Ren had always been more of a night person compared to the day. The air was cooler, the atmosphere was more relaxed, there were usually less people around… he felt more at ease under the comfort of moonlight. Whenever things had gotten too stressful during a mission into a Palace or just with life in general, the dimly lit backstreets of Yongen-Jaya served as a source of stress relief for him. Unfortunately, with everything that had happened so far since he had awoken in Alola… the cool night air was doing next to nothing to calm Ren's frazzled nerves.

The disguised Zoroark let out a deep sigh as he leaned against the back wall of the main school building, his arms crossed over his chest and one hand on his chin as he tried to get his thoughts back in order. His afternoon spent in the library of the Pokémon School was certainly a fruitful one, although it felt like he was being overloaded with all of the new info he had gleaned from the unfamiliar books. He had originally only intended to check out a few to get a basic understanding of his surroundings, but he soon began to realize just how much info there was to try and learn.

The first thing that Ren researched was the geography of his surroundings and the world at large, to see if there were more similarities to Earth besides this Alola place. Maybe Melemele's resemblance to Oahu was a freak coincidence… But one look at the world map had proved that little thought very wrong. The geography of the continents around the world were startlingly similar to that of Earth, but there were enough noticeable differences where he could tell this was not home. Was this some sort of alternate dimension then? He had heard of the multiverse theory briefly…

Ren shook himself a bit, trying to get his thoughts back on track. "Focus…" He muttered with a huff, pushing his illusory glasses up his nose out of habit. He moved onto his research of the Alola region, now knowing that it was an archipelago consisting of four islands. The one he had woken up on was Melemele Island, home of Hau'oli city and the guardian Tapu Koko… whatever that was. Honestly, the more he read on Alola and Melemele Island, the more Ren questioned why the Holy Grail had sent him (and possibly his friends) here in the first place. If it simply selected random locations, he was grateful to his luck for being so close to civilization.

Hopefully the rest of the team shared his luck.

Unfortunately for him, however, Ren's proximity to actual people wasn't much help right now. Without any money or any records to speak of, finding some place to stay was going to be extremely difficult, not to mention the issue of trying to find food. That malasada he had earlier had already left a hole in his stomach, and he was feeling much more drained than he felt he should. A soft sigh escaped him as he rubbed his temples, looking over to the edge of the school yard that led into the forests of Melemele.

After his encounter with the Scyther the other day, Ren really didn't want to chance going back in there… but he didn't have much choice. "It's better than nothing, I guess…" He muttered to himself, before beginning to make his way over to the forest edge. Hopefully, he could find a relatively isolated place to rest.

The forests of Alola were certainly calmer under the cover of darkness, a small blessing that Ren was exceedingly thankful for considering just how tired he suddenly felt as he slowly trekked over large roots and patches of tropical flowers, his shoulders sagging a bit under his disguise. He honestly had no clue why he was feeling so drained right now… all he'd done was studying today, which he had done countless times in Leblanc without feeling like this. "Hopefully it's nothing…" He grunted out as he sluggishly stepped over a large rock.

The darkness continued permeating the forest as he walked deeper, although thankfully it seemed like his eyes as a Zoroark were greatly accustomed to the night. Once he was absolutely sure that he was out of sight from any lingering students on the school grounds behind him, Ren let the illusion over him drop with a small gasp of effort, doubling over from the sudden wave of exhaustion that overtook him. It felt like someone had dumped a dozen sandbags on top of him, his head pounding and his muscles sagging.

"Guh… W-What the…" The Zoroark groaned, leaning one paw on a nearby tree trunk to steady himself. His chest heaved as he stood there, sweat beading his fur. What the hell was happening to him..? The last time he had felt like this was the day after infiltrating Shido's palace, and he hadn't done anything nearly as strenuous as that in the past couple of days!

His splitting headache made it difficult to even get a thought straight, slowly but surely getting his breathing under control. Were his illusions that difficult to upkeep? Sure, he felt the initial drain when he applied it this morning, but he had felt fine until just recently.

… Futaba did always say that he tended to get really absorbed in his studying. He must've just failed to notice. But either way, now Ren really needed to find someplace safe to sleep tonight. He didn't think he'd be able to defend himself in a state like this, especially not from something like that Scyther.

With his paw still on his pounding skull, Ren slowly glanced around, his long black and red hair swishing behind him until he laid eyes on a rather large mound of bushes a few feet away. The leaves rose just up to the middle of his torso, and if he looked close enough he could see an opening in the middle of them.

