So I'm happily updating this because why not? Enjoy Enlightening the Soul everyone!

Amy47101 does not own pokèmon, only her OCs, Vale and Sara.

o.0.o.0.o

The Adventure Saga

Enlightening the Soul

o.0.o.0.o

His heart tore open when he saw her just laying there. At first, he thought she was some sort of doll. He's seen them briefly in a storefront before, with hair in curls, dresses made of bows and frills. But she hardly seemed to fit the image of beauty that popped into his head.

She was a small thing, very skinny, he noted. Black hair had been cropped short, and he only assumed that she was a she because he could still see strands and chunks of long hair laying haphazardly around her. The entire left side of her face was red and wet, like someone decided to dip it in bright red paint. He could only tell that it wasn't paint based on the smell. It smelled… like those pokémon…

She twitched, fingers barely moving. Suddenly, one pupil shot to him. He startled, hiding behind the doorframe.

"H… H… He… Hel..."

Panicking at the desperate, ragged voice, he whipped around to fetch his toy medical kit from his room, head filled with ideas that he'd somehow cure her with bandaid stickers and squirt bottles of water, when he ran headlong into his father. He fell back, looking up startled.

"What are you doing?" his voice was curt, with a tinge of annoyance. "You know you aren't allowed out of your room, especially here." He wasn't sure how to respond, as he didn't sound angry, or disapproving. So he said the first thing that popped into his head.

"Father, that doll is broken!" he blurted in worry. He raised a hand, shaking. "Can you see her? She's broken."

His father lifted his head, following his quivering arm, then smiled a small smile. A smile he couldn't quite read.

"Ah, yes, she is broken. Quite." he quickly ushered him out of the way. "You remember me saying I was trying to create a new type of toy for you? One that moves around like a real child? Well, she was a test dummy. Poor thing must have been dropped and broke."

"But her face looks like it has…!"

"It's simply paint." he said with a shake of his head. "Must have knocked on over in the midst of her fall."

"But she… she talked!"

"Silly boy, how could a robot talk? This one doesn't even have a voice box installed."

"But… I heard…"

"It must have been something else." he began to almost shove him out of the way, away from the doll. "Come now. Lets take you back to your room. I brought some pokémon for you to play with. I'm sure they will keep you occupied until I can work out the kinks in that silly doll, right?"

Slowly, he nodded. After all, his father didn't have a reason to lie to him, and if he thought really, really hard about it, he faintly remembered his caretakers discussing bringing a friend in for him to have.

Surely this was what he meant. Surely.

o.0.o.0.o

"Where are you going?"

It was an innocent enough question, he figured. She was walking towards him, and he happened to be standing there. She walked much differently today. She walked with some sort of swagger, some sort of confidence that made her seem like the executive that she was.

"I can't talk right now, Hood." she responded, using her little nickname. He pursed his lips, catching up to her with a few short strides.

"Why?" he asked, falling into pace next to her. Unfortunately, he was stuck staring at the masked side of her face, so he really couldn't tell what she was thinking.

"Because I have orders right now."

"What are you going to do?"

"Nothing that concerns you."

He pursed his lips. She was dodging the question. He was used to her not divulging much on certain topics, after all, he was the same. She didn't even know his real name! Of the few times they had met up on the whim, they talked about whatever was present. Mostly pokémon, sometimes whatever topic seemed to pop into their heads.

But now it felt like Vale was being purposefully distant…

"Why?" he asked, coming around and walking backwards so he could look her in the eye. She kept her gaze steadily forward, as if looking past him, rather than at him.

"Hood." she said simply. Finally stopping. He stopped as well. "Let me ask you something. Why do you think I'm here?"

"Huh?" he asked. "What an odd question. You're here because you were hired, correct?"

She seemed taken aback by his answer, but almost looked as if she expected it. Then she shook her head with a small chuckle.

"I wonder what's so different about you." Vale said, glancing up at him. "Why would he care to preserve whatever innocence you had, but strip it away from the rest of us?"

"I don't understand." he muttered, furrowing his brows. He truly didn't. While his father had always been a distant man, he was certainly no villain. He gave him everything he ever could have wanted, from fun toys to loving caregivers in his steed.

"I didn't expect you to." Vale said quietly. "But that's okay, Hood. I'm glad you're happy."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked as she walked by him. Again, he quickly caught up. "It sounds like a goodbye. Is it a goodbye?"

"Hood, I'm going to put it simply. Depending on how the next few days go, I'm either going to be leaving, or staying."

"Leaving?" he exclaimed. "I don't want you to leave. You're my friend, aren't you? Why would you leave?"

"Because I'm not happy." Vale answered simply. "And I can successfully pull off these orders, then what was taken from me can be returned, and I can leave."

"But…" he trailed off, bowing his head with a frown. With this, they both came to a complete stop.

"You're making this out like it's goodbye forever." Vale said, shaking her head with a smile. "But wouldn't it have been the same every time we parted ways? We never knew when we were going to meet up again, right?"

"I guess… but this is different!" he insisted. "I know you were always close to Father, so I knew that if he was around, you were too, or at least you would always come back."

