Hypoxic (adj): You know when you are so excited to go for a run that you start out too fast and within the first minute, you're short of breath and thinking, "What's wrong? This hurts! Why can't I breathe?"—chances are you're hypoxic. Basically your lungs aren't yet keeping up with your heart and you don't have enough oxygen pumping through your system. Back off the pace until you warm up and catch your breath ("A Glossary of Running Terms," Competitor Running).

Hypoxic

Andrea always enjoyed running. When she was a child, she would wake up before the sun rose, sneak out of her house, and run all the way to Route 109, the beach next to Slateport. Her dad would be there a few minutes later before she waded too far into the ocean. He always said the same thing: Never do that again, koʻu kai. You could get lost all by yourself. If you go into the ocean without me or mommy, it will take you away from us.

The fear wasn't enough to deter her; she kept doing it. And every time she ran to the beach, her father joined her, scolding her for playing near the ocean's edge, testing fate itself. Despite her father's tight grasp around her body as he carried her back home, she would forever remember the way the rising sun made his eyes glimmer with a mysterious longing. And then there was the unmistakable smile that tugged his lips: it was the kind of smile only a man living vicariously through his children could wear.

The freedom and invigoration that comes with running is even more enjoyable now that Andrea has pokémon of her own. Her little companions had trouble keeping up at first (except for Victini, who glides by her head with ease), but they've gotten faster with enough practice. Andrea still wakes up early to run. Unlike most people her age, she doesn't mind losing a little sleep, especially if it means she gets to exercise with Victini free of any prying eyes.

She finishes her jog around Central Park as the sun begins to peek above the horizon. She ends her jog in the place she and her friends celebrated Bianca's birthday a mere week ago. After stretching, Andrea collapses onto her back, sinking into the prickly sea of grass. Her pokémon, however, are still full of energy; while Andrea rests, they begin to play a game she can only compare to tag. It reminds her of the eve of her fourteenth birthday. She chuckles to herself as waves of memory come crashing down.

Hilbert. He was supposed to meet her here in about an hour to train with her, but she would probably be waiting for longer, seeing as the boy enjoys sleeping in. The two have spent the past week training together in the mornings; despite the monotony of their sessions, Andrea enjoys the experience she and her pokémon gain from battling another strong trainer.

So until Hilbert arrives, Andrea will play with and dote on her pokémon. Despite Kai's intimidating appearance, he is still the little ball of sunshine he was as an oshawott. He squeals as she calls her companions over and he jumps into her lap. As Kai nuzzles into her chest, Andrea picks up the approaching petilil and holds her out at arm's length.

"You're getting big, Gardenia!"

Gardenia coos and glances away. Ever the timid pokémon, Andrea finds it a little difficult to bond with her. There is a fine line, she has discovered, between giving a jittery pokémon enough love and smothering the nervous creature with too much attention. As much as Andrea wants to constantly cuddle all her pokémon, she has learned to scale it back with Gardenia. Kai and Victini, however, adore being doted on for as long as Andrea wishes.

She scratches the space behind Victini's ear. It purrs, leaning further into her hand and tilting its head back. Andrea's hand moves to scratch Victini under its chin. Victini's leg instinctively kicks out as his eyes close. Andrea giggles. At times like this, she forgets Victini is a special pokémon, one that she must protect with—dare she say—her life. When the realization hits, her stomach twists with guilt. Could Victini live a happy life hidden away in a poké ball, only brought out into the open when no one was around?

A couple of hours later, Andrea is busy doing endurance and strength training with her pokémon. At this point, the sun is already high and bright in the cerulean sky. Such exercise sessions with her pokémon usually end with her pokémon sitting atop her back while she does push-ups, and today is no different. Eventually she collapses onto her stomach and pants. Her pokémon hop off and, as soon as she rolls over, hop onto her stomach and chest. She erupts into boisterous laughter and wraps her arms around her pokémon.

"Hey Andi!"

Andrea snaps up into a sitting position at the sound of her name. She spots Hilbert running towards her.

"It's about time you decided to show up!"

