Author's Note: Elgyem and Beheeyem didn't debut in Gen IV, but that's not stopping me from giving the line to Team Galactic. It fits them way too well for me to pass up.

Chapter 9: Chatter

The boy won the battle, and Commander Jupiter was a woman of her word. The stolen Pokemon were returned to their Trainers, and the Feebas they had captured were to return to the wild. Nobody would be harmed.

That was what she promised; she just didn't say anything about rewriting their memories.

The Elgyem and Beheeyem made life so much easier; if anyone saw Team Galactic do anything untoward, it would be a simple thing to make them forget what they had learned. Why, numbers in Team Galactic have grown exponentially. The latter was just a bonus, really.

Given the limited time her Beheeyem had, he was only able to wipe Jupiter's face (and that of the Grunts) from Rad Rickshaw's memory. The bike shop owner was known for being a gossip, and it wouldn't do for him to recognize anyone involved with stealing his Clefairy.

That was fine. In fact, that would only make it easier to go into her casual attire, track the boy down and rewrite his memories. He was foolish enough to face them alone, so he was the only loose end that needed to be taken care of. Finding him was no issue; of course he would run to the Pokemon Center. While he won the battle, Jupiter's Pokemon gave his quite the thrashing. If his Golbat hadn't forced itself to evolve right in the middle of the battle...

One of the lesser-known facts about Pokemon that evolve through friendship is that they always had a risk of evolving too early. Golbat in particular were susceptible to this; the Zubat line wasn't very popular among humans, so they tend to be fiercely loyal to anyone who showed them even the slightest bit of kindness. Surely the boy knew that, especially if his affiliation with Professor Rowan was to be believed.

As annoying as it was that the evolution led to her defeat, Jupiter laughed to herself as she recalled the events of that battle. The boy looked on in horror as the Crobat pushed himself through evolution, and even tried everything he could to stop the evolution. It was laughable, how much he cared for his Pokemon's well-being. While she would admit that perhaps such compassion was the boy's strength, what a laughable strength it was!

Peering into the window of the Center, Jupiter was proven correct. The boy was there, seated at one of the waiting room chairs. There were two more children with him - one she recognized as having a Totodile hatch within her care. Jupiter hadn't heard any report as far as the Totodile's extraction, so she ultimately assumed that that mission was also a failure.

No matter. The Totodile wasn't the important thing - making sure she left no trace of her identity was.

"It's that one," Jupiter whispered to her Beheeyem. "The one with the red hat."

Beheeyem nodded, and held a hand up in the boy's direction. The process was usually a quick one - thirty seconds at most, before he reported that the deed was done.

Instead, the psychic-type recoiled (as if his hand had been burned). After a moment of clear bewilderment, Beheeyem tried again. He strained for a few more moments before ultimately putting his hand down.

"I'm sorry," Beheeyem said, via telepathy. "This is a unique case."

Jupiter stared. "What?"

"I tried to rewrite his memory, I truly did," the psychic-type responded. "But something is preventing me from holding onto a memory long enough to rewrite it. Just the act of looking into his mind proves difficult."

Beheeyem was silent for another moment - perhaps to attempt another look into the boy's mind - before he continued, "If it helps you to get a better visual, I would liken his mind to a kintsugi bowl - something seems to be holding all of his thoughts and memories together. And whatever that something is, it's powerful. I've only seen it once before."

Jupiter's mouth became a straight line. She didn't like unexpected developments, especially when it put the operations of Team Galactic in jeopardy. Whatever was lurking in that boy's mind was both, which meant that he had become the greatest threat she had seen. He was one to keep an eye on.

"Fine," Jupiter muttered. She shot a glare towards the children before walking away. "We'll deal with him later. For now, we need to let Master Cyrus know."

If anything had happened outside of the Pokemon Center, Lucas wasn't aware of it. Nor did he particularly care. Kale and Blair were healed quickly, but the nurse needed to run some tests on Arty. That battle did a number on him in particular, and that wasn't even getting into the fact that he forced himself to evolve into Crobat. Kale and Blair were worried as well - it hadn't taken long at all for Arty to be like a brother to them. Blair in particular seemed distressed about the whole situation.

He felt guilty about going to a walk at a time like this, but Blair had been the one that practically pushed him out the door. The Umbreon wanted some time in the night air, and far from Lucas to deny her that. Besides, he wanted to clear his mind as well. It was only when Dawn and Barry had agreed to keep him posted that he had no complaints about stepping out.

