An Abra held up what felt like the sky, a Protect shield, protecting its scared trainer.

"I'll protect you, don't worry."

And as the girl fell asleep, having cried herself unconscious, it let out a sigh of relief.

"How long can I keep this up?"

A Mid-Sinnoh Night's Dream - XXIII - Don't Call It Filler!

Lucas received the Relic Badge in short order to much applause, and not just from his fangirls. It seemed that their resident smart guy was attracting some attention of his own. While challengers in themselves weren't an odd occurrence, only a couple hundred got that far. And if you're assuming Sinnoh was as densely populated as a small town, you'd be right to believe there wasn't anything special about that. However, while not as urban as Kanto, and nowhere near as rural as Johto, there were a fair amount of people with not much else to do besides analyze statistics for challengers and watch TV.

Some call the fourth Gym Battle a wake-up call for young trainers for a reason. The difficulty curves exponentially in the Gym Challenge. Bidoof trainers either get knocked out in their first or second gym, or go on to dominate that year's conference.

Hey, stranger things have happened.

The point is, as someone who's periodically shown up in the news as a member of Team Black (Though few truly recognized him for that) while seeming stoic enough for others to project onto to make up for their own failings, Lucas found that he had unintentionally grown a fanbase.

Barry was wailing like a child (well, same difference) internally because of that; Hilbert could see it in his eyes.

Though, the blond's turn to battle was coming up, so he jumped up and ran off to get ready.

Fantina had walked backstage from a runway and returned minutes laters, presumably to heal her Pokemon.
Lucas turned his head to Barry as he approached the stage, inclining his head. He dangled the crystal drill in front of his, and Barry firmly grasped the chain.

"Just in case," Lucas remarked.

"Got it." Barry spun the drill in the air once before approaching center stage.

With a flourish, Fantina greeted him. "Time for the second act, non?"

"What does 'non' mean?"

"Eh… I'll explain later, let us begin!" Fantina looked at him like he was an idiot, which, y'know, Barry, but not quite right regardless. One of her Rotoms flew down from the rafters, sputtering and sparking with inaudible cackling.

"Alright! I've got an idea!"

Hilbert spread his fingertips across his temples."This can't go well…"

"Agreed," Lucas nodded along with a solemn half-frown on his face.

"Regigigas!"

"DAMN IT, BARRY!"

The Legendary golem appeared on the field, groaning in a screeching monotone, surprising the audience, who even after the previous display, wasn't expecting that.

"Well, it's a Normal-type, isn't it?"

Fantina openly frowned, before reaching towards something hidden in the folds of her dress. She withdrew a white Premier Ball with one hand, and recalled Rotom with the other.

"I must level the playing field, as they say. Spectrier."

A horse of black fur and a scraggly purple mane appeared on the field, putting even more pressure on her opponent and the audience.

"What's that?" Barry asked, not having a clue, and a bit confused by her choice to switch Pokemon.

"Spectrier is a Legendary Pokemon native to the European plains. I've traveled the world, seen many things, much like you. There's a… elfin, not a rule, but a doctrine. Fight fire with fire, do you understand? So with Spectrier's strength, I shall defeat yours. Begin!"

"Regigigas, get up!"

It groaned, moving a few feet, but given the size of the Pokemon, that was nothing.

"Spectrier, raise your Agility!"

The ghostly Pokemon nodded, though its eyes were still closed, and began vibrating with energy. It tapped its hooves on the faux-wooden floor, metaphorically eyeing its massive opponent.

"Hit 'em with a Heavy Slam, Regigigas!" Barry yelled, pumping his fists in anticipation.

The golem lunged forward, but was too slow to grab onto the Ghost-type, who simply dodged and seemed to teleport behind it.

"Double Kick!"

It slammed its hooves into Regigigas's back, barely making it stumble, before it kicked again in a flurry of smoke and limbs.

"Come on!" Barry whined, tugging at his hair.

