Author's Note: This is a prequel of sorts to Full Restore, and narratively is sort of the opposite – while that is a story of recovery, this is a story of worsening condition, and what ultimately leads to the intervention that kicks off Full Restore.

Somehow this story also manages to be shippier despite taking place before that one, but is still written in a way that you could read it platonically if desired.

CONTENT WARNING: Depression, unhealthy eating habits, mention of self-harm

There were only so many times it could happen before it started bothering Flint. They would meet new people at some event that he'd somehow managed to talk Volkner into attending, and the gym leader would extract himself from social situations as quickly as possible. Someone would always come up to Flint and ask if his friend was okay, and he would always say:

"Oh, that's just Volkner being Volkner. You'll get used to it. He may seem a bit gloomy at first but he's a really great guy. You'll like him once you get to know him!"

Very few put in the effort to get to know him. Or maybe it was Volkner who was actively resisting all attempts to reach out to him.

"It's part of his charm," Flint would say. "I mean, just look at him. Handsome guy being all broody and mysterious? Chicks go wild for that sort of thing – some dudes, too!"

Arceus, did they ever. Volkner didn't seem interested in the attention, but of course, if he did, that would ruin the appeal, so that was understandable. Wasn't it?

Still, every time someone asked, it weighed a little heavier on Flint's mind. What if these people were on to something? But if something was wrong, Volkner would tell him, wouldn't he? Of course he would. They were the very best of friends, who shared everything. Although, Flint had mixed feelings about the fact that he seemed to be Volkner's only close friend – proud and honored that Volkner would let him into his life when so many others were turned away, but at the same time, a bit worried for him. But that was to be expected, Flint told himself, because not everybody could be a social Butterfree like him. Volkner was just a natural introvert who preferred soldering to socializing.

Yet there were only so many times it could happen before Flint's suspicions got the better of him, and he eventually turned to the internet for answers. He thought he was being a bit silly, but he could no longer shake the nagging feeling that something was wrong.

Depression came up in the results almost immediately. And page after page of symptoms sounded eerily familiar, yet a word came up again and again that gave Flint pause, in every link he clicked on: changes. Changes in behavior. Changes in weight. Changes in attitude. But Volkner had always been this way, for all the many years Flint had known him. Sure, he went through bouts of moodiness, but everybody had off days. Or weeks, in Volkner's case. Right?

So he dismissed the idea. It wasn't like Volkner wasn't functional. He got up, got dressed, went to work at the gym. His Pokémon weren't neglected. He still worked on his gadgets. He joked and laughed and smiled, even if only briefly. He wasn't hurting himself (Flint pushed away the little voice that said that you know of). He just had a generally melancholy personality, that was all.

So why did Flint keep having to tell himself there was nothing to worry about?