This chapter serves as Moon's backstory chapter! Originally I waited until the SM arc showed Moon's story, but seeing as how that story is dumb as hell, I'm ignoring that completely and replacing it with the headcanon backstory!
Eternal Debt:
Sandgem Town, Sinnoh, 8 pm…
Moon closed her tired eyes and leaned back against her chair. She was finally done for the day. Ordinarily, her work shift would end at 5. But since Platinum was very sick today and thus was unable to come to work, Moon had to cover for her, which was very difficult. Moon couldn't read nearly as fast as the heiress which was a tremendous issue. And so despite taking no breaks whatsoever and working as fast as she could and working 4 overtime hours, she was able to finish about a quarter of Platinum's workload. She would have to spread those out in the next few days. It would delay the current project substantially, but Prof. Rowan would understand.
Moon finished up and left the lab. She wanted to go home, to her small apartment in the center of the town, and pass out, but she couldn't rest while knowing that Platinum was suffering quite badly under the effects of the flu that's been going around recently. So she was heading towards the Berlitz Mansion to help treat Platinum.
She knew that the best cure for the flu was to get plenty of food, water, warmth, and rest. But she also knew that whoever had the flu would have no appetite and would have throat pains, making it very difficult to eat or drink. And without sufficient food, the body wouldn't produce enough body heat, thus making it too cold to sleep. Then the body would not recover quickly from the flu, and thus the cycle would continue for a long time.
Moon couldn't force Platinum to eat if the heiress refused. But she knew how to make medicine that would increase appetite and convince her senior to take it. And with it, maybe she could break the flu's cycle and help with the recovery. Of course, it was too late in the evening for that today. So Moon would have the medicine ready for her to take in the morning.
A couple of minutes later, she reached the tall fence that surrounded the Berlitz Mansion property. Moon was currently at the corner of the property, and could see the main gate and the guardhouse in the distance. She paused in her steps, suddenly remembering the very first time she had approached this place, all those years ago…
…
7 years ago, Route 202…
…
Moon slowly walked south from Jubilife City, staying in the forest that surrounded the route. She was so hungry… She would have to look for a berry tree or something somewhere along the route. If there was nothing to eat along here, then she'd have to resort to whatever she could find in the streets of Jubilife again, or use more of what little energy she had left to search the surrounding routes.
Moon paused in her steps when she heard voices coming from outside the forest. She hid behind a big tree near the edge of the forest and focused on the voices. … From what she could hear, there were two boys and a girl, talking and laughing. And the voices weren't moving away or closer, meaning that this group was staying in one place and not on the move.
Moon quietly approached the edge of the forest and peeked around until she could see what was happening. The owners of the voices were sitting on a large picnic mat near a large tree for shade, enjoying the nice weather. There was a black haired boy with a red scarf, a blond boy with a green scarf, and a girl with long dark hair with a red scarf and… Moon looked at the picnic mat and gulped as she saw all sorts of tasty looking food… and there was so much food! There were cakes, pies, and cookies for dessert, and a whole lineup of various dishes for the main meal. Even at a glance, it seemed like there was far too much food for just three people. Were they expecting more people? But the three here have already started eating…
Moon quietly snuck up behind the large tree behind the group and peeked around. The dark haired girl was seated right in front of the tree. In front of her and to the left was a blond haired boy, and to the right was a black haired boy who was holding a burger in each hand, munching away with a super relaxed expression. Next to the dark haired girl, close to the edge of the picnic mat, was a small dish with a delicious looking slice of cake. The cake slice had a whole, tasty looking strawberry on it, and it looked so tempting…
Moon gulped again and slowly crawled towards the picnic mat, being careful to hide herself behind the dark haired girl from the two boys who were looking in her direction. After counting to three, she carefully reached over and snatched the dish. She scurried behind the tree and hastily bit into the slice of cake. … It was so tasty… Moon sat in awe for a second before she wolfed down the rest of the cake. In her hastiness, she ended up smearing a lot of the icing on her face, but she didn't care.
"Huh? Lady, where did your cake slice go?" came a voice from the picnic.
