Carkol Express

Acacia

I don't think I ever could get used to riding the Carkol Express.

Every few seconds, the carriage we were in would jolt one way or another. The bumpy ride was so shaky, it felt like the whole train would fall apart at any moment.

The small Pokemon in the near-front carriage were probably doing fine. Those cubbyholes along the walls were padded and came in enough different sizes that any small Pokemon could fit snugly in one. The jostling wouldn't affect them much while resting in those.

The large Pokemon in the back three carriages were probably doing well, too. The three carriages in the back of the train were like entire houses, large enough to hold a Copperajah comfortably. Anyone large enough to need to ride in one of those carriages would probably barely feel the near-constant bumps.

That just left us medium sized Pokemon, in the constantly shaking middle carriages.

The green metal loops on the floor did help a bit. There were a few snake Pokemon coiled around some of them, and some plant Pokemon with vines wrapped around them, such as myself. But there was only so much they could do to steady us against the jolts.

At least the perches hanging from the ceiling for flying Pokemon seemed like they were doing their job well. The seats on the sides for bipedal Pokemon similarly looked alright. The gray eyedrop wood they were made of didn't seem too comfortable, but they had handles to hold onto, and at least they offered a clear view through the windows.

Almost the whole train was made of eyedrop wood. The naturally gray planks glistened as sunlight shined on them. Even without any paint to accent them, the wood looked pretty, and it was even fireproof!

No matter how good the train's interior looked, it didn't change how much shaking the Pokemon who rested on the floor like me felt. Even with my vines wrapped around the loop, it felt like I was being thrown in a different direction every few seconds.

Who on earth designed this rickety contraption?

… Oh, right. We did.

"Looks like we're almost there!" Lidequir said, looking out one of the windows. "The view in this is pretty great, huh, Acacia?"

"Yep...though it's definitely a lot bumpier than a Lapras for sure," I replied, as the train went over another bump and made the entire car shake. How did the Thunder Continent's Pokemon manage to use this thing daily?

"I dunno, it's certainly less bumpy than trying to ride a Lapras on land," the Wartortle chortled. "Certainly faster too. I don't think there's anyone here who can walk from Moonlight Town to Overcast Village in an hour."

… Lidequir sure seemed to be taking the ride on this contraption in stride. I wonder if she ever rode on any trains when she was human.

When Gen took us on visits to the human world, the trains we rode while there were super stable, but definitely weren't built with Meganiums in mind. The loops to hang onto were on the ceiling, the cold metal floor was uncomfortable to stand on, and there was no sunlight in those underground tunnels. The trains we helped invent here are less stable, but anyone could ride them comfortably. Well, "comfortably" if you could overlook the train doing its best to knock you to the floor every few seconds.

But Lidequir was right. Looking out a window, I could see mountains and hills passing by. They were beginning to give way to trees and a steadily-thickening mist, along with a brief view of a field of flowers in the distance, stretching out for who knows how long. Even if it'd soon be blotted out by the fog that made Overcast Village, the view along the Carkol Express' route really is nice.

"Ayueg? Leviene? How about you?" I asked the Combusken and Bayleef standing across from us. "What do you think of the train?"

"Hrmph, the sooner we get off, the better," Ayueg said, tapping one of his talons on the floor. "It's way too loud."

"Er… yep, there's definitely a lot of noise when riding this train," I said. The racket that happened every time the train jostled was already uncomfortable for me. I didn't want to imagine what being a passenger was like for Pokemon with more sensitive ears.

Suddenly, I heard a loud screeching noise that made me feel like my petals were going to fall off. Most of us lurched forward, and I saw Leviene fall off their feet entirely from the train carriage's jolting. The view outside started slowing down along with the train carriage, until we came to a stop.

"'e're here!" came a loud voice, as Carkoal rolled in from the lead carriage. "'veryone aboard for Overcast Village, it's time to get off! 'e depart for Coulomb City in five minutes!"

