A/N:

About time this story got an update! Next chapter is the election, so definitely stay tuned for that. As usual, special thanks to Orthros for the proof-reading services, which is always a massive help.

If you enjoy reading, please consider leaving some feedback for the story.

"…" - Spoken dialogue

Italics - Character thoughts

'Italics' - Telepathic dialogue

. . . . . - Time skip

/\/\/\ - Lemon Scene

Chapter 8

— — — — —

Liam

— — — — —

The final debate was coming down to the very nail. Kraven had prepared significantly more for this round, realizing last week that Tristan was actually a formidable opponent after all. He had gone back to the drawing board and come up with a new approach. Basing everything upon the shoulders of the teams was a failing strategy, as everyone had been made to realize from the previous debate. But that hadn't stopped him from promising other people's money to the citizens. Money that, in reality, he would likely extort once he had ahold of it.

Being the last debate, the majority of Treasure Town's citizens were present in an attempt to find a candidate that they aligned with the most. After the previous debate, word on the street was that Tristan was favored to win. That didn't come as too much as a surprise, given the endorsements that he had received. Not only that, but he had been able to easily verify his qualifications for the position: his skill in managing finances and his history of upholding justice. Kraven had been forced to falsify some form of origin story. Liam hadn't really been paying attention during that part; rather, he was more interested in how Tristan was doing with the planted questions.

One that he couldn't have seen coming though, was Magnezone. The sheriff had gotten in line to ask question as well, much to everyone's surprise. Though the police were to abstain from any political endorsements, that didn't mean they couldn't ask questions of their own in the debates. As the sheriff approached the front, the crowd fell silent once again. Everyone was eager to hear this.

"Congratulations to the two of you for making it this far," Magnezone stated flatly. "As we all know, despite the fact that Darkrai's attempts to ruin the world have failed, crime has been increasing. For every outlaw captured, two more remain in hiding. I have come to ask how justice will be served under each administration."

"That has been something that I've given a lot of thought to," Tristan began. "After all, that's most of what we do in Retribution. I mean… it's literally the meaning of the name. People that break the law - especially those that prey on others - should be dealt with swiftly and strictly. But we can't stop there. They've already committed the crime at that point, and if it was something like murder… then an innocent life has already been claimed. I don't think we need to be waiting around for the crimes to occur. No, we need to stop them before they happen. I think that can be accomplished by a much more careful screening process."

"Please elaborate," Magnezone stated.

"Well just look at statistics," Tristan replied. "It's no secret that the majority of crimes are committed by repeat offenders. If someone has been locked up before, then odds are they will continue to engage in similar activity. Obviously we shouldn't harass those that have been in opposition to the law, only to change their ways later, but we should pay much closer attention to the moral character of those that enter into our town rather than just letting anyone walk through those gates. I'm all for anyone joining us, but our goal should be to protect our own people first and foremost."

"I see," Magnezone said. "And you, Damian?"

"I would say that I mostly agree with my opponent," Kraven said. "It wouldn't be fair to the people of Treasure Town to risk their safety by ignoring the potential threats at the door. But I think it would only be fair to give all the benefit of the doubt. I've seen some people commit some pretty serious crimes, only to completely turn their lives around. I knew a zoroark that simply went by 'Red,' and he was probably on just about every single watch-list of his time. He stole everything imaginable and didn't get caught for years. But the police played things smart and laid a trap for him, and when he inevitably came to do what he always did, they captured him.

"He spent five years behind bars. He got out - eventually. But the time afterwards was even harder. Just about everyone in the area knew who he was, so they always were watching, thinking that he would steal from them. And I can understand where that fear came from - it was a reasonable concern. But no one would hire him for the same reason, and he couldn't get a loan to start a business because the bank felt that he would take off with the money. In the end, he had to move to another continent altogether to try and make a new start for himself. After Red had spent all that time locked up, he had absolutely no interest in returning to a life of crime. But society almost wouldn't let him. Everyone saw him for what he had done in the past. He was never given a chance."

