Sorry about the long delay, there's a lot going on in my life and it totally derailed my fanfiction! Have a longer chapter as my gift to you.

"Oh Arceus, are you two alright?!"

A middle-aged woman stood in the doorway. Hypno lifted up Michael, offering him up to her. She took Michael from Hypno's arms.

"Greg, I think you need to see this!"

The woman gestured inside the house.

"Come in, you must be exhausted. You can sit on our couch for now."

Hypno was so grateful that these people were kind. They would definitely be good caretakers. Pokémon had a good sense for these types of things. A man with a black beard came down the flight of stairs in a hurry and gasped at the sight. Hypno was sitting down on the couch, clearly looking ragged next to a sleeping Michael. Greg squatted down to eyelevel with Hypno.

"Hypno, is the child harmed in any way? A hospital would be a short enough of a drive, but we would need to set out immediately."

Hypno shook her head. She made sure to keep him safe.

Greg and the woman sighed with relief. Greg addressed the woman.

"Sarah, can you go fetch us some assorted berries for our guest? We aren't sure of her likes and dislikes." Greg turned toward Hypno. "That should ease your exhaustion."

Once Sarah had left, a heavy silence was shared between the two of them.

"Will the child be able to explain the situation?" Greg asked, "I can bring out some picture cards for you to use. I always keep them just in case."

Hypno looked at Michael. She didn't want to wake him up just yet. She tried to make a square with her paws to indicate the cards. Greg knew what she was saying and walked over to a bookshelf. He pulled out a thick binder of cards and set it on Hypno's lap.

"We can start off simple, where did the two of you come from?"

Hypno peered at the maps at the beginning of the binder, but she didn't look at maps long enough to know the area of where she used to live. She settled for finding a picture of a house and pointing to it.

"Ok, so you came from a house, in an area that you do not remember?"

Hypno nodded.

"Pokemon always do something for a reason. Can you show me the reason that you had to leave the house with the child?"

Hypno was unsure how to explain what was going on. She looked for a picture that would indicate her previous master. She finally found a picture of a woman and pointed to it.

"So, a woman was involved. Was it the mother?"

Hypno nodded vigorously, she was glad that this was working.

Greg was starting to get a sinking feeling in his chest, "What happened with the woman?"

That one was going to be difficult. What kind of picture would indicate everything that had happened? She kept looking and eventually found a picture of those bottles that the mother would sometimes bring home. Then, she quickly flipped over to another picture of a fist hitting an object.

Greg's face darkened.

"So, the mother would use these bottles and hit things? Do you mean the boy?"

Hypno looked over to Michael sadly and Greg understood. There was two more questions that he had to ask.

"What about the father?"

Hypno showed the picture of a door, the last place where she saw the man.

Now that Greg knew the full story, he realized that this could become a legal issue. If the boy was found and the mother wanted to take this to court, then he would need to know all that he could. Greg was however very keen on just keeping the boy hidden away.

He was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Did you hurt the mother when you escaped?"

Even if Hypno hated her old master, there was no way that she would harm a human. She shook her head. With that answer, Greg leaned back and planned about what to do next. The silence was broken when Sarah returned with a basket full of different kinds of berries.

"Sorry I took so long! A few nocturnal pokémon had visited me for an early breakfast and I couldn't deny them."

She set down the basket in front of Hypno and looked toward Greg. He gave her a somber gaze and she returned with a knowing look. They would discuss this later. Hypno looked through the berries and picked out the best sour ones.

Greg coughed into his fist. "Well, it's time for everyone to get a good night's rest. We will talk more in the morning. You can sleep on the couch with your child; we will be upstairs if you need anything."

Hypno cuddled up next to Michael, feeling content and safe for the first time in a long while. Greg and Sarah entered the bedroom upstairs and shut the door. Sarah took Greg's hand.

"So, what did you find out?"