"First things first, let's get back on our feet," I said, extending a vine to help Leviene off the floor where they had fallen. The Carkol Express was supposed to be based off human technology... so shouldn't it be able to come to smoother stops? Even if they weren't comfortable to stand around in, I certainly didn't remember any human trains stopping like this.

"Thanks!" Leviene said as they grabbed my vine and I pulled them upright. "That was wild! I can't wait to go on a train ride again!"

I sighed, and my petals drooped at the edges.

"... I know you were Mew before, but I still don't understand you, Leviene," I replied as we all walked out of the carriage, and into Overcast Village.

Overcast Village

As we stepped off the train and into the fog, my antennae perked up, and I felt my petals release a soothing aroma. The buildings about the train station were the same as they always were, but leaves of the tree in the center of the Tree Plaza were beginning to change with the seasons, with a bit of red peeking through the sea of green.

Overcast Village was where my sister Sturece lived with her mate Arbstea and Saltriv, their child. It always felt nice to visit here, especially in the autumn. Though there was something about this visit that felt off to me. I slowed as I looked up at the red-tipped leaves on the plaza's tree, when my thoughts turned to Saltriv. … Right, they'd been missing for three entire months, and had just been found again by a friend of theirs in the village. Even without that potential human in the mix, no wonder why things felt off about this trip.

I should check up on them as soon as possible. Had Saltriv been alright while they were missing? Did they get hurt or scared? Sturece made it sound like they'd been doing alright, but I couldn't help but wonder...

I turned to look towards Team Travelers to discuss what our plan was while in Overcast Village, but Lidequir already beat me to the punch and was already speaking.

"Team Travelers, how about you two go talk to the mayor and see what you can find out about the monster?" my partner said. "Me and Acacia will go see Saltriv and look into that Oshawott."

"Got it!" Leviene said, their leaf swishing from side to side. "Come on, Ayueg! Let's go see Mayor Jellicent!"

"Alright," Ayueg said, with a small smile on his beak, as he and Leviene walked deeper into the fog.

As the Bayleef and Combusken disappeared from view, Lidequir turned towards me. "You go on ahead," she insisted. "I'll go look around and see how bad the shadow Pokemon situation is. We'll touch base in an hour or two."

I blinked for a moment and craned my head back at Lidequir. We did almost everything together as teammates, so why was she skipping out here?

"But don't you want to see Saltriv, too?" I asked. "It has been a while since you two last met."

"Well, yeah, but it can wait. After all, Saltriv deserves to see their uncle first after everything they've been through, and it'd be a bit awkward if I got in the way of them pouring their heart out to you, don't you think?" Lidequir said, giving a sheepish smile as she rubbed the back of her head. "Besides, I have a joke in mind, and I don't think I could stop myself from blurting it out if I went with you."

I frowned a bit at Lidequir's mention of having a joke in mind. While Lidequir was a faithful teammate, her… sense of humor left a lot to be desired at times. Maybe it would be for the best to take her up on the suggestion.

"Alright, then. If you're sure," I said, before catching myself. I narrowed my eyes, since the thought just occurred to me that there was another reason why Lidequir might want some alone time here in Overcast Village.

"... Though this isn't something you're doing to goof off with your joke buddy, is it?"

Lidequir chuckled. "That obvious, huh? Yeah, I was gonna check in with Togetic. I've come with a few one-liners that are sure to help her put smiles on people's faces."

Lidequir shook her head with a chuckle, before looking back with a more serious expression.

"But I wasn't joking about going to see what the state of the shadow Pokemon situation is," she insisted. "And I did mean all the stuff I said about you and Saltriv. I don't want to ruin your reunion."

I sighed, but was smiling. I didn't know how much I believed Lidequir there given that she was always the joking type, but she seemed earnest at least. "Be sure to say hi to Togetic for me, and tell her that I appreciated the letter she sent us. It was really sweet of her to do that."

"Can and will do!" Lidequir said with a pump of her arm. The Wartortle began to walk into the fog, calling back to me as she faded into the mist. "I'll see you in a bit, Acacia."

"See ya in a bit, Lidequir," I replied, as I began heading towards Sturece's house.

