Chapter 02

The Rope and the Rose

Part 1

"Enlist?" Anabel stood, facing that office desk alone. Though she had not fully recovered at that point, she was finally well enough to, at the very least, be walking around. Aina had told her that she should finally get her butt off the bed. Some jargon about hypercoagulable states and room for future patients.

Whatever the case, as soon as she could finally walk again without feeling light-headed, Aina had taken the opportunity to leave two layers of bandages on Anabel's forehead (probably unnecessary in the grand scheme of things) kick her out of her infirmary bed. After an encounter at dinner with Looker at the facility's mess hall, she found herself being escorted to the superintendent's 'office.'

"Given your current state, it would hardly be prudent to let you run around freely. After all, it's not like you know where to go from here."

The feminine voice reverberated from the speakers in said office. Despite it supposedly being the superintendent's office, there was not a single soul to be found in it at all. Instead, the only thing that remained was the visage of a large display that showed nothing more than the words 'Sound Only'. To Anabel, it was nothing short of distant. Though, given her position, that may have been her attempt at prudence.

"Do you have anywhere to go from here?"

As much as she wanted to form an answer to that question, her mind drew nothing more than a blank. She did not know anything beyond her own name and a few small facts.

Her friends? Her life? Her home? Any connections to those concepts were erased. Lost to the wind with no hint of ever returning.

She was truly alone.

"I don't."

And she hated admitting that very reality.

"That's why we decided to enlist you. Given the Pokemon you kept in your care, we can tell that, whoever you really are, you are a competent trainer. Rather than letting you wander aimlessly, we can provide you some sort of foundation for you to search for yourself on. You'll have a steady income and you'll have a support network of sorts. Not to mention, you'll be working under the ICPO, being an agent of justice and all that's good in the world. As cheesy as it sounds, it's a solid opportunity."

It was logical. Being aligned with InterPol wouldn't detrimentally limit her paths forward. She was a blank slate as far as the world was concerned. The possibilities were infinite going forward. Even if she never found out who she was, she could still find a new self within this organization.

It was logical, but was it right?

"Bear in mind that we'll eventually have to kick you out of our facilities if you turn me down."

"Eh?" The thoughts swirling in Anabel's head ground to a complete stop as the superintendent delivered her caveat. Was she...pressuring Anabel?

"I'm not really attempting to extort you into joining us. Should you turn down the offer, we'll return all of your Pokemon to you and let you go once you've fully recovered. Given your supposed aptitude, you'll probably have no real problems creating a new life afresh, even if it's a rough start. We'd still have all the proper non-disclosure agreements to deal with, but those can be saved for the right time."

As she spoke, a hole opened up on the desk and out from it rose a tray holding a single Pokeball.

"But, this decision isn't one I'll ask you to make now. For now, I'll return one of your Pokemon into your possession. In the meantime, keep her with you and mull over it. There's no need to rush into it so take your time. When you've fully recovered, I want you to stand firm before me and make your decision. Can you promise me that?"

The girl walked slowly up to the Pokeball and picked it up, staring at it for a few seconds. It was a bit of a distant feeling, but the warmth of its resident was not one she could truly ever forget. It didn't take long for a smile to appear on her face and for her body to finally loosen up.

"Yes. I can."

Part 2

"So, she tried to recruit you, huh?"

It didn't take long for Anabel to encounter another person once she had exited the so-called office. A man with a gloomy expression had been waiting right outside the office doors. She had seen him passing by the infirmary a few times and had heard him being referred to as Nanu, but she couldn't say she had ever really talked to him. Despite being a member of the international police, he was wearing what could only be called casual clothing. After all, one would not normally think of his sandals and red t-shirt (among other items) as proper attire for the sake of formality.

It was an odd encounter, but not an unwelcome one considering that her last conversation was with a faceless screen and felt less than personal.

"Yeah."

It was likely the answer he had expected to hear, yet one that bore him no pleasure.

"Reject it."

Yes, such an answer truly bore the man with a hatred for the organization no pleasure. After all, such a scenario was one that eventually led Patricia to her death. For someone like Anabel, a presence in the ICPO was, in all likelihood, a death sentence.