He stops in front of her and rubs his eyes. "Ugh, sorry...I slept through my alarms again!"

"Whatever, it's cool. Let's do this!"

"About that," Hilbert begins, clenching his fists near his chest, "we should go to the Battle Company today!"

"What's that?" Andrea asks, eyes widening.

"It's this really cool challenge where you battle like, two floors of a company! Apparently you get a bunch of money and prizes, and if you beat everyone there, you get to battle the boss!"

"That's fucking awesome! Let's go!"

When Hilbert and Andrea arrive at the first floor of the company, the head janitor explains the rules. Hilbert and Andrea decide to team up and double-battle their opponents.

They face their first team, a duo of office clerks with a lillipup and a pidove.

"Gardenia, use magical leaf on Lillipup!"

Gardenia summons a whirlwind of glowing leaves that reflect across the shiny surface of the tile floor. As the barrage of leaves scratches the puppy pokémon, Hilbert commands his timburr to attack it. While Timburr dashes towards Lillipup, the opponent's pidove slashes Gardenia with its wing. Gardenia stumbles from the super effective move and struggles to get up. Hilbert, noticing this, yells, "Timburr, attack Pidove!"

"Gardenia, do you think you can attack Lillipup again?"

Gardenia mimics a nod and sends a stream of glowing orbs towards the lillipup. Lillipup tries to run away from the attack, but the orbs follow him and suck away his energy. When Gardenia's health is restored, she hops over to the opponent's pidove and tackles it.

"Timburr, return," Hilbert growls at the defeat of his pokémon and pulls out another poké ball. Emolga appears on the battlefield. The two share such a close bond that Hilbert doesn't even have to say anything for Emolga to ready for an attack.

Andrea watches Emolga's body charge with electricity. Hilbert catches her gaze and grins. Andrea looks back to the battle, only to see her petilil pinned under Pidove. She gasps and turns back to Hilbert, who is still staring at her. "Wait!"

Hilbert raises his eyebrows, then looks back at the battlefield. "Oh shi—"

Emolga releases its energy, sending a blazing thunderbolt down upon the pidove. Gardenia is hit too. Both pokémon faint, but Hilbert and Andrea have won the battle.

Andrea sprints over to her petilil. "Gardenia, are you alright?"

Gardenia feebly opens her eyes. She tries her best to nod, but it is a stiff, restrained movement. Andrea recalls her to her poké ball, and she and Hilbert accept the prize money from the clerk duo. When they walk away, Andrea turns to Hilbert, a tight frown pulling at her lips.

"I'm not a fan of strategy, but if we're gonna make this work, we have to talk."

Hilbert flushes, eyes going wide. "Huh?"

Andrea sighs. "Like when you had Timburr attack the lillipup Gardenia was attacking instead of covering her!"

Hilbert's gaze hardens. "But fighting types are weak against flying types!"

"So are grass types! And also, not paying attention when—"

"I know, I know! Arceus, you can be so bossy sometimes. We won, so—"

"Bossy?" Andrea scoffs. "Maybe I wouldn't have to tell you what to do if you paid attention! And I don't care if we win or lose, but—"

"Really? You sure are acting like it."

"Ugh!" Andrea groans. Fists clenched, she stomps the floor with her right foot. She sucks in a deep breath. "Fine. Maybe I do care a little. But my pokémon got hurt by my own teammate! Especially Gardenia; she gets anxious really easily!"

Hilbert says nothing.

"If you wanna keep doing double-battles, let's at least try to work better together."

Hilbert rummages through his bag and pulls out a revive and a super potion. He rubs the back of his neck. "For Gardenia."

Andrea takes the items from him, lets out Gardenia from her poké ball, and uses the items on her. Within a few minutes, the petilil is back to normal. Andrea turns to Hilbert. "Thanks."

He shrugs and adjusts his cap. Andrea rolls her eyes. This was going to be a long day.

The two don't exactly make the best team, but somehow, they defeated the Battle Company without erupting into another full-fledged argument. This was not without a few hiccups, of course; Hilbert never fully took Andrea's advice, and more than once, their battles went about as smoothly as their first one in the building.

