Prompt: The hero returns to their homeworld... but they don't get turned back into a human.
"That was a lot of portals." Blair and Summers exited their own, standing on a giant plain, a few flowers here and there scattered across the place as the sun peaked out from one of the calming clouds, the dull grass whistling in the wind. "Is it just me, or does this place look kinda… dreary?"
Summers looked around and nodded. "Looks like this place is recovering from a really long drought."
"Huh." Blair breathed in the fresh air with a smile. "Happy that it survived, even if we don't know this place. That being said, what would those clawed bastards do here?" She scoured the landscape trying to see if she could spot their target early, but like all missions the Nexus Crew has been doing, it couldn't be that easy. There was something else, however, that caught her eyes. "Hey, Summers, look." She nodded towards a hill in the distance as a grovyle tumbled down it. "Found a distant relative of yours."
"You know that isn't how… that… Is that Grovyle?" Summers squinted.
"Yeah, a grovyle, like you." the vulpix retorted.
"No, as in, Grovyle!"
Blair scoffed. "Bah. Remember, the future got erased when… we…" Blair took a second look at the pokemon, lying flat on its back. "Arceus, that is Grovyle." Just as she started moving towards the grass type, she saw a certain ghost-type coming over the hill, charging a Shadow Ball as it rushed towards the gecko. "And that's Dusknoir!" She started sprinting with Summers right behind her.
"Also, didn't Blaze meet another you in her restored-"
"NOT NOW!"
"Got you now, pest!" Dusknoir threw the attack towards his adversary, but it exploded halfway towards its target as a fire type move intercepted it. The ghost-type turned to see the interloper and ate a Fire Blast for his troubles. "Who dares?!" He looked up to see the fox and her grass-type partner running towards him, preparing for another attack. "No… Impossible."
In just a short moment, Grovyle had placed himself between the two parties, Blair and Summers canceling their moves as they slowed down. "Blair! Summers! In Arceus' name, how did you get here?" He was as confused as to how his former partner had arrived at this time.
"That's a long story." Blair said, happy to see her friend again.
"But why are you protecting Dusknoir?" Summers asked.
"Oh, him?" Grovyle turned around. "Also a long story. The short of it is, he's a friend now."
"He was attacking you." Blair said bluntly, glaring at the ghost.
"It's called 'a spar'". Dusknoir said as he got up. "Heard of that?"
"You were… sparring?" Summers couldn't believe his ears.
"How about we take this to a more suitable place?" Dusknoir suggested while dusting off. "Our hut is not too far away, and Celebi would be more than happy to see you two again as well."
Blair continued to stare at what used to be her former adversary. She just couldn't believe how happy or genuine he sounded. "Suuure…" She leaned towards Grovyle. "Are you certain this is a good idea?"
"Don't worry. He's turned a new leaf, partner." Grovyle's smile still had that optimism as the last time Blair saw it.
"Lead the way then." Blair said, cursing under her breath.
"And then the world returned." Grovyle finished as the group along with Celebi was drinking tea or coffee.
"I see…" Blair sipped her coffee.
"So, what did you two do after saving time?" Celebi asked the duo.
"Well, I ceased to exist for some months, and then… saved the world again." Blair said, Summers just nodding along. "Found out why this," She gestured to herself. "Happened to me. Getting attacked through the corridors of time apparently erases memories, and turns humans into pokemon."
"Haven't found a fix to either issue still." Summers continued.
"And the portals I've managed to get through in recent times have refused to give me a human form at all." Blair complained.
"Perhaps Lord Dialga could know something. Time is his domain after all, and so are all corridors and how they work." Dusknoir poured himself a new cup.
"That is actually fascinating." Celebi mused.
"Wait, rewind." Grovyle looked at his two living partners with a strange look. "She said she transformed because we were attacked, and you just gloss over that? What happened during our first trip was an attack? By who?"
"A pokemon named Darkrai. The true cause of the planet's paralysis." Summers said. "But we managed to… neutralize him." He wasn't quite sure how to explain the situation otherwise.
"And then we had peace for some years, and don't get us started on all this Nexus nonsense... We know absolutely jack aside from just scaring our targets away and not take them out in a more permanent way." Blair took another swig of her coffee."And by permanent, I mean something like putting them in a cage or something. Urgh."
"But before we go into details, let us just say that portals appear that take us to different worlds. Today it's apparently here." Summers finished.
"Master, master!" A sableye rushed through the door. "Cloaked things with sharp claws are attacking the nearby village." The entire group got up.
"Those are the things we're hunting." Blair said as they headed for the door.
"Let us help." Grovyle offered. "Then afterwards you can tell us what you're currently doing."
"Sure, but first, you will tell me everything about me." Blair responded.
"Gladly." Grovyle responded. "Also, welcome home." He smiled at his partner through many years.
"While it may be a short visit. I'm happy to see you one more time." Blair responded with the same smile.
"Can you wait with the sentimental stuff until after we take the monsters out?" Dusknoir growled and headed outside.
"Right!" Grovyle said, and they all left.
All except a perplexed sableye, standing in the middle of the room. "But… We are pocket monsters." It stood bewildered for a few more seconds, shook its head and ran outside to help his master fend off the threat.
"Look at them scramble in fear." Dusknoir laughed triumphantly as the spectre scattered, running away to wherever they came from.