"All the more reason to never engage in such behavior in the first place," Tristan said. "That should be expected. When you spend a lifetime breaking the law, you shouldn't be shocked when others view you in a negative manner. I'm not saying that it was good what happened to Red, but such treatment, right or wrong, should not have come as a surprise to him." Liam cringed to himself upon hearing this. Not that Tristan's message was wrong in the slightest, but the audience was conflicted. Kraven had done well with gaining sympathy from them, and the luxray had responded with very little emotion. Not good for gaining support from the people that Kraven had just appealed to.

But it was only a single question among the three hour session. It seemed as though everyone in town wanted to ask something tonight. This was their last chance to question the candidates before the votes were cast. Liam felt that Tristan had done well tonight, but only time would tell who had more effectively appealed to the population. He was constantly trying to convince himself that everything they had done this past month would pay off - that the liar and murderer before them would fail and receive the sentence that was long overdue. That all the campaigning, all the speeches… all the stuff he'd personally done in the dark… would be enough to win this. It simply had to be enough.

— — — — —

Eleanor

— — — — —

It was only a few days before the election was to be held. Already, the center of town was being prepared for the polls, and both sides were making their final pushes. It was at this time that Retribution had finally been able to see some of the others working on Kraven's campaign: all dark-types. She had to hand it to him; he could put on a friendly face. He could tell convincing stories, and could hide the cruelty and evilness that defined him. If Retribution didn't know what they knew, then they may even fall for his act. But to think that this honchkrow would be responsible for the suffering of so many in the not-so-distant future… It's unthinkable, she thought.

The cresselia tried to keep her mind off of thoughts like that by focusing on the task at hand. She and Liam were engaging in community service by repairing the worn-down fences to the west of the main square. While Liam dug out the holes for the new stakes to be anchored within, Eleanor would prepare for him to move on to the next spot, telekinetically sticking the wooden posts inside so that Liam could drive the nails afterwards. That was definitely one of the advantages they had over Kraven: they had the people and the resources to engage much more personally in this endeavor. It really helped their cause to be seen performing public services like this, as it showed that they truly cared about the town. Of course, their careers did that as well.

Ever since she had teamed up with Liam and Selina to defend the planet from Darkrai, Eleanor knew that she wanted to stick with the two of them. Arceus, the two of them were so cute back then. With their pre-evolved forms always stuck in her mind, it was hard to look at them fully grown now. But those two were still the same people inside. Or at least, that was what she wanted to believe. Liam had been acting off over the duration of this electoral process.

She knew the lucario well enough to know when something was going on with him, and right now, there were too many red flags. Earlier, he had stopped working and went Arceus knows where, simply telling her that he would be back soon. She tried to watch where he had headed off to, but he managed to shake her. True to his word, he was back about ten minutes later, but Eleanor didn't like the secretiveness that he was displaying. It wasn't like him at all. She was like a sister to him, and he often talked with her about his plans, asking for the legendary's advice on most topics. But for the time being, he was quiet and secretive, and she didn't like it one bit. He's up to something - that's for sure. I doubt it's anything good.

"Can't do anything without nails." he said. "Looks like we need more." No, what we really need is for you to be upfront with everyone! Of course, she kept that thought to herself, but no doubt Liam understood that she was on edge with him. "Guess that wraps things up for now."

"Yes, it does…" Oh how she wanted to lay into him right now - to really give him a piece of her mind. Not in public, though. The lucario set the unused materials off to the side before dusting himself off.

"I'm gonna go get cleaned up. I'll see you tonight at the meeting."

"Alright," she replied. He went on his own way, heading towards his and Selina's house within the cliff. Eleanor debated between letting the matter go for the time being or really letting him have it. But before she could make her decision, Tristan had made his way to her.

"Hey," he said from behind, his voice both energetic and excited.

"Hello Tristan. You did a fantastic job on your speech last night."

"You think so?" the luxray asked.

"Of course. Our review sessions have really paid off. You gave that crook quite a challenge."

"That's good to hear. Do you think it will be enough for us to win?

"I think we will," Eleanor stated. "We already have such an advantage in this town, and you have managed to get across very well to the community." While she was meaning to be as encouraging as possible, the cresselia was truly impressed by how far Tristan had come. Hardly a few weeks ago, he had been the very same luxray to completely botch the first public speech. The same guy to cower in front of a crowd back then had managed to absolutely enrapture it this time around. While she was at odds with Liam at the current time, she did have to admit that maybe he really had selected a viable candidate. But she still didn't understand why he himself didn't run, or why on earth he was being so secretive about his questionable actions.

