The World Flows Through Me

by Social Coyote

Alola is a region of beauty and connection, but how much can spirituality and scenic views really fix? Moon must find out whether or not Alola can truly solve the pains life has thrown at her, or if she's beholden to fate after all. She's not the only one with something to run from however, and soon she may question whether she's running from fate, or towards it.

15. Mysteries and Dungeons

Chapter 15: Mysteries and Dungeons

---

"There once was an eevee named Love

Such care and adoration he gave.

One day he left and I bought a pathetic little umbreon named Grief,

And I beheld that precious eevee had evolved."

~ Penny "Cassiopeia" Aphelion, "Life Will Not Stop for Either of Us" ~

---

It was late evening on Melemele, and the all-too familiar sounds of dusk were starting to make themselves known as the sun set a slowly dimming orange sky across the island. Bug-types creaked from the Mahalo trail while the occasional lone call of a toucannon signaled the end of another day for humans and pokemon alike. From his lanai, Hala could watch as the residents of Iki passed by either making their way home for the evening or heading off to work a nightly shift somewhere. He liked sitting there in the evenings, waving to folk who wished him a good evening and chortling at those who called out banter regarding the local sports teams. It was an easy way to be present in the lives of his neighbors, subtly letting them know he was still keeping an eye on things for them.

He sat in a rocker with only his blue tank-top and shorts, a small glass of traditional okolehao in one hand with a single ice cube swirling around in it. The warmth of the day's end was pleasant, welcoming even, and he chuckled inwardly as he realized how old he must truly be getting if sitting outside made him feel the need for a good nap. In truth, he had been taking a break from the more business oriented part of being a kahuna: emails, meetings, and the countless overviews of local events and celebrations. Not that he minded these things deep down, as most were welcome breaks from some of the more task-riddled responsibilities of a kahuna, but even he needed a brief respite from it all to remind himself what it was all for.

Just as he stretched his arms and prepared to return inside, a sudden buzzing from his pocket stopped him from rising and he hurriedly shoved his free hand in to pull out his phone. It was stuck in there well enough that by the time he did pull it out, he didn't even have time to look at who was actually calling him before he put it up to his ear. If he was lucky, it was a telemarketer. If he was not, it would surely be someone needing him to be somewhere immediately.

"Alola, dis be Hala. What can do fo' you?" he asked, taking a small sip of his drink.

"Alola, Hala. We need to have ourselves a little chat." The voice on the other end was flat, gravelly, and somehow worse than a telemarketer or an urgent call for assistance.

"Ah. Nanu." Hala grumbled, dropping his natural accent in favor of the more casual one he used when speaking with those who weren't local. Nanu might've been Alolan born and raised, but he hardly acted the part, instead preferring the more mainland-styled accent he'd gathered from his time working overseas. Nestling himself deeper into his chair, he silently wished he'd looked at the caller ID after all. "To what do I owe the pleasure? You're not exactly the 'social call' type."

"Hmph, pleasure. We both know you don't like talking to me, no point in fake pleasantries. I'm only here out of obligation – a gesture of good will, from one kahuna to another. Heh." Hala frowned; that kind of attitude was precisely why he avoided conversations with his fellow kahuna. "I just thought I'd drop in, give you a bit of advice. I don't really care if you take it or not."

Hala sighed, setting down his glass and pinching his nose. "Yes, Nanu, I'm listening. You have my full undivided attention."

"Fantastic. Glad that makes one of us. Anyway, heard you went and let a little rattata slip through your grasp. Had her in your neck of the woods and everything and she got away last night, slipped off on a boat, didn't she? Hell, I even heard your grandson might have been seen with her. Losing your edge, ain'tcha?" Nanu's voice rasped. You could rarely tell when he was being sarcastic or genuine, which was another reason Hala avoided the man. He didn't appreciate games, not with serious matters at least. "That, or you're playing one hell of a game over there."

"I'm not sure I follow," Hala said slowly with teeth clenched.

"Sure you do. Don't get me wrong now, pawning that responsibility off on Olivia? That's a clever gambit, and I respect it – hell, that's what I would have done. But, you know what I like more than dropping my problems on other islands?" He paused, and Hala did not bother to answer. He knew Nanu wouldn't care either way. "Not having problems slip onto my island to begin with. Now I can see where this is going; little punk scurries from island to island, probably blending in with that gaggle of kids you got doing the island challenge, but there's a whole trail of tauros shit that comes with that. Late shifts, extra patrols, fucking wanted posters if its comes to it…"

"I can't tell if you're implying that I purposefully let a criminal wander loose on my island, or that I am trying to smuggle them through the region for my own benefit," Hala began, feeling his cheeks redden in indignation. "The matter is far more complicated than I think you are aware, Nanu, and I struggle to imagine how you even know about this to begin with. The problem was mine, as it took place on my island, and though she-"

"Yeah, well, now it's looking like it'll become all our problems," Nanu cut across. "Look, I don't care for the details, all I know is that if something that requires the International Police comes knocking, that's not something I want to deal with, no siree. Agents and uppity bootlickers coming to my island and turning it into the circus? Best to nip that in the bud." He paused and let out a breath, no doubt taking a puff of a cigarette. "So, out of courtesy, I'm asking you to maybe get a handle on the situation so I don't have to. Because man, arresting your grandson and his pals for aiding and abetting? Maybe even collusion? Not fun."

"... I do not take kindly to threats, Nanu," Hala murmured, his hand squeezing the plastic phone to the point that it creaked. Or maybe that was the sound of his teeth pressing into each other from the unbridled fury that was slowly bubbling within him. Nanu had never been well-liked for his attitude towards his duty, nor the way he spoke to others, but this was drawing a line in the sand.

"Nah, nah see you're missing the point of this," Nanu replied, and his voice was muffled for a moment as he clearly repositioned from wherever he was sitting. "I'm not doing this to be a dick, I'm genuinely letting you know that's what I'm going to have to do for the uh, 'safety' of my island. Now obviously, I don't wanna do that, but arresting a couple of kids is a lot easier on me than playing detective for a month and a half. Stopping this mess before it even gets to my island? Even easier." He let out a yawn, not a care in the world to be heard in his voice despite what he said. "Help me help you. I know it's off island now, but maybe talk to Oliva, huh? Get this brat in cuffs so that damn charity nutcase will stop breathing down all our necks. Cheers."

Click.

Hala pulled the phone away and looked down to see that his fellow kahuna had indeed hung up. He groaned and stuffed it back in his pocket, running his hand down his face and silently rethinking every decision he had made in the past few months. He glanced at his glass, wondering if it was worth pouring another cup to help swallow everything he had just heard, on top of the regular workload he was having to deal with due to his position. He grunted aloud, instead reaching back into his pocket and pulling out his phone once more. With a few clicks, he found the number he had been looking for and pressed his thumb into the 'Call' button.

Calling: Oliva…

---

"She's never gonna fall for it."

"She will if you shut up and keep your voice down, watch."

The afternoon sky was starting to darken as rain clouds blew in over Akala, slowly but surely dampening the sun's rays. It was just past three in the afternoon, and just as the weatherman had predicted an afternoon bout of rain was set to hit within the hour. While the looming weather nixed most of the Hano Grand Resort's outdoor activities and performances, the establishment did pride itself on the grand scope of its interior forms of entertainment (As several staff members were quick to reiterate to grumbling guests) as much as it did its exterior ones. From luxurious restaurants, to bars, spas, stages, to even two whole fitness centers, the Hano Grand resort had it all.

For Moon though, she didn't really care about all that. Sure, she supposed they were cool and all if you wanted to do nothing but relax for a couple of hours, but two days in the Hano had already left her more than a little stir crazy. She wasn't old enough to get into the bar (she'd tried) and she had a feeling whatever comedian or performer was set for that evening wouldn't exactly be catered to the sense of humor or enjoyment of a fourteen year old. Thankfully for her, Hau had suggested they take the afternoon to try out what he called, "the cheapest and most involved form of entertainment since 'Market Control: The Boardgame'." That, of course, was a game called 'Mysteries and Dungeons'.

Hau had explained the rules of the game and helped them create their characters as soon as they had agreed to give it a shot upon seeing the forecast. Moon didn't really understand it, but Hau assured her that if they all enjoyed it they could make it a regular thing as they traveled, and over time they'd come to know the rules as well as him.

