Chapter 15: Astronomer

"What do all those symbols mean, anyway?" Zorua asked.

Tyranitar served out appropriately sized slices of Pecha pie to the three of them and himself as they all sat or lay in the courtyard, enjoying the morning sun. The pie was a bit stale, Zorua thought; it was probably left over from yesterday, but it was still delicious.

"Math," Arcanine said, "Human math."

"I thought you were doing astrology?"

"Human astrology has a lot of math. Actually, lot of their math was invented for astrology."

Absol was only a little chilly, but she lay against Arcanine's side anyway, letting his body block the breeze for her as she ate. "Why do you have all the planets moving in ovals, though?" she wondered, "anyone can see they don't move like that at all."

"Human astrology, only the moon moves around the Earth. Other planets all orbit the sun; Earth does too. If you watch from the Earth, the paths of the planets look complex; could watch from the sun, they're all just ellipses."

Tyranitar was listening intently to their conversation too. He wanted to help with the weather problem too, Zorua thought, but he didn't really have any relevant skills. Gardening and mauling things were both pretty useful in general, but not what they needed right now. He helped out where he could, though, carrying messages and supplies, bringing them all food and treats from town, helping some of the other teams explore, and keeping an eye on everyone.

He didn't seem to mind his supporting role. For being one of the world's most respected rescue teams, he and Charizard were both quite modest. She still though Alakazam was a bit snobby, but, contrary to her expectations when she'd arrived in Pokémon Square six days ago, they were all pretty nice Pokémon.

Absol had to think about that. "But, how could you know what it looks like from the sun?"

"That's what all the equations do. Some Humans, hundreds of years ago, measured the locations of the planets on different nights and calculated how fast they moved and how far away. Now, can use the equations to predict where the planets will be at other times."

"That would be useful," Absol said, "but how do you know all this?"

"Learned it...don't remember, really. Don't know much, though. Can solve some of the simpler ones, if Mewtwo sets them up for me, but wouldn't know where to begin myself."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Team Warmth returned to the library, Charizard, Alakazam, Mewtwo, and Team Arcana were huddled around a book on the table where Charizard had been working the night before.

"I think we've found something." There was a note of excitement in Charizard's voice. "Come look at this."

The book was thick, bound in heavy black cloth. Absol and Arcanine sat beside Charizard, and Zorua jumped up of the table with Espeon and Umbreon for a closer look. The binding was old and stiff, and the paper of the pages thick and yellowed with age. It smelled like dust. Charizard carefully closed the book, showing them the cover. Debossed in gold letters was the title, in a language none of them recognized, but which looked similar to the runes on the discs from Creepy Tunnel.

"Instruments of Creation," Umbreon translated for them.

"It was one of the first batch of books we looked though," Charizard explained to Absol, "the week after you arrived. Of course, we didn't know what we were looking for, then."

Charizard opened it again to one of several bookmarked pages, near the end of the book.

The shaded drawing wasn't the same as the one on the door in Creepy Tunnel, Absol thought, but it was obviously meant to represent the same thing; the same ovals and circles of Human astrology that Mewtwo had been drawing the night before. At the bottom were thirteen circles, bearing the now-familiar runes, plus one they hadn't seen before.

"And so the eleven... pieces?...were sealed in their...chambers, that only he who knew the...portend?...of the doing could undo..." Umbreon slowly translated the caption aloud.

"So, does it say where they go?" Zorua asked.

"We haven't gotten far," Espeon said, "it could take months to translate the whole thing, but it seems to be a legend about a dispute between the Creation Trio and the First One."

Charizard turned to another bookmarked page; Dialga perched within the cupola of a massive tower, five Time Gears glowing on the the walls around him.

Another page, and the First One stood in a great stone hall. Around him, seventeen pillars each displayed a colored square.

Another. Spires of rock radiated in all directions in defiance of gravity and common sense, like a close-up view of the web of an insane spider. None of them could tell what Giratina, crouched at the center and surrounded by fog or clouds, was supposed to be guarding.

Another, and Palkia perched upon a shining yellow sphere, two times its own height. Beneath it were dozens of interconnected gears of various sizes. Ten silvery metal spindles radiated out from it in all directions parallel to the floor, supporting additional gears and ten smaller spheres.

"The Orrery." Arcanine identified it immediately.

#Yes.# Mewtwo agreed.

"That's the thing we're looking for?" Zorua wanted to know.

#I believe so, yes,# Mewtwo said, #I recognize Arceus and his plates, but what are the artifacts with Dialga and Giratina?#

"You don't know about the Time Gears?" Zorua asked.

Mewtwo raised an eyebrow, inviting Zorua to continue. She didn't.

"You wouldn't know, I suppose, if you were last here five years ago," Alakazam said, "Absol, would you like to tell the story?"

"Maybe you should; I don't know this one very well, and you've actually met Team Poképals, haven't you?"

The storytelling turned into a joint effort, with Zorua, Absol, and Team Arcana all contributing details, while Charizard started another pot of tea.

#Fascinating,# Mewtwo said, once they had finished, #so there is precedent for a situation like this, here.#

"They are somewhat similar," Alakazam agreed.

They paged through the book, examining the rest of the pictures. There were maps and portraits, mostly of Pokemon no one recognized, and four scenes of destruction similar to those on the murals in Creepy Tunnel. Once he confirmed to himself that they showed the same four events, Arcanine turned away, not wanting to think any further about what they portrayed. Mewtwo examined them closely, a somber expression on his face.