"It's about time for lunch," said Eleanor. "Would you like to join Flora and I?"

"I think I'll stay out here, actually. The election's so close - I don't wanna let up now."

"Alright, we'll see you later then."

As she made her way towards her next destination, Eleanor couldn't help but think about the way the election was headed. Break or not, it was really all anyone in their team could think about. Kraven likely wouldn't be able to salvage a victory with all the factors against him. But the possibility still loomed above them, and they couldn't rest until they were absolutely certain. She didn't know what would become of the town if such a person were to win. But more than that, she didn't know what Liam would do. His actions had been completely unpredictable as of lately, and she worried for him. Today had been one of the only days she'd actually seen him in town. Other than the nightly meetings, he was often times nowhere in sight.

"There you are," Flora said, coming to a brief landing beside the legendary.

"Here I am," the cresselia answered. "Where did you come from? I thought you would be waiting there."

"Oh, I was just speaking with Liam," the shaymin said.

"What? Where?"

"Over by the beach."

"What?! He told me he was going back to his place!" Now she was going to really let him have it. But first she wanted to catch him in the act. "Take me to him now!"

"O-okay," she said. "Just don't shoot the messenger…" Both of them were soon in the sky, the cresselia hoping to catch her target before he could escape. She could hardly contain her frustration with him at this point. "Now about lunch…" Flora continued.

"We will deal with that after this," Eleanor said through gritted teeth.

"Fine," the grass-type said with a sigh. The two of them drifted over the shoreline, where several sets of footprints could be seen, one of which was very familiar. All of them led off into the woods adjacent to the coastline before vanishing more or less.

"We need to find him."

"Why? What's wrong with Liam right now?" Flora asked.

"How can you not see? He's been acting very suspicious ever since this whole election process started. He's all over the place, and I know for a fact he's lying about his whereabouts. If isn't doing something wrong, then why would he be hiding from us?"

"Well… I guess you've got a point. But it doesn't seem like something he'd be doing - sneaking around and trying to hide from us."

"And where did you just find him? Somewhere other than where he told me he'd be," Eleanor replied. "Now keep quiet and listen carefully for him. His aura sensing abilities aren't the best by far, but it won't take him long to figure out that we're here." She drifted lower until she was only a few feet off the sandy ground beneath, scanning the seemingly endless woods for any sign of their teammate.

"I don't see anything," Flora whispered.

"Me neither. But you said he was out here, right?"

"Yeah - he spoke with me right over there," Flora stated, motioning over by the rocks where they always held their meetings.

"And what did he say?"

"He just wanted to know how things were coming along, and when you and I would be finished with lunch."

"…That didn't strike you as odd?" Eleanor asked.

"Now that you mention it… I guess so. But he wasn't expecting me either. I came here to see if Rachel was here and ask if she wanted to join."

"She's over at the dojo trying to gain support amongst the fighting-types. Weren't you listening last night?"

"I may have had a few things on my mind," Flora admitted. Just then they noticed a figure moving in the distance. Of course, the cresselia thought. We forgot to check Beach Cave! Both her and Flora sped towards the other person, only to come face-to-face with a female buizel. She looked at them in slight fear, carrying a small pouch in her right paw. Without a word, she ran over towards the sea.

"Oh no you don't!" Eleanor shouted, using a powerful psychic attack to force the water-type into the ground. With the air forced out of her lungs, the buizel tried to get to her feet, but she only found herself pinned down once again by the powerful psychic-type. "Why did you run?!"

"I-I got scared," she said timidly.

"Why? I'm sure you know who we are." She slightly nodded. "Then what did you have to be afraid of?" asked Eleanor. Flora trotted over to the small pouch on the sand.

"N-no! Don't!" The shaymin didn't listen, but rather undid the small string holding the bag shut. Inside was the unmistakable shimmer of golden coins.

"Nothing in here but money," she stated to her partner. While it was probably just the water-type's wallet, something still didn't settle well to the cresselia about the whole situation.

"What were you doing in there?" she asked sternly.

"I g-go there all the time," the buizel said in fear. Clearly she was hiding something.

