"The next generation will always surpass the previous one. It's one of the never-ending cycles in life."

-Kakashi Hatake; from the Naruto/Naruto Shippuden series

"Lillie, Gladion, I'd like to introduce you to someone." Lusamine stood in front of her two eldest children, Lani off to the side. Lillie and Gladion looked between their mother and the anxious redhead beside her. The two older siblings never met Lani before, they had no idea who she was. Was she someone Lusamine had recently hired? It didn't seem likely, since Lani was too young to be an Aether employee. "This is Lani, your half-sister," Lusamine said, waving to the redhead.

Gladion's eyes widened. He looked at Lani from head to toe. A whirlwind of emotions swirled inside him. Half-sister? He had a half-sister? Lusamine hadn't mentioned her having another child; so what was this? It was hard enough already with him and Lillie dealing with their mother, now they had to take in the news of a new sibling? A glare came across Gladion's face as he regarded Lani. She was very aware of his look and shrunk away from him. She gripped the straps of her backpack, shutting herself off even more from her surroundings.

Lillie, on the other hand, wasn't as angry as her brother was. She was mortified, to say the least. She didn't even begin to think that she'd have a half-sister, though Lusamine did make an effort to ensure that her eldest children were sent away for months at a time. Was it because Lusamine was pregnant? It was almost disturbing to think about. Lillie was accustomed to being the youngest, to being the "baby" of the family. How could all of that change so drastically?

"Lani, these are my eldest children, Gladion and Lillie." Lusamine waved to her eldest siblings. Lani couldn't bring herself to look Gladion or Lillie in the eye. She could practically see the unpleasant emotions radiating off the two older kids. It made Lani uncomfortable, it made her feel even more out of place. Ramon had convinced Lani no to worry so much, that living with Lusamine and the others would be good. Lani came to see that her father was wrong. Gladion had shown an immediate dislike to her; Lillie seemed just as dissatisfied, if not more so. "We'll finally be a real family," Lusamine exclaimed. "Won't it be beautiful?"

The youngest sibling couldn't help but cringe at that word. Apparently, Lusamine couldn't see just how awful everything was turning out.

. . . .

Lani remembered in great detail the day she moved in with Lusamine. It was far from a good experience. Gladion had refused to speak or even acknowledge Lani; Lillie would talk to her if she had to, but other than that, she refused to be anywhere near where Lani happened to be. Lani tried to get to know her older half-siblings, but their blatant refusal to even look at her made Lani realize that she didn't belong with them. She didn't belong in Aether Paradise. Lani wanted to go back to her father and their farm. She wanted to play with Cubone on the land Ramon owned, to spend time with the Mudsdale and Mudbray; to help the Blissey with any injuries...Lani wanted to go back to where she fit in most.

Aether Paradise was a wonderful place, Lani was not afraid to admit it, but it was too much for her. All the workers, all that open space, the artificial living areas for the Pokémon...it didn't settle well with Lani. The Pokémon who lived at Aether Paradise were having a splendid time, but Lani couldn't make herself enjoy anything. None of the workers wanted to help her get acquainted with anything. Well, all except one. Ms. Wicke was a caring person, the only one who went out of her way to make Lani feel welcome.

"I know this may be hard for you," Wicke would say, "but try not to focus on it too much. Everything will get better, trust me. If you ever need to talk, I'll always be here for you. Nothing you tell me will be spoken to anyone else."

Ms. Wicke had become one of Lani's closest friend at Aether Paradise. No, Ms. Wicke became Lani's only friend at Aether Paradise, besides Cubone, who'd been smuggled into the facility. It was Ms. Wicke who'd given Lani advice whenever Lusamine was too busy to be bothered. It was Ms. Wicke who'd gone out of her way to spend time with Lani when Lillie and Gladion refused to acknowledge her. It was Ms. Wicke who convinced Lani to steal the Pokémon and leave when things got out of control.

There were so many things that the young girl wanted answers to, but she knew she had to find them out for herself. Lusamine had started a tsunami of pain and confusion for everyone around her. Gladion, Lillie, and Lani all abandoned their mother and her obsessive nature; they abandoned the years of ridicule and heartache she gave them. Well, not completely. All the things Lusamine did to her children still lingered in the backs of their minds. Maybe, even if all the chaos the Aether Paradise tangled itself into evened itself out, the three children could find a way to reconnect with each other. That thought alone was enough to make Lani feel a deep, throbbing ache in her chest. Gladion and Lillie never wanted Lani to interfere in their lives. She never belonged. That was something the young girl had to learn to accept, but she just couldn't do it.

Her entire life, Lani never once thought she'd want to have siblings. Ramon never showed any interest in anyone other than Lusamine, and Lani knew her mother refused to have anymore children after Lani's birth. Having grown up with Ramon for most of her life, Lani had grown accustomed to the illusion of being an only child. Lani preferred to go back to that lifestyle, and, for the most part, tried to keep any memory of Gladion or Lillie locked away. If she didn't matter at all to them, why should she be thinking or worrying about them? It just didn't make any sense.

(A/N):

What'd you think of this chapter? It kind of went into detail on how the relationship between Lani, Lillie, and Gladion was like. I'll be sure to go into more depth later on, but this is more or less the foundation of how they all felt about each other. If you've got any idea on how to improve this chapter, let me know in the comment section.

Nothing in this fandom belongs to me. All I own are my characters and subplots.

If you've got an OC or a subplot you'd like added to the story, leave a review or PM me. I'll add it in as soon as possible.

Thanks a bunch.

Willow