Eventually, Arcanine and Mewtwo returned to their calculations, and Absol and Zorua to searching the library for other possible locations. There wasn't anything they could do to help Team Arcana, Charizard, and Alakazam translate the book.

Charcoal stick gripped firmly in his jaws, Arcanine worked through another equation. Alakazam had found a large, smooth-cut sheet of slate somewhere, which made a passable blackboard lain on the floor. It was still uncomfortable, and painfully slow, but a big improvement over trying to write on paper. If it took him all day to solve something Mewtwo could have solved in an hour, he thought, that was still an hour of Mewtwo's time saved for tougher problems.

#Arcanine?#

Arcanine looked up, thankful for the distraction.

#Have you seen anything like a magnetic compass here?#

Arcanine chuckled. "Had one, till two weeks ago."

#Oh, good. I'm going to need to make some observations myself. I thought I might have to invent one.#

"I think we still have Arcanine's," Charizard said, "they're somewhat of a specialty item; everyone who needs one already has one. I suppose we should apologize for disposing of your things, Arcanine. We never expected to see you again."

Arcanine shrugged. He was still annoyed at having been robbed, but he'd stolen half of it himself, and never found a use for most of it. So long as Team ACT was supplying them, there was nothing in his old bag that he really missed.

Charizard left, and returned several minutes later with the compass. It was primitive, with a bronze back and glass face, and thirty-two equidistant markings inscribed around the front. There was no sight, but the needle swung smoothly as Mewtwo turned it.

#This will do,# Mewtwo said, #is there someone in town who does fine metalwork?#

"Like jewelry?"

Mewtwo nodded

"Kadabra, my nephew. You'll recognize the building east of the square."

#Thank you. Arcanine, would you like to join me?#

Arcanine nodded. "Need to take Absol to the tailor and saddler too."

#I'll be a bit longer here. Why don't you meet me at Kadabra's?#

Arcanine nodded in agreement. He was sure that 'alone' was implied.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Yes. A bit of cloth across the back, here, an arch, not so low that it's in the way of her legs." Arcanine held the back of the blanket up to demonstrate. He walked back around to Absol's front. "Bring the front together, like this, so it's out of the way when she runs, but leave the neck wide enough it's easy to get on."

"Mmhmm," Watchog said, "unusual, but simple enough." Watchog and Servine followed him around Absol, Servine taking measurements as she went.

"That's a good idea," Zorua said, "you'll be able to slip it on by yourself."

"Also," Arcanine continued, "Collar around the sides and back of her neck, like this. Stiff enough to stay up."

A hood would have been better, Arcanine thought, but he couldn't see a way to have it not get tangled on her horn. "And a tube, like a sock, to slide over her horn. Stretchy, so it stays on." He motioned sliding it on with both forepaws.

"A horn cover." Watchog frowned. "That's a new one for me, but I don't see why not. Matching colors?"

"It doesn't matter, really," Absol said, "that would look nice, though."

Arcanine could see Watchog calculating in his head.

"That will be 150 Poke," Watchog said, "and we'll need you to stay a bit so you can try things on before we sew it all."

They still didn't have any money, Absol thought. She didn't mind being given things, since Team Warmth was working for free too, but it was slightly embarrassing to have to ask for them.

"It's okay," Zorua said, "Team ACT will give us the money."

"Watchog, we're not really going to charge them, are we?" Servine asked, "remember all the things Alakazam and Charizard said they're doing for us?"

"We're a shop, not a charity, Servine, how are we going to stay in business if we work for free?" Watchog sounded annoyed. "We need needles from Maractus, and thread and cloth from Leavanny and Spinnarak and Dubwool and Mareep, and dye from Bellossom, and we'll need the roof repaired in back before much longer..."

"Oh, Watchog. We have plenty of all that, and if it was really urgent, you know there's dozens of Pokémon who would help with the roof. How are we supposed to stay in business if people think we're selfish?"

"I suppose you're right." Watchog sighed. "It really wouldn't be right not to help, when everyone else is."

"Why don't Absol and I stay here, and you go meet Mewtwo?" Zorua suggested, "we'll meet you at the saddler when Watchog and Servine are done."

"So, are you going to tell me about it?" Zorua asked as soon as Arcanine had gone.

The two tailors were already at work, and not paying any attention to them.

"About what?"

"Last night. How'd it go?"

"Oh." Absol's ears dipped in embarrassment. "We groomed a bit, then I fell asleep."

"Oh. Well, you enjoyed it, right?"

Zorua looked a little disappointed, Absol thought. "Yes. It was wonderful."

"Good." Zorua grinned. "That's what matters, right?"

"What about you and Arcanine?" Absol asked.

"So, I gave him a massage, and then, well, he can do some really amazing things with his tongue..."

"Zorua, you seemed pretty excited about spending time alone with him last night. I don't want to interfere with your relationship."

"No," Zorua said quickly, "I want you to be with us. Arcanine does too. We talked about it yesterday. It's just, well, it would feel weird to mate in front of you, if you're not interested in joining us."

"You want me to?"

"Well, yeah. I think you two are a great match. I mean, if you want to. Also, it'll be less awkward if we share instead of sneaking off together when we're out exploring."

