"Confusion now hath made his masterpiece!" - Shakespeare's "Macbeth"

There were so many things to do on the S.S. Anne that Erika didn't even know where to start. There were dozens of cute little shops that sold everything from clothes to knickknacks. There was an impressive gym for both humans and Pokemon, which contained every workout apparatus Erika had ever heard of – and some she hadn't – as well as a full basketball court and several racquetball rooms. The nail salon and beauty parlor was tempting, but Erika decided she would rather spend her time outside.

When she stumbled upon the outdoor swimming pool, she instantly regretted not bringing her bathing suit. It looked like the perfect way to spend the day; splashing in the clear water with her Pokemon. Instead, she bought a crêpe filled with yogurt and strawberries and sat by the pool, taking her sandals off and rolling up her jeans so she could dip her feet in the water.

"I should have worn shorts," Erika said, splashing Gloom with her feet. The grass Pokemon was floating on top of the water "It's starting to get really warm. It's making me sleepy…"

"Ahhhhh, this was a wonderful idea," Lance said, stretching out under the warm sun. His stylish Gyarados swim trunks seemed to be gathering a lot of attention; the people that walked by all stopped to look at him for a few moments before they went on about their business. That feeling of the warm rays against his skin, coupled with the light, salty breeze that was blowing through almost made up for the fact that the plastic chairs lined up near the pool were extremely uncomfortable.

"Drag," Dragonite agreed, sipping at his iced tea. Sometimes it amazed Lance how… how human Dragonite behaved sometimes. He could never understand how people like Team Rocket could think of Pokemon as mere tools for fighting and destruction…

Lance was yanked out of his blissful daze, however, when he heard the sound of a woman screaming. In one swift motion, he leapt up, discarding his sunglasses and cape as he ran towards the source of the noise; a little old lady in an inner tube floating by the edge of the pool.

"Help! Help!" she was yelling frantically. "A girl fell in! Help!"

Without a second thought, Lance jumped into the water. There weren't too many people swimming in the area; a Gloom flailing about in the water seemed to be keeping them away.

The girl in question was easy to spot in the clear water; her red shirt popped against the calm blue color of the pool. She was sinking slowly, making no attempts to swim to the surface. Lance swam over to her, hooking one of his arms under hers. She was light, and it took almost no extra effort to bring her to above the water. Lance gasped for breath as his head cleared the surface of the water.

"Are you alright, Miss?" he asked, receiving no verbal response. She didn't respond, and her eyes were closed, but she appeared to be breathing. Confused, Lance swam over to the edge of the pool, lifting the girl up against his chest once he reached the shallow end, where his feet could touch the floor.

"Mmmm…" she mumbled, curling closer to him. She looked very peaceful.

Is she sleeping? Lance thought, hardly able to believe it. Someone actually slept through drowning?

Well, almost, he reminded himself. I did save her, after all.

"Excuse me, sir," one of the pool employees said as he marched over. "But what on earth is going on over here?"

"I think she, er… fell asleep," Lance said, placing the girl on his chair. "And then she must have tumbled into the pool. Thankfully, I happened to be nearby; I dove in and saved her life."

"You know, we have lifeguards for that sort of thing…" the employee said uneasily. "Do you think she'll be alright?"

"I don't know…" Lance said, gently pushing the girl's ebony hair out of her face as he looked her over. She didn't appear to have any injuries. Lance couldn't help but notice that the weight of the water had caused the practically -placed flowers on her bust to droop, revealing a hint of the lacy blue garment underneath.

"Hey, have you even been listening to me?" the pool employee snapped. It suddenly occurred to him that the man had been babbling for quite some time now.

"I'm sorry," Lance said, forcing himself out of yet another pleasant trance. "Were you talking to me?"

"Yes, I was talking to you!" he went on. "I was just saying that I think we should take her to the infirmary!"

"Mmmm…" the girl groaned again, but this time her eyes started to flutter open. For a few moments, she didn't move, and Lance found himself holding his breath. Then, quite suddenly, she sat up, coughing up a mouthful of water and gasping greedily for breath.

Thank goodness, Lance thought, exhaling.

"I… I'm all w-wet…" she stuttered, staring at the small pool of water she had just coughed into her palm. "B-b-but…"

"Draaaag," Dragonite said as he draped Lance's cape across her shoulder, causing her to jump. She nodded a polite thank you, wrapping the garment around herself tightly.

"You fell into the pool," Lance told her, not really sure what else there was to say.