But beating the president of the company (one on one, to be fair), lifted Andrea's spirits.

"I still can't believe the president disguised himself as the head janitor!"

"I know!"

She and Hilbert sit in the secluded spot they had celebrated Bianca's birthday at. While their pokémon spar in the near distance, Andrea and Hilbert discuss their plans for the city and the future of their journey across Unova.

"I'm definitely gonna train a bit more," Hilbert says. "Even though Emolga has an advantage against bug types, I don't know if my other pokémon are ready to take on the gym yet. Then after I beat the gym I'll probably head straight to Route four!"

Andrea's mouth slackens. "Route four...Bianca said she was going to take the subway to Nimbasa instead since a lot of people get lost on that route…"

"Yeah, but I'm not missing out on catching tons of cool pokémon!"

"I'm sure we can handle it," Andrea grins, excited for another adventure, despite the possibility of danger.

Hilbert perks up. "Maybe we could even travel together!"

"For sure!" Andrea's voice cracks. To tell the truth, as much as she enjoys Hilbert's company, if Hilbert was going to be anything like he was today during the battles, the idea of being stuck alone with him for weeks on end doesn't exactly appeal to her.

Hilbert racks his head for a topic of conversation. He doesn't want to make a big deal out of the idea of traveling together, after all; be cool, he tells himself"So are you gonna keep challenging the gyms?"

Andrea nods emphatically. "I love battling! It helps me and my pokémon grow closer, especially after hard battles!"

"Nice! You know, I think you've got a good shot at taking on the League!"

Andrea laughs, eyes flitting about. "Well, uh, if my pokémon want to do it, then I'll give it a shot!"

Kai stops what he's doing to cheer in affirmation, and Gardenia echoes his sentiments. Victini, too absorbed in a daydream, does not reply. Andrea chuckles. "You know, lately I've been thinking..."

Hilbert watches her. Her eyes are fixed on her crossed legs as she plays with the sleeves of the denim jacket wrapped around her waist. Sometimes she wears the weirdest things, Hilbert thinks. Take today, for instance: she wears clunky white tennis shoes with a plain black romper that Hilbert can only compare to bicycle shorts. She has abandoned her pink and white cap, yet still wears her hair in its signature ponytail. She is, however, wearing her pink and black cuff bracelets; come to think of it, Hilbert has never seen her without them. No human being should be able to pull off such an odd ensemble, but Hilbert would argue that, somehow, Andrea manages.

Andrea swallows. "That, um…"

Hilbert bites his tongue to stop himself from pushing her to speak. After all, what could be so important?

Andrea is so deep in thought that she doesn't notice the rustling of tall grass nearby that causes Hilbert to jump. It is only when she catches something out of the corner of her eye stumbling out from the patches of tall grass that she snaps to attention.

"Woah!" Hilbert exclaims. "An audino! Sweet!" He pulls out a poké ball and summons his timburr.

"Wait a sec," Andrea says. She crawls over to the tiny pokémon, careful to avoid making any sudden movements or noises. As she approaches the audino, she notices scratches and bruises on its body, as well as the nervous trembling that takes over the pokémon the closer Andrea gets. "I don't think you should fight this one."

"Why not?"

"It's weak!"

"Yeah, but the pokédex said when audino faints it releases a chemical that makes surrounding pokémon grow tons stronger!" Hilbert explains. "So if it's weak then it's already close to fainting."

"The poor thing probably gets into a lot of fights with trainers," Andrea says as a thoughtful expression transforms her face. She sits back onto her calves and digs through her bag. She pulls out a handful of berries and rolls them over to the audino.

"Yeah I can see why," Hilbert counters, eyeing Andrea suspiciously. "You know, audino are pretty rare, and Timburr really needs an extra boost of strength…"

"He can battle one of my pokémon," Andrea replies as she watches the audino anxiously eat the berries.

"It's not the same! What's up with you?!"

Audino scurries away at the sound of Hilbert's raised voice, leaving the half-eaten berries behind. He groans, running his hands over his face.

"Look what you made me do!"