Saltriv's Home, 25 minutes later

"Did Polteageist really bake a cake that big?" I asked my sister, as my eyes widened.

"Yep! For all the Pokemon with family or friends that went missing, and all the shadow Pokemon that had been purified," the other Meganium answered, gesturing the size of the cake with her vines. "She said it was the least she could do after all that we've been through.

"That's wonderful!" I replied, smiling. "It's nice to hear everyone in the village is coming together to help the Pokemon affected by this."

It was always nice catching up with Sturece in person. Letters and connection messages were great, but it just wasn't a substitute for meeting my sister face to face.

"Yep. You've gotta look after each other in times like this. I'm sure you've heard enough about that, though, with being a hero and all," Sturece said, before craning her neck towards me. "Though we've been trying to help Saltriv adjust back to normal life since we found them. So they're having a sleepover with friends tonight!"

My eyes widened. "Really? I thought you said you weren't going to let them have another one for at least a year after what happened last time." I trusted my sister's judgement, but this felt a bit too quick after Saltriv's last sleepover.

Sturece's petals drooped. "Well, that was before they disappeared. They've been gone for so long, and I don't want to deny them this after everything," my sister said, leaning her neck back slightly. "Plus, they've just completed a search mission, and—"

"They joined a search party?!" I interjected, my antennae tensing up. I knew Sturece wanted Saltriv to get used to normal life again, but surely this was rushing things. "So soon after they got back?!"

"Yep. They formed it just yesterday morning," Sturece answered, puffing her petals out in pride. "It's called Team Searchlights, and they've already found and purified a shadow Pokemon!"

"How'd they get their equipment so soon to do a search mission already?" I asked. My mind was racing. I felt conflicted. I was proud of Saltriv for making a search party, and doing that brave work, but also worried about how they'd fare, given they just got back to Overcast Village after going through who-knows-what for three months.

"Well...they did their first mission without telling me or Arbstea, and before they were registered as an official search party," she said, looking down. "I didn't want to punish Saltriv a mere day after they got back, though, so I let the matter slide. Plus, they did rescue Flapple during their first mission. It just wouldn't be right if I punished them for saving another Pokémon like that."

"That's understandable. I don't think I'd have the heart to punish them after such a heroic deed, either. Though hopefully a start like that's a good omen for Team Searchlights becoming a great search party," I said. I still felt conflicted, but if they were able to purify a shadow Pokemon before even receiving their equipment, I had faith in them. There was something else I was wondering, though.

"Actually... who else is on Team Searchlights, Sturece?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Well, Saltriv's best friend Burhalla also joined the team," Sturece said, smiling again. "And...you know that Oshawott I told you about? The one with amnesia? He's the third member."

"Wait, really?" I asked, my petals straightening. If this amnesiac Oshawott had already joined a search party…

"Did he mention anything about being a human?" I asked, leaning closer.

"You know I'm not the type to keep secrets, Acacia. I would have told you if he did," Sturece said, glancing off to the side. "Doesn't seem like he's the next human, unfortunately. Though… there was one thing that has me thinking."

I sighed. Seems like this is another dead end. Unless...

"What was it?" I asked, shaking with anticipation. Hopefully, this could give us at least a clue. "Though whether or not the Oshawott's human, what's his name? You never mentioned it in your letter."

"Well...that's the thing," my sister said, looking at me with narrowed eyes. "He told us his name was Gen."

My eyes widened. That was huge. Thoughts of the Gen I knew and the mailbox from yesterday ran through my head. "Why didn't you mention that sooner?"

"I didn't want to overwhelm you," Sturece said, laying a vine on my neck. "There's already everything going on with the shadow Pokemon, and I'm sure you already heard about the monster lurking around town. I thought with all that happening, it'd be irresponsible not to ease you into what's going on with Gen."

I sighed, but smiled nonetheless. Though it annoyed me that she waited to tell me this, I was glad Sturece was looking out for me. I honestly probably would have gotten overwhelmed if she told me in the letter. Even 35 years on from when Lidequir and I first became heroes, I still get overwhelmed under pressure easily.

