Samuel: *playing Crash Bandicoot at an acceptable volume*

Josh: *reading George Orwell's 1984 while enjoying some tea*

Tyler: *giving Autumn some belly rubs while watching Sam play*

Autumn: *being belly rubbed*

Helios and Ruby: *making light conversation*

Noir and Jewel: *talking while enjoying a bowl of berries*

*door slams*

Samuel: WOAH *almost drops controller*

Josh: *spills some tea* Oh, come on!

Tyler: *jumps in shock*

Autumn: *falls off Tyler's lap* Eeek!

Helios: What was that?!

Ruby: Dunno.

*plastic bowl full of berries drop to the floor, followed by an "Aww" and a sad sigh*

BM: OH MY ARCEUS WE'VE MADE IT TO 8K. I can hardly believe it! Thank you guys so much for all the reads, favourites and follows! Glad to see a lot of you guys enjoying my fic!

BM: Anyways, welcome back to a new chapter of Roadtrip! Sorry if it's a tad later than normal, I was procrastinating way too much. Good lord, I'm pathetic… Enough about me, last time, Autumn and Noir learned about Jewel and Tyler's deeds, our boy gets a new ride and I pulled a fast one in the form of a cliffhanger!

BM: In this chapter, we'll be concluding that cliffhanger (I'd just be a dick move to just leave it hanging, eh?) and get on with our story. Enough talk, let's get on with it!

Jewel: *uses Swift*

BM: OH SH-

Disclaimer: am no claim ownership ok

"I…haven't. She passed when I was born. What does she have to do with anything?"

A collective gasp sounded from the other three passengers.

"Nothing, I was just curious. Meet me at 6 p.m. Head over to 23 Mudsdale drive."

"Well, alright. I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see you later."

Tyler hung up as he stared at his phone for a bit before returning his gaze at the now yellow traffic light. The girls had been trying to listen to the whole conversation, though only being able to pick up Tyler's responses made it difficult.

"What did Cynthia say?" Jewel asked as she noticed Tyler's confused and somewhat somber expression. "Tyler, you alright?" Autumn asked with concern in her voice

Letting out a sigh, he shook away the thought of his family before responding. "I'm alright. Sorry… Our talk brought up some… memories. Cynthia just wanted me to meet up with her somewhere today."

"Tyler, you don't look very well currently. Is there something else on your mind?" Noir inquired as she noticed the confusion that was present in his tone and expression.

"It's just that, how did she know to ask about my mother?" Tyler spoke as he gripped the steering wheel tighter in a mix of confusion and frustration. "Not even Sam and Josh question it. Yet she does after only a couple days of meeting me."

"Maybe it's just a coincidence?" Autumn concluded. Surprisingly, Tyler let out a chuckle.

"Heh, a coincidence, huh? I'm pretty sure no normal fucking person asks about someone's mother after less than a day of meeting them." Tyler spat somewhat bitterly, taking everyone by surprise, especially Autumn.

"W-well, I-I..Uhm.." Autumn stuttered in fear of angering Tyler as she had never seen him angry before. "S-Sorry…"

Tyler sighed and parked the car along the kerb in front of a restaurant he had spotted the day before. He undid his seatbelt and turned to face a scared Autumn and a slightly wide eyed Noir. Jewel could only look at him with concern. Tyler gave them a smile before speaking.

"Look girls, I'm sorry for snapping at you all. It's just… those memories leave a foul taste in my mouth. I try not to dwell on the past, but sometimes I let myself go. Sorry for scaring you, Autumn." He admitted before caressing Autumn lightly, getting her to blush. (I'm inclined to think blushing is her hobby.)

"Anyways, here we are, ladies. Let's get some lunch." Tyler beckoned as he exited with a smile. Jewel, Noir and Autumn glanced at each other for a bit before smiling at each other while Tyler opened each door.

A short time later, they sat down at a table located right beside a window. The group made some light conversation as they waited for their food to arrive. Soon, the topic of Amaura came up as Tyler hasn't clearly expressed what he was going to do with her.

"Alright, I'm definitely going to offer her a spot on our team, but that's still her choice. Though, I feel like she's safe now. Those Team Galactic assholes don't seem to be pursuing to capture her again." Tyler deduced.

"How can you be so sure? They could be formulating some sort of elaborate plan to acquire her again." Noir retorted with her reasoning. Tyler scratched his chin for a bit before replying.