"Be patient," buzzed Regigigas.

"I don't speak Pokemon, I'm not Hilbert!"

"Spectrier, keep using Double Kick!"

For the next few minutes, Regigigas was continuously beaten down by Spectrier, noticeably becoming fatigued, even if it was only just barely.

The orbs on its torso flashed suddenly, and it began to become better, faster, stronger. Its arm whipped out towards Spectrier in mid-air as it was approaching for another Double Kick. Its hand fazed right through, and the Ghost-type Legendary retreated, facing away from Fantina.

"Finally! Give 'em a beat-down! And that's a ghost, so don't use normal moves!"

Regigigas clanked in confusion, as it had no clue what Barry was talking about. Being sealed underground for a few hundred or so years will do that to you.

"I mean, uh, use Fire Punch and stuff like that!"

The orbs flashed as it buzzed deeply, flames beginning to flicker along its arms.

Somehow, neither of the Pokemon were knocked out, but the stage had been entirely destroyed over the following minutes. Not a single plateau remained, all rubble.
"...And that, dear audience, is why we do not use Legendary Pokemon!" Fantina declared, recalling Spectrier. Regigigas was half-buried in splinters as long as Barry was tall, though still uninhibited. "Do you understand that, boy?"

"Uh… Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Now, given that we do not have a stage, I will have to ask everyone to leave. Unfortunately, I will not be able to take on challenges in the near future. Farewell!"

And with that, Fantina walked off and disappeared behind a curtain.

Hilbert grabbed at his temples lightly, a dull mutter escaping his lips. "I think Barry needs to start going last- I haven't broken a Gym in months, don't give me that look!"

After they left, Barry got dragged off by Cheryl to talk to her cousin about his recent catches, though 'drag' is a strong word for someone with a temperament like hers. Lucas, oddly enough, decided to investigate a… church, of some kind, that had popped up since they'd last been there. From the pamphlet, it seemed like it was built by missionaries who were based in Canalave at the moment. It looked like it came straight out of the Victorian era, stained glass windows and all that, so of course, Marley went too. Whatever fits the aesthetic, he presumed. Dawn left to go take a Poffin-making class, so he was stuck wandering around for something to do.

He looked at an odd signpost that was covered from head to toe in posters that read 'MISSING' with a picture of a young girl with what looked like a long-legged Paras on her head. Wait, no. That was just her haircut.

Obviously concerned (And feeling guilty for making fun of her in his head), he tugged a number tab from the bottom of one flier, only a few having been taken before he'd arrived. He dialed it into his cross-transceiver and waited for the dial tone.

Eventually, it picked up. The voice on the other end was old and tired, that much he could tell, when they answered, "Hello?"

"Hey, I saw some posters in Hearthome, and this was the number listed."

"Oh, thank Arceus. I've been talking to the police, all she left was a note, saying she was headed towards Cycling Road."

"...I'm kinda 'the police', how can I help?"

The old woman exhaled a breath that sounded damp. "If you don't mind, could you look for her? Her name is Mira, she's my grand-daughter, all I have left-"

"Don't worry, I'll look around. I'm an Aura Gu- officer with the International Police, so I can get some help if I need it. Anything I should know before I head out?"

"Oh, bless you. She's very young, has an intense drive to improve, likes Pokemon, rainbows, nice people, dislikes vegetables, darkness, bullies-"

"I didn't ask for a character sheet."

"I mean, what should I look out for?"

The woman sighed again, "You could hear her tantrums from miles off, just from the stomping, and she has an Abra."

"...I'm sure I can work with that. I'll do my best."

Hilbert knelt on the ground just inside of Route 208, and released Abra.

"So, I'm tracking a girl and her Psychic-type. I figured you'd be able to help."

"Great, are we going to skin them when we-"

"Not the time for jokes. Anything you can do?"

"Hm. Yes. But I demand a bucket of berries in return."

