"Mnnn…"

Light wasn't filtering in on account of the stone cavern's walls blocking it out, but Astrid could tell it was morning easy enough. A bit of rustling around on the floor below let her know that Arashi was up and stirring too, and Niles and Kaminari evidently had been awake some time before (as they always were) if the little trail of brightness under the curtain door was any indication.

"Astrid? That you?" came the somewhat drowsed voice of the Froakie.

"Y-yeah…" she said back, blinking and fluffing up a bit in her basket.

She carefully skittered out of her roost and onto the shelf, giving her wings a small stretch after having them snugly kept at her side all night. A little more rustling followed from the floor and the lantern overhead flicked on shortly thereafter as a result of Arashi hopping up to turn it on. The Froakie yawned and the Rowlet straightened out a few feathers that had become a bit out of place in her sleep before jumping down, the both of them looking just a bit sleepy still.

"You sleep alright…?" Astrid inquired softly, sticking her feathers back down.

"Yeah! You?"

She nodded.

A few more fluffs and stretches and they were trailing out through the curtain door to the front room where Arashi's parents were, the Greninja and Inteleon apparently having a conversation over something but pausing the second the younger ones emerged. In an instant, the Starstorm duo had two sets of eyes on them, which Arashi didn't seem to mind much but Astrid couldn't help but grow a bit unnerved at. A smallish box sat on the table which they seemed to be examining along with what looked like an unfolded letter next to it, thus perhaps there was some kind of information in it that was sensitive in some way and couldn't be repeated in the presence of anyone else… Such seemed a distinct possibility, but she had no way of knowing for sure.

"Morning, dears," Niles greeted them pleasantly while seemingly studying them at the same time.

"We need to talk," Kaminari cut straight to the chase. "Get over here, you two."

That certainly unnerved the Rowlet, and while Arashi was still chipper as usual, he too seemed to grow a bit puzzled. Nonetheless, the two smaller figures scurried over and jumped onto the table, where Niles folded up the letter so they could not see it and Kaminari placed the lid over the box. Astrid wondered, just a bit, what was in them, but she certainly wasn't going to ask.

"What's up?" asked Arashi, studying the paper and the box curiously but not getting too close.

The Inteleon started grinning almost straight away, leaving them both a bit more puzzled as to why. They had been straight-faced a second before, and Kaminari still was, but it was obvious to the two younger ones that something was going unsaid.

"Have you two been hiding anything lately?" Niles inquired, folding his hands, clearly going for a specific answer and knowing more than he was letting on.

The instant the question left, Astrid and Arashi cast each other a glance, Astrid's eyes going slightly wide and Arashi blinking while saying nothing. They didn't have to say a word to each other, for they both knew the answer was a resounding 'yes,' but they had both agreed not to say anything to anyone. Perhaps they should have spilled the beans, or perhaps that was still a dumb idea that would get them into trouble, or perhaps it was already too late for such… Astrid fluffed out a bit, and Arashi opened his mouth for just a second before closing it again. Kaminari's eyes narrowed at them, while Niles still only smiled.

Nonetheless, at almost the exact same time…

"We have!" Astrid blurted out, quickly looking down at the surface underneath her feet.

"Nope! Not at all!" Arashi brushed it off with a grin.

Just as fast, they were casting each other dismayed looks. Niles chuckled, and Kaminari looked incredulous.

"We swore!" Arashi protested to his friend.

"They already know!" Astrid objected.

"Yeah, 'cause you just told them!"

"No, 'cause they figured us out!"

An unhappy look was all that came next from each of the younger ones.

"Astrid's right, the jig is up," said Kaminari, crossing her arms. "Why don't you go ahead and tell us what's happened in your own words? Don't try to cover it up."

Astrid fluffed out a bit, completely unsure of where to begin, and Arashi gave an uncomfortable laugh, the two of them sharing a glance again.

"E-er, w-we…" Astrid stammered.

"… We formed an expedition team," Arashi fessed up, grinning awkwardly.

The Rowlet gave her comrade a sideways glance before looking back down at the table, still avoiding the eyes of his parents. "W-what he said."

"And?" Niles gently pressed.

"We're called Team Starstorm," the Froakie continued. "We filled the papers out a few days ago, but we didn't want to tell you because of the thing with the beast and Nez getting beat up."