"Yeah, you might be right. But I have a feeling she's alright. A gut feeling, the same one that I felt when I saw Autumn and Jewel in the snow and you after you got hit. I can sort of trust it to be correct." Tyler replied. "It's odd, though…"

"What's odd? We all get gut feelings too." Jewel spoke up since she was listening intently.

"Well, it doesn't exactly feel natural. That and it was never this intense back when I was younger." Tyler explained, still scratching his chin lightly unbeknownst to him.

"Hmm, it's probably more intense now because it develops as you get older. Unlike physical growth, development can't usually be seen with the naked eye. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen though. An example would be comparing a low level and a high level Vulpix. The higher level one would be slightly more muscular, but other than that not much different physically. Their internal powers however are much stronger." Autumn paused as she inhaled a bit.

"But about your gut feeling being unnatural…. I have no idea, sorry…" She concluded, glancing around at the various surprised expressions on her friends. Jewel looked at her with an 'o' expression. Noir had wide eyes. Tyler blinked a few times. "Uhh… Is it something I said? S-Sorry…"

Tyler laughed fairly loudly. "No no, you don't need to apologize. We were just surprised at how much your theory makes sense. Didn't know you were cute AND smart." Tyler joked with a smile as he stroked her hair, getting her to blush hard.

He called me cute…

Unbeknownst to Autumn, Jewel was smirking at her blushing friend. Noir looked fairly jealous as she pouted uncharacteristically.

Not long after, their food arrived. Tyler opted for a philly cheesesteak and a Pecha berry smoothie, Jewel went for a bowl of mac and cheese and a glass of ice tea, Autumn went for a plate of hot chili and a glass of Moomoo milk and Noir went for a serving of Magikarp and chips with a lemon wedge and a glass of cold water.

After they had finished their meal, the group set off to the Pokecenter. The drive there was fairly average as they made small talk with the occasional jokes from Tyler and Jewel. Noir look on at the human and Sylveon with jealousy.

It's not fair, why must he do it with her first?

"Hey, Noir, you alright?" Tyler asked as he noticed Noir's stare in the rearview mirror. This caught her off guard, causing her to jerk slightly before responding.

"Y-Yes, I'm quite alright. Nothing's wrong." She replied with an odd shyness, catching Tyler's attention. He decided not to press for details, mentally noting to talk to her and Autumn later in their room.

A few minutes later, the group arrived back at the Pokecenter. They got out of the car and made their way to the front desk. Noir decided to take a nap so Tyler decided to pick her up in his arms. He noted how adorable she looked as she slept.

As they entered, Tyler noticed a large, creature in an open room located down one of the hallways. It had a metallic sheen to it, two arm-like appendages with white claws at the end of each one and a white spike between its eyes on the front side of its body.

Immediately, Tyler's gut feeling made its effects known again, causing him to stop. Jewel and Autumn took notice of this.

"Why are we stopping?" Autumn inquired curiously before sitting and looking up at her trainer.

"Yeah, something up, Tyler?" Jewel asked as she snaked a ribbon to tap him on his shoulder.

"I had the feeling again. It has something to do that Metang." He explained as he pointed to the Steel and Psychic type laying on a large bed. "I feel like I've seen it before."

"Hmm, that's weird. We haven't seen one throughout our journey." Autumn said as she recollected. They hadn't seen too many Pokemon in general, with the most variety being the wilds they battled back at the path towards Lake Verity.

"No no, not during our journey. I feel like before that…" Tyler eventually shrugged and decided to continue walking to the desk. The nurse greeted the group with a smile.

"Hello, how can I help you?"

"Hi, I'm here to check up on the Amaura that I brought in yesterday. I do hope she's alright."

"Oh don't worry, she is perfectly fine. In fact, she expressed the need to talk to you. Please wait as I fetch her for you." The nurse spoke before walking away.

"Uhm… I have an idea. Why don't we ask the nurse about the Metang? Maybe we can find out more about it and why it's here." Autumn explained with Jewel nodding in response.

"Mhmm! Yeah, great idea!" Jewel chirped as she was also curious about this Metang.

"Right, sounds like a plan." Tyler spoke as he nodded. A few moments after, the nurse returned with a Pokeball in her hand.

"Here you go, sir. Initially, we had some trouble when she came in since we've never worked with an Amaura before. Luckily, her biology is somewhat similar to Lapras." She added as she handed Tyler the ball. He nodded as he took in the information and took the ball, giving his thanks. "Is there anything else, sir?"

