The evening sky above Adstrum was a pleasant shade of burnt orange, and such a lovely sight made Gloria struggle to keep her eyes on the road ahead. The Hypno wandered into a series of colorful daydreams, each of them sweeter than the last: a bakery filled with golden crusted pastries, Combee honeycombs crisp against her teeth, getting sherbert or shaved ice on a hot Autumn day… All with Remmy at her side, of course.

However, her fantasies soon started to sour. Gloria's nose twitched at the choking scent of smoke invading her senses. It took a stern nudge from Remmy to fully snap Gloria back to reality. The old Hypno's eyes fell on a small crowd of Pokémon gawking at something she couldn't quite see, but her husband's trembling told Gloria right away that it was something dreadful.

Remmy hovered speedily around the corner, and Gloria attempted to keep up while also pulling her glasses up over her eyes. The Hypno's aching joints cried at her to stop running, but once she could actually see what was going on– Gloria pushed them even harder.

Inside the Drowsy Munna was a blazing fire. Flames clawed at the glassy windows from within, and the smoke was desperate to escape through the few gaps between the walls. Remmy levitated in place to look on in horror, transfixed on the dancing embers.

"Gloria…" The Musharna's voice was barely above a whisper. He did not have any suggestions, a call to action, or even words to express his distress. The Psychic Type could only float there, his old heart pounding against his chest.

Gloria turned to her husband and placed a gentle hand on the top of his head. Both Pokémon slowly locked gazes, taking their eyes off of their suffering inn. Remmy could see the light in his wife's eyes– the drive to do what she thought was necessary, and he blinked slowly in response to her growing intensity. The Musharna could hear his spouse's voice in his mind: Xander…

Remmy slowly turned back towards the flashing reds and yellows inside his home, his gut twisting so hard that he needed to lower himself to the ground. He's seen quite a few adolescent Fire Types causing accidental house burnings. Their young helper could very well be trapped in the frightening blaze.

Gloria took a hurried step towards the building, only to be yanked back by Remmy's Psychic. The couple locked eyes once again. "D-don't… Gloria… What if something happens? You can't just run off–" His plea was interrupted by a series of deep coughs. The smoke was making its way down the street, and Pokémon were starting to disperse at the actual encroaching danger. The fumes invading his lungs made Remmy lose focus on his psychic grip, and Gloria faltered slightly.

"Remus!…" Gloria whimpered, kneeling down by her husband to rest a hand on his face. "You need to get away from here. The smoke…" The Hypno shook her head despairingly before planting a small kiss on Remmy's snout. "But, I can't just do nothing. Not again…" Without a moment to lose, Gloria hurried as fast as her joints could take her towards the inn. Remmy cried out as the elderly Hypno hurried inside, reaching one of his hands out towards her, but he couldn't stop her now.

The Musharna reeled back and held his breath for a moment. He couldn't go after her, but he wasn't going to just sit there and be useless. Remmy needed to go find help. He mustered the energy to float back up into the air and find any Pokémon who could put out this fire.

Meanwhile, Gloria was making a quick assessment of her surroundings. The houseplants, furniture, and hardwood floors were being torn apart by the flames. The Hypno navigated carefully through the ignited lobby, holding a hand over her mouth and nose to protect her lungs from the smoke. "Xander! Dearie! Where are you?" Gloria called, her hoarse voice drowned out by the cackling fire.

An unfamiliar voice called back to her, it was a desperate plea for help.

Gloria focused her mind on the kitchen. The sink, the water… She would need a bucket, those were in the housekeeper's room. Using Psychic, Gloria managed to switch the faucet on and retrieve a bucket through layers of steam and smoke. The Hypno's focus was interrupted by a stray flame snagging her leg fur. As Gloria recoiled, the metal bucket could be heard falling to the floor.

It didn't matter how hard this inferno tried to stop her. After about half a second of recovering, Gloria hurried into the hallway to retrieve the bucket. However, Gloria suddenly stumbled backwards as a sharp pain shot through her head. It disappeared within a moment, but Gloria had to hold herself up against a wall in an attempt to remain steady. The Hypno tucked into her neck fur while taking a series of sharp breaths. It was too piercing for the heat to have done it; Gloria's Forewarn was compelling her to stay far away from that room.

