Disclaimer! I do not own Pokemon, Nintendo, Gamefreak, or any other major corporation in charge of Pokemon. I do owe you guys lots and lots of gratitude for reading my story and for all the lovely reviews you are giving me!

Ps. Sorry for being a day late, I have been very VERY busy. BUT I STILL LOVE YOU ALL!

Read the author's notes!

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August 4th 20xx

Things haven't been the same since we fought that rookie trainer three days ago. I recall that we continued marching on as if nothing had happened, I remember feeling…happy and oblivious to the weirdness of that afternoon out on route 102. Elizabeth had been even more attentive than usual, always asking how I'm feeling, what I'm thinking about or what I want to do. When I sarcastically commented on how hot it was yesterday, she tugged at my shirt until I walked off the road and sat down in the shade. It's like she's been trying extra hard to make me enjoy spending time with her like she's worried about me being even a little upset. I have started taking notes on her weird activities, or at least I thought I did. I found notes in my journal that I didn't remember writing. Nothing major, just small things like how Elizabeth reacted to noise at night or how she acted around other trainers. It sounds a little weird, I know but it's probably cuz I was out in the sun all day for the past week. I keep myself hydrated, but heatstroke around August is pretty common here in Hoenn. Even up North where I grew up, we had a few cases of people fainting in the middle of the street around August or late July. The only thing worse than the heat during the summer was the random storms that swept through Hoenn. One day you could be on your veranda enjoying a nice cold drink, the next moment your sunbed is swept up and blown across half the city.

Gaps in memory and Elizabeth's weird behavior aside our journey hasn't been all that bad. After Mitch… wandered off it took us a whole day to run into another trainer. Elizabeth was taking a nap on my stomach when another trainer hollered to us from the road. Elizabeth, Tide, and I were resting our eyes under one of the bigger trees just off the road, so it took us a minute to realize someone was calling to us. She was pretty nice, I think her name was Julie…or Jubilee, my memory is a little fuzzy. I was still groggy from the food coma, so that probably explains it. I remember that she was pretty excited to battle us, but after Elizabeth woke up, she became very passive and ended up forfeiting a few turns later, even though her Lilipup managed to wear down Tide pretty well.

I am concerned about Elizabeth. Of course, I love her, she's my little buddy just like Tide. I really like her. She's sweet and caring and very very pretty…She's great, but she's been acting weirder and weirder since we left Oldale. I didn't notice it until we fought Mitch, but there is something different about her. I guess I haven't seen any other Ralts, but I skimmed through the Pokedex's database a few times before we went to sleep. There are some… discrepancies between her and the Ralts entires. Maybe she's still troubled after almost being eaten by those Zigzagoon a week ago. I guess I would be pretty rattled too if I were her. Something is not right with my Elizabeth…I love her, but something is off.

"What you write?" – Elizabeth floated into frame, seating herself on my left shoulder as I scribbled away in my journal.

"Oh, hi Elizabeth!" – I quickly slammed my journal shut and looked at her. I tried to look innocent but there are things you can't hide from a telepath.

"You okay?" – She asked softly and patted my head with her tiny hand.

"Y-Yes of course, I'm just a little tired from all the walking. I mean, we've been walking since 9 am and it's almost four in the afternoon!" – I stood up slowly, making sure she wouldn't fall off.

Elizabeth floated off of my shoulder and hovered in front of me a little below eye level. From behind her green scruffy bangs, I could see her vermillion eyes gazing into mine as if my true feelings were written on my pupils. She tilted her head to the side curiously and hovered around me, checking to see if anything was off about me. She poked and prodded my arms and back all the while looking at me with a "does this hurt?" expression on her face. I couldn't help but snicker at the adorable display.

"I told you, Elizabeth I am fine. You don't have to worry so much." – I grabbed her out of the air before she could start poking lower on my body.

"But I care about…Eric. I care!" – She protested and began squirming around.

"Eric care about Elizabeth too." – I teased and brought her up to my face. – "Now let's get going, Petalburg is not that far now. I think we can make it there just before nightfall."

Once her expression softened and her presence in my mind did too, I let go of her so she could continue hovering around me while I packed up our things. I retrieved the journal I hastily dropped to the floor and tucked it back into my pack for safekeeping. After double-checking everything and making sure that the compact tent wasn't going to expand inside my pack again, I gave the orders to march.

