Lillie

Koa growled as he tackled the stufful, knocking the small bear pokemon onto his back. He mewled in protest, gripping the sides of Koa's head with his front paws and trying to force him off. Koa bit into the stufful's neck, clamping down on the skin, clicking strained notes. The stufful rolled, pinning the dragon underneath him.

Lei and Lillie both watched the two pokemon as they played, Lillie with her head in her hands, leaning over the pokemon center bed, and Lei while pulling on a black tanktop in the corner of the room. Lillie tossed a glance at the girl – she'd been trying not look at her changing, even if Lei didn't seem to care – and raised an eyebrow at the black tanktop. It had a familiar design, with two straight, white lines crossing over her stomach. Try as she might, she couldn't place where she'd seen it before.

"So is it male or female?" Lei asked, now rooting around in her backpack. She picked up Sissy's pokeball and examined it for a moment before attaching it to her belt.

"Male," Lillie replied.

"You decide on a name yet?"

"I haven't." Lillie yawned heavily. She'd barely gotten any sleep the night before, and the rare few times she'd actually managed to doze off, all she could see was the twisted, bloody corpse of the mother bewear. She would jolt awake, heart racing, and Hana would growl at her angrily for waking him up yet again.

Koa gained the upper hand in the wrestling match, shoving his rocky head under the stufful's chin and forcing him back and away. His mouth clamped fully down on one of the pokemon's arms, forcing it painfully to the side. All the stufful could do was ineffectually flail, unable to pull Koa off of him. After a long moment, Koa released the stufful and retreated, letting the pokemon get to its feet.

"They like each other," Lei noted.

Lillie shook her head. "They're establishing dominance. The stufful seems resilient enough that I'm fine with him wrestling Koa. I wouldn't let Hana out at the same time as Koa, though." She didn't want Hana electrocuting the bagon, or for Koa to be too rough with the fragile mouse pokemon.

"I dunno. Looks like they just like each other to me." Lei shrugged.

Both pokemon were panting, watching each other. It could have been wariness and competitiveness, but it could just as easily have been an early start to camaraderie and friendship. Lillie had no way to know for sure.

"You ready to go?" Lei asked. Lillie nodded, grabbing up her pokeballs. Koa noticed this and growled in protest, backing away from Lillie.

"Every time…" Lillie said, exasperated. She clicked the center buttons on both balls, and the pokemon fizzled away into red. She saw Koa attempt to run to the side to get away, but to no effect. As long as the pokeball had a line of sight, there was no escaping.

"You're heading to the Fire Trial, right?" Lei asked, shouldering her small backpack. Her rifle was being held by the pokemon center downstairs. Lillie nodded. "Mind if I come along? I've always wanted to see the volcano."

"S-Sure..." Lillie replied, surprised. Lei beamed at her.

Downstairs, Lillie noticed the boy from last night was still sitting in the lobby, except instead of crying, he was laying on his side on one of the lobby couches. Lillie watched him as Lei retrieved her rifle from the front desk. He was younger than her, with dark brown hair that was rough and unwashed. His skin was very light, unusual going by the others she'd seen in the area.

Lillie picked up a brochure and thumbed through it absently, ignoring the text more than anything else. A pretty, dancing Alolan girl was plastered on the front page of the brochure, flowers in her hair, and wearing a grass skirt. Enjoy paradise today! It was an advertisement for the Hano Grand Resort on the other end of the island, of course. Wide, white sand beaches clutched against bright turquoise waters, the coastline dominated by a massive hotel complex.

Ilima had occasionally ranted about the false image the tourism industry perpetuated about Alola, usually talking about how most of the money made in large resorts worked its way back to the Unovan mainland and into the pockets of foreign business owners. Lillie wasn't sure what to think about it. Kukui had never really talked about it, and she hadn't heard about those kinds of problems on Aether Paradise, either.

The boy on the bench stirred, sitting up slowly. He stared at Lillie and she immediately looked away. In the brief moment she had to look at him, she'd noticed the large bags under his eyes. He scratched as his neck nervously before getting up and sluggishly walking to the counter. Lei had just retrieved her rifle and was walking back.

The boy bumped shoulders with Lei, knocking her back. Like a snake suddenly disturbed, Lei's anger was instant and fiery. The taller girl pushed back against the boy, expression contorted, nearly knocking him over. He looked at her, flabbergasted.

"Watch where you're walking, asshole," she snapped. The boy looked away. Lei strode to the front door, but Lillie hung back, listening as the boy approached the nurse.

"I'm sorry for your loss," she heard the nurse say, and the boy just nodded.

"Wonder what his problem was."