"Eh?" Perhaps it was the shock of being led into one surprise after another, but being recommended to reject InterPol was probably the last thing she had expected to hear from Nanu. "Why?"

"There's no need for you to stay here. InterPol isn't the place for a young girl like you."

"That may be so, but it's not like I even have a home to return to. I could still have some sense of 'home' if I stayed here. I'd have some support in trying to find myself."

"Is that something you really need InterPol for?" The man walked closer to Anabel as he spoke, until he was only a few inches away from her and looking down into her eyes. "You don't. Go into the world on your own journey to figure yourself out and you're guaranteed to meet people who would become your support along the way. You're a Pokemon trainer, aren't you? Beyond that, aren't your Pokemon support?"

Anabel, finding herself taken aback by the straightforward words attempting to cut her down at any pass, unconsciously took a step back, putting a hand to her pocket and clutching at her Pokeball.

"But, I can still help people from my position if I take the offer—"

"You could still do that even without being part of the organization. Trainers act on their own and help people all the time. It's a natural course for the average trainer. Creates a nice little sense of cooperation between new and veteran while helping others in need. It's loose and free-form and doesn't place stupid moral quandaries your way. The structure of an organization would only tie you down like that."

He wasn't wrong. As much as an organization would support her, it could also heavily work against her. There was no guarantee that she would ever regain her memories and no matter what she would be working at the behest of the organization rather than by her own will.

The man walked up to her and rested a hand on her head. "The world may seem scary and alien to you but you'll still find your way one way or another. You'll be fine. Even without the help of Interpol."

With that, he took his hand off and continued walking. As Anabel turned her head back, she could see him flicking his wrist back at her general direction, as if telling her to scram.

There was not much more that she could do beyond giving him a quizzical stare, though he would never see it at this point.

What was left for her from here on though? That binary choice would never change. Leaving Interpol and never looking back would ultimately grant her freedom and a chance to forge her own life anew without restraint. But, even if it was something similar to imprinting tying her back, she couldn't help but feel a small but prevalent connection to the place in which she had woken up. It was the first place she had woken up in and given her state of mind, it was the closest thing she had to a home.

Resting a hand on her hair and her other on the Pokeball in her pocket, she sighed. He had left without letting Anabel get much in edgewise, though it was hardly like she had anything worth getting through to him. He had systematically cut her arguments down one-by-one until nothing was left.

She honestly did not know what was left. Despite her supposed strength, she did not have much to herself.

Letting her arms down, she continued to walk down the corridors until she could find some place she could use to just quietly sit and think through it. A library. The guest room they set up for her. Anything worked—granted, this was supposedly a ship given the occasional sway she felt underfoot so options were limited.

Though, her feet ended up leading her not to what she was seeking, she did catch sight of a certain someone who was at an intersection near the stairs to the deck certain figure speed-walking through it.

"Mr. Looker?" Anabel muttered, hoping that the man in question would never hear her.

As soon as he entered her field of vision, she jumped behind a nearby corner and kept her head to the side, trying to keep Looker in her peripheral vision. Despite the fact that they were in a ship's corridor, she was honestly surprised at how little noise resounded. Her quick and sloppy movements didn't even leave behind a single trace. If she weren't preoccupied with the silhouette of the person, she would have wondered just how much of an oversight that could be especially given the possibility of any enemy attacks. But, that was not the focus at the moment.

Having confirmed that he had walked through the space and no longer lingered, Anabel nodded to herself as she stood back up and headed to that corner.

Perhaps questioning him on her predicament would be an adroit course of action. Though, she couldn't deny that part of her just wanted to follow him to see what he was up to.

She was still a teenager, after all.

Part 3

If she needed any further confirmation that she was on a ship, Anabel got it the moment she had started to tail Looker as he, and by extension she, headed off of the ship onto the port they had docked onto. Since she had awoken, she really hadn't seen much aside from the sterile and metallic interior of the ship. Suffice to say, that could not have been healthy for her. The concept of the day and night cycle seemed to be barely held intact by the clocks on the walls and her own circadian rhythms.