"You're just as thoughtful as ever, Sturece," I said, giving my sister a playful brush of her antennae. "Thanks for looking out for me."

"Not a problem, Acacia," my sister said, lightly batting one of my petals. "So… did you and your teammates have any ideas about this Gen?"

"Honestly, given everything we know, I'm pretty sure he must be the Pokémon we're looking for. The only problem is that he didn't mention anything about being a human. Even then, that's not exactly conclusive evidence against him. Why, when Lidequir first came to this world, she only told me she was human at first. Though I suppose nobody asked if she was human until… that moment happened after we first met Xatu," I said, twitching my antennae. "Actually. Now that I think about it, all of the humans we know of had something similar happen to them. Nobody but their partner knew they were human until they were asked."

Sturece shook her head. "I know, and I thought about that, but Saltriv didn't say anything about Gen bringing that up, and they would've told me if he did. And when I asked Gen myself what he remembered, he said he only remembered his name and how to do a few things."

That's true. Saltriv wasn't the type to keep secrets, and surely they would have told that to at the very least their family. And if Acacia had already asked Gen directly about his memories and he didn't mention being human, that almost completely ruled him out.

Unless… "I know it's a stretch, but… maybe this 'Gen' you found forgot he used to be human?" I asked, my petals perking up."

My sister's eyes widened. "I hadn't considered that at all. You know what, that could be it!" she exclaimed.

"Only problem is that every other human remembered being human, though it wouldn't be the first time a pattern with the humans brought to this world was broken," I said, smiling widely. "For example, Ayueg was never sent back to the human world like the others."

"Well, you told me Gengar wasn't either, but point taken," Sturece replied, before glancing to the side. "It's just wild to think that I might be taking care of a human. Though… if you're right and this Gen really is human, would that mean that Saltriv is his partner?"

"I believe they would be. Everyone's partners in the past were the one of the first Pokémon that a human called to this world met," I said, laying a vine on her neck again. "I… know you're probably worried about them, but I'm sure they'll be just fine. Everything worked out for me, right?"

"I know Saltriv would be a wonderful partner, but…" my sister said, looking down. "It's still scary to think my own child might be tasked with saving the world. After all, even your own adventures with Lidequir would've ended horribly if you two weren't such good teammates or hadn't had some good luck at a few points."

I couldn't help but know she was right. Absol showing up to save us from Articuno and subsequently joining our team, and Ninetales stopping Team ACT just before they could finish us off were both lucky breaks that saved our lives. Even that tiny reviver seed Butterfree gave us for our first rescue was crucial in our climb up Sky Tower.

Even so… "Maybe, but I think we're getting ahead of ourselves. We don't know if this Gen is even human to begin with," I said, moving my vine closer to her head. "As much as I'm hoping he's the one, it's unlikely he'd forget about being human."

My sister's antennae drooped. "I don't know… I have my doubts, but…" Sturece trailed off as she looked back up at me. "You're right. Saltriv probably won't need to save the world. And even if they do… I'm sure they'll do wonderfully."

"That's the spirit!" I cheered. I was about to suggest preparations just in case Saltriv really was the next human's partner, when out of the corner of my vision, I saw a red leaf.

"Uncle Acacia!" they said, moments before my vines wrapped around them in a tight hug.

"Saltriv! I'm so glad you're ok!" I said. I felt their own vines wrap around me in turn. For a moment, all my worries about the next human had faded, replaced with the joy of seeing my nibling again.

"How have you been?"

"I've been doing great! It was a little scary finding out I've been missing for months, but everything else has been good!" they said with a wave of their leaf. I saw Sturece's vines wrap around them in a second hug.

"Oh, there you are, Saltriv!" she said, all the worry on her face from before gone. "Did Burhalla's dad agree to the sleepover?"

"Yep! Burhalla told me so!" Saltriv replied with a bright smile. "I'm so excited! I already have so much planned for tonight!"

