As soon as Mew returned to the Expedition Society headquarters, they told anyone who would listen about what Aster had said regarding them being his partner. Most of them didn't really care, much to their chagrin, though Ampharos and Mawile did seem quite pleased at the news.

The next several days passed in a comfortable routine. Mew would awake early in the morning, sometimes before the sun was up, only to find that Aster was already out and about somewhere. In their search for him they would pick up a quick breakfast from the kitchen (though Swirlix grew steadily more frustrated with every day that Mew intruded on her culinary palace), and eventually find their new partner wherever he happened to be. His preferred hiding spots included the seashore, the observatory, the café, the lighthouse, and the docks. Sometimes he would be writing a letter when they'd find him, though he wouldn't say who it was meant for. Every day Mew got a bit faster at finding him, until it became almost like a little game between them.

The Treecko didn't slump over when they approached anymore. He didn't look exactly pleased to see them either, but it was better than the outright distaste he had displayed earlier. Mew still didn't get to choose the jobs they went on, though that didn't mean they weren't interesting. Together they went on jobs involving item retrievals, rescuing lost Pokemon, and even hunting down an outlaw! (Aster had insisted that Mew stay behind him during that last one.) And best of all, not a single unfamiliar memory came to them during that entire time, to the point where they forgot about that business entirely.

With every trip Mew learned a little more about the world they lived in: the reason it rained; how the earth revolved around the sun; why crops needed water and sunlight. Their curiosity, rather than subsiding, only grew stronger with every new discovery—they needed to know everything, and the best way of doing so was to travel and see the world. How fortunate it was that their occupation involved just that.

However, one day Mew woke up not to a silent, golden morning, but to a dark room and the sound of quiet snores. The desk and equipment chest were draped in grey shadows, lending a mysterious air to the bedroom. They sat up and spotted a familiar Treecko actually sleeping in his bed. That was new: they had never seen him sleep before. Ordinarily he would still be up when they went to bed, and when they woke up he would be already wandering the town.

They didn't have long to dwell on the unusual situation, however, as the rhythmic chimes of a distant bell shooed the silence away. Aster shot up, eyes wide, and immediately twisted to look out the window. He stared in disbelief at the pale sun, which was peeking through a hole in the dark cloud cover. "No way," he muttered. "Did I actually oversleep?"

"Morning, Aster!" Mew said cheerily.

He swiveled and looked at them as though he had just noticed they were there. "Oh. Um. Good morning."

"What're you so surprised about?"

"Well…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Normally I don't sleep very well. It just feels weird to be waking up late for once."

The chimes stopped; footsteps and muffled voices could be heard from outside the bedroom. Mew cracked the door open and spotted some of the other Expedition Society members—Archen, Buizel, and Bunnelby—trudging down the hallway and rubbing their eyes.

"What's going on?" they asked.

The Treecko was already up and raiding the chest in the corner of the room; most of the equipment was thrown out onto the floor, with only a few wands and orbs shoved haphazardly into his bag. Once satisfied, he made for the door. "The daily meeting," he said as he passed them and stepped out into the hall.

"The what now?" Mew followed him out and floated alongside him. He was walking as though he was in a hurry. "If this meeting is daily, how come we've never gone to it?"

"I might've…skipped it a few times." He hefted the bag higher onto his shoulder. "And we always left early before the meeting actually happened, so I guess you never got to see it."

"Does the whole Society usually attend this meeting?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, great!" They leaned forward and flew a little faster. "Maybe I can get to know some of the other members better! It feels like we never see them, you know?"

The two reached the central room, where a single pale sunbeam broke in through a window to shoo away the shadows. Ampharos was standing before the rest of the Society and was talking about some kind of expedition they were planning; the other members watched with expressions ranging from polite interest to outright boredom. Swirlix in particular kept sneaking wistful glances at the kitchen door, while Mawile impatiently tapped her foot on the floor. Not one of them seemed to notice the two entering. Mew intended to fix that. Aster, his head down, silently led Mew to the back of the crowd. "Stay quiet," he whispered. "Maybe we can still sneak out—"

"Hi, guys!" Mew said. "Whatcha talking about?"

Ampharos fell silent at the interruption, and the entire Society turned to stare at them. The Treecko froze, teeth clenched, then slumped over and sighed.

Dutifully, Archen said, "Hey, Mew. Good to see you." Then, "Oh. Hey, Aster."

"Hi," Aster said, staring at the floor.

"We were just going over some future plans to investigate reports of a lost city on the Sand Continent," Ampharos said, smiling warmly at them. "So as I was saying, the Gliscor we've been in contact with says…"

For what felt like hours, he explained every minute detail of the alleged city buried beneath the sand dunes. Mew listened intently at first, but soon boredom started to seep in; one could only pay attention to the same topic for so long without losing interest. Judging by what Ampharos was saying, they weren't even going to check out the city anytime soon! So why in the world would anyone care about it? Mew started to understand why Aster skipped these meetings so often. To keep themself entertained, they looked around at the other members to see how they were holding up: Bunnelby was having trouble staying awake; Dedenne looked restless and antsy, her whiskers sparking and fizzing; Buizel's eyes had glazed over, and now he gazed emptily at nothing in particular.