"Wait a second," Flora said. "Aren't you the same buizel from last night? The one that asked the question about the aqueduct repairs?"

"What?" she nervously said. "You've got me mistaken. There are a lot of buizels in the town, you know…" But the grass-type shook her head.

"No, I'm sure of it - I never forget a face." Already Eleanor was beginning to connect the dots. She only prayed that she was wrong; that Liam wouldn't have actually done something like that. But she would find out soon enough.

"One more question," said Eleanor in as intimidating of a voice she could muster. "And I want the truth." The buizel gulped as she stared back at the legendary. "You met with a lucario in there, didn't you?" She sat there completely frozen, clearly conflicted as to whether or not she should answer that question. Her silence was all the answer Eleanor needed. "Forget it. Flora, we're going after him, even if we have to drag him out." She left the dazed buizel to herself and levitated towards the cave. Liam had been clever in how he got into Beach Cave; instead of going through the front, it seemed as though he had entered through one of the various smaller side passages. Doing so had masked his footprints a lot better, and had they not seen the buizel, they would have been searching the woods for him. Once they had gone inside, it became a simple matter of following the buizel's own trail.

"I don't like this place," Flora said with a shiver. The only sound throughout the dark tunnel system was that of the waves cascading into the various eroding rock formations. Everything was damp, sprayed by the salty mist from the intruding sea. Fortunately, both of them could fly, but it still was unsettling. Every once in awhile, a shellos could be seen slithering along the sands, but other than that, they weren't finding what they were looking for.

As the two of them trailed further into the cave, the natural sunlight that had peaked in was cut off, leaving everything pitch black. Eleanor didn't hesitate to create a luminous light using her psychic abilities, and the surrounding area became clear once again.

"I wish I could do that," the shaymin commented. Eleanor ignored the statement, instead focusing on the two upcoming tunnels. She headed towards the one on the right, finding the footsteps continue in that direction. But both tunnels, though taking a winding path, ended at the same dead end. "Flora, you take this side. I'll grab the other."

"There is absolutely no way I'm doing that in the dark," the grass-type stated.

"It's just a little way. We'll both end up at the same spot. The main thing is not to let Liam slip back out."

"Ugh," she groaned, "fine. But you owe me lunch when we get out."

"Whatever. Now hurry! I don't want him getting away!" The two of them each took different tunnels, with Eleanor taking the one on the left. A still stream quietly stretched among the stalagmites on the left side, and it was there that she noticed a new set of footprints. Yeah… that's him alright… But to make matters worse, she saw two lines, one going both to and from the source. It looked like he had retraced his steps and had made a swim for it. He wasn't here. Great, we missed him. But she wasn't about to let him off the hook. They already knew enough for a direct confrontation.

The cresselia hurried along her path in an effort to get to Flora. She would just have to wait until tonight. But whenever she saw him… that lucario had better have some answers.

— — — — —

Selina

— — — — —

Well it looks like it's about time to get started… Truth be told, she was getting a little sick of these nightly meetings. Of course, she understood the necessity of them, but it was getting a little tiring doing them every single night - especially this late. She and Liam would have a half-hour commute back, and some of the others such as Tristan had it even worse. But there was nowhere in town that they could do something like this in secret, and her and Liam's home wasn't exactly big enough for the entire team. Not to mention that practically any other location would be absolutely torturous for Lapras to get to. It just looked like the beach would have to make do.

But on the positive side, it was always amazing to see the scenery. The night sky was always in its most visible state out here without the light of the town interfering. Just a few strides away from the campfire and one could see what seemed like the entire galaxy in all its wonders. That and the fact that this place always brought back a lot of great memories with Liam. Speaking of which…

The lucario had just gotten everyone settled down and circled around the small fire. He took his usual spot between her and Tristan. "Alright, so just to start off, everyone did great today with their individual projects. Heard a lot of good things around the dojo, and all of our public service projects are ahead of schedule. And Tristan - nice work on the campaigning. I noticed that you had quite the crowd in front of you earlier. Didn't even see Kraven out there at all."

"I did my best," the luxray said modestly. "I'm just glad that I've got such a great network of support. You guys really pulled this off for me, and I can't thank you enough for that."

