Chapter 16: Professional Griefers

- - - - - The Day Operation Critical Hit Began, Hulbury - - - - -

- - - - - 6:35 AM - - - - -

"It'll be fine. It'll be fine. You've lived your life facing all your challenges and trials. You'll get through this." Nessa told herself while facing the mirror after having put on some sweat pants, a sweat jacket, and tying her hair up into a high ponytail. She briefly peered back to the empty part of her bed where Haru had previously been sleeping at, and exhaled. Taking a few deep breaths as she descending from the stairs, Nessa would trek out to keep herself occupied.

Nessa wasn't the type to believe in 'karma' or bad omens. She preferred to take the life she had before her and mold everything into the shape as she saw fit. This is how she approached her casual and her professional life. Yet walking outside early morning from her home as Haru had left that day to go to Kanto for the big operation against Team Rocket left her uneasy. Outside, the morning dew was thicker than on most mornings on the grassfields, the fog had rolled in, and the nearby lakes were a bit more noisy than usual. Magikarps were leaping from out of the waters and a small school of Chinchous were all above water; something that they normally don't do.

/Huh..that's strange. They're normally sea floor dwellers unless trainers fish them out through certain means. Wonder what's up with that...? Those karps here are also so noisy.../ she thought to herself, while out sprint-walking along the town limits for her morning exercise.

At this early time of the morning, there were vendors setting up their booths ready to sell goods such as incense and vegetables. These and more would always be offered to both Pokemon trainers and normal citizens alike, but with the Gym Challenge having just round up recently they had to switch their inventory up to stay afloat. Upon sprint-walking by these people, Nessa looked back upon herself on how things have gotten to the point, and recalled a memory. The day that she fell to defeat at the hands of Milo in the Pokemon Gym Challenge within the finals, and compared it to the memory she had when Haru was the one who defeated her instead.

The former memory brought back irritation no matter how many times it replayed. Ex-Chairman Rose had come to do what one would call a 'back handed compliment' in something not uncommon for one in power such as him. Meeting her in the locker room at Wyndon Stadium, he would congratulate her on her fighting style in Pokemon matches and even show that he was a 'fan' of her modeling career...only to then suggest that she leave one of her careers entirely if she 'truly cared to improve herself.'

/"What do you mean by that...Chairman?"

"Oh nothing really, it's just...exactly how high you'll reach...is up to you."

"!"

"Hmm? Don't you agree?"/

/At that time, I was so frustrated with myself. Sure, Milo had type advantage, but any trainer worth their salt should have been able to plan for that and reverse psychology the opponent into one's own victory. Come up a winner. That bastard had the audacity in his position to assume I should have just quit one of my passions on the spot./ She thought to herself over and over that moment.

It had long since passed without any repercussion or blowback. Rose had been serving ample time in prison for his crimes, and he was no longer a threat to her livelihood. It wouldn't be the first time she was told to simply 'choose one or the other'. Powerful women, especially those of color like herself, would face oppression like this all the time. At one point she had yelled at a paparazzi to just 'Go interview Cynthia' if they were going to lob useless and whiny drivel at her, and she left.

Fanbases for a model are one thing while those for a Pokemon trainer another. If you were, however, a Gym Leader of all things, your limelight is shone on in quite a different respect and have to do what you can. Sometimes Nessa would hear about how those dedicated to chronicling her modeling career would have absolutely no interest in what she did with her Gym. The idea that you could separate a person like that was maddening to her...though it made sense: sometimes interests don't match up to certain individuals.

At recent times, Nessa had been pondering if the others dealt with such struggles that were at best contextual. Allister was a shy boy who had the leadership skills and responsibility thrust upon him to be a Gym Leader, but she figured perhaps that wasn't the same thing. It would be silly to even begin comparing. The only thing that she could even start to think that may understand would be her best friend Sonia: an ex-researcher-turned-professor of the Galar Region who lives up to the reputation of her grandmother.

She decided to do a few laps with her friends on her mind to keep her mind at ease and away from the very real danger that her love had put himself in with the important position he had been imposed. Upon one of her laps Nessa had slowed down in front of a truck that had been setting up for outdoor concessions. While it was still early, they were open up for business, and the scents drew her to investigate. Inside she noticed a few Pokemon were wearing small aprons and hats as uniforms; accompanying them was a girl putting up a small menu. It appeared to be an extension of some cafe from a franchise she didn't recognize, but the smell of the truck caught her attention.

"Oh good morning!" said the girl inside, as a Scorbunny waved, going 'Bun!' excitedly. Nessa smiles, coursing over the menu. "Top of the morning to you. I've never seen this truck here before. Are you new to Hulbury?" she asked. Readjusting the cap she wore, the girl on the inside made sure her nametag was visible and nodded. "That I am. What can we get you?".

In a few moments, Nessa walked away with a small sandwich that was cut up into the shape of a Diglett and a protein fueled drink. Spotting the name 'Leah' on the receipt, she found her favorite spot near the lighthouse and sat down on one of the benches to stare outwards. The fog had slowly been lifting from the ground to give way to more visibility, though for what it was worth it appeared the whole day would be cloudy. No sunny blue skies for her to enjoy, but at least the morning snack was worth it.

Her mind goes back to the chain of thought she had before and compared ex-Chairman Rose's approach to her during her loss to Haru's victory over her in battle at the Wyndon Stadium. For the first time she was positively reaffirmed and felt like what she was doing mattered to someone. He had given her the biggest set of compliments even though she was the one who was defeated, and was a bit aghast when she was approached in the locker room.

/"Thank you, but you don't have to butter me up after winning. It's okay. I'm a lady and can handle her defeats when she's out."

"No I'm serious! I don't know what it is about you, but the way you strategize is actually something that I got surprised on both accounts. The fact you had me nearly panicking both times is really scary: you're smarter than you give yourself credit for!"

"You do know that 'almost' only counts in horseshoes right? It's fine. I hope to see you continue onward and do what only I could dream of, Haru."

"But I'm being honest though. It may not mean much coming from me, but I'd like to battle you again someday. I don't know how or when, or even if it's even a thing I could request if I become Champion to do for exhibition matches...w-wait, not that exhibition matches could even be the only reason we would fight."

"Huh?"

"Uh! I mean...it's not that...Look, I'm aware of some of the struggle you may have because of what people have said...with you being a model and a gym leader. /

Taking a bite of the Diglett sandwich again and finishing it off, Nessa crossed one leg over the other and smiled. Thinking back on it, the face expressions he was making trying to talk to her after a match was rather cute. It hadn't quite hit her until much later after the fact, but the memory of seeing him stumble over his wording was something to behold.

/"Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't think this through much enough and I'm not good with words sometimes. But I don't buy that bollocks personally! The fact that you can do both and still manage to get as far as you have means you're a lot better than you say...at least that's what I think! So I'd like for today to not be the last time we see each other okay? Or is...is that not proper of me?"/

"You're out here earlier than usual." Came a familiar voice to Nessa's side, as she looked over to see the face that was paired to that voice. It was Sonia; wearing her old coat and having a scarf on. Happy to see her friend, Nessa smiled wide and patted to the empty spot next to her.

"I could say the same for you, Sonia. What has you up this early, or are you now the type to be exercising like yours truly?" Nessa asked, though she had raised an eyebrow when Sonia sighed. There was an air of exasperation in that exhale, as she caught on. "You and Leon doing okay?"

Sonia laughed it off with a hand wave and shook her head. "Oh of course! W-..we're doing fine. Actually, I've been low key on it, but it turns out that ever since the two of us confessed that we've been enjoying each other's company in ways I wasn't sure was possible. It's...different, though it seems to open up some new problems."

"Problems? What, did you have your first fight? Haru and I have had some, though they're resolved in our own ways pretty quickly." Nessa said, almost smugly. Her mind goes to the point when they were wrestling over some food she was trying to eat from the fridge and wound up making herself chuckle.

"No, nothing like that. It's this whole 'Team Rocket thing'. Leon couldn't tell me anything but insisted he'd be fine. It's not that I don't trust in his ability, and I know he's strong. I saw him become the 'Unstoppable Champion' at one point in my life for goodness sake!" Sonia seemed exasperated and threw her hands up in a surrendering gesture.

Balling up the wrapper from the sandwich's remains, Nessa turned to her friend and leaned back on the bench. "It's because now that you're invested with him romantically you don't want to lose what you had before. Team Rocket doesn't play fair, and Leon was there with Haru and Hop when we had our own problems, right?"

Not far from the two of the talking, a Wingull had landed on a lamppost and caw'd before preening its own wings. Sonia had been stressed on the very thing her friend pinpointed and chose to stare at the bird Pokemon to help her laser in on what was on her mind. "Basically. I know I shouldn't feel all...shambolic or anything about this, but it's gotten so bad I couldn't bring myself to simply go to the laboratory and begin a new day of studying. I told Hop on a written note that I'll be there later, so if he gets there soon he'll probably just find something for himself to do."

The two shared another moment of silence before Sonia looked to Nessa. "How do you manage when you find yourself in some sort of...way where you lose the plot or feel like you might?"

The Raging Wave closed her eyes momentarily and breathed deep before exhaling slowly. She'd turn to Sonia with a spirit matching her persona. "I just focus immediately on what's in front of me and see what makes me happy about that one thing. Speaking for myself, it's the town that I help while being a fisher-woman. It's the people in Hulbury Stadium. Things like that. Sometimes I'll think about all of those that come to my stadium to watch the matches and think about what kind of memories people are making. As a Gym Leader I go through those often when the Pokemon Gym Challenge is occurring and don't really think too hard about. My focus is on the battle. However, leading up to it you can't help but think about the lives of the people who go there to see not just you, but to experience what you give them with their friends, family, and whoever else they may bring."

"Hmm...those are good points." The professor said while tipping back some water that she brought from within her coat pocket.

Continuing, Nessa held up a finger. "Everyone here may remember the time when I kissed Haru in front of untold hundreds of people in-"

"Thousands, Nessa." Sonia corrected her.

Nessa's face grew dark red. "T-that's not the point! Anyway, that's just one moment. Think about the fact that every single person going there is another life. Everyone there has a story on why they're there. Maybe they're someone who hasn't yet discovered their love of Pokemon, or maybe they're someone with a love of sports. Maybe they're celebrating an anniversary, a friendship, good school grades, or some other thing. When I face my fellow Gym Trainers in the mornings of those days, I tell them that the best they can do is what matters, and the people will recall that for a lifetime. When I go out there and perform, I'm riding the highest wave and surfing it right to the end of the day. To them, it's not just a game day, and in a way I think people out there know exactly how to appreciate Pokemon like we do."

In her excitement, Nessa had balled up both of her hands into fists and pumped both energetically: recalling past matches she's had. A smile spread on her face and her cheeks went red again. "I think Haru understands that, and has always understood that. Even when he was a mere Gym Challenger, he knew exactly what audiences perceive and the strength of battles beyond the simple ideas of competition. That's why he wants to help continue putting on a show for others while also guiding future trainers. He understands perfectly and exactly what it's supposed to be like as a Gym Leader."

"We're still talking about how to deal with stress, right?" Sonia teased her friend, as Nessa took it in stride and nodded.

Turning to Sonia, Nessa kept up her energy and smiled even wider. "Yes. Basically take the principle of looking what's in front of you and remember why you do what you do. You're a professor now, and you've written a book. Doesn't it fire you up knowing that you're inspiring new minds to care for Pokemon in a nurturing way? To know that others may one day seek to come here and study Pokemon and help out everyone else?"

Leaning on one of her hands as her elbow was propped on her knee, Sonia looked out on the same waters Nessa was staring at earlier and smirked. She ends up chuckling and exhaled. No exasperation detected in her tone, the happiness came back and helped enlighten the mood. "You're right. I think if I can do this, I can also approach things in the same way you do. By doing this, I can also continue to make Leon and many untold others proud. Thank you, Nessa."

"What are friends for?" The athletic dark woman gave a tight side hug squeeze to her best friend as the two continued to watch the waters for a little while longer. Eventually Nessa stood up and told Sonia that she had to continue on her morning regiment before heading to a nearby hill. As the two departed, their own 'fog' within their minds cleared up. The morning may have been rife with its own bit of noises, but there would be nothing but serenity for both the ladies' mental constitutions.

- - - - - Same Day, Circhester - - - - -

The snowy town had seen more active days, but the lull that came after the annual Gym Challenge always brought with it a chance for those such as Melony and Gordie to shift gears. If it wasn't for the recent events and the Pokemon League Tournament, Gordie wouldn't have said much to his mother anyways, and had decide to go into another spurt of time avoiding her outright.

As those within Circhester know, the conflict between the two was so legendarily chaotic that it split the two apart in both Pokemon Gym Type allegiance and as a parent to her son. Melony had the appearance of a caring, loving mother but was often rumored to have 'ice cold' mannerisms in the Gym. Matter of fact, this split would have continued if not for what occurred during one of Gordie's social outings. While getting ready for a fan meet, the burly Rock Gym Leader saw that his phone was going off. Notification after notification made his screen light up, telling him he was missing not just text messages but voice mail as well. By the hint he got from those messages, it appeared Melony had been trying to meet him halfway on some mutual ground.

Frustrated by the repetition of voice mail, Gordie picked up the phone when she called him again. "Yes?" he answered coldly, with no indication that he had any means to keep it going long if he could help it.

The tone from Melony came back apprehensive. "Hello Gordie. It's been awhile since we spoke..."

Gordie rolled his eyes and pressed two fingers under his glasses to where his own eyes were as if displaying stress. "Uh huh. I'm...kind of busy at the moment. Getting ready to head out."

At that same time, Melony was in her home and looking at the other children of hers playing with each other. As her eyes settled on one of the last happy photos she had of herself and Gordie, her expression grew somber. "Right, of course you are. Listen, I know we've had our differences, but I'd like to talk to you about something. I understand that there are some things that we will never agree on, and for what it's worth-"

"Mom, I know you really want to have it out right now but I just don't know if I'm capable of doing this now. For all we know, this will go just like last time." Gordie sounded as if trying to find a way to end the call there without resorting to just tapping 'hang up' immediately.

"No, please, this is important." She was heard, starting to plead. "We barely speak a word to each other and after thinking about what's possibly going to happen with that Rocket situation, and...and what happened with Syra...I keep thinking on all the lost time."

"Do you really? If you wanted to help see a change between us then you know it won't be that easy." Gordie fired back.

"I know it won't be, but that's..." she had to take a deep breath as her heart was racing. Even if her son was antagonistic she still loved him all the same. It pained her to have this separation be felt still to this day. "Gordie, please-"

"Or what? Or you'll start the same fight about following in your footsteps? About whether or not I'll be continuing the bloodline? Living up to your name? Don't think I've forgotten. I'm focused on ME and only ME for now."

"Yes I know, I understand Gordie but-" Melony tried to find a way back into the conversation but her son's Rocky exterior proved dangerous as he wasn't having any of it.

His voice raising in irritation and volume. "BUT WHAT?! I played nice and professional, especially amongst company but don't let that fool you into thinking-"

It was Melony who interrupted Gordie this time as she raised her voice for the first time since their infamous fight. "WILL YOU PLEASE LET ME FINISH!? I need you to hear me out!"

Her kids that were in earshot briefly turned to look at her while she was on her phone before dispersing, all of them sensing the tension in the air. The hand clenching onto the phone shook a little. "I'm sorry. I know that nothing I say will truly bring back or repair entirely what occurred between us since that time. But Gordie I can't stop thinking about what I learned at the dinner. What Syra went through, and what she did to get to where she was at? The struggles she was dealing with? When Haru said in the battlegrounds that 'you still have time to fix what you have'? Look, I know that I'm cold and strict. Others across all of Galar know it...but at the end of the day we should be able to have a dialogue as two adults. As family."

She was on the verge of tears as if holding back a dam that was starting to crack. It was the longest Gordie had let her speak to him in a long while, and her getting it out of her system felt cathartic. "As a mother to her son, I want to bury the axe between us. I don't want us to end up like what happened to her."

Admittedly hearing her starting to break on the phone took the wind out of Gordie's sails. Even in his own hardened state and defensiveness in the mere notion of talking to her was he lowering his walls. "I...see. I'm not exactly sure where to start, but you're right. We were all there and heard from both Haru and Syra what her situation was...and I don't want to repeat those same mistakes."

A second or two went by as she had to hold back from sobbing a little directly into the receiver of the phone. "I'm not asking you to forgive me right now because I know such a task would be impossible at the moment, but I am asking to begin to help me help us get past it all. Circhester's been known for awhile to have this rift that split us and the Gym Challenge...but it doesn't have to in the future. Let's at least try to move past that much. One step at a time."

For the first time in awhile, Gordie had sounded a little unnerved: finally hitting an emotional similarity to what Melony had sounded like on the phone with him. "I'm just...afraid. I'm afraid that it'll be like last time. I don't want that to happen, so...so you'll have to excuse me for this. Shit. Okay...I haven't been helping by not listening to you, either, Mom. You were only doing what you thought was right, and even if I disagreed, it wasn't fair to you how I reacted."

Briefly interrupting Gordie with a gesture of 'let's head out soon', a publicist who would be escorting him to his fan meet saw that he was on the phone and did only that in silence. He knew that he had to leave soon in order to be on time, but for once he wasn't going to rush to it. "Hey...mom? I gotta go now. Maybe soon we can...move past this together. If you'd like, we can talk it over later. Is tomorrow fine?"

She almost couldn't believe her ears. The usually ice cold mother smiled warmly through tears and wiped off one with a thumb. "Absolutely. We can meet midday."

For some reason the idea of seeing her alone didn't immediately make him tense. Perhaps in his own right, Gordie was starting to soften up from his own rocky shell, or perhaps it was just proper timing. For better or worse, the whole encounter between Haru and Syra was sending shockwaves throughout the community. For two Gym Leaders of Rock and Ice, a new start was peeking around the corner. He didn't promise anything, nor was the conversation ended on a "I love you" even though they were related by blood, but for one short moment Gordie didn't feel his blood pressure raise just by speaking to her. For one short moment, Gordie felt that the town of Circhester may begin to advance once again right along with him.

Hanging up from her end, Melony smiled and exhaled in satisfaction as she gazed upon another photo of the two: the day he caught his first Pokemon. Tomorrow may not have been promising a return to those soothing feelings, but she may soon be able to feel the weight of her past collapse away like an avalance.

