Amber.

When I got the phone call from Momma, Riley had found a navy blue beanie that he liked, and we were looking for a pair of jeans with Cynthia and Lucian.

"...You really don't need to dress like a weird businessman all the time, Lucie, let's find you some new clothes-"

"I'm really quite comfortable with what I have, Cynthia. And please, don't call me 'Lucie'."

Riley and I were looking at a few pairs of jeans in his size, when we heard them enter the store. I stood on tiptoe to see over the rack, cursing under my breath.

Damn, it's Cynthia and Lucian! She was dragging him inside, a lot like how I was dragging Riley.

"Hm," Riley hummed quietly, picking up a pair of dark jeans and looking at them. "Sounds like Cynthia and that older guy, from Hearthome."

I laughed nervously, remember how Cynthia had been all over Riley. "Heh, yeah...small wor-"

"Hey! Riley!" Cynthia came hurtling down the aisle, forcing Riley into a hug. Her blonde hair swished annoyingly. Lucian came walking calmly after her.

Riley dropped the jeans he was holding. "C-Cynthia," He stammered. "Hey!"

She pulled away, glancing at me. "Hey, Amber." She gave a little wave. "Have you guys met my friend, Lucian?" She gestured to the well-dressed young man behind her.

Riley looked Lucian up and down, picking up the pants he dropped. "Not formally, no. Hi, um, Lucian."

Lucian smiled politely, wide enough to close his eyes behind his glasses. "Lovely to see you again, Riley," He said. Then, nodding at me, he added, "And Amber."

"What're you guys doing, looking for clothes?" Cynthia asked.

I took the opportunity to thrust myself into the conversation, explaining, "My family moved here, and my mom thought Riley would need better clothes for winter, so here we are."

Cynthia nodded. "That's so nice," She said. "I'm here with Lucian, because he needs some more casual clothes. Why don't we shop together?"

Riley turned to me so I could answer, but before I could, my Pokegear buzzed and my ringtone sounded. I answered the call, holding up a finger.

"Hello? I'm sorry, I'm-"

"Amber, it's Mom," Momma answered. "I need you and Riley to come home. I left Astro in charge for just a few minutes so I could get groceries, but I come home, Astro's passed out and Max and Riley's Riolu are sobbing their eyes out. I just called your father."

My heart skipped a beat. I breathed in a sharp breath.

"A-Alright, Momma," I responded quietly. "We'll hurry."

"We may need to take him to Nurse Joy, I don't know. I'll see you in a few minutes, sweetie."

Momma hung up. I pocketed my Pokegear, and turned to Riley.

His dark blue eyes showed his worry. "Amber? What's wro-"

"We have to go." I swallowed a hard, painful gulp, grabbing his hand and pulling him away. "C'mon."

I didn't even let him say goodbye. Riley pulled out of my death grip as we neared the escalator.

"Amb, you looked like you were gonna cry in there." He gently touched my arm as we went upstairs. "What's wrong?"

"It's Astro." I took another gulp of air. "He...something happened. I don't know what. We just...we have to go home."

I saw him nod out of the corner of my eye. "Of course. God, I hope he's okay."

We stepped off the escalator, now on the ground floor. Riley fell into step with me as we left the Department Store. I noticed his hand at his side, threaded my fingers through his, and squeezed.

"...I hope he's okay, too."

He reddened a little in embarrassment, but flashed me a smile and squeezed back.

Riley.

We walked back to Amber's house with nothing but a beanie to show for the trip, and a couple of mixed feelings about her being so touchy-feely.

Riley, she's upset, I reminded myself. You can't think about stuff like that right now...

Truth be told, I was worried for Astro, but my Riolu had been left with him, too. I hoped my poor, sweet Riolu was okay.

We walked in silence back to Amber's house, and she pulled her hand from mine before we went inside.

Max and Paul were sitting on the couch, with Mrs. Daniels trying to stop Max from crying. Paul had a wide-eyed, shocked look.

The little blonde boy jumped up when he saw his sister, running over and hugging her around the waist.

"Amber, I'm sorry!" He blubbered into her stomach. "It's all my fault! I'm a terrible little brother!"

Mrs. Daniels sighed. "He's been like that since I got home," She said quietly. "And Paul, he...he doesn't really know how to tell us what happened."

Amber pulled Max away, holding him at arm's length and wiping the tearstains from his cheeks.

"It's not your fault, Maxie," She told him soothingly. "Just tell me and Momma what happened, okay? I'm not mad, and neither is she."

Max sniffled, wiping snot away with his wrist. "Y-you're not?"