The two saw the strangest thing within a half hour into their walk; a Feebas determinedly flopping down the street. The bewilderment wouldn't stop there - the minute she saw Lucas, the Feebas practically launched herself right at him, and he fell to the ground with a shout. Blair let out a concerned noise as well, sniffing over the Trainer and fish Pokemon. Possibly to see if they were okay.

"Hey, what are you doing-?!" he asked, taking the Feebas into his hands. The fish Pokemon proved to be a little heavier than he thought. Now that he thought about it; he had seen this Feebas before. Was she one of the Feebas that Team Galactic had gathered?

It was odd how she seemed to relax the moment Lucas fell over. It must have taken a lot out of her to be get all the way here from that building - if his hunch was true, anyway. At a first glance it would be easy to assume that she had a bold nature, but that didn't seem to be the case anymore. In fact, her movements seemed almost gentle as she fell asleep right there and then. Blair watched the Feebas' actions closely, before looking up at Lucas' face with a quirked eyebrow.

Before Lucas could think more about it, the sound of heels against pavement registered in his mind. He looked up, and was floored to see Cynthia looking down at him and Feebas. Of course Lucas knew who she was - what self-respecting Trainer wouldn't recognize the Champion of their region?! Lucas could pick up amusement from her Aura, followed by surprise.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Is that Feebas yours?" she questioned with a polite smile. "I don't know if you're aware of this, but Team Galactic had been holding her and several wild Feebas in their lab. We've been working on bringing them back to the wild, but this one didn't seem to want to go."

"She's actually not mine," Lucas admitted, carefully getting up on his feet. There was no sense in lying - not to Cynthia. Besides, Lucas felt a little guilty that Dawn hadn't found a Feebas while one had quite literally fallen right into his lap. "I know about what Team Galactic was doing, though. I confronted them about it earlier today."

"Oh, really?" Cynthia was silent for a moment. "Do you happen to remember why they were gathering Feebas?"

What a strange question, but Lucas answered anyway; "The Commander said something about how Feebas can evolve into Milotic in more than one way. I think they wanted to study that."

"Yes, that makes sense..." Cynthia admitted. Another moment of silence passed before she continued, "I know I've already asked a lot of you, but this is important. Is there anything else you can tell me about Team Galactic? I've been looking into them as well, and an associate of mine told me about a Trainer that's confronted them. I assume that Trainer is you?"

"Do you mean Mister Looker?" Lucas had been wondering who brought Interpol to look into Team Galactic, but he didn't think it would be Cynthia. "I actually saw him earlier today too. He told me that the Grunts didn't seem to be aware of what their boss' goal was."

"Is that right..." Another moment passed before Cynthia gave him a smile. "Thank you for your help. And your name would be...?"

"Lucas." He looked down at the Feebas in his arms and let out a sheepish chuckle. "I'd shake your hand, but I don't want to risk dropping Feebas."

"Fair enough," Cynthia laughed. She then rummaged into her bag, pulling out a Dive Ball and holding it out to him. "Speaking of...I have an unregistered Dive Ball here. If she really is wild, why don't you take her with you on your journey? I've heard about some Pokemon choosing their Trainers, and it seems like Feebas picked you."

Lucas' jaw dropped. As if he wasn't already feeling bad enough that a Feebas had approached him, he now had the Champion encouraging it? What was Dawn going to say?

He looked down at the Feebas, who was still sleeping. Definitely exhausted. He definitely couldn't wake her up and get some kind of confirmation now, could he? Then he looked down at Blair - she looked back up at him with curiosity clear on her face.

"Um..." Lucas realized that he had to swallow his doubt this time. Dawn would probably understand, given the circumstance. She was always pretty understanding. "Sure. Thanks, Ms. Cynthia."

It was a bit of a struggle freeing up a hand for Cynthia to place the Dive Ball into it. It was only when Lucas sat back down on the ground that he was able to take the Ball from her. When the Feebas was called into the Dive Ball, it clicked immediately to indicate a successful capture.

As Cynthia departed, Lucas looked down at the Dive Ball. He couldn't shake the feeling of guilt - as if what happened to Arty wasn't enough, there was the fact that he got a rare Pokemon so easily.

About an hour after the Feebas situation, Lucas could hear his phone ringing.

He was surprised to see the name on the caller ID: Ethan. There were many reasons for him to be surprised, but the first one to come to mind was the time difference. Johto wasn't too far away from Sinnoh, was it?

So he didn't hesitate to accept the call. He sat on a bench, while Blair had hopped onto it to place her head on his lap. Lucas scratched behind the Umbreon's ears as he answered, "Ethan? What a surprise! I didn't expect to hear from you."