"That's wonderful!" my sister said, with a smile matching Saltriv's. "Just be sure you three behave tonight, alright?"

My petals perked up at the sight of Saltriv being so happy. It was wonderful to know that they're doing well, despite everything.

"So I heard you made a search party," I said as I let go of them. "How's that been going?"

"Really great! We're called Team Searchlights, and we already found and purified a shadow Pokemon on our first mission! And our equipment arrived this morning!" Saltriv said, before they caught themselves and their eyes widened. "Wait, I mean—"

"It's alright, Saltriv. Your mom already told me about it," I told them, moving my vine back and forth across their head. "Even if you shouldn't have gone off without equipment like that, I'm not mad. I'm proud of you for saving Flapple."

The smile on their face returned. "Thanks, Uncle Acacia."

I smiled warmly down at them. Pokemon's lives were more important than any rules.

"And how about that sleepover?" I asked, retracting my vine. "What kinds of things are you planning to do for it?"

"Lots of things! We're going to have treats, and games, and a pillow fight, and I'm still working out the rest, but there'll be lots more!" Saltriv said, their tail wagging rapidly. "I actually was stopping by here to ask mom to help me get a few things for it."

"Oh, really? What do you need?" Sturece asked.

"Some treats from Polteageist's Café!" Saltriv said, looking up at her. "Can you help me get them?"

"Of course," my sister said, before turning towards me. "I'll go help them get the treats. It shouldn't take too long, we can talk some more when I'm back."

"Alright. See you soon," I said, as the two began to walk out of the house.

"Bye, Acacia!" Saltriv said, waving their leaf just before they disappeared from view.

It was nice to see Saltriv doing so well. I was so proud to hear how they'd been doing well already on a search party. Why from what I saw of them just from our meeting, you'd never have guessed they more or less fell off the face of the planet for three months.

Before long, I heard footsteps approaching, and turned around, seeing a tiny Oshawott wearing a reunion cape looking up at me. This must be the Oshawott Sturece mentioned. He's so small and tiny, almost like a little sprout compared to Saltriv. His name was also Gen, right? Just like our Dewott friend? Talk about your coincidences, but I should probably come up with something to distinguish the two if they're ever together... I think I'll call him Mini Gen for now. After all, the name fits, doesn't it?

"Uh, are you Acacia? From Team Seedlings?" Mini Gen said. I could see his tail quivering behind him. Was Mini Gen really a human after all? If so, it would explain a few things. Maybe he was still feeling frightened about losing his memories. Or maybe he was frightened about being in an unfamiliar body.

Nevertheless, scaring him won't do any good. The poor little guy clearly needs comfort. I extended a vine, laying it on his head. He flinched at first, before looking back towards me, his expression slightly calmer.

"I am. It's nice to meet you. What's your name, Oshawott?" I asked, despite being sure I already knew the answer. It was best to ask him first, so as to not frighten him.

"Gen," Mini Gen said, giving a tiny smile. "Did you really save the world? Saltriv told me your team did."

"That's right, we climbed up to Rayquaza's domain, and helped them find and destroy a falling star that was causing natural disasters!" I said, puffing out my petals in pride. "We also helped a Gengar who used to be a human make amends with a Ninetales and rescue his Gardevoir partner, even after he caused us to be chased halfway across the Air Continent."

Mini Gen's eyes widened. "Really? He was a human?"

"Yep! It's a long story, really, but the gist of it is that he was turned into a Pokemon as part of a curse after touching a Ninetales' tail," I said, looking Mini Gen directly in the eyes. Now would be a good time to segue into what I needed to ask. "Though on that topic… what do you know about humans, Gen?"

Mini Gen looked down at the ground, frowning. "Nothing, really. Just that there's Pokemon pretending to be them."

"That's all you know about them?" I asked, craning my neck towards him. "There's been a lot of Pokemon talking about humans around the Thunder Continent, including rumors that one has come to this world recently. Haven't you heard anything of them?"

"I'm sorry, but that's really all I know," Mini Gen said, putting his arms against the sides of his reunion cape. "I… have amnesia. I don't remember anything from before two days ago."

