Chapter Sixteen – Dramas pt 1

The next morning felt unrealistically quiet for Alexa and Hayden as they steadily started their journey down Join Avenue; there were surprisingly very few patrons wandering around the long trail, with even fewer at the market stalls carrying out transactions with the stall holders. Hayden looked towards his daughter, her look of anxiety catching his attention.

"Are you feeling all right?" he asked nicely.

"Y-yeah, I-I'm...I'm still a little apprehensive about speaking to Keith after everything that's happened recently," Alexa replied timidly. "At least, what I can remember...I know everybody's bored of hearing me talk about that by now, but-"

"Alexa, it's okay to feel nervous; the two of you haven't made eye contact since the fight happened," Hayden said graciously as he gently stroked her hair, which was partially – and somewhat loosely – tied back with a violet ribbon.

"Yeah...I couldn't even look at him outside Castelite..."

"You're having second thoughts about speaking to him, though, aren't you?" Hayden asked worriedly. Alexa chuckled nervously.

"Kind of... I'm mainly worried that my feelings about what happened to Aunt Hailey will get in the way of trying to sort things out with Keith...m-maybe I should go home while you and the others stay here in Unova..?" Hayden grew increasingly worried.

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" he asked hypothetically. "In my opinion, running away with your tail between your legs isn't going to make the problem solve itself." Alexa looked away from her father, beginning to look and feel more anxious.

"S-Sorry...it's just...I really don't want to mess things up again..."

"I can sympathise, Alexa, but it's unhealthy to be so constantly pessimistic," Hayden said gently. "If you want your relationship with Keith to survive, you're going to have to face the problems you're currently having and work them out between you."

"...implying that's still what I want..."

"You haven't even tried talking to him about it yet; it's not like you to give up so soon." Hayden suddenly, yet subtly, took Alexa away from the main path and to a lonely spot near the water fountain. He faced Alexa directly as he placed a hand on both of her shoulders; the look of distraught in Alexa's eyes caused his heart to sink. "Look, I don't know what Keith said to you that made you so upset, but you can't keep yourself down because of it; it's not doing you any favours."

"Sorry...I-I just...I guess I'm still new to being in a relationship..."

"There's no shame in that. But there's something you need to remember about relationships; they often come with bumps in the road. Believe me, I know; your mother and I encountered those bumps more than once. At the end of the day, you and Keith need to get rid of those bumps together if the two of you want your relationship to work. Do you understand?"

"Y-yeah," Alexa nodded with uncertainty. Hayden smiled kindly.

"Try not to worry about it now, sweet pea; we still need to make sure you've fully recovered from your concussion." Alexa stared at Hayden silently for a few moments before smiling.

"Yeah, okay; I'll try and worry about Keith later."

"That's my girl. And don't worry about Keith either," Hayden said as he and Alexa resumed walking down the slightly busier Join Avenue. "I'll bet he's rattled about his part in your fight; he certainly seemed to be when he arrived at the hospital the day you became concussed."

"I'll need to see that for myself; I haven't seen him properly since I ran out on him..." Hayden wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him softly as they made their way out of the avenue.

"Let's worry about the hospital for now, okay? That reminds me, how are you feeling right now?" Hayden asked curiously.

"I haven't had any headaches for a while at least, so take that how you will," Alexa said casually as she and Hayden walked through the hospital doors.

The hospital was almost as quiet as Join Avenue was; there were very few patients in reception, but all of them were walking wounded. Alexa and Hayden approached the reception desk at the same time as a recognisable black haired doctor walked towards the desk.

"Oh, you're here!" Aaron laughed. Hayden and Alexa faced the doctor with friendly smiles.

"Hello, Dr White," Hayden greeted. Aaron looked at his sterling silver watch.

"A little early, perhaps, but it's been so quiet today I can be flexible for now." He smiled kindly at Alexa. "Shall we?"

Hailey stood in front of the inactive stove as she looked down at the silver and pink Xtransceiver on her left arm slightly glumly. A Delcatty sat in front of Hailey, happily batting the cord that hung from Hailey's pale red dressing gown, the silver bell hanging from her blue collar jingling with almost every movement. A Jolteon with a scar below his right eye watched the Delcatty from the kitchen doorway as he scratched his neck with his paw, careful not to damage the black leather collar around it. He looked rather annoyed with Delcatty's playing.