"I didn't make you do anything!" Andrea stands up and anchors her hands onto her hips

"Seriously, what's up with you?" Hilbert exclaims. "Since when have you been against battling?"

"I'm not!" Andrea retorts. She throws her arm out to her side, motioning to the place the audino once stood. "But that audino was weak and didn't want to battle!"

"How could you know?"

"It was nervous when I got closer to it," she explains, shifting her weight to her right hip and crossing her arms.

"Whatever. Thanks for making me lose out on a chance for Timburr to grow stronger," Hilbert rolls his eyes.

Andrea gapes, then shuts her mouth before Hilbert can get the chance to look over at her. "There are plenty of other chances for Timburr, I'm sure."

"Yeah, whatever," Hilbert nods, still not looking at Andrea. "I'm gonna go...find some people to battle. Since apparently you're against that now."

"I am not!

"See ya."

Andrea resists the urge to yell, to insult him for being so immature. Andrea's tight mouth slackens. "Hilbert, wait."

He ignores her and continues to walk away. Andrea thinks about sprinting after him, but she cannot move. Once he is out of sight, she sits down, buries her face in her hands, and groans. Her pokémon inch towards her.

"What is happening?"

Could so much have changed since the eve of her fourteenth birthday, only a little more than a year ago, when she saved him from the ocean's cruel grasp? The image of Hilbert lying on the sand flashes before her closed eyes. She remembers the way her veins tingled with leftover adrenaline and fear as she, Bianca, and Cheren kneeled around him. It was a moment suspended in time; they held their breaths as they awaited for Hilbert to take one of his own. Just as they braced themselves for the worst, Hilbert came to with a series of sputtering coughs. His eyes snapped open, landing on Andrea, who hovered over him with an impossibly euphoric smile. Her heart was still beating as fast as a cutiefly's wings when she noticed how pretty his amber eyes looked in the moonlight.

Kai panics as he watches his partner's eyes well up with hot tears. As Gardenia and Victini begin to comfort her, Kai runs away and dives into her backpack. When he stumbles out of her bag, Andrea's squinted eyes are on him, trying to make sense of his odd behavior. He hands her a slip of paper with a meek smile on his face. Andrea feebly takes it from his paws.

She chuckles, shaking her head at her pokémon's attempt to cheer her up. Kai had given her a coupon for a Castelia Cone that she won at the Battle Company.

"You know me so well."

The city air is thick, palpable with heat, smog, and moisture, trapped between towering skyscrapers and fresh asphalt. Andrea enjoys the warmth; years of living in tropical Hoenn accustomed her to humidity. Kai and Victini escape the heat by resting in their poké balls, while Gardenia rests in Andrea's arms and basks in the scorching sunshine. It's the perfect day for ice cream.

As she approaches the fountain in Castelia's Central Plaza, her eyes land on a girl walking down Mode Street. Initially, what catches Andrea's attention is the girl's attire; a thick hoodie and jeans aren't appropriate for today's weather, but her dark sunglasses, oddly enough are. Despite the obvious disguise, Andrea immediately finds the girl familiar, in a nostalgic sort of way. Andrea gasps as her eyes roam down the girl's legs and notices an eevee trotting alongside the girl.

That was enough of an excuse to approach her. Maybe then, Andrea thinks, she'll figure out who she is.

Andrea dashes forward, determination coursing through her veins. She loses sight of the girl as a crowd surges out of a building on the corner of Mode Street. Teetering on the tips of her toes, Andrea peers over the heads of the tourists that block the sidewalk. Upon not spotting the girl, she squeezes her way past the crowd, frantically glancing about once she passes them. The girl has stopped, indulging someone who wants to pet her eevee. Her leg bounces as she ducks her head and pulls her hoodie further over her head.

Andrea stops just behind the girl. She couldn't see who was petting the girl's eevee before, but now she does.

"Fascinating. This eevee is quite happy, despite being on a leash. After all, a leash and a poké ball aren't all that different."

Andrea's voice catches in her throat as her prepared request to pet the girl's eevee melts away.