"Zorua...you know I'm not going to be able to stay with you guys once this is over, right? I still have to return to Mount Freeze."

"I know you said that, but why?"

"Because it's my responsibility. It's what we've always done, and it's worked so far, hasn't it?"

"It's just a mountain, it can't be that special. Absols can sense disaster anywhere, right?"

"We don't know it's not important, Zorua. There are plenty of other Absols in the world, but who had visions about the weather and the Meteor Incident? Our ancestors though it was important enough to pass down, even if we no longer remember why, and I'm not going to presume I'm wiser than they were. Anyway, Mount Freeze isn't a bad place to live; it's beautiful, and I have lots of friends there, too."

"I guess you're right." Zorua couldn't find fault with that logic. There had to be something special about her family, if they'd gotten to save the world twice in eight years. "But you don't have to be alone, right? We can visit?"

"I think that's fine. Mother always lived alone, except for me. Ninetales has his own cave. He says Grandmother had friends with her though, and Great-grandmother too. We can ask them if they agree to come to Pokemon Square."

"I don't know if Arcanine would like it in the winter. He loves to lay in the sun. Maybe we could live with you sometimes, thought?"

Absol smiled. "I'd like that. I'm sure I'd miss you both so much."

Their conversation was interrupted by Servine, calling Absol to try on her altered blanket. She and Watchog tugged and measured and had her pace around the room, then took it off for further adjustments.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Arcanine reached Kadabra's shop, Mewtwo was waiting out front, seated on the low stone wall beside the door. Mewtwo lowered his gaze from the sky to meet him as he approached.

"Not there?" Arcanine wondered.

#I think I was making him uncomfortable,# Mewtwo said, #he's working on it now.#

He sat beside Mewtwo on the ground, hoping that Mewtwo would speak. Something, anything, that might help him remember. Mewtwo was silent, staring past him at the road. He wanted to talk, Arcanine thought, but something was holding him back.

"You did this to me, didn't you?" It was just a question; Arcanine didn't mean it as accusation, but Mewtwo flinched as he said it.

#Yes.#

"Why?"

Mewtwo looked away. #I thought I could help you.#

"That's not an answer."

#No,# Mewtwo agreed, #it's not.#

"Why can't you tell me?"

Mewtwo didn't answer immediately. His face was troubled. Arcanine waited silently, patiently. Suddenly feeling lonesome, he wished he could lean over and lay his head on Mewtwo's lap. Mewtwo's hand reached out toward him, slowly, hesitantly, as if asking for permission. He leaned toward Mewtwo, just a little bit, and the hand brushed against his shoulder, and rested there. Three points of pressure, warm and solid and familiar.

Mewtwo sighed. #I'm sorry, old friend. I can't explain things, but you will remember. I promise.#

He wasn't satisfied, but Arcanine knew he wasn't going to get anything further from Mewtwo on the subject.

"Where is this world, relative to Ear- to ours?" Arcanine asked instead.

#This is Earth, of course, even if the continents are different,# Mewtwo said, #we both recognize the constellations, and the moon. You're familiar with the idea in quantum theory that there are an infinite number of timelines minutely different from our own?#

Arcanine nodded.

#There aren't. I don't know why, but there are only a handful, each quite unique. This is the only one I've been able to explore to any significant degree, and by far the most similar to our own.#

"Would be easier to do the calculations in our world, wouldn't it? Why not go back?"

#It's not easy to travel between them; at least, not for me. It requires a lot of energy and time, and a lot of skill, to warp reality like that. Mew first showed me this world a few years after we settled Mount...about fourteen years ago. The first time I tried to come back without her, I nearly killed myself. I have more raw power, but I lack her finesse. She's had a few billion years to train, after all.#

Mewtwo's voice trailed off, and the two of them lapsed into silence. Arcanine's eyes closed and he inhaled deeply, sampling Mewtwo's scent on the breeze. They said smell was the sense most linked to memory, didn't they? His sense of smell was orders of magnitude better that a Human's.

Mewtwo was young and strong and healthy. He'd slept on the ground with used blankets and had Orans for breakfast. He was worried, and guilty, and tired, though he hid it well, but also confident. Arcanine could also smell paper and charcoal, and dozens of scents of their daily activities.

#What do you think of the Time Gears story?# Mewtwo asked eventually.

His eyes opened and Arcanine cocked his head quizzicaly, unsure what Mewtwo meant by the question.

#Is it true? Do five magic gears control time?#

Arcanine considered a moment before answering. "Zorua told me nearly the same story almost a month ago, before we knew about any of this. All impossible of course, by Human science, but...things just work differently here. You've been in a mystery dungeon?"

Mewtwo nodded.

"Strange, aren't they?"

#Very.#

"Get used to them. Have their own logic, like...used to play a game, I think, with dice and little figures on a grid?"

#Dungeons and Dragons.#

"Yes. Any rule individually was silly, but we still spent hours playing and arguing about them. Time Gears story is the same; impossible, but consistent with how thing work here."

#So you think it's true?#

"People here don't make up fantastic things like Humans. Probably dozens of Pokémon in town have met Team Poképals, and no one doubts them. Ridiculous as it is, think it's all, literally, true."

#Hmm.#

Mewtwo didn't seem surprised. Arcanine wondered, whether he had already reached the same conclusion.

"You said yesterday in our world, they know what's happening, but not why."

