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Bonus Chapter

"A little heart to heart"

"...I figured you'd find me eventually."

Xatu sighed deeply. He had heard the sound of rustling cloth from behind him, and the soft noise of one taking a single footstep. Furthermore, he could feel the gentle breeze of the night air flowing into his cramped tent, slipping through the flaps that protected his tent from the outside.

"It took me a while, you know." The visitor said, smirking pridefully, "I already checked here a few times, but you weren't here."

"So why are you here again?" Xatu said, keeping his back to the visitor.

The visitor took the response as an invitation to enter the tent fully. He sat on the carpet that covered the floor of the tent and grinned at the bird sitting opposite him.

"I just had a feeling you'd be here," He said casually, "that's all."

"A feeling, huh?" Xatu covered his face with his wing, "I see..."

The visitor's ears perked up at what the bird said. He cupped his chin with his paw curiously and said, "Speaking of which, how did you find me anyway? Did you really use your powers of sight?"

"Did I really...?" The bird shook his head slowly and replied in a tired voice, "Even now, I have a hard time believing that I did."

Xatu calmly moved his gaze to the ceiling of his tent. At the top of his tent was a small hole. Normally, he would burn incense and fragrant grasses to produce a special colored smoke that would drift out of the hole in plumes to attract customers. But today, his fire wasn't lit and the only thing that came through the hole was a bright ray of moonlight.

Since he returned from Mount Bristle, he attempted to reactivate the power of sight many times. However, no matter how hard he focused, he simply could not bring about that strange blackout, or that painful headache. It was as if his freak vision from before had never happened.

"I have a confession," Xatu slowly turned around and faced the visitor. With a serious glint in his eyes, Xatu asked in a sincere voice, "Will you listen to it, Riolu?"

The visitor's grin was brightly visible, even within the dimness of the tent. He folded his paws across his chest and shook his head.

"No, I wont." Blue said nonchalantly to a startled Xatu, still grinning, "But, I will hear you out on one condition."

"...and what's that?" Xatu said nervously.

"My name isn't Riolu," He said in a prideful voice, "It's Blue. Get it right."

Xatu gaped at him, completely stunned silent by his answer. He hadn't expected such a strange, almost child – like demand. It was so unexpected that he couldn't help but crack a smile at him.

"Mmhmhmhm..." He covered his beak with his wing again, but this time, he did it to muffle his amused chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Blue said indignantly as he angrily jabbed his finger at the laughing bird.

"No... I'm just... surprised, is all," Xatu coughed behind his wing to try and halt the chuckles, "I... I wasn't expecting such a straightforward request... ahem..."

Xatu took a deep breath to recompose himself. He lowered his wings and replaced them onto his chest as he placed his gaze upon the visitor.

The Riolu that he met this morning, the one who calls himself Blue. Even if he possessed the power of sight from birth, Xatu doubted that he would ever be able to predict this Pokémon's actions. Everything that Riolu did went completely against his expectations. Even now, Xatu continued to be stumped by him.

"Very well..." Xatu made a big show out of clearing his throat before continuing. He straightened himself out and stared directly at the Riolu wearing an amused expression on his face.

"Riol... I mean, Blue... do you mind if we had a little heart to heart?"

"Sure. Let's have a talk."

Xatu smiled. He opened his beak to begin his confession, but suddenly...

"Oh wait!" Blue shouted suddenly. He clapped his paws together and turned around, leaving Xatu feeling quite foolish with his beak wide open. "Hold on Xatu, I just remembered something!" Xatu clacked his beak shut and goggled at Blue's back. He appeared to be rustling with something behind him, but Xatu couldn't quite make it out in the dim light.

The sound of cloth being fumbled with, along with an unusual noise of metal clinking made Xatu incredibly confused. After a moment, Blue turned around and flashed Xatu a smile. He presented proudly a large, heavy sack in his arms. Bewildered, Xatu stared at the sack, wondering what was inside.

"I almost forgot!" Blue said in a chipper voice as he hurriedly dropped the sack on the floor, causing a loud, resounding clinking noise to explode from within, "Machoke and his guildmates told me that capturing Drowzee was worth quite a few Poké. Apparently he was a pretty notorious criminal in other towns too, so they gave me this as a reward for defeating him."