- - - - - Ballonlea, Ballonlea Stadium - - - - -

At the same time that everyone else was getting ready to deal with whatever new publicity stunt or moment that would be fixated the news, a certain Fairy Gym Leader was busy in the office within Ballonlea Stadium. Walking past the stage that was used in the past when Opal was seeking successors for the same position he himself was in, Bede had returned from delivering some outgoing mail and holding a small pile of things from his inbox. Mundane things such as management of the Gym finances, promotions for upcoming events, and fan letters were in the mix.

The past year had seemingly gone through his mind as quickly as his own journey that had led him to the very spot he found him in. 'Home' was no longer just the product of some circumstances that happened to him from ex-Chairman Rose, but of a warmth from being a Gym Leader in the somewhat isolated town of Ballonlea. He didn't show it often amongst his peers, as Haru had a tendency of bringing out the worst of his own personality, but Bede had since mellowed out considerably in comparison to his origins.

Sitting at his desk with a Hatterene following, Bede let out a long breath as if running back what was going on lately. The events that were playing out lately did little to involve him outside of merely baring witness to the Pokemon League Tournament, but he couldn't help but feel things took another shift. "Ever since that girl waltzed into my Gym and took the badge I gave her, things have felt off. Now ever since Haru told me everything at the staff dinner in inclusion to what was revealed at the Wyndon Stadium, I feel uneasy. Perhaps...it got me thinking, 'Rene."

The pastel colored Fairy Pokemon shifted her glance at him, thankfully not getting into any violent outburst from how low Bede kept his demeanor around her. Glancing over to her, Bede brought out his planner, a pen, a calculator, and a notepad that he kept a list of professional contacts. On the desk to his right, he would bring up one of the sites he had bookmarked of organizations and had now zeroed in on one location: the original 'home' of whence he came, his orphanage.

Floating over to his side, Hatterene looked studious, prompting Bede to speak up. "From what I've gathered thanks to Haru and that entire match, Syra dealt with a very rough upbringing. I didn't even have as bad as her, and the result of what her past was is something I would never wish on anyone. But if you think about it, she's not an isolated case. There are others out there in far worse situations; with or without parents." He was flipping though the pages of his notepad and had his pen in his mouth, getting ready to write down something. "Like it or not, the attention that this has brought to everyone is something we will all remember. I was lucky to be picked up by someone in that orphanage and given an opportunity to compete in the Gym Challenge. It led me to be disqualified and ultimately turned into..."

He gestured around him to the whole office, implying his Gym. "This. But perhaps there's something to be said here about the whole thing."

Looking over onto his desk, he spotted a picture of himself begrudgingly accepting the Gym Leader uniform from Opal. It was snapped in a hurry and in the photo, Bede didn't look entirely pleased. While fate had been thrust upon him multiple times in the past, he was thankful of where those events led him currently. "I've decided to not act complacent on this, Hatterene. So here's what I'm going to do..." taking the pen out of his mouth and pointing at his computer. "Let's start from the top and find some people that can help me set up a fundraiser for some orphanages. Maybe an outreach program. They have those, right?"

Hatterene's paw-like appendage that would mimic a hand if needed had landed on her master's head and she smiled. Without saying much, he knew that she would be 'all in' to support him on such an endeavor.

The pen glided across the papers before him, writing down lots of notes consisting of numbers, names, and a bullet point list of ideas to discuss to higher ups within the Galar League. Bede takes a sip of some freshly brewed tea and paused for a short while before writing again. /Thankfully Syra is a unique case where she was able to manage and pull through thanks to sheer tenacity. Her fighting spirit is much like my own, but not everybody is so lucky. We are all human. We all have our flaws and need direction. Perhaps as a Gym Leader I should help redirect some attention to those less fortunate./

"Right. We've got a lot of traction to make, and now with the Gym Challenge officially over before restarting for some time, let's focus on other, better things." He noted, as if to remind himself on what was important. Tomorrow would be another day, and Bede was filled with determination anew.

- - - - - Current Day, On the Way Back to Galar - - - - -

- - - - - 2 hours from landing - - - - -

The day that the crew had woken up and were only a mere few hours away from being back home, a few things had changed. Syra was told that throughout the evening Sam was talking to others that were involved on the more 'legal' side of the operation and the investigation that led up to it. Spending more time than he wanted in order to get a point across, it appeared that something would have to eventually be discussed with Oleana and others in the Galar League but something was making headway.

That 'something' was Syra's punishment. He had been arguing into the early hours of the morning with officials about what to do with her; saying how she laid her life on the line multiple times throughout the entire mission for the sake of the better future. Sam had collected testimony prior to the call from Haru himself that Syra not only said but did the very things he was vouching for, as it lined up with the reports coming from everyone else. Those that had met Syra within the operation all vouched for her ability and willingness to work as a teammate, with Haru vouching for her willingness to sacrifice.

At the point the 'decision would be made in the near future', but for now nothing would be handed down to her, and she no longer needed to be held up in a jail cell.

Upon being presented the news however, Syra had one second of feeling elated before yelling like she was realizing some horrid truth. The volume made Haru twitch and put a finger into his ear. "Holy shit, what? Did you forget something in Kanto?"

"I FORGOT! I put my dad behind bars for what he did, but where is my brother going to live? Where are WE going to live?! I haven't said anything to him and it's been days and..." As Syra's instinct to be a big sister kicked in, she went to the floor squatting to the point her knees met her face as both hands pressed to her forehead. Repeatedly saying "No no no" to herself over and over, she was dreading the worst. All this time she had completely forgotten on trying to make sure he was safe since the two siblings kept in contact leading up to the tournament only for her to forget about keeping tabs with him.

"Okay Syra to be fair, you were jailed for a few days before heading out to do this shindig in Kanto. They took your phone, and most likely had a LOT of things on your mind." Haru knelt down to her level to try and make the velvet haired girl calm down. But she shook her head.

"No no no no you don't understand. I'm supposed to be there to take care of him. I'm his only family he can trust. Sure, I got rid of the asshole would-be, useless-as-a-cold-bucket-of-semen would-be father of mine so he could no longer damage the family...but I did it without a plan so..." her breathing had increased, whereas Haru had recognized the beginning signs of an oncoming panic attack. Holding his hand out to Sam before he said anything, he merely went along with it.

"You're absolutely right, I apologize. Let's do a mental exercise together okay? Let's focus on something together. It's something that Nessa helped me learn to do...c'mon." Haru spoke softly, helping Syra to her feet. She walked along with him as Haru did his best to ground Syra mentally.

Leon walks by as he sees Haru helping her onto a nearby set of empty seats, going to Sam. "Morning, Johto Man. Heard anything from home?"

Sam crossed his arms and leaned against a window, peeking outside at the view. Catching a brief glimpse of a rainbow for a split second, what was running through his mind was his own personal 'next step'. "Oleana will be meeting us when we reach land. I'll have to report what I have to her...and then head back to Johto to see to it that Rocket finally answers for their crimes. Considering the amount of research, the scientists involved, damages, and Giovanni himself, it may take awhile. But since I was a major part of the investigation I have to see through it to the end."

Taking his own cap off, Leon walked to Sam's adjacent side to ruffle his own hair a bit before putting it back on. "You don't want to go, do you?"

Sam sighed as his head leaned seemingly further onto the window pane. "No I don't."

Leon gave a smirk, with a hand raised in front of his face as if to cover a smirk. "You want to stay in Galar, don't you?"

The once ex-now-actual-champion saw Sam look at him without changing the direction of his own head. "Yes I do, but the operation requires me to at least go back to Johto once landing here and wrap things up. It eats away knowing I have to head out one last time." Sam sighed, but gave a smirk when Leon was matching his own grin back. "I guess you've already put 2 and 2 together about why I'm apprehensive, huh?"

"You could say that; I'm known to get lost, but I can see it rather plainly with you. It's the chairman, isn't it?" Leon asked.

Sam had hesitated initially to answer since not even Haru had made a comment on it, but felt right as rain to confide a bit to Leon. "I'll be honest. It's been really confusing knowing how to 'pull the trigger' without overstepping my boundaries. She has her world in Galar managing the League, and at one day I just...decided that I wouldn't exactly 'commit' without either moving there or doing something to mitigate the long distances between us. Hearing secondhand what happened with Macros Cosmos irritated me since she was able to turn herself around, but was dealing with that all in solitude without any immediate comfort from me. Initially I was mad hearing someone named 'Haru' had done what he did, but I pushed that aside when Oleana contacted me and informed me she was doing better."

Sam ended up looking back to where Haru had taken Syra to be calmed down from her little breakdown and then leaned against the wall with his hands acting as a makeshift rest for his head. "She insisted that things were fine, but I counter-insisted on seeing her soon. Leon, I do not recommend the 'half long distance, half close distance' approach...as I'm someone who regrets doing it for so long."

He saw that Leon tipped his head a bit downward with a serious expression and put a hand on Sam's shoulder. "Exploring the world is something I imagine was amazing, but thanks to what you share with her, you don't want to be a traveler, do you?"

Shaking his head and lowering it, a ping of guilt seemed to creep up on Sam's face of all the time lost. "I don't. At one point I wanted to travel the lands, searching far and wide beyond just Johto itself. Before I knew it, I DID travel those lands! Ever since going through the Ruins of Alph, I had a strong desire to check out other areas. In the end, I went through Hoenn, Sinnoh, and even your neighboring region, Kalos." His enthusiasm dwindled for a bit, thinking back on it. "I've been mumbling for a bit. I apologize."

It was amusing to Leon how he saw several parallels between Sam and Haru and how two gentlemen have two completely different lives while pursuing their relationships in similar manners. Doing his best to keep the conversation lighthearted, Leon gave a tap to Sam's shoulder. "So you went and explored a bit of the planet while doing your best to keep a relationship, long distance as it was, while also taking time to make sure she knew you cared. As far as your personal career is concerned, you checked this off your 'bucket list', and now that you've had some time to think about it, you want to put that all aside, right?"

"Right. I've...done enough taking the piss on this whole thing. Maybe one day I'll even pursue Galar's Gym Challenge for fun. But as far as going crazy and being a globe trotter? Once this whole case is over? I'm going to head back to Galar. But please try to keep this lowkey. I don't think now would be a good time for others to realize that I'm with the Chairman herself; professionally speaking." Sam rubbed the back of his head and laughed a little weakly. At that point Haru had poked his head out into the hallway and waved Sam down. Syra seemed to have calmed down from her anxiety spike earlier.

"She's doing fine now, Sam. How much longer until we hit land?" he asked.

"Roughly a few hours. Should be enough for a solid action or kid's movie. " Sam coyly replied. Haru was seen pursing his lips together and looking off to the side studiously. "Means we have some ample time to relax before hitting home. Now that you mention it, do we have any onboard movies? Anything recent to kill time until then?"

"Uh...we should? I haven't looked." Sam hadn't even considered it since they were all so focused on the operation as Leon raised an eyebrow. "In-house entertainment huh? I hope you don't have any stinkers, Sam. You wouldn't wanna disappoint Galar's Champ now would you?" teasing the fellow man.

"Do you have the movie?" Haru called out, to which Syra appeared next to him, walking out of the room with a completely confused look on her face. "I'm sorry, the WHAT movie?"

"Oh, it's a video game movie adaptation but turned out really well! You'd probably get a kick out of it!" Haru replied excitedly. Sam was too busy trying to look through whatever library that they had, while Leon went to use 'the loo' and Syra had the most tense and confused expression on her face. She said nothing but stared at him.

"What, you too old for a kid movie or something? What does your brother like to watch?" Haru would nudge his elbow into Syra's side as she rolled her eyes a bit in annoyance.

"He's reaching 'that' age and has begun shifting to checking this series name F*te due to seeing the blonde girl wearing armor and sword. That seems to tickle his fancy now. He tried to get me into it but honestly I'm not a history buff so I can't appreciate it." Syra would end up smiling a bit thanks to Haru showing some genuine interest in her side of the family she was on good ground with, as Haru raised a finger.

"Aha, but you gave it a shot right? Well then why not the adaptation of one of the best MEGA video game characters put to film? Besides, you of all people could use some stress relief! Sam! You should help us find that movie and put it on and join us." there were stars in Haru's eyes as the prompted idea of watching the movie for the possible 329th time in the past few months still ran wild with excitement within his veins.

"Fine, but if this movie is awful, you owe me a Shiny." Syra muttered to him whilst crossing her arms.

"Wha-you know I only have one which was a gift from my girlfriend's dad right!? I can't just give that to you! We went over this befo-" Haru looked flabbergasted as Syra held up a pointer finger definitively halting his speech.

"One Shiny Pokemon. I said what I said."

His cheeks puffed outwards, and almost enjoying his irritation she replied once again "Make it a Shiny Scorbunny. How's that?" /Maybe I can have Goji help me out on this.../

After what felt like forever but was in fact only mere seconds, Haru shook her hand while making eye contact. "Deal. But you're gonna laugh at this flick. It's SUPER stupid and very enjoyable!"

Syra's magenta eyes had narrowed until they appeared as slits. Her mind had almost physically been seen as though she were calculating Pokemon IV stats in real time. "Wait, stupid but...but that implies it's not a good movie right?"

"Of course it doesn't. Wait...you've never seen something that was stupid AND fun?" Haru looked over his shoulder back at her while he was rummaging through his backpack to see if he had any leftover travel snacks left.

Almost like she was insulted at this point of contention, much less her own intelligence, Syra turned away raising her chin up. "No, because they're usually GOOD movies with GOOD acting. I prefer action flicks that are grounded and have serious punch to them."

"Name one." Haru had walked back up to her and was holding a small bag of Razzberry-flavored candies.

She spoke without hesitation. "Combat Annihilation."

Haru broke out into laughter, holding onto his stomach, causing Syra's face to go red with blush as she was flustered. "What's so bloody funny?! I'm serious!"

"I thought you said 'good movies with good acting' Syra but that's one of the worst rated films for adaptations yet!" Haru wipes a finger across his eyes and is stifling his laughter now at this point. The raven haired girl looks back gritting her teeth and puts both hands downward into fists.

"You bastard, you hold your tongue! You just don't understand it like the rest of the critics that slammed it! Not only is its soundtrack perfectly indicative of the era it was filmed, but it's martial arts and acting at its cinematic golden peak!" fake swinging punches in his direction.

The two had a stare off before Haru asked her. "You're serious huh? Well in any case you should have fun with this movie due to its stupidity and silliness. You ever see a mascot character eat chili dogs at light speed?"

"Excuse me, what?" Syra now looked completely baffled, with Haru emphasizing while taking a slow bite of a candy.

"Have you. Ever. Seen. A mascot character. Eat. Chili dogs. At light speed?" munching down with a loud 'crunch' on the candy at the last word.

"Trust me, when Haru says something dumb like that, it usually pans out in the end." Sam replied, grinning ear to ear.

"Remember, if this sucks: shiny." Syra reminded the to-be Gym Leader one final time. Leon would eventually join the crew, but as she sat there surrounded by them, Syra would occasionally look over to Haru and found herself smirking. His personality was too infectious to not put some faith into something so benign as this, and she knew from firsthand experience that if he insisted on something like this he meant it. Folding her arms together and proping one leg over the other, she found herself relaxing with the crew to check out the movie.

/This is nice. I wonder if...if this is what it's like having friends./ were her final thoughts before everyone grew quiet as it started up and they all watched. Thankfully, Haru was right and Syra would enjoy it alongside the rest of the crew as its balance of comedic timing and silly storytelling hit home to her in a spot she didn't expect.

One would hope that her life will continue to roll in more pleasantries like this, but for now, wrapping up loose ends was of utmost importance. One such loose end would be waiting her alongside Oleana as the crew was almost back home in Galar.

- - - - - Pokemon League, Wyndon - - - - -

At that time, Oleana had long since been in talks with multiple figureheads within the whole league to determine who it was that was the mole working with Team Rocket. While it was regrettable that such a person had slipped in under her nose during this time, one bit of good news had come out of it: Galar had expanded their horizons on what Pokemon were to be within the land. Such a move would bring a new economic boom to the whole region, and it was one thing that brought a positive light to 'Operation Critical Hit' and its repercussions. Already within a day people were trading new Pokemon in and out of Galar as many trainers were happy to get new additions to their own families or teams.

Before the Chairman was to head out to meet Sam and the others, her attention was focused on someone who had come there that neither her nor anyone that would later find would expect. Standing before her was a comparably tall woman with long flowing green hair with a business-like attire similar to the Chairman herself. She made her business briefly known, and within seconds Oleana knew that there would be one change to be made: this woman would accompany her to meet the others. It was important that she arrived alongside Oleana.

"Excuse me. Yes, this is Oleana. I'm going to require some more security as I'm to head out. It won't be for myself, however, it's for someone of great importance to the 'it' that I'm following up on. Yes. Yes. Thank you." Hanging up the direct line to security, the phone clicked definitively as she had her sights on the new woman who stood before her.

"Come with me, madam. We have much to discuss, and I'm very interested to hear what you have to say. Although, pardon, what was your name again? You spoke it once but as Chairman I have many names to memorize over time." bowing briefly apologetically before extending a hand to shake the woman's hand.

Reaching forward, the other lady smiled and warmly replied. "Amiri."

- - - - - Galar Borders, Portside - - - - -

- - - - - 2 hours and 31 minutes later - - - - -

The large private boat that had contained the troupe that came from Galar for their contribution to "Operation Critical Hit" had reached Galar shores. Seeing the coast within view, the crew looked out together as their captain informed everyone they would hit land shortly. As the sun was at the middle of the skies for its midday shine, Syra got a clear view, if only a tiny glimpse, of what appeared to be several officials standing where their 'Welcoming Party' would be. Her face faltered, remembering that upon leaving she was a criminal to be tried in court.

"Hey Haru...?" she turned to him. Looking up to her, Haru met her gaze, noticing that her tone was serious. "I had a really fun time. I hope to do this again, though I can see that as soon as I'm back home, I'll most likely have to go through capital punishment. I know what was already said about me of course, but Galar Law is something that doesn't screw around. You know how it is. Tch...that's my guess anyway. So if it's any consolation-"

"Hey Syra, look I'm certain that things wil-" He was counter-interrupted by her putting a finger on his lips as she then withdrew it to fold her arms together.

"It's fine. At the end of the day, I'm glad I got to come back with a clear conscious, help my home and save my best friend. I was a bitch to you quite directly, but you still helped me even when nobody asked. If I ever get out of jail then we need to have a rematch of some sort. Make it an official, or exhibition: I don't care. But I WILL be back and I WILL defeat you." She extended a hand down to him with a confident smirk. What was left of her attitude had dwindled to one that no longer carried the heavy burdens of her own action. She had an 'edge' to her, truly, but no longer held any hatred for him or his actions.

