"Aue" is a Hawaiian (Alolan) exclamation of amazement (They use it in Lilo and Stitch). It's kinda pronounced Lika "ah-oo-eh." It's a fun word. I have to resist using it too much.

So, one of my older Pokémon characters is named Lily. I named her long before the Sun and Moon games came out, and she will show up later in this story. Sorry for the confusion, and I'll try to make it clear who's Lily and who's Lillie! At least they're spelled different.

Polaris-Ponyta, Shira-Reshiram, Mia-Cubone, Marin-Primarina, Zetty-Rotom Dex

Chapter 2: Beneath the Bridge

The sun was beginning to dip as our party hiked uphill toward Iki Town. The higher we climbed, the more the ocean opened up behind us. For a while, I could even see the little white speck on the beach that was Shira. She'd worn herself out demonstrating attacks for Professor Kukui, and was taking a nap.

"It will be a while before the battles start," Kukui explained as we stepped into town. "Help yourself to food. I'll introduce you to Hala. He's the Island Kahuna - the strongest trainer on Melemele Island. I don't see him yet. But his grandson will be taking part in the battles. Or maybe you want to visit the Ruins of Conflict. You have time before the festival's in full swing. That's where people go to pay our respects to Tapu Koko."

There was already a bit of a crowd gathered for the festival. Everyone knew each other, so it was obvious that we were strangers. But Professor Kukui introduced us, and we immediately became welcome guests. Once again, I was struck by how weird it was for strangers to know about me. As word got around, I was surrounded by people asking about what happened in Unova and Kalos. When I spotted a gap in the human wall, I slipped away. I wasn't sure where Ben and Hari had gone, so I headed alone up the trail toward the ruins. It had been a busy day. We flew in this morning, worked with Professor Kukui most of the day, and were now getting tired from jet lag. I wasn't up to answering any more questions. I wish I had a bit more energy to appreciate the festival. I wanted to do a battle in honor of the Tapus, but then I'd have to retreat and sleep.

The trail was steeper than I expected. So much for taking a break. But the view from the top was amazing. Before me was a vast chasm with a river frothing at the bottom. A wooden bridge spanned the chasm, and across that were the Ruins of Conflict; the shrine for Tapu Koko. I headed toward the bridge and realized that I wasn't alone. There was a blonde girl standing there, wearing a white dress. She was at the end of the bridge, wringing her hands and calling out. There was some kind of commotion on the bridge. A Pokémon battle? She heard me approach and spun around.

"Help, please! Nebby's in danger!" She pointed to a little purple and blue Pokémon huddled on the planks, surrounded by aggressive Spearow.

I reacted without thinking, stepping onto the bridge. By the time I noticed how rickety the bridge was, it was pointless to turn back. I grit my teeth and stepped carefully on the creaking boards. Nebby was cowering, so I couldn't tell what kind of Pokémon it was. It looked a little like Swirlix, but the colors were all wrong. As I approached, the Spearow turned and squawked at me. I sighed, and continued to edge forward. "Listen up. I'm just here for the Pokémon. If you insist on fighting, I will." I didn't wait for a response, but bent over and scooped up Nebby in my arms. The lead Spearow swooped over my head and cawed loudly. I used telepathy to send him a picture of Shira. "This is the kind of Pokémon that battles with me. Trust me. You don't want to fight her."

The Spearow hesitated, backing off a bit. I turned around, ready to get off this bridge. But as my foot pivoted, the plank snapped. I gasped and dropped to my knees. The force of the impact made the frayed ropes snap. The floor dropped out from under us.

I reached for the ropes, a cry choking out of my throat. But I was holding Nebby and didn't react fast enough. Above us, the girl's face stared down in horror as we fell. My free hand closed around Shira's Pokéball, but dread slammed into me as I realized that the Pokéball was empty. Shira was back at Kukui's lab. I called out to the Spearow for help, but they'd bolted in panic when the bridge broke. I reached for Rotom's Pokéball, knowing even as I did so that he wasn't strong enough to catch us. There was nothing but the rocks and rolling waters hurtling closer.

