A/N:

Another chapter out, this one being pretty fast in terms of update speed. Right now, I'm kind of on an Into Darkness roll, particularly because of these next three chapters.

Also, keep in mind that following or favoriting this story, as well as posting a review, makes you eligible for a one-shot. Generally they're around 20K words or more.

Thanks to Orthros for the super fast editing services!

"…" - Spoken dialogue

Italics - Character thoughts

'Italics' - Telepathic dialogue

. . . . . - Time skip

/\/\/\ - Lemon Scene

Chapter 14

— — — — —

Tristan

— — — — —

With the path for the road to Capim having been cleared, the shipment of grain had already reached the other town. Now, all of the negotiations had taken place, the majority of which had fortunately been taken care of by other members of his administration. The two towns had announced the planned move to their respective populations, and as expected, there was a great deal of surprise among the residents of Treasure Town once they had heard the news. But it was a welcome change that would greatly expand both settlements, and maybe one day in the distant future, there would be nothing but buildings between the two locations. However, Tristan supposed that something of those proportions wouldn't be able to occur for many years.

Perhaps the most exciting news, though, aside from the easily accessible iron reserves, was the fact that the two settlements had managed to come to an agreement on a name for this state: Valmor. It had been agreed that both towns should keep their respective names, though Treasure Town would, of course, be the capital city of the new state. Valmor, he kept thinking to himself. It had a great ring to it, and to think that he was in charge of it all. But that was a power that he refused to let go to his head, and as such, he had agreed to now consult with the elders on every move that he made. It wouldn't seem right otherwise.

He walked through the crossroads, seeing the banners displaying his colors. He'd kept the symbol that he'd used in his campaign, and now it would be the flag of an up-and-coming nation. This arrangement between the two towns was working out very well, so maybe it would be worth looking into making similar propositions with other towns. But he would have to start integrating smaller towns into Valmor, as Treasure Town would still have to remain first and foremost. And he had already planned out which villages he could visit next - ones with a couple hundred people, if even that. All of them could be introduced into this new state, and trade could be accomplished among all the settlements. He could hardly believe that at the top of it all was him.

Hopefully, when Selina and Liam came back from their trip, they would be impressed at what all he had accomplished in such a short time. Tristan hoped that they were well, but that fear that had always instilled itself within him couldn't help but manifest. An entire month… But he shook his head. Everything would be fine. At least, it had been up until now. He figured that he may as well keep himself occupied in order to keep his mind off of his friends, lest he worry too much.

"Ha! Got you this time!" Flora said, drifting down to the luxray.

"Oh, hey Flora," Tristan said.

"What's got you out here? Come to look at all the flags that I designed?" she asked teasingly.

"Something along the lines of that. They look good, you know. You've got a real talent."

"Not particularly, but I appreciate the compliment," she said. "I heard of the news, by the way. You're taking this entire town by surprise, Tristan. I'm impressed… I mean, everyone is. Not that we didn't expect great things from you - that's not what I'm saying at all! It's just…"

"I understand," Tristan said. "This town… well, Aidan, Cecilia and I did a little research, and it seems like Treasure Town has grown ten times more within the last few months than it did the last twenty years. Flora… what the hell were they doing? Yeah, Torkoal was a very wise and noble guy, but he never tried anything different. This town was just surviving. But now, after all this… we're thriving."

"I couldn't agree more, love," she said, nuzzling up to him. He didn't react much aside from staring up towards the Guild.

"Those assholes up there… why did they even have a say in how things were run around here in the first place? Bunch of fools, and they wouldn't have had any problem had I starved to death!" he snarled. "But they're not worth the trouble. I'm better than that."

"There you go, honey. Just leave all that in the past," she said. "I know they didn't treat you very fairly… and we didn't know what was going on. We would've done something…"

"Yeah, I know," he said with a sigh. "Just me and my own pride, probably ashamed to ask for help. Might just be some of Liam rubbing off on me after all this time." He stared at the tent on the hill, and all the vibrant totems on each side of it, then shook his head. "Those guys… they mean well. I know they do. And I can't hate them for that, it's just… a bunch of dumbass people doing dumbass things," he laughed.

"Ah, well you gotta credit them for trying," Flora replied.

"Unfortunately so. But they don't get much of a say in anything anymore. They stick with their jobs and keep their hands off of exploration teams' money," he said.

"Now while that is the right call," she said, "I cannot help but worry. The Guild did rely at least somewhat on that money they were collecting. Now they don't get any of it."