"Y-yeah," she said, looking ashamed as she stared at the ground. "I figured as much…"

"Would you like to go to the infirmary?" he asked.

She shook her head, "No, I'm fine."

"That's what they all say…" the pool employee grumbled. "At any rate, if you would like a dry change of clothes, I'm sure I can find some for you."

"That would be nice," she said. "Thank you."

"Follow me," he said unenthusiastically, pointing towards what appeared to be the changing area.

The girl got up, stumbling a little at first. Still in hero-mode, Lance jumped up to steady her. She thanked him with a smile – a real one this time – and began to follow the employee. She paused, however, and turned back towards him.

"I still have your… towel," she said, her cheeks turning a pale shade of pink. "Do you mind if I-"

"Go on," said Lance. "You can bring my cape back to me later."

"Hey, lady," the employee called over his shoulder, looking even more irritated than before. "Are you coming or what?"

"Right," she nodded, bowing hurriedly before she turned, so quickly that she almost stumbled again. "Um, please wait here; I'll be right back!"

"Alright…" Lance said, watching as the two of them left. He sat back down on his now-damp chair, putting his sunglasses back on (anyone who had seen his heroic feat might have recognized him, but he saw no reason to keep going without his safeguard. His shoulders felt bare without a cape.

Lance felt Dragonite tapping his shoulder, and when he turned around he saw that the large Pokemon was offering him a sip of his iced tea.

Lance grinned, "Thank you, but I'm not thirsty."

Dragonite shrugged, finishing the drink in one dragon-sized gulp.

"That was really strange," said Lance. "I didn't even know it was possible to be asleep under water…"

After what felt like hours – in actuality it was only about ten minutes – the girl returned. She carried her soaked clothes in a canvas tote bag, and was now wearing a pair of men's shorts and an oversized t-shirt that read I'm on a Boat.

"I'm sorry it took me so long," she said. Lance could tell by the sound of her voice that she was already in much brighter spirits. "I had to go back and look for my sandals and my purse."

"It's quite alright," he said. "That's an interesting shirt."

"Oh, yeah," she said, laughing as she tugged at the large garment. "It was the only appropriate shirt they had back there."

Lance smiled, "Considering we are on a boat, I would say that yes, that shirt is very appropriate."

"No…" she said, blushing a bit. "I meant that… Well, all of the girl's shirts were a bit… revealing, and most of the men's shirts were really crude."

"Oh…"

"Hang on just a second," she said, digging through the bag for a few seconds before she pulled out Lance's cape.

"Thank you," he said, grateful to have it back. It was wet, of course, so Lance hesitated for a moment before he put it on; after all, he was wet, as well.

"So that's what that was," the girl said softly. "I mean, I should be the one thanking you, Lance. According to that man, you just saved my life."

"It was no trouble at all," Lance said. "I – Wait! You just called me Lance!"

The girl giggled, "Of course; what else would I call you?"

She did see you without the sunglasses, Lance reminded himself. He cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, but I believe you have me mistaken for someone else. My name is… um… Chet."

Behind him, Lance heard Dragonite laughing, and it took all his willpower to refrain from turning around to glare at the dragon Pokemon.

"Oh…" the girl said, looking a little confused. "My mistake; you look just like Lance, the league champion."

"Heh, you know, I get that all the time," Lance said truthfully. Counting this girl, four people had already seen through his disguise. Perhaps he should have gotten those reflective lenses after all… "Not that I mind; he is really cool. Someday, I would like to have him autograph my cape."

She giggled, "Well, if you aren't Lance, I suppose I should introduce myself; my name is Erika. It's a pleasure to meet you, Chet."

Seeing her like that – smiling, with big brown eyes as she held out her hand for him to shake – Lance felt a strange sense of déjà vu. He quickly pushed it aside, knowing that even if Lance had met this girl somewhere before, Chet certainly hadn't.

"The pleasure is all mine," he said, shaking her hand. "Would you care for a snow cone, Erika?"

Her smile grew, "Actually, that sounds wonderful. I must have lost my crepe in the pool…"

"Alright," Lance said, leading her over to the bar where Dragonite had bought his iced tea. From there, Lance could keep an eye on his Pokemon, though he knew Dragonite was more than capable of taking care of himself.

"Oh wow, I didn't even know they made that many flavors of snow cones," Erika said, eyeing the menu with amazement. "I think I'll try blue coconut."

"And I'll have cherry," Lance said, passing a bill across the counter.

"Aww, you should have let me pay," Erika scolded as she crawled onto the bar stool, which was just a little bit too tall for her.