The road to Petalburg was long and grueling. Everyone always talks about how being a Pokemon trainer is the best profession in the world, but no one talks about the downsides and the long hours. A good chunk of what it meant to be a trainer was just competitive camping and pretending homelessness. On foot, the distance between cities was a week at the least and two at the most. The searing summer heat, which I adored back in the city where air conditioning was essentially a basic human right, was a trainer's greatest enemy. At least the people who maintained the routes managed to set up drinking fountains every dozen miles or so. Natural sources of water were becoming less and less frequent the closer we were getting to Petalburg, which meant no more pitstops for splashing and splooging.

The calming orange hue of the setting sun had blanketed the outskirts of Petalburg by the time we got there. It was a good thing too. If I had to spend another night out in the wild I was gonna call it quits and just become a lawyer or some other useless member of society. Once we crossed the city borders the pep in my step returned and it felt like my pack became ten kilograms lighter. Peering out from behind a nearby alley was a face I never knew I could miss so much.

"Brendan! You got my text!" – I called out and hurried over to my good friend from Littleroot.

"Well duh! Didn't you see the checkmark next to it? I clearly saw it!" – He shrugged and held out his fist for a bump.

"Next time you leave me on read, I'm sending your country bumpkin ass to Kalos!" – I replied unamused but accepted the bump anyways.

"Whatever, you bourgie bastard." – He retorted. – "Hey what's that thing floating behind you?" – He asked and looked over my shoulder.

"Oh, this?" – I tried to turn around and grab Elizabeth but she floated away from my hand.

She quickly flew behind me and kept evading me all the while snickering with that silver-bell laughter of hers. Eventually, she settled down and sat back on my shoulder, but it took another minute for Brendan to stop laughing. I stared at both of them with my best "you're dead to me" face, but Elizabeth just snickered and gave a quick peck on my cheek. Flustered, all my angst at the situation quickly vanished and was replaced with embarrassment. Somehow I managed to gather enough brain power to come up with a retort that would make the situation a little less awkward.

"If you try that, I'll stick my foot up your ass!" – I pointed at Brandan who was already puckering up to mock me.

His lips were pulled thin and he looked at the little white Pokemon on my shoulder. He sized her up quite well, well enough for me to ask him to stop and just ask what he wanted to ask.

"How the hell did you manage to catch a Ralts? That's like the rarest Pokemon on Route 102!" – Brendan stared at me with a mix of jealousy and wonder.

"TeChniCalLY Surskit is the rarest Pokemon on route 102, and I didn't find her on the route, I found her in the woods by Oldale." – I explained.

"Her?" – Brendan raised a brow and got an even bigger eyeful of Elizabeth…'s curves.

Brendan suddenly took several steps backward and looked around confused. He snapped his neck around so fast I thought it was gonna fall off of his head.

"Did you hear that?!" – Brendan asked as his eyes locked onto Elizabeth again. – "Your Ralts just talked!"

"Please, everyone knows Pokemon can't talk." – I stated condescendingly. – "She uses telepathy!"

"That! Is! So! COOL!" – Brendan was seconds away from exploding with excitement. – "How did you teach it to do that?"

Brendan's focus quickly shifted to Elizabeth again.

"Huh? What's that? A name?" – Brendan replied to an unheard conversation. – "Oh I'm sorry…Elizabeth?"

I stared at Elizabeth with the same look of wonder Brendan had just displayed moments ago. She tilted her head back and puffed out her chest, taking in the praise of wonder that oozed out of Brendan and me.

"Knock it off you diva, you're gonna hurt yourself carrying that big of an Ego." – I poked her stomach, resetting her posture and mood. She stuck out her tiny tongue, displeased with the ego check.

"Come, we can catch up on our way to the Pokemon center, I wanna get there before it gets dark." – I walked past the still drooling Brendan.