Her hand was met with his own, shaking it firmly and smiling back. "Promise. I'll see you on the battlefield in an official match, and like before I won't go easy on you!"

"I'm counting on it." She grinned widely.

A short while after hitting land, Sam was the first to head out in front of the group and saw several notable figures. Oleana was in the front and center, while multiple security guards surrounded her on all sides. As the crew operating the boat was still onboard, Leon, Syra, and Haru would eventually join up with him. Walking off the walkway, Sam met with Oleana as the head of the group and spoke cordially.

"We've arrived, ma'am. As reported earlier while we were on our way back: the mission is complete. I have a full report for you right here to look over in detail: triplicate form. After getting my own things ready I'll have to head back to Johto to see to it Team Rocket is put away for good. As stated, the scientists and those injured in the whole operation are in the hospitals in Kanto, while the Pokemon recovered are being rehabilitated. Their timetable to release varies depending on the Pokemon, and Mewtwo escaped."

As his own eyes met Oleana, she quietly took the folder with all his findings. It pained him to be told once again that he had to leave, but for this situation it was strictly and professionally business related to make sure it was done. She was seen clasping her hands once together and giving a soft smile to the group.

"Mewtwo leaving is fine, as it appears our world will be safer without him being bothered. That being said. Sam! Leon! Haru! And...Syra. You 4 were a small group of a much bigger operation that saved countless lives, and not just the League, but the world shall thank you all. Many eyes bore witness to the entire event, and this will be something that will be taught in the history books. For now...you all may rest."

Syra had stepped forward; head lowered and ready to take any blow aimed her way. "Ma'am. I know what I did was very wrong. It was against the law, I endangered our region, and put everyone here and our region's reputation at risk for my own selfish endeavors and gains. It was agreed upon that I was to group up with Haru and everyone else, per his request, and I've fulfilled that condition. If there's nothing else to be said, then I'd like to head back to my cell so I can continue to pay back society."

Sam quietly had locked eyes with Oleana, who looked to him, then Syra. The tall woman inhaled slowly and walked forward to Syra. The girl had tensed up briefly as if expecting to be physically escorted off the premises just like at the Wyndon Stadium but opened her eyes in disbelief when all the Chairman did was merely pat her on the shoulder with one hand. "That...will not be necessary, Syra."

The girl had frozen in disbelief and looked back at Oleana. "What..?"

Halfly apprehensive as well as enjoying that she was going to 'stick it' to other council members that would most likely give her an earful later, Oleana withdrew her hand and put both behind her back. "I said that won't be necessary. I, and several other members within our Galar League were watching the whole events unfold very closely, as well as the aforementioned untold numbers of people around the world. Sam relayed all of the report findings from his own firsthand accounts all last night, and there was plenty of video footage of innumerable news stations and broadcasts showing everyone what you and the others did. I was even able to get ahold of Gold, who spoke to me himself and confirmed everything that I had learned. It has been decided that any such punishment that would have remained after this would merely just be salad dressing on the very big plate of which you delivered your own 'justice' to Team Rocket themselves."

Syra took a step back looking at Oleana. She could not believe her ears and had begun tearing up slowly. It was simply too good to be true for where this was leading. Haru was hoping things would be heading this way but had no idea Oleana had already made a decision.

Oleana sighed once but gave a wide smile. "I don't make it a habit to toss big preachy phrases like that often, but it suits what you did. It would be nice, sure, to have you be ordered to do more community service or pay back the Galar society and people with your time, but in my judgment you more than paid it all off by doing what you've done. What you did to help Cynthia. Coordinating with Blue, Red, and Silver. Saving the scientist who was the whistleblower. Fighting and helping take down Giovanni definitively, as well as standing up to him when your very life was directly threatened. Despite all of these odds against you, you more than cooperated when you could have turned coat on your fellow trainers. Considering your life that you almost paid, and the risks involved all throughout...and because your specific involvement was a Galar Pokemon League issue, I have certain powers that others in this case do not."

Another voice came forth in the form of a woman with a much more mature tone. The lady with long green hair and a suit similar to Oleana's had come from behind the group of security guards and held her hands together forward. Syra's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, and the tears flowed freely near immediately. "It has been thanks to all of this, as well as some information I was able to supply to them, Syra, that you are welcomed back without any inhibitions. You've already paid it all back in full."

Syra locked eyes to the woman who walked forward, almost unable to speak. "M...mom..?"

/Wait...her MOM?!/ Haru's thought silently came, physically turning to look at both Syra and then Amiri in a triple-take.

Amiri smiled warmly. "Hello Syra. I've come back..."

Syra dropped her bag as the tears started streaming continuously, and Oleana confirmed what the lady spoke with a nod. "Syra, I've granted you a complete pardon. As a leading official of the Galar Pokemon League, and with help from a certain someone...you're free."

/A FULL pardon...?/ Haru thought in disbelief, though happy for his friend.

The girl had flung herself to the woman with green hair, clung tightly to her and cried openly as Oleana smiled, turning to Sam. "I reviewed all of the information very carefully that you gave me. I imagine that I'm going to get an earful from doing this, but considering that several of the biggest offenses were taken care of by her and your group, I took action. For one, she was not the one who bombed the stadium. We were able to confirm that thanks to the information she gave us while in captivity. Secondly, with all the data you gave me Sam, and everything else, I was able to find that any such 'time' she would have done would barely equal to the same cost as what she did...and she chose to do it in the most dangerous of conditions. Plus, her mother, Amiri here, has provided me additional information regarding Team Rocket since her father was a member. Thanks to this joint information we may be able to further keep them all down."

At the time the two were talking, the woman who came forward was on the ground holding onto Syra. Like a child who was lost, Syra could not hold back the flood of emotions that were bottled up in her. Amiri held Syra tightly, knowing that whatever pain Syra was dealing with would come out and could only do as a mother would: simply comfort her with a tight embrace. In the same time, Amiri had informed her daughter that her little brother, Gabriel, was safely at her home and would be awaiting their arrival patiently.

After a bit of sobbing, Syra looked up to Oleana, wiping her eyes and bowed briefly. "Thank you...thank you thank you thank you thank you so much. I don't know what else to say..!"

"Just try to stay out of trouble, and do let me know when I can expect to see you fight again, how's that?" Oleana would reply, giving a dry response but with as enthusiastic of a smile as she could physically muster.

- - - 15 minutes later - - -

Haru stuck around with Syra and her mother if only just to formally get to know her for a tad bit before making his own departure. Sam had left to go finish up the business he had with Oleana, report to Looker, and get his own things together to head back to Johto so he could wrap up things from his end. Before he left, he had told Haru and the others he was unsure how long it would take, but that 'mark my words' he would be back once it was over. Leon had since made his way to Sonia as he figured she would want to see him as soon as possible and even see if his little brother would be up for some lunch. He had to ask directions a few times before getting to an Air Taxi station.

As Syra was getting her bearings together, Haru would introduce himself and explain a bit of his own history with Syra from his own perspective to Amiri. The whole time as they chewed the scene together, Amiri had given a smirk; studying him up and down slowly. It was obvious to Haru of which side Syra had taken her appearance and personality from, as the woman, despite her age difference, looked remarkably young and was slightly bustier than even Syra herself. Leaning forward, her heavy chest had bounced and looked back to Syra when he had finished up discussing about their on-boat shenanigans. "You know, she had written me several letters during her Gym Challenge and always made sure to insert some lines about you. At the end of the day, I can see why my daughter had a crush on you."

"WHwwh..MOM! It hasn't even been a SINGLE DAY! I HATED HIM THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE CHALLENGE OR DID YOU MISS THAT PART?!" Syra immediately exclaimed, as her face turned as red as Haru's hair. Haru himself had blushed, but gave a loud laugh from the way she reacted: it was amusing to see this new chemistry firsthand.

"Well to be fair this entire time she's kind of been a pain in the ass as my rival but she's a pretty cool trainer in her own right!" he'd respond as Syra tried to swing for his face with a fist and missing easily.

"That does NOT make things easier with you saying that, dumbass!" she was flustered and had to look away afterwards, grumbling. /Shit, why did she have to say that now? Now I feel all fucking weird with him damn it! Bad enough I didn't even tell her that I kissed him but yet she's onto me!/

Amiri gave a hearty laugh, standing upright and smirked. "Hatred and Love are two sides of the same coin my dear Syra, don't you know? Though to be fair I guess I don't blame her. If I were her age, I'd probably feel the same way towards you myself."

It was at this point Haru saw the scenery for what it was beginning to be and held up both hands defensively. "I'm flattered Miss Amiri, but I'm loyal to my dear Nessa. Actually, I should be seeing to Nessa right about now. I'm sure she'll want to know that I'm fine and home finally."

He bent down to pick up his backpack from the ground and nodded to Syra and Amiri, looking at his new 'rival' he had obtained. "Hey Syra. One Shiny Pokemon. I'll let you know when I get one." tapping onto his Rotom Phone and letting it form into a bicycle. Immediately Syra held a hand out with her face still blushing from what her mother was saying outright in front of him and took a step forward.

"Wait you don't have to do that, I loved the movie we watched earlier remember?! The deal was if I hated it, you'd get me one shiny, remember?!" stretching a hand outwards.

Putting on the helmet that he took from his backpack, Haru snickered and got onto the seat before nodding to Syra one final time. "I know, but screw it. I still feel like gifting you one. I'll have someone help me out okay? I think I know a girl who specializes in breeding. For now I have to head to the Air Taxi station and head to Hulbury!"

Before she could respond, Haru had already started bicycling his way out and was waving back to the two of them. "Arrivederci, Syra and Miss Amiri! Stay safe!"

The two watched as he slowly disappeared past some hills as Syra exhaled with fatigue. Throughout the past year so many things had happened that were of so many disparagingly highs and lows. The Gym Challenge, joining and then leaving Team Rocket, taking down Giovanni, taking in her father for the abuse and grooming he put her through, and making some friends while being pardoned completely was a lot to take in. Her mind had centered on the forbidden topic about her father and looked back at her mother.

"Hey Mom? There's something we need to talk about while we head to the house..." Syra's tone had shifted to one that was filled with shame. Confused, Amiri had tilted her head and raised an eyebrow in worry.

"What is it, dear?" she asked.

Crossing her arms and almost holding herself physically close, the now fully pardoned ex-Team Rocket girl herself had looked to Amiri with a frown. "I...I need to talk to you about what Dad's been doing since you were gone. Things I never wrote to you about in those letters. It's not an easy subject for me to talk about. Can we leave now?"

The entire time they had a few security guards still around them. While those that were with Oleana and others had already dispersed, a few that were remaining had orders from the Chairman to make sure Amiri and her daughter were safe at the port.

Her mother looked back. In the pits of her stomach she had a sensation that told her that what Syra was about to dilvuge to her would make her twist into a rage henceforth unforeseen and never felt in her life. "Yes. But don't force yourself to say anything if you don't want to, okay?"

"No. It's important I tell you everything..." was Syra's last words as the two were escorted by security guards into a vehicle that would bring them both to Amiri's home. There, Syra would begin to tell her everything in as much detail as possible. A new chapter had begun for the girl from the wrecked home, and it began with an honest to goodness true family.

...and a friend in the very person she once hated, Haru.

Having left his fellow group behind, Haru had fulfilled the last mission that he said he would do before focusing entirely on the 'smaller', personal things in life that didn't require him to throw himself into danger. For the past few years he had gone through a lot and while on his Rotom Bike, passing through the outskirts of Wyndon, the chronicles of those events flashed through his mind.

One day fate had decided that Hop and him would take the Gym Challenge together, and before he knew it, carry the legacy of his fallen friend Hiro on his back to a Championship. Along the way the likes of Sonia, Marnie, Bede, and all the Gym Leaders would each have their own interactions that seemed to grant him more of a tumultuous livelihood than simply being 'that son of a caretaker in the small town'. He even thought about ex-Chairman Rose, misguided and vain as he was in his plan to fix the Galar energy crisis.

Haru hit a hill, soaring through the air briefly before both wheels of the bike landed decisively and thought about the first time he entered into a Max Raid with other Pokemon Trainers; how the immense world crushing size intimidated him on the first encounter. He thought about the first time he was in a Gym Leader battle with Milo, and how the music was so intense that he started to move his feet while commanding his then newly evolved Raboot, Goji, into the final phase of the battle.

The comment came to Milo after the battle that he was flustered on almost losing his composure standing in front of so many people but that he is happy to have been there.

A Machamp held out one of its multiple arms to stop Haru and some other bikers to help direct traffic as another memory hit the young man's mind. He thought back to his first encounter with Nessa herself, and some others throughout his journey. The thought of being a Pokemon Master in honor of Hiro was so thick within his mentality that if he had been any more dense continuously at the end of his career, one would have guessed he didn't have any actual humanity in him.

- - - - Hulbury, Early in Haru's Gym Challenge - - -

/"You must be a Gym Challenger, right?" Nessa spoke, not facing him. She was looking out onto the lakes near the lighthouse before turning to face him.

/Whoa...those eyes of hers..!/ Haru thought, clamming up entirely.

She gave a confident smirk, eyeing him a little bit. "You're one of the ones endorsed by Leon, right? You've become something of a hot topic among the Gym Leaders."

Haru was still finding himself unable to really say much, but flashed a slight grin of pride. /I'm...a 'hot topic'? You sure that's not you, lady? Geez! I mean...I remember Hiro and I talking about you over magazines and being introduced with your League Card...but the pictures don't do justice!/

"Here you go, Mr. Famous. I already heard about you, so you should learn about me, too." Nessa had extended a hand to him, giving Haru a copy of her League Card.

Before walking away, Haru spotted a glimmer of her combative spirit within. "Let's head to the stadium. I love fishing, but I love Pokémon battles even more and I'm itching for a battle with you!"

Watching her walk into the Gym, Haru glanced at the League Card and read the back of it to himself quietly while standing near the bench. "'...met Sonia during their Gym Challenge, and they continue to be close friends. Nessa often gives Sonia fresh seafood from Hulbury. She has declared that Milo of Turffield is her rival, but Milo responded by saying that his rival is himself.' Wait, she knows Sonia? OOo~oh, so this is the friend that Sonia told me about awhile back. Holy shit. Well...good to know my friend knew Nessa back when I only had seen her in magazines. I couldn't even say anything to her face and just clammed up. Ugh. Anyways...she's the second Gym. I can do this!"/

There were so many things that the world of Pokemon contained within that he only got a chance to start exploring and checking out the second that his journey guided him through Galar. /One day I may even go to the Isle of Armor, but that's not at the forefront of my mind./ Haru pondered, waiting as some Pokemon were crossing a street. Walking onto a train with his Bicycle turning into back into its phone form, he decided to ride the rest of the way there to Hulbury instead of his previous decision to use an Air Taxi.

Viewing the countryside while taking on seat near a window, Haru had more memories flash through him. Working long hours to make sure his Pokemon were strong and taken care of, and how unfortunately a lot of them were no longer around. It pained him how he could now never go back and see if they were doing okay when he would be home in Galar, but at least the one caveat throughout all of this was he was no longer alone.

It's to be said that humans are social creatures, and despite his own characteristics of being both introvert and extroverted, and how Hiro passing made him wish to be left alone for indefinite periods of time, none of those he met throughout his Pokemon career filled a certain void. The void within him was one he didn't know was growing until it was starting to be noticed by other people. A simple few passing thoughts of wanting to see Nessa, the Water Gym Leader from Hulbury, and comments to post battle from both at her Gym and at Wyndon Stadium were simply seeds that were sewn for more things.

Impostor syndrome still reared his head from time to time. Haru took time to reflect during the train ride to Hulbury on whether he still even deserved to be with someone like Nessa, whether he was ever really a 'champion' or deserved anything. Whether she could 'do better than me' or 'if I'm even right for her'...but then thought back to the way how the two of them eventually got together. Both of them refused to put anything that would take away their passion or focus from their careers, but since they both recognized that and were secretly hoping someone would take down their guarded walls...

The ex-Champion smirked to himself.

/I was such an earnest fool. To belay all of those things to myself out of a sense of remorse, pride, or maybe guilt. Melony told me at one point that I had survivor's guilt ever since Hiro passed on. Maybe that's why when Nessa did what she did I had to try and convince myself that it would be worth a shot, and acted in an outburst the day after it became obvious we both had something going on./

He leaned towards the window, using his elbow to prop up on the sill and use his palm to let his chin rest on it.

/"Nessa, the beautiful raging wave of Hulbury and Water Gym Leader of this very place, I, Haru, hereby ask you...to a date with just the two of us!"/

/Geez, that was rather excessive huh? Heheh...well, maybe not. I've spent an awful lot of time trying to do so many things to resolve things for other people when I should be focusing on myself. Nessa saw that, told me, and as usual, she's right. Now that this whole thing is over, I have the rest of my life ahead: a Gym of my own, a Sanctuary that I definitely have to study for.../

Pausing for a moment, as he heard the conductor announce that they were approaching the Hulbury Station, Haru looked within his wallet. He had a picture of the two from their first date when they were sitting next to each other a the lighthouse. He was wearing his formal outfit at the time, and her a white dress; the same one that she was seen wearing in her rare league card. Smiling, he puts it away after kissing the part of the photo that had Nessa's face.

/Hiro and Pokemon gave me this passion that have allowed me to act this way for many years of my life...but it does not control me so much that I've been blinded to what matters to me more than anything else now./

Dusting his shorts due to the dust from the seat on the train, Haru got up, grabbed his backpack and walked off where him and the others that were riding on the train were exiting. Facing the familiar lakeside and small port town, he took one deep breath and exhaled with a smile. "Hello Hulbury. I believe you have someone that I need to see right now."

- - - - - Hulbury, Water Gym - - - - -

- - - - - Indoor Pool, Staff Area - - - - -

As the news had no doubt been springing up globally about the situation with Team Rocket and how many notable figures from around the other parts of the world were involved, news sources were curious to find out as much as possible. As the story was developing before Sam, Oleana, or any other figure that was in charge of the investigation part of the operation would divulge information, it'd be one 'for the tabloids' to pick up the slack. Many theories came about already from the televised portions seen by untold thousands, and others would be wondering what would come out of it.

For Nessa, she had long since been scheduled a modeling shoot and interview on the day that the others would be returning back home. Despite wanting to just stay home to take care of her 'water babies' and wait for Haru to return, the professional world required her today.

