Outsiders (ZnT/Pokémon Reverse Summon)
Season 1, Episode 16, Chapter 6

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Travelling through the vortex was a very strange sensation. One that Louise could only compare to how she arrived on Earth all those months ago. It felt as though she was moving through thick water that pushed and pulled at her in all directions. She couldn't help but hold in her breath, and her chest felt tight as though a weight was pressing down against it. There was a small light in the distance, illuminating them and them along in a vast, purple-tinted void of darkness. That light quickly grew in size and intensity, and soon they found themselves back in the real world.

Both her and Saito slowly turned their heads to stare at each other. At first, none of them said a thing, then Saito muttered, "Well…we're back…"

Louise stared at Saito for a moment, then nodded and said, "So it would seem."

"We are back, right? In the real…our Kalos? We didn't just hop into another Earth, did we?" Saito asked, then he gulped and added, "This isn't a hallucination, is it?"

"I…don't exactly know," Louise admitted. "I think we are back, though."

"That's not very assuring."

"Well, excuse me for not knowing the intricacies of multiversal travel," Louise shot back and huffed. "If it makes you feel any better, I doubt Giratina would go into all that trouble just to put us in the wrong world."

At least, that's what Louise told herself. Like Saito, the uncertainty as to whether or not they actually were back in their Kalos – a phrase that, before today, she would've thought to be pointless – was almost unbearable. It was taking all she had not to completely panic over the implications, but she was finding it hard to do so as time went on. Saito appeared to be in the same boat, and even began to breathe sharply in and out. But, before it could go on for too long, Derflinger slapped them both across the back of their heads with his sash.

"Calm down, both of you," Derflinger ordered, his eye narrowed and focused. "I know you're scared. Believe me, I get it. I'm scared, too, but freaking out about it isn't going to solve anything. So, take a deep breath and cool."

The two trainers stared at Derflinger silently for a moment, then Saito quietly pointed out, "Uh, Derf? It's 'chill,' not 'cool.'"

"I don't care, I'm an old sword stuck in my ways. Chill, cool, doesn't matter," Derflinger flippantly replied. "Point is, I suggest you calm down. We're already out, so panicking now isn't going to solve anything. Okay?"

Both trainers looked at Derflinger then back at each other. A few moments passed, a heavy silence falling over everyone. Then Saito and Louise sighed and closed their eyes, with Louise mentally counting down from ten as she breathed in and out deeply. When she was finished and opened her eyes again, she felt noticeably calmer. There was still a twinge of panic and fear in her, but she was able to keep it down for the most part. She supposed that was all she could do at the moment.

Looking around to see where they landed, Louise saw that they weren't in Reflection Cave. Rather than being surrounded by rocks and crystals, the two trainers and Derflinger found themselves standing on a hillside covered with green grass surrounded by red, blue, and yellow flowers and dark-brown and evergreen trees. In the distance, they could see the faint, orange glow of city lights. Fireflies and nocturnal Pokémon flew around, and with the pale full moon rising high above them, it created an ethereal aura around them. Yet, when compared to what they just witnessed, the scenery appeared very grounded.

Finally, Louise turned her head back to Saito, gulped, and shakingly said, "Let's…let's get out of here."

Saito was silent at first, then he gulped, nodded, and replied, "Yeah…"

With complete and utter silence between them, Saito, Louise, and Derflinger trekked down the mountain towards their destination. Pulling out her red Pokédex, Louise saw that they had emerged on the north side of the mountain, which meant the city they were heading towards was most likely Shalour City. On any other day, she would've been excited and eager to start her next gym challenge as soon as possible, but right now she didn't really have it in her. Neither did Saito, judging by the fact that he was still breathing heavily while looking around nervously, almost as though he was trying to convince himself that he was back in the real world, and was gripping his hoodie tightly. Louise wasn't judging; after all, she was doing the exact same thing.

Eventually, they left the soft grass behind in favor of a dirt trail, one that led directly to a paved road. Guided by streetlamps and neon store sings, the trio made their way towards the Pokémon Center, ignoring anyone walking beside them. Most paid them no heed, most likely assuming they were just another pair of trainers coming down from the mountains who didn't have the best time. Something that must've been an almost daily occurrence. If only they knew what actually went down. Louise barely even noticed the dirt, grime, dust, and more on her clothes, but she did feel a few torn strips of cloth flapping about as she walked and the night wind moved around her. Tomorrow they would clearly have to go clothes shopping, but that seemed so far away at the moment.