Even so, the air she felt as she exited the ship out into the world beneath the post-sunset, starlit canopy was nothing short of refreshing. The calm breeze that flowed around her over the docks was a fresh memory, distinct from everything she could recollect. She almost found herself making an utterance and gaping wide-eyed at the scenery but, she withdrew her hands over her mouth as she kept her eyes darting between Looker and the world around them.

In contrast to the ship, the pier it was docked at looked almost like it belonged in a different age. It was a grand structure made almost entirely out of wood, reaching out from the coast into the sea. If one were to describe it, they would say it almost resembled a Galvantula with a central thorax and body that had numerous legs coming out of it. But, it went beyond mere wood. At its center was a large tree, standing tall and climbing to the heavens. Above the central portions were roofs which also held numerous lanterns that lit up the area. At each different leg of the pier was a different type of boat, be it one that looked like a Wailord or one that resembled a Whiscash. There was even a building that looked like a small Pokemon Center sitting at the back nearer to the coast.

If Anabel had to describe it, it resembled a large village more than it did a pier.

Various benches and even the tree sprouting out from the center of the thorax gave it a far more lively vibe than a simple pier and the numerous people that were going about their day seemed to hold more resemblance to a neighborhood rather than a busy (or even not-so busy pier). It was homely.

It almost felt like a hypnotic effect that her muscles started to relax as she gazed upon the scenery.

"It's so peaceful." The girl muttered as she smiled and let her hands drop.

Huh?

But that made no sense. Sure, that statement was accurate, but why was that the first thing that she had muttered?

Something felt so horribly wrong about the words she had let slip that she crossed her arms and broke her mind away from the world around herself as she focused into the depths of her mind in order to find some answer.

But nothing came.

What had embedded itself so deeply into her subconscious that noting the tranquil was the first thing she had done?

Even as she tried to force her mind down that line of thinking, she could think of nothing. It felt like walking down a path only to find a concrete wall or the edge of a cliff before her. No matter how much she tried to progress down that path, it would only end up causing pain and would bear no fruit.

Even now, just thinking about it was enough to make her head feel like a vice was squeezing around it.

The girl clutched at her head tried to squeeze it to relax herself, but she felt something strange as she did.

Sweat?

Anabel withdrew her hand and gazed at the liquid that coated her fingertips. She raised her eyebrow. The sun was setting and the weather had began to cool down. This was only amplified by the breeze that floated over the waters onto that village-like area.

On second thought, was that the feeling of her heart beating out of her chest? Was that the feeling of her lungs scrambling for air?

She staggered as she forced herself to regain her bearings. As she remembered to breathe, she finally slowed her breathing. After only a few more seconds, her heart began to slow down as well.

"What was that..."

Anyone with a working pair of eyes could tell that she was facing some form of panic attack. That was not what Anabel wanted to know. The bigger question was why it happened. What thoughts and memories had she been attempting to tread upon to trigger such a reaction?

"No...now's not the time for that." Whatever those thoughts were, it was obvious what would happen of she tried to approach them once again. She had already experienced it once and now was not the time to re-experience it.

She had something far more important before her and whatever residual data she was trying to read would not be going away any time soon.

"Where'd he go?" Leaning off the edge of the ship, she peered over the numerous people who were walking, standing, and running in the village. It didn't take long for her to find that prominent brown coat and sharp hairdo whose walking back in from one of the legs of the village. As she tried to focus her vision, she could see that he was holding something in his hand, though the details of what were too fuzzy for her to discern. At the very least, it was something he could hold in one hand.

Did he get that from one of the boats?

As she questioned that, she realized something—if he had already went to one of the boats to get whatever he was carrying, just how much time had passed since she had gotten onto the deck and fell into a panic?

"No. I shouldn't worry about that."

The girl clenched her hand into a fist as she focused on what mattered more at that moment. He was heading towards the wilds that lay on the land behind the village. There was only one way out of the village, so she knew where he was going. She just needed to make sure she could get to there and keep Looker in her sights before he vanished.