"You know that's not an issue with our funds- Ah, wait, you're just being difficult. Seriously, anything?"

Abra levitated into the air before spinning like he was a needle on a compass rose. "Aura, Psions, they're different. You can see one, I can see the other."

"Psions?"

"Traces of energy left behind by some moves being used. Let's say Protect was used a hundred feet off. Hours after it faded, there would still be traces of previous psychic manipulation in the area. It would be difficult to pinpoint exactly where it occurred beforehand. However, the same isn't true for the ground, as it hardly ever moves."

"Do Psychic-types leave Psions behind even if they aren't using moves?"

"Don't ask stupid questions, why do you think they're Psychic-types? Even if they aren't using official 'moves', levitating or even breathing will leave behind trace amounts of Psions."

"Are they different based on species?"

"Mine are exceptionally powerful, of course, but yes, they'll look different based on species. Abra have a bright pink, Meditite have an aquamarine, Cresselia has a blinding white, so on and so forth."

"So, can you track it?"

"Do you know how many people travel this road? If I looked, I wouldn't know where to start."

"Right," Hilbert agreed, before picking up Abra and putting him on his shoulders. "I'm going to start heading towards Cycling Road, you keep a lookout for Abra Psions."

"Right, boss."

Hilbert could've run at a dozen miles an hour and barely broken a sweat if he used his aura right, but even if Abra was smarter than he was, it wouldn't matter if he couldn't see what they were looking for.

"I'm seeing a small trail leading into Mt. Coronet. I hope you have a flashlight."

"Well, neither of us need it."

"Does Aura Sight apply to rocks?"

"Eh… yeah, you have a point." Hilbert stopped at the entrance to the pitch-black cave, and a white cloud sprung into existence above his head, to little notice.

There was a black dot inside. Then another. And then another.

"Oh, wait, I bet I can use Fire Punch for this!"

"Your genius is truly astounding," drolled Abra with evident sarcasm.

Hilbert began thinking really hard, as that generally worked for him. He was more hot-blooded than he was book-smart, and that helped a lot when one tries to turn their arm into a torch. Heat, warmth, anger, motivation. Willpower.

A flicker of flame sputtered between his outstretched fingertips, weaving between them like a ribbon. He willed it to grow hotter, and immediately felt the drain from the power of the flame and the increased protection of his shields. He slapped his blue sleeve before it could be intensely damaged by the fire, but the new black spots were going to annoy him to no end.

"Alright, we're good to go!" He said, with renewed enthusiasm.

"Don't get lost."

"I won't, it's only like, a few hours of hiking- Oh, crap. Yeah, I'll send a message to let the others know I'll be out late." And after doing so, he reached for a spare soda he had in his bag, miraculously as cold as when he bought it, and shotgunned the thing after cracking it with one hand. "I love caffeine."

"You're wasting my time-"

"Excuse me, any spare screen time?" Asked a suddenly appearing massive sword, scaring the hell out of Hilbert.

"Ah!"

Yeah, that about sums it up.

"I would like to explore this new place," Honedge asked, spinning a few meters away so as to not decapitate them by accident. "I will accompany you. I believe that Whirlipede would like to stretch as well."

He did let Whirlipede out (Shaymin had tagged along with Dawn because of the promised Poffins), though Golurk and the pseudo-legendaries were a bit too big to fit."But... you're a nine-foot long sword. Do you know Minimize?"

"I learned Automatize countless years ago, long before your birth, in the Azoth Kingdom of Kalos. It will have a similar effect, so should I choose. I believe it will lower my weight, though I will shrink rather than become less dense."

"Okay, how far can you take it?"

"How much can you carry?"

"Yes."

"Your hubris is astounding as always."

"I'm just worried about the size aspect, do whatever as long as you can fit."

Honedge turned herself into a pocket-knife and lazily floated into his field of vision while he turned away.

"Huh. I guess even you have a smart-ass streak."

