It had been a few days since we left home. Soon we would be at the Indigo Plateau before any of us knew it. Thankfully, Brittany was acting a little more at ease with us. She was carrying a backpack that looked similar to my mom's when she was traveling. We had to stop and get her some things while in Viridian City. She didn't have much since she had been kept in custody.

I listened as my parents and grandma shared stories to Brittany that I was familiar with, having already heard them myself. She seemed interested in what they were telling her, occasionally asking a question or two. Maybe this would help us in gaining a connection with her.

I had heard of my mom telling about how she had battled many people and she had become friends with almost all of them. My dad had told of a few of his gym battles and his story of how he became the Champion. My grandma Johanna even told of her time in her first Grand Festival. Brittany looked so happy and listened to every word that was spoken, she seemed to be savoring the stories.

"I've seen a lot of battles. My dad would practice a lot and I would see them." Brittany said softly.

My mom then started to tell of the Wallace Cup. As she spoke, she made some motions to show how she ran onto the stage. Brittany looked interested and her eyes sparkled with entertainment. She seemed very interested in contests.

"She was a tough opponent to beat. Thanks to my partner, Piplup, and the move Whirlpool, I was able to win the Wallace Cup." my mom said, finishing her story.

"Contests sound like a lot of fun. They seem so different from what daddy does in battles. I still want to see one for myself so that I can see and fully know what a contest is and what a...coordinator is." said my cousin.

My mom smiled and looked at Brittany, who was smiling back. She had been very talkative to my parents and grandma while Jason, Michelle, and myself, walked in the back, listening.

"How much farther is it?" Brittany asked, looking and sounding tired.

"It's just a few more hours. We'll be there before you know it." my dad replied.

I caught my mom looking a little unsure for a moment. "Brittany...what is your story? What were you doing all these years away from us?" my mom asked. "You don't have to tell us if you aren't comfortable telling us."

Brittany paused and looked around. Her eyes were wide and uncertain, but after a minute, she nodded her head. "I'll tell you." she said softly.

A small silence passed over us as Brittany tried to figure out what to say.

"For as long as I can remember, I've lived on a ship. My daddy's ship. He never allowed me outside of it because he said that there were bad people and things outside. I sometimes walked out, being careful, and followed him. I got to meet some of the people he was with. He made sure that none of them spoke of me, but they were all nice to me. Daddy never let me out, no matter how much I begged. He said it was for my own safety." Brittany explained.

Even though Darien was evil, he had kept her safe and away from Team Rocket. He didn't want her to be around what he was around. He didn't want her to grow up like the way that he had.

"He was strict with me most of the time and left me alone too, but he always talked to me whenever I wanted to talk or had a question. And he's my daddy, I love him. Even though he didn't show me that he loved me, I know that he did. He had a different way of showing his love for me...but..."

She paused and looked ahead of her. "About a month or two ago, he changed."

My eyes widened and I looked over at Jason and Michelle, their eyes also widened slightly. That was around the time that we ran into Darien and when he didn't capture us.

"He started to stay in the room with me more and was being really, really nice to me. He looked sad and worried when he was with me all those times, though. I didn't know why he was sad and worried, so I asked him. He would never tell me, he would just change the subject or leave the room, saying that he had something to do.

"I kept asking and then one day...he told me. He told me that he was going away and that he might not see me for a long time. I was sad and scared because I...I don't have a mommy and I didn't want to lose my daddy, too." Her voice had cracked just the slightest as she remembered.

"But nothing bad happened, though. The police found me and took me back to daddy and then I met Ash, Adam, Jason, and Michelle. Then we were taken somewhere by the police. They treated us nicely. While we were there, I asked daddy why they took us away. We didn't do anything...but I was wrong. He told me that he had done some bad things and he would tell me later on.

"He told me a lot of secrets and of all the bad things that he had done. He told me that he was a Pokemon Hunter who stole Pokemon from people for money or just for fun. He told me about the deal that he had with Team Rocket and why I was never allowed out of the ship. He didn't want anyone to know about me. He told me that there was someone really bad and mean that would rip me away from him if they ever found out about me. So he had to keep me safe. He said that he was sorry for keeping all of this from me and sorry that he did all those bad things. He was crying and I didn't want him to be sad. He wanted me to forgive him for the pain that he caused me, but he hadn't caused me any pain. I hugged him and told him that he was a good person now and that I forgave him. He then told me about you guys and how I could trust you."

I was shocked. She was only eight and she had gone through all of this? I hoped that the police released Darien so that Brittany could have him back in her life.

"Brittany, you're very brave, being only eight years old and being able to forgive him for everything that he did after hearing all about it." my dad said.

My mom looked at her. "What about your mom?" she asked.

"I've never met her. I don't know who she is or what she looks like. Daddy doesn't know where she is, either." Brittany said sadly.

I saw Michelle frown out of the corner of my eye. She and Brittany both had something in common, neither of them knew who one of their parents were. But while Darien didn't know, Misty knew who Michelle's father was. Maybe one day, they would find their mom and dad.

"Look up ahead." my dad said, breaking my thoughts.

We were at the Indigo Plateau. Looking around, it was full of people and Pokemon. Some were practicing, some talking, while others were looking at the booths that were selling snacks and souvenirs.

"Oh...wow..." Brittany said, turning her head in every direction and looking around. She even stood on her toes, trying to see farther.

"Come on," my mom said.

Brittany reached up and took her hand. As we walked, I saw my mom pointing things out to Brittany. Michelle was scanning around the area and I was, too.

I saw Michelle snap her head back and she smiled. "Amber!" she called.

I looked to where Michelle was looking at saw Amber. She was standing towards the edge of a field and turned, hearing her name. After looking for a moment, she saw Michelle and ran over.