At this point, Ren would take just about anything. He just hoped that those bushes weren't already occupied.

With a grunt, the Zoroark slowly hobbled over to the foliage and crouched down, being careful not to get his fur snagged on any branches as he crawled in. The grass underneath him was cool and slightly moist, and as he slowly laid himself down onto the forest floor he couldn't help but think that this was surprisingly comfortable.

Using his large mane of fur as a makeshift pillow, Ren rolled over onto his back and looked up through a gap in the foliage, gazing into the stars above. A soft sigh escaped his muzzle, and his stomach gurgled softly with discomfort.

Maybe he'd get lucky with another malasada in town tomorrow.

Over the next few days, Ren followed a fairly simple schedule. Wake up in the forest with his headache lessened to a dull throb, put on his disguise, and take a short walk over to the Pokémon School to continue learning all he could about this new world. He was quite lucky to have found that small cluster of bushes in the forest, since it seemed like most Pokémon would steer clear of them while he slept. Ren wasn't exactly sure why this was the case, but he was grateful for it.

The library at the school continued to prove itself a valuable source of info for Ren, with dozens upon dozens of books for him to tackle during his stay here. It was a good thing that he had always liked reading, since it was something that he had done a lot back in Leblanc. The sun over the Alolan sky would rise and fall, and Ren would still find himself lost in a mess of ink and pages spread across the table in front of him.

He soon found that Pokémon were a vast subject to cover. There were over a thousand currently discovered species of Pokémon, which was absolute insanity to him, and that was only scratching the surface. There were different typings, evolution, regional forms… and of course, this world's number one hobby and sport, Pokémon training and battling.

Ever since Ren had witnessed that battle between those two students in the courtyard, his curiosity had been piqued. The intensity of the fight between those two Pokémon as they went at it, their trainers shouting out commands with a fierce determination… Even if he was just a spectator, it reminded him of the thrill of a good battle in the Metaverse. He originally thought that it seemed a bit irresponsible to give kids the ability to fight with monsters that could spew fire or cause fissures with a single stomp… but to his surprise, trainer injuries were a very rare occasion, and a good eighty percent of the cases were from Pokemon lashing out at an abusive trainer.

Another thing he had hoped to find some information on was about his own species, a Zoroark. Unfortunately for him, though, most of the info in the books he read through were very scarce. It seemed like his species were an exceedingly rare group of Pokémon, so until he got access to the internet or found some more specialized books, he was still in the dark.

"Wow, you sure do take your studying seriously, Ren!" Mallow had said one day while she was visiting the library, leaning against the back of a chair while sitting on her knees. Ever since she had met him down by the courtyard she had visited him every now and then while he studied, which honestly had helped alleviate some of the loneliness that had settled in since he was forced into this place. "Are you interested in starting out as a trainer?"

Ren looked up from the book he was currently reading through (called "A History of Champions") with a light smile, subconsciously adjusting his illusory glasses. "Seems like it'd be a fun time. How'd you guess I'm only starting out?"

"Just guessed since you don't seem to have any Pokémon on you," Mallow replied while gently petting one of Bounsweet's leaves, making the small Pokémon giggle a little. "If you treat training like your studying then I think you'd make a great trainer!"

Ren stifled a snort. Bit of an ironic guess, considering that he was a Pokémon now. "Thanks, Mallow. Maybe sometime in the future, but… not right now." He was considering becoming a trainer since they apparently made good money, but he had too much on his plate right now and no papers to actually get registered as one in the first place. Maybe making illusory documents would work..?

"I get what you mean. I like being a trainer, but I wouldn't wanna battle competitively." Mallow said as she idly poked her cheek. "I think me and Bounsweet prefer just battling whenever we feel like it!"

"It's a lot of fun!" The Pokémon on her shoulder added.

Ren couldn't help but smile a bit at Bounsweet's enthusiastic tone. "I'm sure it is."

Looking back on it now, Mallow reacted a bit oddly to his response, but he didn't think anything of it.

His studying sessions would continue without interruption like this at first, but recently he's been feeling… pretty lightheaded and unwell. Unfortunately for him, food has continued to be rather difficult to come by when he had no money (and he'd rather not steal from people who were just trying to run their business. He was a Phantom Thief, not an actual thief), so he's had to make do with whatever berries he came across on the forest floor during his treks back to his temporary home, and it didn't help that his sleep was always restless, waking up at the slightest rustling of bushes and the frequent nightmares plaguing him. Water wasn't much of an issue, thankfully, since there were a couple of water fountains in the school, but that didn't do much to sate his hunger.

