We made it back to the southern half of the continent in one piece. I didn't see the Abomasnow ever again. The Froslass didn't speak of it again, either. Things calmed down between her and Konstantin, though, mostly because they realized that they could get more things done when working together.

Ike had been rewarded for his evolution with the TM for Shock Wave, which Nick explained would never, ever miss. Ike could literally have his eyes closed and it would still hit its target--which he demonstrated at once with Konstantin. The ghost hadn't taken kindly to that, of course. But I was sort of excited to have a full-fledged electric Pokemon on the team that I took Ike's side and broke up the fight before it could start.

And, for awhile there, I was happy.

Since I had gotten two badges in such a short time, Nick let me go on a training spree without having to worry about either Crasher Wake or Volkner. I still didn't know which I wanted to challenge, but with Ike's boost in strength and training regimen, I was feeling a little more confident on the water Pokemon front. Not enough to challenge Wake, oh no, but enough to make me feel like I wouldn't die if I challenged him at some point in the far future. Far future.

I got to see another training team of Nick's, and a couple Pokemon in particular he was thinking about challenging the Elite Four with. One of them was a skittish Smeargle named Harlan, and another was an Aerodactyl, Patru. Kamala also returned to the team, which didn't make me or my team very happy. We did our best to be nice to her, though--or at least, we all did save Carlita and Konstantin. They remained openly defiant or even hostile towards her. It made for some awkward meal times.

Nick apologized for Kamala several times, but it didn't make things any better. If anything, they made them worse. Kamala seemed to resent his apologies in her stead, and even I had to admit that after awhile, it started to get annoying. "She's one of the strongest ones I have. I have to get her stronger to take on Cynthia." That seemed to be the staple of his rationale.

Even with that slight problem, things progressed. My team all learned new moves. Des learned Rock Slide and Earth Power, which were both really awesome and devastating moves. I now considered him the tank of my team. Very rarely could a wild Pokemon last more than a move against him anymore. I was insanely proud of him.

Carlita had learned more new fighting moves than I could keep up with. I seriously tried to count them, but it seemed like she got a new one every time I thought I had caught up. I did know that she learned Mind Reader--which, in her claws, was terrifying--and Seed Bomb, though, which was happily another grass move. I'd been almost worried that she had run out of those. Still, she was shaping up to be quite the fighter, and was now could even hold her own against Kamala when they were having a strictly fighting spar.

Ike, too, had made leaps and bounds of progress. He learned Bite and Roar, which he was all too keen on showing off to any wild Pokemon we came across. He still only had two electric moves, Spark and Shock Wave, but he also had Charge, which seemed to power them up, so I wasn't complaining. He could handle himself in a fair amount of the country, too, without needing Des or Carlita to back him up. He was proud of himself, I could tell, but I was also proud of him for the fact that he was fighting with the team less. And he didn't attack any of us all that much anymore.

As for Konstantin--well, he wasn't technically mine. I knew he and the Froslass had taken to talking to each other and sharing ghost-y secrets with each other, so I assumed he was making progress, too. I occasionally saw him cart off a smaller wild Pokemon to eat (and caught Ike staring wistfully after him) and wondered vaguely if he was getting any experience from that.

Our team was evolving as a whole. Des as a Camerupt and Ike as a Luxio were some pretty big changes, especially in Des' case, but we got used to it. Carlita didn't pick on Ike so much anymore now that he was shoulder-height to her. Des seemed to fully accept him and even licked him on top of the head occasionally. Carlita had taken to riding on Des' back, squealing with joy as he sort of sauntered awkwardly down the path. Once, even, Ike had joined her and it had been the first real team thing they'd ever done together without me making them.

I was still light years from catching up with Nick and his team, however. We all knew that, too. We watched him practice with his team every day, after all, and saw what they were capable of. Chase was an absolute fiend in battle and had an array of moves that I actually had a nightmare about once. Kamala was just as bad, with both hard-hitting fighting moves and powerful psychic moves to draw from. Patru, while not as strong or fast as Chase, mastered the skies like no one's business and often smacked birds out of the air with his tail in mid-flight. For a living fossil, he was fast. I very rarely got to see Harlan do much, but she had a sort of quiet, scary air to her, so I wasn't sure I wanted to. She seemed shifty, or like she was hiding something--or like she had seen something that had terrified her and kept her terrified to that day.

"Hey, my brother got his second badge! He's making much better time than you did," Nick said cheerfully.

"Don't rub it in."

"If he beats Crasher Wake before you do…"

"So what if he does?" I asked evasively. "I don't care." Actually, I sort of did that a ten-year-old was already a third to where I was.

"If he passes you, I'm disowning you."

"You don't own me."

"Considering how much force I had to invest to get those badges for you? I think I do."

"…Not-uh."

"Yeah-huh. Or do you think you could get one on your own--?"

"Don't start that." He'd roped me into too many challenges with that approach and I would not fall for it any longer. I turned back to where I was trying to learn how to kick from Carlita. She thought it absolutely hilarious to try to teach her trainer how to fight, and for some reason I had just gone along with her.

And aside from random comments like that and updates on his brother's status, Nick and I lived companionably on our training journey. Like I said--for awhile, I was happy.

-.-.-

We had circled back around to Pastoria because Nick claimed he wanted to catch something from the Great Marsh. I knew why we were there, though, and I stubbornly refused to leave the Pokemon Center. That night, however, changed my mind about it.