"And?" the Inteleon kept prodding.

Astrid wanted to sink into her feathers. This was not going well, and it probably wouldn't go well if it kept going. The team formation was bound to get out at some point anyway, but the direction she thought Niles was going with his inquiries… she wasn't sure how to approach the subject.

"And what?" Arashi, however, deflected, trying his best to hide his awkward denial. "That's it! We formed a team and we didn't wanna tell you, but now you know!"

"Are you sure?" Kaminari said to the contrary. "What about Rina and the beast?"

Alarm crossed both Astrid and Arashi's face, the latter still smiling but looking absolutely floored. Awkward glances were exchanged from both of them.

"Y-you know about that, too?!" the Froakie exclaimed.

"Of course we do," Niles coolly remarked. "Perhaps my eyes don't allow me to see through walls like a Luxray, but I certainly saw you venturing to Brushwood Tangle. Normally I would think nothing of it since you two have already cleared a dungeon alone, but Veeko looking scared and not having his friend with him opened up a lot of possibilities. Let's just say, after you got back to town with Rina, I ended up having a very interesting conversation with a certain Lurantis."

The Rowlet and the Froakie were both looking very uncomfortable. Astrid couldn't help but mentally kick herself, and Arashi apparently was regretting his decisions too if his wide eyes and drooping eyelids were any indication. Astrid wasn't sure how else she might have handled the team formation if life had an 'undo' button, but she certainly would have been pressing it with regards to the Brushwood Tangle incident. It likely would've landed Veeko and Rina in trouble, sure, but she couldn't help but think things would have gone a million times better if she had simply gone to Niles and Kaminari or even Nez. Yet there they were, getting busted and looking suspicious anyway.

"Well, the secret is out now, ahaha…~" Arashi's voice trailed off, the Froakie shrugging uncertainly. "So what gave away the team formation then…?"

"I heard about that one the day you did it," Kaminari answered. "And why you thought I wouldn't know is beyond me. I went to the sheriff's office to get information about another outlaw to apprehend, and Deputy Rucio mentioned my son and his friends stopping by."

Astrid and Arashi both deflated, but the other two eased up a bit.

"Team Starstorm is no surprise, nor are we upset at either of you for it," Niles eased them just a bit. "A bit of a heads-up would have been nice, however, especially given the context with which you kept it to yourselves."

"But you should've told us about what you heard in the tangle whether you swore or not," Kaminari said on the other hand. "Whatever you went in for is your own business, but when Lurantis told you about the beast having been there and that it had done something with Rina, you shouldn't have kept that to yourselves."

The two getting scolded deflated even more, Astrid trying her best to sink into her feathers. Whether the little avian was succeeding or not, she felt the gazes of both Arashi's parents on her next, and she tensed up even more.

"Especially you, Astrid," Kaminari chided, practically staring through her. "That thing has already indicated it's got intentions involving you."

"Perhaps you don't understand just how valuable you are, and that's fine," Niles gently noted. "But that's the kind of information you tell two Pokémon that are trying to protect you. Remember that next time this happens, if it does happen again."

Astrid nodded. "I'm s-sorry. It won't happen again."

The Inteleon gave her a gentle pat and she eased up.

"We're all clear here, yes?" Niles inquired, looking between both her and Arashi.

The two younger ones nodded.

Kaminari set the folded up letter on top of the box and nudged it towards the Froakie and Rowlet, noting, "In that case, Reina sent Lucy to drop this off for you earlier. I'm sure you'll like the contents."

Arashi unfolded the paper and set to scanning it over, almost instantly breaking into an even bigger grin than usual and his eyes practically sparkling with excitement. Astrid grabbed the box's lid with her beak and nudged it open, two sparkling badges sitting atop two folded black scarves instantly grabbing her attention. Their rounded centers sparkled in a pale chrome color and what appeared to be two wing-shaped golden ornaments branched off of the sides, and closer inspection revealed "Team Starstorm" engraved on the top half of the center piece with their names on the half below on their respective badges. If nothing else, it was certainly… shiny and official-looking. Arashi seemed more entranced with them when Astrid uncovered them, and put the letter down to hop over.