Amber shook her head. "No, just worried."

The little boy nodded, looking down. "W-we were bored, and Paul, he...he was bein' mean to Astro," He explained timidly. "Callin' him names and stuff. And I said maybe Astro and Riolu could battle each other, and they said yeah, and they battled for a couple minutes. But, Astro fell while battlin', and Riolu caught him, and he didn't get back up."

Amber nodded, listening patiently. As Max spoke, I saw realization sneak into her eyes.

She brushed a lock of hair from his face. "Max..." Her voice was sugar sweet. "That's something that happens sometimes. I think Azzy will be fine; he just needs some rest. He tired himself out too much."

Paul, on the couch, raised his thick eyebrows. "He really has that little stamina? It was hardly a battle."

Amber clenched her fists at Paul's rude comment, but her mom distracted her by saying, "Amber Lynn, that never happened with Astro when he was in Twinleaf. When did this start?"

Instead of answering, Amber frowned, looking down. "Where is he?" She demanded. "Where's my Riolu? And Riley's?"

"I put him on your bed," Max answered helpfully. "'Cause he sleeps there anyway. And Riolu wouldn't leave his side, not for a second, so we put him in there, too."

Amber grabbed my wrist. "Come on, Riley."

As she dragged me into the hall, I heard her mother call out, "Your father will want to hear about this, Amber!"

I had never been in Amber's room before.

The walls weren't painted yet, but she had a pink dresser, desk, and bedsheets. A small TV was on the desk, probably for Astro; him and Riolu were curled up on her bed, on the other side of the room. They were both asleep, Riolu clutching Astro to his chest like a little kid would hold their stuffed animal.

It broke my heart, especially when I heard him breathing in broken sobs. Even asleep, Riolu was upset over his best friend.

Amber sat gingerly at the edge of the bed, reaching out and stroking Astro's ear.

"Riolu really cares about Astro," She murmured, almost in a sad tone.

I nodded. "I'll bet he's torn up over being the one who knocked Astro out," I told her. "Poor little guys."

Lee.

"Lee, I got you a present."

When Mark returned to my hotel suite, I was exactly where he left me; on my knees in the bathroom, praying to the swirling porcelain god for my stomach acid to settle down.

"Augh," I groaned, loud enough for him to hear. "In here."

I heard him throw a bag onto the bed, and he rushed in the bathroom.

"Still hungover?" He asked.

I nodded, trying to take slow breaths. I'd been dry heaving for about an hour, but it finally felt like my body had yielded whatever could have possibly come up.

My body ached, my muscles were sore, and I had a migraine that felt like a Primeape had spent an hour beating the back of my head. I sorely regretting ever suggesting Mark and I go out.

"Why did you let me drink so much...?" I whined. The sound of my own voice thudded like a jackhammer against my brain.

Mark kneeled next to me, chuckling to himself. "Can you get up, or nah?"

I shook my head, licking my chapped lips. "Sorry, man."

"No problem." Mark lifted my arm over his shoulders, and he helped me stand up.

We hobbled to the bed, and Mark deposited me on the side I'd slept on the night before. I rolled onto my side, curling in on myself.

"Hey, Lee?" Mark started rifling through the bag he'd brought in. "I brought you some pretty strong aspirin, and something I thought you'd like."

"Ugh." I rolled on my other side, facing him. "What is it?"

He held out a small, rectangular green package and handed it to me.

"RageCandyBar," He answered. "You like 'em, right?"

I loved RageCandyBars, but I hadn't eaten one in almost a year. I took the candy, unwrapping it shakily.

"Thanks," I murmured, my mouth half-pressed into the sheets of the bed. The crinkling of the packaging hurt my hangover headache even more.

Mark threaded his fingers through my dark hair, rustling it. "...No problem." He set a small bottle on the bedside table, alongside a bottle of water. He handed me two white pills. "Take some of this aspirin, Lee, and drink the water. I'm gonna go get something for lunch, but I thought you'd like the medicine first."

He really did sound like the son of a Nurse Joy. I put the pills in my mouth, then sat up and opened the water.

"Thanks," I thanked him again, gulping down some water. "I'm gonna...I'm gonna try and take a nap. Sleep this off."

Mark nodded, smirking. "There's more RageCandyBars, if you get hungry. I nearly bought out the kiosk."

He slipped out of the room, closing the door behind him. I laid back down, wolfing down the candy bar.

Mark...really is a great guy, I guess.

AOF: Happy 4th of July, everybody!

AOF: Stay safe, however you decide to celebrate, and don't end up like Lee tomorrow morning!