A yellow blur shot through the air. My eyes were watering from the rush of wind, and I couldn't see clearly. Something grabbed me, and my momentum came to a halt. We were hovering above the river rapids. Then like a bungee cord, we shot back up the canyon. The yellow thing set me on my feet where I stood teetering, dizzy and dazed.

The first thing I saw was the girl running toward us, looking shocked. Then I turned to see what had caught me. A Pokémon with large yellow shields on its arms. Tapu Koko.

I took a few gasping breaths, feeling disoriented from the fall. Part of me was amazed that I was still alive. I opened my mouth, but couldn't find any words. Instead I bowed to the Tapu. He stared at me for a few moments, as though studying me. Then he turned and rocketed away into the sky. I stared after him.

"Are you okay?" The girl gasped.

I looked at her, feeling a bit numb, and nodded. Then I remembered that I was still holding her Pokémon. Nebby was hugging my neck, eyes shut in lingering fear. It was the first time I'd gotten a proper look at the unfamiliar Pokémon. It was like nothing I'd ever seen. She looked like a little cloud with arms. I coaxed her off of my neck and held her out so she could see that everything was safe. She glanced around, then reached out to the girl.

"Oh, Nebby," she sighed. "When are you going to learn to stay put?" She took the Pokémon in her arms. "Thank you for saving Nebby! I never would have asked you to go out there if I knew the bridge was going to break."

Something huge and white hurtled out of the sky, landing in a cloud of dust and embers. The girl squeaked and turned away, shielding Nebby. Shira stood before me, looking alarmed. "Cara! Are you okay? What happened?"

I walked toward her, still weak-kneed, Shira lowered her head so I could hug her. "Tapu Koko saved me. But thank you for coming. I'm fine." I guess my fear had been so great that it reached Shira through telepathy. She'd gotten here fast. Luckily Tapu Koko had gotten here faster.

"Oh! You're the champion that came to help Professor Kukui!" The girl exclaimed.

"Oh, yeah. I'm Cara."

"I'm Lillie! I'm Professor Kukui's assistant. He told me you'd all be coming."

"Oh, yeah he mentioned you." I couldn't suppress a wry smile at the sound of her name. I had a good friend named Lily – a Pokémon. And now here was Lillie the human.

"By the way," Lillie continued, "Nebby wouldn't have let either of you get hurt. I'm sure that if Tapu Koko hadn't come, Nebby could have teleported you to safety. She did that with me when we were in danger. By the way, please don't tell anyone about Nebby. She's a very rare Pokémon, and I don't want anyone else to find out about her."

"Yeah, sure." I knew a number of Pokémon that I didn't want humans to find out about.

"Oh, what is that?" Lillie pointed to the ground and I knelt to pick it up. A sparkling stone decorated with carved triangles and diamonds. "I think the Tapu left it for you," Lillie said.

"Oh yeah?" I didn't know what it meant, but it looked pretty and old, so I slipped it into my pocket.

There were a few moments of awkward silence. My heart hadn't calmed down yet. And I was feeling rather bitter. That girl had let her Pokémon go out on a rickety bridge to get attacked. And instead of going out there herself, she'd asked a random stranger for help. Maybe I was being petty, but I'd almost died. That's as good a time as any to be a little bitter.

"I guess we should get back down to the festival," Lillie said, sounding tentative. I nodded and we started back. Near the end of the path, Lillie tucked Nebby into a duffel bag that hung over her shoulder.

Shira wasn't so easy to hide. The moment we stepped into town, all eyes were on us. Several people crowded closer. I glanced at Shira to see if she was bothered by the attention, but she settled down and let some of the children pet her nose. She was being protective after my close call, and didn't want to go back to the lab. Hari and Ben noticed that I looked stressed and came to check on me. As I saw them in their leis, I realized that I'd lost mine. It had fallen off when Tapu Koko caught me. I felt bad for losing my gift so soon after receiving it. Lillie came overs with Kukui, and the man who must be Hala, the Island Kahuna. We slipped away from the crowd so Lillie and I could explain what had happened.

"Aue," Kukui said, amazed. "I'm glad you're both all right!"

Lillie squinted her eyes shut and nodded. "It's my fault! I'm sorry! I need to keep a closer eye on Nebby!"

