The first thing I did after Dawn was finished talking with Mr. Black was ask her what they had to talk about, with her answering she'd tell me once we were out of the building.

And now, here we are.

"A liaison?" I ask bewilderedly while I drive on the way back. "His own kid? Really?"

"Yes."

"But how old is he even supposed to be?"

"If he's just now getting old enough to start his Gym challenge, almost eighteen."

For fuck's sake…

"And why couldn't you just say no? You do realize following us is going to be the least safe decision to make if Team Plasma gets Kyurem, right?"

This time, Dawn takes a pause before speaking again. "The only convincing way to dissuade Mr. Black would have been telling him about that situation. And I have my orders not to share this information with civilians."

Ugh, 'orders'. Of all the stupid excuses she could pull out of her ass…

"To quote Professor Oak, there is a time and place for everything. Orders included."

I manage to get a glimpse of the bluenette arching an eyebrow. "When did he say that?"

"That's not the point. The point is there is a moment to follow orders, and there's a time for common sense. Telling a protective dad what he's signing his son up for is when common sense takes precedence."

"Maybe," Dawn concedes. "But there is also a good reason to keep it secret. If Mr. Black lets anything about Kyurem slip, it wouldn't be long before more and more people learn of it. And then we'd risk Team Plasma catching wind of what we know."

I groan. I see my arguments aren't going anywhere with her.

"Alright," I concede. "But he had better not be some self-entitled spoiled brat. He's got a name?"

"Nate."

The surprise of hearing that name almost makes me lose my grip on the wheel. Thankfully, I recover before I lose control of the car completely, but not fast enough to prevent Dawn from noticing.

"What the heck?!" she berates. "What did you do that for?"

"S-sorry," I reply while my head goes over what I've just been told.

This family is situated in Nimbasa, where the Battle Subway is. Their surname is Black. And the notary's irises are just like…

"I had a fucking layout in front of me and I'm only seeing it now!"

"What are you talking about?" Dawn retorts. "What layout? Wait...is this Nate-?"

"He doesn't have any clash with Team Plasma. Or with the major events of the game." At least, that's how it is for the role he's fulfilling here. "He only appears as a trainer fighting in the Battle Subway. I think he and Rosa will become friends or something there."

I can practically hear Dawn's frown. "Who is Rosa?"

Oh crap. I forgot I glossed over that.

"The protagonist. The one that is supposed to take Kyurem down and become the next Champion."

"And you're saying this now?"

"Because I didn't know it was her yet."

"Yet?"

I let out a groan. Looks like there's no more dancing around that matter.

"There is this mechanic of the game I'd glossed over to avoid confusion. When one starts the game they can choose to play as either a boy or a girl. And I don't mean as a male or female version of the same person, but two very distinct people. And sometimes the one that isn't chosen appears filling a different role. Such as Nate and Rosa."

The fact I'm driving is the only thing keeping me from turning to check on Dawn as a silence drags on after my words.

"You're telling me the Blacks' son could have been the protagonist but isn't because this other girl is filling the role?" she puzzles.

"More or less."

Another silence.

"Who would...who is the protagonist if I'm not? Barry?"

Really not liking the sound of where this is going.

"Lucas, actually."

Again, silence. And this time, it doesn't break. It persists throughout the rest of our journey back. Only when we return to the car rental, do I finally get the chance to properly look at her and see her staring at nothing in particular.

"Hey," I say while shaking her by the shoulder. She instantly winces and blinks before looking around frantically.

"When did we get here?"

Okay, that's not a good sign.

"Just now," I answer, causing her to look at me. "Are you alright…?"

"I'm f-" she cuts herself off when I arch an eyebrow. "It's just...I don't know how to feel about it."

"About what?"

"This…" she pauses a moment to run her mouth, almost as if tasting her own words. "I don't even know what to call it. The whole idea that somehow - or somewhere - my life did not go the way it did. That I could have been a simple assistant to Professor Rowan…"

Ah, that's...uhm, what can I say?

