"Oh, my gosh! Is he-"

"Woah, dude - th-this is - oh, goodness."

Imposter thought it heard voices, but was unsure of their owners until one of them forced it to awaken.

Tierno used Wake-Up Slap!

Its eyes shot open, and for a second its vision contained a familiar blur before it felt its eyes shifting. After a moment it had realized that, for a split second, it had shown them its Ditto eyes.

Sweat emerged from its pores, further wetting its already drenched body.

"He's alive!" Suddenly it found itself being tightly embraced by who other than Shauna. The contact lasted for longer than Imposter expected; did she not mind getting wet?

Apparently not, for it was Trevor's comment that finally made her pull away. "Hey, where's your Froakie?"

Of course; the revelation that had sent Imposter past the point of exhaustion and made it to rest in this puddle on the ground. Froakie was gone again. That was bad.

"You don't - d-do you even know?"

There was trepidation in Shauna's voice. No; Imposter knew, or at least it could guess who was responsible.

Team Flare, it wanted to say. Team Flare had him. They raided the building. They took it away, and then they took its friend. It considered itself lucky to still have its bag, strewn on the ground next to it, the leather having been worn down by water ever since Serena left.

It sadly shook its head. "Huh," Shauna said. "Well, he might be off doing his own thing. If he's anything like my Braixen, he probably is!"

On the other hand, that was probably true. Imposter got to its feet.

"Well, should we look for him? He couldn't have gotten far," Tierno suggested.

"Yeah, good point." Shauna put a finger to her chin in thought; then: "You know, if it gets to be a problem you could always just return Froakie to his Ball, right?"

Did Shauna not see the Water-Type release himself prior to her first battle with him? Or did she not understand the act?

"Speaking of which!" Trevor piped in, "Look, the Ball production started up again!"

The trainers looked. "Wow, you're right!" Shauna agreed, sporting a grin. "So this is where all the Poké Balls in Kalos come from."

Tierno seemed to be the only one concerned with what the group had walked in on. "Uh, sorry for asking, but - why were you just kinda... laying there in a puddle of water?"

"Dope!" Shauna returned. "Serena told us all about her battle with those bad guys who took over the place. You were there too, weren't you, Imposter?"

It closed its eyes and offered a nod. "W-Was it scary?"

The question came from Trevor, surprisingly interested. It shrugged; it did not remember most of what it felt, only the sensation of being tired.

Hands in its pockets, Imposter made its face serious and directed its gaze to Shauna. "We should leave."

It knew they would not be able to understand. It was a frustrating part of not being a full-time human, but this was a statement it wanted enough to voice that it did not care.

"M-Me?" asked the girl. "Is there something I can..."

At that moment, Imposter must have realized whom it was and what it did in situations like these. This time, nobody questioned its decision to spontaneously walk away.

The three teens followed it out of the factory in silence, save for a "Yeah, this would have been really cool to check out if Team Flare hadn't ruined it," from Shauna.

There was one checking into the gate from Laverre City to Route Fifteen.

One could not miss her, or any of her kind. Team Flare's members were as garish as they were proud.

That was its only lead, and Imposter was determined not to lose it. Overhead, it spotted some Flying-Types, and if only there were no humans, it could have become one and caught up much faster. Yet it was being followed as much as it was following, and that meant staying human.

"So, a new Route!" Shauna observed. "Can't wait to see what kind of cuties can be found here!"

As chipper as she was, Trevor and Tierno expressed the same general idea. The humans wandered around, occasionally having battles or catching new team members, but mostly staying out of its way.

That was its chance. Once the group was well and busy, it took off.

How Limber had so effortlessly sprinted all the way from the Poké Ball factory to the woods surrounding Laverre, Imposter had no idea. Its comment earlier about its inability to do so was entirely honest.

Naturally it tripped over itself a few times, but its quarry was not getting away. This determined Ditto would follow the oblivious Team Flare grunt all the way to Dendemille Town's Frost Cavern.

As the name would suggest, the Frost Cavern was remarkably cold. And Imposter, relying on solely its body mass for heat, was feeling its effects.

It always shapeshifted its own clothing, which would carry out the same purpose as any human's would. However, this made it responsible for anything going wrong. If it had forgotten the layer of skin beneath its clothes - which was thin enough to warrant such carelessness, after all - there was little to retain the limited body heat humans gave off.

Imposter was grateful that this time it had not left this step out, but it found itself still frigidly trying to keep on when keeping warm was nearly impossible.