"Ahhhh, this is great!" the Froakie cried blissfully, lifting the badge bearing his name out of the box and looking it over. "We're officially official!"

Both of his parents seemed amused at his enthusiasm.

Astrid gave a glance to the letter and likewise scanned it as well, quickly deducing that it was the obligatory 'Congratulations, expeditioner!' letter that likely came with every box of the sort. She'd already read the myriad of pages and fine print at the sheriff's office; most of the page before her wasn't too important.

Her comrade shortly set to tying one of the scarves around his neck and pinning the badge to it, his bubbles slightly obscuring the scarf but the badge clearly sticking out. Astrid eyed hers for a second, attempting to figure out how best to put it on- her round body left seemingly no area to tie it that it would not fall off of seconds later. Kaminari solved that issue by having her stick one wing out while the Greninja tied it in place at the crux between her wing and her body and fastened the badge on. A bit of adjusting it with her beak made it sit comfortably in place.

Underneath the scarves and badges was a much more official-looking bag than the sack they had been carrying around (and also with a strap across it for ease of carrying it as one liked). Arashi was quick to don it as well.

"Hah! This looks even more official!" the Froakie cried happily, looking himself over with a smile.

"Hey, let me try it too," Astrid asked softly, the edges of her beak curled up just a bit in a grin.

Arashi did so, slipping it back off. It wasn't near as easy, but the Rowlet also found that she could angle it so as to hold the strap under one wing and let the other side rest over her other wing to carry it about, then turn her head backwards and open it with her beak. Nonetheless, her partner seemed far more eager to tote it around on account of looking 'more official,' and she certainly wasn't going to protest if he wanted it that badly. She rather liked the badge, but 'looking official' wasn't any particular concern of hers.

"I've still yet to hear back from the Expedition Coalition about you, but I suppose they're keeping busy these days," Kaminari noted, looking at the Rowlet while Arashi fixed the bag up again.

Astrid nodded. "Th-they seem like a busy bunch…"

Arashi couldn't help but giggle at the mention of his idols, breaking into an even bigger grin.

The usual morning procedures went by fairly quickly, and Arashi seemed happily abuzz the entire time. The two youngsters set off for the town, but before traipsing up the stone steps, the Froakie hopped over to the sea's edge and struck poses while admiring his reflection on the water, which greatly amused Astrid as she watched. Her comrade beckoned her over too, and despite how ridiculous she thought it looked, she obliged after Arashi gave her a few playful whines of "Oh, come on! It's fun!" or a slight variation thereof. Nonetheless, she too started striking poses, most of which consisted of her merely turning slightly to one side and sticking a wing or a foot out while her comrade was much more extravagant in his mannerisms.

However, when they hit one where Astrid had one wing out behind her comrade and the other wing angled like a waving statue while Arashi had one finger in the air as if he were about to deliver an oration, the Rowlet got a slightly mischievous idea… and shoved her comrade forward into the water, getting a surprised cry in return. She quickly skittered backwards as if nothing had happened, Arashi quickly jumping up and shooting her a devilish grin with all of his limbs still slightly submerged.

"Did you just try to prank me~?" the Froakie chirped, studying her. "What was that, revenge for making you pose with me?"

"Looks like I succeeded, and yes," Astrid chirped back.

"So let me get this straight," Arashi mused with a grin, hopping out, "Your best idea was shoving a Water-type into the water? Y'know, the stuff I live next to?"

"No one said it was a good idea," Astrid playfully shot back.

Arashi didn't seem fazed at all and simply squeezed a bit of water out of his scarf, but the next moment, when Astrid wasn't expecting a counterstrike, one of his hands shot out and shoved her over as well. The Rowlet too let out a surprised cry while sticking her wings out to flap them and keep steady, but it was too late and she fell face-first into the water. The Froakie too hopped backwards as if nothing had happened while she picked herself up and fluffed her feathers to shake off.

"Now we're even," Arashi remarked playfully.

"Y-yeah, I deserved that," Astrid chuckled.

She squeezed her scarf out as well (using her feet rather than hands) and Arashi squeezed out the bag, though their new team equipment was left just a bit damp. It was no matter; it would dry off soon enough and dungeon-crawling would likely dull their newness at some point anyway.