"Well, that depends on how charitable the members are feeling. I've made it so that they cannot tax the profits made by exploration teams. Of course, we get that tax revenue now, but they should still be happy. After all, they're all getting to keep far more than the Guild would have ever allowed. But if they want to support the Guild, then it's not my place to stop them. They can donate to the lazy-ass and that loudmouthed bird if they just so happen to want to. But Chatot is not going to intimidate people into caving into his demands any more."

"Now enough of this talk. What do you say we go and grab lunch? I'm fairly certain you haven't eaten today," the shaymin said.

"No, I actually did grab something before I left the house. I'll eat with you, but we'll need to go a bit fast. Aidan and I gotta meet with the elders pretty soon to discuss a negotiation with Roseview. We're hoping to annex them as well."

"Roseview? I've never heard of it," Flora said.

"It's a small town southeast of here. Only about a day and a half walking distance, but that's only because it's in the middle of the forest. If we could get some roads up, I'd imagine that we could shorten that considerably."

"It sounds like a lovely place," she said. "I might have to fly over there myself."

"Should take you about half an hour, since you're flying," he said. "I'm sure you'd appreciate the greenery there. Mostly water and grass-types from what I heard."

"Huh, well I'll check it out. Now didn't we have somewhere to be?" she asked.

— — — — —

Liam

— — — — —

The steep incline of the mountain was right before them, and the entire hike would take only a couple of days to traverse. Selina would have more difficulty throughout it due to her quadruped biology. However, that hadn't stopped her before, and this had become something they had done on each and every trip.

Liam finished putting out the fire, and the slight cold outside made him partially regret that move. But it was time for them to go, and Selina sat by idly, with the tent having been packed up once again. "You ready?"

"Hmm?" she asked, not really paying attention.

"I was just asking if you're ready to go."

"Oh, of course," Selina replied. "Now let's go climb that mountain." He led the way, having learned over the previous voyages the path that was easiest for her, though it still would still require some effort to reach the top. Though he got the feeling that she didn't enjoy it as much as he did… But it took less time as opposed to walking around the mountain range, while also allowing for them to avoid most of the unpredictable weather.

But none of that was forefront on his mind. He glanced sideward, seeing the umbreon looking just as distracted as she had been ever since this trip had started, or really, ever since he'd gone and said whatever he had that night. Liam knew she didn't want to talk about it, but he could feel the constant sense of awkwardness within her aura. He didn't know how to approach the issue, or even if he should, given that she was far too reserved to even think about letting him in on what was going on. But he'd be damned if he didn't at least try to make things better.

"Hey… I know I said I'd leave the matter alone, but… you've been pretty distant lately…" Liam said.

"Distant? No… everything's fine."

"Selina, come on now. You know damn well you're a horrible liar. And besides, I know you better than I know myself. Why will you not let me know what I did?" The lucario was looking at her, expecting an answer. Only, she didn't return his gaze, and instead looked at the ground. Liam stopped walking altogether, waiting the response.

"I… I don't…" she sighed. "Liam… I can't…"

"Why not?"

"Because… I just can't, okay?"

"But you could go and tell Flora…" he said, unhappy with the fact.

"Yeah but… that was different. She… she said some stuff before that, and I needed her advice…" He shook his head, managing a slightly annoyed laugh.

"Alright then. But I know damn well that it was something I said. Why not just get this over with? We're mature, and we can talk it over. She didn't tell me whatever it was, but she did say that I didn't upset you. So why can't you just let me in on it? It's gonna come out sooner or later, unless things are always gonna be awkward like this…"

"I… don't want that Liam…"

"Neither do I. So why not just take care of this now? I wanna make this right, Selina…" he stated. And that was absolutely the truth. He was trying to hide the fact that he was terrified, because never in the years that he had known her had there been any tension between the two of them. It wasn't a welcome feeling at all.

"Liam… I don't know if I can. I'm… scared to."

"Then I'm gonna have to call her on the whole 'non-offensive' part. Whatever I did to hurt you… I'm sorry. I would never want to—."

"You stop that right now," the umbreon said. "You've done nothing of the sort."

"Well then what gives? I feel like we're going around in circles here…" And they were. It had become clear that she wasn't about to reveal what had happened, and he was beginning to wonder if that was a good or bad thing. He wanted to know with everything in him, but Liam was starting to question whether or not he'd truly screwed up. The only thing he knew for certain was that he refused to ever get drunk again.

