Further within the kingdom, the farmland that stretched around us in the outskirts has given away to private gardens in close, if still spacious, neighborhoods. Few of the dusty roads are replaced with pavement or cobblestone though until we reach a wide, scattered hub of small shops. This is supposed to be the kingdom's center, according to Zen, but it all still looks pretty rural.

It's another sunny day, with plenty of people busily coming and going from place to place. I lose count of how many gyms and dojos we pass by: There's probably one, small training hall for each fighting style or discipline. The rest of the businesses we see aren't nearly as centralized and almost all of them look independently run. I can't recognize any of their names beyond a single Pokemon Center, and even then, it looks different to match the rest of the kingdom's aesthetic.

Zen seems proud to show it all off. We tail right behind him as he points out various spots from a family-owned café my mother used to love to a store dedicated entirely to stones. I take a peek at its display as we walk by, noting the wide variety. There's even a Coronet Rock, which may be nothing special here, but is practically unheard of in the insolated regions outside of the Grass Continent's rare finds.

"We have a couple of mines connected to Sinnoh's main underground," the Lucario explains, "And there's plenty of good materials to look for in the nearby mountains. Lots of rare stones are traded here."

Croagunk would have a field day… While the Poison-type specializes in identifying all sorts of items, he'd still probably have his work cut out for him sorting through the mass of rocks and gems we see now. As for me, as we stare at them a moment longer before continuing on our way, I wonder if there are any that would respond to our aura.

I think back on the crystal that Azelf sent with her message. In Rota, there were also crystals aura users could use, but to communicate with each other in real-time over long distances. Something like that might be worth looking into while we're here. Beyond how a rare stone might boost our abilities, learning about them might also put us ahead of other exploration teams. It could open up a new variety of resources for us that haven't even been discovered in the Grass Continent.

"Wasn't your dad a miner, Lira?" Ri asks, intentionally dragging me into the conversation. Right, better not to get distracted despite how much I'd rather be thinking of anywhere else but our destination. "Maybe your parents bonded over stones."

He's wrong though, "My dad doubled as a firefighter and Pokemon tutor." At first, I don't know where the confusion comes from, but then I remember some of the photos I managed to collect of my parents. What few there were of my dad's childhood, a lot of them were taken in a dusty, valley-like place. Thinking harder, I do remember some of the people in them dressed in simple work clothes and helmets: Miners. Not all of the pictures came with labels, but could they also have been members of my family?

I'm reminded of something else too. My grandfather's disgusted voice echoes in my mind, "Why you even talk to her, I'll never know—she can't take a day out of her schedule now to come back here to face us! Probably harder on her now that she's married to some half-brained miner digging circles in an empty ditch in Hoenn—!"

It takes some effort not to let my emotions show, keeping my ears upright and my aura from letting off too much. So what if my dad had been a miner or came from them? Did my grandfather really hate the idea of mom marrying him that much? When his very neighbors are in the same field?! It's such a small thing, and maybe it isn't even the real issue, but it somehow irks me.

I don't know anymore about my grandfather than he probably knew about my dad, the way he distanced himself from us, but from what little I've experienced, he isn't someone I want to give a chance. And still, here I am, walking straight into the Pyroar's den.

"Just as well. Iliana isn't that big fan of rocks anyway," Zen pipes in, "The only place where she'd bury herself in the dirt is a garden."

We turn onto a familiar street that becomes less and less crowded the further we get away from the main hub. Here, the buildings are more distanced apart and have bigger yards between them. It isn't long before small patches of wilderness and the dirt paths from earlier return. An old pick-up truck passes between us an a few acres of pasture.

We walk for another solid fifteen minutes before I fully realize that this is a path I've taken once before, if at a different time and through another's eyes. Aside from the clarity of day replacing the shadows of the night, nothing's really changed from when I saw this road in my vision of Darkrai. We pass the same houses he inspected as he searched for me, and come to the same, several rows of berries where he made his last stop.

I didn't have a chance to inspect the exterior the first time, but I still know it's their home… Zen speeds up a bit to hop onto the short deck in front, proudly turning back to show it off, "This is the place!"