"Oh? How strange. I had placed the plate right here…" came the girl's voice.
"Looks like something snatched it while we weren't looking," came a third voice.
"Uh oh…" Moon mumbled as she froze.
There was a sound of a Pokéball opening, and a heartbeat later, an Infernape suddenly charged around the tree, ready to tackle whatever it was right behind the tree. Moon shrieked as she stumbled away from the charging Infernape, and out into full view. The Infernape jumped in surprise and skidded to a halt, as it wasn't expecting a little girl.
"Huh… this is unexpected," the blond boy said as he stood next to his Infernape.
"Ah! She's the one who stole the cake slice," the black haired boy said, pointing to the smeared icing on her face.
The dark haired girl stood in silence, watching the little girl with a frown. Moon lowered her head and began to tremble, terrified of what was going to happen.
"I'm sorry…" she mumbled as she covered her face with her hands.
"So… uh… what should we do, Miss Lady?" the blond boy asked.
"… She appears to be hungry," said the Lady sympathetically. She approached Moon and lowered herself to a crouch. "Do not be afraid," she said softly with a kind smile. She took out a handkerchief and gently wiped away the dirt and icing on the little girl's face.
Moon steadily lowered her hands. "You… you're not angry?"
The Lady shook her head. "No, of course not." She looked at the empty plate where her strawberry cake slice used to be, and smiled warmly. "If you liked the cake, would you like to join us in our picnic?" She glanced over at her two friends. "Diamond, Pearl, would that be okay?"
"Sure thing, Lady," the black haired boy said with a big smile. "There's plenty of food to go around, and more the merrier!"
The blond boy returned his Infernape. "Well, why not, right? Come on, let's eat!"
The Lady gave Moon a gentle pet on the head. "Come, join us."
Moon watched the three for a bit before she picked up the empty plate that she had taken and timidly followed the Lady to the picnic mat.
"Welcome! I'm Diamond, or Dia for short," the black haired boy said with a smile and a wave.
"And I'm Pearl," the blond boy said afterwards.
"Can you tell us your name?" the Lady asked.
"… I'm… Moon," she said quietly.
The Lady smiled brightly once more. "Moon? It is a lovely name. It is nice to meet you, Moon."
Moon looked up at her in awe. … No one had ever said that before…
…
Once the picnic ended an hour later, the two boys began to pack up to get ready to head back. The Lady was helping out here and there, even though the boys said that she didn't have to. Moon watched the three for a while before she picked up a plate that had gone unnoticed and approached the Lady.
"Oh? Thank you," she said, once Moon presented the plate to her. She smiled as she received the plate and wiped away the dirt before handing it to her friends. "Did you enjoy the food?" she asked, looking over at her once more.
Moon timidly nodded and managed to smile back. It was the first good meal she had in… well, forever. And she wasn't going to forget this, ever.
"I'm glad you enjoyed the picnic, Moon," Pearl said. "But hey, you've been with us for a while now. I'm sure your parents are getting worried about you. So maybe you should head on back home, huh?"
"Yes. We do not wish to cause them concern," the Lady said with a nod.
Moon grimaced a bit at the term "parents". She didn't have any of those and certainly didn't have anywhere to return to. Of course, no one else knew that… She didn't want to ruin this moment by bringing up unnecessary things and simply nodded. She waved at the three and stared at the Lady for a long while before turning away and starting to walk.
But she didn't go very far. Once she had put enough distance, and the Lady's group had looked away, she ran into the forest once more so that she couldn't be seen. Now that she was hidden in the forest, she went back towards the Lady so that she could follow her from a distance. By that time, Diamond and Pearl had finished packing up and now the three were slowly heading south, talking and laughing once more.
Moon wondered if they would talk badly about her, now that she wasn't with them. But from what she could hear, while they did mention her name a few times, they weren't saying anything bad. If anything, they were saying good things, which was certainly unusual. From experience, people tended to badmouth her once they thought she was gone…
The group eventually reached Sandgem Town, which made it a bit difficult for Moon to stay hidden, as the forest came to an end. She had to hide behind corners of nearby buildings to avoid being spotted now, but since she was sufficiently far away from the group, she hadn't been seen yet.
