The mood surrounding Annette's victory over Leon had been considerably dampened by the news of the battle with the King and Chris. With both of them being either confined to a hospital bed or having gone MIA, this left a somber tone around the rest of Arcana, with hundreds upon thousands of spectators wondering when, if at all, the Master Cup Finals would conclude. ArcNet News no longer covered the event with such vigor and simply reported about the conditions of the King and Queen. Michael was seemingly beginning to stabilize under intense scrutiny, as if his heart was trying to pull off one last miracle. Less was openly known about Julia and her health, which caused many to fear the worst. The only thing known was that she had indeed given birth to twins. But her health and those of the babies was up in the air, as no one knew anything or was saying it. As for Chris, his absence from the limelight was nerve wracking to say the least, but many suspected he would pop in at some point.

But with another lengthy period of time without battling, it found Matthew Kingston in a very unexpected and worrying place. He had sent several messages and date invitations to Annette in the past few hours, only to be met with a polite but distant "no, thank you" response. He was alarmed. Things had been looking up for him the day prior, when Annette had planted a kiss on him for all of the public to see. But now, she was distant and trying to be alone. He respected her desire for it, but the fear and alarm he held for her wellbeing and that of their relationship worried him. He feared he had been in a similar place to which his brother and Addison were in during the conflict with Claude's thugs.

And he didn't have many people to turn to who would understand his worries. Addison was in meditation constantly at Kingston Castle, hardly having time for much else anymore. His mother and Holly had both told him very gently to keep his distance and give her any space she needed, but this only caused his anxiety to go through the roof. Jocelyn had mentioned trying to talk to her, but all of his attempts had ended in vain. And he did not have Julia to talk to now in this moment either. Neither of the Augustine Girls was available, with Morgan being roped into helping Addison with whatever she was doing and Jasmine preparing for a long trip to Kalos once the Master Cup Finals were over. This left Matthew with only one final "girl" to talk to about it. But Dawn was proving just as clueless about romance and connections as he was.

He had tracked Annette down to Taghwan City on her own, as she had gone to visit Jeremy's sister while she was working at the Jeweler's. He had dragged Dawn away from preparing for a day of training to help him figure out his situation, much to her dismay.

"Remind me again why I have to be involved in this?!" Dawn moaned as she and Matthew tried to keep up with Annette's many travels throughout Taghwan that busy day.

"Because we're friends, right?" Matthew responded as they came to a halt. "And I'd help you if I could figure out what was up with Annette."

"How would you help me?!" Dawn replied cheekily. "We both lost in the second round of the tournament. If I'm going to be a Master of the Battle Frontier and one day Sinnoh's Champion, I can't waste time on this stuff. Besides, I'm pretty sure Lucas is the sentimental one of the two of us."

"And if Addy hadn't also roped him into whatever she has planning, I'd ask for her help! Now come on! We can't lose her, now!" He grabbed Dawn's wrist and continued to lead her through the crowded streets, ultimately finding Annette looking out at the Tram as it brought riders from Magic Junction or Titanio City and back again. Once they had come up to where Annette had stopped, he yanked Dawn behidn a wall and kept her there. "We can't let her see us! I don't want her to think I don't want her to have privacy!"

"But you don't" Dawn answered, trying to free her hand from Matthew's grip. "And would you let go?! I'm not going to get involved in your love life, Matt. I have my own to deal with." When Matthew feared Annette had heard them when she made a quick glance behind her, he quickly put her up against the wall they hid behind and put his hand over Dawn's mouth. When the moment past, he let her go, but kept his hold of her wrist.

Matthew looked to her desperately. "I do want her to have privacy. But if I did something wrong, I think I deserve the right to know."

Dawn sighed. "Look, like I said, Lucas is the sweeter one of us. But if you ask me, I think Annette would want you to be yourself. Don't be her hero. Just be...well...you."

"All I have to do is be myself?!" Matthew asked, almost not believing her. "How could it be that easy?"

"Sometimes the best solutions escape us when we're anxious" she replied, giggling as she did. "Now, about my fee."

"That's it! Thanks, Dawn!" Matthew made to run past her, but this time Dawn caught his hand and held him back.

"Hold it! My fee?"

"Fee?" he asked in confusion. He was shocked when she pulled him back to where he had been before. "What fee?"