Today was especially bad. He arrived at the school as usual, but he could barely focus on the books in front of him because of how hungry he felt. At least back in Leblanc he could count on Sojiro to feed him something. Already he could see the sky outside turning a dark orange, but he felt like he hadn't retained any info.

"Urgh…" Ren groaned, gently rubbing his temples as he felt his headache spike again. He really felt like laying his head down and taking a nap, but right now he needed to focus. "I'd kill for another malasada right now…"

His (admittedly weak) train of thought was derailed as the door to the library creaked open, forcing his attention over as he watched a familiar head of green hair step through the doorway. Mallow looked across the library before she spotted him with a beaming smile, waving as she walked over. "Alola, Ren! Good to—"

She cut herself off as a flash of worry overtook her face. "Are… you alright, Ren? You don't look so good…"

"Huh?" Ren blinked at her question. Was his exhaustion affecting how his illusion looked? "I-I'm alright, Mallow, just a bit tired is all. It's good to see you."

Unfortunately for him, that didn't do anything to quell the worried look on Mallow's face. Even Bounsweet was looking concerned, the normally energetic grass type looking at him with a frown. "You look like you haven't gotten any sleep in a while… Are you sure you're fine?"

Ren waved her off lazily, sighing. "Yes, I'm…" He stifled a yawn, covering his mouth for a moment. "… Fine, I promise. Just had a rough night yesterday."

Mallow continued to look at him for a moment, almost as if searching for something, before letting out a small sigh and crossing her arms. "Well… if you're sure. At least let me grab you some water or something while you study, and I'm not gonna take no for an answer!"

"I…" He paused. Ren really did want to say that he was okay… but some water did sound nice right about now. Plus, she almost sounded like Futaba whenever she caught him pulling an all nighter for an exam the day before, tugging him out of the chair at his desk and into bed with a strength someone her size shouldn't possess. How could he say no?

"… Would appreciate that, thanks."

Mallow's smile returned with full force, giving him a thumbs up. "It's no problem at all, Ren! I'll be back as soon as I can!"

"You'll feel better soon!" Bounsweet called as the green haired girl quickly dashed out of the library before Ren could even so much as wave in return, once again leaving him alone with his thoughts.

The Zoroark slowly shook his head, chuckling lightly. "And I thought Futaba could be high energy…"

"Alright, Popplio, one more jump!" Lana called out while holding a hula hoop above the school's river, keeping her eyes trained on the small dark-blue shape swimming through the water. Just a few feet away, Professor Kukui was doing the same thing, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched the pair.

'They really do act like they were made for one another…' Kukui thought to himself as Popplio moved closer to the hoop, preparing itself to jump out of the water. Lana normally did these kinds of drills with her Pokémon after school was over, but this was the first time in a while that the professor had decided to watch the two work. It was clear that both Lana and Popplio trusted each other very much.

There was a brief moment of silence, until Popplio burst through the surface of the water with a flourish and seamlessly dove through the hoop. Lana let out a short cheer as the water type hit the water with a small splash, looking up at her with a smile and clapping its flippers together. "That was great, Popplio! You're getting so fast!"

Popplio responded with a short, happy sounding yip.

"Wow, Lana, that was impressive." Kukui said as he walked up to her, clapping lightly. He always loved seeing how well his students got along with their respective partners. "You and Popplio make a stellar team!"

The blue haired girl looked over at the sound of Kukui's voice, looking up at him with surprise. "Professor Kukui! I didn't realize you were watching,"

"Well, I saw the two of you practicing on my way out, so I thought I'd stop by to see how you're doing! And by the looks of things," the professor looked over to Popplio as it jumped back onto dry land, shaking itself off with a bark. "You two are doing excellent!"

Lana smiled warmly at the praise, leaning down to pet the seal on the head. "Thank you, professor! It was all Popplio, though."

"While it may be Popplio doing the swimming, you're the one giving him a Helping Hand." Kukui replied as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Don't forget that a trainer and their Pokémon are two pieces of the same puzzle!"

Lana chuckled and nodded as she gently picked up Popplio off the floor, nodding to the professor. She opened her mouth to respond but paused, glancing behind Kukui with a curious look in her eyes. "Huh… I wonder what Mallow's doing?"

