I'm sooo sorry it took me forever to post this new chapter! I hope you think it's worth it. I mean, I do, but I don't know who you guys are, really, so... Anyway! Back to the story!

Chapter 12

"What would you like?" The waitress at Café Warehouse asked Touko.

"Pancakes!" Touko said brightly, and Cheren chuckled, pushing his glasses up farther on his nose.

"I'll have the same." The waitress scribbled this down on her notepad.

"And you two will get free soda pops because it's Wednesday." The waitress smiled then hurried away

"So… How was your trip here?" Touko asked. Cheren shrugged.

"Normal. There were some Trainers I had to battle, but besides that it was pretty boring," He said.

"Oh. That's no fun," Touko said.

"What about you?" Cheren asked.

"N walked with me here. I hope I can meet up with him again at some point, so we can continue traveling together." Touko looked up at the ceiling as she thought about it.

"N? That weird guy who said he could talk to Pokémon? Why would you be with him?" Cheren narrowed his eyes.

"Well, I don't know… He's interesting," She said. They smiled as the waitress came with their food.

"If by interesting you mean freaky, then yes, he's interesting." Touko rolled her eyes.

"Ah, shut up and eat." Cheren grinned at her before doing as she asked.

As they finished their food, both teens grew excited at the idea of battling each other once more.

N tapped his foot impatiently.

It's for your safety sir. It's alright sir. We can handle it sir. There is no need for you to help sir. Don't worry about it sir.

Every single time. He never did any work. What was the point of being a leader if you didn't do anything?

He sighed heavily, looking up at the sky from his seat on a bench. He never did anything.

He heard the voices of many Pokémon. The sounds of them chattering away to Trainers who didn't understand them. He heard the sounds of battles. Cries of pain. And some... Happy sounds...

It was so familiar. The voices were clearer now that he was focused on them. Familiar names.

Touko. Many Pokémon voices but they said the same name. Touko.

Touko. He had left her for work. Work he wasn't even doing. He frowned, feeling guilty. The feeling stopped as one of the voices talked about going to the museum. He cursed.

He took off running in the direction of the excited voices. N hoped he would make it in time.

Touko walked leisurely in the direction of the museum. Cheren had realized he was about to battle her with his Pokémon already almost unconscious. So, he had run off, promising to battle her later on. So, she was alone again. She had just reached the front entrance of the museum when she saw N walking out. He stopped her.

"Touko! I was looking for you!" He smiled in satisfaction. She smirked.

"Why? Do you want to battle?" She asked, expecting him to say no. She saw Pin walking around his feet in circles, carefully stepping over his feet. N bit his lip.

"I guess you could say that," He said.

"Be specific about what you want," Touko said.

"I… I want to see things no one can see. The truths of Pokémon inside Poké Balls. The ideals of how Trainers should be. And a world where Pokémon are perfect… Do you feel the same?" He felt guilt welling up within him. That wasn't what he wanted at that particular moment. It was part of his dream in the long run, but it still felt like a lie. And the fact that she was thinking hard on the question didn't help to ease his conscience.

"Yeah," She said.

"That so? Well, my friends and I should see if you really see this future too," N said. Touko grinned.

"You did just want to battle! That's so unlike you!" She giggled. He gritted his teeth.

"Are you going to take this seriously?" He asked, pulling a Poké Ball from his pocket. Touko smirked and and pulled a Poké Ball from her bag.

"I'm offended. When am I not serious?" She asked, looking defiantly into his eyes. N raised an eyebrow.

"The question is, when are you serious?" She glared at him, bristling at this comment until she realized he was messing with her.

"Jerk! I'm really going to beat you now!" She threw the Poké Ball, sending out her first Pokémon, and signaling the beginning of the battle.

Another battle between N and Touko! Who will win?! Hehe. Well, please review, follow, favorite, PM me, or all of the above! I know you people read this! Don't be shy!