"Actually, I was wondering about the Metang over there." He pointed his finger to the room it laid in. "Can I ask what happened to it?"

"Certainly. A trainer found it with multiple dents and scratches all over its exoskeleton. It panicked as she tried to approach it and tried to attack. Some of our emergency personnel came in and took it here. Our Steel type doctors came by and took care of the injuries. Though, it's worthy to note that its eyes aren't its normal red colour, but a deep purple. We've deduced that it must be a genetic mutation that does not affect how they work, just its pigmentation."

Immediately, Tyler's feeling came back in full force, accompanied by a memory.

…

(4 years ago, Lake Verity)

Tyler sat by the edge of the lake, dangling his feet into the cool water that rippled and shimmered under the moonlight. He was eternally grateful for Samuel as he managed to coax his mother to let him live with them. Though, the pain of his loss still burned as hard as ever.

I have no one left.

This singular thought lingered no matter how hard he tried to shake it away. Bringing his palm to his eyes, he began crying into them, his salty tears mixing with the fresh water below his feet. The moon shone over the lake with a slightly brighter intensity, though this was because of the tears clouding his vision.

Suddenly, Tyler could pick up some bushes rustling nearby. He instinctively stood up and entered a defensive stance. "W-Who's there? Come out!" He yelled at the bush.

Not long after, a blue oblong shaped creature floated out of the bush. It was a Beldum with an odd purple eye. It looked at Tyler for a bit before slowly floating towards him.

Tyler read its body language, noting that it was just curious but not hostile. As the Beldum reached him, it began to speak.

"Human. You. Pain?" It spoke telepathically, surprisingly Tyler as he took a step back. The Beldum took noticed and looked up with an apologetic look in its eye. "Apologies. Scare. Human."

"It's alright… I just didn't expect you to speak to me." Tyler stepped forward and continued to sit by the lake. The Beldum floated over by his side and hovered in place.

"You. Me. Recognize." It said, catching Tyler a bit by surprise.

"You know me? How so?" He asked curiously with a hint of suspicion.

"Father. You. Save. Me." It spoke with a hopeful tone. "Cure. Burn. Me. Grateful." It spoke as it looked at Tyler with a happy looking eye. "Me. See. You. Walk. Him. You. Son. Correct?"

"Yeah, I'm his son…" He sighed turning his attention to the lake ahead of him. The Beldum took notice of his expression, tilting its body slightly in curiosity.

"Him. Where?" It asked with concern in his voice. Tyler sighed more as tears started building up again.

"He's no longer here… He d-died…" He stammered through his tears, wiping them away. The Beldum took a surprised expression.

"Apologies. Me. Know. Not. Apologies." It apologized hastily, feeling bad for causing the son of the human that saved him cry. It reminded him of how he left its pack because of its odd eye colour. It wore a sad expression before Tyler took notice.

"It's alright. You didn't know." He spoke softly before hugging the floating Steel type. It took it by surprise but didn't protest. It enjoyed the hug as it comforted both it and Tyler, more for the former since Tyler was hugging a piece of cold metal.

Tyler broke his hug and started to talk to his new found friend. Though it replied in broken sentences, Beldum's responses were still adequate for understanding. The two continued for a bit before Tyler decided to go back to Samuel's house.

"Sorry, buddy. But I have to get back to my house. I guess this is goodbye for now." Tyler replied somberly. "Hope we meet again in the future."

"Agree. Me. Enjoy. You. Talk. Goodbye." It replied in a sad but hopeful tone as Tyler made his way to his yellow S2000 that he parked some distance away.

…

"Tyler? Tyler? Helloooo…" Jewel waved a ribbon in front of Tyler's face before sighing in defeat. She whipped one around and smacked him lightly on his cheek.

"Ow, what the… Oh, uh, sorry about that Jewel." Tyler spoke as he was shaken out of his memory, glancing at a pouting Jewel. Autumn just sat there with a concerned expression.

"What happened? It's not like you to space out like that…" She spoke with concern in her voice. The nurse giggled as she took notice of the now no longer in a trance Tyler.

"Sir, you spaced out for quite a bit."

"Oh, heh, sorry. I… think I know that Metang. Is it alright if I visit it?"

"Sure, not a problem. You don't look like the rowdy and troublemaking type, so head on in."