"Yeah, I finally got my PokeGear back from the shop. This isn't a bad time, is it?"

"No, it's not that!" In fact, Lucas would admit that hearing Ethan's voice was a welcome relief. "It's just that the time difference between Sinnoh and Johto isn't a lot. It's pretty late where you are too, isn't it?"

"...Yeah, you got me," Ethan admitted. "I couldn't sleep. Lyra's usually out like a light this time of night, so I thought I'd try my luck with you. Besides, you're on your journey now, right?"

Lucas perked up. "Didn't you start your journey recently too? Your mom told my dad. I'm traveling with Dawn and Barry right now. We already cleared the second Gym in our run."

"Seriously?! I'm preparing for the second Gym! What's your team like right now? Tell me everything!"

"Right now my team three Pokemon. Grotle, Umbreon and Gol-" Lucas stopped himself, and he couldn't ignore the pang of guilt as he corrected himself; "Crobat. And not three Pokemon - four. I just caught a Feebas, too."

Lucas hoped that bringing up the Feebas would divert Ethan's attention from the slip. His hopes were quickly dashed, because Ethan said, "A Crobat, already? That's...quick."

"I know," Lucas answered, distressed all over again. "He wasn't even a Golbat for a full day, he forced himself to evolve, everything just happened so fast-"

"Hey hey, calm down. Isn't that a common thing with Golbat?"

"It is, but-" Lucas ran a hand through his hair. "I should've given Arty an Everstone when he evolved, it's my fault-"

"Shhh." Ethan's voice was surprisingly gentle as he said, "Just breathe, alright? I got you."

Lucas took a moment to breathe. Ethan was always the kind of person to look after the people he called friends - Lucas considered himself so lucky to be one of those people. Being friends with him and Lyra made those few years of living in Johto so precious to him.

"...Thanks," Lucas said, after that moment passed. "I really needed that."

"'Course, Luc!" Ethan's voice was cheerful again. "I'll admit though, I'm a little surprised you're taking the Gym route too. Barry didn't want Dawn for a rival or something?"

"What's that mean?" Lucas said, with a quirked smile. "You saying I'm not tough?"

"Hey, that's not what I meant. I just figured you'd be a breeder, or some kinda researcher like your dad. Isn't there a Galactic group over there that has scientists, you'd fit-"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT."

Lucas' answer came out much sharper and louder than he had intended. A few people glanced towards him as they passed by, and he tried his best to ignore them. He inhaled through his nose and exhaled out his mouth. Anything to quell the feeling of anger rising in the back of his mind (because it wasn't like Ethan knew that Team Galactic was part of the reason for Arty's condition in the first place).

"That is..." Lucas swallowed. "Sorry for the outburst, Ethan. I just...Team Galactic's starting to become a sore subject for me. Even if I wanted to be anything but a Trainer, they wouldn't want me anyways."

"...You wanna talk about it?" Ethan asked. "Or should I leave the subject alone?"

"That is..." Lucas was glad that it was Ethan he was talking to right now. He might be a bit of a loudmouth, but his heart was definitely in the right place. "Team Galactic...they're not good people. Not entirely, anyway. My friends and I have fought them a couple of times - think Team Rocket with disco fever. I actually should've mentioned this when I told you about Arty - I was fighting one of their members when he evolved. So..."

"Ohhh." Lucas heard a soft sigh coming from the other end. "Sorry. Subject dropped. But uh...keep me posted about Arty, yeah? Going off what you told me, it sounds like he loves you a lot."

"I will," Lucas answered, and he felt like crying all over again. He could just feel his voice wavering as he quickly followed it up with; "Um...Sorry again for the outburst. I just...I really appreciate you calling. I'd like to hear more about your journey, when you can."

"Course." Lucas could hear a yawn coming from the other end. "I should probably get to bed now, though."

"Okay, don't let me keep you. Good night, Ethan."

"G'night, Luc."

The call ended, and it was only then that Lucas realized that he had a pretty strong grip on his phone. Would it snap it half if he applied just a little more pressure? He couldn't say.

The nudge against his arm snapped him out of his thoughts, and he looked down at the Umbreon by his side. Blair looked up at him with what could only be concern, and he started to scratch behind her ears again.

"Rei-"

The name was not familiar to Lucas, but the voice was. He looked up and was surprised to see Aevus. His visible eye was widened - although Lucas couldn't tell if it was from surprise or embarrassment. A moment passed where the two just stared, not knowing what to say or do.