Mawile, however, was staring intently at Mew and Aster. It felt more than a little uncomfortable, like she was examining them for any imperfections to pounce on. Mew floated a few inches to the left so that Aster would block her vision, but still they felt her gaze on them, hot as the sun. What was her deal?

Aster shot them a look: What are you doing? He didn't say it, but they could tell he wanted to.

In response they nodded almost imperceptibly towards Mawile. He turned towards her—and immediately turned away, his eyes wide. The two exchanged shrugs, then he shuffled a little to the right so that he could hide them better.

After what felt like years, Ampharos finally finished describing the lost city and concluded the meeting with, "Give it your all out there, team!"

The Society responded with a chorus of cheers, some more enthusiastic than others, and all of them—including Mawile, thankfully—dispersed throughout the building to handle whatever needed doing. Aster took Mew's paw and made for the front door, but Ampharos called out, "Aster! Mew! Can I have a word with you two?"

"What do you need?" Aster said. "We were actually going out to handle a job, so—"

"What're you talking about? We haven't accepted a job yet!" Mew said, tilting their head. He shot them a meaningful glare, but they didn't really understand what he meant, so they floated towards Ampharos and pulled the Treecko along behind them.

"A request for help came in just last night. It seems quite urgent," Ampharos said as they approached. "During the petrification crisis caused by Dark Matter, a Hoppip was in the Sunbathed Garden. His family hasn't heard from him for several weeks now, and they're getting quite worried. I trust you understand the significance of this?"

Aster nodded grimly, but Mew had no idea what a petrification crisis, Dark Matter, or Hoppip was. Not for the first time, they had the distinct sensation of being locked out of the loop.

Ampharos seemed to notice their confusion, judging by the way he tilted his head. "Has nobody told you about Dark Matter, Mew?"

They shook their head. A small, distant part of them felt a strange sense of déjà vu at the name, though they were certain they'd never heard of it before. "I don't think you guys mentioned it yet," they said. It felt uncomfortably like they were trying to convince themself.

"Ahh…hmm. How do I explain this to you?" Ampharos folded his arms, seemingly thinking, and eventually started speaking: "Dark Matter was a creature created from every Pokemon's negativity, and it wanted nothing more than to destroy the planet we lived on. It had two main methods of doing so: turning Pokemon to stone, and dragging the planet into the sun."

"And possession," Aster said darkly. "It took control of Pokemon and made them do its bidding."

"Wow, that sounds interesting," Mew said. "And terrible. Mostly terrible. Did Dark Matter win?"

The Treecko stared dully at Mew. "We wouldn't even be here if it won. The planet would be burnt to a crisp. We'd be dead."

"Oh. Right…yeah, that makes sense." They rubbed the back of their neck, grinning sheepishly.

Ampharos stepped forward and clapped Aster's shoulder. "In the end, Dark Matter was defeated. The remaining Pokemon who hadn't been petrified came together to stop it once and for all, though I'd wager that Aster and Vallea did most of the work."

"Woah…" Mew turned to Aster with their mouth hanging open. "You never told me you saved the world!"

"It wasn't only me," Aster said, lowering his gaze to the floor. "Vallea's the one who stopped Dark Matter for good. I just…helped."

"Who's Vallea?" Mew asked.

He scowled. "My old partner."

"Oh." They knew from experience that asking about his old partner tended to be met with anger, so they didn't push further. Instead, they asked, "So what does this Dark Matter thingy have to do with finding a lost Pokemon?"

"When Dark Matter was defeated, every petrified Pokemon was returned to normal," Ampharos said. "But depending on where they were petrified, some were in more danger than others when they returned. Imagine you're flying over an ocean only to be suddenly turned into stone." He furrowed his brow, the orb on his forehead glowing faintly. "You would…plummet, and when you awoke you'd be underwater."

"Wait. Hoppip can fly," Aster whispered, his eyes haunted.

"If you got petrified in a Mystery Dungeon, where the land itself changes around you, it would be very easy to get lost," Ampharos continued. "I suppose that's what happened to Hoppip. He was travelling through the Sunbathed Garden when Dark Matter attacked, and now he can't find his way back home. Can you two handle this job?"

"Oh, definitely!" Mew said, squaring their shoulders. "Finding that Hopper—"

"Hoppip," Ampharos said.

"—will be no problem for us, even if he's lost in a Mystery Dungeon! Right, Aster?"

"A Pokemon who was petrified…" The Treecko shook his head, his expression troubled. "I don't know. Can nobody else handle it?"

"What do you mean?" Mew said. "Isn't taking care of stuff like this our job? Why are you turning it down?"