Moon hid behind the corner of a tall fence that surrounded a gigantic mansion. The group had stopped a bit ahead. Did they realize that they were being followed? Moon peeked around the fence and saw that Diamond and Pearl were standing a few feet away from the Lady, and were waving at her. The Lady waved at them as well, and the two boys soon began to walk away. The Lady watched them leave before she walked through the front gate and headed towards the gigantic mansion.
Moon peeked between the bars in the fence. The Lady walked up straight towards the front door, and the people around her bowed to her. … That certainly explained why the two boys had called her that. … And it was even stranger now that the Lady had been so nice to someone like her…
…
Moon snapped out of her thoughts. She reached over and touched the part of the fence where she had hidden behind all those years ago, and peeked around it once more. The guardhouse didn't seem as far away as it did back then. Probably because she was a lot taller now? She looked in between the bars of the fence at the gigantic mansion. It didn't appear to be as far away as it did back then, either. Of course, having been there many times now, she knew that looks could be deceiving. That entry path was surprisingly long and annoying, probably because it was uphill to the mansion, and the colossal scale of said mansion seemingly dwarfed everything else, including the true length of the path.
Moon went up towards the guardhouse by the front gate. The guard saw her and with a friendly nod, let her through. Within a few minutes, she was able to reach the front door of the mansion, and waited as a maid opened the door for her. And a few minutes after that, Moon was finally able to reach Platinum's bedroom, where the heiress was resting.
There were a lot less staff around the room than usual, Moon noted. And what few staff did remain nearby, they were wearing gloves, and some even had disinfectant wipes. Given how many people worked and lived in this mansion, a spreading flu was certainly a concern. Moon would probably have to make a whole ton of precautionary medicine for the staff pretty soon.
She knocked on the door and waited a few seconds before quietly opening it. And immediately, she noticed that it was quite hot inside, as if the heater was on at full blast. And on the large, comfortable bed, Platinum lay on her side, with her blanket pulled up tight. She looked over and upon noticing that Moon had arrived, she slowly tried to sit upright.
"Lady? How are you feeling?" Moon asked worriedly as she approached the bed.
"I am okay…" Platinum said weakly as she tried to force herself up. She winced as the movement caused a jolt of severe headache and she put a hand on her forehead.
"Please stay down," Moon said. She knelt beside the bed and felt her senior's hand and arm. … Her skin felt quite cold. "Have you gotten much sleep?"
Platinum shook her head. "No… it is too cold…" she said as she pulled the blanket closer towards her.
"Have you been eating anything?"
"I have forced-" She was interrupted by a sudden wave of coughs, and she groaned as the pain in her throat became much more severe. "Ugh… I have forced myself to eat a spoonful of porridge. But I have no appetite and it hurts to swallow." She put a hand on her junior's head. "Moon… you should return home and rest. I do not want to infect you as well…"
Moon shook her head. "I'll be okay, Lady. I'll go home once you fall asleep. I won't be going to sleep fully knowing that you're like this." She held her senior's cold hand. "Lady, you need to eat to get body heat, but you haven't been eating much, which is why you're so cold. But I do know how you can warm up again without forcing yourself to eat. It would be very hard on you for a while, but it'll definitely be good for you. … Do you trust me?"
"Yes, of course. … What do you need me to do?"
"Please follow me. We are going to the bath facility in the mansion."
"A bath?"
"Yes. When you're feeling cold and no amount of blankets or clothes help, the never-fail solution is to take a hot bath."
Platinum frowned at the thought of having to get off the bed and actually make her way to the private bath facility. She couldn't even sit up without the headache threatening to break her… "Okay… I trust you…" She tried to sit up again and clenched her teeth against the headache.
Moon quickly caught her and helped her off the bed, supporting her from the side. She noticed immediately that she was going to have to support pretty much all of Platinum's weight, as the heiress currently didn't have enough strength to stand on her own. Platinum kept her spare hand pressed against her head. Moon would have to hurry.