Next to the pool sat Nessa, wearing a red spaghetti strap top and black spaghetti blouse that had a split down the side; an outfit she had worn for a previous shoot. As the photographer and other staff who had been assisting with the shoot finished up, she was pulled into a small interview that would be for a Hulbury paper.

"As we move on into another year of lull for the Gym Challenge, some of our readers would like to know what, if any, of your plans are coming up?" said the lady, who had a notepad, pen, and audio recorder on hand.

Taking a moment to consider the angle this may go at, Nessa replied as professionally as she could, leaning into her side as she tossed part of her hair back. "Well...Galar went through a lot this year, and Hulbury itself experienced a bit of a tangent in terms of the local businesses and how the events therein played a role into the Pokemon League Tournament. Lots of things were seemingly unbalanced without us ever knowing it, such as the stadium attack. I'd like to take some time and see that we work on making sure nothing like that happens again. I'm...not the kind of person who would open up a sanctuary per se, but since I am a model as well as a Gym Leader, I have a responsibility to uphold an image not just of myself but of the people I help daily. Having seen the others pull their weight has left me feeling like I can do bigger things."

As the reporter wrote down in her notepad, she was seen humming along with Nessa's comments. The Raging Wave looked to the clock that was hung on one of the walls nearby and lamented that it had not reached lunchtime. /The shoot today took awhile, which was fine, but I wasn't counting on this so suddenly./

"Ah yes, the sanctuary. That's something Haru had mentioned about doing in retaliation for the unfortunate event that had happened to him. Has he said anything to you about it that you could relay to us?" She inquired, with an eyebrow wiggle.

Playing a little coy, Nessa raised her chin a bit with a smirk. "All I'm aware of is that he is going to go through the proper education and preparations leading up to it, and will be getting the requirements taken care of just like he is for his gym. Though, if I'm honest it took some direction from me so it would look bad on myself if he made a mistake." laughing a little in kind, as the reporter shared a chuckle.

The laughter had come to an abrupt end from the inquirer's end with the next question. "Right! So Nessa, now that the Gym Challenge is indeed complete, and Rocket is presumably behind bars, what are you and Haru going to do? You two have been dating for quite some time and it's no secret that fans want to know the details. Is there ANYTHING you can give us?"

"Nothing at all." Nessa replied simply, now crossing one of her legs. There was an awkward bit of silence between the two before the Gym Leader pressed on. "Next question."

"Apologies, miss...but we really want to know. I..it's-"she would begin to try and court Nessa for a response but was given a simple wave of a hand in a 'Stop' gesture.

The dark beauty had then leaned the side of her head on the palm of her hand and narrowed her eyes, throwing invisible daggers with just a glare back at the reporter. "I'll leave you on this, and you can take with it as you see fit or you can see yourself out, how's that? We like to keep ourselves private. No amount of dressing up the question is going to get us to talk about it in lengths to others, as I won't have his integrity nor mine challenged."

The look that Nessa had been piercing through to the other person had shook them to the point they had to readjust in their seat.

From across the swimming pool area one of the doors would open as Haru poked his head inside. Having noticed how quiet it was but seeing all the lights were on, he knew that Nessa had to be somewhere. One glance and he'd see that she was sitting in one of her modeling outfits conducting an interview and decided to simply walk towards where she was at without making much noise.

"Ah...well onto another topic entirely then." The reporter stopped herself when she noticed that Nessa had slowly gotten up from her seat.

*th-thump. th-thump. th-thump*

The sound of Nessa's heart beating faster pounded in her head as the blue in her eyes had brightened up looking back at another pair of eyes from near the pool. She saw Haru with his uniform on slowly waltzing alongside as his hands were in his pockets and felt like her heart would leap out of her chest. The second his glance met her own and she saw him smile back it was the greatest joy she had felt in so long.

She had inhaled slowly, biting her bottom lip while walking towards him; both eyes budding into happy tears.

He sounded tired, but all the same happy to see her and nodded slowly. "Hey Nessa, I'm home."

Nessa's slow walk of near disbelief about him being back turned into a slight sprint, as the woman had tackled her dear love fully with both arms. Catching her the best he could, Haru held onto Nessa only to feel that she had pulled him sideways into the pool next to him. Haru's backpack, which he was holding with one hand due to his fatigue and knowing full well that Nessa would be embracing him upon seeing him there, had flown completely out of his hand and landed near the pool.

The couple had resurfaced from the water with Haru and Nessa's hair completely going flat and both of them soaking wet. But with her standing strong and holding onto Haru tightly, her hands cupped his cheeks and started to kiss him slowly. She did not want it to be known that she was worried during the time he had gone to Kanto to resolve the Team Rocket problem with the others but was all the same very relieved to have him back.

Being held by her tightly, Haru kept his face tilted up to meet Nessa's stature and loving embrace. It did not matter that the first minute upon seeing her that he was thrown into a pool and, in turn, the scene caused the reporter to ditch the possible idea that there would be any more interview following this meeting. As his glasses had fallen off and both lovers looked deep into each other while standing in the pool, Nessa could not smiling as she looked into his eyes. "I love you. I'm so glad you're back home."

Being as cheeky as he could be, Haru grinned widely and clasped one of his hands around Nessa's. "Told ya I would be."

"I know we already had this talk before you left, but I was worried something was going to happen when you were in Kanto. A bunch of news stations had broadcast the outside of what was going on at their headquarters and when an explosion occurred on the rooftop nobody could get a closer view of things. So I panicked for a bit until I saw you later on the ground and...and..." His lover had begun rambling before shaking her head. Ridding herself of the doubts and negative thoughts from earlier, it only mattered that he was home now. Cradling his face, she leaned down until both their foreheads touched as Haru saw some tears stream down.

Slicking his hair back with his right hand, his left had rested on her hips and smiled at her. "As I promised to you, that will be the last 'heroic' thing I do. From now on, my focus is to the Gym that is being constructed, doing what I can towards my own sanctuary, my family, friends, and you."

Saying that much brought back a warm smile and sense of security to her life. Exchanging a few more kisses between them, Haru looked to the side and chuckled. "I suppose you'll have to do that interview another time, huh? Sorry about just showing up in the middle of it."

Following where his eyes had been glancing, Nessa rolls her eyes and lets out a chuckle before making a dismissive handwave. "Oh, pft. Don't be. It wasn't really going anywhere. I was doing a modeling shoot and they just sorta..." She had stopped herself when her eyes met his own again. Try as she might, she had gotten hung up on his return back home and brough his face into her chest.

"Hmm...?" He blinked, feeling the back of her hands pulling his face onto her chest as the two stood together in the poolwater.

The back of her hand had started to stroke the back of his damp head. "Let's just stay like this for a bit and then go home, okay?"

Though they were no replacement for the sounds of natural waves crashing on the local shores of Hulbury, the silent ambiance given by the pool itself lent to the somber moment between the two lovers. Cradling her previously somewhat reckless partner close to her own body, Nessa felt at peace. For at least the near future, no more 'Eternatus' or 'Team Rocket' level events would prompt Haru to spring into action and focus on such things. The two could start peacefully focusing on themselves while she would also begin to give him more pointers to being a Gym Leader.

- - - 2 weeks later - - -

As soon as it was possible, Syra had shown up to Nessa's home one day and spent roughly half an hour apologizing profusely for her actions in the past with a gift basket she had found.

"H-hey...you know you don't have to do this..." The Water Gym Leader said, sweating a bit from the forehead as she was handed the basket. Off the handle, there was a pair of balloons of a Vaporeon and Cloyster floating, with candies and a gift card inside. Syra hung her head forward while she kept her hat off her head.

"No! I was very much a bitch to Haru and especially to you. I said very cruel things to your face that was uncalled for, and even behind your back and that's not the type of person I should aim to be. I'm not that kind of person anymore, and I don't want to be remembered for it! While this may not cover nearly the amount of guilt I feel, I hope this at least helps to bury the axe." As her long raven hair hung low, Syra eventually went to the ground placing both hands on the concrete and kneeling until her forehead touched them.

Nessa looked down at the girl and narrowed her eyes studiously as a frown spread across her lips. "You said some extremely callous and uncouth things. Things that I would be called simply for existing. For just being. You didn't let up at all, and slandered me."

"Y-yes! I did...I did all of those things." Syra replied, looking at the ground still.

Sighing, Nessa's face had lightened up granting a neutral expression. "But you're also one of the only people whom, after saying such things to me, has apologized. You even did it to my face which takes a lot of courage and self reflection. I can recognize that you want to change things and do better, so I thank you for that, Syra."

The girl lifted her head up and smiled: relief finally coming to her face. "Yes! You won't regret it! Thank you..!"

Sighing one final time, Nessa's neutral expression then gained a small, if slightly indifferent smile. In her heart she had begun to push aside what happened between them. "I'm not comfortable quite yet with being so inviting, but give me some time and I may consider going for a match or two to whip you into shape again since you'll be doing the Gym Challenge again." Waving a hand with a finger pointing.

"Of course!" Standing up, Syra gave a thumbs up and quickly bid her goodbye.

It was a little awkward being put into such a situation after everything that occurred, but Nessa brushed it off and went about the rest of the day as if it didn't happen. For now, she had houses to look for with Haru.

The advent of the ordeal where multiple ex-Champions grouped together would be later referred to by multiple news outlets as 'The Global Team Rocket Assault'. Oleana would make her comment succinct and to the point on what exactly was going on and where Galar was involved. She had told reporters about the larger involvement of a bigger scheme that had developed right under the people's noses. How Syra was only a tiny piece of a larger effort to get Galarian Pokemon to be researched, how a man inside the region had been secretly working with Giovanni, and what it meant for the other regions that assisted within the operation.

Sam was seen on television with Looker commenting about the findings, what they were able to recover from the scientists, and the constant effort by those able to reverse engineer the 'Super Pokemon' to their normal states. Holly was interviewed for her extensive knowledge of this, and, like her friend Syra, she was given a new lease in life as she was then currently helping the Pokemon League staff in the Wyndon HQ building. Under the publicized radar, it had come to light that after Syra returned the Pokemon she stole, that she was allowed to keep Tyranitar. While it was considered stolen goods, it originally had no home to call its own and did not want to leave her side. Since she was able to be one of multiple figureheads helping to resolve the whole case, she was allowed to keep it as a partner. The 'biggest' punishment however was that she would have to restart her Pokemon Gym Challenge of Galar, and had made a comment to Haru via text that she 'has no problem working her way to beat his ass'.

Many people had mixed reactions about learning what they did about Syra both in the match she had with Haru in the Pokemon League Tournament in Galar, and what was revealed publicly in the news. A turnabout occurred as many then learned the full details of a report on the events in 'Operation Critical Hit'. After knowing that she laid her life on the line with the others, several fans began to rally behind her eventual return in the next Gym Challenge: now nicknaming her 'Miss Blue' for her personality being similar to Blue from Kanto and being a mirror to Haru himself.

The other event that would be brewing under the radar eventual big legal case of Syra and her father. As Syra had her brother Gabriel as her witness, the two informed their mother of the way how their father had spiraled down into an abuser of verbal, physical, and sexual natures. She had told her mother, Amiri, everything that he did to her over the years. Informing Amiri that with her gone, Ritsu had taken 'advantage' of Syra multiple times and at one point groomed her into his liking. She went as far back as the 'tough love' training she endured to when she knocked him out with Bea by her side in Wyndon. Amiri was horrified at the knowledge, and apologized profusely over and over at her inability to be there for her own daughter.

Both children bore no ill will or anger at their mother, but now united together in a new goal. Syra was going to put him behind bars permanently and would be seeking a lawyer to assist with the whole debacle. Knowing that it may take a bit of preparation and infinite patience, Syra was unfortunately not happy to look to the horizons. While she would be able to take on the Gym Challenge again, her priorities had temporarily shifted. She'd have to let Haru know about this whenever possible.

At the same time, Haru contacted Sam and asked for his own lawyer to assist him in putting the man responsible for murdering his Pokemon in the slammer. Due to overwhelming evidence, a great lawyer with just as much of a flair for style as himself, and a proper judge, Haru was able to win his case within a week as the man was sentenced to life imprisonment. The paperwork would be a long post-case ordeal, but he would start to funnel any money from the case winnings into his bank for the future. It wasn't much that could be done in order to give his fallen friends justice, but it was the best he could do for now.

The next best thing he could do was start figuring out what goes into the process of managing a sanctuary for Pokemon and what knowledge goes into it. Before that, however, he made the call to ask Oleana on how the progress of his Gym was turning out and it was going to be 'roughly 2 years, give or take'. In the meantime he would be using that time to train his chosen Gym Trainers, and having a new goal to apply to himself: studying Pokemon deeper than he did before.

He grew up under the care and knowledge that he obtained through his mother, Lana, but Haru figured it would be best to apply actual knowledge on how to take care of the Pokemon that may be left in his sanctuary's care. What got him through his career as a Pokemon trainer-turned-ex-champion would not be enough to properly maintain everything there. The current future looked a lot less active than Haru was used to: house shopping, studying for a Pokemon sanctuary that would be heralded by himself, and training with his Gym staff when the Gym got close to opening.

'One day at a time' he figured, and so with a few books from Sonia to start, he ended up taking the time to study in between 'house shopping' with Nessa one day as the two were cooped up indoors. Outside he noticed the Galarian skies went from their usual orange tint in the evenings to darker greys from an oncoming shower, and like most people, the sound of rain helped his focus. Nessa had her laptop and several papers and pamphlets strewn about the floor near where she sat, while Haru took a brief second out of the evening to answer a call.

"Sorry, what? Are you sure that's going to be fine? You'd be missing a whole lot during that time period you know." Haru spoke into his phone whilst having it on the 'speaker' function. It was Syra on the other end, who had called to inform him of a few decisions she made recently.

"Yes I'm sure. This whole thing with my Dad is going to take awhile, and honestly after learning that your Gym won't be open for a good while means I can spend some time rebuilding myself again. For one thing, I have to spend some time getting to know my Mom personally: play 'catch up' with her. With her back in my life right here and now, I can at least try to close in on any gaps that are between us. Don't worry, it's not like we don't get along: we do! Outside of that though, I need to be around for Gabe as we transition into this new life, and I have to also do what I can to make sure to put that bastard in the big house until the end of his days." she spoke with that same spunky confidence she had.

Haru's Pokemon, Masako, had appeared in the room with a tray of snacks for her master and Nessa. She had prepared some miniature sandwiches for them as they were shopping for houses.

Thanking Masako quietly for the opportunity to snack, Haru replied back. "Well if you really do want to wait all that time just to have another shot at me, then I guess I can't push you to do otherwise. I won't be able to get back to you on the timetable of when my Gym will be finished. That part of the whole process is out of my hands since we finally secured its puzzle design in terms of matches leading up to me. When I'll be able to open it nobody can say but I'd guess it may not be for another two Gym Challenges. Are you sure you'd rather wait to take down Leon AND me in one shot huh?"

"Damn straight!" Syra shouted back with a laugh.

"Then it's settled. We'll have our rematch and I'll see you when you are assigned to the Shield Challenge variant. But I gotta go: got a few houses to scout with my love here." His eyes wander upwards to Nessa, who meets his gaze just as she chomped down on the 'wich she was holding.

"Right, right. Ciao, you two!" Syra hung up.

He leaned onto the couch after putting his phone down onto the floor and exhaled. Nessa got up and handed him a pamphlet by laying it right on his face. "Gah! What, did you find something?" His hands reached up instinctively.

"I've -been- finding 'something'. More than you." she winked, teasing him.

Pulling the pamphlet from his face so just his eyes appeared above the paper to her, Haru raised an eyebrow. "Hey this is technically my second time doing this you know!"

"Did you find anything, then?" Nessa cocked a look with her hip thrown slightly to the side. She was greeted with him holding up a highlighted area of a home that was in northern Hulbury. It was in a patch of land that was a bit of distance from the Gym there, with the view of the port much further than it was currently. She would still be in Hulbury and able to manage both her Gym and able to fish effectively, but far away enough that they both could gain privacy.

Biting on her thumb and sitting down next to Haru where his feet were at, Nessa looked it over from back to front. "Okay, you get one."

"One what?" he asked.

Her eyes darted to him without moving her head; eyeing him from the side. "You get ONE."

"What's the...I mean what is this grading? I got one GREAT location out of...however many 'good' or 'okay' ones..? One out of ten..?" Haru had raised an eyebrow confused while Nessa raised a hand as if to interrupt him.

"That is the END of the answer: YOU GOT ONE!" snickering as Haru tossed a pillow at her from the other end of the couch as she slapped it away before it 'hit' her.

He had to know for sure, however, and asked. "I clean up well then it seems. What do you think of that spot?"

She took a look around at her own place she had lived at for awhile, with Haru looking back. No doubt he was thinking of his own home at the same time. Studying both the details of the asking price, locale near the place, and her own gut feeling, Nessa looked back at him finally. "I say we check this place out when we can and go from there. How's that?"

Haru signaled a 'ok' hand gesture and smirked. "Sounds like a date."

- - - - - The Next Morning, Motostoke - - - - -

- - - - - Haru's Home, Dining Room - - - - -

The dining room only had one light turned on for the moment, but it was enough to work for a sleepy Steel Gym Leader who had run into a very 'interesting' morning gift. After waking up and while on his way downstairs, Haru had bumped into something he initially didn't pay mind to since in his sleepy stupor the size reminded him of his Champion Trophy.

Except this wasn't a trophy at all. The texture was all wrong, and when his ankle hit the side of it, the object rolled over. Slowly coming to, Haru turned back to look at the ground and his face went pale in a mix of horror, irritation, and annoyance.

"Okay. That. Is not what I wanted to walk into this morning." was the very first thing he said in a somewhat normal volume, waking up the sleepy Glaceon, Nora, who was still on the edge of his bed and looked up slowly at him. Locking eyes to Nora, Haru pointed. "Hey, did you know about this?"

The Eeveelution took a minute to 'wake up' but she walked over to where he was at and, in the dimness of the room figured what he was pointing to and shook her head. It seemed that the object was planted overnight, or was being moved around for a bit and made its way to his room somehow. He knew what to do and it revolved around having an early morning, very stern talking with two Pokemon of his own.

The tension in the air was thick enough to substitute as a broth for curry that Haru would make in the morning. As he sat at the north end of the table, his Lucario, Mirukon, and Gardevoir, Masako, would be sitting at the east and west sides of the table. Everyone would be facing the object in the middle of the table that Haru had placed, with the two unable to look at their Master in the eyes.