The old Hypno had no time to process such an eerie presence. Pushing herself off the wall, Gloria decided to forget the bucket and rush into where she heard the cry: room 3A. Two Pokémon, a Girafarig and Skarmory, were pressed against the back wall as an intense ball of fire was devouring the bed with its flames. The Girafarig was keeping his Skarmory friend behind him, protecting the Steel Type from the attack. Something within the flames screeched with fury.

"What do you want… WHAT do you WANT!?"

The voice was disguised by the burning air, but Gloria could still hear him… Xander.

What had sent him into such a fury, Gloria couldn't have possibly known, but such a lovely young Pokémon would never attack guests unprovoked. Gloria dismissed her analysis of the poor boy for now; she had located the source of the flames and needed to extinguish them before it was too late.

A stream of flames shot from Xander's overwhelming fire shield at the two guests cowering against the wall. Skarmory screeched as he shoved the Girafarig out of the way, his metal body getting battered with fire. His friend shrieked, "Silver, no!"

"Grr–" Silver grit his beak tightly as he shook the attack away. The Skarmory growled as his wings started to glow with energy. "I've had enough!"

Gloria recognized a Wing Attack when she saw one, and held her hands outwards towards Silver. "Don't hurt him! He doesn't know what he's doing!" A gleam of light flickered from the Hypno's fingertips, and Silver stopped mid-attack as his body trembled from Gloria's Disable.

Gloria leered at the fireball as she made an attempt to Disable it, but that move in particular didn't work so well when she used it in rapid succession. The toxic fume induced headache wasn't helping her focus much either.

"Wh– what are you–" Girafarig blinked a few times to gather what was happening, assessing that Gloria was only trying to protect her friend. He shook the doubt away before leaping into action, quickly hobbling back in front of his paralyzed friend to push him back up against the wall. He then shot Gloria an uneasy glance. "I was trying to open it earlier, but the window won't budge!"

"Don't fumble with the faulty latch, just smash it!" Gloria shouted as she pointed her hands now at Xander. "There isn't any use in preserving it now!"

Girafarig was hesitant, but another look towards his suffering friend solidified his resolve. He turned around and kicked as hard as he could at the glass, shattering it instantly. The piercing sound caused Xander to recoil and cover his ears with his paws, halting the violent fire. Girafarig took advantage of the limited peace to shove his partner out the broken window, forcing the struggling Skarmory to escape whether he liked it or not. "Come on!" Girafarig beckoned Gloria towards him with a swing of his head, "We need to get out of here!"

"I'm not leaving my Drowsy Munna." Gloria coughed on some smoke. "This Overheat will leave him weakened soon. Then, I can splash his body with water, and the flames will end."

The Girafarig turned back towards Xander, "O-overheat? No way…" He muttered as he took a shaky step back, but was met only with the wall. "It couldn't be!–"

Gloria didn't care about what was or was not possible, only that she knew what to do to make Xander stop. The blazing Fire Type was taking threatening steps in Girafarig's direction, and Gloria waved her arms towards the hole in her wall. "Just get out of here! Join your friend outside; I can handle this."

"Not a chance! An explorer never leaves another Pokémon behin– WHOA!" Girafarig had to duck as a small burst of fire came his way. In a panic, he ran over to Gloria through the incinerating room. "Just tell me what I need to do!"

Gloria hesitated. The last thing she wanted was an extra Pokémon to be in danger, but such a spry Girafarig could be great help. "Alright fine, quickly fill the bucket laying on the ground out there with water. I'm going to distract Litten, and you're going to dunk all that water on him! Got it?"

The Giraffe Pokémon gave her a short nod before hurrying out of the room, dancing around the spreading fire. His slick black tail gave Gloria a worried frown as the Psychic Type fled towards the kitchen. Gloria turned back towards Xander, whose Overheat was already dying out– Thank goodness.

Gloria wasn't scared. Well actually, she was terrified– but not of Xander. She wanted to hold him– to somehow smother the fire out in her arms, but Gloria fought back her emotions as she slowly approached the little Litten. "Xander, dearie… can you hear me?"

The ferocious flames turned towards her, the flickering embers disguising Xander's real eyes. That sharp pain burst through Gloria's mind as the two Pokémon made eye contact. The elderly Hypno held onto her head while desperately recovering her bearings. However, all that hyperventilating was escalating Gloria's smoke intake. "Listen to me, sweetheart… you need to take a deep breath–"

"NO!" Xander roared. "SHUT UP! IT DOESN'T WORK!"