When they entered the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy turned to face them with a smile on her face. She announced, "Hello, welcome to the Pokémon Center."

Letting out a tired sigh, Saito replied, "Hello, Nurse Joy. It's…been a long day."

"I can see that," Nurse Joy admitted, letting out a small, amused smile. "Had a rough time coming down the mountains?"

"…Something like that," Saito answered. He then took a breath and asked, "Do you have a room with a shower we can use?"

Nurse Joy happily nodded and gestured towards one of the hallways behind her while saying, "Last door on the right. I'll get you a key."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Louise replied as she took out her Luxury Balls. Saito did the same, and both trainers placed their Pokéballs on separate trays. Derflinger propped himself onto a tray as well, his exhaustion finally catching up to him, and finally Saito handed over his Pokémon Egg. As Nurse Joy handed the two trainers their room key, she took both trays and wheeled them away for treatment.

Watching the nurse go, Saito and Louise turned around and walked back to their room for the night. When they opened it, they saw that there were two small beds with a nightstand between them. Other than a lamp and a small painting of a Pokémon in a colorful field, there wasn't anything noteworthy. Beside the front door was the bathroom, which both trainers couldn't wait to hop into.

"You can take the first shower," Saito offered, and Louise gratefully nodded as she unceremoniously dropped her belongings onto the bed, pulled out her sleepwear, and entered the shower. Feeling the hot water cascade down her skin, she stood there silently to let the dirt and stress be washed away. Louise lost track of time before long, and by the time she finally got out of the shower, dried off, and got changed, Saito had already converted the couch into a pull-out bed complete with sheets and pillows.

Nodding at her, Saito grabbed his things and entered the bathroom, locking the door behind him. Louise sat down on the bed, her legs hanging off as she stared blankly towards the door and pale yellow and red walls. She wasn't particularly staring at anything, and as before time seemed to fly by.

Only then, sitting in silence, did she acknowledge the colors of the wall. Surprised, she looked around the room, spotting her red backpack, bright red covers over white bedsheets, even the painting with its blue sky, red flowers, green grass, and a yellow Pikachu frolicking in them. Louise then quietly stated, "Oh, I can see colors again. That's…good."

Any other time, Louise would've been ecstatic, but right now she didn't really have it in her. She went back to mindlessly staring at nothing, content to sit in silence. Before she even knew it, Saito had stepped out of the shower, his hair still damp even as he walked over to sit across from her on the pull-out bed.

The two trainers silently stared at the other, both unsure of what to say nor what to do. A tense, nearly suffocating silence fell between them, and neither were particularly willing to be the one to break it.

Finally, after what seemed like a few minutes of nothing, Louise finally relented. She let out a sigh, then said, "So, that was…a thing."

"You can say that again," Saito agreed as he groaned and rubbed the back of his head. "Fighting doppelgängers of ourselves, heading into the Distortion World. Meeting Giratina. I mean, I did not expect today to turn out like this."

"If you did, I would have called you crazy," Louise replied. Despite themselves, they couldn't help but let out a smirk and small, mutual chuckle, but before long the gravity of the situation took hold once again. She then asked, "What are we going to do? We have to…tell someone about this, right?"

"Would anyone believe us?" Saito asked. "We just went through it, and I hardly believe it happened."

Louise supposed he had a point, then nodded resolutely and answered, "Professor Sycamore definitely will. He believed me when I said I came from another world right away, so he'll believe this."

Saito thought for a moment, then nodded in acceptance. He then added, "I suppose that Agent Smith dude might believe us, too. He did say people from other worlds falling to Earth isn't that unknown. Hopefully learning about evil versions of ourselves doesn't get him suspicious of us again."

"I wouldn't call them evil," Louise quietly admitted as she rubbed her hands together. "Definitely bad, but not…evil."

"They worked for an interdimensional Team Rocket," Saito pointed out, narrowing his eyes as he pointed at her. "I fail to see how that isn't evil."

"I know, but…" Louise sighed and hung her head, letting her pink hair fall forward. "She helped me. She told me what I needed to know in order to get out of the Distortion World even though doing so didn't help her at all. It would've been better for her to simply leave me there, but she didn't. Don't get me wrong, they and whatever Team Rainbow Rocket is planning needs to be stopped, but, as much as I don't want to admit it…I don't think she's a monster. Or at the very least she doesn't think of herself as one."