"You sure you're all right, Hailey?" Harvey asked from the Xtransceiver. Both Harvey and Lily were in a conversation with Hailey; Harvey's video was on the main Xtransceiver screen whilst Lily's was on the secondary screen on the left hand side of the Xtransceiver.

"I said yes, didn't I?" Hailey sighed as she twiddled her light blonde hair with one of the fingers on her right hand. Her hair was untied, rather wavy and slightly damp. Delcatty ended up lying on her back as she played with Hailey's dressing gown tie, exposing the purple triangle birthmark on her front left thigh.

"Sorry, Hailey, we're just concerned, that's all," Lily said worriedly. "Hayden told me you're thinking about missing the reopened Nimbasa Contest." Lily's revelation alarmed the Jolteon.

"Y-yeah, I'm still thinking about that," Hailey said nervously.

"Are we really going to go through this all over again? Hailey, you can't give up after one mishap!"

"I know what you said, Harvey. And I've had mishaps before...just...not this bad," Hailey said glumly. Jolteon's ears dropped as he continued to observe Hailey's budding depression with worry.

"Harvey's right, Hailey, you can't let this bring you down," Lily said sweetly. "But if you truly want to miss the Nimbasa's reopened Contest, that's entirely up to you."

"Thanks, Lily. I'm still thinking about it, though, but...urgh, Charlotte, will you stop it?" Hailey glared at the playful Delcatty with annoyance. Charlotte looked up at Hailey wearing an innocent smile.

"Mreow~!"

"You wearing that dressing gown she likes, Hailey?" Harvey laughed.

"It's not the gown she likes, it's the cord; it's too long," Hailey replied as she pulled up the dangling cord in question. Charlotte sniggered as she walked away, playfully brushing her tail against Jolteon's face ever so lightly, annoying him. "I should trim it..."

"I think you should before Charlotte does it for you," Lily chuckled. "Oh, by the way, are the kids ready for school tomorrow?"

"A little early to be asking that, don't you think?" Harvey questioned. Hailey looked out of the nearby kitchen window; there, she saw Daphne and Daniel in the back garden, their Slurpuff and Aromatisse respectively. The Aromatisse had several spikes on her head, while the Slurpuff had two red spots on his belly. Daniel appeared to be looking at a carbon grey rectangular device he held in his hand.

"They're outside, training," Hailey said simply.

"What for?" Lily asked. "Do they have an exam coming up? I take it they have such exams..."

"They do, but that exam isn't why they're training now," Hailey explained. "They said they wanted to get some extra training done in case they run into any more bully problems."

"Are they still getting bullied?" Harvey groaned.

"Not as strongly as that one time, no, but they still get ridiculed for their heterochromia," Hailey replied.

"That's terrible," Lily sighed.

"I know, but I don't know what Striaton Academy's going to do about it...especially now that the new Principal's starting tomorrow," Hailey sighed.

"I'll bet he's gonna be a pushover like the last one; even the teachers hated his lax nature!" Harvey said spitefully.

"According to Daphne, she's a former police sergeant," Hailey shrugged. "Anyway, their form tutors have-" Hailey randomly looked at the screen displaying Lily's video feed. "Hey, isn't that the display cabinet Colin and I gave you for your wedding, Lily?"

"Say what now?" Harvey asked in confusion.

"Y-yes, it is," Lily replied bashfully. "We're using it to house trophies and other achievements; Keenan's gym badges are in there, too."

"That's nice and all, but what're you doing in Johto?" Hailey asked with surprise.

"Yeah, I thought you were going to stick around," Harvey said, equally as surprised.

"Oh, we're not here for long; Keenan and I came here with Cheryl to pick up some things for our homeschooling sessions tomorrow," Lily explained as she held up a science textbook with her free hand.

"So you're going to homeschool Keenan away from home?" Hailey blinked.

"Kinda defeats the purpose of it being called "homeschooling", Lily," Harvey laughed.

"I'm aware of that, Harvey," Lily chuckled.

"By the way, Harv, did you manage to call Naomi back?" Hailey asked curiously. Jolteon scowled at Hailey's intrusive question while Harvey frowned.

"I couldn't get through to her."

"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's okay, I never said anything beforehand," Harvey said nervously. "But you should focus more on getting back on track, Hailey; leave the divorce problems to me."