I've already stopped. The design of the house is pretty much the same as the others in the kingdom. It's only one story, with a small attic and a side turret connecting the two. There isn't much in terms of decoration: Just a couple of plain, potted plants; the kingdom's flag; and some stepping stones leading to a worn doormat. The grass has been neatly cut recently though, and the ripened berry bushes next to the home look enough like sparkling jewels to be their own décor. One of the three wooden deck posts is cracked and needs repair.

I can't look inside. Beyond the pressure of being here, that vision keeps playing back to me in my mind. I'm still not ready: I don't think I want to be here—I'm not wanted here! Even Ri though is now walking ahead of me, only looking back to offer his hand like a lifeline when I'm too distressed to follow.

What am I supposed to do?

"You're like a newborn pup in some ways," Zen snorts good-naturedly, bringing my focus back to him. He crosses his arms over his chest, "You can't mask your signature at all, can you? Everything you feel pours out from you."

I wince, wondering just how much he already could've picked up on. Thankfully, he doesn't ask any questions.

"I can teach you how to manage it later. For now, your friend and I can probably use our auras to cover yours, so don't worry. Thalia has some ability as an empath, but neither of them had as strong an aura as your mom's. So long as we're careful, they won't notice a thing until you want them to."

I hadn't even started thinking about that problem! If they sense something familiar to Iliana in me like he did, there's no telling how they'd react! Zen's plan and casual expression, combined with my partner's reassurance, does give me some comfort though. I shake my head at Ri's offer with a soft grin, steeling myself to move forward without needing someone to drag me across the yard. Stepping close to the deck, I feel their auras overlap mine.

It's surprising. For the most part with Zen, all I feel is a strong sense of presence, like he couldn't hide himself if he tried. With Ri, it's like I can almost feel everything: his curiosity, his excitement to be here, his nervousness for me… It's as if someone turned a valve and released all of his emotions in one wave. No, more than that, if I leaned into the feeling, I swear I could feel the very beat of his heart just as easily as if I were to place my head to his chest. He looks bashful, reining it back a bit.

Before I can get over my shock, Zen opens the door and lets himself in, beckoning us to follow. We shuffle through and at last I find myself standing in a room I'd only seen through the frame of a window and lit only by the flickering glow of a television set.

Which sits beside me—turned off for now. We're in the living room. It's not very big, with barely enough room for a side table between the armchair and sofa opposite of us. A dark blue-green rug blankets the wood floor. On the far side is a stone fireplace lined with photos and small figures on the mantle, and in the corner beside it stands a low, three-tier shelf with different odds and ends stacked on. The only noise we hear comes from the quiet hiss of steam spouting from a boiling pot in the kitchen only a few steps away.

As surreal as it is for me, Ri's intrigued. He looks around the small room just as he would at any of the other, far more impressive places we've been on our adventures. Zen calls out to let anyone there know we came in. I stay back, not wanting to touch anything. The rush of autumn air suddenly cut from behind me when the door is shut feels incredibly final.

"Glad you're home, Zen!" a woman's voice shouts, making me freeze, "I need someone to pick some more Cornn berries so I can keep canning. Do you think you could collect a bucket or two of them for me?"

A slim figure turns around the kitchen doorway, wiping her hands on her apron. Her head down, all we can see of the human woman at first is her messy, low bun of chestnut hair. When she looks up—green eyes widening in surprise by the unexpected company—I'm rattled to find that her face is an older, thinner version of my mom's. That face is terrifyingly familiar, but the soul behind that visage is a total stranger: Without a doubt, Thalia, my grandmother.

I think I can stand her a little more than my grandfather, and I'm at least glad that she's the first of the two we've met. She never stepped into my life, but she stayed in contact with my mom up to when she was pregnant with me. For a while, she cared enough to cry over us.

For now though, she just stares, then slowly beams like the countless other people Ri and I have come across who just see a pair of cute puppies. Her voice dips sweetly as she fawns, "Well, hello there! Where did you come from? Zen, you rarely bring over anyone. Are they new Pokemon from the guard's trainees?"

"Not exactly…"

Before he can find a subtle way to explain or a suitable lie—whether she could fully decipher his words or not—she raises back up to give him a mild, scolding glance, "And what's with your aura? It's like you're trying to assert dominance: It's no wonder they look nervous."