Mewtwo nodded.

"So, what's happening?"

#What would happen if another massive object; a rogue star or a black hole, say; passed through our solar system, very close to the ecliptic plane?#

Arcanine had to stop and think for a moment. "Gravitational force would affect the orbits of the planets, if it were close enough…slingshot effect, like Humans use for spaceships."

#Continue. Assume the transit time is much shorter than a solar year.#

Arcanine could almost remember having been taught. He could imagine the silhouette of a Meowth, pacing back and forth in the light of a projector, eyes glinting yellow each time she turned around. "…planets approaching as it passed would be accelerated, and planets retreating would be slowed." He looked to Mewtwo for approval.

#Correct. Continue.#

Where was Mewtwo going with this? "Change in velocity doesn't effect the period, it alters the radius of the orbit. Slower body drops closer. Faster body moves away…"

#And insolation is proportionate to the cube of distance, yes?#

"We're moving away, sun should appear dimmer. Why hasn't anyone noticed?"

#Two things," Mewtwo said, "one, it's been quite gradual; about a ten percent decrease in more that two months. Our eyes perceive light logarithmically over fifteen or so orders of magnitude. The change is just too subtle to detect without Human equipment, even for someone like Xatu. Two, here in the northern hemisphere, we're in spring. As our hemisphere tilts toward the sun...# Mewtwo looked down at Arcanine, waiting for him to finish the thought.

"...Apparent brightness increases because less atmospheric scattering."

#Yes. You're fortunate, here, that the vast majority of this world's population is on a continent in the northern hemisphere approaching summer. The southern hemisphere will have a much rougher time of it.#

"Mewtwo," Arcanine objected, "isn't possible. Even if the object were too dim to see, Humans would have observed it. Occlusion. Distortion from gravity."

#Of course they would have, but they didn't. We have an effect, with no plausible cause; at least, not one that Human science can explain. Then I came here.#

Mewtwo sounded like he was expecting a response, but Arcanine didn't know how to continue. "Mewtwo, I don't follow."

#If Dialga's Gears control time, what does Palkia's Orrery do?#

Arcanine turned around, and their eyes met for the first time in the conversation. The idea was ridiculous, but it made sense it the same way that Time Gears and mystery dungeons did; a power far beyond their understanding and Human science.

"Never considered that." Arcanine admitted.

#Neither did I, until just now.#

"Eleven pieces. Do they work independently? Ten planets and the sun. Maybe whoever sent those Ice-types is already using some of them."

#Possible.# Mewtwo thought for a moment. #How tall did you say the halls were in Creepy Tunnel?#

"Maybe ten meters diameter?"

#Unusually large for a mystery dungeon?#

Arcanine nodded.

#I make the diameter of the sun in the model at eight or nine meters, if it's to scale with Palkia.#

Just the right size to fit through the tunnels, Arcanine thought. How heavy would it be? Would they be able to haul it out?

"Those four scenes in the book; same ones by the door in Creepy Tunnel."

#I though so, from your description. It's curious; the Time Gears, the Orrery Fragments, and in our world, Arceus' Elemental Plates were also hidden away. If these artifacts harness the power of the creation Pokémon, why hide them around Earth?#

"Four times destroying the world, someone took their toys away?" Arcanine suggested.

#Possibly, but who?#

Arcanine shrugged. He didn't have any guesses, and he didn't think it mattered, right now. "Can you really solve it?" he asked instead.

#Fortunately, this isn't rocket science. Given twelve positions on each ellipse, I'm assuming that we only need to be within plus or minus fifteen degrees. I think that's possible with Darkrai and Absol's data. We'll still need to guess the missing planet, Jupiter and Saturn's moons, Neptune, and Pluto. Thirty thousand or so attempts, worst case; not pleasant, but doable. What happens after that...I can't begin to guess, yet.#

They sat together for a while in silence, Mewtwo's hand still on his shoulder. Arcanine didn't need to ask to know that they shared the same worries

"Said I'd meet Zorua and Absol at the saddler," Arcanine said eventually.

#Thank you for talking with me,# Mewtwo said, #I'll see you back at the manor. And...I'm sorry I couldn't tell you what you really want to know.#

Arcanine shrugged as he stood up. He did want to know, but would it really change anything if he did? Whatever had happened five years ago, he had friends and a job to do here now, and that was what mattered, wasn't it?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Team Warmth returned to the manor with commitments to pick up Absol's fitted blanket the next day, and Arcanine's saddle in a week. Delphox was waiting in the library when they arrived.

"Oh!" Absol said, "That was quick. Did Team Victory have the stones?"

"Metagross says it's a rare ore called magnetite," Delphox said, "he's sent us some samples to work with, enough for two or three discs, but he's not sure if he can obtain enough for 250 more."

Delphox pulled the disc out of her bag, and several un-worked pieces of matching dark stone, and slid them across the table to Absol.

"It was a good idea," Absol said, "but now that we have Mewtwo to solve the puzzle, we shouldn't need to fill all of them."

"I'll take these to Kingler's shop so they can begin work," Alakazam said, "Arcanine, may I take the other discs as examples? Espeon, Umbreon, would you join me?"

Once again, they all worked late into the night. As everyone else was leaving the library, Tyranitar entered with a large armload of firewood.

