Location: Café Connection
Date: June 26th

Lyra is in unusually high spirits today. After yesterday, I was sure she'd be in a sour mood, but now? Just as peppy as ever. She asked for my advice on something, but said we'll just discuss it later. For now, she wants to focus on our usual Expedition Society work.

I wonder what she wants to talk about. Was she up as late thinking about our situation like I was? Maybe she has an idea she wants to finish pondering before running it by me.

Well, right now we're in Kangaskhan's Café Connection and I feel like I need to make a note of this. One of our clients we've explored with is a Bayleef, and he's in the café with us. It...feels strange seeing him. I was transformed into a Chikorita when I came to this world, so to see an evolved Pokémon of my own species...it...I don't know how to describe it, but it feels strange. I'm most definitely a human, yet meeting a Bayleef...are there human words for it?

I asked Lyra about it and she said what I'm experiencing could be natural herding instinct. Most members of the docile Chikorita line travel in herds to easily fend off predators, so it's kind of rare to find one who travels alone. She said that since most of the time it's male Meganiums who lead our herds that I could be feeling a form of subservient intimidation or respect. Sort of how we feel about our parents, just with a member of my own evolutionary line.

For a Pokémon to evolve, I know they have a lot of battle experience. To grow and adapt to the dangerous situations they find themselves in, Pokémon naturally evolve within a matter of seconds after they meet certain criteria. In Bayleef's case he evolved after reaching a certain level. Come to think of it, I turned level 16 during our last expedition, and I didn't evolve. Quite sure that's the level I'm supposed to evolve into a Bayleef. Maybe I can't evolve since I'm a...unique case. I wonder if Lyra will evolve. She's only level 15, so we'll see. It'd certainly help our expeditions if she did.

Anyway, I need to prep for our daily expedition. I asked our team from the day before yesterday if they saw any suspicious folks lurking near the village, and they said no. I think it'll be safe for us venture out of the village for today.

Location: Home (night)

I...don't know about this.

The thing Lyra wanted to talk about was if I wanted to sneak out of the village with her tonight. At the time, I agreed to her plan because she said she's gonna sneak out whether I joined her or not. I don't want her to leave alone, and besides...what choice do we have? Everyone's opposed to us leaving and it's really the only way we're gonna get out of here without their interference. However, agreeing to do something and doing it are two very different things. Now that I'm about to do it, it feels all levels of wrong.

Not to mention I'm breaking my promise to Nuzleaf. The morning after we returned from sneaking out, I promised him I wouldn't do that again to spare him the terror of his child going missing. He's been such a good parent, and for me to do this a second time...

Well, the more I think about it the less guilty I feel because he's breaking his promise too. The night after he needlessly yelled at me, he apologized and promised he'd listen to me more instead of leaping to his own conclusions. Last night, he not only wouldn't listen to me, but he went back on his own advice. Wasn't he the one saying I should feel free to explore despite others telling me not to? Yet, now he expects me to obey and stunt my explorations because he said so.

Honestly, I hate it when adults do that – they say "because I said so" whenever a kid asks why they need to do something, and it's just lazy. Kids don't ask why to be annoying all the time. Sometimes they genuinely want to know why they need to do things. You might as well be saying, "Don't question my bidding, tiny slave. My word is law because I think my superiority complex trumps your desire to learn more about the world around you."

So lazy.

Back to Nuzleaf. I want things to stay okay between us, but he's not even willing to meet me halfway on this matter. So...what choice do I have? I feel like the village children are in danger, and Nuzleaf refused my request to leave. I have to do what's right, even if it means his rule gets broken.

Now I'm about to sneak out of my window again to meet up with Lyra and hit the road. It won't be easy...but we'll have each other. I hope that alone is reassurance enough that everything will be okay. No, I know it is!

So, here goes.

Location: Serene Village Plaza (dead of night)

Well, this was an unexpected delay, but it's too pertinent not to write about before we hit the road!

Lyra and I visited the hill with the big tree one last time before we left, and lamented the good times we had here. It...it hurts to be leaving everyone like this. Nuzleaf, Carracosta, our classmates and teachers, Budew, Roselia, the other villagers...they were good to us. Looking over the village again filled me with the peaceful calmness I first saw upon arriving here. It...it made me feel sadness welling up knowing I'll be leaving it behind.