They set off across the sand and up the stone steps to town shortly thereafter, though not before Arashi struck one last pose. Nothing seemed amiss in town, for other Pokémon were up and carrying on about their day. Nez was out and about and waved at them the moment they stepped into sight, then promptly seemed to notice their new accessories and perked up.

"Oi, you two! Are those badges?!" the Nidoking called, getting a grin.

"They sure are, Nez!" Arashi cried happily in return, hopping towards the spiked one asking.

Astrid flapped along after her comrade, and the Nidoking too took a few steps in their direction with a gleefully inquiring look on his face. Nez knelt down to look them over, and Arashi was certainly happy to show off their insignia. Astrid merely held one wing out to show that they matched.

"By the gods, ya've done it!" the Nidoking cried, gently running one claw along the inscriptions on the badges. "Aye, I always knew ya were gonna do it someday, Arashi! And a fine decision you've made too, Astrid!"

Both the Froakie and Nez gave a happy laugh, the Nidoking holding his arms out and Arashi immediately jumping into one to give the larger spiked creature a hug. Astrid was puzzled for only a moment, but when that moment ended very quickly, likewise did the same as her comrade. Nez's claws playfully scruffed them both, but despite their threatening appearance, were gentle enough to not leave a single scratch. Astrid had to admit, amnesia or not, this was probably the sweetest creature she had met in either of her lives even if she had no memories of her former.

Nez giggled, glancing between the two smaller figures. "So does this mean that, one day when Team Starstorm is famous, I can brag about knowing the both of ye and stick fancy posters of ya on my wall?"

"Of course you can, Nez!" Arashi laughed.

Astrid would've blushed had her feathers not been in the way.

The Nidoking turned them both loose with another happy laugh. "I would say, 'Make Uncle Nez proud,' but I know ya will.~"

"Give us a little time and we definitely will," Arashi gladly affirmed.

Nez gave them one last little wave as they scurried off.

Lila was sitting out in front of her house along with Charlie, while Veeko appeared to be getting a talk from an Umbreon on the front steps. A Flareon and a Heracross just off of the steps double-checked the contents of a bag that the Heracross carried before they set off down the path towards the edge of town, Astrid guessing that they had some mission to attend to.

Nonetheless, Lila quickly noticed them, then noticed their insignia just as quick and nudged Charlie, who also took it in.

"You guys are looking a little fancy there," the Jolteon mused.

"Aren't we?" Arashi replied with a smile.

"Thank heavens Trixie isn't here to see that- she'd never stop laughing," Charlie remarked.

Lila strolled closer and studied the badges, tracing the outlines of them with one paw. She started grinning, apparently taking a liking to them as well. Arashi definitely didn't mind.

"Hm? Why isn't Trixie here? Did something happen?" Astrid inquired.

"She's off running an errand with her dad," Charlie answered. "But hey, did you guys see what happened on the bulletin board earlier this morning?"

Astrid and Arashi looked at each other- they had not. Arashi definitely looked intrigued, and Astrid was too, albeit moreso with the possible connotations of what, precisely, had happened.

"Just come see for yourselves- that's the easiest way to show you," Lila said, standing up and strolling off towards the board.

Astrid and Arashi followed, the Rowlet slightly uncertain but her comrade looking curious. Lila and Charlie didn't seem to be too concerned, thus Astrid decided that likely nothing was amiss, and perhaps Trixie had merely pinned up a drawing of a Bewear breaking a Pachirisu's neck for the world to see. That, or perhaps a particularly unintelligent outlaw had corrected some slight piece of misinformation on a wanted poster and inadvertently turned themselves in.

However, she discovered that such was not the case, and although being concerned would likely do their bunch in particular no good, things were not exactly pleasant. Charlie's tail-hand pointed up at none other than Salem's poster, but it was different than before. Instead of a Fennekin, the picture was split into two halves and had the image of both a Braixen and a Delphox on either side, and the cautioning text had also been changed around.