"I'm not turning it down; I just want to know if anyone else is available for the job."

"I'm afraid not," Ampharos said. He blinked, and his eyes suddenly looked bleary, betraying a depth of exhaustion Mew hadn't noticed before. "Archen, Buizel, and Bunnelby have been busy for weeks finding Pokemon lost in the mountains, at sea, and in caves. Dedenne and I have to coordinate all of this, while Mawile and Jirachi are busy with their own investigations into the origins of Dark Matter."

Aster blew out a long breath. "Alright, fine. We'll find that Hoppip. Is that all, Chief?"

"No, actually," Ampharos said. Ignoring Aster's pointed sigh, he continued, "How have you two been working together? Is everything going alright?"

"Yep!" Mew said as Aster nodded.

"Good, good," Ampharos said, though he seemed preoccupied. The orbs on his head and tail glowed faintly, and his brow was furrowed. "That's good…"

He stared at the two silently, apparently consumed by whatever was on his mind. The hall was empty now, and Mew was getting restless—Hoppip was in danger, and they needed to get to him as soon as possible! Every second counted. "Can we go now?" they asked.

"Er…yes," he said, his focus clearly elsewhere. He waddled up the stairs with an "Excuse me."

The two watched him go in silence. When he was out of earshot, Aster rubbed his face and let out a resigned sigh. "Okay…okay," he muttered to himself. "Let's…let's go get this over with."

"You good?" Mew asked.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I…just don't like thinking about Dark Matter, that's all." The Treecko shook his head. "We should get going." With that, he made for the front door. Lively Town was already awake, chattering voices overlapping as the greasy stench of something frying filled the air. The rhythmic rumbling of waves echoed as the two headed through the crowded plaza and out the town gate.


Getting to Sunbathed Garden was a simple task: all it required was a half day's walk following a dirt path near the coastline. Besides a brief trek through the Gentle Slope Cave, the trip was easy going. Aster didn't mention anything about Dark Matter, nor did he seem inclined to talk about it, so Mew decided not to bring it up again. As they traveled, the sky grew darker and shrouded in heavy grey clouds; the only sunlight came in occasional thin beams that pierced the cloud cover. The path trailed off, replaced by wild clumps of grass and bushes, but Aster kept moving with confidence as he referred to a map on his fancy Gadget.

Soon, he came to an abrupt halt. Mew stopped alongside him. Before the two lay an thriving, idyllic grassland dotted with flowers of all shapes and colors. Some of the flowers were tall and yellow, all of them facing the same direction—sunflowers, Mew remembered. Aster had told them that sunflowers always tried to face the sun. They didn't know how accurate that was considering how the sun was presently hidden behind a cloud cover, but it didn't seem impossible. Other flowers were minuscule, smaller than their paw, little blue and white dots against the oddly short grass. Still others were round and short, bearing fat violet petals on top of thin stems. The colorful field went all the way to the horizon, and ancient, gnarled trees dotted the landscape every so often.

Something about this place seemed so familiar. If Mew let their thoughts wander enough, they could almost see themself running through the flower-covered fields, laughing as they relished the sun on their face.

They shook their head to clear it. "Are we there yet?"

"Yes." Aster stared straight ahead with unusual intensity.

Mew grinned at the flowers laid out before them. "How come you didn't want to take this job? This place is beautiful!"

"I don't like looking for Pokemon who used to be petrified," he murmured.

"How come?"

"I just don't, okay?" The Treecko grabbed hold of their paw. "Now hold on tight. We'll enter at the same time so you don't get lost."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Mew rolled their eyes. After the incident at Odd Field, he had insisted that the two enter any Mystery Dungeon at the same time to avoid getting separated. Mew hated it: the whole process made them feel like a child who needed to be looked after, not a competent and capable explorer. But he'd refused to take them along unless they agreed to it, so there was nothing to be done about it. After counting to three in unison, they stepped (or floated in Mew's case) across the invisible border.

Once again, nothing seemed to change; Aster, however, wrinkled his nose at the flower field stretching out before him.

"Why are you making that face? Did you smell something funny?" Mew asked.

"A storm's coming. Do you feel it?"

"I don't feel—"

A brisk wind picked up and blew Mew back like a balloon. Aster grabbed hold of their tail before they got too far and pulled them back down, then glared up at the sky. "Now do you feel it?" he asked flatly.

"Yeah."

"Most Pokemon prefer to hide from the rain, so our job might get a bit easier when the storm starts. Maybe we'll get lucky and nobody will try to fight us." He scanned the plains all around him for several seconds, his eyes narrowed, then he walked forward a few steps. Then he looked around again, wasting precious seconds, and walked a few more steps. He repeated this process several times, inching forward at an achingly slow speed. What was he doing? Every other time they'd looked for a lost Pokemon they'd proceeded at a much faster pace. Time was of the essence when looking for someone in a Mystery Dungeon. Hoppip was out there somewhere, possibly in grave danger, and they were wasting so much time for what seemed like no good reason. Eventually Mew got fed up with him.

