Had it really been a year now?
It only felt like yesterday.
Lillie was sitting at the table, on the balcony of her room. She was sipping some tea, made and brought to her by Hobbes. Snowy was asleep on her lap, while Magearna was arranging some pot plant flowers, making occasional clicking noises. And sitting in the chair across from Lillie was... Lillie.
Lillie the Shiny Nihilego that was. Or Nihilillie.
Nihilillie was also having tea. However, her cup was on the table while she had her hands, or tentacles full, with a book she was reading, about Pokemon battle strategies. Gladion had recommended it from their home library after Nihilillie had taken an interest in battling.
LIllie watched her for a moment and smiled warmly.
Never in her life would she ever expect to be friends with a Nihilego. The same Ultra Beast that had traumatised her to the point of being afraid to touch any Pokemon. Yet here they were. A whole year since they met. A whole year since she, her mother Lusamine and Gladion were reunited with her father, Mohn.
Lillie leaned back to watch the sky and sipped her tea. Memories passed through her mind.
The journey to find Mohn was long and hard, but in the end, worth it all. Easily the best part was recovering Mohn's memories and the whole family embracing for the first time, since Lillie was just a baby, learning to walk. She had never seen her mother so happy in a long time. Lusamine had cried tears of joy when Mohn said her name after years of separation.
Nihillie had saved Mohn's life. It was thanks to her, as well as Magearna that they were able to find him again. Even Gladion, who once despised Ultra Beasts for causing so much pain to Lillie, was more than happy for Nihillie to join the family. He even took her under his care for training.
It made things even better that Ash, Pikachu and their new friends, Chloe and Goh and their Pokemon, Grookey and Eevee were there to witness the wholesome reunion. And they couldn't miss the opportunity to join Lillie and her newly united family for a homecoming feast back in Alola. Something that Kahuna Hala had promised, since they had found out Mohn was still alive.
On the boat, leading heading back to Alola, LIllie, her family, Ash and his new friends told Mohn stories about the many things that had happened since his disappearance. Including the bad things like Lillie's fear of touching Pokemon.
It was then that Lillie, still silently sipping her tea, thought about Faba.
It was true that Faba had done such horrible things, but he was very remorseful for it and punished in a fitful way. After a time, he was fully forgiven.
But to Lillie's surprise, even after hearing of Faba's wrongdoings, Mohn had forgiven him as soon as they arrived home. He explained that the only person he blamed was himself for not being there. That, since his disappearance, everything at Aether Paradise began falling apart, including his beloved co-workers. Nonetheless, Mohn had talked with Faba after the welcome home party and agreed that bygones be bygones.
How truly incredible her father was indeed.
Too good to be true in fact. Lillie was afraid that Mohn would be overwhelmed with tons of research when he got home. But it wasn't long before he became great friends with Rotom Dex and was provided with everything he needed to know, though it did take some time for Mohn to catch up.
Lillie began reflecting on the past year since their return. Lusamine and Mohn had of course resumed work at Aether Paradise again. Only now, they took it upon themselves to make time for their kids. Lusamine still liked cuddling Lillie and calling her "baby girl", but Lillie had begun tolerating this. After all, to any parent, their children would still their babies, no matter how much they grow up.
It took some time for Nihillie to get used to her new surroundings, but after realizing that the family owned a piano, it wasn't long before she felt right at home. The servants, including Hobbes were impressed by her lovely playing and gave her full access, anytime she wished. She began to learn various tunes, although the "Mother and Daughter" tune was always her favorite. When Nihilillie wasn't playing piano, she was either training with Gladion, sometimes helping Mohn and Lusamine at Aether Paradise (she still loved being with Mohn whenever she could), or like now, spending time with Lillie.
Gladion had begun to train again, only he wasn't away from home anymore like he used to be. He trained in the mansion's battlefield and sometimes Lillie joined in as a sparring partner so she could train Snowy or Magearna. Even Mohn had tried his hand at battling again. Zoroark was so glad to have his human partner back by his side, though Gladion had been a pretty good trainer too.
Mohn had even considered completing the island trials as he had never been able to do before, and earn a new Z-Ring, insisting that Lillie keep his old one after hearing of how strong she had become with it.
And, oh! How wonderful it was to gather with her friends at the Pokemon School to watch Ash defeat Leon and become World Champion. Ash Ketchum. The boy who had helped Lillie in her times of need, who had helped her move past her PTSD and finally become friends with Pokemon. Lillie couldn't think of any other person more deserving of World Champion than Ash Ketchum.
There were still the nightmares, though.
Lillie woke up from a particularly horrible one, not long after returning home. It had been about the Nihilego that had tried abducting her when she was young. The reason she had been unable to touch Pokemon. It was wonderful that Nihilillie had been so understanding of her trauma and she, Snowy and Magearna were able to comfort her. These nightmares became fewer and fewer as the days went by and Lillie was no longer afraid in confiding for support. Mohn had told her that even though he wished he had seen his daughter grow up, he was still proud that his 'little princess' had indeed become strong.
Lillie's mind came back to reality when Snowy stirred a bit in her sleep. Magearna had finished arranging flowers and had joined them, standing next to Lillie. It too began watching the sky, as though deep in thought. It made a little clicking sound and pointed to the horizon.
A helicopter was in sight.
"Mother and Father will be home soon" Lillie said.
Nihillie gave a content sigh, looked up from her book and reached for her teacup. It was empty. She began reaching for the teapot, but Lillie's hand got there first.
"More tea?"
"Ni..." Nihillie nodded and held out her cup. Lillie poured the tea and added two sugar cubes. Just as the Ultra Beast liked her tea.
"Lego.." said Nihillie in a happy tone.
"You're welcome" Lillie answered, smiling.
The young girl and the Ultra Beast clinked their teacups together and sipped.