"...I'm sorry you feel this way." Vale said quietly. "But I'm not giving this chance up. If it makes you feel any better," she offered a small smile. "You are a good friend. And we can still be friends, if that's what you want. It just seems that we'll be walking different paths. But then again, Hood, how was that any different from before?"

It wasn't any different, he realized. But it didn't make it any harder to watch her walk away, knowing that the possibilities of him running into her to share in trivial talk were now marginally slimmer.

"It must be sad." he flinched and whipped around, seeing his father standing there with his arms crossed.

"Father! Ah, um…"

"No lying." he said simply. "Don't think your little relationship with her didn't go unnoticed. Surely you are aware that I have eyes all over the premises of this hideout."

He chose to not respond to that. Yes, he was aware, but he was so good about keeping his friendship under wraps.

"Of course, I can't blame you either. She's quite conniving, isn't she?"

"No! Father, you have it wrong, I was the one who said we should be friends…"

"Look at how she manipulated you. She has you thinking you're in the wrong, when you've done nothing wrong. It is the very same with me. I picked her up off the streets, fed her, raised her, gave her everything she could have ever wanted… and yet, what do I get for my kindness? Instant betrayal. Like a caterpie that she doesn't have a use for anymore, she abandoned me. All we were, all you were to her was a means to an end, and now, she's just dropping you," he snapped his fingers. "Like that. You're not worth her time anymore."

"But…"

"I know. It's hard being betrayed. But that's what people like her do. They manipulate. They steal. They hurt. But we… We aren't like that." he walked past him. "Now if you'll excuse me, I must make sure Vale carries out her orders as promised."

"Father… Please don't be mad at her…"

"And even now, you still sympathize?" he responded sharply. Hood, at this point, knew to shut his mouth.

"No, Father. I apologize." he bowed his head slightly. His father nodded, then continued on.

And yet, there was still this nagging feeling in the back of his head. It wasn't as if he didn't have any reason to disbelieve his father, after all, he always did everything to make me happy. He was always right. But something… something was off this time.

Maybe, he thought, just maybe, if he could talk to Vale one more time, he could talk some sense into her, and get her to stay.

With a new resolve, he decided to leave, and went back to his room, trying to calculate the perfect plan to encounter Vale again.

o.0.o.0.o

Dearest Trainer,

We could hardly be prouder than to say that we have been helped and have, in turn, helped you. With our greatest happiness, we have watched you grow over the course of your journey. We have heard that you even grew strong enough to defeat Clair, the strongest gym leader in the region. Dearest Johto dexholder, it would make us nothing but proud for you to formally attend our festival in honor of the pokémon of good fortune, Ho-oh. You will be a guest of honor, and we have only the highest hopes that you will attend.

Sincerely yours,

The Kimono Girl

o.0.o.0.o

New Bark Town was written in dark letters with bright, tiny handprints across it. It was as if children slapped their hands in pain and put them on the sign, over and over and over again.

"This sign has the handprint of almost every kid in New Bark Town." Lyra said, gently touching a hand to it. "It's a silly tradition, but before the law was passed, raising the training age to fourteen, the handprint of ten-year-olds would be put here as a memory of those who began their journey. After the age was raised, the tradition sorta died out…" she trailed off, smiling at him. "But the sentiment is cute nonetheless, right?"

"...Sure." Silver reluctantly agreed. "But why are we here?"

"...I want to show the professor how much you've changed." Lyra finally admitted. "...Clearly, you've earned the respect of a dexholder."

"What?" Silver practically hissed, shooting a glare at her. Subconsciously, he found himself gripping Typholsians pokéball. "Lyra, you're aware that I broke into the professor's lab and stole Cyndaquil, right? And you plan on presenting me on a silver platter to the professor?"

"No! Well, yes…" Lyra sighed. "Silver… I want them to recognize you for your greatness. You can't do that if you keep running away from them."

"I'm not running away. I'm avoiding arrest." Silver muttered.

"It's okay." Lyra said supportively, reaching out to grip his hand. "Let Typhlosian out. Meganium and I will be right by your side, and we're going to show Professor Elm how strong you are. Show him how much you've grown."

Silver ground his teeth, fighting against his inner conscious. Logically, his mind was telling him to turn back around and continue on his journey, to forget that he ever returned there. But on the other hand, his mind kept envisions a disappointed Lyra, with teary doe eyes and pouting lips.

It was like his right brain was arguing with his left brain, and it was making his head hurt.

"Fifteen minutes." he finally relented, releasing Typhlosian. "The minute he picks up the phone, I'm gone. Clear?"

"Crystal!" Lyra chirped, keeping a hold on his hand as she happily released Meganium. He heard an obvious snickering noise, then turned, seeing his Typhlosian with his head bowed.

"Typolsian." he muttered, glaring at him. Typhlosian slowly lifted his head, and evident smirk on his face.

"Aw, he's smiling!" Lyra gushed. Silver narrowed his eyes. He wasn't smiling, he was smirking. Teasing him. Making fun of him. And he knew that he would never raise his voice, let alone his hand, in front of Lyra. Damn thing was smarter than he looked. "Come on, Silver!" she exclaimed excitedly, still holding his hand and rushing into town.

o.0.o.0.o

As they approached the professors, Silver swore that he could hear his pokémon laughing the entire time that Lyra held his hand. Which is why he was grateful that the town was small and easy to navigate.