"Xatu says it's going to be cold tonight," Charizard explained, "the coldest it's been in a couple months. Team Razor Wind has moved into the manor for the night too."

Tyranitar was loading the main firebox of the stove, not the small side compartment that Charizard used mostly for making tea. It was they first time they'd had a large fire since Charizard had made one for her the day she'd arrived shivering at the manor. It held a lot of wood, she thought; it would burn hot for a couple hours, and the bricks of the stove would stay warm all night.

"Thank you," Absol said. Did Mewtwo have somewhere warm to sleep, she wondered; he hadn't mentioned where he was staying. Maybe it was a secret. He was a powerful Pokémon, though. He could take care of himself.

"Something wrong?" Charizard asked, "you don't have to worry about getting cold in here. Even without a fire, the manor is massive enough to stay comfortable most of the winter."

"It's not that." Absol smiled, though she wasn't sure it was visible in the darkness. "Do you...know where Mewtwo is staying?"

"I'll find out, if you like."

"It's, well, it doesn't matter tonight. I'm sure he's fine."

"I'll ask Alakazam anyway," Charizard said. He lit the stove with a long breath, and he and Tyranitar departed, leaving Arcanine, Absol, and Zorua alone in the library.

"I'm glad Mewtwo's not staying in the manor," Zorua admitted as she wriggled in between the other two, "I still think there's something wrong about him."

"He seems so...," Absol paused, searching for the right word, "well, sincere. Even if he's not telling us everything, I really think he's here to help."

"It's all too convenient," Zorua said, "showing up right when we need him, knowing all the right things, knowing Arcanine. What do you think, big guy?"

Arcanine grunted noncommitally.

"Would it be rude to ask about his species?" Absol wondered, "he does look a bit like Mew, but I've never heard of a Pokémon like him before. Do you think he's a Legendary?

Arcanine had answers; he knew he did. Mew's relationship to Mewtwo, Mewtwo's origin, his powers. All the information was there in his mind, but somehow the pieces failed to fit together into a coherent whole. He sighed. "Don't think he'd mind if you asked."

"Oh, good," Absol said with a yawn, "maybe I will, tomorrow.

Zorua, snuggled between his side and Absol's, was just out of reach, so Arcanine leaned over and began to groom Absol instead. He was hesitant at first, still not sure if she was okay with it. After a few licks, she began to lean her head into it with obvious pleasure, stretching her hindlegs out behind her and her forelegs forward off the cushion. He wrapped a foreleg across her shoulders and pulled her closer.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Vulpix sat on the sill, staring out the window of the cabin. A light snow fell outside, dusting the ground in white. She wasn't staring at the snow. She wasn't staring at her reflection, or Arcanine's, or Sandslash's, or the bit of meat that Sandslash was trying to dangle in front of her. She wasn't staring at anything the rest of them could see.

"Vulpix, please," Sandslash pleaded, stroking her back with his other hand, "you have to eat. It's been two weeks."

Vulpix's ribs were clearly visible, and her coat was dull. Her shoulders slumped forward, her tail hung limply off the sill, and she smelled of despair and death. She looked so different from the vibrant, confident Vulpix with whom he had shared fifteen wonderful years, that she could have been a different person all together. A tube from the IV tree beside the window dripped fluids into a shaved patch on her neck, and the towels on the floor were damp with urine. After the first few times she hadn't left the windowsill to relieve herself, they'd all just pretended not to notice the smell.

Arcanine wanted to go to her, but it hurt too much to move. Doctor Farr, Team Rocket's reluctant veterinarian, had gotten most of the shrapnel out back on Mount Quena, but he could still feel it in there, dozens of little bits, rubbing against muscle and bone and nerves with every movement. If he lay just the right way, the pain was tolerable. He could send Sandslash to ask for more medicine. Farr would give it to him, as much as he wanted.

Arcanine welcomed the pain, though. It was a just punishment for his failure. Twenty years Mewtwo had trained them, and when the time had finally come that he needed to protect his family, he had still been too weak, too slow, to scared.

Gentle Vaporeon, torn apart by Team Rocket's artillery because he'd been too slow to react. Gyarados and Golduck, slowly bleeding to death in the lake because Dewgong had come back to save him instead of staying with her own team. Vileplume and Hitmonlee, fighting by Mewtwo's side where he should have been.

Ten eggs which would never hatch; his and Vulpix, Sandslash and Vaporeon, Rapidash and Ninetales, Blastoise and Dewgong, Venosaur and Bulbasaur, Charizard and Squirtle, Golduck and Psyduck. They who had survived could make more, but it wouldn't ever be the same. Vaporeon, Golduck, Gyarados, Vileplume, and Hitmonlee were just gone, now; no cubs, no eggs, nothing but memories.

Vulpix had been so excited when she had lain her egg. So had Vaporeon, with two. Though Mewtwo had brought them a top of the line commercial incubator for the nursery, she had spent hours there, watching everyone's eggs, examining them, laying with them. She had insisted on the whole team sleeping in the nursery at night, whenever it had not been packed full of other teams with the same idea.

Vulpix, with them in body but no longer in spirit. Beyond malnutrition, there was nothing physically wrong with her. Now that Mewtwo and Doctor Farr had brought supplies up to the cabin from Orre, they could keep her alive indefinitely with intravenous nutrition. She wouldn't tell him what had happened. She hadn't spoken a word since before Mewtwo's surrender. No one would tell him what had happened to her.