"Why are you doing that?"

"Doing what?" he asked without looking at them.

"That!" They flew to where he could see them and mocked his movements, tip-toeing forward with a faux-terrified expression on their face. "You're going so slow! We need to find this Hoppip before anything happens to him, and at the rate you're going it'll take us hours to get anywhere!"

The Treecko frowned at them. "I reckon you can never be too careful in a Mystery Dungeon, Mew. Especially when looking for Pokemon who used to be petrified. I've taken jobs like this before, and…sometimes you find things that aren't very pretty." He continued his sluggish search while the clouds rumbled and the wind grew ever stronger, whistling through the flowers and sending petals flying up into the air.

"This is stupid." Mew said. "What does Hoppip look like? I can fly up into the air and search for him from a good vantage point. It'll be easier to find him that way."

"Uh…look for a round pink body, stubby arms and legs, yellow eyes, and a pair of big leaves on top of his head. Can you remember all that?"

"Yep."

Mew started to float up, but Aster said, "Hold on. If you see anything that could be dangerous, and I mean anything, come down immediately. Do you understand?"

"Aster, there's nothing up there to worry about!" they whined, pointing at the sky. "Do you see any Pokemon flying around? I don't!"

"Do you understand?" he repeated.

They groaned. "Ugh, yes! Can I go now?"

The Treecko glared at them for a few seconds, then eventually nodded. Mew immediately took off, rocketing up as fast as they could. The cool wind blew through their fur, the air smelling earthy and fresh, and they laughed in exhilaration. They soared through the sky, riding the wind currents and drifting wherever they pleased, but they stopped before reaching the low storm clouds: they didn't know for sure what was in there, and they didn't feel like risking it when they had a job to do.

Right, the job. They were supposed to be looking for Hoppip.

A small part of Mew shrank away from the prospect of spending their time staring at the ground instead of flying around as they pleased, but they knew Aster and Hoppip were counting on them. They couldn't let them down. So Mew rolled over onto their stomach and looked down at the flower-covered field. The longer they scanned the wild garden for any signs of Hoppip, the clearer it became that finding him would be an arduous process. The Sunbathed Garden viewed from above was a veritable ocean of colors—blue, orange, red, yellow, violet, indigo, every single color Mew could think of was down there somewhere, mixed in with everything else. It hurt their eyes to look at. Picking out Aster from the flowers was hard enough; they shuddered to think how difficult it would be to find Hoppip, especially if he was hiding beneath the branches of one of those trees. Every time they saw a flash of pink and green, it turned out to be nothing more than a little flower flapping in the wind.

Mew quickly grew frustrated. Why couldn't Hoppip get lost in a desert or tundra or something? It'd be a whole lot easier to find him there instead of a place like this. They tried to keep looking, but they kept losing focus; their shoulders and neck tensed up, their brow furrowed, and they just couldn't find him. They let out an exasperated groan.

Something cold and wet hit the top of their head, soaking their fur. They rolled over to look at the sky, where they spotted drops of water falling from the clouds. "Oh, great," they muttered. "Now it's raining too."

Mew rolled back to face the ground—and saw a round, pink Pokemon. Could that be Hoppip? Sudden excitement coursed through their veins as they ran through Aster's list. Stubby arms and legs, check. A pair of big leaves, check. They weren't sure about the eyes though; the Pokemon was lying face-down, possibly unconscious.

From up in the sky, Mew could see that Aster was searching in the complete opposite direction of where he needed to go. "Aster!" they shouted, but the clouds themselves let out a deafening boom at the same time. "Aster!" they shouted again, louder this time.

The Treecko looked up at the ruckus. His eyes widened. He started yelling something, but they couldn't make out what he was saying—the clouds were making that crashing noise over and over as great white flashes jolted through the grey mist and rain. The air suddenly felt oddly fuzzy, like it was filled to the brim with static electricity, and a sweet and pungent odor hung all around them. Aster started gesturing wildly as he shouted, his eyes wide, but Mew didn't understand what he meant. Eventually they managed to make out a phrase: Get down!

As soon as Mew processed that, a huge bolt of lightning shot out of the clouds and struck a tree directly below them. The lightning blew right past them, but smaller bolts broke off and jolted to their arm.

For a moment all Mew knew was pain, a terrible shock raging through their entire body.

They lurched away from where the lightning had just been, but they lost their balance and started falling down, down, unable to stop. They tumbled through the air, somersaulting this way and that, trying desperately to gather their thoughts and remember how to levitate. In the face of the thunder and lightning their mind had gone blank with panic, their whole body soaked, paws and face tingling, the world a blur. They flailed their arms in a desperate attempt to use their own telekinesis on themself, but it didn't work. Nothing worked, and they couldn't stop falling.

They managed to right themself so that they were facing the ground again. It was getting too close. They'd hit it in a few seconds. Mew closed their eyes and took a deep breath, then tried to fly one more time.