"Lucas," Aevus corrected himself. His movements were rigid as he nodded at the two. "Apologies. I mistook you for someone else. He...also had an Umbreon."

"Hi to you too," Lucas greeted, a little awkwardly. It seemed like Aevus, Looker and Team Galactic all seemed to be connected to each other - whenever he saw one, the other two wouldn't be far behind. Was Aevus investigating them too, like Cynthia and Looker were? Or was Aevus just a weird coincidence?

"I see you're preoccupied," Aevus said, turning on his heel. "Excuse me-"

"Aevus, wait."

Aevus stopped and turned, a curious expression on his face.

A moment passed, then two. Lucas was tempted to dismiss the thought that had crossed his mind - to just tell Aevus to forget it. It would be so easy to just do that and get back to the Center to check on Arty. It was clear that Aevus wanted to leave - why else would he excuse himself so quickly? But the thought crossed Lucas' mind that he should at least tell someone about what he was going through. As for why Aevus? Well...

"Have you ever looked at something, or someone...and thought they were weirdly familiar?" he started. Once he got the question out, it was like a dam had burst; "Like, you know you've never seen them before in your life. Not a single trace of them, but you recognize them anyway."

After a long moment of silence, Aevus answered, "I've experienced that in the past, yes. Unless I'm mistaken, the phenomenon is called deja vu."

"That sounds right," Lucas nodded. It was strange; now that he had actually brought up the subject, it seemed easier to keep talking. "I asked because...I've felt that every time I see Team Galactic."

"...Have you?"

Lucas didn't know if he was frustrated or relieved that Aevus had given such a short answer. But he took advantage of it anyway; "Like...I feel sick, and I get angry. I felt that in the Valley Windworks, and I felt that today when I saw their building here. I don't think I can bring myself to ignore them, and I don't know why."

He let out a short, humorless laugh. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this. I haven't even told Barry or Dawn."

Because it wasn't like Barry or Dawn could really get it. Could they? It had surprised Lucas how easily they accepted the Aura thing, but would they accept this so easily?

There was also the idea that maybe - just maybe - Aevus would have some idea. He had known that it was Aura that was overwhelming Lucas two years ago. In the back of his mind, Lucas would admit that he was hoping that Aevus had some kind of answer for this as well.

As intense as Aevus' Aura was, there was a strange familiarity to it as well. Maybe that was why he could pick up on the conflict within it. Conflict...and dare he assume guilt? Followed by a sharp realization. Followed by dread - Aevus had to have realized that Lucas could pick up on it.

"About that..." Aevus swallowed. A long silence passed before he said; "I'm sorry."

Before Lucas could ask what that meant, he felt a nudge on his side. Blair had his phone in her mouth, and the screen had lit up. When he extracted the phone from the Umbreon's mouth, Lucas could see that he had a message waiting for him.

Dawn (22:59): We got news about Arty. He's alright. The nurse does want to talk to you about him, though.

Dawn (22:59): It's nothing bad, at least it shouldn't be.

Lucas (23:00): Thanks so much, Dawn! I'll be right over.

When he looked up from his phone, Lucas was surprised to see that Aevus wasn't there anymore. It was like he vanished into thin air. He really had somewhere he needed to be, huh...

As much as he didn't want to (as much as the idea stung), Lucas had to resign himself to asking Aevus the next time they bumped into each other. He hoped that was sooner rather than later.

Because why would Aevus apologize, if he didn't know what was happening to Lucas?

Dialga had been careful to not mix Lucas up with Rei up until now, but seeing him with an Umbreon caused a lapse in his judgement. If it had been any other Eeveelution that the little Eevee had chosen for herself, Dialga was sure that the mixup would not have happened.

He knew from the Lake Trio that Roar of Time would have affected Lucas drastically, but it wasn't until Lucas actually said something that Dialga realized the gravity of what had occurred. He also realized the anxiety he had been feeling the past few weeks was guilt. Even if it was an alternate of himself that had used Roar of Time...what did it say about him, that he remained ignorant of the ramifications until now?

What was worse was that Mesprit was right; Lucas had proven to be quite perceptive. Dialga was certain that Lucas had some awareness of the situation. While there was no way for him to realize that 'Aevus' was actually Dialga, Lucas certainly now knew that 'Aevus' had some knowledge of what was happening to him.

For that reason (and so many others), Lucas deserved to know the truth. How Dialga would go about that...well, that was a mystery to him.

But Dialga knew that he had to try. He hadn't known guilt like this since Rei, and Lucas wasn't even dead.