A/N: Hello everyone. I'm back. I apologize for taking a short break, but I just became so busy with my summer that I had no time to sit and write. I kind of do now, but hopefully it'll stay like that before I head off to college in the next few weeks. Now time for some reviews.

HarmonyMew: Thank you! I hope you still look forward to more despite my short hiatus.

Guest: Lillie will show up eventually. Right now though, her location is a mystery. And that's actually what I have been doing. It helps me actually see what goes on in the games instead of reading about it.


Ch. 3: Choosing a Partner

When Moon and the others arrived back to Iki Town, they immediately went over to where they had last saw Professor Kukui. They found him standing by the wooden stage now accompanied by a tan older man. Despite looking stocky, the tan older man had a colorful appearance. The most interesting detail about the older man that Moon saw was that his white hair was pulled in the exact same style of ponytail like Hau's.

Upon seeing Hau, who was being supported by Sun, the older man immediately rushed over to Hau and helped Sun place him down on the ground. As the older man looked over Hau's injuries, Sun explained to bot

h him and Professor Kukui about what happened to them. Moon watched as the two older men listened intensively, both widening their eyes when Sun got to the part about Team Skull attacking them and again when Sun got to the part about Tapu Koko saving Moon. Just as Sun finished his explanation, the older man, who had just finished wrapping a bandage around Hau's abdomen, chuckled.

"Although it is said to protect us, the truth is that Tapu Koko is a rather fickle creature. Yet," the older man said looking up at Moon with a smile. "Our guardian was moved to save you."

The older man stood up and turned towards Kukui and laughed. "Kukui, my boy! It seems we have a cause to celebrate! It seems like I should entrust this brave and kind young girl with a Pokémon of her own along with these two young boys. I imagine that this young girl will make a fine trainer as well!"

Moon felt her heart quickened at those words. She did quite understand what the man meant by her being a fine trainer, but she knew it was important. It felt important to her.

As she thought over this, Moon did not see the older man stepping forward towards her. He stopped in front of her and extended his hand out towards her with a warm smile.

"I'm glad to meet you, child. I am Hala, the Kahuna of Melemele Island."

Moon stared timidity at Hala's hand not understanding what he was doing. Sun seemed to notice this and walked over to Moon and took her right hand into his.

"It's alright, Moon." He said as he brought her hand over to Hala's hand. "This is called a handshake. It's a type of greeting."

Moon nodded slowly to Sun's explanation as her hand made contact with Hala's hand. She felt Hala shake her hand for a few seconds until her hand was released from his soft grip. When it was, she looked up to see Hala staring at her closely as if he was observing her.

"Moon... is that your name, child?" He asked.

Moon hesitantly nodded not knowing what else to say. She was struck how Hala's behavior had suddenly changed from heartiness to seriousness. She did not know how to make out of it. And yet, despite that, his voice was warm and kind. He could be trusted.

"Tutu?" Hau questioned as he stood up, wincing in pain.

Hala looked back and gave a small smile at Hau before returning his gaze back at Moon. "Professor Kukui told me about you, Moon. While it is indeed interesting of why you appeared unconscious on a trail, I am glad that you are here awake and well. Now..."

Hala stopped speaking and reached into his coat drawing out three pokeballs.

"Come my Pokémon! Let's have a look at you!" He called out, tossing the three pokeballs into the air and releasing three Pokémon onto the stage.

Once the three Pokémon on the stage appeared, Moon noticed Sun stiffened by her right side. As she looked at him taking note of the wonder and excitement in his eyes directed at the Pokémon in front of them, she began to hear movement to her left. She turned to see Hau now standing by her with the same wonder and excitement in his eyes directed at the Pokémon. Sun and Hau were completely infatuated by the three Pokémon.

"First is the Grass-type Pokémon, Rowlet!" Hala explained, gesturing towards the first Pokémon, a small brown and white owl that had a round body and short legs. Upon hearing its name, the Pokémon hooted rather timidly and rotated in a full circle, stopping once it faced the children again.

"Next is the Fire-type Pokémon, Litten! Hala continued gesturing towards the next Pokémon, a red and black cat that was currently curled up on the stage with its eyes closed. Upon being addressed, it stood up and stretched its body, meowing quietly. Once it finished stretching, the Pokémon looked up at the children with a bored expression.

"And last is the Water-type Pokémon, Popplio!" Hala concluded gesturing to the last Pokémon, which was the blue seal-like Pokémon that had a round, pink nose. Once it heard its name, the Pokémon barked cheerfully and leaned forward, clapping its tail fins together making a playful sound.

"So, which Pokémon will each of you choose?" Hala asked the three turning towards them.

Both Hau and Sun turned towards each other and nodded. They both nudged Moon, who was staring at the Pokémon in awe, closer towards the Pokémon. When she felt her body move from the gentle push, Moon turned towards Sun and Hau with confusion only to see them smiling at her.

"Moon, we want you to be the first to pick." Sun explained.

"Yeah! You deserve it!" Hau added cheerfully.