They managed to slow down, but they couldn't stop their fall completely. They hit the ground with a faint thump. Everything became silent.

When Mew managed to open their eyes, their entire body hurt—their chest, their arms, their legs, their face. They rolled onto their back with a groan. It was storming in earnest now, the sky rumbling, the wind carrying colorful petals past, and the rain pouring onto them. The clouds were dark and moody with an odd green spot in the middle. Mew blinked. The green spot became a Treecko's frightened face. His mouth was moving, but Mew couldn't hear anything he said. They blinked the rain out of their eyes and tried to concentrate.

"Are you hurt?" Aster was saying.

"Uh," Mew said. They sat up and tried moving their arms. It worked, so they gave their chest and legs a glance: dark bruises blotched their entire body. They gave the bruises a few experimental pats: they ached, but not badly, though their arms wouldn't stop shaking for some reason. "I'm a little banged up, but I'll be fine."

"Good," he said with a sigh of relief. His relief quickly turned into anger, though, as he snapped, "What were you thinking?! I told you to come back down if you saw anything dangerous!"

"I didn't know you were referring to the storm!" Mew said indignantly. "I thought you meant an angry Pokemon or something! How was I supposed to know lightning is dangerous?!"

"It's common sense!" he roared.

Mew jabbed his chest. "Yeah, maybe for you! I only have a few weeks' worth of memories, and none of them involve getting hit by lightning!"

"I—" Aster cut himself off. After rubbing his face and letting out a frustrated groan, he reached into his bag and pulled out an Oran berry. "Eat this."

"I'm not hurt that badly—"

"Eat it," he ordered, his tone unusually dangerous.

Mew ate the berry. A few of the aches around their body faded, and the bruises on their chest and legs lightened slightly. In the absence of pain, their mind was free to focus on other things, like—

They gasped. "Oh, that's right!"

"What is it?" he asked, taken aback at their surprise.

"I think I saw Hoppip! He was lying face-down on the ground somewhere around here, but…I can't remember where exactly." They tried to lift off from the ground, but a sharp pain shot through their chest at the sudden movement. The earth spun beneath them, nearly knocking them down onto their back.

Aster must have noticed them flinch, because he started reaching into his bag again.

"I'm okay!" they said, trying to cut him off before he could pull out another Oran berry. "Really, I'm fine. I just—"

But Aster had already shoved another Oran into their paws. "Eat."

"I—"

"We're not going anywhere until you eat it." He sat down cross-legged in front of them, his eyes narrowed. Mew opened their mouth, intending to argue, only to realize that every second spent squabbling with him was another second Hoppip was in danger. As much as they'd love to debate how many Oran berries they needed, they would rather spend their time doing something actually important. Mew scarfed down the Oran as quickly as they could, leaving their paws smeared in blue juice, then tried to rise off of the wet ground again. It worked, and the pain all around their body faded into nothing but a dull ache. The bruises were still there, though they were a little lighter now.

"Better?" he said.

"Yes," Mew hissed. "Now can we go?! Hoppip's somewhere nearby!"

"Fine." The Treecko stood up and brushed clumps of dirt and grass off his legs. "But don't fly too high, you hear me? I don't want you getting struck by lightning again."

"Okay, fine! Now let's go!"

Probably due to Mew's urgency, Aster abandoned his sluggish method of searching in favor of actually walking at a normal pace. Thanks to this drastic increase in speed, the two managed to find the Pokemon Mew had spotted in a matter of minutes. He was still lying face-down in a cluster of tiny blue flowers, but all of his characteristics matched Aster's description: round pink body, stubby arms and legs, green leaves. As the two approached him, Mew asked, "So is that Hoppip?"

"I think so," Aster said, and Mew immediately flew off towards Hoppip, leaving the Treecko behind. They dove down and turned Hoppip onto his back. The leaves coming from the top of his head were tattered and torn, little bits and pieces missing from them; one of the leaves was significantly shorter than the other, its tip chopped off entirely. His eyes were closed, though he was still breathing from what they could tell. Little cuts and scrapes adorned his body. None of them were deep enough to be severe, but they still needed to be treated.

"Aster, do you have one of those Reviving seed thingies?" Mew asked, looking down at Hoppip. "I think he needs one."

No response.

"Aster?" They turned towards him. The Treecko was staring down at the ground, his expression oddly blank. He bent down and picked up a flat, thin stone that had a web of lines engraved into it.

"Hey!" they shouted to get his attention. "I think Hoppip's been hurt! He needs our help!"

Aster stared at the stone for a few seconds longer, then gently placed it back onto the ground with trembling paws.

"Right," he murmured, his gaze dull. He reached into his bag and pulled out a Reviver Seed and an Escape Orb. "Yeah. Let's take him home."