With the grace of a Rapidash, she ran down the stairs that lead from the ship down onto the dock. As she finally set foot on the wooden structure that lay above the sea, the sense of grandness in that village seemed to only grow. But, now was not the time for it. It was a long distance across the sea-borne village, but she could still make it if she hustled.

Not breaking pace, she continued to run, twisting around people, turning around corners, and shouting the occasional apology as she barely avoided crashing into other people and Pokemon.

Was it good technique for tailing someone?

Hardly, but it was even worse if she lost sight of the person she was attempting to tail. Luckily for Anabel, it seemed to have worked out for her in the end as she reached the path that connected the village to the Wilds and caught sight of Looker walking further out into them.

As the number of people around her began to thin, she slowed down as she let herself catch her breath to the best of her ability while keeping a distance from him. As she did, she continued to keep a laser focus on Looker.

She would find herself hiding behind trees or keeping herself hidden in the tall grass that seemed to be all over the place as she kept following him, leaving herself as low a profile as she could. As new as this was to her (and as bad as she was at it), she couldn't help but find it surprisingly fun. Almost giggle-inducing.

Moreover, things were going smoothly as they progressed through that nighttime wilderness and Looker seemed none the wiser.

Things would never truly progress that smoothly and hiding within the tall grass, where Pokemon hid, inevitably begets problems, as most people would agree without a second thought.

"KKKKSSSSSSHHHH!"

A high-pitched shriek emanated from behind Anabel as she backstepped into the space behind a tree.

"What?!" As she turned around in shock, she fell behind on her butt and saw what had been crying out. Its large, almost iconic, incisors stood out as its pitch black fur seemed to blend in with the night sky. A pair of vibrant red eyes almost luminesced as it stood on all fours, baring those iconic incisors and its pouch-like cheeks and whipping its naked tail in a frenzy.

"A Raticate?" Anabel hopped back onto her feet and hopped back a few feet as she grabbed at the Pokeball that had been returned to her. It was different from what she had been imprinted into her knowledge before. Between the black fur and the cheeks alone, it was clearly quite different, but there was no doubt that it was a Raticate. Was it a different form?

Anabel tightened her grip on the Pokeball and tossed it to unleash the Pokemon that lay inside it. There was no time to worry about what it was. There was no time to worry about being stealthy anymore. Whatever it was, it was aggressive and charging straight at her.

What appeared from the Pokeball was a pink quadruped with a forked tail and a red gem-like piece on its forehead.

"Espeon! Use Psychic!" Not worrying about holding back, Anabel commanded it to use an attack that would quickly end an encounter with the average aggressive wild Pokemon. Espeon stood in place as its eyes and the gem on its head glowed, releasing an unseen energy at the charging Raticate.

But, nothing occurred. It was as if the wave of energy had simply bounced off it in its bounding charge.

"What?!"

Her cry resounded as the rat Pokemon rammed into Espeon. The sun Pokemon flew back, landing only a few feet away from Anabel.

What was she supposed to do at this point? Given that it took a Psychic attack head on without even flinching, the Pokemon either had to be super strong or heavily resistant to Psychic attacks. More likely than not, it was the latter.

It had stopped to take a breath, stamp against the ground and posture. Despite its size, she could tell that the Pokemon facing her was merely blustering.

Still, it was an opportunity. If Anabel ran away, that thing would merely chase her down.

"The moment it starts running," Anabel whispered to the ear of the Pokemon who kept its eyes on the enemy and pointed at a tree. "Psychic."

With that simple gesture, the rat Pokemon stopped stomping around and once again started its charge. But, within that same instance, the tree beside it collapsed. No, it was best to say that something broke the trunk and caused it to fall, right into the Pokemon's very path.

From where Anabel stood, it was unclear whether the tree had actually hit it or merely obstructed it. However, those few extra seconds would be enough to help them two of them gain some extra ground.

She didn't even need to say anything. Without hesitation, Anabel turned and ran as fast as she could while Espeon followed behind her.