Moon blinked and smiled softly at the two's actions. She did not quite understand why they wanted her to pick a Pokémon, but she understood that it was a moment they wanted her to treasure. After all, they were giving her a chance to pick first.

So with hesitance, Moon stepped closer to the three Pokémon that now had their attention directed towards her. She gazed at each of the Pokémon shyly taking in their appearances once more. Popplio seemed like a jolly Pokémon, judging by how it acted when Hala called it, while Litten seemed too easily bored given how it no longer was paying anymore attention to Moon.

Moon turned her attention away from Popplio and Litten and now looked at the last Pokémon, Rowlet. Unlike the other two, it was more reserved. It was quiet and showed a lack of confidence she could easily distinguish based on the small hoot it gave earlier when Hala addressed it. But beyond that, she saw something else in the small Rowlet. While it showed that it was insecure about itself from its greeting, Moon could easily see there was more to the small owl. It would indefinitely grow. Just as how she needed to.

That was why Moon decided to point at Rowlet as she looked back at Hala. The older man chuckled at Moon's choice and looked over to the two boys. "And who will you two choose?"

Moon watched as Sun and Hau stared at the remaining Pokémon with intense gazes, studying and soaking in everything about them. After what seemed like hour, Sun finally pointed at Litten, while Hau finally pointed at Popplio. They both looked up at Hala signifying that they, too, had made their choice.

"Moon, Sun, and Hau, go up on the stage. It is only when you and the Pokémon have both chosen each other can you truly call each other partners." Hala said addressing towards the three.

The three obeyed and made their way onto the stage. They walked towards the center of the stage and stood silently, gazing at the Pokémon that stood before them with curious gazes.

"Hau, you have decided to choose Popplio. Now we shall see if Popplio truly chooses you." Hala said earnestly as he now stood between the three Pokémon and children.

Hau took a deep breath and kneeled down to the cheerful seal-like Pokémon. The Pokémon tilted its head slightly to its right at Hau's actions. And yet, just as it seemed that it did not understood, the seal-like Pokémon barked happily and wobbly moved towards Hau. Hau laughed as he picked up Popplio raising up, as it continued to bark happily. Popplio had chose him.

Hala smiled and nodded for Hau and Popplio to move back. After they did, he continued speaking. "Now Sun, you have decided to choose Litten. Now we shall see if Litten truly chooses you."

Sun nodded and took a step forward and kneeled down. He placed his hand out for Litten. Litten stared back at the hand with a bored expression and meowed loudly. It stretched its body and then took a few steps forward. Once it was close enough, it stopped and stared back at Sun with its red eyes, studying him closely. After what seemed like hours, Litten meowed quietly and walked forward to Sun's hand, licking it. Sun smiled at this action and petted the black and red cat. Litten had choose him.

Hau chuckled and nodded for Sun and Litten to move back. It was time for the last Pokémon to choose their trainer.

"Now Moon, you have decided to choose Rowlet. Now we shall see if Rowlet truly chooses you."

Moon nodded and took a step forward. She stared at the small owl below her as it did the same to her. Slowly, but shyly, Rowlet moved forward towards her and hooted. Once it was close enough to her leg, it rubbed its face against it gently, cooing softly. Moon wanted to move away from the owl Pokémon in response to the touch, but found herself unable to. Rowlet was warm and soft, things she did not expect. She found herself kneeling down and placing her hand out to touch Rowlet. When her hand made contact with its head, she could not help, but smile. And she soon realized that Rowlet was hooting cheerfully now that she had willingly touched it. Just as how she had chosen it, Rowlet had also chosen her.

"So little Rowlet as accepted you as well." Hala said as he walked onto the stage. He faced the three children and have each of them an earnest smile. "I am glad for you all. If you three can work in harmony with your Pokémon, you can go anywhere together."

"That's right!" Kukui added cheerfully as he walked onto the stage as well. "I'm sure you three and your Pokémon will be friends for life!"

"So, do you each know what you are going to name your new Pokémon?" Kukui asked with a smile.

"I'm going to name Popplio, Azura!" Hau answered happily turning towards Popplio with a bright smile. "Do you like that name, Popplio?"

Popplio nodded and barked jollyfully, snuggling closer to Hau's chest. Hau joined in laughter at Azura's response.

"And what about you, Sun?" Kukui asked turning away from Hau to Sun.

Sun looked down at Litten, who was now laying down curled up by his leg, and shrugged. "Kuro..." he answered. "If that is okay with you..."

Litten raised its head slightly and meowed loudly and laid its head back down. Sun had to guess that it was fine for him to call Litten that name.

"And you, Moon?" Hala asked, looking away from Sun, and now back to Moon.

In response to his question, Moon slightly gazed down at Rowlet. She wasn't sure if she should give Rowlet a name, and yet, she felt it was right to. She, herself, was given a name by Sun, Hau, and Sun's mother. And because of that, she wanted to do the same for Rowlet, so that it would get a chance to treasure it just as much as she treasures her new name.

"Tutu, Moon does not ta-" Hau started to say, but he was interrupted by Moon.

"Mikio..." Moon murmured quietly still staring down at Rowlet, hoping that it would accept is new name just as she had with hers. "That's the name I want to give to you."