Bringing Hoppip home took a good few hours, mostly because Hoppip wasn't in much of a position to give them directions. He regained consciousness after being fed a Reviver Seed, but he seemed perpetually on the verge of falling asleep, and anything he said came in fragile whispers. He kept asking about the leaves on his head. Neither Mew nor Aster knew how to respond, so they just kept telling him he'd be okay. Aster carried him as they traveled along the road on the coastline, occasionally asking him for directions in an oddly gentle tone. Eventually they managed to find Hoppip's home—a small village of farmers that was located in a forest not far from the coast. When they arrived, his family—a Jumpluff, Cherrim, and Cherubi—immediately rushed him to the local healer. Mew wanted to stay and see if he'd be all right, but Aster ardently refused to delay their return to Lively Town any longer.

So they continued their journey home—was Lively Town really home now?— making their way down a worn dirt path that twisted and turned in on itself as though the Pokemon who'd created it hadn't known where they were going. It led them through dark, creepy forests and wide open plains, until they finally reached a field of tall, wild grass that stretched all the way to the coast on the horizon.

Mew was feeling quite spry for someone who'd been grazed by a bolt of lightning. As Aster trudged down the path, Mew flew between the deep green blades of grass, occasionally popping out and diving back in like they would in an ocean, laughing in excitement. Aster, on the other hand, stared down at the path with tired eyes as he walked. For some reason that job had left him an exhausted shell. At first Mew had thought he just didn't like being beneath the rain, but the storm had ended several hours ago and he was still just as glum as he'd been when they'd found Hoppip.

With the rain gone, the crimson sun now hung low over the horizon, the sky painted in broad strokes of orange, pink, and purple. Sharp grey clouds stood stark against the colorful sky; the storm's winds had whipped up the clouds into abstract, unrecognizable shapes with little puffs of white scattered here and there. The meadows grew sparser as they went on, and the two eventually came across a mossy stone bridge above a burbling creek. It was getting cooler now, the air smelling of pollen and muddy roots.

"Can we stop for a moment?" Aster asked in a monotone. "I…need to take a break."

"Sure, yeah!" Mew floated off of the bridge and over the river so they could get a better view of the dark water. At the bottom of the river sat a whole bunch of pebbles mixed in with tall, thin plants that swayed in the current. The setting sun's rays reflected off the river's surface and created fleeting red glimmers on the deep blue water.

Mew turned to flash Aster a grin. "We did pretty good today, huh?"

The Treecko shrugged. He sat on the bridge's edge, his legs hanging over the water, and he looked at the river as though he were searching for something in the depths. Something was off about him, though Mew didn't know what exactly was wrong—maybe it was the way he furrowed his brow, or how his paws repeatedly clenched and unclenched, or it could be the faint longing in his eyes.

"You okay?" they asked.

"Huh?" He looked up at them. "Yeah. I'm just tired. Need a minute to rest."

Mew shook their head. "That's not what I mean. There's obviously something on your mind. Do you wanna talk about it?"

Aster rubbed his nose, seemingly thinking, then lowered his gaze back down to the water. "Can you keep a secret?" he asked, his voice dead.

"Sure."

"These jobs, looking for Pokemon who used to be petrified… They terrify me. That's why I was moving so slowly back at the Sunbathed Garden. I was worried I'd step on something…unpleasant."

"What?" Mew floated a bit closer. "What're you scared of? It's not like these Pokemon are gonna eat you."

A pause. "When we found Hoppip, did you recognize the stone I picked up? Did it seem familiar at all?"

"Uh…" They thought for a moment, their brow furrowed. "No, not really."

He nodded grimly. "Good. It's better that way."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

But the Treecko didn't seem inclined to continue. He only stared down at the swift river's current, sitting still as a statue. Eventually, he muttered, "When Dark Matter disappeared, I thought we'd finally get some time to rest. But…no matter how hard I try to forget everything that happened, it just keeps haunting me."

"So? You're a hero, right? You saved the world! Stuff like this should be no problem for you!" Mew darted to him, grabbed his torso, and lifted him to his feet. They tried a smile, but he didn't bother returning it, turning away instead with a sigh.

"I wish Vallea were here," he murmured. "She's a lot braver than I am. She'd know how to handle this."

So that's what this was about. Mew waited for him to continue; when he didn't, they asked, "Do you miss her?"

"All the time."

They were curious about what happened to her, but they knew topics like these needed to be approached with care. So they asked, "How did you two meet?"

"Well…" The Treecko scoffed. "She didn't exactly introduce herself. On the day I arrived at the village she lived in, she sneaked up on me and took me by surprise. Dragged me all over the place in an impromptu tour. Vallea…honestly, she was really hyper. I didn't know anyone could have that much energy. Sometimes she'd wake me up in the middle of the night because she couldn't sleep, and we'd talk until the sun came up."

Mew grinned. "Sounds like she was fun to be around."

"Fun is one word for it. Most people in the village would say she was exhausting."

"Did you think she was exhausting?"

"…I used to." Gently, he took off his greenish-blue scarf and cradled it in his paws. "But then she gave me this, and I realized how kind she was."