The Riolu eagerly pulled the sack open, revealing its contents. Xatu's eyes practically bugged out at the sight of hundreds of gleaming, golden coins inside. He reached into the bag with his wing and picked out a single coin. The small, rounded piece of metal glowed with a dull shine as he held it up in the moonlight. One side was emblazoned with a stylized P, while the other displayed the numerical worth of the coin.

"B – Blue... what is this?" Xatu stuttered, completely flabbergasted. He had never seen such a huge amount of money in one place before. At most, he had only been able to save up a handful of gold before he spent it all.

"It's Poké, isn't it?" Blue responded simply, his tone plain, "You should be able to recognize it, I mean, you were the one who told me about it."

"No, I mean – hold on a second!" Xatu covered his face with his wing and turned away from the Riolu's excited face. The conversation was fast moving into a direction that he couldn't understand! He took a deep breath to calm himself from the sudden swerve in topic and tried to compose himself as much as possible before returning to the conversation.

After a moment of silence, Xatu turned back to the Riolu. Blue was picking up the coins inside the sack and letting them drop back inside carelessly, making loud clinking sounds echo around inside his small tent.

"Alright, Blue..." Xatu began, leering warily at the sack of coins, "How... how about you tell me everything from the start first...? I don't think... I quite understand why you're showing me... all of this..."

"Well, I just remembered what you told me earlier today." Blue said plainly as he dropped another coin back into the sack.

"What I told you...?"

He nodded earnestly, "Remember? You told me that your charms were worth 900 Poké or something. I'm not too sure about how many Poké were in this bag that the guys at the guild gave me, so I just brought it all."

"Hold... wait, you mean..." Xatu was struck dumb by what he just heard. He stared at Blue, then at the sack of glittering coins, then back at Blue. The gears in his shrewd mind was grinding at maximum speed as he began to comprehend what the Riolu was saying.

"You brought all of this... just to buy one of my charms?"

Blue grinned and nodded energetically.

Xatu felt as though he was about to fall over from the sheer absurdity of the situation. The amount of money inside of the sack far outnumbered the worth of any charm he owned. In fact, it probably outnumbered the worth of everything he owned.

"This amount of Poké..."

One thought ran through Xatu's mind. With this much Poké in his possession, he could easily pay off every single debt he's accrued throughout his entire life. With this much Poké in his possession, he could easily escape from the clutches of the Persian and Meowth that has haunted him for so long. With this much Poké...

But, could he really accept such a thing with a clear conscience? He looked up at Blue, who was watching him interestingly, waiting eagerly for a response. For all the lies and mistreatment he's given to that Riolu, was he worthy of such a gift?

With a deep sigh, Xatu shook his head. No, he couldn't. Such an easy path doesn't exist for someone like him. And even if it did, what would he gain from taking such a path? He had already spent his entire life always trying to walk the easy road, and all that's gotten him was nothing but trouble and suffering. If he accepted this gift from Blue, then wouldn't he just be making the same mistakes once more?

"Blue... I can't accept this," Xatu said, pushing the sack of coins back to a bewildered Blue.

"Eh? But why? Is the amount wrong?"

Xatu shook his head again, "No, the amount is... well, I'd say the amount is too right." He gently shut the opening of the sack, hiding the gleaming coins away from the moonlight. "But I still cannot accept your generous gift."

"I don't understand," Blue folded his arms and huffed, "is it the wrong coins then? Are there different types? I just don't understand this money thing."

Xatu chuckled. Truly, this Riolu sure is an odd Pokémon. Xatu had never met a more honest Pokémon than Blue. It was a refreshing experience for him. For most of his life, he had been mired in the dark, grungy world of lies and trickery. To him, Blue was like a stray ray of sunlight in his world of dishonesty.

Xatu stood up and turned his back to Blue. He walked over to the other side of his tent and stood in front of a large, wooden chest lying on the floor.

"Blue, I truly appreciate what you're offering," Xatu said as he opened up the chest, "however, I cannot just accept your money in good conscience."