Dawn lets out a huff. "Still, I can't say I would have wished Lucas were the one who went through what I did. Or someone else. In fact, why did anyone have to in the first place?" She takes a deep breath. "I'm sorry for rambling. I don't even know where I was going with that."

...well, the best I can think of is trite rhetoric, but I have a feeling it's better than nothing.

"Whatever your life has been or could have been, whatever the reason, I don't think focusing on what ifs is good. But if you really must, think of what you would have missed with a different life."

The bluenette lets out a sigh. "Yes, I know. I wouldn't have become Champion."

"'Champion' is just a title," I retort. "And titles aren't worth crap."

She furrows her brow.

"Think of all the places you've been to during your life. Could you say you would have been able to see them? Or the Pokémon there? The people?"

Her brow relaxes, while her pupils break eye contact with me and look to the side.

"And all the friends you've made along the way, what of them? Would you have even met them in other circumstances? And Drif, E, Tog, Rio, Roh and Pip, can you say you would trade them away? Or your family?"

Dawn is unable to answer me as her gaze systematically avoids me.

"Look," I sigh. "I'm sorry if that was out of turn, but-"

"No, that was…" she pauses to take a deep breath. "I appreciate it. But...look, do you mind if I take the rest of the day for myself?"

I furrow my brow. "Are you sure it's wise?"

She nods. "I am."

I'm not. But pushing her is not wise either. "Alright."

We get back to the Pokémon Center after paying for the car. And then I don't see her for the rest of the day.

If there is one thing the Castelia from the games has over a real one is that you can always be sure it's going to be sunny. A real one, instead, has to conform to how the real world works, which means that if the weather decides to be anything, it's going to be that.

Just like today's rainstorm proves.

"Ra?" Annette asks as she watches the water pouring down outside the windows.

"First time seeing this much rain, buddy?" I ask her and she nods. Welcome to life outside a desert, I guess.

I finish suiting up and then the two of us go down to the main floor. To my surprise, Dawn is already there, watching the Pokémon Center's entrance. Or rather, the rain that can be seen from it.

I walk up to her until I'm right next to her, where I can see the impassive face she's looking outside with. It is then that she notices me and musters a smile. "Good morning," she greets me. "Have you slept well?"

"Well enough," I reply. "What about you?"

The smile she put up slightly falters for a moment. "Not bad." She then turns back to the entrance. "Although this weather was an unpleasant surprise."

Yeah, no kidding. "I assume it's not a good idea to go outside with rain this bad?"

Dawn shakes her head. "Nope. We're more likely to catch a cold than accomplish anything else." She turns around and looks over to the reception. "They have an area for trainers who want to battle here, but I don't think Annette is quite ready for that yet."

"Mara!" Annette protests.

The bluenette looks down at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, little gal. I meant no offense."

Annette pouts as she...crosses her small arms. Sort of. More like she puts one over the other and keeps them close to her chest. And Dawn simply giggles at the sight. And honestly, I can't blame her.

"Well, in that case," I say, interrupting the scene and looking back at Dawn. "What do we do?"

She replies with a shrug. "I think we can do whatever we want for today. I think I'll make a few calls to my family. There is a twelve hour gap between here and Sinnoh, but my parents should still be up right now."

...there is nothing wrong with her words. Just a lady stating her projects for the morning. Reasonable projects, letting those close to her know how she's doing.

And yet, as she says them, I feel a knot forming in my stomach.

"Hey, are you okay?" Dawn asks.

"I'm fine, don't worry," I reassure her. "I was just thinking about what I could do." I didn't mean it as an accusation, so why does it feel like it is? "I'll, uh...I'll leave you to your calls. Come on, Annie. Let's go back."

Annette doesn't say anything, strangely enough and just starts hopping after me, all while Dawn just watches us go.

After Annette and I have gone back to our room, I lock the door and go to sit on the bed while Annette hops onto the sofa.