As much as she wanted to say she had a plan, Anabel really didn't have a clue as to what to do at this stage. She was in some wild area she had never been to before running away from a Pokemon. She really just wanted time to regain her bearings but she had no idea what to do.

She was just running wherever instinct was taking her.

Come to think of it, why had she chosen this route? Why had her instincts guided her in that direction? She didn't know this place well enough for it to be based on any knowledge or logic. So, what was in the direction she was heading for?

!

By the time she came to the realization, it was already too late.

She had already been running in that direction for a good minute. And the screeching of the Pokemon she had barely left behind was slowly catching up.

Her calves and thighs were searing. Her heart pounded against her chest. Her breathing became shallow.

She had told Looker that she was a very powerful trainer, but she had only just recently gotten out of medical care. Much like a person with a broken leg finding their muscles much smaller and weaker after they heal, she, too, had wasted away from injury and recovery. Anabel was hardly at the state she claimed to be anymore.

Whatever competence she may have had, it had atrophied to a significant degree.

"BRICK BREAK!"

In tandem with that roar, a croak echoed out from in front of her before she saw a silhouette jumping up over her. As she stopped and turned around behind her, the identity of the silhouette made itself clear. A Croagunk slammed the side of its hand down onto the rat Pokemon.

Its advance was once again ground to a halt as its face slammed directly into the ground.

"Don't let this opportunity go!" Anabel focused on the downed Pokemon and directed Espeon to make an about-face. This wasn't enough to stop it. The Pokemon was pulling itself off the ground against the push from Croagunk. Whether they knocked it out or permanently stopped its advance, they had to do something or else this chase would never end.

"Zap Cannon!"

At its forehead, Espeon coalesced a ball of electricity. Though Pokemon would often be slower in using attacks that were not its type, it still had enough time. The time that it was taking to struggle was more than enough to charge.

And without command, it fired. The cannonball of electricity flew straight towards the Pokemon, throwing it back a few feet, causing it to land on its back, convulse and then stop.

It was over. Anabel could finally take a sigh of relief. But, instead of hunching over, she found herself falling backward as one of her feet slipped on the dry ground.

But, despite anticipating feeling her back slamming against the hard floor, she, instead, felt her fall break as her arms rested on another pair of arms.

"Are you alright, Miss Anabel? Please, don't force yourself." Behind her was the man she had been tailing.

When she thought about it, why had she fled in that direction? The answer was quite obvious. When someone is unfamiliar with the world around them, they inevitably find gravitation to those who are familiar, much like a lost child in a mall.

"Yeah. I'll manage." She readjusted her feet and forced herself to stand back up. Her legs still felt soft and wobbly, but she stood straight up, letting the cool night-time breeze drift around her. Despite the whole ordeal probably only taking a couple of minutes, it felt like it had been an eternity since things had calmed down. "Thanks, Mr. Looker. Return, Espeon!"

With a flick of her wrist, the Pokeball took back in the purple Pokemon that had fought alongside her.

"So, what came over you to decide to tail me from the ship?"

"Wait. Did you notice that early?" Stunned, Anabel gazed blankly at Looker, who simply nodded. "I see. I should have figured I wouldn't be able to tail an InterPol officer that easily."

She was chuckling to herself in self-derision, so could Looker really point out the flaws in her actions at this stage? She was probably long since tired after being chased. Maybe it was best to not try to pursue that line of thought any more.

"The Superintendent called me in to her office earlier today. Though I'm not sure if I'm supposed to call it her office considering she wasn't there in person..."

Looker's thoughts froze. He didn't need her to continue to know exactly what had happened. After all, the Superintendent had already announced her intentions beforehand. After all, he was to bring Anabel into her fold.

"Anabel, do you mind coming with me?"

"Eh?"

"I imagine she offered to have you join InterPol. She probably made an ultimatum."

His voice had become terse. Unnaturally so. That was all Anabel needed to not say a single word. He was right, so she nodded.

"Follow me. I want to show you something."

But, at this point, she had already been knee deep in her (now failed) attempt at tailing.

"Don't worry. It's where we would have ended up if you weren't interrupted."