"I believe that comes from associating with you, from what I've seen."

"Fair, fair." Hilbert began walking off into the cave, leaving a shadow from the flame. "Well, let's go."

Abra only found a trail leading out of Mt. Coronet, so it was likely that Mira, the girl, was at Cycling Road. Some passerby gave him odd looks with the Abra on his shoulders, the floating sword, and the tire bug behind him, but really, was that so strange?

They got the north-bound route soon enough as the sun was setting, and found that the trail of Psions led underneath the road into grassy plains and woodlands.

"Oh, this is going to be a pain."

So, he grabbed Whirlipede in one arm, Honedge in the other, made sure Abra was holding on tight, and jumped off the edge. Rather than plummeting into the pond beneath him, he landed in a crouch with little more than a ripple.

"You really shouldn't grab my handle if you want to live," Honedge warned. Not threatened, warned, because the soul drain thing was mostly reflex.

"I would live just to spite you," he replied, waving off their concern and walking out of the pond, putting a shocked Whirlipede down on the ground. "Sorry about the jump, you'll get used to it," he said to the Bug-type.

"Your greatest flaw is hubris, I pray the great lord has mercy on your soul."

"I don't think Arceus quite has domain over that, and I'm not into worshipping Legendaries anyway."

"I wasn't speaking of your Sinnohan myth."

Hilbert tilted his head, even as they were walking. He spared Honedge a glance. "Then what are you talking about?"

"Lord Helix, surely you know of his grace?" Looks like Honedge was something of a paladin, what a surprise.

"Ah… Unova doesn't have a strong religious center. Most people look at those kinds of things like myths, I mean, I can't recall anyone worshipping Landorus unless they were really backwater. Science kind of takes precedence over there. That being said, yeah, I've heard of them once or twice," he said, making small talk even as they tracked down a missing person. He really had no sense of when it was a good time for levity.

"I was first born as a defender of the Lord, to be used in his defense," Honedge said, habitually spinning as it levitated, recalibrating for its temporarily smaller size. "Heretics from the east attempted to spread their message through pillaging and rebuilding things 'how they ought to be'. I found purpose in the Lord, and so, in combat."

"Was that before or after… y'know, that war that happened in Europe?"

"What war? If you are referring to the crusades, then yes, however, I don't believe you've been alive long enough to remember them."

"No, no, it was a different one, I've only heard about it though. No one really likes to talk about it. It's why everyone speaks the same language now though... I think. It's the same reason only Cheryl's got a grandfather out of all of us."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"What for?"

"..."

"Whew!" Hilbert suddenly exclaimed, stretching his arms out in the midst of the setting sun. They were a hundred meters off from a cave entrance, and had been walking straight towards it for some time thanks to Abra. "That was a heavy conversation! Cerebus syndrome, right? Pretty crazy. Anyway, let's go pick up girls in a dungeon!"

"Your references only make sense to you, and most certainly not to me. I refuse to be involved in the act of 'picking up girls'."

"It was just a… Yeah, it was a lame joke, that's my fault. Let's go."

Abra piped up, "And I'm pretty sure that gag would need to age a decade to actually make sense."

"What do you mean? Wait, picking up… Why the hell would I say that? What was I talking about?"

"We're going cave diving to find experimental subjects."

"We most certainly are not."

"I have seniority, do what I say."

"I will cut you, that is not a threat, it is a promise."

"As much as I would love to hear this conversation continue, daylight's burning."

The inside of the cave was as dark as Hilbert's nickname, inspiring him to turn his arm into a torch again.

"The Psions trail off a few meters in. It's likely that they teleported or fainted."

"Well, if it used Teleport, then we wouldn't be looking for it, would we?"

"Just keeping you on your toes."

"You're a serious pain sometimes, you know that?"

"Someone's got to be."

Hilbert shook his head and closed his eyes. "I'm going to look with Aura Sight, tell me if I'm going to run into something."