After securing a slight heap of snacks and drinks from a vending machine, they had gone up and down the corridor outside their suite searching for the standard beige ice machine that every motel seemed to have, only to realize the Hano Grand Resort had no such thing. A passing member of the resort's staff told them that ice could be delivered straight to their rooms from the ice machine outside, but Moon declined; she'd had enough of being tended to hand and foot, not to mention she'd had a delightful idea. So it was that with a little white lie to Lillie, and the gathering of a plastic grocery bag, the three descended outside to the big white metal container featuring a snowy-white vulpix and the word "ICE" in big red letters.

"I don't think it's functioning either, you guys. Nothing is coming out," Lillie said disheartenedly from where she stood, a plastic bag spread wide in her hands and held up to the metal chute. A few feet away, Moon felt her lips crease into a smirk as Hau desperately tried not to give into his giggles.

"No no, trust me, it just takes a minute. Don't close the bag, you'll let the ice go everywhere," Moon said, giving her a big thumbs up. Hau snorted and Moon quickly elbowed him in the ribs. "Shaddup, shaddafucup." Lillie sighed and continued spreading the small bag, holding the lever down with her armpit in what was obviously an uncomfortable manner.

"... I don't see why this is so obtuse," Lillie murmured, readjusting her legs. "You would think a resort that prides itself as much as the Hano would have something a little less complex just for gathering ice. Do adults not prefer ice for their beverages; is it not common enough to warrant ease of access? We will have to practically race to the room just to ensure that it does not melt!"

"Eh, it's a rich people resort. They probably just get their assistants and attendants to get the ice," Moon said with a light chuckle. Lillie turned her head and glared at her.

"If that is true, then perhaps I should have the both of you over here instead, given as you are the ones who I had to name as my retainers just so we looked the part," she huffed. "At the very least could one of you hold the lever down? It's very cold and uncomfortable under my arm and-"

"Watch it, hold it hold it hold it - hold the bag!" Moon and Hau both called out and pointed forward as the rumbling of the machine whirred up, indicating incoming ice. Lillie quickly stretched forward with the bag spread wide as the rumbling grew louder and louder, until finally from out of the metal funnel a huge bag of ice suddenly shot down, into the metal tray beside her.

Moon and Hau quickly broke down into hysterics, leaning on one another as their knees threatened to buckle under the weight of their combined laughter. She slapped Hau's back as her eyes bulged out of her skull, her free hand firmly planted onto her knee to stay upright. Lillie stared down at her empty grocery bag, and then the pre-packaged bag of ice neatly dispensed in the tray without so much as a word.

"G-gotcha!" Moon managed through her laughter. She had to clasp her cheeks with her fingers as her lips started to hurt from the strain of smiling. When Lillie still said nothing, a part of Moon began to fear that perhaps they had gone too far – she hadn't forgotten Lillie's less than pleased reaction at her water bottle trick after all. After a moment Lillie finally turned around to face them, plastic bag still in hand, with her eyes lidded in endearment and a soft smile across her face.

"You two are… actually unbelievable, I've found," she said, shaking her head as she walked past the giggling pair. Hau hefted the ice over his shoulder, following behind as Moon and Lillie led the way through the resort's gardens back to the hotel. The wind had already started to blow along the way, and the sky finally opened just as they ascended the wooden walkways leading to plaza, and the three of them quickly broke into a sprint with Lillie tightly gripping the brim of her hat to prevent it flying away. Moon and Hau shook off their sudden wetness as they made it inside, desperate to return to the comfort and warmth of their suite as Lillie refused to, "act like a pokemon" in such an establishment.

Once they arrived back at the suite, Lillie quietly excused herself to the bathroom to dry while Moon and Hau got comfortable on the living room couch. Chlorine sat snugly in a recliner with Alonzo the litten with the cartoons Moon had left on for them still playing, while Kickback and Calliope the rockruffs were passed out beside one another in the corner of the sectional. Moon smiled at them, noticing the way Kickback had his head over his sister's protectively as they slept. Calliope had still yet to truly show any signs of play or excitement, which worried Moon, but at least when Kickback was with her she didn't whine. Draping a blanket over the both of them, Moon flopped on the other end.

"Don't you need like, a big cardboard divider or something?" Moon asked Hau as he pulled out his phone and began writing things down on a notepad. He didn't look up at her as he shook his head, pulling out a coin, a shot glass he'd taken from the cabinet, and several dice.

"Nah, that's mostly for hiding rolls and having the rules right there where I can read them. But, I've got everything in my head and on my phone, so… we should be good to go. Shot glass or coin?" He offered them forward and Moon blinked, but she had barely opened her mouth before Hau decided for her and handed her the glass. "Nevermind, already know what you'll want. These are going to represent your characters, since I don't have any tokens or minis on me, yeah?"

Moon would have, in fact, chosen the shot glass.

The door to the bathroom creaked open, and the nervous eyes of Lillie peeked out from within as she mumbled, "A-am I set to appear yet?" Hau raised an eyebrow but chuckled, motioning for her to take a seat beside Moon. Moon, having no problems whatsoever with this, hastily made room.

"It's not a play, sister. You don't have to get all into it – unless you want to, of course." He slid the coin over to Lillie who looked at it peculiarly as she slowly made her way over towards the couch, and took her seat beside Moon. "But, if you want to go ahead and introduce your characters, I'll get some music going to set the mood. Like I said, it doesn't have to be elaborate, just let yourself get into the groove. We're just going to call this a little trial run for you two, yeah?" He began tapping away on his phone as the gentle lull of the rain tapping against the glass window leading out to the lanai instilled a sense of tranquility across their living room suite.

Despite the relaxing atmosphere, Lillie looked over at Moon with a twinge of embarrassment on her face that had no right being as cute as it was. "Um, I apologize, but perhaps you could- I mean, if you wouldn't mind, that is… consider going up first? I'm uh, not very well rehearsed in… performances. I-in front of others, that is, as I certainly wouldn't have sang the other day had I known -" But Moon playfully (and gently) punched her shoulder.

"Don't sweat it, I was born to perform. Well, music, I think. Not really board games, but hey! I'm a performer at heart!" With a swift popping of her fingers, Moon puffed out her chest and put her hands on her hips, smiling proudly. "I am Bwarkus the Maelstrom, a super old warrior popplio who has spent too many years kicking ass, and now seeks an honorable death in combat. He likes beer-"

"Fermented berry juice," Hau corrected from his music-searching.

"He likes fermented berry juice, pretty ladies, and wrestling with the city's guards as a personal pass time. Oh, and according to my sheet he's a 'bard'," Moon announced, looking at Lillie and giving a fake bow to her. "How was that? Dramatic? Inspiring? Super embarrassing to watch and mildly childish?" Lillie gave her an awkward smile, but patted her shoulder encouragingly as she was clearly glad the focus had been taken off of her.

"A uh, a bit of a combination of all three, yes. B-but you did good!" Lillie assured as Hau gave Moon the thumbs up. "Though, I must ask, why is your character so old but still a popplio? Should he not have evolved by this point, if he has reached the point of being venerable?" But Moon merely shook her head.

"Hey, age doesn't always equate to the stage of an evolution. Also, Hau said we had to start as the first stage of a pokemon." She shrugged, cracking open one of the Dr. Pelippers they had on standby and pouring it into the fancy wine glasses they'd taken from the cabinets. For some reason, the suite was quite low on actual cupware. Suddenly a burst of fantastical medieval music sprouted from the hallway, and out from Lillie's bedroom came Rotom as he floated around the three of them, hopping and spinning while the music continued to play.

"Zzrrrt! Hau was taking too long, so I found some suitable fantasy music instead! Haha, guess that makes me the real bard around here, huh?" Rotom buzzed, muffling the music each time he spoke. Moon glared up at the obnoxious electronic.

"How do I roll to attack him?"

"Nah nah, hang on," Hau said, holding up a hand. "He actually might be a Dungeon Master's best friend, if he can take care of the music while I focus on running the game."

"He's got 'Unregistered Hypercam2' at the top left part of his screen for God's sake… why is he even out here?"

A tiny 'ahem' from beside Moon caught their attention, and they watched as Lillie held out her hands. She welcomed the rotom-dex into her palms,as she gently propped him on her knees and began scrolling. She flashed Moon and Hau a sheepish look, before turning him around so they could see her screen.

"I um, I could not find a sheet of paper big enough, and as you are both using electronics I figured Rotom would suffice." Sure enough, the numbers and boxes were all neatly filled out on Rotom's screen, much to Moon's displeasure. "Shall I… begin then? Um…" With a quiet little cough, Lillie straightened herself beside Moon and looked further down at the screen as Hau began playing thematic music quietly from his phone.