Sandslash eventually gave up trying to feed Vulpix, just as he had patiently twice a day for the last thirteen days, and hopped down from the windowsill. He set the bowl of meat silently in front of Arcanine and walked out of the room. Arcanine gulped it down mechanically.

He should have thanked Sandslash, he thought too late. The situation couldn't be any easier on Sandslash than it was on him; Sandslash wasn't injured, but he was still trapped here caring for the rest of them, in Farr's much to small cabin in the mountains outside Orre, wondering what would happen next. They were still a family. Politeness and honesty and taking care of each other had gotten them through countless disagreements and disputes and poor decisions, and there was no reason to let that change, even if everything else had. Choosing to ignore the agony of his back, Arcanine forced himself to his feet to limp after Sandslash.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He was on the steel table again. Arcanine couldn't remember how he'd gotten here, this time. There was no pain, only a warm, fuzzy, distant feeling, and a warm pink glow through his eyelids. It was like being back in the cloning tank, he though; his very earliest memories, staring out through the pink fluid, watching the slow cycle of day and night and the lights on the consoles and the occasional indistinct shape moving outside, and wondering innocently what it all was for.

This time was different, thought, because he could smell Mewtwo, and Dewgong, and a Human. They all smelled worried, and exhausted. He could smell disinfectant, and metal, and the fainter scents of other Pokémon. They had been hurt and scared, too. More than anything, he could smell blood; his own.

"He's not healing any more. We have to stop." The Human voice was tired and hollow.

#It's the inflamation. We have to get the rest of it out.# Mewtwo sounded even worse.

"Mewtwo, you're going to kill him like this." The Human again.

Dewgong, can you give us another Heal Pulse?#

"I'm sorry, Mewtwo. I just can't." All of her customary joy and enthusiasm was gone from Dewgong's voice, Arcanine thought. She sounded like he had felt these last two weeks.

Something moved in front of his face, blocking the light.

We can't wake him up like this,# Mewtwo said, frustrated, #give him another dose.#

"His vitals are too low."

He's tough. He's one of the toughest Pokemon I know. Give him another.#

"I'm waking him up." The Human's voice was final.

#Farr...#

"No. We need more Field-group blood, and he needs to rest and eat and heal, and then we can try again."

Did they know he could hear them, Arcanine wondered. The corner of his mind where he could always feel Mewtwo's presence was empty. Had Mewtwo cut him off? Was it an effect of whatever drugs they'd given him?

#How long will it take him to heal?#

"I don't know. Mewtwo, I don't think he wants to heal."

#Why not?# Mewtwo demanded.

"You're the psychic, and you know him better than I do; you tell me."

Mewtwo didn't answer, and the room was uncomfortably silent for several minutes, broken by the occasional rustle of paper and clink of instruments.

Farr broke the silence. "I'm sorry for what I did to him. I know there's nothing I can do to make up for it. I know he doesn't want to speak to me, but can you tell him?"

#You saved his life. You saved my life too, when you broke Giovanni's machine. All of us owe you a debt we can never repay. He's not grieving his own injuries, though; he blames himself for not protecting everyone else.#

"You can't let him go on moping like this. Find him something to do, anything...he's waking up."

#Arcanine?# Mewtwo's hand rested on his shoulder.

"Muuhthuuw." The sedatives hadn't worn off, yet, and everything still felt thick and heavy, but he could feel Mewtwo's comforting presence again.

#Ah, good. Your back.# Mewtwo smiled; Arcanine thought it looked forced. #We got as much as we could; there's still a few tiny pieces in there, but I think you'll recover, now.#

Arcanine knew Mewtwo was lying to him. Had Mewtwo ever lied to him before? He didn't think so. He suppressed that train of thought. He couldn't let on that he had heard their conversation earlier. Mewtwo would worry about it. Mewtwo had enough to worry about already. Raising his head from the table, he looked around. They weren't at Mount Quena, and they weren't at the cabin. Everything was sterile white and glittering stainless steel. It looked like a Pokémon Center, just like on the television.

"Whurr..."

#Doctor Farr's practice in Orre,# Mewtwo explained, #we smuggled you in two days ago.#

"Vulpix. Sandslash. Where-" He began to panic. Had something else gone wrong? He struggled to rise, but his limbs were slow to respond.

#It's okay,# Mewtwo pushed him down gently, #everyone is fine. As...fine as they were. Mew is with them. You were getting worse, and we needed a proper facility to operate.#

"You've been unconscious two days," Farr said, out of sight behind him, "two hundred some stitches and enough morphine to kill a Mudsdale. Take it easy for a while, okay?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mewtwo's hands cradled his muzzle, gently lifting Arcanine head to face him. Arcanine lowered his eyes, not wanting to meet Mewtwo's gaze. He had failed Mewtwo. He had failed everyone. He didn't deserve the care they all gave him watching him around the clock, feeding him, changing his bandages, helping him outside so he didn't soil himself. He was a burden. He didn't want to be a burden.

He could wander off in the middle of the night, he thought, shut Mewtwo out and not come back. Mewtwo would respect his decision and not pursue him. Mewtwo would never forgive himself. He could join Vulpix at the window, staring at nothing and slowly wasting away. The whole family would have to watch. He was trapped, Arcanine thought; there was no way out which would not cause the Pokémon he cared about even more pain.