Lyra probably didn't have a subtle bone in her body. She slammed open the door to the professors lab with all the silence of a tauros in a glass shop, causing most of the lab assistants to jump in their seats. One even dropped all the papers he was holding, causing them to scatter all across the floor.

It was only when Lyra approached the one man who dropped his papers that Silver realized that he was no assistant, but rather, the professor himself.

"Professor Elm! I'm sorry!" Lyra exclaimed, bending down to help him. Unsure what to do, and fairly certain the other assistants were whispering about him behind his back.

"Isn't that the same red hair that broke in that one day…?"

"He wouldn't go and flaunt it around us, would he…?"

"But he's with Lyra…"

To spite them, he bent down and began picking up papers too. Looking up, he found that the professor was staring at him, his look a mix between curiosity and blatant fear. He scowled. These people acted like he robbed them at gunpoint, rather than throwing a smoke bomb in here…

"You… You're…!" he exclaimed.

"You're right." Silver muttered, standing up and passing the papers back to him. "I'm the one who stole Cyndaquil that day."

"Um… uh…"

"Should… should we contact the police, sir?" one of the aides asked quietly. Silver's first thought was to bolt.

"Please don't call the cops on Silver!" Lyra blurted out, hopping up and latching onto his arm, as if reading his thoughts. "He can explain everything, I promise."

Professor Elm looked between her and him for a moment, then slowly set his papers aside.

"Hold off on calling anyone." Professor Elm said to his assistants. "Lyra and… Silver, was it? Come to my office."

Silver slowly followed after the professor while Lyra stayed latched to his arm. He shot her a glance, and she looked back up at him.

"You're not running away." Lyra murmured under her breath, but nonetheless, relinquished her grip. As Lyra calmly shut the door behind her, the office was now cramped with the two full grown pokémon, the two teens, and the one adult. There was an uneasy silence as Professor Elm studied Typholsian of the brim of his glasses.

"I can't believe this is the same Cyndaquil that I was going to give to Ethan." he finally said. "He's grown quite a bit, hasn't he?" he reached out a hand to pet the pokémon, and Typholsian, much to Silver's surprise, allowed the professor to run his hand along his head. "This Cyndaquil was smaller than the others when he hatched. Poor thing was abandoned, and I ended up getting him. I was planning on giving him to Ethan because I was sure his talent of caring for and breeding pokémon would help him grow."

Silver chose to say nothing.

"I was so worried that he would crack under the pressure, being in the hands of a thief. But to see him this strong…" he glanced at Silver. "I'm surprised to say the least." Folding his hands, Elm seemed oddly composed in comparison to the stuttery, wimp of a professor that Silver encountered when he first robbed him. "Are you going to explain your actions?"

Silver said nothing for a moment, then quietly set Typholsian's pokéball on the cluttered desk.

"I will admit that I am the thief who stole that Cyndaquil. And I will admit that doing that was for strength and strength alone. When I took Cyndaquil, I saw him as a tool for battle. A tool to further me in life." he closed his eyes and sighed. "And I'm not gong to say I'm sorry for it either."

"Silver-!" he heard Lyra say, only for him to shoot a glare towards her. She shut her mouth at that, but kept her lips pursed, as if she was just waiting to open her mouth and apologize for him.

"And I have my reasons behind that too." Silver continued, slowly bringing his gaze back to the professor. "I'm not some pure soul like Lyra, or someone with a compassionate heart like Ethan. Unlike Krystal, I did not balance my training methods between strict and rewarding. I treated Cyndaquil… all my pokémon like the beasts I thought they were. If they disobeyed me, they were punished. Easily, I could blame myself treating them like that because that was how I grew up, but I don't believe in excuses. I did what I thought was best to craft the tools I needed to dominate anything in front of me. These were answers I gave when I took the test at the Dragon's Den and, not surprisingly, now that I think about it, I failed."

He let out a sigh, as if he finally let off a heavy weight that was holding him down. He bowed his head, staring at his folded hands.

"But I was never a person who would let a failure go. If I lost something, I always fought back with brute force. Somewhere along the line, though… something changed. I'm not willing to admit that my pokémon are my friends, not yet. But I will say I have a connection to them. I started to care for them… like pets, almost. Like companions. I'm not scolding them as harshly now. I've been… trying to grow closer to the one who's been with me since I was a child. So…"

He trailed off, lifting his head again to make eye contact with the professor.

"If you want to take Typhlosian back, that's fine. He was never mine to begin with anyway."

"Silver, no!" Lyra cried out, standing up in her chair. She whipped around to the professor, fists clenched to her chest. "Professor Elm, Silver is my friend, and I know he's made his mistakes in the past, it doesn't mean that you should take away Typhlosian!"

"Lyra-"

"No!" Lyra shot back to Silver, whipping around to look at him. "Silver, I watched you grow on this journey! You do care about them, you just admitted it! Your pokémon are your family, just as mine are, and I'm not going to watch you give one of them away!" before Silver could utter a word, she whipped back to Professor Elm. "Please don't take Typhlosian away!"