"Michelle!" she cried as she stopped running and smiled at her. "After beating you on Cinnabar Island and with only one contest left, I wasn't sure if you were going to make it. I'm so happy that you did, though."

"Yeah, I am too. It's my first Grand Festival."

"Mine, too!"

Amber quickly glanced around and her eyes widened greatly. She ran over to my mom and startled Brittany, causing her to hide.

"You...You're Dawn Ketchum." she said, shocked.

My mom smiled and nodded. "Yes..."

"You're my idol! It's great to meet you! I'm Amber."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Amber. I'm always glad to meet a coordinator that I've inspired. I wish you the best of luck." my mom said.

Amber looked so happy that she looked like she might explode!

"Great to see that you're entering, Michelle. This is my fifth Grand Festival, I'm hoping to win this time." said a familiar voice.

Turning around, we saw Blair approaching.

"Hey, Blair!" Michelle greeted happily.

"I'm Amber," Amber greeted, this being the first time that they had met.

"I'm Blair, nice to meet you." Blair said.

I quickly remembered that Blair had two Pokemon that my mom had and I had seen them perform in contests. Blair had a Buneary and a Pachirisu just like my mom.

"Hey Blair, you have two Pokemon my mom has. Buneary and Pachirisu." I said.

"Really? Well, my mom's best friend from years ago was a coordinator who had them and that's why I caught them."

My mom looked at Blair. "What? Your mom knows me? Have I met her before?" she asked, confused.

"Of course I know you, Dawn. I hope that you haven't forgotten me after all this time." a voice from behind said with a slight laugh.

My mom turned around and smiled at who she saw. "Zoey!" she cried, hugging her.

Zoey laughed and hugged my mom back. Both of them had huge, happy smiles on their faces. They went way back and hadn't seen each other in years.

Looking at Zoey, I saw that she was older than my mom, in her late thirties. Her hair was a dark orange that was almost grazing her shoulders and it was spiked. She was wearing a purple tee, blue jeans, boots, and sunglasses were on her head. Looking at her, I quickly remembered her. A picture of her and my mom was hung in the hall at home. Zoey didn't really look much different from when she was a teenager, she just looked older.

"I can't believe it! It's been way too long!" my mom cried.

"Yeah, it has! I missed you, Dawn!" Zoey said happily.

Once they released each other from their hugs, Zoey looked around. "Hi, Ash, Johanna." she greeted. "Great to see you in person again after your disappearance, Ash."

"This is our son, Adam, and his friends, Jason Oak and Michelle Waterflower." my mom said.

"I'm Amber,"

"And this is Brittany, my niece."

Looking down, I saw that Brittany looked nervous and scared of the unfamiliar faces. My mom knelt down to her level.

"It's okay, sweetie. These are friends of ours. There's no need to be scared. That's my old friend, Zoey. She's my best friend and a coordinator like me. That's her daughter, Blair, and their friend, Amber."

"Michelle, have you seen Nikki yet? I've been looking for her, but I haven't seen her anywhere. She has five ribbons." Blair said.

"No, I haven't seen her. She probably won't come after what happened to her." Michelle said softly.

"What?"

"What happened to her?"

"While we were traveling, we were with Nikki and her brother. We got ambushed by a Pokemon Hunter and Nikki got captured. He...violated her." Michelle said softly. "She...she's emotionally scarred for life after what he did to her."

I saw anger flare in Zoey's eyes. "How dare someone do that to a child?!" she cried.

Amber looked shocked and sad. Her eyes were wide in shock, but full of sadness.

"Oh my...that's terrible." Blair said softly and sadly.

We stood there for a few minutes, deciding what to do until Zoey asked if we had checked in for the Grand Festival yet.

"No, we haven't."

"Well, come on. That's where we were heading, but Blair saw you guys and wanted to come and say hello." Zoey said and started walking.

We walked up to the front desk of the hotel and the lady looked up. "Hello. Contestants and family?" she asked.

"Yes,"

"Okay, I need the contestants' names and ribbons."

"Amber,"

"Blair,"

"Michelle,"

The lady looked at the screen and scanned the girls' ribbons. "Here we are. Well, lucky for you girls, you're all in the same room. We have family rooms too, so just sort that out amongst yourselves. Good luck in the Grand Festival. Here are your keys and enjoy your stay."

"Thank you,"

After finding where are rooms were, Jason and I chose the room across from where the girls were staying, my grandma and Brittany were in a room on our right, Zoey on our left, and my parents were in the room on the left of the girls' room. Thankfully, Brittany had warmed up to my grandma and was comfortable around her, enough to share a room. We dropped our things off and were standing in the hall.

"Well, I was thinking that I could show Brittany around some more." Dawn said.

"I'll go with you," my grandma said.

"Me too, it'll be great to catch up with you, Dawn." Zoey said.

"Blair, Amber, and I are going to explore. Adam, you and Jason can come with us if you want to." Michelle said.

I glanced over at Jason and he nodded.

"Sure,"

"I think I'll just go and practice with my Pokemon." Ash said. "We'll meet back here before we go out for supper."

Author's Note: Brittany has gotten to know her family better and they've gotten to know her better too, having heard her story about what her life's been like up to this point. It seems that her father had some good hidden inside him the entire time. Brittany is also showing an interest in contests after hearing about them from her aunt and grandma.

Now everyone is at the Grand Festival where Dawn reunites with Zoey, her old friend, who is also Blair's mom. The kids also meet Blair and Amber again but there's no sign of Nikki, who may not show up after her horrible ordeal.

Will Nikki show up and compete in the Grand Festival? What will Brittany say when she finally experiences a contest for herself?

Find out as the first round of the Grand Festival begins in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!