Inside the chest was every single charm and talisman Xatu had owned. From ribbons to necklaces, bracelets to collars, everything he owned was stored safely inside this container. Xatu reached inside and withdrew a single object from within.

"However, I will offer you a proposition." Xatu said with a smile as he turned around. He held the object in his wing up to the moonlight. It was a small, yellow seashell suspended in the air by a thin string. The bright red jewel embedded in the shell glinted dimly as the necklace spun around leisurely.

"This is what you wanted, right?" He said as he handed Blue the Necklace of Memory. "I'll give you this charm for free. But, you have to listen to what I have to say, is that fine with you?"

Blue took the necklace from Xatu's wing and examined it. Then, he shook his head.

"You don't want it?" Xatu said, confused.

"This isn't what I wanted," Blue replied as he handed the necklace back, "I was going to ask you for the other thing you showed me. That pink colored ribbon."

"The... Aura Bow?"

Xatu took the necklace and replaced it with the pink ribbon inside the chest. He held it in front of Blue for confirmation.

Blue nodded quickly and beamed, "Yeah, that's the one."

"I'm surprised, Blue," Xatu remarked as he handed the ribbon over to the Riolu, "I had assumed that you were more interested in the Necklace of Memory."

"I was," Blue admitted as he examined the ribbon, "but, I decided that I'd rather have this instead."

"Would you mind telling me the reason?"

Blue grinned as he tried to tie the ribbon into a bow, "It's for a friend. You said that this ribbon helps someone get stronger, right?"

Xatu nodded hesitantly, "Yes... I believe so."

"My friend's worried about being weak and afraid, so I thought maybe this charm of yours could help her get a little bit braver, you know?"

"That's... very generous of you, Blue."

"You think?" Blue tilted his head to the side quizzically. He accidentally undid the messy bow tie in his paws, making him grumble in frustration.

"Well then, will you accept my proposition then?" Xatu reminded him. Blue looked up from his paws and nodded.

"Very well," Xatu closed his eyes and quietly thought about what he was going to say. This Riolu had forced him to reevaluate the way he was living his life. It only seemed fair that he cleared things up with him.

"Blue, I haven't been completely forthright with information with you." He began, "Since we met, I've been lying to you. Trying to fool you into listening to me and believing in me."

"I do not possess the power of sight," Xatu turned away from Blue, avoiding his eyes, "Since my birth, I lacked such abilities that my ancestors had. My powers of sight... are probably just as powerful as yours, Blue."

"Eh?" Blue sounded surprised, "What do you mean by that?"

"I apologize, that was probably a little confusing," Xatu lowered his head and sighed, "My claims of being able to see all... to be able to view everything that goes on within town, or to predict the future... it's nothing more than a self – serving lie."

Xatu shook his head, "You were right back when you called me a liar at the plaza. Back then, when you asked me to use my sight to find your friend, I truly could not have helped you. But, I couldn't have let you known that then. So, I lied."

"But, I don't understand," Blue interrupted, "why did you feel the need to lie to me?"

Xatu chuckled humorlessly, "I have an awful reason." Xatu turned around and gave Blue a pathetic look, "I needed you to uphold our deal."

"You mean, you needed me to fight in that battle royale thing?"

Xatu nodded, smiling uncomfortably as he did so, "I needed you to keep fighting. I needed you to win."

"Why, you may ask?" Xatu intercepted Blue's question, "Because I was a fool, Blue. I had a foolish idea to use your strength for my own gain. I... I went to a dangerous group of Pokémon and placed a dangerous gamble on your victory."

"A gamble on me? I don't understand..."

"Perhaps it's better you don't," Xatu shook his head dejectedly, "either way, I was selfishly abusing your trust for my own gain. And in the end, I betrayed your trust when you needed me the most. All because I was afraid to let you know the truth." He guiltily tapped the side of his head, "The truth that I was just a foolish bird that wanted to use you for my own selfish needs."

"No." Blue stated in a plain voice, "You're lying again."

"What?" Xatu slowly lowered his wing, "What do you mean?"

Blue folded his arms in front of his chest and sighed, "You didn't betray me at all, Xatu."

Xatu cocked his head to the side, wondering what he meant. Blue responded by sighing again and frowning discontentedly.