She shook her head angrily. "You basically stole me away from a day of training and then expect me to give you my wonderful advice for free?!" She angrily took a firm grip of his hand with both of hers. "Nuh uh. Nope. You owe me for this, Matthew!"

"What do you want, then? A battle?"

"If your brother had a hard time with me, I doubt you could beat me" she remarked, somewhat jokingly.

"If you just wanted to insult me, then are we good?" He made to pull away again, but Dawn remained firm. He used his other hand to grapple with her in an attempt to free himself, only for that one to be trapped in Dawn's grasp to. He expected to be insulted or ridiculed but paused when he saw a sad look on his friend/rival's face. "You okay?"

Dawn sighed, her grip on his hands lightening a bit. "When all of this is done, things are going to go back to the way they were before all this. Only this time, I won't have Lucas with me. He's going to complete his doctorate and then be off in Sandgem Town getting ready to replace Professor Rowan. I won't have Cynthia either. She's going to go to her place in Undella Town before the League opens up." She eyed him with a surprising amount of respect. "Though I mock your skills, you went toe to toe with Lance and might have come out on top if he didn't have that ace up his sleeve. I need someone who can be a rival to me in Sinnoh as well as here. I know you're needed in Arcana, but I want you and Annette to come with me to the Battle Frontier."

Matthew was caught completely off guard by this request. "You want us to go with you?! Don't you hate me?!"

Dawn laughed at this. "Look, you and I will never be as friendly as your brother and me were. But that doesn't mean I don't care or that we're not friends." She looked up to the skies above them, trying her best to fully orchestrate her words. "You and Annette are both excellent trainers and I suspect that if I invited one of you to join me, the other would insist on coming. If Annette doesn't win the Title Match and take on the mantle of Champion, I think it's a no brainer that you come with." She then returned her attention to him. "And if she does, well, then I expect you to visit as much as possible."

"Assuming she doesn't offer you a position in her Elite Four?!"

Dawn shook her head. "I highly doubt I'd be high on her list. You would be, I suspect and most likely Giselle. But it would be my honor to go into the Battle Frontier and compete with two people who aren't just extremely good trainers, but also my friends."

Matthew sighed. "Leaving Arcana may not be in the cards for a bit. We still have a lot to rebuild. The entire Pokémon League has to be rebuilt from scratch and if Michael doesn't recover..."

"Then how about in the future?!" she pleaded. "You guys don't have to come now. But I want you guys to be competing with me for the rest of our lives the same way Cynthia and Michael did with one another. It's important, not just personally, but also politically and professionally for our regions to cooperate more and more in the future."

Matthew thought for a moment. The offer was tempting. To compete in the Battle Frontier and show himself in ways that Ryan never had? And after all, though he and Addison were still best friends, his oath to her was ended now that Mewtwo was gone. The world didn't need the White Mage anymore. He was free to pursue whatever he wanted. His thoughts lingered on Annette and how he might compel her to join him in heading to the Frontier. He collected himself and returned his gaze towards Dawn. "I'll think about it. But keeping my girlfriend happy is most important. And I don't think she'd be particularly happy if she caught me holding hands with another girl."

Dawn's face went red at this and she quickly released him. "Cool. I...uh...I'm glad you'll think it over. And uh...remember what I said. Be yourself with her and you'll be fine." She backed away from the situation before breaking into a full-on sprint and vanishing beyond Matthew's view.

Once he was sure Dawn was gone, he took a deep breath and made it over to where Annette stood overlooking the trams. He recalled how, in one of his sadder moments during the war, Ryan explaining to him how he and Addison had cheered each other up about Michael when they believed him dead in the Taghwan Hall attacks what felt like a lifetime ago. Now, it was his turn to comfort Annette. She did not look to him or even acknowledge him at first as he walked up to her and leaned on the same railing she did.

He wasn't sure which way to approach this. With humor? Compassion? An offer to battle? A hug? A kiss on the cheek? He didn't know what it would take to get the smile he wanted to see the most out there. It was almost as if she didn't even know he existed at that point. Realizing he had no choice but to wing it, Matthew cleared his throat. "You know no one has forgotten about you, right?" She did not immediately respond, instead leaning more on the railing than before. "I mean, a lot is going on. And with my cousins duking it out like they did, I know it may feel like everyone forgot what you did, but know that I wouldn't. You made me so proud to watch you fight Leon and come out on top."