"Well, I should get going now; I'd like to get dinner started," Hailey said as the doorbell rang, which caught Jolteon's attention. Jolteon began to growl deeply.

"And you have company," Harvey teased.

"I still need to find some more textbooks; I've only found one before we started talking," Lily added.

"We'll see you later, Hailey," Harvey grinned before he ended his communication.

"Bye," Hailey said half-heartedly as she ended her communication with Lily. She began to leave the kitchen, petting Jolteon's head along the way. "Hey, Dexter," she said sweetly as her fingers ran along the Jolteon's fur. Dexter watched Hailey as she opened the front door; in the doorway was someone wearing a black tube top underneath a black blouse made from – of all clothing materials – lace with matching black jeans and heeled boots. Dexter glared at the Delcatty standing next to the woman.

"Hello, Hailey."

"Adelina!"

Keith walked steadily down the incredibly wide and long red drawbridge alongside Robbie, who adored the sight of the ocean around them. Reese lay comfortably on the Sawsbuck's back, his head resting against Robbie's neck, while Ava stood on Robbie's head, almost hugging one of his antlers. Keith took a deep breath and exhaled silently.

"Maybe I should wait until tomorrow."

"Bui?" Reese asked.

"I dunno, it's just a gut feeling," Keith sighed. "I just...I want to sort things out with her, but I don't know if she's going to want to at the moment; you heard what Troy said yesterday."

"Bui," Reese nodded.

"He did say I should wait until today, but I don't know if that's a good idea...I wish I could ask him, but I don't know how to get in touch with him...maybe Naomi can give me his details or something, I dunno."

"Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked solemnly. Keith glanced back at Robbie in momentary confusion. "Sawsbuck?" Keith sighed as he slightly looked away from the concerned deer Pokémon.

"I am nervous about meeting Alexa, but I'm mostly afraid of her Dad; he would've given me an earful if he hadn't spotted Ava's egg."

"Bui-bui bui-bui?" Reese asked nonchalantly.

"Well, I'm not exactly winning any brownie points with her family right now, am I?" Keith asked bitterly. "Even Keenan's turned against me."

"Saws, Sawsbuck?"

"My plan is to see if they're at their hotel in Castelia City," Keith explained as he looked ahead. "It's better to have this talk with Alexa face to face...I think."

"Saws," Robbie nodded in agreement. Ava nervously looked around her as Robbie walked, but failed to notice a small blue feather falling slowly towards her...

"PII!" Until it landed on her nose. "PICHU, PICHU!" Ava brushed her paws down her face desperately as she staggered about on Robbie's head; she would have fallen off if Keith hadn't taken her into his arms. "Pichu..."

"Relax, it's just a feather," Keith smiled kindly as he took the blue feather lying idly on Robbie's snout and held it in front of the frightened Pichu. Ava stared at the feather for a little while before sighing with relief.

"Pichu...!" Keith laughed as he discarded the feather and continued walking, still holding the now relaxed Tiny Mouse Pokémon in his arms. Robbie continued to follow his friends down the drawbridge.

"W-would you like anything to drink? Tea, cappuccino?" Hailey asked as she led Adelina into the kitchen, much to Dexter's disgust, scowling at the guest the entire time. "Water...?"

"No thank you on all counts, Hailey, dear, I've just come from the café," Adelina declined modestly. "I've spent my time there thinking about my behaviour yesterday, and I want to apologise for my rudeness; it was highly uncalled for, and I'm sorry."

"I-It's okay, Adelina...if anything, I should apologise."

"Whatever for?" Adelina asked in confusion as Huey sat down next to his Trainer. Dexter slowly entered the kitchen and approached Hailey.

"It was my fault the Contest was postponed," Hailey sighed. "I've been thinking about what happened since yesterday and...I don't know how to explain it, but I honestly feel I'm the one that caused the Contest to be suspended." Adelina's extremely minuscule smirk hadn't escaped Dexter's notice and glared angrily at her.

"Oh, why must bad things happen to such good people?" Adelina questioned, feigning her distress. Peggy walked down the stairs with Piper roosting on top of her head and spotted Adelina in the kitchen.

"I dunno...it's probably one of those things..."

"One of those things that certainly shouldn't have happened," Adelina remarked. Peggy walked off of the stairs sneakily, attempting to avert Adelina's attention. "Then again, if you hadn't suffered, perhaps someone else would have." Dexter's scowl grew in its intensity.