Lei walked with a relaxed gait, her gun slung over one shoulder. She didn't carry much with her besides that, just a simple knapsack that apparently contained one change of clothes. When questioned about how she expected to camp on the way to Wela National Park, Lei just shrugged and said she'd sleep on the grass.

Not that Lillie was in a more advantageous state. The only belongings she had left were her backpack, her pokemon, barely any clothes, and some canned food.

I'm almost out of cash too.

The two girls passed the familiar white rock, the same old man lazing about in the sun, staring off into the distance. His wrinkled face was tight with concentration, and his posture was such that Lillie wasn't entirely convinced the man had moved at all. He didn't so much as glance at Lillie as she passed by.

I wonder if I'll run into that Mike guy again.

An image of Hana's torn ear brought a swell of anger to her.

"What about something cool, like 'Killer'?"

"Huh?" Lillie turned to her walking partner. The other girl's green eyes had a curious glint to them.

"A name. For the stufful."

"Maybe not that." Lillie smirked. "I'll have to think of something."

If the pokemon was aware, or cared, that Lillie killed his mother, he certainly didn't show it. He'd been out of his pokeball most of the morning, either wrestling with Koa or meandering about, exploring his surroundings. Despite the ferocity of the mother, the son seemed to possess a calm demeanor, and was not at all fearful. It only took an hour for him to start nuzzling into Lillie's lap.

Am I his mother now?

She dismissed the thought. Not that she was the most familiar with the species, but Kukui had always told her that imprinting in pokemon usually happened in infancy. The stufful, however, seemed to have no intention of causing any problems.

Lillie locked her hands behind her head, staring down the road ahead of her. The sun was covered in a thin blanket of gray clouds, hidden from view. It was just a mite too hot for her tastes. Lei had the right idea with her blank tanktop and white shorts, and Lillie had followed suit. She wore a gray t-shirt, one of Acerola's, and black shorts.

Ironically, the only other shirt she had now was the black halter-top she'd been refusing to wear. The most daring of the articles Acerola had pushed off onto her, and now it was her only change of clothes. Not that it was that bad, since the only skin it exposed was her upper back, but the thought still grated at her.

And so what? It's just skin.

Mother wouldn't have agreed with that justification.

She stared up at the slopes of Mauna Wela to her right, at the deep green covering its northernmost face. Layers upon layers of ever-shifting leaves, the distance tricking her eyes into seeing them lie flat against the land. Further up the mountain, over a mile up in elevation, the forest abruptly cut away, leaving it bare of any vegetation.

Somewhere in the forest, Hunters may well be examining the corpse of the mother bewear, taking genetic samples and recording as much information as they could. If the mother had other stufful pups, they'd likely be capturing them.

Kahili wasn't a Hunter. Her father was. I wonder what she was doing out here?

Lillie remembered one of Kukui's many lectures about Alola. Growing up in Aether Paradise hadn't left her supremely informed about the region, and Kukui had been very generous in answering her many questions.

On the Internet and in so many of her books, there were always mentions of Rangers, yet Alola was a region specifically bereft of them. When he heard the question, Kukui had thought about it for a moment, one hand gently stroking the light stubble of his jaw as if he wasn't completely certain of the reason.

Pokemon Rangers are quite prevalent in Unova, so I suppose it is a little odd that they're absent from Alola, especially because we're forced to abide by so many Unovan laws. Perhaps it's because their job is generally taken by the Hunter's Association?

It was all he'd said, and Lillie hadn't pressed further, distracted by some other happening. She sighed, wishing she'd paid more attention and had asked a more specific question.

The two girls paused where the small road leading from the pokemon center led onto the wider, more developed roadway. There weren't a lot of cars at all, but there were certainly a number of people. Trainers, some walking with pokemon out, others alone or in small groups. Some carried umbrellas, others chatted along parked cars or carried ice chests. A few looked ready to go hiking into the mountains. They were of numerous different skin tones, though Lillie noticed with some embarrassment that none of them were nearly as pale as she was. Alolan boys and girls, men and women, mixed with many people from the Eastern Archipelago.

The East is a culturally diverse region, one I'd argue is much more complex than Unova. The Johto, Kanto, Sinnoh, and Hoenn regions compose the bulk of the Eastern Archipelago, and they had significant emigration into Alola during the Plantation Era. Most of the population of Alola is Eastern in origin, rather than Alolan.

Every so often she would see an Unovan mixed in, but they were all quite tanned and certainly in the minority. Lillie bit her lip as she realized that with her white skin and bright blonde hair, she stuck out quite noticeably. She cast a brief glance to her companion, who stared at the people with barely concealed irritation. Her red hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her green eyes surveyed the people suspiciously.

Is she Alolan? It's hard to tell. She's certainly tanned enough...

She opened her mouth to ask, but Lei cut her off.