But Lyra agreed that we gotta. We gotta leave it behind to fulfill her dream and...beyond just the fear of the Beheeyem, I feel like I gotta leave it behind to get stronger. I feel like I've grown a lot since I first awoke as a Chikorita, but my growth has sort of plateaued. Not just strength-wise, but maturity-wise too.

I've gotten into a cycle of obeying the rules, then deciding to break them to do what's right, accepting my lumps, then back to obeying the rules and continuing the cycle. Staying here has given me the basic knowledge I needed and provided a critical start when I had nothing before...but I don't need to stay here anymore. I needed this when I had nothing, but I don't need it now. If I stay here, I'll never get stronger. I need this just as much as Lyra does – we need to see the world, experience different things, and grow as two individuals. We can't accomplish that in this tiny village.

So, we're in agreement. Sad as though we are to leave it behind, we know this is the right thing to do.

However, as we were about to leave, we were stopped by our classmates. They wanted to see us off and...it turns out that Espurr was watching us. She said we were acting suspicious, so she used her powers to eavesdrop on us and tell the others so they could come wish us luck instead of letting us sneak off into the night without saying our goodbyes. What's more is that they told the adults! Instead of coming to see us off (or stop us, if they felt inclined...) they gave the kids letters to give us. Shelmet said it was probably to save face.

We got letters from...everyone. Lombre, Raticate, Hippopotas, Principal Simipour, VP Watchog, Audino, Farfetch'd, Sunkern, Roselia, Kecleon, Hawlucha (his letter made me laugh because he actually wrote his famous "Hy-krah!" catchphrase in it – what a card!), Kangaskhan...literally everyone in the village who didn't show up.

Yes, including Carracosta and Nuzleaf.

Lyra got really choked up when reading Carracosta's letter. He said her adventurous spirit couldn't be contained, and that she should go chase her dreams if she really felt like she was ready. This...everyone had always discouraged Lyra from pursuing her dream, saying she was just a kid and...she was so broken and upset thinking nobody was ever on her side, so to see Carracosta encouraging her to pursue what she really wants to do...

I won't lie, I got teary-eyed in front of everyone. It's not comfortable, but...well, we're having a moment dammit. Who cares if I have to suffer a little discomfort to let my emotions show?

Nuzleaf's letter caught me by surprise, for sure! I didn't think he...he never indicated that he...he made it seem like he didn't think...

He's cheering for me. He's worried about me, but he's still...he believes...

Ah. I'm sorry, I'm getting rather choked up. He made good on his promise, and yet I...he knew I'd sneak out, so maybe he did that on purpose? Maybe he purposefully broke his promise and cut me off last night to make me feel better about tonight...

Bless my leaf-headed father. He's too good for me, and I really wish I could've hugged him before I left.

Thinking back on it now, Nuzleaf seemed totally normal after I arrived home for dinner. When did he have time to write this? Did he prepare for when this day came because he knew it'd be sooner than he wanted? When did everyone else know we were gonna sneak out if we just decided that today? Maybe they knew us from our habits, but we didn't really indicate this is what we were planning. Lyra even caught me by surprise in deciding to do this!

Maybe we're simply that predictable.

Anyway, I got so choked up I kinda clung to Lyra and cried my eyes out. I think Pancham cracked a remark that I didn't hear because when I was drying my eyes, I heard Deerling scolding him, saying there was a time and place to say such things and now was neither.

Well, he had to get one last biting comment out for old times' sake. Aww, screw it all! We went around and hugged everybody. Just to tease him, I started with Pancham and went around from there. While I was hugging Deerling, I heard Pancham call Lyra the most annoying Pokémon he'd ever met, but when I glanced over, I noticed he was clinging to her and trembling.

Heh. Afraid to look weak in front of his crush, even during their last moments together it would seem. Such a softie.

Anyway, it's about time I wrapped this up. Lyra allowed me a bit of time to jot down this entry before we leave. Since we'll be on the road I probably won't be able to update much, but I'll try. It won't be easy...but it's time to say goodbye to our home and travel onward! Lyra and Irau starting the next chapter of their big adventure together!

Goodbye, Serene Village!