Professor Elm was silent at that, then he stood up and took Typhlosians pokéball in his hand. Just as Lyra feared the worst, Professor Elm opened his mouth.

"...I'm not going to take this pokémon away from you, Silver." he finally said, turning back to them.

"But… But I stole him from you!" Silver exclaimed.

"It sounds like you're a glutton for punishment." Elm responded cheekily. Silver opened his mouth to protest. He wasn't a glutton for anything, let alone punishment, but he grew up knowing that if he did something wrong, he would be punished. That was how it went.

In recent years, he learned in order to fend for himself, he would need to do wrong, and deal with the consequences. The police in this country were pathetic, barely able to handle Team Rocket. They didn't have time to chase down a redhead kid who stole a pokémon and a pokédex when they had a mob running loose, this not including the mysterious 'Masked Rockets'.

"As you know," Professor Elm continued. "My colleague is Professor Oak, and he researches the bonds between humans and pokémon. Though it is not my expertise, it does tear at my heartstrings to pull apart a trainer and a pokémon and a trainer who have clearly grown close."

"So…"

"Yes." Elm said, pressing the pokéball into Silvers hand. "Cyndaquil, no, Typhlosian, is yours to keep. Of course I'll have to inform Professor Oak on this update… but surely you don't mind, right?"

"Hardly!" Lyra exclaimed. "Thank you so much, Professor Elm!"

"Yes." Silver said, slowly looking to Typhlosian. With only a soft, barely visible smile, Silver closed his eyes. "Thank you. Very much."

o.0.o.0.o

"So the rumors really are true?" Ethan asked with a grin as he looked at the invitation that Lyra had presented to him. Lyra cocked her head curiously.

"Rumors?" she asked.

"That you were helping Kimono Girls!" Ethan exclaimed, now holding the letter in the air, as if examining its authenticity.

"I didn't realize that her helping out Kimono Girls was that much of a big deal." Silver muttered, crossing his arms as he tried to stay as far away from the small group as possible.

A few days prior, shortly after Silver and Lyra managed to regain Professor Elms faith in him, Lyra had received an invitation from an Espeon. The three friends had reunited together in Cherrygrove City, running into each other purely out of coincidence. After a few pleasantries, they began walking back towards Eucrteak City.

Somehow, SIlver found himself being dragged along for the festival.

"Kimono Girls used to be a symbol of purity. In more ancient times, if a male helped a Kimono Girl, he would receive her hand in marriage, if not vast fortune from her father or then husband. Helping a Kimono Girl nowadays is said to simply bring good fortune, but nonetheless, it's quite an accomplishment to have rumors of your helping nature reach as far as New Bark." Krystal said off handedly.

"Aw, I was just doing what any ol' person would do." Lyra said, waving her hand through the air dismissively.

"But to get a personal invite…" Ethan mused. "You sure that we're allowed to this?"

"I don't see a problem in bringing you guys along." Lyra said with a small shrug. "Besides, it's a festival, right? The point is to invite as many people as possible, so why not bring some friends?"

"I suppose…" Krystal trailed off, quietly brushing some of her bangs over her forehead.

"Oh!" Lyra suddenly exclaimed, smacking her fist into the palm of her hand. "Krys, you're wearing your bangs different."

Usually, Krystal kept her bangs parted right down the middle, framing her face. This time, however, she had them sideswept over her forehead, covering the skin completely.

"What of it?" Krystal asked defensively, a hand fluttering up and touching the hair.

"Nothing. It's just different." Lyra said with a shrug.

"I think it looks nice!" Ethan blurted out, though averted his gaze and scratched his cheek awkwardly. Krystal shot him a thankful look, and Silver swallowed his urge to gag. Shooting a glance at Lyra, he could only pray that he didn't look at Lyra the way Ethan was looking at Krystal. So obvious like that… It made him shudder just thinking about it.

And that was basically the gist of their travels. Ethan and Lyra would talk about something, Krystal would sometimes make them stop to catch a new pokémon for the pokédex, those these stops hardly proved fruitful as she had most of the pokémon already.

"What pokémon don't you have?" Silver finally snapped to her.

"Some Kanto native pokémon who haven't migrated over here yet and some certain evolutions of pokémon." she responded in a stern tone. "And, of course, the legends."

"Let me see." Silver said, snatching the dex from her. Clicking through it, he was honestly impressed by her progress. It was mostly filled! Of course, he didn't let that show. Shaking his head, he gave it back to her with a frown. "I can tell you your problem right now. Some pokémon need to be traded in order to officially evolve. You'd need to find a trainer who has said pokémon, trade with any specific item that is needed, and then trade back after the information is registered."

"Really." Krystal said, her tone not making out whether she was surprised or impressed by this knowledge. "And you know this because…?"

Silver was considering giving her a cold glare saying to shut up, or say that he read a lot of books, and that she should try it, but Ethan beat him to a response.

"No one cares about that." he suddenly snapped. For whatever reason, Silver felt like smirking at him. It was almost as if… getting a rise out of the easily irritable Ethan was as satisfying as winning a battle or, may Ho-oh strike him down if anyone ever heard this, making Lyra smile.

Regardless, getting a rise out of Ethan humored him. A little. A lot.