She headed out of the room and caught the attention of a maid nearby. "Keep the room and bed nice and warm, please," she said as she walked past her.
Platinum began to shiver now that she was no longer in her superheated room. Moon cast a worried glance at her as she felt her senior trembling in the cold. Platinum… trembling in the cold? That was definitely serious. Moon never thought that she'd see her beloved senior like this, especially since the heiress loved to use Ice type moves…
…
The little Moon crawled out of the bush near the edge of Sandgem Town, where she had slept for the night. It was pretty early in the morning, so the air was a bit chilly, but since it was summer time, it wasn't that bad.
She headed back towards the massive mansion she had seen yesterday. She had no idea what the Lady's schedule was, but hopefully Moon would be able to see her leaving the mansion for… whatever reason. The mansion was easy to spot, given its size. Moon reached the tall fences that surrounded the property. She peeked through the bars, and saw some gardeners but little else.
For a while, she sat on the grass and watched the gardeners, wondering when the Lady was going to show up, if at all. Eventually, the little Moon decided to walk around a bit, since she was getting quite bored now. She didn't want to venture too far in case the Lady showed up, so she decided to follow the tall fences. The fences seemed to continue on forever. Just how big was this place? She kept walking though. She could still see the front door of the mansion from here, so she'd keep going until that changed, at which point, she'd go back.
A sweet, pleasant aroma soon caught her attention, the type from a bunch of flowers. Moon followed the scent along the fences and she was soon able to see a huge flower garden on the other side of the fence. And to her pleasant surprise, Moon could see the Lady in the middle of the garden quite far away from her, strolling around the flowers.
Moon hurried along the fences until she was close enough to see the Lady's expressions. She didn't want to draw any attention to herself, however. For now, she was content in just watching her from a distance. The Lady seemed to be enjoying the stroll in the flower garden, and occasionally crouched to take in a flower's scent from up close.
The Lady took a deep breath and began to walk away from Moon's direction, heading deeper into the gardens. Moon kept her eyes on her at all times as she scrambled to follow along the fences. She was now at the part of the fence that faced away from the rest of Sandgem Town, and instead, faced the forests that surrounded Route 202. As a result, there were a lot of bushes around. The trees have been cut and trimmed down to maintain a set distance away from the fences, but the grass and bushes have been mostly left alone.
Moon's foot suddenly hit something as she stepped forward, causing her to trip with a yelp. She crashed onto the ground and looked behind her to see what she tripped over, and saw a wild Luxio rising up from the tall grass, where it had been napping until the little girl had stepped on its tail and tripped over its hind legs.
The Luxio growled in anger and let out a loud howl. As if answering its call, wild Shinx began to appear from the forest. And with a responsive howl, the leading Shinx leapt forward towards Moon, with its fangs bared.
Moon shrieked as she scrambled backwards. She kicked at the Shinx, which in turn bit into her shoe. She tried to free herself and managed to slip her foot out of her damaged shoe. She pushed herself backwards and away from the wild Pokémon, but her back soon hit something hard. She looked up in terror and realized that she was pushed up against the tall fence. The wild Luxio saw that its prey was now trapped and pounced on her.
Moon screamed and clenched her eyes shut, curling up into a ball. But there was a sudden gust of cold wind, and the Luxio never reached her. She trembled in terror for a while before she realized that nothing was happening, and slowly opened her eyes. She felt really cold for some reason, and when she fully opened her eyes, she realized why. The Luxio that had pounced on her was frozen solid, covered in frost, mid-pounce. She looked around, trying to understand what just happened.
"Are you okay?" came a soft voice from the side.
Moon looked over and saw the Lady running over, her Empoleon following closely. There was a man wearing a suit following them at a distance as well. The Lady seemed to have recognized her immediately, as she paused in her steps very briefly. But she didn't bring it up yet as she focused on the wild Shinx that was surrounding their frozen leader.
One of the wild Shinx leapt towards her. The Lady pulled back enough and her Empoleon stepped forth to smack the Shinx away. The Lady took the time and space provided by her Pokémon to reach over and pull Moon away from danger. Moon watched in awe as the Empoleon shot forth another Blizzard, freezing all of the wild Shinx where they stood.