Moving closer, Thalia reaches into her apron pocket and pulls out a pair of blue poffins sprinkled in pink. She kneels down to hold one each out to Ri and me, but while my partner happily accepts the offering, I hesitate. In the end, I only take it to keep appearances.

The treat in my hands stays uneaten. Everything about this long-dreaded moment has my stomach reeling. This scene, this smiling—if tired—person in front of me, is completely different from the screaming, sobbing woman in my vision. Worse, watching her like this—dressed the same way, doing the same work—is like seeing my mom again.

If I were in my original body, would she think the same? Before my jump through time, I shared their dark hair and green eyes. Even without aura, would she have been able to look at me and know immediately that we were family? Would it rattle her the same way it's hurting me now?

"What a unique coat…" Just my luck, her gaze is focused on me with intense curiosity. My appearance might not be familiar to her, but it's abnormal enough to keep her attention. She reaches out tentatively to try to brush my fur. I step back, ducking behind Zen.

Covering for me, Zen places a hand on my back and gives my grandmother a pacifying look, "She's just shy around humans."

Thalia takes the rejection well enough, her expression soon turning to one of sympathy before she instead turns to my partner to give him a light scratch behind the ears. I'll admit, there's a part of me that's a little jealous over how much better he's handling everything. At this rate, whether they're helping mask my aura or not, my reactions will give something away.

The Lucario again takes the lead of the situation, stepping around our group in a way that makes me move closer to Ri while he grabs a pair of berry-stained buckets from beside the wall. "I'll get right to work! Better to do it now while there's still plenty of daylight."

Thalia understands him well enough to answer him with a nod, then turns back to us, "Maybe your friends can pitch in. What do you think, Riolu? If you both help out, I promise there'll be plenty of treats to share!"

We don't need much convincing. Ri's glad to help and I'm already glad for a breather. There's a side door through the kitchen that leads back outside. As we walk out, I finally pop the poffin into my mouth to leave my hands free. It's tasty, with a light, sweet flavor and a delicate crunch. Nevertheless, there's something about it that burns my throat before I can even swallow.

Split between the three of us and thanks partly to a cool, dry wind, the work isn't hard. The repeated actions allow me to meditate on things and my chest starts to feel a little lighter.

I can picture my mom doing these same chores, working this same field. Maybe she enjoyed this same mountain air. There's a tire swing not far from the house tied by a rope that looks like it could break with the slightest tug. Maybe she played on that as a young girl. The fact that I'm really here, surrounded by all these imagined memories, is incredible.

Here is part of the family I've looked for for so long and to them, I don't even exist. Their daughter left and I'm just a piece of a future they're going to cut off with her. I'd laugh if it wasn't so wrong.

Mom, what made you leave to start with? The Lucario Kingdom is a beautiful place and we've met enough kind people here. It's an aura user's paradise, but you even left Zen behind. Are your parents really so awful or were you simply that desperate to strike out on your own?

Only an hour passes by the time we finish our task. We even have time pick some Watmel berries that would start to rot if they were left on the ground any longer. Leaving the rest of the work to my grandmother from there, we drop them off on the kitchen table and are left to ourselves. From there, Zen takes us down the home's narrow hall to the one spot I've wanted to see most.

The bedroom we enter is extraordinarily tidy, as though it were something out of an exhibit. Books and long-untouched toys sit on shelves. In the corner sits a wooden swords and other training weapons, and along the wall near the entrance is a computer table with its devices unplugged. A poster mapping out Sinnoh sits above a low platform bed that's been neatly tucked—a Togepi and Baltoy doll rest on top of the pillows—and above that is a smaller loft bed that seems to be the only one of the two left with an owner.

I know it before Zen tells us that this room was hers…

Ri steps close to me from behind, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. Looking back at the Lucario, he asks, "Would it be ok if we had a couple minutes alone?"

One of Zen's ears tilt back awkwardly; however, he seems to understand that I need a bit of space to take it all in. He dips his head in agreement and walks back, "I can give you a few minutes. I'll be with Thalia, so just run back out if you need me."