Xander snarled as even more fire surged out from his hardly visible mouth and nostrils. Flames caught onto the fur of Gloria's left shoulder and started to singe her flesh, and the Hypno gasped in pain as she grabbed the injury– frantically attempting to pat out the fire.

One hand gripping her shoulder and the other at her scalp, Gloria still shuffled closer to Xander. The Hypno released her head and twirled her fingers, using a thumb to pull off one of her rings– this specific ring actually being her hypnotizer. If Disable wasn't going to work, Hypnosis had to. "Shh… It's okay, Xander…"

As Gloria started to swing the metal piece back and forth, Xander's growling came to a short pause. The Litten's eyes fixated on the hypnotizer. He tried to pull away, but couldn't, and the flames clinging to his body started to slow. Gloria smiled. "That's right, easy now… Shh…" The Hypno muttered before coughing; she was running out of time.

Xander's fixation on the metal washer didn't last much longer. The flames erupted once again, and Gloria had to squint at the blinding light. Lord Arceus above, why isn't it working? He should be falling asleep! Wait– Unless…

Gloria's body finally collapsed in on itself, forcing her to kneel on the floor. She could no longer efficiently get oxygen to her aching lungs, but a smile was still her face as she hacked up smoke and flem. She could only be thankful a fire like this didn't happen while Remmy was in the building. Gloria knew she would be okay– she had to be. But Remmy… his lungs…

The fading fires allowed Gloria to look up at Xander as he was closing in on her, but the Hypno shut her eyes. Gloria's old bones couldn't fight away the encroaching unconsciousness, and she braced herself for Xander's fiery assault.

But, it never came.

SPLOOOOSH– SSSsss…

Suddenly, it was not smoke, but steam that was filling the room. A bucket of water had been dumped on the blazing fireball just in time, and Xander appeared to be knocked out cold. The Girafarig looked on in utter dismay at the thought that he might have taken too long, but Gloria's eyes slowly flickered back open. "G-good job… young man…"

A loud Roar echoed through the Drowsy Munna, accompanied by the sound of vaporizing water. The two floor-bound Pokémon and Girafarig were soon joined by a large Arcanine and a vest-wearing Wartortle. "Hurricane! Get those two on my back!"

"Right! Yes, Ma'am!" The Wartortle swiftly helped Gloria to her feet. "We'll get you out of here, just hang tight– okay?"

The Hypno could only nod weakly as she was helped onto the Police Officer. Her gaze didn't leave the limp Litten on the ground, feeling as though she had failed him somehow. Hurricane grabbed Xander and handed him off to Gloria, "he's safe to touch. Keep him close!"

That was one thing Gloria knew she could do. The Hypno practically smothered the unconscious Fire Type with her neck fur.

"I'll keep the path clear!" Hurricane rushed back out of the room to immediately start spraying the furnishings with Water Gun once again.

The Police Arcanine looked down at Girafarig. "Stay close! You'll be safe with me!"

The small group carefully escaped the burning building, navigating around lingering flames and smoldering ash. Once they were in the clear, Girafarig hurried to where he saw Silver– while Remmy rushed over to his wife. "Gloria!"

"I'm alright…" The old Hypno croaked. Her eyes were still on the young Pokémon she was holding. The Arcanine kneeled so Gloria could carefully slide off her back, and Remmy used Psychic to float her and Xander down gently. Once the Musharna got a good look at the condition Xander was in, he audibly gasped and hovered closer.

"What on Earth happened?" Remmy mumbled.

"I'll tell you what happened." The Skarmory snarled, approaching the group with an accusatory wing. "That clerk of yours nearly killed us!"

"Silver, please…" The Girafarig pouted. "He was distressed. I could sense it… and I should have told you–"

"That's no excuse to light everything in his path ablaze!" Silver squawked. "I want my money back!"

Girafarig frowned at his partner, and even the Psychic type's tail grimaced at Silver. "Okay, you need to calm down. These Pokémon are experiencing a fire in their place of business, and all you can think about is getting a refund?"

"Don't you get snappy at me, Mirror!"