"Alright, thanks a bunch. But first…" Tyler spoke as he grabbed Amaura's ball and released her. The Rock and Ice type looked around before resting her azure blue eyes on Tyler who knelt by her. She adopted a thankful smile.

"Thanks for saving me. I really appreciate it." She spoke softly, getting Tyler to chuckle and nod.

"No problem. It was the right thing to do. Those Team Galactic assholes won't get their dirty hands on you. Especially after all that." Tyler reassured her. She gave a toothy grin that rivaled Jewel's.

"So, how are you feeling?" Tyler inquired. Amaura glanced all over her body and moved a few of her limbs and her short tail.

"I feel great! Nothing feels out of place." She concluded with a happy tone. Tyler grinned for a bit.

"Alright, I have a question for you. So, we humans have a system to rehabilitate Pokemon to be released back into the wild. Usually abused or unsuitable for training Pokemon are given this treatment. I've decided to give you this option as well. So in short, do you want to go back to the wild or join with me in my team?" Tyler asked as he pointed to the girls who were holding their breath for her response.

Almost instantly, Amaura leaped and tackled Tyler lightly to the ground with him emitting a small "oof" in response. Autumn immediately began readying a flame on the tip of her tail, with Noir beginning to charge a Dark Pulse as she had woken up a few minutes ago and Jewel extending a ribbon to grab the Amaura. They were all stopped when Tyler began laughing as Amaura began hopping up and down while chanting "You!" over and over again.

Jewel laughed and ran over to her trainer's side. Autumn let out a small giggle and followed her with Noir smiling and doing the same.

"Well that was an answer and a half! Welcome to the team, Amaura!" Tyler exclaimed happily. He didn't care that the other trainers in the Pokecenter were looking at him, most of them chuckling and a few of them feeling annoyed at the commotion.

A short while later, the group which was now five strong made their way to the Metang's room. Jewel and Autumn explained more about Tyler and his story, with his permission of course. Amaura, who was now called Ava, was taken aback by his past, amazed at how a person could be so nice to Pokemon even after one murdered his father.

Tyler pushed on the double doors that lead into the large room. It was mostly empty save for a few medical equipment, a bed and the sleeping Metang in question. Hearing the door creak open, it opened its eyes, revealing the brilliant purple colour that Tyler recognized.

The Metang, however, looked on with intrigue, surprise and fear. It hovered backwards while taking a weak fighting stance.

"Who are you!?" It bellowed, catching Tyler of guard with the sheer volume. As Tyler removed his hands from his ears, he sighed.

"Calm down. We're not going to hurt you. If I were, I'd tell Autumn to burn you to a crisp. That wouldn't be ideal though, since my father's not here to heal you." Tyler explained in a calm voice for the first part, before adopting a joking tone for the second part.

"Wait, father…burn… No… It can't be…" It muttered in a surprised tone. Tyler just smirked as everything seemed to click in its head.

"Yes, it can. It's been a long time, Beldum. It looks like you evolved. Congratulations!" Tyler chuckled lightly as he approached the Metang. It had a twinkle in its eyes as it floated over and hugged Tyler with its two appendages.

"It actually is you! Its been so long!" It buzzed happily, tightening its hug. It loosened only when Tyler began tapping on its cold steel body while muttering "Too tight" over and over. Everyone chuckled which got the Steel and Psychic type to uncharacteristically clink its claws awkwardly, since the Metagross evolution line are usually calm and stoic.

"Yeah, its me. How have you been all these years?" He inquired as he sat down on a nearby chair. Metang gave out its version of a sigh and hovered by to him. Jewel leaped into Tyler's lap and laid down like a house cat. Autumn sat down by Tyler's leg and Noir made her way onto his head, with him chuckling as she laid atop him. Ava stood beside Autumn.

"It's been pretty hard. I tried going back to my pack a few days ago, but they didn't just reject me. They attacked and tried to kill me, called me a 'disgrace' and 'mistake'." It sighed as it moved a claw to its front side, effectively facepalming. "Then some humans found me and took me here to heal. I'm really grateful."

"That's horrible. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have left you. I'm sure my friend wouldn't have minded you if I took you back with me." Tyler admitted while patting his steel friend on its 'back'.

"It's fine, really. I'm just… I don't want to go back there anymore. I can't stand it. Everything looks at me like a freak, usually attacking after they spot me. It's not fair…" It replied in a sad tone. Tyler could only look on with pitiful eyes. Everyone stayed silent as they felt awful at how the world seemingly treated the Metang.