"I just...don't understand..." she muttered sadly.

"It's not your fault" he assured her. "Look, one day, you'll be the one getting popular with the people. I'd be devastated if anything happened to you during your match with Leon. So, it's only fitting that-"

"Net net?!"

Matthew raised an eyebrow at that. "Huh?"

"What's so funny about 'Net net'?" she asked him.

"I don't even know what a 'net net' is. But if it's bothering you-"

"It's what Kayleigh calls me" she explained. "Usually, if it's just us in the room, she'll growl and pout at me, but whenever someone says my name, she just says 'net net' and laughs like it's the funniest thing ever."

Matthew chuckled. "I guess I didn't miss out on it, then."

She stretched her body out. "Did I do something wrong? I mean, I never imagined your sister would-"

"Sweetie" he explained, "it's nothing you did. She's...just very clingy about me and Ryan. She is not a fan of Addison's, especially when it meant Ryan wasn't giving her his full attention. I guess it's the same with us now that we're dating. She thinks 'net net' must be the world's funniest nickname or something."

"I didn't mean to-"

"She's just going to have to learn to put up with you" he compelled her, putting his arm around her. "Because as far as I'm concerned, you aren't going anywhere."

Annette finally smiled at this. "Well that's good. I didn't have my doubts on that front, but if it means I have to work harder to earn the respect of your sister, I will." She sighed and lowered her head. "Now, that leaves me with one last problem."

"No one has forgotten how-"

"You think I care what others think of me?!" she gasped teasingly. "I could care less what they want to see. I just want to know who I'm facing in the Title Match. I need to be able to prepare myself. Beating Leon took everything I had. But your cousins are in a different realm of challenging. Especially the King. But if his health scare continues, how will I know if he can give me one hundred percent in our match? And then there's Chris. He would have been flattened by Michael if his health didn't flare up. Did he give his all to his match? Or was he holding back? I've seen Chris take part in several tournaments, but I don't know what to expect if I'm up against him." She leaned her head on Matthew's shoulder. "I'm nervous. This is the farthest I've ever made it. And if I don't become Champion...will I ever?"

"If you don't beat whoever your opponent is" Matthew assured her, "then it just means you need a bit more seasoning. I doubt you do, though. If Lance, Diantha and Leon can't beat you, I don't think there is a hurdle you can't overcome. Besides, even if you don't win, there is a silver lining to it. Dawn invited us to go to the Battle Frontier with her."

Annette raised her eyebrow. "The Battle Frontier? You mean, you didn't get accepted?"

Matthew paused. "Wait...I was supposed to be accepted? I thought it was an invite."

She giggled as her face went red. She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "You are such a boy. Don't worry. I'll help you fill out the paperwork." She then wrapped her arm around his. "So, where are we headed today?!"

"Every single time I asked you out before, you said no. Why the change in mind?!"

"A girl has to keep her secrets, right?"

"I suppose" Matthew responded, though he was sure he understood them even less now than he did before.

{}

The hallways of Titanio Hospital were bland and uninteresting, which only made the anxiety within Chris grow worse as he traversed the halls to find where the maternity ward was. While there were signs and other things pointing in directions, he found his nerves becoming more unbearable as time went on. This was going to be a day that essentially defined who he was for the next decade or so. And instead of finding some temporary distraction from his woes, he was being tunneled towards them at an alarmingly fast rate. One way or another, he would have to overcome the final demons in his way from becoming the man everyone prayed he would one day be. One wrong move and he would lose everything.

He didn't sleep a wink. He rarely ever missed an opportunity to pass out after heavy drinking, but his fears about losing both Michael and Julia, combined with the story Bridgette had told him had kept him from getting a reprieve. He had showered and changed his clothes into less formal attire, mostly to avoid being seen by people he may not be too keen on being recognized by. But he was not hungry, thirsty or tired. He would not give himself the luxury of those things just yet. Not until he had done as Bridgette asked and overcome the darkest aspects of his past, once and for all.

He had hoped to say his piece to Michael first, but upon learning from Amanda that Piper was with him at that moment, he knew better than to go where his wife was, especially when he had to clear the air with her prodigal sister. He made a rapid move towards the maternity ward waiting room to avoid making even eye contact with Piper, knowing that he could not possibly hope to keep her love and affection unless he made the final transition to manhood he needed to. She had to be saved for last. Michael would come after he saw Julia.