Saito stared at her for a moment, then sighed and quietly replied, "Most people don't think of themselves as being bad. Everyone's the hero of their own story, but that doesn't mean they are one."

Louise looked back at Saito, then nodded and said, "I know."

Silence hung over them again, and Louise couldn't help but hug herself tightly. She then admitted, "You want to know the worst part? She told me why she turned out the way she did. The bullying, abandonment, pressures of being a noble unable to cast proper magic in a family and society that demanded otherwise. It was all so damn familiar. The other me went through the exact same Founder-damned thing I did, only she took a different path to resolve it. I wanted to prove myself and earn everyone's respect…but she gave up, and decided she'd settle for fear."

Louise mirthlessly laughed, then declared, "Do you want to know how many times I thought about using my wand on my classmates to make it stop?"

Saito shot a horrified look at Louise, but she continued on before he could say anything.

"More times than I like to admit. Especially by the end," Louise stated. "The worst part out of all of this wasn't that there's a version of me that turned bad. It's that I could easily see myself doing the exact same thing."

Louise looked up at Saito, tears in her eyes. Saito could only look at her, shocked into silence, before he gently moved over to wrap his friend in a hug. She returned the gesture and began to weep into his shoulder. They sat there, Saito comfortingly rubbing her back as she continued to cry, and only when the crying turned into sniffles did they break away.

"Th…thank you, Saito," Louise said, wiping away some tears. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize," Saito insisted. "You have nothing to be sorry about."

Louise looked up at Saito, then warmly smiled. Saito smiled back, then sat beside her on the bed. A comfortable silence slowly fell over them, a sense of security in each other's presence taking route. Yet they knew they weren't done talking about what they went through, and so Saito turned his head to look back at Louise.

"So, those other worlds…" he began, and Louise nodded. She was honestly wondering when one of them would bring them up.

"I'm going to be honest. While I'm far from unfamiliar with the concept of other worlds being a thing, I honestly didn't expect anything near like what we just saw," Louise admitted.

"Yeah," Saito replied, pursing his lips. "The multiverse really is a thing. I mean, I already figured that, but seeing it firsthand is a whole different beast."

"I can't help but wonder if my world is another universe, or if it's simply another planet in this one," Louise admitted. "Before, I honestly thought Terre was in another universe entirely, but now I'm unsure."

Louise then added, "Still, I have to admit. Heading to the Distortion World…while it was terrifying on a fundamental level, it was kind of awe-inspiring, too."

"Yeah," Saito said and nodded. "Heading into the Distortion World, and seeing Giratina? I still can't wrap my head around it."

Louise turned to give Saito and inquisitive look, her eyebrow raised. Seeing this, Saito turned to face her, his eyes going wide.

He then declared, "Giratina a Legendary Pokémon, Louise. Not just a Legendary, but one of the Pokémon responsible for the creation of our world. And we got so close to Giratina, we could practically feel its breath. That's something hardly anyone, ever, gets to experience. Never once in my life did I think I'd ever get to experience it. It's just…amazing…"

The awe and wonder in his voice was clear. To Louise, it sounded like he was describing a religious experience. Given how, from what she could see, Legendary Pokémon were often worshipped by people all around Earth, she could somewhat understand why Saito might feel this way. Even she had to admit seeing Giratina up close was a wonderous, and terrifying, thing to behold. One that she knew she was immensely lucky to witness. For him, it was like meeting the Founder in person.

Louise then slowly nodded and admitted, "Oh yeah, I guess that is a big deal. I didn't think of it that way. Still, seeing those other versions of us, I can't help but think about the what ifs. A lot of them were really interesting, to the point where I wonder what it would've been like if I lived in them. Except for that last one, though. That just looked horrifying, and I pity the people there who have to live through it."

Saito winced, then said, "Yeah, I don't think going through a zombie apocalypse would be fun."

"Based off what my mother has said, I think you'd be right," Louise replied. Saito nodded at her, then looked away for a moment as he pursed his lips.

Collecting his thoughts, Saito slowly asked, "Hey, about the, you know, the—"

"The worlds where I summoned you?" Louise finished for Saito, who quickly nodded. She sighed and shook her head, then admitted, "I told you, I don't know. I don't know who, or what, I was trying to summon. The only thing I do know is that that Arceus interrupted the spell before it could go anywhere. It's how I got here, remember?"