Huh. I was really sure he knew at least something about humans from his reaction to Gengar... Either he's truly forgotten that he's human, or he really isn't human after all. Maybe the human test will clear things up.

I reached into my bag with a vine, and pulled out a small book, labeled "Human Writing Samples". I held it in front of Mini Gen.

"I'm going to need you to try to read some things for me, ok?" I asked, giving Mini Gen a warm smile. Hopefully that'd make him a bit less on-edge.

"Uh, ok," Mini Gen said, as he looked up towards the book.

I opened it to the first page, which contained a sentence in a human language. "Galarish", Gen had called it. "Do these glyphs mean anything to you?" I asked. "If so, what does this say?"

"Uh, I don't know. I can't read it," Mini Gen said, looking back down.

Figures. I flipped to the next page, a sentence in Johtonese. "How about these glyphs here?"

"I...can't read those either."

I sighed, and we went through the rest of the book, filled with sentences in various other human languages. I asked him the same question, but the answer was the same every time.

As we got to the last page of the book, my petals had begun to droop. No matter what human writing or language I showed him, he couldn't read any of it.

… Maybe he really wasn't a human. But that mailbox made me wonder. Gen's name, in human writing. I had thought it was for the Gen I knew, but now that there's an amnesiac Oshawott here now named Gen, I don't think it could be a coincidence.

Hopefully one of the confirmation questions will help? Gen designed them to be things almost anyone from the human world would know, and we always updated the answers every time we visited the human world. If I asked Mini Gen a few, maybe they'd trigger a memory?

"Do you know who the current champion of Galar is?" I asked, only for Mini Gen to tilt his head at me.

"Um, what's Galar?" he asked in return. No luck there, then. Neither did asking what a gym was, or what rangers do.

Maybe just asking straight up would help? Maybe it'd trigger a memory and he'd say yes. Or he could be unsure, and say he doesn't know, and we could work more closely on helping him figure it out.

"Were you once a human?" I asked, hoping that he'd say yes, or even that he doesn't know, and we can start helping him—

"No," Mini Gen answered, looking down at the ground.

That answers that, then. Though it wouldn't hurt to make sure.

"Are you completely certain? There's nothing at all that's made you even wonder before?" I asked, hoping that there was at least a tiny bit of uncertainty. A chance that the human who had arrived to save the world was this Oshawott, and we could help him immediately.

"No, nothing," Mini Gen said.

That's… unfortunate. If he's absolutely sure he's not a human, then he's almost certainly not one. After all, since when was there a human that was brought to this world that was convinced they'd always been a Pokémon?

… I'd better go tell the others. We'd come all the way out here to Overcast Village and now we had fewer leads as when we first set out. Maybe we could spend some time relaxing around town, it might help us figure out what to do from here.

"Alright. I actually should get going now since my teammate's been waiting on me, though thanks for the help, Gen," I said, before starting to trot away.

Before I could get far, though, I heard a small squeak, and craned my neck to look back down at the little Oshawott. He was trembling, and was holding tightly onto his reunion cape. I could see some moisture on the fur around his eyes. Oh no, was I being too pushy with him? Was he feeling bad for not being able to read or answer any of that?

I walked back over towards Mini Gen, laid a vine on his head again, and gave him a soft smile. I thought about the wonder I first felt when I met Lidequir, focused it in my petals, and released an Aromatherapy to soothe him.

"You don't need to feel bad, Gen. You didn't do anything wrong," I told him, moving my vine across his head. "You actually were really helpful!"

"I was?" Mini Gen asked, looking up with wide eyes.

"Yep! Now we have a better idea of who you are, we'll have a better idea of what we should do, and we might even be able to help you recover your memories!" I said. Always look on the bright side, Lidequir always told me. Even though Mini Gen wasn't a human, at least we knew for sure now and we could better focus our efforts for finding the next human. And since we understood Mini Gen's situation a bit more now, it might help us with recovering his memories!

"...thank you…" Mini Gen said, before waddling closer to me, and hugging one of my front legs. I smiled brightly. He's so adorable!