"Well," Kukui sighed, "Nebby's a free spirit. You can't keep it under lock and key."

I nodded, wondering if I should try talking to Nebby about safety. Then again, some people (and Pokémon) just have no clue when they're doing something dangerous.

"So," Hala said, "Tapu Koko saved you. He may be fickle, but it looks like you attracted his attention. From your history, that's not surprising. Or maybe he just sensed Reshiram's presence about you and thought he ought to keep you safe."

"Hey, Hala!" Kukui exclaimed. "If Tapu Koko does have his eye on her, we should invite her to join the Island Challenge!"

Hala nodded, looking thoughtful. "We are about to open it up as an official league challenge. If she'd like, she can test it out."

"And," Kukui continued, "When you go through this Island Challenge, you'll be able to collect Z Crystals!"

They turned to me, seeking my opinion. I'd been wondering about it, though I didn't think I'd be allowed. The Island Challenge would be fun by itself, but the chance to gather Z Crystals clinched the deal. I couldn't resist learning about strange new Pokémon powers. And, of course, this would be a great excuse to explore all corners of Alola. "Sure, I'll try it!" Even in my current frazzled state, it was an offer I couldn't refuse.

"Excellent!" Hala exclaimed. "I'll get your trainer amulet and passport ready in the next couple days. But we'll discuss details later. The festival battles are about to start. Do you still want to take part?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Come on. I'll take you to get ready."

By the time I stepped up onto the stage, I was mostly calmed down and ready to battle. Actually, the battle helped focus me. I was used to battling in extreme situations. I found myself facing Hala's grandson, Hau. He grinned as he stepped onto stage and sent out Decidueye. I sent out Marin, my Primarina.

Hau laughed. "I was wondering if you'd send out Reshiram! I'd love to battle it, but I think it would end pretty fast for my Pokémon."

I smiled, drawn into his lighthearted view Pokémon battles. I definitely had fun battles. But I'd also been in truly terrifying battles. Either way, Marin was one of my newer Pokémon, and was probably a similar level to his Decidueye. If Hau was good at strategy, this could be a pretty even match.

Hau acted fast, not wanting to give me time to think. Decidueye used Razor Leaf. Marin wasn't as maneuverable on land, so he had trouble dodging. Decidueye used Razor Leaf again and again, trying to give Marin no room to counter. But Marin used Bubblebeam, knocking away many of the leaves. The two continued firing at each other, and it seemed a ridiculous standoff. But Marin was letting out a low hum as attacked. Primarina use song to control bubbles, and Marin's song was guiding some bubbles off to the side. They gathered above Decidueye, congealing into one large bubble. Marin sang out a commanding note and the bubble dropped down, bursting in front of Decidueye. He hooted in surprise and toppled backward. Marin closed the gap with Aqua Jet, then spun and used Disarming Voice. Now that Decidueye was knocked off balance, the tables were turned. Hau been smart to keep Marin at a distance with a wall of super-effective attacks. But we'd broken that wall. Marin struck with Aqua Jet again, dodging back and forth so Decidueye had trouble getting a lock on him. One of Decidueye's attacks flew wide, and Marin seized the moment for one final attack. Icy Wind. Decidueye slumped, defeated.

Hau whistled as he returned his Pokémon. "Wow! I should get some pointers from you."

I thought for a second, not used to giving battle critiques. "You had a really good strategy. You expected to be facing a much stronger opponent, so you tried to keep us at a distance while you whittled us down. In reality, my Primarina was a pretty similar level to your Pokémon. Ironically, that may have made it harder for your strategy to work. If you'd hit us with a powerful attack, you would have done some serious damage. But you never really know your opponent until you've battled them. I guess keep an open mine and a sharp eye. And be creative! Everyone tells me I use crazy strategies."

Hau grinned and folded his hands behind his head. "Sounds good. Thanks for a great battle!"

"You too." As we shook hands, a crowing sound cut through the evening air. I looked around confused, but everyone else fell silent, and then began to murmur in excitement.

Hala laughed. "That was Tapu Koko. It looks like he approved of your battle."