"So you think the Contest would've ended tragically anyway? I highly doubt that," Hailey huffed.

"You never know; Fate works in mysterious ways," Adelina said casually. "And maybe Fate didn't want anyone to win the Nimbasa Contest yesterday...so she spoiled your Bellossom's already dangerous appeal. Perhaps you should have reconsidered having your Grass type play with fire...I would NEVER allow my dear Hyacinth to carry out such a risky routine!"

"Hyacinth's Hidden Power isn't Fire, so she can't play with fire, even if she wanted to."

"That's true, but it's not the point. Do you not believe that this whole issue could have been avoided if Eric used a different appeal?" Adelina asked. Noticing how conflicted Adelina became, Peggy snuck past the kitchen and towards a closed door.

Colin sat in front of a large desk in what looked like an office. There was a computer on a separate desk next to a large printer photocopier that stood in one corner of the room. A large blue filing cabinet stood in a different corner of the room, almost opposite the printer photocopier. Colin was sitting in front of several large sheets of white paper and a few other items such as a drawing compass, a divider, a ruler and a triangle. A blue eyed Phantump with four leaves on either side of her stump head watched Colin sketching what looked like the exterior of a new building with fascination. The Phantump, however, looked towards the closed door as she and Colin heard quiet knocking.

"C'mon in," Colin said merrily as he continued his sketching. The door opened as Peggy entered the room nervously.

"Daddy?" Colin spun his chair around to face his shy daughter as he placed his pencil on his left ear.

"What's the matter, sweetheart?" he asked gently. "You nervous about school tomorrow?"

"I-It's not that," Peggy replied as she walked closer to her mostly confused father. "It's the lady Mummy's speaking to in the kitchen."

"What lady's that, cutie?"

"I don't remember her name...but it's the mean lady who made Mummy cry..." Colin became mildly infuriated.

"Adelina... Right..!" Colin stood up from his black office chair and started to walk to the door. "C'mon, Madison."

"Phantump," Madison complied as she hovered after her Trainer. Peggy quickly followed her father out of the office.

"I don't know, Adelina! Since the incident happened, I don't know what to think! My family keeps telling me it's not my fault, but something tells me it is!"

"I'd follow that intuition, dear; it was your appeal that backfired, after all," Adelina stated bluntly. Dexter began growling angrily at Adelina. "Honestly, sweetheart, your appeals have a habit of backfiring, don't they? I saw Dexter's appeal five years ago; the Zap Cannon/Thundershock combo? I didn't think he'd miss that badly."

"JOLT!" Dexter roared furiously at the insensitive lady. Hailey gently stroked her Jolteon's head, which calmed him down to some extent; his snarling faded into a low growl.

"That mishap worked in our favour, so it hardly counts."

"My point is you've been having more and more mishaps for the past five years or so; are you even sure you've still got the knack?" Adelina questioned as Colin arrived at the kitchen doorway. "In my honest opinion, Hailey, you've seem to have lost it after your Double Performance left little Dexter with his scar."

"That's enough!" Colin suddenly exclaimed angrily. Hailey and Adelina face the irate architect; Hailey was surprised, but Adelina didn't seem to care.

"Did we disturb your artistic flow, Colin?" Adelina asked sarcastically.

"I am not having you in this house if all you're going to be doing is bothering my wife!" Colin snapped sharply. "And considering what happened yesterday, I presume that's all you're going to be doing, so I suggest you leave right now!" Adelina spotted the shy Peggy hiding behind her father's right leg, clinging to his jeans with both hands.

"Let's not raise voices in front of the little one, all right?" Colin looked at Adelina with disgust.

"Just get out!" Adelina shrugged casually before facing Hailey one last time, causing Dexter to growl loudly again.

"If I were you, I'd evaluate Eric's potential as a Contest Pokémon," Adelina began. "And consider replacing him with something else..." She smirked. "Preferably with something that won't try to kill everyone around it." Before Colin could physically force her to move, Adelina walked out of the kitchen. "Come along, Huey, it's time to rehearse for the Nimbasa Contest again. I'm sure Hyacinth would appreciate the honour of showing how a REAL Flower Pokémon should perform."