"Not a problem," Liam said. "Now one thing I'd like to mention that we could be doing better…" Selina yawned as the male lucario's voice trailed off. Honestly she felt that Liam was overplaying this whole situation. Sure they may be up against a crook, but with who their team was, the umbreon figured that they had this whole issue in the bag. From what she could tell, everyone else felt that way. And with only five more days until the election, she sincerely doubted that Kraven could manage to have enough of his paid thugs come in to swing things in his favor. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of funding such a feat would require…

She yawned just a little too loudly, unintentionally breaking everyone's train of thought. "S-sorry about that…" she stammered. Rachel grinned, but managed to get things back on pace, continuing with the data she had been collecting. From what Selina could tell, everything seemed to favor them. She placed her head between her paws, gently reclining in front of the warm fire. As she stared through the flames, she noticed that Eleanor was visibly angry about something. But she remained completely silent throughout the meeting, leaving Selina to ponder what might be upsetting her. She hadn't even seen the cresselia look like this ever since the entire incident with Darkrai.

"Well I guess that about sums everything up," Liam said after giving everyone their assignments for tomorrow. He'd have to let the umbreon know later - she hadn't exactly been listening. After he dismissed everyone, it wasn't long before the team started to head their separate ways for the night. Out of the corner of her eye, Selina saw Flora walking over to Tristan's side, while Lapras began his short voyage back towards Brine Cave. As Liam started to put the fire out, the only one left aside from the two of them was Eleanor, still sporting that stern expression from before. Oh no…

"Alright Liam," she started, "would you like to start being honest with us?" The lucario looked at her in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Earlier today you said you were going to get cleaned up. Flora saw you down here right after you spoke with me."

"And? I did get cleaned up. Came out here for a swim. Why are you spying on me?"

"Why are you still lying to me?" she countered. "I know you went into the cave. We caught that buizel that you had met with. She clearly wasn't expecting anyone, so it's obvious that the whole thing was secretive." Selina perked up upon hearing this. Why was he meeting in secret with a someone else? Particularly a girl…

"Look, you probably think you're onto something, but you're not. I came out here for a little while and spoke with Flora, then went back. You're just misinformed." As soon as the words had left his mouth, he was flung violently to the ground.

"Stop lying to me!" Eleanor yelled. Her eyes were beaming brightly, her whole body completely inflamed with the vibrant pink energy. "After everything we've been through, you can't even bother to be straightforward with me?! With the others?! Ever since this whole thing started, you've been acting off, and I finally know why! And you just sit here and deny it?!" He got back onto his feet, glaring daggers back at the cresselia. But she wasn't backing down. Selina just stood there, scared to get involved in any way.

"I don't know what's gotten into you all of a sudden," Liam stated, "but you need to mind your own business."

"This was all your idea!" Eleanor yelled. "You started this whole process, and everyone has worked perfectly as a team except for you! You disappear all the time, sometimes for the whole day! I'm not leaving until I get answers! What are you up to?!" Selina finally mustered the courage to step forward, albeit slowly. Her ears were lowered and she was terrified to intervene, but she couldn't let things continue to go on this way. She didn't want to see her two closest friends break out into a fight.

"Liam… I thought we talked about this… You promised me that you wouldn't do stuff like this without our help…" He had trouble looking her in the eyes upon hearing this. "Tell me… what did you do?" He walked over to the two rocks and took a seat on one of them. His hands rested on his knees as he considered whether or not to speak. "Please Liam… don't keep hiding…" Eventually he spoke.

"I want you two to promise me that everything I say stays right here."

"Why should I? You don't seem to have a problem breaking your word," Eleanor snapped.

"Because if you don't, then I won't tell you shit," Liam responded. "Simple as that. Now do we have a deal?"

"Of course," Selina said.

"Fine," the psychic-type muttered, "now start talking." He took a slight breath. It was clear that he wanted no part in this discussion, or to come forward for that matter. But it was something that he could no longer avoid.

"What I saw in those visions… I can't let it come true. I'm not letting this town sink into darkness when I've got the ability to prevent all of it from happening right now. Kraven wants to ruin this place for his own personal gain. He's trying to maintain the illusion of a legitimate campaign, but ever since he started, he's been crooked in how he's played. I've already spent a quarter of a million paying off the people he's bribed to come in and vote for him."

