Dawn, Lucas, and Barry passed the same particularly mossy rock for what might have been the twenty second time.
"We've been this way before," she said, looking at the trees that stretched upwards around them, poking holes in the clouds but blocking out most of the sunlight with their canopies.
"Nuh-uh, man, I know where we're going," Barry said, before turning his map another ninety degrees. He had said something about how his father taught him to orienteer and not to rely on electronics.
"I'm a woman, thank you very much," Dawn said flatly. "And I think that what you meant to say is that we're lost."
"Not all who wander are lost," Lucas said in a pretentiously mystical tone.
She glared at Lucas until he shrunk away and crossed her arms. "Well, we've been 'wandering' for days."
That wasn't necessarily true, but meandering around after passing through a really depressing Solaceon Town and running into that flowery Ghost-type was enough of a pain to make anyone exaggerate.
"Aren't you two supposed to be prodigies or something?" she added, wrinkling her nose. "There's no way you could have passed the licensure exam without being able to read a compass."
"You don't gotta know how to read to pass," Barry said, "You just gotta be a stone-cold badass. Y'know, like me."
Dawn made a disgusted growl but let up as she caught a light through the trees. "Wait, I think I saw something."
From the way that dampened grass was folded it was hard to be certain, but as she experimentally tapped it with her foot, she could see that there was a trail leading towards the light.
"A trail?" Lucas suggested.
Dawn made a face at him over her shoulder but didn't comment, only taking off ahead. They couldn't get anymore lost; at worst, it would be another Ghost-type to catch.
It turned out to be a little more than a wild Pokémon; in fact, it was a mansion in a terrible state of disrepair. Even so, Dawn could see a tiny bit of light coming out of the foyer's windows.
"Woah, that looks cool!" Barry shouted right in her ear.
She whipped around to punch him, but unfortunately lacked the wingspan that let Hilbert do so with ease. Barry weaved around her knuckles as if he hadn't seen them at all, instead moving right up to the front gate and trying to see inside.
Her hand dropped back to her side. She couldn't wait until they met up with Hilbert again. If actually could talk to spirits (and if spirits were actually real), then she wouldn't feel so bad about killing the two morons.
That was the only reason. Definitely.
The mansion's resident seemed to hear the commotion, as a woman in green appeared in the doorway and waved at them.
Barry cheered and pushed the gate open, jogging towards her while leaving her and Lucas to catch up.
The woman was younger than Dawn thought. She was tall in a way that she definitely wasn't jealous off on some level, and her clothing looked old in a refined, mature sense. It was her voice that gave it away.
"My name is Cheryl Kusanagi," she said with a bow that was matched by the Chansey beside her, "It's a pleasure to meet you."
The Lights in the Sky Are Thunderbolts - XXII - The Enemy's Gate is Down
After an overnight stay at the inn and various shenanigans involving Oreburgh's food and service industries, Hilbert and Marley (with Shaymin attached) managed to get back on the road.
There were very few official tunnels that went through Mt. Coronet. That wasn't to say that there wasn't any travel through them, it was logistical necessity. It was much easier for the League to fortify and protect specific routes than to try and make the entire mountain safe for travel.
Hell, looking at the corkscrew-like shape of the road map, they probably had more than enough trouble anyway. The road bent seemingly randomly and circled around a point in the middle with such a wide berth that it took on the shape of a sickle's blade.
The entire area within was designated as wilderness, marked up with warnings about unstable rock formations and potentially feral wild Pokémon due to the mountain's unique magnetism.
Hilbert ran the math.
"Golett could probably take us the long way around," he said, before eying the reed box that Marley carried on her back. "I don't know about the box."
The smell of rotted leaves flooded into the air as Shaymin voiced their annoyance.
The duo of three stood at the entrance to the tunnel that cut through Mt. Coronet and went into Hearthome City. The highway had the lowest of ceilings, as a bit ahead was the entrance to one of many caverns that filled the mountain.
Even if Shaymin could almost certainly reduce him to atoms, they weren't likely to do so while he cooperated with them. He took the opportunity to mouth off because seriously, they hadn't needed to pull him into their inner world just to prove a point about their strength.
Was that what it felt like for other spirits when he used Communion?
He made a mental note to apologize to Machamp, Fuego, and Yuki. And maybe Spiritomb, if he ever ran into Cynthia again. And potentially that pair of dragons from Jubilife, but that was so unlikely it was basically impossible.