Well, what to do now? My old phone is useless here. Having Annette try some of her moves here would cause damages to the room I'd rather avoid having to refund. I don't have anything to read with me.

And conversations past the yes-no routine are not possible with Annette since I can't truly understand what she says.

All that leaves me just one option.

"Want to watch some TV?" I ask Annette.

"Ra," she replies while nodding. Although, she sounds strangely less convinced than usual.

For the following few minutes, I keep switching from one channel to another, hoping to find something that might pick my interest, or at least Annette's. Unfortunately, I don't have much luck on that front.

If I were home I'd have quite the selection of movies to choose from in a situation like this, be they a physical copy or something on Netflix. Hell, with Netflix I could probably binge a TV series during a shitty day like this. Or even play a videogame. Or simply browse the internet. Or even try to call a friend.

If I were home.

…

It's been two weeks. Two frigging weeks. Two weeks since I was supposed to just buy groceries and go back home. Two weeks since I've disappeared, leaving my family with no idea of what happened to me. And by now my friends know that too.

And the only thing I can do about it is sit here, with no way home and trying to secure myself a living, with no friends or family to speak of. And if it were not for Annette, I would be alone.

"Ra?"

I turn to Annette. She is looking at me, with her head tilted the angles of her mouth turned down. What is she-?

As I try to pass a hand over my check, I sense a wet trail going from the edge of my eye and down from it. I then take a deep breath, clear my face and smile back at Annette.

"Don't worry, little gal," I tell her. "It was just-"

Knocks coming from my door interrupt what I was going to say. Who the hell could it be?

"Who is it?"

"It's me," Dawn voice answers. "Could you please open the door?"

As I go to the door, a few questions pass through my mind. What is this about? Wasn't she going to make her calls? Is there news about Team Plasma? Or from the Blacks?

Upon opening, I'm mildly surprised to see she has ditched her coat and hat. Even more strange, she has a bottle of berry juice in one hand and a couple of plastic cups in the other.

"Mind if I join in?" she asks chirpyly as she extends her hands. "I believe some company would be good."

"Uh…" I blink, completely taken aback by the sudden situation. "I...was actually watching something with Annette and-"

The sound of a Poké Ball recalling a Pokémon cuts me off, and I turn around just in time to see Annette's falling on the floor, not too far from where I'd left it.

Sly cactus…

"Well?" Dawn presses. "Looks like she wasn't that interested in whatever you were watching. What do you say now?"

I let out a sigh. Where is this coming from all of a sudden?

"Is the beverage at least non-alcoholic?"

"Yeah. Sorry, but I don't really drink."

"Neither do I." I clear the way for her. "Come in."

The bluenette closes the door behind her while I go pick Annette's ball up and place it back on the shelf where it was before. When I turn around, I find Dawn sitting on my bed.

"If you prefer the sofa, you can sit there."

Dawn shakes her head. "It's best if we stay within reach of each other while we have only one of these." She raises and shakes the bottle.

"Very well," I sigh as I sit across from her. She then hands one of the cups over to me and I offer it in wait for her to start pouring.

"Not so fast," she says. "First we're going to play a little game."

I fail to suppress a groan. Her face becomes more serious after that. "It's important, so pay attention."

My only response is folding my arms.

"Now, the little game. We are going to take turns asking each other questions. Every answer gets you a drink. If you really don't want to answer one question, the other gets to ask another question right away. Deal?"

Really don't want to answer? "What kind of questions are we asking?"

"You, about anything you think you know about Sinnoh." What? "Me, about your old life."

WHAT?!

"Wh-why do you-?"

"Because…" she takes a pause after that one word. At first, I think she's trying to be dramatic. But the way her face grimaces seems to suggest otherwise. "Because I realize I've made you think about it down at the entrance. And that hurt you. I want to make amends. And talking might be the best way to help you."

"...I'm fine," I say half-heartedly.

"Ah, ah, ah," she retorts, her index raised admonishingly. "If you're going to say that, let me first tell you a story."