As the two other Pokémon bickered, Gloria gave her husband a worried glance. The Hypno whispered to avoid the other Pokémon overhearing. "I think he was having a bad daydream again. That glazed look in his eyes… the loss of all sense… It's the only possibility for a Pokémon like Xander to do something like this."

Remmy glanced over at the smoke and steam expelling from the door and windows, before turning back to his wife. "Are you sure?"

She nodded slowly, before revealing her hypnotizer clutched tightly in her hand. "You can't put an already sleeping Pokémon to sleep."

"Jennifer, ma'am. We've taken care of the active fires." The Wartortle from before approached the group. "The smoke should clear out in a few hours… but I recommend booking a stay somewhere else for the night."

Remmy sighed tiredly. "Ironic…"

"Only the room, parts of the hall, and the entrance seem to have been mangled by the flames. Thankfully, there aren't any structural problems or major damages to the walls. I hope you don't mind me asking, but how did something like this even happen?"

Gloria didn't even hesitate, glancing back at the arguing strangers before blinking slowly at Wartortle. "Just the old case of a Pokémon learning their first Fire Type move. Stray Ember must've startled him into producing more Embers. I'm sure you know how it is."

Remmy then added, "Poor guy must've tried to put it out himself– considering his fur is drenched."

Jennifer looked down at Xander, not entirely convinced by the old couple's story. It did seem to appease Wartortle, though. "I'm sure you know what that's like, Officer." The turtle Pokémon remarked as he looked up at the Arcanine in charge.

Jennifer gave a nervous glance back at the smoking building before looking back down at the extinguished Litten in Gloria's arms. "Yeah…"

"Well, with all the fires put out and everyone safe, that's my que to split." Hurricane gave the chief of police a polite bow before making his way through the remaining crowd. "Get a move on! Return home! The disaster is over!" He shouted while waving his arms.

Everyone dispersing finally drew Silver and Mirror's attention away from each other. Mirror gave Silver a huff as he hurried back over to Gloria's side. "It's our fault for overwhelming him. Please, let me help in any way I can.

Gloria gave the Girafarig a kind smile. "Don't worry too much about it, honey…" She looked back down at Xander, the frown returning to her withered face. "It's just a family emergency… We'll figure it out. We always do."

Mirror shook his head. "We're Team Reflection, and I'm its leader. I couldn't live with myself if we left you both to deal with the aftermath."

"An Exploration team, ey?" Jennifer finally tore her eyes off of Xander. "Can I trust you both to watch over these three for the rest of the evening, then?"

"Of course! Just leave it to us, Officer!" Mirror chimed as his tail chattered its teeth in agreement. "I'll escort them to the nearest inn!"

Silver huffed as he wearily approached the group. "How do you expect to pay for another three-night stay somewhere else… when we specifically came here for something cheaper and you don't want our money back?"

This time, Mirror couldn't think of anything to say. Arcanine gave the nasty Skarmory a huff. "I'll go with you and provide the rooms, so don't even worry about spending a single coin."

Gloria could feel tears start to form, but a quick sniffle pulled them back. "Thank you so much, Miss Jennifer…"

"Don't thank me," Jennifer gave Gloria a soft smile. "It's my job, after all."

Remmy lifted his wife back onto Jennifer's back with Psychic before floating up and settling himself on the Arcanine alongside her. Gloria was carefully brushing soot and ash out of Xander's fur as the group of them started making their way down the street. After a while, Gloria stopped grooming the Litten to fidget with the carrier bag she had recently gifted him. It was hardly a satchel anymore in its flame-torn state, but she still took it off his limp body to see if the contents inside had survived.

It was almost entirely Pokécoins. The small bits of metal were hot to the touch, but they didn't hurt to hold. The cold water must've returned them to a more manageable temperature. Gloria tried to do a quick count, but her aged brain mixed with the fatigue made it difficult. Ten one-hundred value coins… one fifty value coin… That added up to three nights, or at least Gloria was pretty sure it did, so she assumed this must have been the money Mirror and Silver had paid for their room.

The only other thing inside was a small pouch, and when Gloria grabbed it– she could tell immediately that this also held money. She opened it to check on its contents, and wasn't surprised to see the coins inside… but was surprised to see that each one was a one-hundred value coin. "Why, this…"

"What is it, dear?" Remmy asked while tilting his head. "Something the matter?"

"This is… 10,000 Pokécoins."