everyone."

"He put me in the place of a person I've never been, isn't that enough?" Asuka hissed angrily. "Thanks to him, we are all trapped in a world we know nothing about. And don't get me started about Misato and the others, they're not even human anymore."

"Would you have preferred... to die?" Mew asked softly.

Asuka froze. "What?"

"Your world was doomed to die," Mew sighed. "Celebi foresaw this, and his duty was to inform Master Hand, as well as the respective guardians. "I can't get into details, as that would catch the attention of Dialga, but I can tell you that you and Shinji would have been the only humans left on Earth... with you in a state of coma."

Asuka grabbed her head. "No, no..." she whispered. "That can't be true..."

"What do you think why we agreed to Master Hand's plan?" Mew asked. "It was to save you. Master Hand went even farther and saved people that don't even have any guardians. He knew he'd probably be condemned for saving your friends, but he did it anyways. He transformed Misato and the others into Pokémon because he couldn't find another free role in such a hurry. So he created a new one for all of them, including Maya, who is now registered as an official Pokémon Trainer in the Pokémon world."

"And what about Shinji, wondergirl and me?" Asuka demanded to know. She was still shaken by the news. "Why did he have to put us into these roles? What did he do to the real Zelda?"

"He didn't do anything," Mew explained. "We knew for quite a while that Zelda, Kirby and Krystal had disappeared... and nobody knows what happened to them. Fact is, their disappearance threw the order of the multiverse... into disorder. The balance between good and evil must be maintained. So, by putting you into Zelda's place, Master Hand killed two birds with one stone: He found someone who could fill in for Zelda until she is found, and he was able to save you."

"But... but what happens to me after Zelda is found?" Asuka stammered.

"I... I can't say for sure," Mew admitted. "Either Master Hand hadn't quite thought this part of his plan through yet, or he did and didn't want to share it with us."

"Just great..." Asuka groaned. "But... what about Hikari? That wolf-girl... was that really Hikari? Why did she attack me? And who was the other hand?"

"That was Crazy Hand, Master Hand's demented brother," Mew explained. "And it looks like he has chosen a few champions of his own to fight for his own cause. We don't quite know all the details yet, but it seems he's working for an organization called the 'Subspace Council'. Hikari Horaki, Kensuke Aida, Toji Suzuhara and Gendo Ikari are all citizens of your home world that have been saved by Crazy Hand, not his brother."

"The commander as well?" Asuka sighed. "That's just peachy... And what about Link, Midna and all those other people I've seen in the battle? Are they replacements for some disappeared heroes as well?"

"No, they are the original champions, but unfortunately, they got caught in the crossfire. Link and Midna were fortunate enough to land back on their own world, even if it is a different continent. The only one of these champions who was deliberately pulled out of his world was the boy named Lucas..."

"Okay, I get it why he did it, but couldn't he just have asked us?"

Mew smiled. "Would you have believed him?"

Asuka sighed. "Point taken. But can you at least tell me why I'm turning into a Hylian? I knew my ears weren't pointy back in Hyrule."

Mew floated up to take a closer look on Asuka's face. "This is curious..." she murmured. "Looks like the illusion spell Master Hand put on you is slowly wearing off..."

"What the... ILLUSION SPELL?" Asuka screeched. "What do you mean, illusion spell?"

"Well, when Master Hand brought you to Hyrule, you had to fit into Zelda's role... and that could only happen if you were a Hylian with her own powers. But unlike Shinji and the Pokémon, you were in a form similar enough for a normal human, so that Master Hand decided to at least shield your new form from your own eyes. At the same time, your form was shielded from Link and the other Hylians, so that they saw Zelda whenever they looked at you. But now that the illusion is crumbling, you will be able to see yourself in your true, new form... see, there goes another layer of the illusion. It's almost completely gone."

Asuka looked down into the lake and gasped. It was her face, all right, but it had a distinct, almost elfin appearance, with sparkling eyes, narrow cheekbones and elongated ears. Asuka also realized something else.

"I'm... I'm older..." she murmured and felt her face. "I look at least as old as Maya... that is, before Maya changed..." A look of satisfaction and confusion appeared on her face. "I'm a grownup..."

"It was unavoidable to change your age," Mew apologized. "Too many things in Hyrule would have to be changed, beginning from the size of the princess' wardrobe."