#Arcanine, you fought as hard as you could.# Tears formed in Mewtwo's eyes, and he looked away, embarrassed. #It's my fault. I thought I understood Giovanni. I thought I could keep you all safe. I thought I knew what was best for everyone, but I was wrong. I was wrong about everything.#

Mewtwo leaned down, burying his face in Arcanine's mane. He could feel Mewtwo's body shaking as Mewtwo wept into his fur. Mewtwo's fingers slid along his back, unheedingly poking into unhealed wounds and tugging on sutures.

Mewtwo's mental defenses slipped for a few seconds, and their thoughts began to blur together. Years of worry for all of them. Years of laughing and playing and training and mating together. An endless, legendary-sized sea of doubt and regret and love. It was agonizing, and the most wonderful thing he had ever experienced. It was the most intimate that Mewtwo had ever been with him, and he didn't want it to ever end. He wanted to push Mewtwo over and lick the tears from his face, but the pain was so overwhelming that he couldn't remember how to move.

Mewtwo recovered his control and drew back, and it was over.

#Arcanine, I don't want to ask anything more of you, but I need your help with something. There's a place that Mew showed me years ago, after we left Cinnabar. It's...I'm not sure what to call it. Another dimension; someplace only the Legendaries can travel between. I've a friend there who might be able to help us. Will you take a message to her for me?#

Arcanine nodded. Was this a real job, he wondered, or just a distraction, like Farr had talked about?

#Arcanine, I don't want there to be any doubt between us. You're not getting better. It's not safe for us all to stay here long, and if we have to flee, you're too heavy for anyone but me to carry, and I'll need to fight. We've tried everything else that we know how to do. Mew and I talked about it last night, and we think this will work.#

Mewtwo's hand stroked his mane as he spoke. #There will be a town called Treasure Town. Blissey there is a good Pokémon, and a good healer. Find her and tell her I sent you. I'll come back for you once everyone's safe here. If you're feeling better before I return, try to help some of the other Pokémon there.

#Most Pokémon there will be friendly. Fight if you have to, but try not to kill anyone. Whatever happens, you mustn't eat anyone; the Berries and Apples there will satisfy you. Do you understand?#

Arcanine nodded. He didn't understand, but he didn't need to. Even if Mewtwo wasn't always right, he was still the most intelligent person in the world. He had protected them, taught them, loved them for twenty years. If Mewtwo thought that this was necessary, then Arcanine would believe him.

#Now, there's one last thing that we need to do. I'm going to block some of your memory, just for a little while.#

"Mewtwo..." Arcanine drew back. All the wonderful times that they had had together were over now. No matter where they went or how well they hid, things could never be the same. All he had left were the memories. He couldn't lose them. "I don't want to forget anything."

#You won't forget. You just won't remember for a while.# Mewtwo reached out a hand toward him, a pleading look in his eyes. #Please, trust me.#

Arcanine couldn't refuse. He could say no, and walk away, and Mewtwo would respect his decision. Mewtwo would still worry about him, thought, and so would the others. They had all suffered enough; he couldn't allow himself to add to their burden. He knew as well as Mewtwo did that he wasn't healing. Whatever Mewtwo wanted to do wasn't just for him, it was to protect the whole family.

Arcanine leaned forward, leaning his head into Mewtwo's outstretched hand. "I trust you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next several days kept them all busy. Mewtwo, with Arcanine's assistance, was making good progress in converting Absol's vision, though he never seemed satisfied with himself. Chimecho at Wigglytuff Guild sent word from Grey; he had recruited several of the guild's more scholarly apprentices, and had begun an organized search of the guild archives for other possible locations of Orrery Fragments.

Arcanine remembered more and more of his past, but the more he remembered, the less sure he became. He and Mewtwo had obviously fallen into an old routine, working together with the ease of long familiarity rather than new acquaintances. Sometimes, as they talked, Mewtwo's hand would reach out to touch his shoulder or his head, then withdraw in embarrassment. He'd even caught himself leaning against Mewtwo's legs, once. That was what he'd always wanted, wasn't it? Mewtwo's touch, Mewtwo's approval? Was that still what he wanted? Five years he'd been abandoned here, and still no explanation.

The cold weather continued, lending an increasing urgency to the efforts of the Pokemon gathering food and wood for Pokémon Square. Within a kilometer of town, every Berry and Apple had been picked, and every dead tree cut and dragged back, and Pokémon were ranging further and further afield. People were starting to worry; there hadn't been any trouble yet, but Alakazam insisted on at least one experienced Pokémon with each party.

Her newly modified blanket was quite comfortable, and the horn-cover was wonderful, but Absol had no desire to spend more time outside than absolutely necessary for personal hygiene. She spent most of her time with Alakazam, Charizard, and Team Arcana, learning the language of the strange runes in the book as she helped them translate. Occasionally, Mewtwo and Arcanine called on her expertise as well.

Not feeling useful in the library, Zorua helped Tyranitar with the stores. They had dozens of crates of Apples and dried Berries packed away in the basement of the manor already, and barrels of Tropius's freshly pressed cider and wine beginning to ferment, and bundles of herbs hung from the ceiling.