Keeping his hands linked together, elbows propped on the table, and leaned forward so that only the top half of his face was seen above his hands, Haru looked back and forth at the two Pokemon and the object in question: an egg. He pursed his lips together and thought about where to start this conversation off first thing in the morning. He had to be delicate about this, but he had to be smart.

"Okay. So. You two recognize what this is, don't you?" Haru spoke in an almost matter-of-fact tone that gave a hint of one trying to re-organize his thoughts. Mirukon looked like he was sulking. The Lucario seemed to be in a bad way on having fought when to tell his Master about this thing and was eyeing Masako from across the table. The two pairs of eyes met and they looked back at their Master with an affirmative nod. Haru let out a sigh.

"Okay then, I'll move on. This isn't an egg that you two found from a breeder, or in the wild, is it?" with the sound of one of his feet tapping on the floor quietly. Both of them went quiet in front of him and the Lucario had moved a paw to the back of his head. Seeing where this conversation was going, Haru exhaled and scratched his chin with a thumb. "Right, I'll be more specific. This is an egg from within the team, isn't it?"

His Lucario had let out a mumble, as if to express dissent but the Gardevoir from across the table held up a hand. She looked to Haru with a new expression he wasn't aware of quite yet, but seemed to understand. "You two are the parents, aren't you?" He asked them directly, putting both hands down and arms folding over each other.

Both nodded slowly.

/Okay...this puts things on hold for a bit. For one thing, now that Mirukon is going to be a dad he's going to have to raise that little one right with Masako. I haven't bred any Pokemon, so I'll have to ask for pointers on what to do but to have this happen now? This is certainly one way to start a morning. Suppose we have a possible Riolu or Ralts on our hands here./

Their master closed his eyes and let out a 'hmm'. Masako stood up and put both arms around the egg before looking at Mirukon, who eventually joined her on the other side of the table. Laying one of his paws on it, he smiled at the Psychic Pokemon who he considered to be his lover and the mother of his child; eyeing Haru with determination.

Haru sighed and stood up from the table, initially putting both of them on their guard. He exhaled and smiled at the two. "Mirukon. Masako. I want you two to understand something. That right there is your child. Whatever may hatch from that is something you two created in union together, and since I know you two have been a thing for awhile I feel it's come from a sense of deep affection, right?"

Mirukon had walked from his end of the table to where Masako was and curled an arm around her waist; pulling her towards him. It took her by surprise, but she then looked back at Haru and nodded once more. Letting out a soft laugh, Haru leans his head back a bit and then shook it. He wasn't disappointed but a decision had to be made. "In that case, Mirukon, I can't use you for my Steel Gym."

"!" The Lucario blinked, thinking he was being 'released'. Holding up a hand, Haru held him from thinking any such thing. "You two are going to be parents, and I may be an ex-Champion, but I'm not one to push a stressful life on you of being a father AND a combatant just to make me look good as a Gym Leader." He looked down at the egg and walked towards it, putting his own human hand gently on the top of it before looking at the two again. "You two have to raise it together. I think it would bother me if I were to take this little one's father away from its early life growing up just so I could take on Pokemon Trainers wanting to collect a Steel Gym badge. So as far as I'm concerned...you gotta stay home with it. You have to promise to take care of it okay? It's a baby Pokemon, and it's going to rely on you two and probably myself for a lot of things."

Both of them had let their hands drift off the egg and hug their trainer, as Haru sighed giving a hug back. "Honestly, you two are already a handful as it is and to give me such a shock first thing in the morning? Jeez."

Looking at the two Pokemon embracing each other, Haru pondered a few things. He knew that now his period of studying Pokemon leading up to his sanctuary would involve prep work for the baby to hatch, but he gained a smug expression when one final thought came to him.

Before he could think up on the thought for too long, however, he got a brief flash of an image in his head. He saw himself with one of his hands holding a much smaller hand in his own while walking. As a result, Haru ended up being the one in the room more flustered than either of the expecting parents. /The Wild Area waits for no man, and now that I've had this talk I need to get ready for today. Nessa's out fishing, if I recall correctly, so I have to do this morning solo./

Heading back upstairs, his eyes glanced over to the window to see how the outside appeared. Weather seemed fair, though he noticed some joggers wearing some sports gear and a towel around their neck. Knowing that the day ahead would be fair was the first of several indications of how the rest of the day would pan out.

- - - - - Hulbury Lakes - - - - -

"Hey Dad...can I ask you something?" Nessa would ask as she was bundled up in a full fishing outfit while wrangling bait onto a hook. Scratching his own salt and pepper colored beard, Armstrong had made sure to keep his volume low but replied back to her. "What's on your mind, dear? Everything going okay with that spritely boyfriend of yours? Haru, yes?".

He grunted and reeled his fishing line as the familiar sensation of a tug came: a small Magikarp was on the other end. Putting it into the cooler, he looked up as Nessa threw out her line and sat down. "Yes, everything is fine. So...I've been with him for awhile and the thought crossed my mind over time about what things would be like a few years from now...possibly even longer." She brushed a finger alongside her nose to stifle a sneeze that felt like it was going to arrive any second, only to pass her by entirely. Her father hummed a bit inquisitively and then raised an eyebrow. "Well...that's a good thing, yes?"

"Well, that's what I wanted to ask you about actually. Is it okay that I'm having such thoughts, or do you think I'm jumping the gun? At one such part we had a talk about the possibility of, you know...if I ever had a child. For a second I was worried it would scare him...but he came back with an answer I'm not even sure I was ready to hear." She had found a spot on the water to focus her attention on while the fishing line sat there unbothered as the lure was idling; drawing in what it could at that early hour.

"Hmmm...I'm not sure this kind of topic would suit me. Your mother may be better, but since you asked for my perspective, hmm. What was Haru's answer when you approached him on this possibility?" Armstrong asks.

"That if it came down to it and he needed to, he'd put down everything to make sure he'd help. That he could say something so definitively so early and mean it...is something I'm somewhat jealous of you know?" Nessa laughed a little weakly before turning back to her dad after hearing a can open.

Tilting his head back after popping open a small can of an alcoholic drink, Nessa winced. "Isn't it a bit early for that?" "Not when you're retired it's not!" her dad joked, taking a sip and hissing. It would be after that she got her reply from him on her thoughts. "It is always a good thing to try and plan for the future but do not be dismayed if things turn out different than what you tried to aim for. Are you worried about such things because of feelings for Haru are changing?"

Nessa sat there with her feet turning inwards and her boots tapping slightly as she had readjusted herself in the seat. "No. It's actually because they're going so well that all these other thoughts are coming now."

Her dad egged her on for a response. "Nessa..."

The Gym Leader took a deep breath and exhaled slowly with low volume. "I pondered on what I would do if I ever chose to walk away from this life. Everybody in our world is so obsessed with working or living with Pokemon...and while that's just tickety boo for many people, I wonder if it's going to be okay for me in the long run."

She tilted her head up to look as some Magikarp had catapulted out of the water and back in it with a loud splash. She recalled her love of the water, water Pokemon, and how many things in her childhood led her to this point. "I love being a Gym Leader and a model. Both of those things are my passion, and being able to reflect on those things with a much clearer head gave me time to think about it all. Like...would it all be worth continuing to do them if I ever mothered a child? Would I still want to do those things at all? Should I even worry about having one at all?"

The older man took another sip of his drink, quietly hissed and allowed the zen of the lake's sounds elevate his own comfort of their parent-and-child talk. "Hmmm...quite the book of spells you've conjured up for yourself m'dear. Have you spoken to Haru on these new thoughts? Things aren't actually rockier than you said earlier, right?"

Nessa shakes her head and a smile spreads across her cheeks; face blushing. "Up until his...'more direct' involvement in my life, I guess I didn't have anyone be as fierce as myself that would push me, so it's a little weird to me still to feel as empowered as I do now. In turn, I push back. As much as I've seen him be able to find out things he's passionate about, I wanna make sure I'm not left behind."

Taking off his glasses, Armstrong would get a lens cloth out and rubbed his 'seeing eyes' clean. "Nessa, you're a fantastic Gym Leader, a model, and a person. No matter what the media, or what the Pokemon League says, you'll always have those that care about you most back you up. I've seen you grow from a small, sunhat wearing girl eager to make friends with a Feebas she sees in our lakes, to the superstar you are today. You can do anything."

"To this day I still think about the fact I wish more could look up to me. As a Gym Leader, I'm only the second...yet there are those that still look down on me due to..." She couldn't finish it, and her father dared not to finish the thought for her out loud. The battles she had with Milo in the past still would come back to bother her; try as she might to push it past her. To look at the 'glass half full' was sometimes a struggle even for one as multi-capable as one 'Raging Wave of Hulbury'. "Anyway...to a degree I suppose I want to feel more like an actual Leader that people can look up to instead of just fawning over me due to how beautiful I'm perceived to be. There's a pretty infamous Gym Leader in Johto that I learned about, who is also early on in their Gym Challenge for all trainers. However, outside of one of the Pokemon she uses for her strategies, people don't really care to bring up much about her outside of it. In the grander scheme of things, she's kind of forgotten. When I think about that Gym Leader, I also worry about not wanting to fade into obscurity."

She narrowed her eyes and grew pensive thinking about such a possibility. Armstrong got up to stretch his arms from the long period of sitting that he had been doing, and would slowly retract back to his seat without rocking the boat and alerting nearby fish Pokemon. "Going back to earlier, Nessa. Whether or not you ever choose to have a child, retire, or continue pursuing your dreams. That doesn't make you any less 'valid' as a person, and whatever you choose to do will make me proud. Choosing to do such things doesn't make one 'boring' or 'normal' or anything. You're the you that you are right now because you worked to this point, and despite all your shortcomings you've made it here."

"Are you sure that's not selfish of me? After all...I'm a woman." Her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed a tad.

"So? What about it?" the father of hers responded with a raised brow.

She seemed confused about where she was going, as the topic had been a little on the fly. Leaning forward, she put a gloved hand to her forehead in frustration at her lack of self realization. "We're supposed to be the ones to help extend a species, so we get stuck with such roles and responsibilities. If we step out of line, or pursue 'too many goals' we get blowback for it from all sorts of audiences. On one hand, I want to never stop doing what I'm doing now."

The waters went quiet as neither of them had said anything after that for what felt like forever, though it only be a moment. With no response needed to continue, Nessa changed her tone again and smiled. "Then again...what you say is right, Dad. Plus, the more I've been thinking about it...the more I remember how I feel when HE'S around. That maybe as long as he's around I can do what I want and...if...if that includes the possibility of...having a family?"

Her dad felt one of his ears perk up a bit to listen.

With one leg huddled up to her chest, Nessa said in a near whisper. "...then I think that would be really nice."

The redness in her cheeks had deepened considerably. Since the two had begun being sexually intimate, she had moved from her original form of birth control to another to fit her lifestyle and relationship, but occasionally the thought of saying 'Screw it' and removing it from the equation entirely had started to enter her mind. It was not an easy decision to make, nor should it be made so soon either. Be that as it may, the fantasizing of such things seemed to have brought her joy.

Before this shift in her life, the micromanagement of model and Gym Leader had such a ripple effect that it became one of the footnotes of her League Cards. Being known as "The Raging Wave" was both something she was proud of and lamented. Nobody likes to be known as 'that person' who takes losses poorly. In the professional world of wrestling you have characters such as 'heels' who intentionally act as the villain-like opposite to fan favorites, but now it appeared she began to finally care less and less on such things. To a degree, she hated knowing that in the past people created weird rumors of there being 'two different people' even if it was partly true.

The rest of the morning ended up as it usually would: her and her dad would 'compete' to see who would catch more fish and one would come out the victor while the other had to cook for lunch. Nessa got fired up from the talk to her dad, and sought to then make sure what she cought would be ready to be sold for Hulbury's local fish markets.

Before leaving with a few boxes of freshly cut fish Pokemon, her father would come out of the house and gave Nessa a tight hug. "I'm glad you went along and fished with me. I know how busy you are and that everything you're going through is hectic to say the least. I don't have all the answers, but I'm glad I listened."

It was such a simple gesture, but since she had to get so many things off her chest it was a relief. "Thank you Dad, this helped."

- - - - - Wyndon, Pokemon League HQ - - - - -

- - - - - Oleana's Office, later that morning - - - - -

On one of the monitors laid the live broadcast footage of one of many things Oleana had to monitor. While location and other factors had prevented her from being at the scene on the telly, it was important to watch: the court case of Giovanni and Team Rocket was starting today. She saw Sam, Looker, and his team on their side of the room getting ready to go over everything. There should be no reason to believe that this would turn out into anything but a success for the League and all Pokemon trainers globally, but with such a nefarious group it would be hard to pin down if this was going to be a long, drawn out battle.

As it displayed on the screen, the words that were spoken to Haru echoed back to him multiple times over. Standing across from her desk was Haru; fully decked out in his Steel Gym Leader uniform. His pupils had shrunk, forehead sweat slid down to his cheeks and his face went pale. As his hands started to shake, the words of what the Chairman had just said to him did not even register as reality. He gulped. "Ss...s...sorry..? I must be hearing things incorrectly...but...did you...did you want to repeat that? My Gym...it's not going to happen?"

The businesswoman sighed and nodded her head, making sure to be as professional and as understanding as she could. Oleana pointed upwards with her right hand. "It is being 'paused'. No doubt you and many others are the reason that many people are safe today, and since taking down Team Rocket it's more clear than ever how seriously you take the safety of our citizens and those that look up to you while you were Champion."

He tried to hide it, but for once Haru felt his legs were close to giving away. "So then...why? Why has my Gym, no, my future been stopped like this?! Who the hell is responsible for this?!" both of his hands balling up into fists and teeth gritting. Oleana sighed and clasped her hands together studiously.

"The case that's being levied against the completion of your Gym is linked to the new information that's come to light ever since the Pokemon League Tournament. Most of what has occurred since then has been forgiven to you both by you and Syra's relative fanbases. However...some of the other members of the board believe that ever since then you have...been playing 'favorites' with her. The word being brought forth is 'collusion' with you being the prime suspect. That you would bank on Syra so heavily into joining the operation that perhaps you had planned it all along to allow things to get so such a dire state. As such, they ceased on continuing to fund the construction of your Gym. For now, this will have to be something I fight back."

Grabbing onto his hair with both hands and clenching, Haru squatted while leaned slightly forward. Oleana could see that this was devastating him. /This...this can't be happening...! This was my dream: I retired! I gave everything up for this! I was so passionate on moving on with-...Now what...? Am I going to let everyone down and be unable to fight back just like that?!/ he panic-thought.

"I'm going to fight this, Haru. I'm uncertain on how complicated it will be, but because I was there to oversee the whole thing, and can vouch for you and all this, I'll combat these old todgers and make sure that the money spent to construct what we have so far doesn't go to waste." Oleana spoke, nodding, and then stood up while looking away. It pained to see someone she relied on a few times in the past look like this, and now the tables had turned: he would have to rely on her. "Your efforts for what you've done won't be in vain."

"I don't get it." Haru said flatly, standing back up from his squatting position and having both of his hands hang to his side. "Hmm?" Oleana hummed inquisitively.

"I don't get why this has to be a political thing. Playing 'favorites'? Really? Why anyone would see me or my past actions and think it was pre-meditated, or that I had set this up and am untrustworthy? I get that I'm a former Champion, hell, I actually understand that since I wasn't able to fulfill my mission in apprehending Syra earlier was my fault, but it's not like I was a mastermind of the criminal kind! Up until recently, I didn't even know what a damn shiny Pokemon was: do they honestly th-..." he stopped himself from ranting or putting anything more against his case and sighed.

As Haru hung his head low and looked to the floor, Oleana walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You have done a lot for me in the past. For now, do what you're doing to study for the Sanctuary: I heard that you're well on your way to memorizing the egg groups of many Pokemon and are studying viscously." she offered a smuch of a smile as she could offer

Looking back up to her, Haru felt a little awkward being so close suddenly. But she was correct on the studying. "Yes...I am right now learning about mating habits of certain species, why certain groups match and why they work the way they do, how those classifications came to be, Professor Oak's notes, and am even studying about Pokemon and Human relations on that front. It's a lot to take in but I figure it's knowledge I may need to know to better understand how to take care of them since it'll be a peaceful home to them."

Removing her hand, Oleana went to sit back down at her desk. "Details will come to you when I have resolved this and your Gym will be back 'in progress'. I am truly sorry to have told you this, Haru."

He bowed in respect as both hands clenched, one of them shaking and nodded. "No need for apologies, ma'am. We were just doing our job. All of us." Oleana stood with her arms crossed with her eyes glancing back to him. Haru hadn't said anything but just nodded once again, bowed, and exited the office. When he exited she looked to the floor with a morose expression and sighed. /Yes, we were ALL doing our jobs./ She thought to herself.

He took the elevator back down to the main lobby floor in silence, and ignored the greeting from another employee who got in the elevator with him. Stepping out, Haru didn't say a word to anyone whether they were a fan, a friend in passing, a colleague, or outdoor market workers telling folks to try their 'new hot dish'. Up until getting to an Air Taxi station, he walked in silence.

"Ah, hello there ex-Champ! Good to see ya. Where will ya be heading?" says the pilot, putting away his newspaper and readjusting the goggles he wore for aerial transport. Stepping into the cab, the Steel Gym Leader just dryly replied. "Motostoke, please."

The ride back to his original home left him feeling empty, and like any other time when life was making him feel shitty, a certain landmark in his backyard would be his go-to comfort zone.

- - - - - Haru's backyard - - - - -

Even as it was merely middle of the day, the clouds had started to clump together as if to signal a storm. It appeared that they were merely 'hiding' until Haru had arrived home, but then again weather in Galar going from calm-and-serene to loud-and-chaotic wasn't unheard of: the whole region sold its appeal in The Wild Area and other parts of the region on such unstable weather.

Not caring for much of anything, one man went to his backyard to talk to his best friend at the small tree that had been growing for awhile. Hugging his knees together as he sat down, Haru looked at it and decided to speak.

"Here I am again...like this is a fucking confessional in a church. Tch. Sorry, bro, I didn't mean that. Things have been...interesting yet somewhat rough. I went and helped save the world again but with many new people I never met. I saw Steven Stone. That was cool. Helped take down Giovanni while on my first trip to Kanto. Guess you could say it's not all bad. I was even able to make a new friend and help resolve some the bad blood she held onto."

Scratching behind one of his ears, Haru looked at the tree and started to tear up. "Damn it. By now I would hear some quirky comment from you. You didn't always have a response that could cheer me up, or a solution but..."