"It's no problem! It's our duty to help!" I replied, wrapping a vine around him to return the hug. We hugged each other for about half a minute, before I spoke up again.

"Now, I need to go talk to my partner so we can continue helping the Pokemon here," I said, retracting my vines. "We'll do what we can help you recover your memories soon, but for now, I need to go. Ok?"

"Ok. Thanks, Acacia," Mini Gen said, letting go of me.

"I'll see you around, Gen!" I said, before trotting out of the house to tell Lidequir the news.

And we were back to not having any leads on the next human besides that mailbox. But at least Mini Gen was really sweet!

What could be up with him, though? There were so many signs that pointed towards Mini Gen being human... but if he isn't one, then what is he?

He had amnesia, no one ever saw him before, and we found his name in the mailbox. The former two were things that most past humans brought to this world experienced, and the latter raised my suspicions even further. But Mini Gen was adamant he wasn't one, and couldn't read a human language or answer any of the questions. He couldn't have even forgotten about being human, because he was completely certain he wasn't one.

Could he be lying? No, that wouldn't make no sense. What possible reason could he have to lie, especially with Burhalla around? If he woke up in a completely unfamiliar body, wouldn't that be one of the first things he would point out?

There was that whole thing when we were saving the world, though, with everyone in Pokemon Square thinking Lidequir was the cause of the disasters because he was human… and then there was what Gen and Vernir said they discovered about Munna's gang hunting down humans during the crisis of the Bittercold…

But even so, all of the humans at least told the first person they saw that they're human. Even Gengar did that with Team Meanies. Surely if Mini Gen was human, he'd have at least told Saltriv and Burhalla.

Perhaps I was looking at this from the completely wrong angle.

… It was admittedly a bit of a stretch, but could he be the partner of the new human? And the human wrote down their new friend's name, and that's why it was in the mailbox?

It wouldn't be the first time both members of a human's team had amnesia. After all, Leviene didn't remember anything about being Mew, and it seemed like a more likely scenario than two humans sharing both a name and species. It wouldn't be very much of a stretch for there to be other Oshawotts floating around out there with Gen's name. After all, I've met Chikorita sprouts in person who were named after me by their parents, even if every time I meet one makes me feel a bit weird about it. Even if the Gardeners aren't nearly as known as the rest of the world-saving teams outside of the Mist Continent, it's definitely possible that was a Samurott out there who really admired Gen, and named their pup after him.

But if Mini Gen was the next human's partner, why would he be separated from his human partner and wake up in the middle of Twig Woodland? And what happened to the human, then? And wouldn't the human have left at least a trace if they were so close to the village? Humans and their partners never showed up far apart from each other. It's so much of a stretch that it just doesn't make sense.

Maybe he's just a regular Pokemon who had his memories erased by something? Maybe that monster we heard about caused it? Hadn't that happened to the Porygon-Z it attacked?

But then why was he next to Saltriv in Twig Woodland?

None of this was adding up right. Every explanation I could think of had holes. He couldn't have forgotten being human because he was certain he wasn't human. He couldn't be lying about not being human because he had no reason to. He couldn't be the human's partner because the human would have turned up by now if they had been so close to Overcast Village. And he definitely couldn't be a regular Pokemon with amnesia because he woke up next to Saltriv, after they had been missing for months.

Just what was going on with Mini Gen?

Saltriv's Home

Gen

I stopped trembling, and breathed a sigh of relief, my tail flopping onto the floor. The entire time, I hadn't even realized it was tensed up.

That was really close. I thought that Acacia would find out my identity for sure.

What on earth was all that about, anyways? How did they already have suspicions I was a human before even meeting me? They even had some Johtonese and Unovan writing, too…

What's going on?! What does Acacia want from me?

And there's been more people than me who used to be human, like that Gengar. But that was apparently from a curse, and I hadn't been cursed… or at least I think.

Still, there were other Pokemon than just me here that were humans. Was Acacia also one, and that's why he had human writing and knew stuff about my world?