Where were the Ice-Types? It knew that they would be much better-suited for these temperatures, but so far it could see none. The first sight it got of one, it would Transform, no matter who was watching.

The grunt it was following seemed not to mind. She was headed towards the entrance of a cave; while Imposter watched and froze, she strolled into the black darkness.

There was no other choice; it had followed her this far, and Froakie would never forgive it if this was really the way to get him back and it failed.

Its shaking extremities carried it through the entrance, where things were more visible than it had expected. There were trainers, but they seemed preoccupied with their teams and paid Imposter no mind.

Something nudged its foot, which it found to be a Bergmite. Apparently he was part of a whole pack: a few others swarmed around its legs, seeming friendly.

This was its chance. It took a second to shrug off its bag (which landed turbulently on one member of the group), but that was all: it raised its arms as if stretching, letting the Transformation happen. From the ground up this time - its feet melted into goo and fused into each other, all support they provided gone. They hardened quickly into the natural shape of a Bergmite. The rest of its body followed until what was left of its arms slithered into its underside and its vision adjusted.

It was no Skiddo, but Bergmite's resistance to the cold inflamed Imposter's opinion of the species almost immediately. Its subject and his kin gaped in varying emotions at it: some in shock, others disgust, still others awe.

Imposter was surprised and a little disappointed to find that Bergmite's eyesight was even more poor than Ditto's; it seemed clarity had been traded for improved night vision. As it blinked away the blurs, some of the small Pokémon spoke up.

"Wow, what was that?"

"You ever see someone just - did this really happen?"

"Hey, you, tell us what's going on!"

It zoned them out: its priority was recovering ground on the fleeing grunt. A flash of red in the distance grabbed its attention, but it dissipated too quickly to be of any use.

"What, are you not going to talk?"

"What even are you?"

"Ditto," it hastily answered. "I'm a Ditto. We're a species that can turn into pretty much anything..."

Some of the younger ones oohed and ahhed, while it turned to try grabbing its bag.

It had failed to think this one through, it realized soon enough. It could not see the human it had been pursuing all evening, it could not keep up with her on Bergmite's miniscule legs, and there was no way it would be able to carry a bag now. But at least it was not cold.

"You seem mighty stressed," an observative Bergmite pointed out. "Something the matter?"

Would it tell them? What would they know about ill-intentioned humans? Regardless, they may have at least seen her, so there was no harm in asking.

"I'm wondering... Have any humans come in here recently?"

"Oh, real humans you mean? Sure, there are trainers who come in and out of here every day."

"No, I mean - anyone wearing, like, red. You couldn't miss them against this snow."

"Oh, them. Yeah, I think they're new here. You're with them?"

Imposter's eyes narrowed. "Any of you see where they went?"

One stepped up. "You mean you want to go deeper into the cave?" Her voice was raspy and serious. "We never leave the den. It only gets colder the farther you go, and food is more scarce. Whatever you are, you're one of us for right now, and we can't make it very far without getting lost."

They had poor navigational skills? That was no different from how Imposter always was.

"C'mon, you know that isn't true," another said to the speaker. "Chief goes into the cave all the time!"

"Well, Chief isn't here. I say we-"

"Think again."

The group stood alarmed at the new voice, large and deep. It sounded as though its owner would down Graveler for breakfast on a daily basis.

When Imposter turned to get a look at him, it realized that this might be true. For there stood a Pokémon twice the size of the largest Bergmite, and ten times as threatening.

"C-Chief Avalugg!" chanted some of the surrounding Pokémon. "Look, a visitor!"

The leader singled Imposter out easily. His breath crystallized in its face as he spoke: "Who are you, and what business do you have with our clan?"

The Ditto nervously scuttled back. "I'm just passing through, sir. I'm not here to battle, or anything."

Avalugg seemed to accept this, but needed to make sure. "You look exactly like my nephew right there," he observed. "Explain."

Imposter sighed. "I-I'm not really from here; I'm part of a species called Ditto. We can Transform into other kinds of Pokémon. I hope you don't mind, but I was freezing, and I understand Ice-Types don't mind the cold so much. This was the only way I could keep on going."

The chief looked suspicious, as Imposter would likely be in his position. "I can prove it," it added. "Please, watch."

Avalugg slowly lowered himself. Deforming was almost always easier than Transforming, but losing its cold resistance for even a few seconds was enough to stall the process for a moment. It had already committed, though, and Imposter found it had no choice.