"So…where is she now? I'd love to meet her."

He looked up and met their eyes. For a brief moment anger flashed across his face, and it seemed like he would tell them off again. Then it vanished, replaced by emptiness. "She had to…go."

They cocked their head. "Go where?"

"I…I don't know." The Treecko slowly lowered himself until he was sitting on the bridge's edge again.

"What do you mean, you don't know? Did she run away in the middle of the night or something?"

"No, no. I…" Aster blew out a long breath, fidgeting with the scarf. "She—" His voice broke as he hugged his knees to his chest and fell silent.

Gently, Mew said, "You don't have to continue if you don't want to."

He sat there staring at the river for several seconds. When he spoke, it was in a quiet monotone. "I don't know where she is now. I don't think she'll ever come back. Everyone tells me she will, but they're wrong. I saw her fall apart on the hill. She fell apart into golden lights. There's no way she can come back from that."

Mew didn't know how to respond. Nothing he said was making sense. But whether it made sense or not, he was obviously hurting. Maybe this was why he was so cold to them. After a few seconds, they floated over and sat down on the bridge next to him, then they patted his shoulder in an attempt to make him feel better. Up close they realized how badly he was shaking—like a house on the verge of collapsing, holding itself together with the last of its strength.

"I'm sorry," Mew said.

"Don't be. None of this is your fault." Almost angrily, he turned to them and met their eyes. "When I was looking for you, I thought I would somehow get her back if I found you."

"How would that work?"

He scoffed. "I don't know. It's…I guess it's a mixture of unusual circumstances and my own wishful thinking. But you have nothing to do with this." He nodded to himself. "Looking back, it doesn't really make sense."

The two sat quietly for a while, staring down at their blurry reflections in the creek. The water burbled and whispered as it swept by on its way to wherever it was going—the ocean or a lake or a well, Mew didn't know. The sun had nearly set completely, leaving them with a faint crimson afterglow that did little to light up the plains and river.

Aster took a deep breath and tied the scarf back around his neck. "I'm sorry for burdening you. I don't mean to be a downer."

"No, it's fine! I was curious why you were so mean, but I guess this sort of makes sense," they said, shrugging. "You just miss your friend, right?"

The Treecko turned to them, his brow furrowed. "Was I really that mean?"

"Oh, for sure," Mew said. "You kept telling me to get lost, remember? And you wouldn't answer any of my questions at first. And every time I got hurt, you'd get really mad for some reason."

"I'm sorry," he said again. He sniffed, frowned at his paws. His voice trembled as he continued, "I-I just…I don't know what's wrong with me. You're a good person, but I…always feel so angry and scared, and when I take it out on you I feel even worse. Ever since Dark Matter attacked a-and Vallea vanished, I…"

Aster broke off with a sob that curled his body in on itself. Even in the dying light, Mew could see a few tears running down his cheek, his eyes shimmering. He touched his face where the tears were, then gasped sharply. "No," he murmured. "No, no, not now. I-I promised I wouldn't…" He wiped away the tears, but more came to take their place.

"Hey, it's okay." Mew rubbed circles into his back the way they'd once seen Mawile do to Ampharos. "You're okay. Whatever happened before, it's over now. You're safe."

He kept wiping the tears away from his face and eyes to no avail. "She asked me not to cry when she disappeared. I-I can't…"

"That seems kind of selfish of her, don't you think?" Mew said. "Maybe she didn't want to see you sad, but she's not here anymore. You can let it out. Crying is a release of the emotions you feel, or at least that's what Ampharos told me once."

Aster made a noise somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "H-he told me that too."

"See? No point bottling it up."

"You sound j-just like everyone back at the Society. They kept telling me that the first few weeks after she…"

The Treecko trailed off, hiding his face behind his paws. Mew sat with him on the bridge, seconds turning into minutes, as he wept for his past and his partner. Sob after sob shook his shoulders and curled him tighter, the sounds of grief echoing across the crimson fields. Mew didn't know what to say, but a little voice in the back of their head told them nothing needed to be said. Sometimes, all that mattered was being there for those who needed it. Slowly the weeping grew quieter, until eventually he fell silent and lowered his paws. The Treecko looked tired, but alive. He wiped the tears away and sniffed once. When he spoke again, he sounded almost composed. "Thank you."

Hs gratitude was so unexpected that Mew almost laughed. "For what?"

"For being here." He met their eyes. "How…how about we start over?"

"What do you mean?"

"I…haven't been fair to you. I blamed you for things you couldn't control." He rubbed the back of his neck. "If you still want to be friends, then, er…"

Mew grinned. "Of course I want to be friends with you!"

"You sure? I've been a massive—" He cut himself off, thought for a second or two, then said, "I haven't been very nice, is what I'm trying to say."

"Don't be stupid. I'll be friends with you!" They opened their mouth intending to continue, but when they spoke no sound came out. In fact, they couldn't hear anything at all. Aster's voice, the breeze blowing through the wild grass, the river burbling beneath them—it was all gone, replaced with silence.