"There were less people here yesterday," she said, folding her arms. "Probably because it's the weekend. It'd be weird to just walk through with a gun, but I guess we don't have a choice."

Lillie didn't respond. She stepped forward, lowering her hands and fiddling with the edges of her shorts. There really were a lot of people. She turned her head back to the white rock. The old man was still facing the same direction as always. A bit past him, she could see the pokemon center nestled against a hill, the ocean past that.

But what caught her eye was none of those things. A boy, all dressed in black, was running towards them, his expression desperate.

"Come on, Lillie," Lei said, touching her shoulder. Lillie nodded, turning back to the road.

"Wait!" A voice shouted from behind. The boy ran around them, stopping in front of them both.

He was several years younger than Lillie was, and shorter too. He gasped for air and Lei paused, examining him. There was evidently something displeasing about him, as Lei scowled and turned her head slightly, obvious in her intent to seem disinterested.

"You're the brat from the pokemon center," Lei said finally. The boy stood up straight, brushing some brown hair away from his eyes. He couldn't have been older than ten or eleven.

Lillie folded her arms uncomfortably, waiting for the boy to speak. After a long moment he caught his breath and stood up straight, looking at them both.

"My name… my name is Tristan, and I need your help..." The boy tossed his head up suddenly, looking dead into Lillie's eyes. A fire burned deep below, betraying a resolve that came wholly unexpected, that washed over her. For just a moment, she saw Gladion again when he turned and walked away. "I need to get my revenge."

"I'm from Iki Town, actually."

Tristan kept looking around, furtively assessing their surrounds again and again and again. He sat opposite the two girls, hunched over – heavy, like an old man with a failing back – and withdrawn. His eyes still hadn't lost that determined, distant stare, even an hour later. The three trainers sat alone at a park bench in what the signs called an "approved camping ground".

"This is where the haoles say we can camp?" Lei had spat the moment she saw the sign. "I'd rather fight a bewear again."

And yet, despite the protest, she had followed Lillie and Tristan in.

"Iki Town?" Lillie asked, surprised at the familiar name. "Did you know a girl named Luna?"

"No, but I heard of her," Tristan said. "She's the girl that died, right? Her mom went a bit nuts after, before she left for Kanto. My mom always got a bit sad when she talked about her."

Lillie bit her lip. She remembered Luna's blank face as she slipped beneath the rapids. There had been a rough calmness, completely uninterrupted by the horrific events unfolding around her, as if Luna had been held in a trance. The two girls had gazed at each other, one above and one below, and then suddenly the morbid stare had been broken.

"Luna?" Lei perked up. The girl's eyes narrowed, as if surprised. Lillie looked at her companion briefly before turning back to the boy.

"What did you want our help for?" Lillie asked impatiently.

For a moment, the boy looked at her. His brown eyes were dark, almost black. He was somewhat pudgy, possessing an awkward bearing that felt as if it belonged to a frame larger than the kid had. Not at all skinny, but it'd be difficult to call him overweight. His cheeks bulged like a baby's, and Lillie would have found it endearing had it belonged to a boy half his age.

"My magby, he..." The boy's eyes glistened, as if he was just about to cry. Instead, Tristan straightened his back and held his head high. "He died. Another trainer killed him in a battle and then stole my tauros. I've only got my emolga now."

"Another trainer killed your pokemon?" Lillie asked, taken aback. She thought back to the battle between Acerola and Ilima, how Ace's dhelmise had nearly torn itself in half to defeat Ilima's snorlax.

"I was… I was weak." Tristan's gaze lowered. "I made the wrong call. It's my own fault, but I… I can't just let it go. I want my revenge, but my emolga is too weak. She can't possibly be enough. My tauros and magby were the strong ones..."

"Then why not go to the police?" Lei stated, clearly dismissive. Lillie grit her teeth, stopping a instinctive, snapping response.

"My brother already did." Tristan shook his head. "Mike said he'd handle it, but… but I don't think he can. He's not that good of a trainer. And mom's too sick to deal with this kind of thing, so she… she doesn't know. There's no point in telling her."

Mike? Lillie shook her head. It couldn't be the same guy.

Lei emitted a low growl, shrugging off her gun. Lillie watched the older girl as she ran one hand through her shoulder-length red hair. She paused, holding back one half of her hair, staring down at Tristan like he was a gnat on a wall. Her upturned sneer, the defiant glint in her eyes… Tristan seemed to shrink in the face of it.

"Why should we help you with anything?" Lei snarled, running her hands slowly along the park bench, each parallel to the other. The motion was slow, reminiscent of an arbok winding up before a strike.

"Lei," Lillie said, surprising herself with the hardness in her tone. Lei turned to her, eyes wide as if caught off guard. Lillie felt her resolve weaken. "L-let's at least hear him out."