He turned the corner into the Maternity Ward's waiting room. To his surprise, it was almost entirely empty. According to Mark, Anthony had brought the young Prince James to see his mother but had moved to the waiting room outside of his father's room instead when Julia was going through a painful episode. Victoria had gone to Kingston Castle to take up a shift of watching her niece and nephew alongside Lady Erin, leaving only Cynthia behind to guard the way towards where Julia was now resting or enduring immense pain with her infection flaring back up. Cynthia kept her head down and did not acknowledge him as he entered. He sat across the room from her and fidgeted nervously as he awaited a nurse so he could ask if the Queen would see him.

"I hope she's okay" Chris lamented. "If she doesn't pull through..."

"I'm surprised you don't have faith she can make it through this" Sinnoh's Champion finally responded, keeping her attention elsewhere. "She's been through worse situations and come out on top."

"Not when her husband's life hung in the balance."

Cynthia sighed. "Michael is not going to die, Chris. He's recovering. Slowly and definitely not at a rate I would prefer him to, but he is. If my friend was going to die, don't you think I'd be there instead of watching over his wife?" She was silent for a long moment, as if waiting for Chris to say something before she continued. "I know what you're going to say to her, Chris. What you have to get off your chest."

"How would you know?!" Chris said anxiously. "Have you ever had the capacity to destroy a friendship over something like this?!"

"The honest answer is not going to be something you'll like to hear" Cynthia replied, her words dripping in melancholy. "There was a time I did consider it. A long time ago, when I was a stupid girl in love. But seeing the happiness of someone I loved with someone else made me feel better about myself. And it helped me move on to what I was supposed to do with my life. It even, for a time, helped me find someone that could help me forget the pain for a bit. And even if that didn't work out in the end, I will always give them my full love and support. You need to ask yourself if you are willing to do the same for Julia and Michael."

"Of course I am."

"If you were one hundred percent sure, then why would you be here to say what you need to say?"

This shut Chris up. He lowered his head in shame. He wasn't sure if he could. He had not let go of his feelings. He had simply buried them underneath the rest of his grief and despair. He must have hoped that time fighting side by side with Michael and revisiting their friendship and brotherhood would have helped him fully get over his feelings for her. But even Cameron had sensed he was not quite over her, especially if she was willing to fight Julia over the pain she'd caused the both of them. Now, with all of this insight to how he was feeling about the past and all that was boiling over, he needed to look inward and fully confront the pain and will it away if possible. Because the only way forward without that would be more moments of him self-destructing and losing that which was most important to him.

The doors to the maternity opened and a nurse came out and bowed respectfully to the two. "The Queen is able to see visitors now" she chirped. "But please do not overstimulate her. We have given her plenty of antibiotics to fight the infection, but her priority is her children. Which of you will see her?"

Cynthia looked to Chris and gestured. "He will. And he will abide by the rules, right Chris?"

The nurse held the door open for Chris to slowly walk inside after her. He made one last look to Cynthia before heading in to face his fears one last time. To his surprise, she was in the first room they approached. "The Queen has an emergency button if anything is wrong. If you will excuse me, I must check on her child in the NICU."

"NICU?!" Chris gasped.

"The Queen will explain if she's fit" she explained before ushering him inside.

Chris took a deep breath and slowly walked into the room. There was a gentle, almost angelic bit of meditation music playing in the room. Julia was leaning heavily on the back of her bed, her hair frizzled and completely tangled from the immense pain she was in. While one hand gripped the side of her bed tightly, the other held a small, fussing form wrapped inside of a pink blanket. Though her eyes were squeezed shut in pain, she would gently console the baby in her arms.

"Shhhh. It's okay, my little angel" she assured her daughter. "Mommy's here. I wish Daddy was, too."

Chris stood frozen in the hallway, a swelling of emotions taking him over. He envisioned himself being the man coming in to check on his newborn child and wife. But to his shame, he could no longer tell who was on the bed to see him. Was he about to destroy his friendships and his relationships with his wife, brother and Julia? Or was he finally going to be able to bury the past? He peeked his head around the corner and did his best to admire Julia and her new daughter enjoying time together.