A strange sensation came: regret, sick and rotting, festering within them. They couldn't shake the terrible feeling of having done something wrong, even though there was no reason to feel this way.

Furrowing their brow, Mew tapped their ears under the belief that there was something stuck in them. It didn't make a difference. Aster was saying something, reaching up to touch his scarf—

That scarf. It was important.

Images and emotions flashed through Mew's mind, each barely remaining for a moment before another would take its place. They saw crowds of kids running and playing without them, and heard their disparaging insults directed at her, and felt lonely, so very lonely. Why wouldn't anyone be her friend? Was she doing something wrong? She was only trying to be nice, but everyone just called her annoying…

It was happening again. The unfamiliar memories were coming. Mew tried to pull themself back to reality, back to the bridge above the river, only for the world to collapse beneath them and send them plummeting down, down, into darkness.

They heard a voice from somewhere far away. Mew? You in there?

Mew tried to reply, to say that they were scared. Nothing came out.

Hey, talk to me. Say something.

They couldn't. They were back in the Sunbathed Garden again, falling and unable to stop, but the ground wasn't getting any closer. The farther Mew fell the faster the earth receded from them, until suddenly they looked up and spotted a massive, dying tree floating above a rotten crater.

They were right. She was selfish. She hadn't wanted to see anyone hurting for her, but all she'd managed to do was make things worse…

The world faded to nothing, and Mew remembered no more.


Ampharos was in the observatory helping Jirachi with an astronomy problem (that he only pretended to understand) when Aster burst into the Society building carrying a comatose Mew. After rushing the two to their bedroom, Ampharos stumbled out and made his way to Mawile's study, where she was glaring down at yet another ancient inscription. She looked up when he entered, her expression grim.

"It's beginning," he told her.

The next day, they sent for Xatu. He arrived in a matter of hours, during which Mew regained consciousness—much to Aster's relief. As for Ampharos, Mawile, and Xatu, Mew's sickness was no surprise to them. They'd all been informed about it one way or another: Xatu had foreseen it and he'd warned Ampharos, who had let Mawile know. The sickness was a sign of Vallea's presence, proof that she hadn't faded away completely. It meant there was still a chance for her to come back. But if the plan was to proceed as intended, neither of the children could know about that. So when Xatu gave his diagnosis in the children's bedroom, he told nothing but a carefully fabricated story about how a fragment of Dark Matter still remained within Mew, and that Mew needed to rest in order to heal.

Everyone believed it. Mew, Aster, Dedenne, the entire Society, they trusted their chief, and Xatu by extension. Part of Ampharos recoiled from lying to all the Pokemon whom he'd known for so long. He'd never lied to them before, not even once, and he felt sick to his stomach for doing so.

After Xatu gave his diagnosis, Ampharos ordered the Society to clear out of the bedroom and give the two some space. Most of them either went to handle some work or left the building entirely, but Mawile lingered in the room. He exchanged a silent nod with her, then she left. When she was gone, he turned to the children and put on a reassuring smile as he swayed side to side, his balance nearly gone. Mew was lying curled up on their bed, bruises all over their body, their eyes only half open. Aster sat beside them with worry written all over his face.

Ampharos shook his head to try and shake some of the dizziness that plagued him, and said, "Get some rest. That applies to both of you."

Aster blanched. "But—"

"No buts." Ampharos wagged a paw. "If you go out on a job, Aster, I know for a fact that you"—he pointed at Mew—"will find a way to sneak out and follow him. It's happened before with Archen and Buizel."

"Who says I'll sneak out?" Mew said in a ghostly, tired voice. "I…honestly, I don't feel up to doing anything right now."

"Which is why you need to rest," Ampharos said. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay now," they said. "But when I was unconscious, it felt like I was dreaming. It felt so…sad. And lonely. Like I could never find my way home again."

"Er…" Ampharos cast about for a suitable explanation. "Well, Dark Matter was an amalgamation of negativity, after all. I suppose loneliness is a part of that."

"Will they be alright?" Aster asked, and Ampharos could hear the concern in his voice. That was good: it meant the boy cared about Mew. When they would take Mew and act like they needed to be destroyed—to "stop" Dark Matter once and for all—Aster would be terrified, and the Harmony Scarves would resonate with his fear.

It was brilliant. It was sickening.

There was so much Ampharos wanted to tell them, but to speak any of it aloud meant risking everything they'd worked so hard to set up. Bringing Mew to the Expedition Society, pairing them up with Aster, sending them on a job related to Dark Matter—all of it had been a concerted effort to reach out to whatever fragments of Vallea that still remained in Mew. Judging by what Mew had said, it seemed to be working. But if Ampharos gave into his guilt and told them the truth, she would never come back.

He thought carefully about how to word what he wanted to say. Eventually, he declared, "Everything will be okay."