"M-My character, her name is… um, Lady Asmera of the- of House Glacialrift. She is a um, I suppose she is an Alolan vulpix, cast away from her family home after they strayed from their family code, and now she seeks to redeem them from their malevolent ways. Oh! She is a 'cleric' of… I believe Articuno." She interlaced her fingers and sat back, flashing Moon an anxious smile as if to ask 'How was that?' to which Moon happily gave a double thumbs up. Then Moon stopped and thought for a second.

"You know this game is for escaping reality, right?" she deadpanned. Lillie harrumphed and swatted at her shoulder, eliciting a mischievous giggle from Moon just as Hau gave an approving nod, and motioned for the both of them to offer their attention while he raised his hands to set the stage. The lights did not dim any, but the sound of the rain outside and the cool temperature of the suite gave off a brisk and shivery feeling that made Moon want to curl a blanket around her shoulders and cozy up somewhere like her rockruffs.

"We'll be starting this adventure in a land called the Haze Continent, a land full of pokemon – and only pokemon – of every kind, from the lowliest bug-type to the mightiest dragon. The Haze Continent is known for the thick fog that blankets the land, never receding and always visible, whether you're out on the sea or scaling a mountain; the haze prevails," Hau announced, his voice dropping to a quiet, almost somber tone that Moon rarely heard him use. "If the gloomy fog were not enough of a blight upon the land, recently a civil war has stirred in the corners of the continent, and is slowly spreading from town to town. Taverns and inns are frequent with whispers that the god, Zeraora-"

"Who?" Moon asked before she could help herself. Lillie gave her a look and put a finger to her lips, but Hau paused his introduction as a look of surprise had overtaken his muted expression.

"Hold on, you don't know who Zeraora is?" Hau asked, resting a hand on his knee. "Sister, come on, I know your mom had to have read you some of the Alolan fables growing up, yeah? The Taboo Tapu, Menehune, Zerarora and the Crystal Dragon? Maaaaan, you missed out on a childhood right there." He shook his head in mock pity as Moon quickly tried to recover her metaphorical Alolan childhood past.

"Wha- nah, I heard the stories growing up! I just, kinda liked hearing the one about the three lycanrocs the most." Now it was her turn to give a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of her head as she avoided their gazes. "I had my mom tell me that one so many times, I still know it by heart, actually, but uh… that's besides the point. Who's Zeraora, anyway?" She looked to Hau for an explanation, but to the surprise of the both of them, it was Lillie who spoke up.

"Zeraora is the trickster god of Alola, born from an erupting volcano after a bolt of lightning struck it. He is often portrayed as selfish and mischievous, caring only for his own amusement often at the cost of the denizens of the islands, and I believe the term 'lolo' in the region's pidgin dialect stems from an old pronunciation of his name." She blinked and looked at the other two, realizing that they were both staring at her in complete shock. "What? W-Was that incorrect?"

The girl who has never stepped foot in a school knows more about my culture than I do?!

"Exactly the opposite, sister!" Hau said, looking somewhat proud. "I didn't even know that about the 'lolo' part, but it makes sense since he was said to be wild, crazy, and just plain old irraz. But yeah, he's the trickster god. Pretty much every culture has got one; the Infernape King from Sinnoh, Kalos has Hoopa and his six rings, and uh… I think Thundurus counts for Unova? Maybe?" He gave a shrug.

"How'd you know about that anyway? You're showing me up over here." Moon pouted, and Lillie gave an embarrassed little smile and pulled a book from her duffel, holding it up to show them all the cover. The book itself was frayed and clearly had seen plenty of use given its many scrapes and busted edges that littered its cover, though the outline of a leaping cat-like pokemon and some kind of dragon-type were still visible despite the age. The cover read, 'Alolan Fables for Kids'.

"This was one of the books Ilima loaned me whilst we were in Hau'oli. It's not exactly complex reading material, but it certainly is interesting. There's even footnotes added in from the author that give context and history to a lot of the fables, which is wonderful! Although…" She frowned suddenly, flipping the book back over and looking at the cover. "I fear now I might not be able to return this to him. Not in a reasonable time, at least."

Ugh, I don't want anything to do with that book if it's his, culture be damned. Persnickety prick.

"Would you like me to read it to you sometime, Moon?" Lillie asked, her frown giving way to subdued excitement. "Not that you cannot read it on your own, but I thought it might be a fun way for us to both learn about your culture together!"

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE-

"Yeah, sure I'm game," Moon said, taking a large gulp of her soda filled wine-glass to hide whatever damning evidence was likely taking place on her face. She gave a wave of the hand, deliberately avoiding Lillie's curious gaze. "Anyway, trickster god. Got it, carry on. Sorry for interrupting." Hau accepted her apology with a nod, and gave a short cough into his hand as he readied to begin his introduction once more.

"Right, so, word in the taverns and inns is that Zeraora is stirring trouble, but nobody quite knows why. You both have been privy to this supposed influence though, uh… we'll start with Bwarkus. Bwarkus, while you're out on the road-"

A sudden jingle cut through the fantasy music like a razor leaf, but rather than having rang from the rotom-dex, both Hau and Lillie slowly turned to look at Moon as the jingle continued emanating from within Moon's pocket. Whispering curses, Moon frantically reached inside her stupidly tight pockets to turn off her phone, but when she finally managed to pull it out and look at the screen, her thumb hovered over the red button.

Mom is calling.

Moon leapt up from the couch and practically tripped over her sleeping rockruffs as she hurried over to the front door of the suite; the game, soda, and snacks all but forgotten.

"Moon, are you alright?"

"Oh, for sure. Gotta take this, go on and start with Lillie, I'll be right back," Moon said, her words spilling out without thinking as she opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. She barely thought ahead far enough to grab the room card as she left. As she turned, she saw the looks of exasperation on her friends faces had turned to that of concern and condolence, but it barely registered with her. Her mind was running too fast to quit, she hardly realized she was walking away from the door and just absently down the hall. Her eyes were glued to the screen, staring down at the call she'd been hoping to avoid since the day prior. Or… had she been hoping for it?

That was kind of the sick cycle of perspective that Moon couldn't shake herself from. On the one hand, she had been expecting about thirty-five missed calls once she charged her phone and actually took a look at it, only to see that she was thirty-five calls short. Almost every teen knew the fear of a string of missed calls from a parent or guardian, but she hadn't heard anyone describe the absolute uncertainty and dread that came with no missed calls when she absolutely should have had at least a couple. Now, finally, she had a call. Just one.

On the other hand, she could pretend to be the carefree, punk-rock, confident girl all she wanted in front of the others, but… she missed her mother. She hated that she ran away, she hated that her mother had gone behind her back, but most of all she hated that they had parted in such a subdued way. Maybe that was a part of growing up, realizing that not everything ended with bangs and climatic confrontations. Sometimes things happened with fizzles and whimpers, unsatisfying partings and an irritating lack of closure. Naturally, that just made her desire to fix it, to want to try and do things amicably. To salvage.

It was human to yearn to seek a satisfying conclusion, just as it was human to be scared of that same yearning. That was the most obnoxious thing about being human; the indecisiveness. Pokemon probably didn't worry about being indecisive; being hesitant could get a pokemon killed out in the wild and as such there was no room for it, while being a human meant that you could get a mid-life crisis or the wrong flavor of ice cream. Or, in this case, could forever wait to choose between two feelings when neither one would really make her as happy as she hoped.

She sighed, running her hand through her hair instinctively – only to quickly pull it back. From a third perspective, she was lucky to have a choice at all. Some people didn't have the opportunity to choose to reconnect with a loved one, as she had learned so recently. Once she had finally taken a breath and prepared herself, she saw that trailing through her thoughts had led to her waiting too long, and thus, she had missed the call after all.

You're thinking too much. Stop that, it's bad for your health.

Then again, this was an excellent excuse to put it off even longer. Who could blame her for avoiding a phone call like this? She was fourteen, this was practically expected of her: a freebie, even. But no, her mother had probably worried enough, and it wasn't like Moon didn't give her reasons to worry for her health without running away and attacking a family friend. No, she'd belted out the chords, and now it was time to face the music.

Her thumb flicked the "Call back" button and began to gently ring its stale, flat tone. Of course, with her luck her mother wouldn't pick up for some reason or another, and she'd be in a pit of her own making. Would she try again? At least once would be courteous, but anything else might seem desperate, and at least she'd have the excuse that she tried right after her mother had-

Click.

"..."

Oh Arceus what had she done.

"... Hey, Moon."

"... Hi, Mom."

