"Wow, this is…this is amazing!" looking at the diminishing ground below makes me temporarily forget my injuries. "Hey, don't rock the lift too much! I keep suggesting they add a rail or something, but everyone seems to think it's all right." I slow down, watching our ascent.

"…thank you, by the way." I paw at the floor, "I don't think I said so yet, but I appreciate you going to all these lengths to help me." "Don't mention it!" She grins, "I couldn't just leave you there, and besides, it's not totally for free" I tilt my head, "you're gonna join my exploration team, remember?" She says while nudging me. "Of course, you don't have to if you don't want to, I understand if you want to find your own way…." "No, not at all!" I interrupt, "I…I honestly don't know where I could begin. Nothing about this world is familiar to me, I don't even know how I got here" I let out a shaky breath, feel the breeze on my face "but maybe, with our exploring, maybe we'll find some clues…" I look up, and Skitty is beaming "such an adventure to kick off an exploration team to, I can't wait!"

Passing bridges and branches, I get a closer look at some of the buildings and decor. A lot of time and love appear to have gone into making this place what it is.

"…I was wondering though, could there be any clues in your bag?" "Huh? My bag?" Stupid! Other than tearing through it in a panic to get my mirror, I basically forgot it existed! "Oh! My bag! I guess that's why you're going to be a team leader…haha…"

I put it in the middle of the panel, our foreheads touch as we peek inside, I'm a little nervous about taking things out, lest they fall.

"Let's see…looks like you have your mirror…what's this?" She pulls out a rectangle with a glass face, there's a wicked crack down the middle. I'm filled with panic before the words come. "My phone!" "What's a phone?" "It's…it's like a communication device, you can talk to people far away and do all kinds of things" I try it "But I think it's broken" "Wow! All in that little box?" She looks at it in awe, "Someday I'd love to explore your world." I wish I could remember more to share with her, but the blow about the phone is still sitting heavily—I don't want to dwell on the hints it could have had for too long. "Let's see what else…." There's a pocket that appears to be devoted to garbage, and a few red and white balls.

"Ooh, what are those?" "Uhm…." They're important. They're VERY VERY important. At least, that's the feeling I get when I look at them. But…."I'm…not quite sure" Skitty looks disappointedly at the balls, then back at me "Hey, don't worry about it! Maybe it'll come back to you." She says, trying to cheer me up, "Anyway, looks like we're here!"

I glance down—big mistake. Maybe after this I'll join Skitty's crusade to get some railings on these platforms. "Alright then, off you get!" A burly Gurdurr clutching our rope calls out. We stop off onto a platform stretching in front of a large building built securely into the tree. A polteageist floats out, "Welcome Skitty, good to see you, and you must must be Gwen! I'm nurse Polteageist, please come on in!" We follow him inside as he takes a brief medical history "What seems to be troubling you?" ("Ah not much, just some mild trauma, memory loss, and a nasty case of transformation." Good one Gwen, that'd get you express treatment alright, straight to a padded cell). "Well I was unconscious, and when I awoke I was in a lot of pain and lost my memory." "Ah, perhaps the result of a bad battle?" "More likely from her transformation!" I look at Skitty, aghast; so much for being discrete. "Transformation? You must be mistaken, Zorua doesn't evolve from anything" the nurse offers with a confused expression. "No, not evolution, transformation! Gwen used to be a human!" "H-human!? Oh my, are you quite sure?" The nurse says, turning to me. "Y-yes, it's true" secret's out, so may as well be honest, "I lost all my memories, save for my name, formerly being a human, and not being from this world, but I don't know anything else about myself or where I'm from."We're in what appears to be the exam room now "I-I see…well, the doctor should be with you shortly." He says nervously.

He closes the door as he leaves, and Skitty and I sit in silence for a few moments. "I'm sorry," she starts, "I guess I shouldn't have said all that stuff. I've been told I blurt stuff out without thinking sometimes..." "It's alright…I was thinking about keeping it private, but you're probably right, honesty is the best policy." Skitty still looks ashamed "plus, we're more likely to learn something if other members of the society know about my…condition" "…thanks for trying to make me feel better Gwen" she says with a smile.