Haru heard it thunder in the distance. Looks like rain was on its way, so the personal talk would most likely have to be cut short if the formations and families of flying Pokemon sailing past him were any indication. Perhaps he had been holding it back for awhile, perhaps he had never truly gotten over the death in the first place, but for some reason the thing Oleana told him broke him in two. He felt no direction whatsoever. /Fuck I can't even speak...I've been relying on coming here like it's going to somehow solve my damn problems but it won't! One minute I'm holding it together in front of my peers and even think I'm getting better, but I'm not. If I can't become a Gym Leader and help other trainers blossom into realizing their life's goals what good am I?/

Nobody but him was at the house, and he stayed away from telling Nessa about the events entirely. Haru instead just shut himself away from everything for that moment and cried a little: wishing once again his friend was there to help alleviate the stress.

Evening showers came for everybody at Motostoke as Arceus pushed Time itself onward regardless of what everyone else had to say. When he was contacted by Nessa later, the two would speak together on their finalized plans for moving. It turned out that over all the places the two had cycled through, only one fit the true bill of the things they needed. Reaching a perfect medium between what both Haru and Nessa had spoken about, they settled on a home further north of Hulbury. The distance of it in comparison to everywhere else would mean that the train station would be only a little bit visible if one stood on a tall hill in the distance. Not everything would be going so well for him as of late, but knowing that there was something else to look forward to helped all the matters.

New home meant new beginnings, and for the meantime it seemed he would take as many 'new beginnings' as he could get.

- 1 MONTH LATER -

The fateful day had come: Haru and Nessa bought a house together and were in the process of slowly moving their things to it. As exciting as it was, the two of them knew that this means a whole new laundry list of responsibilities and even more things to do. This was the act of two people moving in together with their things being brought under one roof. They had been through so much together already, but in spite of it all their relationship had deepened enough that moving in together was 'right'.

...and then Haru looked at the list Nessa helped write up. By 'helped', it means that Haru wrote down only a few things he thought they would need while Nessa compiled 4 times the number of items.

While in her kitchen and taking a look at the list after helping to vacuum, Haru felt a bead of sweat form on his forehead. "Haha...ahh...this is quite a list huh babe. I actually didn't consider a lot of these."

Nessa had her hair pulled back into a bun similarly to how she would have it while wearing one of her favorite hats and turned to him while holding a feather duster. "...I'm surprised you didn't comment on the bidet inclusion." waving the duster in his face with a teasing smirk as Haru waved it off a bit.

"A bi-day? Oh. The word with the silent 'et'. Is that another Pokemon I don't know?" Haru coughed while turning his head to the side but this response prompted Nessa to give him the most blank stare of silence.

She folded her arms together and looked to her Drednaw, who had a feather duster in its mouth to assist her and back to him. "It's not a silent 'et', it's just pronounced differently, but you really don't know what a bidet is? I had thought you'd find one after going to Kanto. I guess you really must not have stayed there for long, huh..."

"I guess it must really be useful then, right?" Haru was being completely serious, while giving a passive shrug.

- - - - - Department Store, Hammerlocke - - - - -

- - - - - Steelfix - - - - -

"Oh...so THAT'S what a bidet is..." said the man with a somewhat half disgusted, half confused look while Nessa pretended to demonstrate what one would do while sitting down and getting back up on one while down the bathroom aisle. Having brought Goji with them to help push the cart, he would be cooperating with Nessa on what was going to be done or at the very least set 'in stone' that day. At this point of the day, the Cinderace had noticed the cart was starting to get full, so he looked apprehensive being taken to the 'bathroom' section where they were at currently. The cart he had been pushing this whole time was filled with some paint rollers, paint, masks, vent covers, frames for pictures, caulk, caulk gun, new fishing rods, tackle box and some towels. This was only a part of what they would be able to complete on their list; visits to other locations would be necessary after they were finished here. Now Nessa was trying to convince Haru that one of he new necessities they'd need for their place was a foreign-type toilet.

As the aisles were crowded with employees walking with Machokes carrying supplies, and some Magnetons near the ceiling helping to fix some wiring alongside their human partner, the area they were currently at was not that busy. People were too preoccupied getting woodworking supplies, or making sure not to be in the way of the lifts being pulled by Golurks.

Nessa had gestured with her arms wide looking at one of the display graphs of the extra features that would come with such a thing and was focused talking to Haru about it. "Okay so consider how much we both spend on TP. For one thing, let's forget about the type of piping we need to make sure it has warm water for the 'cleaning' laser of water. This would save us BOTH a lot of cash, you're 'cleaner', and we'd be in-and-out to do our mornings quicker too."

Haru held up a finger, darting his eyes left to right. "Why specifically mornings?"

She ended up walking back to him and handing a pamphlet of comparisons between it and its 'competition'. "Because that's when your body really needs to GO, you dork. Anyways, just consider it! C'mon darling, I've seen your boxers and you could use something like this that helps clean your derriere a bit better!" Teasing him with her elbow.

He somewhat muttered to himself a bit quieter on the side while Nessa was in earshot as he looked over said pamphlet: the two studying their options quietly. "At least I don't bleed for days on end..."

"HARU!" Nessa gasped, looking at him wide-eyed in surprise.

"What?" He replied coyly as she fake-hit him on the side and was laughing.

"You little shit! I can't help that!" with Haru chuckling right along with her,shielding himself from Nessa who was trying to pinch his arm as a defense. For a bit Haru and her would be going through the whole list of things that would be needed to make their upcoming home a bit more welcome...though not alone. They'd be stopped a few times to make small talk with a few fans who would spot them, and leave them with a selfie if they wanted. After much deliberation and some more joking around the couple settled on getting a 'bidet' latrine for their home, and would ask to have it delivered when possible since they did not want to overload the Corviknight cab with it and their cart's full of items.

Towards the end of the visit, Haru was the one pushing the cart at this point with Goji helping Nessa grab something from a higher shelf. "I think with this, we're actually finished aren't we?" he asked, a little tired but nonetheless having been in a relatively good mood throughout. Pulling out her phone and opening up a notepad app, she 'checks' one final box and turns to him. "That's it. We may have to hit another place, but for now this is good. No need to shop for everything today, and too much at once means we'll overload the Air Taxi cab. With this we can head out back home and put these aside for when we head to the new place!". Sighing with a bit of relief and chuckling, the redhead grinned back at her. "That's wonderful."

Though his mood was shortlived as a voice came from nearby from someone he despised: a news reporter. This one was someone he recognized from being interviewed a few times during his Gym Challenge run and would later bug him over and over about him and Nessa. He didn't go out of his way to memorize the name but the appearance more than gave it away: short spiky blonde hair, lean build, a little taller than himself, green eyes and a tendency to cut straight to the chase. Wearing a cap with a Zapdos symbol on it, this man who came to be known as Blake. "Haru! Champ!" he called out waving. Knowing who it was the second the soundwaves hit his ear drums, Haru pushed his cart forward and ignored it.

"What's up?" Nessa asked, noticing that he had hunched a little more over the cart and had a tense face suddenly. All he did was grit his teeth and gesture in the direction where the voice came from. She'd walk alongside him after taking note of who it may have been since the man gave it away waving. "Please let's just...go right now. C'mon Goji, we should be heading-"

"HEY HARU YOU MUST HAVE NOT HEARD ME! I was trying to get your attention!" The voice was far closer and in much quicker time than it should have taken any human to get there realistically.

Haru tensed up as his left hand instinctively went to guard his face and Nessa stepped back. His sudden appearance even surprised her as well, and Goji only looked on pensively. /How did...? I didn't even hear him run over here, son of a bitch./ "H-hey...uh...what was your name again?" Haru asked, though it wasn't like he cared to know.

"Blake! I was the one who tried to get an interview wh-" The excited man tried to say as Haru held out a hand towards him, holding onto his forehead as he felt a vein throbbing and spoke for him. "-when the news came out I was dating Nessa. I remember. You wanted my whole life story leading up to that and kept asking all the wrong kinds of questions, so I left."

Blake had taken a few steps back and held his hands together like some Ekans Oil salesman hoping to strike well with a sales pitch. "Yeyeyeyes. Again! I apologize, I just...I gotta know if you got a moment or two to spare. I SWEAR it will not be about Nessa and you's relationship. You two have a wonderful thing going, that's great. Cool. I just wanna see if I can hear about some things and get them confirmed." He saw that Haru ended up folding his arms and looking at Nessa. Neither of them said a single thing but kept their eyes locked for a short while. The rising tension of neither one of them providing Blake a satisfactory answer did not make his pursuit any easier and that intention was made crystal clear. At this point in their relationship they were developing the ability to sometimes say nothing and know exactly how the other was feeling: Haru didn't want to deal with this just as much as Nessa did in her daily life. It was bad enough the two got hounded on other matters, and for a busy day like today the Steel Gym Leader was not having any of Blake's time.

So he didn't.

The two said nothing, turned to Blake, and then proceeded to walk past him with Goji following behind. Haru thought he would be rid of the pest until he heard some words that froze him right in his tracks.

"So I suppose I won't be getting that comment about there not being a Steel Gym anymore huh?"

Nessa's eyes widened in shock and confusion from the statement itself. There was no way that was true, she figured 'Haru would have told me by now if that were true'. "Honey...is what he said t-...true?" She briefly stammered over herself for a moment when she looked back at Haru because his face showed a new emotion that had never been on his face once. Not with his Gym Challenge Career, not around Syra, not even when the other things in his life were stressing him out. This was something brand new. He looked completely torn, and in what felt like a flash of lightning Haru had appeared where Blake was and leaned towards him. Both hands balled into fists downwards, the man she had grown to know as 'Haru' was speaking like someone else had taken the controls of his mind.

"So it's not enough that your kind slithers about daily, hounding people for clicks, hoping that you can get ad revenue by making sure to tell people that someone like myself is dealing with an array of issues. It's not enough that the day I had a panic attack, YOUR news organization ran a hit piece trying to claim that my 'upbringing was a lot more chaotic than people would like to expect, what does this mean for Galar's new Champion?' and that Nessa 'made a mistake in being with someone secretly unhinged'? What exactly do you DO, Blake, I wonder? What's your purpose with all of this? What do you even contribute to society?" Haru had begun walking towards him until Blake was getting cornered onto a shelf display.

"H-hey hey wait, look I'm just doing-" The man began to whimper, but he was cut off short.

As his voice grew more shaken, Haru's left eye started to twitch and was speaking with his teeth gritting. "WHAT, your 'job'? Your 'job' that views the lives of those with goals biger than life through a microscopic lens?! You know, the same goals more meaningful than simply telling people 'Oh it's going to rain today and guess what Melony may be having another child but is it by her husband? We don't know! Check out our article for the reasons why we think so!' or 'Is Haru secretly just an apologist for ex-Chairman Rose because he didn't publicly speak out against his actions after becoming Champion'? I can't tell what you people actually get out of doing this! Honestly it's hard to tell whether or not you actually give a shit about the people you try to get information about if it's a charity or a sanctuary they want to build to give Pokemon a safe haven, but no! You'd rather say you're an ally to justice and the "truth in the printed word" but turn a blind eye when those same words cause someone to spiral into a depression and commit suicide due to harassment campaigns your ilk invites! So you all just continue onward, and for what, so you can continue to drink your soy lattes with your gluten free lunches from all that blood money you've earned?! You fucking trail of Muk-slime!""

A few people had gathered by now noticing how loud Haru was getting as Blake had been starting to cower in the corner. "Instead of reporting on the good things that those of us who carry the weight of the world on our backs actually do, you'd rather be making sure your shit tier media friends would ask whether or not I spent 'too much time going on dates instead of training'. Oh wait! I'm sorry, that's giving you guys too much credit, since you'd rather stoop to printing a 12 page story you helped get published in a fucking tabloid that implied I was boning Syra on the 'side'. The one where your only piece of evidence was the fact I got her some fucking fast food!"

At this point Blake was kneeling on the floor holding both hands up in a guard. The rage radiating off of Haru's face was so fierce it was blinding since almost nobody had seen it. "All you journalists are the fucking scum of the planet. Now. To answer your question...sorry, it was about a Gym of mine right? How about instead of answering that, YOU, tell ME, where you found out about that information." Grabbing him by the collar and yanking him up off his feet. "ANSWER ME, ASSHOLE!"

"HARU THAT'S ENOUGH!" Nessa shouts. She had her fists balled up and was shaking, having to call out to him to break him out of his spell. It was something she had never seen before and her only course of action that came to mind to stop all of this before it got violent was to yell at him. Haru turned to her with his face locked onto her own expression...and it softened.

"Tch...go piss off, wanker." Haru grumbled, letting go of Blake by the collar as the man ran off. He turned to look at everyone staring at him and just walked back to where Nessa and Goji stood silently. The 3 of them got in a line for the cashiers and Nessa was fully on guard.

The Water Gym Leader was quieter than normal and seemed frightened to the point of being emotionally vulnerable. In the entire time of being together she never saw him blow up like this, and couldn't look at him directly for a moment. The face he wore was not the one she knew from the man she loved, and was worried something happened. "Haru...you...you're scaring me." Sighing from the comment, and now filled with shame, he kept his head low.

He couldn't look back at her out of fear that his face hadn't relaxed at all. "I know. I'm sorry...I uh...I don't know what came over me." Putting a palm over his eyes and dragging it downward, he was worried that the word would come around quick. If Blake was asking about such a thing, how widespread was this knowledge? Did it get reported already as a fact, or was it in the 'Rumor Mill" currently?

The couple quietly paid for everything at the front cashier booth, and Haru withdrew Goji into his PokeBall for the trip home. When the two got out of the Steelfix Department Store, they flagged an Air Taxi cab, and with the several bags they carried into it, asked to be taken back to Hulbury.

As Nessa took a moment to try and cut through the thick, awkward air between the two, her logical side came back and did its best to get right to the issue. "Haru. What aren't you telling me? What happened back there...? In all the time we've been together I've never, not even once, seen you blow up. Sure, you've gotten playfully mad with me, and we've had a few bouts of disagreements..." She had began to say all this to the man sitting next to her, who was staring at the floor quietly.

The Raging Wave had become the 'Calming Wave' at this point and tried to speak to him again, letting her hand rest on the cab set and then clasp around one of his own. "Haru, look at me. Please."

He lifted his head and revealed a familiar face of defeat that once overcame him, and depression. When her hand held onto his own, he was able to start putting his thoughts into words. The face he showed her was similar to the one she saw when he broke down at Wyndon's Fan Meet. "It's...true. Someone on the inside of Galar's Pokemon League Council thinks that I, for one reason or another, orchestrated the entire last year's dealings with Team Rocket. They think that I had somehow colluded with Syra to have these things occur, and that why I spoke up in Syra's defense to get her on the operation with us would be 'evidence' of those 'facts' they're claiming. They're taking into account everything that was said out loud at the League Match...and..." He has to wipe a tear that suddenly shows up at the corner of one of his eyes. "Yeah. I'm a Gym-less Gym Leader. A man who gave up his life of being a Champion to reign over a Gym that's not even going to be happening anymore. Miss Oleana told me she's going to fight for me on this, but we both know the power that the Chairman has in comparison to the Council. It's like our government branches."

Another tear came on the other side of his eyes and then both. They started sliding down his face and shame came to him once again, lifting his arms up to wipe his eyes. "Nessa I'm so sorry I did that. I can't believe that I let this all just hit me at once, but I guess doing all of this only to see my passion fail sorta made me think 'Did I fail Hiro by doing this?' and 'Did I fail myself'? I didn't tell you because I wanted you to stay proud of me and to see me continue to study and work myself. Having built this stupid image of being 'the hero'...it's so exhausting. This world of Pokemon has brought me so much joy, and throughout everything I've been dealt with while being a Gym Challenger I've done nothing short of staring at it in the face. But now it's threatening to take parts of that same life I've made away from me...and I'm scared. I'm scared and angry I won't be able to make much of what's left; my time being so far 'gone' that I may as well not be in it. To a degree I understood why Leon was the way he was for so long who thought he was trying to find a new meaning in his battles. Here I've found that 'new meaning'...and now it's gone."

Biting her lip, there was nothing that came to Nessa's lips that would resolve the pain. "Haru...there wasn't a point where I wasn't proud of how far you've come. But bottling all of that up inside you is something I don't want you to do in the future, okay? That's why I'm here for, to talk to me." In her usual ability to try and be optimistic for situations like this, Nessa felt just as lost. She didn't have anything grand that came up to say to help take the pain away from Haru, nor did anything logical come up at all to try and deter from the situation. It was a very complicated, but very real thing that was eating away at him. The tension had lowered considerably since he began to speak, and even though there wasn't any true solution to the problem, all his lover could do was gently pull him close and laid his head on her lap as she started to stroke her fingers through his hair.

Initially feeling the need to ask what brought this on, only to stay quiet, Haru narrowed his eyes and the shut them. So much guilt and shame clouded his mind. It was unbecoming to have such an outburst in public like that, and now with the knowledge that people could be spreading the No-More-Steel-Gym 'Rumor' would possibly cause more problems with him than he wanted. Both his hands went to cover his face while his head laid in her lap and the words "I'm so sorry...that was a big fuck up." came out of him. Shaking her head, Nessa paid it little mind and had forgiven him at this point; continuing to just stroke his head for comfort.

"It's okay Haru. Despite everything...you're still you." Was the only thing that came to her mind while slowly taking off his glasses delicately, and continuing to pet him. That evening brought with it some new burdens that had surfaced from below the crust of Haru's psyche. Her point was solid, however, and that was all he had to focus on for the time being. "You know how you used that line from that one anime and I teased you for it? Well, here's one right back for you, Haru."

The dark beauty looked down at him as she used her fingers to tilt his head that was on her lap back up to him. As his brown eyes met her vivid blue ones, she continued to speak quietly. "If you can't believe in yourself, then believe in the me that believes in you." Such a nerdy phrase being spoken back to him in a situation that reflected the need for it felt reassuring. He spent the rest of the Air Taxi ride with his head on her lap facing her directly. As her hand parted his hair, keeping eye contact all the while, the man smiled warmly. "Thank you. I will."

They pause for a bit to just let the air settle down before Haru spoke up again.

"So does that make you genderbent K*mina, now?". Nessa clicked her tongue in irritation and tapped him on the forehead. "Honestly! Must you mess with this moment with a comment like that?"

"I mean I don't mind being genderbend Y*ko in this case..." He insisted on continuing, if nothing else cuz of Nessa's flustered face was making him grin.