The frozen ground was even more icy than it remembered, and it rapidly felt its base going numb. It was shaking violently before the process was even complete.

"N-Now," it pled, "will you let me go? I'm-m looking for s-s-some humans who've been c-causing problems around Kal-K-Kalos for some time now-"

"Team Flare?"

It snapped to attention. "You know them?"

"I hate them." He looked across the group of Bergmite as if preparing thoughts to tell a story, but all Imposter could think about was shifting back. "Listen, take your pick of who and do your thing again. Then you're coming with me."

But Imposter had already started, relief showering over it. It shook itself, just getting used to things again. "Where are we going?"

"I'm going to take you as far as I know. If we find them, you are going to take them out. Understood?"

There was no way of knowing whether it would be able to do so or not, but it was going to accept help wherever it could get it. "I understand. But I'm going to need my bag... Now where is it..."

A sound nearby directed its attention to where the case was dropped, and revealed the small Bergmite rummaging through its contents. "Hey! That's my collection, my friends are in there," it barked, chasing away the intruder.

"Now, treat your fellows with respect," Avalugg demanded. "You won't be seeing me helping someone who won't help my people."

"I'll - figure something out." It was a poor recovery, but it seemed to satisfy the chief.

"Now, on my back." He had tilted sideways so that his flat back became a ramp up which Imposter could climb. It was confusingly easy to do this, but Imposter thought not to question it. Clutching its bag in its mouth seemed to be the only way to get it on; Avalugg's movement had tossed it comfortably on with its owner.

"I have seen one grunt," Avalugg mused. "Intruder had a Frogadier, and that was it. These suckers tend to come underprepared."

This was the name of a Pokémon Imposter did not know, so it was content to give a "Hmm" and let the chief decide where to go.

It was a bumpy ride, and a slower one than Imposter was hoping, but at a certain point it started to hear humans talking. "Th-In there," it directed its ride. "That sounds like trouble."

The two navigated through a short hall, which cleared out into a particularly cold section of the cave. Imposter cautiously slid off and hopped over to the entrance.

Indeed, Team Flare was inside. Behind it, Avalugg growled.

"Alright..." Imposter started to explain. "Now I'm about to do something a little - odd; just as a warning, Ditto don't typically do this. But I find a certain charm to it, and it's gotten me this far..."

The last sentence or so had retreated into a whisper, Imposter hesitating. This was going to be cold.

It pinned down its Trainer Card, dragging it onto the ground. Avalugg watched with a judicious eye as it underwent its most frequent change.

It took a deep breath, digging its hands deep into its pockets. The frozen air crashed into its lungs with every breath, chafing at its stamina the whole way.

Now it was almost Avalugg's height; they were only a few inches from being eye-to-eye. He seemed off-put by this development.

It would have to put its bag on, of course, which it did promptly. "So... this is kind of my thing," it found itself obligated to explain, by Agalugg's alarmed expression. "I've be-been able to get everyone to believe I'm a human so far. They'll-ll battle a trainer with six Pokém-mon before they'll take wild ones seriously. Don't know how I got myself caught up with-with these people, but they have a friend of mine. I need to get him back."

Avalugg's eyes widened. "Are you going to be warm enough?"

A glacial pit had been forming in its gut, and it could never be sure the answer to that question. "I don't know," it admitted. "But I've got t-t-to go in there. If somethi-thing goes wrong, would-would you help me?"

Avalugg nodded. "Just make sure nothing goes wrong."

When he said it that simply, it seemed easy enough. Imposter drew another awful breath. "Well - I'll tr-try."

It peeked into the room, where red-suited Flares were surrounding something that looked to be a Pokémon. This was where Imposter forgot its freeze and made its appearance.

If her headset was any indication, the person in charge was another scientist like Celosia and Bryony from the Poké Ball factory. Trouble always seemed to follow an encounter with one of them.

It took a bit for her to notice it, but when she did, she looked ecstatic.

"Ooh, there it is!" she was cheering. "Grunts, the entrance! Get the entrance!"

It spun around to see that three or four of the low-level lackeys were standing at the ready, blocking off any means of escape. It could not even see Avalugg, who was hidden in a shadow by the protrusions in the nearby rock.

"This is it, I've got it! I won!" The scientist placed a finger teasingly on Imposter's nose, reminding it of the cold. "The other scientists and I have been looking all over for you, Pokémon," she explained. "The first one to get you to the boss is going to be pro-mo-ted!"