Just like that, he's gone. I let go of a long breath, shoulders sagging, and take one more step closer to the center of the room. A pale rug cushions my feet. I feel like I could drop, but I keep myself up. This isn't a victory and we still have a job to do.

What can we learn in a few minutes? Zen would probably let us come back if we asked, but I don't know how much we can do in front of him before he starts asking questions. I turn to my partner, "Let's look around. See if you can find a diary, just be careful not to move anything."

Ri begins to explore the nearby shelves while I search the room the best way I know how, with the Dimensional Scream. I don't get what I want, just more than I bargained for. Although I've gotten a lot better at using the ability, I now use it so much hunting through visions that my head begins to hurt just as badly as it did when I first started wielding it. Bits and pieces of the past scramble together. I see the room before it was my mother's; I see her and Zen when they were little; I hear them giggling in the dark, trying not to get caught staying up late; they're playing; they're sleeping; she's doing homework; she's getting ready for the day—

But I don't see a glimpse of the grown woman I know in those memories. In all of them, she's still just a girl with no idea of what's coming in the years ahead. I end up with nothing by the time I need to stop because my head hurts too much. Ri hasn't found anything by then either.

Can we really write out the possibility that she didn't warp through time then, since there's no sign of her having memories of the split timelines? It still doesn't exactly limit our search by much… I wish Celebi was here already. We could ask her for advice or maybe she'd be willing to glance into the past herself to look for clues.

My ears fidget at the sound of the front door unlocking and a masculine shout of arrival. Though far less angry, I recognize the voice in an instant.

Ri and I creep back into the hall, peering around to see a greying man enter the living room. He's fairly muscled despite his age, and the uniform he wears underneath a heavy jacket makes me think that he works at one of the dojos we passed on our way here.

"You didn't bring Uri with you, Eric?"

"He's with his mate."

Zen sees us almost as soon as we come out, rushing to our side. Unfortunately, this beckons the man's focus our way as well. The dark eyes that land on us are sharper than his wife's, more like a bird of prey's than a human's. Jarring as it was to meet my grandmother, my grandfather matches the stern image I had of him perfectly. He looks like someone who would embody the very concept of strict and rigid tradition itself.

Thalia steps out of the kitchen a second time for introductions, grinning at Ri and me fondly, "Aren't they adorable? Zen brought them over for the day."

The way Eric looks at us reminds me of how someone might examine a weapon, "Whose are they?"

"I think they must've been sent to the kingdom only recently. I've never noticed them with any of the breeders."

"Odd…" the man murmurs, then he begins to take off his shoes, "but it looks like they were raised well."

Relief floods me as he looks away only for a bitter feeling to replace it. An unanswered question whispers in my mind.

"She's going to have a baby, Eric. Doesn't that matter? We're going to be grandparents. Doesn't that matter to you at all…?"

How can I let go of the resentment I have toward these people? This isn't like with Team Salacious, who bullied us senselessly, but at least knew where to draw a line. Or Dusknoir, who was a friend of ours in this timeline, also a victim of Darkrai's actions in the Dark Future, and still works nonstop for some kind of redemption. These people left a child to grow up and mourn alone.

Granted, I could say the same for my dad's side of the family, but I don't know anything about their situation to judge. I was just as much an aura guardian as these two—I may as well have belonged here! Well, I'm glad I didn't. Because of that, I have actually people in my life who do think I matter!

"Lira…" Whispering my name, Ri draws me closer to himself. I'm shaking.

It takes me a second to compose myself enough to respond, "I don't think I can stay here any longer right now, Ri. Let's go back."

His face shining with concern, he looks to Zen for help. Also sensing trouble, the latter draws focus to himself before my grandparents are fully aware about my state. He motions to the exit, "These pups have gotten enough excitement today. I think it's better if I go ahead and take them back."

"You're leaving already?" Thalia blinks, humming to herself, "I guess your trainers would miss you, but at least take some more poffins before you go. I have to give you something for your help."

The few minutes it takes for her to pack them up seem to drag on and I can't wait to be out of that house! The warm afternoon sun and still crisp breeze are liberating compared to the suffocating feeling of that place. I can feel curious eyes following, but I don't look back. I run ahead of our group, clutching the cloth-wrapped sweets tightly.