She waited, patiently and respectfully accepting the hellish cacophony of yelling and crying that would inevitably sound out from her phone's speakers, except it didn't. Moon began to realize that it would never come, and somehow that was concerning in an entirely different way. To go from dreading what she anticipated, to the anxiety of not knowing what would happen, was truly her least favorite way for such a phone call to play out.

The silence between them was suffocating, and she wondered if her mother felt the same on the other end of the line. She could sit there and wonder for another couple of minutes, or she could actually speak up and just ask like a regular person, but it was surprisingly hard. Moon was at a loss for words, something that anyone who knew her would say happened once in a lifetime, but what was she supposed to say? An apology would feel like she was admitting defeat, asking how her mother was doing would be insensitive, and anything else just felt like dodging the question or just downright rude.

That was another thing about choosing: sometimes you just had to, even when all of your options sucked.

"Was wondering when I would get a call from you. I expected like, a hundred texts and missed calls, you know," she said, leaning against the wall as a couple passed her in the hall. "Or, you know, an island-wide manhunt with you leading the charge in your truck. Unless that's actually what you're doing; should I be nervously peering through a set of blinds right now?" she asked, only half joking. From the other end of the call, Moon heard her mother sigh, and she wondered if she was sitting out in her usual spot on the lanai, or propped up against the kitchen counter.

"A good mother probably would have done that… one, or both, I don't know." There was a clinking and a shifting that Moon couldn't quite decipher, but her mother continued. "Don't get me wrong, I wanted to. It was my first instinct when I came home and you weren't there, and all of your stuff was packed up and gone along with Lillie… but that just confirmed what I already knew. I knew you'd gone off to continue your trials, hell, I knew when I pulled out of the driveway you probably wouldn't be there when I got back."

Moon stood against the wall, her feeble attempts at lightheartedness fading out. That explained the awkwardness and underlying tension of their last conversation.

"If you knew, why didn't you… I don't know, stop me?" Moon murmured. "Lock my door, ground my ass… put a parental lock on my phone, I don't know." The laugh that came through the phone speaker was hollow, devoid of any real mirth, and one her mother used far too often.

"Because I'm not stupid, Moon. I know my daughter, I literally carried you in my belly for nine months and have the stretch marks to prove it. I could have grounded you, taken your phone, your pokemon, your laptop, and put bars over your window, and I'm sure you still would have found a way out." Well, she wasn't wrong there. "It's half the reason I let you go initially in the first place. Disregarding the fact that I never wanted to lock you up… I never wanted to chain and tether you, you know that – I hope you know that. I just… it felt like-"

"Like you had to," Moon finished for her. She remembered what her mother had said on the first day of her journey. "Yeah, no… I get it, I guess. Maybe."

"So, yeah, I didn't bother hitting you with a hundred phone calls. I knew you probably wouldn't answer anyway, not right away at least, so I… gave you a few days." There was an audible exhale on the other end, and another clink. Her mother wasn't drinking… was she? "Kept telling myself I needed to know where you were, and what you were doing, but… eventually I told myself it was no different than when you were on your first trial. At least then I was on the same island, and the GPS on your pokedex was still on. Clever little shit."

Moon winced, but she couldn't help but smile slightly as she realized she had in fact been smart enough to do that. "Yeeeeah, I guess that was more because I was worried about you giving it to the cops or whatever." Moon suddenly remembered the reason that this had all transpired in the first place; not just because her mother was worried about her, but because of Lillie. The police, the house visit, the fact that her mother had planned on handing Lillie over. Her smile dissipated.

"Are you going to get in trouble?" she asked a little stiffly. "With the police, since you told them you'd hand Lillie over, and then she wasn't there anymore…" Even as betrayed and hurt as she felt, she didn't want her mother to get in trouble with the police for something stupid she had done. Lillie obviously didn't either; she knew the poor girl would lose it if her mother got put behind bars for their daring little escape. "You uh, you can tell them it was all me. I'm the one who snuck her out, after all, and I… might've also prevented Kukui from doing the exact same thing, so, I'm probably already a criminal. And to think I made all those jokes about going on a crime spree…"

Her mother let out a sigh that came out as slightly static through the phone. "Let's… not talk about Kukui, right now, for both of our sakes. But um, no, I'm pretty sure I won't be going to jail anytime soon. I flat out told them you ran out after you figured out I'd planned on barring you, but that I didn't know if Lillie was with you. Which was pretty much a lie, I knew she was…" Moon silently damned her obvious crushing; she always knew one day it'd get her in trouble. "But obviously I don't want you getting arrested either, so please for the love of all the Tapu, do not do anything stupid around them."

"But Lillie's-"

"No 'buts'. Moon, this is serious. Whatever the reasoning for why did what she did, it was still a crime. If they want to question her, or detain her, you cannot directly stand in the way of that otherwise you're going to get lumped in right alongside her. I know you like her, I know she's a damn good kid who deserves better, but you're really walking the razor's edge with what you can get away with as a minor." It was a testament to how well her mother knew her that she wasn't asking her to hand Lillie over herself, just to not directly challenge it. "They're not normal police officers, Mahina, they're… they're not just a couple of Alolan detectives. God, if you get charged with obstructing a global agent…"

"Why the hell do a pair of 'global agents' want her? You're telling me they got nothing else to do but chase kids who stole a pokemon?" Moon scoffed. She knew that there was a little more to it than that, but she couldn't just go spilling all of Lillie's secrets after all. Her mother clearly wasn't amused by her jabs.

"I don't know, but Moon… fuck, you are really putting me in a tight spot here. If you were a normal kid, and we were a normal family, I would've done those things you suggested; I would have grounded you, I would have kept a closer eye, and I damn sure wouldn't have let you run off with Lillie when she has international detectives looking for her. I honestly argued with myself on whether or not I would tell them to bring you home once they caught up with you." There was a long, pregnant pause then, followed by another clink. "But… we're not a normal family. Chaining you would be… responsible, but cruel, given the circumstances. I'm sorry I went back on my word and tried to keep you from continuing the trials, I really am. I… shouldn't have flip-flopped."

Moon closed her eyes for a moment, thinking of a different time. She exhaled. "I kept my side of the deal… I called, and I visited within the three weeks, I did everything you asked. I know you're scared, but… you promised me you wouldn't let that change how you do things, and then you did. You're worried about giving me so much rope that I hang myself, but then you keep it too tight to the point that you're the one choking me."

"I know, baby," her mother murmured, "I know I did, which… is another reason I'm not yanking you back immediately. I'm not going to sit here and lecture you the whole time, otherwise I know you won't want to call me again. I just… need you to be aware, and safe. Please… if the cops or the detectives try to bring her in for questioning, don't get in their way. Just, pretend that you didn't know, okay? If you can do that, and still call me and… and make all your appointments, then I'll look the other way, okay? Otherwise, I'll probably have to reel you in to avoid either one of us getting in serious trouble."

Moon's teeth clenched together as she winced. Her mother didn't know she had already met the detectives at the hotel. She didn't know that she had already lied and feigned ignorance to them once before, and likely wouldn't be able to get away with it a second time. A part of her wanted to tell her, to confide in her mother once more like she had a hundred times before, but she knew it would make things worse. Her mother would definitely backpedal then, and demand she come home before she got into more trouble, and Moon was barely getting off the hook as it was.

Now I'm the one who's being a jackass liar.

"Promise. I'll be safe, and still call and visit and all that," she managed, and she swore she could hear the smile on the other side of the phone, however faint. That definitely didn't hurt or make it worse, not at all.

"Thank you, Mahina. I'll drop it there, but, really… I know how headstrong you've become, so the fact that you're still willing to work with me after I went back on my word… I'm proud of you. I probably wouldn't be so understanding at your age." She gave a bit of a dry chuckle then, one that Moon mirrored as she realized her mother was right: she was totally going soft. They both let out a small, shallow sigh as a beat of silence passed between them before her mother spoke again. "So, that aside… how are you doing? Are you guys still continuing your trials? Have you been taking your levomepromazine?"

Moon let out a small sigh as her head gently bumped the wall behind her. From one exciting conversation to the next. But, she figured she owed her mother something after running away at the very least. As she opened her mouth however, a sudden thought struck her like the back of a cast iron on a Saturday morning. How much could she truly trust her mother? She loved her wholeheartedly, but what if this was all a setup to try and decipher where they were? What if it was like those movies, and her mother actually had a whole squad of cops and agents in their living room, all of them surrounded as they slowly traced their call with some machine from the eighties?