"You took Fée to Mount Bristle. You protected me from Drowzee's attack. You helped me beat up that creep with that thing you did with the stones." Blue said, smirking, "You didn't betray me at all."

"But I went and lied to you about everything!" Xatu insisted, waving his wings around wildly, "I … I was using you! I tried to belittle you in public when you argued with me!"

"So? It's not like any of that stuff really mattered in the end, did it?"

Xatu gaped at the Riolu, astonished by just how little he cared about his betrayal.

"Even if you can't see or anything doesn't matter," Blue added, "all I remember is that you came to my aid when I was in trouble. That's what really counts, don't you think?"

"You... you don't care that I abused you like that? That I bent your trust for my own purposes?"

Blue shrugged and tapped the side of his head, mimicking the bird's actions, "Like I said, all I saw was you helping me fight against that Drowzee. Whether or not you went and gambled on me fighting, I don't know, nor do I really care."

"Besides, you must've had a lot of faith in me if you really believed that I could beat everyone at that battle royale thing!"

Xatu could only watch, stupefied as the Riolu chuckled in a carefree way in front of him. Why was this Riolu so willing to forgive him for all he's done? Xatu just could not understand.

"Blue... you're willing to forgive me for what I've done...?"

The Riolu interrupted his laughter with an exasperated sigh. Annoyed, Blue pushed himself off the ground and stretched his arms and legs. Afterward, he held out his right paw to Xatu.

"I forgive you Xatu," Blue beamed as he offered his paw, "so forget about all that complicated stuff already!"

"You're the oddest Pokémon I've ever met, Blue," Xatu shook his head as he stood up. He looked down at his wing. A few feathers were still missing from when they were forcibly pulled apart earlier. Back then, he had considered it a symbol of his betrayal. But now, he considered it a reminder. A reminder to never lie again.

"But," Xatu smiled as he covered Blue's paw with his wing, "that's not such a bad thing."

"Thanks, Xatu," Blue said as he shook the bird's wing.

"No, I should be thanking you," Xatu replied, "you've helped me learn an important lesson today, Blue."

"Oh, what's that?"

Xatu released his grip on Blue's paw. With a dramatic swoosh, he extended out both of his wings beside him, forming his favorite pose.

"The importance of honesty."

After a while, the Riolu left with a small, colorful box in his arms, which contained the precious Aura Bow inside. Xatu watched from behind the tent flaps as Blue ran off toward the guilds district. He has spoken something about finding his friend before the night ended. Xatu assumed that he was speaking about the female Eevee from earlier. Fée, was it?

When Blue finally disappeared from his sight, Xatu sighed and retreated into his tent. Starting tomorrow, he was going to begin his life anew. He'll live a more honest life, without lies or deceit. Although he wasn't sure about what he was going to do, he was confident that he could figure something out. After all, if that Riolu could succeed in something as difficult as a battle against a criminal, then he should be able to find something he could do as well.

Feeling strangely elated for tomorrow, Xatu walked to the center of the tent with a gleeful bounce in his step. Suddenly, his foot hit something hard on the floor. Groaning a little, he glanced down.

"W... what?"

He was greeted with the sight of a sack filled to the brim with gleaming coins. He sighed. That Riolu must've forgotten to take it with him when he left. Xatu reached over to the sack and tried to move it out of the way so he could have a place to sleep. When he meets Blue again, he'll remind him to take it away. But, as he pushed the sack, he noticed something strange attached to the side of the sack. It wasn't visible before, as Blue had always kept that side of the sack facing him.

Curious, Xatu leaned down and tried to make out what it was in the dim light. It was a small, white badge with the number "27" printed on the surface. Below the badge was a series of messily written words, a message left for him, perhaps? With great difficulty, Xatu read out the message.

"This is a gift from Blue to Xatu!"

Xatu stared blankly at the childish message for a moment. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had imagined it. But no, it was there, shining in the moonlight. The Riolu told him before that he couldn't read, so did Blue ask one of the guild members to write it out for him? He sighed as he pushed the bag over to the side of the tent, leaving it next to the big wooden chest where he stored his valuables.

"What an odd Pokémon."

Xatu smiled as he lied down on the carpet. What an odd Pokémon indeed.