Her jovial attitude was lost on everyone in the artificial room. The grunts, Imposter, the large Pokémon in the corner, the smaller one poking out behind him...

The latter's face rung somewhat familiar to Imposter, and it recognized that shade of blue anywhere.

"Well, I don't know about promoted," the scientist went on. "But certainly his new favorite! And to think - Aliana had the Masked Villains working for her, and Celosia and Bryony were working together, but li'l ol' me and my plan for this here Abomasnow were the ones to finally lure you in. How'd I know you'd play the hero card and come looking for this weakling?"

She made a sweeping motion with her arm to where Froakie was huddling around the leg of the ice behemoth that seemed to be the subject of Team Flare's appearance here.

"Anyway, that's enough blabbing. Let's take care of you first, then focus on this fool over here," she suggested, referring to the Abomasnow behind her.

She was so... happy, and Imposter had never seen that from someone in Team Flare. Overconfidence - she had that, too - was common amongst leaders of the organization, but not this disarmingly upbeat attitude.

While Imposter was thinking about this, it failed to notice a couple grunts coming up behind it and securing its arms: it was the same tactic the scientist at the Poké Ball factory used, but it had worked then and it was working now.

What had even happened last time that allowed it to escape? Imposter wracked its brain. Serena. She was there, and her scarily strong team was the only reason Bryony and Celosia surrendered.

She was nowhere to be found now, but then, Imposter was a trainer too.

Its bag - that was where the team was, and so far it seemed it was untouched. Summoning all the strength its numbing arms could muster, it shoved off its captors just enough to reach down and pull out a few Balls.

As expected, the Ditto looked confused upon being sent out in multiples, and without instruction on what to use as a subject. "Ab-Abomasnow!" their leader shouted. "Over there! Turn into that, I'm right-t b-behind you!"

It first had to be sure that they were clear, but once it saw them turning, it was eager to follow - but not before hiding its bag between its feet. Team Flare was not going to be getting it this time.

The scientist and surrounding grunts watched in shock. Abomasnow himself seemed unimpressed, and Froakie - Froakie looked too cold to know what was happening.

"Now, no need for all th-that," sputtered the scientist. "If you want to do this with brute force, we'll battle you, sure. But it's going to be tricky, because we need to bring you in alive..."

Imposter roared as an intimidation. "Right, well then, how do you like this?"

You are challenged by Team Flare Mable!

She sent out an Abomasnow's greatest fear: a Fire-Type. A Houndoom, specifically; Imposter had not seen one before, but its instincts kicked in immediately and it knew the quadruple weakness was not going to make this an easy fight.

Imposter was not a strategist; not even close to one. But it was acting as a leader, and its team agreed to look up to it in times of battle. It spewed orders for the team to fend off the Pokémon of the grunts surrounding it and Mable, trying to think on its feet.

Imposter stole a glance at their stoic Transformation subject in the corner, who had yet to say a word. "Are you going to help us?"

"Uh..." he confessed, "I don't really know what's going on right now... What's this feller doing down here?"

He was looking down to where Froakie was clinging onto his leg, and promptly shook him off. Froakie passed out quickly - perhaps due to the cold, or to the impact against the ground - but likely both.

Imposter steeled itself. That was someone it cared about, and he was in trouble. In its distracted state, it failed to notice Houndoom approaching for an attack.

The Foul Play knocked Imposter backwards, but like certain training bags, it bobbed right up again. This momentum carried it forward in a nasty Wood Hammer.

Houndoom flew back, growling the whole time. This distance allowed Imposter to send off an Ice Shard before Houndoom returned with Feint Attack.

Around and behind it, Blizzards were flying and enough roots were planted that the ice underfoot turned bumpy. One Ditto had just defeated a blue Water-Type that reminded it of Froakie; the Pokédex would later reveal that this was the Frogadier Avalugg had mentioned earlier. Suddenly a voice behind it broke out in a scream.

It did not need to look to recognize the voice. "Limber!" Apparently it had taken an Air Cutter from someone's Golbat, and was close to fainting. Imposter sent a look of sheer desperation towards Abomasnow. "Go help it out."

Reluctantly, he did; Imposter knew it needed backup too. Around it, everyone seemed occupied, but there was one Pokémon, it knew...

Imposter called for help!

One large pillar of ice connected with the ground, then another, as a moving glacier strode into the cavern. Chaos met Avalugg like he was a Bug-Type in a tornado.

Mable looked angry. "What a cheap trick, making this two-on-one! You should be ashamed of yourself! Houndoom, take that one out!"