So they continued on the journey, Ethan choosing to mindlessly chatter to Krystal about the success that he's been having breeding pokémon at his grandparents breeding house, so much so that he was thinking of opening an adoption house very close to it once he finished his journey.

"So where did you learn about pokémon evolution anyways?" Lyra asked, seeing her other two friends were distracted. Silver, glanced at Ethan and Krystal, the former telling tales to impress the latter, the latter seemingly interested in his stories. This gave Silver a moment to think about Lyra's question for a moment.

"When I was younger… Under the care of Mask…" he trailed off quietly, making doubly sure that Ethan and Krystal weren't listening. "I remember that Mask had us trained in specific areas. The triplets were trained in the arts of fighting, one strengthening instinct, one strengthening the power of the mind, and the other strengthening the body. I only know them because they trained Vale and me when we were younger."

"So they were older than you?"

"Yes. Older than Vale, even. Then there were two other girls as well. They had more… supernatural powers, I think. One was a healer and the other could predict the future. I didn't know them very well, because Mask didn't want any form of comfort around the two of us." a pause. "They were the same age as Vale, from what I remember."

"So then there was you two, right? What does this have to do with pokémon evolution?"

"Mask trained me to make my pokémon as strong as possible, to get the best stat boosts when they evolved." he closed his eyes. "I still remember those lessons getting drilled into my head."

"But for what purpose?"

"I couldn't tell you." Silver said with a shrug. "But if I had to guess…" at that, he trailed off and stopped. He could only think of one reason as to why Mask excessively trained both him and Vale… "I can't remember."

"You don't?"

"No." Silver responded lamely. Lyra didn't respond for a moment, then she smiled at him.

"It'll come to you eventually, I'm sure."

That was all she had to say before she hurried closer to her friends, quickly jumping in on the conversation unintentionally, or perhaps intentionally, Silver wasn't sure, making Ethan much more heroic than he actually seems.

o.0.o.0.o

"Oh wow!" Lyra gawked as she stared at the festival that was around them.

The sun had just set upon their arrival, and there was already an impressive display. Streamers with unlit lanterns were strung across the stalls, and stands were already built, food vendors were in the midst of cooking various foods, and children were running around in yukata's with adults trying to keep up with them. At certain points in the town was performers, most making the most of their pokémon's moves, almost like it was a contest.

Ethan let out a whistle at the impressive display. Krystal seemed to be taking a keen interest in the performers. Even Silver was impressed by the display. It was almost as if this was more than a festival, but rather, a once in a blue moon celebration. Of what, he has yet to know.

"Hey!" Lyra said excitedly, standing on her tip-toes to look over the crowd. "I think I see Mr. Looker and Sara!"

"Really?" Silver muttered, stretching his neck to see what was going on.

Indeed, there was Sara and Looker, the former blending in rather well by wearing a midnight blue yukata with a flowery-white pattern across it, hair clipped up loosely with her bangs down and hair framing her face. On the other hand, the latter stuck out like a sore thumb by trying to hide behind a bush.

"Lets go say hello!" Lyra said excitedly, latching onto his arm and dragging him through the crowd. Supposing she was to excited to be reasoned with, he simply accepted the fact that she had chosen him among her friends to drag around.

"Tell Lyra we'll call her if we need her!" Ethan shouted after them, a hint of teasing in his voice. He glanced over his shoulder, and swore that he saw Krystal shaking her head like she was Lyra's mother or something. Embarrassed, but also… proud? He was having trouble telling.

Before he could decide if he should scowl at Krystal or smirk at her, Lyra was already raising her hand to wave at Sara and Looker.

"Sara!" she called out with a bright smile. Sara glanced up at the sound of her name and smiled. She held her hand in a half wave. At this point, they were standing right in front of her.

"Long time no see Lyra!" the young detective said with a big smile.

"Must be one with the bush… Must not blow cover like my foolish apprentice…" they heard Looker mutter. Silver rose an eyebrow, and looked back at Sara.

"Do we want to know?" Silver asked, nodding his head to the secret agent. Sara pursed her lips, then turned her face away.

"I just like to think he's under the influence, but no. He's sober, and doing that." Sara sighed. "But for me, that's normal. So what're you all up to?"

"We got invited by Kimono Girls!" Lyra said happily, bouncing from such excitement that she was jerking Silver's arm to and fro. "Now that Team Rocket is gone, everything's a lot more peaceful…"

Silver felt the need to bring up the Masked Rockets, and judging by the momentary flash in Sara's eyes, she wanted to remind Lyra as well… but by better judgement, both decided not to ruin the mood by bringing up the villainous team, at least not in front of Lyra.

"Hey, Lyra." he said, shaking his hand free. "You're hungry, right? Go get something to eat."

"Hm? Okay! Do you want anything?"

"I'll take whatever you get."

"Alright!" she beamed, darting through the crowd to purchase food. Sara smirked, crossing her arms.

"Still Lyra, huh?"

"If you mean she's still gullible as ever around her friends, then yes." Silver said.

"Oh? Friends? When did that happen?" Sara teased, unable to suppress a cunning smirk.

"Between then and now." he answered bluntly, crossing his arms. "I know how you police people work. You don't just take vacations to prance around festivals dressed up. Especially when you're on duty."