Well, okay, maybe it wasn't that serious, but it wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility. Her mother might have brushed over the issue of Professor Kukui and said she was okay to continue her journey, but that didn't mean she was a hundred percent in her corner yet. Moon might've been the spitting image of recklessness, but even she could appreciate a healthy sip of caution when she was technically defying the law.

"Eh, I've been trying to take the stuff. I think I forgot to take some the other night after we got here cause of the hustle and bustle." That was the politest way to say she'd attacked a grown man with a pokemon. "But otherwise, yeah, we're just… you know, roughing it. It's been a bit awkward since we left, uh… given what happened, but we're uh, we're working through it. Although, now that I think about it, something did happen… something that I'm actually really glad you're here for, because I don't know who else to talk to about this…"

The other end of the phone was silent, and she knew her mother was waiting patiently for her. She glanced up the hallway, just to make sure she was far enough away from the door that nobody would risk overhearing her, and chewed on her lip for a moment as she took a deep breath.

"So, I might have uh, started doing the uh, the thing…" she murmured. "It started happening yesterday morning, and um… yeah. Nothing major, yet! Just, you know, bits and pieces…" Her fingers clenched around her phone, drumming the side of it rapidly. "I just wondered if, you know, maybe you'd have any ideas on how to deal with uh, with this."

"... And the reason you're being so vague and mysterious is because… you don't want your friends to know?" her mother guessed. Moon nodded, only to remember her mother couldn't see her and gave a noncommittal grunt of confirmation. She knew they were still in the room, but just speaking aloud about it felt risky. "Ah, God baby, I'm sorry… I know this part is never easy. I don't think you're going to find any hacks or tricks to get around it either, not in Alola at least with the weather being muggy and sunny. I think you're just going to have to own it, you know? You'll have to tell your friends sooner or later – this isn't something you can hide, Moon, you know that. All you can do is own it."

Moon sighed; that was about what she had expected. Even if her mother didn't have any solutions, there was something about hearing the comforting voice that helped her just a little bit. A little boost to help her keep going. That would have to do. There was a small chirping from the other end, like a garbled, distorted melody, and her mother spoke up once more.

"Sorry baby, that's the end of my break. Call me again sometime, okay? Soon? I know you're busy… being a runaway and all that, but I don't want us to drift apart. Okay?" she asked softly, though the lightness in her voice was clearly forced. Moon was just glad her mother wasn't day-drinking after everything that had happened. "We've still got a lot to talk about, and don't think that just because I'm letting you go that you are not in deep shit young lady."

Moon scratched the back of her head and gulped, looking down at the patterned carpet. "Yeah, definitely. Um, I'm sorry about everything… which probably doesn't mean much right now, but… it isn't how I wanted any of this to go. I hope you know that. I love you, and… I'm sorry."

"I know, Moon. It's not how I wanted this to go either, and… I'm sorry too. I love you baby, please be safe, and don't get your friends into any trouble, and don't let them get you into any, okay? I love you too."

"... Bye, Mom."

Click.

Moon sighed and let her head hit the back of the wall again, probably disturbing someone in their suite. The call had gone far better than she expected; no yelling, no crying, no accusations, just a calm and slightly downcast conversation between her and her mother after she had run away, attacked a family friend, and taken up with a girl who was wanted by super-detectives. Maybe that was why Moon didn't feel much better after the call. She had gotten off easy. Too easy. It didn't matter how reflective her mother had been, she had simply pushed the line too far to get off with a gentle scolding and a slap on the wrist.

She turned and began to walk back to their room, hands in her pockets. She knew she'd stepped out of line, and any other time her mother would have dragged her back by her ear and told her front and center how she had screwed up. Her mother knew that too, surely. She had even said she was in deep shit… but that wasn't being enforced just yet. Was it something secretly sinister that had to do with these detectives? Was her mother secretly working with them and trying to lull Moon into a false sense of security for when forty armed officers leapt on top of them from around a corner? Somehow, she didn't think so.

"Chaining you would be… responsible, but cruel, given the circumstances."

That's all this was. Her mother was folding. Moon had wanted to avoid this kind of situation, using it as leverage had never been desirable or optimal, not for what she wanted. Yet it was undeniably effective; she was being allowed to continue her journey, travel with her friends, and now the only stipulation aside from checking in was that she didn't give into her anarchist nature and stir the ire of the police. Of course, without her leverage her mother wouldn't have been so hesitant in the first place. Then again, she wouldn't have even been in Alola without it.

Moon would have preferred the angry phone call, if she was being honest.

With any luck, she could forget about the phone call and go back to the game she had been playing with her friends. That would take her mind off of everything, surely? She approached the door bearing the number 9033, and began to pull out her keycard when she paused, stopping as every teenager was practically programmed to do when they heard their name being brought up in a conversation they themselves weren't privy to. She could hear Hau and Lillie just inside, and though they were not talking loud, they were close enough to the door – possibly in the kitchen – that Moon did not have to struggle to make out their words.

The proper thing to do would have been to continue on through, or to leave and come back as opposed to eavesdropping, but Moon was not proper. She was a menace who ran away from home, listened to punk-rock, attacked her sorta-uncle, and apparently hung out with criminals. Besides, what teenager didn't want to listen in on secrets involving themselves? She knelt down, putting her ear up to the door as she concentrated. A single guest walked by, staring strangely at her and muttering about the perversion of youth, but she paid them no mind. It was snooping time.

"...do you think it is?" came Hau's voice from within. There was a pause, followed by a glass being sat on the table as Lillie replied. Her voice was so soft that Moon had to strain just to make it out.

"I do not know. I do not think it is my place to ask, nor speculate, given it is clearly a very tense subject that seems to be the source of much strain between her and her mother. To be quite frank, it is such a tight secret that I cannot help but wonder if perhaps it is merely our imagination. My father once told me we see negative space more clearly when it provides a false image."

"Nah, it's gotta be something. I'm not trying to pry, it's just… it makes you wonder, right?"

Moon's heart dropped. They were speculating. Well, her mother had certainly been right about one thing; she couldn't keep it from the two of them if she tried, and tried she certainly had. She wasn't surprised by any means, but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. Was this all anyone ever cared about, what it was that was wrong with her?

"I don't wanna be a nosy-nosepass, I respect her privacy and all that, but she's one of the boys." There was another silence, and Moon got the feeling Lillie was giving Hau a look because he quickly continued, "I mean that, we're all close, yeah? I'm gonna worry for my sister, it's just natural. I'd do the same if I thought something was wrong with you, you know, aside from the… everything you told us about."

"Mm." Lillie hummed, somehow fitting an immense amount of sass into a single sound. "I… well, I understand your worry, in that regard. If you want my honest suspicions on the matter-"

"Heck yeah."

"- then I cannot help but think back to our time in the regional memorial cemetery. There, the both of you were quite adamant to not visit the graves of your parents. While I do not know the specifics of Moon's father or his death, I know from what I have overheard that her mother fears her dying in much the same way. To the point of wanting to take her away from the trials as a safety precaution."

"You think it's correlated then? Dang, you don't think he died doing the trials, do you?" Hau's voice asked, lowering significantly as the weight of his own words hit him.

"It seems… possible," Lillie said, though her tone indicated she didn't think so. "But from my understanding of your culture, the island challenge is specifically a coming of age test, so it would not make sense for her grown father to have perished while undertaking it. No, I do not know if it is something physical, or perhaps an illness of the mind, but we would do well to respect her privacy on the matter."

"But-"

"Trust me, Hau, there is nothing more humiliating than to have a secret laid bare to others before you have come to terms with it yourself. Especially if it is an ugly, undesirable secret, when you are trying to come off as the opposite to others." Another pause, followed by glassware clinking slightly against the counter. "If you have never been in possession of such a secret, then I could only compare it to having someone walk in when you are in the midst of changing, or dealing with a particularly horrid piece of acne."

"... Dang."

"Quite."

Moon felt a sudden rush of affection for Lillie, especially knowing that she had discovered Lillie's own secret completely by accident, and likely far before she had wanted to share it. Heck, Lillie more than likely had never wanted it revealed, just like Moon felt about her own, albeit for very different reasons. Yet rather than hold animosity towards her for knowing, or to seek some kind of even ground by discovering Moon's secret, she politely and respectfully ignored it. She even encouraged Hau to do the same, not that Moon could blame him for his curiosity, but it still meant something.

It was an entirely selfless thing to do, despite all that had happened between them.

Moon stepped away from the door a few good feet, making sure to step loudly as she approached once again so as to give them the impression she was only just now coming back (a tried-and-true technique when it came to teenage sneaking, Moon could verify) and slid her card over the scanner. She stepped through the door with a flourish, putting on a smile as she strolled inside and flashed a pair of finger guns at her friends. They both stared at her.