Marley side eyed the box over her shoulder. "Shaymin says that if we take the road less taken, those that come after us will be filled with Gratitude."
Hilbert considered that for a moment. "I mean, yeah, I'll make it safe if we run into anything, but that's not the point."
Fruits swelled and popped under intense sunlight and muddied boots.
"That is the point," Marley agreed.
Hilbert made a face, resisting the urge to plug his nose. "Like I said, you don't follow Ideals to make people grateful to you, you do it because you believe in them. Whatever happens happens."
He smelled pollen from wilted flowers and then petrichor from the rains that revived them.
Marley nodded before turning back to Hilbert. "Very well. But for the cases of Gratitude that do occur, we will follow you."
Hilbert sighed with only a hint of disgust and turned towards the alleged crossroads. There was a paved trail that went alongside the highway to his right and a dirt path that was only marked by painted blazers along boulders and stalagmites straight ahead.
"It'll take a few days," Hilbert said, estimating distance with his thumb and one eye closed. He could simply pulse his spirit through the mountain, but it was harder to focus on exact distances when his awareness was spread so far.
"Then there is a greater number of opportunities to generate Gratitude," Marley said.
Hilbert's brow furrowed.
"Can you stop saying that?" he asked over his shoulder, even as he started walking. "I get that Gratitude is Shaymin's domain and also kind of yours, but it's getting on my nerves. Just say you want to help people."
She shook her head as she followed behind him, absentmindedly adjusting her straps. "People aren't always grateful when you help them."
Hilbert tried to think of a reply but dismissed it. He could see that he wasn't likely to make any progress.
The two started their hike in awkward silence.
A few days later, Hilbert stumbled out of the other end of the tunnel with Marley close behind, her steps light like falling leaves while his were like rolling stones.
"That was," he began, pulling at his scarf before he drew a blank and blinked rapidly. "I'm just going to forget all of that happened."
Marley smoothed out a wrinkle in her dress. "I would appreciate that, yes."
His mind still whirled with questions. Why were there chasms so wide that only Machamp could carry them across? How did a Solrock get big enough to substitute the sun for a colony of Grass-types? Why did the gravity between Earth and Mount Coronet's peak cancel out like they were in space?
He also thought that the Rising Sun was a stupid name for a spirit that didn't move. Then again, the Solrock didn't seem too intelligent past being a tyrant.
His questions would go unanswered as he looked out across Hearthome City.
The elevation was fairly high inland, so while he couldn't see the ocean, he could see a few other towns in the far distance. Townhouses and parks stretched out in front of him, with streets filled by the midmorning rush of parents heading to work or taking their kids out for a day trip. Bright lamps stood over every street corner and everywhere he looked, he could see ramps that led onto sidewalks and into shops and houses. On the outskirts, he could just barely make out warehouses against the hills and rolling fields.
The scent of sour grapes wafted from the box strapped to Marley's back.
"Hearthome City was built with accessibility in mind," she said, looking from him to the city streets. "Many adults, children, and smaller Pokémon are grateful for the freedom of movement. The first elevators in Sinnoh were built here."
"How do you know that?" Hilbert asked skeptically.
She looked towards him with slightly raised eyebrows. "You're asking how Shaymin knows what makes people feel Gratitude?"
Hilbert directed his reflexive glare away from her. "Yeah, good point." He recognized that he didn't have any ground to stand on in that argument. "So, what's the plan?"
She blinked. "I thought you already had one."
He kicked at the dirt. "Well, the plan was to see if there are any hauntings around town, but now I have to worry about you two following me around."
The smell of honey flooded into his nostrils before being replaced by the smell of rotten fruit. He gagged and started coughing.
Marley stared down at him as he half-convulsed and tried to catch his breath. "Proximity to the source of Gratitude is all that Shaymin requires."
"Stop doing that," he tried to shout, but it turned into another cough halfway.
"That is how Shaymin communicates," she said simply.
"Well, communicate a little quieter, yeah?" he pleaded, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "I'm extra sensitive to that stuff. You wouldn't show an epileptic a Porygon getting hit by a Thunderbolt, would you?"
"Hm. I suppose that would not be conducive to inspiring Gratitude," she said. "Shaymin, may I ask that you be gentle with him?"
The aroma that followed wasn't exactly apologetic, but it was much more soothing than before.