We hear hushed voices outside, possibly arguing. The door creaks open, and a drampa slowly comes in, followed by an elegant lurantis. "I am Dr. Drampa, pleasure to meet you, and this is—" "Master Lurantis! What a surprise!" Skitty interjects. "Hello Skitty dear, I see you didn't quite find our berries, but it sounds like you did find something else rather interesting" she turns her gaze to me, "yes, I've heard a snippet of your story Gwen, but I'd love to hear it from you. Tell me, how did a human find her way to our world?" I'm feeling particularly self-conscious now, one part under "Master" Lurantis' scrutiny, another part because at the time time I'm undergoing some kind of physical exam. I tell Master Lurantis the same story.

"Fascinating, so you've lost all your memories save but a few? I am sorry to hear that." Master Lurantis bends down to my level, resting a feeler on my shoulder. "Our Exploration Center is a leading entity in exploration, if there's anywhere you could learn about your world or identity, it would be here. If you would consider joining our society, we'd be happy to have you." I'm touched, obviously the glory and reputation the Center could gain by making discoveries about the legends of humans would be well worth the trouble and expense taking me on, but to open its doors and try to help…I can't help but feel my eyes water slightly.

"Master, as it happens, Gwen agreed to be the first recruit in my team!" Skitty chimes in, tail swaying back and forth. "Splendid! Congratulations on officially starting your team Skitty, I'll expect you both in the briefing room first thing tomorrow!" "and Gwen," Lurantis looks in my direction again "I wish you a very warm welcome, and every success in your journey."

As she leaves, I give Dr. Drampa my attention once again. "Well I don't know much about humans or transforming pokemon, but I think with a few oran berries and a good night sleep, your injuries should be fine" he turns away, organizing things on the counter "a real life human" he mutters "fancy that! Even at my age there are still surprises!" "All right Dr., thank you! Come on Gwen, let's get you to my place!" "Thank you Dr." I call out as Skitty pulls me out of the office.

"Phew, what a day! You wake up ready to collect berries, you go home with an exploration team!" Skitty leads me to a rope bridge that looks less dreamy and more unstable close up. "C'mon, we should head back to the dorms to rest before tomorrow! As my teammate, you won't mind sharing with me, right?" "Oh, no not at all" I frankly hadn't had the time to even consider where I'd spend the night. "Great! This way!" She bounces on the bridge, "don't look so nervous! We haven't had a bridge accident in at least 6 months, and that was only cuz Scolipede went on an especially rickety one" Skitty says, as though hearing about a scolipede plummeting from these heights is supposed to reassure me. "Psychic type caught him, so it's all good" she says, noting my concerned face before turning and proceeding.

After crossing several more bridges, climbing ladders, and making twists and turns that I forget the moment we pass them, we arrive at the dorms. Skitty's room features a soft bundle of hay and leaves fashioned into a bed, with a couple more undisturbed looking bundles off to the side. She's got some supplies in barrels and maps pasted on the walls. In the corner lies a pile of old looking books.

"Sorry about the mess, but you can sleep here!" She gestured to one of the bundles. "Better rest up! It's gonna be a busy day tomorrow!" She climbs into her own bed "I can't believe it, we're actually going to be an exploration team!" She snuggles deeper into the soft hay "mmm, goodnight Gwen…" "goodnight Skitty" I say, closing my eyes. As excited as Skitty is, it's all been a whirlwind since I awoke in the forest. I'm so tired from everything, but this is the first moment I've really had to myself to process things. It's all pretty absurd when I think about it, I don't know whether to laugh or cry. I guess all I can do it take it one step at a time and hope I find something along the way, a hint to my past or how to get home, but it somehow feels incredibly passive. How can I leave something so important as the rest of my life up to chance? What if we never find an answer? If I spend the rest of my life here? If-if-

I realize how fast my breaths come, tears at the edges of my eyes. There's infinite possibilities in the world, but only one will come to pass. And whichever one it is, I'll just have to deal with it as it comes. I slow my breathing, and try to get some sleep. Skitty is right, whatever comes tomorrow, it'll help to be well rested.

—

I've lost track of how long I've wondered this forest, but the sun's set, so it must have been a decent amount of time. There's barely been a soul, save for a couple of young pokemon. They didn't look wild, but when I asked them where their trainer was, they laughed and said something about being too old for stupid stories. I can't help but feel like the more I search, the more lost I get. Gwen would know where to go.

But I haven't seen her yet either.

I hope they're all ok. I'm sure they can all hold their own, but this place still feels…off. But I can't feel sorry for myself. Climbing up a tree, I resign myself to the truth—it's late, and I'll have more luck continuing the search in the morning. For now, it's time to sleep.