Purple banners flew in the wind atop grand spires that stretched towards the golden sky. A castle, complete with walls and battlements rested on a hilltop, bathed in the warm light of a rising sun. Colorful wagons pulled by strange, bison-like beasts flowed in and out of the open gates, guided by even stranger-looking people.

Dew wetted Tanner's paws as he gazed up at the castle. Now THIS was a dimension he could get into! All the weird creatures, outfits, and languages. Maybe he would see a dragon or something!

Though, he had already seen a dragon back in Mayweather... Still, Tanner was excited.

Hoopa floated forward and nodded at a passing soldier, before he joined the caravan of people flowing into the city. The genie followed behind a painted wagon with tassels around its base. Tanner waited for a group of cats to pass, before he joined Hoopa's side.

"Where are we?" Tanner asked as he gawked at a bulky, pink woman with sharp spines instead of hair.

"This..." Hoopa gestured all around them. "Is the citadel of Hallow. It's pretty much a hub for all monsters and creatures from across the world. Cool, huh?"

"Yeah, it's awesome. What is this dimension?"

"It's a generic fantasy-style dimension. You've got lizard people, fox people, cat people, people people. There's some form of magic here, so the rules of this dimension are pretty vague and nonsensical."

Tanner narrowed his eyes. He wasn't sure what that meant. This was a magical dimension. The only exposure he had to magic in the past was either in books or the pokemon world. From what he could see here, there was a wide variety of things he could call magic. From the creatures, to the little machines that zoomed about, and the wizards conjuring sparks at their fingertips.

Whatever it was, it was thrilling. Tanner watched a bluish-green cat creature with wings walk by that almost looked familiar.

"Are there other Pokemon here?" Tanner wouldn't have been surprised. Hoopa didn't seem concerned about blending in. Oddly, they blended in well enough as themselves. There was a blue genie up a few wagons from them, and Tanner saw plenty of creatures that walked on all fours.

"Oh, no no no. Nah, Pokemon are pretty rare in the multiverse. That's uh, Arceus' doing."

"Huh?" Tanner asked, confused.

"There are very few variations in pokemon. Pokemon usually fit one image. If they don't, they aren't pokemon. Arceus has one vision for how pokemon should be. It's a pretty narrow worldview if you ask me, but you know, I don't call the shots, he does." Hoopa threw up his arms in frustration. "Don't worry about it if it's confusing."

Tanner nodded. It was confusing.

The wagon they were following had a green lizard man with a bronze mechanical arm and magnifying glass attached to his head. The lizard mixed a red vial of liquid into a bowl with green powder. There was a 'poof!' and a thin green smoke filled the back of the wagon.

"Wait- are there other Hoopas? Is there more than one Arceus?" Having alternate dimensions meant that there were infinite pokemon. That included Hoopa, right?

"Nope." Hoopa shook his head. "Most Legendary pokemon exist outside of time, space and reality. There are some duplicates- there's usually a weather trio and a lake trio for every pokemon world, but..."

The legendary turned around with a wide grin. "There's only one of this guy." Hoopa pointed his thumbs at himself.

"Huh..." Tanner mumbled. He couldn't remember who Rayquaza or the lake trio was. A lot of that went over his head. Partially because he was distracted by a creature that looked like a werewolf that was speaking to a half-man half-goat.

Tanner hopped over a puddle and looked up at the citadel of Hallow. He could only imagine what it looked like inside.

"So, what are we doing here?"

"We're still taking it easy, first off. It wouldn't be a good idea for either of us to get in any fights for a while. Not until you know more moves. There's lots you can learn here though." Hoopa explained.

"Like what?"

"Like… I don't know, maybe moves, maybe cultural diversity and… social skills. There's nothing that opens your mind quite like talking to whatever that thing is." Hoopa glanced over at a creature that looked like a cross between a millipede and a hawk. It was very strange.

"So we're just relaxing again?" Tanner sighed.

"No! We're experiencing. We're living , kid. Before we get too far into this thing, I want to make sure you're alright. We're going to be moving fast, and I don't want you to get overwhelmed."

"I'm not overwhelmed." It was a lot, but he had dealt with worse when he was turned into a Zorua.

"Sure, and that's good to hear. I just to ease you into it gently. Have a bit of fun before we get to work. Take me for an example-" Hoopa spun in a circle, doing a flip as he turned to face Tanner. "I had my power taken from me. Do I let it get me down?"

"Apparently not?" Tanner guessed.

"Nope! Not for a second. I'm going to get my power back, and I'm having fun while I'm at it. You're going to be a Human again soon, but you have to enjoy this a little. Make sense?"

"Yeah." Tanner nodded. It did make sense, and he did appreciate Hoopa bringing him here. It was an amazing place and he was curious what else they would run into on their journey.

"Good. There is something I need to check on though. Speaking of which- you want something? You said you were hungry, right?" Hoopa pulled out a ring and spun it between his hands. Different dimensions flashed inside the ring as it spun.

"Oh, yeah. Could I... could you get me a cheeseburger?" Tanner desperately wanted fast food. Pokemon diets consisted of a lot of fruits and vegetables, and it got old fast.

"Now we're talking!" Hoopa rubbed his hands excitedly and looked for a place to toss a ring. After a second, he floated into the back of the wagon they had been following and created a portal.

A burger fell out of the portal onto the counter space inside of the wagon they had been following, followed by a bag of fries and a soda.

The steampunk lizard looked bewildered.

"Hey, buddy, my friend's tired. We're hitching a ride." Hoopa patted the lizard on the back and dropped a large heap of gold coins on the counter as well.

The lizard's eyes went wide. They didn't complain about their new hitchhikers.

Once their ride was secured, Tanner hopped up onto the cart and greedily dug into the food.

He was worried at first. He was sad about having to leave Tessa and Landon, and scared that Hoopa was only going to mess around. Or that he would get lost in a random dimension.

As he ate, his worries faded. This place was cool. Hoopa just conjured a full meal, and a pile of gold. They could go anywhere. Tanner had a purpose- to help Hoopa get his powers back. He could go home if he wanted to, but as Tanner looked up at the polished walls of the city, he was reassured. He belonged here.

"Mmm- I did want to ask…" Hoopa took a bite out of a roll of cotton candy. "What's with the mohawk?"

"Oh. It's how I used to do my hair back home. When I was a human." Tanner responded as he ate some fries.

"Huh. Why?" Hoopa gestured with the cotton candy stick at Tanner's hair.

"I… like it, I guess? I don't know. It's cool." Tanner said quietly.

Hoopa shrugged and continued eating his cotton candy.

Tanner looked out the back of the wagon at the caravan.

Should he get rid of his mohawk?

No…

Tanner was looking at a person with a face of a fox, with a bunch of earrings and piercings.

Sure the mohawk was different from other Zorua, but it didn't really matter. There weren't any other Zorua here anyways. If that random fox guy could look however he wanted, then so could Tanner.

His fur was already cut anyways, and it wasn't like he could change how he looked.

The lizard, who was still working in the wagon looked over at Tanner and spoke with a higher-pitched voice than Tanner was expecting. "I think your hair looks good."

"Thanks," Tanner said quietly. He watched out the wagon window as they passed the fifty-foot tall white stone walls surrounding the city. Symmetrical buildings lined pristine brick roads populated with people loading and unloading wagons. They bartered, laughed and embraced each other, and worked busily. All while Tanner finished his burger.

Eventually, the wagon came to a stop, and Hoopa gestured for Tanner to follow.