"I don't know what to say to that, Liam…"

"No," he said, "me neither." The umbreon looked away, and he could sense the slight feeling of sadness. But he wasn't sure how he could really talk to her at this point, seeing as to how there was clearly something wrong, and she didn't seem to want to fix it.

"How do you think Tristan is doing?" she asked, probably in an attempt to change the subject.

"Right now, I'd imagine he's doing pretty well, since I made it practically effortless for him."

"Huh?" She flashed him a confused look.

"You already know about the field money," he replied.

"Oh, that. Yeah, and it was a good call," Selina said.

"Tristan and Eleanor laid out the right idea for the taxation policy, but it'll take time for the town to really generate the money needed for these stunts that Tristan wants to pull. There just isn't enough out there for it. Do you know what it cost to clear those fields?" he asked.

"No…"

"Forty thousand. I sat down with Aidan and helped crunch the numbers. I imagine that typhlosion still has no idea where a good bit of that money came from."

"You've been pitching in, haven't you?"

"I've held up to what I said I would do. I'm not paying the Guild anymore, but I'm contributing where I can. And what I paid is a little more than what I make a month, anyways, among interest, business transactions, and bounties. I'm still by far the richest person in that town. But that move to clear the fields, that was more than just for Treasure Town."

"Oh?"

"Our food situation would have been fine. We could have cleared land as needed to deal with our problem. But Capim isn't so lucky."

"What does Capim Town have to do with any of this?" she inquired.

"Remember how I had left for those two days a few weeks after Tristan had won?" She nodded. "I went over there. I'd heard a resident of Capim talk about an upcoming food shortage being the reason he'd moved to Treasure Town, and I had to check it out. Turns out, they were right. The fields that had been planted could not provide for the population, and it was getting ready to become a serious issue for them. I ended up speaking with one of the grass-types that worked their wheat fields, and he had mentioned that on top of everything, there was nowhere left for them to expand. Unless, of course, they were gonna start putting vegetable gardens in everyone's houses. Any further north, they're in rocks, and of course the forest is to their east, right beside their fields. But they don't have the people or the money to be able to do what we just did."

"So the field expansion was for Capim?" Selina asked.

"I struck up a deal with their leader," Liam said. "I could get all the food they'd need and then some in the matter of a few months. My guess is that it's already there now. All they'd have to do is become a territory of Treasure Town." Selina stopped in her tracks.

"What?"

"Now it helps both groups out. They don't starve, and we get additional tax revenue. Maybe that and some access to their iron mines. But it works well for everyone. All I had to do after the field expansion was in place was go back there for a day and tell them that we were getting everything ready for them."

"Liam… why did you not run? You said you didn't want any part in politics, but then you go and do something like that…"

"And I didn't lie," he said. "I don't want to sit around all day and debate policy, or crunch numbers. I am a person of action, not talk."

"Action or not, that's politics if I've ever heard it," the umbreon said.

"Well whatever it is, it worked out well. I convinced Tristan that he'd be making the right move by expanding, and all he has to do is stay quiet, take the money I offered for the fields, and just get praised as a good leader. I could've had Marvin do that much." He noticed that he had the dark-type's undivided attention, and it was a welcome change from the previous topic of discussion. "But you asked why I didn't run, and my answer is the same as last time. I couldn't give this up to save my life. I enjoy adventuring with you too much for that. And I knew I'd be able to pull the right strings to win it for whatever candidate I wanted. Tristan, though… I'm glad you made that suggestion by the campfire. I was planning on using Retributions' weight to shift things towards the best person, but it was seeming like nobody wanted to run. And then you threw his name out, and it all worked perfectly."

"It… did?"

"Of course. I wanted Eleanor to run initially. We could've all just sat around and waited for her to get ninety percent of the vote. But Tristan… you see, he's a more agreeable type. Do you know what the golden rule is, Selina?" Liam asked.

"Yeah… treat others the way—."

"Not that one. The other golden rule." She looked at him confusedly, then shook her head.

"No… I can't say that I do…"

"He who makes the gold makes the rules."

"W-what?"

"See, Eleanor is a real lovely gal, but she's a bit high-and-mighty. Truth be told, that's kinda okay for her to think, being that she's a legendary and all, but the fact is that Tristan is someone that I can use a whole lot easier."

"L-Liam!"