"Reow!" Huey willingly followed Adelina out of the kitchen and, ultimately, the house, leaving Hailey feeling hurt and distraught. Colin approached Hailey quickly as she sat herself down on the nearest chair around the table.

"Hailey, are you all right?" Colin asked worriedly.

"I-I just...I don't know..!" Hailey buried her face in both of her hands, causing Peggy and Piper to look as hurt as Hailey was. Dexter approached Hailey and rested his paw on her thigh comfortingly. Colin held up his right arm and searched through his contact list in his black and white Xtransceiver.

"Adelina had no right to be here..."

"I-I'm sorry..!"

"It's not your fault, Honeybee; she's supposed to be your friend. Not that she's been living up to that reputation as of late," Colin grumbled as he initiated contact with two numbers.

The examination room looked like any examination room should. There was an examination bed on one side of the room, where Alexa was sitting, a cork board near the room's entrance with different medical leaflets and posters depicting various issues, including drug abuse and blood donation, all pinned to the board with different coloured pins. A computer sat on a desk opposite the cork board, but it was turned off. Hayden stood next to Alexa until his black and gold Xtransceiver suddenly began to emit an upbeat guitar tune, which caught his attention. Alexa watched as Hayden lifted his arm up to see who was calling him.

"It's Colin."

"Maybe it's about Aunt Hailey," Alexa guessed worriedly.

"I'll take it outside, okay?"

"We'll be all right here," Aaron smiled. "You go ahead."

"Thank you," Hayden smiled back as he left the room, stroking Alexa's hair a little before walking outside.

Hayden closed the exam room door behind him as he accepted the incoming communication. A second screen suddenly shot out of the Xtransceiver's left hand side, showing Harvey's video feed, which seemed to have confused both him and Harvey.

"What's going on, Colin?" Hayden asked in puzzlement. Part of Laddy's head could be seen in Harvey's video.

"Yeah, I'm trying to visit my ex-wife," he said grumpily. "Well, I'm not in the hotel yet, but that is not the point."

"Sorry to bother you, fellas, but Adelina just left the house," Colin said nastily.

"Adelina? What did she want?" Hayden asked.

"To upset my wife further, that's what," Colin replied fiercely.

"What, again?! Hadn't she caused enough psychological damage at the Contest Hall?!" Harvey asked crossly.

"Apparently not," Colin sighed as he seemed to be walking to a different part of the house. "I'm getting worried; she wasn't completely herself after we came home from the Nimbasa restaurant, but, after Adelina showed up just now, Hailey seems to be even more distressed than before."

"So you think Adelina deliberately compromised Hailey's self-esteem even further while she was visiting?" Harvey asked quizzically.

"She played the Hyacinth card just before she left," Colin said tensely. "That's what really upset Hailey just now."

"I swear Adelina only caught Hyacinth to show up Eric," Hayden muttered irately.

"I thought the same thing when I first saw that self-righteous Vileplume," Harvey agreed meanly. "So, Colin, you want Hayden and I to come over or..?"

"You're both busy, so not right now; I should be able to bring Hailey back to her senses on my own. I just thought I'd keep you both up to speed with what's happening with her, being her older brothers and all."

"I appreciate it, thank you, Colin," Hayden said kindly.

"I do, too; thanks, buddy," Harvey grinned. "But that Adelina...she's really grinding my gears right about now..."

"Hailey's the priority here, Harvey."

"What about Alexa?" Colin asked Hayden with concern. "You're at the hospital right now, aren't you?"

"It's just a check up, Colin, it's nothing serious," Hayden smiled. "But I'll let you know what the verdict is when we get back to our hotel."

"Tell her I said hi!" Harvey said happily. Hayden laughed.

"Will do."

Harvey leaned against the wall outside Driftveil Star hotel, his left arm held up in front of him; his silver and gold Xtransceiver displayed Colin's video feed on the central screen and Hayden's on the secondary screen on the Xtransceiver's left hand side. Laddy watched the communication from Harvey's left shoulder.

"Anyway, I should get going; otherwise, Naomi's going to be too busy to give anyone the time of day," Harvey said nervously.

"Good luck," Hayden said solemnly.

"Thanks, I'll need it," Harvey replied sheepishly. "Colin, you just take care of our baby sister, okay? Keep her as bubbly as you can."

"I'll do my best," Colin smiled.

"All right, see you guys later."

"Bye, Harvey," Colin said nicely.