A story? Really?

"There was once a wide-eyed teen girl, who set out on a Pokémon Journey because she wanted to be the best trainer there ever was alongside her childhood friend, who she considered a little brother. Unfortunately, along the way, she repeatedly crossed paths with a crazed cult that kept doing bad stuff all over her home region."

Oh. That kind of story.

"By the time that crazed cult was disbanded, she had seen one too many bad things, and the one thing that kept her mind from thinking too much about it was focusing on achieving her dream of becoming the next Champion. And she did. That's when it all went downhill."

Uh?

Her next words come out less fluently. "With no more goal to set her mind on, she kept thinking back of all the crazed cult did. And how she had been powerless. Her friends noticed something wasn't right. She said she was fine because she didn't want to burden them. Which only led to a downward spiral until the girl and most of her friends drifted away. And as of now, it has been years since they talked again."

…

"She said she was fine because she didn't want to burden them," she repeats mirthlessly. "Does that sound familiar?"

"That girl seems to have her problems figured out," is all I can think of saying.

"That girl merely acknowledges what went wrong. And she had some time to think after a certain gruff Faller pointed out the good things she had in life."

Touche.

"So, shall we begin?"

"I have a feeling you won't take no for an answer," I groan.

The bluenette smirks. "Nope."

This will go splendidly, just you watch.

"Alright, who starts? Ladies first?"

"No," she answers, shaking her head in the process. "You first."

Oh, great. What do I start with?

"Are the Pokémon currently with you the only ones you have, or do you have more?"

It's nowhere near important, but I guess I might as well ask.

For a moment, a flash of surprise comes over Dawn's face. She composes herself quickly enough, though, and answers readily. "I have seven more. A Bibarel, a Staravia, a Luxio, a Cranidos, a Shieldon, a Porygon-Z and a Spiritomb. I keep most of them as reserves because they are not as strong."

"The only two exceptions are Pory and Spir - the Porygon-Z and Spiritomb. They are more," her lips tap together while she hesitates on her next words. "Let's call them 'free spirits'. They're on par with my other Pokémon, but they are less keen on following my instructions in battle. Not in a sense that we have a bad relationship, mind you, merely that they prefer to do things their way."

Sounds like an unreliable duo.

"I've also caught a few more, but those were for Professor Rowan's research."

After giving me that answer, Dawn pours herself half a cup of juice and drinks it all in one sip.

And then she turns to me. "My turn."

I brace myself for whatever her question is going to be.

"What did you do in life? As a job, I mean."

…

The wall of the room suddenly becomes much more interesting as my gaze turns away from her. Of all the things she had to start with, it had to be that.

"Are you alright?" Dawn's concerned question comes from my side.

"Nothing," I admit out loud. "I had just dropped out of university. I had taken on a faculty I believed I could handle. I was wrong."

I let a few moments pass for the information to settle in.

"I was living with my parents while searching for a job. Then this happened."

It's not right away that I hear Dawn's comment. "I'm sorry."

"Just…" I sigh, turning to see her saddened face and offering my cup. "Just give me the drink and go on."

She does just that and I drink the thing in a couple of sips.

"Is it my turn now?" She nods in affirmation. "Very well then."

We spend what feels like hours going back and forth with questions. True to her words, her questions are always about some aspects of my life, my family, where I grew up, some other noteworthy aspects of it, all things that aren't particularly exciting. Just a quiet regular life.

And yet, the more I talk about it, the more I feel my chest tighten.

On my end, there isn't much about her life I could ask that I don't already know from Platinum or from what she's already told me. But considering what the goal of this 'game' for her is, I find myself compelled to ask her to talk about her encounters with Team Galactic - or at least those I know of from the game. For one so traumatized by their actions, she is able to recollect the first ones with ease, the only exceptions when she talks about her first fights with Mars and Jupiter, where a hint of fear creeps into her voice.

All that changes when we get to the Lakes' bombing. Specifically, Lake Valor's.