Kukui blinked and glanced over his back, trying to see what Lana was talking about. About a dozen yards away walked Mallow, holding what looked like a glass of water with a slightly worried look on her face. She was staring down at the water as it sloshed back and forth inside the cup, looking like she was barely even paying attention to where she was going.

Instantly, Kukui's instincts as a teacher were on edge. 'Something's definitely on her mind…' He thought to himself. Normally, Mallow would have gone home by now, but it was obvious that something was worrying her.

So what kind of professor would he be if he didn't see what was wrong?

Kukui turned back to Lana with an apologetic smile. "I'm gonna see if she needs anything, alright? Sorry to cut our chat short, Lana."

"It's fine, professor. Tell Mallow I said hi!" The blue haired teen replied with a slight nod, the seal in her arms barking in turn.

Kukui nodded back and turned to jog after Mallow, his lab coat flowing behind with each step he took. Maybe something was going on at her family's restaurant? That wouldn't explain the glass of water that she wasn't drinking from, though.

"Mallow, Alola!" The professor called as he got closer, snapping Mallow out of whatever thoughts were swirling in her head. Her green hair swayed as she stopped in her tracks and glanced back, almost looking startled for a moment before she realized who was talking to her.

"O-Oh! Alola, professor!" She greeted as Kukui stepped up to her, the worried expression on her face replaced with a warm smile. Her partner did the same on her shoulder, trilling happily at the professor. "What's going on?"

Kukui stifled a frown as he lightly crossed his arms. That smile wasn't doing much to mask the worry in her eyes. "I could ask you the same thing. What's got you staying behind today? I don't normally see you around this late."

Mallow's smile faltered almost as soon as he asked that, glancing back down at the glass of water in her hands. "Ah, well, it's… nothing major, really. Just bringing some water to someone I've met recently."

"Someone you've met?" Kukui repeated, his interest piqued as he lightly rubbed his chin. "And here I thought you would've known everyone on the island by now with how popular your parent's restaurant is. Who could this mysterious new someone be?"

"I'm not sure if you've met him… His name's Ren Amamiya." She told him, with Bounsweet trilling in affirmation. "He said he's visiting Alola with his parents, but he's spent most of his time here since he doesn't want to fall behind on his schoolwork."

Kukui's brow furrowed in thought. Ren Amamiya… wasn't that the Kantonian kid he met a few days ago when he was returning a book to the library? "Funny you mention that, I actually did meet your new friend earlier this week. He told me the same thing about visiting."

From what he remembered, his interaction with Ren was a bit… strange. Something about the way he acted set off alarm bells in his head, like something was wrong that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Oh, really?" Mallow replied, her eyes widening a bit. This was quickly smothered under that same concerned look she had a few minutes ago, however. "Well, this water's for him, and… if I'm being honest, professor, I'm a bit worried about him. I've only known him for a few days, but…"

The professor kneeled down a bit so he could get down to eye level with her, resting his arm on his knee. "What's got you so worried for him?"

Mallow was silent for a brief moment before she sighed. "There's just something… off with him today. Like he hasn't been eating or sleeping well. The past couple of days it hasn't been as bad when I went to go say hi, but…"

Kukui frowned. That… didn't sound good at all, to say the least. He did recall Ren being strangely apprehensive and dodgy whenever he asked questions about why the kid was visiting the Pokémon School in the first place… Just what was going on?

'Guess there's really only one way to find out…' Kukui reached out and reassuringly squeezed Mallow's shoulder, smiling as he stood. "Why don't we go see him together? Maybe we could find out if he's doing alright."

The green haired teen looked up at him for a moment before nodding, smiling a bit. "If you're sure, professor!"

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

The sound of the clock pounded against Ren's skull as he stared blankly at the book on the table, the information held within its pages looking like nothing but gibberish at this point to his tired, bag-laden eyes.

The disguised Zoroark was truly starting to feel his exhaustion take its toll. His body felt like lead, his forehead throbbing every now and then, his stomach churning as it growled for any kind of sustenance. The berries in the forest were good for a temporary energy boost, sure, but he really needed something more substantial.

"Ugh…" He groaned, rubbing his eyes to try and fight off some of the sluggishness. "How long have I been here..?"

He glanced over to the clock on the wall. It had only been twenty minutes since Mallow left to grab him some water.

Ren sighed, exasperated. It felt like hours had passed already, and yet he was getting nothing done. Maybe he should head back to his spot in the forest and try to get some extra sleep in..?

