"We're thinking of getting ready to fly again, Dawn," Kenny informed me. After sharing stories in Sendoff Spring, I felt a lot closer to him; there's something about storytelling that binds people together.

I nodded. "Okay. Just give me a few minutes."

"Sure." Kenny walked over to the Champions. Steven had an arm around Cynthia's waist, but the two adults smiled when they saw Kenny. Steven Stone helped Kenny put a harness on Staraptor to help with flying.

I stood at the top of the gently flowing waterfall. The streaming water was thin enough that I could hear voices in the nook below me.

"I take it you'll be heading to Oreburgh City?" Ace asked, his voice timid.

"Mhm," Riley acknowledged, quiet. "Sorry I can't come with you and the others to Hearthome City."

"It's no big deal, Riley. Fixing that Poké Ball and rescuing the Pokémon inside is more important."

"Mhm. To be honest, though, I'm not sure if Roark and Byron can fix it."

I shivered.

"But you have to try."

"Of course I'll try, Ace." Riley sighed. "I'm sorry I can't be your opponent in the exhibition rematch—but I think it was meant to be like this. Things will work out for you; Lucario and I know it."

"I don't know," Ace admitted, "if I'm cut out to be a gym leader. I mean, I ran away, leaving Paul to deal with my mess. Unlike me, he can actually say no to all those challengers."

"You ought to have more confidence in yourself, my friend. Facing Uxie's trial showed your competence as a Gym Leader more than any exhibition battle would."

My own trials in the Distortion World had come from Mesprit and Azelf—and Cynthia had helped me solve Mesprit's riddle. From what it sounded like, most of the others had also worked together to overcome our hurdles, except for Kenny, who might have been alone for most of our time in Primal Giratina's realm.

"Hey, Riley?"

"Yes?"

"When you become Gym Leader of Canalave City," Ace said, referring to Byron's offer for Riley to succeed him as Sinnoh's steel type specialist, "what kind of Gym Leader do you think you'll be?"

I thought of the Gym Leaders I'd met on my journey with Ash, some of which I'd gotten to reunite with recently. Somehow, I couldn't imagine Riley having Gardenia's enthusiasm or Maylene's mischievous friendliness—but that wouldn't make him any less of a Gym Leader. He's reliable, kind, and stays calm even in a crisis. In fact, he reminds me of—

"I think," Riley replied, "I'd want to be a Gym Leader like you, Ace."

I smiled. Kenny returned to join me at the edge of the waterfall again. I glanced at him and put my finger to my lips.

Below us, Riley asked, "Do you have a plan for when you get back to Hearthome City?"

"I do, actually." For the first time since the exhibition battle, Ace sounded confident.

Kenny waggled his eyebrows at me. Eavesdropping, Deedee?

I stuck my tongue out at him. We headed to the flock of flying Pokémon, ready to fly west. Riley and Corviknight would accompany us to Hearthome City but keep going to reach Oreburgh as soon as possible. Cheryl rode Togekiss, sitting comfortably and braiding her long, green hair. Conway and Sigilyph aimlessly circled around the flock. Like a real flock of bird Pokémon, we switched leaders frequently: as the strongest flying types, Talonflame, Braviary, Staraptor, and Crobat took turns leading the flock. Corviknight and Skarmory flanked the formation, their bulk shielding us from winds from the side. Noivern took the rear to create a tailwind that accelerated us onward. This was our strongest formation, protecting Togekiss and Cheryl in the center, though we mixed things around for fun. The wildest version of our formation was when we let Aaron take the lead. Noivern was good at flying, but Aaron's terrible sense of direction almost turned us south toward Lake Valor.

Ahead, the steeple of Hearthome's cathedral punctured the clouds, serving as a beacon for us. "This," Riley said, currently leading the flock, "is where we part ways. We will see each other again, friends, if it is meant to be."

"It is meant to be," I retorted. "We're not done yet, Riley. I promised to return to the Distortion World someday to save Cyrus."

"You're right. And I wish to have a rematch with you, Dawn, on behalf of Lucario and Corviknight."

Ace urged Crobat forward to take Corviknight's place as the future Gym Leader of Canalave City banked left, angling south to avoid flying over the peak of Mount Coronet. Kenny brought Staraptor close to Talonflame. Both of Ash's Pokémon tucked their wings in to avoid flapping into each other. I wondered if Ash had ever battled with them together; the aerial combinations these two flying aces could pull off were almost infinite.

"Hi, Dawn."

"Hi, Kenny."

"I feel like I missed a lot after we split up back in Eterna City."

I grinned. "Quilava evolved."

"What?! Aw man, I can't believe I missed that!"

Giggling, I pulled ahead. Crobat kept the lead until we arrived at Hearthome City and landed in a light run on the gold-patterned ground. Passersby gawked at us and then burst into rapturous applause. Conway and Kenny helped Cheryl off Togekiss before I returned my Pokémon to her Poké Ball. Aaron held up the three Poké Balls containing the flying Pokémon we'd borrowed from Ash. "I guess we'll be returning these."

Kenny pouted. "I just got used to flying with Staraptor."

Aaron ruffled the younger boy's hair. "You're a Sinnoh trainer, yeah? Go catch a Starly and raise your own mighty Staraptor, Kenny."

"You know, Aaron, I just might. If I learned anything on this adventure, it's how important it is to have a flying Pokémon."

I walked over to Ace. "So what's the plan?"

Ace smiled and began heading toward his gym. "First, I want to check on Paul."

I nodded, resisting the urge to scowl. Focusing on how Paul took on Ace's burden by staying behind helped me feel a twinge of compassion toward Ash's former rival. "He might be feeling overwhelmed."

"No, I'm worried he and Electivire wrecked my gym and terrorized my future challengers. Think of all the Ursaring complaints these citizens might have filed! Officer Jenny will hound me and Paul for this. And speaking of Officer Jenny, I want to explain the situation to her myself."

"I'm sure she'll understand."

We gave a wide berth around the crowd swarming the Hearthome City Gym. An Ursaring roared and ran at the reporters and prospective challengers, scattering them. Ace smirked at me and raised an eyebrow. You think?

"Or not," I conceded.

Ace laughed. "It'll work out. Things always work out. 'No worries,' right?"

"You got it."

"What about you, Dawn? Any plans in Hearthome?"

I looked past Ace's gym, at the eastern gate to Amity Square. "Definitely."