Julia sighed. "And your brother, too." Her eye found Chris and she did her best to smile. "Can't say I expected you to be the first one to visit, but I welcome it all the same."

Chris nodded and walked inside, sitting beside the exhausted Queen. "How are you doing?"

"Oh, as well as someone in my position can be" she winced, clearly in an absolute nightmarish amount of pain. "I mean, I have an infection that may prevent me from ever having children again, one of my newborns is struggling in the NICU and I'm in no condition to see him and my husband may be dying somewhere in the hospital. So yeah, so well." She cradled the newest Kingston in her arms though, her primary concern about her daughter. "But look at your niece, Chris."

Chris smiled faintly at the small, crying bundle in Julia's arms. "She's beautiful, Jules."

"Celina Jane Kingston."

Chris froze at the name, one no doubt honoring his biological mother and Michael's chosen mother. "A fine name. And I'm glad she's as healthy as can be."

"I don't think it's right to keep them separated" Julia admitted, "but I need to know at least one of my family members in this hospital is okay. Do you know anything about Michael's condition?"

"Aside from it being mostly my fault?" Chris shook his head shamefully. "No. I came to see you first. I wanted to make peace with Michael in case...in case things don't go how we want, but things are a little tense with my wife so I chose to come see you first."

"What caused this?" the Queen asked as Celina Jane finally began to settle down in her arms. "Did something happen at the Bistro?!"

Chris could not bear to keep her in the dark any longer. "I found out some...very disturbing things from Shannon and my father. And when I did, I kinda lost my mind. I lashed out at a lot of people, including your husband and my wife." Julia slowly shifted her daughter into her other arm as she tried to give Chris her undivided attention, allowing Chris to continue. "My Dad...cheated on my mom."

Julia was silent for a long moment, as if contemplating all that would stem from this. "So that's why Bridgette came back so quickly."

"Bridgette talked your husband out of doing something we agreed on the night before and when I found out from Kat, we almost went at it in the locker room. I said some horrible things I now regret with every fiber of my being. And that's why Michael used the Crimson Fury when we fought. He thinks he caused my mother's death. And now Cameron's, too. I cannot even begin to describe how awful I feel, especially now with Piper basically saying it's over if he doesn't pull through."

"He will. I will drag him back from the Realm of Arceus if I have to."

Chris took a long moment to gather his courage to make his final confessions. "I'm...I'm not ready to lose them, Jules. I'm not ready to be alone. And I can't bear to bury another close person in my life, right now. That includes you and him."

"I won't lie and say I've been in worse pain" his old friend whispered, hoping against hope that her daughter would sleep until her nurse came to pick her up. "But I need to stay alive for my babies. All five of them. When they are able to take care of themselves, Chris...ugh...then I can die in peace, knowing they are okay." Her face darkened as the idea of her husband truly dying crossed her mind. "But I need Michael to be there with me when it comes. If he dies, half of my reason for being goes with him. I vowed to him that I would never leave him. And barring that one, asinine and stupid lapse of judgment three years ago, I like to think I kept that promise."

"Bridgette thinks a way for me to overcome my past is to finally let go of it all. So that I'm not burdened by it."

"A tough challenge. Not even Michael has let go."

Chris nodded. "Something I might be able to do outside of his shadow then. But to do that, I need to finally end all of the things that have burdened me all of these years."

"Will you forgive your father?"

"No. I can accept he did it. I can even accept my mother doing what she did to prevent Cam and I from discovering it. But the fact that he spent years after we beat the Syndicate and brought Michael home hiding it shows he truly has no honor in him. I can forgive Shannon. At least she's remorseful. And I do owe Bridgette an apology for saying what I did about her to Michael. But my father? I will never forgive him for this. He will have to make his peace with what he did before I ever try to make amends. My mother didn't deserve to have her life ruined."

"So if you're set in your ways with regards to your father, why come to me first?"

"My father's actions aren't the only ones I need to come to accept." He lowered his head, knowing the next few words he spoke may decimate any chance he had of making things right by anyone who mattered to him left in his life. "I...I never truly got over what happened between us..."

Julia raised an eyebrow at this. "You're actually doing this now?!"