She looked up at the Lady. Her long dark hair and red scarf gently swayed in the breeze created by the Blizzard, and she looked so perfectly calm and collected, as she scrutinized the situation with unblinking eyes. The Lady finally looked down at her, now that the hostile wild Pokémon were not going to be a threat any longer.
"You are safe now, Moon," she said with a kind smile.
She gently petted her on the head as she held her in a warm embrace. Moon looked up at her in awe for a while before she buried her face into the Lady's shirt and began to cry, wrapping her arms around her waist, holding onto her as tight as she could, as if she was terrified of letting go.
…
Moon and Platinum reached the private bath facilities deep in the mansion. Moon took Platinum to the women's facility, and entered the changing room. Even though the bath facilities were private, each one was decently sized, allowing for up to 20 people to use it at once.
Moon set Platinum down on the changing room bench. "Lady, I'm going to turn on the hot water and set things up. Please get ready in the meantime."
"… Okay…" Platinum said weakly.
The bath facility had two main "tubs" for hot water, one for cold water, and a line of stalls for showers and massage. There was also a sauna to the side, but hot water was a lot better for the current purpose, so Moon left it alone. Since no one had used the facility recently, it was left in perfectly clean and drained condition after the routine maintenance. Moon went over to the nearest hot water tub to check inside briefly before fiddling with the controls to quickly fill it up with water.
By the time she returned to the changing room, Platinum had finished undressing, and was lying on the bench to try to ease her headache. She was shivering much more now that she didn't have her clothes on to provide her some warmth. She curled up into a ball as she trembled, trying and failing to keep some warmth. Moon quickly took out a large towel from the stack by the lockers and spread it over her senior, using it as a temporary blanket.
She could hear her senior's light and shallow breaths as she suffered from the effects of the flu and now the cold, lying on a cold uncomfortable wooden bench. … She had to hurry. The more she delayed, the more her beloved senior would suffer.
Moon crouched down to her knees and proceeded to gently but quickly tie Platinum's long dark hair into a bun. Once the long hair was tied up, she wrapped another towel around the bun and securely tied it into a knot. Satisfied that the hair would remain dry throughout the ordeal, Moon put a hand on her senior's shoulder.
"Lady, you're all set. Let's go to the bath," she said.
"… Okay…" Platinum said weakly, her voice barely a whisper.
Moon gently supported her from the side and helped her up to her feet. She noticed with a grimace at just how cold her senior's bare skin was, and could feel the goose bumps everywhere. … The faster she warmed up, the better.
Platinum groaned as she put a hand on her forehead, her headache suddenly intensifying as a result of standing upwards abruptly. Moon quickened her pace and went up the stone steps of the bath tub and Platinum was finally able to step into the hot water.
Platinum gasped a bit and quickly lowered herself onto the inner seat of the tub, the hot water rising up to her collarbones. She squirmed a bit as her cold bare skin tingled in contact with the hot water, and let out a long satisfied sigh as it felt so damn good. She leaned back against the wall of the tub and rested her head on the stone, her tied up hair and towel wrapped around her head serving as a makeshift pillow.
"How's the water, lady?" Moon asked.
"… It is… perfect…" Platinum said, sounding very relaxed. She lowered herself some more so that the hot water went up to her chin.
Moon went over towards the controls once more. She tinkered with it for a bit and activated the bubble massage. Platinum smiled happily as she felt the stream of water and bubbles massaging her lower back. She slowly stretched her legs as she relaxed more and more.
"How are you feeling?" Moon asked as she crouched next to her senior again.
"I still have a headache, but it is minor," Platinum answered. She looked over at her and smiled. "… Thank you, Moon. I am feeling so much better, all thanks to you."
Moon raised her hands. "Ah, no need to thank me, Lady. I'm only returning some of the favor you've done for me over the years. … After all, you've saved me. I owe you everything. I can never repay you for all you've done for me. So I'll always do everything I can to help you, Lady. No matter what."
