If you asked Moon what happened that day, she honestly could not recall.
According to her family she collapsed at the entrance of the chapel looking like a princess, her white dress splayed around her perfectly. Her eyes were wide, her face grew red, and a few laughs left the guests' until they noticed the tears streaming down her face.
Confused expressions took its place on several faces. The laughs turned into murmurs. And everyone started putting two and two together: if Moon was here, then where was Gladion?
The attention was growing way too fast. The bridesmaids and groomsmen hovered over the entrance, blocking people's view of Moon as they urged her to get up.
But the request fell on deaf ears.
They needed to buy time to distract everyone from Moon.
The bridesmaids looked over at Sun, all their eyes screamed "do something!" so Sun bit the bullet. He walked to the front of the church, called off the ceremony, and with everything already paid, he said the guests could feel free to attend the reception later in the evening.
He didn't know if anyone actually went; he honestly didn't care.
Luckily as he made the announcement Hau and Lillie were able to slip Moon away. She was short of breath and her quiet tears turned into sputtered sobs as they left the chapel and walked through the foyer towards one of the cars.
All the way back to the hotel she kept asking for Gladion and if he was okay, until her final question became "what did I do wrong?"
She fell asleep with her dress crinkled in all the wrong places.
Hau and Lillie exchanged looks; silently agreeing to stay with her until her mom or Sun arrived, but even then they knew they weren't going to be leaving her side for a while.
Sun spent a lot of time that day convincing the Alola press to not run a story. To respect his sister's privacy, to let their Champion be upset in peace.
Alola agreed, every other region in attendance didn't.
Unable to refuse the big scoop of a Champion being left at the altar they flooded to the hotel in an attempt to see Moon, her family, and Gladion's for that matter.
Somehow, even though everyone denied their persistent requests for an interview, pictures got leaked and information got shared through social media.
But Sun had to hand it to the news outlets for their consistency, 'cause whether it was about her dress or the catastrophic event itself every single article ended with:
Where did Gladion go?
It was a question on everyone's mind, but it was four days later when Hau discovered the answer.
He was with Moon's mom on a trip to her house on Akala, a barely lived in space since Moon spent so much time at Mount Lanakila or Aether. However, it was up to them to make it a welcoming space when Moon came home that evening. And In the event Moon would actually eat they planned on making some of her favorites, but that's when Hau noticed a small white envelope on the dining room table.
"Auntie" Hau calls out as he lifts the envelope, when he turns it he sees Moon's name splashed across the front, "who has access to Moon's house?"
Her mom hums for a bit before finally responding, "with a key? Pretty sure it was just…" her voice halts, unable to speak the name that has crushed her daughter.
That was enough for Hau to know who this was from. He tears it open, not caring about the legality of opening someone else's mail. Moon would forgive him for that.
But what he wouldn't forgive was the contents of the letter. A key and a single four word sentence that left more questions than anything:
"I'm not strong enough."
It was two evenings later when Hau told Lillie and Sun, his hand holding on the contents of the envelope.
Lillie was the first to reach for it as her eyes scan it at a rapid pace. She turns it over, and over again, only to find nothing, "where's the rest of it?"
Hau sadly shakes his head.
"You've got to be kidding me…" she says in complete disbelief as she hands it over to Sun.
It took less than a second for his fist to meet with the nearby wall, "that motherf-"
"Are you going to tell Moon?" Lillie asks, interrupting Sun's tirade. Hau looks at her with wide eyes, but as he opened his mouth to ask what she meant Sun speaks up again.
"What the hell are you suggesting, Lillie?" Sun yells as he pulls his hand away, the throbbing sensation growing. "My sister does not need another layer of heartbreak!"
"Keeping secrets from her won't make anything better, Sun!" Lillie retorts, significantly raising her voice.
"I'm not sure right now is the best time…" Hau begins when the three of them hear a cough from behind them.
It was Moon, looking at them with a muted expression. Her mouth was in a straight line, her eyes were cloudy, the dark circles were evident, and her silence said it all.
She heard them.
Moon extends her hand out, still not uttering a word, but they knew what she wanted.
"Moon are you sure…" Sun begins, but his sister doesn't budge. He looks at Hau and Lillie with a sad look as he apprehensively places it in her hand.