I blinked blearily as I awoke to an empty Center. I looked around for Nick, but the lobby was empty. Wait--hadn't I fallen asleep in my room? Where was Nick? Where were my Pokemon? Now considerably more awake, I stood up and looked around frantically for anyone. "Hello? Anyone here?"

"I'm here." I whirled around and saw a girl with tan skin and pink hair reclining languidly on the couch. She had her bare feet propped up on the table and her hair fell low over her eyes.

"Who are you?"

"You don't remember me?" she asked, tilting her head back and staring at me with unnaturally wide eyes. "That's sad. I'm hurt. I'm the goddess of love, remember?"

Dim pictures of the girl laughing hysterically, saying something about Froslass, saying something about Froslass' trainer… They came back, barely. I squinted at her. "But who are you?"

"Maybe one day you'll really find out." She stood up lightly on her toes in one, fluid motion. The pink cloak around her shoulders rustled slightly as she pulled her arms free of the fabric. She clapped her hands together and chuckled, looking me up and down. "So then. Have you seen that Froslass lately?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes. It does. Very much." She smiled, forced and sharp. I backed up reflexively. "Have you?"

"No."

"You're lying."

"If you already knew the answer, why did you bother asking me?" I snapped, backing up another step.

The girl with the big eyes took a step towards me, still smiling. I was beginning to think this would turn into a nightmare--when it got worse.

A boy in a dark grey version of the girl's cloak suddenly appeared from nowhere, literally tumbling onto the scene. He got back to his feet unsteadily, unsure of how to keep his balance. The girl screeched and before I could get a good look at his face, or listen to what he was muttering about, I woke up. I was back in my room, safe on my top bunk, though a little shaken.

Then I realized that I really didn't want to know what the dream had meant. I wish all of the intruders in my dreamscape would go away and let me have normal dreams again. I gave up trying to get any more sleep that night and carefully slid down from the top bunk, hoping I didn't wake Nick. He snored loudly and rolled over, so I figured I was safe. I took my phone and scribbled out a note by its light for him if he woke up before I got back.

I didn't take my team with me and let them sleep in their balls instead.

Just as I was closing the door, I heard a, "Dus?" I nearly jumped out of my skin, though I managed not to make a sound. Taking a deep breath to try to regulate my heartbeat again, I turned around to face him.

"What, Kostya?"

"Dus?" he repeated. I rolled my eyes and walked around him. The lobby was eerily empty, just like my dream. I ignored that, though, and instead went outside. It was cool, and I almost wished I'd brought a jacket with me. The eastern sky was just barely starting to get light. I checked my phone. Four thirty-nine in the morning.

Konstantin appeared once more by my side, holding up the jacket I'd neglected to take with me. I nodded in thanks and put it on, immediately grateful. "…It's quiet out here," I said softly, relishing the silence of the pre-dawn.

"COME ON! You call that a run! I can run twice as fast as that blindfolded with my arms tied behind my back and hopping on one leg!"

Konstantin and I both winced from the loud shout and the yelling. We peeked out from the doorway at who was yelling. We barely reeled back in time as Crasher Wake and a large, orange weasel sprinted past. I paled at the sight of the Gym leader. I had never expected to see him outside of the Gym…

Unfortunately, it seemed as if they had noticed us, for they doubled back. I shrunk back and tried to hide behind Konstantin. Crasher Wake ran up to us, and, still jogging in place with his orange Pokemon behind him, exclaimed, "Hey! Are you another early riser out here for a workout?"

"Um--no--"

"WAIT A SECOND--I know you!" The man stopped his jog and, panting slightly, leaned in with his hands on his hips. His Pokemon mimicked him. "You challenged me before, didn't you?" He sounded a bit more normal when he wasn't raising his voice so much.

"Uh, yeah, I did…" I admitted, still trying to hide behind Konstantin. It didn't work very well, though, especially after he disappeared and reappeared beside me. I glared at him for the betrayal. "A-Awhile ago…"

"Ahaha, I knew it! I never forget a challenger, especially not one as fun as yours! You were tied up last time, weren't you? Are you here to challenge me again? Are we going to battle without arms again? That sounds like a real challenge!"

"Actually, I'm not--"

"Why not? Given up on training, have you?!" He leaned in again suspiciously, narrowing his eyes at me. I shook my head fervently.

"No! I have--I mean, I'm still training!" After managing to get six, I was proud of them. And I totally meant to get all eight. I had not given up on training, and found it a little insulting to be asked that. As a team, we had been making so much progress, too! "I have six badges!"

Crasher Wake leaned back. He looked completely, utterly nonplussed. The orange Pokemon behind him once again mirrored his expression. "…Six? But… I'm the fourth Gym leader."

"…Yeah…" I suddenly wanted dearly to go back inside.

"Why have you skipped my Gym?! Are you that intimidated by my fearsome team?!" Just like that, abrasive Wake was back. He laughed and placed his fists on his hips. He didn't bother waiting for an answer. "I will not allow this to go on! It has been such a long time--No! This must be the first time ever that I, Crasher Wake, will have challenged a trainer with six badges! This will be an epic challenge! You, be at my Gym at noon today! I will accept nothing less!"

With that, I was left cowering in the doorway of the Center with an appointment to challenge Crasher Wake at noon. Yeah, the happy time didn't last very long.