"You never do get over your first love" Chris admitted. "I held my tongue for both yours and Michael's sake. Because I knew you two needed each other. So I could easily sit back and let things go their intended way, despite how much I wanted to be with you. But when you two got engaged, I won't lie and say I wasn't broken up about it. I know I could never replace Michael to you, especially after all that happened on Mt. Heatmor, but I couldn't help how I felt. So...in a bit of a drunken stupor one of the nights before the wedding, I wrote you a letter. I poured my heart and soul into it and was dead set on giving it to you beforehand."

Julia was certainly not expecting this. "A letter about us?"

"But Shannon found it and gave me like a hundred reasons not to give it to you. If I wanted to keep Michael in my life, as well as you, I had to let you go. And for a while, after I burned that letter, I thought I had. I love Piper. I love her with every fiber of my being, and yet I can't tell if you had ever asked me to do something, would I stick to my choice or follow you without another word. And that's what scares me. I could never imagine letting Piper go, but I know this could very easily destroy everything the four of us have."

"Chris, what happened between us..."

"I burned the letter" Chris reiterated to assure her. "And I don't regret it. But I won't lie and say I forgot what it's contents said. I'll spare you the emotional details, but I was going to ask you to run away with me. So Michael could properly heal and we might have a chance to...but it doesn't matter. Michael would never have tried to heal if you weren't there with him. I can see that now."

"After all the work I did to get Michael back, you think I would have just abandoned him at a whim?"

"I felt I had to try" Chris shrugged. "What did I have to lose if Michael was leaving for Kalos regardless of what you or I wanted?"

Julia took a long moment to contemplate her words. "Chris, I love you. And I am so thankful that if I didn't get to share my first kiss with Michael, that it was with someone like you that I could trust with my life. But I love you the same way I loved your sister, or the way I love Mark and Lizzie or the boys or anyone else in the family. Maybe a bit more, but if I had to choose between you and Michael, I would not hesitate to pick my husband. I love him with all of my heart and soul. If he dies, the part of me that is a hopeless romantic would die with him. All that would matter to me are my children."

Chris nodded. "I know. I guess I just needed that reassurance from you. I don't want to ever put you and him in a situation like this again, or Piper for that matter. But I can't stop how I feel."

His first love let out a beleaguered sigh. "Chris, if we're being honest here, I think you should use this as an opportunity to understand what your father did and move from it."

He tensed up at this. "Understand what? How he betrayed my Mom and us? How he-"

"Think for a minute, Chris" Julia responded gently, so as not to disturb her slumbering daughter. "Shannon stopped you from making the same mistake your father did just before my wedding to Michael, your brother. You would have willingly crushed our friendship group, broken any bonds you and Michael had and likely forced Cameron to choose between you two, all to take a gamble that I would break Michael's heart again and choose you. Tell me how you are in any way different from your father, who willingly destroyed his own family because of how he felt about another woman."

Chris let his head droop. Once again, Julia had made a foreign concept to him seem so abundantly obvious. It was something he had always admired about her, never being one to tap dance around an issue. She was right. He was willing to do the same thing his father had done just as Michael and Julia were about to get married. He didn't deserve any kindness or pity from either of them, but he could only hope both of them would still care for him as they always had. Without Cameron and if something happened to his still young marriage to Piper, Julia and Michael were all he had left.

Julia smiled faintly and took his hand. "The path to forgiveness isn't one that's easily walked, especially because the first step is one almost no one ever manages to cross."

"What is that?"

"To forgive yourself."

In the back of his mind, Chris was sure now that he remembered every word of that letter he wrote to Julia. But if he wanted to forgive himself for his actions, he needed to move on. If there was a way to delete it completely from his memory, he would. But for now, with his friendship with Julia refortified, he could truly say goodbye to the boy who had loved his childhood neighbor and focus completely on the last two people he needed to forgive him. He was about to comment as such, when he could hear footsteps approaching. He let go of Julia and sat anxiously, hoping that the nurse was back with good news about his nephew. "What is his name?"

"Whose?"

"Your son's?"

Julia closed her eyes and let her head rest back on the pillow for a moment. "Sora. Sora Christopher."

Chris nodded at the tribute to himself. "Somehow, I always liked that name."

The nurse entered the room and spied the infant asleep in her mother's arms. "I see the fair princess has become comfortable with her mother. But I need to return her to the incubator to be with her brother." She walked over and gently took the sleeping Celina Jane from her mother. "Your son will be under observation for the next few days, Your Grace. But after that, the three of you should be able to return home."