"You can tell I'm on duty?"

He could tell from the minute he saw her. It didn't even take having Looker claiming to be "one with the bush". Mask trained him in more ways than one to spot a spy, and as he grew literally on the streets, raising himself after he ran from him, he basically perfected the art in his own way. The concept basically applies to undercover or plainclothes cops as well. The way Sara stood off to the side, observing rather than participating, was the biggest tip off.

Her lips curled into an impressed smirk.

"Not to shabby, are you?"

"What's going on?" Silver responded.

"Well…" Sara mused. "This is highly confidential, but we think Mask might have deployed some agents here. They're seeking legendaries, so what better place to make a grand entrance after literal months of lying low than a festival celebrating the legends? Or at least the big bad Ho-oh."

Silver furrowed his brow for a moment. She was right to think that Mask would show up here. But how? And in what way?

"Sara!" he briefly turned his gaze to a young man with spiky brown hair approaching them. Briefly, he registered him as Gary Oak, one of the original four heroes of Kanto. And just as he had heard, he had a cocky, arrogant stride to him that really make Silver want to have nothing to do with him.

"Gary." Sara greeted, turning to him with a smile of respect. "What's going on?"

"Dayna and Fire are on their way. Leaf is getting an overhead view." he pointed upwards, and saw a Pigeot flying around with a young woman in its claws.

As Gary and Sara continued to discuss the threat that was possibly looming over them, Silver continued to think. Mask only made things bigger than it had to be when it really important. And Silver never even heard of him leaving the base. So he was probably going to dispatch a bunch of grunts, or a single executive.

A sudden thought occurred to him as he slowly gripped his right wrist.

Ever since he got this mark, and began experiencing 'symptoms' of it, he noticed something odd. Mask didn't bother to pursue him anymore. The man who kidnapped him, and was chasing him his whole life, suddenly stopped. In fact, from what he knew, almost all activity of the Masked Rockets had basically died down after the three legendary beasts were released, courtesy of Team Rockets bomb.

Shortly after that, he felt like he was being followed. Not pursued, really, but followed. As if being observed. It was neither threatening or comforting. Simply a presence who was studying him for some unknown reason. And now that he thought about it, within recent months, strange things always seemed to happen with him and fire. At first, it was things he could brush off, like campfires staring quicker than normal. Then it got odd, to the point of where he was noticing the fire being attracted to him, like he was some sort of magnet for flames.

…

…

…

It might be a far cry, but what if Mask wasn't lying low for the sake of lying low? From a tactics standpoint, it would make the most sense to attack right after Team Rocket fell, when the police forces were weakest and civilians were least expecting the shock of an attack. He wasn't waiting for strength or numbers, from what Silver could recall, he had plenty of that. Mask was always one to seize an opportunity, so it didn't make sense for him to not take the opportunity that was given to him.

Maybe… Mask wasn't laying low for the sake of lying low, but rather, he was trying to confirm something? To tie up some loose ends?

"Gary." he suddenly said, interrupting the conversation he was having with Sara. "This may seem like a bad time, but I need you to research as much as you can on the legends connecting to Suicune, Entei, and Raikou, along with their connections to the other legendary pokémon and people of Johto."

"I can do that for you, easy." Gary said arrogantly. "But my question is why the sudden history lesson?"

"Because I don't think Mask is lying low because he can." Silver said. "He's to smart to back down and let the enemy recuperate. Trust me when I say he's the type who will attack when you're down."

"Okay… But what does that have to do with the legends?" Sara finally asked. "I mean, I know he's after them for the most part… but this doesn't explain why you need Gary to research them."

"That's what I'm trying to figure out myself." Silver responded. "But please. I need you to gather as much information as you can, as quickly as you can. Anything, no matter how significant, could be vital to this theory."

"I'll see what I can do kid, but I'm not making any promises." Gary said, an arrogant tone to his voice.

"Good." Silver said, silently turning to Sara. "If what I think is correct, there's no doubt that Mask is here right now."

"Mask as in the boss, or his underlings?"

"The underlings. But it is most likely Vale is here." Silver said. "I need to find Ethan and Krystal. Look for Lyra too, this is important."

Sara sighed, running a hand down her face.

"All in all, I don't think I should be listening to you, but…" she leaned down towards him, speaking in a whisper. "I think you know what's going on. After all, you recall my specialty, right?"

Silver wracked his brain for a moment before it hit him. Missing children. And the reason she was really here in Johto was because she was looking for her old friend.

He nodded in response. Sara smiled, giving an approving nod.

"Alright then." she turned to Gary. "Before doing your research, contact Fire and Dayna. Change of battle strategy. Instead of being separated and attacked separately, we should try to get back together in a group." she glanced at Silver again. "Are you going for Lyra or Krystal and Ethan."

"Kyrstal and Ethan. My theory revolves around them."

"Got it." she turned to Gary and Looker. "You two look for Lyra and the other dexholders."

"Already in contact." Gary said, suddenly running off.

"Then I shall pursue your pigtailed friend." Looker said with a nod.

"I'll look for her too." Sara said, about to go in the direction opposite of Looker, but stopped when Silver grabbed her arm. She cast him a look out of her peripheral vision at him. "Yes?"