Kukui stared at Moon in shock, while Sun and Hau smiled that she was now talking a bit more now. Hala only nodded at her response. At hearing Moon's voice, Rowlet hooted quietly and raised its wings. It began to flap them and flew up to Moon's shoulder and landed on it. Once it was perched on her shoulder, it snuggled its face into Moon's cheeks cooing softly. Moon giggled at the softness of Rowlet's fur on her cheek. Judging by the Pokémon's reaction, she could tell it liked his name.

"Great job you three!" Kukui praised. "Now that you've got a Pokémon, you three are real Pokémon trainers, yeah! And to commemorate, here's a lovely gift from me to help make it special!"

Kukui took a red device out of his lab coat pocket and handed it to Moon. Moon took the device from him and studied it as Sun and Hau inched close to her to see the device as well.

"Professor, is this what I think it is?" Sun asked looking up at Kukui.

"Indeed it is!" Kukui said with a slight chuckle. "That device in Moon's hand is a Pokédex. A Pokédex is a real high-tech kinda tool that can automatically record facts of any Pokémon you meet. Your new partners, Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio, have already been recorded. Since I only have one right now, you three can share it."

"And before I forget!" Kukui said as he dug into his other pocket. He took out three small booklets and handed one out to each of the three children.

"Here is a Trainer Passport for each of you."

Once Moon, Sun, and Hau had their respective Trainer Passports, Kukui spoke once more. "Now that's all have been taken care of, why don't you three head home? I think spending time with your new partners will allow for you each to bond closer together."

"You're right!" Hau agreed acknowledging Kukui's advice. He turned from the Professor and looked over to Moon and Sun with a cheerful smile. "I'll see you guys tomorrow then! Me and Azura have a lot of bonding to do together!"

Sun nodded and looked over to Moon as he picked up the sleeping Litten from the ground. "Let's head home, Moon. My mom wouldn't want us to stay out too late."

Moon nodded and took a step forward to Sun when she felt something heating up in her bag. She stopped, widening her eyes in surprise, and opened her bag. All at once, a bright light began to shine from the bag. Curiously, she dug into her bag to take out the source of the light, which just happened to be the stone she had found earlier. Once she had taken it out, the stone began to glow faintly.

"Moon, would you be so kind to give me a look at the sparkling stone you have in your hand?" Hala asked unexpectedly. Moon nodded to his request and handed the stone over for him to see.

Hau inched closer to Hala and stared down at the sparkling stone, that now was losing its glow after leaving Moon's hand.

"Tutu... isn't that..." Hau began to say, but he stopped only staring at the stone almost as if he was mesmerized by it.

"Moon, where did you get this stone?" Hala asked looking up from the stone with his brows furrowed in thought.

"I found it..." Moon replied quietly struggling to answer the older man's question. "After..." She trailed off looking down.

"After Tapu Koko saved you, right?" Sun asked gazing at Moon with worry.

Moon nodded and smiled at Sun. They both looked back at Hala, who only chuckled at the recent development.

"It seems Tapu Koko deemed to give you this stone. Perhaps Moon, you came here because this is where you are meant to be."

Hala smiled widely and continued. "Allow me to borrow this stone for awhile. Fret not, I'll return it to you the next time we meet. I would also like to ask if you would do us the honor of joining in our festival a few days from now."

Moon tilted her head in confusion at what Hala requested from her. Seeing this, Sun placed a hand on her free shoulder to reassure her. "I'll tell you about it later Moon. For now, let's just go home."

Both Sun and Moon waved goodbye to Hau, Kukui, and Hala and made their way out of Iki Town and back on the trail that led to Sun's house. As they walked, Sun tried to fill the void of silence by talking to Moon and Kuro. He explained more about himself, talking about his likes and dislikes and his hopes and goals. Moon tried her best to listen, but she eventually found her thoughts drifting away back to the blonde-haired girl that had saved her.

She wanted to know if she was safe. She yearned to know if the blond-haired girl was having as much fun as she was having. She hoped that she was well and not in any danger. And Moon desired to see her again. Just so that Moon could thank her for what she did. She needed that more than anything.

"Moon, we're here."

Moon stopped walking and turned away from her thoughts back to the reality she had drifted away from. She found herself now standing in front of Sun's house with Sun standing by her holding Kuro in his arms. He smiled at her as Kuro yawned loudly seemingly tired. Mikio, who was still perched on her shoulder, snuggled closer to her cheek cooing affectionately at her skin. Moon could not help, but smile at this. For now, she would continue forward. After all, the blond-haired girl was right. She didn't have to be afraid. It would be fine. She now had new friends to help her move forward.


A/N: Thank you for your patience! Since I'm relatively new to the games, I have no idea what Pokémon to give to Moon and the others. Because of that, I would like to ask you, my dear reader, to give me suggestions of who you think should get what Pokémon. Keep in mind I'll be looking into it, but I may based the teams from your suggestions. As always, thank you and look forward to the next chapter!

Current Teams:

Moon: Mikio (Rowlet)

Sun: Kuro (Litten)

Hau: Azura (Popplio)