Julia nodded, her eyes closed. "Now if we can just hope my husband gets out soon enough."

"I'll have his Health Proxy come and give you any news regarding his health." The nurse paused at the door with the baby in her arms and did her best to curtsy. "Forgive me, Your Grace. But Douglas Kingston is here for a word." She then slipped out of the room as Christopher's aged Uncle Doug entered the room and stood over her bed.

"Good to see you" Doug told his in-law. "How are you feeling, Julia?"

"Oh, as good as I'll ever be" she remarked sarcastically.

"How are those little gifts from above?"

"Celina Jane is as healthy as can be" Chris answered his uncle for an exhausted Julia. He could tell Julia was extremely emotional about her son's welfare and thus chose to speak on her behalf. "The other little guy should be fine with a little more observation. He's named after me, you know. Sora Christopher."

"Never took you for a 'Sora', Chris. But I digress." He cleared his throat. "While I'm glad that you are doing well, Julia, I have to admit that's not the whole reason why I came."

"Business, I suppose?" Julia wondered aloud.

"With regards to the Master Cup Finals" Doug sighed, his attention turning to Christopher. "We need to talk about what-"

"You don't have to say a word" Chris responded politely. "But I doubt the tournament can resume until Michael is at full health."

"That's just it, Chris. Michael may never be at full strength again after this. Jenna and Amanda have said that Michael won't even be able to train again for another six months. His heart just isn't strong enough, right now." Noticing both his nephew and the King's wife tense up at these words, he attempted to reassure them. "But Michael will recover. It's just that, despite his overwhelming advantage over you in the semifinals have left the judges of the Master Cup in a predicament. Michael was clearly going to win that match, but with him unable to physically continue either your match with him or advance to the Title Match with Annette, that leaves you as the winner of the Semi-Finals, Chris. You are going to advance to the Title Match in his place."

Chris's face darkened. "No. Michael can take it up in a few months when he's ready."

"You're not listening, Chris. Michael may never battle again after this. It's too risky with his health already in question."

"Then crown Annette a Pokémon Master!" Chris hissed. "I'm dropping out."

Doug was aghast. "You can't be serious, Chris. We're so close to-"

"Doug, let me handle it" Julia interjected. Her eyes then turned to Chris, the man who had already confided in her his deepest feelings. "Chris, my husband may very well be on death's door. He may never battle again. And the only reason he was even put at risk was because you snapped at him about something beyond his control." She took a deep breath as she reclined back onto her pillow. "If my husband suffered through this for nothing, I am going to make the remainder of your life a living hell. Michael would want you to be there in the Title Match. It's something you've been dreaming of for all of your life. You spent so long trying to climb out of Michael and Cameron's shadows and now you're throwing away your best chance?!"

"I don't deserve the chance" he admitted. "I don't deserve anything, if we're being honest."

"I disagree. So would Michael. So would everyone else who has seen you grow up these last few years. This may be the one and only chance you have of proving yourself the best Pokémon Trainer you can possibly be. If you give up now, what are you going to say to justify walking away when it mattered most?" She took his hand once more. "This is your time, Chris."

"I didn't beat Michael, though."

"The rules say otherwise" Julia assured him. "You are going to give this all you've got. And you're going to do it for me, for Michael, for Cameron and for your wife."

Doug stood at attention at the foot of Julia's bed. "Your call, Chris."

Chris gave Julia's hand an affectionate squeeze. "I can't say no to the Queen." He then rose and faced his uncle. "When will the Title Match be held?"

"Tomorrow at sundown."

"Make sure Annette is ready" Chris remarked. "Because I'll be spending the next several hours making sure I am." Doug departed as soon as Chris gave him his answer and Chris then turned his fullest attention to Julia. "I'll be out of contact until the match tomorrow, but if you need me, call me on the KERN."

Julia nodded. "Will do. Take care of yourself, Chris."

Chris nodded and departed from the room with speed rivaling his Uncle's rapid departure. He would have continued his rapid move towards his own personal training grounds had he not been called on his Poke Gear by a nurse from the Pokemon Center in Titanio City. He answered nervously, almost forgetting he had Pokemon there resting and recovering from his brutal clash with Michael.