"See ya," Hayden said as he abruptly shut off his video feed. Colin ended his video soon after Harvey pushed the secondary screen back inside the Xtransceiver. He sighed as he lowered his arm.

Harvey slowly walked through the hotel's revolving doors and saw that the hotel was far less busier than he had anticipated; there were indeed many people in the lobby, but there were more people sitting on the sofas reading newspapers and magazines over cups of coffees and tea than queuing at the reception desk with their luggage. There was a bleach blonde male at the reception desk in place of the usual Rhonda. Harvey took a deep breath and was about to venture further into the hotel when he saw a black haired woman approaching the male receptionist with a gentle smile just as the last person in the queue left the desk and hotel. The woman's appearance took Harvey and Laddy by complete surprise; they recognised the woman, but she looked more managerial than they thought she'd be.

"How are you doing, Ben?" Naomi asked kindly.

"That was the last check out for the time being, ma'am; so far, no complications," Ben replied contentedly.

"The system not confusing you at all?"

"No, ma'am," Ben replied as Harvey began to silently approach the reception desk. "Is Rhonda okay with it now?"

"I'll give her a break; the system was literally brand new when she came on shift yesterday," Naomi smiled.

"Naomi?"

"Hm?" Naomi looked up only for her confusion to turn into shock. "Harvey?!"

Hayden returned to the examination room and closed the door behind him before approaching Alexa again.

"Everything okay, Dad?" Hayden sighed as he sat next to Alexa on the examination bed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"I'll tell you a little later, okay?" he replied with a gentle smile. Alexa became worried, but looked at Aaron when Hayden began talking to him. "How is she, Dr White?"

"Well, there's no evidence of nausea and she seems to have her full composure and stability back at the very least," Aaron said as he checked his clipboard. "Her language is as fluent as ever and her vision and hearing are still perfect..."

"How many tests did you run anyway?" Hayden asked in bewilderment.

"You can't be too careful with head injuries, Mr Thorndyke; even a minor head injury could end up becoming dangerous to a patient," Aaron said seriously. "That being said," he continued, lowering his clipboard. "I am confident that Alexa has made a full recovery." Hayden sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus..."

"There are still certain precautions I'd personally like you and Alexa to take for the next few weeks, though," Aaron said.

"What precautions?" Alexa asked worriedly.

"First and foremost, avoid as much stress as possible," Aaron replied. Alexa recoiled immediately, confusing Aaron. "What's the matter?"

"I-I have some personal issues I need to sort out...it's been stressing me for the last two weeks," she admitted.

"I see... I'm not saying you should avoid the problem, but try to avoid the stress it may bring."

"So I can still sort things out?" Alexa asked hopefully.

"So long as you don't let any stress get to you, yes," Aaron replied. Alexa sighed with relief.

"Thank Arceus..."

"Anything else?" Hayden asked.

"Do you play sports, Alexa?" Aaron asked.

"No, I'm more interested in gymnastics," Alexa replied truthfully.

"Then I don't think that will be a problem. I don't know, though, gymnastics isn't covered on the "dos and don'ts" of concussion recovery..."

"If I do a handstand or something after my Dad and I leave the hospital and I feel dizzy afterwards, I won't do any more for a few weeks," Alexa suggested.

"Sounds like a plan to me," Aaron smiled. "Anyway, I think that's everything, so we're pretty much done here," he said as he stood up from his chair. He returned the chair to its original place in front of the computer as Alexa and Hayden stood up from the bed.

"Thank you, Dr White," Alexa said gratefully.

"You're welcome," Aaron said kindly as he exited the room, leaving the door open to allow Alexa and Hayden to exit. "Feel free to get in touch with me if you have further problems or questions."

"Will do. Thank you very much, Dr White," Hayden said appreciatively.

"Not at all. You have a nice day," Aaron grinned as he walked away from Alexa and Hayden, waving a little as he left. Hayden and Alexa walked in the opposite direction, towards the reception area of the hospital.

"I'm glad you're in the clear, sweetie," Hayden smiled. Alexa smiled timidly.

"Yeah, me too. But I'm mostly glad I can still try and talk to Keith if I can keep myself from getting stressed."

"So long as you enhance your calm whenever's necessary, I'm sure you'll be fine," Hayden said reassuringly. Through the corner of his eye, he spotted a quiet coffee shop next door the the busier hospital gift shop.