Brendan made sure to walk next to me as close as he could, just so that he could always see Elizabeth from the corner of his eye. I regaled him with the tale of how I heroically saved Elizabeth all on my own, how I set up camp with one arm and how I bravely walked through the forest to seek medical attention for my slightly sore wound. Elizabeth chimed in to knock me down a peg every now and then by telling Brendan "what actually happened". Little narc. I showed Brendan the little imprints where the nasty bite mark had once been. Had it not been for the photos I took of my arm while the miracle bandage was on it, he wouldn't have believed me.

He also spared no detail of his escapades on Route 102. He allegedly fought dozens of trainers and came out on top unscathed. Of course, I didn't believe one bit of his story…and then he showed me all the pictures he took with the defeated trainers. They were not amused. He managed to get to Petalburg a full three days ahead of me, which not only ticked me off but also made me question if Brendan was secretly some sort of magical protagonist who could bend space and time to his wits. Apparently, he's been helping out his dad over at the Gym, tutoring the newbies of the town. Even teaching some kid how to catch Pokemon out in the wild. Turns out the reason he was so annoyed by the fact that I showed up with a Ralts, was because the kid he was tutoring managed to get one on his first encounter, not to mention that his Ralts had blue hair and an orange horn.

"I still can't believe you made all that money by beating those kids on Route 102. I could only find like…two people and they were both cheap!" – I grumbled as we rounded a corner.

"Is that why no one else was on that damned road all week?" – I was staring daggers at him, pissed about missing out on some serious cash.

"I don't know what to tell you, man you could make some cash if you-" – Brendan was about to bring up his stupid idea again, but I cut him off quickly.

"For the last time, I am not setting up a Ralts breeding program with Wally!" – I flicked his forehead, hoping he would finally drop it.

"Ralts!" – Elizabeth backed me up. – "Ralts…" – She snuggled into me.

"No." – I stared blankly at Brendan and his stupid expression. – "It's not like that, you jackass."

"Whoop! Saved by the center, oh what joy!" – Brendan chuckled as we finally stumbled across the Pokemon Center.

"So I guess this is where we part ways?" – I turned to Brandon, slightly upset about how little I got to talk to him after being apart for so long.

I would never say it to his face, but he's grown on me. We haven't known each other for that long but we became best friends. May too! When Brendan brought her up I could feel the familiar tug of loneliness in my heart. It's incredible how strong bonds can form so quickly. Perhaps that's why Elizabeth is so attached to me.

"Guess so. Those rooms they give out to trainers are pretty small and they ain't got no games in there, so it wouldn't be much fun if I tagged along." – Brendan said scratching his chin.

"You're probably right, but we should catch up in the morning! It's been a while since I last saw your dad, I wouldn't mind seeing him again." – I suggested.

"Sure, we can get breakfast together. Unless my old man got trainers to beat." – Brendan shrugged. – "Right! This reminds me, do NOT challenge him. My dad is crazy good, the trainers he beats are stupidly good too! You better head out to Rustboro tomorrow instead of sticking around."

"Thanks for the heads up!" – I waved at him and headed for the entrance of the center.

"Consider my offer while you're in there!" – Brendan hollered. As a joke…I hope.

I flipped him off and stepped through the gates.

"Good evening! Welcome to the Pokemon center, I'm Nurse Joy!" – A lovely-looking nurse greeted me from behind the front desk. The bags under her eyes betrayed her peppy attitude. A steaming cup of coffee sat on her desk, surrounded by torn-up empty packets of extra strong instant coffee.

I recognized the brand, my father often relied on it to finish his thesis papers. My mom would sometimes steal some of his stashes if she ever wanted to turbo-clean the house or finish a day's worth of chores in a single afternoon. Years of coffee consumption made my dad fairly immune to the shakes that came with using this specific brand of instant coffee, but whenever we came home when my mom used it, we would find her passed out on the couch vibrating like an electric toothbrush.

"Long shift?" – I asked cautiously as I approached the front desk.

"Ohoho dear, you don't know half of it…" – Joy's smile pulled even tighter on her face. – "How can I help you?"

"I'd like to get a room please, and to get Pokemon healed up!" – I placed my Pokedex on the desk and plopped TIde's ball next to it.

"Alright, dear…" – Nurse Joy hammered away at her keyboard with her eyes half shut. – "What about your other little Pokemon?" – She pointed at Elizabeth.