Asuka sat down on the stone again. "And what do I do now?" she sighed.

"Well, you just have to wait... now that Palkia arrested Master Hand and his brother, we all are waiting for their trial to begin. Later, in another trial, it will be decided what to do with you. At least Master Hand's charges aren't as dire as those of Crazy Hand. Crazy Hand's actions resulted in the death of a guardian, after all..."

"Can't we just go home?" Asuka asked. "Isn't there a way to save us all? How is our world doomed in the first place? Is it because of the Angels? Will they defeat us?"

"I can't tell you the true reason," Mew sadly said. "Even that would attract the attention of Dialga. But I can tell you this: Now, with you and the other children of destiny removed from your planet, it's not the original fate of doom your world has to face. Instead, another horrible event has occurred that makes it difficult for you and the others to go back."

"And what is that?" Asuka asked.

Mew had a look of pity on her face as she replied: "Your planet... has been taken over by the Aparoids."

Dialga, the Temporal Pokémon, was standing on the top of a high pillar, in the middle of its own home dimension. Star constellations and cosmic clouds were floating past him, as he watched the past, the present and the future at the same time.

Except for him, the only residents of this emptiness were Palkia and a huge amount of Unown, who were Palkia's servants. Celebi or one of his future or past selves appeared here every now and then, but unlike the Unowns, he was the only one of his kind, and therefore you could not see him around here quite as often.

The pillar was standing on a high mountain that rose out of the nothingness. It was an almost perfect facsimile of the Spear Pillar on Sinnoh, except that only the top of the mountain looked like Mt. Coronet.

Dialga opened his eyes when a flash of light heralded the appearance of another Legendary Pokémon. When he felt the female presence, he believed it at first to be Cresselia.

Instead, it was a female, humanoid version of his rival Palkia.

Dialga snorted. Then he began to chuckle. After that, he couldn't regain his posture and began to laugh. He laughed so hard that he almost fell off the pillar he was standing on.

Palkia's eyebrow - one of the things he never had before - was twitching. "Fine!" she spat. "Go on and keep laughing. Laugh as much as you want. What happened to me is soooo funny, isn't it? Right, I would have laughed the same if it had happened to you."

"Damn right you are," Dialga chortled. "This is the most funny thing I've seen in my life, and that's saying something!"

"Hold your breath before your laugh causes time ripples..." Palkia grumbled. "To your information, it's Crazy Hand's fault that I look like this."

"What, is he now a transformation specialist?" Dialga chuckled. "Why don't you ask Mew if she turns you back to normal?"

"Because this isn't a magical transformation," Palkia hissed. "This change was caused by intelligent nanites, and that means they changed me on a cellular level. I'm not sure if even Palutena's magic would be enough to change me back."

"Man, I heard that Crazy Hand did some, well, crazy stuff, but this is the icing on the cake..."

"You can say that again," Palkia grumbled. "I've already sent a couple of my Unowns to inform Arceus about this. Crazy Hand and his brother are imprisoned, their trial will begin tomorrow... if all of the judges are present by then."

"Who will the judges be?" Dialga wondered.

"In such an extreme case, it's gonna be the whole council. Arceus and Palutena, Din, Nayru and Farore, both you and me, Groudon, Kyogre and Rayquaza..." Palkia blinked when she saw that Dialga wasn't looking at her face. "Hey, are you even listening?"

"Oh, I'm listening..." Dialga grinned. "Just eyeing your 'Lustrous Orbs'..."

Palkia roared furiously, at least she tried to, but with her current voice, it almost sounded... cute.

Dialga winked. "You're cute when you're mad, you know that?"

"Don't you get any ideas, you creep!" Palkia grumbled. "Do you know how this is for me? I never had a gender before, after all."

"Maybe you should go and see Cresselia... maybe she has some tips regarding female hygiene..." Dialga chuckled.

"All right, smartass, enough joking around! This is serious! I will go and gather as much witnesses as I can... and we still need to question the guardians involved in this mess. They have quite a few things to explain to us..."

And with those words, the spatial Pokémon turned around and left, unaware that her rival was eyeing her the whole time.

He whistled. 'Man...' he thought. 'She does have a nice ass...'