"When you find Lyra, tell her that I'm sorry we got separated… and tell her that we'll meet up later, okay?"

Sara stayed silent for a moment, then shook her head while shaking her arm free. With an over exaggerated shrug of her shoulders, she spoke.

"Idiot, if you wanna ask her on a date, don't use me as a messenger."

o.0.o.0.o

Lyra found that the festival foods of this town generally come on a stick. That worried her for a moment, as she was pretty sure she'd spill it down her front if she got anything on a stick. So she was pretty happy to find cotton candy prepackaged in a cute little plastic eevee-patterned bag. But that was besides the point at the moment. Because as of right now, she completely lost everyone.

She went back with grilled chicken on a stick for Silver and cotton candy for herself, but the spot where Sara and Looker and Silver was was completely vacant of the three people she was looking for. It was just overcrowded with townsfolk trying to celebrate their festival.

Lyra pouted her lips for a moment as she turned back around. If only Silver had a pokégear! This would make everything so much easier for her. Oh well, she decided, moving the chicken to her other hand to hold with her cotton candy. Unstrapping her pokégear, she began to walk about absently, clicking through to get Ethan or Krystal's number. She'll just call them and they'll think of a way to find Silver and Sara together.

Just as she was about to press the 'send call' button, music filtered into her ears. It was peaceful music, almost as if the notes were the wind, blowing through the entire festival. At that point, Lyra realized how quiet the festival had gotten. Everyone was quiet out of some form of respect. She closed her eyes, becoming lost in the music. Then, amidst the music, a bell rang.

Finding herself drawn to the noise, she moved past people, and briefly saw the twirl of the most gorgeous kimono's she's ever laid eyes on, adorning the bodies of five equally beautiful women. Honestly, as she looked closer at the five girls, she couldn't help but stare in awe at how similar they all looked, how they seemed to be dancing like flickering embers on the wind. As if to compliment their beauty, the orange and red rays of the setting sun graced their porcelain skin while the orangish leaves that seemed to grace the area around the Bell Tower year round fluttered around them.

And in the very center of the dance was a pure glass bell with a golden pattern in the shape of a heart on it exactly four times. It was floating there, ringing in a rhythmic way as the dancers danced.

Suddenly, something flashed from her chest. Lyra looked down for a moment, feeling a bit of heat from the center of her chest. Slowly, she reached up and tugged at the chain around her neck, seeing that it was attached to that rainbow feather that Sara had given her when they defeated Team Rocket. It was flashing in a brilliant, rainbow-hued light.

Lyra.

The voice echoed in her head, though she wasn't able to lift her eyes from the feather. She felt the snacks in her hand slip through her fingers, followed by her pokégear.

Come forward, young trainer.

Entranced, she stepped forward.

o.0.o.0.o

Silver was midway through trying to find Ethan and Krystal- he said 'and' because he was fairly certain that Ethan wasn't going to leave Krystal's side if it killed him- when pain suddenly shot through his right arm.

It was an intense pain that felt like fire was licking at the limb, causing the veins to pulse under his skin at a rapid rate. His heartrate accelerated and his vision even blurred for a moment.

o.0.o.0.o

Flames licked at his shins as he dove back into the house, using his sleeve to cover his mouth. Despite this, he coughed and choked on the smoke, eyes watering as he tried to shift under the weight the beams that trapped him.

He clenched his fists tightly as he struggled to move, but knew that, even if he managed to get free, something below his waist was broken. He wouldn't be able to do anything more than crawl.

He heard a tremendous roar and something crashed through the house. He forced his head up and saw his closest partner next to him. While the flames hardly affected the fire-blessed beast, even he knew that there was no hope for him now.

"Go." he ordered. "Evacuate everyone. There's no point in saving me."

The pokémon scoffed, then began using his head to lift the beams off.

"I said go!" he shouted more sharply. "Listen to me. No doubt my legs are broken, and even if I get out, I'm older now. Years of fighting are taking their toll. I won't be able to do anything to earn money for myself. I'd rather you go and save more vibrant lives than save mine, only for me to rot on the street begging for spare change."

He paused as coughing wracked his form. Each time a cough came from his lips, it burned his lungs, as if a horridly dried, clawed hand was reaching down his throat to pick out any moisture that was left, if any.

"I can't do anything more." he finally continued. "I've saved all the lives I could…Please… just go…"

The beast was silent, staring at him for a moment, then slowly nodded. As he continued to lay there, dying, he was sure his faithful partner was already snatching children and other villagers from deaths horrid embrace. A last, single thought flitted through his head.

Have I… proven myself, Entei?

o.0.o.0.o

Silver felt like he just emerged from a pool of water, gasping deeply as pain continued to wrack his one arm. Clutching the limb, his head snapped back, desperate for the fresh air that cleared out his lungs. It felt… almost like he was there…

He stumbled behind a building, still looking for Krystal and Ethan. Going around a corner, in a particularly shady spot between two buildings, he found them. Ethan was gritting his teeth, gripping his left arm as he seemed to be bearing some sort of pain. Krystal was sitting on the ground, curled in a ball and clutching her head. Faintly, he saw something glowing under her bangs. He cast a glance to his hand, inhaling sharply as he saw a faint glow through his glove. Slowly, he lifted his gaze back to Ethan. His left hand, too…

"So I was right." he said, loudly enough for them to hear. Ethan snapped his gaze up. Krystal was still clutching her head, but was gasping now. Silver himself could feel the pain in his arm slowly fading away. He stretched it out and clenched his fist, trying to ease away what was left of the lingering pain.