Her left eye twitched. "Haru oh my gods..."

"We even have the color scheme down. You're blue, I'm red...OW!" Both of his hands went to his cheek as she pinched one of them and rubbed it. Laughing it off afterwards, Nessa ended up pouting as her brief irritation only came from a place that could find it endearing at the same time. "You do that intentionally to piss me off don't you?"

"Sometimes. You're cute when you're angry, Miss Raging Wave." Haru's face was full of smugness at this point while Nessa once again voiced her dissatisfaction. "That's it, you don't get seconds tonight!"

He gasped at her. "OH COME ON!"

Tomorrow was another day.

- - - - - The Next Day, 10:20 A.M. - - - - -

- - - - - Postwicke, Sonia's Lab - - - - -

Making her way to the lab, one brunette with her hair tied back knocked on the front door with a small box of homemade goods in her hand. She had been pondering having her Pokemon help her do some gardening and get peppers planted, but for the time being she considered 'The local scientists could use some pep in their step'. Knocking on the main door twice, she would be greeted by Hop. His eyes lit up and smiled back. "Miss Lana! Good morning!"

Under the bright yellow sunhat she wore, Haru's mom smiled back. "Hop, look at you! I know I see you often around here but you're looking good. Is Sonia around? I brought some Razzberry Cream Scones that were made this morning for everyone here." Perking up interest immediately, she hears another voice call out once the word 'scones' came into earshot. "Miss Lana, hey!" it was Leon, coming over. The two brothers were spending some time catching up as Leon decided to help him with reorganizing some shelves while also doing what he could to help clean up the place. Making her visit short, Lana bid them adieu but would run into Sonia along the way.

The professor was coming back from a small run of bringing back some Pokedex devices to hand out to up-and-coming trainers, but wanted to take some time before officially going back to her research. "I'll be back you two, I need to have a chinwag with Haru's mum here okay?". Both brothers replied back affirmatively before the brightly colored professor turned to the mother of Galar's previous Champion. "Do you have a minute...?"

Lana had no clue what could be going on that would cause her to halt her own daily tasks to speak to herself in private. Finding a small grassy hill where some Wooloo were eating peacefully, the two ladies sat on the apex of it while Sonia pulled her ponytail back. "Has Haru contacted you lately?"

Humming a bit in thought and crossing her legs while leaning back and sitting straight as both hands were behind her back, the mother replied. "No. Should I have heard something from him? He's an adult, and while I'd like to know a lot more than I let on, being his mother and all, I remember that he's done so much already. There's not much need for me to keep in constant contact with him, but ah, I do miss my baby boy." saying that last bit with motherly pride.

Sonia looked a little morose as her eyes narrowed and blurred her own vision as if to dissociate. "There's a rumor going around that he no longer has a Steel Gym anymore...and that he blew up in public yesterday."

"His Gym is what..? Wait...what...?" The brunette looked shocked, confused, and worried.

- - - 10 minutes later - - -

"...and that's what happened. There's not much else to go on currently since it's mostly going off of anecdotal accounts when it comes to his outburst, but plenty of people caught exactly what he said and who he was saying it to. If the rumor about his Gym is to be believed then...then I don't know if there's anything I can do as a friend to support him." Sonia would say with a complex expression of irritation at the world and empathy for her little brother-like-friend that she found in Haru.

Sitting there and hearing how despite all the sacrifices he had made that something was going on to set him back, Lana exhaled. "It seems like whatever happened finally pushed him to the extreme limit. I don't want to comment on whether or not it's true, but Haru was never the type of boy to have outbursts like that at all. Even as a baby he was quiet, and I later joked with him as an adult that I was worried something was wrong with him. Be that as it may...he was fine. He turned out to be the son he is now despite everything."

A wind blew by as an Air Taxi and its Corviknight landed in the distance, transporting someone coming from the Isle of Armor who wore bright purple, green, and white colors on her jacket and had bright pink hair that was adorned by an equally loudly colored hairbow. The mood of such a town still going on as if nothing crazy had occurred within the past few years was something Lana reflected on in order to 're-center' herself on things. "But if something did happen, I am sure he'll get past it. For now, you have a responsibility to the up-and-coming trainers. I hope things are going well for you."

While the parent of the ex-Champ seemed somewhat dismissive of the point, she was ultimately right about it all in the end. Sonia nodded to herself and sighed with a quiet exhale. "Yes they are: trying to get around how to make sure when I have time for Leon that I don't accidentally talk his ears off with the new discoveries I've made. Then again, he doesn't ever try to stop me. He just listens quietly and shows interest in everything I'm finding out even if he doesn't understand it all."

Lana stretched her arms across from each other before getting back up and dusted the front of her overalls. "In any case, I'm going to head back to the house. I have some new Will-o-Wisp Chili Peppers I want to plant today. Take care, Sonia, thank you for being a concerned friend." Giving the young professor a big hug, Lana would take off back home with a wave.

Arriving back home, the Budew in the front yard greets her upon reentry and waddles behind. Going inside the small home to fetch her pepper seeds and some gardening tools, Lana takes a glance inside the living room. In one corner sat a small picture she had of Haru and Hiro, with a small urn near it. Something told her to not go outside just yet, as the middle-aged lady sighed. The intense empathy she constantly felt being around people was both a blessing and a curse. Despite telling Sonia otherwise, she was more worried about Haru than she let on, and had walked to the photo where the two best friends were captured on it. "Hiro, it's probably best that you don't have your peaceful rest fagged but if you're able to give him a sign, please...I think Haru needs your help."

She stood there for several minutes just looking at the picture and urn before sighing, wiping a vacant tear on the edge of her right eye and heading back outdoors with her tools. Peppers needed to be planted, and idle hands couldn't get it done.

- - - - - 1:00 P.M. - - - - -

*Knock, Knock, Knock*

The Postwicke Lab door swings open and Sonia is greeted by a face she always had time for with open arms. "NESSA!" The two ladies held each other tightly happily as Sonia bounced a bit in place. "I'm so happy you dropped by!". While being embraced Nessa knew that her time was always valuable and flagged Sonia a bit once the excitement of her own visit wore off. "Hey bestie...do you have time? I need some advice. Possibly help."

"Absolutely! Hey Hop!" Sonia calls out. In a few seconds Hop pokes his head from the rear window that was opened towards the back. "Yeah?" he calls out. "Go on a lunch break with your brother, okay? I've had you two cooped up in here for a bit and Nessa just came. I can still do my part for the errand, okay?" The boy, paired with his buddy Dubloo shrugged and called out to his brother. "Ay Leon! Let's get some Alolan pizza, my treat. Sonia said we can break for now!"

Sonia pulls up a chair while her water based Pokemon friend sat on the opposite side and propped her elbows up. As if getting right to the point, she leaned forward to eye Nessa as her head tilted. "Go on and tell me everything."

Nessa went on to tell Sonia about the way things had been going lately. She discussed how her own talk with her father was something she had been thinking about not only just for her own personal 'self' but for her own profession. Asking Sonia what her perspective was on the prospect of having a family, Sonia had no real answer but decided to support Nessa on the decision she came to grips on. Nessa continued to spitball about how well she's been able to train her Gym Trainers as one of them could now act as a 'Vice Gym Leader' should she ever have to take leave for a short bit of time during an annual Gym Challenge. Sonia asks her about how Haru has been since he's transitioned into his new life: feigning ignorance for the time being about the 'rumors and speculations' she had come to know. It would be here that Nessa's mood slightly took a more concerned turn.

"While he has his nose in his books learning what he has been for his sanctuary, he has moments that leave me concerned. I'm no medic, but even I can see when his body is starting to just barely get by. As of late, even before the issue with his Gym occurred, he's developed insomnia. Sometimes in the early morning I'll spot him downstairs; face plugged into his computer screen doing nothing but sipping his favorite drink while he reads and takes notes."

Sonia leaned on one of her hands and sighed. "You're not worried that you're in too deep with him, yes? I just wanna make sure on that."

Nessa shakes her head. "Of course not, I just feel powerless knowing all I can do is just try to comfort him since he went so out of his way to make me feel like I matter. He knew long ago that I was only the #2 Gym Leader but after he defeated me in the Pokemon League, he extended a hand and made me feel like a person instead of just another obstacle he overcame. Of all the trainers I met on my journey as a Gym Leader, he was the only one to look back. Like...okay. I get it. At times it seems silly to thi-"

"No it's not. It's not silly at all." Sonia politely interrupted her friend with a pained smile as one finger traced a glass of wine she was sipping. "You don't have to explain your attraction to me Nessa, it just happened, right? I was there from the start for you, and if anyone knows you better than yourself, it's me, hmm?"

Letting out a sigh, such beautiful words had made the stressed heart within Nessa feel lightened up, if only just a little. "It just hurts you know? I hear him put himself down so intensely. I worry that his guilt has come back, or that it never left."

"Guilt? What guilt?" asked Sonia, but right after speaking such words, she understood. Her eyes had closed in thought. "Oh...right."

Balling up both hands into fists and one knocking the table, the Hulbury Goddess of Water grit her teeth. "I made the bed that I lay in due to my own hard work, heart, and soul. Not once did I compromise my vision despite the pressure from higher ups in the Pokemon League, but Haru is starting to feel like he may have to go down that route. I don't want that for him!"

She turned to Sonia directly. "Sonia, I think he needs closure. Any failure that he's been experiencing has been circling back to HIM internally and hits him thrice as hard. It's like he spent so much time trying to consistently stay on top and hold this image other people have of him, that due to all these issues he won't forgive himself on failure. For all the steps forward being made, it's like it's all just erased. In all the science you've been able to research is there any remedy or recipe or something I can do to help alleviate this? I'll have him go to therapy if I need to, but I wasn't sure on what to do. I have no answers or ideas, only questions."

Sonia had a brief flashback in her talk with Leon about how his being 'lost' was mostly a facade he put up in the public eye to cover for his own depression on having to always put up an image of 'The Undefeated Champion Leon'. To hear that Haru was experiencing another version of it wasn't what she wanted for him. Without waiting for Sonia to say anything Nessa got up out of her seat and leaned towards her friend like she was addressing Oleana back in the old days. "If this continues to go on, then I fear he may go down to a point of no return."

It shook her to say that due to the worry and examining the past events, but Nessa meant every single word that she spoke. Fear hit Nessa's eyes and tears budded at the corners of them. This was only a big 'what if' that hit her mindspace, but it was still a realistic one should things progress further in the wrong direction. Crossing both legs, Sonia started rummaging mentally over everything she had studied up to that point. "Remedies, remedies...hmm. That's a good choice of words you made, Nessa, because I don't think you're the type to ask me for a resolution from old wives' tales concerning Pokemon. Our world already has too much of that. Be that as it may, there is no outright cure for depression, and I don't think you want me to bring hypnosis into this, right?"

Replying immediately with her arms crossing over each other into a "X" formation, Nessa speaks with confidence. "Right. I'm not so ridiculous that I would request help in getting a Hypno or even have a Ghost Pokemon to help for this situation."

Getting up from the seat with the goal in mind to help ease Haru's mental fortitude, Sonia went to her yet-completely-reorganized stack of books that were sitting on one part of the floor before yanking out a book on Legendary and Mythical Pokemon. Going back to the table with Nessa looking at it with her, Sonia's eyes were speed reading; the search for a specific item on her mind. Both ladies were quiet. Nessa didn't want to disturb whatever it was that her friend was looking for, and Sonia using her physical and internal library to search for 'the right thing'. After a few moments of searching up and down for something, she hit her 'eureka' moment. Leaving the book on the table, Sonia half jogs up the stairs of the lab and starts digging in a corner of one of the shelves.

She comes back holding what looked like a weirdly distinct feather that was colored pale yellow and green; tied to a small string. Nessa looks to Sonia with a quizzical expression. "...and this is..?"

"The Lunar Wing. This is one of the feathers from the Legendary Pokemon, Cresselia. With this, it is said to fight off nightmares given from the Mythical Pokemon, Darkrai. If one sleeps with a Lunar Wing, they will have sweet dreams, though even this is only touching on the surface. What I like for you to do is give this to Haru. Have him sleep with this whether around his neck or otherwise near him. If he falls asleep with this then maybe, just maybe, after he wakes up he will have some form of awakening or peace. This is what the research and legends have led me to believe, so if anything can help, this can." Sonia's arm stretched out and handed the small feather to Nessa, who would put it around her own neck.

Looking at Sonia, she embraced her best friend tightly. "Thank you for listening to me. I know I kept you busy for awhile talking about my own problems and then the boyfriend and...and..." she just sighed and shook her head, but the woman she embraced shook her head. "Never apologize for making time for me, Nessa. I'm just glad you thought of me highly enough to help you, and I hope that everything will turn around. Let me know what happens okay?"

Stepping away from the lab, Nessa waved to Sonia one final time and then took a glance back at the books that she brought out. In her haste to find Legendary and Mythical Pokemon of note she had skimmed over a few that still only had tiny blurbs about them and little else. A small metallic-like Pokemon with what looked like a metal nut for a face, its evolution, and another one that had the appearance of a dark, simian-like form with the distinct coloration of black and bright green. /It's like Nessa said, the world of Pokemon is a very distinct one that benefits everyone differently. Hopefully soon I can pin down what the mystery behind these are, or at the very least leave a breadcrumb of truths for those further down the line to find out./

- - - - - Haru's Home, Living Room - - - - -

At the time Nessa was heading on her way to meet up with her partner, Haru was starting to pack up his things slowly with the help of a friend. He had plenty that needed to be put into boxes and it required a bud with some arm strength to help him.

"Gordie..c...can you help me? I didn't realize until just now how heavy this stack of DVDs was going to be." Haru said weakly with his face growing pale and legs shaking. The box was labeled 'Bad Movies' and was filled to the brim, completely unorganized to any degree. Walking over to where he was, the stout man took it from him as Haru sighed with relief.

" 'Bad Movies'? You keep a collection of this stuff?" he asked Haru, who took to a cushioned seat while Nora had been sniffing around, playing Hide-and-Seek with Leafa earlier and was investigating despite what her Master was doing. "Yeah. Nessa hates a lot of these, but it's a fun thing to do: pop in one of these and we both joke about how terrible it is together. Or not. She kind of got revenge on me by buying me the sequel of P*kken, the live action movie." rubbing the back of his head while Haru's Aegislash, Polnareff had floated in the room from the backyard. It was getting used to the way how his new home was and to see it slowly become bare was making it anxious.

With it coming over to Haru's side, the Gym Leader put a hand on the top of its shield. "We're going to be moving, don't you worry. It'll be a bigger, and better place!"

"So what about this 'revenge' you were referring to?" Gordie asks, sitting down with the box and putting it with the others before helping to make sure everything was nicely set in before taping it closed. Snickering a bit upon remembering, Haru leaned forward. "Oh, the movie Nessa got? Yeah. So it was 'revenge' in it that it was so bad I had to pause after the first 8 minutes to get my bearings, causing her to start laughing before saying 'Oh honey no, you started this, you have to finish it'. I suffered through the entire runtime while pressing my fingers to my forehead and the 'pause' button on standby."

Turning slack-jawed in awe of the way Haru describe it, Gordie slaps one knee and then pushes the 'Bad Movies' box to the side as it was fully closed. "Holy crap! I almost have to see this movie to even believe that it exists...! Ah...well at least you two never have a dull moment. But speaking of no dull moments...I heard about your Gym."

For a brief second, a vein in Haru's forehead throbbed. Internally he took a second to breathe slowly and looked at Gordie with a half hearted smile. "Yeah. Oleana is doing her best currently to fight it so I can bring tomorrow to a new line of Gym Challengers, but with this now and the whole fallout from what Team Rocket did, it may take a hot minute to fully resolve."

Pulling some of the manga that Haru had on his shelves down to place them in another box, Gordie paused hearing the last words of his statement and was reminded of his mother. "I suppose we both are dealing with that sort of thing huh? Situations requiring 'a hot minute'." he said. Catching his attention, Haru looked up as his Sword-and-Shield Pokemon had since then nestled next to him: the Aegislash taking time to study a lot of what was in the home just to stay occupied during the conversation. "You too? What's going on with you? I haven't checked in since you started a new line for fan meets, but you run into trouble too?"

After grabbing a small tower of graphic novels and placing them upright in the box, Gordie sat down with Haru so the two of them could put them in together and sighed. "Guess you could say that. It's about my Mom and I."

"...oh! That's...new." Being surprised by that, Haru blinked and did a double take just to make sure he heard correctly. "You and Melony are talking finally? How's that going?" After pondering the query for a moment, the Rock Gym Leader took a stand and went to the fridge to get him and his friend some drinks. After sitting back down and opening the can, he took one sip and sighed. "We're talking things through very slowly. I know you came into the Gym Challenge only recently but we of course weren't always this distant. A few heated conversations in the past got so bad that I said things I no longer am proud of, and we are trying to reach to each other on mutual grounds. The whole split that caused this rift is filled with things I'm not proud remembering. This process is going to be lengthy but I'm hoping it will become snow under the bridge."

"Water." Haru interjected.

"Huh?" Gordie sound confused.

"It's 'water under the bridge'." Haru explained, eyeing him intently. "Anyways, I know I shouldn't be the one to judge you, man, but I can't imagine being that with to my own mother. No matter what she's done to mess with me there's nothing that I can think up at all that would bring me to cause a rift." Haru said, thinking back on Lana for a moment. How she so casually met up with him and Nessa only to then try and 'Mama Bear' the scene and caused him to feel embarrassed when baby pictures were mentioned. That being one of many times that made him feel like taking off to the skies and how none of that was enough to do what Gordie did to Melony.

In the middle of leaning forward and then combing his pale blonde hair back, Gordie changed the way he sat on the carpet flooring. One deep breath later, he began to explain. "Mom is a very strict person and had a lot of things semi-planned out for me when it came to what was going to be my future way back in the past. The way she had this whole 'Mother Knows Best' personality clashed with the way I was seeing things and since neither of us were known to back down from our sides, and I am the oldest of my siblings, I suppose she wanted me to set an example for them. The whole thing was me wanting to keep my own individuality, acknowledging what her wishes were but deciding not to go with it did not sit well with her at all."

Haru took a sip of his drink and hissed after the alcoholic taste of Pecha Berries hit his throat. "Right. You have a lot of younger siblings. I recall seeing the pictures you've shown me."