"Heyo, who's ready to mystery, and or dungeon?" She grinned, passing the both of them as she slid back into her spot on the couch. Lillie blinked while Hau clapped his hands together, jogging back over to his spot with a renewed excitement as he got all of his screens and information back up. When Lillie sat back beside Moon, she gave her a quizzical look.

"Is everything alright? You practically leapt off the couch when your phone rang," she mumbled, but Moon continued to smile. She wouldn't let them worry over her, not anymore than they already had of course. She would make sure of that.

"Oh, nah it's all good. Thought I recognized the number because it had a Kantoan area code, but it wasn't anything exciting." She shrugged, picking up her glass and nodding towards Hau. "But now that's outta the way, go on Hau! Sorry for the interruption, carry on with selling me on your world of whimsy and trickster gods. I'm here for it." Lillie did not look entirely convinced by Moon's response, but before she could voice any more concerns Hau began playing the atmospheric fantasy music from his phone and picked up where he had left off with his narration.

"Right, so, as I was saying. We begin within a large city known as 'Horizon City', a bastion of safety and commerce for the weary traveler and eager merchant. Rumors of the trickster god, Zerarora, continue to spread from caravan to caravan, inn to inn…"

Moon made sure to smile and give Hau her full attention as he continued to weave an introduction to the game, and whenever she glanced over at Lillie she found that she too was listening intently. That was good; she wanted them all to forget their worries for a little while, especially any concerning her. Her mother had been right of course; she couldn't keep the ruse up for much longer. Eventually, as was the nature of such things, it would come to light and everything would be different. But for now, she could enjoy the closeness and familiarity of her fellows, of their strange little resort vacation, and of just being a stupid kid.

If she could just keep them from worrying a little while longer, she would be happy.

---

The rain lasted well into the evening, even as they wrapped up their game for dinner and made their way down to the lobby of the resort to explore their options for an evening meal. The first location they tried, a nice traditional grill and bar, refused to serve them without an adult, much to the three's displeasure. Their next attempt at a rather fancy restaurant was met with an unimpressed look and an upturned nose from their host as he pointed out that, "The White Cloth" did not accept guests who did not meet the dress code requirements. Lillie, of course, was exempt from this evaluation.

Apparently, fine-dining establishments didn't want the perfectly good money of a girl who looked like she ate steak with her hands and wiped her mouth on her sleeve. She was prone to doing both of these things, but she resented their biased assessment of her regardless.

Eventually the trio settled on a pizzeria within a sort of miniature food court, ordering a deep-dish chicken bacon ranch pizza for Moon, and a chorizo pizza for Hau. Having never tried pizza before, Lillie was left indecisive and started to quietly count out the calories of each topping until finally Moon and Hau helped her pick out a spinach and olive thin crust that met her requirements. The three of them sat around a small circular table, their three pizza boxes overlapping with the edges of the table and leaving little room for anything else. Lillie's bag sat beside her on the floor.

For a moment each of them was silent, enjoying the taste of their respective dinners (Moon had to stop Lillie from slicing her pizza with a plastic knife and fork with a shake of the head) and simply taking in the atmosphere around them. The rain tapping against the resort, visible from their spot in the food court's entrance, was a welcome and calming sound as sizzling and machine ringing from various restaurants went off around them. People walked by with their pokemon, talking about pointless things or commenting on the disappointing weather, but never loud enough to be a disturbance.

Moon leaned back in her chair as she chewed on a string of cheesy-ranch from her slice, and pulled out her notepad from her back pocket along with a pen attached to the rings. She gave it a quick click, and looked through her to-do list for Alola, trying to see if she had completed any of her tasks lately. Her lip twisted in mild disappointment for a moment until she got to number seven, and her eyes lit up as a smug little smile crept across her face.

7. Stay in a fancy hotel and order room service like you always wanted! Check!

That was another one down. That brought her to a whopping… seven. Seven out of twenty.

Dangit.

She sighed and slipped the notepad back into her pocket. One was better than nothing, especially on a list that was meant to encapsulate her entire time on Alola, but something inside of her couldn't help but feel like she was missing out. She was ready to cross the next one off, to see the next big thing, fight the next battle. A rhythmic heart like hers didn't do big gaps of downtime, just like a fast-paced song didn't have a lot of rests in the sheet music. It wasn't that she hadn't enjoyed their time in the fancy resort, but it had made her restless; the rain keeping her inside wasn't helping.

Lillie seemed to notice the antsy tapping of Moon's feet that had sprouted up, as she cocked her head like a stray rockruff and nodded towards Moon's notepad.

"How is your to-do list coming along? You look a bit anxious; has our side-tracking caused you to miss some of your desires?" she asked. Moon tsked and gave a small shake of the head, dangling another bite of pizza into her mouth.

"Nah, nah. Just… having trouble sitting still," Moon admitted with a shrug. "The resort is cool and all, but like… I dunno, I guess staying in one place too long is making me nervous. What's the plan for the trials? Do we even know which one we're going to do first?" She turned to Hau at that since he was the trial expert, and he and Lillie had already discussed it. Hau's eyes flicked between them as he realized she was talking to him, and quickly forced down the pizza in his mouth as Moon whacked him on the back again.

"Ahem! Ah, thanks sister. Yeah so, uh… trials. Trials, man, trials." He hummed out a little melody and brought out his phone, scrolling repeatedly with his tongue between his teeth while Moon tapped her foot. "Trials! Alright, so like, was kinda thinking we'd take on either the trial of water or the trial of grass next. Those are handled by trials Captains Lana and Mallow, respectively. The trial of fire is… eesh, yeah no, we're going to have to climb up the Wela Volcano Regional Park. Let's do that one last, yeah?" He turned to look at Moon and Lillie.

"Shoots," Moon responded, still leaning in her chair.

"We have to climb a volcano?" Lillie looked absolutely mortified but Hau quickly gave a shake of the head.

"Nah nah, it's not active. It'll just be a really rough hike though, like, that's the tallest mountain on Akala." He let out a low whistle as he stared at his phone, shaking his head. "Unfortunately, captains don't say what their trials will be, not to mention they change them every year, since that would kinda defeat the whole purpose, so there's no telling which one would be the hardest. But I mean, come on. Climbing that mountain will be trial enough, eh?" He gave Moon a nudge, giving her a conspiratorial glance as he lowered his voice. "'Course, I doubt the police will expect go up the mountain first, so we may actually want to consider it…"

Moon however, shook her head. "Nah, I don't think we'll have to worry about that. I mean, I hope we won't, but when you think about it we probably should've had some kind of warning sign by now, right? Like, we haven't seen those detectives since the motel, and for some weird reason they don't actively seem to be working with Alolan police. It's just them." She held up a hand and started counting various possibilities off her fingers. "No escorts, no news coverage, no word of increased police activity in Heahea. Heck, why did they agree to meet Kukui at the ferry instead of just being there at the docks when we arrived?"

"Actually, you're right." Hau nodded, crossing his arms. "I was watching the local news this morning – dunno how Gramps does it, stuff was mad boring. Was a segment on an illegal breeding ring for albino pichus, though – but there wasn't anything about us or Lillie. Heck, not even Nebby has a wanted poster. Maybe they have to get special permission for each island they investigate?" He gave a shrug and sipped noisily on his drink while Lille looked thoughtful, but unsure. She looked worriedly between the two of them, and Moon was sure she was feeling bad that they had to go to the trouble of dodging police for her sake. With an almost inaudible sigh, she ripped off a piece of her pizza and held it in the gap of her duffel's zipper.

Moon watched her offer the piece into the bag, chewing on her own slice with a hum. "You know I'm surprised you carry that thing everywhere. Aside from the fact it's heavy, wouldn't it be easier to keep our little bud in up in the suite, or something?" Lillie, however, shook her head.

"Oh no, I wouldn't want that. Perhaps it is merely me being overprotective, but I genuinely worry that Nebby will manage to slip out somehow and wander off. It would unfortunately not be unlike him to get blown away in the wind just from the open veranda – ah, my apologies. Lanai. It's much easier for me to just keep him at my side so I can watch him."

Hau shook his head. "A true mad-lad."

Lillie's expression suddenly flickered to that of someone who had realized their phone wasn't in their pocket, a look of panic taking over her face in an instant as she suddenly pulled her hand back with the bite of pizza still between her fingers. She yanked the bag up into her lap and forced the zipper open, pushing clothes and belongings aside frantically as her breath picked up and she began to mumble incoherently under her breath.

