"Hey there, Shift, I got you a nice treat...you're still up, Riley?"

Lee came back just a few minutes later, a bit of pizza grease smeared across his cheek. He had a red berry in his hand, with a curly green stem. Cheri Berry, is what Dee called them.

I nodded, shifting uncomfortably a little. "Yeah..." I answered carefully. "What time is it?"

"Like, almost midnight." Lee took his previous seat, holding out the berry to his Umbreon. She happily ate it. "Who's a good girl, staying with Riley? You are." He rubbed her head, grinning.

I laughed. "Shouldn't you be going to bed?" I asked. "Aren't coordinators, like, super obsessed with how they look?"

"Not me," Lee quickly countered. "I'm...I'm still waiting for a call, so I figured I'd check in on you. Where's the girls?"

I gave Lee a summary of what happened, watching him carefully. He looked like he hadn't slept in days, big dark circles under his eyes and his black hair an uncombed mess. His pale face stood out even more under his dark hair.

Lee nodded, frowning. "Yeah, well, I expected as much..." He sighed. "You know what I heard him say yesterday? 'Damn Riley. Damn him, nobody makes Amber worry so much except me!'

Amber was worried enough to piss Astro off? I blushed a little. "I-is that why Astro got so mad? Because of Amber?"

Roll of the eyes. "Don't even hide that blush, casanova. I seen that look in your eyes when you talk about the redhead. You got a crush."

"I don't have a crush!" I argued. My headache ebbed back again.

Lee snorted. "I've heard that line before. Just friends, right?"

"Shut up. You don't know anything." I looked away, red and flustered. Riolu, sitting down by my leg, giggled.

"Dude, kidding. Lighten up." Lee laughed. But, he obviously wasn't. "Jeez, can you take a joke?"

"...Oh." I bit the inside of my cheek, turning back to him."Sorry."

He crossed his legs, folding his hands on his knees. "Jeez, but you little kids are so touchy about your feelings. Always gotta hide crap, 'til nothing makes sense."

That was the last straw. "I am not a kid," I shouted, "I'm thirteen years old!" The force of my voice went straight to my head, making it throb painfully. I could literally hear my heartbeat.

I winced, drawing in a ragged breath. "Gah..." I closed my eyes, holding my palm against my temple.

I heard Lee nearly jump, and swear under his breath. "Riley!" A cold hand wrapped around my wrist. "Riley, you alright?"

For the moment, I didn't answer. I listened to the dull "thump-thump" in my ears.

"Do you...should I get Nurse J-?"

"I'm fine." My voice was flat. I swatted his hand off, rubbing my eyes. "My head...it hurts again."

Lee hesitated. I felt Shift lift her head out of my lap. "Umb?"

I opened my eyes, looking down at her. Her ears were pricked up, and she stared intently at her trainer. Lee frowned.

"I-I think it's time you go to bed, Riley," Lee lectured me. He stood up, moving the chair back where he'd found it. "Shift, c'mon, girl. Say goodbye."

Shift looked up at me, licking my cheek and hopping off the bed. She followed her trainer out the door, trotting happily behind him.

"But, Lee, wait-!"

"Goodnight, Riley." He closed the door behind him, turning off the light.

With the light off, the only light in the room was the moonlight through the window. Riolu looked up at me, looking worried.

"Are you worried for me?" I asked him. "I'm fine. I'll...be okay."

Riolu's eyes showed brightly in the moonlight. He tilted his head. "Hyo..."

I smiled. "No need to worry. Let's just go to bed, huh?"

Tess.

The Next Morning, in Pastoria City.

"The hell is this crap?"

One morning, while we were in Pastoria City, Volkner had a letter delivered to him. It had the official Pokemon League logo stamped on the front.

Flint looked over Volkner shoulder. "What do you think it is?" He asked.

Volkner glared at him. "A jury sentence. How the hell should I know?"

"Open it," I urged. "Let's just see."

It took a sigh from Volkner and a muttered curse, but he reached for the flap on the envelope and pulled it up, almost slowly.

There was a letter. Volkner took it out, and the three of us read it.

DATE: October 20th

TIME: 4:00 p.m.

LOCATION: Galactic Building, Veilstone City

VOLKNER SURGE,

You are cordially invited to attend a meeting of the eight strongest gym leaders in the Sinnoh region, on the date of October 20th of this year.

A large current issue in our region will be discussed and handled as the situation permits. Your attendance is greatly recommended.

The Pokemon League, Sinnoh Division

Flint was the last one to finish reading. Volkner made a disgusted face at the letter.

"You've got to be..." He shook his head, marching out of the Pokemon Center and into the marshy city. He walked at a speed to make a Linoone jealous.

Naturally, Flint and I followed. "Wait!"

"Dude, what are you doing?" Flint asked, sounding concerned.

Volkner finally stopped when he was just about at the edge of town. He pulled his Pokegear from his pocket, immediately punching in numbers like the buttons had personally wronged him.

"I'm gonna call my good for nothing sister," Volkner huffed, "And find out why the hell I've got to go to this frickin' meeting!"

It really made him mad. Volkner put his Pokegear on speaker while it dialed.

"...Hello? Volkie?" A lady answered.

"Crystal, why in the actual hell did I get summoned to a GYM LEADER'S MEETING in Veilstone City?!" Volkner demanded, not even warming up to a shout. "I'm not even a gym leader yet!"

While Volkner caught his breath from having yelled so much, the lady, Crystal, waited patiently.

"Are you done?" She asked calmly.

"Yeah."

"Good. And I hope you're not in a crowded place, because you really sounded childish." She really sounded like a big sister. "The reason you were invited is because I asked the League to invite you. Several talented trainers across the region have also been selected to attend, and besides, you'll take my place in just a few years, anyway, so it would be a good idea to expose you to the foreign concept of responsibility for once."

I almost died from that minispeech. I cleared my throat. "Um, miss Crystal?"

"Is that a girl?" Crystal asked.

"A friend," I explained. "Um, miss Crystal, I think Volkner is very responsible-"

"That's cute, sticking up for my brother." Crystal laughed. "You'd think Flint would. Are you there, honey?"

"Hi, Crys," Flint greeted her cheerfully. "Yeah, I-"

"Guys, stop being friendly with my sister!" Volkner complained. "Is that it for the lecture?"

"I don't know. Is it?" There was an edge to her voice.

Volkner sighed. "You're a jerk."

"Love you, too. I've got to go run and open the gym. Safe travels to Veilstone!"

And she hung up. Volkner just stood there, Pokegear open in his hand. It tipped over, landing in the mud.

Volkner buried his face in his hands. "I hate my life. And my sister. And the family's goddamn Pokemon gym," He huffed, his voice muffled by his hands.

I patted his shoulder helplessly, while Flint retrieved the Pokegear.

"Hey, it's not gonna suck that bad," Flint offered, handing the device back to Volkner. "I mean, how bad could it be?"

"I've been to one of those meetings. I nearly got killed by a flying pen. I swear to God, most gym leaders are worse than wild animals."

Flint laughed. "Heh. Sounds like a party."