"Lord Kingston, sir" Nurse Joy commented on the other line. "I'm afraid that we're going to need to keep your Alakazam with us for a few more days. The battle with Rhaegar devastated him. But the rest of your team should be ready to go now."

Chris's face went white. "Jafar?!" Jafar was the heart of his attack. His psychic prowess and amazing stamina made him a vital cog to even hope to compete in the Title Match. Without a strong telekinetic attacker, Annette was going to dominate the match with him without much hassle. He took a deep breath. "Thank you for taking good care of him, Nurse Joy. I'll be there to pick up the rest of my team in a few minutes." He made for the exit to the Maternity Ward.

Cynthia remained outside where Chris had left her, cross-legged and her eyes cloaked. She did not even make a passing glance at him and remained seated there until another update could be given with regards to either Julia or Michael's health. Chris gave her a halfhearted wave before making it for the exit of the waiting room. He was almost too slow to react to a Poke Ball being flung at him. He caught it and glanced over to the corner of the hallway in surprise.

"What was that for?!" Chris snapped at Marley.

His former girlfriend walked to his side and pressed an envelope into his hand. "Read this when you feel that you're ready to. Good luck in the Title Match." Without warning, Marley leaned up and kissed Chris on the cheek before disappearing around the corner.

Chris opened up the Poke Ball. From out of the confines appeared a Pokémon that appeared to have some similarities to many different types, including Water, Dark, Ghost and maybe even Psychic. It had several purple tentacles with light blue undersides that sprouted from the top of it's head. Yellow, beady eyes to go along with a pink beak-like mouth and a lavender colored body, with six notable yellow beacon-like circles on it's midsection. Scythe-like fins at the tips of the tentacles and a final set of white fins which seemed to act as feet of sorts to keep this one balanced and standing. Chris had seen this Pokemon before, but had never been one who had possession of one.

"What would Marley be doing with a Malamar?!" he asked himself before taking out the letter to read. The envelope was unsealed, so it was only a second of slipping the handwritten letter out to see what Marley had written for him:

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Chris,

Unfortunately, I can no longer remain in Arcana for the Title Match, as duties at the Battle Frontier have compelled me to have to leave. But I will say that I am proud of the man you are becoming. You are one step away from your final goal of being a Pokémon Master and should you overcome that girl who crane-kicked Leon out of the tournament last round, I would hope to see you again, this time as the master we've both known you to be capable of being. With that said, one of the toughest tasks for anyone, Master or simple bug catcher, is to learn to understand their own limits. You may wish against all things to be able to go back and change your past to something better. But this is not something you or I can do. Believe me, no one regrets choosing one path in life over another than me. But I know that path is no longer tenable for me and I can accept that. You have to understand that these things happen and you don't have the power to change them. Only to run from them or learn from them.

Your confrontation with Michael the other day showed me that the two of you, despite being at each other's throats throughout the match, still love each other with all of your beings. You're both brothers when all is said and done, which is why it hurt me so much to see you two going at it the way you were. After learning some more context from your wife, I think I understand you a bit more than I did when we dated. You are a damaged soul who longs to be restored to what you were before all of the pain. And while I wish we all could help you reach that goal, only you have the power to help yourself power beyond the dark past that plagues you and Michael. The only way I can see you powering past this and overcoming all senses of doubt and suffering is to give this match with Annette everything you've got.

I saw how brutal the match between your cousin's Dragonite and your Alakazam was, which is why I chose to enclose to you a Pokémon that might help you in your match. This Malamar has also seen a great deal of pain in her life, so I can only hope you two will bring out the best in each other. You are so close to your goal in life. I don't want to see you give up on that. And neither does this Pokémon. Fight until the very end and if your day in the spotlight as Champion is not meant to be, then make sure that kid has to earn a win over you. And one last thing: I know it isn't really my place to say, but I don't think there is someone in this world more better suited to balance out your less than desirable tendencies than your wife. You've lost so much in your life already. Don't chase her away too.

When this Title Match is over, I want to see the kind of man who emerges out of it. So make sure you stop by the Battle Frontier on your Honeymoon so we can have a much more fair rematch, and hopefully I'll win this time. Take care, Chris. And stop looking so gloomy. It only looks good on me.

Now and Always,

Marley

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