"Metang, I have a proposition for you." Tyler spoke, catching Metang's attention. It looked at him with a confused look in its eyes.

"Why don't you join my team? All of us have been through pain before and we're doing our best to recover. You already know my past, but not about my team. I'll tell you if it's okay with them." He spoke as he glance down at Jewel first.

"Of course! It told us theirs, it's only fair for us to it ours!" She yipped with a determination to help this poor Metang back to its figurative feet.

"Yeah, I-I just can't stand mistreatment just because of being different. You're not a freak, you're special." Autumn spoke with newfound confidence.

"Absolutely. I despise those who look at superficial differences as a way to judge someone. That is simple unacceptable and pathetic." Noir explained with a will to help Metang.

"Even though I've only just joined, I still think if you can help whoever, then help them! Everyone deserves it, no matter how different you are!" Ava exclaimed with spirit.

"Thank you, girls. I'm incredibly proud of you all." Tyler spoke with a smile as he turned his head to the now taken by surprise Metang. Not long after, he began to tell every one of their stories. From the moment he met Jewel and Autumn face down in the snow, the moment he heard a crash and found Noir on the road and when he tried to save Ava from being kidnapped by Team Galactic. Metang could only listen with awe at their struggles and triumphs.

"So, with all of that being said, my offer still stands. Would you like to join us?" Tyler offered with a calm smile and an extended hand. Metang caught on with what it was supposed to do and shook Tyler's hand with its claw. It gave Tyler a happy look and a nod.

"Yes. Absolutely, thank you so much, Tyler." It spoke with an overjoyed tone before hugging Tyler again, albeit much gentler. Tyler chuckled and hugged it back, not caring about the hardness of the steel at all.

"Great! Now, do you have a name? Sorry for asking so late, it just never occurred to me." Tyler asked it.

"No, I don't. The pack just assigned us a number and referred to us by it." It spoke, sounding a bit deflated. Tyler looked at it with pity as he thought of a name.

"Ah, how about Epsilon?" Tyler spoke as Metang perked up and nodded happily.

"I like it. Sounds cool." Epsilon replied with a happy tone. Tyler and the girls chuckled before they made light conversation to pass the time.

Roughly a few hours later, Tyler and his team made their way down the Mudsdale Drive, looking for number 23. Tyler walked in the middle with Jewel to his right and Autumn to his left. Epsilon floated behind with Noir sitting on top because it didn't mind. Ava walked by Autumns right side.

"So, where are we going?" Ava asked as they began walking down hill, passing a house with the number 16.

"Ah, right. Well, we're going to Cynthia's house. She was a Champion a few years back. A Champion is the strongest trainer in the region." Tyler explained before continuing. "She was the one that saved you and us, if you can remember. She also told me to come over as she has something to tell me about my mother."

"Oh, what happened to her? Your mother, I mean." Ava asked curiously. Tyler visibly flinched by her question as they passed a house with the number 20.

"Well, she passed when I was born…" Tyler muttered sadly, shaking his head. Ava and Epsilon grew wide eyed, with the former letting out a gasp.

"Oh, sorry Tyler. I didn't mean to pry." She admitted. Tyler sighed as he looked over to her with a slight smile.

"It's alright. Look, we're here." Tyler said as he stopped in front of a house with the number 23 on it. It look like a fairly regular two story house with a brown exterior. Tyler and his team walked up and knocked on the door. After a few minutes with no response, Jewel spoke.

"I guess she's not home?" She concluded.

"That's odd, she told me to me-" He was interrupted as the door opened, revealing Cynthia standing behind it.

"Good, you're here. Come in." She beckoned as Tyler slowly followed without muttering a single word. They made their way to the living room, which was clean and tidy. Cynthia gestured to Tyler for him to sit. Each team member made their way and sat down on the sofa except for Epsilon as he hovered and Noir who was still sitting on top of it. Jewel noticed Tyler fidgeting nervously and decided to lay on his lap to calm him down, which it did as proven by him stroking her gently.

"Uhm, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" He spoke as he leaned forward from his seat.

"There's no simple way to put it, so I'll be straight with you. I missed you and your father, son."

Yeah, everyone kinda saw that coming, huh? Anyways, I apologize again for uploading late. I had a lot of stuff to do. Until next time, fellas. Bruhmeister, out!

Jewel: GET BACK HERE

BM: NO