Lance, however, had no problem settling into his seat, "Nonsense; a gentleman never allows a lady to pay for a meal."

"But this isn't a meal," Erika pointed out. "It's just a snow cone."

"Nevertheless, it's the same basic principal."

"But you saved my life," she said. The man behind the counter handed them their treats, and the debate didn't stop her from digging right in. "I owe you…"

Lance took a bite of his snow cone. The cherry flavoring was delicious, and the cool ice felt good as it danced down his throat, causing him to shiver.

"You don't owe me anything," he said. "But, if you don't mind me asking… How is it someone falls asleep while underwater?"

Erika – her mouth already turning blue around the edges from the coconut flavoring – once again looked away in embarrassment. "I was asleep before I hit the water."

"But falling in didn't wake you up," said Lance. "I don't understand how that's possible."

"I…" she trailed of, taking a deep breath. "I have narcolepsy. I fall asleep a lot without meaning to; I don't have any control over it. The last thing I remember was sitting by the pool… I must have fallen asleep and slipped into the pool."

"I see…" Lance said. Admittedly, he didn't know much about narcolepsy, but it didn't sound like fun. "That sounds really rough."

"I've been this way for a long time," she went on, running her spoon through the ice in her cup. Some of it spilled out onto the counter, but she didn't seem to notice. "Since my parents died…"

Lance gulped; when he started the conversation, he had no idea it was going to be this heavy. "I'm sorry-"

"No, it's fine," said Erika. "It was a long time ago."

"How old were you?"

"Nine," she said. "Ever since then, I've always had someone looking after me. I usually don't go out on my own."

"I can see why," he said.

"I hate it," she said, the harshness in her voice surprising him. "Just once, I'd like to be able to do something on my own. My door has to be locked from the outside at night, because sometimes I sleepwalk. I can't even go to the grocery store without falling asleep. It's so embarrassing sometimes…"

"You shouldn't feel ashamed to ask people for help," Lance said, feeling very wise. Passing along something he learned from his grandfather always made him feel that way. "It doesn't make you weak, especially if you're there for them when they need you."

"Yeah, I suppose…" Erika said, finally looking back up at him. "I shouldn't have dumped all of that on you, I apologize."

"Don't mention it," he said. "What are friends for?"

"But we've only just met," Erika reminded him. "It seems awfully rude of me to-"

"There you are!" a shrill voice interrupted, and when Lance turned around, he saw an elderly woman in a kimono rushing towards them, trailed by a couple of girls wearing maid's uniforms. Erika went ridged, all of the color except for the blue around her mouth draining from her face.

Slowly, she turned around, "Sayuri, I-"

"Look at you!" she said. "What are you wearing? And what on earth is that on your mouth?"

Erika gulped, "I had a snow cone-"

"I bet you think you're really clever, don't you?" she scolded. "Using Sleep Powder so you could sneak out!"

"I didn't think you'd let me go otherwi-"

"We will talk about this later," the woman said. "Come along, Erika."

"Y-yes, ma'am," she said, sliding off of her stool. She looked as though she would burst into tears at any moment. "Goodbye, Lan… Chet."

"Goodbye," he said, watching her leave for the second time. Yet, somehow, this time he was even more confused than the last.

"And just who do you think you are?" the lingering, pink-haired maid asked, giving Lance a bold shove. Had he not been so caught off guard, he might have actually appreciated it; if this angry lady knew who he was, she probably wouldn't have shoved him. At last, he had fooled someone!

"I-"

"A womanizing pig, no doubt," she said, crossing her arms.

"No!" Lance said quickly. "It was nothing like that!"

"You men are all the same; you're all just after Erika-sama's money," she said, crossing her arms. "She may be naive, but I can see right through your philandering ways!"

"I'm not a philanderer, I swear," he said, holding his hands up in mock-surrender. Having never been in a situation even similar to this one, he was quite flustered. "I didn't even know she had money! I mean, she offered to pay for the snow cones, so I assumed she had some cash on her, but-"

"Ha, don't make me laugh," she said. "There's no way in hell that you didn't know the heir of Celadon Gym was well off."

"I'm telling you, I didn't-" Lance paused, reality suddenly hitting him like a sack of bricks. "You mean…"

Suddenly, the maid's face softened, "Oh, she didn't tell you? Erika-sama is the leader of the Celadon City Gym. You didn't recognize her? She's, like, famous, I thought…"

"No…" Lance said blankly. "No, I didn't recognize her…"