"I'll try my best. Thanks, Dad," Alexa said sweetly. She soon noticed that she was walking away from the hospital entrance. "Uh, Dad...? Exit's over there..."

"Change of plans," Hayden grinned.

Keith and Robbie sighed with relief as they finally stepped off of the arduously long drawbridge. As they tried to catch their breaths, they looked around the area; there was a straight road in front of them with the Route Gate at the farthest end of the route. A caravan of sorts was parked near the gate, with a baker selling all sorts of freshly produced bakery items, such as cakes and bread rolls, from the tray that hung around her shoulders; she had attracted several potential customers with her produce. Other bystanders were gathered around a casual guitarist who played a soothing and gentle melody from his guitar. Other people – presumably Pokémon Trainers – were walking along the route; some heading to the Route Gate, some heading to Driftveil Drawbridge. As soon as he caught his breath, Keith stood up straight.

"Still got a long way to go," he said quietly. "Let's keep at it, okay?"

"Sawsbuck!" Robbie said as he looked over his shoulder. Keith turned his head to face Robbie, but continued walking.

"If I wanted to ride on your back again, I would've climbed on as soon as we left the hotel," he said firmly. "Besides, you've carried me enough for now; you need a break," he said kindly. He looked ahead of him, but his shoulder collided with the shoulder of a passing girl; she had rather messy dirty blonde hair, deep blue eyes and wore a smart-looking black coat over her brown-grey turtleneck. Ava panicked and slipped out of Keith's arms as the girl looked towards Keith apologetically. Ava ran away from Keith, but crashed into the chest of a highly disgruntled Dewott with fluffy grey eyebrows, who looked down at the frightened Pichu irately.

"Sorry! Are you okay?" she asked with concern. Keith faced the girl as he rubbed his shoulder with his free hand.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going; are you okay?" Keith asked hastily.

"No, I'm fine," the girl smiled kindly.

"P-P-PICHU!" Ava wept as she ran around the Dewott and towards the Route Gate. Hearing her scream, Keith, Robbie and the girl watched the fleeing Pichu; Reese awoke with a start and shot straight up onto Robbie's head upon hearing the commotion.

"Ava, wait!" Keith cried as he ran after his sobbing Pichu.

"Hey, wait!" the girl cried. Keith, however, was already racing down the path after his infant Pokémon. Robbie bowed apologetically before galloping after his companion. After the Sawsbuck disappeared from her line of sight, the girl looked down at her Dewott, looking rather unamused. "Boris, what did you say to upset that Pichu?" The Dewott folded his arms and looked away from her as he huffed.

"You didn't have to do this, Dad," Alexa said modestly as she and Hayden exited the hospital; both of them held a paper cup in their hands, both with a steaming hot liquid inside.

"You were the one who brought up the hot cooca," Hayden teased.

"I know, but this isn't exactly what I had in mind," Alexa laughed. "...thanks for this anyway, though."

"My pleasure," Hayden said courteously as he and Alexa started to walk away from the hospital. "Is there anything you want to do before we go back to Castelia?"

"I don't think so," Alexa mused. "I don't really have anything else on my agenda today," she said as she drank some of her cocoa from her coffee cup.

"Me neither, that's why I asked," Hayden laughed.

"PICHU!" Ava's fearful cries attracted Alexa and Hayden's attention as they looked towards the northern bridge; Ava sprinted across the bridge in tears with Keith and Robbie in hot pursuit.

"Ava, wait up!" Keith yelled desperately. Alexa watched with panic as Keith finally caught up to Ava and scooped her up with both hands. "Gotcha!"

"PII!" Startled by Keith's sudden grab, Ava released a discharge of electricity from both cheeks, shocking Keith in the process. When the electricity faded, Ava lay limp in Keith's arms, giddy from the shock. Robbie caught up to Keith as he began to straighten his messy hair with one hand.

"Saws?!"

"I'm okay; she's still not doing any damage to me," Keith said rather calmly.

"Keith?!" Keith, Robbie and Reese finally noticed Alexa and Hayden standing near the corner of the hospital; Alexa appeared to be in a state of shock while Hayden looked as though he was between frustration and concern. Keith suddenly felt tense, especially after seeing the irritation in Hayden's eyes.

"...Alexa."

To be continued...