His ears perked under his illusion as he heard the door to the library creak open once more. Ren slowly turned to say hello, expecting Mallow to be back, but to his surprise she wasn't alone now. Professor Kukui stood in the doorway with a friendly smile, with Mallow following close behind.

"Oh, uh… hello, professor," Ren lightly waved, a bit confused as to what he was doing here.

"Alola, Ren! Good to see you're still keeping up with the studying." Kukui said as he stepped into the library. Mallow stepped past him and smiled as she came over to the desk, setting the glass of water she was carrying down. Bounsweet took the opportunity to hop off of her shoulder, moving close to Ren's arm as it started emitting a very pleasant scent that wafted up to his nose.

"Sorry I took so long, Ren!" Mallow said apologetically, clasping her arms in front of her. "I got a bit sidetracked by the professor. He wanted to, uh, talk about something."

Normally, Ren would've noticed the way she paused in the middle of her last sentence, but with the exhaustion muddling his mind he only nodded in response, lazily waving her off. "'s fine. Thanks." The Zoroark leaned forward and took a long quaff of the water, gasping lightly as it left his illusioned mouth. He definitely needed that…

"It's no problem, really!" Mallow replied, rubbing the back of her neck. "Hopefully that helps you feel a bit better. I know you said you were alright earlier, but… I'm still a bit worried about you."

Ah, right. He supposed he didn't really do a convincing job of telling her he was okay… He really wasn't used to being worried over by other people. Usually he was the one doing the worrying between all his friends.

Kukui took this moment to speak up, his hands resting in his coat pockets. "That's actually why I'm here with her. From the sound of things, you haven't really been taking the best care of yourself lately… is everything going okay with your family trip?"

Ren had to bite back a slight cringe, a bit of panic flooding through his veins. How in the world was he supposed to get out of this one without sounding like an insane person? He couldn't exactly say 'actually, I'm not on a family trip, I've actually been transported to this world from my own by an evil god, and to top it all off I'm not even human!'

"It's…" He started, tapping his fingers anxiously on the wood of the desk. "Nothing major, honestly. Just been dealing with some night terrors."

Unfortunately, that's when his stomach finally decided to speak up, a loud growl coming from his middle that made him groan a bit and instinctively hold a hand to his torso. 'Traitor…' He thought to himself, grumbling lightly. "... I forgot to have lunch today."

As expected, that didn't do much at all to quell the worried looks on both Kukui's and Mallow's faces, the two of them glancing between each other. The professor looked like he was having an internal debate with himself, one hand on his chin and one arm crossed over his chest. "Well… I think it would still be for the best if you took a break from studying for today. Sounds like you've been at it for hours already."

"Yeah, go out and have some fun! It's Alola, after all, you should be enjoying your trip while it lasts!" Mallow followed up.

… Well, Kukui was right that he had been at it for a while and he hadn't made much progress at all. It was probably for the best that he headed 'home' and tried to get some sleep. As much as he wanted more info about this strange, convoluted world, he wasn't getting anything done in a state like this.

"I guess you're right, yeah…" Ren said, subconsciously rubbing his forehead and stifling a yawn. Man, his exhaustion really was starting to catch up with him… "I probably should head out. Get something to eat."

"That's probably for the best." Kukui nodded with a small smile, then suddenly snapped his fingers, brow raising as if realizing something. "Actually, if your parents would be alright with it, I could take you over to my place for the night! I could whip us something up really quick and I've got a spare room for you to sleep in."

Now it was Ren's turn to raise his brow. 'That… sounded almost too good to be true.' If he were in any other situation, he'd probably turn down the offer since he barely knew the guy. But, honestly, anything was better than another night of sleeping on a damp forest floor. He seemed like a nice enough professor, anyway. "I… think it'll be fine. As long as I'm not intruding."

The professor quickly broke out into a full on friendly grin now, clapping his hands together. "It's no problem at all! It's usually just me and Rockruff anyway, so it'll be nice to have a little company."

"... Well, if you're sure," Ren said as he slowly got to his feet, stretching out his back after sitting all day with a groan. He tried to ignore his headache as he turned to Kukui with his hands in his pockets. "I'm ready to go whenever."

"It's not too far from here. Just Follow Me, and we'll get there in no time!"

Mallow let out a groan.

So sorry for the long wait on this one! Motivation left me for a good minute but I'm starting to get back into a groove. I hope you all enjoy!