"Do you have any idea what's going on?" Ethan managed. He didn't even sound annoyed or angry. Just concerned.

"Remember when I met up with you while you were bussing in Goldenrod?" Silver asked. "And you mentioned a mark on your left hand?"

"Yeah."

"Has anything else… odd been happening around you?"

"Odd…? Yeah, actually. If having electronic devices short-circuit whenever I touch them counts."

"What about her?" he nodded to Krystal.

"No clue. She just started crying about her head hurting, so I took her away from the noise." Ethan said, casting a concerned glance towards her. "Do you know what's going on?"

"I have an idea." he responded simply. "Have you seen Lyra anywhere? We need to get her back before…" he trailed off as something suddenly began glowing from above. Odd, he thought. The sun had already set. Slowly, he lifted his gaze, and realized, in a mix of awe that it was anything but a star or the sun that was glowing brilliantly above them.

"Is that…" Krystal managed as she stood on shaky legs, staring at the form above them. "A pokémon…?"

o.0.o.0.o

The annoying dissonance of the townspeoples cries of annoyance echoed in her head. How disrespectful! they cried. How dare she interrupt the sacred dance!

It seemed that neither she nor the dancers cared though. While she was sure that most security would stop her, they didn't. The kimono girls seemed to take notice of her approaching, and instead of stopping the show and demanding she be taken away, there seems to have been a flash of recognition. So they worked the dance around her as she approached the ringing bell.

As if it were attracted to the bell, the feather lifted up farther and farther until, eventually, it was completely sucked into the bell, casting a rainbow hue over the crowd. People ooed and aahed at the display while she stood there, staring at the sky, waiting.

Then, in a flash of golden rainbows, something shined like the sun from above. It circled over them, as if studying the people. There was a rush of panic and awe as the giant bird landed almost directly in front of her, spreading it's majestic wings as a sign of it's power.

"Ho-oh…" Lyra murmured under her breath. The legend stared intently at her, and she slowly reached out to touch the giant bird. It bowed its head, respectfully awaiting her touch.

Just as her fingers were about to brush the side of its head, Ho-oh suddenly thrashed violently. Snapping Lyra out of her revere, she looked up, completely stunned to see the once peaceful pokémon now furiously attacking people around it. It attacked again, and she fell back, scrambling back as fast as she could to escape its wrath.

What… What on earth happened?!

"Come on!" she heard someone shout, grabbing her arm and hoisting her up. Briefly, Lyra registers priestess clothes and long black hair. "I'll take you to safety!"

"What happened to it?!" Lyra exclaimed, looking over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of what was going on. A forceful tug forced her to look forward so she wouldn't stumble.

"I don't know! I think I saw some weird people wearing masks attacking it though!"

Lyra widened her eyes.

Masks…?

o.0.o.0.o

"Hold up!" Ethan exclaimed, causing Silver to skid to a stop. Krystal stopped as well, both of them looking back at the raven-haired teen as he dug through his bag.

"What on earth are you doing?" Krystal demanded the obvious. "Someone was blatantly attacking a legend and Lyra is missing! We need to find Sara or our seniors immediately!"

"That's the thing." Ethan said after retrieving what he was looking for. He held up his vibrating pokégear. "It's Lyra."

Silver snatched it from his grasp and quickly pressed the answer call button, despite Ethan's protests.

"Lyra!" he exclaimed. "Where are you? It's chaotic out here and I'm-"

"You're what, Silver?"

His words froze in on his tongue when it hit him that the voice on the other end was certainly not Lyra's. Not even close.

"Worried, were you?"

A dark chuckle.

"Well, then. It seems even you have a weak spot, whether you're willing to admit it or not. Don't worry, though. I promise I'll keep her safe. After all, she's a pawn in my game, as you still are, Silver."

A pause.

"I'm sure you're wondering what I want. It's simple, really. I want you and your fellow dexholders, including the famous Leaf Green, to join the Masked Rockets. And for every day you don't submit, little Lyra will loose a finger. And if I run out of fingers, I'll start on toes. After that? Eyes and the tongue. And if you still want to push it…"

He trailed off darkly. At this point, Silver felt his grip loosen on the pokégear, but all that surrounded him was the ever echoing dissonance of Mask cackling laughter. And he had every right to laugh like he was victorious.

He had officially managed to get his ultimate trump card.

o.0.o.0.o

I honestly intended to update this a couple weeks ago, but I was having trouble transitioning into the next part. I needed to transition from Lyra and Silver in peace to Lyra and Silver fighting Mask. This, of course, was the transitioning chapter, and it was hard for me to write it all out.

But on the plus side, I know exactly how I'm going to end this story, so depending on the next couple weeks and my motivation to write, this story may be over soon!

Amy47101 signing off! ^.^