He only saw a light glow from Abra, Whirlipede's purplish outline, and Honedge pulsing with red and black. That was… odd, but she was different from other Honedge anyway, it probably made sense.

"I believe this is what they call a 'who you are in the dark' test."

"Too literal, and you have to be alone for that." He snapped his fingers, making a sound akin to that of a firecracker. "Hey! Mira!"

No response.

His field of vision deepened, and a speck of aura flickered on the very edge of his sight.

"That's pretty far," he said as he opened his eyes. His shout was still echoing across the dark cave walls. They started walking, Hilbert keeping his eyes shut and relying on his three Pokemon to tell him where to go.

"There's a branch up ahead," Honedge stated, a metallic brush in her voice. "What's your call?"

"A bit of advice I've always followed for mazes is to stick to the left." He took another few steps forward.

"Wall. Turn forty-five degrees."

"Thanks."

Whirlipede dutifully dug a trench in the ground behind them, leaving a trail without even being asked.

"You can turn back now."

"Right."

They continued on like that, approaching a growing speck of aura on the horizon. He could make out a faint shape, like a blob with slight protrusions. Sure, there were more branches in the path, but the scuffing of the cave floor showed the path forward. Though, worryingly, there were also Pokemon tracks.

"Hello?

Still no response.

When they stumbled onto a rockfall, a ball of ice dropped in his stomach. There was a faint red pulse coming from under the pile of collapsed caving.

He ran towards the pile immediately, shoving aside boulders with barely a thought. Honedge sliced through larger pieces and scattered them to reduce the weight.

Miraculously, there was an air pocket shaped like a semi-sphere beneath it all. There lay a small red-haired girl in a fetal position, covered in dirt. Her chest was rising and falling, but just barely.

Hilbert's pupils shuddered as he reached into his bag, shuffling for something.

"Damn! Awakenings won't work. Abra, what kind of berry wakes up-"

"Chesto Berry."

He didn't reply, he only reached into his bag for the dry-tasting fruit. He pressed it into her mouth with his thumb. Seconds later, she coughed and spit out the berry, achieving the intended effect regardless.

"Wha… Abra? Are you there? Did the Gible get you…?" Her eyes opened, but clearly hadn't adjusted to the pitch-black cave.

Hilbert snapped his fingers, (Warmth, heat, willpower) creating a small lamp in the palm of his hands. "Hey, are you alright?"

Her head slowly turned to face him, with half-lidded eyes. "...Who're you?"

"I'm Black." He paused. "I'm Hilbert. Call me bro if you can't remember those. I'm getting you out of here, alright?"

"...Out? Where's Abra?"

Hilbert looked over to his Abra, who shook his head. "There's a massive deposit of Psions surrounding her, but there's no trail leading elsewhere."

"Put that in simpler terms," he thought back succinctly.

"Four-hundred percent sync ratio."

His eyes widened involuntarily.

"You mean…"

"I'll explain on the way, she's looking rather confused."

He turned back to the little girl, who was staring up at him, rightly confused.

"What does a four-hundred percent sync ratio mean?"

Hilbert's eyes widened again, further than before.

"Did you… read our thoughts?"

"Did I? I'm very… tired…. Where's Abra?"

"They're…" He struggled with the words. "Invisible, right now. They're with you, but you won't be able to see them for now."

"So I can hear her but I can't see her?"

"..."

"..."

"I think this just got very complicated very quickly. Abra, Teleport us out."

"Too dangerous, boss. I can't do groups well, and her mind's too muddled to make out the right destination. You could end up buried under a pile of rocks if we're not careful."

"Alright, Mira? We're going to retrace our steps, do you think you can walk?"

She struggled to even sit up, bruising evident all over her body.

"My legs hurt, I don't think I can…"
"That's fine, I can carry you. Hold on tight, okay?" He pulled her onto his back, Abra floating temporarily to let her arms get a hold. He pulled her legs into a right-angle, like a Grumpiggy-back ride.