"Highly elusive, highly difficult to apprehend. Current stage of evolution unknown; is not in the first-stage. Reported to use techniques and abilities not innate to species or evolutionary line. Utilizes strong attacks and foul play, also commonly blindsides targets and slips away through a flame shield to discourage pursuit. Victims commonly suffer grievous bodily harm and memory loss. Works within a syndicate; current status and relationships of subordinates unknown. Current number of subordinates unknown. Only known underling is a Charizard who has also escaped apprehension thus far; suspected to also be in contact with an aquatic species. Also suspected to temporarily utilize mind control on some victims for nefarious purposes. Motive is unknown. Whereabouts unknown. ABSOLUTELY NOT TO BE PURSUED ALONE. UTILIZE EXTREME CAUTION IF ENCOUNTERED."

To the side of hers, however, was another one, although the contents of it couldn't be ascertained. All that remained were a few singed edges of the page around the pins holding it in place. Some ashes were still on the ground but had mostly been blown away, and on the board behind where the poster would have been was a burn mark as if somebody had spit an ember straight into it. Clearly, someone did not like being found out, but that someone's identity was anyone's guess.

"Sheesh! There's more than just her now?!" Arashi exclaimed. "Y'know, her shenanigans would be over in ten seconds if Giratina just showed up out of nowhere and dragged her to the Distortion World, or if Regigigas went and Heavy Slammed her across the continent! Now that would be some good news!"

"If that happened, Arashi, they would probably kill more Pokémon in collateral damage," Charlie remarked, nonetheless getting a slight grin at the idea.

Somehow, Astrid too doubted that her comrade's idea would work flawlessly, but the Rowlet was a bit more intent on the burned remains next to Salem's words of caution than anything else. "S-say… Who did this…?" she inquired, pointing one wing up at the singed edges.

"We don't know; it was just like that when everyone saw it this morning," Lila answered, shrugging.

"A-ah…" Astrid accepted it, though she still couldn't help but want a solid answer.

Solid answers… those seemed to be incredibly elusive as well. If anything, Astrid hoped she could obtain at least some answers with what the badge on her wing granted her, but that too was a path waiting to be explored. She'd still just have to wait and see.

"So," mused Lila, "since you two are a team now, are you gonna go on any missions yet?"

The Starstorm duo exchanged glances again, Arashi looking excitedly eager while Astrid wasn't particularly fazed one way or another.

"What do you think, Astrid?!" the Froakie asked gleefully, clapping his hands together, "What should we do?"

She thought for a second, then replied, "I don't think we should go yet."

Arashi blinked, still grinning but looking rather taken aback as if her answer had just dashed all of his hopes. Charlie and Lila shot each other silent and subtle grins at his sudden pause.

"Not because I don't want to or because we can't do it, though," the Rowlet clarified, "You know how it was the last few times? In Tranquil Tunnel, you were hopping funny for a floor before we found that berry in the rocks, and in Brushwood Tangle, we used all of our items but one Oran berry, and most of those came from the dungeon itself. If we get caught somewhere again, I don't want to go in completely unprepared and us end up relying on luck to get through, especially if someone else shows up wanting to start a fight."

Arashi eased up, relaxing at her explanation. "You do have a good point," he acknowledged.

"Listen to her, Arashi," Charlie chuckled. "She's trying to keep you from accidentally getting killed!"

The Froakie laughed, sticking an arm around his comrade. "You're right! Our synergy is perfect, aha!" and then to Astrid, "Okay, here's what we'll do! There's a place called Verdant Meadow a little ways to the west- about the same distance away as the sheriff's office, but in the opposite direction. It's not a dungeon, but it's in feral territory, so we might get attacked, but they're mostly small Bug-types so it should be fine. We'll go there and gather what we can find, and then we can run a mission tomorrow!"

It was agreeable to the Rowlet, and she nodded.

Arashi turned to Charlie and Lila. "You guys wanna come too?"

The Aipom and Jolteon didn't have much better to do either, and shortly, they were off.


Even if the inhabitants were wild, Astrid could only describe the surroundings as 'utterly innocuous.' Some ways past Brushwood Tangle and in a somewhat flat area amidst the cliffs surroundings much of their terrain sat the meadow, and within it was a myriad of bright flowers on the ground and several big trees, some of them with things growing on them (though most without). A few Caterpie crept around and a few Kakuna hung from the branches, but they largely kept to themselves. A Roselia here and there cast them a glance, but didn't seem bothered enough by the presence of outsiders to do much of anything. The ones visiting certainly weren't going to start anything with them, either.