"Uh, sure…"

There was no point in backing out, so she followed him at his request. It didn't take too long as the two of them passed the grassy field-like area onto a beach. Sitting upon that sandy surface a good distance from the movement of the tides was a bouquet that Looker picked up off the ground before sighing and relaxing his shoulders.

"This location..." He gazed upon the bouquet, clenching his hand around the wrapping and clenching his teeth. Was this something he was even something he was allowed to disclose? About 40Z? About where they had found Anabel? He clenched and clenched and clenched until his mouth finally opened up. "Is the closest place to where one of my comrades died."

For the time being, he didn't need to speak of the fact that she came out from the location that 40Z had passed.

"She was only a few years older than you, but she was a promising officer. Energetic, straightforward, cheerful. The job of an officer is depressing but that girl always managed to be like the sun wherever she had went."

There was no need to speak of the fact that she was like Anabel herself. This girl was too young to deal with the extra burdens that would place. Moreover, what would happen if she tried to fancy herself a replacement or tried to fill in her empty vessel with that image? Looker would not let that happen.

"I wanted to at least do something to honor her memory."

"This...happened recently, didn't it?" Though Looker had avoided giving too many details on 40Z—no, Patricia's death, Anabel had still found enough to go on to piece together information about it. "I'm sorry. I guess that was a bit too insensitive."

"No, it's fine." Looker waved his free hand aside. "It was before we rescued you, but she died recently."

And it was all my fault.

The man clenched his hand upon the bouquet but stopped himself from speaking those words. Again, that was something Anabel did not need to know. He would be remiss to add that burden to her own.

"But, this is the reality you have to deal with as an agent. There's no guarantee that you'll end up seeing the next day. You may end up dying. You may end up discarded. You may end up unable to walk for the rest of your life."

He had been tasked with bringing Anabel into the fold. That was what the superintendent had ordered of him.

"You're young. Regardless of who you may have been, you have a long life ahead of you. You don't need to burden yourself with any of this."

But, he could not abide by his orders. His hesitation had already led to the death of a young woman. He could not let Anabel walk into Interpol. He could not let her be put under his command. He could not let the possibility of another death under his watch go beyond its current zero percent.

No matter what, he couldn't let this girl…

"Was that how she felt though?" There was no malice or judgment in Anabel's voice as he cut through his self-derisive episode. She likely wasn't even aware that she had done so. That was what her pure gaze had told him.

And so, he frowned. Was that how she felt? Did Patricia constantly worry about the impending dangers to the point where it had crippled her? Was she laboring under some delusion or misinformation that those dangers didn't exist?

Looker, in his heart, knew the answer to those questions all too well. He had spent plenty of time in that young woman's company. So, both he and Nanu knew exactly how Patricia felt. That was why Nanu could be so enraged in the superintendent's presence.

But, as he choked his breath and tried to force out his words, he realized not a single sound had come out. Looker produced nothing more than the dry sound of small gasps of air being forced out, each being overshadowed by the sound of the rising evening tide.

"Was she happy?"

As curt as Anabel's question was, it cut right to the chase. There really was no room for any other answer.

Looker didn't know if Patricia would have blamed him the hesitation that led to her death, but he could answer this for certain and it pained him. Because the honest answer would not push her away.

Yet, he scratched his cheek with his free hand and smiled as he spoke up as memories of that young girl flooded his head.

"She was."

There was no way he could lie about that young woman. As much as he may have held the ugly desire to hide the reality from Anabel, he bore a smile and stated reality to Anabel.

"That girl loved every single moment she had spent with us. There was no way she could smile the way she always did if she didn't."

Yes, that was the truth. That was something that his desire to protect Anabel truly couldn't suppress. Even if he had tried to do so, mixing in lies and creating a malformed half-truth while holding his bouquet and staring out over Patricia's watery grave would be like spitting on her memory. A grave act of trampling on her even if it weren't malicious.

And perhaps Anabel sensed that as she smiled upon the InterPol Officer.

"I see." Perhaps it was the way that Anabel had smiled as she sifted with her hair, blown to the side by the sea's breeze, and turned her head out to the moon glittering on the surface of the water. It was somber, yet comforted.