"Avalugg, watch out-" warned Imposter. Houndoom's fiery teeth clamped on one of the Ice-Type's legs in a supereffective Fire Fang.

Avalugg cringed for a moment, but shook the opponent off; Imposter released a Blizzard in Houndoom's direction. He was not fully knocked out until its partner used Avalanche.

Houndoom bounced to the ground, allowing Imposter to finally catch its breath. Mable grasped at her hair. Around them, it seemed each of the Ditto were winning their own battles. Imposter looked just in time to see Limber demolish the opposing Golbat with an Ice Shard.

"No... nonononono!" Mable shouted. "We couldn't have lost! It isn't fair!"

Imposter held its side, where it had received the Feint Attack before. The site was throbbing slightly. It was not ready to go down a third time today.

"Just - whatever! Team Flare, let's beat it! This isn't even worth the promotion."

She and the rest of her grunts returned their Pokémon and bitterly pulled out. "And can we talk about how darn cold it is in this awful place!?"

Her muttering continued loudly as she walked away, echoing off the cave walls. The party had started to regroup, demanding answers: what was Team Flare doing here, who were Avalugg and Abomasnow, where was Serena, could they have a Hyper Potion? But Imposter refused to answer any of these; it had something more important to take care of.

It found its hands too round and useless for picking up anything small, forcing it to turn back into a human. It knelt down beside its fallen comrade and scooped him up; Froakie was freezing, and his body was limp.

This was bad, this was very bad. It held him close to its chest, its heart beating rapidly. They were both frigid, and the presence of so many Ice-Types was only multiplying their pain.

Imposter shifted something in its breast - it realized for a moment that this outfit would contain an undershirt, which it fashioned as quickly as it could. Despite protest from its fingers - pink and difficult to bend - it pulled down its jacket's zipper halfway, placed Froakie in the resulting pouch, and hurriedly zipped everything together.

It could feel Froakie's heart beating faintly. This was better than nothing. He was breathing, too, if the water vapor exiting his mouth was any indication.

It stood up, its legs burning. "We h-have to get out of here," it declared, searching the ground for its bag and hoisting it on. "Avalugg, thank you for ev-erything. You s-saved my hide..."

"And you saved my home," he returned. "You're right. You need to leave if you're going to stay like that. Do you need a ride again?"

"Not a ride," it said with a shiver, "but a guide. I have no idea where we are."

Avalugg looked pensive. "I can help you with that. What about Abomasnow here?"

The full-time in the room looked up. "Me?"

Imposter addressed him first. "Isn't this where you live? Or did Team Flare do something to you?"

"No, I love it here," he returned. "Thanks for visiting. It's never that we get any good battles in this place."

The others gave him a look, wondering how he could possibly see the situation as a good one; he remained oblivious.

"Alright... well, team, you all did fantastic," Imposter continued. "You deserve to take a rest. Return, all of you."

The remaining Ditto looked between themselves. "Imposter, no," Limber objected. "You're going to freeze out here."

It already was; what was their point?

"Yeah, you can't Transform if you're going to keep Froakie like that, can you?" agreed another.

"And look how tired you are, you could end up just like him."

"Give me the Pokédex," one requested. "I'm going to find a nice Fire-Type, and we're all going to keep you warm."

Imposter blushed at their generosity, its face red as a Tamato Berry. It gladly handed over the device.

The party huddled around the one holding it; "Would it be too soon for Houndoom?" one was daring enough to ask.

But that would do just fine, Imposter decided. Four set to work on that, while Imposter took the Pokédex back. It had a special job for Limber.

It showed it the page. "Mm, I think I can do that," Limber said nervously.

Ten minutes later, the eight Pokémon were marching through the Frost Cavern, toasty as they needed to be. Limber, taking the small form of a Fennekin, was perched alongside Froakie in its trainer's jacket, heating them both.

It was a trek, but Avalugg pulled through, and Imposter's team stepped out of the cave to be met with the night sky. Looking up brought visions of stars and snow, and one waning moon. Avalugg and the Bergmite clan said their grateful goodbyes, and the rest continued back to Dendemille Town.

The end to a bad day had finally come, and things just started to look up.

Imposter Fact of the Day: Fun fact, this is the only chapter not to feature any dialogue from Froakie. Next chapter will be the first time he uses the name 'Imposter' rather than just 'Pasta'.

Sorry for the late upload; having a very busy day today. And I will tell you, just writing this chapter has made me feel cold. Whoo!