"Well, I suppose…" The girl mutters, looking away from her eevee. She catches Andrea out of the corner of her eye and turns to fully face her. "May I help you?"

Andrea closes her agape mouth and blushes. She peels her gaze away from the girl's doll-like lips. "I like your eevee."

The girl smiles. Despite her impatient air, she offers Andrea the opportunity to pet the rare pokémon.

Andrea kneels beside the boy and swipes her hand across the eevee's back. Gardenia hops out of Andrea's embrace and coos at the eevee, who barks back a greeting. The boy petting the eevee flinches and glances up.

"A-ah! Andrea! I didn't notice you!"

"Hey N. Long time no see."

"Indeed," He chuckles, a soft sound Andrea barely picks up.

Andrea scratches eevee's head, then turns to the girl. "Does eevee have a name?"

"Cl—Er, I mean, uh, no. He doesn't."

"Oh, ok. Where'd you get him? I've never seen an eevee in Unova."

"He was a gift from my parents," the girl says.

Andrea's heart stops. The girl's voice changed, if only for a split second, as a refined accent slipped through the typical Unovian accent she had previously been speaking in. Andrea squints, trying to place why the girl's nose looks so familiar—iconic, even. "You look really familiar. Have we—"

"We should be on our way," the girl interrupts, picking up her eevee. "Goodbye."

Andrea watches the girl jog away, disappearing through swarms of people walking down the street.

"You don't know?"

Andrea, still squatting next to N, turns to him as she picks up Gardenia. "Hm?"

"That was the Princess of Eindowak."

"What?!" Andrea yells and bounces onto her feet. N flinches. People walking by turn to the duo and stare. "N, why didn't you say anything?!"

He stands to his feet and shrugs. "I didn't think it was a big deal."

"She's royalty!" Andrea's exclaims, eyes wide and shoulders tense. Everything made so much sense now; the eevee whose name she hid, the disguise, the fake accent, her wistful beauty...

N stares off into the distance. "I'm sure she wants to be treated like a normal person, though."

Andrea's face softens. Her gaze falls to the floor. "True…But how did you even know it was her?"

"Her nose."

Andrea glances over at him. Eyebrows furrowed together and lips pursed, N gazes beyond the place the Princess once stood. Beads of sweat slide down his pale face. He wipes his forehead with the back of his hand. His shoulders fall as he sighs and looks down at his hand.

"Wanna go get ice cream?"

"Huh?"

Andrea twists around and pulls out the crumpled coupon from her jacket pocket. "World Famous Castelia Cones: Buy three get three free!" It seems almost too convenient, she thinks, that she ran into someone else she could share the free ice cream with.

"I don't...eat dairy."

"I'm sure they have non-dairy options! After all, if pokémon can eat them and not all pokémon like dairy, then…"

N hums in thought. "Well, if that's the case then I don't see why not. But I must warn you that I'm quite picky, and I've never tried ice cream and—"

Andrea gasps. "You've never had ice cream?!"

He shakes his head.

"Oh, it's over," Andrea laughs and grabs his hand. "Come on! I'm not letting you live life without eating ice cream!"

She dashes forward, holding petilil in one arm and N's hand in her other hand. N's heart races as Andrea weaves between passerbys. He doesn't like being close to so many people, and the overlapping noises of the city don't quell his feelings of discomfort. So he squeezes his eyes shut and trusts that Andrea will guide him safely to their destination.

Andrea zips past the long line for Castelia Cones and situates herself and N at the end of it. He opens his eyes when a gust of air replaces the warm embrace of Andrea's hand. For a moment he finds himself unable to speak.

"You ok?"

He avoids Andrea's observant gaze, eyes landing on the pokémon that rests in her embrace. He bends down to meet the petilil face-to-face. "Hello there. I don't believe we've met before. I'm N. What's your name?"

Gardenia chirps, sinking back into Andrea's chest.

"Gardenia, eh? That's a beautiful name. Do you like it?"

Gardenia beams with pride.

"Interesting. What sort of things do you enjoy?"

Gardenia bounces in Andrea's arms as she titters.