No matter what attempt he had made to shield that young girl, he could say that girl was no longer going to budge from where she stood.

That girl had no home.

She had no memories or self to return to.

Yet, she had latched upon the first home she had come upon.

As he walked to the water and placed the bouquet upon the receding waves, Looker was sure of one thing.

He had truly been defeated.

Part 4

"So, that's your decision?"

The feminine voice once again reverberated as Anabel stood before that office desk and 'Sound Only' display.

"Yes. I'd like to join."

Unlike last time, Anabel spoke up on her own volition. It was neither coersion nor pressure that had driven her to walk into that office and talk to the superintendent.

She held Espeon's Pokeball in her hand, letting it rest softly in her palm and fingers as she gazed upon it with a smile.

"If I may ask, what compelled you to take up my offer?"

Despite the communication being through only her voice, Anabel couldn't help but notice a twinge of displeasure as she asked. Things had gone as she had wished after all. Even though every single out lay bare before her, she chose to walk into this.

But, Anabel merely tucked that into the back of her mind. This faceless woman was now her superior, so it would be remiss of her to try and start anything,

"Everyone was trying to get me to leave. But, it wasn't malice or revulsion that was directing them."

No matter what, she had seen it in both Nanu and Looker as they tried their best to dissuade her from staying. No matter what they said or how prickly they tried to come across, they were truly kind.

"It was out of kindness. No matter what, that was something I could actually trust."

Despite how much the option of going on her own was treated as the better option, one where she would be able to direct her own happiness, she could not help but realize that as the turbulent uncertainty it truly was. If she had left, she had nothing but the Pokemon she had been found with, and while they were truly inseparable companions, she could not help but wonder what or where she would go from there.

She would have no direction. No people.

She may not have been alone, but in the grand scheme of things she may have as well functionally been such.

And yet, here there was something she could use as a guidepost. There were people who were truly kind enough to look out for her well-being. Interpol may have been a wide-reaching organization with many people and many facets left hidden in the darker recesses of its depths, but there were still people there who were kind enough. There was still a future before her eyes she could grab.

"I figured that as long as there are people like them around, I would find someway to manage."

She had scratched at her cheek and chuckled like a child.

That was all she needed for now. In a world she didn't know was alien to her, that was truly all she needed.

Part 5

"Ahahahahahahaha!" The laughter within that pergola belied the calm nature of the world around it. It had threatened to break through that transient illusion of peace as the Beautifly flew away from her. It was frenetic and childish. It was manipulative and selfish.

"That was perfect!"

"I beg your pardon, ma'am?" The man in the mask poured a new cup of tea for the Superintendent as she had made her declaration. He could see enough of a smile on her face to know that she had gotten exactly as she had wanted, but something felt off to him.

"You needn't understand it. Just know that the substitute for Phase 3 has shown herself to be a worthy candidate." Her small hand hovered before her mouth. "Moreover, that wild card actually worked in my favor for once. I had worked around the fact that he would attempt to subvert me, but to think his actions ended up working in my favor for once. I'm not sure whether to thank him for his nature or Anabel for her ability to see through him."

Yes, everything had gone according to her plans and beyond.

"But, was there something to your dissatisfaction, then?"

Though Anabel had caught onto it, she had not said a word. But this man had openly decided to question it.

With that, the girl's hand dropped down to her lap. The smile she had once brandished faded away.

"You've become quite complacent if you're willing to question that."

He was almost certain that he had seen a frown on her face, though from her gaze towards the world around him, it was not a twinge of displeasure directed towards him. He could honestly not understand what ran through her mind or what pillars she stood upon, but he could safely deduce that even with the scathing comments, she was not mad at him.

"But, let's put that all aside for now."

Just as quickly as she felt her mood sour, she had discarded all that displeasure. After all, her gaze was set elsewhere.

"We're getting closer. It's only a matter of time before we can make our first move."

A/N: Surprise! Bet you didn't see this ever coming back to life, did you? Real life is hard. But the tale of these four is something I must spin. One way or another.