"No- no no no, no… Nebby? NEBBY?!" Her eyes darted around the food court in desperation, and Moon felt a pit form in her stomach as she realized what was going on. She just had to open her big mouth, didn't she? "Nebby?! No no no, oh my God, not now… NEBBY?! NEBBY!" She rose from her seat so fast the table scooted away from her, and Moon had to leap up just as fast to put a hand over her friend's mouth, shushing her incessantly as Lillie tried to bat her hand away.

"Lillie- Lillie, stop! People are staring!" she hissed, and with an inward sigh of disappointment realized she sounded like her mother. "Calm down, look- hey, hey look at me. Look at me, stop stop stop. You gotta calm down, okay? We're going to find Nebby, alright? He's gotta be in the hotel somewhere – heck, he might have even slipped out in the room, or in the last minute or so." She stared into Lillie's eyes, and Lillie slowly stopped her panicked searching to meet hers in return. Well now it was Moon's turn to breathe funny, and she pulled her hand back.. "Just uh, relax. We can split up and look for him, and if we're really lucky someone will find him and they'll make a PA announcement about a weird blue pokemon, or something."

Lillie's eyes began to dilate once more, and she let out a terrified squeak. "Or someone will capture him! Or- or they'll contact the police about a mysterious pokemon, or he'll get hurt-"

"Lillie, if someone does catch Nebby, I'll snap the ball in two," Moon said without a hint of humor or hyperbole. Something in her tone seemed to resonate with Lillie, or perhaps she just truly believed Moon meant every word, which was exactly what she had been hoping for. She slowly nodded and took a deep breath, and Moon squeezed her shoulder. "Let's just calmly, without drawing attention to ourselves, get up and start looking. We can split into three; one of us can stay here, the other can backtrack the way we took, and someone else can run ahead to the room. If we don't find anything, we can ask the staff to make an announcement-"

"Found 'em," Hau said through a mouth full of cilantro and chorizo, and he raised a hand up to point over at the sushi restaurant where a particular little pokemon was happily floating atop the restaurant's striped awning. His eyes were wide with awe as he looked around the food court, finally resting on the lady below him who was offering a plate of free samples to patrons as they passed by, and Moon could see the drool forming on his lips even from where they were.

That made things just a little bit harder.

Moon clenched her teeth and began getting out of her chair, smacking Hau repeatedly on the arm as she did so. "Okay, change of plans, Hau- Hau, swallow the damn pizza. Distraction, now now now, please!" Hau swallowed the bite he had in his mouth and rose, calmly crossing into the mass of chairs and tables as he held his slice up with one hand and cupped his mouth with the other, calling out loud enough for the entire food court to hear.

"Eh! Who made dis pizza? Who da one that cooked da pizza, brah?! I just wanna talk, yeah?" The entire court suddenly fell into an uncomfortable quiet, all eyes turning to Hau as he carefully pushed chairs aside, his slice held aloft while quiet mumbling and tense chatter picked up around the court. Moon blinked, surprised by Hau's unquestioning willingness to draw attention to himself, but quickly took Lillie's hand and pulled her up out of her chair .

The both of them skirted around the edge of the court, careful not to walk too fast and draw attention to themselves, despite the fact that even those they passed who were merely crossing through the court were also drawn to the commotion. She could hear Lillie's quick, fearful breaths behind her as they took to the wall, and looked up in time to see that unfortunately, Nebby had moved on.

"WHO MADE DIS PIZZA, BRAH?"

"Uh, s-sir, we'd be happy to- what kind of pizza did you order? Do you have a receipt?"

Moon cursed under her breath as they saw Nebby floating onto the next awning over, above the sub-sandwich restaurant, and she lamented the fact that he wasn't tied to a pokeball. It'd be too easy to throw one, retrieve him, and book it. She couldn't even get one of her pokemon to try and corral him back towards them, as she'd left her pokemon up in the suite. They had to get him before he wandered too far, and fast.

"Nebby, please get down here right now!" Lillie hissed, but Nebby's attention was on the succulent smells and sights below him. Worry shot through Moon as she watched; this careless little puffball would end up jumping into a vat of oil at this rate, and Unovan fried Nebby probably wouldn't cheer Lillie up. Moon snapped her fingers several times and went, "spspspsps!" like she would with Meowth at home while Lillie waved her arms and quietly called Nebby's name as forcefully as she could muster, but neither attempt earned them so much as a passing glance.

Moon sighed anxiously as she glanced around, noticing at least one person was already curiously glancing their way. What could she do that wouldn't draw the attention of everyone in the food court? She glanced around, looking for something, anything. A chair, a table, a product sampler, a fake plant…

"You made dis pizza?"

"Shuah did. What, you no like 'em, huh?"

"Luano, my braddah, you killing it wit' dis pizza! Tastes like it came straight from Paldea, no joke – EH, ALL YOU BETTAH GET YOUR PIZZA FROM LUANO, YEAH?"

The food court broke into head shakes and cheers as Hau smiled and clasped hands with one of the cooks over the counter, and he flashed a smile over at Moon that obviously said, Hurry up, Sistah! Moon saw the crowd return to their meals, their attention no longer held by the fake outburst which meant any moment someone would notice the stupid floating puffball that stuck out like a sore thumb even amongst the various pet pokemon lingering around the tables. The first to see it would be the product sampler lady, who was turning back to look at them curiously and getting ready to offer them a piece of sushi-

OH, OH! BINGO BABY!

Moon snatched the tray of samples away from her to the surprise of both the sampler lady and Lillie beside her, but she quickly held it up and gave it a little shake in Nebby's direction. Nebby's eyes darted over over to the plate, his eyes widening again as the savory smells wafted up towards him in full force. That was exactly what she wanted.

"Come on, boy. Get the plate of sushi, you little pokepuff… Lillie, open the bag!"

"What?!"

"Excuse me! That's not yours-"

With a gleeful chime, Nebby leapt off the awning with a slight bounce, plummeting downwards with an eager smile and an open mouth just as Lillie opened the zipper and swung her duffel bag upwards. In a flash, Nebby disappeared into the depths of the duffel, and Lillie turned to prop the bag against her shoulder with a grunt as it flopped against her, stumbling a few steps forwards before letting out a sigh of relief.

Moon was impressed; she had meant to just throw the sushi in the bag and lure Nebby in, but this worked a lot better. She handed the tray back to the bemused sampler, taking two pieces between her fingers as she popped one into her mouth, and tossed another into the still zipper of Lillie's bag. Couldn't lead the little guy on, after all.

"You didn't see anything," she said firmly, pointing a finger at the woman. Then, without a word, she took Lillie's hand once more and swiftly pulled the both of them into a loose throng of passerby that were shifting back and forth, some going here, others going there. They waded through the small crowd, ducking and dodging around people as they made their way to the exit just in time for Hau to slip in beside them, three pizza boxes lodged under his arm as he tried to act nonchalant.

"Ho', das where you two was!" Hau grinned, sliding each of them their respective boxes as they hurried out of the court. "Sheesh, you two sure know to push the clock, yeah? Wasn't sure if they was about to scrap with me or what. Thank the Tapu they were cool about it – just couldn't think of another distraction fast enough. But hey! It worked!" He gave the both of them a wide grin as they made their way through the lobby and towards an elevator, each of them wearing a look of relief as Lillie cast nervous glances back towards the food court.

"Man, Hau, I knew you were the right guy for the job." Moon beamed, giving him a playful punch as she took her leftover pizza.

"That was utterly terrifying, but… yes, your impromptu distraction was nothing short of miraculous." Lillie sighed, slowly growing a relieved smile of her own. "But let's not discount Moon's quick thinking either, for without her I fear everyone in the food court would have seen Nebby before I would have had the opportunity to grab him. Ugh, you are so getting a stern talking to once we are back in the room, mister!" She leaned down and whispered firmly to the duffel bag's zipper, and a soft, sad chime came from withinside.

Moon couldn't help but giggle, drumming her fingers against her palms as a warmth tinged her ears. Compliments were cool, boy did she love compliments.

"So, uh… does that mean I've redeemed myself for letting Nebby go towards the road?" she asked as casually as she could. The memory wasn't her fondest one, and for however much she could say that she had no way of predicting Haupia and Hau flying through the trees, that didn't change the fact Lillie had trusted her, and she had let her down. This poor girl had been let down too many times by people, she was going to make sure that for once she had someone she could rely on.

Lillie thought on it for a moment, her face twisting up into deep thought as she tapped her chin and hummed softly. Moon would have sworn she was doing it on purpose if she didn't think Lillie was incapable of such sarcasm. After a dreadfully long couple of seconds, Lillie finally gave a polite nod of the head.