There were more batches of berries drying around woodstoves all over town; that had been Arcanine's idea, as there wasn't enough time or sun to dry them the natural way. He'd helped the Meowths at the bakery convert their bread oven to a dehydrator as well. They weren't as good as sun-dried Berries, she thought, and had a bit of a smokey flavor, but they would do. Arcanine had a lot of good ideas that no one else would think of, like with Absol's blanket.

There was a new shed half-built against the north side of the manor to store firewood; Team ACT wanted to save the space in the manor for Pokémon and food. There were more stores in Ampharos's bar, which was well on its way to being fully enclosed, and Team Hydro's base. They had decided to save stocking Kangaskhan Storage for last, as a dozen Pokémon were currently remodeling the mostly empty interior from storage to living quarters. She had thought that the way Pokémon in Meadow Town pulled together under Luxray's direction after the attack was impressive, but this was even moreso. Hopefully all of the other towns had received Delphox's message and were preparing too.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was lunchtime when Zorua returned from inspecting the progress Timburr and his crew had made enclosing Ampharos's bar. It felt strange to have people asking her opinion on things, especially something important like a building that might keep some of them alive. She'd had to admit she knew nothing about timber framing, and told him she trusted him to make it extra sturdy and warm. She should go back later with Tyranitar and Arcanine, she thought; maybe they would have more useful input.

Mewtwo sat on one of the benches in the courtyard, beneath a large Apple tree. After the storm the night before, its branches were bare of leaves and covered in snow. Yellow and brown leaves mixed in the snow beneath it. A half-eaten Apple in one hand, he was alone, his back to her. This was the opportunity that she had been waiting for, Zorua thought; she could demand answers without Arcanine or Alakazam or anyone else telling her to be polite.

Her footsteps muffled by the snow, her approach was nearly silent. Ten meters away, she paused; there was no sign that Mewtwo knew she was there; no turn of his head or ears. He stared at the ground, apparently lost in thought. Did she want to startle him? It would be funny, and it might put him off balance and give her an advantage. On the other hand, he was a powerful Pokémon, and he could probably knock her out in one hit despite her type advantage, and maybe flatten the manor at the same time.

#You want to talk about Arcanine, don't you.#

Zorua jumped as Mewtwo spoke into her mind. He still hadn't moved. How did he know it was her? He shouldn't be able to feel her at all, Zorua thought.

"That's creepy," Zorua complained, "how did you know it was me?"

#Micro changes in air density,# Mewtwo said solemnly. He lifted the Apple in his hand, examined it as if he had forgotten it was there, and took another bite. He still hadn't turned to look at her.

"Micro-what?"

#Nevermind.#

Zorua trotted around in front of him and sat down in the snow, annoyed that Mewtwo had ruined her moment. Now she was flustered and defensive, instead of him, and she wasn't even sure whether he'd done it on purpose. "What did you do to Arcanine?" she demanded.

Mewtwo raised an eyebrow and took another bite from his Apple.

"You erased his memory, didn't you?"

Mewtwo nodded.

"You brought him here from your world and left him."

Mewtwo nodded again. He finished the Apple and leaned forward toward her, elbows on his knees and chin cupped in his hands.

Mewtwo was supposed to argue, she thought, not just admit everything. She was supposed to be leading this conversation, not him. Why did it feel like the strange one-sided exchanges he had with Arcanine?

"Why?"

#You care about him very much, don't you?#

Zorua nodded instinctively, then wished she hadn't. Why couldn't she be all calm and mysterious too?

#I can see it, whenever you're together. He loves you, too. I'm going to tell you what I told Alakazam, so that you can understand why it's important not to tell Arcanine yet. Something terrible happened to him in our world. I blocked his memory of it and brought him here to heal. I thought I was helping him.#

"Then you abandoned him."

#I lost him. I had never brought anyone else here with me before. It was more difficult than I expected. I arrived in Treasure Town shortly after he fled from Team Magnezone.#

"Delphox said a strange Psychic-type was paying for his bounty. That was you, huh?"

#It was. I had other responsibilities waiting for me in my world. I left Magnezone a means to contact me should he be found. After all this time...# Mewtwo's eyes were moist. Zorua imagined that, if he were speaking, his voice would be breaking. #...I didn't think I would see him again.#

She didn't know how to continue. She had been prepared for Mewtwo to be angry or defensive, but not for him to start crying. "Now that you've found him, you can fix him, right?"

#His memories aren't gone,# Mewtwo said eventually, #everything in the mind is interconnected; you think of the wind, then the scent of a friend, then playing together, then training together, then training with someone else, then a time you were injured, and so on. What I did was sever those connections around certain memories. I thought I knew what I was doing. I had done it before, but never on that scale.#

"That's why he remembers astrology and stuff, but not how he got here."

#Yes.#

"So reconnect them."

#It's not so simple, unfortunately. Each bit of memory, by itself, doesn't mean much; it's the circumstances around it, the connected memories, which give it meaning. I can't put the old connections back. Each new connection would be an exercise of judgment. What's more important, the times you were happy with someone, or sad, or angry? Even just telling him about it creates connections, and those early connections will influence the later ones. Once he's remembered more, I can start to help him, but now...he's too impressionable.#

Zorua considered that for a moment. She didn't know what sort of explanation she had been expecting, but this wasn't it. It sounded reasonable enough, but she still felt that there was something important that Mewtwo was leaving out.

"So I'm not allowed to tell him any of this?"

#Now you know, it's your choice. It would be better for him, I think, if you didn't.#