"Wait now, don't be reading into it like that. Everything I've done in secrecy has not been for my own gain. How can it be wrong if I'm not the one to profit? You're the only one who knows as of now. So it's not for money, not for popularity. I do what I do because it's right. Not because of power, or politics, but because it needs to be done. And if we're being honest, things have changed drastically for the better. As things are now, I'm paying more than I did at the Guild, but we know for a fact that it's all being used wisely. And I get a say in where the money goes this time."

"Geez, you're such a complicated one…" she said.

"I don't see much complication with this, to be honest," the lucario replied. "I've got money and power, and I just used both of those things to make sure that nearly ten thousand people do not go hungry."

"That is true," she said. "But don't you think Tristan would be disappointed?"

"Disappointed? About what? He's the most powerful person in the town… well, at least, everyone thinks that… But he's being hailed as the most effective leader that Treasure Town has ever had in just a few months' worth of policy. I don't see what he needs to be upset about." Selina shrugged.

"I don't know, maybe he might feel like you don't really believe in him, seeing as to how you're secretly running things…"

"Well then I guess it's just one of those things that he won't find out."

— — — — —

Eleanor

— — — — —

With the recent creation of Valmor, and with Tristan and several of his officials in some other town, Eleanor had been left to look after things. Though she wasn't quite so sure what really needed looking after. Tristan had asked her to keep an eye on the place in his absence, so she had resorted to helping with the road construction. Though right about now, part of her was regretting that decision, given the summer heat and all…

But it was a good way for her to occupy herself, and while she helped lay the stone bricks in place, she couldn't help but wonder how all of this had come about. It just seemed so convenient and out of nowhere that Treasure Town would actually be approached out of the blue by the leaders of Capim for such a proposition. Eleanor had no issue with the deal that had been made, but she had to be missing something. There was no way that it had truly been that simple. And if she found out that lucario had anything to do with this, he would have hell to pay when he got back.

Yet it was still a good proposition, she had to admit. Nobody here had really known about the issue at large within Capim Town, and she was glad that the population was no longer at threat of a famine. Whatever the case, she'd have to do another round of questioning Liam. Honestly, she felt that their relationship always seemed to boil down to these disagreements, with him sneaking around and sticking his nose where it didn't belong, and her calling him out on it and trying to get him to straighten out. She wish that he would just knock it off, but she doubted that Liam would really listen. Ever since that election, he's been like this… That wasn't to say he had done something of the sort this time around, but she wouldn't be surprised in the slightest.

"Hey, you're drifting a bit off there," one of the workers said. The cresselia paid more attention to the bricklaying, finding that she needed to straighten out the ones that she had been laying while the mortar had not yet dried. She took the leveling board and set it beside the bricks, adjusting them as she went. She and one other were laying theirs towards the town, while most of the others were setting theirs between the two extending borders.

Eleanor knew one thing for certain, though: she was proud of how Tristan had been conducting himself. She was constantly overhearing how hard he worked, and how great of a job he was doing as the Advisor. The luxray had stepped up with great maturity, having taken well to the role, but also not letting any of it go to his head. He acknowledged that he did not know everything about what was going on, and resolved that issue by finding the smartest, most experienced people around and taking their advice. He listened to the words of the elders arguably as much as Torkoal did, if not more, and he had turned out to be the right pick for a candidate after all. Within just a few months, Tristan had managed to make concern about food a thing of the past, the price of which was now next to nothing, and the police were receiving some top-tier training from both Raymond and his crew, as well as Rachel. In addition to that, trade was currently being expanded upon, and they had far more raw materials available. Given that he had the position for life, there was no telling where things would head, though it was clear that everyone involved in his administration had full intentions of making this new state as large as possible.

"I think it's about time we call it a day," the boss of the construction crew - a machoke - stated. They had just run out of mortar, and he had likely found it as a good place to stop, being that it was late in the afternoon and all. Everyone had dried-mortar all over their forearms, too.

"Won't hear me complain," said an infernape.

The crew packed up the little equipment that they did have, and the excess bricks were set off to the side, where they would be used the following day. "Thanks for the help and all, miss," the machoke said.

"Not a problem," Eleanor replied. "I needed something to do today anyways."

Once everything was in order, she flew off towards town, intending to wash herself in one of the nearby waterfalls before grabbing something to eat. She couldn't help but wonder what Liam and Selina were up to right about now.