Lei stared at Lillie for a long while before hanging her head, waving her hand and falling silent as if giving her permission. Lillie smiled gratefully and turned back to the boy as he sat anxiously in his seat. Lillie nodded at him and he spoke, his speech a stammering, messy mash of words at first.

"It-it-it w-was near Wela National Park, where the main road up the mountain is. There's a bus that will take you up to the summit there, you know? I-I-I was waiting for my brother. He said he was gonna be there, but he was late. I was playing with my magby and these three guys came up. They wanted my magby. One of them kept pressuring me to trade with his zubat, but I didn't want to, so they… they tried to fight me. It was three on one and… and they killed him and then stole my tauros."

"I'm sorry," Lillie said. "What did they look like?"

"They had..." Tristan looked at Lei for a moment. "They had dark tanktops like hers. Really similar designs, actually. And they wore white beanies and… and… they talked really rough, you know? I can't… I don't know how else to describe them. They were Alolan, I guess. Maybe."

"Maybe?" Lillie asked.

"I'm not sure, honestly." Tristan looked at them both, his expression serious. "Will you two help me?"

"Should we?" Lillie whispered to Lei. The other girl leaned against the tree, looking off into the forest surrounding the approved camping zone. She hadn't said much since Tristan told his story, instead folding her arms and withdrawing.

"No. We should just keep heading to the Fire Trial." Lei stared at Lillie, her expression hard. Her bubbly and kind demeanor from this morning had completely faded away, replaced with a roughness that Lillie wholly didn't expect.

"But they killed his magby–"

"Let the police handle it," Lei said firmly. "If they killed Tristan's pokemon, they'll kill yours too. I didn't save you from a fucking bewear just so you can go get stabbed by a bunch of thugs."

"But–"

"Forget about it, Lillie," Lei snapped. "You're just a little girl. There are things out there that are completely beyond you. Even as a trainer, even with pokemon, you can't solve everything."

Lillie stared at the ground between her feet, wringing her hands. Absently, she wondered when she'd started the habit. She felt the raw uncertainty in her chest eating at her. She was powerless, and so was Tristan. But leaving it all to the police…

"Logically, we should leave it to the authorities," Lillie started, raising her head and looking into Lei's eyes. "There's no reason we should help."

"Exactly, so let's–"

"And, logically, there was no reason for you to save me from that bewear," Lillie said, cutting Lei off. "You were in danger too – once that bewear was done mauling me, he would have attacked you. If you had missed two, maybe even one, of those shots, we'd both be dead. You took an enormous risk to yourself when the rational thing was for you to run. How is this any different?"

"'How is this any different?'" Lei repeated, scowling, walking towards Lillie, her expression dark. "Are you an idiot?"

"Maybe." Lillie lifted her head up, keeping her gaze level with Lei's, not looking away no matter how much she wanted to – and god, did she want to. Lei's emerald eyes were like stone, observing her coolly. The other girl's body was tense, as if she was about to lash out at any moment.

After a long moment, Lei's shoulders drooped and the older girl looked away. Lillie released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"They could be dangerous thugs," Lei said finally. "Or they could just be idiot kids that wanted a rare pokemon and didn't think their actions through. But we don't know that for sure. It's stupid to just go charging in. Really, we should just let the police deal with it–"

"And by the time they get out there, take statements, and start an investigation, Tristan's tauros will be dead or the thugs will be gone." Lillie shook her head. "We're already on our way to Wela. We can help him."

Lei exhaled heavily, hanging her head.

"You're gonna be the death of me."

Author's Notes: Sorry for the delay on this chapter. I'm trying to maintain a once-a-week schedule right now, but work has been intense recently and lots of things have been happening. Not too many reviews this time!

UmbranPrince - Yes, I know about Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. I'll probably take a break from writing when they come out so I can beat the game (usually takes me about a week) and I'll see what they change. I'm somewhat worried that it'll be another Black and White 2 (which in my opinion murdered the plot in Black and White), but we'll see. I don't expect there to be too many huge changes, but if they introduce new canon elements I'll take them into account. At least one of the two new ultra beasts is already set to appear at some point in my story.

As for the violence/darkness statement, while I do agree that if a person doesn't like a story then I don't encourage them to keep reading, there is a certain finesse that I want to make sure I achieve. I'm not trying to write Pokemon 40K, and grimdark is certainly not my goal. Because of that, when dark things do occur in my story, I want to keep them grounded. As a result, if feedback is such that a particular action or scene was poorly received, I at least have to investigate to see if it's just personal taste or if there is an objective quality issue going on.

I'm glad that you've been enjoying the story!

I think next chapter will be Gladion. Gladion's chapters are fucking hard to write.