I'm halfway down the street before I start thinking that I'm pretty pathetic. After all that I've managed to live through, I can't face two humans who themselves don't realize who I am. If I kept myself together a little better, maybe I would've found something eventually! I'm complaining about them, but I can't do that much for my own parents.

"You alright, kid?"

It's pointless to ask: I can't hide anything at this point, with even my own tail betraying me. A sigh escapes past my lips, "I'm sorry… I know I didn't handle that the best."

Zen says nothing at first, despite the infinite words I see behind his gaze. Above everything else today, I'm most grateful to him for not trying to pry. He's been insanely patient, given all he's had to adjust to and what else he has to know he's been left in the dark about.

He scratches his head, "They're not… bad people, I hope you know. I'm not sure what you've heard about them, if anything, but I hope you can give them another chance soon. Even if we're the only ones that know about it. And if you need someone else to talk to, I can listen."

"That might take a while."

"Take as long as you need. Everyone's got something in the past that's hard to face," he moves ahead, as usual, ruffling my hair as he steps by, "You don't have to tackle it all in a day."

I lean my head into Ri's shoulder before we follow in lockstep. I'm grateful to him to, for staying by me and letting me take the steps I need in my own time. He's also been patient, not even saying much since we got here.

None of us really say anything more until we've reached the heart of the kingdom once again. It's still in the afternoon and just as we're passing a large, two-story building, we hear a sudden clatter of metal. It's hard not to notice those little things—like a baseball hitting a chain-link fence—when they're so different from the environment we're used to. Ri races toward the sound and I follow him, stopping just outside of the closed-off diamond to watch a couple of teenagers mid-practice. A few others dressed in oxford blue uniforms walk by on the other side.

"What's this place?" he asks.

"It's just a school."

The slack-jawed look my partner gives me is priceless. Compared to Treasure Town's pair of separate, outdoor classrooms and single, large tent, I guess this is a little hard to believe… A lot of people can stay on their Pokemon journeys for years at a time, either studying as they travel or postponing their educations, so a school like this is actually a little uncommon. Still though, a human would put in a lot more hours toward their studies in the day, nearly every day of the week, than most young Pokemon would.

The material is a lot different too. Instead of literature, advanced math, and science, there's folklore, trade, and exercise. Staying active and learning from true experience take priority. Granted, I can only speak for my own, diverged childhoods. "Didn't you go to school?"

"Yeah, but it was nothing like this! This place is huge," Ri waves at the building, "In my hometown, you went to the arena and they gave you a wood tablet to write on between battles. I had to get most of my books from whatever traders passed through."

After everything we've seen, it's funny to think that a school is one of the places that impresses him the most. As someone who's always preferred research to battles though, it makes sense. He wouldn't have had many teachers to match his interests before we joined the Guild. Even then, the Guild archives is just one room—mainly used to keep track of maps, registers, and shared criminal records with the local jail.

Ri and I walk along the fence until we reach a tree just tall enough to let us peer through the first-floor windows. Class is out, but there are a handful of students inside talking to each other. Several boxes and decorations are stacked around, so they must be gearing up for a festival. I can almost read his mind as he stares at the vacant rows of desks, wondering what it must be like. "Do you think we could go in?"

Watching his tail swipe behind him eagerly, I hate to disappoint him, "I don't know if we'd be allowed in..."

He lets out a mild hum of discontent. I'd kind of like to see too, since I didn't have much of a school-life myself, but there isn't much we can do. If we're still here when the festival goes on, we could go in with everyone else. For know though, we might have to check out a close second—someplace he'd be just as eager to see.

Pulling him along, I hurriedly lead the way back a couple of blocks until we reach one of the buildings that caught my eye the first time through: A library. From the looks of it, we still have a couple more hours before it closes. That's plenty of time to look around.

Zen tags after us, hiding back a chuckle when he gets a good look of my partner's expression as we go inside. This little, rural library has the Guild's archives beat by a long shot: Row after row of books, with a couple of sitting areas and a section for computers in the back. There's a tiny, separate wing for kids and another closed-off room that looks like it's used for events. The way he stares at it all, I may as well have dragged him to the world's biggest candy store.

I better keep up. I'd hate to lose him in here.