"Arceus… Liam…" Selina said. It was true that both of them could afford something like that, but a sum of money that large was nearly half a year's worth of his work.

"There's more to it than that," Eleanor said. "The buizel from earlier - you paid her too. She didn't look like some thug that Kraven would have bribed. No, it was much more deliberate than that. She was one of the people that asked a question at that last debate." What? Selina looked over towards Liam, who offered no defense for himself. "You're paying people to ask the right questions. You've rigged the debates…"

"What would you have me do?" Liam asked.

"Oh I don't know? Maybe stay out of it! Tristan has this under control - you made sure that he knew that! And yet you don't seem to actually think that!"

"Be honest with yourself. Tristan never had this under control. If it weren't for you coaching him up and me making sure there were actually questions that he could answer, then Kraven would have successfully stolen this election."

"Well with how you've gone about all this, you seem to know a thing or two about stealing elections," Eleanor snapped.

"I told you that I would make sure that we win at any cost. I've made sure of that. You act like I've done something horrible, when I'm just protecting the town from an absolute monster. Apparently you're too short-sighted to see that."

"Yes! He is a monster! But you don't seem to care what your actions have said about this team! We're supposed to stand for justice, and here you are trying to manipulate politics! You're supposed to be a leader, not whatever you are now!"

"This is the best way for everything to play out," Liam countered. "Almost no one knows what I've done. Only the thugs that aren't even here anymore and a few trustworthy people here and there. Once word comes out about who Kraven really is, then even they will know why I did what I did. But I'm not going to let this town sink into chaos just to maintain some sort of high and mighty image of myself - even if that's what you might do."

"You watch your mouth!" she hissed. Please Liam… let it go… Selina doubted that she could hold the cresselia back if she decided to seriously attack. She wouldn't do that, though… would she?

"Whatever. But the fact stands that I've been willing to do the dirty work that needed to be done without involving any of you. I made the impossible happen: Tristan winning."

"If you were so worried about him losing, why didn't you just run yourself?" Eleanor asked, her spiteful tone still present.

"Because I don't want to. Anyone else could have that job as far as I'm concerned. Anyone but Kraven. He just seemed like the best option out of who I had to pick from."

"So it's a 'protect the town at any costs unless it inconveniences me' type of thing?" the cresselia asked.

"You act like I'm being selfish for wanting to do one thing for myself. Ever since I washed up right over there, nearly every decision I've made has been for the benefit of others. I want to continue my job as a bounty hunter, not sit around all day and run the town. Even then I'm still doing a service. So I'd really appreciate it if you could just back off."

"I just want you to be honest with us," Eleanor said. "But you've been lying this entire time about what you've been up to, not to mention that you are blatantly trying to rig this election. Countering Kraven's bribes is one thing, but paying off people to shift the debates in Tristan's favor? That was wrong."

"Well if you had thought of some other alternative, I'm all ears. I couldn't have just taken Kraven down - it'd have looked like Retribution is trying to—."

"Trying to what? Steal the election? Tell me, what does it look like you're doing now?" Eleanor had a point there.

"I don't care. As long as it doesn't look like the team is doing it," the lucario said.

"You're the leader! Of course it will look like the team's doing it! There's no way out of this hole that you have dug yourself into - that you've dug us into!"

"Once everything's been taken care of, then I'll be straightforward with everyone. I'll tell them about every coin spent. But you can't tell me the end won't justify the means. I'm willing to take the hit on this one, so please… just stay out of it…" Maybe Eleanor figured that the matter wasn't worth pressing any further. Liam had already done everything that he'd set out to do, and there was no stopping it now. Selina didn't know how to feel about all of this; all she knew for sure was that she was glad that a fight between the two of them had been avoided. She would hate to have seen the outcome of that…

"You two are my friends, and I care for both of you very deeply. I hate that I had to keep my actions hidden… but I didn't want to involve either of you in this…" For the first time since the ranting had started, Selina spoke up.

"Liam… I told you before: I am your partner. You can trust me with your life. Why do you insist on tending to these matters on your own? Was it because of the money?"

"No… it wasn't just the money. I just didn't want the two of you involved. I could take care of it myself, and I did just that. There wasn't any need to get anyone else into it."