"What about Bernie?"

Gardenia continues.

"I see. But he is happy?"

She nods.

"Good, good." He stands up straight to meet Andrea's wide-eyes gaze.

"Gardenia's pretty shy," she says. "I don't know how…"

"Pokémon open up to me relatively quickly," N explains. "I hypothesize it's because no human they've ever met can communicate with them."

"What's it like?" Andrea asks as the line inches forward. "To talk to them?"

"It's easier than talking to people," N admits, ducking his head. "Pokémon speak plainly, never concealing their true feelings behind complex metaphors or beautiful words. People belittle you in the most covert ways."

"I'm sorry you've been treated that way."

"It seems that...people cannot understand me. I speak of my dreams passionately, only to be patronized. I'm too idealistic, they say. Too much of a visionary, too naive and hopeful," N's eyes take on a resolute glare as he looks at Andrea. "But the thing is, I'm not innocent. I've seen pokémon harmed, I've seen the cruelty of people, and I've experienced people's stubbornness to let go of the familiar. I know liberating pokémon isn't going to be easy. But it must be done."

Andrea stays silent for a few seconds, thinking of what to say. "Even though our dreams are very different, I think I understand how you feel."

"No. You can't."

She bristles at his voice that stings her skin like icy water. "Maybe I don't know exactly how you feel, but...I do know what it feels like to be different from the people around you. What it's like to be…" she swallows, remembering the lingering stares of disapproval sent her way whenever her parents picked her up from school; or the shock she felt upon first arriving in Nuvema, where everyone has fair skin; or the way her friends dismiss and criticize her when she talks about pokémon. "I know what it feels like to be noticed. And not in a good way."

N's eyes widen as Andrea tries to blink away tears. Andrea scoffs and rubs her eyes. "Sorry, it's, uh, been a rough day."

"Andrea…" N's stiff lips fall into a worried frown. Despite his mood swings and steadfast beliefs, N finds himself easily affected by these lapses in Andrea's strong facade. "I'm—"

"Next in line!"

Andrea snaps to attention and approaches the woman behind the Castelia Cone stand. "Um...Three normal Castelia Cones, one non-dairy Castelia Cone, and..." She twirls around to face N. "How many do you want?"

"Ah, I'll have three non-dairy Castelia Cones."

The woman smiles. "Alright! I'll have your orders ready in just a moment."

As the woman leaves, Andrea releases Kai from his poké ball. N echoes her actions, releasing a venipede and a swadloon. A wide grin stretches across Andrea's face. "Woah! Those are some really cool pokémon!"

N's lips curl into the tiniest smile at Andrea's newfound enthusiasm. For some inexplicable reason, it's much nicer, he thinks, to see her smiling than it is to see her crying. Before N can say anything, the woman returns with the orders in a special tray. Andrea hands her the coupon and some money.

"I—You should at least let me pay for mine," N fumbles.

Andrea waves a careless hand through the air. "It's cool. Besides, you don't like battling, so you probably don't have much money in the first place."

"Well…"

The woman hands Andrea her the change and wishes her a nice day. Andrea thanks her, takes the tray from the counter, and walks away from the stand. N hurries after her. Andrea leads him Central Plaza, where she and her pokémon hop onto the fountain's edge and begin to eat their ice cream. The sole non-dairy Castelia Cone Andrea ordered goes to Gardenia, and the rest go to her, Kai, and Victini (who is, unfortunately, still in its poké ball). She hands N, who is still standing, the tray of remaining Castelia Cones.

"Well, go on!" Andrea urges. "Try it!"

N bristles, taking the cone into his shaky hands. He closes at his eyes and gingerly nibbles at it. His eyes snap wide open, sparkling like bright stars in a deep black sky.

"It's good!"

Andrea's face stretches into a giddy smile. She erupts into giggles—the kind a little girl shares while playing with her friends. Oblivious to N's confusion, she continues to laugh, throwing her head back and squeezing her eyes shut. When she calms down, she starts at the feeling of something sticky sliding down her thumb. Victini's Castelia Cone melts away as Andrea catches the liquid dripping down her hand in her mouth. She looks up at N and blushing. Her heart races.

