It had been just under two weeks since Leon had gone off to wherever he was, and Hiki hadn't once left their apartment, much less moved from the couch. She hadn't even taken any of her Pokemon out of their Pokeballs, aside from Ninetales, who stayed loyally by her trainer's side, giving her comfort in any way she could, and worried about her just as much as any of her friends had been.
Leon leaving so suddenly really brought Hiki down and the fact that he hadn't once called, texted her, or responded to any of her attempts at contacting him really made her fear the worst. Between thinking their relationship was over, to worrying that something bad had happened to him while he was away, her mind wouldn't stop racing.
Just about every day, Raihan let himself into the apartment after finishing up his duties in the gym to bring her food, knowing she was hardly doing anything to take care of herself. He was the only one she was willing to let in while she was feeling the way she was, and he was thankful she trusted him enough. Of course, even with how angry he was with Leon for running off without telling anyone, he was worried just like she was, only he kept most of that inside.
Hiki was curled up in a blanket at one end of the couch when he arrived as Ninetales met him at the door. He pat the fox on the head and made his way to the living room, placing a bag of food on the coffee table in front of her. "Dinner's here!" he told her, trying to sound somewhat cheerful. "I got your favorite, this time!" Of course, he had to call Melony to find out what that even was, but it didn't bother him.
"Not hungry…" she mumbled before rolling over to face the back of the couch.
"Well I'm not leaving here until you eat, so unless you want me here bugging you all night, it would probably be a good idea to try anyway."
No response.
"Alright, guess we are going to have to do this the hard way." Without warning, he grabbed the blanket she was using and yanked it off of her.
Hiki groaned and sat up, glaring at him. "Rai, give it back, I'm cold…"
He draped the blanket over his shoulder and picked the bag of food up again. "You might warm up if you eat a hot meal, you know."
It didn't take much for him to talk her into doing the things she needed to do. She was completely aware that he would pester her to no end if she didn't. She sighed and reached out her hand for him to hand her the bag and she ate quietly.
"Have you tried getting up and moving around at all today?" he asked her, taking a seat next to her on the couch.
She simply shook her head while chewing her food.
Seeing her from this angle, he noticed her eyes were puffy, which meant she had been crying again. He knew it was best if he didn't ask about it, because that usually only made her start again. "It's really nice out today, want to go to the Wild Area?"
"Probably not…" she responded before taking another bite.
It wasn't a definite no. Maybe today was the day he would finally get somewhere. "Let's not go for your sake, then. Let's go for your Pokemon! They haven't had any fresh air in over a week."
That was true… She knew it wasn't fair to keep them cooped up just because she wasn't feeling her best. Giving him another wordless response, she nodded in agreement.
"Good," he said with a relieved smile. "You finish eating and I'll pack up your backpack, alright?"
Any other day, Raihan would have simply flown to the Wild Area on his Flygon, but due to Hiki's current state of mind, he knew she would be more comfortable taking a Corviknight Taxi. The entire flight, she sat in silence and stared out the window. She didn't do a whole lot to get herself ready for this outing. She just put on a hoodie and sweats and threw her hair up in a ponytail.
She really didn't pay much attention to where in the Wild Area they had gone. She was here to let her Pokemon run around and that was it. Raihan was thoughtful enough to bring her to an area that had a lake, so her Lapras could swim around. Hiki sat in the grass, holding her knees close to her chest as she watched her Pokemon play with some of Raihan's. All but one, that is. Her Ninetales stayed right by her side, even when Raihan reassured her that she could go off and play too, that he would keep an eye on Hiki for her, but the Pokemon sat still.
"Alright… How about I try to find us some ingredients to make curry?" Knowing Hiki would probably try to push back about not wanting to eat, he continued. "Ya know, for the Pokemon."
Hiki shrugged. "I'm sure they would be happy if you did." She actually didn't seem to have as much of a negative attitude when she spoke. He wondered if getting out of that apartment and giving her a change in atmosphere was really what she needed.
"Then I'll be back. If you need me for anything, just call, okay? I won't go far." he told her, holding up his Rotom phone as he said this.
She nodded and went back to watching their Pokemon run and fly around, while resting against her Ninetales. Her fur was always so soft, like a cloud… She reached up and started mindlessly petting at the fur on her chest, feeling calm as she did this. Her Pokemon really seemed happy to be out and interacting with other Pokemon, so in a way, that made her feel somewhat better.
Her concentration broke, however, when she realized she heard a man shouting not too far from where she was sitting. She raised her head from where it had been resting on her Ninetales and she saw a trainer with a Sylveon… and he was yelling at it. She tried to tell herself to mind her own business, but then she saw something she couldn't possibly ignore. From what she could understand, the trainer was upset with the Pokemon for evolving into the wrong type of Pokemon and he was trying to leave it behind. The Sylveon didn't quite understand and tried to follow him anyway, affectionately rubbing against the man's leg… until he kicked it and shouted at it to get out of his sight.