"Right! I almost forgot you have a ball too!" – I patted my pants, looking for her ball in the many pockets of my cargo pants. – "She's always out so I sometimes forget where I keep her Pokeball…Found it!"

The Pokeball had been out of use for a while, so it shrunk down to its compact form. I tapped the release button to re-expand it and placed it on the table. I scooped Elizabeth off of my shoulder and placed her next to it.

"I know you don't like it in there…but we've been out on the road for a week, so I want to make sure you're alright." – I explained as Nurse Joy looked through her many drawers.

"I am okay…I am good!" – Elizabeth raised her arms high, trying her best to convince me.

"I know you say that, but it's only for a short while…" – I explained and held my hand out for her.

I felt our psychic link flair up as Elizabeth locked eyes with me. Her presence was strong, raw, and demanding.

"Don't you…trust me?" – I squinted, finding the sudden invasion rather unpleasant.

The probing quickly stopped and her presence lessened in my mind. Her nostrils flared and her eyes widened. She grabbed my hand with both of her tiny, soft hands. From behind her bangs, I could see her light vermillion eyes looking longingly into mine.

"With…life…" – She said in an uncharacteristically serious tone. – "My Eric, I trust with life."

I felt unimaginable joy upon hearing those words. A torrent of warmth and energy surged through my body. From the tips of my toes to my ears. Had it not been for Nurse Joy awkwardly staring at us, I would've welled up with tears and cried right then and there. Instead, I cleared my throat and cupped Elizabeth's cheek in my palm with my right hand, and tapped the release button on her Pokeball.

In a quick flash of light, she was gone and so was the psychic link that had connected us for over a week. I never knew how accustomed I grew to her presence until it was severed. I stared blankly at the Pokeball in my hand, unsure what I was feeling at that moment. I felt empty, unguided, and different. I couldn't even hear Nurse Joy talking to me until she called my name a second time.

I reluctantly handed her Elizabeth's ball and watched as she put it in the restoration machine. Since neither of them sustained any major injuries I expected the machine to only take a few seconds to finish and play its signature melody. While the machine was scanning the Pokeballs, Nurse Joy handed me the key to my room for the evening.

"Room 308…" – I read out loud and put my key and Pokedex back into my pack.

On the screen behind Nurse Joy, I could see a digital rendering of a Mudkip in a Pokeball next to a question mark. I assumed it was unsure how a Mudkip could be so chonky or perhaps it was one of the old-fashioned machines that awaited species confirmation by the on-duty Nurse before activating the healing procedure.

"That's odd… "– Joy stared at the question mark on the screen. – "It's not recognizing your Ralts."

On closer look, the question mark was also rendered within a Pokeball, right above where Elizabeth's ball was placed. I recalled that my father once said that Hoenn would receive an updated Pokemon database and restoration machines from Galar and Sinnoh respectively, but it couldn't seem to recognize my Ralts.

Nurse joy opened the interface on the machine and began pressing buttons. A digital keyboard appeared on the screen, and after Nurse Joy swiped her ID against the machine, she typed in 'Ralts'. After a brief pause, the screen displayed a rendering of a Ralts inside a Pokeball, seconds later the familiar tune could be heard and the restoration machine turned off automatically.

"Here you go, Eric." – Joy handed me my balls with a tired smile.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy!" – I replied and clasped my Pokeballs on my belt. – "Do try to get some sleep, I heard Norman might be sending some trainers your way tomorrow."

Nurse Joy's fake smile widened as far as it could.

"I know dear…" – She hissed through gritted teeth.

I headed up to my room, thankfully the staircase was just around the corner so I didn't have to bother Nurse Joy by asking for directions. I was unaware of just how tired I was until I had to climb three flights of stairs with my heavy backpack. Once I reached my room, I practically oozed through my door. Quickly slinging my pack off of my shoulder I landed on the small, one-person bed with a satisfying thud. I didn't care that my bed back at home was king-sized or that my mattress at home was twice as good. At that moment, after a week of sleeping on the ground, that bad might as well have been the most comfortable thing invented by mankind. I laid on my back with my hands strewn out on both sides, aiming to take in as much of the comfort as I could, knowing I would be back on the road by tomorrow.