And what did all this have to do with those Pokemon who were apparently pretending to be human? Why were they doing that? Why would they want to do that?

Everything about that meeting was so confusing. I had gotten some answers from it, but also a bunch more questions that made me feel even more lost than before.

I just want to go home… I miss the bustle of Goldenrod City, talking with Spersua, stargazing in Ilex Forest, just being with my family, visiting the flower shop just down the street...

Suddenly, my nose twitched, as a familiar aroma reached it. Chocolate chip cookies. They have those in this world? They smelled so good, just like the ones from home…

Though I couldn't see any source nearby for the smell. Where were they? I looked all around the front room of Saltriv's house, but I couldn't find them anywhere.

It wasn't until a minute later that Saltriv arrived from outside, carrying into the house a wooden platter of chocolate chip cookies. At least ten of them, baked to perfect chocolatey goodness. I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into them!

… But how did I smell the cookies from so far away, though?

Oh. Right. I'm an Oshawott now. I guess they must be able to smell better than humans can. … I'm not sure how to feel about that.

"Hi, Gen!" they said, waving their leaf as they set the platter on the ground. "I brought us some snacks for the sleepover!"

"Thanks! They look great!" I said, beginning to reach for one, before pausing. "... Er… I can have one, right?"

"Not yet," Saltriv said with an apologetic look. "I want to wait until the sleepover begins. You can have one as soon as it starts, though!"

I frowned, and stepped back away from the cookies. It wouldn't make any sense getting on the bad side of my host, guess I'll have to wait a bit longer until I can savor them.

"Hello!" I heard a familiar voice shout, and looked over to see Burhalla walking in. "Where's your parents? I thought they'd be here."

"Oh, hi Burhalla! Mom's talking with dad at the Kecleon Shop. She'll be home soon, and she'll have some more treats when she arrives!" Saltriv said, their tail beginning to wag.

"Er… hey, Burhalla," I greeted, smiling at my teammate. He smiled back.

"You're ready for the sleepover, Gen? I've been ready since last night!" Burhalla said with an eager grin. "I even put everything I'm bringing in my synchronised bag, so we should all be able to use it!"

"Yeah! I'm ready," I said. I was ready as I could be, aside from not knowing Water Gun. I hoped Water Sport would work for that game Burhalla mentioned, the one that required me to know a move of my type.

Though first things first. Before we could start our game, or anything else, the sleepover had to begin.

"Uh, can we go in your room yet?" I asked Saltriv, glancing in the direction of it.

"Of course!" Saltriv exclaimed, beginning to head towards their room. "Come on in!"

Many questions still swarmed my mind, some big, some trivial. Why did Acacia suspect I was a human? What stuff did Burhalla bring? What's been happening back home while I've been gone? What kinds of games did Pokemon play? How long until I could taste those chocolate chip cookies?

…. And how long until I can finally go home? I really hoped it wouldn't be much longer.

For now, though, I hoped I could enjoy this sleepover, even if I was currently a Pokemon. I pushed my questions from my mind, and together with Saltriv and Burhalla, I walked towards Saltriv's room, ready to have some fun and forget about my troubles for a night.

A/N

Hello! Today is the first anniversary of when Eternal Shadows was initially conceptualized! It's gone through a lot of changes since then, but it has improved so much, and is still a story I hold very near and dear to me.

Thank you so much to Fobbie for betaing this chapter, and to Team Ion for looking over it! Also, special thanks to Sudmensch, Herolich, and Theprinceofpuddles for supporting me. I couldn't have gotten this chapter out without their help.

And to you all, thank you all so much for sticking with me this far, and for those of you who are new to this fic, thank you for checking it out.

I still have a LOT in store, so look forward to that! I'm really excited to show you all what I have planned!

Also, I've recently started some non-canon askblogs for some of the characters in this fic, particularly Team Searchlights and the World-Savers' Council! You can find them at ask-team-searchlights and ask-world-savers-council on tumblr.

Again, thank you all so much for reading, and I hope to see you again soon with chapter 12!