I'm going to kill that hedgehog, Hilbert swore mentally as he pushed himself to his feet. "I'll take what I can get." He rubbed his abused ribs. "I'm going to stop at a GTS terminal, ask around about hauntings, and then see what the deal is with the gym around here."
When he'd looked online, the gym was listed with the same address as the Hearthome contest hall. There was plenty about the top coordinator, Fantina, but he couldn't find much about the local gym leader.
Marley nodded. "Would you like us to acquire a hotel room for the duration of our stay?"
Hilbert stretched and looked over his shoulder. "If you could find somewhere cheap, that would be best. Not like, hidden-cameras-in-the-bathroom cheap, but franchise cheap."
Marley nodded again and pulled out a flip phone. "Very well. I will contact you when this is done."
Hilbert blinked and stared for a second. He had never seen, for lack of a better word in his mind, such a girly cell phone strap. It was pink with flowers on it and everything. It looked hand-made, too. "I don't have a cell phone," he said bluntly.
"Troubling."
That comment doesn't really help, Hilbert thought.
"We should make efforts to correct this." Her visage became firm like thorns as the smell of roses leaked out into the air. "I am certain that there are those other than myself that would be grateful for the ability to contact you."
Hilbert looked off to the side, fighting to keep his expression even. That was true, wasn't it? "Well, I don't know about that. I don't actually speak Japanese, Golett just helps translate it through intent."
"Sinjohan-Japanese is the name of the dialect," she corrected.
Hilbert's eyebrow twitched. "Yeah, whatever. I wouldn't be able to get much use out of it, that's what I'm saying. Spirits can't travel through telephone lines." His brow furrowed slightly. "Except Rotom. They don't count."
"I see," Marley said. "Then, we will accompany you until your tasks for the day are completed."
"I also," embarrassment appeared on his face for a split second, "I also need to get new clothes. My shoes are scorched and this is my last shirt." He plucked at the dirtied cloth as if to prove a point. "If I can find a craft store, I can probably fix up the tears on my jacket."
A glint appeared in Marley's eyes and a smug smile on her lips. Shaymin's spirit hadn't shifted an inch. "Is that so? I'm quite the skilled artisan."
"I don't need your help," he said, sticking his hands in his pockets and looking off to the side. "I've managed just fine on my own so far."
His heart pulsed in half-hearted annoyance. The scarf around his neck tightened somewhat.
"The floozy seeks to place you in her debt," Yuki chimed in, apparent over his shoulder and only to him. "Do not fall for such shallow tricks."
"I'm aware," he muttered. "Also, no one uses the word "floozy" anymore. It's 2009." And hadn't that been a well-spent afternoon with Hilda back in the day, looking up as many ways as possible to insult someone's mother.
"A true gentleman only acquires his first mistress with the permission of his wife," she added, a breath of frost tickling across his ear. "Such practices were archaic even when I was a girl, but considering the current birth rates-"
"Alright, that's enough out of you," he said, praying that he wasn't blushing before he turned back to Marley.
"Was that Galarian?" she asked.
"Unovan-Galarian," he said with a half-hearted glare before sighing and kicking a rock. "Let's just go. We're not going to get anything done by standing around."
She nodded. "Very well."
They ended up in an internet cafe of some kind, with Marley immediately logging onto Pokénterest while he started looking through the forums.
Topic - Sinnoh - News - Hearthome - Pokémon Fan Club
Number1PokémonFan (Original Poster): If you enjoy talking about, researching, or caring for Pokémon, come to the Pokémon Fan Club's Hearthome Clubhouse! Unlike the Hubbard City Clubhouse, you don't need to pay to become a member or increase in renown or anything similar. Gym challengers are welcome! As our project for 2009, we hope to compile an encyclopedia of as many Pokémon species as possible and the impact that each species has had in our development.
That looked interesting, Hilbert thought. He doubted they had a whole lot of Ghost-types coming through, so maybe he ought to stop by if he had some free time.
Topic - Sinnoh - News - Hearthome - Warehouse Weirdness
PokkénRiderPSI (Original Poster): If anyone has info about what's happening out near the edge of town plz let me know.
It was a delusional middle schooler, Hilbert recognized. Given his own username, he wasn't much better, but at least he understood grammar and spelling. It was probably a part of some kind of roleplaying game.
…Wait a minute. How did the automatic translation work with bad grammar? Did the Porygon in the servers understand intent so well that they would translate words that made no sense so that they'd continue making no sense.
He shook his head to clear the thoughts away. It wasn't too pressing of a matter.