"Oh, that went just like I told you," she hastily says. "Wake was there, we entered the lake together, he caused a distraction, I entered the Valor Cavern and found Saturn there. You know the rest."

I arch an eyebrow. "Do I?"

Dawn tenses up at that question. Her grip on the cup tightens and her gaze lowers to its content. The gulp she lets down is clear to all to hear.

I'm about to ask if she doesn't want to answer, when she takes a deep breath and raises her head again, a new fire in her eyes.

"No," she says in a low tone. "No that's not all. When I arrived at Lake Valor, what I found was...a nightmare. Hundreds of Pokémon that lived there, all scattered across the lakebed, several of them sporting injuries from the explosion. All hopping desperately around, looking for water that was gone."

"All I could think at the moment was 'what monsters would do this?" she continues, her voice now louder. "Who could deny the Pokémon their habitat, their home and leave them to suffer like that? And for what? What could justify that?"

I find I can give her no satisfactory answer.

"And then, after beating Saturn, not only did I learn that I was too late to save Azelf, but the others were in danger as well. I rushed to Lake Verity and managed to save Professor Rowan and Lucas from Mars. But Lake Acuity…"

I let her take her time to catch her breath. When she opens her mouth again, she's all but shouting as her body shakes.

"I had to make the voyage to Lake Acuity all on foot. I had never been to Snowpoint before, so I couldn't reach it via flight. But I didn't care about any of that. All I cared about was that Barry, my friend - my little brother - was walking into an ambush. I rushed to the lake as quickly as I could. Hell, I almost froze to death because I tried to traverse route 217 during the night."

Oh, my God!

"And when I arrived, despite my attempts to be as fast as possible, I found out I had only been just in time. One minute later, and… I don't know what would have become of him."

As she finishes speaking, Dawn has to take steadying breaths, her shaking body very slowly steadying as she does so. At the corner of her eyes, I think I also see some water.

"I'm sorry," she then says in a steadier tone while wiping her eyes. "I didn't mean to make this about me."

"It is no trouble," I reassure her. "From the looks of it, you needed this."

"Maybe," she says uncertainly. "Maybe."

For the next moments, the two of us just stand there, letting the silence reign in the room. It only breaks when Dawn glances at the now almost empty bottle.

"Huh. It looks like the game's almost over."

"Yeah."

In theory, this would be the part where Dawn takes her sip. In actuality, she skips that altogether and hands the bottle over to me.

"One last question," she says. "After everything you've told me, how do you feel?"

...how do I feel?

"It's painful," I state. "To think about everything I had back in my world. My friends and my family, now so far away with no idea of what happened to me. And to tell you the truth, it still doesn't feel real that...that…"

That it's all gone. The words I can't bring myself to say out loud. Only keep repeating in my head.

An action I'm stopped from doing, however, when, to my shock, a pair of arms wrap themselves around me and I find my face resting into a bush of blue hair.

"Uh…" is all I can dully utter.

"It's alright," she whispers in my ear. "If you feel like you need to cry, do it. You do not have to put up a strong front."

"It doesn't feel right, though," I reply. "The lakes, Spear Pillar, and I assume Team Galactic's HQ too." Her grip slightly tightens. "What you described, and what you haven't described, sound like much more horrific experiences than any I've ever seen."

"Trauma is trauma," she retorts. "And pain is not a competition. Never a competition. Only something that presents itself in different ways. Some more subtle than others."

…

At first I stay still with Dawn's embrace around me, still too embarrassed to do anything.

But as the minutes pass by, my stance relaxes. And before long, I find my arms returning her hug, her body only briefly tensing upon the first contact before she too relaxes.

And then the dam breaks. It isn't brief. It isn't a magic solution to all my problems. But it does manage to give me some relief in the end.

And judging by my wet shoulder, I can only hope the same was true for Dawn.

Thank you to Softandhappy and Geolight164 for betareading. You can find us at the Fanfiction Treehouse discord server at: 9XG3U7a

See you next time!