She looks down at it, her eyes reading the contents in a fraction of a second, before folding it up neatly and heading back inside.
Not a single tear or a sob escapes her, and they weren't so sure that was a better reaction.
The next day Moon was out of bed early.
She was wearing a simple outfit sans ring on her finger, her hair was neatly pulled back for once, and her pokeballs lied sturdily on her hip. Sun and their mom stared at her in disbelief from the living room as she slung her bag over her shoulder.
"You don't have to go back to the League right now you know..." their mom says worriedly as she heads towards the door, but Moon doesn't stop until her hand was on the doorknob. She hesitates for a quick second, before her head turns slightly.
It was just enough for Sun to see that for the first time that week her eyes weren't clouded by sadness.
Instead he found pure unadulterated rage.
"If he can up and leave because he's not strong enough, then I'm going to make sure he can never come back," her voice waivers as she swings the door open.
He doesn't think Moon meant to slam it behind her when he hears her back hit the frame with a quiet 'thud'.
Eventually, the years rolled by and everything went back to normal.
Hau became Melemele's Kahuna when Hala decided he was getting too old.
Sun became a businessman to no one's surprise.
Moon was smiling once again taking her spot as Alola's Darling and Champion.
And Lillie?
Lillie, a head researcher at Aether, had refused the offer to become President for five years running.
It was a role she never wanted and it was still a sore subject for her.
For starters, she was angry with her brother for leaving her best friend, but what also pissed her off was that he left Aether without an explanation.
But Lillie was Lillie, undyingly hopeful. She hoped for years everything was a fluke; a rash decision on the behalf of an idiotic 25 year old, but when no one heard anything from him for years Lillie couldn't help but to be worried.
It was one fateful afternoon, however, in the Aether halls that made Lillie lose her composure.
Two Aether interns huddled over their Pokedexes when Lillie walked by them. A sentence comprised of "Gladion" and "back" made it to her ears.
Lillie uncharacteristically snatches the Pokedex out of their hands to confirm their musings.
Moon sits sideways on her Championship chair. Her head resting on one armrest as her legs draped across the other, a habit many told her to quit.
"You have an image, Moon!" she remembers fondly hearing, only to sass back the speaker saying that people needed to accept her as who she was. She places her fingers on the Pokeballs simultaneously releasing her team.
Decidueye, her starter, prepares himself for battle, only to peer around and see no trainer in sight.
A small coo leaves Decidueye as he tilts his head in confusion, and soon her other Pokemon follow suit, but Moon turns her own head to meet her Pokemon's gaze.
"No, no battle today" Moon says with a light laugh as her head tilts back up to stare at the glass ceiling, "I just wanted to thank you all for 17 years here and how I..."
" R" blasted on the PA system at that very moment interrupting Moon's heartfelt moment.
"Actually…" Moon begins as she swings her legs around to the ground, "winning a battle might be a better thanks, don't you think?" Her encouraging smile fills her Pokemon with glee as they prepare themselves for the trainer.
They all stare at the entrance when they see long blonde hair bolting their way up.
It was Lillie, heaving and panting as her hands fell to her knees.
She was trying to catch her breath as Moon screamed in delight.
"LILLIE, YOU BATTLED YOUR WAY UP HERE?!"
The black haired girl ran to her best friend so fast her hug caught Lillie off guard.
This was no time to celebrate.
"Moon. Moon. Let go!" Lillie pries the shorter girl's arms off, the furrow in her brow doing nothing to drop Moon's smile. Lillie was always a worrier anyways.
"I need you to leave Ula'ula right now" Lillie says frantically as she peers behind her. Moon only gives her a bigger smile.
"Lillie, I love you and all, but I can't just hand over my Championship! Besides we should celebrate that you're here!"
Moon's playfulness does nothing to calm Lillie down. Soon a small beep is heard on the PA again.
"Um…"
"Champion, we couldn't stop-"
"Can you-"
"MOON, GET THE HELL OFF OF MOUNT LANAKILA."
The last one was undoubtedly Kahili, and Moon's smile soon drops. The urgent nature in everyone's voice made her stomach flip in an unpleasant way, but by then it was too late.
" R" the speakers blasted again, and the doors at the bottom flew open except this time instead of just one person there were 5 at the bottom of the stairs.
4 seething Elite Four Members, and a blonde Moon never wanted to see again.