The air felt fantastic. All of the lush greenery gave the meadow a very vibrant feel, as if its inhabitants were incapable of being sad. Astrid quite enjoyed it too, the grass under her feet feeling very soft and comfortable to stroll around on. Charlie had already shinnied up a tree and found a chestnut to munch on, leaving Lila to fuss at him to drop her one on the ground below on account of not being able to see clearly where they grew from her position.

"Are we looking for anything specific?" Astrid inquired of her teammate.

"Well, if you can find an Oran plant, that'd be great," Arashi noted. "But that one-"

Her comrade pointed to a rather small plant with blue flowers growing in little bunches, a spiky red fruit mixed among the blooms in some places.

"Is that…?" Astrid studied them curiously, taking a few steps closer.

"Hm?" Arashi asked, following along behind her. "Do you know what these are?"

She tilted her head sideways, still looking them over. Something told her she wouldn't like eating one, but where that feeling was coming from, she couldn't place. "… That's a berry, right? A spicy one?"

Arashi seemed surprised, grinning nonetheless. "… Yeah, that's a Spelon berry," he answered. "They're supposed to feel a lot worse than eating a Blast Seed, and without the positive effect of breathing fire, too- though you'll definitely try. How did you know they were spicy? Did you eat one before you wound up on the beach or something?"

"… No, they just… caught my attention, I guess," Astrid too was a bit puzzled, making sure Charlie and Lila were out of earshot. She crept a bit closer to her partner, saying, "They look familiar, but… in a vague sort of way. Kinda like how I just knew I wasn't supposed to be a Rowlet, but I can't remember anything about being a human, except that I am one."

Arashi nodded. "Ha, maybe you tried to eat one before your memories went blank and that's why you recognize them," he jested, then in a bit more of a serious but still amiable voice, "So that means you come from a world where humans are still alive, Pokémon exist, and berries grow. Sounds like an interesting place! Maybe if we ever run into Palkia or Hoopa, they can show us!"

When her comrade put it that way… it certainly sounded like a better start to getting answers, although she had to doubt that Palkia or Hoopa would make themselves available in any way that she and her comrade could access.

"All that is to say, don't pick Spelon berries unless you just really like feeling a burning sensation in your throat," Arashi mused.

Astrid certainly didn't intend to- as far as she was concerned, they were going to stay right there on the plant.

Lila, on the other hand, looked up at Charlie, sticking her front paws on the trunk of the tree in a very pathetic attempt to climb up it even just a short distance. The Aipom smiled down at her, lounging without a care on the bend of a branch.

"C'mon! I can't see any of them up there that look ready! Can't you help a sister out?!" Lila called, somewhat joking on one hand but actually wanting a chestnut on the other.

"We aren't in a dungeon; you want some, you have Swift," the Aipom playfully brushed her off.

"I've also got Thunderbolt!"

"And we both know you wouldn't Thunderbolt me!"

"Oh, get real, I- ow!"

The spiky shell of one fell down from Charlie's branch, dropped by his tail-hand straight onto Lila's snout. The Jolteon jumped back from the trunk and brushed her nose off with one paw, while Charlie only watched with a grin from his perch.

"There you go!" the Aipom sarcastically called down to her. "Now, why don't you- yeeEEEeeeh!"

A Spinarak webbed down from further up, evidently not all that happy with someone yelling down from its tree. Charlie recoiled almost as soon as he saw it and lost his place on his branch, quickly tumbling down through the trees before landing on the ground rather ungracefully. Lila started grinning as soon as she saw the display, and Arashi too couldn't help but be amused. Astrid merely blinked.

"That's what you get!" the Jolteon cried. "That's what you get for not helping your friend!"

Charlie brushed himself off, sighing but looking haplessly playful all the same. "Alright, you win!"

The Spinarak dropped down, hissing at them in disapproval, but a Swift and a Bubble shut it up fairly quickly.

The youngsters stayed there for quite some time, looking around for things that might be useful and stowing them in the bag if any came up. Of course, their search was also interspersed with occasional random puffs of pollen to an unsuspecting friend's face, and the occasional sound of a Graveler someplace further off giving another wild one a Rock Throw if it stepped too close.

If there was a cause for worry, they couldn't see it. If it lurked further away, they paid it no mind.