— — — — —

Selina

— — — — —

She stared into the fire as Liam placed a few sticks here and there to keep it ablaze. She wasn't really sure what to think about his interference in politics, but Liam was going to do what he saw fit, and it was clear that there wasn't much talking him out of it. She could only imagine Eleanor being enraged at the lucario, and couldn't help but slightly laugh at the thought of her flinging him around, demanding answers once again.

"What's so funny?" he asked.

"Nothing really. Just thinking about how Eleanor snapped at you back during the election," she replied.

"Ah," he said, placing the final stone in a ring around the campfire, before sitting beside her. "Find humor in watching me get thrown down, do you?"

"Maybe a bit."

"I see how it is, then," he laughed. "She'd probably do that and worse if she found out about the whole Capim thing. Can't imagine she'd be thrilled. I swear, that Eleanor…"

"Hey now, you can't say anything bad about her."

"Oh no, of course not. Legendary and all. But I wish she'd just let off a bit," Liam said.

"You know she's just looking out for you. Of course, that comes after all the arguing and questioning. But I know you aren't about to stop."

"Then you know me well. Why shouldn't I be able to use the wealth I've accumulated to help out where I see fit?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure she has her reasons," Selina said.

"As do I for continuing to pitch in."

"But I do not understand," the umbreon said. "You refuse to cooperate with her, or tell her what it is that you're up to. But yet you just casually told me earlier. Why is that?" Liam shrugged.

"Well, you're special…"

"And she isn't?"

"That's not what I meant," Liam said, backtracking. "I just know that I can trust you to not freak out on me, and I can't exactly bring myself to hide much from you. You've proven that time and time again." Flora's words were on her mind, knowing that the shaymin had been at least partially right.

"But why is that?"

"Beats me," Liam said. "But I seem to confide a lot in you, don't I? I mean, we've been through a lot together…"

"That we have…" she admitted. From Primal Dialga to Darkrai, it had been the two of them. "I still can't believe that we managed to do all the things we've done…"

"Yeah, well it's been a hell of a ride, that's for sure. And I've got you to thank for it." He placed his hand gently on her shoulder, and immediately the thoughts of that nature had returned, though he meant it solely as a friendly gesture. "Thank you, Selina. For starting the team with me… for never doubting me. You've always backed me, and I really appreciate it." She stayed silent, wondering if this is what it had all led to. If something was about to happen, or how she would respond if it did…

But he retrieved his paw from her shoulder, and she quietly released the breath that she had been holding. "Why… why don't we set up the bed?" It was getting kind of late, and served as a viable excuse to try and escape the situation altogether. Liam nodded.

"Sure. Getting a bit tired myself." Aside from the food, which he carried in the large satchel on his side, Liam also had the bedroll, with two folded blankets within. She had no idea how he managed to fit them all together into the tight pack that he could to roll up and wear, but he surely did. Selina just figured it might be just one of those things that the bipeds could do better. But while she had managed to avoid conversation for the night, lest she become even more awkward around the lucario, there was one other issue. Being that they could only carry so much, and that the bedroll was thickly lined, Liam was only able to carry one. She couldn't fit anything else on her back, simply due to room constraints, so this was the way things had to be over the course of the trip.

And it hadn't been awkward before - each of them took half, and each got their own blanket and all. But despite the fact that they'd done this in the past, there was no ignoring the awkwardness that would be present this time. At least each of them had their own blankets - and even thinking about a case in which they didn't threatened to let her nerves get the best of her.

Liam gave her one of the two blankets, which she readily crawled under, both for the warmth and as a means of visual escape. Meanwhile, Liam took his place on the other side of the bedroll and situated himself for the night. "Goodnight, Selina," he said.

"G-goodnight…" Fortunately it took him almost no time at all to fall asleep, leaving her to her own troubled thoughts. If this was what the entire trip would be like, then she already couldn't wait for it to be over. As much as she enjoyed the Hidden Land, she was not enjoying constantly being on edge like this, with every little look or gesture from the lucario nearly making her lose it. Her bond with Liam was worth protecting at all costs, and was what she treasured most in the world.

But it wouldn't be the same. There was simply no way after hearing all that she'd heard - after Flora's words, and Liam's own in his intoxication. She would need to figure out a way to act on this, or tell him what he had said in his lack of consciousness. Neither of those options seemed particularly appealing, but waiting around forever wouldn't work, either. She was scared though, for it seemed that any move other than just holding it in could jeopardize the relationship that she couldn't bear to lose. And last time she thought she had, it had nearly resulted in her taking her own life.

By the time she had managed to fall asleep, the fire had long since gone out.