"A-Anyways, umm...it was nice running into you, N!" Andrea smiles. "Kind of happens a lot, huh?"

"You have an extra Castelia Cone," N begins, noticing the uneaten treat. "But Bernie isn't with you anymore?"

Andrea gulps as her attempt to bid N farewell doesn't follow through. I have to get somewhere private and give this to Victini before it melts! "I'm, uh, really hungry."

N squints. Kai and Gardenia tilt their heads as they stare at their partner in confusion. N, of course, picks up on this. "That's not the truth, is it?"

Andrea wipes the sweat off her forehead, eyes fixed on the ground. Her mind races in an attempt to formulate an answer. I could always just leave, she thinks, but her legs weigh her down, stubborn and unwilling to cooperate with her thoughts. A tiny voice from deep within her chest tells her that running away in this moment would be unkind, because, based on their earlier conversation, N is not used to being told the truth. Maybe she should stay with him; trust him, evem. She bites her lip, deciding to listen to her heart. "Do you think...you could keep a secret?"

N's gaze drifts towards the sky. His pokémon eye him curiously as he hums in thought. "I don't see why not. That's what friends are for...right?"

Warm bubbles of fondness float through Andrea's chest. Magical; this warmth in her chest is what she called magical when she was younger, and when even the wildest dreams seemed within reach.

Andrea takes N to the secluded spot of Central Park she has been frequenting ever since Bianca's birthday. The two sit, legs crossed in the lush emerald grass. Knee-high patches of grass, hunter green bushes, and strong elm trees conceal them from the outside world. The leaves whisper their secrets to each other through the muggy wind.

"So, um," Andrea begins, pulling out Victini's poké ball from her backpack. "I do have a third pokémon, but I keep it in its poké ball because...if other people saw it...well, you'll see."

N nods, expectantly waiting to see what secret Andrea could be hiding. She takes a deep breath and shakily presses the center button of the poké ball. A red beam shoots forward, and Victini materializes from it seconds later. Victini yawns, then stretches its limbs with a squeaky whine. N's mouth drops. A chilling sweat breaks out throughout Andrea's body, but her body remains warm as she awaits N reaction.

Silence drags on for an eternity before N sputters, "What—no, it can't be—" he stares at her in shock. "You caught Vitcini?"

"Well...sort of. It wanted to join me," Andrea explains while she hands the pokémon its Castelia Cone. It flies into her lap and licks the ice cream. She sighs, feeling as if a cool washcloth was placed on her forehead.

"Incredible! So you must have visited Liberty Garden, then!"

"Actually—" Andrea stops herself. Quiana probably wouldn't appreciate having her story spread around. "Yeah."

"No way! I've always wanted to go!" N's eyes gleam with a childlike excitement. "They say it's "a symbol of hope for a world where humans and pokémon live free!""

"Really? I had no idea!" In a bout of enthusiasm, brought on both by her ecstatic relief as well as N's rare display of glee, she rests her hand on his forearm. "N, you have to go! It sounds like the perfect place for you!"

N flinches when she touches him, but the anxiety that initially froze his system is washed away by warm waves of dopamine. It feels different than the touch of a pokémon; her fingers sear through his skin like bolts of lightning that electrify his veins.

Realizing what she has done, Andrea gasps and pulls away from him. Her face burns like an unstoppable wildfire. Her memory reminds her of the day they met, when she criticized him for invading her personal space, as well as the time she hugged him on the inn's rooftop. How hypocritical! "I-I'm sorry."

N, mouth agape and eyes wide, cannot bring himself to say anything. Andrea cringes, the urge to sprint away into the tall grass twisting her stomach.

"S-so this—this is Victini," Andrea says, motioning to the mystical pokémon in her lap.

N's face softens. He takes a moment to collect himself before speaking: "Hello, Victini. My name's N; it's an honor to meet you. How are you today?"