Without a second thought, Hiki quickly stood and ran over to the Pokemon, checking to make sure it was okay. "You poor thing… Are you hurt?" Her Ninetales had followed along and stood, guarding the Pokemon as her trainer got up and faced the man, anger and many other emotions filling her eyes. "You… You should be ashamed of yourself! That's no way to treat a Pokemon!" she yelled, storming over to him.
"Why don't you mind your own business, kid? This doesn't concern you." He turned around and stared her down. If it wasn't for the fact that she was dressed the way she was, the man might have recognized her as the Champion… well, former Champion's girlfriend, which may have even made a difference in how he was speaking to her, but that was not the case.
She clenched her fists at her sides, her anger growing. "It does when I see an innocent Pokemon get hurt! Especially by someone it loves!" Oh… She felt herself choke on those words. Her emotions were starting to resurface right alongside that anger. But she couldn't let her own pain stop her from standing up for that Pokemon. "You don't deserve to call yourself a Pokemon Trainer!"
"What did you just say?" the man responded, angrily. He raised an arm to her, catching Hiki off guard. Was he about to hit her? But for some reason, he froze, staring behind her with a bit of a shocked expression on his face.
Just as Hiki was about to question it, she felt a hand gripping her shoulder. Startled, she looked to see Raihan behind her, looking down at the man with an intense glare that would have made even Eternatus run for the hills! Gently, he pulled Hiki to stand behind him as he dealt with this guy himself.
"You know… Pokemon aren't naturally useless. Every single one has the potential to be great." The Gym Leader stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jacket as he stepped closer to the other trainer, who recognized him, knowing very well not only his position in the League, but also his strength, and slowly backed away as he spoke. "It's our responsibility as trainers to help our Pokemon realize that potential. So if you see one of your own Pokemon as useless, well… that just means you're a useless trainer."
Hiki knelt back down to Sylveon, petting it gently. The trainer kicked it pretty hard before, so it was bound to have a bruise… if not worse. She was listening to everything Raihan was saying to him as she cared for the Pokemon. "He's right, you know," she told it, softly. "I can see you have a lot of potential. You're not useless at all…"
Raihan continued, backing the man into a tree. "You understand how Sylveon evolve, I'm sure. It happens when an Eevee grows affectionate toward their trainer. Your Pokemon evolved out of love… for you. And you were willing to just throw it away for that very reason. It's disgusting…" He shook his head. "You know, anything that could love someone like you must be pretty strong in my opinion. Really, you don't deserve it. Sylveon is going to be a lot better off now." Especially in Hiki's care. He knew her well enough to know that Pokemon already had a place in her heart.
He looked back to see Hiki holding out her hands while her Ninetales formed some ice with her breath. Hiki took that clump of ice and wrapped it in a small towel she had in her bag and placed it gently on Sylveon's injury. "That should help. We will get you to a Pokemon Center as soon as we can, okay?"
At some point during all of the commotion, Hiki and Raihan's Pokemon caught on to the trouble, three of them coming to Raihan's aid. His Flygon, Goodra, and Hiki's Dragapult were behind him, all ready to battle if they were needed, while the rest of the Pokemon were at Hiki's side. The Pokemon were smarter than most would think. The particular group who chose to assist him knew exactly what they were doing by grouping together, and it made the Dragon Tamer proud. He chuckled, turning his attention back to the trainer, who was certainly intimidated at this point. "It's kind of funny, you know? If that Sylveon were still at your side, you'd be the one with the upper hand."
The man scoffed and ran off. "Oh well, good riddance," Raihan said. He was almost certain he was going to find some article at some point, claiming he attacked some trainer in the Wild Area, even if he never would have actually allowed the Pokemon to hurt the man. That wasn't the kind of trainer he was. But… it was worth it to see the look on his face. Raihan couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
He walked back over to Hiki and Sylveon, kneeling down to their level. "You're going to be in much better hands now, I can promise you that. My friend here loves all Pokemon."
Upon hearing his words, Hiki… smiled… For the first time in weeks, she actually, genuinely smiled. It was enough to bring a tear to the eye of the strongest Gym Leader in all of Galar. What a relief…
"I think we need to get her to a Pokemon Center. We can treat all of the Pokemon to curry after we get Sylveon taken care of," Hiki said, pulling a ball from her backpack. It was a Heal Ball. "Would… it be okay if I asked you to stay with me, Sylveon? I'd say… you and I both need each other right now."
Sylveon rested her head in Hiki's lap and made a sound of consent before nuzzling her face against her new trainer. Hiki gently tapped the Heal Ball on Sylveon's head and she went inside. Usually, if a Pokemon already belonged to another trainer, it would break out of a ball owned by another, but it was clear that this Pokemon no longer accepted the other as her trainer as the ball began to shake, rather than bursting open. When the ball clicked shut, Hiki felt tears start to stream down her face as she held the object close to her.
Raihan placed his hand on her back, letting her sob. "I'm really proud of you, Hiki…" He knew he shouldn't say this part out loud, but he wanted to tell her that he knew Leon would be too. He decided it was best to keep that to himself… though, he was sure she knew it to be true deep down. "Now come on, let's get her to the Center."