Platinum slowly pulled a hand out of the water and gently petted her on the head. "… You do not have to do anything for me, Moon. You are always free to do what you wish. And I will thank you nonetheless for your care. So… thank you, Moon."
Moon smiled as she felt the warm hand on her head (and the water trickling down from her head down to her clothes). She reached up and gently held her senior's hand. "You're welcome… sister."
…
The Lady walked around the flower garden with Moon, letting the little girl calm down and relax. Moon stopped crying and was now busy looking around the gigantic flower field in the even bigger backyard.
"Moon, if you are feeling better, I will take you back home now," said the Lady. Moon shook her head, however. "… No?"
The little girl looked down at the ground. "… I… don't have a home…" she mumbled out eventually.
"Oh? Then…"
"I don't have parents or any family…"
The Lady frowned as she took in the information. She put a hand on the girl's shoulder sympathetically as she came to a realization. "So when we met yesterday, you followed me here."
Moon nodded. "You're the only one who's been so nice to me… I just… wanted to be around you…"
The Lady thought for a few seconds before speaking. "So you have nowhere to go, and no one to look after you… Have you been to an orphanage?"
"I hate it there," Moon said, shaking her head. "I don't want to go to places like that…"
"Hmm… I believe I can offer you an opportunity," said the Lady. "Follow me, please."
The Lady began to lead Moon somewhere specific, instead of slowly walking around the gardens. Moon sped up to keep up with her. And after a moment of thought, she slowly reached up to hold her hand. The Lady seemed surprised at the contact, but soon smiled warmly and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. The Lady held her hand and slowed her steps a bit so that Moon didn't have to rush to keep up.
The two eventually left the mansion premises and approached a particular building. It was pretty close to the mansion's fence, and relatively close to other notable structures like the Pokémon Center.
"Where are we?" Moon asked.
"This is the laboratory of Professor Rowan," the Lady explained. "I work here on most days, helping with research on various Pokémon. What do you know about Pokémon, Moon?"
"I know about those purple slimy Pokémon. Grimer, I think they're called? I lived alongside enough of them for long enough to know what they like and why."
The Lady nodded approvingly. "Good. That means you are quite attentive, and that you learn quickly. Moon, what I am going to offer you may be difficult for you right now, but will be good for you later on. I can offer you to work with me in this laboratory, albeit unofficially. You will start by simply assisting me, and if you are sufficiently helpful, I can convince Professor Rowan to let you live here. And in a few years, once you are old enough, I can convince the professor to let you work for him full time, and I can purchase a suitable home for you."
"If I agree, can I… stay with you?" Moon asked.
"Yes. It is impossible to get you to work for the professor right now since you are too young. Nor can I convince him to let you live here when he does not know you well enough. And I would not be able to convince him to let you work for him later when he does not know your capabilities. But this way…"
Moon slowly nodded. "… Where will I stay for now, though? It's going to take a while before the professor lets me live here, right?"
The Lady smiled. "You certainly are attentive. I had intended to ask Diamond if you can stay with him in the meantime. He is one of my closest friends. I am certain I can convince him to assist you."
Moon thought for a bit. But it wasn't much of a dilemma, really. She had nowhere to go, nowhere to live, and no one who looked after her. By accepting the Lady's offer, she would have a home (albeit temporarily for now), she would have a caretaker, she would have something to do with her life, and most importantly, stay close to the Lady who was offering to save her whole life.
"Okay. I'll do it!"
The Lady smiled brightly and gently petted her on the head. "Excellent! We will start tomorrow!" She looked down at the little girl's dirty clothes. "But for today… come. Let us get you all cleaned up and find you some new clothes. Then we will head to Twinleaf Town and discuss this with Diamond."
Moon nodded happily. "Okay… sister!"
The Lady seemed surprised upon hearing the word. "Sister?"
Moon put a hand over her mouth. "Oh… I'm sorry… Is that not allowed?"
The Lady giggled a little. "No, no. You may address me however you wish."
Moon smiled brightly and embraced her savior tight. "Thank you so much, sister!"
This chapter idea has been around since I had the flu back in January. I probably would've remembered a lot more about it if I wrote this back then, but… ehn.