Topic - Sinnoh - News - Hearthome - Poffin Making Classes
Hilbert clicked on it without thinking, and as soon as it had registered in his mind, immediately clicked off.
Floaroma.
Topic - Sinnoh - News - Hearthome - In Relation to Religious Observances
KalosisXavier (Original Poster): Please do not go into the foreign building and tell the priests that you don't believe in their "fancy sky Legendary" or something similar following services. It's not necessary. Followers of the Archean faith have done much for Hearthome in the past, even if some of their beliefs don't align with Sinjohan tradition. Going out of your way to antagonize them is disrespectful.
OurMaushold: That doesn't happen.
InterRhyhornnum: It happened last week, what are you on about? The guy's competing on the circuit, can't remember the name but he has an Aggron. You can't get the permits to raise Aggron without being a decent trainer.
OurMaushold: Well, it didn't happen. And if it did, it wasn't that bad. And if it was, that's not a big deal. And if it is, that's not the guy's fault. And if it was, they didn't mean it. And if they did, they deserved it.
InterRhyhornnum: Literally, what are you talking about?
Hilbert, at risk of further brain damage, clicked off to look at something that could actually be important.
Topic - Sinnoh - News - Hearthome - HC Tag Battle Tournament
HeartIsWhereTheHomeIs! (Original Poster): Greetings, trainers! If you're traveling, thank you for visiting Hearthome City. If not, we're glad you've decided to stick around! Every month, the Sinjoh Multi Battling Association teams up with the Hearthome City Gym to hold the Hearthome City Tag Battle Tournament. Sign-up starts the last full week of each month that follows. Partners will register as pairs, and soloists will be teamed up randomly. You'll be working together to earn fame, fortune, and the satisfaction of a battle well won! The winning team earns priority to challenge Gym Leader Fantina, so trainers running the circuit, come on down!
Marley leaned towards his screen, the demonic mythical resting in her lap like an innocent Pokémon and not the hellspawn that Hilbert was certain it was. "Are you interested in tournaments?"
"Don't hit on me," he said bluntly, before pushing back his chair and sighing. "I might as well, but this seems like a pretty big media thing and that's not really something I'm into."
"Most gym battles are televised," Marley reminded him.
"Well, yeah, but not all of 'em are recorded or advertised," Hilbert said, clicking around. "I don't want all of that attention, I just need the badge for credibility."
She leaned in closer. "It says you can sign up with partners."
He eyed Shaymin. "No." He wasn't exposing that thing to anyone else.
"I do have other Pokémon," she said with half-lidded eyes, notes of amusement in her voice. "I can't very well use Shaymin in an official capacity. I'm a half-decent battler as well."
"I knew that," he said, looking off to the side and mentally asking Golett to get a hold on his blood pressure. She had let her Pokémon out to breathe while they were traveling through Mount Coronet. If Fuego was a radiator, her Arcanine was a weighted blanket in the shape of a giant dog. Scolipede was a big bug that could crawl upside down on a cave ceiling despite weighing maybe four hundred pounds. There was a willful rejection of physics and then there was that. The Pokémon wasn't Ghost-type; the weight had to go somewhere.
He had no doubts about her battling ability either. The Solrock inside of Mount Coronet, the Rising Sun, had been as powerful as it had been ridiculous.
"Hell, alright," he said, slumping into his fist. "Let's head over there later. That's everything I wanted to look at for now."
He made his usual post about hauntings and logged off.
"This is a family friendly establishment, sir," the hotel's front desk agent said to the two of them. "Illicit activities are strictly-"
"Whatever you're thinking right now is wrong," Hilbert said flatly.
AN:
Not the greatest chapter of my career, but it happens. This chapter was going to be a giant reference to Ender's Game because I thought it would be funny and the "the ends justify the means" argument is sort of lurking behind Hilbert's interactions with Marley/Shaymin. I planned to set the chapter in the Solrock colony but I realized that there wouldn't be any stakes. Maybe I'll write a side story later that will cover it, but it would mess with the natural flow of things here.
In this fic, a lot of Sinnoh's industry is handled by cargo shipping (Sunyshore, Snowpoint, especially the Pokémon League), but a highway that roughly goes from Canalave to Veilstone makes sense. It allows for wilderness and normal route travel but also common sense travel methods for people that don't like potentially getting ganked by wild Pokémon. MC bikes down a well-maintained road in Platinum's credits.