"Alright… My stomach hurts."

"That's probably the dust inhalation," he remarked as he grabbed her backpack. It seemed to be filled with camping equipment and a cracked flashlight. "Don't talk if it hurts."

"I'm fine," she grumbled dryly. Quite literally, as she spit out a wad of dusty phlegm to their side.

"How'd you end up lost?"

"I wanted to catch a Sandshrew, but a Gible came out of nowhere and broke my flashlight… It smashed up the cave and there were rocks…."

"A Gible?" He noted to not surprise her with Garchomp, while keeping his eyes on Whirlipede's trail.

"Ack-huh."

"I'll stop it if it comes around," he said, simply. He was keeping track of where he was going from the feel of the ridges in the ground, as he couldn't exactly use Fire Punch at the moment.

It was smooth sailing for another few minutes, until the cave began growing lighter. That wasn't supposed to happen, see, because it was definitely nighttime by then.

"Remember, everyone. We go in, flush out the Gible, and catch them all before the police get wind of it, got it?"

Hilbert stood awkwardly at the entrance of the cave, watching a dozen grunts slowly turn towards them, illuminated by various spotlights. A blond man in a Team Galatic jumpsuit turned towards him, first shocked, then sneering.

"You-"

"Okay, wait for a second," he gestured with his head, subtly tapping an emergency call button on his cross-transceiver. "Should I say rotten luck or such misfortune? First one rolls off the tongue better. And I mean, of all the days you guys could've picked to poach Pokemon, you chose today?"

"We're just catching wild Pokemon, officer. Nothing illegal about that, is there?"

Hilbert's mind actually blanked at that.

"Officer?"

"It's the blue jacket. And these guys aren't very smart in the first place."

"Fair, fair. Is that illegal?"

The Galactic officer sneered again- (Don't do that so much, your face might get stuck) before shrugging with a smirk.

"Of course it isn't."

"Have any illegal catching equipment? Bombs or anything?" He walked over to an open van and peered inside. "Because if you have bombs, I don't need arms."

"...For what?"

"Well, to kick your ass. The name's Black, with Interpol. Your boss may have heard of me."

That shocked the officer, who took a step back. "You're-"

"I mean, seriously, isn't my mugshot hanging somewhere in the office? You know, like a plaque, reading 'Our worst enemy' with a heart?"

"What are you-"

"Okay, listen, I know how cell organizations work." He turned to the other grunts. "If this is your first mission, you won't get in too much trouble. I know the idea of fixing the world is appealing, but there are better ways to do it. Turn around, walk away, quit."

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

"Turn yourselves in, I've got cargo that needs to get to the hospital."

That actually gave a few grunts pause, and their hands inched away from their Pokeball belts. Their commanding officer noticed it too.

"Hey! We can't turn back now! We need these Pokemon for the raids!"

Hilbert fixed his gaze on the blond. He seemed older than him, but not by much, only a little bit younger than Roark. "What raids?"

That actually shut him up.

"I said, what raids?"

"...The boss said you were stupid, but now I get it. Don't you see how burned the world is, kid? Team Galactic will remake it, better than before. You're an Aura Guardian or something, ain't you? You want to do the same thing as us, admit it."

"I think I could say, 'Shut up, Hannibal', but that's not nearly long enough of a monologue to need me to say that. And you're right, I am gonna change the world, but I'm not going to hurt good people doing it. That's where you've gone wrong. Last chance. Turn yourselves in before I learn Blaze Kick."
"Tsk. Grunts, attack!"

"But sir, he's carrying a child…"

"Fine, don't injure them too badly!"

See, it's a bit odd to witness the evil team have a conscience sometimes. Not that it mattered, as he sent out a wave of flames with a sweeping kick, jostling Mira on his back.

"Okay, I know I said last chance already, but to be fair, you didn't know what you were getting into."