"They are surprisingly tough." Grovyle said as he glanced at his arm, seeing a torn of leaf. "And strong, too."
"Are you okay?" Blair asked the grass type.
"They grow back." Summers and Grovyle said in unison.
"And you fight those all the time?" Celebi asked as she was done circling the small village.
"Well, not really. It's the things we fight whenever we're out, but we mostly just sit in this weird place, train and stock on supplies for these missions." Summers looked himself over for any scratches, though he only found some that he didn't have to mend.
"How about you fill us in?" Grovyle asked.
"Not here though." Dusknoir said as he looked at the pokemon, taking glances out the doors and windows, glaring at him. "I'm still not welcome here. Understandable, after all I've done."
"We have a friend and two times offender of 'trying to destroy the world' who can sympathise." Blair said. "But we will make sure that Darkrai will not become the monster he used to be."
"Okay, to the house, now! I really need context here." With that the group set off, Blair and Summers starting to explain what happened after Temporal Tower, reaching up to the present.
"So there is a Blair out there, who is still human and have her memories?" Celebi asked once they were done.
"Yeah, and apparently, I'm nothing like her." Blair said, still grumbling over the situation.
"Well, that's half right." Grovyle said. "I can see so much of the old you, but there's notable differences."
"Like what?"
"You're happier." He replied much to Blair's shock. "Not that you were an angsty, angry person before, but..."
Celebi looked solemnly at the two. "The losses you two had seen had put a damper on your emotional state. The only time you smiled in the end were when you got progress on how to fix the paralysis."
"Morbid." Dusknoir said without hessitation.
"Weren't you the source of a lot of that?" Summers asked.
"Actually no." the ghost replied bluntly. "Aside from the most heinous of crimes, such as undoing the paralysis, Lord Dialga was against executions and death penalties. Going from living to dead was a change, and nothing was allowed to change." He stared at his empty mug. "The sableye and I... We were sources of pain and scars, but not death."
"Don't have to state that." Blair said with a shocking amount of optimism. "Underneath all this fur are plenty of evidence of that." She brushed a paw up one of her shoulders. "Speaking of, any interesting stories tied to them?"
"Plenty." Grovyle said. "And I do owe you some stories, don't I?"
"THAT MAY NOT BE NESSESARY!" Everyone jumped out of their seat from the loud voice.
"I'll... get that." Dusknoir said as he headed for the door, opened it and saw the god of time standing outside. "Lord Dialga, I didn't expect you here."
"NO NEED TO BE SO HUMBLE, DUSKNOIR. YOU'RE MY SERVANT NO MORE, AS I HAVE REPEATETLY STATED."
"Even if it was during your madness, I still swore an oath of eternal loyalty to you." Dusknoir said as he bowed. "I do not intend to break it any time soon, no matter how many times we enter this discussion."
"STUBBORN AS ALWAYS. BUT, AS FOR WHY I'M HERE, BRING ME THE GIRL, I WANT TO SPEAK TO HER." Dialga lowered his head to peek inside. "AND NOW THERE'S TWO OF THE GRASS REBELS." he chuckled.
"They're two different grovyles." Dusknoir replied awkwardly as Blair and Summers exited the house and stood face to face with the former maddened god.
"Uh, we're not in trouble, are we?" Summers said meekly as he looked at the time dragon.
"I CAME TO SEE THE SOURCE OF THE SMALL DISTORTION OF TIME. TURNS OUT TO BE YOU, WHO HAVE EXISTED IN TWO INCOMPATIBLE TIMELINES. I HAVE HEARD NEWS OF YOUR CONCERN, AND WILL GRANT YOU MY WISDOM." Dialga looked at Blair. "IF THE GIRL WANTS IT, OF COURSE."
"You mean about my current condition, and my memories?" Blair asked. "You can restore them?"
"INDEED, BUT AT A COST." The god frowned. "YOUR MEMORY CAN RETURN THROUGH STRONG EMOTIONAL RESPONSE TO SOMETHING FAMILIAR. THOUGH, THESE RESPONSES ARE USUALLY DUE TO EXTREME STRESS, AND SEEKING IT OUT HAVE THE RISK OF BREAKING YOU INSTEAD OF RESTORING YOU." He looked at Blair to see any reaction, but she kept her stern look towards him. "AS FOR RESTORING YOUR FORM. I CAN DO IT, BUT IT WILL BE PAINFUL, AND FURTHER MORE, MEMORY LOSS OF THE TIME IN YOUR CURRENT SHAPE HAVE A HIGH PROBABILITY OF BEING FORGOTTEN IN A WAY SIMILAR TO YOUR CURRENT LOST MEMORIES."
"So if I become human again, I will forget all about Summers?" Dialga made a small nod to her question.
"You have told me a few times that you would like to see yourself as a human." Summers said as he placed a hand on Blair's head. "Here's your chance. Don't worry about the memory loss. I will be right by you to remind you."
"As tempting as it is... I think I will refuse." Blair said, a smile on her face, but sorrow in her voice. "Maybe when return back to the Treaure Town of the past I can ask that Dialga. As for getting my memories back... I'll get them." The sorrow disappeared and was replaced by a hopeful tone. "Not today, probably not tomorrow. It will take years at the very least, but I'll get them back someday. I will be stubborn about this. Especially since I know it's possible."
"You really are Blair, memories be damned." Grovyle chuckled then faced Dialga. "So... Do you prefer tea or coffee?"