"Yes, I do believe you've successfully redeemed yourself for your previous transgressions," Lillie said promptly, turning and giving a rather soft smile to Moon that made her stupid little Alolan heart beat like a war drum. She couldn't help it; those half-lidded eyes, that genuine little smile, there was just something inherently warm about it that made Moon want to melt into a puddle like Alolan shaved ice. It was stupid, it was cheesy, but dang if she just didn't know how else to describe it.

Maybe that was why those silly cliches about butterfree in the stomach and meowths catching your tongue became so popular in the first place: they really were just that accurate. How else did you describe the shiver of heat that rushed through your body like a warm shower from seeing someone you liked give you such a pleasant and adorable look? It only lasted a moment, one that Lillie probably didn't even realize, but Moon could have lived in that little moment of seemingly adoration from her friend for a month. Maybe even a month and half.

"Aheh, yeah, uh… but like, did you see how Lillie swung that bag of hers and scooped Nebby up like a net?" Moon quickly nudged Hau and forced a subject change, lest Lillie notice her dang stupid body reacting to a smile and making her ears go red. "This girl is going to throw one hell of a right hook, if we train her right."

The three of them laughed and joked with one another, reveling in the relief of danger seeming to pass them by as they made their way down the hallway. It was such a regular and innocent experience, joking with her friends and being goofballs, that she had no way to prepare herself for when they went to unlock their suite and instead found the door wide open. Some optimistic childlike notion of doubt inside of her might've written it off to be the resort's housekeeping, or that one of them had accidentally forgotten to close it when they left.

That is, had the inside not be completely and utterly wrecked from top to bottom.

Moon, Lillie, and Hau, all stared from the doorway in silence, each of them staring forward in different states of confusion. Hau was bemused, his nose scrunched up and his head swiveling back and forth as if hoping to find an explanation in front of them, while Lillie merely gasped and threw her hand over her mouth. Moon could only stare, her lips slightly parted as she took in the sight of the once beautiful resort suite, now resembling a crime scene. She stepped in carefully, her shoe crunching on the shattered remains of a wine glass, and glanced around to fully take in the damage.

Several piles of glass shards littered the once clean slate marble tiles, and every single cupboard and cabinet within the kitchen had been left open and its contents shuffled, scattered, or in some cases on the complete opposite side of the room as though they'd been carelessly chucked over the shoulder. The fridge door was open, though the leftovers they'd had from the night before were now missing, as well as the bottles of soda Moon had brought up. The ice they'd tricked Lillie to gather remained, which offered little comfort.

As Moon treaded carefully into the living room, she saw the sectional couch had been damn near dismantled; pillows and blankets tossed haphazardly while the cushions remained upright as though a child had been searching for lost coins underneath. The few plants that decorated the living room had either been left alone or knocked over, spilling fake dirt and flora onto the hardwood of the living room. While the television had been left intact, the coffee table was stained with-

"Is… is that blood?" Lillie gasped as she pointed to several crimson stains that had streaked across the coffee table. As Moon looked around more, she realized it wasn't just the table. There were small droplets and flecks spattered here and there, be it the floor, the couch, or even across the recliner. The amount wasn't overwhelming by any means, but the sheer fact that there was blood did little to soothe any of them, and they all turned to look down the hallway to see that the path of destruction continued; each of their bedroom doors were wide open..

A flash of worry gripped Moon as she glanced back at the blood and followed its tiny source to behind the couch, and at first she was relieved to find that there was nothing waiting for her there. Then, the horrifying realization practically dropkicked her as she realized that there was nothing waiting for her behind the couch, in the kitchen, or anywhere else in the Ho'olei suite.

"Chlorine?" Moon called, turning around frantically to look for any sign of her beloved pokemon. "Kickback? Calliope?!" They had been right there, like they usually were when they weren't running around playing, and now they were gone.

Gone.

Gone.

Someone had stolen her pokemon.

"I'm gonna check the rooms," Hau said, an unusual shakiness in his voice as tossed his pizza onto the island bar.

"Hau, wait! S-someone could still be here!" Lillie whispered as she reached out to stop him. Moon pushed past the both of them, grabbing the first knife she saw from the kitchen drawer – a boning knife – and striding towards the hallway with purpose filling each step. "Moon! Moon, what if someone's still-"

"They better fucking hope not, or our cleaning bill is going to double," Moon muttered as she strode into her bedroom and kicked the already opened door further.

Empty.

Slam!

Empty.

Slam!

Empty.

Moon threw her hands up over her face, nearly stabbing her eyebrow as she paced back and forth in front of her room before finally leaning against her door frame. Naturally, all three rooms were complete catastrophes, and not a single one held a living soul, human or pokemon. She didn't understand; it didn't make any sense. Who had done this? Why? To hell with the rooms or the food, someone had stolen her pokemon. Why them? Twenty thousand rooms full of rich touristy jackasses, and they were the ones who got robbed? Seriously?

"They got Alonzo and Haupia too, man," Hau groaned, running his hands through his hair before promptly kicking his bedside cupboard. Lillie jumped, while Hau muttered in native Alolan as he gripped his toe and let out a small moan. "Ow, ow ow… man, who da heck wen come all da way up here jus fo' steal our stuff, brah?! Gah, dat hurt…" He lowered his head against the cupboard, letting out a long sigh before going silent. Lillie looked between the both of them, clearly not knowing what to say or do in the situation. That was fine, Moon didn't really want to hear anything at that point.

Moon held her head in her hands, her eyes clenched tight as she struggled to think about who or what could have happened. Her mind was whirling, clouded by frustration in anger, and she felt herself getting dizzy and nauseous with each little movement which only served to frustrate her more. She sighed and carefully made her way to the bathroom, barely thankful to find her medicine had not been stolen as well.

"I um, I shall… I shall report this to the staff. Perhaps they noticed something amiss on the security cameras." She heard Lillie quietly walking in the background of overwhelming silence that plagued her ears, and heard her shifting around the living room. A part of her wanted to tell her not to, that it would probably just bring attention to them and warrant the police getting involved, which none of them wanted.

Hau, like her, was simply standing in his room in silence. What was there to say?

She took her medicine, and threw it in her bag afterwards as she began to gather the rest of her belongings. Something told her they wouldn't be staying in the suite for another night. Oh God, they'd definitely have to talk to security now, and the cops would surely be involved… no, they would have to leave, and fast. But where would they go now? What could they possibly do without their pokemon? Every step forward seemed to get followed by two steps back.

As Moon slung her bag over shoulder and stepped into the living room, she saw Lillie in the kitchen with the room's phone pressed up to her ear, and when they locked eyes Lillie held a finger to her lips. She had a concerned look on her face and waved Moon over; she held the phone up horizontally for the both of them to hear, with Moon having to press the speaker button just to register the voice on the other side audible.

"I-I'm sorry, sir, could you please repeat that?" Lillie asked as she pulled the phone closer. The voice on the other end of the line was familiar, and Moon recognized it as belonging to the evening receptionist for the resort, Clark.

"Yes Ma'am, I just asked if your guests had made it to your suite okay. They looked rather confused when they were checking in, and I had to give them directions a couple of times." Moon and Lillie exchanged confused glances, while Hau walked into the kitchen with the glass crunching beneath his shoes and stepped up beside them. "I'll admit that they didn't quite look like they were in the right place, but they had the verification to access the Ho'olei suite and we received the notice regarding their arrival ahead of email."

"What um, what did these uh, these guests look like?" Lillie asked, changing her grip on the phone as her hands became slick with sweat. Moon felt a pit drop in her stomach, her lips slowly parting and her bag nearly falling out of her hands as the receptionist answered.

"Oh, well um, they both wore black tank-tops I suppose. Had white lines on them, I think, as well as a pair of silver necklaces, and… beanies? Yes, that's right beanies. I thought it odd considering the weather, but I'm not one to judge what the youth of today wear. Did you… not meet with them? I assumed you had since they came back down about twenty minutes ago and left… Was that what you were calling about? Miss?"

Lillie's mouth had slowly dropped open, and she turned to look at Moon who felt her jaw twitch. Even Hau's face was contorted into a steely look of frustration as they all stared down the black phone, and then turned to look back at the ruined Ho'olei suite. Despite the mugginess of a post-shower evening in Alola, Moon felt a chill run through her that seemed to make her fingers jittery and her head numb. Without a word, Lillie slowly and shakily lowered the phone, until it fell into the receiver and the line went dead.

Click.