"We know exactly what we're doing! Now-"

A booming voice echoed from around them, "I beg to differ." A dozen spotlights illuminated their spotlights, and police had surrounded the cave entrance. Sure enough, Looker was standing among them, holding a megaphone. "You're all under arrest. All attempts to resist will be met with the force of a sixteen-year-old entirely unqualified for us to hire."

"I'm qualified to kick ass, isn't that all that matters?" Hilbert shouted at the police line.

Mira giggled for a moment before coughing again.

"I mean, uh, I gotta go. You guys got this?"

Looker pulled the megaphone away from his mouth, but his sigh was still audible. "You know you're implying that you think you know better than the police, don't you?"

"Just checking, jeez. Well, I gotta bounce. Whirlipede, Honedge, Abra." The three Pokemon returned to their Pokeballs. His voice dropped lower, back to normal. "Hold on tight, okay?"

Mira nodded, and they were off, a few miles higher than the speed limit, but who would stop him?

Looker watched the boy recede from his vision, shaking his head. "That kid… I think he might actually end up on payroll, if he ever bothers to check in properly."

"Do you think he knows that he should?" Asked a plain-clothes Officer Jenny, tapping her Chinchou to make it turn down the light. Who needs spotlights when you've got Pokemon, right?

Looker paused, before alternating swearing and chuckling under his breath.

"Kid's gonna have one hell of a bank account by the end of this."

Hilbert took Mira to the Pokemon Center, called her grandmother, and found that she wasn't answering. Given it was midnight, that made a lot of sense. Nurse Joy had attached an odd sort of oxygen breather to her face, which pulled clouds of dust from her lungs with every breath. Modern medicine truly was a miracle.

She was dazed, though still awake through the process.

"I left your grandmother a message," he told her before downing another canned coffee. "She'll be here in the morning."

"...Okie. Abra is happy now," she said simply.

"About that… You said you could hear Abra?"

Mira weakly nodded, tugging her blankets tighter. "She says thanks."

"Where is she?"

"In my head."

Hilbert leaned back in his bedside chair, stewing in thought.

"So her Abra dissolved into her. That's very not good, but at least they aren't technically dead."

"What's the call, boss?" Abra floated over out of Mira's vision, close to the floor.

"What are the odds that she's a Psychic-type now?"

"She has a Psionic pulse, it's a deeper red now, hints of orange. It's definitely coming from her."

"So she… combined… with her Abra?"

"Seems like it."

Hilbert clapped his hands together, lightly though, as to not disturb the girl.

"I'll talk to you in the morning, okay, Mira?"

"All-righty, bro…"

"Sleep well."

And she did. Hilbert sent off another text to the others, just so they'd know he was back in town. It was well after midnight by then, so they wouldn't see it for a while, but it was the principle of the thing. He had an interesting conversation with Abra afterward though.

"You didn't think to mention Psions before today?" He asked aloud, as talking mentally for too long gave him a headache.

"You never asked."

"I've never heard of them before!" He whispered.

"It's something of a secret we like to keep to ourselves. Not every Psychic-type can see them, but the more powerful ones can. Think of it like your Aura Sight, but for psychic energy. Except less hazy and with a lot more molecules."

"How would you know?"

"I can see your memories, of course. And you've described it multiple times."

"That makes sense. I mean, it's creepy as hell, but still."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"I'm locking you up in an asylum if you ever evolve, you're a menace to society."

"Sure, sure."

They were both only half-joking. Abra, because Psychic-types are just like that; And Hilbert, because he knew that deep down, Abra had a good heart. Probably. He wasn't a betting man.

AN:

Seriously, don't know why this took two weeks to get done. When in doubt, introduce a stat trainer. I might start skipping Gym Battles, they're immensely boring because there are barely any stakes and have uninteresting field conditions. Unless I can make jokes out of them, I dunno.

This chapter got a little dark, weird. That's about it, give me another week and I'll get something out.