"No, I understand that. It's just…" Saito sighed and rubbed the back of his head, then stated, "I just can't help but think about if you did. Would we still be friends, or—"

"Of course, we would," Louise declared, her tone absolute. "Even if the circumstances of how we met changed, we'd still be friends. I know it."

As Saito looked at Louise, she remained resolute and certain of her conviction. Yet, at the same time, doubts and questions lingered. One in particular pressed against her mind: had she summoned Saito, would she have asked him to be her familiar or would she have gone through with it without his consent? Louise liked to think that she knew the answer, that she wouldn't, but at the same time didn't really know the answer. She was a different person back in Tristain, one who might not have made the same decision she would now. The thought made her sick to her stomach.

Still, the more she thought about it, the more she figured knowing wouldn't really solve anything. At the end of the day, whatever or whoever Louise was trying to summon didn't thanks to Arceus. It didn't matter what could've been. All that did was what had.

While Louise stewed in her thoughts, Saito cheekily smirked and joked, "Well, if you still want to go through with it, I demand fair wages and benefits."

"What?" Louise asked, confused as to what Saito was talking about. Then her eyes widened as she caught on to the meaning, and a flustered blush erupted across her face as she yelled, "What?! No! I don't want you as my familiar!"

"Oh, so now I'm not good enough? I see how it is," Saito quipped and mockingly turned away, only for Louise to hit him in the head with a pillow. He laughed and fell down as Louise glared at him, an embarrassed blush on her face. Not just for what he was trying to imply, but also for what he didn't know about how the familiar was bound to the mage. She tried not to think about it, but as she glared down at his face, she found it hard not to.

"I'm serious, Saito!" Louise declared as Saito continued to laugh, holding her pillow close to her body. As he began to calm down, Louise lowered the pillow and let out a sigh. She then admitted, "Honestly, after everything I've been through, I don't think I need a familiar."

"Hmm?" Saito sat back up, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Why not? I thought familiars were these super important things for your people?"

"They are, but not all mages have them," Louise admitted. She then let out a small smile, then added, "Besides, a familiar is supposed to reveal what type of mage you are and be a lifelong companion. I think I already have both."

Knowing what she was talking about, Saito smiled and nodded. Louise smiled back, then sat back down on the bed and declared, "You know, if there's one thing this entire even has done, it's opened my eyes. For the longest time, I thought that coming to Earth was the worst thing to ever happen to me. I was ripped away from my home, my family, everything I knew was inaccessible. For the first time in my life, I was truly nothing. Yet, now I see the truth. By coming here, to Kalos, to Earth, I've made friends, learned who I am and what I want to be. I've grown stronger than I ever would've back home. I got to meet you. Outside of some…circumstances, I've been happier here than I have back home for years."

Louise turned her head to Saito and boldly declared, "Saito, getting brought against my will to Kalos was the best thing to ever happen to me."

Saito looked at Louise, then smiled. He replied, "I'm happy you feel that way. If you hadn't been brought here, I would've have met you either. Possibly. Could've gone either way, really."

"You're never going to let that go, are you?" Louise dryly asked, narrowing her eyes, and Saito shook his head.

"No, it's just going to be one of those questions that are always there but never really get answered," Saito said. "Like what really happens to us after we die, or why our socks keep disappearing in the dryer. The world may never know."

Louise rolled her eyes, then felt her Pokédex rumble. Realizing that their Pokémon were now fully healed, she and Saito got up and walked towards the door. Neither of them knew what would happen to them next, but if the current leg of their journey has proven anything, it would certainly be exciting. And neither of them would have it any other way.

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Hello, everyone! Here's the latest chapter of Outsiders. Special thanks to Darwin Candidate and Yuri Vampire for their help in bringing this chapter to life.

With that, we now officially end Season 1 of Outsiders. There's a lot more in store for our heroes, and I can't wait to show you guys what's coming.

Now, I have an unfortunate announcement to make. I will no longer be conducting my Q&A sessions after the chapter. They are taking far too much time for me to do, on account of me receiving so many reviews per chapter, which severely delays the posting of the chapter on . By doing this, I can get the chapters out much quicker. That being said, please feel free to PM me any questions you have outside of reviews. I will be happy to answer them there, so long as they are not spoilers.

I hope you guys enjoy, and let us know what you think. See you next time.