"Yeah. Well, ever since the whole...Syra...thing...I suppose it was the trigger that was pulled to get Mom and I on speaking terms again. She doesn't want it to ever become so bad to a point that I would think she's an awful person. I know she isn't. The worst that occurred between us was that bad set of arguments that's done its fair share. You know." The man gestured to his Rock-Type Pokemon outfit he was wearing; the uniform being left at his home.

Leaning forward and putting the drink down, Haru nodded in agreement as he sees Mirukon walk by: seen carefully holding the egg Masako had laid recently. "Right, right. I didn't battle you myself but I recall learning up on the whole thing, especially after meeting you myself. Though the hint never came to me that 'this woman is as cold as ice on the inside AND past the Gym battle', I guess it just means we all put on a certain face when we're out anywhere, right?"

"Well, with that all said, we are at least talking. For now I don't feel nearly as...how does one say it, lurgy around her due to stress. For the time being it seems this rock has begun rolling down a small hill and is making its own mark on the world." Gordie took another sip of his drink and then set it down to look across from him. "What about, you, Haru?" Gordie asked.

"Hmm?"

"What are you going to do when you go out there for the first time and meet the fanbase that has stuck by you up to this point as a Gym Leader? It'll be your debut eventually, and as someone with experience, I can tell you that first impressions are everything. Well, in your case I suppose they'd be first 'new' impressions." He was asked, as Gordie switched topic from himself to what Haru was going to be doing. It would be useless to pontificate the questions of 'what if there is no Steel Gym' for now, and instead he figured it would be better to ask Haru on his goals. Up to this point the thought never really occured to him on what he would 'do' per se, but now the glimpse of the future gave him hope.

Throwing one fist out and reeling it back to his side, Haru grinned widely. "I probably won't have much to say to the first Gym Challenger, but I do know one thing is for certain: I'll have to come up with a new pre-battle pose that's worthy to be printed on a League Card!"

Both boys end up laughing at the silly exclamation that came from Haru and then continued on with the work. While Gordie couldn't stay for more than a few hours to help Haru pack, it felt nice to have another sit-down with someone and then talk directly about Gym Leader business. As Gordie left, he called out to his Lunatone. "Hey Luna!". The crescent moon shaped Pokemon appeared and floated over to his side. "Care to help me with packing?". It wiggled up and down as if to nod affirmation to him, and the pair would help.

- - - Late that evening - - -

Having gotten a good portion of his books and other media packed up, Haru had called it quits roughly as Nessa had arrived to his home. Though he smiled upon seeing her again, she could tell he was putting on a strong face. The thought about the Lunar Wing came back, and during the pasta dinner that he prepared for them she told him everything she did throughout the day while ending about the Lunar Wing. While he didn't really understand too well how it could help matters, it didn't sound like a bad idea. He was examining it well after the time they were eating while in his bedroom and she came to meet him wearing a night robe.

"Hey Haru?" she appeared, walking in and laying next to him. "I know things have been rough for you, and aside from packing you've been putting in a lot of work. But tonight let's put on the telly and watch a movie together." smiling softly in the hopes that such a suggestion could help.

It wasn't so much that he was unsure about the idea, but he knew how busy she could be. For a second, he looked at the Lunar Wing she handed him earlier and put it around his neck. "I packed almost everything up outside of the plug-in devices on the TV, so are you sure? Don't you have something to do tomorrow?"

Nora hopped up on the end of the bed like she usually would around this time of night, and hearing the words 'movie' gauged her interest. Smirking confidently, Nessa shakes her head. "Nothing at all tomorrow. Like I said during dinner, I'll be helping to get ready for the new house so you can I can tackle that. For now I want you to relax and...I don't know. Let's put on something dumb or see if one of your favorites is playing."

She had kept up her emotional strength the best she could to try and cheer him up, knowing that even if his pain is more nuanced than he let on, maybe the smaller things in life could pick him up out of his bad mood. Seeing her put so much on the line lately, even if part of it involved handing him a weird looking feather, Haru sighed. "Sure thing, Nessa. I guess 'fall asleep watching a movie with your loved one' is something I haven't done in awhile. I'll let you pick."

"No. You do it. I want you to be as relaxed as possible. Here." she had yanked him down finally onto the bed until he was at chest height to her, while one hand had grabbed onto the remote and started browsing through one of the multiple TV-enabled apps. His face blushed, relishing in the comfort of being embraced in bed in the dimly lit room and her freshly-showered body. "Okay...sure thing."

/Man I don't know if it's the stress of everything lately or that she smells good but Nessa already has me feeling sleepy.../ Haru thought, while he found a comedy movie he had seen so many times and loved, 'The Yamask'. She looks down at him, cradling one of her hands around his head and started to stroke his hair again and spoke quietly. "We've been through a lot...but I'm still here you know."

The Lunar Wing seemed to be having an effect on his ability to stay conscious already, with his eyes feeling heavy. As she felt Haru nestle his head into her cleavage, Nessa was comforted in knowing he was confiding in her on this. /I don't know I'm supposed to be able to tell if the Lunar Wing is working, but I hope it is./ Roughly 20 minutes into the movie, Nessa peaked down at her chest to look at Haru and tilted her head. He was still watching the movie that was on TV. Another 15 minutes pass, and she noticed that he had slumped a bit further against her. Both eyes closed, and his glasses had slid almost all the way off. Reaching around delicately, the dark haired beauty took them off and let the rest of the movie play out. /Please work.../

Haru's mind went into a deep, deep sleep...

- - - ? - - -

It was as if he was living a life that never existed, as if it was all a lie. Nothing around him made any sense. Was he flying, or swimming? Was he still a human, or had he begun the process of reincarnation? Was that the smell of tuna drifting by him, and why is the ground so hard when it was just mud?

*CRASH*

The sound of what was heard to be a thousand cannons being fired off at once deafened Haru's ears as he fell into a pearlescent lake whose reflection showed many moons and a dimly lit sun that painted the skies with blues, purples, and decorated 'whites' as stars. The reflection had shown those same skies as magenta, pink, and red, but they were the same skies. As he felt his body go 'under', Haru re-emerged on the other side to what looked like a small island with a single fully grown Kanto Maple Tree that had two children huddled over a small playmat. He was about to dry himself before realizing he didn't have his Steel Gym uniform on, but some casual clothing he remembered wearing before applying for the Gym Challenge. His smugly thought to himself. /Guess wherever I am, I just decided to wear my black Gengar shirt, huh../

The two kids playing in this weird dream-like area caught his attention, so he walked over to where he was and was shocked to see what was playing out before him.

"C'mon, one more game!"

"Tch, okay. You're really asking for it though, and afterwards that first print Charizard is mine!"

"Hey I never said it was going to be for that card!"

"Now it is!"

"Laaa~me!"

"Okay! I've drawn Heatran!"

"You're cheating!"

"Nuh-uh!"

Haru took a few steps forward as if to talk to them, reaching out before he heard some more voices behind him on the other side of the tree. Two older voices belonging to two young men looking over what seemed to be League Cards. There was a small pile of them, plus a small notebook one of them was writing stuff in as he belted out laughing. "Dude! DUDE DUDE okay! Okay uhhhh...okay..! Straight up...Cynthia HAS to be the one I would do if I ever had the chance."

"Look it's fine to dream, and I'm not gonna bust your balls, but we both know that wouldn't happen and if it did, it's cuz she's a blonde with big tits right?"

"YEAH?! AND!? What's wrong with that?!" said the other, gesturing with his hands outwards in a 'what are you gonna do about it' motion and laughing.

The other man, combing his red hair and readjusting his glasses had clicked his tongue. "Well I guess I can't blame you, though the one from Kalos is sexy too. Classy lady? Actress? Diantha can't be beat. Okay actually you know what? Let's move away from Champions. Let's talk Gym Leaders. Whitney isn't too shabby. Gym Leader from Johto? Yeeea~aah."

"You say that...but I know what your true 'weakness' is, man."

"Oh okay! If you're so smart then prove it, who could beat her for me?" The bespectacled man said, leaning forward defiantly before his friend flashed a few of the Gym Leaders from another region they had begun looking through. While both of them were living in Galar, they only recently had taken notice of the whole world of Pokemon competition. The older one, who wore his brown hair back into a ponytail had flashed a few cards.

The redhead looked at them and admittedly had been looking at one of them a bit longer. "Nessa, huh? See! I fucking KNEW you would go for her, you're so predictable! hahaah!"

"Tch. Yeah? Well...look at her! Idk if it's the leg pose she has going but...oh fuck you and that face you have! GAH! Anyways how did you figure me for a man who enjoys dark women? "

"Hahahaha it's fine. Just remember to introduce me to her when you see her in person as a Gym Challenger, Haru."

The last name echoed repeatedly throughout the seemingly infinitely vast nothingness that was this odd location Haru found himself in, and he turned around. Suddenly neither group of individuals were there, and the area he was standing in himself had given way to a grassy cliffside. The tree from before had 'stepped back' several meters as if the tree was something that would move from place to place, while allowing Haru himself to view the beautiful landscape. Off into the distance, he saw the pristine waters of the same confusing reflective quality from before. Still, the colors didn't match what the skies before him actually were, but it didn't irritate him much as it just confused him.

How did he get there?

Nervous, Haru was finally able to speak. "O...oh..okay! Okay you got me! Arceus! Dialga! Palkia! Giratina you bitch? It's gotta be one of you right? Fucking...whoever brought me here...you can come out now! Cresselia? Someone? I'd like to go home now...these memories hit different, and I don't wanna be here anymore." His face faltered, looking at his feet. He was wearing the shoes he wore when he began the Gym Challenge journey..which was odd. Then again, his shirt being what it was before he began that journey was also confusing.

He heard someone step behind him.

"Yo."

Haru felt his heart leap into his throat, turning around to the voice.

He had battled a deity capable of turning the whole world into a purgatory state, tamed the wildest of Pokemon going 'crazy' around Galar, and faced off with mankind's strongest man-made Pokemon atop of a building in Kanto, but nothing prepared him for this. The person he faced stood a few inches taller than him with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail, and a full light beard wearing a bright orange shirt, blue jeans and boots. Haru's eyes watered immediately.

"I said 'yo' or did you not hear me?" The man teased again.

"Hiro...what the fuck. What the fuck is this?" Haru said, staring in disbelief. He walked over to where Hiro stood and poked his chest once. It was solid, and he looked up to him again. "Is this real?"

"Sorta. Kinda? It's hard to explain. But I'm glad you're here man...it's been awhile." Hiro said, giving a soft smile. He was embraced by Haru who held onto him tightly and began to cry.

"Hiro I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you. I'm so sorry we never went to the places I said we would, that I didn't get you out of that house, watched that movie that you wanted to watch with me only for me to say 'No' at the last second, and I'm so sorry that you...that you died alone with nobody next to you. That it happened overnight and not even you knew about it. I'm sorry that I haven't gotten over it, and that I'm even like this. You shouldn't have passed on at all, not when you had your whole life ahead-"

"Haru. Please don't start, man. It's okay. It wasn't your fault. I'm being taken care of here." Hiro began, trying to calm his buddy down and patting him on the back.

Haru's face looked downward, balling up both hands into fists and fake-hitting him. "Arceus-damn it, when you left I felt a piece of me get torn apart that I haven't been able to piece back...! You're my fucking brother! With you gone I've been a fucking mess, man. The most that I've been able to do is keep your ashes safe, and Mom...holy crap, Mom took it just as hard. She hasn't even touched your shirts to make it into a memory blanket because just like me, she doesn't wanna mess with things that used to be worn by you or owned by you and...fuck! Damn it Hiro, I spend days at a time feeling like nothing matters anymore, and if that weren't enough, I still feel like we had plenty of things left to experience as best buddies. You were my brother for life! Okay I lied, everything isn't that bad. I have good friends who take care of me, and Pokemon who love me. Life has been going somewhat okay but whenever I make a mistake, it just kind of reminds me of my failure to make sure you weren't in better health. Like I'm somehow failing you as a brother, or that I could fail again."

Hiro placed one hand flatly on top of Haru's mop of a head as parts of the hair stuck outwards. "Haru. One at a time, bro. Let's go sit, ay?" Being taken back by how this was actually Hiro talking to him, Haru goes to sit next to him the same way they would in his house.

"Ri-right. So...I'm...eheh. I became a Pokemon Champion like I said I would do. Ended up helping to save the Galar region with my friend Hop, you remember him, and I became 'the best' in the region like I said I would!" He felt a sense of pride come back as Hiro gestured a thumbs up, as the two buddies now overlooked the unforeseeable huge horizon before them both.

"Yeah? What else have you ended up doing while I've been gone?" He asked.

Haru wiped his nose a little and smiled with pride."Uhhh...I...ended up dating Nessa. The Hulbury Gym Leader."

He got slapped hard on the back, causing Haru to cough. "AYY! You bitch! Look at you, getting 'it'! hahaha!"

Pointing back to Hiro and leaning towards him with a huff. "Hey! She's a very classy lady you know, so make sure she doesn't hear that if you ever...oh right. Well, anyway. We've been together for almost a year now. I made some new friends like I said, and I've decided to become a Steel Gym Leader: Galar's first. But...some stuff is happening that makes me worried it won't come to pass. So I got worried. I expended so much of my time trying to make sure I was honoring your memory and that you'd be proud of me. It's all I have left."

"You're wrong. It's not all you have left. Haru. I've been watching what you've been doing, man. I may not be able to say anything or be able to leave a sign, but you're quite the pro now, bro. Honestly it leaves me jealous to a degree, but I know that you're doing all of this with the conviction you got and I gotta say you've far surpassed what I thought you would. You're taking names, and kicking ass. As your best friend, you gave me the best life I could have asked from someone like you,man. You've made me proud."

Haru bit his lip and the tears came back again. It felt good to be reassured like that from the person himself, even if it was his spirit. "Hiro, I'm trying to make sure that I make everyone happy but also myself happy. Parts of this journey have been so rough that I guess I've forgotten to do that. Yet, even so, I started this all to do the very thing I told people at the beginning: to honor the one person I felt was always 'better than me and #1' which was you dude."

Hiro gave an indifferent smirk but felt honored enough and leaned back. "I may not have thought so highly of myself, but I'm glad that if I left an impact on anyone it was you. Also, you got a little taller since I last saw ya. There an exercise for that?" He asked, pretending to do a 'rimshot' drum on his knees and leg; a common thing he would do with Haru when he told a bad joke.

Haru looks at him with a groan but then ended up laughing. He really missed being told bad jokes or puns only to be followed up with that gesture. "So...I miss you. I'm gonna keep missing you when I go back to my bedroom or wherever I'm at you know."

"Yeah, but man honestly please don't think you're going to fail me. You never did. Not even once." Hiro turned to him and patted Haru on the shoulder, making Haru look up at him. "Just make sure if you ever have a child to tell her about their uncle Hiro."

Haru's face turned red which made Hiro burst out into laughter. "HE-hey that's not funny asshole! I don't even know about having a kid yet, but I said if Nessa got pregnant-"

"What if she already IS?!" Hiro interjected, pointing to him just to tease him, causing himself to laugh as Haru got flustered even further. Haru looks to the skies. "Okay THAT'S GOOD I'M GOOD! Arceus you can take me back! You prick!" Standing up to kick dirt in Hiro's direction, both of them ended up laughing with Haru only pretending to get actually mad about it.

"Hey Hiro. I fucking miss you and love you man. I'm sorry, once again." Haru bit his lip and did his best to stay strong as Hiro stood up. Giving him one last hug and letting it sit for a bit, one thing Hiro never really did a lot when he was alive, caused Haru to just silently go with it. As the man turned, Haru waved. "I'll tell the others about you okay? Like I did before..! I'll tell Nessa!"

Hiro smiled and nodded. "She matches you, man. Be good to her." Before smugly gesturing a 'sex' gesture with both of his hands before Haru flipped him off, causing the older man to laugh. It was an earnest moment; something Hiro would have actually done and waved to Haru before turning to walk off into the nigh infinite space, as the grounds between the two began to stretch to infinitum.

Being slingshotted out of the weird, psychedelic plane of existence, Haru feels his center of gravity suddenly come back as he was falling backwards in a reverse flip before 'landing' on his back.

- - - - - Haru's Bedroom, 3:22 AM - - - - -

Haru's eyes opened up and he turned to his digital clock that was next to his side of the bed. It seemed in his subconsciousness he fell asleep cuddling Nessa and the two hadn't moved in their sleep, and caught the numbers on the clock: gasping at the time. It wasn't so much a dream, as it was a confirmation. He actually got visited by his brother finally. One of his own hands goes to his face just to 'check' and noticed he was holding onto the Lunar Wing the entire night, and his face was dried with tears.

Haru slowly sat up, causing Nessa to mumble quietly in her sleep before waking up. "Haru~...is it already morning?" she said without opening her eyes. He turned back to her while on his side of the bed and spoke just as quietly, to not wake Nora. "Hiro visited me."

"..mmm...what?" She had to be sure she heard him right and sat up herself before moving to him. Noticing he held the Lunar Wing in hand, her eyes widened and had adjusted in the dark. "Wait.."

"Yeah. I don't know if Cresselia's Lunar Wing also involves granting wishes, but I remember one time talking to Hop and asking him if he thinks there's an afterlife. How I had figured maybe Hiro was being taken care of by Arceus. I can't even begin to describe the place I was just at, but it was unfathomably beautiful. I saw memories of my past play before my eyes like I was walking in those memories like a time traveler. Then, Hiro himself appeared." Haru turned to Nessa in the dark with one eye streaming a tear, but he wore a smile. "He knows about you. He knows about us. He's been watching this whole time...and he said he's proud of me."

Wanting to give Haru peace with the item he was holding turned out to be a much better result than she could have hoped for, as Nessa wrapped her arms around him and held him close. She never knew him personally, but to hear the words come from Haru relayed from Hiro hit home. Haru wasn't crying so much anymore of sorrow, but one that felt like another goal had finally been fulfilled.

He finally got closure from the other side. Hiro was happy for him, proud of his endeavors, and Haru could finally move forward. Of all the world's wonders and things to check off the bucket list...'Get approval by your big brother' was something Haru wasn't expecting.

But now that he had it, he could move on. Outside of his window, he hears the sounds of Lycanrocs howling. Hiro associated himself with wolf-like Pokemon, so perhaps it was the world's way of letting Haru know he was fine.

/Thank you Hiro, for everything./ Were Nessa's last thoughts before her and Haru drifted off back into sleep, as Haru had another set of pleasant dreams that evening with the beautiful Water Gym Leader holding him close.

- - - - - CHAPTER 16 END - - - - -