"No," said Eleanor, "what there isn't any need for is for you to try and take on the world by yourself. What would you have done if those thugs had decided to attack?"

"Then I would have dealt with them like I always have."

"You can't fight them all, Liam. One day you're going to have to learn that the hard way," said the cresselia.

"I took on Destiny Tower by myself. I'm pretty sure that a couple of lowlifes would have had no chance against me. None of them ever have."

"I just want you to be well," Eleanor continued, "but you seem absolutely determined to make things difficult for yourself…"

"Yeah, well what's done is done," Liam replied. "Are we finished here?" Eleanor nodded.

"As long as I get your word - and you actually mean it - that you won't ever do something like this again." Liam laughed lightly, but nodded.

"Both of you have my word. I've done everything that I need to do by now anyways."

"Good. You better stick to it this time," the legendary said. She must have realized the time at this point. It wasn't like they'd spent too terribly long in this heated conversation, but two of the three people present would be walking back. They would be arriving noticeably later than usual. "I'll let the two of you go now. And Selina… keep an eye on him…"

"Of course. He can't seem to stay outta trouble unless I do," she said, playfully glaring at her partner.

After the two of them had made their way back home, Selina hopped onto her bed with a sigh. The rest of the week would undoubtedly be busy for the team with the election being so close. She still wasn't sure what to make of Liam's actions, but one thing was for sure: she was glad that conversation was over. She hadn't seen Eleanor that hostile ever since the cresselia had helped the two of them confront Darkrai. It was a miracle that everything had managed to settle down tonight, especially since she hadn't been required to pick sides. Right or wrong, she couldn't bear the thought of having to stand against Liam…

He's such a handful, she thought to herself. No wonder Chatot butts heads with him all the time… But none of that came as a surprise. Liam, though generally calm and collected, had a mischievous side to him - one that he liked to exercise around that bird. But his meddling in the election had taken all of that to a whole new - and questionable - level.

But she didn't truly know if she could blame him for what he had done. It was clear that Eleanor still harvested some negative feeling towards the lucario for it, but Selina didn't know for certain. After all, he is trying to prevent Treasure Town from falling into the wrong hands… And it wasn't like he had been doing it for his own self interests. Oh well, she concluded, no use dwelling on it. It's all over now. She shuffled under the covers a bit more, finding a much warmer position.

Looking over at Liam's bed, she found him to already be asleep. It always humored her how he slept, too: slightly curled up and without making a single noise. She'd seen it countless times before, but it always humored her nonetheless - especially when his left ear occasionally twitched. Ha, I can only imagine how much of a hard time the others would give him if they saw this. Seeing such an adorable sight, yet knowing his ferocity on the field, was kind of a conflicting image.

Trying to focus on the task at hand, Selina closed her eyes. They would be up early in the morning, so she'd do best to get as much rest as she could. "Goodnight Liam," she called out instinctively. As she would expect, no answer came from the lucario. She giggled to herself as she drifted off.

— — — — —

Kraven

— — — — —

"They never showed up!" the honchkrow yelled to his associate. Despite his size, the rhydon cringed. "Over four fucking hundred of them, and I've only seen twelve! I paid all of them! Where are they all going?!"

"I don't know sir," the rhydon answered. "Not a word about any of it. They just didn't come…"

"I can't be having this," Kraven said, shaking his head. "Not this close to the election." He looked out over the town as it basked in the moonlight. How the fuck did everything go so wrong? Kraven had already been fighting an uphill battle by being a foreigner, especially considering he was campaigning against a member of the team that had saved the planet. And the very leader of that team… just so happened to have significant ties to nearly every single business in town. He'd done his digging around for information, only to find that that lucario had Treasure Town under his foot. With his wealth and reputation, everyone respected him. And Kraven's opponent had received his unwavering support throughout the entire election.

And now, a few days prior to the polls opening, I can't find hardly any of my paid voters… It wasn't looking like he could salvage this election in any way. Not without resorting to his most risky tactic yet. He had hoped to avoid it; if he was caught, then it would mean a whole new world of trouble. But I've got no other choice at this point…

"Juggernaut, make contact with those two officers. Tell them I'm paying whatever it takes."