Though it took longer than I would like to admit, I got up from the warm, fluffy, pastel-blue bed and began to undress. I threw my jacket over the same chair that my pack had been resting on. My shoes flew across the room and landed a few feet away from each other by the door. My sweat-soaked shirt and pants landed on the floor, crumpled up into one big ball. I took a mental note that I would have to get all of my clothes washed before I continue my journey, but only in the morning. I didn't have the heart to bother Nurse Joy again. I stared at the Pokeballs attached to my belt curled around my shirt on the floor. With an exasperated sigh, I unclasped them both and put them on my bed.

"I'll let you guys out after I shower." – I rubbed my eyes and dug through my backpack to get out my PJs.

I nearly cried again as the warm, wet embrace of the shower hit my skin. I used up practically all of the available soap and shampoo that came with my room. Who would've guessed that a warm shower and a soft bed would be the things I'd miss most during my travels? Eventually, I managed to climb out of the shower, fresh and more tired than ever. Had my breath not fogged up the mirror in a green mist, I would've forgotten to brush my teeth.

"Finally!" – I yawned and sat down on the bed.

I groggily held up Elizabeth's Pokeball, knowing full well that Tide couldn't care less where he slept as long as no one bothered him. Elizabeth's loving and determined expression flashed in my mind, and against the tiredness that had loomed over me, my lips curled into a soft smile. I placed TIde's ball on the nightstand and pulled back the covers, expecting that Elizabeth would demand some pampering after being separated for so long.

Laying on my side, I fidgeted with her Pokeball, looking for the release button in the near-pitch-black of the room. Tap.

A dim red glow lit up the room as Elizabeth's small frame manifested on the mattress next to me. The sudden light blinded me for a moment, as my eyes had slowly adjusted to the darkness of the room by now. I knew Elizabeth would be a little huffy so I put on my warmest smile to greet her.

"Sorry, I took so long, Elizabeth…" – I looked in the direction where I saw her pop out.

Barely illuminated by the residual red glow, Elizabeth stood in front of me. A look of shock plastered on her once pale-white face. Her black eyes widened in terror as the violet pink of her irises flared with light and power. She raised her arms to shield herself from my gaze, her soft hands were marked with an inky blackness.

The sudden invasion of my mind felt as if my head was about to explode as Elizabeth clawed her way in to establish our psychic link. The last thing I recall before it all faded to black was the look of sorrow on her face and the tears running down her cheek.

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Author's notes:
O_O

Oh, my GOOOD! What was that? What a cliffhanger, am I right? Boy that was a lot of fun to write! I managed to organize myself well enough to make time for this chapter without pushing away my other responsibilities! Also, you may have noticed that the dialogue method has changed. Yes, I decided to change it to this format, as it is the same format I use for the Novel that I am writing. (In stores near you coming 2025). This chapter felt more natural to write this way, and it also felt nice to go back to the classic sweet side of E and E, while still maintaining that air of mystery and spookiness that the reboot possesses. Going forward you can expect a more balanced mix of these two sides of E and E. I want to maintain the sweet and loving nature the original chapters held, but with the thrilling spookiness of the reboot. Wait, did I just repeat myself? I think I did. Yeah, I'm rambling on again, huh? Eh, it happens from time to time. Onto the updates!

EDIT: After some feedback, I decided to drop the new text format and readded the quotation marks.

ALSO I'm opening up some polls on reddit to see how you guys are feeling about the reboot, and my current story telling method-

Updates:

This month, in the spirit of Christmas you can expect a new chapter of Eric and Elizabeth Noncanon shorts (Christmas-themed, of course) and a new Christmas-themed drawing or animated GIF, that will be posted on the OFFICIAL E and E Reddit (link below).

E and E things that were made between chapters: Two new GIFS featuring Elizabeth, an Eric and Elizabeth meme template featuring Elizabeth as a Kirlia. That's about it, didn't have a lot of time to do things in November.

Story prior to reboot: Eric and Elizabeth the Gardevoir: Forged Memories - www,fanfiction,net/s/14067718/1/Eric-and-Elizabeth-the-Gardevoir-Forged-Memories

Non-canon monthly shorts: Eric and Elizabeth's non-canon adventures - www,fanfiction,net/s/14116302/1/

(replace the "," with "." before lookin' them up)

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