Victini answers N in a series of noises and gestures. Victini seems notably more interested in N than in Andrea's other friends, and thus spills at the seams with elation. Andrea retreats to the chaos flooding her inner thoughts as N and Victini speak. Too much happened today for her to process—her emotions teeter on a cliff's edge, awaiting a wind to either knock them off the cliff or further away from the edge. Her earlier argument with Hilbert had nearly ruined her day; maybe I'll call him later and apologize. But what for? a voice within her counters. I shouldn't always have to be apologizing for Hilbert's moodiness! It was settled, then; she would wait for him to apologize!

Still, a part of her regrets their fight. Despite his annoying inflexibility, she, can admit to being a little too stubborn for her own good, and he still cares for him deeply. After all, they have been friends for quite a while now, and it would be terrible to lose him over something so silly.

If Hilbert doesn't apologize within a couple of days, she'll just swallow her pride and apologize first. Having reached an agreement with herself, she decides it's a waste of energy to think about the issue any longer. So instead, she tunes back into N's conversation with Victini.

"I see," N says. "It appears as though we have similar interests."

Vitcini emits some noises.

"Of course she would! But it is a very long trip. Is that the only reason you'd like to visit?"

More noises.

N's eyes widen in revelation. He says nothing for a while. Victini tries to catch his attention by jumping up and down from Andrea's lap.

"N? What is it?"

"Victini is fascinated by the myth of the Dragons. It has a connection to the legendary pokémon, as well as the Province of Eindoak. It wants to visit."

Vitcini erupts into a series of squeals. Andrea deems them to be nonsense, as N doesn't care to translate, or even acknowledge the pokémon.

"Really? Then we'll go!"

Victini turns to N and says something. His mouth slackens as he limply points to himself. "You want me to go?"

Victini nods. Andrea's heart skips a beat.

"Well, ah, although I've always wanted to go, but…I don't know."

Andrea urges her quickening heartbeat to still, but such reactions are beyond her control. "Why not? I mean, um, you shouldn't miss out on something you want to do, and, um.." she rubs the back of her neck. "Victini wants you to go, so…"

N nods. "You're right. It could be beneficial towards my journey to achieve an ideal future."

Andrea takes note of his statement, but decides not to address it for now. "How do we get to Eindowak?"

N pulls out his cross-transceiver. "The only way is by a train that goes on a bridge across the water."

"Oh alright. Then maybe we can—"

"I bought two tickets for tomorrow morning," he interrupts, already transmitting physical copies of the tickets from his cross-transciever.

"Huh?! Tomorrow?!"

He stands up and hands Andrea a ticket. "Yes. The sooner the better. I must be on my way now; there is a lot I must do to prepare for this trip."

Andrea takes the ticket from his hand and frowns. "You should've let me pay."

"Take it as a thank you for the Castelia Cones."

Andrea sighs. "Alright…"

"I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"See you then," Andrea stutters, stretching out the shorts of her romper. When she loses sight of N, she falls onto her back and groans.

"What is happening?!"

A wild audino appears, stumbling into N's path. It collapses onto the ground, panting and crying. N drops to his knees and gingerly presses two fingers to the pokémon's throat. He reaches into his bag, pulls out a super potion, and sprays the injured pokémon. When the audino's cries collapse into miserable sniffles, N pulls out a handful of berries and an open water bottle from his backpack and lays them in front of the pokémon.

N stays with the audino until it the water and berries are gone. Audino approaches N and rubs his hand. He rubs its head while he applies bandages to some of the terrible scratches it suffers from.

When Audino is all patched up, N stands to his feet, bids it farewell, and walks away. The pattering of tiny feet atop soft grass and a soft cry stop him in his tracks. He turns around, eyes meeting those of the audino, who is rushing towards him. The pokémon stops at N's feet and rubs its head against N's legs. N swallows the lump stuck in his throat as he bends down and takes the pokémon into his warm embrace. N rubs Audino's back as he feels warm tears seeping into his shirt.

N forges ahead with his new companion, gaze hardening on the path that lies before him.

Even if no one understands me, I must transform this world—then, and only then, will pokémon finally be free.

A/N: thanks for reading! as always, reviews/faves/subs are greatly appreciated!